Starting the year off well

As we get close to the end of the second week of 2012 I thought it was time for a bit of an update. Not too much to say but training has been going quite well. I have successfully been able to increase my volume, I am hitting the gym and have been able to get some nighttime trail runs in as well.

A few of the highlights have been somewhat of a soul ride this past Sunday. It was a little wet out and I took the CX bike out for the first time in over a month and spun with no goal or destination. Ended up hitting a short but fun little section of trail and was able to get a neat shot of some custom graffiti that was done just for my bike.

A quick stop to enjoy some scenery

Another highlight was a headlamp trail run that I headed out on this evening with my buddy Ward. It was a fun little run and had great company. Really looking forward to making this a weekly run.

From this evenings trail run. Shot on the same bridge as the shot above of my bike

Following Ward up the trail. Probably not the best idea as his sense of direction seems to be a bit misguided but he did okay this time.

The weekend is coming and so will some more workouts and hopefully a couple beers to add to my next post. This post is a brief one as I wanted to get something down and for some reason am having a little trouble sleeping this evening so the mind is not razor sharp.

2011 A Year in Review and Looking Ahead

Not sure that I have done one of these before, but I've had a lot on mind about this year lately and want put my thoughts down before I forget. Overall I am happy how the year turned out and had a lot of fun but am definitely looking to make 2012 even better.

Training wise the year started off quite good I got about 8 weeks of solid training in and was starting to feel really good. I then took a week off and took a vacation to Hawaii with my girls. A great week but as is often the case when we arrived home we were all hit with some sickness. Well a head cold turned into the ear infection from hell. I went through three rounds of antibiotics, sprays, drops, etc and it just would not go away. Training suffered as anytime I tried to put in any effort my head would pound and I would feel quite "off". Had my first two DNF's ever. Both of them I thought I was feeling better, but as soon as I put down the hammer I started going backwards. To make a long story short I decided to cancel my spring/summer racing schedule, get my ear better and then focus on a fall cross season.

During this period, Julie also went back to work after her maternity leave with Sage and I took on new daddy duties before and after work. For months I was feeling exhausted and was blaming it on my ear infection, but I felt like I just couldn't shake it. Finally I went to the doctor and explained my symptoms. He reminded me that I have a toddler and some new responsibilities and that it takes a lot more out of you than you realize. He still sent me for some tests, but was pretty sure that was the reason. Sure enough the blood tests came back normal, and finally after about 3 or 4 months I started to get some energy back and feel more myself.

Over the summer I had lots of fun. Took a trip to Bend, OR a trip to Portland and enjoyed more than a few good beers. Spent lots of time with the family. And started a build for the Fall cyclocross season. By the time Labour Day came around I was ready to get racing. Had fun and hurt a lot at the first race of the season. Took my fitness and built it up throughout the season. In November I had my best race of the season at the Cross Border Clash and then for the last 3 races of the season I saw my form slowly decline. Most likely this was due to a lack of a big base as my training hours for the year were quite low compared to other years.

Looking over cross season I accomplished pretty much everything I had hoped. I held some fitness through the fall, I had a ton of fun and I learned about racing tactics and skills that will help me to improve for 2012. I also learned that I really love to race and that the hurt that you feel during a cyclocross race is impossible to replicate.

Now looking forward to 2012. Yesterday I unofficially started my training for 2012. My major goal for the year is going to be to stay healthy. Which will allow me to train enough and consistently to race better than 2011. Other than that my plans are going to be to race a handful of endurance mountain bike races in the spring/summer, targeting the Test of Metal as my peak for the early part of the year. I first rode this race in 2010 and since have wanted to get back as I did not meet my expectations and believe I can have a much better day out there. As additional motivation for this race this year I will have Ward to beat, and I can't let a runner beat me. After the Test I will focus on Cyclocross season and plan to put in a full season again like this year with a hope to build on my learnings from 2011.

A few pics from non-training/racing adventures from the year

2011 CX BC Cup Finals

This past weekend was the final race in the BC Cup series for 2011. The race was being hosted by my team Daryl-Evans Racing so it was an early morning wakeup to be at the park by 6am to help with the set-up. Course set-up went quick and the course definitely looked to be awesome. Lots of wet slow grass, a 12 stair run-up, mud, and a nice deep sand pit. Set-up was finished around 9:45 and I headed to registration to get registered with the plan to go grab some coffee and a light snack in preparation for my 12 o'clock Masters 3/4 race. Well that plan was thrown out the window, when the Cycling BC official checked my license apparently back in January I ticked off the wrong box and was ineligible to race in a Master's category. Strange since this was the final of 7 races with all of the others allowing me to race Master's. I was bummed as I wouldn't be able to race against my normal crew but decided to make the best of it.

Unfortunately start time for the 3/4 race was 10:30. So I rushed to my car, got changed hopped on my bike, completed a warmup lap, and headed to the start line. The start went fairly well, but could tell right from the beginning I was not going to be in this race. The Master's 3/4 group is much larger and has a larger span of skills whereas most of the 3/4's were very quick. I buried myself and put in what I had, but it was not much. I ended up at the back of the pack and finished 12th of what I believe was 13. After the race I had a good time hanging out and cheering on the other races as it was a great day for December. Mostly dry. This tentatively ends my 2011 CX season and I will be moving into some base training in the next week or two to get a jump on the 2012 season. Plans could still change as there are two more CX races being held just south of the border in Bellingham. But since I have been seeing diminishing returns in my racing since the cross border clash in November it's probably best not to race. But the pain and fun of another race or two is definitely calling my name. Post race beers and dinner. It's Oven baked chicken, all the enjoyment of fried chicken without all the guilt.

BC Provincial CX Championships

Yesterday was the BC Provincial CX Championships held in North Vancouver at Mahon Park. All week we saw rain so it was definitely to be a muddy race. Luckily on the morning of the race all we saw was a light drizzle, but that didn't matter because the course had already developed some super muddy sections. Leading into the race my prep wasn't as great as it could have been. A rodent and plumbing issue at home left me without a lot of sleep and too much time away from the bike, but I had hopes that maybe the rest would help. The categories were a little different than usual as tehy were based on age(30-39) rather than categories, so I'd be racing with the Cat 1/2 guys as well. I ended up getting a spot of the back of the pack and throughout the first lap I felt pretty good. And going into the second lap I was hoping things would get better and I could make up a few spots. Unfortunately my gut started to act up and I had trouble pushing it at all. I kept at it and tried to stay with any wheels but my day was over so I rode the course as hard as I could and worked on my skills and having fun. As I finished up the race although, no happy with the day's performance I have been really happy with the CX season this fall. After having a crappy spring and writing off the MTB season I have accomplished all that I wanted to in CX this year. I race more than any other year, I continued training fairly consistently throughout the fall, had a ton of fun, and am pretty sure I got faster. Next weekend is the final race of the BC season out at South Surrey Athletic Park. I am really looking forward to getting out there and laying it down one more time, before transitioning to base training for next year.

South Surrey CX Race Report

This weekend was the South Surrey CX race put on by Mighty Riders and Daryl-Evans Racing. I was up at 5 to head to the park and spend a couple of hours setting up what was to be a wicked course. Flyover, singletrack, banked turns and a killer run-up. After setting up the course I headed to grab a coffee and fuel up a bit before getting changed and prepped for some warmup.

Just as we were starting to warmup for our 12 o'clock race it started to rain and with the rain the temperature seemed to drop significantly as well. A light drizzle soon turned into a steady downpour and the course conditions were changing as well. After feeling like I had overdressed the previous week I decided to go with bare legs and arm warmers. I quickly found out that this was not nearly enough. Midway through the second lap I could not feel my hands or my feet and my legs were stinging from the cold. Braking became very difficult and my legs just had nothing. I had passed a few riders in the first lap but was quickly losing spots and was feeling worse every lap. Somewhere around lap 3 or 4 I slid out on a corner and moved back to the very end of the pack.

I struggled through the rest of the race and tried to finish strong but just really had nothing. It was not the best day I've had, actually the worst this year, but I finished and I learned that maybe it's better to overdress a tiny bit rather than underdress. Next week is a week off of racing and then into the final two for the year.