McGrath bikes (Philly delicacy)

In case anybody was wondering what Brendan does in his spare time when he is not saving the world from global warming or defending his position as the #1 ranked cat4 cross racer in the Universe. Here are some shots of Brendan building a sweet cross frame for his friend Christian.

The drawing

laying out the tubes

Mitering action shot

mitered tube (solid)

Front triangle, almost ready for fillet

Iron Cross VII, mud, blood, sweat and tears in the woods

I pre-reged for this race a while ago when I had the 70 dollars to blow on a race. As the date for the race drew nearer I felt less and less prepared and motivated to do it and more and more people that said they were going to go dropped out. At the 11th hour I got hooked up with a ride with Team Bike Therapy's newest/first/oldest team member Misha (I hope I'm spelling that right) and Warren from Alliance. Misha was one of the founders of the team that would one day become Team Bicycle Therapy, he recently quit Amoroso's to go back to Therapy to start racing cross at the age of 60. Warren is a crit/ track powerhouse rider and is one of the riders responsible to pushing the drives ride to 36 mph on the first lap.
I have to thank Lee for helping to cut out a whole lot of driving time by helping tune Misha's Subaru WRX, it is a very quick car even, loaded with gear, three people and bikes. But we got to the camp ground where the IC lite race was earlier that day, and sat down to our spaghetti dinner in the dining hall. There were about 30 to 40 people in sweat shirts and flannels packing down second helpings of pasta. After dinner we grabbed a bunk house, it was a small partially open shelter with no heat or insulation or bunks. We all laid our sleeping bags and pads our and did our preped for the next day, filling camel backs, ect. Warren and Misha both brought a bottle of wine so we emptied both using our new iron cross pint glasses. As we where getting ready to turn in Chris Pagoda from ciclismo popped his head in the bunk house looking for a place to sleep.

The next morning it was cold, I was freezing after I got out of my sleeping bag. I did push ups to warm up every few minutes, put my chamios cream on with a cold hand and colder cream. Misha made some really good strong coffee but I really didn't wake up until after the first hard road climb and fire road climb. Check point one seamed to come really fast, I was in that early morning auto pilot until the first single track section that I conservatively picked my way though while everyone I passed on the climbs blew by me. But the whole ride until the third check point was pure pleasure. Crisp sunny day, 40+ mph descents on fire roads, bridging up to a small group on the roads and flat sections of fire roads and organizing a pace line, the leaves were at their peak fall colors and shimmered in the sun. The coarse was very well marked, the volunteers at the aid stations were extremely helpful.

Even the long hike-a-bikes where you shoulder your bike and hike for over a mile up the side of a mountain, where hard but not all that bad. After check point three, the road pitched up toward the sky, you would reach what from below looked like the top thinking it couldn't keep going, and it did, for about 5 miles of hard fire road climbing. My tempo was a bit to fast and on the rollers at the top of the climb I came within an inch of cracking. Which is where Warren did crack, after getting three flat tires both of his legs cramped up and he feel over, still clipped in and then started to cry from the pain. That is how hard of a race it was. The single track after the rollers was really tough, and the last hard climb on the single track is where I did crack, my legs cramped up and I had to walk my bike up the last part of the climb before the last hike-a-bike. Mercifully the last 5 miles of riding where on the road, they flew by, I rolled over the finish line after four hours and thirty five minutes in 45th place and received my iron cross socks.


The winner did it in three hours and fourty five mintues, and the last person in finished in seven hours and fourty minutes. Most races are as hard as you make them but this race is just hard period. But I'll be back next year, maybe I'll break 4 hours.

Images are from Felkerino's Flickr site

Preamble to Hillbilly Hustle v.4

John-Jack Drummond and I have an affinity for driving to New Jersey and racing our bikes together. On this particular occasion, we were headed to Elmer—a small stretch of land in south-western NJ’s rural farming land. This sparsely populated area of just 1400 inhabitants is known for its sprawling acres of orchards, which fan out in every direction. And, at this time of year, the trees are still bejeweled with brilliant red fruit.

George Carlin would often poke fun at NJ. For example, saying: “New Jersey is the Garden State?…yeah, right!…What are they growing, smokestacks?” I suppose, for him, growing up in New York City, he viewed NJ as an inferior patch of land across the River—much like we Philadelphians view the City of Camden. It’s there, though, we wish it wasn’t. If George visited Elmer, he would realize NJ is only mostly a criss-cross of highways, byways, jughandles, smokestacks, and boardwalks. There are still secret gardens tucked away out there. Thank God.

For both John-Jack and I, this was our first cyclocross race of the season. At 7’oclock in the morning we were both filled with anxiety and coffee. This combination often leads to frequent trips to the bathroom—this time was no exception.

Our twin-bikes were clean & shiny as we hoisted them to the roof. In a matter of hours, though, that would all be changed. After a final check of equipment & sundries, we packed the car. Once satisfied everything was in order, we headed for the fog drenched Walt Whitman Bridge—guided by the lifeless voice of John-Jack’s GPS. It was eerie, though, in a matter of 35 minutes we would safely be at our destination: Hillbilly Hustle v.4

Once off the highway, we zigzagged through the farmland and its backroads. As we approached the address, a man clad in fluorescent clothing guided us to park in a recently mowed field. The car scraped at the topsoil as hundreds of grasshoppers hopped to avoid a crushing fate.

After signing-in, we completed our silly-long checklist of the pre-race routine—numbers were pinned, tires inflated, legs smoldered from the heat of embrocation on our freshly shaven legs. We spent the remaining time before the race surveying the course’s twists & turns. This being New Jersey, after all, there were no real ups & downs, save for a man-made heap of dirt aptly named Mt. Doom.

Because Mt. Doom claimed a victim last year (in the form of a broken clavicle), and this being New Jersey, a round-about was created for those too scared or unwilling to traverse the earthen pile. Taking the bypass, however, would cost a rider two extra seconds to navigate.

On our warm-up lap I, too, fell victim to the deceivingly dangerous Doom. I approached the steep ramp with what I thought was enough speed to send me safely to the other side. As I reached the top, I stalled. My bottom bracket scraped the crest while my front wheel sunk into the still-soft unpacked dirt. Unlike my bike, my body was in motion, though, I was no longer in control—gravity had taken over me. I flipped forward, my feet solidly locked into the pedals. My bike and I, once atop the great Doom, were splayed shamefully on the ground below. Welcome to cyclocross, I thought. I received high marks in fallsmanship from the microphoned announcers calling the play-by-play. I could see the confidence evaporate from the faces of my girlfriend, Father, and random onlookers as I picked myself off the ground. I bolted upright, jumped on the bike, and surveyed the damage. My pride may have sustained a broken collar bone, but my body was fine. I rode away with all parts in working order. Off to the races…

-m-

Whirlybird race report and hangover competition

This is my first time using a blog or anything like it, but people wanted a race report so here it is. We left Philly at a decent hour for race day because thankfully the C-race was slated to start at 10 am and the venue was only 30 mins away. On the drive over we all compared notes on the level of hangover and the hangover competition was a tie between Gerry and Brendan to be later decided in who would finish worse in their race. Both Gerry and Brendan did the C-race as well as honorary member Eian. Gerry got off to a good start and lead the first two laps with a pretty good gap proving once again that his blood flows better through his veins when thinned with alchohol. Brendan also did a fine job riding in top ten for the majority of the race until an untimely crash opened up his knee and spilled out what seems to be a tar like substance (luckily the UCI wasn't there because Brendan's blood look to thick not to be doped)So Gerry ended up 5th on the day (could have been 4th but a number of lapped riders thought it would be fun to block his way on the run up). Brendan finished 13th thereby winning the hangover competition here is a side by side comparison of the hangover face

Eian also rode a fine race. I am not sure if he was participating in the hangover competition but the expression on his face sure made it look like he was. However, as we learned last week, Eian has an uncanny ability to capture the classic suffer face right when the camera man snaps a shot of him. The rest of the race he just rides around with a smile I swear.

The next race was the B race where Mike Mast experienced the highs and lows of good form stuck behind a bad crash. Mike was the 3rd to last person through the first turn thanks to a crash that happened right in fornt of him on the start line.
Out of the 75 or so that started Mike's race He moved up through the field finishing a respectable 32nd given the 3 other crashes he was stuck behind.
Watching him during the race, he looked strong and kept moving up the whole time.
My race was next, and I have to thank everyone for sticking around to watch, it was great to have people cheering for me. I got a good start and was leading the first lap when Mike Yozell tried to take and inside line on a turn and crashed into me. we were both tangled up and found ourselves at the back of the group. Follwing Yozell up through the group was fun and educational but I definitely burned a lot of matches doing it. By the end of the race my legs were cramping up and I was having a hard time remounting after barriers as seen in this picture.

I ended up 10th on the day and felt good for most of the race. I felt so good that I was even attempting to blow kisses to the camera manAnd on a final note I want to thank My wife Jen and all who helped her in picking out and putting together my most amazing Birthday present (wheels pictured below)...Andy, Dan, Shane. It was a total surprise, they ride great, they look beautiful and give me a shit-eating grin every time.

Charm City- Intimate reflections and Photo contest

Holy Crap what a weekend. Nittany Lion pictures are still being loaded, so I'll wait until they are up to talk about all that. So straight on to Sunday and Charm city. We had a big crew of Willem, Brendan, Mike and me from the team, and teammates in spirit but not in kit, Dan Action and Eian from Firehouse bikes, drove down and raced with us. Luckily we all raced the B race except Dan who was racing for UCI points, so we didn't have to wake up to early.
The course was pretty much the same as last year. Nice new touches were the stars instead of the barriers on back hill, and soul food. I don't remember there being soul food last year but I'm happy they will be at a few other MAC races. I was pissed when I didn't get a call up at the start but I got over it as soon the gun went off. Eian was pre-riding the course when everyone was lining up, then was still riding up to the start when the pack went by and had to jump on from behind. So out of a race of 125 starters and with most of us lining up in the back of the field, our results where...

I got 8th place, after the results were initially posted as 10th, Willem got 22nd, Mike got 57th, Brendan got 78th and Eian who had to chase on to the whole race got 83rd. Dan had crap luck again in the UCI race when he went down and his bike decided to ghost ride down the hill but still finished in the money.

But it was a really fun race, I saw alot of familiar faces and met some new ones. And one last thing, really bike thanks to Mikes girlfriend Becky who saved our lives when she saw a SUV Mike didn't see.

So on to the next thing. The competition was hot, there was a lot of photo's provided by Cycling Captured and MLK Images, many, many, many mediocre pictures. Demon Cats was also there but I don't feel like waiting for the photos to load. So the winner for the Charm city cross race is... Eian! for this amazing expression that expresses all that cross racing is.


Willem gets runner up for having the same look of unshakable concentration in every picture. Its like he's doing taxes.

and Brendan gets the last podium for this piture of him running away from a this enormous man who was trying to crush him under his size 20 feet. and here are some more photo's of Willem

This is Mike



Some of me (shane)





Brendan



and Eian, again showing us what suffering really looks like.

Cyclocross is hard...

I took my cross bike out this morning before work for its maiden voyage. The bike performed flawlessly. I, on the other hand, had a hard time keeping the rubber down. I hit the deck more than a few times…but who’s counting. I laughed, got back on the rig, and shredded more trail (the usage of the word "shredded" is debatable). The dribble of blood coming from my knee only made me want to ride harder, get better. I could have ridden all day. Damn work was calling, though.

Cyclocross is a beast. Having a road biking mentality, my mind was bent as I tried to apply what I thought were the proper techniques to successfully navigate the terrain. On many occasions I was on the brink of disaster—overcooking turns, turning too sharply, even climbing out of the saddle was calamitous on the loose gravel (that’s where I obtained the trickle of aforementioned blood).

After I realized my tires were a tit over-inflated, I stopped, lessened the pressure, and was again on my way. It’s amazing the difference in ride-feel after releasing 5-10 psi. The road was instantly softer and more forgiving. I was carrying more speed through the turns. I felt steadier. "This rules", I thought. "I am totally into this".

*Sidenote* Dan Langlois is an animal. He tears through the woods like a rabid boar. I have a lot to learn, bigger balls to grow. I look forward to the challenges to come.

I omitted the part about Nathalie kicking my butt, which she did—all over the woods. She rocks!

I’m glad you set up tepid laps, Nathalie. It was an awakening experience. I now know what I’m getting myself into (bloody knees and falling in large nettle plants). It will be some time before I graduate to warm laps and beyond.

Stay radical!

Cross Practice

Congratulations to Gerry, Shane, Juliet and Willem for making it out to cross practice in the beautiful weather we had this evening. Much props to Juliet and Gerry for making it out for the first time. I think I fell more than both of them combined. Gerry, ever the asshole, was really good and kept up with the A ride after doing two sets of the B ride and riding away from everyone in that ride. A good dose of rain made the course nice and slippery. I think we are all ready for next week's practice and the first races of the season right after that. Also congrats to Mike Green for getting out the first time on his cross bike.

Milk Chug Monday Challenge

A few weeks ago Gerry made a drunken wager with Mikey Green that he could consume an entire gallon of milk in one hour. Later, he sobered up and did some research on the Internet and learned that while it was physically possible, the results were often unpleasant.

Faced with the facts, he did what any sane, reasonable human being would do...he tried to get himself out of the bet.

Mikey Green would have none of this, so a date was set and a venue was chosen. A couple of friends stopped by for a few beers to watch the spectacle. Good times were had by all...well, except for Gerry.

Here, for your viewing pleasure is video documentation of Gerry's attempt at consuming an entire gallon of whole milk in one hour:

Course de Marlton-Evesham-Marlton

Mikey Green and I took a ride over the Ben Franklin today for some Jersey-style crit racing at the Course de Marlton-Evesham-Marlton. This is a fancy name for a bike race held on a course in an office park that most area racers have spun around thousands of times. The course has two right angle turns and a sweeping S turn on the back end. It ends on a slight uphill that probably rises no higher than 20ft, but thins the herd a lot more than you'd think.

After taking in the first Master's race, we signed up and lined up and were off. In a lower category race, this is the time of the season where most racers have good fitness, so unfortunately a lot of sketchy riders who would be getting shot OTB in the spring are now strong enough to wreak havoc at the front.

And by wreak havoc, I don't mean getting up to the front and setting a hard pace or breaking away, I mean sitting up in the middle of hard efforts, taking hands off the bars when they should remain on the bars and plenty of unpredictability in the corners.

Mikey and I did our best to stay at the front and stay out of trouble. I haven't raced a crit since the first week of May, so it was a bit of an adjustment at first...a little closer, a little twitchier. However, when you go through the same loop 20 times, it makes it really easy to pick out the right lines and the places to be when it gets fast.

There were two crashes...one in the middle of the race right by the start/finish line and another in the final third of the race on the backside of the course. Mike and I stayed out of trouble and found ourselves 1 and 2 going into the last lap.

Mike played the dutiful teammate and led out...I was right on his wheel, which was going to force someone else to make the first move. A QCW rider and another dude jumped past on the right in the final half mile and I was able to get on their wheel. The finish was on an uphill and I started my sprint a little bit to early. I picked off the other dude, but the QCW rider and two other guys passed me from behind when I faded a little bit at the line. I came in fourth, but just missed the podium spot I was aiming for.

Mikey was pretty spent from his leadout and got swallowed up and came in 45th (it was a pretty big field.) Big ups to Mike because he definitely put me into a position to finish well and I am positive that without that leadout, I probably finish in 10th at best.

All in all, a good day. A good result and both Mikey and I kept the rubber side down and keeping with tradition, we enjoyed 11am Lionshead Lights immediately following the race.

Also, I threw down one of my best murderfaces to date in the final sprint...I really hope the photographer was able to get a shot.

Grass Track!

The Grass track was a real good time. I'm going to blame my being bad at it on my tires. My lack of ability, taking turns to wide and forgetting to put weight on my outside hand could have also contributed to me sucking. Mike Mast would go pro if you could go pro in grass track races. He's been saving up his legs all season and he's now found his true calling. Willem is a jerk and you should never let him get his handle bars infront of yours. Nice to see such a large showing of team therapy tonight. had everyone but Brendan and Jack there.

Rumor has it that cross practice will start in early September thanks to our friends at Wissihickon cyclry.

Race of the Race pics, your second chance to win big.

After much deliberation I've decided that this last weekends prize of being in the right place at the right time is...

Brendan looking the fastest,
and Jack at a close second, both with the side views. One of Jacks typical murder faces would have pushed him over and given him the win.

Mikey getting a third place. Great photo but it loses a few spots because you can see his bike in the picture and sharp eyes could tell that its a Trek.
And hear are some of the others. Better luck next weekend .