Lake Effect colors run deep

Its been awhile since I've posted...nothing much going on except the day to day grind. I've been getting in some great miles and most have been outside. Yeah! Four days straight outside! Which leads me to my posting today.

The red and black of Team Lake Effect. In my mind as a racer, ever since I started racing, these colors have always brought butterflies to my stomach. Even while on opposing teams I know we always counted the LE riders in the peloton and kept a watchful eye...whether we could do anything about them or not.

Now that I am on TLE, for year 2, I still get those butterflies. Its different though. Its about expectations and the idea of knowing what goes through the other riders minds when they see us wheel the line. Its also the respect the colors give us as individuals. I'm not a great rider compared to some on the team, but I have had my moments. I see myself as one of those riders that nobody counts as a threat and that none of the cat 1 riders see me as significant...but I have a purpose in the peloton. Somehow...

But my experience last night on my ride made me a believer in the power of the Red and Black. Two words...Paul Martin. I was riding on the Parkway and he was going the other way sporting his old Texas Road House kit...but we exchanged waves and a nod. In general this is nothing big. To me, coming from Paul, this was in recignition of the colors I was wearing and representing, not so much me as the rider. I'm sure he has no idea who I am. But he knew the LE colors. I'm proud to be wearing this uinform. It has a long tradition of greatness. I hope to be a valuable member of my team.

oh yeah...
Here is my race calendar!

April:
4th Malabar Farms
25th RATL
26th CVCRTS – (covered bridge race)

May:
2rd RATL
3rd CVCRTS – (covered bridge race)
9th RATL
10th Chippewa
30th Mohican 100 MTB (tentative)

June:
14th State Road Race
21st State TT (tentative)
27th Raccoon Rally – Salamanca NY

July:
Westlake

August:
15th Shreve RR
29th – Valley City RR

Lake Effect hits Brecksville!

Yesterday was my first chance to ride with some the other Lake Effect guys in '09. I'm not sure how far we road as a group. There were 7 of us total. Mike V, Bill and Tony Marut, Rudy and Robert Sroka, Matt Weeks and myself. Tony and Robert are the youngest on the team...and they rock! Its so great to see young blood out there having fun on a bike and challengeing themselves and us...well, ok, the older guys.

I ended up with 67 miles on the day, just under 4 hrs. We only averaged 16.5 mph for the ride. Buts its great saddle time. We got to share some stories and just get to know each other which is nice. Like now I know Matt has a problem having to do with blood and his chamois. I won't go into detail here...but its not pretty. I also didn't know that Matt raced mountain bikes. We got to hear how Rudy met Paul Martin...It all goes towards helping us ride better together when the season comes. I can't wait to start racing..but I'm still working on getting down to race weight. I'll be there..hopefully sooner than later!

Thanks to Bill Marut for the picture...thus he's not in it. But going left to right we have Mike V. Robert Sroka, Tony Marut, me, Rudy Sroke and Matt Weeks peaking his around the back of Rudy.

East-Side represents!

So the first official ride in the east side indoor training series held at Team Energetics off of Wilson Mills road went off without a hitch last night. Janet and Tim...um..he has no last name...did a great job at finding a sweet venue. There were 12 that showed up to ride. We got in a kick ass 2 hour strength and endurance workout. I think most everyone that was there were CTC members. But everyone is welcome to head out and ride...just go to the CTC website for info. I'm glad to be apart of this thing representing Bike Authority and Team Lake Effect.

On a personal note...my training got stepped up another notch this week. I'm feeling it a bit in the legs today. But its all good! So I guess the State championship race is in June this year...guess where! you got it! Caesars Creek....hmmmmmph....

Team Lake Effect

So we had our '09 season kick off meeting last night hosted by Bike Authority. It was great to see everyone without a helmet and shades on and see their faces rather than their spandex'd up ass. We have a broader team this season. With my plans of doing more Westlake races and well, more races in general, this should be a great season. I've been kicking around the idea of doing the Mohican 100k. Just kickin right now...but I may just do it.
I'm also teaming up with Janet Edwards, a fellow TLE rider and CTC member, for her indoor training rides on the east side on Tuesday nights. (if you need more info, just ask). This will be great exposure for the team and for BA.
On a training note...things are going well. I have another power test this week and I'm looking forward to see if and how much I've improved. until then...the Ghost is out!

its been a while...

So it's been a while since I've posted anything important. I've been riding...despite moving and being sick all since the start of the year. I'm just now beginning to feel close to normal energy levels. I feel I've been riding strong and the weight I gained in the down time is starting to drop off...slowly. It just doesn't fall off like it use to.

It's nice to be in house again. I know with the added responsibilities...shoveling snow, yard work and the such, I'll have a little more stress on my body and time. But its all worth it. I can't wait to see how the new location effects my ride destinations this summer. I've already been riding more to the east of Rt. 8...away from the valley. maybe i can head more north into the Chagrin Valley for some rides. It should be fun. Al I know, is that I have to ride harder than ever.

Big Target

I’m standing in line…next in line, so I had just put my DD coffee and powerbar protein bars down on the belt…the lady in front of my was fishing around in her wallet for correct change…the cute cashier girl was just standing there looking out side and noted out loud that it had just started to snow. This took the attention of everyone in the two open checkout lines to the doors…enter the Target employee that was bringing in the carts from the parking lot. Just as someone in the line at the register next to mine commented on “how its better to have snow than the ice we had last night”, the cart lady walks out from behind all of the carts and begins to walk in front of us all towards the employee door next to the Starbucks…as she does this, she unzips her coat.

Now this fine specimen of a woman…weighing in at about 350 pounds and roughly 5’-6” in height changed my life forever. As most horizontally challenged women are she was well endowed. And as a good Target employee she had on her company issue red T-shirt…a t-shirt that was, well…about 8” too short. This put in full site the glow of her stomach roll from the top of her pants up past her black hole of a naval to the shadows cast by her large sagging breasts. But this woman paid no mind to the free show she was giving everyone. Not too mention the cold rush of winter air that had rushed in behind her and the carts she no doubt had to feel on her open acreage of skin.

So out of respect for the, well…the fat, everyone in the two checkout lines quickly looked away and continued on with what they were doing. The mood had changed; the room was ready to burst. You can now taste the uneasiness. It’s a train wreck and you can’t stop what is unfolding in front you…Though I try, I can’t take my eyes of the glowing whiteness of what appears to be one of several abdominal areas…I’m a deer in caught in head lights and the silence is deafening…As the handful of customers and Target employees that surround me recover from the horror we just witnessed the woman makes her way closer to the employees only area.

So without thinking I said….”They make bigger shirts, right?” and evidently, this wasn’t to myself…I’ve never heard the tension snap in a room so fast and so loud….The cashiers were on the floor laughing, the lady in front of me was bright red with her face buried in her purse, and the store manager was running at full sprint after the spectacle to get her off the floor as fast as possible…


That’s my story….i will laugh about that for years…

08- the rebuilding year!

I've spent sometime here looking backwards at this past year, well and the the year before. In '07 I barely rode 2000 miles. I didn't do any races. I ran more than I ever have. I really needed to get off the bike to enjoy it again. In 08 I will be close to 8000 miles on the bike. Not a record by any means, but descent. In 09 I hope to get over 12K miles.
The first couple of races I did this season I got dropped. The first was within the first 7 miles of the race. I regained my fitness pretty well, actually getting a win up in New York at the raccoon rally. All my other races I was active for the team, so I never really had great results. Next year I want to be in better shape than this year, so even if I get spent working for the team during a race, I'll still have enough left in the tank to be a lot closer at the finish. Their are a lot of really strong riders on Lake Effect. I love racing with them and being apart of the team. I'll be able to race at westlake in 09, so I'll have more ride time with them. I'm looking forward to next year. it should be fun.