UVU Spring Classic

The weather this past week has been cold and rainy with plenty of snow in the mountains.  I was able to get up and ski last Tuesday which I loved but I didn't get to ride much outside on the bike.  It's been a bit frustrating on the bike due to the combination of the weather and a problem with my front Zipp 303 Firecrest wheel.  The whole wheel thing is a long story and deserves a post dedicated to that experience but it's still unresolved so I'll wait to see how it turns out.  It's enough to say that I'm not happy with Zipp right now but I'm giving them a chance to make it right before I give the full account.

Saturday I was lucky enough to race in the UVU Spring Classic in Utah County.  Again, the weather was not the best and we got rained on a few times but nothing terrible.  This was a first time race for me so it was an adventure for sure.  Familiar roads, as I had ridden with Jen around the Goshen area a few times last year but we had never done the climb up to Eureka and it is there that I got dropped by the leaders near the bottom of the climb.  I felt decent once I got into my climbing rhythm but it takes my body a while to get there.  I worked with 2 other guys on the way up and we agreed to stay together because we knew we'd have the wind on the long flat roads to deal with once back down.  I was glad we did because I think those flat roads were much more miserable than the climb up the canyon.  One thing I didn't do on this first road race of the season for me was eat properly.  I felt myself loosing energy and getting really hungry nearing the end.  It was a 58 mile race and had 1 gel which wasn't enough for me.  Lesson learned.  I don't know how I did place wise since they haven't posted results yet but I am happy with the sub 3 hour finish.  The Cat 4 race group was quite small which was another new thing for me.  Last year every race I did seemed to have lots of Cat 5 racers.  Even this race had a bunch of Cat 5's compared to our group.  I think I like the smaller group.  I'll be interested to see if it stays that way in future races.  The next one for me (besides crit races) will be the Antelope Island Classic in 2 weeks.  I'm looking forward to that.

Oh, I forgot to mention, I've put my name in for Lotoja again.  I'm going for Masters 35+ this year. It should be interesting, that is if I get in.  I'll find out in May.

New Band Video.

Here is the music video we shot for the song "Two" off the album "Aligned."  As you might be able to tell it was shot in my basement.  I read one comment on youtube saying the video was "as true as you can get."  I laugh because I know they're right.  If that's a good thing or not, I'm not sure. Enjoy.

First Ride Up Butterfield This Year.

Last Wednesday I planned to do the DMV crit race but due to unforeseen events I didn't make it.  Instead I went on a local ride up Rose Canyon and Butterfield Canyon.  The gate is still closed at the bottom of Butterfield so the ride was about as peaceful as you can get.  I didn't see another soul the entire time.  I saw some wild turkey and deer but that was about it.  There were a couple of fallen logs across the road but nothing too bad.  I was able to only go about 3 miles up due to the snow that covered the road but it was well worth it.  I snapped a couple of pics once I couldn't go any further.  I was at just over 6,000 ft at this point.  After this I rode for as long as the light held until finally going home.  Great ride and I can't wait to do it again.

Quick self-portrait.  It was getting cold at this point.  Around 33 degrees.

The point in the road where I had to turn around.

First Crit Race of the Season

Saturday was the first crit race of the season for me.  It went well enough for the first race.  No crashes which is my first goal but I've learned to position myself a little better in these races and in doing so it makes for a better day.  I finished somewhere in the middle of the pack but I didn't get dropped and that's better than this time last year.  It could be that the flight is easier this year compared to last year but I like to think it's because I'm getting better.  I rode for about an hour before the race as a pre-race warm-up and I think that helped too.  I've learned that for me it takes a while for the legs to feel good throughout a ride so I'm realizing how important it is for me to get a good warm-up especially for a race like the one on Saturday where it seems you just jump right in at full pace.

Infinite Cycles Team in Saturday's RMR Crit.  Photo Courtesy of Danny Staten.
(I'm on the far right on the white Focus bike.)

Yesterday was a beautiful Easter with perfect weather.  It was a great Easter weekend spent with family.  I got a new Garmin Edge 510 for my bike and I've had a chance to use it on a few rides and so far I'm impressed.  A lot of useful information and paired with a heart rate monitor it will add a new dimension to my training.  

I also wanted to report on our ski day last week.  Such a beautiful powder day.  A typical spring dump of 2ft at Snowbird and with the kids in ski school, Jen and I had a blast.  We went long and hard all day hitting most of the mountain but my favorite was High Baldy with it's perfect pitch and light, deep snow.  We had so much fun that I didn't have time to take a picture but I shall remember it as one of the great powder days of the year.