What's New?

Well, I finally got around to updating. Riding has been going well. I have split the time between the cross bike and the mountain bike. I spend half of my time going pretty long on the cross bike for Dirty Kanza training, and tossing in a couple of trail rides to keep some level of skill. Last weekend was race number two on the year. A bunch of us went up to Smithville lake, north of Kansas City for the Bone Bender. It was a 6 hour mountain bike race. The course was in excellent shape, and it was a lot of fun. I was quite surprised by the number of riders that showed up for this event. It is only the second year for this race, and it was reported that there was around 300 riders! The event started with the traditional Lamond's start. I got my usual terrible start for this type of race which made for a very congested first lap. After the first lap I settled down into a nice pace for the day, and felt Strong until the finish. I noticed that their was a noticeable improvement in my fitness from the first race, and was quite happy with the people that I was surrounded with at the finish of the day. After a long afternoon on the bike, I put down two NOS before the trip home, and boy, they put some fuel into the tank and the ride home was a breeze. If things continue the way that they are, I should end up being a pretty good season. Up next on that schedule is the Wilson Lake Fat Tire Festival this weekend. It is always a great event that is held on some of the most awesome trails within a day's drive from home. Their is also a high level of competition, due to the face that the Chambers family puts on this event.

I am still trying to get some quality miles in for the Dirty Kanza coming up on June 5. The event has grown to the point that their is a elite field that show up to toe the line. I am really excited to see what I can let loose that day, now that I will be competing in the Masters 50+ division. Stay tuned to see how things progress!

Peace Out!

No News

Well, their is not much going on this past week. Since Arkansas, I have just been getting in some regular miles. It took about a week to totally recover, but since then things have been good.

I am starting to get excited. This coming weekend a lot of us Team High Gear members are going to Smithville Missouri to the Bone Bender 3/6. Looking at the weather, it looks like it will be dry with the temperatures in the mid 60's. Quite nice for this time of the year!

Should be able to get some good mileage in the legs for the Dirty Kanza that is coming up June 5! Oh yea, the new kits came in this past week and they are REALLY sweet!!! Shawn down at IM Designs always does a super cool job. Check back next week for the results of the bone bender, and pictures of the new kits! Till then, get out and enjoy the awesome weather!

Peace Out!

Well, here we go again. The same old song and dance......I am just plain LAZY about updates! Having a lot of fun on the bike lately though. A bunch of us Team High Gear members went to Arkansas for the Ouachita Challenge last weekend. Being the first race of the season, you just don't know what to expect. For the most part the team did well. As for myself, I felt good the entire day, and felt like except for on little error, I rode well on the day, climbing sections that I was not able to climb last year, and actually feeling good when I crossed the finish line, unlike last year when I was totally trashed!

I am a little confused about my performance. When I crossed the line I felt like I did really good. When looking at the numbers the next day, they were OK, but not what I was expecting to see. As for the course, it was 5 miles longer with 400+ more feet of climbing. My average speed was pretty much what it was last year. My average heart rate last year was 163, this year it was 160. The big difference was in the final placing. Last year I placed better, but I was still in the top 50%. I think part of it was the field was extremely stacked with HIGH quality riders. The plan was to keep a closer eye on what zone I was working in for the day so I did not hit the wall again. I was able to do this. Could I have worked harder on some of the climbs? Probably. Could I have been able to place better? Maybe. But that is all water under the bridge. The main thing is that I felt good about myself out their, and rode strongly this year. I am content with what happened, and look forward to returning next year. This is one kick butt race, and am up to giving it a try again.

As for the rest of the team, Aaron Elwell was a BEAST. He crushed it on the day, and just missed out on a sprint finish to finish third on the day! That is awesome considering the riders that were their. Garret and Tim also did extremely well, placing around the top 50 riders on the day! Dusti did well also placing in the top 74, and Dustin and Randy were right their with me putting in a good showing. Especially Dustin. He did the race on a rigid single speed! Don't know how he was able to pull that one off.

Well, their are a couple of more race opportunities that are coming up in the next couple of weeks. Both within a few hours drive from here, and I an looking forward to getting in a little more work in on the local scene! Check back again for the newest 411!

Peace Out!