The smell of burning plastic was ever present in traffic hitting the 180 turn there after the start. Crazy carbon rim people. But hey with that smell no wonder those yellow pads are so important.
Tubulars do really actually work as good as people say they do. Yes I've *known* they are awesome. And I'd been reasonably successful at avoiding trying them during a race knowing that once I do try em, forget it, it will be impossible to ride clinchers again. Yes this is the allusion mentioned earlier. G-ride loaned me an old set of 32 Challenge Grifos. I ran them low. Bottom out good hell of a lot of times, felt the rear tire folding in that flatesque manner hitting the corners but then that was just going into the corner, in it, stuck like glue. Holy crap was it faster.
Skinny white dude rebuked my "I've got too much to work on in cross, so I should save the tubulars" with the salient point: they help you go faster in the corners and thus you learn to corner better and you get faster. Hard to argue that. Cornering is a solid weakness. Running Racing Ralphs at 45 psi on smoothish courses still isn't a very smooth ride compared to those Grifos at ~38 psi. not much pressure difference but if I run the Ralphs lower than 45 they chatter and washout worse. Heck they hook up great, but they aren't as smooth or fast as the tubulars.
Yes. I know. There is a huge reason why people run them. No question. Time to start figuring out how to come up with the cash to get the bikes set up.
Colin's mishap though does give pause, but I guess it goes to show it doesn't take a hot disc rotor to slice open a tubular, just one sharp old school wide add canti brake.
Did anyone else notice that the Pits were absolutely PACKED for the 3/4 Masters and the 1/2/3 Masters races? After the "old" guys were done, the pits were a ghost town. Hmmm. I wonder why.
Jason has an awesome collection of photo's up from the weekend. Check out his Picasa Gallery.
Every time through the sand pit I thought the rototiller was Eyebob, I guess because one lap through there spongebob-sticklegs was sitting there crouched taking pictures. And then I kept thinking, man, I'm glad they didn't run that through there before our race. It was so ridable not even funny. And the one time I ran it I kicked myself for being stupid. Faster? Yes. But after sand legs were rather wishing I hadn't done that.
Lots of folks have some good shots. Ryan Exit17 has a bunch up. Heck there are tons out there. And surprisingly enough, even a couple of me.
To the guy who said "on your right geoff" at the top of the run up one of the days who found me feeling more like not moving over and dropping a spot than moving over, I appologize. I dunno who that was, Morse was back there but it didn't really sound like Steve's raspy voice and afterwards he said he didn't say anything the whole race, so I dunno who that was. But it is racing. I might give ya a push, like I gave Soups when he got taken out in the sand pit (I passed him as he was laying there in the sand) and came past me, I figured I could give that guy a good old push, rocket him forward without affecting my momentum. Now giving someone like Milliman would be like pushing an SUV, totally pointless, dude is one big ass MoFo.
Warming up for a cross race is not to be underestimated. Getting those 1 and 3 minute intervals done after a good 20 minute or so variable cadence spin on the trainer really does actually seem to work. Works better than just spinning on the trainer. I love my iPod on the trainer. Trainer doesn't even bother me any more. Damn digital devices of convenience, making the hard work almost fun. Oh and getting a decent night sleep is wicked important. didn't get much on Friday night and the legs felt it. Got a better night sleep but still not great Saturday and i did feel more rested.
Yes. Talking wicked crazy rambling here today. Or should say right now.
heddwch
g
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
weekend shots
From Sunday...
Thank you Meg
And thanks to my wife for grabbing a great shot of the run up that made day two so kick ass:
And then, my leg wrenching but fruitless attempt to bridge back to the pack after going nuts at the front for a lap at jamestown:
And in carrying on from sunday's prep when I was distracted or focused on more important things I managed to only change one sock getting ready. Riding with a blue verge sock on my right foot and a plain black sock on my left. Using that "luck" for Jamestown didn't seem to be nearly as effective. But then the wheels you see in Meg's shot are not my Rolf Vector Pros, and the tires are not my Racing Ralphs.
-g
Thank you Meg
And thanks to my wife for grabbing a great shot of the run up that made day two so kick ass:
And then, my leg wrenching but fruitless attempt to bridge back to the pack after going nuts at the front for a lap at jamestown:
And in carrying on from sunday's prep when I was distracted or focused on more important things I managed to only change one sock getting ready. Riding with a blue verge sock on my right foot and a plain black sock on my left. Using that "luck" for Jamestown didn't seem to be nearly as effective. But then the wheels you see in Meg's shot are not my Rolf Vector Pros, and the tires are not my Racing Ralphs.
-g
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Richard Fries
Now some know I'm not his biggest fan when he has the mike. He tends to be overly repeatative, always is going on about some insider stuff to make you realize how many people he knows, and he rarely gives you the run down from leader to say any given place. A racer could finish second, or third and Richard might never ever call their name. That said, he is an enthusiastic bright spot at times. Not the most popular guy be we all know him.
I ran into Darcy at jamestown. Yes THE Darcy (some called her digger head darcy for the propensity to crash and land on her head enough to have a neurologist tell her "NO MORE BIKES").
She told me something that floored me.
Richard had a stroke friday. He wasn't calling the race on saturday, but he was there in full Richard Fries style on sunday. I had no clue. I was floored when I heard it. Darcy said he is fine and everything is okay but it is still a scary moment to hear something like that.
-G
I ran into Darcy at jamestown. Yes THE Darcy (some called her digger head darcy for the propensity to crash and land on her head enough to have a neurologist tell her "NO MORE BIKES").
She told me something that floored me.
Richard had a stroke friday. He wasn't calling the race on saturday, but he was there in full Richard Fries style on sunday. I had no clue. I was floored when I heard it. Darcy said he is fine and everything is okay but it is still a scary moment to hear something like that.
-G
Racing the Triple...
Ouch.
A pretty memorable weekend. One that can't be summed up while catching up from not being at work/online since Thursday at 4pm. Vacation days are nice, but man, recovering from them is always insane. So this will be a short, quick synopsis. I have all good intentions of doing a great glen-esque(sp?) write up. But if I don't get something up well. It will be too distracting all day.
Saturday was a good day. Race was not as good as possible. I rested on Friday a bit and got everything ready, and then promptly didn't sleep much at all on Friday night. I was worked up I guess about the race. This being the big test. The big show. Concerns about getting lapped by the likes of Mahk M, Bold Asphlom and company, while proved to be unfounded were still weighing on me. Not to mention having a weekend off, wondering how I would bounce into the races. Could I do it? Well. I did survive. Wound up last rider on the lead lap, which I guess technically isn't DFL. Just dead last on the lead lap. I rode 3 good laps (by my standard, which would just be okay laps by other's). Then the wheels fell off a bit. I just felt there wasn't anywhere to catch a break, to recharge. And then Jerry went by and I deflated. Dunno what was up with that but when he came by he sort of sucked the oomph out. That happens to me a bit. Maybe I've just been pushing too hard for too long only to have one minor mental issue like that push the reset button making me realize oops, tank is empty. I don't know though. It was tough. The race that is. Crazy power course. I'm supposed to do well on these things, but my torque is a bit down this year, mostly from the spring spinning instead of grinding the trailer around. I've got more snap in the legs, but the torque isn't at the same level, but, it is coming back it seems. I was pissed getting passed and then dropped by G-ride, but then I couldn't get too angry, he's a team mate and a great guy. That can't make you angry? Gotta feel good for the guy, he beat ya (again). 88 starters, 78 finishers and I wound up 73 (should have been able to hold of Hersey but knowing I started the last lap I just let Stevens ride away and I sort of did the shut down like I did last year when I raced the 2/3 race after the 3/4 masters and finished w/o getting lapped after starting absolutely last). After the race though we hung around, got a couple beers from the NBX boys, James and Bo graciously offered up a couple beverages that they always have in copious supply (nice to have a beer sponsor). Chilled, hung around, sat over on the grass, someone (next time tell me your name) looked at me funny for a minute (I was still incognito, no orange suit yet) then said something to the effect of I read your blog, thanks for breaking the boredom of my work day. We headed to the rock, I got sunburnt, we watched the women race, then the men race for a minute then I left and made it home.
Sunday was a new day. I actually got some decent sleep after having a touch of trouble falling asleep. We loaded up the family and my daughter's bike and burned some 100% recycled locally produced BioDiesel to get to Day 2. A gorgeous day. A better race. And I tried something that I've known deep down that if I ever did I would regret it unless I could somehow never go back. That I will save for later.
Sunday's course was incredible. I loved the changes. It just felt right. Best G-ster course I've raced. Saturday was identical to both days last year and this change was awesome. I loved it. Still wicked hard. But I found a few places to recover a touch more than the day before. I also finally discovered who that milliman guy is. I managed to put together what I felt was almost a whole race of good laps. The last lap kind of got away from me. More on the specifics of that later too. There were only 86 starters on Sunday but Mark actually made the start, and the leaders raced for 44:40 minutes instead of only 40:20. Saturday I clocked a 48:18, and sunday a 51:15. Not a big difference but one minute twenty seconds was something I was very happy with. Probably most of it is attributed to what I tried. But putting together all those better laps was a nice feeling. We chilled. Had some rice balls, saw some great folks, stuck around for the kids race (never should you have a hairpin 20 feet from the start of a kids race, hell you wouldn't put that in an adult race, recipe for disaster, unless your idea of a good race is one where crashes are normal and bloodied crying kids are expected). Headed home and tried to get ready for Monday's race.
Jamestown. This was a team event. My wife joined the women's open race, we watched her, got ready and then I raced. We had a lot of guys. A couple no shows but still. We had numbers, but I think we just lacked motors, and communication. In a way I'm somewhat pissed. One plan was to make the race hard and string it out on the first lap. So. I did. But I managed to spring a solobreak. Some tall super skinny freak (not me). With in 3-4 miles of starting the race he was off the front. I worked up there. Rotating through, pulling, animating. Working my butt off. Recover for a second head back up front drill it. Slip back, go forward. lead through the light house, try to get people rallied to bridge the gap. To bring the break back. Heading up the nice fresh asphalt on the final "climb" my efforts in the first lap plus were taking a toll. I got slightly popped off the back. Spend the next bunch of miles dangling just off the back, hoping that the pack might slow just a touch, or that maybe a fresh team mate might come back and help me or something. But nope. They were going the same speed as I was. Even through the headwind section. Then it tilted up and my legs said, no way. And they were gone. And I'd figured since I was the only one of the team doing any work at the front on the first lap, certainly the rest of the guys would kick some ass, work together and reel that tall guy back in. And I was determined to finish. Hell no was I going to DNF. Not a chance. So I just went as fast as I could. Alone. For 20+ miles. Got passed by the 35+, then the 45+ just after the lighthouse. But heading towards the lighthouse I could see that the tall skinny kid from NY (IIRC) had about the same gap and he didn't look like he was suffering too much. This is a race when people say breaks NEVER stay away. In the 1/2/3 race, breaks stayed away. Our race. Maybe all the races. I don't know, but it was strange. The North wind probably played into that. A tail wind on the longest straight stretch plays into the break's hands. Anyway. I drained the tank for the third day in a row. I haven't raced on the road since battenkill (april). The longest I've ridden was the back to back double at Suckerbrook before yesterday. But on the positives it was fun. I would have likely popped off the back going to the finish if I hadn't done the work up front anyway, the results wouldn't have been too much different, I just would have less of a time gap. It was a gorgeous day. The family had fun, the colors on the trees driving down there were fantastic. All around great weekend.
And my legs are cooked. I might just let them rest all week, getting just a few easy commute rides in to help loosen things up.
heddwch
g
A pretty memorable weekend. One that can't be summed up while catching up from not being at work/online since Thursday at 4pm. Vacation days are nice, but man, recovering from them is always insane. So this will be a short, quick synopsis. I have all good intentions of doing a great glen-esque(sp?) write up. But if I don't get something up well. It will be too distracting all day.
Saturday was a good day. Race was not as good as possible. I rested on Friday a bit and got everything ready, and then promptly didn't sleep much at all on Friday night. I was worked up I guess about the race. This being the big test. The big show. Concerns about getting lapped by the likes of Mahk M, Bold Asphlom and company, while proved to be unfounded were still weighing on me. Not to mention having a weekend off, wondering how I would bounce into the races. Could I do it? Well. I did survive. Wound up last rider on the lead lap, which I guess technically isn't DFL. Just dead last on the lead lap. I rode 3 good laps (by my standard, which would just be okay laps by other's). Then the wheels fell off a bit. I just felt there wasn't anywhere to catch a break, to recharge. And then Jerry went by and I deflated. Dunno what was up with that but when he came by he sort of sucked the oomph out. That happens to me a bit. Maybe I've just been pushing too hard for too long only to have one minor mental issue like that push the reset button making me realize oops, tank is empty. I don't know though. It was tough. The race that is. Crazy power course. I'm supposed to do well on these things, but my torque is a bit down this year, mostly from the spring spinning instead of grinding the trailer around. I've got more snap in the legs, but the torque isn't at the same level, but, it is coming back it seems. I was pissed getting passed and then dropped by G-ride, but then I couldn't get too angry, he's a team mate and a great guy. That can't make you angry? Gotta feel good for the guy, he beat ya (again). 88 starters, 78 finishers and I wound up 73 (should have been able to hold of Hersey but knowing I started the last lap I just let Stevens ride away and I sort of did the shut down like I did last year when I raced the 2/3 race after the 3/4 masters and finished w/o getting lapped after starting absolutely last). After the race though we hung around, got a couple beers from the NBX boys, James and Bo graciously offered up a couple beverages that they always have in copious supply (nice to have a beer sponsor). Chilled, hung around, sat over on the grass, someone (next time tell me your name) looked at me funny for a minute (I was still incognito, no orange suit yet) then said something to the effect of I read your blog, thanks for breaking the boredom of my work day. We headed to the rock, I got sunburnt, we watched the women race, then the men race for a minute then I left and made it home.
Sunday was a new day. I actually got some decent sleep after having a touch of trouble falling asleep. We loaded up the family and my daughter's bike and burned some 100% recycled locally produced BioDiesel to get to Day 2. A gorgeous day. A better race. And I tried something that I've known deep down that if I ever did I would regret it unless I could somehow never go back. That I will save for later.
Sunday's course was incredible. I loved the changes. It just felt right. Best G-ster course I've raced. Saturday was identical to both days last year and this change was awesome. I loved it. Still wicked hard. But I found a few places to recover a touch more than the day before. I also finally discovered who that milliman guy is. I managed to put together what I felt was almost a whole race of good laps. The last lap kind of got away from me. More on the specifics of that later too. There were only 86 starters on Sunday but Mark actually made the start, and the leaders raced for 44:40 minutes instead of only 40:20. Saturday I clocked a 48:18, and sunday a 51:15. Not a big difference but one minute twenty seconds was something I was very happy with. Probably most of it is attributed to what I tried. But putting together all those better laps was a nice feeling. We chilled. Had some rice balls, saw some great folks, stuck around for the kids race (never should you have a hairpin 20 feet from the start of a kids race, hell you wouldn't put that in an adult race, recipe for disaster, unless your idea of a good race is one where crashes are normal and bloodied crying kids are expected). Headed home and tried to get ready for Monday's race.
Jamestown. This was a team event. My wife joined the women's open race, we watched her, got ready and then I raced. We had a lot of guys. A couple no shows but still. We had numbers, but I think we just lacked motors, and communication. In a way I'm somewhat pissed. One plan was to make the race hard and string it out on the first lap. So. I did. But I managed to spring a solobreak. Some tall super skinny freak (not me). With in 3-4 miles of starting the race he was off the front. I worked up there. Rotating through, pulling, animating. Working my butt off. Recover for a second head back up front drill it. Slip back, go forward. lead through the light house, try to get people rallied to bridge the gap. To bring the break back. Heading up the nice fresh asphalt on the final "climb" my efforts in the first lap plus were taking a toll. I got slightly popped off the back. Spend the next bunch of miles dangling just off the back, hoping that the pack might slow just a touch, or that maybe a fresh team mate might come back and help me or something. But nope. They were going the same speed as I was. Even through the headwind section. Then it tilted up and my legs said, no way. And they were gone. And I'd figured since I was the only one of the team doing any work at the front on the first lap, certainly the rest of the guys would kick some ass, work together and reel that tall guy back in. And I was determined to finish. Hell no was I going to DNF. Not a chance. So I just went as fast as I could. Alone. For 20+ miles. Got passed by the 35+, then the 45+ just after the lighthouse. But heading towards the lighthouse I could see that the tall skinny kid from NY (IIRC) had about the same gap and he didn't look like he was suffering too much. This is a race when people say breaks NEVER stay away. In the 1/2/3 race, breaks stayed away. Our race. Maybe all the races. I don't know, but it was strange. The North wind probably played into that. A tail wind on the longest straight stretch plays into the break's hands. Anyway. I drained the tank for the third day in a row. I haven't raced on the road since battenkill (april). The longest I've ridden was the back to back double at Suckerbrook before yesterday. But on the positives it was fun. I would have likely popped off the back going to the finish if I hadn't done the work up front anyway, the results wouldn't have been too much different, I just would have less of a time gap. It was a gorgeous day. The family had fun, the colors on the trees driving down there were fantastic. All around great weekend.
And my legs are cooked. I might just let them rest all week, getting just a few easy commute rides in to help loosen things up.
heddwch
g
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Check it out
NEMBA Access Raffle 2008 Killer prize list. Buy your tickets now!
Seriously.
Buy a bunch. If you win the bike and don't want it, give it to me!
also, get this one out of the way...
Live Superprestige Cup races we can watch in the USA? NO WAY!
Yeah. On the internet. So now you have a choice. You can go race, or you can sit on your butt in front of a computer and watch other people race. :D
or buy a ticket, win stuff from NEMBA and use it on a trail or something...
Heddwch
G
Seriously.
Buy a bunch. If you win the bike and don't want it, give it to me!
also, get this one out of the way...
Live Superprestige Cup races we can watch in the USA? NO WAY!
Yeah. On the internet. So now you have a choice. You can go race, or you can sit on your butt in front of a computer and watch other people race. :D
or buy a ticket, win stuff from NEMBA and use it on a trail or something...
Heddwch
G
reflections on the year with a cyclocross bias
So this year, like last year, things have changed dramatically regarding preparation for the race. I've been on the trainer more in the last month than the previous year combined. I've commuted to work less on my bike (generally if not on bike I'm fampooling it) in the last two months. I've stopped drinking coffee, and for that matter anything containing caffeine at all. The year was spent focusing less on knee grinding power hauling the trailer over geared than spinning my ass off being under geared. I don't remember if it was solobreak or nega coach who called me completely uncoachable. But that's probably not far from the truth. Last year I was recording ever damn pedal stroke from January to actually this time last year on a power tap. Even used it in a few cross races before selling it to an e-acquaintance of MIF. I've got a better running base than I have since being in High School. I'm actually having moments of positive self confidence on the bike, and that's rather odd.
I am very excited about this weekend. Taking last weekend off and not missing the race at all was a good sign. It meant that I needed a re-charge. A last topping off of the batteries before hitting this next heavy stretch. Two days of Gloucester topped off with the Jamestown race.
I am excited. Unlike Battenkill or the 24 HOGG I feel confident I will get to the other side of this long weekend and not be left with a feeling of "now what"? We've got so many great races to look forward to this year. And it true I'm hoping to keep building until the Rhode Island races in December. Follow that up with a strong concert season in Seattle and then a nice "relaxing" bit of vacation. My wife joked with my brother the other day about having to plan the next meal together for January or February, because even though we are barely 5-6 miles apart, all of our schedules are so full this time of year.
On a year to year basis, I do feel like I'm grasping little bits of how to do this whole bike racing thing better. Results may not be a whole lot better. I'm certainly not coming into cross season as on form as many people. Things could always be better, but I have hope. I don't think I have the potential or the opportunity to kill it like results boy is this year. But I do feel like I haven't quite figured out how to tap into my potential, and as crazy as it sounds to an athlete, I have to sort out the mental side of racing. Unlike most of the wicked fast guys my age, I haven't been racing non-stop since I was a kid. Heck I didn't start competitive cycling until i was in college, then shortly switched to the less competitive Mt bike stuff in Michigan before discovering cross and then that was just fun. And no, I tried to do the whole little league thing, but that didn't work out well. Took me till 10th grade to actually start doing anything athletically competitively outside gym class. All that development time potential for wiring a brain for athletic competition just didn't happen, and it isn't easy to cognitively try and work through it. But then i'm not burned out. I was never faster than I am now. I don't have a limit on what my legs can do based on the past and honestly the words of someone who knows my supa fast team mate well give me great encouragement. She said "he wasn't always fast..."
Maybe there is hope for me to compete for verge points in a year or two. Maybe I can realize some of the potential locked inside of me. And if nothing else, my perseverance and tenacity at sticking with something I love even without the rewards of success as defined by culture and media (winning, podium, points rankings) can hopefully serve to inspire my children. It isn't just about winning. It is about doing. About choosing a lifestyle that is challenging and rewarding. Racing gives me the motivation to push more than I would w/o it. And Cyclocross, well it is just damn Nasty.
heddwch
G
I am very excited about this weekend. Taking last weekend off and not missing the race at all was a good sign. It meant that I needed a re-charge. A last topping off of the batteries before hitting this next heavy stretch. Two days of Gloucester topped off with the Jamestown race.
I am excited. Unlike Battenkill or the 24 HOGG I feel confident I will get to the other side of this long weekend and not be left with a feeling of "now what"? We've got so many great races to look forward to this year. And it true I'm hoping to keep building until the Rhode Island races in December. Follow that up with a strong concert season in Seattle and then a nice "relaxing" bit of vacation. My wife joked with my brother the other day about having to plan the next meal together for January or February, because even though we are barely 5-6 miles apart, all of our schedules are so full this time of year.
On a year to year basis, I do feel like I'm grasping little bits of how to do this whole bike racing thing better. Results may not be a whole lot better. I'm certainly not coming into cross season as on form as many people. Things could always be better, but I have hope. I don't think I have the potential or the opportunity to kill it like results boy is this year. But I do feel like I haven't quite figured out how to tap into my potential, and as crazy as it sounds to an athlete, I have to sort out the mental side of racing. Unlike most of the wicked fast guys my age, I haven't been racing non-stop since I was a kid. Heck I didn't start competitive cycling until i was in college, then shortly switched to the less competitive Mt bike stuff in Michigan before discovering cross and then that was just fun. And no, I tried to do the whole little league thing, but that didn't work out well. Took me till 10th grade to actually start doing anything athletically competitively outside gym class. All that development time potential for wiring a brain for athletic competition just didn't happen, and it isn't easy to cognitively try and work through it. But then i'm not burned out. I was never faster than I am now. I don't have a limit on what my legs can do based on the past and honestly the words of someone who knows my supa fast team mate well give me great encouragement. She said "he wasn't always fast..."
Maybe there is hope for me to compete for verge points in a year or two. Maybe I can realize some of the potential locked inside of me. And if nothing else, my perseverance and tenacity at sticking with something I love even without the rewards of success as defined by culture and media (winning, podium, points rankings) can hopefully serve to inspire my children. It isn't just about winning. It is about doing. About choosing a lifestyle that is challenging and rewarding. Racing gives me the motivation to push more than I would w/o it. And Cyclocross, well it is just damn Nasty.
heddwch
G
as the day slips by
challenges
Lots of them out there.
With this new rate cut by all the banks I wonder if the whole "lets drop the rate a point or two here and there" didn't actually wind us up in the mess we are in.
Low interest rates mean people accrue more debt. Saving is silly when the "savings" accounts only return 0.5% on your money in the bank. No wonder people stopped saving and living their wage. Why bother saving when you can borrow money for 5% interest? Even 10% sounds reasonable.
How are banks/lenders supposed to make money on lending if the return is lower than inflation?
Didn't anyone learn from the automakers when they went 0% interest happy for so long? What does that mean? Giving away free money. Yeah that helps the bottom line. Were the cars just so over priced that the 0% was just a cost adjustment? Or did they poop in their own bed and screw themselves? Between the 0% and the giant bigger is better is safer SUVs they fueled the upside down spending. McMansions with Balloon and ARM mortgages... any different? Not really.
I heard something this morning from a bank prez, he said he won't sell something (loan) that he wouldn't use himself. IE i think, refering to the "sub-prime" lending. How do you expect to make money if you loan it out below cost, then all your customers never actually refinance with you.
I don't have any answers. I'm not an economist. Numbers and formulas sometimes make my head spin. I need pictures, tangible variables. Numbers and me don't really get along too well.
It just makes me wonder, if all this collapse isn't a reaction to the years of wicked low rates. 1.5% seems crazy. How do 'banks' make money off of that? Heck that's a lower return rate than owning a grocery store, and with energy costs and other costs going up, it doesn't leave much room in the bottom line for trips to resorts so the CEOs can plan how to wring more blood out of a stone.
Did we pull out of the 80s recession with help from high interest rates? (I don't know then answer, but i do know it is way more complicated than one factor).
At least this kind of cogitating is quelling the building anxiety and excitement about Gloucester... more on that later...
So what is it all about. How do we fix it?
Sacrifice? For who? There are always going to be sectors of the economy that are not feeling the pinch, and sectors that are. And there has to be a new niche to expand and generate a new demand for goods and services that is strong enough to carry the whole economy up. In the 80s-90s that niche was the computer. But then the bubble burst and some vindictive not so smart jackass decided to go finish his daddy's war and ignore a reasonably reactionary military activity that was started in reaction to the attacks on 9/11. Saddam might have been a major dickhead, an opressive dictator, but, he had no more use for those OBL followers than we did. We could have left him stewing until Afgan was cleaned up. We (the USA) would still be seen as leaders of the world, not some stupid bull in a china shop that is the world bashing everything to bits and making a mess faster than China can build crap and put it back on the shelves.
Oh one other thing.
These "losses" on paper. Stocks are pieces of paper. If you are invested in a good solid company, things will turn around. They always have, and probably always will. The value might go up and down, but that "stock" is a stake in the company. I remembered how I "rationalized" all those "retirement account" losses in 2001. I started thinking about what I was investing in not as money, but as individual pieces of paper, who's value may go up, or may go down, but knowing over the time I will hold onto them eventually I'll have bought enough pieces of paper (stocks) that things will work out. Eventually most will rise and then split, doubling my holdings, and things will be fine.
I haven't lost any money if I don't take it out or move it anywhere. If I was clairvoyant I might have pulled 100% of my market based holdings when the market peaked a while back, and then bought that value of it at the bottom and gained maybe a little. But then that means knowing when the top is and where the bottom is, and while that might help boost a bit, I've got a bit of confidence that you know, in 30 years or so if I am ready to retire or at least start drawing on that retirement account there will be some cash in there.
And last economic related bit, is AIG the next ENRON? I still am wicked pissed that the jackasses in congress "bailed them out" what the hell, if they were stupid and risky with other peoples money and lost it all, what makes anyone think things will be different with the govt's money?
Yes, all questions are rhetorical. Talking to myself. These are my thoughts and i'm not sure why I'm writing this here, maybe because sometimes my thoughts get construed as more than just a beginning of a formed thought. Thinking and then trying to express those thoughts via a medium more tangible than brain waves is a personal exercise. Fortunately no one demands that I submit op-ed articles, fortunately it is all organically derived. I could tap that google adsense stuff but then I know I would not be able to resist targeting topics that generate peaks in the revenue, and then I would lose that last sense of why i was doing this all. I'm only an expert in a few fields, none of which I really actually ever touch on here, but this helps me expand a bit, or move on a bit. Truly an introspection section of the internet.
Life goes on. We survive and grow.
Heddwch
g
Lots of them out there.
With this new rate cut by all the banks I wonder if the whole "lets drop the rate a point or two here and there" didn't actually wind us up in the mess we are in.
Low interest rates mean people accrue more debt. Saving is silly when the "savings" accounts only return 0.5% on your money in the bank. No wonder people stopped saving and living their wage. Why bother saving when you can borrow money for 5% interest? Even 10% sounds reasonable.
How are banks/lenders supposed to make money on lending if the return is lower than inflation?
Didn't anyone learn from the automakers when they went 0% interest happy for so long? What does that mean? Giving away free money. Yeah that helps the bottom line. Were the cars just so over priced that the 0% was just a cost adjustment? Or did they poop in their own bed and screw themselves? Between the 0% and the giant bigger is better is safer SUVs they fueled the upside down spending. McMansions with Balloon and ARM mortgages... any different? Not really.
I heard something this morning from a bank prez, he said he won't sell something (loan) that he wouldn't use himself. IE i think, refering to the "sub-prime" lending. How do you expect to make money if you loan it out below cost, then all your customers never actually refinance with you.
I don't have any answers. I'm not an economist. Numbers and formulas sometimes make my head spin. I need pictures, tangible variables. Numbers and me don't really get along too well.
It just makes me wonder, if all this collapse isn't a reaction to the years of wicked low rates. 1.5% seems crazy. How do 'banks' make money off of that? Heck that's a lower return rate than owning a grocery store, and with energy costs and other costs going up, it doesn't leave much room in the bottom line for trips to resorts so the CEOs can plan how to wring more blood out of a stone.
Did we pull out of the 80s recession with help from high interest rates? (I don't know then answer, but i do know it is way more complicated than one factor).
At least this kind of cogitating is quelling the building anxiety and excitement about Gloucester... more on that later...
So what is it all about. How do we fix it?
Sacrifice? For who? There are always going to be sectors of the economy that are not feeling the pinch, and sectors that are. And there has to be a new niche to expand and generate a new demand for goods and services that is strong enough to carry the whole economy up. In the 80s-90s that niche was the computer. But then the bubble burst and some vindictive not so smart jackass decided to go finish his daddy's war and ignore a reasonably reactionary military activity that was started in reaction to the attacks on 9/11. Saddam might have been a major dickhead, an opressive dictator, but, he had no more use for those OBL followers than we did. We could have left him stewing until Afgan was cleaned up. We (the USA) would still be seen as leaders of the world, not some stupid bull in a china shop that is the world bashing everything to bits and making a mess faster than China can build crap and put it back on the shelves.
Oh one other thing.
These "losses" on paper. Stocks are pieces of paper. If you are invested in a good solid company, things will turn around. They always have, and probably always will. The value might go up and down, but that "stock" is a stake in the company. I remembered how I "rationalized" all those "retirement account" losses in 2001. I started thinking about what I was investing in not as money, but as individual pieces of paper, who's value may go up, or may go down, but knowing over the time I will hold onto them eventually I'll have bought enough pieces of paper (stocks) that things will work out. Eventually most will rise and then split, doubling my holdings, and things will be fine.
I haven't lost any money if I don't take it out or move it anywhere. If I was clairvoyant I might have pulled 100% of my market based holdings when the market peaked a while back, and then bought that value of it at the bottom and gained maybe a little. But then that means knowing when the top is and where the bottom is, and while that might help boost a bit, I've got a bit of confidence that you know, in 30 years or so if I am ready to retire or at least start drawing on that retirement account there will be some cash in there.
And last economic related bit, is AIG the next ENRON? I still am wicked pissed that the jackasses in congress "bailed them out" what the hell, if they were stupid and risky with other peoples money and lost it all, what makes anyone think things will be different with the govt's money?
Yes, all questions are rhetorical. Talking to myself. These are my thoughts and i'm not sure why I'm writing this here, maybe because sometimes my thoughts get construed as more than just a beginning of a formed thought. Thinking and then trying to express those thoughts via a medium more tangible than brain waves is a personal exercise. Fortunately no one demands that I submit op-ed articles, fortunately it is all organically derived. I could tap that google adsense stuff but then I know I would not be able to resist targeting topics that generate peaks in the revenue, and then I would lose that last sense of why i was doing this all. I'm only an expert in a few fields, none of which I really actually ever touch on here, but this helps me expand a bit, or move on a bit. Truly an introspection section of the internet.
Life goes on. We survive and grow.
Heddwch
g
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Something I haven't touched on here
the market...
not to kill the tears of laughter of ANIMAL...
but... closing down as much as it has with the volume today (freaking insane damn near close to double the average volume)...
it isn't good, but damn it. we WILL survive.
America came out of the depression stronger. We will emerge out of this crisis.
But... it has been a bad day. so we leave you with REM Live from dublin
heddwch
G
PS really today wasn't that bad, it only dropped a couple %... it is sort of how much it has dropped in the last few days/weeks that have people freaking out...
not to kill the tears of laughter of ANIMAL...
but... closing down as much as it has with the volume today (freaking insane damn near close to double the average volume)...
it isn't good, but damn it. we WILL survive.
America came out of the depression stronger. We will emerge out of this crisis.
But... it has been a bad day. so we leave you with REM Live from dublin
heddwch
G
PS really today wasn't that bad, it only dropped a couple %... it is sort of how much it has dropped in the last few days/weeks that have people freaking out...
Did somoene say ANIMAL
I love that character... that and the two guys at the end of the second clip...
Why does Animal crack me up so much...
"my kindof woman"
Why does Animal crack me up so much...
"my kindof woman"
quote of the day?
In mtb and road, the weather will play a huge part in determining the rider turn out. In cross, short of locusts, the weather isn't too much to worry about. Cross racers are plenty excited about getting muddy and destroying their equipment.
Almost funnier than the tromping quote... and more cycling related... always good to steer clear of politics for a second.
Check the whole post in context. A bunch of "yeah already knew that" stuff but it is good to read and refresh now and then.
heddwch
g
funny stuff
Hats off to O'Grady for catching me up on what I missed in the debate, damn fine minute by minute summarization of it.
and because it is so good... so entertaining i feel compelled to mirror it here, so in 10 years I won't have to wade though O'Grady's archives if they are still there... if we are all still here...
8:22 p.m.: Russia v. Georgia: Both McCain and Obama tromp all over their wieners on this one.
BWahahahah... that's just an awesome line... i'm in stitches reading it over again...
and because it is so good... so entertaining i feel compelled to mirror it here, so in 10 years I won't have to wade though O'Grady's archives if they are still there... if we are all still here...
1 0 | 0 7 | 2 0 0 8
Round two
Tonight brings us another one of those so-called "debates," with all the spontaneity, vivacity and unpredictability of a primary-school theatrical production. If Mister Strait Jacket goes off his meds and his talking points tonight, we might get a moment's entertainment. Otherwise we're in for an evening of Obama struggling to make thoughtful points between intervals of McCain stolidly lying his ass off. I'd give a healthy organ to see Mister Strait Jacket distractedly gobble a fistful of uppers instead of the usual tranquilizers, if only to give Hunter S. Thompson something to chuckle about in Hell.
I will be watching, and sipping, and occasionally chiming in here on the DogS(h)ite. But I think I'll do without Twitter this time. I haven't had a chance to explore it much, and I find it more convenient to rant and rave in the old, familiar style. So stay tuned. And keep a bloodshot eye peeled to Talking Points Memo, Washington Monthly and Mother Jones in case you'd like a little fact with your fiction. I started making shit up pretty early in the veeps' debate.
Speaking of making shit up, listen for some blather from McInsane about what The Nation's Ari Berman has termed Obama's "flimsy ties" to Bill Ayers, the Sixties radical who was present at the birth of Weatherman (later the Weather Underground) as the old Students for a Democratic Society started coming apart at the seams.
I have a motheaten copy of "Weatherman," edited by Howard Jacobs, a book I recall picking up while hitchhiking through the Midwest in 1972, and a determined election mechanic could really give Middle America the heebie-jeebies with a few choice selections from some of Ayers' writings from that period — if so many of us of a certain age hadn't had our own revolutionary heads so firmly up our own dialectical asses at about the same time. Hell, McInsane says dumber shit every day, four decades later. Who's the real threat to the Republic here?
There should be a statute of limitations on youthful ignorance: The Weather Underground planted some bombs, John McCain dropped a few bombs, and I'd rather not have either Bill Ayers or McCain in charge of the nation's armed forces come 2009. Happily, only McCain seems to want the job these days, and all it takes is a simple yes-or-no vote to send him back to where the formerly militant Ayers is — in the history books.
Here we go:
7 p.m.: Whaddaya know? McCain actually looked at Obama.
7:04 p.m.: Obama rips W and McCain on their hands-off handling of the economy.
7:07 p.m.: Mister Three Decades in DeeCee talks reform. Buy up them bad loans. With what money, I have no idea. He knows how to get America working again. Meg Whitman as Treasury secretary? Mmm hmmm . . . .
7:10 p.m.: Obama: Warren Buffett, maybe. But let's save the middle class..
7:11 p.m.: Bailout v. rescue. McCain talks about how he "suspended his campaign" to deal with the crisis, which is so much ice-cold horseshit.
7:14 p.m.: Obama: Deregulation is the problem here, and McCain is a jive-ass muthafuckah. Wanders off into a screed and then says: "You're not interested in hearing politicians pointing fingers."
7:18 p.m.: McCain: Americans rock.
7:19 p.m.: Best question yet: How can we trust either of you? Obama: Well, if things suck now, think about McCain, who has spent the last eight years with his liver-lips pressed to W's butt.
7:21 p.m.: McCain: I'm a bipartisan (not a maverick, but it's early yet). More baseless attacks and a bizarre detour into energy independence.
7:24 p.m.: Tom Brokaw: Health care, energy, entitlement reform — which takes priority? McCain: Talking points! Talking points! My friends, talking points! Obama: Energy is a priority. In 10 years we can be free of Middle Eastern oil. Next, health care. Third, education. And finally, McCain is full of shit to his non-existent sideburns. He wants a $300B tax cuts for Big Bidness. Won't work.
7:28 p.m.: McCain: Earmarks! Spending cuts! Freeze everything except defense and veterans affairs. Say fuckin' what? Is this fascist Italy or what? Meanwhile, blabble gabble glabble.
7:31 p.m.: Obama invokes 9/11. Attacking problems within and without government. How do we use energy? We're gonna have to find new ways to find oil. Clean coal. Safe nuclear energy (and he can pronounce the word). And we must all conserve energy, happily using products bought in the USA. Also, ramp up the Peace Corps. The Army ain't the be-all and the end-all.
7:34 p.m.: Obama: No across-the-board freezes. Let's see to it that sacrifice is shared.
7:36 p.m.: McCain: Obama wants to raise taxes and cripple small business. I am in favor of reducing taxes, including his fabled $5,000 refundable tax credit for health insurance.
7:38 p.m.: Entitlements like Social Security and Medicare? Obama: The Straight Talk Express lost a wheel on that one. We have to look this bad boy over. Meanwhile, I want to provide a tax cut for 90 percent of Americans. And McCain wants to give his rich buddies a pile of money. Let's save the middle class. Then we can deal with the rest of this mess.
7:41 p.m.: McCain: I'll take 'em on. All of 'em. I'm not too popular with my own party, much less his, but I'm bipartisan (what, everybody hates his dumb ass and he's still gonna get something done?). Even Brokaw is starting to think he's full of shit.
7:44 p.m.: McCain is seriously raving now. Maybe he did mix his meds in the green room.
7:47 p.m.: Obama: Rips McCain for screwing the pooch on alternative fuels in his nearly three decades in Congress. Talk is cheap, and drilling won't help.
7:48 p.m.: Brokaw: Manhattan Project or Silicon Valley when it comes to cranking up energy alternatives? And off McCain goes again, jabbering about "goodies" and offshore drilling and "bridging the gap" by drilling offshore, my friends, my friends, my friends.
7:50 p.m.: Question: Is health care a commodity? Obama: Moral and financial imperatives demand that Americans have the same options as senators. Nice big pool. McCain wants to tax your employer-based health-car bennies.
7:53 p.m.: McCain: Health records online. Walk-in clinics. Obama's a dick. Talks about "gold-plated, Cadillac plans" — like the one he's had all his life as a military dependent, Navy vet and retiree, and congresscreature. That this asshole talks about "government mandates" and what "employers understand" when he never worked in the private sector is like me talking about nuclear physics.
7:57 p.m.: Obama: Oh, Lord, is this guy full of shit.
7:59 p.m.: McCain: America is the greatest force for good in the history of the world. Paints himself — the dude who stacked three American aircraft fucking the duck and backed W 95 percent of the time — as Mr. Judgment. What does Obama know? Ti ti, GI.
8:02 p.m.: Obama: It's true, I don't understand some things. Like why W and McCain have flushed the country, its alliances and its economy down the Iraqi crapper.
8:04 p.m.: Brokaw: Absent national-security interests, what is the Obama Doctrine regarding intervention in nightmarish situations? Obama: We can't be everywhere all the time. Work with allies.
8:06 p.m.: McCain: Iraq. Petraeus. Victory with honor. A cool hand at the tiller (this from a guy whose nicknames at Annapolis were "Punk" and "McNasty."
8:09 p.m.: Question: Drive into Pakistan a la Cambodia during Vietnam? Obama: Naw, pressure them, don't give them money, expand non-military aid, and if we have OBL in our sights, then we act.
8:12 p.m.: McCain launches into much bad noise about Teddy Roosevelt. Aw, shit. Where's the wine?
8:14 p.m.: Obama: Speak softly and carry a big stick? This from Mr. Bomb Bomb Bomb, Bomb Bomb Iran? Puh-leeze..
8:16 p.m.: McCain:&#%@^$@!!!
8:18 p.m.: McCain is on again about "the surge" and honor and victory — this time in Afghanistan. Never mind that both the strategic and tactical situations are entirely different. No wonder he was at the bottom of his class at Annapolis.
8:22 p.m.: Russia v. Georgia: Both McCain and Obama tromp all over their wieners on this one.
8:25 p.m.: Question: Defend Israel against attack? McCain: League of Democracies. Serve, sacrifice, never again. Obama: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. I will do everything that is required to prevent it. Military actions not off the table, but sanctions, energy conservation and diplomacy first.
8:30 p.m. Brokaw: What don't you know, and how will you learn it? Obama doesn't answer the question. Talking points. Sounds tentative and full of talking points. McCain goes off into pure, unadulterated horseshit. Oh, fuck, this is awful.
8:22 p.m.: Russia v. Georgia: Both McCain and Obama tromp all over their wieners on this one.
BWahahahah... that's just an awesome line... i'm in stitches reading it over again...
Time to vote?
Cyclocross Republic is something new... weekly polls (that are far less scary than the ones hinging on Nov 4th).
But then if you've been keeping track of The Church of the Big Ring, then you know what i'm talking about already.
But then if you've been keeping track of The Church of the Big Ring, then you know what i'm talking about already.
first cool day
In the 30s on the way in this morning. And I was over heating damn it. sleeveless base layer short sleeve jersey under a Voleur jacket is too much. Just knee warmers and bib shorts was perfect though. Legs felt great.
Stupid Lump song was in my head as I headed out this morning. WTF. How did that get in there?
Oh and McCain (from the 5-10 minutes of the debate that I saw) looked like one angry bitter frustrated old raving lunatic. Heck he was supposed to just walk all over Obama in the Town Hall format. But from what I saw, it wasn't the case. Obama actually sounded pretty damn solid. And what I really want to know is what the hell was McLame writing down as SOON AS THE WALKED IN, DURING INTRODUCTIONS. WTF? Did Obama even touch the pen to paper during the debate? McSame was scribbling furiously every chance he got. If I was going to watch the whole damn thing I certainly would have needed to play a drinking song with it.
What is up with Palin saying no to NBC's request for an interview? Did she get so destroyed by being on CBS and ABC that she will only set foot in FOX studios? So what if NBC is perceived as being a Liberal anti-republican network (not true IMHO), they are still a huge media outlet, shouldn't you be hitting ALL the stops? McBush has been on there plenty of times. Never seems to mind it, always gracious and all that. And Biden this morning on there (caught 30 seconds of his interview) kicked some ass. Funny guy. Smart. Intelligent. Who's more popular though the smart kids with the answers, or the dumb jocks and cheer-leading beauty queens. Who would you rather have running the country? Another jock? Or a smart guy.
Too much politics? Maybe.
S'okay, the election will be over before cyclocross season ends (hopefully at least).
heddwch
G
Stupid Lump song was in my head as I headed out this morning. WTF. How did that get in there?
Oh and McCain (from the 5-10 minutes of the debate that I saw) looked like one angry bitter frustrated old raving lunatic. Heck he was supposed to just walk all over Obama in the Town Hall format. But from what I saw, it wasn't the case. Obama actually sounded pretty damn solid. And what I really want to know is what the hell was McLame writing down as SOON AS THE WALKED IN, DURING INTRODUCTIONS. WTF? Did Obama even touch the pen to paper during the debate? McSame was scribbling furiously every chance he got. If I was going to watch the whole damn thing I certainly would have needed to play a drinking song with it.
What is up with Palin saying no to NBC's request for an interview? Did she get so destroyed by being on CBS and ABC that she will only set foot in FOX studios? So what if NBC is perceived as being a Liberal anti-republican network (not true IMHO), they are still a huge media outlet, shouldn't you be hitting ALL the stops? McBush has been on there plenty of times. Never seems to mind it, always gracious and all that. And Biden this morning on there (caught 30 seconds of his interview) kicked some ass. Funny guy. Smart. Intelligent. Who's more popular though the smart kids with the answers, or the dumb jocks and cheer-leading beauty queens. Who would you rather have running the country? Another jock? Or a smart guy.
Too much politics? Maybe.
S'okay, the election will be over before cyclocross season ends (hopefully at least).
heddwch
G
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
word of blog
haven't hit up that in a while, word spy that is... word of blog definition
Gotta love this. Since trackrich mentioned it yesterday:
social notworking
Quick run down of tabs I left open with good stuff to read:
I'm going to say, check out Fatty's page. His stuff was good back when, now it has transcended good if you will.
Among the best race reports from the weekend:
Untilthesnowends, Eco Cross Race report
Legolord, Coonamessett Eco Cross 10.5.08 (i guess Nasty is a good thing? i got worried that he was suggesting that nasty meant they were mean and dirty riders, you know, like what nasty means).
That's a hell of a lot of people for one race
Or you can read ErikV's report here at CX Mag.
hupunited's report on CC#1 (great shots of a struggle in the mud - don't for get the click here link)
runbikeswim's account of Alpenrose. Best line is the second one.
And of course the must read of the PDX crowd (race reports and hell anything she puts down in digital ink)
everythingaskance made me chuckle (guy pushing bike account)
Badbradjurga: Oh to have made the trip to Cooperstown.
Hannahheartattack talks about Hurricanes.
mr crossinnewbelgium is saying that WI racers know how to party...
crossadvice aka simon burney is ditching the blog format and has announced the new-site before getting a home page up...
Todd Wells and a Mt bike perspective on the current doping situation.
fiddy's So Cal Cross report
frite-en-mayo offers up "Gaining Ground just to lose it again"
Wicked pimp ride over at ponyshop
Oh and as much as I hate to say it to all those who got the "surprise me" speedvagen, I *still* think the Rainier Beer bike (paint scheme) is way cooler. The bike certainly isn't cooler. But then I guess you don't put bikes in a cooler. Ya ride them.
Oh and ya can't but be down with the Cash for Chaos (themichiganscene) running with the Mr T theme.
Heck Dan's been to the races Too!
well there ya go...
of course all these links are over on the left somewhere (or at least most of them are)...
heddwch
G
Gotta love this. Since trackrich mentioned it yesterday:
social notworking
Quick run down of tabs I left open with good stuff to read:
I'm going to say, check out Fatty's page. His stuff was good back when, now it has transcended good if you will.
Among the best race reports from the weekend:
Untilthesnowends, Eco Cross Race report
Legolord, Coonamessett Eco Cross 10.5.08 (i guess Nasty is a good thing? i got worried that he was suggesting that nasty meant they were mean and dirty riders, you know, like what nasty means).
That's a hell of a lot of people for one race
Or you can read ErikV's report here at CX Mag.
hupunited's report on CC#1 (great shots of a struggle in the mud - don't for get the click here link)
runbikeswim's account of Alpenrose. Best line is the second one.
And of course the must read of the PDX crowd (race reports and hell anything she puts down in digital ink)
everythingaskance made me chuckle (guy pushing bike account)
Badbradjurga: Oh to have made the trip to Cooperstown.
Hannahheartattack talks about Hurricanes.
mr crossinnewbelgium is saying that WI racers know how to party...
crossadvice aka simon burney is ditching the blog format and has announced the new-site before getting a home page up...
Todd Wells and a Mt bike perspective on the current doping situation.
fiddy's So Cal Cross report
frite-en-mayo offers up "Gaining Ground just to lose it again"
Wicked pimp ride over at ponyshop
Oh and as much as I hate to say it to all those who got the "surprise me" speedvagen, I *still* think the Rainier Beer bike (paint scheme) is way cooler. The bike certainly isn't cooler. But then I guess you don't put bikes in a cooler. Ya ride them.
Oh and ya can't but be down with the Cash for Chaos (themichiganscene) running with the Mr T theme.
Heck Dan's been to the races Too!
well there ya go...
of course all these links are over on the left somewhere (or at least most of them are)...
heddwch
G
Gloucester triggered musings
The results I mentioned on Friday. The race before the race. Why is it so important? Should it be? No (aside from the fact that some of the podium spots are guest passes, I will leave that at that).
Bottom line it shouldn't be that important. But it is. Gloucester is much less an issue than say Northampton where you have a few hundred feet of paved road onto a 90° turn then a few more loose sharp turns and a down hill over a covered narrow gage railroad. Gloucester does often have a bit of selection going on. And you can get tied up in the exit of the road, or the first 180° turn, but it isn't going to make or break the race.
As someone said, it is a drafting course. There aren't that many of those around here. Not many around many places, this is cross after all. The first year I did it, the only category open was the 2/3 race. I lined up somewhere in the middle and finished somewhere in the back of the middle. I only raced on day and that was Sunday. I liked the course. Last year I lined up in the 3/4 masters race, front row both days. Hole shot both days and I wasn't even tried hard to get it. First day I wrapped my head around some course tape because I didn't pre-ride it and wasn't prepared to make the cut that Chip did as we dove down into and around the pit section. Fries gave me a shout out as the guy who was strangling himself and 20-30 guys all road past as I frantically tried to get free of the tape. I worked back up to 20th. Sunday same start, I knew the turn and instead of working past 10 guys I slid back a bit more. Tired and all that. And to top it off? I tried to race the 2/3 race. Day of reg. Absolutely reverse hole shot. And I basically stayed there. Worked hard enough to hand with a Canadian kid who was just wicked happy not to get lapped by Lynne. It hurt. But I was just riding around having an absolute blast on the course. Monster pile up at the 180 turn in the 2/3 race. Lots of sketchiness. But a good mix of speed and what not.
So thinking back to all that, how much fun it was racing up at Gloucester I started reflecting on the weather a bit. It has been warm and absolutely dry these last two years. Will this year be the same?
Wet vs. dry does change things up a bit. When the course is dry you can almost recover. Or at least you can almost actually sit in and do a bit less work in the draft. When the grass is wet and slow and muddy (ala Bedford), the draft is such a small % of your work demands that it is almost meaningless. Not having raced G-ster in the wet I don't know but judging by the ecology/geology of the park and the typical layout of the course, my guess is that wet ain't gonna slow that place down much.
Being a slower tall guy is actually not much of an advantage at a drafting course. Esp. if you start in front of 75 guys. Everyone behind you is presented with a big giant carrot. Oh hey look, there's that tall freak, lets go gang busters, sit on his wheel and recover then blow past him. That's pretty much how the race goes for me. Work my ass off, then find a gaggle of wheel suckers unwilling to come around until they are recovered enough and by then I can't do much more than hold the same pace and watch them attack off my wheel. Cross racing, as someone recently commented to me (can't remember who now-I remember- B-Mac), isn't like mt biking. You can't just kind of relax until the guy behind you catches you. It doesn't really work that way, in Mt Biking it does kind of work, sometimes. Cross? Ya gotta get on the rivet the whole damn race. Recovery is basically done in the turns, when you are running, or when you are sitting in behind some giant freak who's slowly getting faster as each year goes by, slowly seemingly to get smarter about training and racing in the same time space too, but still not fast/smart enough to be much more than a roving wind break on a drafting course.
One thing that flabbergasts me are crappy starts. How hard it is to go from standing there with one foot in the pedals to being clipped in and going balls out? Or at least balls mostly out? I've heard it all the time "I got a bad start" or "I just couldn't get clipped in"... what? How do you not get clipped in?
What do you do on the remount? Fumble around coasting until you get the second foot clipped in? Or do you just mash with the right (traditional remounts) and start pedaling until your feet clip in. Some people argue that with the 4 sided crank brother pedal you never have to look down to see which way the pedal is rotated. Um. A two sided pedal isn't any different. Heck a one sided pedal hangs in a way that lets you get clipped in without looking. That's how they are designed. A two sided shimano or time pedal is a thoughtless stomp "click" I’m in. And no matter how big and strong your hamstrings are, as a cyclist and a human, your quads have more power, you don't need to be clipped in to use them. JUST FREAKING CLIP IN AND PEDAL. Every time I come to a stop light I practice my starts. Yes, seriously. Year round. Light goes green, quick check for red light runners and BOOM. Best is usually watching traffic to know if there will be one coming through on a red and just going with the green. Right foot clipped in, hanging around 1-2 o'clock, left foot on the ground. No pushing off, just stand, go and clip in and pedal. Track standing practice can serve you well if you get caught behind a pile up in the race, but if you practiced your starts instead you might not be behind the pile up? No?
Myette's phrase of placing well in the early registration being worth 100 hours of training assumes that you can start well. Starting in the top 4 rows is great if you can get clipped in and going, and totally pointless if you bugger it up.
And that is something that doesn't hurt nearly as much as intervals or running stairs or doing hill sprints, or what ever it is you do to simulate the demands of cyclocross racing.
Cyclocross is honestly the best damn cycling sport out there. It is wicked hard, but there are so many little things. It is like Opera.
Yeah, Opera.
Why? Simple. Opera is the ultimate culmination of all performance disciplines. To have a truly remarkable Opera performance demands having the best musicians, and the best singers. But they have to work perfectly together. It also adds the dimension of set design, costume, lighting, and theatrical presentation. It isn't just a couple singers sitting in front of an orchestra. To be successful it all has to come together. Cyclocross takes elements out of Road, Mt bike, even Track and Time trialing disciplines and adds more skills on top of it, running, barriers, and transitions.
Rachael Lloyd may feel the same way about it, as an Opera fan herself. Maybe madame butterfly does too.
Putting it all together like the top 10 UCI points Men do is amazing to watch. No wonder Sven's start money is worth it for a promoter. Those at the ultimate peak of the sport really are comparable with the best of the opera companies in the world. Where do you go if you want to experience the best Wagner? Seattle. Hands down around the world one of the best dramatic presentations of his work.
I might actually start rocking the Flying Dutchman (Wagner) sound track this week and give Death Magnetic a break.
So this race before the race that I started with. It is a warm up for those of the cast who aren't going to be on stage. The stage performers at the Verge #3 and #4 races have been determined by the VT races. Those in the top are the main performers in each race. The rest make it there by hard work and diligent preparation. Given time and effort, those for whom the race before the race really matters, might some day find themselves shouldering the pressure and the honor of being a ranked rider.
Cyclocross is just simply one hell of an awesome sport.
heddwch
G
Bottom line it shouldn't be that important. But it is. Gloucester is much less an issue than say Northampton where you have a few hundred feet of paved road onto a 90° turn then a few more loose sharp turns and a down hill over a covered narrow gage railroad. Gloucester does often have a bit of selection going on. And you can get tied up in the exit of the road, or the first 180° turn, but it isn't going to make or break the race.
As someone said, it is a drafting course. There aren't that many of those around here. Not many around many places, this is cross after all. The first year I did it, the only category open was the 2/3 race. I lined up somewhere in the middle and finished somewhere in the back of the middle. I only raced on day and that was Sunday. I liked the course. Last year I lined up in the 3/4 masters race, front row both days. Hole shot both days and I wasn't even tried hard to get it. First day I wrapped my head around some course tape because I didn't pre-ride it and wasn't prepared to make the cut that Chip did as we dove down into and around the pit section. Fries gave me a shout out as the guy who was strangling himself and 20-30 guys all road past as I frantically tried to get free of the tape. I worked back up to 20th. Sunday same start, I knew the turn and instead of working past 10 guys I slid back a bit more. Tired and all that. And to top it off? I tried to race the 2/3 race. Day of reg. Absolutely reverse hole shot. And I basically stayed there. Worked hard enough to hand with a Canadian kid who was just wicked happy not to get lapped by Lynne. It hurt. But I was just riding around having an absolute blast on the course. Monster pile up at the 180 turn in the 2/3 race. Lots of sketchiness. But a good mix of speed and what not.
So thinking back to all that, how much fun it was racing up at Gloucester I started reflecting on the weather a bit. It has been warm and absolutely dry these last two years. Will this year be the same?
Wet vs. dry does change things up a bit. When the course is dry you can almost recover. Or at least you can almost actually sit in and do a bit less work in the draft. When the grass is wet and slow and muddy (ala Bedford), the draft is such a small % of your work demands that it is almost meaningless. Not having raced G-ster in the wet I don't know but judging by the ecology/geology of the park and the typical layout of the course, my guess is that wet ain't gonna slow that place down much.
Being a slower tall guy is actually not much of an advantage at a drafting course. Esp. if you start in front of 75 guys. Everyone behind you is presented with a big giant carrot. Oh hey look, there's that tall freak, lets go gang busters, sit on his wheel and recover then blow past him. That's pretty much how the race goes for me. Work my ass off, then find a gaggle of wheel suckers unwilling to come around until they are recovered enough and by then I can't do much more than hold the same pace and watch them attack off my wheel. Cross racing, as someone recently commented to me (can't remember who now-I remember- B-Mac), isn't like mt biking. You can't just kind of relax until the guy behind you catches you. It doesn't really work that way, in Mt Biking it does kind of work, sometimes. Cross? Ya gotta get on the rivet the whole damn race. Recovery is basically done in the turns, when you are running, or when you are sitting in behind some giant freak who's slowly getting faster as each year goes by, slowly seemingly to get smarter about training and racing in the same time space too, but still not fast/smart enough to be much more than a roving wind break on a drafting course.
One thing that flabbergasts me are crappy starts. How hard it is to go from standing there with one foot in the pedals to being clipped in and going balls out? Or at least balls mostly out? I've heard it all the time "I got a bad start" or "I just couldn't get clipped in"... what? How do you not get clipped in?
What do you do on the remount? Fumble around coasting until you get the second foot clipped in? Or do you just mash with the right (traditional remounts) and start pedaling until your feet clip in. Some people argue that with the 4 sided crank brother pedal you never have to look down to see which way the pedal is rotated. Um. A two sided pedal isn't any different. Heck a one sided pedal hangs in a way that lets you get clipped in without looking. That's how they are designed. A two sided shimano or time pedal is a thoughtless stomp "click" I’m in. And no matter how big and strong your hamstrings are, as a cyclist and a human, your quads have more power, you don't need to be clipped in to use them. JUST FREAKING CLIP IN AND PEDAL. Every time I come to a stop light I practice my starts. Yes, seriously. Year round. Light goes green, quick check for red light runners and BOOM. Best is usually watching traffic to know if there will be one coming through on a red and just going with the green. Right foot clipped in, hanging around 1-2 o'clock, left foot on the ground. No pushing off, just stand, go and clip in and pedal. Track standing practice can serve you well if you get caught behind a pile up in the race, but if you practiced your starts instead you might not be behind the pile up? No?
Myette's phrase of placing well in the early registration being worth 100 hours of training assumes that you can start well. Starting in the top 4 rows is great if you can get clipped in and going, and totally pointless if you bugger it up.
And that is something that doesn't hurt nearly as much as intervals or running stairs or doing hill sprints, or what ever it is you do to simulate the demands of cyclocross racing.
Cyclocross is honestly the best damn cycling sport out there. It is wicked hard, but there are so many little things. It is like Opera.
Yeah, Opera.
Why? Simple. Opera is the ultimate culmination of all performance disciplines. To have a truly remarkable Opera performance demands having the best musicians, and the best singers. But they have to work perfectly together. It also adds the dimension of set design, costume, lighting, and theatrical presentation. It isn't just a couple singers sitting in front of an orchestra. To be successful it all has to come together. Cyclocross takes elements out of Road, Mt bike, even Track and Time trialing disciplines and adds more skills on top of it, running, barriers, and transitions.
Rachael Lloyd may feel the same way about it, as an Opera fan herself. Maybe madame butterfly does too.
Putting it all together like the top 10 UCI points Men do is amazing to watch. No wonder Sven's start money is worth it for a promoter. Those at the ultimate peak of the sport really are comparable with the best of the opera companies in the world. Where do you go if you want to experience the best Wagner? Seattle. Hands down around the world one of the best dramatic presentations of his work.
I might actually start rocking the Flying Dutchman (Wagner) sound track this week and give Death Magnetic a break.
So this race before the race that I started with. It is a warm up for those of the cast who aren't going to be on stage. The stage performers at the Verge #3 and #4 races have been determined by the VT races. Those in the top are the main performers in each race. The rest make it there by hard work and diligent preparation. Given time and effort, those for whom the race before the race really matters, might some day find themselves shouldering the pressure and the honor of being a ranked rider.
Cyclocross is just simply one hell of an awesome sport.
heddwch
G
Have you seen this?
Zonhoven picture gallery
There is of course PDXcross if you haven't checked that out since this weekend. Some cool shots from Alpenrose.
oh and a quick add it here...
someone else "gets it" atmo
There is of course PDXcross if you haven't checked that out since this weekend. Some cool shots from Alpenrose.
oh and a quick add it here...
someone else "gets it" atmo
need a laugh?
drunkcyclist caption-this-32 yeah so it is a link to DC, but man o man if you haven't seen it... well there, for those who don't want to click over there, I present you the middle finger.
But seriously, where the hell did she get that god aweful coat? She's covered in nipple pasties or strawberry shortcake puke. That and it makes her look way bigger than some other shots. And the pink "i'm hiding a double chin" bulky turtleneck think doesn't even match the fahking swirls?
Who the hell is her fashion consultant? Now I know nothing about the circumstances of the shot, but one pissed off little girl popping the finger and some wicked bored and man i don't want to be here faces on the band just doesn't help.
Also from the DC today. The joke that gets reworked everytime there is a group of stocks that tanked. I think it started back with the nasdaq internet bubble bursting...
If you bought $1000 of stock a year ago, you would now have:Not to get picky but is that a Mass refund or a Michigan refund. If that's mass then you can take the cans back to Michigan and get $428 in cash. That's a fiscally sound plan.
$91.28 if you bought Washington Mutual
$37.50 if you bought Neomagic
$21.29 if you bought Freddie Mac
$20.79 if you bought Fannie Mae
But, if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer one year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the cans for the recycling REFUND… You would have $… 214.00 in cash.
So the best investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle.
It’s called the 401-Keg Plan
heddwch
G
Monday, October 06, 2008
Thousands are Sailing
In the head this morning. Before that a welsh tune that Ar Log does, but I can't find any Ar Log online (except this).
Took it pretty mellow. Enjoyed the cool air. We might actually get close to the freezing point tonight according to some weather prognosticators. Might have to haul in the Jade and the Staghorn Fern.
No racing but wow once again from the shots that ROB BAUER took (i just gotta say his name loud and first last for some reason) it appears that yet again a perfect cross racing day was had in Falmouth at Coonamessett Farms. That race was the very first cross race I did in my return to the sport, but we got a lot done around the house instead. Kind of needed that. Also it is nice not being completely physically trashed on Monday from racing on Sunday. Plenty of spring in my step. Although from the looks of ColinR riding his new SRAM loaded Squidley X-Fire I might have missed a good one this year.
I'm not going to hope or long for real cross weather at Gloucester. No. The weather will do what it wants and I will be happy with what ever mother nature tosses at us.
That said, I've washed my cross bike from mud/wed races more this year than all of last year, and the season starts this weekend (all the other races are pre-season - sort of, not really but nothing as big as G-ster has happened yet).
Well there ya go... almost a whole day gone past since starting this.
How much is Sven Nys really worth? Interesting reading posted by Christine V about it.
That and I find it interesting that it seems a handful of americans are picking up on the Dutch "field riding" word for cyclocross.
It seems from my casual and albeit completely isolated position that most Belgians fall back on the French word for our sport "Cyclocross" not "Veldrijden". Sure, there is a good number of Flemish speakers in and around Belgium (duh) but it just seemed that most of them used Cyclocross before Veldrijden. Maybe it is an equal use word. Just something odd as I see more and more Belgian flags screen printed apparel with the Dutch word for field riding on it.
Oh and one of the Kona Twin Towers has a new written outlet. That's good because his blog went a wicked long time between updates.
Some pimpin cans of beer to go with a cool bike's debut.
And is Wendy an adventure racer or bike racer... sad to see she won't be competing in any more of the NACT races (ie Gloucester). Ah well.
Hey - I might have set a record here today (dragging the solo entry for the day out all day). At least maybe it has warmed up a touch outside seeing as it is now time to suit up and ride home.
be safe out there, and if someone says Nuk-U-lar one more time when referring to nuclear power/bombs/whatnot i'm gonna short circuit...
heddwch
G
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