7:57 AM | 
Posted by
Joe M. Owens
MOvember 2010 -- Final Update
13 years ago
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Musings of a newbie Cat 4 bike racer: pt. 2
Most cycling fans know that this is the "year of the comeback." Making their returns to the pro and continental pelotons are Lance Armstrong, Floyd Landis and Ivan Basso. Expectations have been high and results have been mixed.
On a much smaller scale, this is also the year of my comeback, so to speak. Many of you know about my battle with pancreatitis last year, effectively sidelining me for 5 months (May through October). Getting back on the bike in November was like pressing the reset button on my fitness. The only thing to do was throw one leg over the top tube and turn the pedals over once again.
The going was rough initially. Twenty miles felt like fifty and my legs had no snap. For two months I spent just riding by feel and building miles. For Christmas, I got a DVD set for increasing my power on the bike. In February, I got even more serious and bought a power meter to gauge my fitness from workout to workout. The gains were quick. By March, I'd regained a good deal of the fitness I'd lost from being sick.
All the while I'd also been getting training advice from a friend (through cycling of course), Ultra Marathon cyclist and coach, George Vargas. His no nonsense approach was just what the Dr. ordered. The thing I like most about George is that he doesn't sugar-coat anything. He won't applaud you for doing a shitty job. (Shameless plug for George's blog.)
As the proverbial wheels of the season kept rolling, I also earned my Cat 4 upgrade after middle-packing it for three years in the Cat 5s. As my previous post mentions, I was ready to kick off the racing season in Lincoln, NE at a criterium race when my buddy Kyle suffered a disastrous crash the day prior. I decided my comeback to racing would have to wait.
I made up my mind to return to the peloton at the Melon City Criterium in Muscatine, IA (my wife's hometown). The course is a lot of fun, limited technical turns, a wide course and a steep hill every lap to spread out the field. I began focusing my training on courses that somewhat simulated the Muscatine race. The only thing I lacked at that point was a team.
I'd thought about racing in the green, black and silver of my favorite local bike shop, Bike Masters, but while I was there the other night trying on jerseys, I spotted Mark Stursma, a member of the area's foremost racing squad, Team Kaos, receiving a professional bike fit from fit-guru, Dave Reinarz. Apologizing profusely for interrupting his fit, I asked Mark who I could get in contact with to join the team (if it wasn't too late already). He affably said he'd take my information and pass it on to the right people.
Later that night, I received an email from Kaos Vice President, Doug Semisch. He informed me that the team was community service-based and that the dues are donated 100% to charity at the end of the year. He also said, "All members are required to participate in some of [our] community service events and to assist in putting on the Dave Babcook Memorial race [we] hold each July. Community service events include bike safety rodeos for kids, Life-A-Thon ride, Tour de Cure ride sponsored by our title sponsor, Alegent Health, the corporate cycling challenge, and other cycling based chairty events."
It honestly sounded great to me so I told Doug that I was in. He put me in touch with Brandon Fenster who is in charge of team kits. After a grand total of 18 emails, I had agreed to meet up for the Wednesday night group ride from Bike Masters, at which time I could pay for dues and a team kit (jersey and shorts).
As luck would have it, Wednesday's weather proved to be the fly in the ointment. A wind advisory was issued for the metro area with gusts exceeding 50 miles per hour. Not to be daunted, I showed up early to meet with Brandon, took possession of my kit and suited up for the ride, ridiculous wind and all.
Going into the ride, I assumed my fitness would be the limiting factor but it turned out to be a combination of my brain and the wind. Even in group rides, tactics are employed. If a rider is like me and not the best climber, he or she should get to the front of the group at the beginning of the ascent and if they need to, trickle toward the back of the pack. I did this for the first few rollers but found myself caught out on a particularly steep climb near 186th and State Streets.
As I pedaled toward the back of the pack, I briefly lost focus and began cycling through the display of my PowerTap. As soon as I looked up, a gust of wind hit me square in the chest and I became unattached from the group. When you don't have the protection of the group's draft, it takes a Herculean effort to get back on. Being as we were in the middle of the climb, they pulled away.
For a few miles, I rode solo, fighting the wind with no protection from the pack. I decided to right in my Steady State zone, just under Lactate Threshold (the point where lactid acid floods your muscles and forces you to slow down). I never lost sight of the group and just kept pedaling. Around the 15 mile mark, the pack turned around and headed back. I reattached and rode with them the rest of the way. However, I ran out of fluids with 8 miles to ride, so needless to point out, I was deep inside the pain cave.
As we rolled into the Bike Masters parking lot, I was feeling pretty good about myself, for the most part. I'd have liked to stayed with the group the whole time, but never losing sight and reattaching was a confidence boost. All in all, I'd give myself a B minus.
I talked to a guy on the team (whom I believe was named Rich) and we discovered we'd both be racing in Muscatine. He was going to be doing both the Masters 50+ and the Cat 4 races. The best part is that, even though you can't always employ a lot of tactics in a Cat 4 crit, there is a mental bonus of having a teammate there to race with. I'm definitely looking forward to it.
Sorry for the long-winded post! If you are still reading, thanks! If I updated this thing more often, I'd likely have shorter posts, haha!
On a much smaller scale, this is also the year of my comeback, so to speak. Many of you know about my battle with pancreatitis last year, effectively sidelining me for 5 months (May through October). Getting back on the bike in November was like pressing the reset button on my fitness. The only thing to do was throw one leg over the top tube and turn the pedals over once again.
The going was rough initially. Twenty miles felt like fifty and my legs had no snap. For two months I spent just riding by feel and building miles. For Christmas, I got a DVD set for increasing my power on the bike. In February, I got even more serious and bought a power meter to gauge my fitness from workout to workout. The gains were quick. By March, I'd regained a good deal of the fitness I'd lost from being sick.
All the while I'd also been getting training advice from a friend (through cycling of course), Ultra Marathon cyclist and coach, George Vargas. His no nonsense approach was just what the Dr. ordered. The thing I like most about George is that he doesn't sugar-coat anything. He won't applaud you for doing a shitty job. (Shameless plug for George's blog.)
As the proverbial wheels of the season kept rolling, I also earned my Cat 4 upgrade after middle-packing it for three years in the Cat 5s. As my previous post mentions, I was ready to kick off the racing season in Lincoln, NE at a criterium race when my buddy Kyle suffered a disastrous crash the day prior. I decided my comeback to racing would have to wait.
I made up my mind to return to the peloton at the Melon City Criterium in Muscatine, IA (my wife's hometown). The course is a lot of fun, limited technical turns, a wide course and a steep hill every lap to spread out the field. I began focusing my training on courses that somewhat simulated the Muscatine race. The only thing I lacked at that point was a team.
I'd thought about racing in the green, black and silver of my favorite local bike shop, Bike Masters, but while I was there the other night trying on jerseys, I spotted Mark Stursma, a member of the area's foremost racing squad, Team Kaos, receiving a professional bike fit from fit-guru, Dave Reinarz. Apologizing profusely for interrupting his fit, I asked Mark who I could get in contact with to join the team (if it wasn't too late already). He affably said he'd take my information and pass it on to the right people.
Later that night, I received an email from Kaos Vice President, Doug Semisch. He informed me that the team was community service-based and that the dues are donated 100% to charity at the end of the year. He also said, "All members are required to participate in some of [our] community service events and to assist in putting on the Dave Babcook Memorial race [we] hold each July. Community service events include bike safety rodeos for kids, Life-A-Thon ride, Tour de Cure ride sponsored by our title sponsor, Alegent Health, the corporate cycling challenge, and other cycling based chairty events."
It honestly sounded great to me so I told Doug that I was in. He put me in touch with Brandon Fenster who is in charge of team kits. After a grand total of 18 emails, I had agreed to meet up for the Wednesday night group ride from Bike Masters, at which time I could pay for dues and a team kit (jersey and shorts).
As luck would have it, Wednesday's weather proved to be the fly in the ointment. A wind advisory was issued for the metro area with gusts exceeding 50 miles per hour. Not to be daunted, I showed up early to meet with Brandon, took possession of my kit and suited up for the ride, ridiculous wind and all.
Going into the ride, I assumed my fitness would be the limiting factor but it turned out to be a combination of my brain and the wind. Even in group rides, tactics are employed. If a rider is like me and not the best climber, he or she should get to the front of the group at the beginning of the ascent and if they need to, trickle toward the back of the pack. I did this for the first few rollers but found myself caught out on a particularly steep climb near 186th and State Streets.
As I pedaled toward the back of the pack, I briefly lost focus and began cycling through the display of my PowerTap. As soon as I looked up, a gust of wind hit me square in the chest and I became unattached from the group. When you don't have the protection of the group's draft, it takes a Herculean effort to get back on. Being as we were in the middle of the climb, they pulled away.
For a few miles, I rode solo, fighting the wind with no protection from the pack. I decided to right in my Steady State zone, just under Lactate Threshold (the point where lactid acid floods your muscles and forces you to slow down). I never lost sight of the group and just kept pedaling. Around the 15 mile mark, the pack turned around and headed back. I reattached and rode with them the rest of the way. However, I ran out of fluids with 8 miles to ride, so needless to point out, I was deep inside the pain cave.
As we rolled into the Bike Masters parking lot, I was feeling pretty good about myself, for the most part. I'd have liked to stayed with the group the whole time, but never losing sight and reattaching was a confidence boost. All in all, I'd give myself a B minus.
I talked to a guy on the team (whom I believe was named Rich) and we discovered we'd both be racing in Muscatine. He was going to be doing both the Masters 50+ and the Cat 4 races. The best part is that, even though you can't always employ a lot of tactics in a Cat 4 crit, there is a mental bonus of having a teammate there to race with. I'm definitely looking forward to it.
Sorry for the long-winded post! If you are still reading, thanks! If I updated this thing more often, I'd likely have shorter posts, haha!
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