Flying Trapeze

This is my training regimen these days. Well, I did do some hills on Cuernavaca last nite. Let me know if you want to go flying with me . . .

Rain Rain Come Again

Last nite was Thursday nite, which means time for more Driveway action.

I convinced my lifelong friend Adam Gaubert to accompany me through the maelstrom.

Here are some fotos of the action. Thankfully, no one went down at the races.

I Love the Driveway

Last night was the 4th race in the 32 week long Driveway Series, put on by Holland Racing. www.drivewayseries.com

Since I've not been on the bike much lately, my form has been suffering, and consequently my performance at these races. As a result of the trip to the velodrome last weeekend, however, I experienced what real pain on the bicycle is all about.

So last night, I tried to re-create that track experience, and went for a couple of prime laps. It worked out! I managed the first prime and the crowd prime. My bounty included a bottle of shiner, some redbull, and a bit of cash.

Best of all, I did it on the night when I was wearing the coveted TWM slippers.

Austin. What a great place to live.

Freaky Tracky Stylie

Thanks to a very good friend of mine, this past weekend I tried something I never expected to do -- I got on a velodrome. No, this is not the machine which separates my Ft. Davis hematocrit from my Walburg blood samples, but in my experience it certainly did separate the men from the boys.

On Friday afternoon we traveled down to the Alkek Velodrome in "beautiful" Houston, Texas. Once there we received very friendly track certifications and practice sessions led by a multi-time U23 national track competitor, and of course, our borrowed metal steeds. Thank you to Alkek's folks on both counts.

[As I write this blog entry, I'm listening to Beastie Boys, Paul's Boutique, Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun. I just want you to know that, because it is really have an effect on the direction this entry is going . . . Son of a bitch gettin' rich!]

Anyway, we did the Friday night races. For the first two races, I had on the wrong cassette (my combination was a 49/17). I felt like a squirrel on speed, I was probably spinning at about 145 rpm trying to stay in the pack. I didn't stay in very long. Try again.

On Saturday, though, I had the right gearing. In the 10 lap scratch race, I barely missed a podium spot, with a hard fought 4th place. In the miss and out, I was robbed from what was a sure victory, since I know how to hold a wheel and certainly come across one. I was pulled and finished 5th place. Oh well! It was great fun.

In the attached fotos, you will see me sporting Sir Stefan's gallantry, as my precious Wooly kit was afraid of getting carved up on the track surface. You will note, however, that our famosity is well known even in Houston, where I left hearing the pleas of the promoter: "SirChris, thank you for coming, but next time, please wear your Wooly Kit."

That is all for now.

New Shoes

Sometimes I forget how important it is to bring to your fellow teammates' attention the fact that you have a new piece of specialty equipment.

Mine has come in the form of a pair of burgundy sidis, forma feminina, as my feets are especially delicate . . . yet the last point of connection between the power produced by my dense quads and the pedals on my machine.

Thanks to the Kemoto Dragon for pointing out my oversight, and the picture above displaying these beauties for all to see.

Gutterball Manor Manda Style

This past weekend was racing out east of Austin, with two races put on by a great local team, Velossimo Racing. Ronde von Manor and Ronde von Manda. Round and round they go. These are two olde school races, with lots of rollers, false flats and WIND. In the attached pictures, you may be able to see the bamboo blowing over, in addition to the byke racers.



Alas, I wasn't able to join the Kemoto Dragon at Saturday's race because I had other work obligations. Unfortunately for Kemot, he flatted out of the break with 3 miles to go. But on Sunday, I did venture out to join the Polish wunderkid to see how whether my two weeks of being sick, snowboarding, and having a busy work schedule had affected me any.



It did. After 3.3 laps of suffering at the wheels of PJ Rabice, Evan Lambert, and finally Adam Gaubert, I pulled the plug to make my way back to the car. My reward for lasting that long was a milky strawberry milkshake from Sonic.



Next time we hope to have better luck.