Riding in Austin...YA!

Had to go to A-Town for a meeting last weekend and as usual I won't go without my bike. Woke Sunday to Sunny and 40 degrees. After a stolen bowl of oatmeal at the house I was staying I headed out to one of my favorite training grounds. Its off of Bee Caves rd and its called River Road I think. Its about 2 miles down to the bottom of the ???Valley, Canyon??? Hills?? what ever Austin has. Either way you go down hard and then come back up hard. Great climbing all the way back up. Did a few repeats there and then headed back into town over into Westlake where the hills are steep as hell and fun to mess around on. Overall I prolly didn't ride more than 35-40 miles, but I went up to Jupiter with all the climbing. F'ing FANTASTIC riding. Why do I live here? Anyways, got my first race on Feb 7th. Stage race down in South Tejas. I'm not ready but I need to race myself into shape so here it goes. Still waiting on my kit so I might not be racing at all if my team dosen't hurry up and get me a kit.

All for now.

j

Late Night Hill Repeats

Neal and I headed out in the 38 degree dark last night looking for something that will pay big. We decided on 10 laps of hill repeats, sitting down, into gail force winds, and frostbitten toes. It was cold. No one else was around. We passed homes full of familys settling down to a nice warm meal. Maybe they had soup or something to ease the day. I don't know. All I do know is we suffered.....and it Freaking ROCKED!

Best,

j

It's that time again...RACE SEASON

I've been doing what most of us do all winter. Riding long boring miles and enjoying the scenery. I gave up on coming home after every ride and being trashed from suffering all day. I'm on a new plan and I hope it works. I don't mind trashing myself, but everytime you ride can't be good for you. There is a place for that I know, but recovery has to take place. Now I'm riding and enjoying myself. Coming home feeling pretty good and not fucked. Once a week I give it a big effort and drool on the couch at night, but lately just riding at about 75% seems to be paying off. We'll see at my first few races. On a new team this year, www.dallasracing.org and I couldn't be more excited. Major sponsor is Park Place so we roll Benz style. Well, when I'm sleeping at night thats how I get dropped off at races. Now just waiting for the kits to arrive, the calender to fill up with races and me to be tired...again. Gonna be a fun year for racing. I got my work cut out for me to get my 3. It'll happen. For the VERY few who read this, I will update allot more often. Congrats to Fawley who just won his state stripes last weekend at the State Cross Championships. He won again for like the 100th year in a row. Bad MF! Hope I can learn a few things from him this year since we are on the same team. But on those training rides I will most likely get dropped at mile 5.

Till next time,

j

Long time...no post

Ya. Been awhile. I've been busy dealing with life stuff and since racing season is basically over for me, its not a bad time for it to happen. New job, and now I have had to step it up and man up a bit. So much for 1:00 4 hour rides with all the slackers. Damn I miss those days. Not its 100 f'ing degrees and I have to either ride at 5:00am or 8:00 pm which really cuts into me drinking wine at night. Ha. I feel somewhat fit even if my time on the bike has dropped a bit. I'm still getting in 4 good rides a week with 2 hard ones and 2 "just rides". Either way I feel ok. I do miss the days of mandatory riding. I might have needed to join the army as i really like structure. But I hate it when I don't have a reason. I'll be ready for this winter and next spring. I got allot to prove next year to myself and I am going to have to step it up. Other then thinking ahead 6 months I just have been living in the day. Tour is nice to have on. I live Ricco getting popped. Come on man, don't ride super human and expect to get away with it. That stage was f'ing stupid. He rode like superman on Epo. At least make it look hard. I do.

Thats it..Try to post more often if I can get my shit togeather.

j

UPGRADE...Looking for a Team

Ya, thats right. I'm a 4 now and I am pretty happy about it. Not a huge deal in most cycling arenas but it was a stride for me and I am ready to keep moving forward. Adveraged a top 15 all season with a couple of top 10's so I hope to be very competitive next season. Time to train and build the engine.

Thats all. Just riding as much as possible and looking for a team to get on with. There are some cool ones in town but I don't know the guys so that won't work. Then there are some teams I can be on tomorrow but they have allot of freds on them so that doesen't seem appealing either.

Delimas,

j

Wine and the Bike....Racing and Upgrading

I haven't been on the bike in 2 days. I will be tomorrow though racing. I also like wine and have made it my business for the last 4 years. Its cool. I was reading a post on Belgium Knee warmers site that talk'd about the love of cycling and wine. Its weird that my life has the same parrellels as do others. Wine is so much like cycling its fucking crazy. Maybe not to the typical person, but to people who know, well, they understand. I don't love wine cause it gives you a nice buzz, although its a plus sometimes. No, I love wine because it enhances my life, as does training and racing. You don't get that from everything. Really, what the F do you do daily or every 2 days that really enhances your life outside of making $$ (which actually gives me a headache more than too much wine). If you don't know wine then learn more about it. Read about it and ask people who know about it. Its so important in life that its crazy. Europeans have known this for a long time and thank God passed it on to us Americans. Oddly enough, most of the racers I look up to are Europeans. Go fucking figure. I can't help where I was born so I won't bitch.

Anyways, just a rant while I wait to go pick up the wife at the airport. I should be in REM sleep but she is getting in at 11:55 pm..Sucks for me but she's the bomb so whateva....

Wish me luck tomorrow night. Its a big night for me....UPGRADE!!!!!

John

P.S. Wine of the week. Mibal Perfil 2003. You prolly can't find it but if you do get 5 bottles or all they have if you can afford it.

Flanders.....Again

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1438501764/bclid1406165222/bctid1473768260

I know I will never be here, but once you understand it all makes sence. Real racing at its truest form. I have had passion in my life on allot of levels, but now I uderstand what its like to live and breathe it, day in and day out. I just want to go ride it.

j

Getting There!

Man, today was a GREAT day! I hit the early Sunday ride that for the last 2 time I have been dropped on and I killed it today. Nothing has felt better than being in the mix on this ride today. Even beats all the races this year..Granted, the muscle on this ride could have clobbered me at any given moment but they didn't and i ended up in the mix at the sprint at the end. Didn't win but fuck, I made it! Training has been paying off and I've been riding smart which I am happy about. Hard efforts with RECOVERY. I'm so looking forward to next season. Man I got plans and I can't wait to see then through. In the mean time its build this engine and get ready for the fall. Then prepare for next spring. I love having a plan. Off to bed now. Soar legs, tired eyes and this Malbec isn't helping. Sinday is my only real drinking night so its on and I'm out.....Nothing like being in the wine business.....

j

Gaining...

I've been riding pretty hard lately and i think its paying off. Got a strong finish in my first crit and this weekends rides were fast and hard but I hung in there and held my own. I don't really have a training plan for he rest of the year. Basically I just want to build the biggest engine I can up until the fall so I can start with something good for winter training. Kinda like building a muscle car. Your not gonna put a tiny block in there and hope its got power. You want to start with a freaking Hemi! Or whatever, I don't know anything about muscle cars. Critting it up again tomorrow night which will give me my upgrade. No big deal to some but its a stepping stone for me that I am proud of. Now its time to think about really becoming the racer I want to be. I'm 35 so I'm not planning any world domination, but I can be competitive for sure. Have been all year anyways. Thats it. Same stuff and nothing new. Signing up with a team in a few weeks which will be nice. Get my kit and start representing. Maybe a grill too? Not sure. In the mean time I am saving up for some new wheels. Zipp 303's? Reynolds? Not sure, but I want some.

Ya,

j

First Crit

Ya, thats right I did my first crit last night. See, I'm a true road racer. I like distance and the pain that comes at the high mileage mark. Thats racing. )my own opinion). But last night I headed out to a crit. Nothing like racing for 30 minutes. Gay. Anyways, it was pretty fun. Basically you just hammer and attack until the bell rings. Well, you know this. I don't need to tell you. Anyways, I got 3rd. There was a 2 man break that stuck and I got blocked by one of there teamates so I didn't get in. I towed the field for the last 2 laps (lazy F'er's) and got a jump on them at the sprint. Wasen't to hard to get the 3rd. I'll go back and do some more, but the ROAD is where its at.....Come on Spring of next year....

j

Racing Again ......

Man, when races come and go I really miss them. Now I know why I am so addicted. I f'ing love it. Win, 8th place, 21st...Whatever, I'm in. This past weekend Seabass, Neal and I headed down to Coldspring Texas for some. We left Friday an hour late cause Seabass is always late. Headed down to Huntsville where we checked into out shitty La Quinta right across the street from the clink. Ya, Huntsville State Prison is a hell hole. Don't go there. I'm serious. You will not like it. You don't get treated well in prison and this one is even worse. After a glass of Kroger's finest Cabernet it was off to sleep for an early morning. 5:15am early. We headed to Coldspring in the morning light following other cars with race bikes on racks. Its eaiser than getting directions. To spare you with all the details the race was nice. Good roads and some good climbing. We rolled out, about 55 riders and it was typical attack here, attack there but nothing sticking. The San Jose guys basically stayed up front and covered all attacks so I just laid back and tried to maintain a top 15 position in the pack. It was 3 16mile loops and on the 2nd we were heading up a climb and I heard the normal sound of spokes breaking and carbon scraping the cement. Not a fun noise. 'bout 8 riders went down. This broke up the field a bit. On the last lap we were rolling pretty good and there is a right turn that heads to the finish line which everyone was positioning themselves for. After the turn it was about 4 miles to the finishline and needless to say the hammers were down. Neal and I worked our way up front and held our ground. We were coming up on the finishline which is a 8% grade for about 1000 meters. Ouch. Not a fun place to sprint. Neal jumped first, way to early and this started the sprint way out. Neal cracked and went off the the side. I proceeded to hammer it out begging my legs to keep going. I held one San Jose guys wheel, jumped to get him but to no avail. All in all I think I got 10th. Not terrible since I was sick for a week and a half before. Sunday I rode 5 hours on soar legs so I think I got me some good fitness in this weekend.

Until the next race.....3 weeks to go.....

j

Whateva!

Man, 2 weeks of this alergy/cold shit. Really put a dent in my routine. Add on a new job that is taking up WAY to much of my riding time and you get me these days. A total asshole. I feel like I have wasted away to nothing. I stayed off the bike in order to get well and I am allot better so i hope I will be ok by saturday to head to Coldspring and get me some podium. I rode yesterday and felt "ok" but nothin like I should be. It's a real bummer. 40 mph winds today. The kind that is so bad that you just go home after 3 miles and say forget it. I'm gonna wake up early tomorrow and get me some southloop and get back in race shape. I really hate the turn my life has made lately. I made a few decisions to take life my the horns and forefit a bit of my lifestyle in order to make some strides on a financial field and they are not working. I am, but the money is not. I've been putting in 10 hour days and working saturdays for shit. I was making more working 1/2 the hours and only 5 days a week than I am now. Now I have to find something else soon before I lose my F'ing mind. Its a real bummer too. I am kicking ass at my new job and the return is shit. Go figure.

Whateva!!!!! Just gonna think about riding and racing. Everything else can suck it.

j

Weather

You know what is weird? Weather. We are controlled by it in all ways and it makes all the rules. I got this soar throat and a pounding head that is full of crap. Oh ya, my ears hurt too. My energy is ok but not 100%. Alergies I guess. I can tell you it sucks climbing up steep roads with a pounding head. Also it doesen't go away when you take meds. These high and low pressure systems come through and disrupt my life and fuck everything up. It's either alergies or its rain or something that controls my entire day. Seriously, I just figured it all out. If you ever wonder who really has control of you life, just remember it is the weather.

I think I am the first to figure this out. Like Einstein.

j

Season Coming to an End?

Been weird lately. Mainly cause the Road season in Texas is about over. Crits are in full swing which is fine for crit racers, but I like the road races. I only got 2 more this spring and a couple early fall so I'm sad and depressed. What am I going to do now? I need to do some crits to get my upgrade over the next few weeks so I guess I'll get ready for those. Headed down to Austin last week and did a killer ride. Man, no wonder those guys are great climbers. Its all up and down. Dallas guys can hammer flats. I'm feeling pretty strong these days despite cutting down my rides. Riding 4 days a week now due to my dumb ass job that has me actually working. Sometimes I wonder if its even worth it. I'm 35 which means I am to old to be a serious racer, but can't I take it seriously? Fuck, its my life. An its not like I am doing something unhealthy.

Anyways, Killer Paris-Roubaix. Killer Flanders. Just some serious racing going on. Props to those riders. Some serious suffering going on. I got some head cold or alergy shit going on so I can't ride today or prolly tomorrow. Typical.

j

Busy..

I love seeing this.....

Been busy lately. Working allot which sucks but it a must in order to survive and continue to try to dominate on my bicycle. Its costs money. Had a hard ass training ride saturday with Neal and Seabass that killed me and went into Sunday. Sunday I had to just recover. Damn! Off today but looking for a light spin tuesday and then my first Crit weds. Little nervous but really looking forward to it. I don't know what else to say but DAMN BOONEN!!!!!

There have been some truly amazing races so far this year and they make me want to hammer.

I F'ing love it!!!

j

2 Race Update

Last weekend turned out to be really good. Maybe some rest was just what I needed. First up was a race in Mineral Wells. A really nice mostly flat course with one good long climb and allot of false flats. I race the 35+ and man I will ALWAYS race that now. No more of these races with 20 year olds who have nothing to lose. Call me a loser but these guys have it going on. We all have bills, mortages, etc. Anyways, we roll out and not much happens until after the climb. The field breaks and I am up front when 2 riders break. I was on thier wheel spinning in my 11. Can't hold it. I fall back in and a group of 9 of us start out to catch them. Once we got rolling a TSJ rider solos to the leaders. Strong Fu#&er. We got together and were taking some serious pulls and we almost caught him. The other 2 cracked so the TSJ rider was all alone. I was outon a out-of-the-saddle 30 second pull when I look up and the finish line is 500 meters. Fuck. The sprint starts and I am spent. End up in the pack with 13th. Not bad out of 48. After a nice cabin retreat on PK lake we wake up to some pancakes and head to Palo Pinto for some climbing. I was pretty tired warming up but got my head straight and waited for the roll out. Same deal. Fast until the major climb. And yes it was a climb. About a 4-5 minute down in the saddle climb. I was mid pack and when the climb hit I had to make my way through traffic for a bit. Once I was through I caught Seabass and told him to hang on my wheel. I looked up and Neal was pulling the lead group up the climb. Good climber. I pulled Seabass to the top and the I hear Neals Wife Laura yell "its all down hill from here". I slammed it in the big ring and told Seabass not to leave my wheel. We had some serious dropping to get done since we have about 20 riders ahead of us. I got in gear and burried it taking pulls with Seabass. We flew past about 6 riders and caught the chase group. Once with them I caught my breath and waited for the sprint. The a Colvativa rider jumped and he other 3 team mates blocked and we were fucked. I was yelling to get the F out of the way but nothing happend. We sprinted in and I wound up 14th.

Overall it was a good weekend and I felt of about my placements since it was my first 35+ races. Fitness is fine, just tactics and experience that will get my to the top 5. Cograts to Neal who sprinted for 5th.

Pic to come......

j

Flanders

Unbelieveable........

Racing

Got 2 races this weekend and I am in no shape for them. I'm tired and its not from training. I'll either have really fresh legs or I will be dropped at the start line. Who knows? My life has been a fucking whirlwind as of late and I'm ready for some stability to come. Good changes but just enough to disrupt my daily life. I hope it is all for the best. Time will tell. This is my last road race weekend I think. Maybe a couple of more here and there but this is gonna be my last 2 race out of town weekend. After this, a few crits, get my 4 and train for next year. I'm ready to do some fun rides without training. Some good distance, new roads and riding with friends. Enough of this pounding miles alone to make my girl legs bigger.


Wish me luck this weekend.

j

Too Tired To Post

Sorry. I've been slacking on my blogging. New job, trying to train and got 2 races coming up this weekend. I am basically a walking zombie. Stress is no good and its gonna be the death of me for the last 2 weeks. My legs are soar and I haven't even hammered the miles I would have liked. Oh well. Tis life. After this weekend I am gonna start doing allot of distance. I'll get my intense stuff at crits, but I need to get my rides longer. I've been racing gay Cat 4/5 races and I am over it. The races are just to short. I don't get my legs until they are over. F me. Get my 4 in a few weeks and its time to think about next year and what I have to do in order to destroy everyone in the field. Most likely I need to go back to 25 years old and train allot. But until that happens I'll just be a tired 35 year old looking to dominate.

nappy time

j

AREA 51

Last night at a certain time Neal and I headed to Area 51 in order to get it done. That's what you do there. No whining, no crying. Just do it and be done with it. Since I cannot tell you what it is I would compare it to doing the Tour in one day. It's painful and the entire time you wonder why your even doing this. But you do it and you will be stronger for it. Its the best training ground ever and it doesen't take long. 1-1.5 hours and you have to stop and go home to a family who loves you or you will end up in a mental ward.

Either way we got it done and I already feel like Jan.

Stay Euro,

j