Grants Tomb Crit 3/9/13

This past weekend was Grants Tomb Crit. Fun, fast course. I felt like I did everything right during the race until the end. The final sprint started way earlier than expected. By the time I realized what was going on, I knew my chances were over. I probably put in a solid 75% effort at the end and ended up 9th out of a field of 50 or so. Our lead group of 11 had about 45 seconds on the rest of the peloton at the finish.

Photo © Anthony Benavides

Sunday team ride

Sunday I went for a ride with a few from my team. I haven't seen most of these guys since Cross season ended. We put in a great 75 miles in some epic fog, and got back just in time to watch Cyclocross Nationals while we killed some pizza and beer. Perfect day.

Bubble Cross, NJ 11/11

Staten CX was cancelled this year because of the destruction in Staten Island. We made last minute plans to Race out in NJ at Bubble Cross last Sunday.

The course was very technical. I would say that 1/8th of it was on sand. From the sand you exited to a singletrack climb that entered a whole twisty, dirt back section. There was some good climbing on the front section, a small kicker that you could catch some air off of, and a short set of stairs. Weather was in the 60's so all of this made for a really awesome, challenging race.

Our team did really well in the Cat 3's taking 1st and 2nd. I took 5th in the Cat 4's behind Wilis (king kog) who took 4th and Keith Garrison (pink rhino racing) took 1st.

We were just notified today that this weekends upcoming races at Super Cross Cup were postponed, so we are currently trying to find a game plan. I really want to race this weekend. My season is nearing a close. I have more than enough upgrade points and I think I'm about ready to make the jump up. I plan on upgrading right before my last race of this season so I can get a taste of what things will be like next year.

Enough from me, heres some photos from the day... Jen was nice enough to shoot some photos of the cat 4 race while I was racing. The rest are mine:

Full gallery HERE

K-tel and Brian Quinn post race

Catchin a little air during my race

Marty Cross days 1&2, Chester, NJ

This weekend we headed to Chester, NJ for Marty Cross thrown by Marty's reliable cycle.

The course was strung out on a hill with a really scenic view. Most of it was off camber. On day 1 there was a big climb that most people ran up. It had the stickiest, clay-like mud that I've seen all season. I had some serious trouble clipping back in after the run up as the mud was so thick that it wouldn't come off my shoes and pedals. There was also a paved downhill section that went right into a muddy, rutty section with a tight turn at the end. You could easily trash hard if you took it with too much speed. I took it really fast on one lap and nearly lost it.

On day 1 I was in 5th place most of the race. I dropped my chain twice. The first time I lost 4 positions because I couldn't get it back on. The 2nd time I lost even more ground. I ended up 12th despite the issues. Thats the first (and 2nd) time I've dropped a chain all season.

Day 2 the course was much faster, but with a lot more climbing. Most of the time was spent on the bike as there was only 1 set of barriers. Day 2 was much better. I ended up in 6th place.

I have zero complaints with how I rode,  and zero issues. I'll take it. We had most of the consistent racers in Brooklyn at this race, so it was cool to just race with a bunch of friends. Keith from Pink Rhino Racing and Jun from Chari and Co ended up on the podium.

:Marty Cross Gallery of days 1&2 (click me):

A few randoms (click to enlarge):

Town Hall Cross 10/6, Cooper River Cross (CRCX) 10/14

So I'm a little behind with my updates. Everything has been a blur lately.

Last Saturday we raced at Town Hall Cross in Pennsylvania. There was quite a bit of climbing, and a lot of switchbacks through mud and wet grass. I was supposed to start around 30th in the grid. I missed my call up and ended up having to start around 80th position. I pushed my way through and ended up taking 3rd! To date I have never made up that much ground in a race. It was a tough race but I felt really strong throughout it.

Today we raced at Cooper River Cross in Cherry Hill, NJ. This was a mostly flat course with some technical sections, a rideable staircase, and a lot of loose dirt. I didn't have a very good start and the leaders got away quick. I started about 5 rows back. I made my way up and by the 3rd lap I was in 6th place. I was battling with the guy behind me the rest of the race. I held onto 6th until the final sprint. I got nabbed by the 2 behind me and ended up 8th. That hurt. I am happy to be in the top 10, but bummed at the same time that I didn't step it up and hold my ground. Looking back I think I could have pushed it harder, but in the moment I caved. Either way, another day, another lesson.

I didn't go crazy taking photos at these races as I did at some recent ones, but here's what I got:

A few from Town Hall Cross (FULL GALLERY HERE):

my second podium this year...3rd at Town Hall Cross

A few from Cooper River Cross (FULL GALLERY HERE):

Floyd Bennet Field Race (2nd place!) 9/2/11

I haven't been able to make any of the Floyd Bennet Field races this year because I was always working. They just started their Sunday series, so I figured it would be a good way to end out the summer road season.

Off the line, 3 people took off sprinting and made some serious headway. I spent the first lap and a half riding by myself trying to catch them but never did. I fell back into the pack and tried to regain myself. 2 of the 3 people that went out early couldn't hold their ground and eventually fell back into the pack. I was at the back of the pack just hanging on and watching the one rider who was still way out front. We would get closer to him but as soon as we were out of the wind, he would make more ground on the pack.

the first 2 straights are directly into the wind and the other 2 are not. As soon as you hit the straights out of the wind, you can go much faster. On the 4th lap I held on to the back of the pack. I made my way to the middle as we were coming up to the 3rd straight. The pack slowed a little and I made my move and broke away. I thought someone would go after me or latch on to my wheel but no one did. I killed myself until I slowly caught the lone racer who was way out front.

We went for over a lap before I had regained myself enough to pull out front. Him and I worked together for the next 4 laps and held a considerable lead on the rest of the pack. I have to give him credit though as he did more work than I did, and when it came to the final stretch, I went into it accepting whatever I would get. I ended up talking second.

It was really awesome how it played out. I took a big risk and it was worth it. Very happy with the outcome!

Tour of the Catskills Race stage 1: Assault on devil's Kitchen

As a cyclist, I am always riding somewhere. As time goes by, one ride blends into the next. Its hard to keep the same routes fresh, but its always enjoyable. Its just sometimes forgettable. One thing is certain, I will always remember my hardest rides. I have a top 5 that I can recall with vivid memory. They were life changing, and pushed me in different directions.

Today we raced the Assault on Devils Kitchen at the Tour of the Catskills. This is the hardest ride I've ever done. 65 miles of racing with about 6000ft of climbing and a 5km climb at the end of the race with up to a 16.7% grade.

This was a cat 4/5 mixed race with a field of about 75. It started out with a lot of climbing that split the field up quick. I was on the back of the lead pack which was about 15-20 racers. I fell of the group a few times and had to work a lot to get back. At one point there was a minor crash in front of me which caused me to lose them by quite a big gap. Luckily there was a huge descent coming up. I rode down the whole thing without touching my brakes in order to catch up. There was no visible pack behind me, so If I didn't catch up, I was pushing the wind by myself.

I stayed in the group with my teammate Alan (who ended up 17th) and my friend Eli who took 4th. As we were coming down another descent which went around a corner, my rear end kicked out sideways and I almost crashed. I got up out of my saddle and realized that my tire had gone flat. This was 2/3 into the race. I was pissed as I knew this would kill my race.

I waited at the intersection but it took about 20 minutes until a support car showed up. We had this great idea at the beginning that it wasn't worth it to carry a flat kit because once you flat you are pretty much done. That was a stupid idea. During the time I waited I watched the rest of the field pass me by. My other teammate Johnny stopped as I was fixing my flat, and we rode off together in dead last place.

Johnny didn't seem to have much left in him so he stuck behind me as I pushed the headwind and my limits for another 20 miles. I picked off a bunch of racers along the way, I'm not really sure how many. I didn't look back until after about 10 miles, and I realized that Johnny was nowhere to be seen. There was a pro 1/2/3 girl who had latched on to my wheel. I was mistaking the sound of her bike for Johnny's. Either way, I kept pushing until I hit the wall. By wall I mean the devils kitchen climb.

I was wondering when the climb would be coming up, and it was obvious. It looked like a fucking wall. I could see people ahead of me struggling on the first 100 meters. My body had energy but my legs were dead from pushing so hard on the way there. I made it up most of it but I had to get off at a couple points. 80% of the people around me were walking their bikes. It was so steep that it was actually hard to walk up. My heart rate was through the roof and I felt like I was seeing stars. Shit was intense.

After the relief of finishing the climb, the last 5 miles or so until the end were rough. I was out of water, light headed and felt like I was going to pass out from heat exhaustion. I found myself again alone and just pushed through it. I surprised myself actually as I seemed to still have a bit left in reserve. I picked off a few more on the last stretch.

Overall I ended up 39th. I am still happy with the result because of my huge setback. I know I would have done much better had I not flatted, but thats the price we pay. The feeling after dismounting the bike when I was done was indescribable. I was so spaced out and couldn't make sense of anything around me. After drinking a ton of water, coke, muffins, a cheeseburger and a beer, I sort of realigned my head.

I'm not gonna lie, right now I can say that I don't ever want to do that climb again. I have a feeling that will change and I will probably do this again next year. Somehow through the pain that we endure, there is pleasure, and looking back at today I can somehow say that I had a great time. Til next year?...

The race:



A few photos via instagram:

3 bikes stuffed into a Honda CRV

finish line

race and reward

sunset on the way home

Things as of late...

July was a crazy month. I have been racing here and there, but overall just training, eating well and riding like crazy. Its safe to say that those 3 things are consuming my life at the moment. When I'm not doing something to push myself forward, all I'm doing is thinking about my next move, my next ride, my next experience.

I put in just under 900 miles in July which is the most I've ever ridden in a month. I also attribute a little of it to the fact that I now own a Garmin and document every mile I ride. Either way I'm proud of myself. The feeling of progression is addictive. Once you realize that it is happening, there is no way to hold back from pushing harder. I'm not a young kid anymore. Believe it or not, I'm 36. A lot of the people I ride and battle with are 10 years younger than me.

I am currently finishing out the road season riding for Team Cicli Devotion. I'm very happy to be part of a solid team with some great dudes. I feel as it is a great fit for me and I am looking forward to learning some better racing skills and training with them. My cat 4 upgrade is coming up soon. I should be ready to upgrade within the next few races.

This weekend a few of us are out to tackle the Tour of the Catskills. We are only racing Saturday. It's 65 grueling miles with what is apparently the hardest climb in the Catskills at the end of the race (devils kitchen climb). I'm looking forward to it and also nervous as fuck. I haven't done any road races outside of the NYC parks.

This past weekend we did a race in Prospect park and then headed out to the NY/NJ state line right after. It was a solid 80 miles of consistent burning in my legs. Doing a long ride after a race is brutal. Don took some shots which are on his blog along with the one of me below. See more at Donalrey.tumblr.com

Cat 4's at Prospect this past weekend