uno mais foto espoir nationales

Espoir Nats and French Broad Classic

The finish of the tim trial at u23 nationals, it went okay. The course was open and wide and straight, with four turn-arounds! and it was fairly windy aka not really my kinda time trial but I think I managed 63rd. The most frustrating thing was that I couldn't line up at TT helmet, it kinda sucks not to have the proper equipment for nationals but whatever.
Mr Tollesson navigating the third turn-around. I was his minute man, so needless to say, I eventually saw him out on the course. Felt like the old LMC days!
Me negotiating the third turn-around, not to stoked about having to start the sweet slight grade without precious momentum haha.
In the start house. Ready to rock.

The road race went ok as well, I don't have any pics unfortunately but I managed to get through in the second group, in 81st place. Not stellar, but I was pleased to have finished and have a vibe that I was getting back on track.

My home race in Asheville was last weekend, the French Broad Cycling Classic. The time trial was brutally windy for the early starters, which included me, because I was too lazy to register early haha. So I was on a great pace until the turnaround, but didnt have the power to fight the headwind, and only ended up beating my time from last year by 1 second. But, my placing was higher...15th. I felt GREAT in the road race, "no chain" as Hincapie says. But in almost identical fashion to last year, I got a little excited and instead of waiting for the field sprint, I attacked with 1km to go...and got caught 50m from the line, sucked, but the reality of racing bikes. there was a break off, so it was only for 5th anyway. But it is frustrating to feel so good in front of your home crowd and not come up with the goods. But it's only one race after all. I ended up 15th, again. I'll just keep hoping one year they decide to make the race longer. please. haha. The course is really flat, and I actually really like it a lot, I do time trial practice on the exact loop that we raced. But unfortunately, when the course is easy, I need it to be long to really excel. One day...I'll win it.

The crit is a super tough course that I managed a very good result at last year, but this time around it was a suffer fest, there is a really sharpe turn before the climb, so you hit the climb at like 10mph and have to sprint up it every lap, and it worked me over pretty good. I couldn't do much more than sit in and survive. Amazingly....15th place, yes, again. Worst case senario, I can call my weekend performance consistant haha.

I am In Altoona PA right now, for the Tour de Toona. I'll do a TdT post as soon as it's over and I get some pics. Stay tuned

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the new mtb

this is my new mountain bike, i just got it built this weekend. BMC aluminum frame, carbon rear triangle, cane creek zonos wheels, sid race, avid juicy brakes, filled out with xtr and sram x.o. weighs in at 22.8 lbs.

if i can get the engine in a little better shape maybe it can do some damage this fall on the collegiate circuit.

3 weeks?

well i've got three weeks of race-free atmosphere. my ribs are doing better, but i am going to have to pass on the Soto Memorial stage race, which sucks because it was one of my goals, but life goes on. i had a free weekend scheduled after that anyway, which fits my three week "no racing" period the docs conjured up. so i'll get going again June 6th at the TT at Lowes Motor Speedway, then the Roan Mountain RR June 9th. I'll try and get some fotos up since text posts aren't too exciting.

bustED

well. the road race went like this: flatted on 1.5 mile gravel sector first thing. got a wheel, in the pack, no biggie. Felt good, entered the feedzone 8th wheel, got a feed, while my hand was still off my bar someone tapped my front wheel, i over corrected and crashed, landed on my bike and a few guys piled ontop of me. got the wind knocked out of me, some bruising on my chest and back, nothing much. bent my frame, broke my front shifter. dnf.

yesterday i went and talked to a doctor cause my chest was giving me some trouble. word is i crushed some of the cartilidge that connects my ribs to my sternum. GREAT. but not much i can do other than load up on ibprofen and rest, it's supposed to hurt for three weeks. bummer. so i have some uninvited restdays coming up, but shouldn't affect any races, since i wasn't scheduled to race this weekend anyway. and i still plan on lining up at the Soto Memorial stage race May 25-28.

Team Time Trial

the first event of collegiate nationals is in the books. it was mildly successful. one of our girls flatted at about the halfway point which is terrible luck, but they rode well to seventh place in DI.

by the time the guys lined up it was super hot. our team hadn't done much training together prior to the last few days but we worked pretty well together we just didn't go fast enough, we rode the hills pretty well but on the final five miles of flat we were struggling. when we finished we had the third best time posting 24:50, but fell to 13th by the end of the day. I was the only returner from last years national championship team and i think i should of been able to carry more of the weight on my shoulders this year but it was a good learning experience and something to build off of since we'll have all four guys back next year. ttt life is a little harder when you don't have Bookwalter buring it at 32 for extended periods of time. we're sitting 8th overall in the team omnium right now, not where we wanted, but out best events are to come, so we'll take another look after tomorrows road race.

we'll be back next year to contest for the win.

the road race is going to be super dynamic. part of the course is flooded so they are re-routing us across 1.5 miles of gravel. it is going to be crazy, that section is just after the 1.25 mile dam we have to ride across, with only a nice hill inbetween them. that section will make the race.

Channel 6 Interview: Collegiate Road Nationals

watch my interview here

Eve of TTT

another day in kansas in the books. early this morning we indulged in some continental breakfast, then the mens and womens TTT teams piled into the bus and drove the course. Then we came back to the hotel and got dressed, drove back to the course and rode it twice. we did two ten minute efforts with the team, rotating at 80%. Then we did two 4 minute max cadence efforts to get the legs good and open. I feel pretty good, and the team looks solid. we should have a good ride.

we then ate at chipotle, aka i walked to subway haha. and then we went to the host hotel and took care of registration, which went very smoothly and fast for such an event. i was impressed. and while we were there i got interviewed by channel 6 news which was kind of cool, it airs tonight so i'll get to see how pro and diplomatic i can pretend to be. still no fotos but i am working on it.

over and out

KANSAS

well after 14 hours of driving the LMC team has made it to Lawrence Kansas. We just went out and rode for 2 hours, the TTT did some rotating and practiced a few turn arounds. The legs feel pretty good, but not great after all the driving. The TTT is friday and the RR is sunday, then i get to help the guys that are doing the criterium on sunday. more updates to follow and i'll try and get some fotos as well.

Lowe's Motor Speedway Time Trial

the LMC team made the drive down the charlotte for the TT. the orignial plan was for us to do Team Time Trial practice and me not race, but we didn't get there early enough to do practice, so i decided to race since i was there. it went okay, all seven laps were within 3 seconds of each other. official results aren't up yet, but i have me at 20:28 unofficially. that's 1:10 faster than i did last year, and it is only early May, that has to be a good sign?

TOV

well my Tour of Virginia adventure ended on the third stage. I had a dissappointing TT, where i just couldn't get my legs rolling for a 3.6 mile effort. In the stage 2 crit, I felt great just sat in on the difficult course and finished same time, just as planned which moved me up 23 places on GC. Stage 3 was a road stage with three categorized climbs, two cat 3s, then a cat 1. I made it over the first climb okay, near the back but not in the red. then there were at least two climbs that weren't categorized that sure felt like they should of been, and I was wearing down and dropped off the back on the second one. then managed some very uneffective use of the caravan to try and get back into the pack, blew a lot of energy and got dropped for good. a teammate wasn't too far behind and me and him chased until the second feed zone at 85 miles, where we were already 25 minutes down, with a cat 1 climb remaining, so knowing we we're destined to make the time cut, we loaded up into the team car.

it was pretty dissappointing but i've got way too much left on the agenda to dwell on it. so, one weekend of local stuff to get the legs moving then off too Lawence kansas for Collegiate Nationals where I will race the TTT and the RR. Then it is straight to Russellville Arkansas for Tri-Peaks Stage Race, then straight to Nashville for the Soto Memorial Stage Race. Then there will surely be some rest and family time, and time with my beautiful sarah beth. Then i can plan out the second half of the season.

addio

Conference Championships

riding da bike
sometimes you just have to go solo for a while just to show everyone you can


watching the morning racing with a lil buddy, that i officially named Ewok

what a bear

conference was fun, but it is nice to be back. loading the truck up tomorrow to drive up to lexington VA for the Tour of Virginia.

Lee's McRae Collegiate weekend

(L to R) Spencer Beamer, Scott Sewart and me, catching and dispensing of the break one by one on the climb up hw 194.

well, a little rest the last two weeks and the legs are coming, as all the work is starting to pay off. This weekend was a lot of fun. I got to do my first climbing race of the year, to test out what the numbers in training were saying about my form. it was 48 degrees and threatening rain, misty and foggy. quite epic. 6 laps with your standard avery county portions of climbing.

we let a 7 man break roll at the start, and were content to stay conservative. but the climbs and the technical decents shreaded the lead group down to 8 riders after 2.5 laps. LMC had four there, Scott Stewart, Carson Worts, Kevin Holdber and myself. we kept the pace solid for another lap when on the 3 mile climb Scott, Spencer Beamer and myself went off on our own. The gap to the leader was too much to worry about, but there were people inbetween to be caught and of course, Spencer to deal with. next lap on the same climb Scott and I started attacking him and finally I got clear and stretched out a 15 second gap, and scott dropped Spencer at the top. I waited on Scott on the following technical decent and we worked together, or basically he pulled me around another lap and a half haha. but the last two laps it started raining really hard and my legs got really cold and went from feeling "no chain" to unfunctional in the matter of one decent. we had caught all but 3 of the break, and while 5th on the road i called it a day. I was freezing and got everything I wanted out of the race, some TOV prep and some confirmation of how my climbing is looking. I was really happy to be in the three man group with two VMG/Nat'l Team guys, and to be able to cut it down to an LMC only chase group late in the race and on the biggest climb after pulling everyone else around for 3 hours.

Next weekend is Conference Championships at Vanderbilt, then it is quickly back to school, then off to Tour of Virginia on monday. not to mention the masses of homework I have to do inbetween now and then.

easter break fotos

me and sarah before i went out to ride
sarah and lil sadie
my dads crazy project
carson and me posing for some fotos
and some knitting
and of course my lil sister, annabelle

3 steps of collegiate racing

1. Bike Racing: Luke Winger (LMC), me (LMC) and Spencer Beamer (Furman/VMG) lapping the field in the Criterium at UGA.

2. Sleeping after bike racing: that is a sweet van you might say

3. anddd...eatting after sleeping after bike racing: this is actually after eatting too, but whatever. downing some ruut beer.

carson and me posing for some fotos

Donaldson Center RRs

Well saturday was sunny and warm in Greenville sc, and windy to the point of being rediculous. The wind made the race really hard. And a sweet pothole took out 4 of our guys, what bad luck is that! A break got off the front again just like last week and stuck til the end. I have to thank Dan and Rob for helping me through the last couple of laps and allowing me to be up there in the field sprint to finish 14th overall.

After the injuries throughout the team sent a couple teammates home, we were left with only three guys, and after Lucas flatted, only two to contest the finish. sunday was good weather, and still windy, but not nearly like the day before. Jason did an awesome job keeping me out of trouble and toward the front, he got me up into the top ten wheels for the sprint which i finished third in, but unfortunantely there was a break that stuck again, so I was 9th overall.

A pretty solid start to the season, I am very happy with how my Banner Elk form has worked out in these early races. The sprinting is coming around, if only there was a climbing race soon, ugh. Now I get to rest up and enjoy a few weekends of the collegiate scene.

Spring Series

Well, I finally got the racing legs going last weekend at the Greenville Training Series. Saturday went okay, I felt really good but the team still has some kinks to workout, but all in time. The field was all together with one lap to go, which lead to a crazy final lap. 8 guys got off the front and stayed away and everyone else contested the field sprint, where my teammate Justin Beard finished second, and I got sixth, putting us 10th and 14th overall. So a solid start to the season, the legs felt good, that's all that matters at this point. Sunday was cold and rainy, so I opted to stay home and sleep rather than partake.

Recovery Riding

nothing like ending a good three day block with a recovery ride in the rain.