Video Remix à la Driveway

Chris from Rapha / Mellow Johnny's came out to the Driveway here in Austin and brought a helmet/seatpost cam. Check out the footage from the Cat 3/4 race:

Rain & Fireworks at Tour of Lawrence, KS

After a successful trip to Lawrence, KS last year, the team was looking for another good weekend in the "Center of the USA" (the geographical center close to Lebanon, Kansas, to be precise). Josh, Carlos, and Travis drove in from Elite Nats from Bend, OR via Boulder, CO along with Sully while Ronnie and I made the trip up from Texas. I thought I'd be escaping the rain of Hurricane "Alex" but I was wrong. Except the Street Sprints on Friday Night we raced two days in the rain.

Josh kicked off the weekend in style by winning the Sprints, beating Nick Coil (left) and Dahlheim for 2nd and 3rd, respectively.

That cricuit race around KU campus is definitely the most fun circuit you do all year - mix in some 40mph descents and about a dozen slippery 90 degree turns and you have an exciting bike race! 500m into the race (it was raining, of course) a few guys already hit the deck and it was game on from there. I managed to work my way to the front where our Colorado-recruit Ben Blaugrund already settled in along with Sully. Unfortunately, Sean flatted and it was down to only two of us in a front group of about 12 riders. Thanks to good equipment and 80psi in my tubulars the rainy + slick roads didn't bother me too much...I felt okay physically, but only that and knew it would be hard to be there at the very end. That's when I told Ben to go for it when he sees the opportunity and sure enough he followed the right moves and made the podium by the days' end behind an on-form Dahlheim and former Mercy-teammate "Jose" Schmalz.

riding around KU campus with Hall, Bergman, & Co.

Ben Blaugrund on a slippery podium

Sunday's Crit was held on the same course downtown Lawrence again and having finished 2nd here last year myself with Heath winning we were motivated for a repeat and get Josh the win at the end of his 1-month race-trip across half the country. After a short spin in the morning (in the dry) I realized it will be a "wet affair" again:

But were able to execute our plan exactly as nothing would seriously get away for the first 45min of the 75min race and it was just time to follow wheels without wasting energy....energy we would need at the end do deliver Josh to the line up front and in one piece. There were only a few minor "sliding" crashes and people skidding but overall it was pretty good to see the field handling the slick pavement so well. I gotta give credit to the the tires again, though - never felt more comfortable running 80psi on the carbon tubulars in the rain. We took over with 6 or 7 laps to go and just rode a steady lead-out tempo to keep the pace high and keep others away from "swarming" us. It worked out well, although I had to dig deep a bit for a lap when Chad Haga attacked w/ 2 to go but the boys got everything under control and Sully held on for 4th while Josh took the win by a solid margin over 2nd place.

getting ready for 75minutes of fun in the wet...

...getting it done after 75minutes of great teamwork!

Nature Valley 2010

lots of fun, more to come...

Photo by Kevin Schaefer of PedalRanch

Bike The Bricks and OKC Rocks

The 3-day-race weekends continued in McKinney and Oklahoma City this past weekend. McKinney Velo put on a new event in downtown called "Bike The Bricks" and it's definitely the coolest crit I've done in Texas besides the Downtown Austin Crits held over the last few years. It was a tight course, at night, and a quality field. We had the numbers but still, that doesn't guarantee anything in bike racing. Everyone wants to win and was hunting for that $2,700 1st place purse and a 15lb heavy trophy. It worked out well, with Sully + Ronnie making the move and Ronnie winning the sprint in dominant fashion for the "V". Me and Carlos ended up riding away from what was left of the diminished peloton for 7th and 8th place and we put all of our guys in the Top 20 or so. Great night.

Ronnie being "pro"

Two new events on the Oklahoma Race calendar followed Saturday and Sunday, fashionably labeled "OKC Rocks". This town might not be know to you for the great riding and racing opportunities but there's something in the making and those crits were definitely a sign that there's lots of potential for great bike racing in the future. My friend and fellow MSU Cycling alumni Greg Saxon is involved with it and it was good to be back in Okie-land! Day 1 around the State Capitol did not go 100% according to plan as Josh got narrowly beaten at the line by an early-charging Brian Jensen and we settled with 2nd, 4th, and 6th and the rest of the guys in the all in the Top20. But we made up for it on Day 2 when the same P12 field + Raul Alcala and his teammates from Mexico took on the 90-minute crit just south of the Oklahoma Capitol. Four of us made a solid break in the last 20minutes of the race and Sully, me, and Pat McCarty got away at the end with Sully taking the win ahead of RBM's MVP Pat and myself. The three of us ended up lapping most of the remaining field and I think I'm celebrating at the bottom of the finish "hill" in the pic below while Sully crosses the line for the "V".

Sully for the Win at OKC Rocks, Day 2

Tulsa Tough

I've been coming to Tulsa Tough every year since 2006. Back then, it was a bit smaller and less teams showed up but over the last years this event has grown to a 3-day NRC criterium series with guys + girls coming from the East and West Coast to get a slice of the $100,000 prize money spread over 3 days and all categories from Cat 5 to P/1. Chris Z of New Medio, the City of Tulsa, and the entire cycling community really built themselves an awesome race weekend there in the middle of boring Oklahoma...well, Tulsa ain't boring that's for sure!

We had a good team lined up and hoped for some sprint finishes with our very own Josh Carter on hand. That was the plan and well, sometimes you're the hammer, sometimes you're the nail. Friday's crit was more "nail-like". The Blue Dome night crit was fast and furious but everything stayed at bay for the most part, we followed moves and I went for a "Fireworks prime" ;-) At the end of the night, though Josh lost the wheel in front of him and with 90guys trying to be up there and chopping corners etc. we didn't come out with much.

Sportswriter and photographer Lyne Lamoureux of Podium Insight took some pretty cool shots that night:

Saturday's Crit at Brady Village looked to be yet another field sprint since former Mercy teammate and super-sprinter Huffy wanted to keep adding points to his Overall lead and we also hoped to have Josh there at the end. Besides, the course is fast and even though there's a small hill on the backside (in front of the SOUNDPONY) not much separation is usually made. The legs felt good again and I remember winning the Gambler's prime last year just before the lead-out trains almost rolled over me...This time around, though it was time to go to work and help setup Josh again. A dangerous move of 10 or 12 rolled off with 30minutes to go and we only had 2 guys in there. We stuck with the plan and Carlos, Heath and I brought it back and the rest of the guys took care of the rest to keep Josh up there until the end. It ended a bit differently as planned out with Sully getting 7th and Huff winning - again! We were close, but not there. One day to go, though.

Sunday's Riverview Criterium is the most exciting, craziest, criterium I'm racing each season. Athens is right next to hit, but the "Cry Baby Hill" is so unique and just therefore TulsaTough deserves its spot on the NRC calendar! The 1K course is more like a circuit, with a short + punchy hill, some rollers, a downhill and 500m flat along the Arkansas River. Every year I did this race the winner almost always rode in the front, made the breaks, and sometimes even lapped the field. No different today. There was not much hiding you can do on that course. I found myself off the front a bit too early after I took the first KOM on top of the hill so I backed off again and tried to save the legs for the rest. Guys would go off and come back and 30min it was time to go again as a group of 6 or 7 rolled off the front. Jelly Belly was happy to control the field and wait until the end and just watched guys who could threaten Huff's lead. Good for us. I was in good company with Tilford, Bergman, Schmalz, Haga and a couple of other guys. It didn't go far, though and we re-shuffled again. Finally, Brian Jensen made another move and me and Bergman joined and the three of us just rolled for the next 30minutes until 5 or so to go. If you have three guys racing on the front and being committed to stay away on a course like that it's hard for anyone to just bridge up or the field coming close to us. 2 guys made it, though and one of them my Kiwi teammate Logan. Solo for 3 laps to catch us and close a 25sec lead! He gave all he had to make it a bit harder and launched an attack but Jensen was unbeatable today and rode away with 1 1/2laps to go. Bergman, the other guy who bridged up and I were left just ahead of the charging field with 1/2 lap to go. I was behind Bergman coming out of the last corner but the other guy was right on my wheel and I had nothing left for the sprint for the last podium spot. Frustrating for sure, since it was so close and having ridden in the front most of the day. But still, it was a nice end to an exciting weekend and we definitely had the hammer in our jerseys today!

Texas State Crit Weekend

The Memorial Day Race Weekend is always fun and the true start to a month of crit racing in the region. Was not different this past weekend. Pro/1 races only seems to be the "new thing"
to do in Texas racing so the fields are way smaller, the purse goes down a bit and the racing gets harder? Not so sure about the last one,though.

Saturday was Glickman Crit in Richardson, a race I won a few years back out of a 2-man move with Minturn getting 2nd back then. We got the right break going but lacked the true sprinter in the move and that was it. One down, 2 to go. Sunday's GS Tenzing Crit was much more fruitful, with Josh getting launched with 300m to go and Logan getting 6th and a few more green/black in the Top 15.

The actual TX State Crit was back in Ft. Worth like the last few years. Great course, technical, fast and spectator-friendly. We had the fastest guy in the field so we made sure everything stays together for the end and the plan worked out. Josh and Carlos (2009 winner) went 1-2. It might look good to have all the guys at the front but no matter if it's a local crit, the P/1 State Crit, or an NRC race it takes a lot of teamwork to get this going. New Cat 1 addition Brant Speed fit in well and THSJ-founder Barry Lee did his share, too (see picture). Hopefully these are signs for things to come.

Mike Olheiser Interview

If you know Mike Olheiser, a good friend of mine who I've raced with on the same team a couple of times the last 2 years, you'll enjoy this video!

old case, but still a hot topic

There's a good article about the "Doper Next Door" in the June edition of Bicycling Magazine. I usually don't post much articles/links on here but this is quite good and it's written by Austin resident, journalist and bicycle racer Ian Dille. To check it out click the link below or read the magazine. Makes you think.

Looking 4 Speed at Speedweek

The trip over to Georgia for Speedweek was almost a bit too much. First from AUS to HOU to pick up Carlos, the Colombian and Ronnie, "The Rocket". Then on towards New Orleans (but through...) and over towards Mobile, Alabama with a quick overnight at one of the millions of hotels located right on I-10's.

We made it to our host house in Horchton, GA, and it was nice to stay with real, friendly people for a few days instead of being cramped up in some small-a#$ motel Athens Twilight was the first race. It was a big wash-out, torrential rainfalls all night long, delayed start, and unless you started somewhere in the 2nd row it was close-to-impossible to anywhere....well, you could always go down, though! Two Park Place crits as prep for the first NRC of the year didn't cut it for me. Only Sully managed to finish in the Top20 after taking 3rd in the CompuTrainer heats out on College St the night before (see pic). If you're ever there, make sure to stop at The Grill in downtown, great American Diner open 'til late night.

Sully smiling before CompuTrainer Final

dark + rainy S/F area Athen's around 11:30pm

Roswell Crit the day after just north of ATL went much better (thanks to dry roads) and i was actually able to race my bike. No result at the end but the legs came along and we were part of the race.

The following Tuesday we headed further SouthEast, this time to Beaufort, SC for another 3 1/2 corner crit - this time at night again. Those courses reminded a lot of Superweek except we did half the race in the dark - and besides some streetlights, and a few flash lights at the S/F area there was not much to see - at least for me and I was wearing clear lenses! You can watch "Dino" aka Sully get taken down by some unnamed rider in the below video. Happened with 2 to go so was a bit frustrating.

The Waltersboro Crit just a bit further north was a replica of the night before in terms of light but at least the streets were smooth and we got to race through a nice historic downtown with quite a few people lining the metal barriers. Everytime time your wheel would hit one of those, the crowd would go "uuuuhhh, ahhhhh". Until something happened. Than it was more like "Ouch". But it was actually pretty safe considering we raced again in the pitch-black dark at some parts of the course. I had an okay ride but nothing special to report. Trying to sprint against the Russian Alexi of TT1 was probably the hardest effort I put out all race that night.

Like the night before, we headed back to the "Rice Planters Inn", our place to stay in that area. The night ended with some fireworks in the parking lot and the morning started with a $5.99 breakfast buffet at Shoney's - budget food for hungry cyclists!

Race #5 and #6 were again a bit more north, this time in Spartanburg and Dilworth/Charlotte, NC. We stayed at a great place just outside Spartanburg which made things much easier, and Bailey, the Labradoodle kept things entertaining while not riding/racing. Spartanburg Crit was right downtown around Denny's headquarters on a Friday night and it was like riding a velodrome clockwise w/ out much light - again. The legs felt better and I was able to get in a break but yet again, a field sprint was pretty much pre-determined with the big sprinter teams looking to add V's to their winning record.

Bailey checking out our gear

I've done the Dilworth Crit back in '04 or '05 when guest-riding with OutdoorLightning on Thad Fissher's team. They have the race for 37(!) years in a row now. I really like the course: halfway up a longer hill/drag, but only 4-6% and big-chainring-material. The other half of the course is pretty much downhill and you make a 90degree left-hand turn at the bottom. Dilworth itself is a nice neighborhood and the race goes right around a park. We tried again to be in the right moves and get a result by hoping for a break would stick so we all took our turns jumping with stuff. I went from sitting at the back of the field to off the front only twice, the last time I rolled off with 5 to go to be joined by Adrian from UHC who wanted to set up his guys by having the other teams chase us down. But with 2 laps to go our little escape for primes was over and it ended up in yet another field sprint. Carlos cracked the Top20 but that was it for the day.

By the time we got to the last race, #7 in Sandy Springs just north of ATL, I was pretty worn out and had caught a the common cold somewhere along the way. After 30min I called it a day since my legs said "no mas" and that was the end of Speedweek. Thanks to family-friends Tony+Rebecca I got quick shower, dinner, and a ride to the airport to head back home. Time to get some rest + rebuilt!

Soggy Mineral Wells

Things are going upward from weekend to weekend and I went fast during the (rainy) TT at Mineral Wells Stage Race - probably the rainiest race I can remember doing here in Texas (2days in a row water, water, and more "crazy" water). Off to Georgia and Carolinas now for some Criterium racing. Looking forward to some fast crits before we're headed to my old Mercy stomping-grounds of Arkansas for Joe Martin Stage Race at the beginning of May.

Photo: The Racing Post