That felt good!

I already know I didn't blog last night, but it's only because I fell asleep on the couch again at 9:00 after I got my daughter to bed. It's been a long week and it caught up with me.

I got up this morning and cooked breakfast for my daughter and made my cappuccino, before scrambling to get ready for the Weekend Worlds... the Chili's Ride. This morning broke sunny and clear, with lots of standing water and wet roads. The temp was cool but the skies were not black with clouds... it was a perfect morning to ride! I got out the door with barely enough time to ride down and catch the small first group of the Chili's group (one of the local Saturday group training rides). I got down the hill and caught them as they were passing, so I whipped a U-turn and joined them. It was a small but dedicated group. After a little rolling, we were eventually caught by another group doing the same ride and our numbers grew to around 12- 15 riders. Again, much smaller than the usual 40+ riders, but it was a quality group of dedicated riders.

Even though I only had a granola bar and a cappuccino in my belly, my legs were feeling pretty healthy and once the caffeine began to wear off a little, my heart rate settled down a bit. The early accelerations came at the usual spots they always do with the usual suspects, but I was able to stay with the group and even help push the pace a few times. At roughly the midway point of the ride, the first "climb" to challenge our legs came and I was pleased to hang with the leaders much longer than usual. I crested the climb within sight of the leaders and in about 6th place. For me, that was a very good effort. I mean... I started the day at 208.2lbs... not exactly my climbing weight yet. After the climb, we stopped at our usual spot to regroup and refill water bottles. As we rolled off, we laughed about how massively outnumbered I was for the final sprint by my friends on the Adams Avenue Bikes team... about 8 of them against me. We rolled off laughing about how they were going to gang up on me and make it impossible for me to privateer the sprint. Truthfully, I agreed with them- the numbers were NOT in my favor, at all.

We rolled off towards our date with destiny and the final major sprint of Weekend Worlds. I put in a short, but legitimate pull for a few Km on the front... earning my keep in the group. As we headed down the long final few miles of rolling roads toward the sprint, my sprinter's nerves got all tingly with excitement... even knowing how improbable my chances were. The group was rotating well, with the AAB guys drilling the front fairly well to maintain a good tempo. It was clear they owned the ride. I tried to maintain my position in the front group, sitting third wheel as often as I could. As sometimes happens, we hit the final light of the road with a red light and had to slow to a near stop before the light changed and we were able to roll off with a fresh regrouping at the front with new AAB legs to set tempo for the finale!

Two weeks ago, with less ready legs, I was in roughly the same spot- riding the wheels of the leadout- when I nailed a pothole and double flatted. That image kept playing in my mind as I told myself to not repeat that sad performance. When we finally passed the offending potholes, I felt a lot safer, but also knew that the sprint was coming in a few more pedal strokes. I was still in third wheel as the AAB guys, including my friend C-Murder (Chris Michels of Focus Bikes), began to give it the final wind-up. When the lead rider pulled off and Chris began to wind up a sprint/ leadout for their big fast man Everett Hauser who was behind me, I knew I had to go or get swamped. I launched my sprint, deep in the drops and knuckling through the gears with my SRAM shifting (a sprinter's best friend). I was out of the saddle and flogging my scandium bike with all the power I could give the pedals. The chain lagged slightly dropping from the 12t down to the 11t, but once the shift was complete I gave it all I had left- which wasn't much- and ran for the finish with open road ahead of me... and heavy breathing behind me. I allowed myself the chance to peer back behind me through my legs to see that I had the sprint won and crossed the imaginary line with my arms held high! The "victory salute" was half joking with my friends and half honest and sincere elation. I don't know if this is the first time I have won a sprint like this since my crash nearly two years ago, but it was certainly the most satisfying if it wasn't!

After the sprint, my legs were wobbly noodles and my heart rate was damn near hummingbird speed... but I had won. I had won with terrible odds against me and good friends dead set against letting me win. Afterwards, there was plenty of discussion about how unlikely the win had been and how a lesson had been taught by a wily veteran. I admit I was very pleased with myself!

We added an extra few miles to the ride and rode up and over the 52HWy, which is a nasty 4+ mile climb! The group quickly dropped my exhausted ass and put a few KM gap into me as I settled into the best pace I could maintain. We regrouped at the bottom of the descent and I helped Chris with a flat, holding his impressively light Focus Izalco Milram team edition bike. We chatted about the sprint as I told them they'd gotten their revenge dropping me so easily on the climb.

Andrew and I rolled off through the Mission Trails park as the others rolled up and over the Mission Gorge climb. We chatted about our relative lack of condition and about life, etc. We nursed each other along on the final few miles, lending encouragement and support. We enjoyed the sun and lack of rain, though we were drenched to the bone and covered in mud from the water and debris all over the roads of the day's ride.

As we split to go to our respective homes, I was reminded of why it is that I love to ride bikes. Time with friends, healthy competition and a desire to force myself to dig just a little deeper. The ride had been an incredible one on many levels. It was so great to have that first feeling of truly getting something of my old legs back beneath me. Getting a "win"- even if the only prize is bragging rights for a week and the right to give my friends grief for not being to able to keep me from winning the sprint- is such an emotional boost. I'm a long way from being where I want to be, but sticking with the riding during lunch this week as it dumped rain on me, paid off and helped build the base for more miles.

I love riding a bike. I love riding a bike with my friends. I'm glad I keep coming back from these setbacks and frustrations again and again. I'm glad I haven't given up yet. I'm glad I'm actually motivated to buy my racing license again and contemplating racing in a few weeks against riders far better trained and prepared.

I hope your rides this weekend- or whatever it is you like to do- inspire you too. In the end, it's great to be alive and have friends... even friends who can't seem to keep me from winning a sprint that really should've been theirs! (I kid... I kid... sorta...)

Tim

It's on!

Today after work, I climbed into a dusty "loft" area where a few of my bikes are stored in the building. My two Coltello track racing bikes are both up there- one set up for time trial events and the other for sprint/ omnium events. The Coltello in Metallic Red, the first production frame we made, sat there with a good inch of dust on it. It hadn't been ridden since about two weeks before my crash last April 29th.

After grabbing the bike and the wheels, I scurried down from the loft in hopes of getting a few minutes to work on the bike and get it cleaned up. I got part of the way done when it was time to leave and the lights were being shut off. The bike and wheels got tossed into the back of the car and I drove home. Once home I replaced the tires on the wheels with some fresh rubber and tubes. I then proceeded to put a cog on the rear wheel, put some pedals on, set up the new saddle and generally polish and shine what is one of my most prized bikes- I worked very closely with our former Senior Product Development Manager to create the Coltello track frames using my years of experience racing on the track and his far superior skills in frame design. Together, the efforts brought about the Coltello... and it has brought me great joy ever since.

After chowing down on a bit of grilled tuna and some rice, I finished dialing in the bike and then put on some Mandex and headed outside with the rollers and my allen wrench set to finish setting the bike up to my preferred position. Thing is, I eyeballed it so well inside that I didn't even need to adjust anything once I got outside! The only difference from my "old" position of last year before the crash is that I moved the nose of the saddle forward a little- my back doesn't have quite the same range of flexibility right now.



After a few minutes rolling around on the street in the dark and on the rollers, I was satisfied with the fit and my position. It feels like a full blown race bike; light, stiff, low in front, high in back and ready to go as fast as I can possibly try to make it go.

One might ask the logical question, "hey, Masiguy, why you dialin' in a race bike?" Well, unless something springs up tomorrow, I'm hopping back on the track to race in the local Tuesday Night Race Series here on our velodrome... the one that nearly killed me. This will be my very first time back on the track since the crash and I am both nervous and excited. I love to race on the track and the friends I have there are amazing- their support since the crash and through my recovery has been more than I could have ever expected. I sincerely feel that I owe it to all of them to get back on the track and complete the cycle of my recovery- even if it means sitting at the back and suffering like a dog. At least I'll be suffering with a smile on my face and with friends.

I'll do my best to get pictures and possibly even video while I am there... so stay tuned.

Thanks again to every single person who has been so supportive during my recovery from the crash. Your support is what is making this return to racing possible and when I finally do stand on the podium to receive a medal- whether this year or several years from now- it will be with all of you at heart.

Tim

Home again, home again...

Got back into San Diego this afternoon after a series of flights from Taipei to Tokyo to Los Angeles to San Diego. There were no problems with any of the flights, even the last leg from LA to SD where I had to nearly run from the Customs and Immigration security to my gate. I boarded the plane just 5 minutes before taking off, but I made it!

The three of us- Wayne Doran (my Product Manager), Pat Crosby (Haro MTB/ Adult Product Manager) and myself- managed to all make it back home safe and sound. After being away for 15 days, it will be nice to sleep in my own bed and see my daughter- though I do already miss my girlfriend.

As always, my camera was with me all the time and I have tons of great pictures to share. The first week of my two week stay in Taiwan was for a bit of a vacation with my girlfriend and going to a wedding for her best friend. Getting a chance to see more of Taiwan than just bike factories in Taichung and Taipei was long overdue and much enjoyed. I'll share some of those pictures as well as all of the usual bike-related ones too.

Yes I know- she's much better looking than me.

The second week of my stay was devoted to working with Wayne to see key vendors before finalizing the spec of the bikes you will get to see (and fall in love with) in 2010. We're working on some really incredible bikes and I am so proud of how the Masi line is growing and shaping up. We visited with many different vendor partners- either at their factories/ offices, or in ours- and are much closer to having all of our homework done to deliver some incredible products to you.

Part of that second week was spent at RideOn/ Taichung Bike Week. It's a mini-"tradeshow" for the OEM market only. It's a valuable chance for us manufacturers to meet with our various suppliers and vendors to finalize our spec and see anything that might get a last second add to one of our bikes. It has grown very organically over the past 4 years or so and is now something that is actually quite important to the industry. It has become important to the city and county of Taichung as well. On Monday, many of us who attended the RideOn/ Taichung Bike Week had a private meeting with the Mayor of Taichung and some of his representatives. Several of us sat in a "round table" discussion panel to talk about the pros and cons of the current event and listen to the city explain how they want to help facilitate what we are already doing. Honestly, it was very exciting for me personally to sit in a room of my peers and industry kin and talk about how we can all work together to make the little un-tradeshow work for us all. It was also very exciting to see how much the city of Taichung wants to help us do our jobs. After all, much of the Taiwan bike industry is centered in the city and county of Taichung and is a major economic force in the Taiwan economy. But, sincerely, the best part was the feeling of being a part of something that was about the greater good of the industry itself. Those who cared to attend clearly represent those brands and people who actually care about the health of the cycling industry and not just the bottom line of their respective brands. To me, that's the best part of the industry I care so much about- the people in it who also care.

The Mayor of Taichung and his liaison to the bike industry, Anna Wang.

Last Sunday I also took part in a 75km "race" in the mountains surrounding the city of Taipei. I say "race" because it wasn't an officially sanctioned event, per se, and was more like many of the "fun rides" we have here in the US. The riders ranged from the elite to the novice... and everywhere in between and on every conceivable type of bike you can imagine. Of the 75km, 50km were uphill... some parts of the climbs were steep enough that scooters were being pushed up the hills! Needless to say, with the total lack of fitness I have, it was beyond painful. I am not too proud to admit that in the last 5km, I had to walk my bike up the climbs 3 or 4 times. I was blown to pieces by the end, but considering that I have ridden 3-4 times over the past 2.5 months... I'm happy to have even finished at all. I am also happy to report that the bike I shipped over for the event rode flawlessly- aside from not making me not have to pedal uphill. The new Scandium frame I have been testing rode perfectly- it accelerates like a dream and corners flawlessly. The road feel is everything Scandium is supposed to be and has very stiff power transfer to the pedals. The updated SRAM Rival group worked perfectly but I was totally over-geared and needed a compact crank for the amount of steep climbing we did, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Also, the new Shimano RS80 wheelset rode awesome! These new carbon/ alloy clincher wheels are sweet and I can't wait to get the bike back from Taiwan so I can start putting more miles on it.

It's time for me to try and get some sleep, even though my internal clock is all out of whack. I'll have more to report soon and will have plenty more cool pictures now that I have reliable internet able to handle the images.

Tim