COMOtion Team Meets To Plan Season

The first 2010 team meeting was held at the Retul Fit Studio in lower downtown Denver where master bike fitter Todd Carver offered up an update on the ever evolving Retul Dynamic 3D motion fit system. The system is used by pro teams around the world for precise evaluation of bike fit replacing the carpenter's level and plumb bob with infra-red LEDs and dimension calculating software. Todd recently set up the new Radioshack Team and convinced Lance Armstrong to move his saddle up 1 cm.

Once the correct dimensions, angles and set-up are determined, the rider is given the critical data to use on other bikes or to compare to changes in equipment. If Lance trusts Todd, I imagine I would. Check out the company's site on the sponsor links to the right.

Team owner Stephen Lechner presented the encouraging outlook for the season and surveyed each racer for his/her priorities and commitments for the year. Sponsor support is essential and many of the team supporters have again committed to the 2010 season.

As always, the Mountain States Cup Series http://www.racemsc.com/ will be the focus. COMOtion racers will also compete in the Winter Park Series, http://www.epicsingletrack.com/default.asp, Firecracker 50 http://www.mavsports.com/?id=8 , fall cyclocross events and other competitions throughout the Rocky Mountain region and country.

The team set March 25-28th as the date and Moab, Utah as the site for the annual team training camp. A Sports Illustrated associated action photo shoot will also take place April 7th among the red rocks.

Permission via the hand raise was required prior to excusing one's self to the beer drain facilities.

Lots of work to be done before we test the speeds of rival teams in the many race venues across the region.

ASRc Starting To Come Together.....2010's XC Ride - Brakes ready..

When you're already riding the greatest brand and model for your riding passion, it's hard to make improvements. The 2010 cross country racing choice once again, is a brand new Yeti ASRc carbon framed lightweight XTR'ed to the hilt. This week we're working on the stoppers and shifting cables.The Shimano system is not the easiest hydraulic brake to bleed. Special tools make the job simpler but patience is required.

What can I add? Viewing custom Yetis on http://www.yetifan.com/ a particular ASX in Europe caught my eye because it looked like a true custom job. One reason. White shifter cabling and hydro hoses. Genius!! Gotta have it.

Cables were easy with Jagwire offering kits through Bike Source in Colorado Springs. Got enough for the ARCx next time I feel like wrapping cables under bar tape.

White hydraulic brake hose proved to be a little tougher. Jagwire had offered a match to the shifter housings but were back ordered or "we'll let you know-maybe status" on the Internet.

First bad experience ordering bike stuff for nearly a decade. A jerk off shop in Michigan, Harbor Country Bike claimed they had them in stock for twice the MSRP. I filled out the order form and gave them a credit card number. My bank account was immediately charged. No auto-acknowledgement or word for 3 days. Suspicious, I Googled the firm. Crap, lots of complaints on this shop. Finally a reply comes from the owner. He doesn't appreciate my insistence on a status update and now I am not going to get my order because of perceived "threats". The Wells Fargo Fraud Division is watching but my refund does come days later. Jerry, you are a bad egg in a good industry.

Part of the 2010 improvements include full shifter cable housings to keep crud from entering through the traditional bare cable split sections.

Friends in the UK vouched for Chain Reactions Cycles at http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/ . They had the GOODRIDGE brand of hose and fittings. Shipment was immediate and assembly was dummy proof.

The end results are eye-pleasing......

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Are they going to make me faster? I think so.

WINTER LIGHTEN'S UP FOR A NIGHT RIDE

The COMOtion senior citizen committee broke out the miner's lights Wednesday and made a run up Green Mountain. Gary Peterson and I were actually the only riders to show up. The other guys are full of talk until it's time to hit the trail head and do some PM climbing. They start talking union trash and drinking beer and never seem to shed the suspenders for Spandex.

It was a pleasant 48 degrees with no wind Wednesday and it made for a perfect start to February's ride-when-you-can season. Jackets and leg warmers were required but as always, too much clothes climbing...not enough on the downward fly.

The trails were dry over 90% of the park and I was actually eating dust on the north side descents behind Gary's LARGE ASRc.

Trying to make Wednesdays our regular weekly night ride weather permitting. Come join us.

NFL PLAYOFFS GRAB TRAINING TIME

ALL I GOT WAS A DAMN CARROT..........

So P.O.ed at Vikings. Not Farve. He played great. Promise to make up for the lost training time during the next week. Snack food dominated the day's diet. January training going OK, averaging 6 hours per week and a mis-proportioned 143 pounds. Aerobic base stuff on the trainer and 3x25 weight work except for the chronic right shoulder annoyance . One more steroid injection and then we'll look to the knife. We'll see what doc says in early Feb.

DRY CREEK NOT COMPLETELY DRY.......

STANDLEY LAKE IN WINTERTIME

The first ride of Twenty Ten was a real thriller not knowing what was around the corner in a very familiar training route. Dry Creek Trail runs from I25 through Westminster, Broomfield, Arvada, around Standley Lake (with a little imagination) and back.

This trail is popular with the Black Lab runner crowd but was better suited for Siberian Husky sled crews this Saturday. Weeks of -32 degree weather and a foot of snow left the urban trail in a barely passable condition is some stretches.

Common sporadic higher temperature days in the 50's started the melt presenting a variety of riding conditions including fast steady sections of frozen ice/snow pack, rut producing melting slush cranks and fast dry pavement portions always South facing.

All was going well until I attacked a gummy 1/4 mile of doubletrack below the dam. The YETI ARCx stopped fully when Play Dough consistency muck froze the fore and aft wheels. Sage brush sticks save the day providing poking and scraping utensils. Fifteen minutes later I'm looking over the vacant waterway. Return trip will be off trail (sorry tree-huggers) using available grass for traction. Made a valiant charge up out of the weir road shortcut until traction broke and I collected the first elbow mud of the day.

Garmin stats left us with 29.6 miles, 2 hours and 36 minutes and an average speed if 11 mph. Usually I'm on the 16-21 mph pace for this ride. Mud and snow on this day made the route feel like a constant 8% grade. Great ride ended with a flat and being locked out of the house..... cold, bonked and dripping wet.

Gotta love Colorado winter riding!!!!

2010 EVENT PLANNING BEGINS...

HA!!!
Got under the wire and am registered for the 2010 Triple Bypass. The ride sold out 3,500 places in less than 45 minutes on-line. Scalpers and wanna "B" riders are already showing up on Craig's List.
Missed out last year but am looking forward to the 120 mile ride from Evergreen to Beaver Creek with 10,000 ft. + elevation gain.

Won't know about the Leadville 100 until February 8th and Firecracker 50 registration not yet open.

"MOTIVATION IS HIGHEST WHEN THE SUCCESS RATE IS 50%"

some smart sucker from my past........

HAPPY FRIGG'N NEW YEAR

Spent most of the New Year's weekend Pimp'n out the Silverado...Side nerf bars for little people and weiner dogs.
Double walled stainless steel exhaust tip serves no real purpose. Bowtie mud flaps to cut down on snow crap deposited on the no purpose stainless steel exhaust tip.Final touches are the custom chrome YETI and COMOtion sticker for the rear cab window. Give me a mailing address and I'll send you a couple of the COMotion cool stickers.

Winter Time Project Priorities...You can help...

Break out instruction manual and mini pump for exercise ball..... Rebuild 3 Rp23s

Sort out 30+ jerseys for summer yard sale...naaw..

Replace air freshener cause I share the basement with 2 wiener dogs.....
Change out the Simple Green in the parts washer because I think some of the GREEN is not so simple.

Re-fill flask with Mr. Weller's finest..Christmas gift hint.....

Start at the beginning. 3.5mm, 4mm,5mm,5.5mm,6mm,7mm,8mm,9mm,10mm..Sharpies are for black wheel ding makeup. E-Tape for everything else.

Oh, yea NEW ASRc to reconstruct before the 2010 XC season.

Covidien buddy John Twa donated a twin SID providing parts for my ultra light ARC fork resuscitation. Should do that this year. Winter Park Hillclimb is just around the corner.4 pairs of Cranky Bros. to rebuild.
Sherman big bike fork to re-seal before the spring Moab assault.HOW ABOUT IT, WHAT SHOULD I START FIRST... I'M LEANING TOWARDS THE FLASK REFILL !!!!!

OUT OF RETIREMENT ALREADY-THINKING ABOUT 2010

After a month off and acting like I don't care, the local Cyclocross scene has me semi-motivated about actually getting off my duff and returning to competition.

Attending the 2009 Blue Sky Xilinx CX in neighboring Longmont was a methadone treatment into the addictive world of cycling competition.

Sugar and I just hung out with COMO buddies and fellow workers to enjoy the great Colorado outdoor recovery from a recent snow storm. Sun and mud were plentiful for a perfect Halloween Saturday in Colorado.

My personal pick for the win was Georgia Gould who took the Silver in Longmont

Women's Results:
1. Katherine Compton Planet Bike
2. Georgia Gould Luna Chix
3. Alison Dunlap Luna Chix
4. Meredith Miller Cal Giant Strawberry
5. Kelli Emmett Giant Bicycles
6. Amy Dombroski Webcor Builders
7. Heather Irmiger Subaru/gary Fisher
8. Barbara Howe Vanderkitten
9. Alison Powers Team Fuji
10. Lisa Matlock Strong Natural Grocers P/b

CT managed a respectable finish and spent 45 minutes waiting to power wash the muck from the drivetrain of his Yeti CX steed.

Oliver went silently by barely recognizable with the "red beard" removed. Something about getting married the week before. I don't get it.

Motivation had me riding the Yeti CX from B'field to the Boulder Cup race Sunday at the Boulder Reservoir. The 45 mile, 2K foot elevation gain road ride was not hard but I'll need to catch up over the winter months and pay for the Whoppers and fries.

Yeah, that's the ticket-snow mud and sunshine.

Still In De-Training Mode

Wedding done.
Since the season ended I've riden the Yeti CX 25 miles on the Dry Creek trail and one clumsy climb up Mt. Falcon. Studying what to do next while the weight piles on..Any suggestions? Just don't say Cros racing..

Final Weekend Split Between Friends and Team

The middle week of September was split between long-time friends Martha Spaulding and Dr. Paul Fournier and the 2009 COMOtion Sports team both celebrating monumental events. Friday's get-out-of-town scramble took us to the tunnel, then a hard right at Silverthorn up to Kremling and on to Steamboat Springs after ascending Rabbit Ears Pass. We were there for Paul and Martha's wedding atop the Steamboat Springs Ski Resort. An awesome event highlighted by a high altitude sunsetthat got more spectacular by the minute as we watched the evening retire over the golden Yampa River Valley. We were 10,568 feet above sea level.

After an evening of dancing with my bride of 36 years and a couple or six adult beverages later, we enjoyed the final weekend at a Colorado ski resort without having to switch number plates, lube chains or calculate glucose levels, warm up or start times. NICE!!!!

Sunday noonish we headed south to Breckenridge to celebrate with the team who made the 7th consecutive Mountain States Cup Series championship a reality.The series awards came late but as predicted, I managed to survive for a silver medallion second place in the Cat 2 50+ men's division. Elephant Rock century and Copper Triangle plus sixteen races including the Super "D" series is a long and (+$) summer sport.

The Team laid cool as ever passing time before the final series announcements with an impromptu Nerf football game under the stage.
After category awards, we took our rightful place center stage announcing once again that we were the most organized, talented and serious team in the series. Credit to the freshmen for carrying the alumni through- Margie, Evie, Cary, Holly and Ryan spot lighted the podiums and kept even the oldest of the group enthused about the year's outcome. Thanks guys, proud to call you teammates.

2009 Mountain States Cup Series ChampionsLANCE DID NOT DO 8

Sol Survivor Now Understood

Teammate Cary Dunn and I enjoyed the reasonable way to ascend Sol Vista's climb..................................
The next to last stop on the 2009 Mountain States Cup Series ( http://www.racemsc.com/ ) was held at Sol Vista Ski Resort and titled "Sol Survivor. I'm not sure if I was the only one, but survivor describes the 3 day stay accurately.
Having broken every training, diet and race preparation rule this year I should not have been surprised that my performance sucked. I've been run down now for the last 2 months evident with high blood glucose readings, respiratory infections, constant sinus drainage and multiple fever blisters.
Enough excuses.

I wanted to cement a podium for the series final in Breckenridge next weekend without having to endure the 3 -event stage race final.

Mission accomplished!!
Adding 344 points for the series through the XC and STXC gruel, I'm in for a second place finish in the Cat 2, 50+ series. My apologies to cheering COMotion Sports teammates embarrassed by my double-lapped short track run during the 30 + youngsters race.

The XC course included never ending climbs and the most technical descents ever encountered in 7 years of XC racing. Riders attempted to stay clipped but somewhere between the first drop and the pass beside the EMT hammock, you died. If you made that descent...your eyes were closed and you smoke dope. The terrain mimicked a badly cleaned, 15 degree fireplace pit that was littered with baby heads, momma heads, daddy heads and dinosaur heads. Add on that airborne dust eliminated any visibility. The same section was used in the Super Downhill and qualified for the pure Downhill route. The emergency vehicles streaming past our resort room all weekend was a reminder of just how tough the conditions were at the Sol Survivor.

Monday's Super D race was as always, a fun ride. Knowing what was in store from the XC drop, I was sure to purposely line up in the second squadron and I just grabbed the ASX by the horns and tried to ride the 41 pound bucking bronc to the bottom. The over 50 trio of me, Woody and Frenchie have had fun all season long and politely assembled at the rear, grinned and grunted downward. I elected to toss the Yeti down the drop and slide on my butt until we were reunited at the bottom.

Sol Vista hosted the team's annual feed and sponsor appreciation event. Thanks to Felix, Marcy and crew for rustling up the grub for stinky and hungry COMotion racers and friends.

To get an idea of a typical SV DH run, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo1LIAUpKwk&feature=relatedt

COPPER CUP COULD HAVE BEEN WORSE....

Last place in the XC, next to last in the Super D and a two in a row DNF in the Short Track left me wishing this season was over. In reality, it all but cemented a second place attendance award for the 2009 Mountain States Cup XC Endurance Series with the +144 points awarded for 7th.

Youngster teammate Carry Dunn performed the hat trick this weekend winning all three events but may have pushing me off the podium in the 30+ Super D series.... All good!!!

The second ever DNF was caused by an over enthusiastic team member who pushed me faster than the tiny little 1.95 Kenda tires have ever gone on the ARC hardtail. The push was so violent that the jolt caused the tire bead to spin off the rim exposing the under-inflated road tube to the jagged rocks on the downhill section. My neck has also been stiff stince the incident.

Next week we wrap it up at Sol Vista with a laid back holiday weekend racing all three disciplines celebrating the 7th COMOtion Sports Team win with the wieners in attendance and the BBQ and beer a priority.