Well I (Derrick) didn't exactly have the greatest week, as I think I was a little tiered from the Battenkill affair and still trained hard , then scrambled to put the bike together for Almont Roubaix at the last minute. I did have a bad vibe when I showed up to the Almonte Race and a) the number I was supposed to have was 113...I'm a little superstitious, so I pond it off on Vince.
Then my cassette came loose, progressively during the race then was completely apart by the time I finished and I was only able to use 2 gears. In retrospect I should have taken a wheel from a teamate, but hey who knew the cassette would do that, not me. I think the only feeling worse than going so hard you want to puke is not being able to go hard casue your scared your bike is going to fall apart. A little unfortunate as it was an event shich would have been nice to win, for the team, but let's just say it's not the be all end all of my season.
I pouted for a few minutes on the drive home then had some Indian food that was so spicy my bowels may never be the same and a chocolate chip cookie and I'm over it.
For me though, it was still a good weekend, staying with the Orange's, sounds like a reality TV show, but it was cool to hang with the guys and drink espresso. Also things had been a bit shaky with Vince and I for a little while and I went into see him Saturday and I feel like were good again, which is important to me, cause the guy(and all the Cyclery crew) has (have) done tones for both Tash and I over the years and I try to take pride in not only being a super fast bike games guy, but I care about the path I take to get there. I mean sometimes shit's gonna happen right, and people are gonna get pissed, but I try to stay on the luke skywalker side of the force. Lord knows there has been so much gossip about this and that these days that it's hard to not get mixed up in it all.
I kind offind it funny after a less than stellar race, or mechanical, the people around me always tell me "nice job", don't sweat it, or some great cliche about a learning experience and true enough there is often a lesson to be learned, maybe not one that's gonna change my life or anything, but just kinda part of life. Maybe what the people say isn't necessarily going to be life changing, but at least they care enough give you a pat on the back or slap on the ass.
So I just talked to Tasha and she won the ST Martine race, off the front for 25km with another girl and just took it in the sprint. Shit yah! She said she only won by an inch or two, I said that's all you needed to win by. Good thing about being part of the Duo, we always have two shots at winning, so as I guess I 'll cancel my prescription for zoloft cause I'm over my 25 min depression. Her team was really happy and she had a smile in her voice and although it was nice for me to have me time this weekend, I have to say that I did miss her.
She must have won that one for her Father, Maurice as it is his B day today, happy birthday Maurice.
Good on Tasha for getting the first one. Now I gotta pony up!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Tour of the Battenkill
So we headed down to Cambridge NY, for what was going to be the first real challenge of the season, and a test for the preparation we have set forth.
Natasha raced on Saturday and after a tumultuous week of trying to find both her position on the bike and confidence, she found both and put in a good ride on Saturday and her and her team mate finished 4th and 2nd respectively in the women's 100 km race. I think they had some communication issues near the end, but once they spend some time training together and a few more races and I think her team is gonna lay down some serious smack. She said they made just a very simple error, before the race, since it was different from last year and not a circuit race, they should of at least road the last 5 - 10 km of the finish. The km's were a bit off of what the race was advertised as and the finish was fast off of one final corner only 500 metres from the line.
Although I have to say the choice of restaurants pre race was interesting. Let me just say I have never been in a place quite like this, had a very heavy hippy vibe, a server with dirty finger nails, a dirty floor, and an open mike night that featured a comedian, 7 year old pianist and Johnny Cash look like a like...he walked the line for sure.
We had to attend the meet the pro's event and press conference pre race, it was a little intimidating sitting beside the fresh off the plane from Belgium BMC squad, but hey after having chatting with Erwin and sharing a plane with NYS in Italy, I didn't feel totally out of place.
We were put up at Hyatt in Malta, and let me say it was without a doubt the most luxurious hotel we have ever stayed, ever. Man I didn't really want to leave.
The rest of the crew was arriving Saturday pm, so I headed out to do ride Saturday solo. I tried to do a loop through the hills. Well my 90 minute ride, well it was more like three hours, after completely going the wrong way when I was about 3 km from the hotel, no kidding the scenery looked familiar, I passed it on the way out.
We had a rough idea of what our plan was going into race, barring catastrophe, the guys would help support me into a good placing. It took alot of help from G Reain going back to the car getting bottles and feeds and super director Kevin Field doing his thing from race radio. Thomas Devischer was guest riding for us and put in a good ride but fell just a little bit short later during the second loop of the 200 km parcours.
I was able to stay out of the wind for the most part, I tagged a couple of moves that looked like they had all the right players, but to no avail. I played my cards with about 40 km to go hitting it hard to join a group of 5 that had the top teams represented and that didn't work either but it was still a good effort since we were racing for 3rd or 4th at this point. We got caught and pace was from fast to ballistic to dead slow painful hard up the some of the 19% gravel climbs accentuating the relentlessness of the course near the end.
I may have dug a little bit of a hole trying to get into the move cause all of a sudden I was unable to match the pace and found myself towards the back of the 25 guys or so that were still left in the mix out the 170 ish starters of the race. At the most inopportune time, a huge rock, or let me classify it better, bolder flew up off a back wheel during a high speed gravel descent and somehow hit me right in the knee, I yelled out in pain as it felt like being hit by hammer, just as I yelled, another rock, although smaller, hit my in mouth on my front teeth and sent vibrations though my head like the noise a tuning fork makes when you hit it. Then one more rock hit me straight in the glasses, thank god for eye protection....
Well this was the real crunch time for me, I had trouble keeping my focus and gave in a little bit to the pain. I found myself in the caravan having to use the convey to get back on, I actually went across, then fell short just 50 meters short of the group and then made one final all out effort a few minutes later to join the group. But the pain was not over and slugged it through from the back of the group for the last few km's. I tired to match some accelerations near end going with Tim Johnson, but no one wanted to let him go, a couple of guys rolled away and the rest of the bunch was happy to sprint it out. Well I let up a few meters from the line a crossed the line near the back of the group.
It's kind of one of those races, where your like yah I was 22nd, and had I tried harder near the end I could have had a top ten, but after 5hours and 20 minutes...it's just not that easy. I did however get a lot of positives out of the race and it was a goood effort this early in the season. Realistically we don't have that many races here in North America like that. Sure MTL Quebec is 250, but it's not at all the same, there is not 50 km of gravel and I think there is only about 5 turns in that whole race, so it's not really comparable. THe guys that were in it for the win were coming off of some serious racing in the last few weeks and months so it's important to compare apples to apples.
I was really happy with the way the RWR team worked. We rode strong, 3 of us in the front group for 95 % of the race, looking organized, being organized and fitting into mix just as well as any other team out there. SO I think it was good for the guys to see and experience this and I'm glad we took the invite to go.
I'm happy with my preparation to this point and think it has been more race specific to this point. I did lack that Mortal Combat "Finish Him" in the last few minutes, but hey 15th or 22nd, seriously those are not the numbers I care about as much as 1,2,3...those performances are the ones I want and need and the foundation is obviously there this year that nail it when the time is mine.
Derrick
Natasha raced on Saturday and after a tumultuous week of trying to find both her position on the bike and confidence, she found both and put in a good ride on Saturday and her and her team mate finished 4th and 2nd respectively in the women's 100 km race. I think they had some communication issues near the end, but once they spend some time training together and a few more races and I think her team is gonna lay down some serious smack. She said they made just a very simple error, before the race, since it was different from last year and not a circuit race, they should of at least road the last 5 - 10 km of the finish. The km's were a bit off of what the race was advertised as and the finish was fast off of one final corner only 500 metres from the line.
Although I have to say the choice of restaurants pre race was interesting. Let me just say I have never been in a place quite like this, had a very heavy hippy vibe, a server with dirty finger nails, a dirty floor, and an open mike night that featured a comedian, 7 year old pianist and Johnny Cash look like a like...he walked the line for sure.
We had to attend the meet the pro's event and press conference pre race, it was a little intimidating sitting beside the fresh off the plane from Belgium BMC squad, but hey after having chatting with Erwin and sharing a plane with NYS in Italy, I didn't feel totally out of place.
We were put up at Hyatt in Malta, and let me say it was without a doubt the most luxurious hotel we have ever stayed, ever. Man I didn't really want to leave.
The rest of the crew was arriving Saturday pm, so I headed out to do ride Saturday solo. I tried to do a loop through the hills. Well my 90 minute ride, well it was more like three hours, after completely going the wrong way when I was about 3 km from the hotel, no kidding the scenery looked familiar, I passed it on the way out.
We had a rough idea of what our plan was going into race, barring catastrophe, the guys would help support me into a good placing. It took alot of help from G Reain going back to the car getting bottles and feeds and super director Kevin Field doing his thing from race radio. Thomas Devischer was guest riding for us and put in a good ride but fell just a little bit short later during the second loop of the 200 km parcours.
I was able to stay out of the wind for the most part, I tagged a couple of moves that looked like they had all the right players, but to no avail. I played my cards with about 40 km to go hitting it hard to join a group of 5 that had the top teams represented and that didn't work either but it was still a good effort since we were racing for 3rd or 4th at this point. We got caught and pace was from fast to ballistic to dead slow painful hard up the some of the 19% gravel climbs accentuating the relentlessness of the course near the end.
I may have dug a little bit of a hole trying to get into the move cause all of a sudden I was unable to match the pace and found myself towards the back of the 25 guys or so that were still left in the mix out the 170 ish starters of the race. At the most inopportune time, a huge rock, or let me classify it better, bolder flew up off a back wheel during a high speed gravel descent and somehow hit me right in the knee, I yelled out in pain as it felt like being hit by hammer, just as I yelled, another rock, although smaller, hit my in mouth on my front teeth and sent vibrations though my head like the noise a tuning fork makes when you hit it. Then one more rock hit me straight in the glasses, thank god for eye protection....
Well this was the real crunch time for me, I had trouble keeping my focus and gave in a little bit to the pain. I found myself in the caravan having to use the convey to get back on, I actually went across, then fell short just 50 meters short of the group and then made one final all out effort a few minutes later to join the group. But the pain was not over and slugged it through from the back of the group for the last few km's. I tired to match some accelerations near end going with Tim Johnson, but no one wanted to let him go, a couple of guys rolled away and the rest of the bunch was happy to sprint it out. Well I let up a few meters from the line a crossed the line near the back of the group.
It's kind of one of those races, where your like yah I was 22nd, and had I tried harder near the end I could have had a top ten, but after 5hours and 20 minutes...it's just not that easy. I did however get a lot of positives out of the race and it was a goood effort this early in the season. Realistically we don't have that many races here in North America like that. Sure MTL Quebec is 250, but it's not at all the same, there is not 50 km of gravel and I think there is only about 5 turns in that whole race, so it's not really comparable. THe guys that were in it for the win were coming off of some serious racing in the last few weeks and months so it's important to compare apples to apples.
I was really happy with the way the RWR team worked. We rode strong, 3 of us in the front group for 95 % of the race, looking organized, being organized and fitting into mix just as well as any other team out there. SO I think it was good for the guys to see and experience this and I'm glad we took the invite to go.
I'm happy with my preparation to this point and think it has been more race specific to this point. I did lack that Mortal Combat "Finish Him" in the last few minutes, but hey 15th or 22nd, seriously those are not the numbers I care about as much as 1,2,3...those performances are the ones I want and need and the foundation is obviously there this year that nail it when the time is mine.
Derrick
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Hair cut = Shawarma
I know, how is this even possible, well living in Cornwall anything is possible. I decided to use my race winnings and the money I made this month coaching on a haircut, some hair products and yes some Shawarma.
In Cornwall, I payed 15$ for a wicked haircut at a Salon and then just over 15$ for two plates of Shawarma at Cedars....man talk about a deal. Natasha's hair and color was a little more than that, but she's a chick so whatever, but it was also a very reasonable price. I had nothing better to do later in the day and came back and told her hairdresser to chop off 4 inches, and she did, man what a mess of hair on the ground. Tasha's hair looks great, and it made her smile.
What does this have to do with racing....uhmmm....preparing for success and podium pictures.
Playoffs start tonight...since the sens are out, I've gotta put my hopes in someone else, better make up my mind soon...dunno..it sucks to be Natasha cause she's gonna be watching lots of shinny!
In Cornwall, I payed 15$ for a wicked haircut at a Salon and then just over 15$ for two plates of Shawarma at Cedars....man talk about a deal. Natasha's hair and color was a little more than that, but she's a chick so whatever, but it was also a very reasonable price. I had nothing better to do later in the day and came back and told her hairdresser to chop off 4 inches, and she did, man what a mess of hair on the ground. Tasha's hair looks great, and it made her smile.
What does this have to do with racing....uhmmm....preparing for success and podium pictures.
Playoffs start tonight...since the sens are out, I've gotta put my hopes in someone else, better make up my mind soon...dunno..it sucks to be Natasha cause she's gonna be watching lots of shinny!
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Flambrough Classic Road Race
Mixing it up
This race is otherwise know as the Good Friday race, but Flamborough Classic sounds cooler.
So we headed off to Natasha's parents in Belleville on the way to drop Armstrong the cat back to the Elliott Spa. Then Kevin Hazzard was nice enough to put us up for the night in Burlington.
Natasha's race was actually quite descent, but I think when it's not crazy hard, she falls asleep a little and she got boxed in during the sprint, so not quite what we were hoping for, but she has been having some problems with her calf and she has spent lots of time trying to get her cleats right and just can't get it dialed in. Well they were dialed in but then on a ride the other day they had slipped a few inches when the screws became loose. Her foot actually popped out a few times during the race, so she was a little hesitant in the sprint as well, as last time my foot came out during a sprint I spent a month getting rid of road rash. It just goes to show, that sometimes when you have a little bit of uncertainty, it really hurts your confidence and it's hard to perform at your best. So we'll be taking care of her foot issue this week and I'm sure she'll be able to unleash the sprint very soon, trust me she almost came around me the other day in training after a 100 km's.
So Kevin and I rode to the race from his house and he was burning rubber on the way there as it was a little harder than I wanted to go for 30-40 km's before a race, but whatever.
The objective of the race, for me was just to get a race in the legs, and try to use as little effort as possible, and capitalize on opportunities if they presented themselves. I was happy to see that there was actually a really great turnout for the race and it was going pretty hard up the climbs, so that was good, I was a little surprised to find myself towards the back here but used the lulls to reposition.
I did get a little impatient near the end and went off the front with a few guys with 18.5 km to go. The field was already shattered and I knew I was going to have to do do something about Randall and Roth cause no doubt at some point they were going to work me over. I attacked the other guys I was with and tried to go it alone with no else in the picture, but it may have cost me. Sure enough Randell and Roth came across with Ivey who I tried to drop on the climb, he missed a pull and opened up a gap, they took advantage of me being just a few meters too far back and I just couldn't close the gap. I knew as soon as they got the gap it was over, there was no way I could go faster then both of them to catch on, shit.
I was captured by the field and played my cards right in the sprint, following wheels and took the sprint for 3rd. I was almost DQ'd for an "irregular" sprint as during the sprint, my tire hit a rut and swung the back wheel over a little. Mainly cause I was on the rivet and seeing purple by the end. I was given a warning and all was good as Ivey saw the back wheel jump during the final meters and helped my case with the commissars. Man I think they dq'd half the field for one thing or another.
So, it was a decent result, and I'm content that the prep coming into the season is on track. I can't wait till we get Tasha's stuff straightened out, as it's nice when we're both going well. But as you know the dynamic duo have never seemed to both have great races on same days. Those are rare occasions for us and if one of us has a not okay race you know for sure the other is going have an awesome race.
We also got to see our friends Peter and Hailey and their new home in Ancaster. We played some rock band and I clearly demonstrated my vocal talents although Tash says my "singing" gave her a headache. Poor Tasha, she had to hear old nursing stories as I met Pete in NC as we both worked at the same place and his wife is also a nurse.
Shout out to Marc Boudreau, who I'm told rode a great race and also captured 3rd in the M1.
Back to Cornwall, next up Battenkill. Don't think that I will be in the mood for Rock Band after that one though.
DSJ
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