I'm not really a blogger anymore

But, I'm going to blog. I took this blog down in its most recent iteration because of some technical difficulties I was having with it. But that was premature.

Well, after a year off racing, in which I, of course, gained a ton of weight, spent far too much time restlessly watching youtube videos of criteriums and photos from the 1980s of bike racing (and I honestly felt rudderless much of the time) I was graciously invited by some good friends to join a masters 40+ team based out of St. Louis. It was just what I needed to feel motivated again--about the sport and about my role in it.

Cycling, and bike racing, have been such a huge part of my life for 3 decades now. I've seen it ebb and flow, seen the rise and fall of many fads in the sport. But it is a beautiful, beautiful sport that I miss participating in.

The anti-Tour de France

Big sponsors (Cadillac?). The "Lance" factor. (Yawn). Carbon bikes that are possibly doped along with their riders. (Ugh). As I sit here in my slight post-surgery malaise, I guess I'm wishing for a bit simpler time, when the riders were doped on dangerous amphetamines, chain smoked after stages, and ate horse meat.

I have hairy legs, an aluminum bike, and Ultegra brakes from 1994 on said bike. I wish there were some sort of "anti-USA Cycling" league, where old guys who may or may not have raced as juniors in the 1980s, have a couple of kids and a mortgage, sometimes work 50 hour weeks, and can't afford to buy anything but used components from 2002, could all show up and have it out on the race course. Oh, and hairy legs are a must. Goddamit I don't have time to shave my legs, and I'm convinced that leg shaving is actually kind of silly for amateur racers. I mean, its great to look all Euro-pro in a Cat 3 race, but who, aside from yourself, really gives a shit? Its all about the riding . . .

Mt. Evans Hill Climb

It has been 12 years since I last did this race. 1998 was a wash--I finished in nearly dead last, with most notable thing occurring when Jeannie Longo flew by my on one of the last hairpins--she'd started 45 minutes after me!

But 1997--I performed out of my mind for a complete non-climber and finished 37th out of about 60 guys in the Cat 3 race with a time of 2:29. Perhaps that doesn't seem that great on paper, but believe me, it was one of the best performances of my Cat. 3 life.

All those boys from the front range took off like it was a downtown crit at the beginning. I was like "fuck you guys, I'm riding my own race here," and I drifted off the back. For awhile there, I believe I was in last place (little did I know that I was not in last place, but see the footnote for that). About 7 miles into the race, when the false flat out of Idaho Springs really begins to kick up, I started picking off guys. Just a few here and there. By the time I arrived at Echo Lake I was feeling fantastic and was probably lying near the top 50. Beyond the Lake--I really started to pick off those whose ambitions were crumbling. A Colorado Velo guy here, a GS Boulder guy there. Maybe a Vitamin Cottage guy or two. Guys riding like they were standing still, just flailing. The weather that day was nice, but quite cold and a bit windy past Echo Lake (but sunny).

About 5 miles from the summit, I finally started to feel the effort and if the event had been longer than 28 miles I would have shattered. I'd picked off the last guy I was going to pass, and then was unceremoniously passed by a rider in a Lefler Quantum skinsuit--who later turned out to be crazy Ira from Iowa City. He'd had some kind of mechanical lower on the slopes. I was just clinging to my place. I'd been in the 39-19 and 21 most of the day, I dropped it down to the 23 (and was actually kind of wishing for a 25). Those final switchbacks just hurt like hell.

I was so happy after I crossed the line. I finished right behind my fellow Forest Service co-worker Christopher Jones, an expert mountain biker and mountain goat in his own right. I was dizzy, euphoric, the same feeling I had when I hiked 14ers that year. I just bombed the descent, getting down in less than 30 minutes.

It still remains one of the very best days and memories of my life.

(footnote): I learned a few months later that one of my very good friends, sda, had made the trip from Lincoln the day before, made it to the start line at least 15 minutes late, but still finished in a respectable time, not that far behind me and probably would have finished near the leaders if not for the regrettable delay. . .

Close calls

We have a peaceful road in Boone County called Rangeline. However, the universe did not seem to be aligned correctly last night--I was on the road for work and people were driving like idiots and the traffic was terrible, I was almost broadsided (on the side that my 4 year old daughter was sitting) by some dude who was obviously on drugs at about 6pm on Worley St.

Then this happens to these cyclists out on Rangeline. All of these guys I consider friends. I'm so glad that no one was hurt. And I'm amazed that the woman in the car came through unscathed. The photos above tell everything--she tried to pass and overcorrected--ended up going end over end. Scary stuff.

NEMO Triathlon

My neighbor and good buddy Joe and I have decided to train for the NEMO Triathlon in September. I realize that I need an event to train for to maintain fitness right now. For some reason, I've never really been able to do the "fitness for fitness sake" thing very well. I have to compete on some level.

NEMO is one of the most fun and safest triathlons around. Their army of volunteers makes for an amazing day. Should be fun.

First day of Spring

To segment this winter perfectly into one of the harshest in memory, we received snow and ice yesterday. I had planned to ride this weekend. I would like to rebuild my weakened (weekend) fitness base.

An interesting turn of events has been a sudden return of pain in my left knee, which has been bothering me since 1987. I have this condition. A few years ago I think some cartilage was displaced in a mishap involving getting up from a too low stool for a drum kit making the condition a bit more extreme.

So, I've started to perform this regime:

10 years ago

At exactly this moment 10 years ago I was about to awaken to another day of cycling through the Belgian countryside. You see, I spent almost a month in the Brussels area visiting my brother and his wife, who had a Fulbright Fellowship. But I've told that story before.

I'd like to recommend a good book: Tomorrow we Ride.

Springtime

I pretty much did not blog for a year, but I realized that I missed it quite a bit. Fortunately, I'd saved the old/old monkeysaspets.blogspot.com as an XML file. I retrieved it, and combined all of my blogs into one monkeysaspets. All the posts are here, photos, comments, from back to 2005!

I have literally not ridden my bike since late September of last year. It has been one of the longest hiatus from the bike that I've taken since I lived in Alaska in the early 1990s (when I did not ride a bicycle for almost 2 years). Our second daughter, Lillian, was born on Nov 14th, 2009, and some strange things have happened at work that required me getting a second job. Not to mention this winter was, well, the hardest winter in Missouri I remember since about 1986. So very nice to get back on the bike again. There is nothing like cycling.