Grand Funk

Last night, on our way home from another great Tuesday evening MTB ride, B was reading, and I was listening to the classic rock channel on XM.  The easily recognizable drum entrance to "We're an American Band" by Grand Funk came on.  I started pounding on the steering wheel while B looked at me with that "now what" look.  So he got to hear the story again.  I know I've told him about this song and what it reminds me of at least a couple of times.  Sometimes I think he's just humoring his old man by letting me tell it again.

The story starts with  "Dino had this on 8 track".  Which of course gets the question from B "what's an 8 track?".  How do you describe them?  After we get past that I get into the story.  And yes, I had a friend named Dino.

It was 1974, Gatorback Raceway, just outside of Gainesville Fl.  I had a 1972 Kawasaki 175 with a Hooker exhaust, plastic Preston Petty tank, and a 21" front wheel.  The trickiest bike I had ever owned.  Three of us were piled in Dino's green Chevy van, complete with green shag carpet, and of course the 8 track player.  Dino had a brand new Honda CR 125 Elsinore, the bike that would change the face of motocross.  We turned off the paved road onto the entrance to the track and saw the field full of vans and pickups (this was long before the days of motor homes).  Cue the American Band song.

The race was a 4 hour hare scrambles which was run using the MX track and some single track through the woods surrounding it.  The event was set up to be run as a team event.  I didn't learn this until the riders meeting.  Yea, I know, but give me a break, it was my first race.

The exact details of the race are fuzzy, which makes sense when you consider this happened 38 years ago.  I just remember coming through the scoring barrels and Dino (who had quit because he was tired) yelling "all you have to do is finish and you trophy!".  This was my first case of trophy lust.  I am still surprised what I'll do for a shiny piece of plastic.

Well I finished third, got protested by a father who claimed I changed riders (my introduction to moto dads), and could barely walk to trophy presentation.

By this time B was already back to reading his book and the song was over.  But on my side of the truck it was still 1974, I could smell the Castrol oil and the dust.  I still have that trophy on a shelf out in the shed.  "Out on the road for forty days".

Damn it was good to be 18 in 1974.

Try It, You'll Like It

I don't know if you're really interested in hearing what I think about certain cycling products, seeing as how I have only a couple of years in this sport.  But bear with me here, I do feel I'm qualified to test products that have an effect on how comfortable the ride is.  You see, as you get older, you lose a little padding.  Areas that once had a layer of well, something, now seem to be, boney.  Too much information?  Think it won't happen to you?  Just wait.

Anyhoo, Todd at Higher Ground Bicycle Shop gave me a can of Dry Goods.  He also gave a can to BJS only he got the menthol variety, more on that later.  This stuff is supposed to be used in places where you would normally use Chamois Butter or some other anti chafing product.  It is an aerosol and the original formula looks, feels, and smells like foot powder.  You spray it everywhere, yes, everywhere.

I was a little skeptical when I first went to apply it.   I considered the fact that Todd might be playing a trick.  So I tested it on my arm.  No ill effects, so I applied it to the areas it was meant to be applied to. 

At first it is COLD.  It quickly dries to a white powder.  It has a pleasant scent, not too strong.  But the best thing about it is it works!  I've used it for two 10 hour riding weeks (I know, 10 hours is a lot less than you ride), which included a 3 hour road ride in 85 degree weather, and have been pleasantly surprised.  On longer rides I might use a chamois cream along with the Dry Goods but for every day use it works just fine by itself.

I figured BJS would love this stuff, so when I went to tell him about it I was surprised to find out that Todd had given him a can to try.  BJS didn't like it at all and gave the can to me since I was so fired up about it.  Turns out he was using the menthol formula.  How bad could it be?  Before my next ride I tested a spot on my arm, cold at first, a stronger odor, but after it dried it felt just like the original formula.  "BJS is just being picky" I thought.  So I applied it to the areas it was meant to be applied to.

Oh my goodness!  It felt like I had dipped myself in a bucket of ice water.  I figured it would go away once it dried.  Nope, it lasted for a good 45 minutes.  I thought something was wrong!  BJS never mentioned anything about this when he handed me the can.  Was he just being sly?  Or was he ashamed to say he might be a little (no pun intended) sensitive in certain areas?

I have no idea what the product will cost.  It is not as messy as creams to apply.  The can is still over half full and I've used it every day.  It works on feet and anyplace else you might chafe.  It washes out without leaving any trace.  I cannot recommend the menthol formula, maybe it was just me, but the discomfort wasn't worth it.  So if you even care, I do recommend the original formula, good stuff.

In and Around the Lake

Santa from last weeks race got the hole shot and I was determined to not let him get away.  I settled in behind him after elbowing two other old men off his wheel before we hit the first section of single track.  It was 86 degrees and dry in Winder Ga. last weekend.  The second race of the Gone Riding Georgia State Series was held at Ft. Yargo State Park on it's fantastic 10.5 miles of single track.  And I was determined not to just trail ride on the first lap like I did at Conyers the week before.

On a look back over my shoulder I could see 5 of us in our lead group but the pace was not punishing so I figured every body was content to let Santa pull for a while.  I was forcing myself to drink whenever we hit an open spot, which wasn't very often.  I noticed Santa never took a swig and figured this wouldn't work out so well for him if he didn't stay hydrated.  He made his first mistake at the only rock section, almost going down and taking me with him, but in good Santa fashion he apologised.  Not long after that I eased by him but so did Mr. Fully Rigid Single Speed (FRSS) who also passed me in the process.

When we hit the feed zone at the end of our first lap we were still in a tight group.  Ham, my nemesis from last year's series, taunted me as he got around when I went for a fresh bottle.  I dumped cold water on my head which seemed to rejuvenate me so I stood up, passed Ham back, and caught up to FRSS.

All of the sudden feeling froggy I passed FRSS on the only open section, hoping to put two riders from another class between us as I did it.  It worked but only until we got to the long hill.  I still don't know how that guy climbs so good on a single speed.  He said "let's work together" but I could tell I had burned my matches so I watched him slowly pull away.  I always encourage riders when they pass me.  Even if they're in my class.  I don't hold them up unless they have earned a little dose of rolling chicane due to previously being impolite.  It's just the kind of guy I am.

Anyhoo, the Clydesdale rider who had just moved up to my class and had gotten third the week before, was on my wheel.  He seems to finish strong, maybe I should buy him a box of donuts.  Now I was in third.

With 5 miles to go I started to feel like puking.  I could see another rider from my class behind me, even though he was a ways back.  I thought "if you want it you can have it", I'm such a loser.  I could hear a rider breathing hard behind me.  He gasps "not in your class man".  I let him by and sneak a look over my shoulder, no one there.

Since I almost got nipped at the line at Conyers I tried to keep focused and managed to cross the line in third.  My first sport podium.  Yes, I am awesome.

The kid met me at the finish with a big goofy grin on his face.  You never get tired of seeing your kids smile.  At 16 they seem to come less and less.  He had gotten 2nd and was full of race stories.  If you know him you know how strange it was to hear him.  He doesn't believe me but I was happier for his success than mine.  And yes, I think that 3rd in the 50+ sport class is somewhat a success.

Hard to Handle

That had to be one of the most fun mountain bike trails to race on.  Yea the granite was scary the first time over it, and there were some hard climbs, but the Olympic Track in Conyers Ga. was like a roller coaster.

I worried about the weather all week for nothing.  A shower Saturday night put down just enough moisture to make it tacky for our 11:30 start.  I have BJS to thank for that, the forecast changed as soon as he decided to bail out.  The only problem with the weekend was the wedding reception at our hotel that had moved onto the patio outside our room.  After 2 calls to the front desk they finally got things calmed down but not until my blood pressure had reached critical mass.

Are you interested in a race report?  Do you mind if I describe how I almost lost 4th place in the last 15 feet?  How about how I went for a leisurely trail ride for the first half a lap.  Or maybe how I just fell in behind a Clydesdale rider on the last lap and decided that he was "going fast enough".

Anyhoo, I got a terrible start, the guy next to me elbowed me as soon as he got on his pedals.  This is the 50 plus class but this guy looked like Santa Clause, beard and all.  How could he have been so mean?  The first clue should have been when he told me before the race that he had been in the sport class for 15 YEARS!  So naturally I got behind him and followed him for half the first lap.  I know, it doesn't make any sense to me either, but it seemed like a good move at the time.

After I got around Santa I caught a couple of riders in my class and figured I was close to the top 5, which was my goal for this race.  I had a little incident in the feed zone as yellow wave riders were just riding back and forth across the track.  I may have thrown my bottle at one of them as I tried to get to my fresh bottle.  Right after that a Clydesdale rider passed me just before we went into the single track.  He was going ever so slightly slower than I could go, not quite slow enough for me to pass him back, but slow enough that my heart rate wasn't in the "I'm racing now" zone.  I kept checking behind me and didn't see anybody so I settled in.

On the last time up the big gas line climb I came up on a rider pushing his bike, he was in my class.  I passed him and tried to put as much distance as I could between us.  When we got to the granite climb near the end I could see him at the bottom.  I figured I had my position as I couldn't even see the rider in front of me.  I then started to wonder why people were yelling "GO GO" as I approached the finish line chute.  I upped the pace a little just to make them happy.  Turns out there were 2 riders in my class right behind me, like almost in my jersey pocket.

As you can tell I need to learn a few lessons from this race.  I should know all this stuff by now.  I don't know why it's so hard to think when you're out there.  I ended up 4th in the 50+ Sport class.  The kid got a 3rd in the 15-19 base!    We'll do it again this coming weekend in Winder Ga.  Let's see if I learned anything.

Take It To The Limit One More Time

It's finally here.  This weekend is the first race of the Georgia State Championship Series by Gone Riding.  Sounds really dramatic when I type it out like that.  I know it's not as big as the Florida Series and it's sort of a subset of the Southeastern Series but hey, it's been something to work for.  My guts feel all squishy just thinking about it.  Am I ready?  Have I prepared properly?  You can have all the confidence in the world but all that really counts happens after that starting whistle blows.  Man my hands are getting sweaty already.

I've read that being nervous before an event is just your body getting ready to do something difficult.  I have raced so many events (mostly moto) since my first one in 1974 you'd think I wouldn't get the pre race jitters.   I can think of many nights spent staring at a hotel ceiling waiting for the alarm to go off, so nervous I hadn't slept a wink.  I remember being in South Carolina near Charleston as it flooded and thundered all night.  It was still raining when we went to the start the next morning, praying they would cancel the race.  No such luck.  I pushed that motorcycle more that day than I rode it, finished at 4:00, loaded up in the rain, then drove home 7 hours with South Carolina sand stuck in places it was never meant to be.  If you've ever raced much you've got stories like that, those are the ones you remember.

Let's hope there's some of this

And very little of this

I sleep good now a days before a race.  MTB races don't have quite the element of danger that moto races have.  At least not at my speed.  Anyhoo, yes, I'm excited about this weekend, and a little nervous.  The day it stops being that way for me is the day I know it's time to quit.

Georgia On My Mind

The kid, Big Worm, and I met at the old Miccosukee school at 10:00 last Saturday morning for another Ric Silk designed clay roads ride.  Ric and Big Jim The Awesome (BJTA) had rolled from Ric's house with a route that totaled 120 miles so we had planned to meet them on the road somewhere as we headed north.  I only needed 4 hours of easy riding to complete a light week of the OMTP and the map I'd briefly looked at the night before had shown 65 miles total for our abbreviated route.  The kid was not jumping up and down to go, he had had a tough experience on the last Silk death march, but he figured he could do 65 miles.  He'll learn not to listen me someday.

As you may have already figured out the 65 miles did not include our whole ride.  The map started from Metcalf, which looked a lot like Miccosukee the night before without my glasses.  Since we had started at Miccosukee it added almost 20 miles to the ride.  This didn't dawn on me until after we crossed Ga. 84 north of Dixie and we were over 2 hours in.    Please don't get me wrong, I love going on these rides and I really appreciate being allowed to tag along.  I'd have just put on a little more chamois butter if I'd have looked at the map correctly and maybe left the kid at home.  Anyhoo, once again, I am NOT whining.

I started to get the feeling the kid and I were in trouble at two and a half hours when BJTA got to the front and we were doing 20 mph on a wash board rocky dusty road.  He had those "angry calves" he gets when he's in his training mode.  The kid started to fade off the back.  When we got to the next paved road I got Ric to show us a bail out back to Boston and the kid and I took pavement into town.  There is a world of clay roads and beautiful paved roads in the Boston Ga. area, it begs to be explored further.

We rejoined the group at a store and rolled out together, but not for long.  Since they had more miles to cover and really wanted to up the pace, they waved goodbye and disappeared into the distance.  Big Worm kept us company for a little while when even he felt the need to ride faster.  By this time I knew I didn't want to put this much pressure on my legs at this point in the OMTP so the kid and I put it in survival mode and just enjoyed the scenery.

Five and a half hours after we left we were back in Miccosukee.  Big Worm was lounging on his tail gate enjoying the cool breeze.  83 miles on the clock.  I am soooooo impressed by Silk and BJTA.  I don't know if I'll ever have that kind of leg.  Forty miles further?  Plus a faster pace?  Of course they are all between 10 and 20 years younger than I am.  Is that an excuse, well, kinda.

On the way home the kid was happier after a stop at the store for junk food.  He felt a little bad since this was the second time in a week he had caused me to cut a ride short (he flatted at the end of the warm up lap on our first Joe's ride last Wednesday).  By the time we got home he was feeling good about the trip.  You know how that goes.  We watched Paris-Roubai that night and had a new appreciation of what that must be like.

Even though I burned 5000 plus calories I still gained 2 pounds.  This seems to be common for me after longer rides.  My fueling system on the bike still needs work as my food got stuck together and was hard to eat.  According to my OMTP I shouldn't be doing rides longer than my race time.  I'm still a little stiff today and I've been off the bike for 2 days.  But you know the chance to go riding with friends on an amazing spring day couldn't be passed up just because of some stupid plan right?

Sunday Morning Coming Down

This has nothing to do with today's subject, I just thought it was funny.

No I'm not going to bore you with more vacation pictures.  I'm having enough trouble adapting to the regular work week without looking at them again.

I have tried to be true to the OMTP (Old Man Training Plan).  I seem to come up a little short with regards to hours on the long weeks and then go over on the short ones.  Anyhoo, it's been entertaining planning and scheduling my time.  I know, you've all been through something like this before and you're saying "screw that, that sounds too much like work", and you'd be right.  But give me a little slack here, I need some extra motivation now and then.  You know, when it's Sunday afternoon and you've missed all the group rides due to family stuff, but you really need another 3 hours to make the week.  The kid doesn't want to go and the back porch looks soooo inviting.  You open the fridge to get a water bottle, and you see the cold bottle of beer.   "I'm right here" it says "just grab me and a good book".  Ah, but the plan says to go ride.

That's the way it went last Sunday, so I loaded up and headed out the door, alone.

I think the kid is getting tired of just he and I riding by ourselves.  The first question I get is "who else is going?".  When I say "just me", he usually sighs.  Unfortunately it's the way that this OMTP seems to work.  It's hard to blend in a particular workout with a group ride so I end up going by myself and the kid feels like he should tag along.  But not last Sunday, he opted out.  So I took my music to Forest Meadows and rode the Torture Loop.

I managed to get my 3 hours in and still have some Sunday afternoon left.   I missed my scheduled hours for the week by 1:10 but I could hear the above mentioned beer calling to me again on the last lap.  Yea, I'm weak, that's why I have to work so hard to get a whopping 6th place.  There's only two and a half weeks until my first B race.  I better stay away from that refrigerator.