2011 Racing Schedule

2011 Racing Schedule

 Week Of:  (Racing is usually on Sat+Sun following the date)

17 Jan: Hammock Ridge, Clermont, FL

24: Tour of Bahamas

31: Swamp Classic, Gainesville, FL

7 Feb

14

21: Savannah Omnium (GaCup), Savannah, GA

28

7 March

14: Union City Omnium (GaCup), Union City, GA

21: Dalton Omnium (GaCup), Dalton, GA

28: Rome Omnium (GaCup), Rome, GA

4 April: Tour of the Battenkill, Cambridge, NY

11

18

25: Athens Twilight and Roswell Criteriums (Speedweek. Swagger). Athens+Roswell, GA. Wreck and injury at Roswell

2 May: Joe Martin Stage Race, Thurs-Sun: Fayetteville, Arkansas. (My Birthday week/Month of celebrations..3^rd ;-)

9: Gainesville Omnium (GaCup), Gainesville, Ga

16

23: Tour of Atlanta Omnium (GaCup), Wed-Sun: TBA, GA

30

6 June: Healthy Newton Omnium: Wreck, major soft tissue injury and concussion -hit and killed a deer during the race.

13: 

20 

27

4 July

11: French Broad Cycling Classic. No race due to injury

18: Georgia Cycling Grand Prix, Wed-Sun, GA. No race due to injury

25: Crossroads Cycling Classic, N.C. No race due to injury

1 Aug: Tour of Elk Grove, IL. No race due to injury

8

15: Grant Park Criterium, Atlanta, GA

22: River Gorge Omnium, Chattanooga, TN

29: Labour Day Omnium, Anderson, SC

5 Sept.: 'Need For Speed' Sprint Tournament at DLV (Dick Lane Velodrome)

12: 

19

26

3 Oct.

Ready to Roll... Early Season Peak and Racing is Here.

This weekend: Athens Twilight and Roswell Criteriums.   Sunday is noteworthy as I will be competing against some of the best US racers in the Pro/1 category in Historic Roswell, GA at 6pm.  These are big races yet they are not my main focus but the final tune-up to Joe Martin Stage Race in Fayetteville, Arkansas next week.  Since Battenkill, unfortunate as it may have been, I did not lose any confidence against my competitors and I have put in some serious hours in preparation for Joe Martin --and feeling stronger still.

Next Week:  Joe Martin Stage Race.  A few team mates and myself will be driving out early Monday to Arkansas.  The race starts Thursday but pre-race scouting and recovery is paramount.  Joe Martin is a four day affair starting with a 2.5 miles, 6.8%, uphill time trial on Thursday.  Followed by two 100mile Road Races packed with about 6000 feet of climbing per day.  In comparison, the sawtooth course of Battenkill was ~6000 feet in 80miles.  And, Sunday, the final day, will be a 60min criterium.

Speedweek: http://usacrits.com/speedweek/
Athens Amateur Qualifiiers: 12:25pm. (On the Greenway)
Amateur Finals: 6pm (downtown Athens)
Roswell: 6pm (Historic Roswell)

Joe Martin Schedule: http://www.joemartinstagerace.com/schedule/index.html

I will be in the Men 1,2 category.

Back from The Battenkill

The Tour of the Battenkill in Cambridge, NY (10 April 2011) is known as the Queen of the American Classics... Rightly so!  Three team mates and myself drove up from Atlanta, GA and found out just how difficult this race can be.  

We will start out with an incomplete but adequate history lesson about the Spring Classics in cycling.  The Classics; Milan-San Remo, Ghent Wevelgem, Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, the Amstel Gold, La Fleche Wallone, and Leige-Bastogne-Liege, mark the beginning of the cycling season as well as being the toughest one-day racing of the year.  These are separate races (not part of a series) with a history all of their own in creation and prestige.  Basically, they are classics because they are really difficult and really old.  An example, Liege or L-B-L, was first raced in 1892 and only a few editions have been missed (World Wars).  To Belgians, Leige is the most prestigious but worldwide Paris-Roubaix is considered the "Queen of the Classics."  To answer the question, yes, the names are fairly indicative of the route.  For example, Milan-San Remo is from Milan to San Remo and about 1mile short of a 200mile race.  These races are all in the 150mile range.  Some races include sectors over centuries-old cobblestone and hills, with cobbles, up to 22% gradient from 300-1600meters.  These races are for the true "hard men" of cycling.  Adding to the difficulty of the parcours is the weather.  March and April in Europe (as well as N.E. USA) is unpredictable and possibly dreadful.

Recon with team mates

Part of Meeting House Road

Many cycling races during this time of year will pull from European roots and create a course, possibly throw in a dirt road, and give it a name like Perry-Roubaix (as in Perry, GA).  Nothing compares to Battenkill.  The hills or the roads.  The race is close to 100miles and the first major climbs are at mile 7 and 11 and do not stop till the finish.  Mile 11 is the steepest at 18% and on dirt.  We were honoured to cross it twice (mile 22).  The whole race is filled with sharp climbs like many European Classics as well as a few steady climbs in the range of a few miles.  Perfect for a rider like myself.

The race, however, was not as perfect as I would have liked.  The first twenty or so miles went well.  I was comfortable, good position, and in no trouble up the first round of climbs and dirts roads.  As it turns out, the paved roads are what cause more mechanical problems than the dirt and gravel roads.  The harsh weather has made man-eating pot-holes that, when hit at 30mi/hr, cause a flat nearly every time.  As I found out, on the team recon ride and during the race.  After I got a change from a wheel truck, I had to chase back to the race fairly hard and made contact just as the group hit one of the steeper climbs.  I was about gassed and teetered on to the back of the group but lost contact.  Tried to compose myself as best I could over the top and hunkered down to chase back again.   The closest I came was about 75meters from the group on Juniper Swamp.  It was a long, hard 60 miles solo to the finish but there was no way I was going to pack it up and go home before I crossed the finish line.

Despite being out of contention from the race early I really enjoyed myself.  The course was brutally tough and I felt that it did suit my riding style and abilities.  I would love make it back next year and give it everything.  There is no doubt that I would have been a top finisher in this race.

Link to the race guide: take a look at page 13 and 21.

http://www.tourofthebattenkill.com/storage/pdfs/race_guide_2011.pdf

A picture of the race coming down Meeting House Road:

http://pezcyclingnews.com/cgi/gallerypicget.asp?pic=http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/photos/races11/batt11/batt11-down.jpg

Packed up and leaving ATL

TT bike on display at the Expo

Impressive tech and paint

A Big Step Ahead.

Savannah, GA.  The Georgia Cup Savannah Omnium, February 26,27, race turned out to be a big step ahead for me in the early season of racing. 

I have been having trouble getting quality training time since December, some physical setbacks, and feeling like my fitness has been stagnant.  I would say, and my coach probably would also, that my barriers have largely been mental.  Consistency has been key for me.  With setbacks, I have been consistently on the bike.  Starting the week I traveled to Clermont, FL, I have logged some great time on the bike but still not up to the volume I really need to be riding.  This is not as important as my mental barriers to working out at the intensity that I am capable of training. 

The Way Back to Atlanta: An extra week in Clermont and the Swamp Classic.

Post race Sunday before heading home

Well, I just could not bear coming back to Georgia with another cold front hitting the East Coast after all the beautiful weather I had been training in.  I am very fortunate to have been able to stay in Clermont, FL another week on my way back --another week of fantastic weather as well!  My extra week allowed me to catch the Swamp Classic in Gainesville, FL en route to Decatur.

Tour of Bahamas Recap

The tour of the Bahamas was good start to the season.  The racing was decent but not great as teams were working out the kinks and everyone trying to be opportunistic for the win.

This would not have been a typical cycling adventure without some uncertainty....

Winter Training, Getting Away, and The First Race of the Season: Tour of Bahamas, 29, 30 January 2011.

The 2011 racing season is about to be under way this weekend with the Tour of Bahamas!!  I decided to start things off with a strong early season race to keep up my motivation through the mentally tough winter training months.

The Tour of Bahamas has kept me motivated up until recently when I was snowed and iced into the house for days on end.  The snow in was fine...for the first day.  By day five in the house I was ready to never see the ice and snow again.  Everyday I had to ride on the trainer, in the cold garage, for hours.  One only has so much that they can stand to be on the trainer and my tolerance happens to be very low.  The time on the trainer began to stack up and weigh me down.  I started to dread getting on the bike as well as coming down with a chesty-head cold.

All this terrible weather brings me up to date with where I am currently, warmer, and sunny, Clermont, FL. --minus a heady-chest cold.  Last Wednesday,  19 Jan, I left Georgia  for a change of scenery and to recharge.  I could not take any more of the cold weather --highs of 30F and overcast for days on end.  I arrived in the evening to a sunny 70F day.  Things were looking up.  Day 1 on the bike, high of 75F and beautiful sunshine.  Oh, yes, no arm warmers, no leg warmers and even a little sunscreen on my nose, I was absolutely buzzing.  I tackled my single leg drills and threshold efforts with gusto!  My training since has been great.  It has been good to get away to gain perspective on things, hang with good friends (congrats Nguyen Vu and Desiree, glad I was here to witness the proposal), and even with the added hours and intensity of my training, I am feeling restored and rested.

Tour of Bahamas has historically attracted the South and Northeastern domestic pro teams as well as other top regional amateurs.  Hopefully this year will be no different... The racing will take place on Saturday and Sunday.
1. a) Saturday will start at 8:30 with a 3 mile Time Trial, Eddy Merckx style (ie. no aero equipment allowed).
b)Followed by a Circuit race at 13:00.
2.  The 105 mile Road Race will be the only race on Sunday and will start at 9:30.

Hammer Down!