Later today I will leave for my first stage race of the season. In honor of this, I've put together a new iPod playlist for my warm-up. In no particular order, it is below
Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train
Disturbed - Down With the Sickness
Metallica - Enter Sandman
Rolling Stones - Jumpin' Jack Flash
Rolling Stones - Shattered
Limp Bizkit - Break Stuff
Limp Bizkit - Nookie
Queen - Fat Bottomed Girls
The Beatles - Get Back
Limp Bizkit - Break Stuff
The race is on the north shore of Lake Mead, outside Las Vegas, and consists of an uphill time trial, a long rolling road race, and a twisty criterium. The plan is to kill the time trial so hard that no one bothers showing up for the road race or crit. I'll let you know how that goes...
Friday, February 27, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
UCLA Road Race and Time Trial
The more observant of you may notice that I skipped the race report for Poor College Kids Road Race and the Mothballs crit. That's because my performance was less than spectacular and I'd rather just move on.
While my softer-shelled compatriots were off in sunny, warm, Arizona racing at Valley of the Sun, I was at the UCLA Road Race on Saturday, rolling around the Devil's Punchbowl course. Sunrise on Saturday morning revealed a spectacular scene of low mountains and rolling hills with a dusting of snow, all without a cloud in the sky. By the time the Men's 4/5 field started at 9:15, though, temperatures were just above freezing, and most of the ice on the road had melted.
I got to the line early and assured myself an excellent starting position. After leading the pack for the first two miles the serious uphill started and I started getting passed. I'm no climber, and this just wasn't my day. I picked up a few people who had passed me, but there wasn't anything organized. In the end, the race was essentially a twenty-five mile uphill time trial. I took thirty-sixth out of a full field of seventy-five.
Sunday saw me in Lancaster for the UCLA Time Trial. A slightly rolling, out-and-back, 23km course, I liked my odds going into the day. Time trials have always been something I'm good at, and this year I have some new equipment. My new time trial bike, a Rudy Project Syton helmet, a bitchin' Liquid Fitness skinsuit, and a rear wheel cover were all ready to go at noon on Sunday.
After getting my start time (12:23:30) at sign-in I headed out to warm up. I stopped by the starting tent for a time check and headed south from there. Despite thrashing myself on the road race Saturday, I felt great. I rolled back up to the line with five minutes to spare and tried to stay loose. I rolled to the line and held the bike steady while the marshall got a grip on my saddle rails. I clipped in and awaited the countdown.
As soon as the starter said "Go," I let go of my brakes and started started cranking. After a hundred yards I tucked into my aerobars and focused on cranking. Throughout my race I focused on keeping my Powertap over 300 watts; everytime I saw it dip I pushed harder. Everytime I felt the pain releave I pushed harder. And everytime I saw a rider ahead of me I made up my mind to pass them. As I passed the 500 meters to go mark I dropped the hammer even harder and poured every ounce of strength into my cranks. I blew across the finish line to post a 29:52, good enough for a win in the Cat 4 race.
The credit for this success goes to my legs and to my Powertap, which gave me something objective to focus on, and distract and motivate myself to fight through the pain. Thanks to the guys at UCLA for putting on a terrific weekend; I look forward to coming back next year.
And in other news, the location for Elite Nationals has been announced as Bend, OR this year. I sense a road trip in my future...
While my softer-shelled compatriots were off in sunny, warm, Arizona racing at Valley of the Sun, I was at the UCLA Road Race on Saturday, rolling around the Devil's Punchbowl course. Sunrise on Saturday morning revealed a spectacular scene of low mountains and rolling hills with a dusting of snow, all without a cloud in the sky. By the time the Men's 4/5 field started at 9:15, though, temperatures were just above freezing, and most of the ice on the road had melted.
I got to the line early and assured myself an excellent starting position. After leading the pack for the first two miles the serious uphill started and I started getting passed. I'm no climber, and this just wasn't my day. I picked up a few people who had passed me, but there wasn't anything organized. In the end, the race was essentially a twenty-five mile uphill time trial. I took thirty-sixth out of a full field of seventy-five.
Sunday saw me in Lancaster for the UCLA Time Trial. A slightly rolling, out-and-back, 23km course, I liked my odds going into the day. Time trials have always been something I'm good at, and this year I have some new equipment. My new time trial bike, a Rudy Project Syton helmet, a bitchin' Liquid Fitness skinsuit, and a rear wheel cover were all ready to go at noon on Sunday.
After getting my start time (12:23:30) at sign-in I headed out to warm up. I stopped by the starting tent for a time check and headed south from there. Despite thrashing myself on the road race Saturday, I felt great. I rolled back up to the line with five minutes to spare and tried to stay loose. I rolled to the line and held the bike steady while the marshall got a grip on my saddle rails. I clipped in and awaited the countdown.
As soon as the starter said "Go," I let go of my brakes and started started cranking. After a hundred yards I tucked into my aerobars and focused on cranking. Throughout my race I focused on keeping my Powertap over 300 watts; everytime I saw it dip I pushed harder. Everytime I felt the pain releave I pushed harder. And everytime I saw a rider ahead of me I made up my mind to pass them. As I passed the 500 meters to go mark I dropped the hammer even harder and poured every ounce of strength into my cranks. I blew across the finish line to post a 29:52, good enough for a win in the Cat 4 race.
The credit for this success goes to my legs and to my Powertap, which gave me something objective to focus on, and distract and motivate myself to fight through the pain. Thanks to the guys at UCLA for putting on a terrific weekend; I look forward to coming back next year.
And in other news, the location for Elite Nationals has been announced as Bend, OR this year. I sense a road trip in my future...
Monday, January 12, 2009
Reluctantly Crouched at the Starting Line
I'm a bad, bad person. I don't blog enough, as I have been informed by several people, including Dave Almighty. With the race season upon us, however, I felt I should reassure my hordes of loyal readers that I am not dead! I did not waste away to nothing out here in the Land of Fruits and Nuts. Rather, I have been training extensively in preparation for my first race as a Cat 4: the Poor College Kids Road Race in Santa Barbara, CA. The next day is the Mothballs Criterium also in Santa Barbara. My new ride, named Viviane, and I will be headed up there to take names and kick ass.
I promise that a race report will follow on Sunday. Really!
I promise that a race report will follow on Sunday. Really!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Red Roubaix Resale
So it's been an awfully long time since I posted anything. Nothing terribly exciting has been happening in Mike's World of Cycling lately, other than lots of training (and let's be honest, how exciting are base miles, really?), and falling off the training schedule due to various side trips. As I write this, I'm sitting in the Windy City visiting with family for Thanksgiving. I am, of course, bike-less, so there's three days down the tubes.
In October I rolled down to the Grand Canyon with a crew of folks I met in the Chicago Basin last year and had a Grand time. Another five days gone, though I can write off a lot of that to cross-training.
And at the end of September I traveled up to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park for a few days of backpacking and had an absolute blast. Sequoia is, hands down, the most spectacular place I've ever seen. I cannot wait to go back, to drink in the fantastic scenery and clean mountain air again.
On second thought, I guess there have been some interesting developments in my cycling career. As I already noted in my previous post I am now a Cat IV road cyclist. In addition, I have a new team. I will be racing for Liquid Fitness Cycling this year on their Cat IV/V squad. I'll have new photos and sponsor links up as soon as I have them, hopefully towards the end of this week.
I will also be bidding fairwell to Beatrix, my faithful, if short-lived, road bike (so if anyone you know wants a 58cm Cervelo Soloist, drop me a line). She's just too long and my pelvic angle is all wrong when I'm on top of her. Yeah, all you followers of Freud can have a field day with that. Instead, I'll be running a Specialized Roubaix Pro, with a SRAM Red build. The added head tube and shortened top tube are, according to several fitters at the LBS, exactly what my freakishly long femurs need. Looking forward to that, though not to re-learning how to shift. As in keeping with custom, I shall take suggestions for a name. Only requirements are that it be female, and you be able to tell me why I should name my bike whatever it is you suggest.
That's all on the Western Front for now. May everyone have a happy Thanksgiving, and a festive and joyous holiday-of-choice. Until next time, keep the rubber side down.
In October I rolled down to the Grand Canyon with a crew of folks I met in the Chicago Basin last year and had a Grand time. Another five days gone, though I can write off a lot of that to cross-training.
And at the end of September I traveled up to Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park for a few days of backpacking and had an absolute blast. Sequoia is, hands down, the most spectacular place I've ever seen. I cannot wait to go back, to drink in the fantastic scenery and clean mountain air again.
On second thought, I guess there have been some interesting developments in my cycling career. As I already noted in my previous post I am now a Cat IV road cyclist. In addition, I have a new team. I will be racing for Liquid Fitness Cycling this year on their Cat IV/V squad. I'll have new photos and sponsor links up as soon as I have them, hopefully towards the end of this week.
I will also be bidding fairwell to Beatrix, my faithful, if short-lived, road bike (so if anyone you know wants a 58cm Cervelo Soloist, drop me a line). She's just too long and my pelvic angle is all wrong when I'm on top of her. Yeah, all you followers of Freud can have a field day with that. Instead, I'll be running a Specialized Roubaix Pro, with a SRAM Red build. The added head tube and shortened top tube are, according to several fitters at the LBS, exactly what my freakishly long femurs need. Looking forward to that, though not to re-learning how to shift. As in keeping with custom, I shall take suggestions for a name. Only requirements are that it be female, and you be able to tell me why I should name my bike whatever it is you suggest.
That's all on the Western Front for now. May everyone have a happy Thanksgiving, and a festive and joyous holiday-of-choice. Until next time, keep the rubber side down.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Motivation
Just in case I needed motivation to train this off-season:
The following request to change your USCF category has been approved and by USAC:
Member: Michael Nies
License: Road Racer
Request to change category from Cat 5 to Cat 4
The following request to change your USCF category has been approved and by USAC:
Member: Michael Nies
License: Road Racer
Request to change category from Cat 5 to Cat 4
Friday, October 10, 2008
Saturday, October 4, 2008
We Don't Need No Water
This week I flew back to Ohio briefly. Unfortunately, Ohio requires your physical presence to renew a driver's license, and mine was set to expire on October 19th of this year. I took a redeye flight from LAX into Cleveland, then took a commuter flight to Dayton. It wasn't a bad trip, but I was a little fried when I got into Hopkins. So I grabbed the biggest, most potent coffee the Phoenix stand in C Terminal had to offer, and a Plain Dealer; comics are an important part of de-stressing when you've just spent the last five hours being elbowed by a smelly, obese, insomniac.
And it was then that I got the best news I've received in at least the last three years.
The headline for the day was, of course, something about the bailout. Or maybe it was the Palin/Biden debate scheduled for that night. Either way, that wasn't what got my attention.
What got my attention were the seven smiling children just above the fold.
I had seen those faces before.
All of them had been in the paper three years earlier.
On May 21, 2005, I was working in an Emergency Department in Cleveland. My shift ended at 3:00 AM, and I was getting ready to leave when we got word that seven ambulances were headed our way with critical patients, five of them receiving CPR at the time. We were already short-staffed that night, like most nights, so I stayed to help. The first ambulance arrived a short time later, carrying a teenage boy. As soon as the doors opened, we knew what had caused his cardiac arrest. The smell of smoke hit us even before we saw his half-burned clothes lying under him on the gurney, where the paramedics had cut them off his thin, wiry body to start IV lines and determine his injuries. He was rolled into the room where I was waiting, along with two nurses and several ED doctors. We tried to resuscitate him, but every time his pulse returned it faded quickly thereafter. After several tries, we had to give up in order to focus on the other victims coming in.
That was the story with all but one of the people who came in from the fire that night. She survived to head up to the burn unit for three weeks, and is still alive today. The ED staff found out before the end of the night that the house which burned had been hosting a sleepover that night. The teenager I had helped try to save was the guest of honor; he had been only three hours into his birthday when the fire started. By the next day the fire had been ruled first "suspicious" by the investigators, and "arson" shortly thereafter. Whoever set the fire poured gasoline around the doors before lighting the blaze. Even with working smoke detectors in the house, no one had any warning. All the victims were likely dead from smoke inhalation even before the flames reached their sleeping bodies. The only consolation there was that they likely felt no pain before they died.
The investigation stalled after the fire. The PD didn't report any more breakthroughs, and I stopped wondering if the arsonist would ever be caught. Until I picked up the Plain Dealer for Thursday, October 2, 2008 and found this story. The only thought that ran through my head until my flight landed in Dayton was "Holy s***, they got the motherf***er." It was a good flight.
And it was then that I got the best news I've received in at least the last three years.
The headline for the day was, of course, something about the bailout. Or maybe it was the Palin/Biden debate scheduled for that night. Either way, that wasn't what got my attention.
What got my attention were the seven smiling children just above the fold.
I had seen those faces before.
All of them had been in the paper three years earlier.
On May 21, 2005, I was working in an Emergency Department in Cleveland. My shift ended at 3:00 AM, and I was getting ready to leave when we got word that seven ambulances were headed our way with critical patients, five of them receiving CPR at the time. We were already short-staffed that night, like most nights, so I stayed to help. The first ambulance arrived a short time later, carrying a teenage boy. As soon as the doors opened, we knew what had caused his cardiac arrest. The smell of smoke hit us even before we saw his half-burned clothes lying under him on the gurney, where the paramedics had cut them off his thin, wiry body to start IV lines and determine his injuries. He was rolled into the room where I was waiting, along with two nurses and several ED doctors. We tried to resuscitate him, but every time his pulse returned it faded quickly thereafter. After several tries, we had to give up in order to focus on the other victims coming in.
That was the story with all but one of the people who came in from the fire that night. She survived to head up to the burn unit for three weeks, and is still alive today. The ED staff found out before the end of the night that the house which burned had been hosting a sleepover that night. The teenager I had helped try to save was the guest of honor; he had been only three hours into his birthday when the fire started. By the next day the fire had been ruled first "suspicious" by the investigators, and "arson" shortly thereafter. Whoever set the fire poured gasoline around the doors before lighting the blaze. Even with working smoke detectors in the house, no one had any warning. All the victims were likely dead from smoke inhalation even before the flames reached their sleeping bodies. The only consolation there was that they likely felt no pain before they died.
The investigation stalled after the fire. The PD didn't report any more breakthroughs, and I stopped wondering if the arsonist would ever be caught. Until I picked up the Plain Dealer for Thursday, October 2, 2008 and found this story. The only thought that ran through my head until my flight landed in Dayton was "Holy s***, they got the motherf***er." It was a good flight.
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