Fisher Midwest Road Team

New Year! New Team!

2011-02-05T20:04:00.003-06:00

Big Changes! The Fisher Midwest Road Team is now the TREK MIDWEST TEAM. With a new name, kits and sponsors, we have also picked up some stellar new riders. You can follow us on our new website -- http://trekmidwest.blogspot.com/

another fun cross season, in the books!

2010-12-03T10:54:00.000-06:00

g.ferguson

Well, I’m both happy and sad that another cyclocross season has come to an end, for me. I know the IL state champs are this Sunday, and that the USGP in Portland would make a nice combination trip with Nationals in Bend, but after our traditional trip to Jingle Cross Rock I’m “done”, and looking forward to skiing. Snow tonight!

Of course the next 2 years will be different with Nationals coming to Dane County!

State Champs

Took the win in the 45+ Open race, with the normal tough competition from John Miller and Mark McGeen. Those guys were tough all season, and we had a good battle at almost all the races. I took the overall too, and really enjoyed the season – and my new Trek XO2. Sweet!

Did the 35+ race right after the 45+, “just for fun”, as I did in many of this season’s races. Took 6^th, the last money spot! Put that money to good use buying some beverages for friends on the way home. Got 4^th overall in the 35+ Open for the season as well; not too bad for a second race, right after my primary race. But, usually, by the time I had been racing for an hour and a half (between the two races, which total an hour and 45 minutes, usually), I’d be hoping to get lapped by the Pro 1.2 leader, to help end my suffering…

Jingle Cross was fun, as usual.

Friday night, under the lights, was tough, icy mud, and rough on the officials trying to get the scoring right. Our results weren’t official till some time on Saturday, and I’m not 100% confident they are exact. But they’re close anyway. Took 6^th, and was just happy to have not hurt myself coming down Mt Krumpit in the dark (the course was mostly well lit, by Musco lighting)

Saturday’s course suited me best of the three days, and I got on the podium with Tom Price and Dan Casper. Those guys didn’t make the podium presentation (after the confusion and delay of the night before they may have just been happy to seek a cool down and some warm clothes, and I can’t blame them), so I took the whole thing! See the photo!

Sunday’s course was more like Friday night’s, and my goal was to have fun and not get hurt on the descent of the icy northeast face of Mt Krumpit. But they took out the frozen Mt Krumpit at the last minute (except for the Pros, who raced a couple hours later). I didn’t quite readjust my attitude in time, and was kind of frustrated with another 6^th place, with 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th place in site on the finishing straight. Right there! Bummer.

Oh well, it was a good season. And chasing all those “kids” around in crits this summer helped get the fitness for this old guy up where it helps in cross.

Time to get ready for next year!

Oh, and ski a little too…

Ode to Cronus

2010-12-02T13:23:00.000-06:00

d.rettig

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D99n9f3vU4

Nuf said

who woulda thunk Madison would be a great city for an off-road bike race?

2010-11-01T15:37:00.001-05:00

g.ferguson

Madison held its first ever off-road bike race yesterday. Thanks to Team Magnus the event at Warner Park was awesome: great venue, course, atmosphere, and, luckily, fantastic weather as well.

Fisher MRT had a strong showing, with at least Matt K, David S, Eric K, Jim M, plus some old tall, hairy guy taking to the start line.

It was both good and sad to see David G there, with his family, as he will soon be moving east, of all things, for some reason.

Even Old Man Rettig made an appearance, although the only carbon fiber he brought with him was in the form of a fly rod.

Fish on!

Thanks to Madison and Mayor Dave for being open to this great new event!

Maybe Madison could attract some similar, quality events in the future?

another beautiful day for cross in Wisconsin!

2010-10-30T21:39:00.001-05:00

g. ferguson

Washington Park again saw a fun cross course in beautiful weather.

And I race my new Trek XO2 for the first time and notched its first win!

Sweet!

Matt K, Tom H, and Jim M enjoyed the fine sunshine and fun course as well.

Now, the first cross race, even in Madison tomorrow!

Warner Park. Here we come.

Cronus CX

2010-10-30T19:01:00.001-05:00

OTC

The new Trek -- Gary Fisher Collection -- Cronus CX cyclocross bike was designed specifically for this race course in England:
http://tinyurl.com/23w9d82

It will also excel in the conditions expected at the 2012-2013 USA Cycling National Championships in Madison, Wisconsin.

2012 wow - time for cross

2010-10-29T21:51:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

Looks like the focus next year needs to be a much later start with a big cyclecross finish. If you are from Madison, you will know what I mean.

Get Dirty

2010-10-25T21:54:00.000-05:00

m.kamphuis

Pretty epic (yes, I said epic) conditions at the Cam-Rock CX race this weekend for those of you who missed it. It's was a complete slop-fest with only 4 laps of the course for the Cat 3s. I didn't finish as well as I would have liked, but I finished nonetheless.

Speaking of finishing, I did have a good results at the Badger Prairie Race a week back: 6th place in a pretty large field. That race has always been one of my stronger races for some reason. Hopefully things dry out and I can get back toward that type of placing.

I also raced my Gary Fisher Superfly to a 10th overall and 1st in my age group in the Comp category at the WORS race in Sheboygan. Not bad for my only mountain bike race of the year! I've been doing that race for years and it's always nice to do well close to home.

Double race weekend this weekend? Hopefully.

Salt Block

2010-10-22T00:39:00.000-05:00

dblomme
Badger Prairie cyclocross race this last weekend. What was served up was good friends, good weather and great Furthermore beer! Good result by the team if you feel like searching here.

Super Compact Drive Needed ---

2010-10-10T20:12:00.000-05:00

Secret, this makes every hill on the Lodi loop feel like you are in the Alps.... especially with a 30lb napper along for the ride.

d. studner

2010-09-20T12:25:00.001-05:00

Bring the Pain!

Cyclocross season is upon us and the 1^st WCA cross race was held on Saturday, Sept. 18. The race was well attended and I found myself lined up in the senior cat. 3 race alongside several familiar faces. This race was pretty well attended and it looks like we’ll have a really fun CX season for 2010.

Both the venue and date were new to the schedule this year and it was nice to have a chance to race once before the USGP of Sun Prairie next weekend. This course was really interesting and fun but was very soft/muddy from heavy rain the night before. I quickly demonstrated that a good start doesn’t necessarily result in a good finish as being under practiced on the CX bike I was slow in the muddy sections (most of the course) and spent my ok legs on trying to make up for it. Racing another 15 minutes takes a lot out of you too and I’m still feeling today (Monday) though my post-race recovery regimine was not what it would have been were I planning to race Sunday (Pizza/beer/late night).

Looking forward to USGP next weekend, I hope to see you all there!

Bodensee - Eurobike

2010-09-15T11:54:00.001-05:00

dblomme
I was at Eurobike 2 weeks ago and managed to sail the Fisher kit around Lake Bodensee before the event. Lake Constance (Bodensee) It is a great ride. For you Midwesterners, think European Door County/Lake Geneva in a more upscale, evolved way. There was a great bike network which connected many little resort style, lakefront locations for over 100 miles. If you ever get the opportunity, go for it. If you're interested in a good Eurobike wrap up, check out Zap's 4 part review: TECH FEATURES: EUROBIKE REPORT, PART 1

Midwest Cyclocross

2010-09-09T23:28:00.001-05:00

d.blomme

The mosquito density here in the Midwest has decreased, and with that, cyclocross race season begins. With the transition to riding off road with drop bars, I've got some sweet blisters formed on my hands from test riding the new Cronus CX on some great mountain and cross trails - the bike has been incredible. Cross season will be fun!

Trek Bikes | Bikes | Gary Fisher Collection | Cronus CX

Tech news: Trek shows off the Cronus CX carbon fiber cyclocross bike, part of the Gary Fisher Collection - VeloNews

UnNamed Epic 2010

2010-08-30T21:54:00.000-05:00

http://connect.garmin.com/player/46924875

Paste this into your browser....

Get this on your to-do list for next year gents!

drettig

UnNamed Epic 2010

2010-08-30T21:47:00.000-05:00

Road season review

2010-08-23T16:12:00.001-05:00

E. Knuth

Hard to believe the road racing season has come to an end already! For our first year as a team we had a very successful season.

We had two Wisconsin Cup series champions, Greg Ferguson won the Masters 45+ Cat 3/4 series and Jim Merrifield won the Masters 55+ Cat 3/4 series, Eric Knuth finished 2nd in the Masters 45+ Cat 1/2/3 series, Jim Merrifield also finished 3rd in the Masters 55+ Cat 1/2/3 series, Barney Sheafor finished 5th in the Masters 45+ Cat 3/4 series, and Matt Kamphius finished 9th in the Cat 4 series. And as a team, we finished 6th overall!

We also had success in a number of other races, including Brian Abraham being crowned the Cat 3 State road race champion and during Superweek, a victory for Greg Ferguson in the Masters 1/2/3 Bucyrus road race and a 2nd place for Dirk Rettig in the Masters 1/2/3 Lakefront road race.

Nice job boys! I'm already looking forward to next year!!

Trek http://www.centurioncycling.com/wisconsin/

2010-08-13T10:13:00.001-05:00

d.rettig

Got to do a great event last Sunday, the Trek Centurion Cycling in Middleton Wisconsin. A rough storm delayed the start and shorted the event, but it was still a blast. Got to spend some time with our brothers from down south – their kits definitely are not as kool as ours….

http://fisherroadteam.com/home/index.php

A great bunch of guys….

Where are you at?

2010-08-13T10:01:00.001-05:00

d.rettig

Have hit Bacon-Eggs-Hashbrowns weight again --- how are you doing this year?

http://www.thewholegang.org/2009/10/bacon-weave-hash-brown-and-egg-stack-recipe/

U.S. Professional Criterium Championship

2010-08-12T14:43:00.000-05:00

dblomme
A few of us are heading to Glencoe, IL this weekend to get our race in before the pros - wish us luck, should be fun!
"the new, challenging course should make for arguably the most exciting crit championship in years."

U.S. Pro Criterium championship - VeloNews

American Flyers 1985 -- stream

2010-08-07T17:09:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNDM5MTMxMTI=.html

What is your favorite quote?

"She wouldn't know a fact if it was banging her all night long" -- that is pretty good.

Fondo fundu tomorrow --

Superweek races - shoe-horned in.

2010-08-03T09:46:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
I definitely gotta get smarter meeting planning software. I targeted several Superweek races for this year but ended up doing just two and those were squeezed into a too busy calendar. I had a number of training sessions planned at work and I just was not thinking about the possibility of midweek races when I set up the times. Could it be my subconscious was telling me something? I was all psyched to do Brewers Hill as my climb was doing well when my wife Jan reminded me of the wedding we had to go to. Well, of course I forgot! So the first Superweek race I ended up doing was in Hales Corner at Whitnal Park. It is a fun little course, a circuit race of a little over 2 miles of rolling terrain with a couple crit-like corners at the top part of the course and a 120 degree corner at the base of the climb heading into the start finish area. The race was early in the day and even started on time so I did not have to fret about getting back in time for work. The legs were OK but not great. There was a lot of action in the race with a number of folks trying to make something happen and just as many trying to make sure they were part of whatever happened - attack and chase, attack and chase. I followed one wheel up and off the front but knew it was not going anywhere. I took a pull, faded back and yep, the pack was there already. Climb was not with me that day - I had "stay with" but no more than that. I thought that if the situation presented, I would take a run into the final corner and see if I could carry speed up the hill but everyone was thinking the same thing, the attackers, the chasers and all the "save it for the last lappers". The pack was spread across the road, going like hell to try to make the selection at the bottom corner. I came around the corner watching the money places sprint up the hill but OK with that. I had been on the ropes a couple times but got to play a little and had some higher hopes for the Lakefront race in 2 days.

I had heard that the long Lakefront course was going to be used and was not disappointed. The long course climbs up the bluff along the lake shore a couple times each 4 mile lap with one fast twisty descent. Last year, it rained and it was slick, slick, slick the first few laps and bodies were hitting the ground on the descent. This year, the forecast was for a very nice day. I was feeling good and hoping for a strong race. I had to get back to work promptly as I was doing another training session. And I had only myself to blame for the scheduling! But things were looking good. We lined up at 9AM, just as scheduled and then sat - there was a car on the course and Milwaukee's finest and who knows who else were trying to figure out what to do. Turned out "no parking" signs had not been posted so the car could not be towed. So they were going to cone off the car. Turned out that the car was on the inside of a corner at the top of the second climb was totally not an issue. And for this, we waited almost 45 minutes. So off we go, all warmup cooled off. At least the first lap was easy. But what do I see? Teammate Dirk is off the front by himself! I thought "I should get up there and block!" And I did move up to the front on the climb at the start of the second lap but looked around and thought that if these guys wanted to reel Dirk in, me sitting on a wheel probably would not make much of a difference. Still, I had moved to the front and thought I would stick around. The pack seemed to be willing to let a solo rider stay but the next lap someone got antsy and the pace heated up. The next few laps were quick with a few folks giving it a go. I was feeling pretty decent - I had brought my climb and the course was well suited to me. And then I see Dirk is off to the races again - this time in a break with 2 others and the pack seems to be taking it seriously. I moved to the front on the climb again to see if I might be able to help to find nothing really organized but sporadic efforts. But I am also getting concerned about the time - what to do? A couple laps later with two to go, the decision is made for me! I came around the corner off the descent on my wheel when the front must have surged and suddenly, I am getting gapped and the gap is growing. I am giving it all I have and hear "pull off" from behind me. Should have pulled to the sheltered side out of the crossing head wind but pulled into the wind and there is no place to pull back in - the rest of the pack is wheel to wheel, noses to the handlebars. Turned out, we were catching the women's field and the boys in the front wanted to get past before the climb. They slowed up a little but I am now at the back and gassed and coming into the climb. Time to find out just how much climb I brought. Tried to spin up but had no acceleration at the top and there they go. Sh#t! Time to go to work. Get to the car and start loading just in time to see Dirk in the break of 3 still off the front and moving nicely on the last lap. I later found out Dirk finished second. CONGRATS! Me? I made the training session with enough time to take a quick shower before.

I fought the clock and the clock won

2010-08-03T08:20:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield

I am FINALLY back to racing though it is hard to justify calling what I did racing. Between work rearing its ugly head, races getting cancelled and a lot of the Tour of America's Dairylands venues being over 2 hours away, I just could not find races that made sense or that I could get to and still get things done at work. So instead, I have been doing a lot of bike commuting. I live about 34 miles away from work and it's a nice ride if the wind is not being too uncooperative. Most of the ride is on farm roads and once I get away from the work area (Fitchburg, a suburb of Madison), I can sometimes count the number of cars I see on one hand. That is certainly true if I am riding in the AM as I am on the road by about 5:30AM. It makes for a good day if I ride both directions. Course, then I need to plan a little so I am not schlepping food and clothes. So I have been backing away from the intervals and just putting in some nice endurance miles. With the temperatures what they have been, it is a decent way to start getting used to the heat. I have not been riding both directions much - usually one day a week. On other days, I may get a ride in one direction in the carpool and then ride home. And other days, I have to drive the carpool. But whatever, I have been getting some good mileage in. But not racing miles. I think my last race might have been one of the last Tuesday night practice crit (at which I announced I was not going to be the volunteer czar next year - three years is enough for now). So I knew I was gonna be stale. The week before the race - a short (19K) time trial - I was doing all the right things to get my legs ready but I do not have a TT bike so it is always "fun" to try to get the road bike converted to a TT machine and try to find that right power position. Each time I do a TT, I tell myself I just gotta get a bike set up permanently as a TT bike. I have gone so far as to cruise the yearly bike swap to see what I can find but it is kinda hard for me to justify spending much money on a frame and components for a bike I might use twice a year. Well, this year, I decided I REALLY need to get this done - at least I have a my old road frame to start from. I had planned to convert the Cronus earlier in the week so that I could get more days logged in the TT position but found the TT clip-ons did not work on the new handlebars so had to get a different set. SO the day before the race, I got it done and went out for a ride to get the position right. At least, the comfort of the Cronus makes the position a little less tiring. But it always takes me a while to find the position. I went out for about 90 minutes, doing a few warm up intervals. In that time, I adjusted the saddle 3 or 4 times. Thought I had it OK.
The next day, it was off to the race. I was not sure what time my start was. I had preregistered but apparently too late in the game to get my start time posted. I got a late start driving to the race but thought I had plenty of time. Nope, my start time was earlier than expected. Oh well, less time to fret about it. The position did not feel right but it felt OK yesterday so I just needed to settle into it, I thought. Whoops, time to go already? OK fine. Started OK but then my legs started to seize up. Just could not turn them over, bring them over the top. Yep, I think my saddle dropped a bit. Must not have tightened it enough. I was not running a power tap wheel but the heart rate monitor said I was working at about max. So how come the scenery is going by so slow. Going into a headwind did not help. At the turnaround, I restarted to feel better but by that time, the damage was done. I was not only slow, I was pathetically slow. Notes to self - give up the idea of time trialing off the front of a race and for gawd sakes get that old frame set up as a TT machine. At least the TT seemed to have gotten staleness out of my legs. I was feeling pretty good coming into the races I had planned for Superweek. But more on that later.

Superweek - Schlitz Park

2010-07-26T16:11:00.000-05:00

dblomme
It was a hot day of racing Superweek's Schlitz Park. Multiple efforts for a breakaway were thrown in throughout the race by the Fisher team with unfortunately, none of them sticking. The team was definitely noticed that day - Great racing guys!

Home | International Cycling

Dog days of summer - remember you are riding mans best friend!

2010-07-25T22:11:00.001-05:00

d.rettig

August is almost here, seriously - take a week off the bike, you will be amazed at how large your cojones can grow in one week. Plenty of ride time left this season.

Top step at Superweek, baby!

2010-07-22T12:14:00.000-05:00

g. ferguson

Eric and I lined up for the Masters 1/2/3 race at the Bucyrus International Cycling Classic in South Milwaukee and were treated to a sweet 2.8 mile loop circuit race that dropped down into the Oak Creek valley and climbed back out twice each lap. We both behaved, as planned, and didn’t try any attacks until late in the 10 lap race. Soon after getting brought back on one attempt I attacked again right away up the small hill on the backside of the course with a lap and a half to go. No one reacted, and I immediately went into TT mode. The course loops back on itself, and I could see the field not too far behind at the first corner. But I was also then able to get out of sight for much of the time, with all the twists, turns and rollers in the course. Eric did a great job, and especially for only one teammate, of blocking and keeping the hounds at bay. Going up the last hill before the right hand turn to the long straight to the finish I was feeling my effort and starting to blowup just a bit. I eased off a tiny bit at the top of the climb, and then ramped it back up on the flat. That last 3 tenths of a mile seemed like forever, of course. I kept looking back, they haven’t made the corner yet, look back, still no sign, look back, holy cats I think I’m gonna make it! I had enough time to zip up the jersey the rest of the way and give a proper salute at the line! Top step for Fisher MRT!

Thanks to Eric for giving me just enough room to take it all the way to the line…

Lakefront Road Race - Super Week - Milwaukee

2010-07-21T14:37:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

The annual Superweek race is in the books. Could not pass up one of the best urban road race courses in the mid-west. You can knock Super Week if you like, but you can’t beat this course. We sat on the tarmac for 30 minutes while the final parked cars were cleared, I had to hit a water fountain before the start as my bottles were already dry. Finally we rolled – and I needed to go…. So first two laps off the front by myself. Rolled back to the pack to wait for the real effort to begin. 4 to go, two rider up, we hit the ravine and I bridge, a lap later and Matush bridges. That is all we needed to stay clear, by the time I tried something for the finish Tommy already had a couple bike lengths on me for the sprint…. I rolled over in 2^nd, it really is great when the legs start working.

Marco?

2010-07-20T20:41:00.004-05:00

Although I missed the ENTIRE racing season, I was able to partake in a different kind of event. That is right, you guessed it...the 2010 North American Hardcourt Bike Polo Championships were held right here in Madison, with teams traveling from all over the continent including Mexico and Canada. And I thought there was strategery, high adventure and contact in road racing...at least we don't have to where hockey gloves and full face masks....oh yeah, and we take showers at the end of the day.

3 days

70 teams

900 games (this is not a typo)

1 champion

All powered by Trek + Bontrager + Ale Asylum

Carbon Road Bikes

2010-07-16T12:34:00.001-05:00

M. Gehling

Are good for riding on gravel if you put 25s on. Rode the Military Ridge to Blue Mounds to do hill repeats this week - happy that I have a bike that can handle gravel and going up hill fast.

How do you travel?

2010-07-14T08:39:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

Get your basics covered. Bring a saddle and pedals – then off to France!

TOAD - Waterloo & Greenbush

2010-06-25T16:09:00.001-05:00

b.abraham

Waterloo Crit:

Greg, Todd, and I lined up for the Cat 3 race in Waterloo. The race was pretty steady for the most part. Greg was in a break about halfway through and when the group caught him, I attacked with two other riders and we stayed away for a lap. Our break was destined for failure when they called a prime as we rolled across the start/finish line.

With 5 laps to go, Greg rolled alongside me and pulled me up toward the front. With two laps to go, we were in perfect position…right in the top 5-10 riders. Then on the last lap we got swarmed and I ended up toward the back. I worked to get as close to the front as possible through that lap but was still close pretty far back when we turned down the final straight. I started sprinting early to pass as many riders as possible and ended up 10^th for the last money place. Excellent work from Greg and Todd during this race! Many thanks for the shelter! J

Greenbush RR:

Five laps of a 10mile loop with a couple short, steep climbs and a fun downhill through the tree-lined park road. A few riders got off the front immediately and the group was fine letting them go. On the second lap, Greg attempted to bridge up with a couple other riders but fell a little short. With two laps to go, the group of 6 had a gap of 2 minutes and it was now a race for 7^th place. On the last lap we headed into the final slight uphill before the finish line and as everyone ramped up their sprints, one of the riders crashed right in the middle of the road. Everyone hit the brakes and moved to avoid him, which pretty much neutralized any sprint that we had going. I rolled across the line for 18^th place. Not bad, but I was hoping for better, as I normally do well on uphill finishes. Who would have expected a break to stay away for 49 miles? J

TOAD Waterloo M123

2010-06-23T20:39:00.001-05:00

d.rettig

Race was a blast, really need help figureing out who to watch. I have been out of the game too long. Eric patrols the front much better then I do, I tend to float around the pack more, that works for me. Got in a couple dirt sections as the group had a hard time holding a line up the hill in firemans park. I was able to shoot off the front a couple of times, just don't have the race legs quite yet - there is always tomorrow!

Waterloo Classic - Cat 4/5

2010-06-23T16:07:00.002-05:00

JC and MK tore it up today in Waterloo. They look satisfied at the finish.

Good work boys!

Who has Race Tummy today?

2010-06-23T11:35:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

It has been awhile, but it feels the same. Race Tummy is here….

No matter how long you have been doing this for….. Race Tummy always feels the same.

Recap before Waterloo

2010-06-22T17:32:00.001-05:00

d.blomme
Consistently, my family has been my best supporters making it to all my races this year. So with their support, racing the ToAD so far has been fast and fun.
Gear Grinder and Team Extreme have had a great team presence with 5 to 7 members racing the Masters 4/5. It's been interesting to see all the new teams from Wisco and Illinois show up.
Grafton was a "B" shaped crit course that gave some racers the challenge of holding a straight line in the corners. I just missed bridging up to the winning break mid-race (will not let that happen again). Tom Hooyer road smart and strong, especially in the final laps keeping the pace high. Fighting for fourth was getting rather messy in the final turn so I mellowed and settled for 15th.
Good beach to relax after the race Kohler-Andrae State Park
Appleton was a smooth course that allowed the pace to be consistent. Again, good team presence was there from many teams so tactics were going to play a part. During the race, I worked a bit with Andrew (who won) and his teammate from Gear Grinder. I was active throughout the race and was in perfect position of 3rd wheel going in to the final turn. Not sure where the motor was when I needed it, but I placed 18th. I'm expecting better results in Waterloo Wednesday, as last year I placed 2nd...
For future reference, located just after the finish line in Appleton was Harmony Cafe, a program of Goodwill. A great coffee house/cafe where we could sit outside and watch the race action with good food and drink.
For great amateur and pro racing, catch the race series if you can Tour of America's Dairyland: June 17-27, 2010

2010-06-22T09:15:00.001-05:00

t. hooyer

Like several other team mates I've had the good fortune to race three of the past four races in the Tour of America's Dairyland. I am happy to report that all the courses have been challenging and unique in their own way and the races have all started on time. In addition, I haven't stood in a registration line for more than 30 seconds. Kudos to the organizers for a well organized race series.

In regards to racing, the highlight was racing with David B. at the Grafton Crit where we were active on the front but didn't get into the break. Although we were both sitting near the front and watched the break go up the road I never thought it would stick since two of the largest teams (Gear Grinders and Team Extreme) didn't have anyone in it. At one point David tried to bridge but ran out of horse power after a lap or so. Thus, we were racing for forth come the last lap. As a result, I was a bit tentative at the end and rolled in near the front of the field for 21st. I believe David withheld his mighty sprint and finished around 15th.

Yesterday I rolled out of bed early for the 8:30 a.m. start at Road America in Elkhart Lake. Beautiful smooth asphalt along with a few mild hills kept the group together for almost the entire race. It all came down to the end where there was an uphill finish. I was in good position until the last couple of corners were I slipped to about 20th position. This was a mistake since the finish line deviated into pit lane where the road narrowed. About half way up most of the rider were standing and weaving slightly. I found myself boxed in and applying the brakes due to a rider weaving across the road. I probably could have finished in the top 10 but instead settled for 18th. I was disappointed since I had good legs. One again the lesson is to stay at the front in such situations so I can ride my own race. Never the less, it was a fun course and I enjoyed racing my bike in beautiful summer weather.

Sign from god!

2010-06-21T16:51:00.001-05:00

d.rettig

Destiny on Fathers day. Rode into town and PBR was going to buy dad a banny split --- not sure why I had not seen it before. Any town with a ‘Bacon St.’ must be a wonderful place.

See you all at Waterloo TOAD and the Greenbush TOAD….

Fisher bikes

2010-06-20T09:39:00.001-05:00

E. Knuth

Not to be too much of a Fisher-homer, but I have been receiving a number of complements about the Fisher Cronus from other racers and fans at the ToAD races so far. It is a sweet ride and good looking too (not me, the bike!).

ToAD Days 1 & 2

2010-06-19T22:43:00.001-05:00

E. Knuth

Good to see a few of the boys (David B, David OTC, Tom H, and Greg) out at the Tour of America's Dairyland races. The Thiensville crit course was flat and fast (Masters 1/2/3 averaged about 28 mph!), and thankfully we just missed the rain that blew through. The fields have been pretty big, with 82 guys lined up for the M1/2/3. I used the always smart tactic of lining up in the back row and took several laps to get to the front--reminder to self, get to the line early! My back-of-the-line starting strategy resulted in my not even seeing the first break (within the first few laps) of three guys going up the road (and staying away) as I could not see anything but the 70-80 guys in front of me! Not too many attempts to get away as the race was too fast and too many guys willing to chase. In the end it came down to a field spring where I unleashed my 700W sprint and finished 18th.

Another nice (hot) day at Grafton today, on the course that used to be a part of the WCA series. Pretty technical course with a slight uphill just past the finish. I did manage to start in the second row today! Another big field (~80 guys), and nothing got away, which was strange given the hill and technical course. In the last lap I was in what I thought was ideal position, around 8th, when two corners from the finish a couple guys touched wheels leading to a 7-8 rider pile-up. My Fisher came out unscathed (meaning it found its way around the carnage), however, I had to come almost to a stop, and lost about 15 positions as a result! Ended up about 20th.

Hope to see more of the team out for some of the upcoming races, there are lots of good ones on the schedule!

The Start of Triathlon Season

2010-06-17T12:43:00.001-05:00

D. Humphrey

Even though my background is in road racing I took a serious approach to triathlon ten years ago. After a bad racing accident I had to stay of my bike for over three months and out of some fascination and the desire to stay fit I started swimming and running - both foreign activities. After about five months of getting moving in both activities I entered my first triathlon and despite the terror (and poor times) I was very intrigued. Not necessary to plod through all the detail but I am now a competent athlete in each discipline and have done my best to blend road racing and triathlon - despite the fact they are vastly different sports and even though the training carries over to some extent, each has unique characteristics. To describe the difference as simplistically as possible triathlon is a steady-state effort - irrespective of the speeds involved. Road racing has the heavy anaerobic efforts that punctuate races not to mention your competitors are shoulder-to-shoulder which alters the dynamics. Essentially there is a limit to the amount of pre-race planning whereas with triathlon you should have a firm idea of your exertion level and how to distribute energy. Certainly you get caught-up chasing people or countering oncoming competition but tactically it is very different than road racing.

Well, back to the racing. In Wisconsin, for obvious reasons, the triathlon season is packed between June and September. There are some "fringe" activities that take place although jumping into open water beyond that zone is not very comforting. My first race (Lake Mills) on June 6 is one of the "classic" races which draws well over five hundred people and the depth of talent is often very deep. It is not unusual to be lining-up against a professional or two and there are a number of national/world champions that will test their early fitness.

I was pleased with results placing second overall. The winner was shockingly fast on the bike passing me about one or two miles in and I simply could not maintain contact. Frankly I was hoping he was on a relay team although that hope was dashed when I spotted him heading out for the run. The next thought was "Well, maybe I can catch him on the run". Nada. Even though I have not directly competed against him after some queries I quickly learned he is a major talent. My one solace: a roughly twenty year difference in age.

More races to come - both road and tri. Fun, fun!

Why do you really bike?

2010-06-15T08:35:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

Bacon or fresh Strawberries.....

You can't really beat the Wisco rides in the summer.

State champ races - one outta two ain't bad

2010-06-14T22:24:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield

June 6th was the State RR championships and as you may have read earlier, Fisherman Brian slew all in the cat 3 field. My race was significantly less stellar. The day before, I did a workout to loosen up my legs and could not seem to get outta my own way but warming up for the 50+RR, I felt pretty decent and power was reasonable so I was not sure what to expect. I had done the course last year and did not have a good time on the 18% grade approaching the finish. The first time up the climb was neutral. The race started from the top of the climb and I was thinking, "this is gonna hurt" and I was quickly proved correct. Someone started nailing it almost immediately and strung the pack out single file or as much as one could in the cross winds. Barney seemed to be sitting in pretty comfortably. I kept trying to get my legs sorted out. By about half way thru the lap, I settled in. Good thing too as the pace picked up on the tail wind stretch approaching the climb for the first time. I was thinking "someone is in a big damn hurry to hit that wall". And hit it, we did, like a wave against a breakwater. All of a sudden, we all just came together and kinda stopped. Well not exactly but I was thinking "civil of them to take it easy on the hill". And same with the next time around except that as I shifted into the big ring, the chain slipped off the outside and I was screwed. Could not recover it. Had to get off the bike and by that time, I was in no-man's land. &^% Started to chase down stragglers, Caught one guy quickly enough that it was clear he was not going to be much help. Kept motoring to a pair and these seemed like a decent pair to share the load with. There was another pair a couple hundred yards ahead but we made no ground. Got to the wall and started up and was thinking "this is odd - I be climbing!" and not even in my lowest gear. Normally, I do not "dance" on the climbs. I prefer to sit and power up today was way different. By the top of the climb, I had left the original pair and joined the pair we were chasing. The next lap was pretty much the same thing - dropped one of the folks I was working with and climbed to join another. So, how frustrating! The day I bring my climb with me, I blow a shift (and it did not do it again the rest of the day!)

The state crit championship was another story. Greg and David G were going up to do the M3/4 and I was going to do the team thing and help out as best I could. I was cautiously optimistic as I had a good warmup both the day before and then at the race. Good power numbers and low perceived effort. The course has a stiff little wall in it that can really hurt if you go into it a little tired. The field was small, especially for a M3/4 which is usually one of the larger fields. 20 started, I think. Greg almost immediately started the aggression and I moved to the front to block. His move did not go for long as people were willing to chase and I continued the aggression, following a LAPT guy up the road. We worked together and stayed away for maybe 2 laps before we were reeled in. Greg went again and David took over blocking duties. Again, the right people were not there. A couple solo efforts were tried by other teams but the efforts were relatively short lived. Greg had said "we gotta keep this hard" and I jumped coming over the wall and stayed away for a bit but no one came up to join me so I was not going to stay for long. Late in the race, Greg again took off and I went to the front to block. He was with two others and while they were not the ones I would have thought would be there, they seemed to work reasonably well together and I was preventing any organization from taking place. But if someone moves to the front and pulls hard for a lap, there is not much you can do to slow it down. A couple of those and with just a few to go, we were all back together. I had climb again that day and I could accelerate over the top to move to good position when others were tucking in and did just that for the next couple laps to stay where I needed. Greg again opened a gap with a couple others on the last lap and I once more tried to give them some space, slowing just a bit thru the corners while trying to be in good position myself. And was thinking all was good until someone took a hard inside line on the last corner and perhaps hopped the rear wheel and when he came down, shredded the rear tire basically right in front of me. Lost the wheel I was following and a goodly bit of concentration but hammered home, passing a couple people but the race was in front of me. On the other hand, all the other 55+ folks were behind me so I took home the gold for my age group, the cookies and the jersey is said to be in the mail. Nice. And I did my team job as well as I could have. A good day.

State Champ RR

2010-06-09T21:33:00.001-05:00

b.abraham

I did the WI State Champ RR in Spring Prairie on Sunday as the sole representative of the Fisher MWRT in the Cat 3 field. I've always liked this course...the laps go by pretty quickly with the nice downhill on the backside and the climb leading into the finish straight is hard enough to string things out but short enough that I can power up it. The Cat 3 racers had to do 8 laps of the 6.5 mile loop. The first few laps were pretty chill, not much movement in the group and no one really trying to get away aside from the usual speed up/slow down stuff. On lap 6, two riders got away and built up maybe a 30sec gap on the field, which they held for the entire lap. On the tailwind section after the downhill, the field picked up the pace and brought them back just before the climb to start the bell lap. I was anticipating some action on the climb with only one lap to go, but no one attacked and the field stayed together for the most part. The pace didn't pick up until the tailwind section again, and then everyone was trying to make their way to the front before the climb started. We took the right hand turn to go up the climb, and I was about halfway down the field, but on the outside so that I could pass people (that was the plan at least). I took off as soon as the climb started and ended up finding a lane to pass quite a few riders. I continued pushing it until the top of the climb and was surprised to see only three riders in front of me. I latched on to the back of that group and we kept the pace high. Then the front rider started pulling away from the other two, so I attacked around them to get up to the lead rider. Once I caught him the finish line was fast approaching, so I continued my sprint past him and stayed away to win the State Championship!

Very exciting...my legs felt good the whole race. I credit that to the long Devils Lake team ride from a few weeks ago. :)

That was for Vontoux. RIP little buddy, I miss you...

Cronus finds Devil's Lake

2010-06-01T12:20:00.001-05:00

d.blomme

Half of the Fisher team made the 78 mile round trip to Devil's Lake this Memorial Day weekend. It was a great route with perfect weather. Keith did some impressive off road riding at 45+mph and Greenblatt managed to complete his preseason training in one ride.

Fisher MRTeam Ride---Devils Lake

2010-05-31T09:27:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
The long holiday weekend offered the opportunity for the Fisher crew to sneak in a group ride. It was nice to have a weekend free of racing and to enjoy a easy ride with friends. The plans were hatched at the Oakcrest Practice Crit and Eric suggested a loop through Devils Lake on Saturday morning. We met at the Middleton Hills Starbucks and 9 Fisher teammates arrived. Gregor, Eric, Keith, David B, David S, Brian, Dale, David OTC and I grabbed a quick coffee and then rolled out. The Devils Lake loop is a favorite of mine and heads north to the Merrimac Ferry where the ferry crossing was new to some. A few short miles took us to the South Shore of Devils Lake and a water stop. From there we climbed deeper into the Baraboo Range and then back to Sauk City, Roxbury and back to Middleton. A great morning with a great crew. Hoping we can do it again as the summer allows.

Oakcrest practice crit

2010-05-26T00:51:00.000-05:00

d.blomme

While the early rain washed away hopes of a challenging practice crit tonight, the Oakcrest Tavern brought in team camaraderie with beer and deep fried everything. The helmet cam will have to wait till the next race!

It's crazy to think that along with my first mosquito bite last night, so brought in the realization that the race schedule here in the Midwest is half done. Commuting to work has now become a priority to get more of those simple miles logged in. Tour of America's Dairyland is just around the corner...

If you haven't really raced yet, get out there and enjoy the fun.

Climbing season

2010-05-20T15:37:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
Whoa! Where did the time go? Into the garden and racing and training and sometimes sufficient sleep. That latter has been plaguing me. One time, I am pretty sure it was a sports drink I decided to try and ended up being "alert" all freakin' night. But the past couple weekends, I have managed to have a bad night's sleep prior to racing for no good reason - and suffered for it. But back to the racing.....
Not many road races in the Wisconsin Cycling Association (WCA) series. Most clubs put on crits. But The Baraboo Sharks put on a couple good road races. When I was living in the northeast, I was doing a lot of road races as there were a lot to do. Some were rolling, some had long climbs. None had the steep challenges that the Circuit of Sauk or LaRue-Denzer-LaRue have, however - or at least I do not recall. CoR has a wicked steep pitch 3ish miles into the race followed by gradual climbing and then nasty crossing head winds once on the bluff. And then not nearly long enough after you turn to ride with the wind, you hit the second climb of the circuit. In years past in the Master 3/4 race, things have shattered on the first pitch and the survivors, both in what is left of the pack or those spit off the back, are left looking for places to hide from the wind that never has failed to howl. This year was different in that a lot of the pack stayed together including all 6 Fisher men. Damn but the Cronus is a nice climbing machine! I confess that I am a tad below the UCI limit (and without having un-obtainium or up-see-daisyium components) but it was the stiffness in the climb that really pleased me, whether I was in the saddle and hammering or out of the saddle. Everything was directed up the road and this despite the nice road comfort. Anyway, something got me up the hill feeling pretty decent. The crossing head winds and gradual climbing convinced me and others to stay protected but once we turned the corner, things heated up a bit. I stayed towards the front but did not have the power needed on the second climb when a small group attacked. Greg and others were able to be there but I could not hold and when we turned another corner and the wind caught me again, I knew the solo chasing was not going to work. I decided to wait for a couple guys and we worked together for the rest of the race. I was racing the next day in LaCrosse, doing 3 crits, and was saving my meager energies.
Two weeks later, it was LaRue-Denzer-LaRue. This is a really nice road race out in the country and I am not sure why more folks did not show. It has the "disadvantage" of being right before Wheels on Willie (WOW), one of the best crits in WI. And again, ya gotta have climb for the race. Back in the northeast, people came out of the woodwork for the road races. WI races do tend to favor the big crit boys. Who knows. Last year, I left my climb at home and was off the back so fast I decided to save it for WOW. This year would be better. I am fitter and lighter. And it was better but not QUITE good enough. I made sure I was close to the front as we started the first climb and all was OK until someone decided to gear up and go. 6 folks immediately moved away and then chasing began. I was frantically looking for any form of help and held wheels as long as I could and was just off the back when cresting the 13% (or so I was told) section with people behind when I hit total melt down. A couple people came by and I had no response. All systems on life support. Finally when a group of 3 caught me, I had a little response. I looked back and it was now or never - oh, this is gonna hurt. I dug as much as I could to hold that last wheel, staring at it, willing it to stay close. When we finally hit a section of road where I could ease back a little, my legs finally started to feel better. Looking back at by pulse rate output, I was surprised I could hold my pulse so high for so long. And the race was only 20 minutes old! But now I had a nice little group to ride with and we worked together, regrouping after the climbs as we all climbed within ourselves and tried to get the race over with in a reasonable amount of time. We even reeled in a couple folks who got dropped on the second time up the steep section. Towards the end of the lap, there is a long 8% climb and as the last time up, I was going to ride at my pace. The first time up, another guy came with me for most for the climb. This time, no one else seemed to want to push and I immediately gapped the group. Looking back, I though "I might as well pretend like I am racing" and pushed it up and over the climb. At the top, I had 100 yards and I thought "maybe" but I had 4 or so miles to the finish to go it was not to be - caught a half a mile or so from the end but no one attacked me and I quickly got my legs back under me. Under a K to go, two guys went hard and I tried to go but not enough power to close and I figured that was it. But they let up just enough for me to slide back and give me a couple hundred yards to rest. They started to go again but the finish line was in sight and I actually had a little snap and took the "Ms. Congeniality" field sprint. I do not know how many of the group contested but it was nice to feel like I had some legs! And so a day of climbing was over. Crits tomorrow - hope I got something left! Stay tuned

Wheels on Willy 2010

2010-05-16T17:20:00.002-05:00

Start....

2010-05-13T11:22:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

I have been making the slow return to the ‘race’ scene after about six years away, other priorities of a young family. I am grateful to have the opportunity to ease back into it with the Fisher Midwest Road team. I have hit 3 crits so far this year and yes, that cronus is the best damn road bike I have ever ridden.

Next up is what may be as close to Euro hard man riding as you can get in the Midwest – Almanzo100 – I will be missing the classic spring crits in Madtown, but my diesel engine seems to work a little better at the longer events.

Time to switch to race mode – meaning you don’t just try to finish, you don’t just try to get into the top 5…. You need to be in it to win it… and make sure you are having fun at the same time.

If anyone wants to join me on a research trip next Wednesday (5/19) on the ‘Bones’ ride – let me know. 160miles in 8 hours.

Practice crit vs. Trails

2010-05-06T18:35:00.001-05:00

d.blomme

Warm day, very strong winds = hit the off-road trails with some good friends for a few hours. Makes for a perfect end to a weekday!

Man's Best Friend.

2010-05-01T15:49:00.000-05:00

http://evilxi.blogspot.com/2010/05/cronus-ultimate.html

WHEW!

2010-04-28T13:25:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
It was a tough weekend for the old guy but a good one for several of the men of Fisher. Seems Ma Nature was calling due the normally cold or rainy days she had been putting off during the week. This last weekend was cold, rainy and windy - so, of course some of us were going to go racing anyway. Saturday in Whitnall Park was the nastier of the two days. During the warm-up, I kept as close as I could to the back of my little Fit, trying to get a little shelter from the elements with the open hatchback. I saw Greg warming up and was glad that I would not be the only Fisherman out there. I had briefly thought about putting fenders on the new ride (yes fenders! The Cronus has attachments you can screw into the frame at the dropouts to attach full fenders - nice touch!) but spent the morning running around doing other stuff and did not get my act together. I did, at least, have the foresight to bring lots of extra clothes. In the my first race of day, the masters 3/4 Gregor, son of Fergu was the only teammate in a small field but he proved to be sufficient in and of himself. The legend of Gregor grows! He attacked repeatedly until finally he and Jeff from Team Extreme went away for good. That turned out to be a great choice for me as Team Extreme was very active blocking, making my life a whole lot easier. There were a number of strong riders in the field but I and Team Extreme let nothing develop and once Greg and Jeff were out of sight, the heart went out of the chase. The course had a nice little hill in it and I was looking at a day of hill repeats and so I decided to save my meager energies for the final sprint. On the last lap, a couple LAPT gents made a strong inside move up the hill early and it looked like it had promise so I followed but I should have been more patient - or better yet, had better legs! Greg was jumped while looking to see if the pack was in sight and could not claw back on the uphill finish but second was a noble finish on such a lousy day!
Maybe it rained during the race, maybe it didn't, who knows? Whatever - my teeth started chattering as soon as the engines shut down and I noticed a few fingers were white and numb and I was way glad to have dry clothes in the car. I fired up the engine and took immediate advantage of warm recovery beverage and dry clothes. I am not sure why I was not having second thoughts about doing the masters 1/2/3 race. Poor circulation to the head? Maybe. But out I went. Greg and Eric were out with me in another small field - oh well, not much of a chance to hide today and when you did hide, it was only to be in the spray of someone's rear wheel! Move a little to the right. Ah, there it is! Draft and no spray! Oops, there is the spray again. Things started quickly and several breaks tried and failed, all of which meant that I had to get my sorry self up that nice little hill at a pretty high rate of speed. Again and again and again. Finally, I ran out of again but did so with a few others who rapidly formed up a little chase group. Or in a couple cases, a sit-on group. Yep - towage. I figured if I was out there, I was going to work and if someone was going to sit on and then later drop my wet ass, so be it. However, I was hoping that the leaders would come by REAL soon so I could ride one less wet miserable time around the course.
Sunday was a better day and on home turf. Laps around Promega! As yesterday, a cold, wet and now really windy day made for more small fields but Madison is home to many Fishermen and we had a us a team in the masters 3/4 field! Greg, Barney, David B and myself lined up with hopes that the roads would stay dry-ish. It rained earlier but so far..... And again, it did not take long for Greg to make his presence felt. By now, he was a marked man, mostly because he was so often on the attack but also because his brothers on bikes were getting better and better at controlling the field once Greg was absent. And sho' 'nuff, Greg was off the front on a nice solo move about halfway in. We had shut down a few chases when a strong group of 3 jumped away while we were not in position to hinder and they quickly bridged up to Greg. Race over! Team Extreme had sent a lad and with both teams blocking, the chasing ceased. For the pack, the action did not re-heat till the last couple laps as we all were setting up for the showdown. Team Extreme was setting up and others were looking for their opportunities but Barney was making sure he was in good position and had David B on his wheel. I moved up to David's wheel to be sweep. Barney came around the last corner fast, taking David to the line. I slowed a tad but not so much that I could not overtake the sole Team Extreme person left between myself and the line. So it was David, Barney and myself 1-2-3 in the field sprint. Nice! Greg was showing a little vulnerability - finishing 3rd. And now time to prepare for the next race - food, drink, new number, thaw out a bit, back on the trainer. Did a few spin ups and was not generating power readily. Oh-oh. Rolled to the line and realized that I was tired. But before I could ponder that thought more, the whistle blows and away we roll. And way too fast for my liking! But I am sitting in, trying to get my legs underneath me, trying to stay out of the wind. Next time up the little hill, the perceived effort meter was saying "again?" and I turned to Greg who was riding beside me and said "f&ck it". I could suck it up and hang on for dear live only to get dropped in a few laps. I could then slog thru the wind till the pack caught me but the pack was small and it was likely going to drop me again. All I was going to do it I stayed in was dig myself a overtraining hole that might take the better part of the week to rest my way out of. Maybe it was working hard in nasty conditions the day before. Whatever. Sometimes ya gotta listen to the body. After the race (wherein it poured for about 10 minutes, making me feel oh so smart!), Greg came up and smiled and might have said something about wishing intelligence was contagious. Next week - Baraboo and La Crosse - and I am feeling pretty recovered from the weekend.

Dear FMRT Brothers,

2010-04-24T00:21:00.000-05:00

I'm "On Call" all weekend for Thoracic Surgery...

The "Bad News" is that I definitely can't race on Saturday, and probably not on Sunday either.

The "Good News" is that if there is a horrific crash in the field sprint, and some Jaggoff's piece-of-shite "Specialized" shatters and the seat stay pierces your chest and lacerates your Pulmonary Artery resulting in Exsanguinating Hemorrhage, I will be able to give you a sweet "Bro Deal" on a Thoracotomy.

Good Luck,

O.T.C.

GDVC 1 & 2 races

2010-04-20T22:21:00.000-05:00

d.blomme

All Hail GREGOR

2010-04-20T16:16:00.001-05:00

OTC

All Hail GREGOR, Son of FERGU, Tree-Tall and Bearded, who did Break Away with Two Rascallions in the Parc de Recherche Masters Category III Race, and in the Final Sprint did Get All Mediæval on Their Buttocks, thus Winning Great Glory for the Fisher Knights! Hail GREGOR Hail!

The fun begins

2010-04-20T15:09:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
This was the first heavy week of racing for me and many more are on the horizon. Last week, my legs were flat and I was hoping to make amends or at least have a good time. I wanted to get in a good short interval workout to open up my legs and come into the weekend fresh and my workouts seemed to have done the deed. Saturday was Menomonee Park - flat and serpentine but very windy. It was often tough to stay out of the wind as the pack shifted from one side of the road to the other. And whether it was a day of inattention, poor judgment or just plain bad luck (yeah, I am being charitable), many people met the pavement over the course of the day. I was expecting to see Barney at the line for the M3/4 race, only to find out later that someone slammed into him as the M4/5 race was winding up for its finale. So it was just me, Greg and Tom H at the line in Fisher black, red and white. And we seemed to waste little time in getting the crashing started. I immediately went towards the front, keeping my eyes open for opportunities and oh yeah, to keep outta trouble. But even in the front, it can get "interesting". I was riding more or less beside this one guy who was saying he was going to stay up front and outta trouble and lead it out on the last lap to avoid the clustering at the final corner. No sooner had the words come out of his mouth than WHAM! It was like someone pulled the bike out from under him, he was down that fast. I saw it out of the corner of my eye and had no clue why he went down. It was a relatively straight section, not much happening. I later heard that he hit a bump and his front wheel came out but ???? That seemed to wake up the pack - people decided that if we were going to be crashing, we might as well do it while racing! There were a few attacks that died in the cross winds until the guy who won last week moved up on the windward side strong and then it was a drag race. I was towards the front and saw Greg move away with authority and decided to let the gap open, find my own wheel and see if this would work. It did and the break was soon too far for anyone left in the pack to try. Bravo, Greg! The M1/2/3 was not as sweet for the boys of Fisher. Eric came in with power and fresh legs but got caught in the pack when the winning move went. Greg tried to help a few times. I confess I was happy to be hanging in!
The following day was back in Madison and I felt better than expected for the first race, the M3/4. We had an excellent contingent of guys in those stylin' Fisher kits - Greg, Tom H, Barney and a cast of Davids (Bloome, Studner and Greenblatt) so things were looking good. But I let my legs talk to me instead of my head too early in the race. A break of maybe 10 formed and was moving away. I think Greg was the sole Fisher rep. I took off with a couple others in a bridge attempt that just succeeded in waking up the pack who came by me while I was semi-hosed. I suddenly found myself fighting to stay on the back and failing. DAMN! But I could still help the team as lapped riders were not being pulled and so got ready for the pack to come by. But what do I see but another break with Greg and 2 others hammering 10 or so seconds up on the field. And then the pack with Barney, David S and David B controlling the field. I drifted back a little farther and went on attack patrol. Sure enough, for a while the attacks were constant. And it was so cool to see us all stifling any moves. If a wheel near me went, I sat on it. If one went from the other side, no worries. Someone was always there. Greg was a monster finishing it off for the win. And then to see Barney make a late attack work for him for 4th was sweet. Three-ish hours later I did the M1/2/3. The ONLY good thing about having to hang for so long waiting to race again was that I got to see the other races and the Fisher team doing well. Congrats to Matt Kamphuis winning the Cat 4 race and Jarred with another strong 3rd. I knew my race was not going to be fun - I could not generate power during the warmup and my stomach was way unsettled. And sure enough, I got unceremoniously shot off the back after about 8 minutes of racing. OUCH! But I was all dressed up and figured I had nothing better to do so went into a low level TT mode. 4 laps later when the pack caught, I was expecting to get spit out like a watermelon seed again but PRAISE BE, the legs had life again and I stayed until a few to go when I just plan ran outta gas. I came around the last corner, pedaling the whole way thru, right on my wheel, put on the power and the wheel I was following just rode away anyway. Dirk (looking good in his first race of the season) even gave me a little push but I was on impulse engines only! Fortunately, the team took me up on my offers of after race homebrews and the cooler was noticeably lighter carrying it back to the car. I am hoping we are establishing a tradition. I bring the beers and the team gets the wins!

Great Dane #2 -- Those Fisher Guys........

2010-04-19T23:42:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
Maybe it won't take as long as I was thinking. Last weekend we rode strong, but not quite as in synch as we would have liked in the Masters 3/4. Sunday's Great Dane Masters 3/4 was different. Six Fisher riders rolled up to the start....Ferguson, Bloome, Merrifield, Studner, Greenblatt and myself. I overheard a couple of riders to my left say "Jesus, those Fisher guys look like a pro team". I had to smile a little. All the work David, Todd and the rest of the Trek folks put in to get the team outfitted was paying off. Now we just had to ride like we knew a little about what we were doing. We agreed going in that we would always go with the breaks or try and make our own. After a couple of laps a variety of riders started launching. There was always a Fisher rider either doing the launching or jumping into the break. Eventually Big Greg got up the road solo and was quickly joined by two other riders. The rest of the Fisher crew went to the front to keep the pack in check and cover any attempts to bridge. Every time I thought I couldn't jump on another attack there goes David...or David.....or David......or Jim. It was very cool to watch. It was amazing how well we shared the work.

The break stayed away and Greg took the three up sprint for the win. A special Fisher shout out to Tom "Hawaii" Starr for a well deserved 2nd. I covered a late attack with 3 laps to go and we instantly had a gap. We worked together to stay away until he faded with 1 lap to go and I soloed in for 4th. The guys really worked well together the entire race and I think it is fair to say we made an impression.

The M3/4 proved so much fun that David B., David S and I decided to jump into the Cat 4 race and see if we could help Matt K. Perhaps the "old guys" provided inspiration? Matt won the sprint and his first crit. Well done Matt! David B and I decided to go for the triple and rolled up to the start of the Masters 4/5. The last race of the day proved uneventful and a good workout.

A good day of racing for the Fisher Midwest Road Team notching 2 wins. Chapeau!

Crash Tested -- Rider Approved Part Deux

2010-04-19T22:20:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
The Menomonee Park Crit was on the menu Saturday and I ordered up the Masters 4/5 and Masters 3/4 races. It was sunny, cool, but windy. A good, but narrow road with several twists and turns, throw in a very strong wind and you have a potential for problems if you aren't attentive. Tom Hooyer and I lined up for the Fisher crew with what appeared to be maybe 35 riders. My thought was to ease into the race and use it as warm up for the M3/4 race. The race progressed quietly with no one willing to attack with the strong wind. Tom and I nosed around the front of the group for most of the race.......with the idea of staying out of trouble. As we entered the bell lap I sat in 5th or 6th wheel as the pace picked up. As the riders on the front slowed in the wind I ended up rolling up to the front......not where I wanted to be going into the wind on the backstretch but, cest la vie. I kept going into the wind expecting at some point to have riders start coming around me, but no one was. I decided to keep upping the pace going into the last rise in order to go into the final corner on the front and let the chips fall where they may in the sprint to the line. It almost worked. As I crested the rise at the front I suddenly got hit from the back. Not sure if it was someone taking out my wheel but I did feel someone hit my shoulder. As I tried to pull it out someone else behind got into me and down I went. The fortunate thing was I ended up off the road and crashed into the grass. So much for staying out of trouble by being up front. I got up and checked things out. Bike OK, rider OK. Not the finish I was hoping for, but I walked away so I was lucky.

I've gotten in two training rides during the week and then Saturday's race on the Cronus and I am increasingly impressed with each ride. Saturday was a good test. The ride is super smooth and stiff. Corners like its on rails and accelerates effortlessly. It also survived the day's mishap like a champ.

More later.

Finally!

2010-04-19T17:53:00.001-05:00

m.kamphuis

The season might be young, but it seems like I've been waiting for a while to get a win on the skinny tires!

First things first. Saturday's race was windy and scary, and I think I can say that was probably the case for most people who attended. I was able to avoid the crashed and not ride through the gravel to finish close to the top 10 on Saturday. Pretty scary day, but I made it through with all my skin attached, so I was pretty happy.

Sunday was feeling good. b.sheafor, d.blomme and d.studner all lined up with me in the Cat 4s and were looking to set it up for me. When they asked me about the pre-race strategy, it dawned on me that this is what it's like to ride with a team! Plan was to grab d.blomme's wheel and be 3rd wheel coming through the last corner and come around for the sprint. With 5 to go the group was together and we were all lined up. Things got mixed up during the next couple of laps and we lost the lead out train, but I moved up and saw d.blomme was going to the front and keeping things from bunching up too much. Half way through the bell lap I grabbed onto an acceleration on the back side of the course. I was sitting 3rd wheel, perfect. A quick shout up to the front kept the pace high as we rounded the final corner. As we came out of the corner I stomped on it and quickly came around the two guys in front. Things were looking good. My cadence was slowing as we headed up the hill and there was a long way to go. I downshifted to keep the cadence up and was able to hold on across the line for my first win!

A big thanks to b.sheafor, d.blomme and d.studner for risking your skin the Cat 4s race! The help during the race and extra pressure was a real motivator for me. Also a thanks to j.merrifield for the celebratory beer (it was delicious)!

There were lots of good results this weekend, but what was really nice was the things that people had to say about our bikes, kits, and team. Things are shaping up nice and people are taking notice. Nice work team!

Go team!

2010-04-18T21:36:00.001-05:00

g. Ferguson

That’s one in the bank!

(Or actually 2, as Matt won soon after I did.)

Thanks to a lot of teamwork I was able to get the win today in the Masters 3 /4 race.

I attacked around 10 min in, and when no one came right away I kind of soft pedaled. That is until I saw 2 guys bridging up to me. Game on! So with about 30 min left the 3 of us worked together really well, while my teammates stymied any efforts to close the gap behind. We had only 15 sec, 14, sec, 12 sec, then 15, 20, 30, 37. Ok. This is gonna work. Time to start thinking about winning!

Not only did I win but Barney held on for 4^th, after chasing and then dropping a late attacker.

Thanks to the David’s (Blomme, Studner, Greenblatt), Barney, and Jim. I couldn’t have done it without you!

And congrats to Matt too. I believe he had a ton of support from the Fisher men too. But I’ll let him tell that story…

Crash tested -- Rider approved

2010-04-17T21:24:00.001-05:00

bsheafor

Sexy Beast

2010-04-14T22:38:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
Inaugural ride on the Cronus tonight. This thing is too cool for school.....:) I know the pic sucks, but I had to post one. Kudos to the design team...well done! More L8tr.

SWEET ride - the legs, not so sweet!

2010-04-13T15:23:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
The new ride is off the windtrainer and rockin'! Thursday night I went out and did some short sprints - 10 seconds of all out on a little downhill, try to get the power above 1K and then the speed and spin up. I figured nothing is gonna stress the system - bike and all the bolts I hope I remembered to tighten, shoes and legs - like a few sprints to make sure everything feels right before race day. I gotta say - the new Fisher ride just disappears underneath me. No creaks or groans, wobbles or any surprises. Well, I guess I should take back the surprise part. I was expecting a bit less comfort on my rear end. But for as stiff as the bike is, it was very nice, even as I sprinted over rough road surfaces (for a good test of system). Getting out of the saddle was really where I felt the stiffness in the fork and BB - all effort sent me forward. Nice! And light! I have no excuse not to be able to climb now - other than lack of climbing ability, of course.
So I had high hopes for Sunday and I was pretty excited (as my mates no doubt noticed) to get the party started. In the Masters 3/4 race, the team immediately got into the action with Barney, David S, Tom and Greg immediately moving up and setting the tone. I jumped away pretty early and waited as someone came up to join and we made a brief go of it before the pack reeled us in. Later, Greg made a strong solo move and I jumped away attempting to bridge. The jump was successful - did not drag anyone else along but the legs suddenly said "huh?" and I started to bog down. Time to go back to the pack. And that kinda cooked me - no more matches. I would like to say it was mechanical but it was clearly biomechanical! I tried to stay in the mix to help block or chase as need be but with minimum effectiveness. Bummin'. And at the end, my thoughts to help in the leadout sounded like a good idea but I was not there. Bummin' indeed! Greg and David (I still have sprinter legs) G were high in the standings thanks to efforts by the rest of the squad.
In the M1/2/3, Greg was repeating from the M3/4 with Eric and Dale coming in with fresh legs. And Eric was stormin'. He seemed to be involved in all the breaks and was constantly at the front. I wanted what he was eating. A few times I tried to move to the front to help block or whatever but the legs were not having any of it. I floated towards the front a few times but could not stay when the pack surged. I knew it was just a matter of time and sure enough, when the heat went up with 4 or so to go, I got spit out the back like sh&*^ out of a goose. And I had hardly caught my breadth when I see the break storming up, Eric in there with heavy hitters.
So time for me to re-group, re-assess, re-focus, re-something or another and get ready for next weekend. Let the legs recoup, do some short interval work to get the legs ready for some hard efforts and come in with fresher legs on Saturday.

H8tr Report

2010-04-12T11:52:00.001-05:00

M. Gehling

It was hateful. And hard. And I hate 3rd.

For those of you unfamilar with the H8tr 100/ M-B-M Spring Classic / M-B-M Hell of the South, its a "race" among friends run on the first weekend in April. The course covers 12 miles of unfinished bike path (read CX course conditions) and 33 miles of packed gravel bike path. Throw in an old train tunnel the requires a light to successfully navigate your way through and you've got yourself one hell of a bicycle race!

The Cronus was amazing and rolling on 28s was a big contributor to my finish. I'd forgotten how painful the start of races can be and this was a quick reminder of how deep the pain cave can actually go. Once we cleared the unfinished section it settle down a bit, but Mr. Popper kept the pace high until the turn around. The mountain stage seperated our group further, and by the time we were back on the unfinished section, we were down to five. One rider took a flyer in the wrong direction once we were off the trail and four of us ending up rolling into the park and sprinting for the top spot. The combination of volleyball pit / mushy grass field finish made things interesting and I was more than happy with my finish. Hopefully next year I can complete the set of H8tr trophies on the mantle and get the big "W".

Cat 6

2010-04-12T07:22:00.001-05:00

Is there a Cat 6? Because I just got my ass handed to me in a Cat 5 race. The GDVC #1 was my first race outing and it didn't exactly go as planned. Starting out with 30 seconds of me fiddling around with clipping in I was already off the back playing catch-up. I got up there in the top 10 or so for about a lap (yay!) - but quickly lost it being not sure how hard to push and when. Most of the other riders were all over the place...no wheels to hang onto. I stuck to the middle of the pack for about 3/4 of the race...then somehow I found myself in the back...and then off the back...and then...dropped. Lots to learn I guess - and I am only willing to try again because I am straight pissed that I didn't finish with the group - the race felt humiliating. I can handle 11hrs of Ironman, but somehow get my ass whooped at a 20min GDVC race. That should tell ya something: racing ain't easy.

-Hammond

Fisher Midwest Road Team WCA Debut

2010-04-11T22:24:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
The WCA season started on a gorgeous spring day with the first Great Dane Crit. I was eager to get out and race with the new team, dust off winter and see if any fitness was gained after competing in the "Tour de Basement" One by one the guys rolled into the parking lot. Greg, Jim, Tom, Keith, Matt, David B, David G, David S, Eric and Dale. Did I miss anyone? All but a couple of us sporting the new and fast looking Fisher Cronus along with the cool new FMRT kits. As we warmed up and lined up for each race we got a lot of comments on the new kits and rides.

First up was the Masters 3/4. The FMRT started with Greg, Jim, Tom, Keith, David G and myself. The guys were ready to roll and make an impact on the race which took Greg all of about half a lap. Greg's attack didn't stick, but it set the tone for the entire race. FMRT had guys attack several times during the race as well as keeping others from getting too far up the road. EXCEPT...for one guy that many didn't know was up the road and out of sight. So the remainder of the race was spent trying to organize a chase and ultimately racing for second place. In the end Greg ended up sprinting into the top 5 and David "Off the Couch" Greenblatt into the top 10. The race was fast and animated more than usual for a M3/4 affair and I think its fair to say the FMRT played a significant part in that.

Masters 4/5 was next and we lined up with Tom, David B and David S. A little more sedated affair than the M3/4 and a wild last lap with some leaning, bumping, squeezing leading to a scramble for position into the final corner. David B chose the right wheel to get on and sprinted his new Cronus to 2nd. I caught bits of a couple of other races and Matt looked good in the 4's taking a 5th I think....? And Eric gets the FMRT Ride of the Day award for getting into and helping drive the winning break in the M123 with Dale in a supporting role keeping the chase in check.

All in all a good debut for the Fisher crew. Hoping to build momentum from here. Stay tuned.

2010-04-11T14:01:00.000-05:00

race action @ research park...Go team Fisher!

j.cassady

Today's Weapon of Choice

2010-04-10T07:46:00.001-05:00

todd.bischoff.jr

And here is the pic.

Today's Weapon of Choice

2010-04-10T07:41:00.001-05:00

todd.bischoff.jr.

Scarfing a big-ass bowl of granola and getting in the zone for the Hell of the South today. It should prove to be epic.

2010-04-08T10:37:00.001-05:00

d. studner

thump thump.. Is this thing on?..

Howdy all, just thought today would be a good time to drop my first blog post anywhere, ever and I’m happy that it’s on the FMRT blog.

This year for me has been a year of new experiences and unknowns. Like a couple of my fellow teamsters I had a baby this fall, the first for me. She’s been the miracle that everyone tells you parenthood will be x100. It’s been so fantastic watching her learn and grow and she’s only 5 months old now. Every week it’s something new and something exciting.

One of the reasons I joined FMRT was to foster new motivation. Nothing motivates a bike rider like a new team kit and this team is filled with exactly the guys I would want to spend my time on the road with. Due to the experience in the last paragraph I spent the winter fitting workouts in where I could, riding in colder weather than I would because time was short. I was unsure and hoping that it would be enough to emerge in the early spring with some fitness to work from. The last few weeks I’ve been slowly turning up the steam, 4 weeks ago, riding the group ride and getting dropped when it got going fast, 3 weeks ago hanging in and getting smoked in the sprint, 2 weeks ago being right in there.

This week I was on the front. I made the 4 man selection and drove it hard so that it stayed away to the end.

So to answer the question I started this post with and all the questions I had for myself all winter;

Oh yeah, it’s on.

Out with the old. In with the COOL!

2010-04-07T20:42:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
I picked up the frame, components and assorted team stuff and just could not wait to build up the bike. The frame artwork is totally stylin'! The red, black and white color scheme does not jump out at you like a loud paint job would but the graphics are really striking. Very cool! Gotta take some pics when I can sit still for a minute. I thought when I was driving home that I would build up the bike and then brew a batch of imperial Russian stout. Ha! It's a good thing I do not make a living as a bike mechanic because I would starve! Slow, slow, slow. Part was that I was pulling parts off the old Orbea - I had bought some SRAM Red components last year - and part was that those parts needed to be clean before the Fisher frame would let them come too close. So the brewing was put off till the following evening. I got it all together except that the steerer needed to be cut down. Team prez David offered to do it at Trek for me and I figured it would be good timing - we were talking about a Tuesday evening ride and I was expecting the team clothing to arrive around that same day. I could combine all three! So I called the clothing supplier Voler to get a delivery date. OOPS! The clothing was being delivered to the wrong place! And it was too late to change. I was clothing czar for both the Fisher squad and the Brazen Dropouts and for the BD order, I arranged to have the order shipped to someone who needed to get some clothing ASAP. And I never thought that the delivery address would be switched for the Fisher order as well. Not a big deal as the delivery address was not too far from work - OK, I can still make this work! But no - that hoped for early Tuesday delivery did not happen. And the weather Tuesday kinda sucked so no Tuesday night ride but I did go out and got the steerer tube cut. One outta three ain't bad, I suppose. And don't ya know - as soon as I got in the car to leave Trek HQ, I got a call that the clothing had just been delivered. Back to Madison go I and then take the clothes to Promega (where work - much more centrally located) for later distribution. And then once finally home, put the Fisher on the windtrainer for the evening workout and to start getting the position dialed in. Argh! Nothing like starting an interval session at 8:30PM - that's about when I started after doing all the adjusting to get everything about where it needed to be.
The next day at work (today) was one where I seemed to say "oh, well" a lot. I had decided that though I wanted to ride into work, the weather would not allow and I kinda blew my legs out on the trainer. But I got up and it was not raining - and the radar looked OK and what the hell! I figured I could take it kinda easy on my legs and besides the afternoon would be better weather. Seemed like a good idea at the time. A friend used to say (and probably still does) that to get caught in the rain is an act of god but to go out in the rain is an act of stupidity. Today's box score - god 1, stupidity zero. At least I was properly dressed. And then at work, the plan was to spend my lunch break checking the clothing. The BD order was separated into bags for each person that ordered. I was expecting the same - oh, well! Now, if you have ever been the clothing czar for a squad, you will know what I am talking about. 20 people, 3 big boxes full of large, medium and small, full zip, hidden zip, bibs, no bibs, short sleeve, log, sleeve, sleeveless - yow!. If you just randomly put things in bags, the chances of getting ANYTHING right is essentially zero. It took all of lunch hour and then some. And I had one pair of shorts left over. And I knew it was not extra. But by the power of deductive reasoning - and then recounting HALF the bags AGAIN, I finally found who was shorted. Racing is SO much easier and at the time, racing seemed like it was far less painful! But it is done and Sunday is the first race as a team, in team colors, on team FISHER bikes. It is going to be AWESOME! News at 11.

How to really pimp your ride....

2010-04-07T15:20:00.000-05:00

d.rettig

If you have not already installed the drivetrain onto your Chronus – cross your shifter cables to interface with your frame onto the opposite sides of traditional down tube shifter mounts. This way your cable houseing will only contact your frame under hard cornering.

Left shifter cable housing should cross in front of the headtube and interface with the right side down tube shifter cable stop. Right shifter cable housing should cross in front of the headtube and interface with the left side down tube shifter cable stop. Then re-cross the bare cables back to a standard orientation before the cables hit the BB shell cable guide.

This will keep your steed looking sparkly longer!

This works with Campy, Shimano, and Sram systems.

2010-04-07T09:49:00.000-05:00

t. hooyer

I journeyed to Trek headquarters late last week where I loaded up my car with all sort of goodies. Upon returning home, my baby girl was sure happy to play with the sleek carbon frame and admire the shiny white Bontrager shoes. Now if I could only remember how to string the cables and size the chain I might be able to ride this horse by the weekend. Unfortunately, I had to tell my daughter that this bike is never going to tow her around in a Burley. Crying ensued so I promised her a pink Trikster when she's a bit older (http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/kids/ages_3_4/trikester/).

catching up.

2010-04-05T19:33:00.001-05:00

t.bischoff.jr

As much as I love world traveling, it really takes a lot of effort to keep your life in order. You can't just hop on a plane and pick up Tuesday where you would normally. Your conference call isn't in your time zone. Water is only out of bottles. Traffic signals are for reference only and beer is more than just a recovery drink--it's a business tool.

So after succumbing to the realization that my road bike was not going to be delivered to my room in China, I got the running shoes on and made a it a go for keeping some level of fitness. Keep in mind I hate running more than most, but have found that I have to do it up here to keep any semblance of aerobic fitness come spring. "Why not ski?" you ask. I do—but there are a lot of days with no snow or ice or rain or mud or any of a large number of non-skiing related blocks in place. One thing I am usually game for is an adventure. That has been the mindset that has got me really going out here in Wisco. Every day is an adventure as an athlete here. More on that at later dates.

So here I am in Shenzhen, it's 5:30 in the morning, and I am running out of the hotel in what appears to be a Batman costume without a cape or long sleeves. By the way—this Batman is pretty furry, too.

And out into the city I go.

Saturday Team Ride

2010-04-04T22:10:00.001-05:00

bsheafor
We had seven Fisher guys show up for our scheduled ride Saturday morning. Actually more than I thought would show. The weather forecast had been iffy and although it was cloudy (and of course) windy, it was dry and the radar was clear. The seven were (please let me get these names right) Eric, Todd, Matt, Keith, David, Scott and me. We met at Barriques on Old Sauk and headed west into the wind. A few miles of easy riding and chat led to Cross Plains. As we headed into the wind toward Mazo the guys soon fell into a pace line and shared the work....and without anyone suggesting it...:) Everyone just fell into place. A good sign for the upcoming season. After some time we swung south and finally got some relief from the wind. We headed up F and began the long climb to Brigham Park. We worked the hill pretty hard and then rolled back into the next valley and back up to Mt. Horeb. Some pace line work brought us back through Riley and we eased back into town and post ride mocha's at Barriques. They guys are riding well and I am looking forward to Tuesday's ride in Waterloo....and next weekend's racing.

Stay tuned.

2 flats and a dirty new bike...

2010-04-03T10:07:00.001-05:00

I made it out to Barriques (the wrong one by the way...I apparently didnt read the email very thoroughly!!) No one there to ride with of course so I figured it was starting at another Barriques somewhere (FYI there are 5 location in madison) ...so I rode out anyway, teamless. Great weather, albeit wet roads which along with racy tires- lead me to collect not one but two flats. Luckilly I wasnt too far from home...so I decided to throw in the towel. Until next time- tuesday eve perhaps!!?

-Hammond

Utah Spring Training

2010-03-30T10:27:00.000-05:00

Dale Humphrey

The Salt Lake/Park City area has been a regular stop of my due to prior corporate commitments. My travels (again, in the past) took me to the area every other week and I kept a bike there so I could enjoy the elevation and more specifically the long climbs that can be reached a short distance from the city center of Salt Lake. The run-up to Alta is very significant with a climb approach 12,000 feet from a base of about 4,000. The biggest differences this year were the temperatures (hovering near 35 degrees Fahrenheit) and my relative lack of training in oxygen deprivation conditions. Also, unlike the August runs, I simply made it to the top and drove down the mountain with my family. The speeds coming down can approach 60 MPH and I decided against that given the temperatures. Nonetheless it was a good time and significant checkpoint on my conditioning.

The remainder of my five day visit was spent in the Park City area which can be fairly sedate although I ventured into the Deer Valley resort area which is full of interesting climbs and $12M+ homes! Most folks were there for skiing or celebrity spotting and I was a curious invader as I snaked my way up the contours of a truly majestic area. Since I remain a multisport athlete my other training was dedicated to running. Same story here: too much elevation, too little oxygen.

Back in Wisconsin so we have shorter, more acute climbs but actually warmer temperatures.

2010-03-28T15:25:00.001-05:00

j.cassady
Thanks for the great ride today guys! (t.bischoff & brad) Any ride with a kwik trip stop is good one...

First race - and so it begins

2010-03-27T22:07:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
Perhaps you are thinking "didn't he JUST get back from a pretty long training camp in Solvang?" I was thinking exactly that when I was driving to the race this AM. Last year, under similar circumstances my legs were pretty damn flat. But the race is only about 35 miles from home, flat and more importantly, I had preregistered (cause I knew I would be waffling the day of). Fortunately, the weather was clear and I remembered how to dress for the less than ideal temperatures late March in southern WI presents. We are not in SoCal anymore, Toto. The first race, the 40+ field was a sit-in fest. A few folks tried to go up the road here and there but most seemed content to contest a 40-up field sprint. My legs felt surprisingly good (although I coudl tell I had no staying power) and I tried to stay in good position to be ready for any slides up the side but no opportunities to try to go with break attempts. And at the end, I got boxed when the speed picked up and decided not to sprint for 20th.
The 50+ race was more interesting. I rolled off the front at the start to see if perhaps something might come of it but only one person went with and apparently his job was to guard against just such moves. I aksed if he was sitting or working - back to the pack. A couple laps later, I again rolled out of the pack but this time, one of the strong folks rolled up. I would like to say we worked together but this guy was strong and it was all I could do to pull thru a few times and in the strong cross wind after an anemic pull, I lost contact. Like I said earlier - some speed but no staying power. In retrospect, perhaps a better strategy would have been to beg to just sit on, contest nothing and promise to work as much as I could. But maybe he was not looking for an anchor. He ended up soloing for the win. At least I semi-redeemed myself by taking a prime. And I would like to say (where have we heard that before?) that when I jumped from third position, no one could stay on my wheel but I suspect that I was the only one to have heard the bell AND that it was a pack prime cause I kept wondering when folks were going to go and when I looked back after crossing the line, I could have sworn that no one else even clicked up a gear. Well, an uncontested sprint victory is still a victory, right? At least something went right that day. In the final sprint, my good position evaporated when I was forced inside as we came up on a lapped rider, others were slowing and I was just not willing to risk threading the needle. Maybe later in the season after some bump drills? I still finished well but just gained back the positions I gave up moments earlier.
Still a good day for the old guy - legs better than anticpated, speed decent, reaquainted myself with pack dynamics and a good solid 1.5 hours of race pace. Now it is time for some recovery and then start working on speed and sustained speed. And get the new ride put together hopefully soon! Next race and first one that counts in a couple weeks!

2010-03-26T16:41:00.001-05:00

t. hooyer

Yep, that a photo of a compression plug and stem on my bicycle. That's not just any compression plug but one owned by Tommy Aldridge, drummer for the band Whitesnake. For all you uninformed youngsters, Whitesnake is one of the original hair bands of the early 80's and they can rock. If you want a taste of their music I suggest turning up the volume on your computer (especially if you're in a cubicle) and dial in to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=em-9utfGCqU.

So how did I get the compression plug from Tommy A? Well, during shipping of my bike to California my compression plug went missing. The small bike shop in Solvang didn't have a replacement so we were loitering around the front entrance when Tommy came along and was informed we needed a compression plug to commence our daily ride. Hating to see a potential ride ruined, he biked home and returned with a compression plug. As it turns out that when he's not drumming with Whitesnake or others such as Ted Nugent or Ozzy, he's out riding his bike around Solvang. We saw him several times out on the road over the next several days but never invited him to ride since he likes to ride solo. Unfortunately, I had to return the plug but I retain the fond memories of my brush with rock stardom.

A fond farewell to Solvang and Santa Barbara

2010-03-25T13:50:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield (not Bob)
Another perfect day on the sunny California coast but it is time to go home - sniff. I miss Jan and will be glad to get back home but damn it was nice to be out here. The bike is safely back is Madison, awaiting my return. Lucky timing on shipping the bike - I was planning on shipping the bike UPS, charging the return to the company I work for (to get their shipping rates) and then reimbursing and was figuring on about $100. But found out about a sale United was having with Fed Ex - $25 to ship the bike! All I had to do was buy the shipping on line and then get the bike to a FedEx drop off place. Thanks but no thanks, UPS. And even better - the bike I dropped off yesterday after we got done riding is now in Madison instead of on a 5 day ground journey (which was as cheap as I could do it UPS). So I will be able to race my Orbea on Saturday. Wish the Fisher was ready to rock but that is a little ways out. But I get ahead of myself.

What a great trip. Great weather - no Pillsbury doughboy costumes. No numb feet! A lot of strong riding and climbing. We met a couple great people - Matt and Sam from Cleveland - and rode with them a lot. No one got attached by mountain lions. Lots of good meals and great smoothies. Hopefully, we kept the Thai place in Goleta in business for another year. Few flats or mechanical issues. The saddle did not turn into the tool of Satan. Have not counted up the riding miles but hour-wise, we were well over 30. Lots of strong pace line work - such a nice change from riding by myself or in the house and always a little interesting as you and other people start remembering how group dynamics work again. Did a lot of leadouts and sprints and feel like I am starting to get the leadout thing dialed in. Earlier in the week, I was totally not gauging distances and capability, mostly starting to wind it up from too far out and then whimpering and dying way too far from the end. And could the jump be starting to come around?

We went out to Jalama Beach the day after climbing Figeroa - about 70ish miles from Solvang - with the whole crew. The intro climbs were not bad but on the long grinder, I just was not feeling perky and was overdressed, thinking it was going to be cooler by the beach. Stopped and shed a layer (wished I had gooped with sunblock so I could wear the short sleeves) and then felt much better and went into pursuit mode and had just about caught Dave and Tom when Tom got a flat and so cruised with them the rest of the way to the beach. Then it was Jalama burgers for all but moi as I had suffered death by burger the last year on the ride and well remembered it. Whether it was the onshore breezes helping up the climbs or the choice of bringing a bagel to eat on the break or just maybe jumping on the back of an RV for an extended motorpace is hard to tell but I actually felt great going up the long grade, much better than in the AM. And felt good when we regrouped and got the pace line thing going. Tom and I managed to stay with Eric, Matt and Barney till we hit one of the last gentle rises with a few miles to go when the legs said "the dilithium crystals are toast, captain" and the line drifted away. Recovery ride back to Solvang and smoothie-land.

After a rest/recovery day when I explored State St in SB (my, but it is no longer the sleepy little place it was 25 years ago!), we did the Gibraltar Rd ride from Goleta. Another glorious day but I found myself wishing for a little cloud cover on the 45-50 minute climb to Calle Cielo Rd. We had wanted to do a more extended ride from there and perhaps we would have been better off going east and then turning around at some point but we wanted to explore to the west, hopefully descend Refugio Rd, checking out that climb for next year. I talked to a ranger at a decision point who let us know that the proposed route would have worked with mountain bikes but he was doubtful about our road gear. So discretion won out over valor (maybe next year with tourign tires) and we road back up to Painted Cave Rd and descented back to SB with Matt and Eric thinking about Gibraltar 2.0. So off we went to the base of Gibraltar again. We were about there when the cumulative miles pushed my percieved effort meter into the no-longer-fun zone and I said adios. It is not often I feel like a weenie after a 4 hour ride but after 11 days of riding, I decided to cut myself some slack. And we had one more day of riding and it was going to be just Eric, Barney and I and I knew who was at the bottom of that food chain. A couple hours, a blueberry/peach smoothie, a hot tub soak, a Sam Smith Imperial Stout and Thai food later, and it did not seem like sucha hard day after all. And to satisfy your curiosity, Eric and Matt did battle each other one more time up Figeroa and and Sam. with Barney's accompanyment, fulfilled her need to get in a 5 hour (or was it longer?) ride. And the next day, we all seemed to be at comparable strength/ambition/energy (I even had a sprint and a couple leadouts in me), so backing down the day before made me feel smarter than I am!

Now it is time - off to the airport for a hopefully uneventfull return to reality. Sniff.

Solvang Training Camp

2010-03-19T23:53:00.001-05:00

bsheafor

We've been in the Solvang area for the past five days and the riding has been great. But we knew that before getting here. This is our third year in Solvang to gain some fitness and tune up for the upcoming race season. The weather is perfect and the roads varied and relatively quiet. We arrived on Monday and have been getting in 3-4+ hour rides each day. Spent the first day riding in the San Luis Obispo area. The last few days have been riding the familiar roads of the Santa Ynez valley. The only bummer is not having our new Fisher rides and kits here, but all good things must wait. More to come...stay tuned.

Life is good. Climbing......

2010-03-19T11:03:00.001-05:00

Jim Merrifield
Spring training in Solvang, CA. Perfect weather, good food and good beer. Good training partners, too. I flew in Monday afternoon and the bike was there waiting for me - hurrah! After we all spent a bit getting the bikes reassembled and set up, it was off for a nice shakedown ride. I had ridden 3 hours both Saturday and Sunday in WI so I was aiming for a lighter ride. Eric and Barney were rested and ready to light it up - time for me to be in wheel sucking mode. And at one point, I said "I be turning back" and ambled my way back to Los Olivos where we regrouped and then headed back to Solvang.

Tuesday, we met up with Andrew in San Luis Obispo. He had driven down from Palo Alto and the plan was to do a nice 3 hour ride, easy pace as Andrew had not been riding as much as we had. Then we would get dinner down in Solvang and go to the Santa Barbara airport to meet the 4th member of the squad out for the training camp. Well, don't ya know that nothing went as planned - got a late start and kinda threw a route together. To make the ride a little more entertaining, we did random sprints - trying to the wattage over 1K. Ended up in Pismo Beach and stopped at Avila Beach for food - or at least the others ate. I had been munching away on the ride and just needed liquid. And glad I did not eat. Remember that 3 hour ride we planned? Well, about 10 minutes after the break and well over the 3 hour point, we hit the climb over the coastal range - See Canyon Rd and Prefumo Canyon. I was feeling pretty decent. Others were grumbling about the blood being in their stomachs, not the legs. And the ride ended up being a good 4 hours of moving time and with the breaks it had gotten quite late in the day - just time enough to buzz back to Solvang, shower up and get to the airport to meet Tom. But the Thai place near the airport (and a favorite spot from last year) was open and so all was well that ended well.

The next day, Andrew came to Solvang. Eric, Barney, Tom and I did an early AM ride for 2 hours to do some higher paced riding. Did some nice fast pace line work - sweet! lots nicer than watching the basement walls - and then met Andrew for another 2. Tom kept saying "you are not going to make me ride 70 miles my first day, are you?" and "I am turning around now." The replies were "yes" and "no" - you're fit Tom. You just did the Berkie! A little beer therapy and a good Italian meal at another favorite place from last year and all was well with the world.

The wellness factor did not last real long the next day, however, for me. The plan was to climb Figeroa Mountain from the steep side. I did it a couple times last year from the opposite side but remembered some steep pitches on the descent. Memory did serve - damn, they were steep for me. And even where it eased off, my 39x26 was not quite low enough to spin. I was out of the saddle way too much. It did not help that the bottom was arguably the steepest section and took some of the power out early. A few times I found a rhythm but whether it was a lack of gears, strength, fitness or what, it hurt! There was a crew of tri camp folks doing the climb and one woman was riding at close to my pace. She had the gearing I wanted - spinning nicely - and we chatted a little, I trying to take my mind off being tired. Then we would hit a steeper section and I had little choice but to stand and would ride away. About 5 minutes of this and I would have to stop to get my pulse back under control. And just as I would start feeling a little human, I would hear "come on, cheese head - no resting" and would see her spinning past. At least the others were not having a much better day - or at least claimed to not be having a lot of fun. All but Tom that is. He brought up the rear but must have had gearing he liked as he was saying how much he liked that climb.

So with legs a-hurtin', I rode recovery back to town and brought out the stick and worked over the legs for a while - damn! even that was tiring! I better get some serious eating action going! But life remains good. Today, we will do an easy couple hours and I will take it easy. Not a cloud in the sky again. The arm warmers are tucked safely in the dresses and the sunscreen liberally applied. And memory of the climb fades as we decide when the next climbing day will be.

2010-03-19T10:52:00.001-05:00

t.hooyer

Nutrition, power output, and tender loins .... the essentials for a successful training camp in California.

Style

2010-03-18T23:16:00.000-05:00

d.blomme

Final art approval for team kit.

early season saturday hurt locker.

2010-03-13T18:00:00.000-06:00

evil wisco. oh you nasty, grueling yet beautiful wisco. every year, she reminds us who she really is by unleashing the pain on my ass. the kind that is forgotten by a long winter snug inside our houses. the kind of evil that legends are made of. the kind of evil that teaches respect.

let's start from the beginning. an early 7am start, with the Fish between my legs, we pedal out for lengthy 90+ miler westward with some local yet notorious evil doers...and for the first few miles, I thought "hell yes -- life is good! this is no problem...sure it is 40 degrees, pissing rain with 20 plus headwinds...but this is living!"

As we clicked along, through the first of the thawed cow deposits and then up and down, up and down, up and down through all of wisco's best rural hideaways... pop. the infamous and inevitable pre-season bonk of a lifetime that puts you back in your place. how could this possibly happen?

lessons learned:

a) people do not and should not go out in the march rain and ride 90+ in hypothermic conditions.

b) a sedentary off season will kill you.

c) for my associates (who aren't from this planet), there is no off season, and they have the kick sticks to prove it.

after seven soggy and shivering hours in the saddle, only 1 fuel stop with our friends at Kwik Trip, my ride came to a close. as for my evil com-padres, that was fun. let's do it again (when it is a little warmer and I have a few more miles under my belt). thanks for the ass kicking.

Bontrager and Smith Optics arrive

2010-03-09T12:09:00.001-06:00

d.blomme

The team's pallet of Bontrager equipment showed up today along with some sweet Smith Optics sunglasses to try on from our sponsor.

CA Dreamin' Also

2010-03-09T11:37:00.001-06:00

Jim Merrifield
The XC skis have been put away. I am pre-registered for the first local race of the season on March 27th. I am all set to head out to Solvang, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara for some riding. Or that is what I thought when I went to bed last night. And while tossing and turning, I started doing the math. Let's see.... want the bike waiting for me Monday, going to ship the bike ground (traveling with the bike on United is $175 EACH WAY! Yow!), gonna take 5 days. OH HELL! I better ship it tomorrow! I could perhaps pack the case in the AM but now I TOTALLY can't sleep. Pack the bike. That is the easy part. Then there is all the stuff I want to put in the carrier. I figure if I am going to ship the bike, I might as well put damn near everything in it so the plane trip is not a baggage schlep-fest. So while the cats are watching me, I am gathering all I need. Or at least hope I am remembering it all. Into the garage, out of the garage, in, out, in, out. Gotta take sunblock, bag balm, how warm is it gonna be? Better put in some extra tubes and a tire. Is that a 9 or 10 speed cassette on the powertap wheel? - oh hell, throw in a 10 and change if needed. Two pair of shorts or 3? Leg warmers. How cold is it gonna be in the mornings? What kits to wear? Unfortunately the Fisher kits are still in production so gotta go with a past teams colors. Which shoes? What am I gonna wear this weekend before I travel out? Gotta keep SOME clothes here! What am I gonna RIDE this weekend? I'll worry about that this weekend! Finally about 12:30, I get the bike box buttoned up and am ready to go BACK to bed. Ah, to sleep, perchance.....

CA Dreamin'

2010-03-08T16:37:00.000-06:00

g.ferguson

Back in the Flatwest, after a solid week of “camp” in Santa Rosa CA.

300+ miles of wine country riding, with more climbing than on my last ski tour.

Photo from Highway 1, after Coleman Valley and Harrison Grade; with Willow Creek still to come on the way back to Santa Rosa. Uh, Willow Creek is not really paved, for those that think road biking is only for the road!

F Mr T

2010-03-04T00:44:00.001-06:00

New Whip

2010-03-03T15:51:00.000-06:00

M.Gehling

Fisher Cronus Ultimate. 16.2 lbs with my Powertap wheel. That doesn't suck.

More thorough review in a few days. Initial impressions this weekend were somewhere between kickass and awesome.

Winter retains its icy grip

2010-03-03T08:53:00.001-06:00

Jim Merrifield
Yeah, I found that out this AM. But where did it all start. Possibly with unresolved feelings towards my father but to bring it a little closer to the present, I had a conflict - the coach assigned a 2 hour ride and I had a cooking class to attend after work. Now, I was not going to miss the cooking class. Besides the fact that I had already plunked down the money, it was too sweet a deal to pass up - one gets to sip wine while watching an instructor prepare and explain the intricacies of some meal. Samosas was on tap - Indian appetizers - YUM! And then one gets fed whatever was prepared. Jan and I have gone to a few with one or more friends and it is a fine evening's entertainment to say nothing of the food and wine.

But I wander - so what was I to do to get in the ride? I was not going to get on the wind trainer at o'dark thirty and ride 2 hours. And riding on a spin bike at work was similarly unappealing and not going to work with the meetings planned. The obvious solution was to drive to Stoughton (30 minutes from home) where the class was, spot the car and ride to work. Then I could ride to the class after work, have clothes and car waiting. The afternoon was slated to be sunny and warmer than it has been in a while and the morning - well, the sun would be up and 20F did not sound too bad. I have ridden when it has been colder.

Got up in the AM and checked weather.com - they claimed 19F - and reminded myself of the route. Ate and got in the car (getting nicely light out) and noticed the car thermometer said 12F. But in half an hour, the sun would be up, the birds chirping and the temperature would be better, right? As I am driving, I see the thermometer wavering between 10 and 12F. Parked the car, got out. The thermometer was not broken. It was BRRRR cold. Too stupid to change plans at that hour so I got on the bike after putting on a third hat and if I had not been thinking OH DAMN IT IS COLD, I would have been thankful for remembering to wear a thermal vest as well as the other 3 layers. I knew it was not quite cold enough but I kept looking to see if my snot rockets were freezing in mid air as evidenced by their bouncing off the ground. I was PRAYING for an uphill to get the heat flowing and the wind chill down. Hoped my brain would not freeze and make me forget the route.

And then a strange thing happened - I started to enjoy the ride. Now I admit that it took a while - about 15 minutes for my fingers to turn the corner on numbness and to not have to push to get the furnace working - but it was crystal clear and bright. Not a cloud in the sky. No head wind, no sleet, no grey from horizon to horizon and beyond like it was on Sunday. And I will admit that when my feet went numb, the pleasure was diminished but it was still a dang sight better than my harsh mistress, the windtrainer. Now if the afternoon will only be as warm as predicted. I KNOW I have warm enough clothing!

Great Wall of China

2010-02-27T04:37:00.005-06:00

t.heal

I've been on a business trip this past week and was getting tired of running on the hotel treadmill. One of my co-workers suggested we ride up to the Great Wall and I eagerly accepted. We made our way out of Beijing at 7am in a fog so dense you couldn't see five feet in front of you. It was interesting to be part of the morning "commute" with the other cyclist. As the miles rolled on, the temperature began to rise, lifting the fog and revealing the true China. People say a bike can take you places but I would have never guessed it could take you through time. We passed through several villages that haven't changed for 80+ years. There were workers riding in their donkey drawn carts, farmers picking up sticks for their stoves and street vendors selling their winter squashes. As we neared the bottom of the climb, my co-worker got a flat. Twenty minutes later and we were off again. Little did I know that the last 12km are all up hill. After many Wisconsin winter days and the cool down, this body wasn't ready to climb. The pain was worth it when we rounded the last switch back and could see the Great Wall staring down at us. At the top we paused for a picture by a temple before heading home. All in all we rode 72 miles in 35 degree weather with only one pit stop at a Chinese Shell gas station (that's another story). It was a grand way to spend a workday in China.

Pimping my ride this year....

2010-02-24T12:13:00.001-06:00

d.rettig

Ready for some serious throw down this season.

Going all out with the Rival group this year…..that is commitment!

50/34

11-28

Serious daddy gears……

Time for the DFE diet!

2010-02-22T07:02:00.001-06:00

Jim Merrifield
OMG - last weekend, I got on the scale and the numbers were not pretty - 161. Not where I wanna be. With limited power, I need to keep the weight down if my power to weight ratio is going to allow me to keep up with the boys. I like to race in the low 150s. How did it happen?!? Could have been the 2 dinner parties with accompanying fermented beverage consumption last weekend? Its not like I have been pushing the upper body weights when I was trying to get a canoe racing body. Back then, I was racing, canoe racing that is, at 175 or so and was at about the same body fat as when I am bike racing - about 5%. No, I have been doing more flexibility and endurance lifting, upper body wise. And while I have been doing a lot of leg work, mainly incline leg press, in the gym, I can still fit in my jeans. So I can't blaim it in newly massive thighs. In truth, the weight has been slowly creeping up over the winter. Must be the dreaded hand to mouth disease!
So it is time - the DFE diet - Dont Freakin' Eat! I figure if folks on wife Jan's favorite TV show, the Biggest Loser (which she refers to as Fat People Jiggling), can do it (lose significant poundage quickly), I could too. Now, its not like I did not eat - gotta have fuel in the tank - but I stopped mindless knoshing at night. DAMN - I LIKED that knoshing. Might (ir might not!) have been decent food but it was calories. And I was a little better about the type of calories. And I started getting on the bike more and longer. I have been on the wind trainer pretty regularily over the winter but instead of warming up for 15 minutes before doing my intervals, I made it a 30 - 45 minute warmup. And then would roll longer after the intervals were over. In fact, I got in a few 2.5 hour sessions. And I started getting on the spin bike in the company gym at lunch time, at a low aerobic level or recovery pace to both help my legs get ready for the efforts in te evening and to add to the base miles. I figured if I did not shed the weight now when I was more in a base miles/long intervals mode, I would have to do it later when I was trying to do a lot more high intensity work. And I have learned that I can not both lose significant weight and recover from short intervals and races. Nope, now was the time!
Well, kids, it worked and is working. I am down to 153 after about 10 days of the DFE diet. And my resting pulse rate has dropped a couple beats to what I expect later in the season - about 37. Could I be getting fit? Hope so. I am feeling pretty good. The first race will be in a little longer than 1 month. And this weight loss is despite having a fine dinner party Saturday with a bunch of friends. I cooked up a Vietnamese food feast. Of course, nothing was anything I had made before. I have been in Thai mode for the last few parties and decided it is time to branch out. Is it possible to stay at a good weight and party on occasion? Will have to explore this more thuroughly! Now, back on the bike!

Inspiration.

2010-02-18T07:57:00.002-06:00

Spending some time in the bay area is always an eye opener. This time my tour guide is installing the inspiration in the right places. We were lucky to have 70 degree+ days, clear skies and no flats. Now the real work begins.

RE: Finally - a road race groupo for me!

2010-02-17T14:17:00.001-06:00

d.rettig

I know you are trembling in your boots already…..

Finally - a road race groupo for me!

2010-02-17T14:09:00.000-06:00

d.rettig

I know you are trembling in your boots already…..

What was I thinking?

2010-02-15T15:32:00.001-06:00

Jim Merrifield

I am not sure what came over me. Perhaps it was the notion that the first race of the season is all too close. Or perhaps that Eric, Barney and Tom are going to lay a serious hurtin' on me during our training trip to sunny California in a few weeks. Or just maybe it was that I am sick of being in the basement on the windtrainer. In any case, I decided that it was high time to get out on the road and get some miles in. Course, I could not just ride from the house. That would have made too much sense. Nope! I decided I needed to get in a little XC skiing (gotta take advantage of snow when snow is there) and THEN ride home. Wife Jan said "I'm gonna ski and then get on the river and do some paddling" (she races flatwater canoe) and I certainly did not want her to get in more exercise than me. At least I was smart enough to plan on skiing classic rather than skate and pre-trash my legs. I am lousy on skate skis and waddle up hills where as on classic skis, I am reasonably efficient and can ski at a reasonable constant output.

So Jan and I met friend Kay and headed out to McMiller, 40ish miles from home, depending on the route. I decided to scout a few of the road I was planning on riding on the way there. A good thing - they were totally snow and ice covered. Not ideal for 23mm road tires. And though it was sunny and relatively warm in the woods, I was noticing the wind was a little stronger than predicted. And I was locked into a headwind the whole way. We skied about 1.5 hours and then it was time. "Have a good ride, honey" and the car was gone. Hmmmm - what route to take. Attempt the back roads and perhaps have to walk sections or backtrack? I had crashed on a snowy descent on the road last year and tore a rotator cuff, something I did not want to repeat. Or ride the wide, dry shoulders of major roads? Not peaceful but no surprises. Go for dry roads, at least at the start, I told myself.

Once on the bike, my legs actually felt pretty decent. And by gawd, it is sunny out! I had dressed just about right - not too cool and not too warm. I had a camel back of warm liquid on my back under my jacket and a pocket full of my favorite instant energy. Life was good. The power meter was not inspiring but it was supposed to be a nice aerobic ride. About two hours later, the head wind I had been ignoring at the start of the ride was still with me and I was wishing I had dressed just a wee bit warmer. My feet were numb and the cold had crept into my thighs. Pulse rate and power were the same and I had about 30 minutes of known back roads to ride. No problem but I was fanaticizing about food - what I would eat FIRST? Or should I get in the hot bath first? And all those little chores I was going to do when I got home - HA! I got in and as I am shedding clothes, I notice I have the total reverse red raccoon thing going on - white eyes where the sunglasses were and the rest of the face red with cold. Carla (our Bengal cat) said ROWL! (loosely translates as FEED ME). Decision made - EAT! I was just starting on my second helping of leftover Thai when Jan got back from the river. "How was your ride?" "A good first road ride of the year." And so it begins.

Bontrager spreading it on thick

2010-02-12T10:13:00.001-06:00

d.blomme

Our latest team meeting gave us an opportunity to check out our sponsor's offerings for the coming race season. We'll be well covered.

FMRT Development Squad

2010-02-11T22:33:00.001-06:00

d.greenblatt

The Brazen Dropouts cycling club and Trek Bicycle Store of Madison are launching a new junior road & cyclocross bike racing team, the Junior Dropouts. The team will be coached by Gordy Paulson of Paulson Performance Cycling, LLC. Interested kids and parents are invited to attend an informational meeting to be held on Wednesday, February 17, at Memorial High School in Madison. Please spread the word!

Download a PDF flyer here: http://tinyurl.com/yjpvygk
For more information, email brazendropouts@yahoo.com

Junior Dropouts

Website: http://brazendropouts.org/members/juniors

Blog: http://juniordropouts.blogspot.com/

Facebook page: http://tinyurl.com/ya4jw6h