Road Trip to Alpina

Here are a couple pictures from a little road trip last week I took with my sister down to Lebanon, NH - the home of Alpina Sports. We were meeting up with Dorcas Wonsavage, the Alpina race director to say hi, pick up the Peltonen race skis, and try on some boots.

I wore the boots and raced the skis over last weekend at Bolton and Craftsbury. The races went ok for me - a starting point. Northwest Vermont Nordic had good attendance - and Eric Tremble raced really well. It was nice to get the first measure of the season. It lets you know how far back you are and it helps get me motivated to do the training to catch-up to the front of the pack.

Dorcas, myself, Peltonen Supra-X, and a ski tie. The skis are real light.
The Alpina Sports race serive truck...with plow and all. Legit.
This was my lunch...a "Rio" bagel sandwich from Burlington bagel. Sausage, cheese, egg, salsa, on a sesame bagel. Pure Magic.

Hot Cereal - its cold out

That first morning you wake up and its still bellow 10 degrees, all of a sudden regular cereal and cold milk does not sound so good anymore. Its time for some hot cereal - some oatmeal or cream of wheat - anything as long as its hot. Looks like I'm a morning to late, time to go grocery shopping.
Brrrr.

Some boots

Hey There - a couple pair of boots for sale. E-mail if your interested - jakehollenbach@gmail.com

Rossignol X-ium Skate boot Women's (white/orange) - size 38 EU - $225 - new condition

Rossignol X-ium Classic boot (silver) - size 44 EU - $125 - lightly used

Into Ski Season

To get myself jump started on the up coming nordic ski race season I packed my bags and hopped a ride up to the land of Canada for 10 days around Thanksgiving.

Paul Smith and I headed up north of Quebec City and stayed with the team from Burke Mt. Academy. We trained, ate, slept, watched hockey, and goofed off. It was lots of fun. The kids from Burke are a great group...and very solid skiers too. Pete Phillips and Matt Johnson are great coaches. I definitely picked up some very useful technique tid-bits doing workouts with them.

I got to try out a bunch of new equipment from Alpina. Some pretty trick stuff. Everything was new to me so it was nice for the equipment and I to "get to know eachother". I really like the Peltonen skis a lot. I was just using their second level skis, called the Zenith, for training - and I was surprised how many people asked me about them. I've never had a pair of Peltonens before, but apparently many other people had a pair at some point in their ski past - and have good memories. All I know is I like the new ones. I also really liked the Exel WC poles - very stiff. Although, while I was in Canada I was trying out a slightly longer length (162.5) than I've used before. I've cut them back down to 160cm - and it feels much better...amazing the difference a little 2.5cm can make.

Then, the day before Thanksgiving Helen showed up with the cavalry - her mother, father, other brother Evan, and their Swedish exchange student. We skied a couple days together and had Thanksgiving dinner. We even did a day of Alpine skiing at Mont Saint-Anne. We did a day of x-c skiing at Saint-Anne as well - and their nordic center is outrageously good (which everybody always says, but you don't really know until you go there). And they only had a couple of their trails open at the time. I can't imagine what its like there when they have all 214km of trails open.

Racing starts this coming weekend in Vermont - with the Bolton and Craftsbury season openers. I was a little tired after getting back from Canada, but I'm back into a good training groove now. It'll be fun to hit the gas. We got some good snow today - with more coming in the next few days. It's going to be a great winter! Get some wax on those skis...

Skiing in Vermont

So, there was cross-country skiing to be had in Vermont today. Its not even Halloween yet (its tomorrow) and we were skiing.

7:45AM - I swung by the UVM dorms and picked up one Paul Smith and we hopped on I-89 south to meet up with Eli Enman down at the Richmond park-and-ride. We parked and rode in Eli's sweet bio-diesel further down 89 to the Waterbury/Stowe exit and headed north on 100 and then did the shake and bake, left-right-left, through Moscow-by Stowe HS-and onto the Mountain Rd. **Take that! Stowe Village Traffic**

8:45AM - We decided to pass on skiing the Stowe toll-road and go right for the Notch Rd. The Notch Rd. is Rt-108 and is closed between Stowe Resort and Smuggler's Notch Resort once the snow flies. The old Stowe Road Race, something I've just heard legend and lore of, used to go up and over the notch. We drove right up to the end of the plowed road and parked. The UVM ski team van was there and Fritz and Jurgen were sitting inside the van, doing who knows what. We talked to them for a moment, then geared up, slapped down the skis, and got going.

9:00AM - We chose to just use waxless classic skis...light touring skis. I'm not going to lie and tell you it was midwinter perfect skiing, but it was real skiing. The road was completely covered, and we weren't stepping over water or rocks every 10 feet. We kicked and glided our way up the notch and passed UVM skiers heading the other direction - including Ryan Kerrigan, who racked up an impressive win at the recent Brandon Gap time trial. I'm picking Ryan to do something real good on skis this winter. He's been working real hard at it for a while now - and I think its time he shines through.

9:30AM - As we started to climb further up the notch we saw UVM assistant coach Pat Weaver coming towards us. Pat was skiing clean-up - the caboose at the back of the of the UVM train. We stopped and talked to him for a few minutes. I think Pat was happy to see that Paul was out skiing with Eli and I. Paul didn't quite nab one of the UVM ski team spots this year (there were 17 guys for only 8 spots) and I think Pat really likes Paul - so he was happy to see that he was staying on top of his skiing and training.

10:30AM - We continued on, back and forth on the notch road for a total of about 1.5 hrs. On the way back to the car we passed the unstoppable force...the immoveable object...Trina Hosmer. She's in her early 60's...an Olympian back in the mid 1970's...and she's still pretty dang fast! And she's right there with the college kids chasing snow up high in the mountains.

11:00AM - When we got back to the car I asked Eli if he wanted to ski just a little more...and he said no, that he liked to keep the first few days of snow skiing in the real cold a bit short. It was really cold up there, and I thought to myself..."well, Eli's a lot more experienced than me, so why don't I go ahead and use his experience...and just do what he does." So, we called it a day, hopped into some dry clothes, and headed back to Burlington. I'd amazingly had some forethought earlier in the morning, and had picked up 3 cinnamon and sugar bagels from Bruegger's. We munched them down and listened to the entertaining radio political commentary on our way back north on I-89.

NextUp - A loosely planned, potentially bad idea, and a heck of a lot of fun - skate ski to the top of Mt. Mansfield and ski down on Saturday morning. Pictures for sure!

Do you YouTube?

I do. YouTubing...or Tubin', as its known around these parts, is a favorite pastime of mine. Many an evening can be passed by bouncing from video to video and seeing where it takes you. Par for course, its often the journey that is more important than the final destination though.

Here are two gems my Tubin' journeys have brought me across lately:

Crazy Norwegian Strength
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoBZDpwfn50

and

Crazy 80's Cheese
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ7L6MUUrTc&feature=related

For more technical inquiries into YouTubing techniques, skills, and related subjects I will direct questions to Colin Jaskiewicz at cjaskiewicz@gmail.com

A New Deal

My legs are feeling better and better - but what's happening is now that my legs can actually go for a while on roller skis is I get to find out how weak my upper body is. I briefly attempted to double pole with Eli and Adam Terko today while they did an interval workout and it was not happening. Alas, good progress is being made and the training is happening and enjoyable.

Its fun getting out rollerskiing with other people - it definitely helped having someone to go with yesterday! It was raining, but Paul and I had made a plan...so we had to stick to it. We did about an hour and a half skate rollerski in the pouring rain. I wouldn't have done it without him, and he without me. (ps, thanks to my sister and Helen for letting me use their rollerskis)

Progress was made this week on making my 2 sport thing really happen. On my sisters suggestion I contacted Dorcas Wonsavage at Alpina Sports to see what they were doing in terms of a racing team. A couple e-mails shot back and forth and a good phone conversation and I sent in a contract to ski for their team. They used to have a pretty bang-up factory team back some years ago - my sister actually skied for them for a little bit...as did Eli's sister, Molly. Dorcas is getting the band back together, meaning getting an Alpina team back in the game, but its still more of a start-up team right now. That is good though, because I'm more of a start-up ski racer right now. It should be a good fit, and I'm really motivated to train hard and race fast for them!

Its amazing too, I've let Mike Sherry know about what I'm doing with skiing and he's ok with it, and I let Dorcas know what I'm doing with cycling and she's ok with it. I definitely appreciate that a ton! So, in the tradition of Jim Thorpe, Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders, and Carl Swenson - we have a 2 sport athlete on our hands. Which isn't really special anymore now there there is that whole "triathlon" thing going around.

Autumn soreness be gone!

I am currently going through the mildly annoying and slightly painful process of turning my very limited cycling legs into legs capable of doing things like mountain running, roller skiing, and weight lifting.

Cycling does very good things for general endurance and the specific strength of the pedaling motion. All the balancing muscles though go unused and the muscles loose their ability to do eccentric contractions. So, running down mountains and balancing on rollerskis put my legs in the hurt-box in a big way.

The last 2 days I've been hobbling down the stairs of the Skirack. People keep asking me if I'm injured. I'm not sure exactly how to answer them. At the moment I am basically incapacitated - however in a few days once the muscles have healed up - I'll be ready to go.

It is amazing how little it takes to put me in this condition directly after the cycling season. I went for a 40-45 minute classic rollerski Friday mid-day with Paul, Helen's brother. Very easy and controlled. Then, Friday late afternoon I did a hour to hour and a half mountain run/hike around Bolton Valley with my sister, Tremble, and some other cool kids. I got up Saturday morning and met Eli for a skate rollerski. We cruised at a medium pace for me - easy for him - and boom...It was all she wrote.

The air is starting to get getting colder, the leaves on the trees are falling, and it will be just another week or two before my legs have completed their annual migration.

Ins and Outs

There are a lot of Ins and Outs going on right now (think Big Lebowski)...the elite amateur cycling scene in New England/Mid-Atlantic is going through all sorts of crazy changes right now. There is some seriously interesting stuff going on. Yeah, yeah, yeah...its small potatoes, nothing like Lance and Vino and all that crap...but its the scene I'm in and its pretty all over the place right now.

There are a bunch of teams that I've heard may not be around next year...Fiordifrutta, Kenda-Raleigh, Targetraining, Sakonnet, Rite-Aid. Pretty whacky stuff. I think a few guys will stop racing and many more are shuffling around trying to find new homes. The face of racing regionally is going to look a lot different. It will be cool seeing all the new rider combinations out on the road next year. I think several teams will get major reinforcements, there will be a couple new teams, and there will be a couple strong riders racing as solo acts.

I'm going to be wearing a new uniform myself next year. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it 100%...but I'm very excited at the same time, taking the next step for my cycling. It is pretty scary though, because the CCB club has come to mean so much to me. Its come to be a large part of my identity as a rider and a person. I love the other guys on the elite team (and all our wild adventures, funny misfortunes, and many successes), the multitude of masters riders (and all their encouragement and advice and racing tips), and especially Steve Pucci. There is a certain "je ne sais quoi" about Steve and the touch he has with his team and his riders. Steve very much stays out of the limelight and behind the scenes - but he's had a huge impact on me and many others. He is a director of few words, but when you do get an e-mail from Steve every word has a message and every message is significant. He (and Amos!) has instilled confidence and purpose in me and my racing. The most satisfying thing for me was having such a successful end of this season with CCB. We really came together as Blue Team and got ourselves on quite a hot streak.

I'm going to be racing next year with the Empire Cycling team out of New York City. After I won the GMSR crit this past year I decided I was going to race 2009 as a full-time bike racer. Interestingly, the seeds of me riding for Empire were actually sowed in the fall of 2004 at the Gloucester cyclocross race. It was my very first race as a CCB'er (I met Steve and stayed with him that weekend and he gave me a CCB skinsuit to race in). Steve was taking a chance on me and I deeply appreciate that and would like to think that it is a chance that's paid off for him. Well, I finished 2nd in the B race at Gloucester. After the finish they took the top 3 and put us inside a big tent to have drinks, get cleaned up, and ready for the podium. Gloucester that day was really windy and there are thousands of cyclocross fans screaming and announcers going crazy but inside that tent it somehow seemed quiet. I chatted with the other 2 guys and especially enjoyed talking to a guy from NYC named Mike Sherry. I could tell right away that Mike and I both enjoyed each other. Over the next couple years I would occasionally bump into Mike at the races and we always enjoyed a good chit-chat.

Mike started the Empire Cycling team in 2007 and has been working hard to make the team into a big-time program. He had a rider win the national TT championship this year and really gets the team to all the big races with tip-top support. I ended up only racing 6 days of the NRC calendar this year (Virginia and Toona getting cancelled had a big impact on us east coasters) - so I'm really looking forward to getting on the road more next year to throw down at the big-show races. I'll be turning 28 next year, which in the world of an amateur cyclist trying to become a professional is a majorly bad thing. Pro teams must have 1/2 their roster under the age of 28. So, if you're over 28, and you want to ride for a big-time pro team, you really need to be a proven racer that can win big-time races. There are a whole handful of riders on the bigger pro teams who are the same age as me that don't have contracts for next year. Because of all this, I really appreciate the opportunity Mike is giving me and am I'm going to make the most of it!

I'd also like to say that I love my girlfriend Helen because she can make awesome pizza and really good peanut butter cookies.

On a last side note, check out this interview with Mike Creed. He's got some pretty funny stuff to say about riders who blog. All true of course! It has made me think...so, you may start seeing some writing that actually has some thoughtful insight. Baby steps.

Snow is coming...get ready! I'm going to be doing some fall training this year with Eli Enman. Eli runs Sleepy Hollow and is one of Rossignol's big-gun national ski racers. He was the guy who came before me in high school...so, I was always chasing his ghost around the cross-country courses. I'm hoping that by training with him that some of his go-fast ski mojo will come my way. Either way, it should be fun, as he's great to get out and run and ski with.

Ski season!

Well, no, its not really quite ski season yet...but cycling season is over. Same as last year, I finished the season with a bang by going out to Las Vegas for a week. I attended the Interbike tradeshow and competed in the USA Crit Series Finals. The trade show was overwhelming as always and the Crit race was really scary as always. I survived both and did a good job considering. I even rode a mt. bike at the outdoor dirt demo - a Specialized S-Works Enduro...a bike that if I hung around with it too much, would probably get me to quit road biking! Not really, but it was so fun to ride.

In the crit race I had my first crash in 2 1/2 years. I had it coming though - at the trade show I was bragging to Mike Sherry (who runs the Empire team) how I don't even need to knock on wood about not crashing. The next night at the race I got a slow leak in my front tire and slid out at 35mph. A couple guys piled to me - and doled out plenty of verbal abuse my way. Jimmy (my bike) and I somehow managed to get up from the crash pretty unscathed though.

I got back in the race, but was a little tentative. I was riding towards the back and kept getting caught behind gaps as the quick pace dropped riders. I'm still on some descent form though and was able to force myself up into the top 10 with 5-6 laps remaining. The field had been whittled down from 100-120 guys to 39 that would finish.

Little did I know though that my samurai sword had fallen out of my pocket when I had crashed earlier. So, when the real US Crit, big money, Las Vegas, nighttime, knife fight started with 3 laps to go...all I had was a damn butter knife. I nearly locked handlebars with both Mark Hekman and Steve Tilford in the last couple laps and let myself get badly cut-off two or three times. I came into the last lap around 25th and could only move up a couple spots to 21st. I'd really wanted to win this one (just like everyone else!) and I didn't - so it was nice having my good buddy Scott Oliver there to sit down with and talk and drink some water with after the smoke had settled. The guy who won, Hilton Clarke, is a pretty damn smart criterium rider. You can really see why they pay him the big bucks, the way he's able to handle himself in these big races.

Fall plans are pretty straight forward...keep up some riding, but really get ready to do a good winter of x-c skiing and ski racing. I'll be working at the Skirack and getting down and dirty with the nordic floor. I'm also planning to do 3 running races this fall in addition to the 12-13 x-c ski races this winter. The Northwest Vermont ski club is just a blast to be with in the wintertime. Then, come springtime - I'm finally going to be a full-time bike racer. I'll let ya'll know about that asap.

My first running race is this coming Sunday! I better get out and start jogging!

Getting amped up as things wind down

So, there are only 2 bike races left...meaning the season is winding down to an end. However after taking a mental break following the back-to-back stage races I am getting myself amped back up to get in the action and make something happen in these last 2 opportunities. I've been making sure my equipment is 100% (Jimmy, the bike, gets tired at the end of the year) and put on fresh cleats, a new bottom bracket, and new shift cables and housing.

This Sunday, over in Portsmouth, there is a great crit. Its a true downtown crit...right in the shopping area, with restaurants and cafes and whatnot. I have a hard time getting pumped for crits if there aren't a lot of people there watching...but when there is a good crowd...ohhh! I get jazzed. It'll be the last race of the season for the Blue Team - and we want to go out in style. I've got a plan in mind and I think it will work out just wonderfully. We've had a great season this year. We've raced really well together as a team and that has been SO satisfying.

The morning after Portsmouth I fly out to Las Vegas - where the Interbike trade show will be going on - but more importantly I'll be lining up again to do the USA Crit Series Finals. The race is Thursday night and is going to be crazy. I managed a top 10 last year...so I'll roll the dice again and see what lady luck has got for me this year. Thanks in advance to Spike and Rodger for letting me stay with them...and MAJOR thanks to my sister for helping me get the plane ticket. She's far to nice to me.

The following are some reminisces of those back to back stage races.

First, a Very cool time lapse video piece from the Burlington Criterium.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvCrevlhQ3M

Second, a picture of the sprint finish in the rain from Tour of Quebec.**One side note...Michelin Pro3 Race tires are fantastic! In the race pictured above almost everybody in the race except the 4 CCB riders (all on the Michelins) had a crash...some of the guys crashed 2,3,4 times in the course of the race. Granted, it was tretcherous - a 2.7km loop with 12 turns, a cobbled roundabout, and it hadn't rained in 2 weeks. We all had Pro3's pumped up to about 90-95 psi and we were rockin' everybody - at least cornering wise. I couldn't help but start laughing as everybody kept crashing. Guys would be going SO slow through turns and then their rubber would just slip out. It was hard to tell why the difference, and all I can think of is the tires. So, thanks Michelin!**

The King of Cool

Marvin Gaye doing what he does best. I saw this for the first time the other day. I wish I'd been there for that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRvVzaQ6i8A

Rose Long

I went and visited my good friend Rose Long this evening in the hospital. She was the unfortunate victim of a hit-and-run while riding her bike down Pearl St. in Burlington, VT. A car coming in the other lane of traffic took a left turn through her lane...and through her.

She's a 100% rock-star though and is already trucking down the road to recovery. She got pretty banged up and has been in the hospital for a couple days and has been, and is going through, some different surgeries. Its amazing though - she has had so many visitors, and the nurses and doctors think she's a hoot...which she is. When I was there visiting today after work, there were so many people coming and going, you would have thought there was some sort of cool party going on. She's hooked up to lots of Morphine....but she can still wrap a crowd around her finger.

I've been helping mentor/coach Rose this year as she's gotten into road bike racing. The one, set in stone, rule I set forth to her as we were getting started with training last January was that she was not aloud to crash. She is a very forward, energetic person and her bike handling and cornering skills reflect that (which led to me making that 1 rule). She can corner and descend a bike on par with the great Liz Harrison - but is still pretty green when it comes to doing it in a pack of other women (who maybe can't corner quite as fast). I was really impressed last Monday when she finished the Green Mountain Stage Race Crit - which concluded her first road season - and realized she'd made it through the whole season without crashing. Rose had an awesome season, winning the ECCC season overall, winning the UVM race, many regional top-5's, a 12th place in ther first NRC race, and some top-10 stages at GMSR.

(*authors note: I did crash when I first started racing - crashing and destroying myself and my brand new racing bike in only my 3rd Category 5 race*)

One week later - boom - the universe strikes - she doesn't crash...worse...she's hit by a Jeep. Oooohhhfff. Rose is going to be aok in the long run - but has some serious resting and healing-up to do for now. I will tell you this though...when Rose comes across the Finish Line at next years Burlington Criterium with a 5-bike length gap - you're going to be seeing a very emotional win. I wouldn't want to miss it! I had a pretty emotional release after finally winning in Burlington this year...with so many friends and family there - but I can only imagine what Rose is going to be feeling like.

Rose has got quite a team caring for her and thinking about her - her family, friends, UVM Cycling, the Burlington cycling community, everyone at the Skirack, and basically anyone who's ever met her for more than 5 seconds.

On a side note, Lance Armstrong - the attention hore that he is - is trying to steal Rose's "comeback" thunder and is apparently making a little comeback of his own. Whatever.

Even MORE Pictures

This batch is from my sister

Helen watching the women's race go by. The honorable Catherine Curi-Mattis was in control. Catherine let me crash on her couch for god-knows how many monthes at her apartment in Winooski when I returned from my year traveling in Asia...way back in....2002.
There is so much to be learned from Amos. Relaxation is one thing I've learned. This is Amos and myself, 3 minutes before they call the racers to the line...down the street on the steps of the Skirack in the shade.
And we're off...what perfect weather we had.
**SO HAPPY**
Colin is rediculous...thank you Colin. If you ain't first you're last...and if you ain't rediculous you're boring.
Interview time. Only minor fidgetting and no "umms"....pretty good.
People who've really believed in me. Helen, Sarah, and Scott O (and my sister taking the picture!). It would have been awesome to have my parents there but they work overseas at International Schools. They are here in the summer but have to head back before Labor Day (so I put way too many pictures up on my blog, so that they feel like they were here). They did see the Hilltowns race though - which was really cool.

More GMSR Pictures

Amos arrives for dinner and I have a surprise for him - its Jake & Amos brand pickles. Courtesy of Helen's sharp grocery shopping eye.Joe Bazzano going nuts with the chalk on App Gap. Joe's an ace feeder and awesome guy to have on our side at the races.
That's Pucci to the right of the picture. Me and boys rolling up to him after 2-3 victory laps. We like ham...and We like hamming it up!
Dinner at Shalimar (awesome Indian food) with the teammates and friends the evening after the road race. Colin is epoxying his broken shoes at the table...Dan is amazed and disgusted.
Matt Colby getting to the top of App Gap the easy way. Matt, Merlin, Butch and everybody at SRAM did a fantastic job this weekend. Quick wheel changes, awesome wrenching, and fast wheels.
Pumped - who wins the big money, crowd prime and the race?! John Murphy...and me.
Dan and Will. Front row at the Crit - 5th and 6th overall. These boys can ball. Both are Super-Cat1's. Its a new category that the USCF doesn't know about.
Will, Scott and Sarah and the Girls, George Deane, Slim Jim and the Downhillers (USA Flag folks), and myself all in a bit of shock about what just transpired.
Jabberwalkie (will be taking the win at Portsmouth), WD-40, Yahor - so European in those shades, and Karl. Its only 1 day a year that grown men in spandex get to block traffic, ride bikes and put out the vibe on Main St. in Burlington, VT - so they are soaking it up.

GMSR - pictures first.

Sitting atop App Gap with my sweetie after the road race - 2k to go and my legs went kah-put.Eric Tremble (all around good guy), Dan Cassidy (2nd place on the day = big smile), and myself.
Lovely ladies of Winooski, Shelburne, Essex, and Colchester at the top of App Gap
Burlington Criterium = Greatest Criterium in the World.
What you looking at Jamey? Its Game Time!
Podoim with Francois and Karl (Karl = Shark from "Finding Nemo")
Interview time (Steve Pucci just happened to be in town and just happened to have a CCB podium hat with him...that guy is some sort of Oracle)

And of course the pre-race picture!

M-Q pictures

Chris was off the front for a whole lot of K's - winning sprints and big checks, and getting some face time with the cameras.
A good shot of me with the mustache. the pink on our uniforms looks pretty tame when in quebec. they love the pink up there.
An interesting side note - my biker clone, Matt Toulouse (in the orange), also showed up with a very handsome mustache. It was even more like looking in a mirror when I saw him.
Like I said Chris was off the front for a long time...look, he's still out there!

Quebexican Adventure

La Classique Montreal-Quebec has come and gone (for the 60th year). I raced with 3 other teammates - Chris "Breakaway" Worden, Colin "Jabberwalkie" Jaskiewicz, and William "WD-40" Dugan (all 21) - and we did pretty darn well. Its a long race - 240km this year.

Last years race was 252km and it took about 5:12. This years course was slightly shorter at 240km and the race took about 5:50. Last year had a cross-tail wind and this year had a slight head wind. Tactics were pretty simple last year. Ride in a big 20 man break all day long and then go like crazy when the attacks start 40km from Quebec. I finished 8th. Amos road great in the break all day last year - but came apart a little at the end.

This year, Chris hit it hard at 10km and pulled 3 other riders off the front with him. They got pretty well up the road and Chris rode awesome. At 106km there is a pretty prestigious midway sprint competition ($250). We heard over the race radio that Chris had won the sprint. That put Colin, Will, and I in a pretty good mood for the 2nd half of the race. Chris' move had 8 more guys bridge up to it - and then eventually the race came back together at about 160km. That's when things got tricky. The race was much more complicated this year - attacks coming and going - teams pulling this back - new moves going - people bridging up. The challenging thing is trying to figure out how different teams are racing and how much people have left once we get over 200km.

I eventually went for it full gas with about 50km to go and was in the action from that point on. Will Dugan had already done the same and was up the road - but had an ill-timed flat and was caught out on the late race excitement he certainly would have been a part of. I bridged up to each group that was ahead of me on the road. Its hard to exactly describe the final 5km of the race as there was a lot stuff coming and going - lots of ins and outs. I had strong legs, but not a lot of quickness left. I finished 4th - just missing the podium, continuing the trend of being very good but not truly great. I hope to turn that around before the year is over. I think I raced a little under confident in the last 10km of the race. Its hard to figure out how tired other people are.

Colin came through in 9th place - he was following my wake up the road behind me catching all the groups on the road. Very impressive for a young guy who can sprint so well to ride that way in the last 15km of a 240km race. Will Dugan rode hard all the way to the line - but had understandably gotten a bit frustrated by the bad-luck out on the road. He will dominate this race one day! Chris Worden continued to impress everybody by riding in only a few minutes back on the win - super impressive after such aggressive early riding.

We had tremendous support out on the roads from Joe (WD-40's mentor) and Chris Worden's very nice parents (who are great feeders).

On an interesting side note - I used two things I'd never used before in this race that both helped a fair amount. We used race radios and it definitely helped me from "spacing out" while riding. I have a pretty bad tendency to just zone out during races and I found having Joe giving us race updates from the team car helped me keep my head in the game. The second thing I'd never used before was chamois cream. Its basically a cream that you rub into the pad that in is the bike shorts that reduces friction (a good thing for long days in the saddle). My ass still hurt at the end of the day, but definitely a ton less than last year!

Anyways, its an interesting race that is very well run and it was fun to do.

Donkey Kong

Like my old friend John McKone used to say, "it was on like Donkey Kong". Blue team (CCB) was kicking ass and taking names in NH this past weekend and it felt good. A couple weeks back I'd hatched this plan in my head that Dan and Will and I were going to lead out Colin at the Concord Crit. In my plan I was going to come through the last turn at 42 mph and Colin was going to light it up like a Christmas tree (L'arbe de noel - for my french speaking readers). Well, it wasn't quite like I'd imagined....I only came through the last turn at 41.7mph. Oh well! Haha. It was awesome - Shake and Bake! Who-WAH. Oh, and we were shaking and baking all day long too. 7 out of the 8 primes. You could say Will, Patrick (the German) and I had a good shopping experience while we were in Concord.

Here's the report: http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/SPORTS/808030361/1054/TOWNS13

If you zoom the finish line picture you can see a little bit of my mustache as I watch Colin. Will is also sporting a mustache now - and it looks like Dan has one on the way as well. Will Amos Brumble be forced to show up to GMSR with a mustache? Will Lassie save Timmy from drowning in the well? We'll find out next time folks...

Well, we rested up and then came back for more....

The Bow road race course is a tricky one - always up and down, not really any flat. If a strong racer misses a breakaway they can get very frustrated with the other riders. We used this to our advantage as we have a multitude of riders good in this type of course - so we used our strength wisely. WD-40 finally got up the road with Cassitron and 3 other guys and it was pretty much game over. Bow is a ballers course...and Will is ballin' good right now. He took the W with some good help from Dan and then Colin and I went 1-2 in the bunch sprint behind for 8th and 9th place (2 riders in between). This was all after just 3 laps of racing though - there was thunder and lightning so they told us we were going to finish at the halfway point. I guess it counts though - so its another one for blue team.

Next up...learning some "your mother" jokes in French to bring with us up to Montreal-Quebec this weekend. Quebec'ers race hard...and they race especially hard at this race...so it should be good stuff.

Races that have come and gone.

Balloon Festival: Race went well- ended up getting 1-2'ed by Jamie and Josh from Fior di Frutta in the end though. Came in 3rd. Willie Dugan (aka WD-40) returned to racing - kicking ass and taking names.

Housatonic Hills: Really good legs - but ended up 3rd again. Rookies Chris and Colin road really well early in the race. Willie D and I made the final selection but I wasn't aggressive enough. Still, we managed to beat Todd Wells a week before he got 15th in Mt. Bike Worlds.

Giro d'Jersey: Mainly did this race because it had a ridiculous name. Went pretty well. Raced hard. Top 10 on all the stages - and the team attempted to Blitzkrieg the last stage. Good times.

Cox Charities Crit: NRC + $15,000 = me getting scared in the last lap. Didn't take nearly enough risks in the end - and used my brakes a handful of times in the last lap alone. I was trying to lead out Amos, but didn't do a good enough job.

Fitchburg: Oops. Not sure what I did, but the good legs were gone. I suppose crashing hard on my TT bike the day before the race in the parking lot at the Skirack doesn't help. I was excited for the road race and I had no gas. One of these days I'm going to nail this race!

Mt Holly: Hot Hot Hot. 100 degrees - 100 percent humidity - a light breeze. Before I knew what was happening I was getting the chills of dehydration. I finished, and most of the field didn't, but it wasn't pretty. Colin road well and was top NJ amateur.

Hilltowns: Back in business. Nearly took the first W of the season...only to get second. Jump early? Jump late? I went with early and Ted King came around me with 100m to go. Dan Cassidy was back in action and stomping the pedals.

Freedom Tour: Apparently this is a $3500 crit in NJ. Who knew? Dugan 3rd in a six man break. I lead out Colin and he showed all the NYC sprinters and PA track guys a clean set of wheels. Team is starting to race well together. Yee-Hah

Mustache

So, at long last I have a mustache again. If you have been living in a cave (or other subterranean dwelling) and are unaware of what a mustache is...then read this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moustache

There are three main inspirational sources for my mustache. The first, of course, is my father. He has been without one for quite some time - but for a period of my childhood he was the proud owner of a very fine mustache. The second two are Marcus Sommers and Magnum PI.

MarcusMagnum

Top Guns names...

...I just got mine today - I'm Slider. You remember slider, right? He was good at Volleyball:
http://www.mobygames.com/developer/shots/developerId,47964/developerShotId,1342/

Thanks a lot to Colin's family for letting me stay with them in New Jersey.

Jake vs. New Jersey

The score:

Jake 1 - New Jersey 2

message from Jake to New Jersey - I'll be back to kick your ass in 3 weeks. Giro d'Jersey.

Comings and Goings

So, as you may have noticed I've stopped updating my blog with my weekly training - that's because its the time of the year were I start doing double blind, super top secret training to get ready for the big races. Actually, that's not true - I just started getting lazy.

Before anything else - I'd like to congratulate my wonderful girlfriend Helen on graduating from UVM and for being part of something pretty special - she was part of the first graduating class of UVM's Honors College. I was there and it was pretty awesome.

Also, my sister is off in Egypt now - she's taking a 4 week trip over there to visit our parents and to travel. She should have some good adventures.

Right now I'm at the end of my first "racing trip" of the year. I came down to New Jersey for 3 races in 5 days. One road race and two big money crits. The road race was put on by the US Cycling Hall of Fame and it was a pretty cool course. One loop - 80 or 85 miles - flat first hall with a few punchy climbs and lots of rolling hills in the second hall. I ended up 3rd and rode a pretty aggressive race. Amos ended 6th and all 4 of our guys finished.

Monday (Memorial Day) was, as it is every year, the Tour of Somerville. A pan flat 4-corner $15,000 crit down here in Somerville, NJ. Its got long long straight aways and it gets pretty dodgy towards the last 5 laps. There were more crashes than I remember from previous years and I think there were a lot of guys left at the end who thought they could win (myself included). It turns out I couldn't win though because 200m before the second to last turn I slammed into a pot hole and PSSSSS! my rear wheel went flat. I was sitting about 10th wheel and had vision of podiums and big cardboard checking in my eyes. It was not to be. I watched the race zip away through those last turns as I rolled up the home straight at 5mph.

On a side note, wintertime x-c ski teammate and Kenda Raleight rider, Eric Tremble won the Cat 2 race at Somerville. He used a beautiful move - although trademarked by me - and attacked with 2 turns to go and suprised the field. He held his gap down the home straight and just held everyone off. I've caught him off guard with that exact move at both the local Tuesday practice crits up in Burlington - so it was cool to see him give it a try himself and have it work.

I'm off to get a podium haircut and then its another $10,000 crit tonight. Hopefully a more challenging course so that there aren't so many guys in the last couple laps.

Go ride your bike!
-Jake

The bike finally has a name!!!

So, my new steed finally has a name. My hog, my mount, my stallion, my ride, my scoot, my whip, my rizzi, my french rocket, my chopper, my sled, my wheels, my weapon, my sword, my boy - he's got a name. Jimmy. His brother, who I rode for the last 2 years, was Timmy.

As a general rule of thumb I think it is good for your bike to have a name if you plan on racing well on it. For example, I've never had a time trial bike with a name yet and I've never really time trialed very well. However, Timmy was the first road bike I ever raced that I named and I became a much better racer on him. Naming a bike is not something that you can really force - but something that just happens. You can think and think and think about what to name it, but the name won't come to you until it's ready.

I feel much relieved that my new bike is finally named. Jimmy is quite a bike. We're still getting to know eachother 100% - but we're getting there.

April 14-20

Monday: -30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -30 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-150 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(GMBC tuesday ride)

Wednesday: -30 minutes biking
-90 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -210 minutes riding w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(2 x Bolton Climb + fast ride back to Burlington)

Friday: -75 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -210 minutes biking
(Battenkill-Roubaix - 16th place)

Sunday: -45 minute walk w/ Helen :-)
-60 minutes biking on bikepath

April 7-14

Monday: -off

Tuesday: -off

Wednesday: -140 minutes biking
(hill workout in Richmond)

Thursday: -80 minutes biking
-25 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -80 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -120 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Sunday: -90 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups

March 31-April 6

Monday: -20 minute run w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-40 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -60 minutes on indoor trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Wednesday: -140 minutes biking
(climbing workout in Richmond)

Thursday: -120 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-20 minutes running w/ situps and pushups

Friday: -off

Saturday: -270 minutes biking w/ stretching
(hard ride w/ Will)

Sunday: -45 minute riding
(cruising ride with Helen :-)

Time on the bike and Marblehead

The first race of the bike racing season was this past weekend. It was the classic New England season opener hosted by the CCB Club down in Marblehead, MA. I was silly enough to follow an attack right off the bat - then, all of a sudden I found myself in a 2 man move with my own teammate Dan Cassidy. The freakazoid and I kept the pedal on the metal for the next 10-12 miles together before we got caught. There was attacking and counter-attacking, but the race ended in a nice bunch sprint. I hooked-up with Colin J. with about 4-5 laps to go and piloted him through the final turn as smoothly as possible. He made good with a nice sprint getting 2nd - just getting pipped by less than 1/2 a wheel.

On a bit of a bummer note both the Tour of Virginia and the Tour de Toona have been canceled. This means that there are no stage races longer than 4 days in the eastern US (apart of Tour of Georgia). This is making for a challenging racing season to plan out. It seems like it will be a season with fewer big-time racing opportunities and it will be really important to make the most of those opportunities.

I do need to start training more again and getting my training volume up a bit. I'd like to try and race well at the Battenkill race in a couple weeks.

Monday: -20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -150 minutes biking
(Climbing Bolton)

Wednesday: -120 minutes biking w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -80 minutes on computrainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Sunday: -120 minutes biking
(Marblehead Circuit Race)

Cold biking time

Winter is really sticking around this year. I stayed inside for most of the week, but by the weekend I finally had my new Time bike all built up and the roads finally were clear. The guys at Green Mt. Rehab (Andy and Eric) let me use the computrainer and I dialed in the fit and the cleat and shim setup on my new Time shoes. Everything feels pretty darn good.

I don't just keep the exact same setup every year and never try to change it. In the off season I always play around with things and try to improve things. I figure if you can make an equipment change that makes you more efficient then you'll stay less injured and it'll give you free speed. However tinkering and changes are for the off-season/early season. I generally try to have everything pretty much as is by early May. Then I leave it there until next off-season.

Monday: -Off

Tuesday: -40 minutes on computrainer

Wednesday: -80 minutes on computrainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ streching and situps & pushups

Friday: -60 minutes on computrainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -150 minutes bicycle ride
(rode from Shelburne to the Bolton Valley baselodge)

Sunday: -150 minutes bicycle ride w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(rode with Dan, Will, Colin, and Chris - aka CCB North)

Here are the boys before the ride. The Brooks pharmacy that was downtown is now a Rite-Aid pharmacy. Rite-Aid sponsors a Pro bike team. Some of our good riding buddies ride for that team - Richard Geng, Robbie King, Bobby Lea, etc. So we kid. But, that downtown pharmacy was open 24h when it was a Brooks and its not anymore.
Snow covered fields, farms, thermal jackets, and good friends.

an off week and a trip to seattle

A pretty lame week training wise - but it was planned. It served as the break between ski season and bike race season. I am pretty excited about the bike season to come.

I took a trip out to Seattle to goto represent the Skirack at a symposium hosted by Brooks running shoes. Emily Steers, the fantastic shoe buyer at the store, and I flew out a day early as we both had friends in Seattle we wanted to visit. I'd been in touch with my friend Charlie Lozner, who I used to ride bikes with when her lived in Burlington, about getting together and hanging out. Charlie worked for Karhu when they were based in Burlington and when they got bought by the K2 copy he moved out to Seattle to work for them out there. Charlie's very good at what he does and so he is now helping guide the Karhu, Atlas (snowshoes), and Madshus brands for K2. I took a bus from the airport right to K2 and Charlie and I got some lunch before he gave me the tour of K2. K2 just moved into a new facility last September and it is impressive. They're one of the biggest sports companies in the world and you feel it when you tour their operation. They have a testing room next to their normal engineering department that is about the size of a trailer home and its a refrigerated testing laboratory. It was a really cool place and it was fantastic to visit with Charlie - he's good people. I then went downtown for a little while in the late afternoon and evening to tour around before taking a bus back out to West Seattle where Charlie lives to crash with him that night. He had some other friends in town already visiting but he and his wife Elizabeth made me a really comfortable spot to stay. Again - good people. Then the next morning I did a really enjoyable long run and took the bus into town to start getting my symposium on.

Brooks invited about 25 specialty running shoe retailers out to a 3 day event in Seattle to do everything from meetings with their footwear design team to group discussions about best practices in their stores. Brooks made sure we had fun too and took us to an NBA basketball game (Seattle vs. Minnesota) as well as including us in their Friday afternoon run (which everyone from secretaries, to CEOs, to sales people in their office does). I think the best part of the whole experience was just getting to talk to people from other shops from around the country. Almost all of the other stores were only running stores. A few did some business in casual shoes or team sports. There were no other stores there like the Skirack (running as well as bike, x-c ski, alpine ski, snowboard, casual, swim, rollerblade, etc) which really made me realize that there aren't many other stores like the Skirack. I found it a little hard to describe the store to other people without sound like I was bragging - a weird feeling. The other stores at the symposium had a real range of people working at them (3:56 milers to fitness walkers) and a range of what they focused on at the store. It was clear though that all the stores were very well run, put the customer's interests #1, and were innovative in some way. All the while during the whole symposium Brooks had us staying at a very cool downtown hotel called Hotel 1000. It was a place for hipsters and people with pointy Italian shoes. And for a couple of day - runners.

Monday: -off

Tuesday: -off

Wednesday: -off

Thursday: -80 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Sunday: -off

Last Ski Race

Monday: -20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

                 -40 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -60 minutes skate skiing

                 -20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

                 -1 Cycle of strength exercises

Wednesday: -75 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -75 minutes skate skiing

                  -1 Cycle of strength exercises

Friday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -120 minutes skate skiing

(Craftsbury Spring Fling 30k skate - 9th)

Sunday: -90 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Here comes bike season

Monday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Tuesday: -90 minutes skate skiing
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Wednesday: -60 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-30 minutes on trainer w/ streching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -90 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-1 Cycle of Strength Exercises

Friday: -30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -180 minutes stakte skiing
(Rangeley Lakes 50k skate - 14th)

Sunday: -20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-40 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

It was a 3 Ski Race Week

I had been doing about 10-11 hours a week training, but this past week (Feb 18-24) was only 8-9 hours. Not much in the grand scheme of things. However, I did mix in 3 good races. I posted my fasted time ever at the Sleepy Hollow 6k (15:35) and then raced a solid 12th at the Eastern Cup Finals in a tight race (20 seconds out of 3rd) and then I capped the week off with a 4th place at the Stowe Derby. Eric Tremble was 3rd at the Derby - so it was a good race for the Northwest Vermont Nordic Club. He and I are teaming up in this coming weekends Rangeley Lakes 50k skate race to try and kick-ass and take names.

So, they start the Derby half-way up the Mountain at Stowe and you finish right in the center of town at the start of the bike path. The race starts at 10:00am and I had to be at work by 11:45am. I raced as fast as I could into town, caught my breath, ate a bag of Madhouse Munchies they were giving away, and then hopped into the car with Helen and jetted back to Burlington.On an exciting, cool note - I'm going to Seattle in a couple weeks for a Brooks running shoe symposium. Their headquarters are out there and they invited 2 people from the Skirack. So, Emily (the shoe buyer at the Skirack) is of course going and me too! I'm packing my bags and heading out to Seattle for a couple days. Yahoo. Coffee COFFEE.


Monday: -40 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Tuesday: -90 minutes skate skiing
-20 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Wednesday: -70 minutes skate skiing w/ streching and situps & pushups
(Sleepy Hollow Practice Race - 1st place)
-30 minutes on trainer w/ streching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Thursday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-1 Cycle of Strength Exercises

Saturday: -90 minutes skate skiing
(Eastern Cup Finals - 12th place)

Sunday: -50 minutes skate skiing
(Stowe Derby - 4th place)

In a groove

So, I'm really happy with the way my winter training is going right now. This past week felt good. I'm having pretty good sensations while skiing and indoor biking is still chugging along with a little bit of jogging. I do need to start biking a little bit more soon. I'm not too worried about it though - it is going to be hard to keep myself off the new Time VXR I have (waiting to get built up) all spring and summer long. This is going to be one amazing bike.

Monday: -25 minute run w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -95 minutes skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Wednesday: -60 minutes skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(Sleepy Hollow Night Race - 1st place)
-30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -120 minutes skate skiing w/ streching
-30 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Saturday: -120 minutes skate skiing
-60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Sunday: -60 minutes on classic skis (teaching touring lesson)
-30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles on Strength Exercises

Lake Placid Loppet

So, I managed to put together a pretty decent race and get 4th at the Lake Placid Loppet. For those not in the know - the Lake Placid Loppet is a 50k ski marathon on a very hilly course. Last year I did the half-loppet (25k) and the course definitely caught me off gaurd and ill-prepared. This year I've been doing some focused long hard skis (thanks for the company Dan!) since I got back from Egypt and it definitely paid off.

The course is 25k long and is a figure-8 shape. So, last year I did 1 lap in 1:30. This year I did 2 laps in 2:41. That's progress. Helen raced as well and she improved her time as well by 6 minutes for the 25k - even though she said she felt like she skied the race easier than the year before!

The start of the race gave me good confidence as the early pack in the first couple kilometers included Eli Enman and Eric Tremble - 2 guys who I sometimes train with on the skis. Eli went on to take his first victory in Lake Placid (hip-hip-hooray) and Eric ended up in 3rd spot. Eric and I both ski for the Northwest Vermont Nordic Ski Club.

Probably the best part about the Lake Placid race apart from the challenging course, is the banquet afterwards. The food is plentiful and actually really good (I think - its hard to tell though because a piece of wood could taste good after a 50k ski race). Its a fun atmosphere to just sit around with everybody and talk about the race that just happened.

In other news here are a few other things I've done lately:
-Went to the Banff Mountain Film Festival (at UVM put on by the Skirack)
-Taught a free Sunday morning skate ski lesson at Bolton Valley (10:00am every Sunday)
-Won a Wednesday night practice ski race at Sleepy Hollow (Its fun under the lights)
-Traveled to Boston for the CCB team mid-winter pow-wow dinner at Steve Pucci (my equipment is way too good for me!)
-Went to an on snow demo down at Stratton to try out next years x-c ski equipment (somethings I loved and somethings I just liked)
-Scheduled my late winter VO2Max Test up at UVM for biking (oh wait, I need to do that)

go Go GO - Jake

A Good Skiing Week

Monday: -25 minute run w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Tuesday: -120 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Wednesday: -60 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(Sleepy Hollow night race - 1st place)

Thursday: -150 minutes mixed skate and classic skiing
(Stratton on snow demo)

Friday: -35 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-1 Cycle of Strength Exercises

Saturday: -180 minutes skate skiing
(Lake Placid Ski Marathon 50k skate - 4th place)

Sunday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

The Winter Rolls On

Monday: -25 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -150 minuts skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Wednesday: -90 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -35 minutes running w/ 2 x stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -105 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-2 Cycles of Strength Exercises

Saturday: -Off

Sunday: -60 minutes skate skiing
-60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Another Week - a little bit more.

This is for the week of January 21-27.

Monday: -75 minutes skate skiing
-45 minutes classic skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-1 Cycle of Strength Exercises

Wednesday: -40 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-75 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
(Stowe Nordic Club 5k race - 2nd place)

Thursday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-45 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -1 Cycle of Strength Exercises

Saturday: - 135 minutes skate skiing

Sunday: -60 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

2008 Training Begins

So, in an effort to make myself open to public scrutiny if I am irresponsible with my training and I going to start to publish a weekly breakdown of what I've done. Here is the week of January 14th-20th.

Monday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Tuesday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-15 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Wednesday: -35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-30 minutes on computrainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Thursday: -60 minutes skate skiing
-35 minutes running w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Friday: -45 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Saturday: -120 minutes skate skiing w/ stretching and situps & pushups
-30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps & pushups

Sunday: -30 minutes on trainer w/ stretching and situps and pushups

Pyramids and Such Happenings

So, we made it over to the pyramids at Giza on New Years day. Some interesting things of note. The city comes up extremely close to the area. I guess I had this image that they are way way out in the dessert way away from civilization, and that is not the case. Also, there is a whole range of different structures and pyramids of many different sizes in Giza. Its not just the three pyramids you see in the pictures.

My mom and dad went over with Helen and I in a taxi piloted by one Mr. Abul Mena (aka Captain Nemo). It was probably about a 45 minute drive from the apartment. Captain Nemo told us how the drive used to be a 3 hours drive before they built the large connecting road. When we got to Giza I was interested to see that just outside the gate to the whole complex was a Kentucky Fried Chicken. So, the Sphinx's eternal gaze is now looking at a KFC sitting 500m away.

We first drove up to a high point that looks across to the pyramids where we took some pictures of the pyramids in the back round. Then, we drove down to the base of the pyramids and walked around the grounds for a while. The pyramids are truly monstrous. The largest of the pyramids (which is the biggest in the world) is made up of around 2.5 million stones which weigh 30 tons each (referenced from Capt. Nemo). So, its really heavy. I walked down into one tomb of a smaller pyramid - which was awesome. Its something else just descending into the earth bellow a structure like that. There was also something called the Solar Boat museum there as well which is something pretty amazing. It was getting towards the end of the day so we zipped down to the Sphinx said hello and then ducked out the gate to meet Capt. Nemo behind "Kentucky" as he called it for short.

The last part of our Giza New Years day was spent getting coffee and tea over at the Mena House - a very deceptive name for one of the most famous Grand Hotels in the world. The hotel shares no relation to Capt. Nemo, but he did tell us proudly that it is the greatest hotel in the Arab world. Kings, Queens, Presidents, Movie Stars, and I have all been there. Out the window of the tea room we ate in was the Great Pyramid looking down at me (with no "Kentucky" in the view). I had a Cappachino and Feta and Tomato sandwich with Tempinade (olive spread). It is amazing how international Cairo is. It is the meeting point of the World - where Asia, Africa, and Europe collide.

Happy New Year Everybody.