My Roubaix Ride and Steed Report

All pictures of race courtesy of Zara
The entire set of photos is here

Well with the agony of Roubaix over for another year, more and more I come to understand that to complete the Roubaix is feasible for many, to be competitive at the front requires both luck AND fitness.

At the RWR Clarence Rockland Classic a few weeks back, I definitely had luck. Once when the peloton shattered, I was lucky enough to be around enough guys willing (and able!) to work to get back to the group before it was too late, and of course lucky enough not to flat, which befell many of my competitors.

This weekend was the annual OBC Almonte Paris Roubaix, almost 90 km of rolling terrain, mostly gravel road and some all out trail, others have already described the course.

We arrived at the arena to a line of perhaps twenty racers, harried volunteers and the usual hubub.

Grab our numbers, get some pins, and back out to Glenn's team bus (crew cab truck with covered bed natch)

Pin on the numbers and go do some efforts

Zip to the top of the neutral section to czech out the first dirt section, and wouldn't ya know it? Fresh gravel. Knowing this is always a 55 km an hour downhill start, the thought of 140 some racers barreling down loose gravel eager to get good position gave me the willies. I vowed to be in the front to the first little climb, then settle in.

Back to the start, line up at the front, van pulls out and I hop right in behind the van. Perfect! Just stay with the van. So I do, and we make it up to the top behind the van and it's game ON!
Held my position all the way to the first climb, knowing the gravel was fresh I made sure I cut the corners correctly and stayed in the middle.

The first section is a long winding dirt road with short steep blind hills, and tricky little corners, most entertaining surrounded by 80 or so eager Cat 1/2/3s and Masters. Have a glance around and see Matt, and Neil, then a bit later David back to my right.

Remembered to ask Neil at the start when the first woods section was coming, and he reminded me. Wanted to be near the front for that section as last year I was caught behind a crash, and missed the group. Not this year if I could help it.
So left onto pavement, and the next right is the woods. Of course I am not the only one who is thinking to be first into the woods, and the pressure from behind was increasing as guys streamed by on my left. Crap! Don't get boxed in. Quick glance over my left shoulder, and slip into the surging stream like an eager salmon. Hard right into the trail, and I'm in a double line of riders absolutely pinning it through here. Most riding blind hoping the person ahead neither crashes or leaps aside to quickly reveal a sharp rock you'll pinch flat on for sure. No crashes, no flats, left out of the woods, onto a farm road and another selection as the group accelerates. No problem staying in the mix

Roll back up towards the front again, czech again and Matt, Neil and Dave and Todd are still with us. Things are looking good, but of course we're only 20 some km in...

A short while later, Matt flats. See more on his story here

That sucks, as I know how much Matt digs this race.

Roll up to Neil and let him know, he slides back into the pack offa the front, no sense pulling with a teammate out the back, we'll sit in for a while and see what's what.


Back onto a paved road, the pace relaxes a it, as Greg is long gone off the front,



















Osmond is trying to muster some help chasing, but of course who is going to work for Osmond and then have him leave you behind? Being alone without teammates must suck, of course he won anyways...


Back to the race, rolling along the paved road then left onto dirt again, we get to the infamous construction zone, where not moments before, I had bottomed out both of my Grand Bois 30c tires, and didn't flat. Gloating to Chris Reid on my tire choice, what happens? Psssssst flat rear. Crap!

Pull over to the side, Doug Van Den Ham, and another are also there changing flats. I win the flat change race and am back riding before the others and start the long lonely chase back to the pack, get out to Wolf Grove road and turn left.

Just past the turn I see a Cyclery rider changing a flat tubular, looks like Steve Proulx, climb a bit, looking for black arrows on yellow signs, see a post with three right hand turn signs on it and follow it. Start rolling down a small dirt road, one lane, super fun up and down. As I start a stiff little climb I look up to see Aaron and Osmond followed by my lost packmates, approximately 20 strong bearing down on me at a great rate of speed. Dive into the bush, they're yelling wrong way, so I wait until most have passed, jump back on and chase, very confused at this point. I wonder if I have missed a turn and they are now looping back to me. What to do? Someone fills me in that they got to a dead end, turned around and Osmond and Aaron pinned it. So by the time I got back out to Wolf Grove and turned down onto Darling, an agonizingly long straight road, I could see the whole race unfolding. Aaron and Osmond way up ahead, what looked like a cluster of maybe 10 guys, which I now know contained Matt, Craig, Steve Proulx and Kiernan among others. Imad was slowly coming back to me, so I caught up with him, we started working, and we were then caught by a group of maybe 15 or 20 riders.

This is ok I think, we can catch the guys ahead, if we work together.



Nope. Never did, we spent the rest of the ride just riding hard, like an A loop in the park. Most seemed content to just roll fast to the finish, and not much rotating was done.

Ah well, good workout nonetheless.

To the end, we all stayed together, then a sprint, which I had no interest in contesting, hence 14 places behind my teammate David, who obviously had more sprint in his legs than I.

Now the Steed Report:



















I rode my True North Custom for both the CRC, and the Almonte Roubaix. It has served me well since I received it in early spring 2007. I guesstimate I have somewhere near 20000 km on it since then. It handles with aplomb in all situations, yet I do not feel that I am compromised even on out Wednesday Night Worlds up in the Park.

It handles everything I can throw at it and really loves to go down, and at just nineteen pounds, with 31c tires, cages and pedals, it climbs well too.



I had an interesting experience the other week. I had been riding the True North quite a bit on fast rides in the Park, so had a sense of how it felt. I then rode my custom Steelwool cross bike, which I have sensed is quite a bit stiffer, and immediately noticed that the expansion strips on the Island Park bridge felt quite harsh. Pulled over to czech the pressure and nope, felt like the 55 to 60 I run normally. Odd. And then, once onto the parkway, I found that I was not able to stay on top of my Steelwool, I was forced to shift down and sit down, whereas with the True North, I was able to really wind it up and stay on top of the gear. I know that the Steelwool is made with relatively inexpensive tubing, while my True North had every tube optimized for my weight and riding style. It really shows.

Steeds of Roubaix: The Sleeper

I figured that the bike I rode for the Clarence Rockland Classic and the Almonte Roubaix deserved a little write up given that it suited both races very well and that it is very different from most of the bikes I saw at either race. Have you ever been in between jobs? Girl/Boyfriends? Apartments? I’m currently in between bikes. I sold my True North Custom Club Racer in anticipation of a Steelwool all road rig sort of similar to Matt’s. While I wait, Matt graciously lent me his Pinarello Cyclocross bike, nicely kitted with a hodge-podge of parts that all work very well together. I won’t bore you with details but will just say that everything works perfectly. The shifters, brakes, wheels and drivetrain function just as they should, zero complaints. I guess this baby’s been around the block once or twice or three times or…you get the idea, handed down from cross racer to budding cross racer over the years. This gave me instant warm and fuzzies. What I love most about this bike is how old and slow it looks and how fast it can be, given the right conditions. Dare I borrow a term from the hot rod lexicon and call this bike a “sleeper”. Does the old Pinarello fit in the “Ugly” category? Some might think so, but it is certainly not in the “Bad” category. Oh no this here is “Good”. Very good.

What makes it sing is the frame. Standard diameter Columbus Nemo steel tubing (according to Matt) rattle-can painted bright orange. It’s a titch big for me; I’m a square 56, this is a 57 TT, 58 ST. I guess I end up with what Competitive Cyclist calls “The French Fit”. Hey I’m French (mostly) so why not? With a 100mm stem this suits me fine. What is striking at first glance is how steep the head angle is. This scared me a little at first being a timid descender. I was afraid that this combined with the flexiness (is that a word?) of the skinny tubes would cause the handling to be too quick and wiggle on fast descents. I was half right. The steering is so quick that you only need to think about turning in any one direction for the bike to instantly dive into a turn. This proved to be VERY useful for avoiding potholes and rocks that suddenly appear when racing in a pack on nasty gravel roads. But what about the high speed wiggle? Well, it does wiggle but not at speed. I have not been able to ride this bike no hands for any length of time and I have to be going fairly quickly to ride with one hand. Otherwise I get a wicked side to side shimmy that amplifies the longer I let it go. (it’s kinda fun to watch and is always a crowd pleaser) But surprise! I have found my downhill wings on this frame. I was able to fly down all the descents at both races with more comfort than I ever had on my old road bike. I can just let it go and feel good about where it will take me. Why is that? I’m guessing it’s due to the skinny, thin walled tubes matching my skinny thin walled body. Maybe also because the frame is slightly big for me? I wish I could elaborate. I should add that I am running 28 Grand Bois tire in the back and a 30 in the front. The larger front tire has added a small but noticeable amount of pneumatic trail which has added to the stability at speed.

Steep! But in the end not scary.

Plenty of clearance Clarence

Matt mentioned “planing”. This bikes planes in spades. Someone (I forget who) noted that during the Clarence Rockland Classic I looked totally relaxed on the rough roads. (true dat) In fact, the moment whatever group I was in would transition to gravel, the others seemed to ease the pace while I felt perfectly fine going the same speed. I made my biggest gains on the gravel where I often pulled away in comfort from riders on carbon cross frames with whom I could just keep up on the road. As for climbing, during the Roubaix Recon ride, I noted how if I grabbed and pulled onto the front of the bars with my thumbs around the hoods and moved my butt forward on the saddle, I would fly up the steepest climbs the course had to offer. I could leave the bike in a medium gear and just row the bike up the hill- in a sort of half-seated, half-standing position on the nose of the saddle, pedaling smoothly and slightly rocking fore and aft. I wish I had the same legs for the race the following week (alas not so).

I wouldn’t call this a sprinty bike but I am not a sprinty rider so it suits me fine. Yes it’s flexy, but who says that is a bad thing? The woods section at the end of the Roubaix course proved that a quick handling flexy flyer is perfect for technical riding. I passed almost everyone in the surrounding group by not getting hit hard by all those sharp ups and downs. Obstacles that I couldn’t ride over were swiftly avoided with a flick of the bars. Once I caught up with Jim, I just followed his perfect line and we led the group out of the woods. This made me smile.

I can’t say that I am much of a cycle racer, but I rode both races as hard as I could and this bike was never the limiting factor. Sure my legs were hurting at times of extra hard effort, but I am familiar with frame induced pain and that wasn’t it. My back and arms felt great the whole time and I always felt totally in control. I would have to be twice as fit to tell you if this old sleeper really isn’t suited for racing. It’s plenty of bike for me. I certainly haven’t felt that I was missing something by riding this over anything else. We’ll see how the season goes, but I am likely going to try this frame in a cross race - what it was designed do in the first place! Can’t wait.

Flat...Sabotage...Triumph!

Before the story, how about a (revised) breakdown of Tall Tree Cycles' Results:


3rd Matt Surch
14th David Stachon
28th Rodd Heino
37th Todd Fairhead
91st Anna O'Brien - 4th Woman!!!!
48th Steve Bosworth
59th Jamie Pold
70th Jim McGuire
71st Pascal Marais
74th Mike Abraham
74th Thom Johnson
96th Neil Scheimann
132nd Mark Carver
133rd Jeff Ryan
134th Glenn Murray
136th Chris Simmons


Neil got the jump below and posted about today's Paris-Roubaix from Almonte. Great to read his account of the bizarre series of events that transpired today. I'll elaborate a bit.

I share Neil's affinity for the Almonte Roubaix. It would not be unfair to say I put a lot of my eggs in the Roubaix basket. Its my favourite local 'race,' but it comes early in the season, so it can be difficult to prepare for it. Four years ago a group of about 9 of us rode the event for the first time, on fixed gears. To the oganizers' delight, we returned the following year with gears, and finished about an hour sooner I suspect! That was a tough one, I didn't prepare very well and could not hold onto the lead group. In 2009 I had many more miles on the road in advance of the race, plus two hard races under my belt in the weeks prior, so I was able to ride a good race. I chased a break and managed to finish in 15th with Neil, only a couple minutes off the winner. I learned a lot, as I do each time I race on the road, so I immediately looked forward to the 2010 edition of the Roubaix.


As Neil writes below, we talked strategy this morning. We knew Osmond and Aaron would be the major protagonists on the road, so all we really had to do was stay with them. We felt pretty confident that a number of other Tall Tree riders would put in strong rides; Rodd, David, and Todd were quite likely to be in the mix, and Jamie, Mike, Steve, Thom, and Pascal all had form to draw on. It would really be about positioning for the guys with less power to call on. Our wild card was my long-time friend, "BMX" Jim McGuire, soon to be Tall Tree club rider, and strong ally.


As Neil and Jay detail (see Jay's great report on www.ottawabikes.com), the start of the race was pretty quick, like last year. To my chagrin, the beautiful buff dirt of last week was now covered with a thick coating of gravel. Wheels churned the surface into a broiling froth, spraying chunks in all directions as wheels flailed through shifting furroughs. Carnage was avoided...somehow. I staged well enough to move close to the front before hitting the gravel, then followed Oz up to the front with Neil close-by. Stay up front and out of trouble was my aim, which led to a good bit of riding on the front. I was keen on seeing what was coming.


After the fresh gravel subsided we had a short respite before heading into the woods. I moved to the front for the 90 degree turn and rolled in third or fourth wheel. Not willing to follow a wheel into a rock, I move forward and assumed the lead position, keeping my pace consistent. I'd focused on this sector during our pre-ride, knowing it is always decisive. Smooth lines were at a premium, and I was happy to find that I was able to come out of the first and second sectors in the lead position. Safe, and not blown up; excellent.


Oz was knocking on the back door, followed by a couple others, but there was no point in really trying to get away. I knew I was by no means strong enough to go away with a small group so early. Neil was with us and a selection of others, including both David and Rodd, within a minute or two. Excellent. As Neil writes, Greg rolled away without a response, and slowly built a gap. Neil and I were not keen to thrash ourselves to reel him in. Then I flatted.


I gave Rodd notice as I pulled to the side. Jim rolled up within a minute as I fumbled with my tube and CO2. I was panicking, think Lance in Ride Across the Sky. I can normally fix a flat rather quickly, but not so well when my hands are shaking with adrenaline coarsing through my veins. Tube out, tube in, CO2 on...not enough gas...seeped out sitting around. Canister two, gas in, unthread, valve core comes out with it!!! Swearing. Extract valve core with much effort. Replace. "Pump Jim?" "CO2." On it goes. "How does it work? Uh, I can't get it to work." Pascal, Jamie and Thom now stopped with us. "Pump?" Pascal delivers. Frantic pumping. Pathetic wheel intallation. "Ok guys, team time trial." Off I go, trying to gradually wind it up. I look back, I've opened a big gap. Damn. What to do? Better keep the hammer down. Time trial, five minutes to make up. Good luck.... Better to try.


One simple word describes the next 15-20k: pain. That's it, pain. Mostly in the legs, then in the lower back. It seems riding hard into head winds hurts my lower back. Must be the stupid hard pedalling. Many carrots dangled for a while. Mostly solo riders, then a group, the one Jay was in. A couple from his group tried to latch on , but I just couldn't slow to collaborate. I had to go as hard as I could if I was to have a chance to catch the second pack, the one with Steve in it (and maybe Todd). I thought of slowing and letting the others catch me so I could ride with them. No, what if the next group was around the next corner....it was possible. I had to remain in the hurt locker, keep stretching the back out and pedal.


I passed a rider who could hang for a bit. He put in a great pull for me and I bridged up to a friendly face, David Bilenky. It was a good time to ease up for a minute, we we rode side by side. Approaching an unfamiliar turn option with three arrows pointing to it, I mentioned it to David. He wasn't having any of it. In no uncertain terms he told me it was definitely not the turn; the correct one was a little further up. I remembered the correct turn up the road from last weekend, so I didn't put up much of a fight. But the arrows were there.....they were. Surely others would be confused?


David let me go soon after and I got back on the gas. Wouldn't you know, Aaron and Oz approached from behind a few kilometers down the road. What the? I surmised they must have taken the wrong turn and been spit back out on Darling after a lengthy detour. They were maching, and I knew there was NO chance I'd be able to hang with them for the next 40k, but there was a small chase group approaching! I was back in the game! Near despair morphed into hope; perhaps I could salvage this ride. Nobody knew whether others were ahead, there was no way to know. We were now three Cyclery riders, a Brockville rider, Keirnan Orange, A Scott rider, and me....I think. One of the Cyclery riders, Steve Proulx, had also flatted and avoided the detour. We made for a pretty able group, and shared the work well as we marched on...and on. Aside from the fading dots of Aaron and Oz, we saw no one.


Attrition hit with about 15k to go when we shed the Scott rider. I was watching the others closely to gauge their condition. Keirnan was riding well, and I contemplated seeing whether he'd want to try to work with me to counter the impending Cyclery attack. Would they have the juice to Domo us? I wasn't sure. Approaching the final Sugarbush wooded sector, I knew I'd have to be very observant and look for an opportunity. I felt confident that I could open a gap through the woods. If the others got through close together, they could counter on the final road section of 3-4k, but I had to go for it. Last week I rode the sector twice at full speed, so I knew what to expect, and I was ready. Approaching the climb into the woods, I attacked. We're not talking fireworks here, just the best I could muster. I got in with a clear path ahead of me and pressed the meat. With only a few minor mistakes, I came out with just one Cyclery rider, Craig "Smoking Gun" Hawkes, in pursuit, with perhaps 20 meters between us. But I let up before the exit, and then accellerated again. The gap grew. I hunkered down and drove it hard. The gap was growing. I didn't allow myself to let up, I couldn't leave anything to change. Go. I was not confident enough to keep from looking back every 30 seconds, despite a growing gap. The final stretches felt far longer than they should have.


Approaching the last turn I spied Oz backtracking, obviously winding down after finishing. He gave me an inspiring thumbs up. "Huh, that must be a good sign," I though. Turning the final corner I scanned ahead for other riders. There were none. Zipping up the jersey I unceremoniously crossed the line an still saw no one but Aaron. "Where is everyone?" "Its just you guys." "Am I third" "Yes" "Oh. My. God."


I still can't believe it. What a roller coaster ride of emotion and pain the race was. I'd resigned to the fact that I'd finish wayyyyy back, only to find myself far exceed my top-10 goal, and secure my best ever road result (not that I've raced a tonne on the road!). I'd been hoping for some time while labouring on the bike that Neil would salvage a result for Tall Tree today. But as fate would have it, he'd double flat, Rodd flatted, and I had the good fortune to be in the right place in at the right time. On the one hand it feels odd to celebrate the placing when many of my competitors were sidetracked. But then, I did suffer a great deal today as I fought to salvage my ride. I never gave up, and I worked hard with my group and executed my plan through the final sector. I'm proud of today's effort, and finishing 'on the podium' of the Roubaix will be an accomplishment I will draw on for years to come. It'll make a great story too.


Thanks to all my team-mates, official and unofficial, who sacrificed their race to help me today. Tall Tree pulled out a terrific result today. Many thanks go to David Bilenky for his guidance as well; Guiness to come. And a big thank you to the event organizers for their hard work putting on the event, always a highlight of the season. Saboteurs may have thrown a stick in the spokes today, but this was one for the books!

Almonte,(not the paris roubaix), Roubaix

Well, just coming off the Pro Am in the Tour of the Battenkill where I finished 48th, I was feeling pretty confident going into this race. As some of you may have heard me say before, I look forward to the Almonte Roubaix more than any other race. Matt and I talked a little strategy during a very short warm up, we were aiming for the win.
Going into the first forest section Matt was leading followed by Osmond Bakker and myself--We came out in that order and shed a lot of riders.I'd estimate the pack was down to about 30 at this point. The attacks started going- Oz went first, when we caught him Greg Reain countered and was gone far off the front shortly after. No one seemed to care that Greg was slowly turning into a speck of dust in the distance. I then got word from Rodd that Matt had flatted-S%*t! Finally we organized a small chase group rotating at the front- Imad El-Gazel, John Fee, Oz and myself-We drove the pace for a bit but then everything started going wrong....The course was marked incorrectly and approx. 20 of us(the lead chase pack) went right for about 3 kms to discover a dead end and where I also discovered I had a flat tire.
Everybody sprinted out of there while I put a tube in my tubeless tire.--Jumped back on the bike prepared to time trial for 50km, but wait, here comes Greg Reain out of the bushes covered in mud. apparently he took the wrong turn too.
He and I worked together right to the last Forest where I had a catastrophic tear on my rear wheel which went off like a gunshot.--Fixed it with a Cliff shot wrapper, then slowly and carefully rode the last 3 km to the finish line--Very anti climatic, Way she goes sometimes I guess.
But wait, there's more!
Matt Surch, after fixing his flat tire, didn't take the wrong turn---he was actually leading the race for a while until Oz and Aaron Fillion caught and passed him.I won't give away too much but Matt got third!!
Podium for Tall Tree at the Almonte Roubaix,(the most prestigious race in all of Ottawa). I'll be marking this one down as a great success for us all!'
Road season over, 364 days to go to the next Almonte Roubaix. Next stop Baie St.Paul XC Canada cup.
Neil. Schiemann

CRC - Part Deux

OK so here is the first race report I’ve written in a few years, it promises not to be as eloquent, nor as detailed as Rodds since he covered a lot.

So as per usual I’m always a little late going and mentally and physically challenged in the morning. I was the last to get out for a warm-up and while it was sufficient with a couple of intense pushes it really was not ideal in length.

Lining up at the last minute beside Dave about 50 back we were chat chatting and Dave mentions that we were kind of poorly seeded should have talked strategy prior....oh well, we’ll just work our way up close to Rodd, get him to the finish and let him go. I’m thinking...there is no way in hell I’m going to be anywhere near Rodd at the 85 km mark !!

The weather stated a bit chilly but in the end I was dressed ideally with two undershirts, jersey and arm-warmers.

So 50 back is not ideal but I know both Dave and I will move up on the first two climbs, which we did, him on the left and me on the right sometimes, on road sometimes on shoulder. I was feeling my lack of warmup on these pushes but knew (hoped) that I would have a chance to settle in and recover a bit before any real attacks happened. I love Rodd’s audio descriptor “a cacophony of missed shifts and dropped chains”. Yup it was cacophonous !

The pace stayed reasonably high for the flat straightaway but in the pack I was able to recover enough and respond to any accelerations. Dave and I were bobbing back and forth and at some times could even chat a bit with friends and competitors. There were a few little accelerations but nothing crazy...couple of guys of the front early but no interest in chasing them down it seemed. Eventually at one point I no longer noticed Dave bouncing around for a while so with a couple of looks back and seeing no green I decided to move up to Rodd (if I could). There wee a couple of pushes into some turns that make moving up and hanging on in some cases a bit of work but made my way up to Rodd and bounced around beside and behind him for a while. As Rodd mentioned, at about 30 km in there was a sharp right (west) turn onto a fairly soft gravel road. I felt OK for a little bit but must have been more drained than I thought as I lost my grip on Rodd and others, and started to get passed by Alex Michel and a couple others. Usually I will turn myself inside out to stay on Alex’s wheel but in the soft gravel and headwind my spindly legs just did not have the power. The back of that group was splintered and there were a 2 or 3 guys strung out over the next 50 meters or so ahead.....but as much as I worked to bridge to a wheel, they all worked at least as hard and after 10 minutes of gradually losing a little ground I had to call a truce with myself and think a bit more strategically. While feeling a somewhat dejected at having been shelled, I was at the same time happy to have stayed with the lead pack of uber-fasties for that length of time, and I knew there would be good groups behind to jump on with....the question was “when”?

It felt like a looooong way on my own through both gravel and headwinds and tailwinds and pavement. All the while I could see the few riders off in the distance ahead....so close, yet so far ! Eventually after about another 10 minutes I noticed 3 guys 100 m back so started to soft pedal and sit up. Unfortunately right before they caught me I threw off my chain (the second time in the race - the first was near the start and I was able to shift it back into the ring), this tmie however the shifting was not working. In a panic I hit the breaks and jumped off the bike to manually put the chain back on the ring but it was too late.....whoooosh they went by as I jumped back on the bike. There was NO WAY I could catch on to the 3 of them from a dead stop and gave up after a couple of minutes. I was cursing my stupidity.....I waited so long for this opportunity and blew it ! So on I went for the next 10 minutes or so with the idea that there is no point in expending too much energy now, just wait for the next group and be satisfied with that. Eventually a large group of about 20 came into sight of my rearview mirror on a paved headwind section. I was glad to join them and the pace seemed surprisingly slow even tho there were some strong riders in this group, Greg Zuliani, Chris Mullington, David Bilenkey, Stu Blunt, Jason Cheney, Jon Gee, Chris Olsen and uber-triathlete Cynthia Wilson. I guess only a few of the 20 were actually working so I ended up joining the 6 or 7 that were rotating through. I did have a chance to chat with Cyn and Greg and commented at how fast his brother Chris had gotten. At one point in time Cynthia decided she had enough of this pace and put it into overdrive and steadily rode away. Shortly after that we came to a small gravel downhill and bridge. Some of the guys in the group were clearly not as comfy on the gravel and while they were not necessarily sketchy, they were kind of “blockie”. Coming around the left side at the bottom of the bridge I pulled around and ahead standing on the pedals uphill, I had no intention of jumping and really just wanted to get in a stretch and in front of the “blockies”. Well in my inexperience I guess I opened a gap and that ruffled a few feathers as about half the group came along behind me and subsequently passed me 30 seconds later as I tired out a bit and had to work to hang on to the last wheel of this group as apparently the other half of the 20 or so splintered off the back. Jason C. made some kind of remark about my move but I didn’t hear what is was exactly...nevertheless it was clearly an expression of displeasure. I think in the end it all worked out for the best as we had some strong riders that kept the pace high. Chris Mullington was an absolute fiend as he time trialed off the front a few times, sometimes pulling us along, other times flying on his own !

Back onto paved road and a bit of the last climb hurt spreading things out a bit but not too much that the group broke up...no big attacks there, at least not that I remember....maybe there was a few who flew off. Anyway there was still a group of 8 or so that savoured the flat pavement and then the sweeping left downhill, (me off the back as always on downhills) but caught back up in a couple seconds. As we made the last turn toward the finish some of the group sprinted. This cowboy is NOT built to be a sprinter and I simply savoured the reasonably good finish rolling in moderately just ahead of Craig Hawkes. About 1 minute behind the previous group, 5 behind Rodds and with a few others in between.

I was glad to be done and chatted with Greg who looked destroyed, Rodd and Marc Lapointe who looked fresh and Alex.

It was a good race - a sufferfest for me at many times but it all goes in the bank and I was happy with my top 25% placing which was better than expected. Stu came in a few minutes later with some bad cramps, then Pascal brought it all home having left everything out on the road after playing good samaritan.
The hamburger helper “meal” was rather below standard, but the race organization was quite good and it was awesome to see 140+ races and a virgin event.

That’s long-winded enough...see ya in Almonte !

2010 Tour of the Battenkill Race Report

Photo: IanC83 @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/behind-the-lens/4513953440/sizes/l/in/photostream/

The 2009 edition of the Tour of the Battenkill was marred by flats for both myself and Candace Ellicott, Tall Tree's lone riders testing the New York waters. As soon as I flatted I knew I'd return in 2010 to try again, to see what I could do in America's Queen of the Classics, my favourite road genre. That race was 82 miles, a distance that suited me more than the 62 mile route every category but Cat1 and 2 race. But the allure of racing with my team-mates as a Master in this race and others through the year was far more enticing than the longer route. After Christmas it was time to work on the trainer to hold onto, then build on 2009's fitness. And so it went, ramping up through January, February and March, all with the Battenkill carrot dangling. How would it go? Could I win? What about Rob, he'd be strong for certain....

Friday, travel. Tanya, aka, the Vegan Vagabond, and Tall Tree's newest addition to the family, picked up myself and family to round out a vegan juggernaut (Mazda Protege) destined for Cambridge New York. Travelling through Ogdensburg, we had an interesting encounter with a US border officer (BO): Where you headed?

Tanya: Cambridge.

BO: What for?

Tanya: A bicycle race.

BO: Oh, I see. Well, it looks like someone's due for an upgrade.

Tanya: Huh? Which one?

BO: The brown one. I mean, the Ksyriums (pronounced Ka Syriums) are good and all, but I dunno about that frame.

Tanya: Baffled.

Me: Laughing. Hey, that frame is brand new, its custom made for me, i.e., really cool.

BO: Hmm, well, I don't recognize the brand.

Us: Ok, bye.

I considered that encounter hilarious. Perhaps others might be offended, but I just love hearing that sort of stuff. Its just too funny. If its not carbon flash its obviously old and outdated, so it seems. Ah well, we'd put that perception to the test on Saturday.

Across the border my daughter spewed chunks (puked) due to the winding road. This was indeed a blessing, as searching the trunk for a rag revealed that I'd left my Rubbermaid of riding clothing at home. A few calls later and Todd and Jamie were picking it up from my house as they left town. Phewf, puke to the rescue. I made sure Ronan knew she'd saved the day with her vomit action. Life can be funny.

The route we took through the Adirondacks was beautiful This road is a typical example of the ample shoulder and great surface for riding. Top to bottom, the park spans around 200k. We hope to ride there soon.

A few missed turns, due to my distinct lack of navigation while enthralled in a conversation with Tanya about philosophy and communications studies (yep, I'm a nerd of many stripes), we arrived at our hotel, the Hyatt in Malta by around 4pm, about 7 hours after departing. Others took less than 5 hours. Others still also got lost.

After settling in and eventually rounding up the rest of the crew, Thom, Lily, Jamie, Todd, Neil, Rob, and Steve, we all headed to Saratoga Springs for dinner at a health food store/restaurant with buffet, where we all enjoyed excellent veg/vegan food at incredibly good prices. The exchange rate certainly didn't hurt. Then it was off to the bar to pound Bud for a few hours before riding back to the hotel and passing out. Kidding. We headed back to the hotel and turned in early, monk style.

Saturday morning. Windy as forecasted, Steve and Tanya headed out after breaking the fast with the team at the hotel. Free breakfast there is excellent, with all the stuff cyclists need before an event. Sure, they don't serve super granola like the stuff I make, but that's cool, I brought my own. The staff at the Hyatt are the most hospitable I've ever encountered, and genuinely so. This is the sort of hotel you return to every year, 'cause it just can't get any better. At $89 for two Queens and a pullout, this place is truly unbeatable. So Tanya and Steve headed off for Steve's 10:30 start, as the venue, Cambridge was up to an hour away, depending on how lost you got.

The rest of us pulled up a bit before 10:30, Steve about to go, Tanya preparing to. Steve was in for his first ever road race, in the Cat5 field...or one of them anyhow. Then it was Tanya off, also for her first race. That left us five Masters, Thom, Todd, Jamie, Rob and myself, to prepare for our start at 12:25. Pressure mounted as the start approached, pinning numbers, checking tires....I was last to the line after a nature break, and sensed an issue with my left pedal on the way over. This triggered a mild freak out, as I had no tools on me. Fortunately, Todd did, and I checked all my cleat bolts, reassured myself, and calmed down for the start.

Rob had wheels in the van, so he gave me his tube and CO2. Nothing like peace of mind. In 2009 I had neutral support in the Cat2 race. Didn't need it this time.

Ok, sorted. Ready to go. The dude in blue and white was a strong climber. I don't know whether he stuck around until the end, but I figured him a contender.

Go.

Rob and I knew we'd be able to stay together unless a problem arose, but the question was how the others would fare. Todd had been training as well as he could given his tight schedule with work and family, and Jamie and Thom had been preparing all winter, to varying degrees. Of the all of us, Todd has the most experience by far, with lots of road racing and track miles from 12 years back. Meanwhile, Rob had various road races under his belt, followed by myself with a smattering of races, then Jamie and Thom. Experience counts for a lot.

The start was smooth and easy as we enjoyed a tailwind of about 30kph. Rob and I were about 12 rows back and taking it easy for a while, just getting the feel for the group, when Jamie pulled up. Excellent. From that point, I never saw Thom or Todd. The pace was steady and easy for a good while, then the rollers began. Rob, Jamie and I progressed to the front of the pack in preparation for the route's first significant climb, Juniper Swamp. I'd flatted before this climb in 2009, so I didn't know what to expect from the group. As it turned out, Rob and I climbed at the front of the group, and crested at the front. Ok, good, feeling ok, checking out the other climbers to see who looked like they had legs.

Each dirt section was buff, utterly buff, as the roads were almost free of gravel, and packed smooth from rain. Dirt does not get better. Flats would not be common. After Juniper, the group reformed with who knows how many shelled. As it turned out, Thom and Jamie we dropped. Bummer. Todd was hanging on; what a champ!

Jamie on the move.

Due to high winds, the flats and rollers were not hammered. Nobody had any real desire to pull, so we rode mellow until about the 50k point, when attacks began. Rob and I were careful to stay at the front, well positioned to get onto the front side of any splits, allowing others to take up the chases. Before long, attacks subsided for the most part, with just one or two riders dangling off the front for a while. There was no chance they'd stay away. 70k marked our most formidable series of climbs, both paved and dirt for almost 10k from start to finish. We knew this could be decisive; it would at least be a selection. I worked hard to stay on the front over the climbs, cresting the final one in second position, while Rob was back a bit. With one rider ahead, three behind, then a gap of about 20 meters, it seemed like it was go time. The others were of the same mind, and we went for it, digging in on the downhill and working together. Unfortunately, I was already at my limit at the top of the climb and I NEEDED to recover. I wasn't recovering at all, nope, not at all. After a few futile kilometers I looked back, say the chase group of 20 or so closing, and sat up. Try to get on, these guys can't last, I though. Rob passed about 6th wheel and I managed to get onto the back. A descent soon followed and I moved up to slot in behind Rob. Recovering now, we were ready to try to make something happen. "Are there any more major climbs?" Rob asked with about 15k to go. "No." Oops, I was wrong, there was one final climb at 90k that was brutal. Rob and I struggled to hang with the group, having absorbed the other guys from the break, as we climbed the dirt for about 2k. This was where I had thoughts of letting them go, I was suffering in the true sense. My quads wanted to seize near my knees, a sensation I've only once experienced, at last year's other first race, the Hell of the North. Nevertheless, Rob and I attacked on the descent, trying to bridge to the 4 guys up ahead who had escaped the group at the top. We simply couldn't do it in our weakened state, and the others were soon on us. Backing off to get out of the wind, I couldn't do much better than take second wheel approaching the last kilometer. Turning the final corner into town we spotted the 300m to go sign, and the guys behind me opened it up on both sides. The sprint was on. I tried to respond, but with my quads seizing I had to stay in the saddle and sprint there. I had no clue where the finish line was as riders steamed by, including Rob, who got right in in front of me so I could take his wheel. All but one passed me; I was helpless.

This is 100% effort here. Jan Heine would be proud of my in the saddle sprint.

Nevertheless, Rob pulled 18th, myself 19th, and the next rider rounded out the top 20, with the next closest rider another minute or so behind. We were at the front of the race, and we certainly left it all on the road. Todd pulled 11 minutes later for 55th place, an incredible ride for the amount of on-bike time he has this year, followed by Jamie and Thom, both having spent tonnes of time in the wind. The winner, Ed Ceccolini, repeated his victory form 2009, an outstanding feat. I think we'll need to identify him next year and follow him. Its hard to race people you don't know from Adam.

It was awesome riding with Rob. Even more awesome though, was my daughter's excitement, enthusiasm, and support for me and the team. No matter where I finish, she's always there with a hug and a kiss.

All smiles at this point. Lets party!

Todd's yellow helmet is easy to spot. I like that. His first race in 12 years was a smashing success! Way to go Todd, you are a champ!

Tanya rode a smart race, battling the whole time. Check out her lowdown here. Image borrowed from SmugMug

Looking pretty fresh eh! Tanya had fun in the Womens Cat3 field and secured 27th place!!! She was definitely in the right category, way to drop the wooden hammer! PS, Tanya is vegan.

Mmmm, fooood. Steve worked hard in the Cat 5 under 35 Black field and finished in....18th place!!!! PS, Steve is vegetarian.

I didn't get to talk to Neil much, but he was pretty happy with 48th in the Pro field. And he should be, its hard to race without any team-mates. One day we'll all race Masters, then things will get really interesting! Image borrowed from SmugMug.

This post is becoming epic, so I'll wrap up. The Tall Tree/Steelwool Bicycles team made a great showing at Battenkill. Of our 8 riders, five were on steel bikes, and of those five, three finished in the top 20. Of those, only one eats animals (hehehe). No meat was consumed by any team member the night before or morning of the race. If nothing else, we proved that steel is still a viable material for road racing, even on hilly terrain, and vegetarian food is awesome.

Sure, I'd like to shed a few pounds off the bike, and I likely will next time, but there is no question that the bikes held their own. I don't think 'upgrade' is the right word. If we'd not been so flustered, we'd have taken hsots of the race bikes and a team photo. We'll try again at the Roubaix next week.

Clarence Rockland Classic

I promised I'd write up a bit on the race just past for Tall Tree riders, so here we go.

First a bit of backgound; the RWR CRC was organized by folks who know what makes a good race. Glen Rendall, Ron Amos and all the riders of Ride with Rendall have extensive experience with road racing, cyclocross and cyclosportives. They knew that cyclists like a challenge, and anything that can be described as epic (whatever that means, since it means different things to different people.)
Add in rough roads where picking a line mountain bike or cyclocross style adds to the challenge. This was not a road race where just following the wheel in front was the best strategy. It was full on concentration and reading as much of the ground as you could see and hope to have a bit of luck.

We had five riders in the field sporting the TT kit, myself, Pascal, Mike, David and Andy. Pascal was excited to try his hand at road racing, I believe Mike has done the Almonte Roubaix among many others, Dave is quite experienced, and Andy has done a couple too, namely the Hastings Hilly Hundred.

Pascal picked Mike and I up at eight we were in Rockland by 9, just enough time to get registered, pin on our numbers and get on the bikes for a half hour warmup. I elected to check out the start of the course as race research (thank you Google Earth!) had me concerned about the two starting climbs, as I knew that over a hundred and forty people attempting an eight percent climb less than a km from the start would equal carnage, therefore a good warmup and proper pack positioning would be key to not getting caught behind people missing shifts and the like.

So we all lined up right at ten, and rolled out. We were lucky enough to have a rolling OPP enclosure for the whole race, being waved through intersections sure was fun!
Sure enough the first climb was a cacophony of missed shifts and dropped chains, I thankfully was well positioned out to the side and made my way to the front ten or so guys. A brief flat section, hard left and then another 500m long 8 percent climb strung things out even more. Being a decent climber I knew these would be my best chances to get up towards the front and stay out of trouble and I did just that. Having reccied the start of the race course that morning I knew that after the second climb we would have a relatively smooth straight tailwind section, and the pace would be on, and it was. Included in today's group was no fewer than three National Champions (road track and cross) and of course all the local hammers. After that climb, we were cruising along the next section at over 45 km an hour.

The joy of pack riding is that 45 km an hour feels relatively easy. Keep your eyes peeled for squirreliness, watch the front of the pack to see if they accelerate and relax. Drink a bit, have a shot blok.

Approximately 25 km in, with a right hand turn onto a headwind gravel section, the groups shattered. In fact just moments before teammate Mike had pulled up alongside, looking good and feeling comfortable. After the right hand turn he was shelled and never made it back on. Their were groups all over the road, five and six at a time.

It wasn't pretty.

I pulled and pulled, barely holding 26 km an hour into the headwind, then looked back for help. Only five or six riders were with me, they pulled though and so it went for over 10 km, with a slowly regrouping peloton dangling 250 or 300 m up the road.
It was torture.

We got back together after some very strong pulls by Casey Roth of the Ride with Rendall team, as well as some good solid work from Glenn Rendall himself, and Alex from the Wheelers (Thanks Alex!), as well the winner (by just one second!) of the female race, a pro racer from a UCI team.

So phew, back on with thirty of so guys, gulp down some Shot Bloks (1 at a time!) and have a look around again, Yep all accounted for, no one out in front, we could see the police car in the distance. Aaron's national jersey, Osmond and Derrick and Greg still there... good!

We made a right turn onto some lovely smooth roads and it must have been a tailwind as we were rolling at high 40s and over 50 for quite some time. That was fun!

Then at about the sixty km to go mark I seem to recall Osmond and another rolled off the front, and then Aaron followed? I dunno anyone want to fill me in on that? I was too busy concentrating on holding my wheel and not hitting potholes as we were now on a rough paved section with heavy cross winds, and I was, as they say, in the gutter. The pace was really starting to heat up and I was doing my best racer boy imitation by not letting a gap open in front, and riding as close to the side of the road as possible as we had a wind off our left.
Ride close and no one can draft you, fewer guys to sprint against, natch.

So after that the group was down to perhaps twenty? Looking down at my computer I saw less than ten km to go (phew) and did a bit of work at the front with Alex.

I'm quite the newbie at this, so I probably pulled too much as when the inevitable acceleration on the last hill came at three km to go, I was unable to respond. Damn.

Four (five?) of us got spat out, Steve Proulx, Alex and Kiernan the junior, and by the time we got to the top of the hill the remaining nine or ten guys were 50 m up the road, and of course that was it.

Alex and I two man TT'ed it to the line and made sure the two behind didn't come back, Alex gapped me on one of the downhills and I just made sure to not get caught as I had nothing left.

So I finished four and a half minutes back of the winner, but only a minute back from the last in the now very small peloton.

Our next finisher was Mike. He was not as lucky as I in finding break mates willing and able to pull through together during the peloton shattering headwind section, but nevertheless ended up a strong 33rd, with an average of over 33 km an hour, just 12 minutes back from the winner. Impressive!

Dave had some bad luck with flats, we'll leave it at that.  Andy, too, had a catastrophic failure only 20 km in.

Pascal left it all on the road and had a great ride in with Vince Caceres, owner of The Cyclery.
I know Pascal was very grateful for the assistance shortly after finishing, so thanks Vince! He rode very well to finish with an average of over 30 km an hor, no small feat considering the wind and the rough loose gravel.

All in all, coupled with our Battenkill results this weekend, I'd say an excellent showing for Tall Tree riders.

I'd like to award a Tall Tree spirit award to both Pascal and Tanya, Tanya's story you know, and it of course exemplifies the spirit we seek to embody here on team green, but what hasn't been mentioned is when Pascal saw Andy on the side of the road with his exploded tire, he turned back, giving up draft buddies (no small thing in a ride of this nature) to see if he could help, of course Andy's tire was shot, and Andy got a lift back, and Pascal went on, but later on Pascal also stopped and gave Dave, our other teammate his pump. So great work all!

Sorry no pics, the ones I took from the peloton were too blurry, (kidding)

I did see Bernard Durand of Eurosports taking many snappies, so if I find some online, I'll throw em up here.

Nomological Danglers: Double Cross Un-race Report

I once took a 'philosophy of mind' course while working away at a degree in...philosophy, back in Montreal. The course could have been extremely interesting. Either I wasn't quite ready for the material, or the prof was in fact a lame duck. I can say that he wore the same black jeans, black running shoes, and black sweater every day. In addition, he had thinning long gray hair and spoke with a British accent. Classic.

As I say, some of the material for this course just didn't really resonate. However, there were at least a couple really fun terms we got to throw around:

1) Homunculus - This word and its denotation are so interesting they've left a lasting impression in my mind. In a (small) nutshell, a homunculus (in this context) is a hidden agent steering/directing the functions of the body.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homunculus

Rather than digging out my notes, I've gone to wikepedia for a quick and dirty account. Gilbert Ryle writes,

According to the legend, whenever an agent does anything intelligently, his act is preceded and steered by another internal act of considering a regulative proposition appropriate to his practical problem (Ryle 1949).

That's not really very illuminative is it? Nope. That's ok. I encourage you to do some more reading on homunculi if you are interested. That's what the interweb is for. The point is, its a really cool term.

2) Nomological dangler - This is another one that just stuck; its so distinctive. This time, wikipedia comes through with a good spiel:

Nomological danglers is a term used by Scottish-Australian philosopher Jack Smart in his articleSensations and Brain Processes. He credits the term to Herbert Feigl and his article The "Mental" and the "Physical". It refers to the occurrence of something (in this case a sensation), which does not fit into the system of established laws. He thinks that systems in which such "nomological danglers would dangle" are quite odd. In his example the nomological danglers would be sensations such that are not able to be explained by the scientific theory of brain processes. Some mental entities for example in a phenomenological field, that are not able to be found (and do not behave in the way that is expected) in physics....Smart puts forward his own theory in the form of Materialism, claiming it is a better theory, in part because it is free from these nomological danglers, making it superior in accordance with Occam's Razor.

BTW, I maintained the hyperlink on Occam's Razor because I've always loved its elegance. Check it out.

Ok, so what's the geeking out al about? Well, as a person who maintains a fascination with the many wonders of the mind, I like to pursue things that pop into my head from time to time. Once in a while, something is indeed going on below the level of awareness we call 'consciousness' that bears fruit. Dreams are sometimes productive in this way, as are intuitions. Nomological danglers popped into my mind as soon as I started thinking about this post, so I decided to follow the lead. What's the connection to Sunday's ride? Read on, I'll try to piece it together.

Like most, if not all, would be riders, I awoke on Sunday morning to +6 overcast weather, a good 4-5 degrees warmer than predicted. Very fine. After a quick breakfast, mostly brown, I 'kitted' (isn't that and annoying term?) up. I was faced with what would prove to be one of my most difficult decisions I'd make that day: which embrocation to apply. Indeed, I underwent mental gymnastics, weighing the pros and cons of capsicum versus cloves, finally arriving upon my choice: Mad Alchemy Uber Secret Coffee flavour. Its my favourite, and consequently I tend to save it for special days. Such a day it was to be. Off I went.

Five minutes later I faced an even more challenging question, quandry even: should I return home to get the maps I'd forgotten. I was already cutting it close to arriving on time, and it certainly looks bad for the organizer to show up late. Maybe I should leave them....But I photocopied them and everything! I decided there was more to lose from having riders get lost without maps than me showing up late, so I backtracked and got them.

I arrived to see a solid mass of riders assembled at Gamelin. Well, solid in number, not congealed, that is. Without much fuss, and a minimal speech we were off on the parkway.

What felt like a mellowish pace proved not quite mellow enough pretty quickly. By the time we turned onto Mine Rd. we'd already broken a few danglers off. I knew Dom and Sean were likely to be happy maintaining their own pace, so I didn't worry. They are always well prepared with routes, so I figured we'd catch up at Pipolinka. There was a bit of hammering going on up front that had to be tamed, which I managed to do one point. I was very impressed by the quality of riding in the group, numbering about 20 at this point. A few of the riders I know are not powerhouses on the road were sitting in very well, riding really smart. There was very little yo-yoing happening and we were covering ground fast.

As usual, Cross Loop was a real crowd pleaser. For the first time, I witnessed riders pass in and out of the covered bridge from atop the hill; a beautiful sight. Before we I knew it, we were pulling up to Pipolinka for a snack. It felt premature for a snack to me - we'd covered the first leg so quickly - but it was promised, and I think well appreciated by many if not all. Stronger riders tend to not realize how much a break like that helps others recover. I quite enjoyed my coffee, as I always do there.

Off to the trail past the Mill we went.

After a last minute addition of air to the tires (sorry, I should have done this earlier, like at home), we were rolling on the dirt. Ryan and Nathan pulled away immediately, never to be seen again. They expected to see some of us at some point. Nope. The rest of the group rolled toward Lac Phillipe as a group for a bit, then strung out. I pulled up the the parking lot at the lake and waited for the others to trickle in. Jamie and Neil were right there, but we soon realized there were issues further back. A lengthy wait revealed a number of flats have occurred further back. Once we were all reassembled we continued on around the lake.

‘We' is a little misleading here. In fact, a few riders dangled off the group and were completely detached. This was not realized up front until we'd pulled away from the lake. This was where the most difficult decision had to be made: do we wait?

The problem at this point was precedent. I/we'd waited the first time. I personally felt like riding with friends beyond Jamie (no offense Jamie, the more the merrier), and thought there were a lot of people riding the same pace anyway. My informal plan was to keep everyone together around the lake, then let it string out the rest of the way. Getting around the lake on the path we wanted to take is a little tricky, but getting around to the far side of the lake is pretty easy, one way or another. Unfortunately, a few riders broke off before we made a couple key turns. So when we found ourselves missing riders, I wasn't quite sure what to do. The tempation was to backtrack to find them, which Rodd and Pascal did, while the rest of us continued. But they came up empty. Later on I wanted to backtrack to get Rodd and Pascal, but they ended up catching us as I fixed a flat anyhow. In the end, the missing riders all made it home, but a couple ended up stopping to hang out, which we didn't know about. So, the lesson I take from this is that we have to follow a pretty cut and dry approach: unless explicit agreements are made between teams to wait for each other, riders should continue on with their partners, assuming those behind them will sort themselves out. Since you can't tell whether someone behind had a catastrophic failure and called in a lift home, took a shortcut home, or opted to take an hour long break, its best to just keep rolling. This lends predictability and reduces confusion. Dropped riders will know they can ditch the route and nobody will get screwed looking for them, and everyone can proceed without doubt. Again, pairings are meant to cover people - you'll know your buddy will come back for you.

Beautiful shot by Rodd.

Steve. Beer. We amassed a gaggle of riders apres at Raw Sugar on Somerset and it was great. They serve proper coffee, food, desserts and beer. New after ride spot I think (replacing our present non-existent one).

It would be rather nifty indeed if I pulled this all together and revealed how its all about nomological danglers. But its not, so I won't force it. Sure, I could work it, but the theme here is danglers, and I think that's what made me think of nomological danglers in the first place. Danglers are not unstuck, at least not all the way. They don't break off in a clean a binary manner: on/off. While a rider might well perceive they are off, unlikely to get back on, they often still dangle in the minds of those ahead. Where are they, just around the bend. They are not gone, a thread of concern psychically connect them, almost imperceptible...danglers.

If anyone else felt pretty bagged Sunday night, know that you are not alone. I cannot remember once doing an long cross bike ride on trails and not being drained at the end. Micromanaging your lines takes much more mental energy than riding a road bike on roads or an mtb on trails. Decisions are constantly being made. Its draining. Its also very rewarding. So don't think you are in worse shape than presumed; its just a case of sensation not really lining up with expectation. Not nomological, but certainly phenomenological. More on that another time.

Rodd's photos can be found here

NEWS FLASH: Sunday's ride was so much fun I can't wait to ride more trails on my Steelwool (below). After this coming Sunday's cross race, the last of the season, I hope to be able to pull off at least one more long ride before the snow sets in. I've got a couple routes in mind that would be fun (and longer) than the DC route. This would of course be an informal affair, but I'll post here if it looks like a go. I'd really like to make it out past Lac LePeche and return on the trails. You can email me at talltreerides@gmail.com if you are interested.

Some will recall I promised a post on the ride quality characteristics I had in mind for this bike. That post is sitting, waiting for a quiet time to put up. That time will come very soon. I hadn't expected to ride this bike much with full on cross tires, but took Sunday as the perfect opportunity to try it. The bikes geometry is very different in comparison to my Pinarello. While it is set up with mid-reach caliper brakes, it still fits a 34 in the front and a 32 in the back, on account of the chainstays being too narrow for my fat 34. I fell in love with this bike on Sunday. Before then, I wasn't sure how I felt about it. On the trails the bike was flawless, incredible stable while plenty nimble. I will race it on Sunday and see how I like the geometry and tubing in that context. I hope for mud for the sake of making the race harder technically, but hope my brakes don't hinder my progress if that materializes. I'll report back on this for certain. I've tipped off the Belgian Waffle man about the race, so bring some cash in case he shows up!