Cheq check cleared!

Once again I applied to race the Chequamegon Fat tire festival. My check for the fee cleared 3/23, which is an early indicator I am in. 7 years in a row and 7/8. This year Erik Arentzen is making the journey to WI with me to compete in the "40." Game on....in 6 months!

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Untitled

Garmin Connect -
Activity Details for Untitled

Lookout Mountain Death Match 1

Saturday was the start of the Death Matches, which is a timed ride up Lookout Mountain. The climb is a little over 4 miles and 1,200 ft of elevation. Yesterday we had a great turnout with I think 9 from the team and Ben. Lookout Mountain is at the base of the foothills by Golden Colorado. It is one of the rides I do right from home. By the time I met up with everyone else, I already had 23 miles and 1,200 ft of climbing. I felt pretty tired on the ride there. The idea of the Death Match is to start people according to speed so that everyone gets to the top about the same time. Its a great idea so that people of different fitness levels can gauge improvements against each other. I rode at a pace that I felt was just below cracking the whole time. My finish time was 24:50, which I was happy with considering how I felt that day, my ride time to the start, and and the fact that I've just started doing speed skills a bit. Erik, Bill, and I stuck around for a second lap up. The temperature for Saturdays ride started out in the mid 30s when I left but got up to the low 60s upon returning home. 64 miles and about 4,500 ft in elevation gain for the day.

Crank Brothers is now an official sponsor of Ride Against the Machine

Today I have been officially registered as the point of contact by Crank Brothers for Ride Against the Machine. I can't wait to get a new pair of TI egg beater pedals as they are super light and I think the blue skewers will fit my new bike very nicely!

Another Saturday, another 100 miles

Last Saturday Jeremy, Erik, Eric, and I set out for our March century. It was the same route as the week before, but we decided to head up Lookout Mountain. Eric, Erik, and I took some hard pulls leading into Golden before a refuel at a local gas station. Once we started the climb, Eric and I pulled away and kept a pretty good pace for being 40 miles into a 100 mile ride. We topped out at about 7,500 feet. We flew down the backside of Lookout where Erik and I reached speeds in excess of 40 mph! The rest of the ride was pretty standard. I felt sleepy tired by about mile 60 and refueled with a Cherry Coke, which gave me my wings back. I felt strong and alert the rest of the ride and led the charge back to town. The winds out of the east were just strong enough to be pretty annoying and take their toll. At mile 85 Erik, who has a power meter, was impressed by my power output. He was putting out 320 watts in my draft, which means I was putting out a fair amount more than that. With all of the early season riding, I am starting to feel pretty good, especially as I work in some speed work. Stats here.