What brings YOU here?

Okay, not much to report on the training front other than I've been off my bike for a bit of time and in the gym doing some strength training and core body work. Not terribly exciting but it definitely feels good to change up the pace and get back into the gym on a regular basis. The snow is starting to fly up by my house and this morning I was greeted to a quarter inch of ice on my truck.
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Now for something entirely different. There comes a time when one must assess what brings them to a certain point, if they are comfortable with that point and how they will resolve any conflicts which arise when they deem themselves uncomfortable with that point. I speak in code, however this sort of "crossroads" moment is relevant in sport training and even interpersonal relationships (the most recent example for me, recent as in THIS MORNING). How do we decide what to do when the "cards are down?"

I've been labeled through numerous tests as having the quintessential "field marshall" personality, which is a personality that lends itself to taking all available information, processing said information in an efficient manner and making decisions on the spot. About a year and a half ago I said YES! to joining Team Strong Heart and have never regretted that choice. TSH is an amazing organization that is as vibrant as ever. Great choice!

I know what brings me to Team Strong Heart and will keep me here. I know what brings me to the people closest in my life, even though those people don't always reciprocate that choice (again, in code, most recently I found this out this morning via e-mail (thanks AKB!)). Think about what brings you to the table, whether that table be the dinner table surrounded by family, the table of your local bar with friends, or the table you share in an RV traveling 18 miles an hour across the country.

Sorry for the ramble, but enjoy these song lyrics that came to mind as I closed my e-mail at 4:45 this morning and stumbled out into the misty cold of Mt. Evans, Colorado...this may uncode what I just mumbled about...

GOODBYE: Drive By Truckers
These cities blur before me, a swirl of colors leaned against the sky
Gone so far away and I never really told you good bye
I know it's kind of lame but sometimes things just turn out that way
We were the best of friends and I'll always remember you that way

We started out with nothing, but wild plans and big ideas and dreams
You were quick to swing the hammer and always fast with some ingenious scheme
Sometimes we argued violently but forged it out of bedrock into steel
Our foundations were so solid and our instincts based on something very real
I feel so damned nostalgic every time I think about those times
I forget how it became that I wouldn't recognize you on the line
I start to feel so guilty but goddamn it I swear to you I tried
To bridge between the distances before I left without saying good-bye

I have friends I met last weekend and friends I've had since I was eight
Friends I've said goodbye to and friends who unexpectedly passed away
And nothing is disposable; at least it's never been that way for me
Its not like you were an acquaintance that I could say never really meant anything to me
No we were really great friends and I always thought that it would be that way
Yet I wonder if I'd know you if the guy that I saw last walked in here today
And I swear until I die, I never would have expected you and I
To grow so far apart and leave without ever saying good bye

Transitions

This too shall pass...

Per my cycling coach, Eric Kenney, whom you'll be reading about on this website very soon, I'm supposed to be off my bike as much as possible. Getting fat...check! Actually, I've been in the gym working on lower body and core strength in this transitional phase of training. I'd be lying if I told you that I wasn't fairly pleased with being able to not ride copious miles day after day, as has been my routing throughout this year. So...I currently find myself fighting through a post shift workout, doing battle with the old ladies and their sign-up clipboards at the recreation center and generally doing battle with my need to always have food and drink in my mouth despite not having the activity level to support my latent hunger.

Transitions!

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On a completely unrelated note, last Tuesday, September 11th continues to be a day of mourning and struggle for many in the public service arena. America remembers the heroes and victims of 9/11 and I personally mourn the loss of 343 of New York City's bravest from the FDNY. I count them as part of my extended family and just wanted to include a quick note remembering those who were lost and those who struggle with that loss years after the fact.

Last week, Denver Fire hosted a memorial stair climb at the Qwest building which brought approximately 200 professional firefighters, including five of us from Boulder Fire Rescue, to a challenge of climbing 110 stories in our full firefighting gear, carrying tools and wrapped high rise packs (dry hoseline, spare air bottles, forcible entry tools, etc.). The women and men of the Colorado Fire Service paid tribute to those lost on 9/11 and worked in unison to carry themselves and about 80 pounds of gear each to the top of the Qwest building. Thanks to all who attended and to those who gathered to support our profession.

I'd like to leave you with this in remembrance of all we have and will lose:

Not of the princes and the prelates with periwigged charioteers
Riding triumphantly laureled to lap the fat of the years,
Rather the scorned - the rejected - the men hemmed in with spears;

The men in tattered battalion which fights till it dies,
Dazed with the dust of the battle, the din and the cries,
The men with the broken heads and the blood running into their eyes.

Not the be-medalled Commander, beloved of the throne,
Riding cock-horse to parade when the bugles are blown,
But the lads who carried the hill and cannot be known.

Others may sing of the wine and the wealth and the mirth,
The portly presence of potentates goodly in girth; -
Mine be the dirt and the dross, the dust and the scum of the earth!

Theirs be the music, the colour, the glory, the gold;
Mine be a handful of ashes, a mouthful of mould.
Of the maimed, of the halt and the blind in the rain and the cold -

Of these shall my songs be fashioned, my tale be told.

-John Masefield
"A Consecration"

Bjorn Turoque

Got done with my shift this morning and decided to go for an easy bike ride outside of Boulder... I completely forgot, but there was a HUGE charity ride going on, the Buffalo Bicycle Classic.

I think that we, the guys and gals who race across America or ride all the time, buttoned-up in our lycra and shaved legs, the riders and racers who are sponsored or maybe just get an extra discount due to our repeated visits to the local shop, tend to forget that there is a significant segment of our great sport that serves the people who simply ride for the fun of it, or ride their bike because their knees are shot from running, or maybe they ride because they want to remember what their old Schwinn felt like long ago. These are the people who pay full price for their gear and still wear their Livestrong bracelets, years after Number Seven.

I saw a massive amount of these working class heroes out on the road today as I rode past on my team bike, eating my grossly discounted Powerbar and wearing my Castelli team kit. I think we tend to get way too serious every now and again and force ourselves out onto the bike because we "have to." When was the last time you earned a paycheck from riding or racing your bike?

Look, I am a serious rider and take my sport with one part passion and one part lunacy, so it was refreshing to get out and chat with some of my comrades in sport who don't shave their legs (men or women), and who actually have never ridden on a bike made of carbon or Scandium. These are the true heroes of our sport and the people most likely to offer a friendly wave or a warm hello on a chilly, overcast Boulder morning.

This and That

Yeah, it's been while since I've posted, but in all reality not much has happened out here. I finally got back to work last week after having been out on injury leave with a broken foot. Back to work...check!

I've essentially decided that I'm done racing for the season. Being lazy...check! Actually, the lazy thing isn't entirely true. I've been getting back on my mountain bike a bit and generally enjoying myself alot more on the bike. There's a certain amount of pressure that comes with training, so even if the pace on the bike doesn't slow, per se, the riding seems much more enjoyable.

My friend Eric and I tackled Vail Pass a couple of days ago... It was a beautiful day, but we had both gotten worked the previous night at Boulder Fire. I had seven calls between 10pm and 3am and he had two. So, needless to say we were a bit less spirited than usual. I'd never ridden the Pass before, which is a 50 mile climbing ride from Frisco to the city of Vail. The route travels what used to be I-70...not sure of the details, but someone's painted all sorts of Euro-style messages on the climb out of Vail, which is pretty funny and kind of cool. There is a cottage industry out here of dropping tourists off at the top of the Pass and letting them ride down into Vail, coasting the entire way. This must be fun for them, but I'm into the climbing AND the descending, so out of my way Texan!

Fall is in the air up at my place on Mt. Evans...overnight the temps are in the 40's and it helps to have a wood stove, chopped wood and a warm blanket.

I forgot to mention in my last post that when I was in Chicago and at the US Pro Criterium Championship, I ran into veteran Team Strong Heart Crew Chief, Bill Nicholson. Running into him reminded me of my new found friends in Minnesota and the support that everyone on Team Strong Heart continues to receive. I'm very thankful for the TSH opportunity and everywhere it has and will take me...

Keep the rubber side down...

Tim

Food, Gas, Lodging

Hi all,

Got back late last night from my "epic" motorcycle ride, from my home on Mt. Evans to my parents home out in the Chicago area. My butt and knees are sore, but I'm generally none the worse for wear. Not sure how I stayed on the switchbacks up to my house late last night, but I'm here and that's what counts.

The road is an interesting place to be, especially by motor vehicle. I think that we cyclists are lucky, in that we get to see the back roads and the less beaten path when we get on our bikes. Those two pedaled wheels take us places that the truck driver and the college aged road tripper only has a vague notion of. My motorcycle only has a 3.5 gallon tank, so I had to stop every 130 miles or so and fill up on petrol. The rest stops and gas'n gos of America are a swarthy point on the endless roadmap of America.

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Thanks to everyone who has wished me well for the 2008 Race Across America. Team Strong Heart is a growing organism full of life and vitality. Look for some wildly exciting events and opportunities in the upcoming months.

I'm placing a call out for volunteers for my crew for next year, so if you'd like to help out, drop me a line. I promise the race will hurt me more than it will hurt you. ;)

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When I was out in Chicago I had the opportunity to go watch the US Pro Criterium Championships in Downers Grove. The course was rain-slicked and there were crashes on every corner. Heck, I even saw an uphill crash. Brings back memories of corner number 7. An excellent recap of the race can be found on the Cyclingnews website. Of note, a 20 year old from VMG Cycling (yes, THAT VMG) won the Elite race on Saturday night after a vicious crash in, yep, corner 7.

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So, I'm off for a ride now...should be interesting...haven't touched a pedal bike in 6 days...

Keep the rubber side down...

TC

Miles and Miles

Riding a motorcycle designed for the track across the country is less than advisable. Consider the implications of sitting on a hardened seat, bouncing along the highway at 80 miles an hour, tucked into a position that renders the knees and lower back completely trashed.

Those of you who ride and race bicycles generally know what I'm talking about. Those of you who have raced RAAM know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. Long distance rides and races, of the pedal and non-pedal variety expose the rider to all sorts of new aches and pains, perhaps, that would not revealed during shorter rides. This is probably one of the biggest issues to tackle for the endurance racer and there really isn't a good way to illicit these aches/pains without putting some long miles in the legs and back and neck, etc.

So, after about 19 hours or riding my motorcycle (the miniscule gas tank made stopping every 130 miles a necessity), I made it to Chicago. Rode straight through the heat of Nebraska and the downright cold and dampness of an Iowa overnight. Hadn't felt that kind of chill since the Race Across America and while at first I was nostalgic for the humidity and the night, it soon became a cumbersome task to wipe the mist off my helmet visor and keep the brain awake.

Blah, blah, blah, I made it, but it did prove an interesting comparison between long distance motorcycling and long distance cycling.

Sunday I'm gonna go check out the United States Pro Criterium Championships in Downers Grove. I did that race several years ago and had a blast, up until the last corner of the last lap. Prior to the race it had rained and the course was damp, especially in the corners. The last corner headed into the uphill finish has a section of cobblestones in the exact apex of the turn.

Wet cobblestones plus a bunch of zealous racers equals disaster.

The guy in front of me took the corner hard, his wheels slid out from under him on the wet cobblestones and he slid across the field. I was sitting top ten headed into the finish and then I was doing my best impression of an acrobat. I landed on one guy who broke his shoulder, the guy who hit me ran over my arm, his tire burning my arm and breaking his wheel, and about 30 other guys ended up in the pileup. I was carted to the finish with my broken bicycle where my upset parents sat waiting to see what had happened to their son.

Memories...anyway, I'm returning to the scene tomorrow to check out the pro men and talk to some vendors about the 2008 Race Across America.

Thanks for reading...

Tim

Moooon River

Last minute, I've decided to head out for another sort of endurance ride on two wheels...I'm going to ride my motorcycle out to see my folks in Chicago. The trip is about 1000 miles each way, which I now understand is about a third of the way across America. Ask me how I know that, please... I think the time away from the bike and the rest will do me some good. Plus, I haven't seen my family in a while, so it'll be great to hang out with them. I even get to help my youngest brother, Patrick, move into his freshman dorm. Pretty sweet...

Over the past couple of days I've had some decent riding. I'm really starting to like the ride from Idaho Springs out to Winter Park and back. I read today in Velonews that Winterpark has something like 600 miles of mountain bike trails, which is pretty astounding for one community, even for a community in Colorado. The climb up to Berthoud Pass is pretty sweet, though I'm finding that this time of year the return climb from Winterpark will usually involve some sort of rain. Yep, got rained on again several days ago, but had a blast as usual, climbing up into the clouds.

Today I rode with my friend Eric, and even convinced him to ride some flats out and around Boulder. I'm finding that my new digs don't really allow for riding on any road that resembles a flat, so I need to take it when the opportunity presents itself.

I found a super funny advertisement for Northwave shoes in the latest edition of Velonews. It's titled something like "Northwave Powers" and features Tom Boonen dressed like Austin Powers. It's towards the back of the mag...check it out. Tom Boonen looks, well, special in his velvet and lace suit. I think he looks better in a green jersey, but what do I know?

And now for something entirely different...several days ago I put down the deposit and registration for the 2008 Race Across America. Solo baby! Stay tuned to the Team Strong Heart website for some more exciting updates about 2008 and Team Strong Heart. You won't be disappointed.

Keep the non-motorized and motorized rubber side down...

TC