This is why I ride bicycles!!!

Call it my yoga, meditation, stress relief, or just that hour to unwind. After a day like this a bike ride does do the trick. Like all jobs, most days just tick by with routine. Then Mother Nature shows up on what should be a "milk run" to Austin, TX and you have anything but routine. I have to admit though, you can't beat the view!!!!!!! Ty

Friday Night Update (no photos)

Forgot the camera for the Friday night BMX races (sorry grandparents)! But things went a "little better for team IZZY than last week. Tommy was still getting great gate starts, only to get passed in straights 2 and 3. Several of the track regulars came up to me and said he needed more gear. So that's what were experimenting with this week. I hate to bog him down too much out of the gate, but a good start doesn't mean much if your 6Th place at the finish line! Izzy on the other hand actually found out that it is o.k. to pass people that are ahead of you! Several times he moved the bars to the left or right and made the pass. Now if he can learn to not let them get in front of him in the first place, we'll be set.
I'm still doing my morning "Greg pacing" thrashings. The fitness is coming around, and i'm starting to remember that falling off the back hurts worse than burying yourself to hold the wheel in front of you. Everyone racing Memorial Day Weekend, good luck and ride safe! Ty

Greg Pacing

It usually has another name (motor pacing). But I don't have a moped or anyone to drive it for me. So I just get the fastest guy I know aka Greg Harper and let him pull me around several mornings per week. Doing this will either make me better, or i'll be a young candidate for knee replacement surgery!
After my last race performance something needed to be done, and done with urgency. With the increase in effort along with some small diet changes, my weight is down and I am feeling better about my fitness level. This will last till the next race, then it's back to more Greg pacing. I keep telling him that some day i'll take a pull, but that hasn't happened yet.
Ty

Can Mushrooms Make You Race Faster?

I don't know if they help your endurance on the bike, but they sure are tasty fried in butter and chased with cold beer.

BMX Season Begins

If you think racing a crit is a contact sport, head for the East Moline fairgrounds and the BMX track behind the grandstands. There is no such thing as holding your line in the corners. Cutting the other rider off, and making other racers take the lesser line is the norm. Crashes are frequent, but injuries on the dirt are minimal. In a road race, guys would be screaming and feelings hurt, but for these kids "rubbing is racing". I love watching Izzy(clay) and Re-run(tommy) race more than I actually like racing myself mainly because they are better than me. If someday they both do clip into a road or cross bike, there bike handling skills will be out of this world. But that's just a proud dad dreaming!!!!!!

If You Finish Last, Did You Really Race?

I love (and hate) two bee races! Let me explain. First off Conn and his great group of volunteers are wonderful. If you can get to any of their races, you won't be sorry. And after my showing today I realize I need to get to more!
For me, all Conn's races follow the same pattern. 1. The race starts out at a comfortable pace, and I start thinking that my training must be paying off. 2. There are several accelerations, but I hold it together. I see all the Hammers around me, and I start dreaming of a cat 3 upgrade. 3. The race actually begins, and I see the string of riders through glazed eyes leave me behind. 4. I find several other riders just like me, and pace line it to the finish. and finally 5. Start wondering what I can do better next off season to stay with the pack just one more hill longer before being dropped.
This pattern stayed true to form on Sat. But you have to have a first race of the year sometime. I did have two teammates in the race, and they both did quite well. Bill Ford got 4Th overall, and Chad Bishop was a much better teammate than me (off the back). Not sure how Chad finished, but they are both riding strong this year.
See everyone next race!