Anecdote Thursday - You ain't doing Jack!

I have all these antedotes that have shaped my life as a athlete and a person. I almost think it would be unfair to leave out these experience that have helped shape my life, especially from an "Athlete" standpoint. So from now on, I'll try to make Thursday the day to give an antedote. Don't worry, I have plenty of them. So if this is halfway entertaining, I'll have more on tap. To actually understand this post better, it's probably a good idea to go back and read, "Going Lone Ranger".

You ain't doing Jack!

To get better, and you know it. While you are sleeping, they are getting better. Why you are watching your favorite sitcom, they are watching film on how to get better than you. While you are cutting that practice session short, they are extending their session.

These are all the statments that were made to me from one of our brightest table tennis stars, 5-time US Champion, 2-Time Olympic Team Member, and now Table Tennis Hall of Famer, Sean O'neil. I was invited to live at the Olympic Training Center in the Summer of 1988, and when I got there the US Team was in Seoul Korea playing the in the Summer Olympics in Table Tennis.

The program had 15 of the top players, male and female from CA, MS, GA, MD, TX, VA, NC, NM, and CO living in 8 dorm rooms in the resident building for athletes. The other 2 dorms were for visiting athletes. We went to public school, but had some subjects off as we trained in the morning sometimes.

And I was pretty full of myself as I quickly realized that I was by far the most athletic among everyone on the team. I dominated all aspects of physical exercise from Frisbee football, to football, track and field, basketball, etc. But where I got it handed to me, was on the table. I got a rude awakening that I was by far the least skilled athlete on the team. Some times I got beat so bad, that I wondered why they even chose me to be there.

The other players were all seasoned athletes with at least 8-10 years of experience behind them. They all came from table tennis families and started playing by age 6. I was this raw talent that started when I was 14, and by 16 I was among the best, but I had a long way to go. The team manager Larry Hodges, would stay after practice and essentially knock the confidence right off my shoulder in beating me repeatedly. I felt like I was better than him, but I was so inexperienced that he just abused me. I got the daylights beat out of me every single day after practice for one entire semester.

Things got real for me when Sean came back from the Olympics. He had just come back from competing on the largest scale in sports. The Olympics is the pinnacle of sports as any person knows. Watching him train, and interact like a true professional made me question if I had what it took to be at the top. He explained this story to me that happened to him when he was a kid.

Let me first say that he was American’s brightest hope in the early 80’s. And at that time his parents brought a Swedish coach over to spend the summer at his house in VA and work with him. He overheard a conversation with his parents and the coach. The Swedish coach essentially told his parent that he really didn’t have any talent, and that he didn’t have the work ethic to be world class.

From that day forward Sean went "Over the Top", with regards to being the best athlete he could be. He had the mental game of Tiger Woods before we even knew that someone could be that intense. If he could beat you 21-0, then he would do it without the blink of an eye. If someone dropped dead playing on the table next to him, he would be focused on his task of kicking your teeth in. I went back to my room feeling like I should just pack my bags and move back to NC. I was not even close to having a “Over the Top” attitude. I was just doing what was required of me to just get by. But before I went to bed, he asked me to go on this run with him, and to be outside my dorm room at 6am the next morning. That gave me some confidence as I felt like he was taking me under his wing.

I met him at 6am the next morning, and he said we were going to run 4 miles to this abandoned landfill, then 1 mile up it, and 1 mile back down, then 4miles back to the training center. That didn’t seem so bad, so I relaxed a little. We did a slow jog across the campus of the Training Center, and if that was the pace, then I would be just fine. Hell, I might even put it on him a bit. But as soon as we got outside the training center an onto the side walk, he freaking took off. He never looked back, and he was running at breakneck Ethiopian speed. This was 6200ft, and I was buried within myself by the first 2 miles, and he never even bother to see how I was doing. I was saved from being dropped by him more than a couple of times by stop lights or morning traffic.

We get to the landfill and I’m happy because there is a dirt road. Sean waits for me, then he said we are going up the side of the dump straight through the bushes. I saw patches and patches that I knew I couldn’t navigate through without being cut up. He takes off, and I follow him. It has broken bottles, trash, plastic grocery bags, and smelled a little like death. By the time we got to the top, my hands were bloody, but the 20 degree weather numbed the pain. We turn around and run right down the same path we came up. The last 4 miles he completely broke my spirit, and dropped me just like the amateur table tennis wannabe that I was. He did wait for me at the gate, and we went to breakfast together. I was shaking as I was tried to eat my eggs and toast, and after I ate it, I went right to my room and barfed it up. I actually couldn’t walk normal for a week, and missed 2 days of school and practice. He never spoke of this event again. No, “Let this be a lesson to you”, speech. He just handed me my ass, and walked off for me to figure it out. I later found out that almost every athlete with potential got the "Run of Pain" with Sean, and they only did that run with him 1 time.

That was the lesson, if you could do more than your competitors, then you can look them in the eyes and know you are dedicated, even if you are not better. You need to know that you have more mental insurance that you were more prepared, more dedicated, and had given up more to be in that position. Winning was an after thought if you reached to every corner of the earth to be better. 4 months later at Ceasar's Palace at the National Table Tennis Championships in Las Vegas, he dominated everyone and won the Men's Singles Title. $5000.00 was brought out to him in gold coins by guards dressed up like Romans. He just sat on top of that money raising his hands. I got a chill in my spine that I can still remember it from 1988, because that was the first time that I saw what the footsteps looked like to going "Over the Top".

That was 1988, and it took me about 4 years to learn how to do that without losing my social life, friends, pssting off teammates, and driving myself up the wall for trying to find balance in my life at the same time. The summer of 1992 was when I truly learned how to balance myself, and in the fall of 1992 I beat Sean O’neil, shortly after he got back from the Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. I think that is when he acknowledged that I was doing more. I had known what he was made of, and there was no way I could stand in front of him unless I had been able to go "Over the Top".

In 2001, I moved to Romania without letting anyone know outside of my family, and closest friends. As soon as Sept 11th happened, I emailed everyone to let them know I was living and competing in Europe and that I was ok outside of being constantly asked to show my passport. When Sean found out I was in Romania he asked me if I wanted to play Men’s Doubles at the Nationals, and I was honored. He realized that I had that “Over the Top” attitude and he scooped me up as a partner before anyone asked. I came back from the first part of the season sharper than I have even been i my life, mentally and competitively. At the Nationals we finished runner up in the Men’s Doubles, and it was one of the best experiences that I had playing doubles.

You can go to this link http://www.usatt.org/events/2001nationals/day_four.shtml to read the write-up from the Finals. Scroll down half the page and you see this picture, and the write-up is just under it.


Now, I live my life by that statement, and I have always been able to look myself in the mirror and know that I’m going “Over the Top”. Now, can you say you are doing that?


Go out and ride smarter, harder, longer, and faster.

Pacer Out!

Dedicated Athlete or Demented Person

That is what I've been thinking as of lately. Ever since I decided that I was going to really give it a very hard try in 2008, I have kinda went off the deep end. I slowly added in all the factors that make up what I think I need to ride my best.

I got a sponsorship from Dedicated Athlete and made my first order for the EP-NO for the year in hopes of raising my red blood count. (Dopers, beware. There are some athletes doing it legit).

My boy Shane at Dedicated Athlete in GA threw in a "Dedicated Athlete" T-shirt, check out the website, www.dedicateathlete.com Here is the front

And the back

I already had the powerlung, and it is a hell of a workout for the lungs, and the concept is to improve exhalation that gets more C02 of of the lungs.

During my rise at a road biker in 2007, I was on Kona Endurance and it was the supplement that I took that got me the 2 best result of the year in the State Series.

They now have Kona Endurance Pro, which is jacked up with more supplement that improves V02 Max, and reduces lactic acid build-up, and I just got my order for that in. The benefits should be coming around in about 4 weeks.

As you know I got the Water Ionizer, and it has proven to me to be the purchase of the years, as I did 5 laps at a pretty hard effort without losing power, and not even coming close to cramping up. Can't say enough about the purchase, I'm definitely patting myself on the back for making that purchase.

I spent a grip on the CAT Altitude Sleeping Tent, and I don't have much of an opinion on it yet as I have only been sleeping in it 10 days. Research says that you start to feel the effects after 2 weeds, and at 4 weeks you will see an obvious improvements, and the max benefits are seen at 6 weeks. That should be right around Santos, so I'll wait to see what happens on that.

By the way the response to me going to far to improve has been really, really positive so far. I'm looking forward to seeing how my I can gauge my performance in about 4 more weeks.

For Xmas I got my brother to order me a copy of "P90X", as he has been raving about it. He is in the military and a drill instructor in SC, and he says that this is the workout that puts the privates in the dirt. For Thanksgiving, we had me do the "Ab Ripper X", and I couldn't get more then 6 minutes into the 15 minute non-stop ab workout. My challenge is to incorporate about 6 of these workouts into my weekly routine. Also, if you come to my place, and make it through the Ab Ripper X, I'll pay for you and your significant other to go to "Bonefish", that is how convinced that it's ass busting. Actually, all 12 of the workouts are tough.

I got this gift from my brother that is more fanatical than me regarding health. It's raw organic chocolate powder. It's nice to put in your after workout shake as it has not been processed. It doesn't really give a sugar high/low like normal chocolate.

Even though I only raced hard for about 14mins at Markham, it was a great workout. I could not have gotten a workout like that if I had went out to ride by myself. So I paid for the atmophere. But, I'm happy to say that my lower endurance zone is coming along just fine.

I went out yesterday and did my normal 40 mile workout while keeping my heartrate in the 140's, and I was 1 minute and 44 seconds faster than my best time I did 2 weeks ago. I think next week I'm going to moved up this workout into the 150's and see if I can manage that for 2hrs.

Today, I'm going to ride down and do 4 laps at Amelia, which has quickly become my favorite trail to ride because it's not so up and down as Markham. It also allows you to do zone training, which I'm a big fan of. I know I have to eventually start rolling with those knuckleheads if I want to get the high end work that I need. I'm going to skip this weekends race, but I will go out and ride the course which I think they will run backwards this time around. I guess I'll try to make Oleta my coming out party for a big effort as it is really the best course that suits my style of riding. Last year the the Pro category only beat me by 3 minutes, so I'll take advantage of the fact the I ride better at that course.

I'll Holla

Pacer Out!

Race Report - 2008 Coconut Cup - Markham

I get to the course about 40 minutes before the race, because I don't want to get there extra early like most racers and hang out. I like to swoop in, sign up, get the bottles, and warm up.

When I went to sign up, and I was very surprised to see Bounds, Mad Maddox, and T-Wiz signing up. All of a sudden the middle of this race was going to be very fast. Damn, I picked a bad day to get a good training ride in on race day. I started looking around and it looked like most of the riders that was in the Expert 19-39 race were ballers so there would be no core midddle group of riders. It actually made it easier for me as I knew I didn't have the firepower to stay on the front like last year.

I warm up a bit with Bounds, Tim, Adam, and a few other going in to do Armadillo backwards. After that went back to the tent, because I forgot my water bottle.

I'm actually being extremely radical this year in my approach. Last year I did this race after 6 weeks off and 2 weeks back on the bike, and I had no power and had to DNF. This year, I'm going to use it as a tool to get faster while working on my endurance for Santos and the Hospice. There was a small, I mean very small inner conflict going on with the super competitive ass kicker in me that wanted to challenge the front of the group. But I would simply DNF if I put down the little power that I did have.

Things I was doing different this race
1. No powders in my bottles(Emergen-C, 20 calories per bottle)
2. No powergels, or gu's (Actually, nothing)
3. I'm going to finish every bottle that I have
4. I'm going to ride more after the race(about 20miles)

If I was drinking this alkaline water of a 9.5 and it was going to keep my body more hydrated, then I was going to put it to the test. It takes character to come to a race and actually experiment. Almost all the racers I know are more concerned about their image with regards to their results. They have to do well, and if they don't it's like the world has come to an end. Note to them: If you think you have to do well "All the time", then you simple have not done enough losing. You need to "Lose" to "Learn". I used to train with Jimmy Butler (2-time US Olympic Table Tennis Team) and he helps me understand the importance of playing a tournament when not in top form. He said all the sports have some type of scrimmage system, and he said, "No one is going to ask you how many practice matches you won in your scrimmage period". I have not been able to get that out of head, and it's been especially challenging in cycling as we pretty much race year round. It's not like living in the north when their are no races because the weather is awful for 5 months out of the year. OK, that is my schpill on why I think it's important to have a training races.

Riders! 5 seconds, whistle and we are off.

Going through the gate Bob and Victor are jocking for position to be in the front and Bob makes a surge. But I admire what Victor is doing because he is not playing defense at all. He is taking the race to Bob. In all the races in the North Bob has used wisdom in playing defense instead of surging to got off the front. Then he would pick off the riders that have been dropped out of the front group. That is simply wisdom over youth, and they both work. See, you don't have to be a Pro to have a Pro's perspective. I'm not sure how many people would have ever picked up on it, or even have the confidence to say it. Shit, I will.

We are going around the fireroad, Bob, Victor, LaRue, Joe V. me, and Bounds. About 200 meters before we turn off the fireroad things starts shaking up, and I manage to get in behind Joe V. And I don't mind making this surge because it won't cost me. We are on a long straight that goes to Bermuda, so I know I'm safe for the time being. My HR is 171bpm, but I don't feel tapped out at all.

We keep it steady through Bermuda, and when we cut out of that section there is a surge and don't even make an attempt to go. Bounds comes around me, and I'm expecting LaRue to be with him. But he is not, and when Bounds says "Jump on my wheel, Pace", I go and he bridges us back up. My heartrate is still the same, but I know things won't get humbling until I get to the Gun Range. Actually, Bounds gets gapped by the front 3 in the gun range and I can feel myself going a little to deep for 14 minutes of racing. But out of the gun range Bounds and I have a gap on LaRue, so I just stay behind him.

I said all that to say that I really didn't want to keep up with Bounds, but I didn't want to wait 10 second to let LaRue pass me. I was just going to keep on riding until he catches me. I go into Outback and I turn off the after burners big time, as it is time to start Speed Pacing. LaRue catches up to and I just pull over, grab a tree and he says "Thanks Pace".

Now, I'm like Patti Labelle, "I'm on my own", and I have to manage the next 4 and a half laps taking in no calories. Just drinking that 9.5. I soon get caught by Trent, then about 3 minutes later, T-Wiz. T-Wiz is in front of me and it's tempting me to go into the red to get on his wheel, but I just keep my effort right were it is.

I go into Armadillo and I can still see him, I go into Toilet bowl and I can see him, I cut into Alligator Alley and I can see him. I get ready to go into warm-up loop backwards and I can still see him. "Nope, not gonna do it", and I just keep it Pacing.

I look down and my HR is 170bpm, and I really wanted it to be around 10 beats lower, but I keep that same effort. I can still see Tim and when I come out of Bermuda Jorge tells me that he has 20 second, and I say, "Thank God". I know if he is still in sight I will end up keeping my effort high. I come out of the Gun Range and just before I go into Outback backwards Luiz M. and Danny say he has 30 seconds. Damn Tim, go ahead and put me out of my misery. I know I'm at the back of the race and the only person I can see is Nixon so I will only ride hard enough to keep my position on him.

I go into lap 3 and I have found a flow, and I have not even felt that tingle in the legs that lets me know that there is some cramping on the horizon. At the halfway point in the Gun Range I hear a group of at least 5 riders together, so I know that's the 40+ group. I was expecting Matt to catch me first as he is the Alpha Male at this course in his category. But it takes them a much longer time to catch me, and once I have made it up the backwards steps in Armadillo, Matt and Campbell passes me and Oscar has to put a foot down, so I push off and I'm behind Campbell. I really don't want to be between any of the riders in this category. I really want get in the back, and watch how things shake up.

I finish Armadillo behind them and I realize that I have been going way too slow. There pace is good, but it's not punishing at all. Maybe that is why there is such a flock of riders together Before toilet bowl I let Oscar pass me as he has bridged up to me. Things stay flowing and cutting into Alligator Alley Oscar has to put a foot down as he hits the soft sand the wrong way. Adams asked to pass, then Joe D., then Andres, then Henry. Shit, 7 riders together going into the last lap. I need some popcorn. Now my agenda is to keep the slow rider in the group on all the fireroads. We go into the warm-up loop and the group gets stretched out.

Once we go into the start/finish it has broken up with Matt and Campbell up the fireroad, Joe D and Oscar and Adam trying to bridge up to them. Andres surges off and Henry is by himself so I surge up to him and give him a push and he able to come up on the group of Adam and Andres and pass them both and now he pulling them. Things stay steady through Bermuda, and once we get out, Adam is struggling so I give him a push also. I'm giving out the pushes like lollipops from the dentist and it raises my heartrate, but I feel good.

I'm sitting at the back and Matt and Campbell are gone, and Oscar, Andres and Henry are in the group ahead of us. I don't have the balls to ask if I can come around them so I just sit in. Adam has slowed down a bit, and Joe is starting to soft pedal and I say, "Joe this is the end, don't play defense". I try to keep him motivated so we can make a surge to bridge back to the trio up the trail. We come out of the gunrange and I yell out, "Who wants a ride" and I put the hammer down as I can see the trio about 15 seconds ahead of us. I'm a little bit inspired as I feel like I'm just a worker trying to pull back a chase group. I go into Outback backwards and I'm racing now. I look back, NOBODY. Damn! "Who's wit me", I say like Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire. I soft pedal until Joe gets back to me, and keep it steady. I gap him again, and I got into Armadillo by myself. I make a mistake at the steps and when Joe comes around I give him a push. Ok, that is push number 3.

I stay behind Joe, but he is seriously going backwards, and I pass him in the last section before the warm-up loop and bring in the 4the lap all by myself. Damn, I won't have any drama this lap to make me forget how painful the race is. The only thing I can think of is Nixon is a pretty strong finisher, so I was expecting him to make some kind of surge. I actually started to soft pedal since I knew I was going to put in more miles, and had to almost force myself out of the flow I had riding with the 40+ guys. I finish out that lap about 40 seconds slower than the lap before.

I went back to the car, and ate half of a blueberry scone, and hit the road to ride on the levy. The first 10 minutes was a bit painful as I was trying to get the body back in the zone, and the fact that my body had cooled down made it especially challenging.

I go to the levy, and realized that it was going to be a little painful as I had a serious headwind. I could only manage about 12-14mph, but I was glad that it was in the attack position. My shoulders started to ache, and so did my back. Great! This is what I need as it make the body stronger. I need to train the body to be in this position more often and the body aching is a great sign that my core strength is being raised.

I started mediating on Santos and the Hospice 100, and just managing the distance, the body, the food intake, etc. These would be the 2 races that I'm focusing on before I start bringing in the power for the new year. I'm also going to get down on some road racing at Rosewood. I think it's going to be more challenging now that I'm Cat 3, so I won't set any goals beside trying to stay near the front for the sprint.

After about 40 mins on the levy, I had enough of being mauled my the wind(thanks Eddie O), and turned around to enjoy the 30min ride back down the levy. Once I got back to Markham I did another 5 miles home, and brought in the days effort at 49.1 miles.

Goals I accomplished
1. I reached the 4hr mark on the mountain bike and did not cramp up, compared to Santos 3hr and 55 min full leg lock up even when I was taking in food(Mission Accomplished)
2. I was able to hold back myself from racing all out and focused on steady riding which is what I need for Santos and the Hospice (Mission Accomplished)
3. I did a XC race on just 20 calories per laps and 9.5ph water, and I now understand the importance of water(Mission Accomplished)
4. I did a XC race on no powders, gu's, gels, etc. (I'm never doing that shit again)(Mission Accomplished)

I can't say I'm interested in going to Amelia to do the same thing this weekend, so I'll most likley do 6 laps on the Pre-ride day, then go to Oleta on Sunday. Now, I know how far I can ride based on no food, I want to see how I can ramp up the power when I add in bars, gels, and powders.

I think my next purchase is going to go towards a bike fit from Matt Goforth of "On Your Mark" Performance. I had said something to him, but never really followed up. I was on the velonews site and Nate Ross and the owner of Wobblenaught explained how they fit the riders based on the body's geometry, and it was really extensive. I have followed this, especially on Eddie O's 55nine performance, but never pulled the trigger on gettin the bike fit. Even after hearing all the overwhelming testimonies. So if I'm going all out in 2008, then I have to get this done. The reason is I still don't understand how I'm so much more effective as a rider on the road bike, but it's just not translating into the mtn bike. I plan to get it soon, and give my body enough time to get used to it for Santos. By the way, that 6hrs of Santos is looking more and more attractive than the 12hrs every day now.

But when I know more, you'll know more

Pacer Out!

Markham Pre-Race Thoughts

I decided that after riding at Markham on Wed and Thursday, that I really don't have XC Race power. On Wednesday one of the laps turned into race pace, and I was not able to hold on in the last 5 mins and got dropped by about 10 seconds. I went out on Thursday and hooked up with Andres and Jorge and was only able to ride about 35 second faster which put me right under 33 and a half minutes. Where I'm really shining at is in the distance of my rides. I'm able to ride a much longer distance while able to hold my pace.

So the fact that the race is 5 laps is in my favor to post a decent result. I really let go of the XC aspiration on Thursday and honestly decided to turn the race into a really hard training ride. In fact my plan is to ride another 3 laps after the race is over, then ride up and down the levy to see if I can get my total for the day to around 50-60miles. If I can do that then I'll be ready for Santos. I won't force the XC speed, I will have to let it come to me whenever it checks in.

On Saturday I went to work for about 2 hrs, then went home and loaded up my stuff. I decided to ride over to Markham since it was only 5 miles from my house. Since I had really good endurance I decided to do 4 laps, then ride back home. I got there and did the first lap with a rider from Z's Bikes. The way Dave Williams set up the course was another "Knock Out", and noone saw it coming. We go around the warm-up loop then cut into a fireroad that goes straight to Bermuda triangle. Out of there you skip Ted's, Jet Ski, and Crime Scene, then a quick in and out of Outback Extension. Straight to the Gun Range. Out of the Gun Range we go into Outback backwards and that section was challenging. We continue going backwards until we get to Area 51, then we cut over to Armadillo. Then it's 95% of Armadillo backwards, then cut over to toilet bowl. From toilet bowl we cut into Alligator Alley, then we take that all the way back out, make a sharp left turn and cut into last section. Then we do the warm-up loop backwards. It was a nice pace, but only a 30min lap. The course is flat on the front end, jagged in the middle at the gun range, even more jagged and challenging once you do Outback and Armadillo backwards, not to mention the up and down of Alligator Alley. Then thing calms down going into the warm-up loop.

I went back in and did 2 laps back to see if I could get a mode. I did a 27 and 28 minute lap, and got a good feel for where I should put in my efforts and where I should hold back. To make sure I had no XC dreams, I put in one more lap for good measure making it 4 for the day. After that, I rode home to cool down the legs. Here is the chart.

My Goals for the race
1. No cramping up (Hydrate, Hydrate)
2. Really come on very strong for laps 4 and 5 (Hold back early)
3. Let the front 2 riders go as they are in a battle (They are just too fast)
4. Ride more miles after the race (Need to prepare for Santos 6 or 12hr)

I prepared my hydration intake for the race after dinner. I'm going to ride with 24oz bottles on the bike, and 20oz in the back of the jersey. I'm going to eat a salad for breakfast since is more alkalizing than my normal meal at Panera Bread, or Waffle house.

Here is the 6 water bottles I plan to drink in 5 laps.

I loaded up all my bottles with Acai Berry Emergen-C.

If I can still walk I'm going to throw this on my back.

I'm sure I'm going to be depleted, so I plan to load up on the 9.5. Remember, "I run on Electrons".

Then I'm off to put in some more miles.

Wish a brother luck out in the woods

Pacer Out!

Clip of the Week - Fight or Flight

In light of this weekends race I went back in the archives to find something that speaks to the "Hardcore Competitor" in me, and I found this.

If you have taken a psychology or sports psychology, then you have heard of the "Fight or Flight" moment. If you haven't heard of it, it is the moment in sports or life when a athlete or person decides that they are going to except the challenge, or they are going to look for a way out of it as it is too much for the senses physically, mentally or emotionally.

If you remember the Tyson/Holyfield from June 7th 1997, then you remember one of the most bizarre moments in sports history. It's when Tyson bit Holyfield on each ear. Now you tell me if you think this is a fight or flight moment.


If you remember the 2003 Tour de France, Lance was having a just a hell of a time trying to get himself together and on Luz Ardiden his handlebar snags a spectator. Take a look

After the chaos ensues, things get back to order. Then when Mayo attacks, and that sets off Lance.


I put in most of the events as they transpired so you can get a chance to really see that it does turn into a moment to remember.

It's nothing better than to ride away from a group that is clustered together holding on for dear life. To me that is a "Fight" moment for Lance


Whatever you do, have a good ride, race, run, then have a little retreat and relaxation.

Pacer Out!

Crunching Numbers, pt 2

To better understand this post, you should probably read "Crunching Numbers, pt 1".

Last year I decided that I wanted to do some XC Endurance events for 2008. After reading the blogs of Harvey, Eddie and Nam O, Danielle, Harlan Price, and others it seemed so attractive that I just couldn't deny trying it. So I decided I better bring myself in slowly by doing the 6hrs of Santos. At the race I went off the front with Shawn S. and Greg D. and we created a huge gap. But at 3hrs, 55mins mark my legs were cramping up, and my stomach would not hold any food. I was practically finish racing at the 4hr mark. I had gone right into cramping up, and it would switch from quad to quad, and hamstring to hamstring, and finally hamstring and quad at the same time.

So I realized I had to study Endurance racing like I had studied everything else I do, and come up with some reason why I think I can pull it off.

What I have going against me is a couple of things. I'm genetically built like a sprinter, and I don't think it's ideal for attempting Endurance Races. The second thing is historically speaking my background in racing is only XC, which does not go over 2 and a half hours in 95% of the races I have done. The third thing is I am prone to cramping up after 2 hrs of hard racing, especially in hot weather. It does not even matter if I'm super hydrated. The last thing that I could think of is going from a 2 hrs XC race to 12 hours of racing is borderline "Insane" to put the body through.

Now, what I have going for myself. Since I played table tennis between 4-6hrs a day, I have built up my body to be more aerobic based, instead of ballistic. I love the concept of riding much longer races where you really get a chance to see the race really play out from a "Will Power" standpoint. You get a chance to really see if it is just talent, or a really fighting "Spirit" in getting a result. The second thing is I can do 100 mile rides on my road bike, and have NEVER encountered a problem with cramping. What is most important is once I have created the cirriculum for any program I have done better than expected. The last and most important is I have never half-assed it once I was Dedicated to the task.

These are the reason I decided that I should start crunching numbers so that I could create a startline and a finishline to being prepared to attempt this type of event. What I did first was I started to crunch the numbers for all XC Endurance races that I followed in 2007. I also got a little bit of advice from Eddie O of 55nine performance last year on exactly what training zones you should be in when training for this type of event.

I basically followed the 12 hr events because they show lap times. It is difficult to mention the 12-hrs of Oleta as it does not have really depth on a high level. The first real event with significant competition was obviously the 12hrs of Razorback. Because it got put on the National Calendar it attracted some really good Endurance races in the likes of Harlan Price, Rob Lichtewalner, Harvey Minton, Ernesto Marencin, and Chris J. Now these guys are very heavy hitters. It essentially was a 2 man race after 2 hours as Harlan and Rob rode awy from the pack. Harvey and Chris had a battle right down the wire, so it essentially was a 4 man race. Not to mention the distance, and the fact that Razorback has fangs.

I won't count the Hospice 100 as it only 62 miles, and it's done essentially on a XC course instead of a endurance course. The next event that I could look at lap times is the 12 hours of Tsali. There were 4 riders in 12hr race, but it was a 1 man race, as Brandon lapped is 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place compeitors. When the winner can lap his 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place competitors, it lets you know that the word "Pro Mtn Biker" is really a relative term and should be used loosely. I followed all the NUE Series races, but they are normally set up to do 2 long laps, or just out and back. But Chris Eatough, Harlan P, and a whole host of other very strong riders dominate those races. After reading some of the post that riders put on their blogs, I was able to get an idea of how things went down without having to look at laptimes.

The next event was the 12-hrs of Santos. It was a 2 man race as Drew and Bob went off the front of our group 6-hr group of Greg D,Shawn S and I. I'm convinced to the deepest part of my soul that the pace the 12-hr guys were going was above XC race pace and they would have paid for it big time. Chris J. and Eddie O are the real veterans in that kind of race and I think they would have brought it back. I think they both got caught up in a duel, and they went to try to crack each other early in the race. The race got called because of dangerous thunder and lighting, and trees down. It would have been nice to see how the back end of that race would have finished since I got a chance to ride the same course.

2 weeks later Eddie O won the 12hrs of Dauset, and Harvey finished second. Harvey got a pretty nasty mechanical, if not, it would have been a much more intimate race. Looking at the results it look like Harvey brought it back to within a minutes, that that was some really intense races. But they rode away from 3rd place, so it was a 2-man duel.

Now, I need to get to more number crunching with the little info that I can put together. First thing, I need to spend more time riding on my mtn bike to get comfortable with riding for very long periods of time in the attack position on a mtn bike. I need a dress rehearsal before I get to Santos. So on Sunday, my plan was to go out to Markham and do it "Godzilla".(It means big people, you know "Grande)

I slept in on MLK, did some reflecting on how far we have come as a society. We have a black man and a women in the race to be president, that's just awesome. We have come a long way. Enough with being preachy.

I can say after the sprinting on foot on Sunday that I woke up and the legs were a little bit tender, but not enough to say that they were sore. But the balls of my feet, toes, my abs, and biceps were really sore. I packed up and went to Markhum and I thought about how I wanted to make the ride really one to remember. In the car I came up with a plan. I would ride around the park to warm up (3.5miles), then do 2 laps back to back, get more water and ride around the park again, then 2 more laps, then ride the levy up to Atlantic in Coral Springs, then back. That is about as epic as I can make it. That would make it a 51 mile ride on the mtn bike, which is something that I need if I want to race longer Endurance events.

I get to the park and my Active Cycles teammate Tom Pike shows up right with me, and we chat and catch up as we have not seen each other since the Amelia race last month. Michelle didn't make it out to ride as she was having some abdominal pain, so I wish here a speedy recovery, and a quick return to the single-track. As I'm ready to start my warm-up around the park, Richard Diaz shows up and I tell him what I plan to do, and he tags along with me as Andres has not shown up yet. There is the nastiest wind head going South West, and makes is almost impossible to ride in, so I know that there will most likely be no riding the levy for me as it would just be too much of a hassle to ride for 10 miles into a 20mph wind.

After we get back to the entrance into the trail Andres is there unloading and has Jorge Cortez with him, so I opt to go in by myself and I find a nice flow, but I don't feel so good yet. I know that my breakfast was still on my stomach and I haven't had any water yet. But I'm doing the first 2 laps back to back, and I have 2 bottles, so I work that out. I finish the first lap, and I feel even worst on the second lap, and I lose 90 seconds. Once I get out I realize it's just too windy to ride around the park, so I decided to not ride around the park, but to do 2 more laps which would make it 6.

I get 2 more water bottles and I head right back in for laps 3 and 4. Now, my legs have found a mode and the burn is at bay and I have a nice clip going. I finish that lap 1 minute slower than my first, and go back in and do the same speed for the 4th lap. I get 2 more bottles, and head in for the 5th and 6th laps. My goal was to ride in the 150’s for as much as I can, and that is what I did the first 4 laps. In fact, my 6th laps was faster than my 2nd-5th laps. My 6 HR's were 158bpm, 152bpm, 152bpm, 155bpm, 153bpm, and 158bpm. Here is the chart for it.

I spent 100 minutes between 150-160bpm, and I can't get more "Endurance based" than that. I'm going to try to keep putting together big rides between now and Santos, but I honestly think that for where my form is, the 6hr event is more ideal for me. I don't want to force the form to try to do the 12hr, so I'm going to be smart based on where my form is, rather than what my head is thinking.

I'm sure if any real Endurance rider reads this post, they will see that I have probably left out 10 factors in training, nutrition, pacing, etc. The good thing about putting together a program, is you can modify it as you go along. I think the important thing to do is keep putting together good workouts that make sense.

Only time will tell if any of this makes sense, and of course I give you all the details.

Later Planet Earth

Pacer Out!

Alkaline vs. Acidic

That has been my main theme of 2008, and so fair things have got off to a fantastic start, and I have been having breakthrough after breakthrough.

If you don't already know I did the 14 day water fast (Easily, the hardest thing I have ever done), and have been enjoying some big breakthroughs on the bike as a result. I read so many books during those days that I knew I would never be the same once I went back to eating food.

I really got a much deeper understanding of what alkalizing food does to the body, and a much better understanding of how harmful acidic food is to the body. If you are an athlete, then you are producing much more acidic waste in volumes that is higher than most people that don't workout as much. So taking in more food that has an alkalizing and energizing effect on the body is paramount.

So I decided to make that concept my theme for 2008. It is to have 80% of the food that goes into my body daily coming from alkalizing food. In the last 13 days the ratio has been more like 90% Alkalizing/10% Acidic. And it became quickly apparent that I was on to something.

Coming off the fast I really went after the right food this time out. I would eat soup or fruit in the morning, and a salad for lunch. For dinner I would always do stir fry. I would get all the alkalizing vegetables, then cook them at 168 degrees. The cookware that I have has a whistle on it once the temp goes over 168 it whistles to let me know that I'm about to start killing the nutrients and enzymes that are vital. Here is what the stir fry looks like. As you can see, I did not hold back on what is alkalizing.

In staying with the Asian style cooking I normally add in some Chinese dumpling, better known as Potstickers if you are American and frequent Cheesecake or P.F. Changs which is the kind which Mrs. P prefers

Me, I'm taking a page out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon with the old school Chinese style dumplings like I used to get when I spent some time training in Shanghai. I get them from the Oriental Market in Coral Springs.

I have stayed on this program to the tee, and I have felt great, and it has shown in all my workouts. If you want to see how it has affected my workouts in a positive way, then read the "Crunching Numbers, pt 1" where it's all broken down.

On top of that I have made the purchase of the year in getting a Water Ionizer, which alkalizes the water to the level of 10.0, with 9.5 being optimal for human consumption. (I know you have already heard me mention this more times than you care to hear, but I'm doing it for a reason). The water you can make in your house with this, is better than anything you can find in the store.

I was at the Sheridian ride on Saturday, and at the Mobil station at the end of the ride it was really painful to watch the riders drink Desani(ph5.4),Aquafina(ph5.6) and Gatorade(ph5.2). That water is just robbing their bodies of oxygen, and energy. They don't even know that the only 2 water companies to drink(If you have to) is Fiji(7.4) and Avian(7.5). Now, I take a extra bottle of 9.5 water that has enough servings of sport powder to fill up 2 more 20oz bottles. If I have to drink water, then I'm going with Fuji.

Just to make sure wasn't tripping about this whole water hype, I ordered some ph miracle water which is suppose to have a ph of 9.5. Here is a picture of it.


That is a gangsta ass looking bottle of water. The first thing I did was crack open a bottle, get my ph drops out and tested it. It immediately turned dark purple giving merit to the fact that it is 9.5, and it highly alkalizing. So for Xmas this year everyone that is significant to me will be getting this $3.50 bottle of water, the website, and the research behind why they should get more of it for their health.

I can say that I have worked out the first 10 days, and have completed 452 miles of training, and I have not even come close to feeling like I need to take a break to give the legs a rest. I fact, on Sunday I went out and did a workout that normally sets me back for 2 days. It is a sprint workout on foot of running 150meters, and I normally do 5 all out sprints, with an average time of 26 second. That 15 minute workout normally has me walking around all sore, and I can't ride my bike for 2 days. On Sunday I did 9 of those sprints, and the avg time was 24 seconds. Check the chart.

8 of those 9 sprints I got my heartrate right into my race zone. Since it was raining, I then jumped on the trainer and did the CTS 1hr "One Legged Drills" with the mask on riding at 14.9% oxygen(9000ft) from the CAT Altitude unit. The concept is to drive up the Oxygen Consumption Rate by doing the sprints on foot, because to me they are much more explosive than doing them on my road bike. Once the legs are tapped out I go get on the trainer. Then getting on the trainer and specifically working on improving the cadense while riding with the mask that is giving me less oxygen to the muscles is another level to reach for the muscles.

That is training my legs to be able to work under a more difficult workload, and without as much oxygen that I'm used to. To ride in your fat burning zone at 9000 ft is like full on racing to the cells that are oxygen deprived.

When I have done the sprint workout in the past, my legs would already be sore once I got up from my nap. Not today! Even after riding on the trainer under low oxygen. My purpose was to go out and see if I could smash the legs, and I have not been able to do it yet. If I'm drinking Alkaline water with a ph of 9.5, the lactic acid can't stay in my legs. Ah Damn! I'm on to something. My new phrase for 2008 is "I run on electrons".

Here is a picture of my non-plastic, non-leaching material container and the "VIP" (Very Important Product) making the life giving, energy giving, 9.5 water, which I call "Water of Life". Ok, that last sentence was really, really lame.

I have been sponsored by Dedicate Athlete since 2006, and I have been taking EP-NO, as it is a natural blood booster. It is going to be more effective now that I'm sleeeping in hypoxia(Low Oxygen) which triggers my body to create more red blood cells.

I'm making my order for the Rapid Recovery, Rapidade, and Multi-vitamin next week so that I'm "Dedicated" all the way down to the bone. I think I have covered all bases, and the last things is how I'm going to approach the Markhum Race this coming weekend. I'm going to keep my plan under wraps, but it is going to be "Extremely Ambitious".

Pacer Out!

Crunching Numbers, pt 1

What's up with you planet Earth, this is your boy Speed Pacer checking in with you after about 9 days of riding for 2008.

I have to say that coming off the fast and getting back on the bike I have worked my form up to a level that I have never experienced, EVER. What has confirmed this is my polar percision performance software. If you don't know I am "Polar HR Chart" Super Freak. At this point I'm almost a slave to them. OK, I am a slave to them.

I'll give you the 4 of the workouts of 40 miles that I have done in the last week, and you'll see that the first 3 workouts got progressive better, but the 4th chart is just "King Kong".

This workout was my first day back on the bike after of not riding for 5 weeks, and a 14-day Water Fast. You can see that I did have a good pace going, but my heartrate values were just too high. My goal is to be able to ride in the 140's. As you can see, I spent not even 5 minutes in the 140's.

So that you understand the colors, the blue zone is the top of my fat burning zone, and bottom of my endurance zone. Anytime you see the chart in the red, that means I'm officially in my "Race Zone".

Here is the HR Chart

And here is HR Values.


The next day I did the same workout, and the chart looked almost the same. I only spent about 10 minutes in the 140's, but the avg spd was about the same.

HR Chart

HR Values


Day 3 was a very cold day, but the heartrate was very high. Sad to say that I spent less time in the 140's, but it was the fastest ride that I have ever done.

HR Chart

HR Values

I took 2 days off from this workout, and popped my cherry on the Titus for the first time this year. I did 2 pretty good laps, but was tapped out for going so hard the first time out. The next day I did a 90 minute recovery workout.

I then went back to this workout on Friday and was determined to get in the 140's. So this time out I decided to just keep my heartrate in the 140's and find my mode. Take a look.

Here is the most beautiful HR Chart I have produced

This is the best zone training workout I have produced also. 87% of the time spent in the lower endurance zone is great.

For the first 3 works my HR averages were, 161bpm, 157bpm, and 160bpm. The Avg workout for this day was 142bpm. For the same speed, my HR Avg when down 18bpm. For some reason my legs and lungs got married for this workout, and I started firing on all cylinders. Even the breathing came around.

Just to make sure I was not tripping, I went back and found my chart of this same workout in November when I had 2 really good finishes in the State Series.

Here is the HR Chart from Nov 3rd

Here is the HR Values from Nove 3rd.

As you can see that my Avg HR was 152bpm, which is 10 bpm higher than my best workout I did this year. So the form is officially better than it was last year, and probably EVER.

Now that I was able to ride at a really consistent pace I decided to get some interval work in at the Sheridian Ride. That is the kind of training I need right now to work on my high end for mtn biking. My plan is to do 100 miles, and to do that I will ride about 22 miles before the I get to the Sheridian Ride, then the 27 miles of the group ride. Then my normal 51 mile ride from Flamingo and Orange up over Sunrise, then out to Weston and back to Orange. The after that I will turn around and take that route back to my house.

I get out of the house at 6:40, and I'm able to get to the Sheridian Ride with about 10 minutes to let the body cool down. That was just enough time to take a couple of photos of the some of the riders in the group.




After we roll out we immediately get stop at Sheridian, so I quickly snap a few more pics.



The ride started off slow, so I knew that it wasn't going to be like last week when it blasted off right from the start. Things got moving once we went over I-75. I could tell that Z's Bike was going to control the ride today. I started to make my way to the front just before we got to Hwy 27. There were 2 groups that were already up the road, which made for a great way for me to get my intervals in. I got with the groups that were making up the chase. Z's was still up front, and they were trying to slow the ride down to keep there guys up the road.

I kept taking my pulls to make sure that the pace stayed high, and we eventually caught the group with LaRue in it. The next group was caught about 2 miles from 84. On 84 Z's made several attempt to put some riders in a breakaway. When we would pull it back in, another 2 riders from Z's would go off the front. Right at I-75 Bob suggested that we try to breakaway. I was a little hesitate as I wanted to save it for the sprint.

Once we get over I-75 a group makes a break for it. I'm slowly stalking my way to the front, and I intended on attacking as soon as we bridge and things get moving again. We caught the group just before Indian Trace, then we hit a red light. As soon as we get going I look back to Bob and signal to him that now is the moment, and I burn about 10 matches making a surge away from the group.

Joe D is on my wheel, and Bob is in tow. I totally feel like crap, and I know I won't be able to do anything that puts the group under real pressure so I pull through. Joe immediately pulls through, the Bob takes a much longer pull that I did. By this time Austrialian Time Trial dude (Name is Keith) bridged up to us. Once that happens, Joe D lets himself get drop and goes back to the group. I take another 2 pulls, then I let Bob know it was futile.

I retreat back to the group, and 5 minuete later Bob asked me if I want to do it again. At this point I was not going to burn any match unless it was the sprint. Once things start shaking up, I'm sitting on LaRue's wheel and I'm thinking he is big and I'll get the optimal protection from wind before I open up my sprint. But when they start setting up the sprint, LaRue gets dropped and gives up 15 meter. I come around him and I have to burn my matches to bridge back to the group that is in full fledge "Go for Broke". When the group starts to break up I'm on the wheel ahead of me, but I can't come around anyone's wheel so when 1 riders comes around my wheel I realized I lead him out, so I just sat up. Note to self: Don't follow LaRue's wheel for the sprint, he just does not have the horsepower.

We get to the Mobil, and LaRue starts on with saying he gave up the sprint because he thought I was not on his wheel. Bull shit! He just got dropped. I have never not been in position. You don't pull out in the last 200 meters unless you have your ball knocked in the dirt along with your legs. 200 meter with good legs is like getting to 3rd base with a chick. There is no way that any person would not proceed.

I get some Fuji water, put my Emergen-C in them, rip off one of the halfs of bread and eat a turkey and cheese sandwich, then I hit the road with Joe, Bob, and LaRue. My plan was to do my 51 mile time trial between 145-155bpm. I really need to put in long miles, at a much higher effort if I want to consider myself being halfway competitive in a Endurance Race.

Joe D and Bob decided to change their ride as they did not want to ride a tailwind up to Boca, only to get assaulted by a head wind for the last 2 and and a half hours of their ride back South. So they opted to tag along with me for my route, which keeps all of us closer to home. We go over the Sawgrass and I have my heartrate exactly where I want it to be.

Once we get to 84, I suggest we should take 3 minute pulls, and we do so all the way down to Royal Palm. We turn on Glades and all continue to rotate, then we make a stop off at the park for a nature break. I rinse the sweat off my face and it refreshes me a bit, as I kinda got bored of licking salt off my lips to keep them from burning. Note to self: Use the lip balm that you brought along. We get back to hitting it, and once we get to Saddle Club Road I take my pull just passed the YMCA. We are going into a headwind/crosswind, and I manage to keep the pace between 21.5-22mph. I pull through after my 3 minutes and Joe is gone. I didn't want to dump him out of the ride, but I was trying to maintain the heartrate between 145-155bpm. Bob pulls for 3 minutes, and when I pull through I slowly lift the pace. I'm at 21mph, then the second minute I take it up to 22mph, the third minute I take it up to 23.5mph. Now, I'm about 1 minute from Weston Road, so I just took it up to 25mph, then took it all the way to the stop light. I'm sure that put Bob under pressure and he let me know it did.

Bob takes a 6 minute pull, and almost all of it is into a headwind, and as soon as he pulls through we are going into a slight crosswind/tailwind, "Thank You God". I take the speed up to 24mph, and I keep it at that pace until the last 2 minutes then I take it up to 26mph to finish out segment of the ride really strong. I think I hurt Bob again on that pull. Since I do most of my ride by myself, I really don't pay much attention to where the wind is. I just pedal the bike.

Now 6 months ago I did this ride with Bob, and between mile 85-100, I completely cramped up and Bob had the "S" on his chest that day as he pulled me all the way back to the end of the ride at Active Cycles. Today I think I had the "S" on my chest as I was the rider putting in bigger efforts.

We chat for about 10 minutes, and we part ways after talking about nutrition on the bike, etc. I'm in for 100 miles, but I only have 76miles, and the route home is only 20 miles, so I'm going to be 4 miles short. I start thinking about how I can put in another 4 miles to make it a cool Benjamin(That means 100, Non-ebonics speakers).

I get going and I decide to just finish the ride as I'm started to lose some power. My heartrate won't stay in the 150's, so I just go into a zone and push the pedals. I get over to Bonaventure and a guys rolls up on me and he is finishing his metric century and offers me his wheel when I tell him I'm on my last 20 of a real hundred. He was a really big guy, and he said he was 235lbs. This guys is clearly in his late 50's, and he is riding like he is in his early 20's. He processed to pull me for at least 11 miles and he did not go under 23mph. At 84 he pulled off at Indian Trace and I said, " I need to remember your name". He said John. I then called him "Tarmac John". If you see a grey haired older gentlemen on a navy blue Specialized Tarmac, don't ask any question, just get on that damn wheel.

I have about 5 miles to go and I take it in riding in my fat burning zone. I end up with 96.1 miles, with an average of 21.2. I rode 20.7 miles to the Sheridian ride and the avg was 19.5, then the Sherdian ride was 24.6, then I road with Joe D, and Bob for 27.7miles at an avg of 20.8, then I did the last hour at 20.5mph. Here is the chart of my HR Values.

The total time was 4hrs, 37mins, and I spent 80 minutes in the 130's and 140's. After doing more crunching of number, that effort is not enough for me if I want to do well at the 12hrs of Santos and the Hospice 100. Explaining to you why will the subject of a post next week also.

Pacer Out!

Clip of the Week - Be like Water my friend

When I was playing table tennis, I was so fasinated by trying to play like the best Chinese, or the best Swedish players. My brother saw me looking at videos, and I explained to him I wanted to be like this Chinese player. He gave me the "Cosby Kids" slap up side the head and put in a Bruce Lee Documentary, to explain to me that I should not try to copy other athletes and the reason why.

From that point forward I was in search of Brian Pace, and his own style. 20 years later, players come up to me and say they want to play like me, and I have a flashback to the Cosby slap.

How that translates into cycling is developing my own style of riding. It's based on equipment choices, or training methods that I believe in and that has have proven successful for me. But most of all deciding to cut my own path to learn how to express myself as freely as I can when I'm pedaling my bike.

Be like water my friend.



Pacer Out!

Going Lone Ranger!

Going Lone Ranger was the attitude that I was forced to take when I moved to New Orleans in 1995 to take on a private coaching job for table tennis. That was the first time in my career that I was without a team to lean on for motivation, moral, and just overall camaraderie.

I had absolutely no friends when I was there, and it really was a 1 year contract in solitude. I lived a couple of miles from The French Quarter, but I don’t party or drink so that didn’t work. There were no good players anywhere in the state or surrounding areas, so I couldn’t get any good training.

That was the first time I forced myself to run, as I needed to find a way to burn off this anxiety. I was making great money for being a single athlete, but I needed my environment to get back in my groove. So I started running, and running and running. I even ran the Cresent City Classic which is the most popular 10K in New Orleans, and it starts in the middle of Jackson Square. Every now and then when I’m riding my bike and I have a good flow going I’m able to replicate that same breathing pattern as those times and it takes me back to running up and down Napoleon Ave next to the trolleys.

Then I bought a mountain bike. It was a Trek 800 Sport with no suspension, and it was on. I would ride all around the town, and that was when I first got the cycling bug. What was more important was I learned to be self-sufficient from a emotional standpoint. I learned that I could do it without anyone else making it easier. When you have a group of people to lean on, it is truly culture shock to go off on your own. So my brother called me the “Lone Ranger” minus Tanto ever since then.

That is probably why I do most of my training with only one practice partner in table tennis, and almost all my training by myself on the bike. I believe that being by yourself is the only way to deal with yourself on every level. Getting in with a group later is a way to test yourself inside of the group dynamic atmosphere, and to see if you have improved on any aspects. I think you do need it too, but your program can be done without.

I was kind of dreading my return back to the mtn bike, because it's always a shock to the body to go back to taking that abuse. I got off work on Wed, went home packed up and took my bike to the Active Cycles to have the new Agilis crank put on with my 34-44 chainrings. I actually road very well with the 33-45, but I know that it is in my best interest to have that extra teeth.

I got the crank on, and headed out for Markham. When I got there it was a small group of riders already there. Andres, his son, Richard D, Bob, Steve, and Dean where out, so I went in with them. My intentions was to get dropped, so I could find my mode, but I was riding ok without going too deep. I had not really lost much of my skills, but the hands and butt seemed a little tender. Bob and I walk away from the bunch, and I realy have no intentions of staying with him, but slower riders up the trail kept me in contact.

By the time we got to gun range I was feeling my back ache just a bit but the legs and lungs felt neutral so I decided to keep pushing the pedal, but not to bury myself. I keep things steady in the gun range and when I come out Bob is about 10 seconds ahead of me. Last summer I would launch an all out offensive to get back on his wheel, but I just continue at my pace. I think it's too ambitious for me to ride any faster. At this point is when I normally get dropped by for some reason Bob is keeping me in his sights. At this point Andres jumps in as he had fixed his flat and cuts in the course to ride with us.

I don't make an attempt to bridge to Bob, and nor does he decide to ramp it up. By the time I finish the lap he had pretty much allowed me to bridge up to him. The time was 34mins,4 seconds, which is the fastest time that I have done since last May. I really didn't want to ride that fast as I was just getting back on the bike. Markham is a very tough course to come to after 6 weeks off the bike and to ride that speed. I was a little happy with the effort, but I would take it easy the next lap.

We go back in and I immediately let Bob go, as I hate giving in to the Peer Pressure of going all out. I also let Andres by before the Rock Garden and I settle into my own Speed Pacing. Richard and Steve are behind me, and I keep it steady as I don't want to ride like I'm racing. I really just want to enjoy being back on the bike and enjoy my mode.

Coming out of the gunrange I'm about 1 minute off the last lap time and I was keeping the heartrate under 160bpm. I make a mistake in Outback Extension and I let Richard and Steve pass me. Before I know it, they are both gone. See, why does the riders have to race all the time. Funk That! I'm going to just ride and finish the lap without acting ignorant. Richard's going to get a hard on if he drops me, so he just might get that hard on today.

I keep it steady and I'm determined that I just need to push the pedals without overextending the legs or lungs. In Bermuda Triangle I can see that Richard has slow down like someone put a parachute on him. I look down, and my heartrate is 162bpm. I didn't lift my pace, he dropped his anchor. By the time we finish the lap, my heartrate is 147bpm. He just outright went backwards for the last 6 minutes.

After we finish the lap I say "You son of a gun, you lifted the pace". He first denied, then said he saw some daylight and tried to put it down. I said it's ok to do it, I'm not offended. He even said he wanted to say he dropped us. I guess it's good to have that environment to train in. I'm pretty tempermental about when I'm in the mood for that kind of intense riding. I'm just not into burning matches when I don't need to.

I ride around the park to cool down while putting together the rest of the week of training in my head. On Thursday, I'm meeting with a guy in my neigborhood that races Rosewood, and we are going to ride around this circle next to where I live. It's an awesome 1.7mile loop and you never have to worry about traffic and you can hit the pedals and never let off the gas. I used to ride the Hiatus/Old Hiatus Loop, but I the turns onto Broward and Sunrise have too much traffic. So this loop is great to just put your head down and time trial to the max. To make this kind of workout more productive and specific, I gotta go ahead and get the polar power meter.

Friday, I'm going do the 1hr CTS "One Legged Drills" on my trainer with the hypoxia mask on at 9000ft Altitude. I still think that there is nothing better than continuing to improve the rpm's. I had a huge improvement last year when I focused on this. In fact, on Sunday when I rode with the Weston Flyers group, I was the only rider rotating at 29mph that was NOT in the big chain ring. I've done one workout on the trainer with the mask on, and I could feel that I had to really breath much deeper. Note to self: Get Power Meter.

On Saturday I'm going to do the Sheridian Ride, and put in a couple of hard pulls at the front. The ride was bananas last week as the avg spd was 27.6 for the ride, which is the fastest it has ever been since I rode it. After the ride I going to do the same route as last week that has me going 85miles total. My goal is to stay under 150bpms, as that is going to be my required heartrate zone to prepare for the Santos 6 or 12hr. It's on the other side which is the Vortex side which has wider, longer single track. I haven't done that course since 2004, I don't remember it being that jagged, so this may be my the best type of course for me to do.

If my legs feel ok, then I'm going to go over and funk with Oleta to the tune of 30-miles of selective singletrack. I don't see a need to do Rocky Mile if I'm preparing for Santos. But I do want to ride at this course just because it's longer, so I get to ride more uninterrupted.

Some thought I have for 2008 so far on:

The Water Ionizer!
That shit is the bomb. I could tell the difference the very first time I road while drinking 8.5 water. I came home after a hard 51 mile road ride, and I felt great. The legs were not tender, or sore. I had done 5 days in a roll, and put in big efforts all those days, and I have not need to take a rest day because of the acid build up. If you are drinking water that has a ph of 8.5, that has a negative ORP, then acid can't exist. Digestion is way better now. I'm actually eating less food in one sitting, and drinking more water during the day. My % of water weight on my scale has gone from 58.2 to 61.1. I can't say enough about this purchase. I have decided that for the first week I'll drink 8.5, the 2nd week I'll moved up to 9.0, then the third week I'll settle into making 9.5 my permanent water to drink. I look forward to seeing how it affects my body once I have moved up to drinking 9.5 water on a regular basis. I'm so stuck on this because I really do think that water is the key. I read this book called, "Your not hungry, your thirsty", and it some of the most intense, but simple reading that you can ever come across. Why don't more people know this? He state that the body should be 70% water, and that we are only as healthy as the fluids that our bodies bath in. Enough on that, I could go all day.

Hypoxia Altitude Tent!
It can get hot and stuffy with 2 people and a dog in it. The weather is cool right now, so it's going to be ideal for the next month or so. Every time the altitude gets to 9300ft, I wake up. My body does not like it to be that high. If we go to bed at the same time, the altitude goes down faster, and I wake up sooner. If one of us hits the sack first, then I normally wake up later.

I know you are probably wondering why I’m reaching to every single corner to get better as a rider now that I want to do it like I did table tennis. One phrase sticks in mind from 1988, is “You ain’t doing jack”. That is the subject of a post that I'll put up next week.

Pacer Out!