Bike racing

Couldn't start this post without a quick mention of Ryder Hesjedal's huge win at the Giro. This marks the first ever Grand Tour win for Canada... and how better than to do it on a Canadian bike!

Now onto my far less exciting past few months racing bikes. With a long season ahead of me--I have my sights set on IMAZ as my A race for 2012--I decided that it would be fun (and hopefully productive) to do some bike racing early on in the year. Add some excitement to my life, createa reason for picking up a new bike and work on some bike-specific fitness.

So far this year, I've done a few races with my buddy Glenn and the rest of the Toga!/Gotham cycling team. I have focused on road racing in Central Park, namely the Spring Series and CRCA and raced in one time trial down in New Jersey. All in all, it's been a great experience. I've built a tonne of bike fitness that was sorely lacking coming out of the winter and have had a lot of fun. I have seen my teammate hit the podium a few times and perhaps most importantly I've yet to crash (knock on serious wood).

A few photos from the races.

Sprinting up the final climb of the Readington Time Trial.

My buddy Glenn cruising through the Readington TT.

Toga!/Gotham after a CRCA race. Glenn took 2nd in a field sprint.

The Venge

In an effort to become a faster cyclist--and because I've really come to love following the pro peleton--I decided that I'd spend this spring focusing on bike racing. It's been a blast so far.

And, while I was at it, I figured that I should pick up a new road rig. Check it out.

2012 Specialized S-Works Venge. Project Black (i.e. matte black carbon, limited edition). SRAM Red. Rovals with a PowerTap G3 hub built in. Built up beautifully by my buddy Dave Nazaroff over at Toga!/Gotham.

I cannot get over how amazingly well this bike rides. Great handling and feels so smooth--I swear that all of the roads in NYC were repaved over the winter. At the same time, great power transfer, stiff bottom bracket and a lot of pop (even despite my loss of bike fitness during the off-season).

The Venge waiting for pick-up over at Toga Westside.

Venge in its new home.

Race photos from Ironman Canada

The beautiful drive up to Penticton, BC, Canada. The area is extraordinarily hilly and green.

Signing in for my fourth Ironman.

Our house up in the mountains. The house was a 40-minute drive up a switchbacked mountain road.

A view of beautiful Lake Okanagan. The swim took place right off of this beach.

The day before. Just another hot, sunny day in Penticton.

Posie and I hang out on the beach. What an amazing race companion... always keeps me calm!

Human cement mixer.

Cruising along the bike course. Sunny. Hot.

A glimpse of one of many piees of hillwork. Okanagan mountains in the background.

Slogging it through the 95F+ marathon. I look happier there than I remember.

A companion on the first few miles of the run. I'd go on to drop this guy, only to fall apart after mile 13.

More running. Toga!

Slogfest.

Posie doing her part to motivate me.

All smiles. Time for a shower, beer and long, long sleep.

Long overdue

It seems that the 2011 season came and went without me writing a single post. Some members of my limited audience have been asking if I'll ever get back at it, so here goes nothing. (I'm currently watching Paris-Roubaix from a small villa in Italy--am away on holiday--and with 61km left to go, I have a little bit of time to sit and write.)

First, a recap of last year. All in all, the season was decent. I got a late (and heavy) start on training and that definitely showed. Lackluster performance at Rev3 Quassy followed by a mediocre race at the Rhode Island 70.3. By the time my peak race of Ironman Canada rolled around, I was coming into good form and feeling pretty confident.

Canada was a great race--the most beautiful course that I have ever braved--but it definitely kicked my ass. I had a poor swim but got out there and rode well. The marathon kicked off with a bang and I decided that it was time to take some risks. I hammered out the first 1okm on about 7-minute pace. Then the course started to heat up and things fell apart quickly. Struggling through the heat, I was stuck walking every aid station, pouring as much ice down my jersey as possible. As I entered the final 10km, I passed a digital screen outside a local high school; it read: 97F. I was going crazy, it really was that hot.

I ended up holding it together and finishing in a disappointing but respectable 10:36.

Well, that just about wraps up last year. I'm going to go ahead and post some pictures from Canada because it truly was a phenomenal race--and I'd really like to share the course with everyone. But, other than that, I think I'm going to just close the books on 2011 and look forward.

Race Report 3: Mightyman Half Ironman

Well, this report is long overdue and the details are getting a little foggy so I'll keep it short.

In 2009, the MightyMan Half marked my final ramp-up to my A Race, Ironman Arizona. By contrast, this year's race closed out my season. And by "closed out," I mean it was a last ditch attempt to garner any residual fitness I accumulated preparing for Ironman Lake Placid. Suffice to say, I spent the two months after Lake Placid enjoying beer, food and a break from training.

Anyway, this race ended up being special for three reasons:

1. It reminded me that anyone can be made to feel like an amateur if they don't treat an event with respect. Let's just say, my pre-race was a little chaotic with 3 return trips to the hotel to pick up various items that I forgot. I was lucky to have my former teammate Adam shuttling me back-and-forth... By the final trip, he just laughed and said "You're actually an idiot. How have you done this before?!"
2. I had the chance to race with my friend Sean. his dad Jack and Jack's friends. Sean had a great race that improved on last year; Jack had a fantastic first Half Ironman and he crushed the bike in particular. And, I got to meet Sean and Jack's (grand)father who was excellent company!
   
3. You lose peak fitness quickly but hard work does end up carry you through. I didn't have a great race and my swim was especially ugly but I still was able to hold it together for a solid ride and a pretty decent half marathon. Nothing to write home about but pretty decent. Oh, and I snagged 1st in Age Group (Men's Under-30).
   

So, I'll leave you with a few pictures and that will close out the year!

Until 2011, tailwinds!

(Very ugly) Swim exit.

Bike out.

Midway through the bike enjoying my new and improved position.

Bike return.

1st in Age Group

Ironman Lake Placid in Pictures

Race reports can be really, really boring... so here's my Ironman Lake Placid 2010 in pictures only.

Full report is here for those who are interested.

The Adirondacks in the background. Lots of climbing ahead of me...

Our house, 79 Cascade Lane, Jay, NY.

Nice kitchen inside the house. Important for big pre-race meals.

Back patio.

Ryan's cleaned up P3.

My cleaned up P2 all ready to go.

Breakfast of champions.

Ominous clouds before the swim start. It would later end up raining while I was in the water.

Three thousand people making their way into the water.

Me, entering the water. Not sure exactly what I'm smiling about... I have 140.6 miles ahead of me.

The front pack just before the cannon.

The human cement mixer starts mixing.

Cement mixer from a distance.

Neat overhead shot of the field as it navigates the outer two buoys.

Exiting the water.

As usual, looking awful coming out of the water.

The course was lined with rivers and streams.


The route out of town at the beginning of the bike ride.

About to start 50mph descent. Trying to stay as aero as possible while still maintaining one hand on the break.

Plugging away on the out-and-back.

Getting ready to jump off the bike as I head back into town.

Run:

Running out of town. Tsk, tsk, that's some nasty heel-toe action going on... although it may be due to the downhill.

Ten yards ahead of the race leader or, more accurately, 13 miles behind. In fairness, pros get a 10-minute head start.

Quick time/pace check.

Kicking around the oval.

Crossing the tape with my hands up like a dork. I guess it beats previous races where I'm looking down at my watch.