Out on the trails - Big Springs

Yesterday I had the itch to get out on the trails on my 'cross bike, just to make sure I can still handle skinny tires on the single-track. I headed up to Big Springs Park in the South Fork shoot off of Provo Canyon. There is a nice, but short, trail near the park that my family uses all the time. We spend a lot of time in Provo Canyon and at least half of that is spent at Big Springs. It's become the go-to area for us. Jen takes the kids up there hiking all the time, the trail is relatively mellow and follows and crosses various streams. It keeps the kids interested and makes it a nice area to go. It's also a great place to go snowshoeing in the winter.

I opted to start off my ride by heading up the dirt road that goes along the East side of the wilderness area. I was quickly made aware that my legs hadn't recovered from the weight

training I did two days before; but I managed to make it up the hill anyway. The trail/road is only 1.5 miles up, so a up and back nets 3 miles. Not a whole lot, so I ended up doing 3 laps going up the road and down the trail. I think the old couple hiking down the road and the family hiking up the trail were starting to wonder what I was doing after I passed them a couple of times.

After riding up the road for about a mile the trees open up into a meadow, this is where I cut back on to the trail to finish the last 1/2 mile up (you can see the trail just to the right of the road, heading off into the meadow). The trail is pretty mellow as it winds up, especially through

meadow. It's basically gravely, narrow double-track. Then the trail gets steeper and starts to get fairly rocky. I was a bit worried about pinch flatting on the rocks, especially on the way back down when I had some speed. I had my tires down around 40 psi to maximize traction. I was happily surprised to find that I can still finesse my way up and down through the rocks without much trouble, or pinch flats.

The single-track back down winds through aspens and pines, over rivers and streams and is really a lot of fun. Not the most technical or taxing as far as mountain biking goes, but plenty

fast for getting the cornering and breaking skills on a cyclocross bike. At one point I was

carrying quite a bit of speed and feeling pretty confident. I rounded a corner and saw a tree and a stream right in front of me, I was sure I was going in after I dodged the tree. I managed to get the bike slowed down just in time and made it onto the bridge. My second time down I noticed a lot of other tire tracks where the trail runs wide; I guess others had come into that corner a little hot too. While I was stopped taking this picture a mountain biker came by and did a double take as he passed by my cyclocross bike; obviously not a part of the cult of 'cross yet.

The fast ride down managed to give my legs, and lungs, enough of a break that I was able to be recovered for the ride back up. I managed to get my legs a bit muddy from cruising through a couple of the springs that spout up along the trail and almost ran over a snake. All in all it was a great way to spend a few hours on a Saturday.

Annual "I can't wait for Cyclocross" Post

This morning there was a definite chill in the air this morning; Fall is on the way. My twitter (yeah I signed up for twitter, but only to see what's going on, not to "tweet" about anything) is full of cyclocross chatter; I follow a bunch of 'cross racers. Some of my facebook friends are posting stuff about 'cross. Everywhere I go there seems to be this feeling of excitement about the forthcoming cyclocross season. To blow my mind even further, the same guys that run the mid-week mountain bike race series are starting a 4 race mini-cross series in September. Check out this awesome gps file of the race course http://connect.garmin.com/player/44997122

To further increase my excitement, this year I have seriously nice (way nicer than my speed and talent justify)cyclocross bike (Stevens Carbon Cross) that I bought last spring with my bike shop discount. I have a set of tubular wheels, aluminum mind you, I haven't managed to get myself to drop $1000 bucks on a set of carbon race wheels. There are a set of tubular tires on those wheels getting stretched and ready to be glued on.

Team Clammy Chamois will be in effect this year, though without our ringers since they defected through the lure of free bikes and local bike shop fame. It sounds like we're going to make it official with team jerseys this year. I'm looking forward to seeing the design and celebrating the rowdiness and brat filled 'cross racing and spectating that is team Clammy Chamois.

My only goal for this year is to move up a few places from my consistent mid-pack finish and not puke after finishing the race in Draper. Upon further reflection, I realize that those goals are somewhat at odds with each other, but I'm going to stick with them anyway.

To achieve these goals I will:

- Do some interval training (periodically, and only as long as my mental Psyche can handle riding a bike in my basement and without going anywhere)

- Limit my sausage consumption to after the race, this includes not taking the bacon hand-up during the race.

- Keep myself mentally in the race and not spend half of it hoping I get a mechanical or a flat.

It should be an awesome season despite the fact that the first 4 races are at venues that are designed to stamp out any delusion that I may have in thinking I've prepared better for this season that in past years. Draper and that stupid hill, Weber x 2 and Heber Fairgrounds designed for fast roadies that have much better cardio than I ever will.

Bring on the cold and the mud and another awesome cyclocross season. Mud and guts on 3!

Geeking out on 'cross bikes.

Cyclocross Magazine asked me if I wanted to attend a bike industry function at Deer Valley a little while ago. The event titled "Dealer Camp" was held this past weekend to showcase new bikes from major manufacturers, giving bike shops and retailers the chance to look over and demo the new bikes. The event was 2 days, but Jen had her Spudman Triathlon on the 2nd day so I was only able to spend one day up there. It was a ton of fun checking out new bikes. I talked with some other people that were very into cyclocross as well including past National Champion Mark McCormack, and a the designer that actually fabricated the new Blue 'cross bikes. I got a lot of pictures and even a few freebies. Check out my write up and pictures here http://www.cxmagazine.com/new-trends-dealer-camp-2010-deer-valley

First XC Mountain Bike Race

I know this isn't cyclocross related, but we've got at least 3 months until the season starts. I decided to do my first cross country mountain bike race. There is a low-key mid-week race series that alternates between Soldier Hollow and Sundance. This last week's race was at Sundance. As this was my 2nd mountain bike race ever and 1st XC race I decided to sign up in the Beginner A category. After registering I got a little worried that I'd be racing against a bunch of kids. They started each group, starting with the Expert A's, in 30 second increments. There happened to be a few teens and other men in my class so I stuck with it instead of going with the Sport class. Boy am I glad I stayed with the Beginners.

The race started with a longish paved uphill ride, long enough to get people strung out pretty well, without bunching when we reached the single track. I finally made it to the single

track section only to find

it's the same trail I've ridden dozens of times. The only problem is I've always ridden it in the other direction, as a downhill. After riding for what seemed like hours uphill I began to wonder why this category of race is called cross country, that would imply some sort of up and down riding across varied terrain. The only downhill I encountered for the first 40 minutes of the race was a periodic 3 second downhill stretch that wasn't even long enough to drop my hear rate one beat. After the initial couple of miles I gained a couple of spots, but lost a few when my rear tire spun out on a steep section. It was too steep to try to start from so I had to push to the top of that climb and hop back on.

After the final hill it was time to start that blessed downhill. I found that I had now sapped all of my

energy and was not able to hold a line very well through the sweeping corners. I was forced to use my breaks much more than I would have liked. After a bit of downhill the course cut over for one last bit of climbing through some trees. I had a bit of speed coming into one corner cut that was cut in close to the trees. I was really leaning into the corner to maximize the momentum I had before the trail cut uphill when my left shoulder slammed into a tree and I was brought to a sudden and painful halt. A quick check revealed a small cut on my arm and a still functioning shoulder so I got back on the pedals and pushed up the hill. I managed to get some strength back for the last fun downhill stretch. Jen and the kids were cheering for me as I flew past the lift area where the spectators were hanging out on the grass. I have no idea where I placed and I really don't care. As hard as that race was I think I'll go for it again next week in Midway.

Cult 'Cross 2010 - Race Review

I forgot to publish this when it happened back in April. A while back I realized that there was going to be a long wait until cyclocross season opens up on Oct. 3, 2010. That is when I started planning on attending the Cult 'Cross race held in Eagle CO. I talked to a like minded friend and we headed out for a road trip and some racing. My race review and pictures were published on the CX Magazine Website http://www.cxmagazine.com/pov-cult-cross

Springtime Criss-Cross

I generally enjoy the Utah winters, especially now that I have snowshoes to tromp around in the back country. Like most other Utahns I'm rather tired of Winter by the end of January. That makes February a very long and tiresome month; I've long held that February is the worst month of the year. Winter is still here, but its not new, or fun or even pretty anymore. It's old, cold, and the snow is no longer pretty and white, it's gray and brown, filled with mud and sand, the dregs of winter. Along comes March, with it's first hints of Spring. Now, I learned long ago not to succumb to the temptations of March for it's attempts at spring-like weather are more like the song of a siren. You'll be drawn into a sunny 50 degree day only to have a hearty winter storm blow in the next day, covering your springtime plans under slushy snow. Making your dreams and everything else soggy, cold and useless.

Around the end of March, beginning of April, Spring decides to show up and stick around. Of course there is often a snowstorm that sneaks in there but it's usually not too bad. I have a love hate relationship with Spring. I need sunny days, too many cloudy rainy days and my SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) kicks in. Utah is nearly the perfect place for me. Utah is the first or second state in terms of most days with sunshine. That all changes in Spring. I like not having to water my lawn, but the clouds and rain can get a bit much.

The other thing about Spring is that it feels like it should be time for cyclocross. I've had about 4 months off now and it seems like it should be time to get back to it. The weather is perfect for 'cross. Cool weather, rain, mud, all the stuff that makes up a good cyclocross race. It just so happens that some like-minded gent in Colorado has the same idea. Next weekend I will be traveling 6 hours to Eagle CO for the Cult 'Cross race. This annual race has been occurring since 2008, though this will be my first time attending. Though this is a race, it's geared more toward having fun, which saves those of us who didn't hit the trainer nearly as much as we should have over the Winter (oooh how I hated that trainer). This will also be the first race for my new bike, hopefully she can take the beating. It's a bit of a drive just for a "fun" race, but I have an itch that needs to be scratched. Hopefully the mountain bike trails will be clear of snow soon and I can get some good riding in until October when the embrocation will flow and I'll hate myself for 45 minutes of lung searing death on a bike.

My Stevens Carbon Cyclocross Bike

I had this post written about 6 months ago and just never got around to putting it up on the ol' blog. This post is dedicated to my cyclocross bike. I've referenced it before, but I wanted to document the effort I put into actually building up the the frame I originally purchased into the awesome race machine that it is today. The details contained herein are probably not of any interest to anyone other than me so don't feel bad if you're bored to tears.

I have 6 months of riding the Stevens under my belt and I'm as happy now as the day I first rode it. I know bike geometry is a personal thing, but for me Stevens really nailed it. My Stevens Carbon Cross bike is hands down the best handling bike I've ever ridden.

Firstly the Stevens frame and fork are fantastic. I've never had a hint of fork shudder even under heavy breaking. It rails through corners with the perfect mix of road and 'cross geometry. This frame has been ridden to a number of national and world championship victories.

I added a 46 cm Salsa Bell Lap handle bar, very wide and has slightly flared drops to add to the bike handling when in the drops.

SRAM Rival shifters with Force derailleurs.

TRP Magnesium EuroX brakes; very light and get the job done.

Thompson Elite seatpost that I picked up with the WTB saddle from Kyle at SBR; thanks Kyle.

FSA Gossamer crankset, re-purposed from my motobecane.

Gore Ride-On sealed cables to gunk doesn't clog things up partway through the season.

Vuelta Tubular wheels

Vittoria Cr

oss XG(all around tread) and XN(file tread) tubular tires.

There are minor stories for some of the acquired parts. I had originally planned on using all of

the parts from my old Motobecane, with a few upgrades. I needed a wider handlebar

but after buying it I realized that my old stem was a different size so I had to buy a stem as well. Then I realized that the seatpost was too small and I needed a wider seatpost to fit my frame. I stopped by SBR to see what it would cost to order a new one and Kyle just happened to have the exact seat post that I wanted to order. He no longer needed it as it came from his recently replaced mountain bike and didn't fit his new one. It was topped with a nice WTB saddle that just happened to match my bike well. He cut me a sweet deal for the pair.

I bought some nice brakes, mostly because I had a little extra in my bike building budget and they were nice, light and worked well. So I ordered the TRP EuroX brakes. I was execting the white and red versions but white and gold showed up. I'm not a big GOLD kind of guy, but I went with it, especially after I got the chain I ordered and it was gold too.

I bought a set of GORE Ride-On sealed shifter cables in the spring. When I was at the Dealer Camp event taking photos for Cyclocross Magazine

I spoke with the guys running the GORE booth. I told them how much I liked the shifter cables and the set me up with a set of their new sealed brake cables for free. Along with being sealed to keep the grit and grime out the housing

has been made stiff so there is less give when the brakes are pulled and it gives a better feel for the brakes. I haven't tried them yet, just got them on so we'll see.

Also at the Dealer Camp event I stopped by the Sinclair booth to talk to the Stevens guys. I told them that I liked their bikes so much I bought one. I commented on the fact that they now stock the bikes with a fork mounted cable hanger for the front brake. I told them I'd been looking for one, but they're really hard to find. The guy I was talking with gave me his card and told me to email him. After doing so I had the free new cable hanger in my hand within a week. Those guys rock.

I wanted to go with white bar tape and hood covers to go with my mostly white bike. My Clammy Chamois teammate Josh hooked me up with some awesome Lizard Skins bar tape real cheap. I bought some Hudz aftermarket hood covers to complete the setup.

After using SRAM shifters at Interbike I was ruined on my Shimano Ultegra 6600. I bought the SRAM Rival shifters. Scott from SBR was upgrading to SRAM Red so I picked up his lightly used Force derailleurs heavily discounted.

I've written at length about my Vuelta tubular wheels and Vittoria tubular tires. Needless to say they are light and strong and aside from the Stevens frame, they're my favorite part of the bike.

So there it is, my Stevens Carbon Cyclocross bike.