Three days of no riding makes Andrio an unhappy boy. I’ve also fallen off the regimented workout horse. I’m lucky enough to get in any riding whatsoever. I just keep telling myself its temporary and things will be back to normal soon.
Man, its gorgeous outside, and I can’t go riding because we’ve been painting our apartment all weekend long. Are stuff is arriving on Tuesday so it was the only time we had. It’s worth it, though. However, the sun has been shining and I’ve been seeing so many riders out and enjoying the sun. I can’t wait to get fully settled so I can concentrate more on my training. In the meantime I have the Marin Headlands to keep me happy.
No riding for me today. Gotta paint the apartment. Good news is that my thighs and calves are getting a serious workout.
Another great morning ride today. I did my normal loop in reverse. I thought I was the only one crazy enough to be out on the trail at 6:00am, but apparently not. I ran into another rider doing the same loop but in the opposite direction. In fact I came across at least 20 other riders, but on road bikes. This city is serious. I keep remarking on how different my lifestyle has become.
Early morning jaunt through the mountains. Rode a short loop of the Headlands, bright and early at 6:30am. No one else on the trails. Felt very strong for most of the ride. Just feeling really happy and blessed to be living in this city.
I did an event and race recap already, but feel the need to do a briefing on the race rig itself. My Epic 29er performed flawlessly the Sea Otter Classic. I dialed in both ends of the Brain for full firm, giving me the stiffest pedaling platform available. It handled really well considering the amount of climbing and speed involved on the course. There were even a few downhills that had me rattled at the bottom, but the Brain opened up and transitioned from stiff to plush smoothly. I couldn’t imagine doing that race on a hardtail.
My only concern was the amount of grip the S-Works Renegade provided in the front. I think having the Fast Trak would have been the better choice given the sandy, loamy terrain.
It wasn’t at all surprised to see the amount of Epics on the course, mostly S-Works models. It was hands down the perfect bike for this course.
Oh man, my wife and I got a new car this weekend! It’s a 5-door Subaru Impreza Sport Limited. We’ve been researching cars for a while now, and thought this was the perfect car for our new California lifestyle. It features all-wheel-drive, 36 mpg, a bumpin’ sound system, 17″ alloy wheels and leather interior. It’s been redesigned for this year, and they’re super hard to get apparently. We lucked out with having the exact car package on the lot and then some. Can’t wait to drive this baby to my next race, and more importantly our next road trip!
I wish I had more time to spend at the festival itself. It would have been great to catch the short-track races, as well as road and the dual slalom. The picture above is the Specialized Factory Racing tent. The racers on the left are Lea Davidson and Rebecca Rusch, respective World Cup and Leadville 100 racer/winners. It was really cool to see how they prepped before each race. All the mechanics were buzzing around getting everything ready. (more…)
After a full day of recovery I’ve had some time to think about my first comeback race. It wasn’t perfect, nor was it as bad as I was expecting it to go down. I’ve had a great off-season to prepare myself physically and mentally, with the help of my trainer, Clayton of Carmichael Training Systems, as well as the support of my friends and family. It was a lot of fun and a huge sigh of relief.
Racing the Sea Otter Classic was never on my calendar till recently when my wife and I decided to move to San Francisco. With the added stress of moving and the relatively short time till race day, it left me questioning and even doubting myself. Thankfully having the time to explore the Marin Headlands gave me a quick feel for the terrain and amount of climbing to expect, but more importantly the confidence to attack the race from the start. (more…)