the start...

It's a long season. Mountain bike and multisport races start in January and won't end until September. Add to that, cyclocross and it's a couple more months of racing. That's a lot of time training and racing, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

The season started last weekend with the Virginia Beach Winter Endurance Challenge. From what I heard, Virginia Beach officials asked Kale Running to promote and run this event. How's that for civic support? Saturday was the day of cyclocross racing with a large purse up for grabs. Sunday was committed to running and a duathlon, my event. Nice little race to prime the pump for the season. It was a 5k run, 20k mtn bike, 5k run, with the majority of the race on dirt. Looking at the distance coming into the event I was shooting for a 1:30 time. At the end I came home with a 1:28:37. Not too bad with a bit over a month of run training in my legs and zero cycling. The first run leg was solid, and I quickly warmed up from the chilly air that greeted the morning. Once on the bike, it's time to pay the rent. Well with no riding in the legs, that check bounced. No snap and no power in the legs, this will be something to remember and work on this spring. The second run leg is always painful, it's just the nature of the beast that is duathlon. I took it easy the first half mile of the course and tried to get the circles out of my legs. A little after the first mile, Sally came past me and I settled in next to her. We chit-chatted as we ran along. Sally was doing the run legs of the coed relay, while hubby Mike did the bike portion. It was great to run along with her, she is part of the TriPower crew that I graviate towards at races. Great People, Good Friends. It was great to see my 757 peeps. I finished strong, feeling the euphoria of a finished race. whew, I love that feeling. I missed the podium in the big 35-39 age group by 9 seconds, coming in 4th in AG and 12th overall. Time to work.

The weekend was made even better by making it a family trip. We traveled to the Beach on Saturday and spent the afternoon at the Virginia Aquarium. Parker loved the place, what kid doesn't like aquariums? We stayed with my Aunt Jean and it's always great to see her and spend time with her.

Plus the Steelers won the AFC Championship. Yeah it was a great weekend.

tis the season to race...

It's January so it must be time to race. uhm, there's something wrong with that, I'm not racing on the slopes like I did in high school. And this isn't cyclocross, it's a run-bike-run in the dirt.

A chance of rain and snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 46.

That's fine weather for cyclocross, but we'll see how it works for a duathlon. The sausage suit will be used, and the skimpy trisuit will stay at the bottom of drawer.

Harvey is racing soon, but I'm guessing his weather will be better in Florida. Best of Luck.

The camera died, maybe I'll be able to poach some photos from the 757 crew. Maybe not since I'll be in the sausage suit.

For Matt...

So I got some grief from my buddy Matt today for not posting. Yeah, it's been a while. Excuses vary, but let's chalk it up to indolence for now.

So what's been going on in the world of Shenandoah Cycling...?

Building trails. QCCC has started the second phase of the Montgomery Hall Park trail system. Over 3 weekends, we built a half mile section. This past Sunday, we nearly doubled it. There are going tobe a lot of nice features, rock gardens, bermed turns through a glade section. This trail will be more open and less twisty as the scout/pretzel aka New-Old trail.

Parker received a new bicycle from Santa this year. It's a red Specialized Hot Walk, a like-a-bike. Red 'cause everyone knows that red bikes are the fastest.

Been drinking some beer here and there. My new favorite restaurant/brewery is Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. Great Food, and Exceptional Beer. It is located at the base of Wintergreen mountain, right behind the Ski Barn. I highly recommend stopping and have a beer or two if you're in the area.

Training, oh yeah. I've been training for the 2009 season. Swimming a bunch, making progress. Running some, ramping up the mileage. Haven't been riding much other than a night ride here and there, and a weekly spin class. Once we get some daylight till 7pm the rides will go long. Looking forward to working with Jeff at Allez Training Systems again this year.

Races. The first race of the season is fast approaching. I'll be lacing 'em up for an off road duathlon on Jan 18th in VA Beach. Should be excruciating, but it's a great way to knock the cobwebs loose and motivate me for long training hours. I'll be sporting the green for IF Racing again this year and have some lofty goals for the season. IF Racing has some new racers this year, one of them is Kyle. I'm stoked to have Kyle on the team and lining up with him and Jeff at some of the Commonwealth's races. I want to learn some of Kyle's skills, maybe.

Hey Matt, how's that?