Gains...

Hi everyone! My apologies for yet another long gap in between posts. I've been busier then I've been in a long time, and it's been all good. The new job has been going extremely well, and travel has worked its way in to my life. Since starting with Walz Caps at last year's Interbike, I've been to Las Vegas, Sedona, New York, Sacramento, heading up to Paso Robles later this month, and possibly Park City in July. As exciting as the travel has been, I'm still very much a "homebody". There really is no place like home!

The training & racing front has been going well. I haven't competed in as many races as I would have like to by now, by that's still largely a result of no longer racing crits, a decision I still have yet to regret. About two weeks ago my friend Rogelio and I headed up to Bakersfield to race in the Vlees Huis Ronde Road Race. An event that's only three years old, but one I've grown to love. The race went absolutely perfect, rode off the front of the peloton for the first 17-minutes, arrived at the first big climb of the day on the front, managed to stay with the leaders almost all the way through the first of two 30-mile laps, and then right as I made the u-turn to head back out for thirty more miles of fun, something slammed my intestines pretty severely. Needless to say, I'll keep this post G-rated, and conclude by saying I had to pull out of the race immediately and ride quickly to the nearest porta potty!

The good news is that I know my form is still there, and this particular course is what is going to be used for the State RR Championships this year, so having a preview was a good thing. This last Saturday I rode the Breathless Agony Century Ride, touted as the most difficult century ride in California. Needless to say, it lived up to its name! 114 miles, and 12,000ft of climbing, probably the toughest single day I've ever had on the bike. Not a race, but a great way to kick off the next 3-week training block.

Up next, the San Diego Century, followed by the State Championship Road Race, then the Death Valley Stage Race, Mt. Whitney Stage Race, then last but not least, the Everest Challenge! That's all for now, until next time...