Justin Lund Ultra Endurance Mountain Bike Racer

2011 Hogsback CX Highlights

2011-11-25T21:29:00.001-06:00

Date for the 2012 Hogsback Cross Attack

2011-11-21T17:50:00.001-06:00

Good News! We got the date for the 2012 Hogsback Cross Attack V2.0

Save this date to your calendar....9/29/2012 (world isn't supposed to end till after this so plan to attend....HA!)

We've moved it to an earlier date for 2012 to coincide with other area events and cycling schedules throughout the state. (minus the WCA Cyclocross series which is impossible to schedule around since they have races every Sat/Sun starting around that time anyway) Only conflict is Bear Paw WORS Race, but seriously that's on Sunday Sept 30th...the hogsback is on Saturday September 29th and not too far out of the way especially if you are from the great white north.

The 2012 version 2.0 will have have a revised start/lap/finish area on the road just down the hill from the sandpit swingset. Since the weather should still be somewhat warm we are including a few additional things.

- 50/50 Hill Climb TT (I think we'll just call it Helltrack TT) - 50% to the winner and prizes to round out the top 3 in both male and female categories (if you think the equalizer is bad try this one on I may just name it Helltrack for the fact that the race has virtually a wall in it and resembles this very much just longer.)

- Post race party till park closes at 9pm at the cabin (more details to come on that later)

- Kids race will end the day after the "A" Race finishes. This will be followed by the ~~Hillclimb~~ Helltrack TT.

- Different pricing schedule for 2012 is also in the works. Something to the effect of race in as many as you want for a flat fee, family rate, and first timer fees. So much more to think about and get set up, but very excited for it.

If you happen to know of another cross race being planned for 2012 up north (from Wausau to Duluth let me know hogsbackcx@yahoo.com , I am working to put together a UpNort CX Triple Crown Series as well which could be interesting.

Course Map and Directions

2011-11-09T06:54:00.000-06:00

Directions To The Event:

From South:

Take US-51 N to WI-86 West/County Rd D East (exit 229)
Turn Left onto WI-86 West/County Rd D East
Turn Left onto N 4th St
Turn first Right onto W Wisconsin Ave
Turn Left onto N Tomahawk Ave
Turn first Right onto W Spirit Ave
Follow the signs to Bradley Park Rd

From North:

Take US-51 S to WI-86 West/County Rd D East (exit 229)
Turn Right onto WI-86 West/County RdD East
Turn Left onto N 4th St
Turn first Right onto W Wisconsin Ave
Turn Left onto N Tomahawk Ave
Turn first Right onto W Spirit Ave
Follow the signs to Bradley Park Rd

For GPS use the address:
Bradley Park Rd
Tomahawk, WI

Course Map:

Welcome to the Blogosphere Josey

2011-10-20T22:03:00.002-05:00

Kid is going to be good.

http://joseyweik.blogspot.com/

Hogsback Cross Attack Course Preview

2011-10-08T12:53:00.000-05:00

My Favorite Training Partner

2011-10-03T20:31:00.001-05:00

Who or what is your favorite training partner and think about your answer? Many may find that a favorite partner may be a friend, rider at similar ability or even better yet faster. Others may find that a favorite tire, power meter, or Ipod may be their favorite training partner. All are acceptable things for people to consider their must have and favorite training partner, but for me it's something of a different element...literally.

The wind is my favorite training partner. It's there to give you a push when you need it. It roars in applause through your ears each and every time you pick up the effort. It doesn't let up when you want quit and when you think about quitting sometimes it punches you in the face more just to make a point that you can push through the pain cave. The wind is just as capable of showing mercy as it is to delivering a punishment that no other training partner or race can give you.

In those early spring rides where the wind teams up with other friends like rain, snow, and the little amount of hills we have here in Wisconsin. They will give you an experience that can only be described in single words like epic, legendary, insane, you get the idea.

Wind is my favorite training partner. Although the roaring applause will sometimes slow the average speed your heart will still beat faster and make you that much stronger. By seasons end all you can hear is the roaring cheers coming from your training partner, hopefully by then the cheers are deafening.

2011 Hogsback CX Course

2011-09-29T10:26:00.001-05:00

The race course has been laid out via GPS, Changed significantly from the original course mapped back in August to shorten up the lap. Kids will not do the new section and will go straight to the run up.

Register early!!!! This is going to be a great weekend. Click HERE to get to the site and look for the entry form or link on the to the Bikereg site on the right side of the page.

Thanks to the following sponsors for coming through.

Tomahawk Mainstree Inc.
Tomahawk Chamber of Commerce
Tomahawk Internet Cafe
Tomahawk Surplus Store
Redeye Brewing Company - Wausau
Van's What's Brewin
Sammy's Subs
Sprocketz Bike Shop - Weston
Infinit Nutrition
Planet Bike
Clif Bar
and more to come....

Chequamegon

2011-09-20T21:10:00.000-05:00

I look forward to this race each and every year. Full of tradition staying with the Performa and BikeHub/Specialized teams and lining up for 40 miles with close to 2000 other riders.

I pull in to our beautiful home for the weekend at around 2 and by 3:30 we split up and some go pre-ride the course and register while others hung back by the cabin. Nate Jasperson decides to go for a ride and after thinking about my week leading up to the race I decided to join him for a ride around the lake. We certainly were outsiders to the road riding scene of Hayward Wisconsin where we encountered one of these road rider creatures. This character clearly looked at us in disgust as we waived in passing leading to his ultimate snubbing of us and our kind gesture besides who rides mountain bikes on the road in Hayward Wisconsin on the week of the 40? It was a nice ride over the river and through the woods back to our cabin for the weekend.

Upon our arrival to the cabin we descended into Telemark to pick up our bags and number plates, plus check out the merch out on display. These guys have the registration dialed and all were excited and happy to help which at times may not always seem to be the case at other events, so things were going pretty well up to this point.

We get back to enjoy some dinner that Nate and Kim made. Frankly, this may need to be the go forward prerace food as I felt awesome the next day despite a couple of Leinies Oktoberfest that were consumed with dinner. Prepped our stuff for race day and off to bed.

We had an early wake up to go stage our bikes. The plan was to get there and get in line to stage our bikes as close to the front as possible. Normally I like to stay to either side and not the middle but found I would in past races get lost out the back cause the faster wheels to follow were going through the center as a large group. So I staged about 5 rows back behind the preferred start punks (aka lucky bastards) took a look at where we were at in hopes to remember that same spot at 9:45 after 1900 more people put their bikes in behind you....ha...the likeliest of scenarios.

So we pull up to our normal parking area for the race the same spot that Brett has parked for the last 8 years only to find a wedding was going down that day (what a bad choice on day since if you are local you know it's cheqfat weekend.) so we parked in front of the building anyway and did the stretch, snack, stretch, warmup, use the portajohn, stretch, use the porta john routine. Then and only then we could go to staging.

The start of the race went off without the cannon as it didn't fire when it was supposed to but no worries as there wasn't much of an issue due to the general population and preferred start mixer that always happens when the gun goes off and we always catch the back group of the preferred starters. As always there were a few hard brakes but seemed less than in years past. I stuck onto Brett's wheel as long as I could until just before Rosie's field and the trail closed up, I went to the left, he was somewhere in the center I think, but in reality he was already gone so I was now on my own to chase. At this point I sat in comfortably in the top 100 or so and I think I knew this cause I was recognizing many people in this group like Joel Hynes, Randy, Tim Ek and many others so I was pretty happy. I would hold this and pass on the climbs for about the first five miles.

About five miles in I get a funny wobble in my rear wheel just before a climb which led to a wheel buzzing. I stopped immediately on the side of the trail to assess the damage thinking I blew another hub, but was surprised to see that my quick release had come undone and flipped open. So as 150 or more people flew by in the few minutes I calmly flipped the bike over and make sure that I kept the wheel aligned correctly and that it was tight. Somewhere during this process I didn't realize that my seat bag became opened and lost all of the contents so I hoped to not get a flat or break a chain. After that fiasco I chased up the hill to begin recovering the spots I had lost. I had a difficult time finding a good group to ride with. Each group I caught I would get to the front thinking I could pull and then cycle through, but each time I did so I looked back to see no one was there. This would happen well past OO. I would again face a tense moment when two riders came together in the middle of the trail which pushed a rider into me. Luckily we both saved it and marched on up the hills, but from there I lost Ek who had caught me seconds before the crash took place. This really made me mad cause if I wanted to make a move to push for a good placing he would be the one I would need to stick with no matter what.

From there I would continue to fly up the climbs push hard on the fire roads and ride strong up fire tower hill. At this point each year I feel a cramp coming on at the top, but also each year I get motivated to push the limits and make my move once I hit the birkie trail. From the time the guy announcing placing on the course (I wonder how he is keeping track of 300+ by the time he got to me) I went from 300 after losing so much time 5 miles in to 340 and then come through to telemark on Jshoe's wheel finishing in 276th out of 1919 finishers. I do know I can ride a better race than that, but I did set a new PR for me at 2h37min and really I can live with that.

Tradition doesn't end with the race, however, we migrated back to the cabin to discuss things like salads, goats, and the methods behind the superman costume and after some stories were shared we then visited the original (OG) Famous Daves. It was a great race weekend and it really reminds me why I got into this whole racing thing to begin with so thanks to Nate and Kim for setting up the cabin and dinner and to everyone out there that shared the great time.

Hogsback CX Race is on!

2011-09-14T08:48:00.000-05:00

Come get some on 11/12/2011 at Bradley Park in Tomahawk, WI. Cyclocross racing starts at 10am with the kids race with the experts and pros at 1pm. Flannels, costumes, and moustaches are highly encouraged...it is afterall taking place in the northwoods and besides who says you can only wear costumes on Halloween!

Kids Race is $10
"B" and "C" races are $25
"A" race is $30

There may be a hill climb challenge as well after it's all said in done depends on how many takers/racers there are.

Website:
http://www.hogsbackcx.blogspot.com/

http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=14300

So I Wanna Try Something Different

2011-08-25T21:02:00.000-05:00

Okay so earlier this year (February) I purchased a Kona Cross bike due to the fact that the ride would be best suited for a bike like that on roads in my area. Some of you may not like this and I get it, but I am going to do some Cyclocross races this fall/winter. It's been something I've been thinking about for a while now and with the re-kindled relationship I have with running on grass and dirt, I think this will be right up my alley.

Had my first practice on Wednesday with Ben Koenig, Casey Hildebrandt, Matt Block and Justin Braathen. The touture on the hot laps was the most fun in a long time.

I will of course still race my mountain bike, but I need to mix it up.

July Is Here and I Think My Legs Are To

2011-07-15T10:16:00.000-05:00

July started off with a bang (no pun intended of course) I was really looking forward to the Thunderdown 10 Hour Solo and rightfully so considering this was a home race for me. This course is hard enough to eliminate any advantage you think you have as the Underdown and Bill himself has mysterious ways of inflicting pain upon those who dare to take his or her opponents to war at his homestead. I made the threat of ripping apart the course and Mr. Underdown didn't take too kindly to my first shot fired at his direction. He made me pay unleashing insects, taking the chain off my crank, turning open trails into a virtual oven, and this would leave me and my battered soul for dead, but I wouldn't let it end that way and despite my stomach distress and other pain that I care not to mention, I felt the reward of sticking it out and Bill gave me that last push of energy to finish a final strong 3/4 of lap 3 to finish the race in 3rd place. No growler would be in the cards for me this year but the taste of redeye's finest brew was well worth the punishment that the Underdown had bestowed upon me.

Wait.....there's more....Thunderdown was July 2nd I would again be called upon to toe the line on Independence Day for a 5K run beatdown as part of Tomahawk's annual Pow-Wow Days celebration and I wasn't sure what to expect here since I haven't devoted any time to running since just before the WEMS opener at the Stump Farm so no running since mid April...I was to die out there for sure with the heat index close to 100 again, but I abandoned all fear cause in the end it was only going to be a run of less than a half hour or so "I can ride a bike for over 24 hours I should be able to survive a 5K with no problem" Is what I said to myself as I was heading to the start line ready to take off with over 350 starters. I along with an old teammate of mine from back on the Tomahawk Cross Country Team used old tactics to quickly make our way to the chase group of around 20 people where he clearly had the legs that day and I was happy to maintain visual contact for the duration and finished with a time of 21:32 and 26th overall out of 340 finishers. I would then circle back and jog backwards on the course to locate my two cousins and uncle who were running the 10K in which I would run with each one to the finish line until all have crossed. I would need a couple of days to recover after that sequence of training.

Not less than a week later I would start to get a feel for this whole bikepacking thing. I loaded up my Kona Jake and Ergon BD1 pack and headed for Minocqua and more specifically The Minocqua Brewing Company. I thoroughly enjoyed riding the hiawatha-bearskin trails for the 80 mile out and back journey loaded up with around 20lbs of random gear.

This week and going foward my heart will race and I will dream in anticipation for the biggest journey into the darkness of the pain cave I will face this season. It's about two weeks away and I am slowly transitioning over to full on Wausau24 mode. I am already thinking about how to break my laps down to get the number of laps I need or feel will need to be competitive. I spend time telling myself that I am in a place where I can be a legitimate threat for the podium barring the unknown. I constantly think through my nutrition and where I went wrong last year and how to improve upon it based on weather, terrain, competition and other variables. There are so many things to consider when going into a 24 hour solo race besides just riding your bike till your racing heart pumps battery acid, for example: Battery life and charging, Pace, Setting up for the run, when to pick up lights and eat, how many calories are going in, weather, pit area location, support, battery charging (yes, I mentioned this twice), list goes on.... So as of today 7/15/2011 I grow more and more excited to roll out onto the course for the first of many laps and will continue to dream/daydream of descending down trail #1 and crossing over redbud road again after the midnight hour to be greeted by the superfans and music so loud it gives you goose bumps each and every time you pass by.

This is no time for excuses or to forget the lessons that the ghost of Bill Underdown has taught me. I will be victorious in some sense of the word, victory and accomplishment is based upon the goals you set for yourself along with your faith in yourself and knowing that there are much larger forces watching over you and at times protecting you from yourself, I will live and die by that very sword on race day. Oh and a little extra motivation never hurts either and how just a single comment can give you that extra push with about 2 weeks to go. I am ready for 25 hours of pain probably more so than years past. As Tim Wilcox would say.....GET SOME!!

What are you doing this weekend?

2011-06-29T21:51:00.002-05:00

Day 1 of Skyrider Build - Tear Down

2011-06-03T13:10:00.000-05:00

If only it were always that easy.....

First step was to disassemble it down to the frame and try not to ingest heaping servings of rust. The crank, wheels, and frame had large amounts of surface rust on it. Oh how there is a silver lining....I found a solution in the form of aluminum foil and coke which allowed me to remove the rust from chrome, the crank looks like the new and the sidewalls of the wheels look nicely polishedl but in need of a good truing. The best part is all but the seatpost collar was attached bike should only need a chain, tires and tubes, and some additional hardware like a saddle to make it right. Paint will need to be done to prevent tetanus shots from being a requirement upon riding this.

(Can you tell which side got the coke/foil treatment?)

(Before)

(After)

Lessons learned so far: rusted screws threaded onto rusted bolts call for a dremmel tool. You will give yourself a headache if you think wd-40 and a socket/wrench is going to loosen it for you.

In case you were wondering what happend with my chicago schwinn varsity. There is some welding and cutting going on right now....I did not appreciate the kickstand being part of the frame. I also just recently accquired a Schwinn Continental (so i've been told) for $5 Can't wait to pick that up also I have a unidentified tandem from either the late 50's or early 60's.

That is all for now.

12 Hours of Northern Kettles

2011-06-03T12:57:00.000-05:00

"The only way around is through"
~ Robert Frost

The quote above can sometimes be equally as dangerous as it is
inspirational. Allow me to explain.

Friday comes around and I am feeling light, had a good pre-ride, dinner
was excellent, bike was in working order and I was ready to rawwwkk. No
issues on the horizon....just yet.

Saturday morning comes, pit area is set up, I along with the rest of the
12 hour crazies zipped up and chamois'd up our super hero costumes and
took to the course. Race started off with a short run up a tubbing hill
and back down into the first section of singletrack. I took it really
easy but kept the others in eye sight and settled in behind Rich and Ty

sliding around on the slick rocks from the dampness left over from
Friday night's rain shower. It was clear myself along with Ty selected
wrong tires for the first two laps but conditions improved dramatically
by lap 3. Speaking of lap 3, that's when things began to go terribly
wrong. I started feeling a tight feeling in my knee and in turn I found
it hard to get up the climbs and that turned into a sharp pain. Then on
lap 4 I was having issues with descending. Lap 5 I started getting the
pain on the flats and really couldn't put any power down on the 6th and
would be final lap of the day. Typically I would normally find a way
through as that is usually the only way as the quote would suggest but,
I couldn't fight my way through this one....not this time....not like I
did at 12 hours of pitchblack where I only had 4 laps to go as I was
only 6 out of 12 hours into the race. I had to waive the white flag and
listen to my body if I wanted any shot of doing well at the wausau24
solo this year.

Sure, yeah, I was disappointed, dejected, and frustrated that I left
running because of this very same issue and has tracked me down again to
unleash a brutal attack on this bike racing hobby of mine. Despite
feeling great and poised to start backing down on lap times I physically
could not do a thing about it.

Next steps....re-do the fit. Sometimes we all have to undergo some
change in our lives everything from Work, life, and even physical
changes will happen it's just a matter of when and how you deal with
them. There is a great quote that gets me past all of this and reads
"The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese"
from the book Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson helped me realize
that the quicker I let go of my current fit, current injury, and other
issues the sooner I will find a new solution and move on and enjoy my
cheese (bike racing) once again.

Wausau Big Ring Classic? Sure I'll be there, but that could change
depending how I am feeling and I approach it from a weatherman's
prospective. I am predicting I'll be fine for the big ring, but there
is a 30% chance of nope. Should certainly be a go for the Southern
Kettles WEMS race though. Sunny skies ahead!

1960's AMF Roadmaster Skyrider Project

2011-06-01T11:27:00.000-05:00

Okay, So a relative found this and another relic rotting away in barn (who hasn't heard that before). This happens to be a 1960's AMF Roadmaster Skyrider (womens). This will be a resoration project which I had started earlier last night. My goal is to keep it as original as possible and only replace parts missing or inoperable. Stay Tuned for updates!

The Wisconsin Abyss Shows Signs of Spring and Then....

2011-05-16T12:45:00.000-05:00

I woke up on race day!

The Abyss otherwise known as spring in Wisconsin has taken its toll on the author, racer, dad, trainer, or whatever my codename is for the week, but over the last month I've received a little help from a pretty well known racer here along the 44th parallel and the help was muchly appreciated and certainly needed so thank you Scott!! My rides have become more thought out and with a purpose, but most importantly fun. I am going into the first WEMS Race of the year optimistic that I will ride consistently, but the racer in me has a lot voices in the back of my mind not allowing me to forget the events of last fall that will be hard to ignore once I get to the start line. Some thoughts are good, those are the ones you want to keep to ensure a good positive attitude others need some correcting and there is only one way to correct those thoughts and that's by bringing the Metal!

Now to the boring bike geek stuff....I am carefully plotting my Maxxis tire selection. Since Ben and Amy Welnak were in town I knew it was going to rain, now the question is how much? The course is pretty sandy and fights away water pretty well....to a point and in certain areas not so much. The Ikons are more agressive in tread pattern than the Aspens, but the Cross Marks are right up there. Another option would be a cross between the Ikon on the back and the Ignitor on the front.....choices....choices, but I stuck with the Ikons and was I suprised how well they handled the wet conditions Also, the Salsa has seen some changes from my friends at the Hayes Group. Answer Carbon riser bar and Manitou's new Tower Pro 29er fork will help lighten the bike up some while giving me a little more support in the cockpit. Nutrition is arriving by the box full. I will be chewing up on some Honey Stinger Fruit Smoothie Gummies and Gels when needed along with my 100 miler mix I created with the help of Infinit Nutrition.

Friday afternoon bike shakedown took place, followed by a lovely dinner and entertainment provided by BikeHub/Specialized's very own JShoe!!!! Saturday it was game on at the WEMS Opener StumpFarm 100.
I started off faster than I normally would to see what I had, but I knew right away that my legs felt really heavy so I basically let Schotz go and tried taking it easy for the rest of the first lap, which turned into 7 more just like it. I couldn't get anything going until about half way through lap 9 I started feeling a little lighter on my feet so I gave it a shot and kinda glad I did as I closed a pretty large gap between rich lytle and myself, but made a really bad choice in lines towards the end that slowed me down enough to close the door. It did feel good to go that hard though....I just don't think my body was ready for that effort for every lap yet this season. It's always fun to go in to a race every so often with no expectations but to ride consistent laps and have fun (which can be tough when it's cold and rainy like it was). Plus the sooner I got done the sooner I got my mint oreo blizzard.

A special thanks to Nacho at Sprocketz for tubes and the tire tool, thank god I didn't need either, but Sprocketz has my back if I did.

Little Miami River Ride

2011-03-24T17:43:00.000-05:00

Introducing MUD

2011-02-17T12:20:00.000-06:00

Introducing MUD, the Latest Product from Infinit

Wake up...Drink MUD. That is the battle cry for INFINIT Nutrition's newest product, MUD. Inspired by mountain bikers but appealing to all athletes, MUD is a coffee/mocha-flavored, pre-race meal replacement or recovery drink loaded with protein, natural chocolate, aminos, premium flax and 3 carbs. Simplicity and effectiveness go hand-in-hand in this all-natural meal that is easy to digest on race morning or even on the way to work. Add just one single scoop of MUD to skim milk or water, hot or cold, and you are ready to rock your day. A special blend of coffees made especially for INFINIT gives MUD its tasty flavor and "caffeine like a cup of joe and energy like a granola bar in each serving."

So, whether you are looking for a breakfast in a bottle, mid-day jolt or recharge after a tough ride, choose MUD for your high-octane drink. INFINIT Nutrition's Chief Powder maker says "this is the best tasting INFINIT to date. Think liquid mocha ice cream in a bottle." Yummmmmm...

Available now at the introductory price of $25 for 22 servings, there is no better time to Drink MUD.

Want to try this or anything else? Go here and use the code "enduroloco" at checkout for a 10% discount off your order. Customize your nutrition with Infinit Nutrition!

Snowbiking

2011-02-03T06:15:00.001-06:00

Bundled up for 2 degree riding in the great white north eh!

New Partnership - Infinit Nutrition

2011-01-04T11:58:00.001-06:00

So lets take a minute and rewind to Wausau24 2009. Infinit Nutrition was a sponsor of the 24 hour series at the time and also supported the like of Chris Eatough (thanks for the training plan and contact info btw) and Pua Sawicki. We were all greeted with giftcards to try some of their phenominal creations and after I tried some in the pits during the 12 hour that year I liked the taste and ordered my first bag with the gift card provided.

I can't seem to eat "real" solid foods during races I needed a one stop shop and while using the slide bars on the website I was able to dial in what I needed to race hard for the time I needed to. I continued to change the formula slightly till I got exactly where I wanted it and continued to order bags of it and will continue to do so going into 2011.

The way I see it. You go with what works and you do what you can to spread the word and support what gets results. If there is one thing you don't do it's mess with nutrition, Infinit Nutrition lets you dial it in exactly to your individual specifications because no two people are made up of the exact same body composition. So going into 2011 I would like to welcome Infinit Nutrition as a sponsor for 2011. Stay tuned for some additional info if you were looking to try some.

1st Skate of the Season

2010-12-20T20:45:00.000-06:00

So let me rewind back to last winter. Brand new cord groomed nicely into the freshly fallen Wisconsin snow and all I could think about was getting my skate ski on. I was determined last year to not give up on skating and shut up, quit whining and gut it out. I would go great on flats and gradual climbs, but REALLY struggle on the steeper climbs to the point where I would "waddle" up after I lost the momentum I carried into the hill. This would continue for a few more weeks until I finally cleared everything and began to put together solid laps under the lights. Towards the end of the season I felt and maybe at times looked like a "real" skater.

Fast forward to tonight, I get out there and feel comfortable right away. My heart rate was through the roof mostly cause my cardio was absent for a great deal of time, but the consistent weight training allowed me to make it through each and every hill no stopping and 2 more laps than I would normally do on the first attempt at skate skiing for the year. I have now come to the realization that I don't ATTEMPT skate skiing anymore, I just pull the laces tight and go. The only thing I noticed right away was the heart rate. I spent 66% of the above threshold and noticed 198bpm come up a couple of times and on top of that I averaged 180bpm.....so to say I have some cardio work to do is an understatement is laughable at best, but it's the first real sustained effort of the year and it felt damn good. If this is any indication of how 2011 is going to go.....I am really looking forward to that first dirty tire race of the year.

Make of it what you will when it comes to walking with skate skis on, but keep in mind not one person showed me technique nor have I been doing this very long at all. This is a good accomplishment to continue to build on in my eyes.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Christmas and New Year!

SK8 er' Die Dude!

Introducing Charlee Jayne Lund

2010-11-27T17:22:00.000-06:00

Charlee Jayne Lund

Born 11/23/2010 at 12:05 AM. 9lbs 2oz and 20.6 in long.

Mom, Dad and Baby are doing great.

RAD Things Done on a Bike List

2010-11-13T21:23:00.001-06:00

(Note: If you don't make the list this year just remember even Cru Jones got his shot)

This list is dedicated to those who have done RAD stuff with or on bikes. It can be shop owners, industry gurus, riders bouncing back and those who have simply kicked some ass at some point this year In no particular order.

Dan Schuester - Boy oh boy what can you say about Dan that hasn't already been said. Inpirational was the first word to came to my mind. This guy would be the last I would expect to suffer from a stroke of this magnitude and on top of that the recovery process and the ability to get on a mountain bike and ride trails of nine mile again seemed like the Mt. Everest of rehab. I had mixed feelings about the whole thing. I first thought he'll be fine and on the bike again by opening day and really underestimated what had taken place. Another side of me thought about my fitness and how if it can happen to a guy as fit as Dan it can happen to me to and to appreciate the time I have to spend with my friends on the bike and my family at home. Finally, knowing and seeing how determined he was to get back on the bike again made me realize how anything can be possible and before long he was back on the bike out at nine mile turning the cranks out of trail #8.

Tim Wissbroecker - What can I say about this guy. Flash back to July. He gets hit by a car and they speed off, he is basically left for dead. Shattered bones, busted up bike, and oh the pain he and his family would go through. He would, however, come back in ways that would rival a story like Rocky and is now on his bright red Felt getting ready for Ironman Wisconsin 2011. Welcome back to race buddy!

John "Nacho" Nowaczyk and Sprocketz Bike Shop - We all know the last two years have been rough. Companies going bankrupt, ponzi schemes depleting our wealth and trust on Wall Street, people losing their jobs for reasons out of their control. John here was no different. Not only did he lose his job but lost it on his birthday. Did he cry about it? Hell no!!! He instead gave the City of Weston something it needed for the longest time and that was a bike shop. In February Sprocketz Bike Shop was born and has the backing of a proud city and a large cycling community. Sounds like something out of a storybook or made for T.V. movie.

Chris Peariso - One of the nicest guys on the circuit and is a great rep for the Adventure 212 team, but this guy will destroy you and leave you crying for mommy at an MTB race of any distance. He was known for primarily rocking the WORS series year after year, posting finishes as consistent as lance while he won his 7 tours, but it so turns out he can be found putting the hurt on the field at some stage races and 100 milers alike. Most recently the NUE Series Cohutta 100.

Ben Koenig - 4th at 24 Hours of Moab. He came back to Moab proving that his 3rd place finish last year was by no means a fluke. This guy pushes the limits of himself and his equipment every time he toes the line. I remember riding with him this summer and to keep up with him I am bouncing off of trees, going over my bars, he's washing out in the sand. I learned a couple of things that day riding with him.

Tim Buffington - 1st Place SS at 12 Hours of Underdown. I have never heard of this guy till toeing the line with him at Underdown. I was charging trying to get myself a RedEye jersey when I look back and he was there and breathing harder than any racer I've ever heard and cranking his Singlespeed like he had the ghost of Bill Underdown chasing him with an axe. I didn't know whether or not he was going to make it that lap or the remaining laps, but he sure as hell did and was close to his fellow DBD brotherin Tim Ek who also deserves mention for winning that race.

Tristan Schouten - Made waves early on at the Subaru Cup Pro XCT and never looked back winning the WORS overall and crankin out top 5's in the USGP of Cyclocross (one race even had a pushup wager on the line)

Brian Matter - Iceman!!!!! He not only won it, but destroyed a field littered with Olympians, National Champs and the best of the Midwest. I may be a little biased seeing as though he was the person responsible for Salsa in my basement. I am hoping he left a little bit of his expertise on that bike so I can go faster next year. Well done and bravo...please win the situp bet on day 2 of Ft. Collins.

Chris Schotz - Underdown.....What else can I say, this trail system has such a grassroots feeling yet up to today's standards in sustainability. I would brag more about these trails but frankly I want to selfishly keep them to myself.

Josey Weik - This 13 year old is racing with the big boys and is no stranger to the podium regardless of where he goes mtb or cross, mud or snow, 30 or 100 degrees. Watch out for this kid.

Danielle Musto - Dominance is what I use to describe her performance at Wausau24. She crushed the womens field and when that was done she took a shark sized bite out of the mens as well. I was lucky enough to ride with her for a few laps and was simply amazed, but not shocked at how well she rode. She has also posted some ridiculous results on her singlespeed and like me rides the red hot Salsa Mamasita.

Scott Cole - Cheqfat, need I say more. For the record I will not make that challenge to him for that race EVER again. He flat out throttled that race in a very impressive way. He goes on this list every year as he is certainly the endurance rider I look up to. Good work (I still owe a blizzard by the way)

So that's it....so far.....If you have an item you would like to add email me at mtbkr81(at)gmail okay....great

Till We Meet Again,

GET SOME!

2010 Wrap Up (Winter and Spring)

2010-11-12T16:47:00.000-06:00

2009 was a year to forget. I started off weak and ended weak with no real clue as to why for quite some time.

First, I decided to go to Monterey California for some West Coast racing which I found to be quite dissapointing to not only how I performed, (DNF-Flat that wouldn't seal at Sea Otter) but also, the course was way too easy. There was UH spot where you decended on beach sand and the Laguna Seca Raceway section was pretty cool. I came home with some nice goodies and great friends from the Evomo squad. From stories I've heard from Brandon and Bryan on the Evomo team, I know they do have better trails than what was displayed at the Sea Otter and we'll just leave it at that.

From that experience on, I didn't gain a lot in any form of improvement or at least that didn't involve paying a price in the form of losing mass amounts of liquids in ways that would make newborns blush. In 2009 I would be blindsided from an illness that took the entire season away from me basically from after Levis 100 to Underdown (July to November) and possibly earlier with the doctor saying "based upon the progression of the infection you may have had this as early as May".....Really? Wow! I just thought I was pathetically slow all year, but it would explain bonking everytime I cross 3 hours of riding where I would have little or nothing left in the tank. It was like running through a well lit hallway at night and then all of a sudden the power goes out and you trip and fall down the steps that you couldn't see coming. Needless to say the Author had come in with less than acceptable results for 2009 and would dedicate himself to get healthy and make sure that 2010 would not be the same. Redemption was a must so enough of that crap, time to move on and I did just that.....

Soooooo.....

It all started in November after I felt better I ventured out on some easy rides, but really hit the gym hard. I had a muscular endurance program I've created that worked great. In december I partnered that up with skate skiing which I did not give up on like in years past. I skated all winter and logged hours 3-5 days per week. I decided to skip Badger State Games this year due in part by the fact that I didn't want to get into race mode so early on I was afterall building a base for cycling. The spring actually greeted us here in central Wisconsin early and showed signs that an early outdoor riding season would be on the way and thankfully that happened. I was able to ride the road and Mountain Bay Trail by February. I would then begin to take multiple trips on that trail as it was such a safe bet for riding during the night as it was still turning black halfway through my ride with toes frozen.

I think I was still tackling some of the lingering illness as I was told it could stick around up to a year even after the antibiotics ran their course, I think I really started feeling like myself just before the Green Bay WEMS Race. I was still feeling slow with aches and pains to that could only be matched by my constant need to sleep and rest for the Iola WORS Race I felt pretty tired and ached on race day, !2 Hours of Northern Kettles I was definately sick, maybe as bad as Levis in '09 and it was a damn good thing I stayed in Fond Du Lac, and maybe started coming out of it by the time the Rhinelander WORS Race started.

My first race of the spring was in Iola for the WORS opener. I thought I felt good, I rode the singletrack with confidence and lost a bottle ejector seat style. I got a bottle of mixed good from the Performa guys. Deuce and friends hooked me up and I completed the final of five laps and thought I accomplished something only to find I was once again near the back.

Second race was supposed to be the Green Bay Wems Race, but as I commuted to Shoe's place it was delayed, then cancelled. We then went to Titletown Brewery for pizza, curds, and beer and followed that up with a ride through the camp. The conditions of the course were in great shape but it was a little windy and a little chilly the rescheduled version became a 100 miler and the conditions may have been worse in some spots, but riding with the Performa crew was fun once again. My second race actually ended up taking place at the 12 hours of Northern Kettles. I started out really slow, no real zip to my legs to hang with the rabbits that took off, I of course would pay for this and wouldn't even come close to having a shot at capturing the leader despite my ubber efficient pit stops. I did get extremely ill once again similar to the episode that i've experienced at Levis in 2009 and I was greatful that I stayed in Fond Du Lac with my Dad and Dawn that night. I don't think I would have made it home. It was worth the 2nd place finish, but I know I would have rode 6 hours of that race much faster than I did.

Next race brought me to Rhinelander and I made it a point that in this particular race and each one going forward I would try to get to the front, but I still wasn't feeling all that strong and I could only hold the Performa rookie's wheel for about 3 minutes and completely popped within 20 minutes.....ouch!!!! Once again towards the bottom. Frustration is setting in at this point, but I still keep trucking along hoping to get the WORS Race I was looking for.

Green Bay 100 miler went well. No complaints except I wish I would have not let Carlos go so early in the race. I had way too much left in the tank at the end but at least I put together a complete race and finished 2nd place to a VERY strong rider.

I finally got to race on some good conditions for my home course at Nine Mile (changing to Underdown for 2011 by the way). I started out strong, but got caught in a mess early on. I spent a lot of energy trying to move up in the heat and eventually got dropped through the field and getting sick on the trail numerous times on the final lap, yay!! That was not what I had in mind for a good race. Would I rebound?????? No! well at least not yet.

Epic collapse and mechanical at John Muir. I clearly overtrained, the muddy conditions and course re-design didn't fit well, for me anyway. I more or less just should have not woke up that Saturday morning to go to a race. I said to myself "F this race......till next year"

Ahhhhh yes the Subaru Cup!!! Tensions were super high with the factory pros coming to town and I was amped up to say the least, I mean you would to if you've seen Willow Koeber right? I got a front row spot and took off like a bat out of hell. I got my wish to get out with the leaders and paid for it, never to do it again.....well at least on that course. I don't think I ever bonked that hard ever in a race. Of course as I got past the last real technical section of the course and tried to climb my and my knee gave me a sharp stabbing pain and felt weak. Apparently it didn't like the short punchy climbs and I found myself pulling the plug early...."bummer dude and F this race to....till next year"

In next week's episode:

* Levis 100 (or not 100)
* 12 Hours of Thunderdown (okay so like 2 hours for me)
* Wausau24 (more like 25)
* 12 Hours of Pitchblack (not under a full moon do you get pitchblack)
* Chequamegon 40
* The wrap up of 10 notes for 2010! (so I forgot five of them....no biggie I'll add them now....it's still 2010)

* Since the Madden Horse Trailer is no longer I will gladly take over and create my own "List" AKA the RAD Things Done on a Bike List (Stuff people do in the bike industry that's RAD like the movie)

Remember if you hear the Mavic "click" in your wheels you're not riding fast enough!

"Get Some!!" ~ Tim "Coffee" Wilcox

12 Hours of Pitch Black Singletrack

2010-09-12T20:04:00.000-05:00

(Pic Would Go Here But THEY Want $20 Bucks For It)

The cheerful and recovered author paid the price to get the win at the WEMS 12 Hours of Pitch Black Singletrack. You see, this 12 hour solo event wasn't quite like the others. The race started after sunset and finished just after sunrise from 8pm to 8am. This was a new journey for me despite all of the night hours I've been fortunate enough to ride in the darkness.

I had to start fast and finish fast all throughout the night and usually I am used to already having good knowledge of the course and have sections already picked out to drink, recover, and hammer to put time into the field. The race started with the typical run to the bikes where I swear I had to be the last one to get mounted and on my way. Luckily for me the leadout was flat and long where I picked up at least a dozen spots and passed some of my competitors flying up the first long climb. I settled into a pace with Tim Bates, who was racing 3 hour solo. I had my fair share of mistakes on the course while feeling it out and really got frustrated with my tech skills. I did manage to settle down and began to start tilting my line of sight upward and that seemed to make a difference. All too often you get caught looking at your front wheel and where you don't want to go as opposed to looking ahead and where you do want your bike to go.

The rest of the first lap went okay and got a sense of what sections will be hike a bike due to keeping the bike in working order and also to save energy. My lights were almost ridiculous and really didn't have a need for bar and helmet light and powered one off completely and the other was only on at half output.

I made a plan in those first few laps as I caught and passed several others out there on the trail that I would only be making two stops. The first would happen 4 hours into it to switch batteries and took advantage of the time to drink some boost and eat a banana. The same would take place on the 8th hour where I drank two boosts, ate a banana, took some ibuprofen for the my ailing knee. I dealt with the annoying soreness of my right knee for as long as I could handle it, but as would go with any bout with tendonitis it got to the point where I couldn't turn the cranks. At about hour 10 the sun tried to sneek a peek over the horizon and I discovered that I could make the knee work as long as I continued to pedal. This became really difficult while decending and the pain on the upcoming climbs would be insane to the point of almost being unable to make it up the climb. The first sustained climb on each lap never hurt as I could pedal all the way to the beginning stretch of it, but some of the others you rolled into the climb and the sharp pain would get worse and worse.

Laps came and went and by the time I came around for the 12 lap I had it under wraps, but now it became a sense of pride and sticking it out for another lap and only finished about 6 minutes off the pace of my first one. I came across the finish line as the winner traveling 89 miles at night in 11 hours and 33 minutes. Now it's time to get some at cheq fat. I have big plans for that race as we have a history. Who is up for a blizzard challenge?

Wausau24 Part 2 Looking Back and Time for Breakfast

2010-09-12T20:02:00.000-05:00

A blog I wrote on July 27, 2009 shortly after the titled "24-9 A Catastrophic Failure" ran its course as did the short lived battle with mono, I ended that post with "Redemption will be the word to describe 2010!" Little did I know how real that statement would become. As I ponder and gather my thoughts of what the night laps had in store for me I now realized that I am getting better and better with each passing 24 solo event and that sickening feeling holds off longer and longer each time I do one. I hope at one point I wont get the weird dizzy spells and naucious feelings, maybe next year?

Anyway, the night laps went pretty well. I would have good laps where I cleaned each section with ease, but there were times where others kicked up rocks and dislodged logs and I wisely jumped off to save myself and my bike. A fog started settling in but my lights were doing the trick. I was quite pleased with the performance of my light setup and the burn time. I came and went through the pits the only time I sat was when it was time to change batteries so killing 2 birds with one stone seemed appropriate and I was still in the right frame of mind that I could sit and not quit. I continued to click off laps and then the big one came. at around 5:30 or so I became very dizzy and sick to my stomach I thought I was going to get sick, but I did lay down for a little while, made a visit to the bathroom and got back out there. I wasn't sure what to expect but the lap times of the last three laps were pretty good and rivaled that of my late afternoon lap times. Then out of nowhere my wife shows up with coffee and that was exactly what I needed and I finished pretty strong. I wasn't completely destroyed at the finish but was looking forward to having some RedEye goodness added to mix.

I was quite pleased with the outcome this year at the Wausau24, but will look to continue my improvement into next year as I will be back and looking to improve on my top 5 finish. The most important thing, I raised roughly $1,200 for the Wissbroecker family. I am very thankful for all the help this year. Jason kept the bottles filled and the lights charged, John from Sprocketz supplied more than I asked and was a great supporter for the fundraiser. Of course my wife for putting up with my training antics and supplying coffee in the early morning hours. Kevin at RedEye for the post race brew. Thanks to Muddy Paws for resurrecting a race and doing an excellent job I only hope it continues to be as successful if not more in years to come. Matt designed a killer course can't wait to see what's in store for 2011.

Now it's onto some wems races and cheq fat. After that I will continue to work on my trails in Bradley Park and work on getting two races scheduled to occur there hopefully in 2011.

Wausau24 Part 1 Racing the Sunset

2010-08-24T22:47:00.000-05:00

I am not sure what it is about 24 hour racing that keeps me coming back for more, but it takes a strange and rare breed to get excited about sitting in the saddle for over 24 hours. During a race like this you can go from high heat and humidity to cold and rainy at any given moment. Rocks become slippery after being ridden over by hundreds of different tires. Roots become slippery, rocks and logs become dislodged and branches come out of nowhere to slap you in the face. Day turns into night and corners become blind. As the 12 hour racers finish, you see less and less people and you find yourself imagining things and at times talking or even singing to yourself. The air becomes chilled and some fog sets in and you can't tell the difference from the fog or dust. Bats from above diving down all around you as you jump in and out of the singletrack. As each stop through solo row goes by I feel a little better each time until at one moment it all goes south and a break was much needed before things turned for the worst. I rested and shook off the stomach bug, drank some coffee and rode into the sunrise. I managed to get in a few more laps and at a pace that rivaled that of my early afternoon laps some 18 hours earlier. I began my last lap and took each section one at a time saying to myself "this is the last time through this section and that section"

This years' Wausau24 was something I will not soon forget.

With the new sherrif in town organizing the race after the epic fail of a certain east coast promoter. The event was in great hands with Adam Schmidt, Josh Halverson, and course designer extrodinare, Matt Block. These guys did a hell of a job and without charging an arm and leg. I am looking forward to doing this all over again in 2011 as I complete my transformation to a 24 hour racer.

I set up my pit along solo row once again and began to get everything set up and ready for the race. Jason had my bottles set to go and was helping with the fundraising efforts prior to the race getting started. I was really expecting and hoping for some great things this year as I was helping a friend (Tim Wissbroecker) with his mounting expenses stemming from a hit and run accident that left him with multiple fractures and other damages that will take an exstensive time to heal. After suiting up and doing a quick interview with a local news station I applied a healthy dose of chamois butter and jogged to the start line, it was time to get some.

I was glad to see so many familiar faces and some old friends that have previously boycotted the race. The pre-race chatter was so loud that we couldn't hear the national anthem or the countdown. Before we knew it the time was here to run to our bikes. I stayed comfortable and jogged easily to my Mamasita, which proved hard to find considering the amount of them at the race and even having the green Ergons. I found my bike though and continued on my lap. I tried to keep my pace and not worry about the team riders busting out of the gates as I know that I had over 24 hours to ride my bike and it does me no good to push the pace this early on. The only regret came in the form to the entrance to #3 the first time across Redbud Road where I got stuck in a log jam of sorts on the first rock garden and again on #1. Across Redbud again and into #6 things began to string out a little bit and I was getting a rhythm going. The doubletrack to HoChi was still wet which made the climb up HoChi really interesting to say the least as I've seen so many different lines through the rocks, but I used my typical line through that section and through #12 and was home free for lap 1. Lap 2 started off with me and a few others taking the wrong turn into the first section of singletrack, but I had Brett in front of me leading the way through singletrack and made up all of the time we lost as that dude can ride the hell out of singletrack. from the top of the gravel climb and out by checkpoint charlie I began to have conversations with Scott Cole as he was helping his brother Mark along to his 8th place finish in the 12 solo (nice job Mark). I mean out of nowhere he would show up and keep telling me to stay consistent and that is a phrase that stuck with me all day long. I had a couple of bad laps somewhere during the normal lunch hour time I would take on 12 hour race, but I remembered to eat more at that time and not stop and luckily there was some tylenol around to help with the correllating headache. I got back some of the time lost while being in a funk and I was bridged up shortly to Salsa Pro Danielle Musto. We continued to chat during the next couple of laps which was refreshing considering I've been kind of bored riding by myself for a few laps prior to that, but when I stopped to get my lights she continued on to her pit and that would be the last we would see of each other till the awards as she took the 1st place spot on the box in the womens 12 solo (great job Danielle). Now it was nightfall and this is when things began to get quite interesting.

To Be Continued.......

It's All About the Big Picture

2010-07-18T21:27:00.000-05:00

Levis 100 strikes again. I am now 0-3 at this race and am thinking of staying away from that place for awhile as nothing good happens there....for me anyways.

I started off great and moved with ease to where I wanted to go. I then got caught up by some junk riding that forced me off my bike 3 times in the first lap. The start of the second lap I put some air in the tires based on the fact that I was rimming out a little too easily. The very start of the third lap is where all hell broke loose and upon entering the first section of singletrack I picked up a stick and snapped off the derailure hanger. My day was done after that, but I did manage to salvage the day by getting out on the mountain bay for another 40 miles. Luckily for me I still managed to get in 6 hours of riding just as the coach ordered.

This race was a dissapointment, but all in all it's about the big picture and riding as many laps as I can for Tim Wissbroecker and his family. The more laps I complete the more I can hopefully give them. So if you are interested in pledging or even just a regular donation I wont turn you away plus you gain entry into a raffle from the great people at:

Bigby Coffee of Wausau
Sprocketz Bike Shop of Weston
RedEye Brewing Company of Wausau

All you need to do is send me the following to mtbkr81[at]gmail.com

Name:
Address:
Phone Number:
$ Pledge per lap:
$ Maximum:

Here is the news story about my quest and personal tie to Tim and this type of accident:

Thanks to everyone for their donations and support see you at Wausau24.

Ramping up to Wausau24

2010-07-05T21:39:00.000-05:00

As I get closer to the Summer Formal of 24 hour racing here in the Midwest I am slowly learning more about my strengths and weaknesses by riding with the fast and the furious from right here in Wausau to those speed demons from Duluth. I have found what I need to work on just in time to have a final test before Wausau24 by facing some past demons at the Levis 100.

This race has seemed to hand my arse to me year after year. The first time I made it to that race was in 2008 and I had just come down with the flu in which I only managed to make it for 4 of the 8 laps. 2009 I was determined to get my revenge and come home with the win but I had been already plagued by mono up to that point unknowingly and was extremely sick before crossing the line in which I at least finished. I am hoping for a strong appearance this year as it would be only two weeks out from my last 24 solo attempt for an unknown amount of time.

Needless to say I am ready for Levis after a hard workout at the underdown and I will be ready for Wausau24. So let it be known I am ready to GET SOME!

Louis Garneau "The Review"

2010-06-22T22:48:00.000-05:00

Louis Garneau TRAIL X-GRIP SHOES

About the shoe:

This is actually their level MTB shoe and has two single straps that merge into a wider one for more power transfer. Removable crampons under the toes and a heel retention system make this shoe a practical and affordable solution.

Approximate weight (size 41/1 shoe): 308 g/11 oz

First thoughts were based on the price range and at an msrp of $84.99 I wasn't sure if I was going to get the performance to rival that of the Sidi's and Specialized BG shoes. The design was simple and for me it didn't include a ratchet strap that seem to fail on me after a year or so on most shoes i've tried in the past. The loop on the back I wasn't really fond of I honestly thought I was going to catch it on something, but that has not yet happened. I was worried at first about only having two velcro straps but the width of the top strap made for a tight yet comfortable fit. Even in wet muddy or dry and sandy conditions I never felt the velcro loosen up. The cleat track is durable and stiff but not to the point of being unable to run in them and they clear mud quite well. The design of the toe box is interesting and while I didn't see anything up front to protect it from the elements and damage from bouncing off rocks amongst other things it's held up very well after 4 wors races, 3 12 hour races, and multiple mountain bay rides in all conditions from the wet rain and snow to the dry and dusty. I am very happy with the performance of these shoes and at this price there is no possible way you can go wrong especially if you don't like the ratchet strapping.

(short version pictured)

Louis Garneau MEN ALVEO 3K BIB

About These Bib Shorts:

The mesh look-a-like construction of the Alveo 3K Bibshorts provides ventilation and the ability to recover its shape although it has been stretched. Airzone chamois is super ventilated with memory foam that maintains density.

DETAILS:

Ergonomic fit
10 panels
No seams inside legs
Flatlocks
Powerband
Front reflector
Back and bottom reflective logos
Airzone Chamois

I normally don't go the route of a bib short I just didn't like the feel in the past but I'd figure I would give it one more chance and I am glad I did and with a bib at an msrp of $119.99 It is well ahead of it's competition at the pricepoint. Fabric felt heavy at first but the mesh like material allows the short to breath with ease and very comfortable. I was very impressed with the airzone chamois in one major aspect in that the beveled edges really made a difference by not pinching your skin as you move in the saddle as you pedal at a high cadence. A nice touch to add to this as well would be the lack of seams on the inside of the short and the "powerband" got rid of that ever so annoying gel bead at the end of the leg. The only thing I didn't like and I may just need to get used to this is how high the material goes above the waistband and I thought it would get too warm but didn't notice a change except to the slimming of my midsection.....hahahahaha. I am loving these shorts, but I have to keep reminding myself that I still need to use some chamois butter despite how comfortable these bibs are.

For more info go to www.louisgarneau.com

Order through John at Sprocketz here in Weston!!!!

WEMS #2 Stump Farm 100

2010-06-13T21:54:00.001-05:00

Photo By Mark Schindel

I'll start off by saying that I wasn't sure what to expect. The weather up to Sunday morning had been well short of amazing even by rain forest standards, but if history says anything about the Reforestation Camp, this place could hold water on monsoon like levels, which is a complete contrast from what the Adventure 212 guys went through in Ohio this past weekend. The weather when I left for the venue was fine with even some sun here and there and that basically lasted till I got to highway 41 when it poured like crazy really till I got to the camp. The setup was very much different from the past and without lapping through the same route as done in past.

We lined up for the start and the field was not short of competition and even with Tim sprinting to a top 5 finish at the Dirty Kanza, I still had to contend with the usual suspects plus with the addition of Carlos, Mike and Trevor this was surely going to be a hard fought event.

The start ran in the opposite direction down the new wet single track and then out on the ski trails backwards to the main gravel two track. I got off the line out front and was first to the bike. I was quickly joined by Carlos and clearly he can ride singletrack smoother than I can so I held is wheel and jumped ahead going into the first section to buy a few minutes of time and once it opened up he regained the lead and we rode out the better half of the first lap wheel to wheel until I bobbled a section and lost my momentum for little bit. I thought at this stage in the game it was early and maybe, hopefully, he would come back to me later on and really I should have stuck with him as our lap times were almost the same averaged out over the last 4 laps so yeah I screwed up a little bit so I settled into a pace in which I felt most comfortable and was caught by Mike Curtes and we rode in through the lap area chit chatting a bit about how fun that course was backwards.

I kept my pace where I thought it needed to be and began concentrating on riding smooth and efficient and basically that's what I did for next few hours. Lap 3 I was already encountering lapped traffic and Lap 4 I came in for new bottles and took to the course again without hesitation. I started feeling pretty damn good so I began my attack and really my approach was to pass every rider ahead of as if it were a fellow 100 miler and this pace continued on as I came through lap 8 even though I dropped my chain while climbing some singletrack.

It's strange what goes on in your head during a race like this. Today I was paranoid that my bike was going to break and that Mike would catch me so in an effort to fend off those demons I stopped for more bottles and this time I lubed my chain quickly and glanced for loose twigs and such in the derailure, pedals and cassette. I ripped out of there like a James "Bubba" Stewart starting a Moto X race with every intention of testing these tired legs and "build some character" I pulled out a couple of my best laps (minus the pit stop) and rolled in 2nd place at 7 hours and 5 minutes. This was probably in my eyes the best race I had where I didn't win because of the hard pace I sustained and then the increased effort that I didn't know I had towards the end.

Photo By Mark Schindel

WORS #4 Sunburst Slowdown
With a very difficult training week in store I wasn't expecting much but it did have some climbing so I thought I could sustain enough for a top half finish. WRONG!

I took off from the back and got hung up in a crash that occurred early on before the initial loop even got underway. Then to top it off, I got caught up in another mess on the singletrack climb where I was reaching for every branch trying to keep myself from unclipping but it just wouldn't hold off and I jumped off the bike while Scanley, Mark, Bill, Dan and Jesse all got away and again I was off the back. Now I am getting pissed off at this point and really just cruised around for the first lap. The second lap I hit the reset switch and attacked as best as I could with my flat as hell legs and busted up that climb. I started reeling riders in one by one and thought I did a good job, but that was not the case. Too much early on putzing around really cost me some valuable time.

Next up is the 12 Hours of John Muir. I've loved this course the last couple of times I've done it and am looking to improve on my 9th place finish from last year and looking back at my lap times, there should be no reason why I can't get back to my 2008 2nd place performance, but the new course has me quite curious and with the weather that place doesn't hold water all that well and gets very sticky.

After that I have the Subaru Cup XC and Short Track followed by a much needed break before heading to Levis to get some revenge on that course. I have unfinished business with that race let's put it that way shall we.

WEMS Series #1 12 Hours of Northern Kettles

2010-05-26T21:52:00.000-05:00

"Whether you think you can or whether you think you can't, either way you're right"

~Henry Ford

The first race of the 2010 WEMS Series begins in the Northern Kettles outside of Fond Du Lac and not in Green Bay as the schedule may dictate. Due to the "weather" (or lack there of) the Stump Farm 12 was rescheduled and changed to a different date and format in which I am still planning on attending and still intending to bring the pain to the best of my ability.

The 12 Hours of Northern Kettles had a challenging wet course that only got better as the hours passed by and we were warned that it would be slick but that was not at all to be a joke. We had a different start format this year running up a pretty steep gravel hill to get to our bikes. My goal was to get to my bike at a comfortable but uptempo pace and hold my own from there. You see, I normally have issues during the first couple of races during the season with trying to complete all of my laps without taking a break. Typically I would take one here an there for around 10 to 15 minutes to take inventory on my body and my gear to make sure all was okay. At this point I didn't have a clue what to expect as my lap times were by feel since my garmin had no juice out of the fact that I never charged it and I also ran out of Infinit Nutrition while mixing my bottles. As far as I knew, I would be in survival mode from the time Mr. Nigh yelled GO!

I settled in right behind Cale and let a couple of rabbits go ahead knowing full well that I was in it to retain a fast yet obtainable pace. Now I didn't have any support and neither did Tim so I really didn't care to check on my progress until the last few laps, but more on that later so really my focus was on being consistent and not overdoing it. The first lap felt slow and was. Same can be said for laps two and three. Lap four I felt a crap-ton better despite the fact that I crashed late in the lap on an off-camber downhill.

I stopped only a few times to get new bottles filled full of Infinit and to apply chamois butter and the occasional Baer back & body pills to help me out with the bumpy course. I knew that this course was going to eat me up due to the fact that every time I had to apply more chamois butter the pain almost made me vomit. Granted I know this isn't something you all need to hear, but it is one of those things that you may never know you may have to deal with during a race like this as if it were some sort of a law where you need to expect the unexpected. So I continue on towards the halfway point and now I know this is the best I've done this early on in the season. Usually, I sit down for awhile as previously mentioned, but this time I haven't considered doing any sort of rest other than restocking on fluids. I was quite happy with my progress and still to this point I didn't have a clue whether I was in last place or in first place as I have been riding by myself not getting passed by any solos at any point since this morning.

So somewhere around the nine to ten hour range I finally decide to check and in an effort to not slow me down I picked a lap I needed more liquids and rode past the timing area straight to the cabin and noticed I was in second. I can't lie here, I was a little shocked all I did was rode how I felt and didn't rest as that was my only choice since I did not have a clock, gps, odometer and so on.

My focus then shifted toward attack mode to keep the distance more if not the same to third place and see what I can do to reel in Eki. Well now that I've seen the stats I know I couldn't have caught him at the pace I was riding, but I wasn't too far off and with it being this early in the year I would have some hard workouts to get me to that level or better later on so I needed to maintain and really without thinking into it, that's what I ended up doing anyway. So I came around for lap 14 and looked at the clock for a little bit running some simple grade school math (which after ten hours can be challenging) and with some praise from the crowd I embarked on my 15th lap and hammered home what I felt and thought would be a hot lap. I was pretty gassed at that point and hoped I had something left other than this annoying cough that recently developed.

I came in at 7:44 with roughly 16 minutes to spare 15 laps and around 100 miles with Tim (former teammate and fellow Salsa rider) coming in 8 minutes later wrapping up his 16th lap. I gotta say he is always a great competitor and I enjoy racing against him. Wish him all the best at the Dirty Kanza.

Next up is the WORS Trek Big Ring Classic here in Wausau. The Rhinelander race was a strategic disaster and will hope to bring a better performance to my home course. I know my strengths and weaknesses and hopefully my body will forget about the weaknesses I have for about 2 hours next Sunday.

WORS #1 Iola Bump & Jump

2010-05-06T09:23:00.000-05:00

The opening race of the 2010 race season for me has come and gone. I am about 90% happy with how things turned out as I knew I wasn’t going to contend for the win I just really wanted to sustain a hard effort for a long as I could and turn the screws as I went along hopefully within 8-10 minutes back of the winner, but that did not happen.

The pre-ride on Saturday gave an early indication of what to expect in regards to the number of riders hitting the course on Sunday and I am glad I got there before the start of the sport race as I had one of the last remaining spots in the parking lot. Around 850 racers toed the line that day and I also heard that 70 Elite riders had a series plate already in addition, over 100 Elite men were to toe the line at the start of the Belgioso Pro/Cat1 series.

I found out early on and reflected hours later that my best races, and races I’ve won were because of start position and placing before the trail tightens up. I know it’s common knowledge, but year after year I get either a terrible start or get stuck behind some slower traffic while the leaders smoothly ride away.

My first race of the year was no different. I picked a bad place to start and got caught up in a mess and watched all of my friends speed off in joy and glee to the first right hand corner going up to the ski jump and again another mess in the little sand box at the top. At this point I got shuffled back quite a bit and spent a good deal of the first lap trying to see if I could gain what I’ve lost and really the only thing I lost on the first lap was a lot of energy. The second lap was not any different, but the third lap I could see a large group of people including Jesse and Nate along with about 3 or 4 more guys and as I drop down into the second half of the 3rd lap I end up losing my second full bottle. Not cool, I had to stop on the start of the 4th lap to get whatever I could and Paul was able to help a brother out.

The fourth and fifth laps were kind of a blur as I was pretty mad at this point and my lower back was killing me. I did catch a couple more riders and had Nate in my sights until a stick got caught in his spokes and wouldn’t be able to see him again for the remainder of the race. I rolled in towards the bottom of the results page and 19 minutes back of Tristan, but cut 10 minutes off my 2008 elite time and gained 5 minutes on the winner so that was the encouraging part of the day.

10 things I’ve learned….

1. Earn the call up and pick a more strategic place to start. Not just any place will do. Look for the line of fast racers in the best position to maneuver the first series of corners and obstacles this can make a difference between a top 20 or bottom 5.

2. Kill the lower back issue and get a riser bar already. (done)

3. Have an extra bottle waiting just in case.

4. Racing is fun, but you can have fun and be aggressive at the same time.

5. I’m not pro, this is a hobby. Train by yourself and ride with your friends

6. I have to be more aggressive on the starts. I’ve put in the time and the effort to compete it’s a matter of just shutting up and doing it.

7. I have been racing for about 6 years…I still have room to improve on technical riding skills.

8. Remember, everybody out there is in just about the same amount of pain. What am I going to do about it?

9. Who cares about how many hours you spend on the bike. Quality trumps quantity.

10. The conditions are never going to be perfect and races don’t always go as planned. Just keep pedaling circles and let the smile on your face do the talking.

This weekend is the WEMS series opener in Green Bay at the Stump Farm 12 and without a doubt will be going 12 solo again. Rain and snow in the forecast with temps around 50 at best with rain the night before will make things interesting. This is going to be a tough early season test for equipment setup, the mind, and keeping on a regimen in regards to nutrition is always tough as we tend not to ingest as much as we should because of the rain and cold. History would show that these are typically conditions found at the Underdown WEMS race and I’ve usually had good luck there when healthy, so this should be right up my alley. Race report to follow after I thaw out from racing in these conditions.

Base

2010-03-28T22:11:00.000-05:00

While getting ready to ride this beauty well into plaid speed at Wausau24. I've been training probably the best I've ever done. I did come down with something this week but not before I got at least 10 hours in, but it's too early to risk something worse by riding through it much like I did last year so I took the previous 4 days off to focus on getting healthy again. This just about happens every year since I began to run track. I get allergies which leads to a cough, then leaving me with a massive cold. I got my salsa in working order and minus my rotor crank I'll be ready to rock.

I am excited to race a 24 solo again this year. I am also glad to be racing it at a lower price....at least 200 dollars less. I hope they get rid of that stupid finish loop on the way into the tent this year, boy was that terrible. I don't really like the idea of a shorter lap. While I would love to bring in more riders that were affraid to tackle a 15 mile lap, A short lap would make things clog up and would be kinda difficult to keep the traditional favorites i.e. flower trail and Ho Chi Minh both in the course while still crossing red bud rd. I say go back to how it was during the 2007 race. I want to say it was around 13 miles and afterall it is an endurance event.

Trail project in Bradley Park is taking shape. Really the focus is on design right now and to get a feeling for how many markers, maps, and other signage to make it a course we can all follow. My goal is to have a race in the park using the old and break in some of the new stuff in spring of 2011.

Racing schedules will be cut down to smaller amount for 2011 as well with baby Lund entering the picture sometime in mid to late November of this year. I being a future daddy and all will be sure to educate the baby by watching Klunkerz, Kranked Revolve, 24 Solo, Off Road to Athlens, Chasing Legends and Highlights of the Tour De France. We are excited for the new adventure.

This weekend I will be riding the salsa on my new trails up north as a early season test session for the bike, Epic Cam, and the trails already in place at the park.

Happy Easter and enjoy the great weather.

Wausau24 Is ON!!!!!

2010-03-20T19:57:00.001-05:00

PRESS RELEASE FOR March 20, 2010

March 20, 2010

Wausau24 will be held on July 31- August 1st, 2010 at Nine Mile Forest in Wausau Wisconsin.
Muddy Paws Racing is working directly with the Marathon County Park department to use the Nine Mile Forest trails including lodge rental and all logistical support from the county for this race weekend.
MPR is a Wisconsin event promotion group focused on “promoting dirt in the Midwest.”
Full details including registration and event schedule will be available at Wausau24.com April 2nd, 2010. Updates are currently being posted to the facebook group “Wausau24 hour MTB race”. We invite the racing community to provide us with feedback to make this a fun and professional event. The goal in 2010 is to provide an excellent racing experience to all participants, make the entry structure competitive, and have everyone heading home with a smile and marking their calendars for the event in 2011.
MPR is working with an excellent team of professionals to make this happen.
Peak Timing, owned by Greg Blasko, is a well-known and respected timing company that has the contracts for such events as the Lifetime Tri, the Birkie, and the MNMBS series. We will use “chip timing” for all participants, the best for error free and accurate results throughout the event.
Matt Block will be our course manager. Matt has worked with the Marathon County parks for years and has a great working relationship with county park management. He has set the course for the Trek Classic the past two years and again for the event to be held on Memorial weekend this year.
TST Media will host and develop our race website wausau24.com, as well as handle all online registration. There will be no additional charges for processing online registration. Discounted rates will be available for early registration as well as a free chance to win a Trek Travel trip to anywhere in the lower 48 states for each entry prior to May 20th, 2010.
Muddy Paws Racing will host the event and serve as race promoter for the Wausau24. MPR is owned by Adam Schmidt, a race promoter for over 15 years and based in Wisconsin. MPR is the promoter for the WORS Trek Classic held at Nine Mile Forest over Memorial weekend this year. MPR also hosts the WORS/MNMBS Border Battle, MNMBS Lifetime Avalanche, and MNMBS Wheelhouse Classic event.

The clock it ticking and MPR is up to the challenge. We are asking the racing community to speak up early and let us know what you want. After all, the event is here for the racers, so let’s make 2010 a great one.

Adam Schmidt
MPR

"Hard training, easy combat; easy training, hard combat"

2010-03-03T22:06:00.000-06:00

(The infamous JVog shot)

Looks like a little more focus on WORS this year. I hate to say it, but I had a WORS burnout which led to me only doing two events. So in all reality I took the year and as most already know I needed it more than I thought I did. I decided to renew my license and get a series number again. I guess that means I need to do that training thing I hear so much about.

So I got a little overzealous and jumped on the mountain bay to give the legs an early test. They responded quite well, turning over with easy and felt lighter if that makes any sense. The return trip was a little sketchy as the wet areas have since turned into a small skating rink at random times, but at least it's a good test of the early season balance skills.

Some long miles ahead for the remainder of the week and weekend hopefully we can get some rain early on to get rid of some snow, salt, and dirt. Game on.

Saturday Ride

2010-02-28T17:53:00.000-06:00

40 miles on Saturday. The early afternoon session had me looking for a way to get out to Hwy KK and back home. Quick showered and jumped back on the bike to meet up with John at Sprocketz and headed over to Red Eye for some beer, food, and good conversation with new and old friends alike. What a fantastic weekend. Even with USA losing gold to Canada hockey. Now get out there and bring some rukus.

Energy Bars at Home

2010-02-21T20:23:00.000-06:00

I found this in an issue of Bike Magazine while cleaning up man cave/spare bedroom.

Dry Ingredients
1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
2 Cups Rolled Oats
1/2 Cup Oat Bran
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut (unsweetend)
1 Cup Lightly Salted Chopped Nuts
1/2 Cup Dried Fruit

Wet Ingredients:
2/3 Cup Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup Milk
2 eggs
1/2 Cup Honey
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar

Line a 9"x13" Baking pan with plastic wrap and coat with cooking spray.
Mix together the dry ingredients, then usa a mixer to blend well with wet ingredients.
Press the uber-sticky mixture into the pan.
Cool for 30 minutes in the fridge.
After cooling, remove the concoction from the pan and cut into bars.
Place bars on a greased baking sheet and bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes, or until firm to the touch.
Let cool, then chow down before during and after your ride.

Pump It Up!!

2010-02-03T19:25:00.000-06:00

I would be a dead man if I ever tried it but damn would it be worth it.

The Week In Review

2010-01-24T20:28:00.000-06:00

This week it was pretty damn warm for January. I decided to take full advantage of it and why not? It is looking as though the following week is going to struggle out of negative temperatures.

Monday: 2.5 hour skate ski at nine mile beating my previous record of 6 and did 8 night laps.
Tuesday: 1.25 hours at the gym
Wednesday: 2 hours on the skate skis
Thursday: 1.5 hours at the gym
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 3 hours of skate skiing at nine mile
Sunday: 2 hours of snowshoe hiking/running
Total Workout Time: 12.25 hours

Last year at this time I was close to 158lbs with about 14% body fat.....ooops!

This year I am a robust 161lbs with about 8% body fat....

I love it when a plan comes together. I can't wait to get on the bike.

Maybe I'll have some B.A.L.L.S come April!!!!

Also, see the new link at the right www.gravelgrindernews.com

A Little Spice In Life Never Hurts

2010-01-17T19:02:00.000-06:00

I was able to pick up Salsa this weekend and I love it already. The paint is cool and the lettering isn't the run of the mill decals like other bikes I've owned, plus the carbon rear seatstays are nicely detailed as well.

My first impressions were that this is a damn cool looking rig. After further examination you can see a pivot point at the bottom of the seatstays by the dropouts. This bike is designed to be a little forgiving and all of that energy needs to be dampened somewhere right??? I could see this being a big advantage in the kind of racing we do in this area as we don't necessarily have to "huck" anything (right Nate?). Another thing I liked right off the bat was the inclusion of reuseable cable routers (see seat stay) these little black wonders are so small in the broad scheme of things but just the attention to detail and the non-use of zip ties made me pretty happy.

This bike came with a full Shimano XT group minus the crank in which that was a Raceface DeusXC (heavy is a nice way to put it). A Salsa stem, bars, grips, and seatpost also came with. I quickly got rid of that stuff and replaced with Titec Ti 118 bar, Titec Pluto Prolite Stem, Titec Duke Carbon seatpost and prolite gel saddle. I also swapped out the xt brakes for my Hayes Stroker Trail brakes. I added a little weight with the addition of some Ergon GX2 grips but they are a must have on all of my bikes.

What's next for the Mamasita diet? Well Starting with the wheels I am going to lace up my American classic hubs to some of Stans NEW ZTR Crest 29er hoops with DT Revolution Spokes and Prolock nipples should come out to around 1400g for the set which is damn good for a set of 29er wheels. The crank comes next. Rotor Bike has a killer crankset called Agilis and I am going to go the route of 2x9 40t/27t. Really once those two things are done I would imagine the final weight would be somewhere between 21-23lbs depending on what tires I use. I do like the wtb prowlers it came with cause of treat pattern, but they are pretty heavy. I could drop about a half pound just by switching to some Maxxis tires.

Other than that I have just been skiing whenever I get a chance. This week will be a tough one as I have no weekend plans so skiing will reign supreme and I am back in the weight room again this week after missing last week due to meetings and not feeling good for a little bit. There is a long time before the first race of the year and I can't wait to ditch the skis and heat up the trails with a little Salsa action, until then I ski till my legs fall off then I ski some more.

Birthday Crosstraining "Ride"

2010-01-10T21:15:00.000-06:00

2009 Yamaha Apex GT = Fast!!!

Well with this weekend being the first of many 29th birthdays I decided to get out on the snowmobile with some friends one of which having a prominent stable of very high quality sleds. We started out with a quick ride to Rick's parents house to swap sleds and from there we rode the twisty stuff which would compare to mtb singletrack. Diving into corners and opening it up on the wide open double track and finally squeezing the throttle to bar and seeing how fast you shoot across a frozen lake and on the sled above it was extremely fast in the respect that going 70 felt comfortable I didn't care to look down on the lakes but 100mph couldn't have been out of the question. The end of the ride led us to a local bar/campground for pizza and soda (no really, soda, I don't drink on the sled). What a ride, What a weekend with great friends time to go to sheboygan this upcoming weekend to pick up a toy the people that typically follow this site are used to seeing. The Salsa Mamasita!!! Who wants to ski at the camp next weekend?

A Public Service ad from the AGRCI

2010-01-07T22:13:00.000-06:00

10 Notes for 2010: Part 1

2010-01-06T21:32:00.000-06:00

A list of sorts. What I want to do, what not to do, plus any goals I have. Really, and I've said this about a million times, 2009 was an epic failure. This past year I experienced and made many changes, but really I did learn a lot and grew as a better person and will hopefully translate to a better racer, which leads me to note number ONE.

1. Mono and Bronchitis is not an effective training tool if after 6 months you still feel tired from walking a flight of steps or can't have a month without getting sick, do not get stubborn and think it's just a little bug. I will be sure to keep tabs on my health for I am not invincible.

2. Race and train like I mean it and smile so much in the process it hurts. This sport can burn you out if you view it like a job and that can be easily said for those that simply stick to WORS. Now take that time and dedication and bump it up to a rider that does all of these 12 hour and above races. It's not a matter of "if" you burn out, it's a matter of "when". I have made the executive mental decision that if I can maintain a smile throughout and enjoy the backdrop in which I am blessed to ride in, I would be selfish for not enjoying it and therefore not have that burn out phase. My though is if I can ride happy I can ride more. If I ride more I hope I could become competitive once again. Simple math people! Well at least I hope it's simple math anyway.

3. I hope to have trails completed in Bradley Park by the time the leaves start to fall. The approval process and working with the city has been smooth so far, but it is like I mentioned above in that it is a process and like all processes they take a while to complete. From there it's adding snowshoe and xc ski trails on a smaller loop. Goal from there is to maybe have a cyclocross race or trail run event.

4. Support the sport, local shops, and greatful sponsors. I've been lucky enough to find my way into this sport. I can pinpoint the day, time, and even weather of the day I decided I was going to race bikes. A lot of people along the way helped me in various different ways from Scoots introducing me to singletrack at Alpine Valley to Bryan at Evomo hosting me at the Sea Otter. Without the state series like WORS, WEMS, and organizations like WORBA these trails may not even exist. Sites like fattireguides, xxc magazine, and MTB Racenews give us, Wisconsin, a pulse on the national scene. Companies like Redeye Brewing Company, Sprocketz Bike Shop in Weston, EVOMO, are all run by cycling enthusiasts and they pull no punches on supporting the industry and it's population of riders.
My sponsors make all of this racing stuff possible and in return I try to broadcast their message to as many people that care to listen and in short to all of the great support, thanks!

5. Preparing for future endeavours and putting to rest my internal thoughts that the tour divide can't be done. This will be the start of a long process to learning the fine art of bikepacking and self supported ultra long distance rides. Chris Plesko got me very intrigued with his stories about his journey along the continental divide. I don't know when and for what year I will send my letter of intent, but the preparation begins now.

Really, since the week of November 1st I haven't taken a complete week off and got back into the gym this year. I think it's going to be a fantastic year.

2010 Schedule

2009-11-13T10:09:00.003-06:00

February 6 - Badger State Games 21k Classic XC Ski and 10k Classic XC Ski
April ? Colorado Training Camp
May 2 Iola Bump & Jump Iola Winter Sports Club, Iola, WI
May 8 Stump Farm 12
May 16 Crystal Lake Classic Camp Tesomas, Rhinelander, WI
May 22 12 Hours of the Northern Kettles
May 30 Trek Big Ring Classic Nine Mile Forest, Wausau, WI
June 13 Sunburst Showdown Sunburst Ski Area, Kewaskum, WI
June 19 12 Hours at John Muir
June 26 & 27 Subaru Cup Pro XCT Nordic Mt, Mt Morris, WI
July 4 Pow Wow Days 5k/10k Tomahawk, WI
July 17 Levis Trow 100
July 31 & August 1 24 Hours of 9 Mile, Wausau, WI
August 21 Hatchet Cross Country Alumni Scrimmage 5k Tomahawk, WI
August 22 Reforestation Ramble Reforestration Camp, Suamico, WI
August 28 Blufflands Epic Enduro Race
September 4 24 hours of Seven Oaks, Boone IA
October 2 Metro Challenge
October 10 Wigwam MTB Challenge Evergreen Park, Sheboygan, WI
November 6 Stump Farm Duathlon

Hump Day Tunes

2009-11-11T10:52:00.000-06:00

Channel 4 News Interview - Stay Classy Wisconsin

2009-11-06T17:58:00.004-06:00

Hello Folks, Champ Kind here from Channel 4 News sitting down with solo endurance mountain bike racer Justin Lund. I was able to ask him a few questions about the 2009 race season and get his thoughts on 2010 and the future.

Champ Kind: First of all, thank you for taking the time to sit down share you thoughts with the best news team in San Diego.

Justin Lund: Not sure what you're doing here in Wisconsin but you're very welcome and glad to have you here.

CK: Coming off of a great season in 2008 would you say you had high expectations going into this past season?

JL: Yes, I was very happy with the way 2008 turned out and really though I could carry that over into 2009 in which started with going West to the Sea Otter Classic.

CK: Did you enjoy your trip out West and what did you take away from visiting the West Coast?

JL: I did enjoy being out west. The landscape was fantastic, meeting the mastermind behind Evomo and some of the other teammates as well as our team sponsors such as Jeff and Sonya from Ergon, Greg from MotorTabs, everybody from Titec, Simbree, Tifosi and meeting some new contacts from Sigma and GT Bikes was an experience I can only describe as extraordinary.

CK: You did race out there right? How did you fare against the stiff competition?

JL: I started off super strong off the front and worked with a group including the eventual winner of the Golden Bike for 4 races or so. As I was about to make it around for lap 1 I ended up flatting and couldn't get it to seal up and was pretty dissapointed after a strong start and pulled the plug.

CK: Sorry to hear that. Do you have a beer?

JL: What? Can you do that on the job? Yes I have a beer (presents Champ with an underdown growler filled with the Red Eye Scarlet Seven and he appears quite pleased)

CK: So I heard the better portion of the race season was spent riding in rain and thick mud. Describe the beginning of the season and how things went.

JL: (takes a big gulp of beer) The season started at the WEMS Series Stump Farm 12 hour. I had big admirations for this race considering I was the defending champ from 2008, but just coming off the first of many illnesses to plague my season was just clearing away and what I found out later was that the chainring I was using needed to be replaced. I had a hard time and pulled plug early on It was raining but that course needed it and there was tons of good racing and great riders drilling it throughout the day. My bike issues would continue all the way till the WEMS race in Franklin and was starting to come around with a top 10 finish but not quite there. I also started feeling strong during the Wausau WORS race where I felt I was on the gas the entire time which was something I had been missing early on.

CK: Sounds like a rough start. Was there a point where you felt like you were at last seasons form?

JL: Yeah, I think just before 24 Hours of 9 Mile I was turning some fast laps specifically during the night hours which was a weak point for me in 2008.

CK: How did that work out for you?

JL: Not great I broke my frame on the first lap and re-injured my knee trying to run in bike shoes. I attempted to get on the singlespeed and grind it but then the pain got to be overwhelming and threw in the towel, definitely not a proud moment in history for me that's for certain.

CK: (Takes another drink of the Scarlet 7) Well slap my ass and call me Betsy. That doesn't sound like the outcome you were looking for. What happened from there?

JL: Well, with the injury and the new bike on the way I took some time off to heal and fit off being sick again. I got back on the bike again just before Cheqfat and was excited to do that race but not on the singlespeed.

CK: How did the Chequamegon 40 go for you?

JL: I thought it went well despite all of the previous illnesses and getting passed by almost everybody on the singlespeed at the start. I rode a 33x16 which worked pretty well on the ski trails but with about 6 miles left I really started to lose energy and cramp up, but that didn't dissapoint me as I still had a pretty good time. I plan to be much more competitive in 2010 if I get into that race via the lottery.

CK: I heard you faced some adversity for quite some time after that. Can you elaborate on that for me partner?

JL: Partner? (Takes another drink) Anyway, yeah, I got sick again after the cheqfat and had a hard time staying healthy between then and Underdown in fact the underdown race turned out to be my best finish of the year but the field wasn't as deep due to WORS re-scheduling a race for that weekend. I went to the doctor that following week and after x-rays, labs, and urine samples, they found I had Epestein Barr Virus which is a basically Mono. It explained my shallow breathing, weakened immune system, and ongoing fatigue. They put me on some antibiotics and it was crazy to get that kind of awakening without dumping redbull or monster into my system.

CK: Ouch! So that was basically the end of your season, is that safe to assume?

JL: Yeah that was it.

CK: In an down year like this, is there anything positive you got from it?

JL: Oh yeah, I would say taking time and going up to Bond Falls for the annual Tomahawk Cross Country camp and speaking to the kids about continuing to stay active after their cross country days are over and seeing how far the program has come over the course of the last decade. Also, going up to Hayward for the Cheqfat 40 was a blast in which I got to hang out with friends both new and old including the Colorado crew Scott D, Brett Ebben, Marni and Chris Plesko. Chris had some funny stories to share about the Great Divide MTB race.

CK: So I heard you had some Jungle Jooz up in Hayward, Did you know I own stock in that company. Anyway, what are your plans for 2010.

JL: Really? If I could sum up the taste of that stuff in one word it would be....butt. For 2010 I am planning to stay local as I am working with the city of Tomahawk to get some mtb trails built in the park so I will be spending a lot of the summer up there. I plan on opening up the season with a Colorado training camp in April. I plan on doing 24 hours of 7 oaks and the WEMS series as always. Plus I look forward to doing some of my favorite WORS races again as well. I will try to get into Cheqfat again, and of course the badger state winter games will be on the calendar. I will lace up my running shoes again to get the THS alumni the win next year and wont miss out on doing the stump farm duathalon either.

CK: Is there anyone you would like to thank?

JL: Of course. I would like to thank Brian at Evomo for bringing me out to California and the support from the team sponsors. I would also like to thank my wife for her support throughout the season and never letting up on me to get me to see the doctor as I am as about as stubborn as they come. I would also like to thank all of my sponsors both new for 2010 Hayes, Uvex, and QRotor, and for 2009 sponsors involved with Team Evomo.

CK: Well thank you for taking some time with us and good luck in 2010.

JL: Thanks

CK: Back to you Ron Burgundy

Ron Burgundy: Stay classy Wisconsin!

Tomahawk MTB Trail Layout

2009-10-13T17:42:00.002-05:00

So I was able to get a layout planned and should get to work on it this upcoming weekend. It's about 5 miles in total length with only a little bit that needs to be added to complete the loop. Red is where I walked it last weekend and the white is how I want it to go. There is and will be a little climbing in this compact little area but it wont disappoint once completed.

New Sponsor for Team Redemption 2010

2009-10-08T10:02:00.003-05:00

2010 is already in the works after some chest xrays, blood work, and doctors visits I will soon know what had ailed me during 2009 and with that all in the past it's time for redemption in 2010. I would like to thank all of my gracious sponsors who had stuck with me through this trying year. EVOMO, Simbree, Rocky Mountain Roastery, QRotor, MotorTabs, Fluid, Titec, Brave Soldier and Ergon, I would also like to Welcome Hayes Disc Brakes for their upcoming support during 2010. I've been lucky enough to have utilized my Manitou R7, Hayes Stroker Trail Brakes, and Answer Hyperlite Bar. I can't wait to see what else I can use to make me a better rider.

New Belgium at its finest

2009-09-30T10:50:00.000-05:00

Shawano 100

2009-09-28T20:32:00.002-05:00

Well I got one century out of the way this year...finally, and it didn't conclude without it's fair share of surprises. I decided to set out at around 11:30 and hit the mountain bay. This is a pretty nice trail and well maintained for a gravel grinder, but found that it doesn't stay gravel all the way to green bay and does in fact break up in shawano so about 3 hours and 53 miles into it I found a gas station close to downtown and refilled my camelback and found my way back to the trail. On the way back, I wasn't able to find where it connects but now at least I was able to put together a hassle free century route with no cars, but the downside is no hills. I felt good for the majority of the ride until the return route where the wind picked up and dropped my average speed quite drastically so I made another stop in Eland Wisconsin to hit up the bathroom and down some additional calories, from there I pushed as hard as I could and turned it into sign sprints for awhile. I still managed a 6:40 century on the dirt which wasn't too bad considering the recent illness, but my body did tell me to rest when I didn't wake up till close to 11am so I missed my ride at underdown with the coles to scout the Thunderdown race course which looks to be epic as usual.

So in a nutshell that's it, one more race at underdown and a duathalon at the camp in November then it's time to get some skate skiing goin on.

Fattire Weekend 2009

2009-09-22T12:02:00.012-05:00

This would be the 2nd time I've been lucky enough to get into the 40 with the last time in 2007. Devils Lake Retreat would be our headquarters for the weekend. Jshoe and Jvog arrived here in Weston Friday morning to head up Hayward after converting my rigid redline ss into a 69er. A short stop in Trego for subs and we were just about there. The majority of the group had already arrived Luke and Sarah, Paul and Melinda, Nate and Kim and finally us. After a few calls back and forth between Brett and Nate, Jim and the Colorado Crew (Brett, Scott, Marni, and Chris) showed up and ready to head to registration. Surprisingly that whole process went pretty quickly and we were already on our way back. Jim "da chef" Parman cooked us a spectacular dinner consisting of grilled chicken, alfredo sauce and noodles, with brocolli while the rest of worked on bikes. Figured out staging and returning to the cabin after the race and before too much longer we went to bed for an early morning wake up.

At the butt crack of dawn or i

n this case earlier we set out to stage bikes and at the time we arrived it was already 15 or more rows a

nd around 400 bikes back. I wasn't too dissapointed only because I w

ould get shuffled to the rear afte

r the cannon blew anyway cause of the fact I was riding single speed. The bike of choice for the weekend was the Redline monocog with 33x16 gearing. Anyway, we all met up again at the cabin a few hours prior to the start for breakfast and headed over to Hayward for the start. The start to the race was uneventful, hell, the cannon didn't even blow off but we did have pirates yelling pirate like things little did I know it was national talk like a pirate day. The start was very controlled and slower than years past but really what did that matter I was on a friggen singlespeed I got dropped in a fashion comparable to contador during the opening mountain stages on le tour. So I pushed on spinning my nuts off trying to keep pace at 22mph as best as I could pedal, pedal, coast and repeat till rosie's field. I think I took it way too easy in the beginning because I was thinking ahead to fire tower. Still I came through OO in fair shape. I would try to find a group that was moving pretty fast but after I would catch a group I found it easy to drop them in which I think this was because the type of riders I would normally be with were 10 or more minutes ahead with JS

hoe and JVog. I would continue to pass swarms of riders on the climbs which I found quite strange. I couldn't understand the amount of riders that were not using the hills to their advantage on to roll up on them and move quietly along side and ride on by with a ring of the bell or two if I felt saucy.

This process would continue till just about fire tower where I pushed it down and tried to carry all the speed I could into it but as luck would have it and I know others have run into this as well where you're climbing and someone jumps off and it's a domino effect until you are running along with the herd. The climb consisted of 4 sections all marked with the signs listed to the left not sure on the length but it couldn't have been too bad. After the end of the fire tower climb it began to go down hill little by little, mile by mile. I started feeling my calfs twinge a little after we got back on the birkie trail and with 4 or 5 miles left I w

as in full cramp mode on the climbs only, luckily for me I had john

hirsch riding with me back and forth as he would gap me on flats and I would catch him on the climbs it was probably the greatest timing as I was ready to give up and spin it in but he encouraged me to keep pushing hard. He got me in the end but it was worth it and greatly appreciated. So the wrap up for the race goes as

a time of 2:48:27.2 So not too bad by my estimation. Afterwards some post race chatter it was back to the cabin and the brew would be flowing like water in a gentle stream. Seriously though we've had an extensive collection of beer being represented from coors (yuck) to point oktoberfest, fattire hoptober, etc. see image to the left (disregard the can of jungle joose as that should have come with a surgeon general warning to drink at own risk). From that point on we talked some trash, got drilled by paul on music trivia, and listened to some intriguing stories about the tour divide by Chris Plesko current singlespeed record holder beating the previous record by 4 days!!! some of the stuff he was telling us made nullified my own personal stories of riding a bike for 24 hours. This looks to be my inspiration going into the 2010 season. Something like whenever I feel like stopping in my pit or walking a hill I need to ask myself wwpd - What Would Plesko Do. In all seriousness though it was great to meet the Colorado Crew and visit with Brett again.

There would be more war stories shared and people turning in one by one until it was me, shoe, and luke left. It didn't last too much longer since we were subject to Coors Light after all of the good beer was gone so that was a good time to call it a night. Sunday was

pretty much as expected in that we all packed up and departed to home. Shortly after arriving I jumped on the Turner and did about an hour and a half at nine mile and then proceeded to become very ill for the better half of the week, but all in all I'll be set to go for a ride at underdown this weekend hopefully to pre ride before next weekends 12 hour solo. There isn't too much left of the racing season but the Stump Farm Off Road Duathalon sounds intriguing.

Found New Music to Jam While Shreddin the Gnar

2009-09-06T18:11:00.000-05:00

What the hell have I been doing?

2009-09-05T23:22:00.006-05:00

I've since dissapeard from the racing scene for a bit now, but have managed to stay busy. I've been trying to get my knee back to 100% and up to this point I've had good and bad days on the bike, but I was recovered enough to go and run with the Tomahawk CC kids who were kind enough to allow me to talk to them about continuing their active lifestyle and all of the options they have now and after school. That following saturday I ran in the THS alumni race and while I didn't have the greatest run of my life, hanging with this years team and some of the fellow alumni like Simon, Deann and Nate was the highlight for that day. I have since taken on a project of bring some mountain biking to my hometown so I boarded the single speed after the race and some food from Sammy's Subs and rode the existing trails and gather ideas of what needed to be created, reclaimed and finally think up a loop. From that point on I've been working with the city to advise of my ideas and also got the help of IMBA and WORBA to get some valueable input and great advice.

I've also been working on getting back on the geared bike and I was like a kid on Christmas Day when I received this beautiful, custom coated, 2010 DW Lind Turner Flux. Oh it is art in the greatest of forms with geometry, aluminum, great welds and the independent dw link a full pound heavier was the biggest concern but after mounting this up and riding it through the roots and rocks of nine mile i'm convinced that this will not be a problem. With the DW Link this suspension is not only more active than the Nitrous, but it climbs like a hardtail. I had a hard time believing this myself until I started up Twinkie Hill and it felt easy. Riding the new Ho Chi connector felt smoother and decending Ho Chi was insane and the flats felt damn good. I am thoroughly impressed with this bike only after the first ride but I do have some suspension tweaking to do and there is no better place than the Underdown.

So that's it, the update, I will be doing some racing at cheqfat and the remaining two wems races.

This Just has to be shared

2009-08-11T21:50:00.000-05:00

2009-08-11T14:57:00.001-05:00

Monday ride hurt only 5 mins into the climb, but today iwas finally able to get a full road ride in. rest wednesday back at it on thursday. RUKUS

2009-08-10T14:59:00.001-05:00

Congrats to Ted Hanes for taking the golden bike. Only one more race left inn the series.

2009-08-08T20:27:00.001-05:00

LAX race cancelled. I like this since i can recover from injury and do this one on my new flux!

2009-07-29T20:46:00.001-05:00

Turner Bikes came through in a huge way. Cant wait to get my new copper flux. Thanks Greg and Dave Turner himself.

24-9 A Catastrophic Failure

2009-07-27T20:34:00.004-05:00

After some of the lap times I've been running at night there at 9-mile, I was very optimistic about the outcome of this race. I knew what times I needed and where. Food was set, bike was clean, numbers on and lined up behind Brandon. The cannon goes off and we take off in a scene that would rival that of a cattle stampede. I get on the bike and ride right behind scott into the first tech section of singletrack and descend out I lose scott and joel hynes right away due to a dropped chain, but do catch back up heading into ho chi. Before you know it there is a huge gap formed now and kept a really good pace heading across redbud rd and as I entered the second group of singletrack, go past the stumps and I heard the bang I never thought I would have to hear and to my suprise my frame is broke, no worries at this point though I would still have a lap time that would keep me alive in the overall but now in 43rd of 56.

On the 2nd lap I jumped onto my singlespeed and continued on a good second lap clawing my way back up to 25th and proceeded into the 3rd I . The 3rd lap started out great but when it came to climbing out of trail #6 to cross redbud my knee began to shoot some sharp pains and before I knew it I couldn't apply pressure on the climbs. So I finished the 3rd lap in terrible pain and fought my way up to 17th at this point, but Adam from Ellsworth hooked me up with a demo for the rest of the race if I wanted it so I switched pedals adjusted the seat and off I went. My thought process for the 4th lap was to slow it down, recover, see how the knee feels and go from there. I didn't even make to the first singletrack section before my knee started up again and now it was getting to the point where I couldn't put any pressure on it at all. So I unclipped and rested it as I took the "y" bypass back to the pits and turned in my card and cancelled the 4th lap.

A very bad day indeed, I felt good, nutrition was setup the way I wanted and had great support. It just goes to show that even on your best days you can still have things go wrong. At this point I don't know what will happen going down the road for 2009. Chequamegon is still a go since I am in the singlespeed class (still not sure if that's a good idea considering the knee problem) and Iceman which again I signed up for the singlespeed class. Underdown I should have a new bike by then but bluemounds wems might have to come off the schedule and maybe the 12 of pitchblack as well.

Thanks goes to all of the people on the course who offered to help not knowing the situation. Also, thanks to Scott Cole for his offering to help as well as his great crew. Also, Adam from Ellsworth was a great help and ready to let me use a demo that Liz (24 solo womens winner) had literally put together the night before in which the glimpse worked great. Evomo for their kick ass hoody that kept me warm throughout the night. MotorTabs kept me hydrated, Ergon, Titec, Simbree, Tifosi, Brave Soldier, and Rocky Mountian Roastery for all their support this season. Only 363 more days till I come back to 24 hour racing. Redemption will be the word to describe 2010!

Levis "Knock Down Drag Out" 100

2009-07-12T20:58:00.005-05:00

My triumphant return to Levis after last years mess of flu/food poisoning (in which the jury is still deliberating on) is now in the books. I didn't know what to expect in that everybody that knows me knows by now or now just found out that I haven't been riding much due to life issues mainly in the form of shit hours at work, but I push on looking into the big picture that it's only temporary as one down year is not going to end my world as we know it.

I knew the front was going to break fast and that they did. A group consisting of chris s, chris p, tim, lee, and the minnesotans (charly and dan) took off like derby horses as I sat in with charlie farrow. I was content in running 1:30 laps just cause I know this place will claim my life if I try to go out at a WORS pace. So when I came in around 1:13 I was plenty pleased and optimistic, oh how the tide would turn. lap 2 was around 1:15, lap 3 around 1:19 and lap 4 was about 1:22, but I was getting some nasty stomach cramping on lap five with jello legs plus full blown stomach problems on lap six forced me to take care of that plus sit for way too much time. So on lap six I get out there and tried to put the hammer down again but could only muster a 1:30 lap minus the stop, but instead of stopping I continued onto lap 7 and destroyed myself I was cramping in my legs on every climb I couldn't hold a line on the second half of the course and I was beginning to get dizzy and my vision was blurring out a little bit I was sure I had not only lost any hope of catching anyone in the top five but may have to worry about not making the 8th lap and losing a few more spots. So finally I roll around to begin lap 8 with lights with me in case I end up walking, get a mechanical, or even a possible #2 in the woods so that I can find some good leafs that wont require expensive creams. I am unsure what possessed me to get back out there maybe just to get the monkey off my back as this place as always plagued me and for god's sake I wanted to finish on the lead lap as the leaders for once this year and quitting at 7 wasn't acceptable. I get out there and I feel like I am the only one and that may as well be true so I drilled the sections I felt really comfortable in and took the other sections down 1 by 1 except for a sandy section where I sunk my front wheel and started to endo until that well placed boulder broke my fall via my pinky and ergon bar end and continued onward. Finally I loop around after busting up that final climb as I wanted to make sure I ended a hard day on a good note and brought it in with sunlight remaining to pack up and roll out. Apparently my suffering did not end yet.

As I packed up my area I had to take numerous breaks caused by dizziness and finally as I pulled back around to the event area I opened the door and hurled onto the gravel, this did make me feel better and good enough to drive back to wausau but I would have to stop 3 more times in random areas.

As I have been mentioning to anybody that has asked how the race went, this was much harder than doing a 24 solo, but the organizers did a great job, and the people at the aid tents were great to everyone that would pass through.

2009-07-10T22:17:00.001-05:00

Just got settled in at levis. looks like a strong field again this year but atleast this time i dont have the flu

12 Hours of John Muir

2009-06-16T20:11:00.004-05:00

Much like the last 5, count em, 5 races we were gifted more rain. So I rolled up to the venue, donated more money to the DNR (why you need both a state trail and parking pass just to ride your bike is beyond me), and set up my pit and as usual rolled to the start line with about 5 minutes to spare.

The course conditions were far from perfect watching riders go down left and right some right in front of me. I bobbed and weaved like a veteran prize fighter but busting out the rigid singlespeed was not only an option cause of the way it performs in nasty conditions, but it was my only option due to drivetrain issues once again and would come back to haunt me later. So for the first six hours I spent it all on my Redline SS and the aftermath looked a little something like this.

So now after that mess was over I needed to get on the geared bike, but I think it may have hurt me more than helped at this point as I was too worried about dropping my chain on the one or two climbs on the course and my turner is much more responsive so I rode a pretty sloppy line for the first couple of laps and just enough that I slowed a little and let people by that I normally wouldn't especially in the pits as I watch a fellow series rider go by as I change out shoes and camelbacks. I am bummed about and new I could have caught or simply stayed ahead of the 3 riders in front of me had I been more prepared. I did feel a little better and my legs came to life again like I was in a 24 solo race on the last lap and rode the 2nd fastest lap of the race for me which is a sign that I am on track for my season goals. So the story goes 9th place on the day just under 100 miles and my turner survived despite the not so optimistic approach. At least the 2nd half of the race offered no mud to speak of and I didn't have to clean two bikes.

Thanks to Simbree, Fluid, and MotorTabs for keeping me alive during the first five mud filled races. Also, thanks to Tifosi for keeping said mud from scratching my retinas. Of course I would also like to thank Ergon and Brave Soldier for keeping me comfortable in the saddle.

2009-06-14T13:38:00.001-05:00

9th on another rainfilled race. last lap was 2nd fastest...report to follow.

Racing (If that's what I call what I am doing out there)

2009-05-31T00:07:00.006-05:00

Now that everyone had a chance to hear the word about the bird (see previous post) I gotta say Life has funny ways of messing with you. First I go to California and do the Sea Biscuit Sand Classic in which I flat and crash myself out after a strong leadout. I then have work schedule changes that limit my weekly riding time to half of what I've done last year to this point. Then comes the weather. Green Bay WEMS looked promising up till about two days prior the weather channel changed their tune and from there we would have rain. I got off on a bad foot forgetting my camelback on the first lap, having the wrong camelback on the 2nd lap and along with chain suck issues from a old drivetrain that the budget wouldn't allow for upgrade I was forced to "riding in the dog" for about 2 hours which left my legs lifeless and would not recover no matter how easy I took it. I called it a day and would live to fight another day.

Next up was the 12 hours of Northern Kettles and I was feeling better than green bay but let it get to my head as I went out like a bat out of hell which if you know my style I started the opposite of the norm for me and burnt my first match early on in the first friggin lap. I recovered much quicker this time due to my illness being put away finally, but stomach issues forced me off the bike after each of the following two laps. Of course once again the rain gods decided it was time to wash the riders off the course and more chainsuck and bigring riding was on tap once again and was doing okay, but as I was gearing up to make a push for my final lap I crashed hard and came in about 5 minutes later than I wanted to be. Now I am at the breaking point. I can't get my legs the correct amount of work they desperately need, the weather has been piss poor each and every weekend, but there is still hope. Hope that the new drivetrain thanks to SRAM and some new chainrings should clear up the mechanical situation. Hope that the switch back to the old nutrition plan will keep my stomach in check. Finally, I hope that a good race at WORS Rhinelander event with good weather for once and of course a great group of friends will be all that I need to keep it going all the way to 24 hours of 9-mile.

At this point of the year I get so busy with trying to train, race, rest and repeat that I don't take the time to say thanks to the people that support the habit and most importantly my wife and friends deserve it the most. They all give me the appropriate amount of shit for doing what I do and never allow me to get lazy. Also, Bryan and Clint at EVOMO for contributing to this two wheel addiction plus wearing the EVOMO gear certainly helps me continue to bring the ruckus out there. The guys at Titec for some coolest go fast goodies, Jeff at Ergon for some sweet green grips and their packs that make commuting look cool and easy on the back, the Simbree snacks are awesome, motortabs tasting like Koolaid makes me happy to have a drink that doesn't taste like your typical endurance drinks. Fluid to ensure I recover well from riding that heavy redline ss for 5 hours or more at a time. Brave soldier friction zone for the keeping the undercarriage in check if in the rain. I would also like to give a shout out to Hayes Disc Brakes for creating the stroker....the guys from performa turned me on to these and despite the rain, mud, and thank god no snow they simply work and my hands do not tire unlike other brakes I've used in the past over the course of 12 hours in a race. Easy to adjust, set up, etc just simply awesome gear. Actionwipes came to the rescue at the right time early on this season cleaning up the mess I was in during the mudfest that ensued in the northern kettles.

The road to 24...oops I mean 12 hours of 9-mile starts....now!
June 1st WORS Rhinelander

June 7th WORS Wausau

June 13th WEMS John Muir - Whitewater-ish

June 27th WEMS Metro Challenge- Milwaukee

July 4th Pow-Wow Days 5k (that's a run in case ur wondering) Tomahawk

July 11th WEMS Levis 100 - Neilsville

July 25-26 12 Hours of 9-mile (a beer costume bring I will)

Lengthy...yes. Informative...maybe. I did manage to kill some time and continue onward with my business plan....watch out trump!

News!

2009-05-29T10:31:00.000-05:00

In todays headlines you may have not yet heard

back in the saddle

2009-05-03T19:14:00.002-05:00

Monday I was feeling a little scratch in my throat and all I could think was "oh shit now I got the swine flu" I assured myself it wasn't in fact I had everybody telling me to get it checked out but never fear all I have is a cold...yuck!. This was my week now to have a little training camp since this severely gave me little chance for trans iowa (Congrats goes to Tim Ek by the way for a 2nd place finish). Wednesday I had planned to do 6 hours at the camp in green bay and had every intention on doing so. I did 3 full laps by myself and then Josh B rolled up so I did a lap with him and couple of his co-workers. Nate and wrong turn neubauer along with paul from team performa pulled up as well. At this point I was completely thrashed with the sickness creeping in and rockin the 32x16 for almost 5 hours already. So when they took off I got dropped. Total time was about 5:45.

I rested the following three days to see if I can shake this cold and today I finally got out to standing rocks. Again, I was rockin the 32x16 singlespeed and again I did 5:40 minutes of riding but much less mileage as it was much more challenging than the camp. I really have to take my hat of to guys like the lalondes and constatine rolling a singlespeed requires much more than pedaling circles, keeping rhythm, and the additional muscle groups that are recruited.

All in all I am feeling pretty good about going into the first wems race of the year. Last year I wasn't anywhere near ready and it showed as I spent a total of an hour in the pits. Some good competition should be a great test for the early season legs, but the big question will be will my stupid cold be gone?

Sea Otter Report

2009-04-25T13:55:00.013-05:00

This was a long time coming at least as far as a write up goes, but a sudden illness kept me in recovery for quite some time in fact right now I should be riding Trans Iowa, but I had to bow out as I was certainly not feeling well, but getting better. Good luck to fellow EVOMO team member Tim Ek on his 300+ mile of gravel goodness.

So about that Sea Otter deal.

Flight departure from Milwaukee was at 5:05 so that meant getting up at 3 am. Good thing about having to go to the airport so early was the lack of traffic and I would be in California before 2pm. I found that regardless of the lack of sleep I've had I still will not sleep on the plane. I had a few connections, Chicago, Los Angeles, and finally Monterey before Bryan stopped by to give me a lift to Laguna Seca Raceway. I got all situated at the EVOMO booth and headed over to get the first of many burritos. After stuffing my face, Bryan and I went around to check out the booths.

First stop was at the Tifosi booth to say hi and thanks to Matt and Shannon.

From there we stopped by the Ergon booth and chatted up Jeff Kerkove and Sonya Looney two very cool people in which is truely great that we get to represent Ergon for 2009. Sonya later stopped back to check out the threads and drop off a couple of dh grips that are new for 2009.

Greg from MotorTabs set up his HQ at the EVOMO booth he is the man with the plan and hooked us all up with Motortabs for the weekends hot weather at times getting very close to 100 degrees.

We also made a stop at the Simbree booth to try ALL of their creations and they are All good. If you have a chance to try some Simbree energy bites I am sure you'll enjoy them.

As far as the race goes, I started off great getting a front row start I took off like I was blasted out of a cannon. I maintained 2nd wheel for the better part of the Laguna Seca leadout. I could tell right away that this was going to be a blood bath with all the climbing in the wide open sun so I put down hard on the climbs and relaxed on descents. The course was comprised of a lot of sand and maybe about 10% was tree covered if that and wide open easy to pass for around 19 miles for each lap.

This would not be my day though as I would lose my front tire in freakish way and do down on a descent as the tire was about ready to roll off the rim. I ran/walked the remaining 3 miles for lap one and turned in my timing chimp. Race ending in DNF. I will say though that despited my early withdrawl from the race It was a great weekend and met a lot of amazing people. Thanks to Bryan and Mike with Evomo, Tifosi, Motortabs, Fluid, Ergon, Simbree, and it was great to meet all of you.

Next Race? WEMS Series Opener at the Stump Farm 12 Hour. Where I will be looking to defend my 2008 solo win!

The Turner is ready...well after I get some shifters! I can't wait for the season to begin.

Who's Going to the Otter?

2009-04-06T22:19:00.005-05:00

Stop by the Evomo booth and say hi, chill in the lounge, play some foosball and register to win the prize pack.

Sunday

2009-04-05T11:46:00.002-05:00

Well there isn't much time left before either Trans Iowa and the Sea Otter is literally 2 weeks from today! I got a ride in this morning and am going on another in a little bit should total around 7 or 8 hours today. I just wish it were warmer as I may end up finishing my ride on the trainer.

Friday, Doctors, Chiropractors, Anti Chaffing Cream? Race Season is about to blow up

2009-04-03T15:41:00.006-05:00

In the spirit of Friday being my day off I..... Went to the chiropractor and got cracked a little bit, visited the doctor for some much needed maintainence and check up, stopped at starbucks and topped off my fluid levels, worked out a deal to get support from Brave Soldier and finally in the spirit of training for mountain bike marathons, I had a marathon conversation via phone with my pops. I have yet to get on the bike and clean a little around house before sam gets back home, but hey it's Friday....who "works" on a friday anyway?

Doctor visit went better than expected after the little scare I had with a irregular heart beat as the EKG showed no serious problems, but with a blood pressure of 142/84 I was quite high.. and may need to check for hypertension. This I think may be due to adding Lawrys to everything short of the apple juice i am drinking right now. Other than that I am quite healthy and can continue on my daily ritual of abusing my body in prep for some Sea Otter and Trans Iowa action. I still have to go back for some labs for thyroids (not to be confused with hemroids) glucose testing and standard lipid profile as well. Oh and a tetanus shot to boot so rusty nails wont hold me back either.

Also, added to the fold, is some support from Brave Soldier. Good dependable brand to keep my time in the saddle a comfortable one. It will truly be put to the test come Trans Iowa. I like their products and look forward to all the comfortable time I am about to spend on my favorite trails (mainly nine mile and standing rocks)

A little more about brave soldiers Friction Zone

Endurance sports formula. Superior anti-chafing. Cold water and sweat resistant. Occlusive silicone/botanical barrier protects and conditions skin for hours. Helps prevent blisters and reduce rash irritations. No petrolatum so safe for wet suits. Long lasting protection from any sports activity where gear chafing of your skin is a problem.

Well that's it for now I found some new material from C-Monster. (It's all Marko's Fault)

Itunes - Wednesday

2009-03-25T22:19:00.001-05:00

If You Don't Know, Now ya Know

2009-03-24T09:06:00.001-05:00

Cheq for $67 cleared today. Looks like I'm in this year.

Awaiting the Spring

2009-03-15T15:22:00.003-05:00

After weeks and months of a brutal winters' past, I am hoping STRONGLY that it's over after seeing temps struggling to hit 60 degrees as a high. I've been in sort of a funk being very frustrated over the lack decent weather and with the sea otter on 34 days away, I need to get my shit together and fast if I am going to have any shot at coming home with this beauty.
This week was an off week of sorts with a scheduled decrease as a transitional period. Next few weeks I will hit it hard again maybe outside!!! I am beyond ready for May, June and beyond. So far this week goes as follows

Monday: Weight and Core Training
Tuesday: 1 Hr Hill Sprints L6 power 90+ RPM
Wednesday: #1 2 Hr tempo ride 2x20 minute sustained efforts
#2 1 Hr 20 minute TT max effort
Thursday: 2 Hr at a coversation pace
Friday: 1:10 Hr optional ride
Saturday: 5ish hours to tomahawk
Sunday: 6ish hours back to wausau with extra credit moon loop

This should get me started

Fat Music Friday

2009-03-06T13:47:00.001-06:00

EVOMO Shirt Design Contest

2009-03-02T21:11:00.004-06:00

Here you go all of you creative types out there. EVOMO has created a t-shirt design contest so put the pencil to the paper and bring the rukus. Click HERE for more details and some prize info which by no doubt will be in large supply.

Snow Wont Go. So here you go!

2009-03-01T22:31:00.001-06:00

It's Official I am pissed!

2009-02-26T19:37:00.003-06:00

Okay so first we have A-Fraud (Alex Rodriguez) on tv every hour on the hour and so I am sick of that (Strike ONE) he should be out of baseball for 2 years just as any cyclist would be. Work changed my schedule giving me notice of the change exactly 1 day prior to the new format in which makes me angry cause they require us to give a two week notice for a single vacation day. (For those counting at home that's TWO strikes). Finally (Strike THREE) I find out it's going to cost $280 or more to get into the 24 hours of 9 mile. Looks like I'll be shooting for 12 solo and that's not even a good price either at $60 (WEMS charges 35). Shout out goes to GG Series for screwing up a great grassroots event. Maybe I can go back to the college days and sell plasma again for race money. Hmmmm I wonder how much jiggalos make...scratch that I'm married.

2009 Semi-Finalized Schedule

2009-02-18T21:25:00.003-06:00

4/16-4/21 - Sea Otter Classic

5/2-5/3 - Trans Iowa

5/9 - WEMS Stump Farm 12

5/23 - WEMS 12 Hours of Greenbush

5/31 - WORS Smokin Spoke (Rhinelander)

6/7 - WORS Big Ring Classic (Wausau)

6/13 - WEMS 12 Hours of John Muir

6/20 - NUE Series Lumberjack 100

6/27 - WEMS Metro 12 Hour Challenge

7/4 - Pow Wow Days 5k (Tomahawk)

7/11 - WEMS Levis 100 (Neilsville)

7/25-26 - 24 Hours of 9 Mile (Wausau)

8/8 - WEMS Blufflands Epic 12 Hour

8/22 - WEMS 12 Hours of Blue Mounds (apparently I didn't learn from last year)

8/30 - WORS Reforestation Ramble

9/4-5 - WEMS 12 Hours of Pitch Black

9/19 - Chequamegon Fattire Festival

10/3 - WEMS 12 Hours of Underdown (Tomahawk)

11/7 - Iceman Cometh

Training Wheels

2009-02-17T21:32:00.002-06:00

Not too much going on but spinning the wheels on the trainer until the snow is finished. We're only supposed to get a few inches which will be nice to get out and skate some more so watching viva la bam on the trainer is broken up a little bit. I've been downloading some tunes.

Chinese Democracy - GnR

Shacklers Revenge - GnR

You Wouldn't Know - Hellyeah

Alcoholin' Ass - Hellyeah

Stranglehold - Ted Nuggent

Stillborn - Black Label Society

See you on the Other Side - Ozzy Osbourne

I Got Erection - Turbonegro

Hot For Teacher - Van Halen

Unchained - Van Halen (not van hagar)

No racing until the Sea Otter, but did the registration thing and if people are complaining about camping rates at the wors races this year they should stop by the sea otter site and see the $60 per site per night price tag....I would rather pay the other 25 or so to have a comfy bed.

Looking Back and Pushing Forward

2009-02-08T20:51:00.005-06:00

Badger State Games for me are now over as today was the final event for the 2009 winter games. The games started for me on Saturday Jan 25th as I lined up for the 10k classic xc ski race in temps well below zero. I got off to a great start and posted a strong 1st place finish. From there I lined up again right away the next morning with of course the same below zero temp I'd seen the day prior in the Quadrathlon which included the 5k run, 5k bike, 5k snowshoe, and finally a 5k xc ski. To make a long story short, run was conservative, my bottle froze within 5 minutes after I mounted the Redline, lots of climbing in the snowshoe, and finally I had no tech skill on the skate skis. All in all a good race with a 4th place finish despite the fatigue. Finally, today, the 3rd and final race which was simply a 5k trail run. I was thinking it was going to be a fast race on some roads but it really was in fact a trail run. Picking your way around the trail was the hardest part as it rivaled that of beach sand, but I managed to come out with a good result and my second gold in my final Badger State Games race of 2009. I was able to utilize the fluid recovery (berry treasure) drink just in time before this last race and it did wonders I wish I had it the Saturday night before the Quadrathlon I like the taste more than others out there as well.

Friday was like the second coming of Christmas as a box of EVOMO goodies arrived. Including the key ingredients to the Nitrous diet plans thanks to Titec, Simbree, EVOMO, Fluid, and of course did I mention EVOMO. As I mentioned above I've already begun to use some of the great items. The new long sleeve team jersey was great for xc skiing.

The Gravel Road to Trans Iowa Begins 2/9/09 at 7:00 am! The Coach Lynda plan has me doing a couple of hours tomorrow with the 20 minute max effort as which I will enjoy. I don't want to just make it through I would like to also get a good result in my first attempt.

Skating...We'll Leave it at That

2009-01-21T21:08:00.002-06:00

So now after swearing off skate skiing I gave it another shot and finally...this time...it's better. I can at least surpass the time it normally takes on the classics which makes it worth sticking with. The one problem I am having is going up hill which at time it seems like I come to a complete stop so if anybody has any pointers let me know.

I think this is going to be a better form of training for me due to the power it takes as compared to striding. It's almost like striding is awesome for aerobic while skating is great for building power. Well I'll just stick with it as it can only get better from here....right?

Balancing Life and Racing With Dave Wiens 6x Leadville Winner

2009-01-19T19:09:00.005-06:00

Want to know how to balance life, work, family and racing? It's a tough task that I am sure anyone that goes through it can attest to, but in a 2 part series, EVOMO interviews the 6 time Leadville 100 champion as he explains how he balances his time and still managed to keep the streak alive by knocking off 7 time Tour De France champion Lance Armstrong. I along with other teammates on the EVOMO team were able to ask questions in regards to training and prep for this race with the type of schedule he has and more.

To be honest my wife and I don't have kids yet, but the balance is still difficult with family and work taking up the better half of the day while sleep takes up the other. I really have to give it up for guys like Dave Wiens and Scott Cole for bringing the rukus the way they do with their busy lives off the bike, but to get a better Idea of how Dave goes about it click here for the first part of the interview with part 2 here.

As far as today goes, I got a good 1.5 hours in on the skis (need more klister by the way) and another 1.5 hours on the trainer. Big weekend ahead.

As Any Other Day That Ends With a "Y"

2009-01-17T21:50:00.002-06:00

Skis were prepared, breakfast down, looked outside......and I about crapped myself. Once again the skies opened up and dumped about 4-6 inches of pow pow (yeah that just happened) freshly on my deck leaving me with two things to think about. 1) I get to shovel the crap when I get home and 2) my skis were not set up for fresh snow ooops this will teach me to not check the weather the night before a race again. It was too late to re-wax, so I packed up my brown blazer and headed to nine mile. I was gladly relieved that they mentioned the fresh grooming had taken place so I had a snowballs chance to glide efficiently and later found I couldn't be more wrong even if I was George W. Bush the last eight years. The trails were not groomed and people made paths in the skate lanes which really left me scrambling and only after bringing forth the rukus on the first large climbs, it all went down hill and I couldn't catch a nice track to stride in, but all in all it was good prep for next weekends beating I am lucky enough to bring on myself.

Tickets for Sea Otter are purchased and accounted for now. Last things to do is find a place to crash for the few days I'm there. The course is about 38 miles which is nice, but rumor has it that it's not super technical which can be boring but this early in the season an easy race technically might be a better option as I prepare for the human sacrifice that is trans iowa. Salsa 24 fest looks to be a place to be at in 2009, but I am not sure I am up for it if the performa crew doesn't go as it falls the same weekend as the Green Bay WORS race.

Winter Racing and Unfortunate News

2008-12-20T01:07:00.003-06:00

It's 1:00 am and I've been watching the uncut version of "Comedy Central Roast of Pam Anderson" with half of my head clogged full of snot. I've been getting my winter racing schedule wrapped up a 21k xc ski race, 5k snowshoe, and the quadrathon (which is a 5k run,5k bike,5k snowshoe and 5k xc ski) this makes the xterra look one weekend and a 5k trail run the week after and 12k xc ski race the week before all of it.

It also looks as though the sea otter is a go this year. I've been really wanting to get out west and do this race since I bought my first mountain bike...a mongoose sycamore complete with RST front fork and chromoly frame....technology has come a long way hasn't it? Anyway I made the attempt to get out and ride the trails across redbud at nine mile that i've tried to create but still too soft I may just scrap the idea and focus on skiing as I am going to have plenty of time on the bike with all the racing I've got lined up during the 2009 season on the EVOMO team.

On a saddening note a fellow racer had passed away recently and while I did not know him personally, Kyle was a great competitor and just by chatting in passing from point a to b I can honestly say he was a stand up guy and represented the sport well. We were in the same age group so I got know him a little bit, but never the less, Thoughts and prayers go out to him and his closest friends and family.

Workin in a Coal Mine

2008-12-09T20:20:00.002-06:00

So with the last two weeks worth of snow I was able to make it out to 9 mile for some winter snowshoe fun across redbud road for more of a marking run through the woods so that I can lay down a good base for some mtb riding.

Not much for racing plans until January in a 12k XC ski race.

Check Ergon for the contest of all contests. Send a pic of your haggard grips and you may win a grip of your choice.

Merry Christmas to all.

Back to the basics

2008-11-24T21:56:00.002-06:00

Okay so after the experiment with the mac had me scratching my head, I think it may have been a little to busy for the blogger folk out there. So I made the executive decision to bring it on back to the blogger world. Simple, easy and to the point.

Thoughts of Trans Iowa occupy my mind on a daily basis. I already am training and getting lists of things needed to conquer the course. I am not going to Iowa to make a half assed effort I am going to ride strong from start to finish if it kills me. Tim Ek-zilla will be joining the Rukus that of Trans Iowa. I am really looking forward to this and am counting down the days to May 2nd.

100th post a good way to end the blogger experience

2008-07-11T23:59:00.003-05:00

Well now that I've got the new site done to my liking until I learn a few more tricks in the HTML Code world. I will be leaving this site behind and leaving you this link to the new one. Stop by leave a comment, say hi, or whatever. I've got a few more things I want to add but really wanted the guts done first.

Save this on your blogs.

12 Hours of Blue Mounds is cancelled due to the large amount of rain during the overnight hours.

Firecracker was fun. I really do like that course, but man do I have some work to do. I had no start speed, but climbed very very well and stayed in the Big Ring during the whole ride. I can't complain too much about that consider how friggin tanked I got over the fourth of July!!! It was nice to see the familiar faces again, but I should have kept my focus oh well...at least it wasn't 2 days before 24/9.

Looks like I'll be on superfan detail at Cheqfat this year as the 50 ways didn't pan out (I need costume ideas people).....what a bummer I feel I've been hosed this year on the lottery side of things no go to Iceman and Cheqfat. Yeah you could say I am a little bitter, sure, why wouldn't I be. At least 24/9 doesn't have a limit and lottery.

Levis 100

2008-07-01T21:47:00.002-05:00

Since about last wednesday I've been battling a nasty stomach bug that really knocked me out and even missed a day and a half of work, but that wasn't going to stop me from riding Levis. Eric picked me up at around 5 am.....yuck!!! my stomach grumbling all the way there and still extremely tired, hell I was tired all the way up to the start, during the first lap, while sleeping in the back of the car, you get the story. I couldn't seem to get the sick feeling in my gut to go away and after talking with Lee about what happened out there and talking to Darko Marko and Creepyfriendly Esquire, I got pissed off enough to stop acting like a pussy and get out there and try it again and in a way I am glad I did as for one thing I didn't finish DFL and for another I got a good traning ride in. The downside was I couldn't keep NOTHING down which is hard to do a race like this with no stabilization of incoming to expended calories not good for endurance racing. Point is listen to your body take a break if you need to it's a long season. Anyway, I finished 4 laps, Jesse and Marko rocked the SS championship and now I get to do a WORS race this weekend in my favorite course in which causes me more injuries than I care to mention...Eau Claire.

Slimfast is good for endurance racing? I learned that this weekend, but kind of curious as I am still looking for something I can take down quickly and not choke...Ideas?

Secret Secret training session tonight has my confidence back to normal....no I wasn't at nine mile and we'll leave it at that.

As Scott listed, 33 days till nationals....YIPPEEE! It's going to be FAST this year and Chris...don't worry about the second log pile in the flower trail as it's already gone. The right hander in Ho Chi Minh got me I think I've been jinxed.

Lumberjack 100 Report

2008-06-17T20:17:00.004-05:00

I had left for the lumberjack and thought it'd be best to take the carferry across as it was quicker???? What I didn't know at the time was that with the flooding up towards Manistee and the huge detour around the national forest I didn't arrive to registration till 8pm and to the hotel around 9 and I still had to eat yet and make up my lap goody bags and bottles and before you know it, it's 4 am on race day time to eat stretch and head out to the venue. I got to there and immediately searched out a pit area and got situated next to the niner/sho-air singlespeeders deejay and fuzzy.

Lap 1:
I was suprised at the road start, but not dissapointed because I was the first rider trailing behind the lead group knowing that I didn't want to blow up trying to keep up with those guys before the clock even started. I started catching people right off the bat at the long, sandy, almost endless first climb and was moving quite well for the majority of the lap and then along came the river created by local flooding easily hub deep and got worse with every rider going through it and was quite long as well. The next suprise was the climbing on the later portion of the lap. I was thinking that with the course being 100% singletrack maybe the first series of climbs was all there would be.....WRONG. Granted I love climbing and I expect it in most cases but I was suprised when I saw the final product of the Garmin registering 31000+ feet of elevation over the course of the roughly 100 miles. I felt pretty good and stopped to pop another gel, payday, cliffbar, swig of coke and off I go again.
2:08 was my lap time.

Lap 2:
Again climbed like a mad man feeling no build up of lactic acid and still making passes, but decided to shut er down after the river again to make sure I had enough left in the tank so I did latch onto Scott's wheel for the remainder of lap 2. When I arrived to the pit area I felt like I had to take a deuce so bad so off to the portajohn I went that took way too much time and bad timing at that, but I did feel a little better and continued on to lap 3. 4:27 through 2 laps this included my time on the john.

Lap 3:
I felt okay on the climbs and carried the bike through the river once again to save it from serious harm as I can't afford to replace anymore wheels, hubs, forks, etc...At this point going into the climbs I felt like puking hell I almost did like three time including in the pits going into my final 25 miles and I was already in a terrible place on the third lap already eating my "Cracked Cereal with Bonkberries" and ready to call it quits in the pit area as my lunch was on its way up to say hello I told Scott that I didn't feel so hot all of a sudden and he knew what was up and said I should get back out there quick then and finish it up (Thanks Scott) 2:37 for lap time.....ouch!

Lap 4:
I felt like crap wrists were numb, stomach was screwed up, legs were gone and if you ride you know the feeling. I kept wanting it to end be done with and so on with every corner that I went around I was looking for the cars in the parking lot. I was glad it was over, happy I finished, dissapointed with the final half of the ride, but proud that I held it together despite the events towards the end. I mustered a 2:54 final lap and I wasn't at all thrilled with it knowing full well that I can ride much better than that. But hey you don't learn anything by going half-assed only wondering what if I went balls deep and gave it my all. With that being said lesson learned and even with bonking finishing mid-pack overall is a small victory in days and weeks of ups and downs. The important thing is to keep my eyes on the prize for 24 hour nats.

Congrats to the World Bicycle Relief guys (Chris and Brad) for strong races respectively.

No more racing due to family functions until Levis 100 in which I am extremly excited about as I love this course I'll be interested in seeing what parts they use for the course and granted there is a map but it doesn't say nothing unless you've been more than the one time I was luck enough to visit

I have to thank the guys at EVOMO for all of their support this season and great threads, Rudy project for keeping my vision and melon in check, Nuun for electrolyte replenishment, Monster for giving me that little extra boost when I am feeling sluggish, SixSixOne for keeping the blister demons at bay and thanks to manitou for keeping the Turner glued to the track. Also, I would like to welcome aboard Fluid specializing in recovery drinks that get me back up and riding again right where I left off.

Lumberjack Short Format

2008-06-15T20:47:00.002-05:00

1st lap and 2nd lap doing great riding split times I had envisioned prior to this on the 3rd I cracked like an egg...humpty dumpty to be exact. I wasn't about to spend all of the funds to go to such a race to DNF especially since this is the furthest i'll be away from home this so I stuck it out and finished I don't know what place but I do know the time and it was disgusting. I'll leave it at that for now.

Off to the Lumberjack Baby!

2008-06-12T12:18:00.003-05:00

Countdown Is On!

2008-06-05T21:37:00.005-05:00

The countdown is on to the..........

The countdown is also on to getting my new stans wheel built dt spokes/nipples and american classic disc hub. This is what's left of the old one.

After this is taken care of it's off to Michigan for 100 miles of fun. No worries about work, housework, or any other work for that matter just me and the bike. Does the top 20 sound like a lofty goal in this race?

After the lumberjack it's right back at it with the Levis 100 and no WORS until the firecracker! Normal ride tonight looming thunderstorms were not going deter me from riding the trails at nine mile into the dark. Happy Riding!

EVOMO @ Big Ring Classic '08

2008-06-02T20:05:00.005-05:00

A race on the home course was to be somewhat of a turning point for the 2008 season and while my legs had that snap I needed to convince me that I was ready to have my first breakthrough ride of the year. I would find out later that the course had other plans for me and many many others as well.

All week long I was feeling pretty sluggish and felt no power after the WEMS opener 12 solo last weekend, but after pre-riding on Saturday and Sundays warm up I had no idea and when this happens I am usually on top of my game. The start went as planned got to the outside and hammered until I started to feel lactic and heavy legged and settled into a rhythm from there. As the mad dash wore off I began to pick up riders on the climb and continued on to lap number two where I really started to pick up the pace some 2 minutes faster than the first lap and on lap 3 as things were going just as well I cut the sidewall and along the bead. The stans sealed both enough to make it just in time to cross the finish but with riding gingerly through ho chi minh to keep what air I had left in it on laps 3 and 4 I had managed to lose the group I worked so hard to drop earlier on and with that 8 minutes as well. I did catch some of the bunch but some were just out of reach. I did have my best WORS overall placing and have a good amount of confidence going into the Lumberjack.

I am a little dissapointed that they didn't use the trail across redbud or the pines between the start finish or even the flower trail, but thats okay I live 10 minutes away. I do plan on riding Saturday at the Underdown trails towards Tomahawk and maybe Smokin Spoke on Sunday if the weather cooperates.

You Know You're a Cyclist When....

2008-05-27T21:40:00.002-05:00

You know when you're a cyclist when....(feel free to add to the list and I'll start)

1. You can effectively pronounce the last name Eatough (as in eat off a plate)
2. You have become a full fledged meteorologist overnight.
3. Minivans and import station wagons become more appealing based solely on the amount of gear and bikes they can hold.

Continue on...leave a comment
See you all at nine mile and yes I am still a little sore from the 12 hour.

EVOMO 4th and 5th at WEMS Opener

2008-05-26T21:57:00.002-05:00

What a way to spend Memorial Day weekend than on the trails racing for 12 hours. Friday night brought me up to Green Bay to stay with Jesse and Steve from Performa Racing prior to meeting Brando at the roadhouse. Getting up at the butt crack of dawn isn't always in my best interest as I am night person, but with 12 hour on the bike ahead of me there is no way I could do any wrong today as I jammed to Rise Against over and over again all the way down to Kewaskum.

We didn't arrive with too much time to spare as I had barely enough time to say hi to fellow EVOMO Teammate Tim Ek. I ran my bike to the start, grabbed my camelback and gloves and by the time I turned around they started the race and I was instantly dfl and stawicki comes screaming by as well just before the trail narrowed I couldn't latch on to him as he was long gone before it opened up and there I was fighting an up hill battle. At this point on my 4th or 5th lap knowing that our times were all within a minute of each other and no letting up it would be extremely hard to catch up before the 6 hour started. I was feeling okay on the first pit to switch camelbacks and bottles and it wasn't until about 7 1/2 hours into it that I started to lose some substantial power and not riding the big ring in places on the course that I normally would and the climbs were starting to not feel effortless anymore. I think this was a case of lack of calories coming in and relying on hammer gel and pay day bars to get by not as planned...I really needed more time to get setup correctly...lesson learned.

So here's the deal
I did 25 laps 117 miles and a 5th place finish (this is only 60 or so less than at 24/9 last year what a difference a year makes)

EVOMO:
Tim Ek 4th place 27 laps @11:46
Justin 5th Place 25 laps @11:24

Treadfest 2008

2008-05-20T21:49:00.004-05:00

I wasn't sure what the weather was going to bring to the Lake Geneva area, but as luck would have it, the rain held off on race day.

I didn't know what to make of the race as I was still sore from the weeks workouts and felt lazy rolling up to the start, but on the plus side I was claritin clear as I continued to fight off the allergies and lung issues stemming from it.

Anyway, I actually got off to a decent start but fell back on the climb as the lactic acid built up fast. I had time to recover on the first drop as there was a logjam and by that time the lead group was gone and by the time I got to the colorado heartbreaker I was already 3 minutes or so back and not riding in the big ring to make a long story short the first lap was the worst of the five. I finished in about the same placing once again but I know my better rides are ahead of me and this weekend in kewaskum and rhinelander will tell a different story.

Lost and Found = Iola Recap

2008-05-05T22:28:00.003-05:00

Photo Courtesy of Rusty

I gave it a crack and rolled up to the line for my first WORS expert race and I really didn't know what to expect, but that was fine since I didn't have any large lofty goals going into this one considering the fact this course hasn't always been nice to me and there were so many unknowns about starting, pacing, and so on, but as usual I end up losing focus on all of that as quickly as I lost focus in my contacts so after 20+ seconds of screwing around that I am off again and chasing the five guys that went by and caught 2 in which one I think Jerrod was his name wanted to trade me lungs for tech...sometimes I would definitely take that in a second as I am still trying to improve those skills and appreciated the comment to be honest. Second and third laps were uneventful as my lower back started to act up. Fourth lap brought caffeine which set up for a great fifth lap and finished with fresh legs which should not have happened lets just say I need a good dose of learning how to deal with the pain train for the entire duration of the race or maybe I am just a slacker...who knows.

So with that being said I know I could have done better than 17th in my group, but hey I went through this very same thing 4 years ago and bounced back to a 4th place finish so we'll see what happens as it's the start of an exciting year.

The next stop on the WORS dirt circuit is Treadfest in Lake Geneva. Hope to see ya there!

EVOMOVISION

2008-04-30T16:03:00.003-05:00

Evomo has stepped it up a notch once again transforming to 3D technology in which I would like to call Evomovision. I should have mine soon and they even come complete with the glasses to get the full effect (hardy har har).

This week has been kinda up and down, cold and warm, rain and sunshine, I am sure you get the deal. A nice hard effort on Tuesday taking the singlespeed up Rib Mountain 5 times and nice tempo ride on Wednesday with some sign sprints had me feeling a little bit on the low side today so just a good stretch and light spin was all that she wrote today. Iola is the race of choice this weekend and am quite excited to be riding on hopefully some stable trails.

Rockcut, Spring, and More Riding Etc....

2008-04-25T19:52:00.002-05:00

With the amount of riding I have been doing lately it's been really hard to waste time in blogosphere, but with a huge project in the works and research needing to be done, I figure I could get some sort of update out just to solidify that I am still alive and kickin.

To start with, I made a stop into Point to pick up Nate, hung out for the night, and headed off to the Rockford area for 30+ miles of racing. All intel gained to this point was that the course was 99% perfect and only a "few" muddy sections. We arrived in what I thought was plenty of time and I don't even think the RC Trailcrew were ready for the amount of people looking for a race to do and consequently enough we stood in line for what seemed like hours and had just enough time to get on the bike and head to the start.

The start was more or less annoying with no real wheel to latch onto since I was the very last person to line up but before I got to the entrance to the singletrack, I had caught Russell and began to reel in another small group of chase riders and then all hell broke loose with me forgeting how to ride in axle-deep mud and going down within the first 10 minutes. So when I thought I got that out of the way I began to have cleat problems and realized I needed an earlier release angle only after I smashed into a tree and even after falling I still wasn't unclipped. I was quite pleased with my Rudy helmet and glasses not getting destroyed during impact so I'll get to use them again at Iola for the WORS opener. Regardless of the conditions and pulling the plug after the first lap, I was able to gather information on what I did well and not so well. I felt rock solid on climbing, great on the logpiles and singletrack speed and did well on speed on flats and false flats. I do need to work on my descending speed and skills. Nate had a smokin race and so did the Lalonde bros...again.

A month from today I will be embarking on my first laps into first 12 hour solo event of the year and I haven't even put more than an hour on the MTB and this fact is just sickening. Sorry there are not any pictures as I am sure the mud kept the photographers from noticing my stellar kit and boyish good looks.

Secondly, Wisconsin strikes again with it's lovely forecast of rain everyday and if that's not forecasted it's snow. Now I am sure everybody is sick of hearing about snow, cold, and people like me whinning about snow, but it just doesn't want to let up....at all. I am dangerously close to asking the EVOMO guys when I can move in since I may just go over for the Sea Otter next year and chill at their killer race lounge as it sounds like they had a hell of a good time last week. makes me proud to be affiliated with such an awesome group. Speaking of which, I need to go and pick up their latest hoody.

Finally, Good luck to everyone braving the conditions at Trans Iowa. Judging from the pictures it looks like a mess out there and I hope to see you all at Iola.