Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast

Repeated over and over again.

For everything. Applicable from music to military.

Usually the start of the season finds me helping a few people who need to clean up their technique on the bike.  Kind of has been like that since I needed the help cleaning my shit up.

I was inconsistent for a while. Christine Vardaros helped a pile, Skinny White Dude did too. And watching footage and thinking about it. Probably Cronoman and Solobreak provided some good tips.

But.

I was inconsistent.  Until.

I slowed it down. A lot.

To the point it felt sill, stupid and a waste.

But you know what?

it works.

Specifically talking about the application of getting on and off the bike in cyclocross I am.

I spent a bit of lunch re-reading some old posts, trying to find where I got it from. Maybe Solobreak's steel trap brain hasn't rusted enough and he remembers but I can't find the original source of the 1000s of dismounts/remounts before racing. I want to say it was old Mud and Cowbells or something. I've since given up looking.

Like scales on a violin, you start slowly. Warm up slowly, then as you hit every note perfectly you can start speeding up. But if you speed up before you're ready intonation goes to hell and you're going to fuck up.

Why bother?

hard to say really. mostly because it seems to be just elegant to do it right, and doing it right allows you to not be limited by speed, no top end, just your top end.

it is faster. you save valuable seconds doing it smoothly. if you can get on and off effortlessly and the person you are racing is wasting energy, that might be a place in the race, just because you were smoother.

Or it saves you the embarrassment of landing on your wheel or something. Sure that happens even to the best, an ill timed rock bounce of the back wheel when you're tired at the end of the race can be a disaster even with perfect skills.

Is there real value to it? I think so. I believe there is.

If you want to succeed, or just do your best, Cyclocross gives you the opportunity to focus not just on pedaling fast, but on this whole side of minutia, bike, tires, pressure, shouldering bike, running, barriers, stairs, remounts, turns, sand...  mud...  Not just going as fast as you can pedal.

It is still a bike racing competition and honestly if you've got the legs and the technical nature of the course doesn't totally baffle you, you can fuck up the remounts and everything else and still win. Might not be pretty but, the results still count.

Slow is smooth smooth is fast...

100-200/session. Walking pace, just fast enough that you can sit on the saddle w/o pedaling and not fall over.

This is when having someone help with how you do get on is key. Visual feedback, hand position head, arms, all that.

For me counting 1, 2, 3 then getting on was the key element. CV helped with that tip. Left foot, right foot, left foot, swing knee over and slip forward on saddle keeping moment going forward and then pedaling. not up and down. you're moving forward. Not deflecting energy or wasting it or smashing your leg/thigh/junk on the saddle. Not getting air. just moving foward just high enough to clear the saddle and get on.

Slowly.

Walking pace. On, swing leg over, drop off, 1 2 3 on, pedal, off, on...

slowly.  Let the neurons figure it out, not training muscles, you're training a neural network, teaching the proper firing sequence. Ingraining it. Learning it.

after 200 slowly, speed it up a touch. go faster. not much faster.

get that 200 done...  speed it up a little more...  200...

speed it up even more... 200...

final 200 should feel super smooth and super fast.

As always do these on soft grass, no need to bruise feet trying to dismount and run on hard pack in cycling shoes.

I have had a few extra thoughts about it this year. One after watching Lars VDH at the top of the stairs. He gets on and pauses before beginning to pedal.  not pauses momentum, but he just gets on and coasts, before pedaling.

Would be a great drill to watch or build forward skills after remount. get on and coast, no pedaling. no smashing pedals to cover for poor technique or loss of momentum.

I know pretty much the readership either doesn't give a shit, or already is as smooth or smoother than me getting on and off the bike.

but, this has been sort of brewing in my brain for a month or two. Finally getting it out.
Maybe it was triggered by the #likeavos video:
http://www.cxhairs.com/2013/10/30/likeavos-1-0/

either way it is a sputtering burst of non-cranky writing...

deal with it

heddwch
G

Chain talk time

have you exhausted your bottle of chain lube?

Need some more? Out of Pro Gold samples?

Want something that works as well or better?

Pick up some of that EVerLube. Make a gallon of your own for $10-$15. Then fill all your old bottles you have saved and share and convert your friends to this stuff. Sure it doesn't have some big fancy label or decal or brand name behind it but if an OBRA and NECX racer can agree on a lube then, it has to be good.

Dave Moulton put a post up on Friday about how to lube a chain.

I'm not a huge fan of using the gasoline, but it would work too. Mineral spirits work better for me but then again Gasoline is cheaper and may work even better. Fumes though, ugh. At least the odor-less mineral spirits are really actually almost odor-less compared to gasoline.

I mix my chain/lube in a 1:3 ratio of 0W20 synthetic motor oil to mineral spirits (the nasty kind, not the 'green' kind) following the tried and true and well vetted ErikV recipe.

I also actually use a Park chain cleaner thing (fill the chain cleaner with the lube, recycle in screw top jar after cleaning chain, top up with fresh stuff now and then and let junk settle and create sediment layer on the bottom of the jar). Followed by wiping down followed by fresh clean lube.

Or if after a cyclocross race I will hit the chain with the park chain cleaner full of my chain lube mix, then wash the bike down with water and soap. Chain is then brand new clean and silent.

Once the bike and chain are wiped down and dry I hit it with a good soaking of the lube, and if the next race is going to be a dry one I'll wipe the excess off very thoroughly, if wet and muddy I will just let it dry with the excess and sometimes add a second coating to double up the lube going into mud and stuff.

Big key to the post that caught my eye more than the lube similarity is the quick link removal trick. Many people have a problem removing quick links without the special tool. that's the other beauty of Dave's post.

And also.

GeWilli recommends running a Shimano Chain with a SRAM/KMC whatever quick link that is the right width for the chain. I've been doing it for ever even though I don't remove my chain to clean it.

have fun, get dirty, clean up and stay lubed...

heddwch
G

canton...

Another dry and dusty  race. Just the 12th annual Canton cup. Definitely smaller turnout this year but th pointy end of the field was strong in most of the races. At least in mine. 

I totally blew the start. Rolled the dice on which side and rolled wrong, then let caution tap my brakes in self preservation rather than push it. And wound up in pretty close to last, 35th-40th maybe. not many behind me at the turn into the field.

But it was a pass fest after that.  Pickingoff big groups on the first two laps, then one at a time. 

Finally had a solid sprint to take 10th place. 

Legs were great the whole time, felt like puking at the end.
It was good. But holy crap was it dusty. billows of dust in the mown grass path. the run up was a disaster. Rain. 

We haven't had much, nice for bike commuting but not so much for the soil and the cyclocross conditions.

Anyway. Next weekend is the big daddy of the CX races. I call it NoHo, some call it CSI... official title is long:
23rd Annual Cycle-Smart International /Shimano New England Professional Cyclocross Series Rounds 5 and 6/ Verge Series Round 7 and 8 

if you can at all make it, as a spectator or a competitor this is the race to go to. Sausage tent, Beer, kick ass course, great venue, solid intense racing. F'n legendary.

I will be there.  Hopefully with the rest of the ENGVT team.

is there a quintessential CX short video?

I asked the twitters, maybe the blogosphere friends have more links to add?

The thought behind the question was if you could pick just one video to show to someone so they would understand the sport, what would it be.

the verbatim question:
If you could only pick one short video to explain CX what would it be?
what came up?
so... there was the big pile of funny snarky smart ass comments and the completely unhelpful ones.

But mixed in with comments were a pile of great links.

Before that though, this often is my choice. Wish I had gotten my hands on a copy of this DVD:

And there are of course the gold mine of resources that Henry has curated and filmed, but linkage over to the left is kind not right it seems but most of his stuff is over on his youtube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/henryj49

now on to the results of the informal poll

Too nice of a day

Thought about driving. I'm taking about some of my art this afternoon so I have three prints in the box. Zipp 303 spokes came in to the shop yesterday. Gotta get that squared away.

It is just too nice if a day to sit in the car.

Check the SVENNESS 2.3

Over here: http://www.cxhairs.com/2013/10/18/svenness-2-3/ awesome breakdown and analysis

Tips and stuff for everyone who is a student of CX racing.

here's the embedded bit though.

#SVENNESS 2.3 from In The Crosshairs on Vimeo.

quick food comment

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22810464

it isn't that new, but the data sort of supports a very loooooooong held position of mine.

NO SKIM/FAT FREE DAIRY PRODUCTS. It is just so not smart. Agree or not, science seems to
The publication certainly may not be totally conclusive but it makes sense, a lot of sense.

I'm not saying dairy should ever be a big part of your diet, or even a part of the diet, but when/if you choose a dairy product, go with one that is not a reduced fat/fat free option. it will make a difference.

Eur J Nutr. 2013 Feb;52(1):1-24. doi: 10.1007/s00394-012-0418-1. Epub 2012 Jul 19.

The relationship between high-fat dairy consumption and obesity, cardiovascular, and metabolic disease.

Kratz M, Baars T, Guyenet S.

Source

Division of Public Health Sciences, Cancer Prevention Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Avenue N, Mail Stop M4-B402, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA. mkratz@fhcrc.org

Abstract

PURPOSE:

To comprehensively review the data on the relationship between the consumption of dairy fat and high-fat dairy foods, obesity, and cardiometabolic disease.

METHODS:

We have conducted a systematic literature review of observational studies on the relationship between dairy fat and high-fat dairy foods, obesity, and cardiometabolic disease. We have integrated these findings with data from controlled studies showing effects of several minor dairy fatty acids on adiposity and cardiometabolic risk factors, and data on how bovine feeding practices influence the composition of dairy fat.

RESULTS:

In 11 of 16 studies, high-fat dairy intake was inversely associated with measures of adiposity. Studies examining the relationship between high-fat dairy consumption and metabolic health reported either an inverse or no association. Studies investigating the connection between high-fat dairy intake and diabetes or cardiovascular disease incidence were inconsistent. We discuss factors that may have contributed to the variability between studies, including differences in (1) the potential for residual confounding; (2) the types of high-fat dairy foods consumed; and (3) bovine feeding practices (pasture- vs. grain-based) known to influence the composition of dairy fat.

CONCLUSIONS:

The observational evidence does not support the hypothesis that dairy fat or high-fat dairy foods contribute to obesity or cardiometabolic risk, and suggests that high-fat dairy consumption within typical dietary patterns is inversely associated with obesity risk. Although not conclusive, these findings may provide a rationale for future research into the bioactive properties of dairy fat and the impact of bovine feeding practices on the health effects of dairy fat.

PMID:

 

22810464

 

[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] 

PMCID:

 

PMC3597284

 

getting way behind

And so little time to catch back up. Or not.

This coming weekend is an off weekend. Have no plans to get in the car and drive a while to race. Need a break from the car or just time to get out for a long road ride and make the muscles do something more than intensity for 40-50 minutes.

We'll see what the weather does, but anyway. Providence Race weekend.

And yes. Totally don't get how it is the Providence Cyclocross Festival Cyclocross (#PCFCX) seems redudant but it sort of goes with the weekend. So awesome in some many ways, and so many routine details we take for granted or that seem obvious completely overlooked.

BEFORE I START THE RANT:
Bottom line. I love this race. I love the course, I have a great and deep appreciation for all that everyone involved in the event did. I just hope at least some of these 'issues' are addressed next year and years to come.

A departure from CX

Around the internet some stuff gets seen by everyone...

some stuff we stumble upon...

this i found as the most recent post at http://cabinporn.com/

rare is the gem that draws out the emotions...
(click through and view full screen in HD - this short film doesn't suck)

JACK from Grace Jackson on Vimeo.

but this did for me...

I've always battled internally between the desire for social interaction with the comfort of silence and being alone away from everything. The reading of my youth is probably responsible for most of that, Edward Abbey, Farley Mowat, Tom Brown's the Tracker...  there are piles of others.

But in many ways my passion for cycling, and racing bikes is not compatible with the desire to have an off the grid tiny cabin alone in isolation...  and I suppose that is where Jack's story resonates even deeper with me, in that it was a retreat for him until it was just him. at a point where with drawing makes sense.

My deep connection to the outdoors, to the tall trees of the Pacific Northwest, drew me into my professional field, and remains a part of me that sometimes gets lost in the challenges of life. I suppose in a way you can say Cyclocross is me embodied. A bit of pavement, some urban aspects, mixed with dirt and you're out there ultimately alone trying to do your personal best. It might be a stretch i suppose.

The surprising element was realizing that "Jack" is Jack English the bow maker.
http://bobtowery.typepad.com/bob_towery/2010/05/new-series-the-legend-of-jack-english-day-one.html
http://www.independent.com/news/2013/jan/30/jack/

I've run across his story a few times over the years with the connection in the music world. My bow is well suited to me. Basically a Viola bow. Thick and heavy, too much of both in the opinion of my sister the professional violinist. But combined with my deeply resonating violin and my slower 1st position play when i can/asked style, it works. I would never get enough use out of a bow Jack made to make it worth seeking one out, but the emotional connection makes the short film and the stories about this remarkable individual even more touching.

Honest truth, I had tears in my eyes at the end of this short film.

Thoughts... a sermon maybe

Riding home in the pouring rain on Friday...  a speech, really a sermon, started to form in my head.

Chipstick had made a few suggestions about how to honor Amy D at the Singlespeed race...  saying a few words was maybe something brought up.

(note: i made a revision to the 'sermon', and I make keep tweaking it a bit as things pop in my head that I meant to put in there originally)

couple links... some comments

This guy. Love him.
gets it...
http://www.fatmarc.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-gift.html

And what I think is probably one of the best books with advice about training, and getting fast... even if i haven't really applied everything there to trying to get fast, it is a great read:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Obree-Way-Graeme/dp/1408196425/ref=tmm_pap_title_0
Back on the shelf i guess. Been a while since I've read it. Maybe time to re-read.

This through the twitters a bit too...  somewhere...  I dunno
http://www.ironguides.net/triathlon-on-a-low-carb-high-fat-diet/
I'm pretty sure it is impossible to race CX on a restricted LCHF diet. Might be fine if you just race once per weekend and maybe train at CX level stuff once mid-week. But back to back there just isn't enough time to replace all the lost glycogen.  Obviously having a killer fat burning motor is key to success and body shape and power to weight. But like sprinting, CX is short, high intensity the whole time. This isn't a Triathlon where you can rely on steady state aerobic fat burning for a big part of the event. This is Cyclocross.  You don't race that day, all day even, and then the next day for a Tri. You can't. But CX?

training for CX...  i've hashed out so many theories and ideas of the years, trying this, that, getting amazing advice, ignoring it, following it, tweaking it.

I have something that sort of works. when I do it. But racing three days in a row, after racing two in a row the week before, with a not light pedaling week in between there was room for one very specific work out last week.

one.  in addition to the commute.

hill sprints... in shoes. running shoes. no bike.

Not a long run. Nope. Sprints done just after the bike commute so everything is warm and loose.  Jog up and over the couple hundred yards to the spot. three sets. easy, medium, hard. 17-18 sec first one, 14-16 second 11-13 third. same distance. walk back down after each.

Was going to do them this morning. Ran out of time. Life. it gets in the way. Kind of sad looking at the next pile of weeks. Racing on Saturday, then nothing sunday, and nothing the following weekend. But I think that is going to be good. I'm exhausted after this last batch of stuff. Going FLAT FUCKING OUT since quad cross.

And now my two rear race wheels are fucked. busted spoke, blown sidewall. need to make something work for Saturday then address getting everything ready for maybe Canton I guess.

On the plus side maybe w/o the weekend stuff I can focus on some solid training blocks. Maybe even head up for a Tuesday night training race somewhere.

Also. a good pile of CX races and I feel human again. Happy almost. Very strange.

heddwch
G

G-ster Day 2 '13 edition

Rewind a bit...

Gloucester day two?
Yeah we need to cover that I think.  Mostly because I think I had a good race. I say I think because it was a loooooong time ago.

providence cross weekend

was a roller coaster, both in cross results points, emotions and everything...

maybe i'll get to write about it soon enough

write about anything

sorry...

i know...

will have to make time...

some how...

heddwch
G

Total FREAK OUT TIME

Lets pause a moment, set the grief aside and have a moment of celebration of Amy.

Racing bikes.

But I made a mistake.

I checked how many people were registered for PVD in the elite 35+ race

we usually have a nice number.  50-60 riders in the 35+ 1/2/3 field.

WE HAVE 91 FASTFUCKINGDUDES REGISTERED FOR SATURDAY

HOOOOOLY SHIT

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK

But then I have Verge points. Starting no worse than 45th or so, maybe higher depending on who shows up who has points and what not.

But that means there are likely two rows of people starting right behind me that ARE GOING TO BE GOING REALLY REALLY HARD AND FAST WHO WANT TO GET POINTS!

This.

is going

to

be

very

interesting

Oh shit
i gotta leave and ride home and wash bikes and lube chains and get ready for

SINGLE SPEED FREAKOUT TIME TODAY

At work for the morning, then race home. try to figure out something to eat THEN GO RACING

and it may be raining out there. Racing in rain? Awesome. Riding home, not so stoked about it.

I MAY NEED MORE COFFEEEEEEEEE
or not

gutted RIP Amy

I'd opened this to write about G-ster day two.

Can't now.

Finishing up lunch i got a text. A friend just said they felt sick, then a DM saying they really felt violently ill.  I was oddly just out enjoying the sun after lunch, in the sun, glorious summer day in early october.

Initially I thought, someone got something at Night Weasels, but then in the DM over to regular twitter section and saw...

my whole feed.

every
single
tweet

finally scrolled down through, not knowing how, or where she was or what happened till i got to one that said:
"American cyclocross racer Amy Dombroski has been hit and killed by a truck while training in Belgium."

and the incredulity and fear as to what happened were instantly replaced with absolute gut wrenching horror, sadness... and tears...

Dombroski

People talk about #NECX as having a distinct identity sometimes. We do. We identify like a family.  A big fucking dysfunctional family but we are, a family. Some of us only talk in person, but we relish the time together when we all do get together.  We can't wait to see each other again at the next race, or on the street, or for coffee, or beer.

We take for granted that we will see each other again....

Life is fragile. It is delicate.

a memory:
The Boston Luna MTB chicks spearheaded by Roz brought Amy down for a woman's CX clinic one year (a few years ago now).  They held it at the old MRC course in Wrentham. Greg W and I were there, he had his daughters and this friend of his, Rachel trying cyclocross for the first time.  My daughter did the clinic, had fun, why? Because Amy made it fun. It was a hugely positive experience for my kid. And Rachel is now a CX racer.

This weekend is going to have a layer of sadness on top of the celebration of bikes. At least it will for me.

Amy will be missed...

http://instagram.com/p/fA80yXsJ3P/
https://twitter.com/CyclismasEditor/status/385829866672648192/photo/1
https://twitter.com/MMDMcMahon/status/385833299291435008

Buy My Cahbon Bike

Please so I can get one that fits.

Long story? Blue/CXracing both sort of fucked up. They listed the EX as being made in a XL size. So I ordered and XL. Oh, wait what? They shipped a L? Well lets slap a 130mm stem on instead of my normal 120 and lets see if it works.  Kind of like what happened to the cranks, Oh you have 180 bb30s? for that price? Great. You sure they are? YES. Okay. Hey before is send them and know you need them for this weekend, and can get them to you, they are 177.5 not 180...  Le Sigh.  So that's the short story of how i wound up with a bike that fits but is too small to drive well. Put it this way. I can easily ride a wheelie on the White blue, not on this bike. and the body position (hoods, saddle, BB) are nearly identical.

It worked pretty darn well. until I started racing on the White Blue XL as a single speed/pit bike. At Warwick when I flatted the big difference was weight. But swapping the lighter wheels onto the White bike makes it pretty damn tolerable and evens it out.  Still heavy but being able to corner and drive it better/faster is well worth the weight penalty.

So.

Who wants this EX? anyone? Not crashed (well i've eaten shit riding it but not structurally). Not brand new but it was a $1650 list frameset. Just selling frame, so I can just plug and play a better fitting bike in its place. Somewhat sad to try and unload it, it works great as a road bike, bars flipped a million CMs of drop. Speedy.  Rides and handles very much like the Klein in terms of stiffness and shit the rest of the ENGVT team is rocking these to much better results than I can deliver.

G-ster '13 edition day 1

Day one...  we got here already to this point where I was there...

that sentence made more sense when i wrote it the first time, i think referring to the back story post... lets got through the race though, in very impressionist broad brush painting style: