When you test the limits of your mind and body, sometimes shit happens.

With Philadelphia and much of the Eastern Seaboard blanketed with record-breaking snowfall, indoor riding has been the only option. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Indoor training forces oneself to make the most of each mind-numbing, minute-watching training session. You ride with purpose and a plan instead of just accumulating junk miles. And, since there seems to be a built in timer which regulates how long one can endure on an indoor trainer—somewhere between 1½-2 hours—recovery (whether planned or accidental) gets its well-deserved attention.

Yesterday was the first time since February 4th I was able to ride my bike outside. That’s seventeen days! Team Bicycle Therapy (minus Willem) planned to meet up and ride the Rockhill WaWa training race—a 2 lap circuit around the Radnor Hunt Club. *Note* rides are often identified from where they depart, usually little or no other significance whatsoever. Take the Bulldog Ride for example: it meets at a statue of a bulldog. Where it goes…I have no idea.

It was a beautiful warm and cloudless day (anything over 40ºF is considered warm these days). The sun was shining bright, which was accentuated by the sparkle of the lingering snow. Team Bicycle Therapy, in full livery, rode double paceline down West River Drive at a casual pace. Everyone had a chance to chat and catch-up on man gossip. It was good to be all together again.

Our team arrived at Rockhill WaWa first. Mischa used the opportunity to give us a secret pep-talk about race tactics and offered up some suggestions. He encouraged us to try something…anything. We are always thankful for his wisdom and guidance.

Riders streamed in from all directions. Though I didn’t know many of the attendees by name, it was still like a reunion, a homecoming of sorts. Pleasantries and hugs were shared by many. Once the group 40 or so was established and settled, we were on our way. The mood was excited and jubilant. Everyone was happy to be playing outside, once again amongst friends.

We made our way to the race course. The 20ish miles in between allowed everyone to stretch their legs and find a comfortable spot in the group. For others, it was a chance to test their legs with short-lived attacks. People looked strong. Everyone’s indoor training has paid off, and it showed.

We all gathered at the start line of the circuit, fully warmed. We paused momentarily for the demarcation of the finishing line. Again, we were off. People were feisty from the start, launching attacks. Most were brought back quickly, but near the end of the first lap there were two riders 100m off the front, daring someone to chase. Coming out of the last corner, Dan L. and I were on the front of the group. I figured I could open a gap while the pack braked into the more-than-90ºcorner. I let off the brakes and jumped on the pedals. I chased hard for a couple kilometers, but couldn’t manage to bridge up to the leading duo. I sat up and waited to get reeled in by the group. This was my something. It was a good go, but not good enough.

I made a tactical error as I was re-absorbed into the peloton. Instead of moving to the far left of the road where I should’ve been, I was on the right—the drive side (a.k.a. the fast lane). As the accelerating group began to pass, I was caught in the gutter with nowhere to go. I squeezed back in line about five or so wheels back, with legs still tingling from the effort. I filed in behind a rider who in the cycling world would be described as a “Clydesdale”, a 200+ pounder. The draft my Clyde provided me was amazing. I was practically sucked right along in a vacuum. Minimal effort was needed to keep pace. I was almost fully recovered.

There is, however, one downside I can think of when riding behind someone that large: Gravity. (One could argue that gravity has been a nuisance ever since that infamous apple landed on Sir Isaac Newton’s head). As the pack rolled along a flattish part of the course, gravity was the least of my concerns, it didn’t even exist. But, when the road tipped upwards, gravity let its awesome presence be known and exerted a tremendous force upon the hefty man ahead of me. To counteract the downward pull, Clyde stepped up on the pedals to supply the drivetrain with more gravity-defying power. This unintentionally caused his rear wheel to shoot back at me faster than my lactic acid addled brain could react to avoid. Before I knew it, my front wheel was overlapped with his rear wheel. Our rubber tires joined and buzzed an awful buzz, which seemed to signal the pack, like a drone to the hive, of the impending danger. 99 times out of 100 this can only result in one thing: road rash. While there is a glimmer of hope, sadly to say, I was not in the lucky percentile. I was on the ground skidding in the gutter out of control.

Helmet Cam Video From Swamp Classic Cat 3 Race...

You can see Dan and Gerry mixing it up a little bit.

I definitely agree with the music choice.

Coming to an end, snowy times are nigh.

The last couple of days of our sunshine trip culminated in a couple of days of racing. One discipline in which we were absolutely novice in, and one that was familiar, but our last experiences were a ways off in the past of our collective memories.
The first was Saturday's team time trial. This, as I think we've all come to find out, is an interesting experiment in team dynamics. The variables are many, and seem to multiply with the amount of people participating. I would say our initial attempt at this sort of race was enlightening, if not a bit dis-organized at times. That said, we rolled in in 5th place. I for one have only desire more to do a race like this again, it's complexities are many and that makes it all the more compelling. I wish I had photos, but as we all raced, alas, we had no one to take them.
Our bikes all aero-ed out for the Saturday's time trial.

Cages came off given the short times of both races.

As soon as we finished the TTT we hurried to get the aero bars off our bikes, the race left a bad taste in our mouths and shedding any superfluous equipment possible seemed an act to salvage a bit of our collective morale.
Thanks for nothing!

Saturday night was a quiet one for us in comparison to the week's previous socializing. We stayed in for the night with our gracious hosts, Niles and Ernie, and were joined by friends Stephen and Lily coming up from Tampa to race in Sunday's criterium.
Even at a decidedly low point, the night was fantastic, we enjoyed wine and other libations and ate some incredible food made by both of our hosts.
Ernie serves it up right!
Sunday found us with rejuvenated spirits, but not without a bit of nervous energy regarding the task for the day. It was the day for the Gainesville downtown crit, a fun, bumpy course with more than its fair share of brick and torn asphalt. If being nervous wasn't enough, it was our last day down south. The sinking feelings crept in as we began to realize the inevitability of our long drive towards the awful, though somewhat characteristic, wintery conditions at home.
That aside, we were treated to a parting gift of dessert for breakfast and coffee by a good friend at a cafe.
Pre-race desserts get us in the mood.

We had four riders riding in three different races. Ansel was going to mix it up in the cat. 5 race, Brendan in the 4's, and Gerry and I in the 3's. Ansel held court at the front of his very short race, being the sole person chasing down a rider with a rapidly diminishing lead off the front. By the last lap though, Ansel decided to set himself up for the bunch sprint and let some others resume chasing the leader whose gap had come down to 10 seconds. Apparently everyone else had the same idea and let the leader go. Ansel more than handily won the field sprint for second.
An unmistakable Ansel powers to the front of the field.
On the bricks, on the hunt.
Brendan's race was almost a cookie cutter crit. One breakaway attempt saw Brendy lead a chase to shut it down, but that was pretty much all the excitement of his race. He played it smart by sitting towards the back and let others dictate the pace, which saw rider after rider shed off the back of the pack lap after lap. In the sprint Brendan could only guess whose wheel to follow towards the line, and finished a respectable 12th for the day. None of us really targeted this weekend of racing as an important one for our season. The goal was a modest one; it's purpose to really flesh out what level of fitness we were at and get comfortable racing again. We weren't not hoping for a win, but I won't say it was the total goal.
Brendy cutting it in over the bricks and looking good.
Looking for a wheel in the sprint.

Gerry and I lined up for our race with a plan to look for, or initiate some breaks to try to get away. Our original plan of going off at the gun got a bit messed up as I missed my pedal and found myself too far from him at the first turn. I did get a chance to start an early attack and 3 others came with me. We held out only for two laps or so before getting caught. I went toward the back of the field as Gerry moved to the front to keep his eye open for other attacks. Thanks to our gorgeous kits for being so standout that I could locate Gerry anywhere he was in the field, and for making our team the absolute best-dressed at the race.
Looking good on the start line.

Gerry got one off with one other rider. I moved to the front to block a bit, but the pack was just surging to get the two of them back. Once together, I took an opportunity to take the race's only cash prime. Handily winning that, I amused myself by completing the lap solo, getting caught at the third and fourth turn.
Gerry going with a promising attack.
On my way to a cash prize.
With four laps to go in the race, it was all but decided that no attack would result in a winning break. Everyone seemed to want it to come down to a field sprint. Gerry and I had a talk, I was to lead him out for the finish. With two to go, we got our way into a good position and by the last turns we were ten wheels back or so. Turning onto the finishing straight I saw a good line with a few wheels to follow, and started ramping it up nice and early to give Gerry a nice launch. A bit of sketchyness at 300 meters caused a blip of hesitation and we had to ramp it up again, only a bit further back than we were. Gerry came around, timing it right, but the best we could pull out was 12th. I sat back down after he launched and rolled in at 19th. Not our best results, but I still feel the race was a success. We rode it the right way, being as dominant and active as we could. When it came down to the finish, we were able to find each other easily and comfortably enact our plan. In the pass-fail nature of crits and bunch sprints, The stars really need to align for a stellar finish. Given a bit of trouble in the finish added to not knowing who to stick to coming into the final run, I feel we did it right. Especially if you think of our whole team finishing top 20 in each of our races, top 12 if you count my lead out as a sacrifice.
One of the watering holes we frequented, Boca Fiesta, is located on the race course. One of the owners, a dear friend Geoff, was offering up what he was calling a "consolation prize" to racers. The "prize" was a shot of tequila followed by a beer. After picking up my ten buck for the prime and checking results, we headed over for adequate consoling.
In looking for the podium, we found the bar.
The team indulging in some true consoling.
The team, thoroughly consoled, and looking great.

It comes but once a year: Red Bowl! The 2010 edition is ready to go, so come up to North Bowl on March 6th, from 2-6PM, and help support the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia. It's $10 in advance, $15 at the door, and that gets you free bowling, raffle tickets, drink specials, and the chance to kick it with local cycling luminaries. Get your tickets at the shop or just click here to buy online. It's been a blast the last few years, so get out of the house and support local cycling!

While You Guys Were Building Igloos, Shoveling Snow and Cavorting About in the Sun...

...I was doing hot laps in the cold woods.

from character building to igloo building.

When life gives you lemons you make lemonade right? Well, what do you do when life dumps a cubic shit-ton of snow in your back yard? you make an igloo, naturally.

Cross Training

While part of the crew is down soaking up the sun and doing some early season racing, the rest of us are back in Philly braving the weather and riding when we can. Last night and into today we had a bit of a snowstorm and we were provided the opportunity to do a little off the bike training. My street had about 2 feet the whole way with a few drifts up to about five feet.As you can see I shovel about as straight as I ride a bike.

I'll close this post by saying building character is bullshit, my back hurts and I have a snowball in the freezer for each of the four Florida assholes when they get home.

Preview to the Remix

The rain is coming down pretty hard now. Dan just worked some magic on a VCR that was gathering dust under the TV, and we're settling down for a hard earned nap with the 1985 classic American Flyers playing in the background.

Today was a full length dress rehearsal for tomorrow's TTT. It's been a very educational exercise in the mechanics and importance of aerodynamics, and we've had a lot of help in the form of our newest training tool:

After switching to iBike from some other power-measuring tools pretty early on in their development, Lee came through in a big way this year and brokered a great team deal. Our whole TT squad (and most of the rest of the team) are using the iAero. For those still unfamiliar with the system, it uses a pressure sensor on the leading edge of the computer, combined with speed and angle measurements to calculate a very accurate power output. Turns out that there is a bigger difference than I ever realized between perceived effort and actual wattage.

In a road race with a field of 40 riders, drafting is a relatively uncomplicated situation. It's like being asked to chase a big rig down the highway. In a single-file line of four riders, though, it's more like chasing a Scion xA egg car. Factor in a gusting crosswind, and realtime wind readings make it a heck of a lot easier to track down what little draft there is to be had.

Progress was made, and the ride data backs it up. Today's transitions were much smoother than yesterdays, even in windier conditions. Practice is paying off, and we're all relatively calm and confident heading into the real thing. Wish us luck tomorrow. We want to represent the team well.

Goobernatorial Candidacy

Astute readers may notice the absence of one Boy Langlois from today's escapades. A happy coincidence gave him the opportunity to spend some time with his father, leaving the rest of us to fend for ourselves.

When the former Mayor of Gainesville aspires to a higher office, he has to hit the campaign trail. Hard. And while our evening activities have centered around the idea that there's no such thing as bad publicity, we decided to devote a day to building positive public image.

Today was the first attempt at a paceline with aero bars, and all told it went quite well. At least, nobody got hurt and we all looked like goobers. Sounds like a success to me. Our 30 mile ride this afternoon included a 14 mile mock TTT, and a lazy return home with several high-profile campaign stops on the way.

We watched as Brendan:

Mingled with his constituents,

Engaged in acts of public service,

and supported local conservation efforts.

After we got home, he rewarded his campaign managers with his first post-vegan attempt at cooking eggs.

They were great. Gerald was quite pleased. He expressed himself through interpretive dance, and set back the effort to restore our image by a few days.

Springtime Forever.

When a post goes out calling for a host to put up roughly half a team of cyclists traveling with most of a team's equipment, you need a lot of luck and great fortune to have someone elect out their place to you.
Fortune truly smiled upon us as an old friend did just that. With no trepidation, Niles, owner of Recycled Bikes, a true Gainesville staple and instituiton offered up house for us to invade. It has been so comfortable and hospitable, we could want for no more. Ample space, great food and a beautiful house There is no more to say. Here are some photos.

After a fun night doing a victory lap of the Gainesville bars we were back up and ready to ride with a respectable start time of approximately noon. The boys prepared with plenty of leg oil and we were off.

We headed out of town via the Hawthorne Trail and then onto CR 234, a familiar road for me. Live Oaks with Spanish Moss line the road as it sweeps through cow pastures.

The team pulls together for what turns out to be a 60 mile tempo ride on a cool 60 degree day.

About forty miles in we take a quick break in the shade while Gerald secures his cleat.

Among the mega fauna spotted that day were zebras, plenty of cows, ponies, and what appeared to be gazelles. 

Team photo.

After our ride we swung by Leo's in full kit and grabbed a few slices. 

Our friend Josh was nice enough to treat us with some creme brulee. Our ride for the day was over with no schedule for the rest of the day. Winter training camp 2010 continues.