Eager To Race~

I set a very good course for this weekends CCCX XC race #2. The weather will be good on race day and the course is going to be very fast. There are steady climbing sections, some sharp climbing sections, and the rest is rolling and fast. I am so very eager to race. I am feeling very strong considering I had a bad crash this past Sunday and a root canal on my tooth on Monday. I still did the Tuesday night ride and felt good going uphill during the ride. I am working on feeling no pain and digging deep to suffer and then still perform when suffering my most.

It is a super busy weekend for me. I have my XC race on Saturday, then the High School Nor-Cal race on Sunday. And there is the CCCX DH race I set up for Toro park going off on Sunday as well.

UP AND DOWN........

This past Sunday I was leading the Folsom TBF race in my division on the last lap. The course was super fun as it was raining and muddy and I was having a blast in those terrible conditions. Then on a high speed downhill section I crashed hard and rammed my chin into a downed tree on the ground. Blood poured out and I had a huge hole under my chin. I finished the race but was passed by the rider who was behind me by 25 seconds when I crashed. So I went from first place and feeling up, to crashing hard and going down in a matter of seconds. That's racing! Still managed to finish 2nd place and was thankful I did not get knocked out or hurt worse when I hit the downed tree so hard chin first. It felt like I was hit in the chin with a baseball bat!

I then had a root canal the next day as I was racing with a infected tooth.

I always come back better, stronger, and faster after horrible ordeals. So this will only make me stronger!

Working On Improvement

It was climbing and group work tonight on the road bike. I will keep focusing on improvement. When the going got tuff during tonight's ride I felt my best. I really feel amazing at times on the bike, and I know my power and strength are growing. Last month I was so sick, and now I am starting to really feel like the improvement is coming at a rapid rate. I will continue to work hard, both physically and mentally.

That's Racing...

At the CCCX XC opener I felt really good early in the race. The pedaling felt easy and I was relaxed. Then a rider crashed in front of me, taking me over the bars with him! After that I lost power and just suffered the rest of the race. That's racing! There will be good, there will be bad, and sometimes it is all mixed together.

I was lucky to not get hurt in my crash. Then I just did the best I could to suffer on.... and make it to the finish. It was a long day in the saddle and the bad weather turned a good course into a real test of strength and technical ability.

I can be so much better, and I will learn from this experience. This difficult finish will only make me better.

Ready To Race

I am feeling ready to race. This Sunday's race is going to be really hard due to the rain and wind and cold weather that is in the forecast. I really like racing in the bad conditions, and I will have my chance this Sunday for sure!

CCCX RACE #1

I set the course for the CCCX Race #1 XC today. The course uses a few new trails that are really sweet, and I also use some of the old trails that were extra fun to ride on. I really think this race route is possibly the best mix of trails out there in Ft Ord. The weather forecast calls for heavy rain & wind. I am really looking forward to racing this course under severe Storm conditions.

TBF MTB WIN

I did the best I could at the TBF Race #1 this past Sunday. I felt good, not great, and gave everything I had on this day. Sometimes a good ride is just fighting as hard as possible, and taking on the pain of the effort when your not feeling great.

I fought extremely hard during the entire event, and just kept plugging away at the course as best I could. In the end I won my division with a time of 1 hour 44 minutes. I basically was solo for the whole race, and this kind of long, extended effort, will help out in future races. I know I can improve on this ride.

MTB RACE

This Sunday is the first MTB race of 2009, the TBF MTB race at Folsom. I really like this course. I will pre-ride the route on Saturday and give it a go in the race the following day.

Road Action

My legs are feeling much better as I am recovering from my month long illness. I almost won the field sprint at the Cal Aggie Crit. in Sacramento this past Saturday. Then won the Masters race at the "Lou" Night cross race in Fresno, despite crashing three times. On Sunday I felt really good on the bike and at the Early Bird Crit. I had a solid chance at winning the 1/2/3 series final. I finished 7th losing five spots in the group sprint right on the line. Then I backed that up with some strong group riding during the week in Monterey. It is the best feeling to gain strength instead of losing it being sick!