Copper

This is your brain in drugs, or Jose Cuervo whatever you prefer

Been relaxing the last couple days. Did a easy mtn ride on Wednesday and took yesterday off. I have decided I live way too far from useful mountains. I have the crap Oquirh's right at my doorstep but I cant touch em. Damn those copper tweekers they run this here Magna town. The 20-30 minute drive to the trailhead is getting old. I knew this when buying my house but of course I tell myself, "Its not that bad" then when it comes down to it, it sucks. So now I need that big house on the east side for the same price as my shack in Rag Town! I'm screwed.

Headin south for a stage race, I like stage races. I feel like I'm in the Tour or something having a race twice a day. DH is rolling down also. DH is on fire after the TOFU, killing the DMV and last night I hear he pulled off the sub 14 minute TT at Salt Air. The 1/2's will be racing for 2nd this weekend. I borrowed a disk rear wheel from AJ so that should shave off a good 1/2 second on the TT. This will be my last weekend on the road bike until the snow covers all the trails.

About time

There she is finally wearing her new double digit number. I have been racing the A's for 3 weeks and I finally got the number on last night for the RMR. I got in a break of about 8 guys including BadMF after AJ split it up with an early attack. It was very hard, my legs were still hurting from Sundays death march race in Francis. I did everything I could to stay on and take my turns at the front and even attacked a couple times when the pace slowed. We stayed out for probably 30 minutes. I used my sprint early on the last lap trying to catch 3 guys that got a gap on the rest of us, and I rolled in 7th. That will be a single digit number after next year!! It feels great to be able to hang with these guys, my confidence and speed has improved so much since getting away from winning the B's.

Today may be a good day to rest or spend some time up Millcreek on the Stumpy. I think Tour de Gap in Parowan is calling my name for the last road race of the season this Saturday/Sunday. Yup summer is damn near over so get your miles in now.

Shuda bin dere and because it makes me faster

If you didnt make it out to the Friday night TOFU circuit race Friday night, you missed out on one hell of a show. I was like a little kid watching the team cars and motorcycles fly by, and the racing of course was great too. I have never seen a race this big in my life. Thanks to D-oza, the fam and I scored some sweet reserved seats with the KJZZ crew right at the finish with free Bajio food and Wasatch beer. I hope this race just gets bigger, but then again if it does, that makes it really hard for me to race it one day.

Here is DH breakin it down for the fellas after the finish. Great job hanging in there DH. Its got to be hard to compete with a bunch of guys that race for a living and are constantly doing stage races. It will be good to have him back in the Porcupine blue next week.

On another note I decided to race today at the Wolf Creek Road Race, why you ask? Because it will make me faster I tell myself. Punishing myself over a mountain with 3200 ft of climbing twice for a total of 6400 ft is not the smartest thing I can do but if it makes me faster its worth it. We started out blazing and almost caught the 1/2 group who left 10 minutes before us on the first climb. Our group was shattered on the first climb. I managed to stay with the skinny boys for most of the climb and caught them quick on the downhill. The group was down to 6 of us and we worked pretty well until the turnaround to head back up. I got blown of the pace halfway up the climb coming back and just tried to keep a good pace and limit my losses. I ended up taking 4th and more importantly in the "over 170lbs class" I took the gold! This was by far the hardest race of the season. There was more than once on the climb back that I thought my mind was going to shut down and I was going to end up passed out in the weeds somewhere.

I am seriously suffering at this point. The race was supposed to be 84 miles and that is what my speedo said at this point. I was reaching hard for the finish. I think we I ended up with just under 90 miles in just over 4 hours. Luckly BadMF came from behind to give some much needed help to the finish. Now I am suffering just trying to get up stairs because my legs are totally destroyed.

Sorry

This blog really sucks! I know all 3 of you have thought that while reading this crap. I gotta do something to bring the rating back up. Any suggestions please comment below.

I missed the DMV Wednesday and the hillclimb today so I am bummin for a ride. I gotta get on the Mtn bike soon or I'm gonna self destruct. I planned on doing the Hillclimb but I ran out of time and the van needed gas so I was stretching it leaving from Ragtown at 5pm to make it to PC in time. What a contrast Magna to Park City, cheap ugly crap to expensive pretty crap in under 45 minutes.

When I am not bustin the 1 track around the house this winter you can find me on this sweet machine in the basement with the New Kids bumpin. I hope to get her before the snow flies. Now all I need is an altitude tent and some EPO and I too can win Olympic Gold!!

Anyone else going downtown tomorrow to watch DH and Team End destroy all those other no names in the TOFU??

Worlds

I took third last night with the A's at the RMR, I guess I should get my plate so I can start taking some points. BadMF was off the front in a break the whole race and I was blocking trying to keep it away until 2 laps to go when PW jumped the group and I went with him. Within a half a lap we were with the break. I was ready to just keep rollin it to the finish but BadMF wanted me to sit on his wheel. He led me out for the sprint but I jumped a little late and ran out of tarmac. No more b's for me.

15 minutes.....

Here is the big finish, I can relax a little with no one in sight

The fam and I headed up to Logan to race the crit and visit with sis, of course we were running late on my watch but that always happens when you got the fam rollin with ya. I got a 30 minute warm up on the course and felt like crap. The race starts I feel like crap, I'm thinking, "what a waste of a drive and my day coming up here", but 20 minutes into it something turned the switch in my legs to, ITS ON! I took a couple good pulls up front and led for a few laps then made my way back to the back of the group to chill. With about 15minutes to go the group slowed down on the hill and I just lit it up! I got a good jump and looked back and the group was just watching me roll off, so I hit it even harder, after 3 laps I had 40 seconds. Now I'm thinking its all or nothing because I am either going to blow or take this thing solo. I had 15 minutes of pain in my future. I would hit it hard on the hill and the top were the group would slow and rest on the downhill section of the course. There were a lot of people and by the end they all knew my name from the announcer and were cheering me on. I kept drilling it on the climb lap after lap until finally I get 3 to go, 2 to go, and finally 1 to go. I drove it home hard on the last lap and did the whole zip up the jersey and throw the hands in the air for the big win.........I still had the 40 seconds, what a way to win a race. I took home a $40 preme and $120 for winning so it turned out to be a great day on the skinny bike.

I got in a 4 hour bruiser on the fat tires with AJ and Johnny Mac this morning, AJ was killing me as we did the millcreekcrestmidmountain loop. It was great fun and I even rammed my hand into a guys stem coming down littlewater....ouch.

DMV Hangover

I went on a little pre-race ride at lunch today and my legs are still worked over from Wednesday. I feel like I just started the off season weight program doing squats all day. That hill really did hurt me! I have the Logan Crit tomorrow afternoon which should be a lot of fun. We are heading up a little early if possible to visit with my littlest sister who just moved back up there for school. We are now minus our #2 babysister. She comes in a close second behind Grandma. Which reminds me I really should pay her for her time this summer which allowed me to get my can kicked in the crits and TT's all summer. The summer and this racing season is about done.

Good luck to DH and Skylere next week in the big TOFU. I have seen a couple secret weapons come out of the compound for those two this week. Its should be very interesting to see how big this race gets every year. I will have to dust off the devil costume for next Saturdays climb to Snowbird!!

Now its off to enjoy the short weekend. I think its due time for some Johnny Carino's http://www.carinos.com, the best food in town.

I will probably be doing the epic littlegreatmidpowercrest trail on Sunday if anyone is interested, meet at 7am in the top parking lot, Millcreek Canyon. Out

The DMV Double

I dont know if I am stupid or just stupid, but I did the DMV double last night. I started off by pack filling with the A's which wasnt too bad, AJ was off the front so BadMF and I were just sittin on the front of the group watching the break slowly fade away. I decided to end the punishment early and try to save something if I happen to be able to slip in with the B's. After paying another $8 to race the B's I was off again hitting that hill every 1 + minute or so. My Dad came to watch and said during the B's race I came up that hill 26 times. So for the afternoon I would say I rolled up that bugga at least 50 times, thats were the stupidity statement comes into play. It was great training and I ended up 5th in the B's which was good because more than once I thought about bowing out and heading home. If the big fella lets me continue this trying process I think I will. That way I can still get a few points here and there for the overall standings which I am sure I will end up 3rd and get mucho faster racing the fast skinny guys.

A Flite

Didnt get the upgrade to the A's but was allowed to race with them without a number. I asked DH to come with me to ask the big Guy about moving up. I figured having the fastest baddest racer with me would help persued him to let me move up. So DH says, "I think its time for Eric to move up to the A's", then after like 3 minutes and some puzzling thinking looks Shrek says, "I think you will get your doors blown off", at this point it was on, I would have killed myself to stay on with the group and I did without kiling myself. I actually did some work and attacked the group a couple times. I made sure I was leading the group as we passed each lap. I think I ended up top ten but was trying to bring back the break for DH along with MadMF.

It was good to move up and I really enjoy raciong with the A's because its much safer and a little faster and more consistent. It will definetly make me faster. DMV tonight, I will go out to race A's and maybe stay to race B's to still get some points.

Movin on Up

So it has been decided that today will be the day when I move from the B group to the A group. What better way to start August off right? Nothing like a good ass kicking from the fast boys to make you feel slow. I no longer have the desire to win the points in the B's and think racing with these guys will just make me faster. This is all based on if we race or not tonight, and if Shrek gives me the hallpass and that double digit number to attach to my steed. Do you think my lunch will help me today or hurt me?

I must tell you I am a little nervous and hope I dont get shelled off the back in the first 10 minutes of the race. AJ promised me lunch if I can pull off the W. I think he should be pretty comfortable with that bet. He has the odds in his favor about 50 to 1.

I can feel winter creeping its way back to the Wasatch and its making me sad. Winter is not a fun time for us SLC punks unless you can afford the 60 lift pass and the 10 gallons of gas to make it up to the resorts and ride your snowboard. Without that your left with 8 layers of clothing riding in slush, sweating in the gym with crappy equipment(sorry spin classes just dont do it for me) or just getting fat.

Well I am off, race report tomorrow stay tuned..........

Epic Sunday

I decided to bag the road ride with the fellas in favor of a mountain ride that would soon turn almost Epic. I call it the LittleGreatMidPowerCrestBig Loop. I got the engine rolling at 7am and the first few feet of dirt I knew it was going to be a great day in the saddle. It had rained last night and the trails up Millcreek Canyon were nothing short of perfect. I headed up Little Water to The Great Western and made my way over the hill and down in to the Canyons via Mid Mountain trail. Me and mid mountain have a good relationship since last Saturday when she was good to me. She was good again and I could tell I was going to make record time on this loop that I do at least once during the summer. Once I hit power line it was getting hot and I started sweating buckets(note to self, change pad in helmet, it is getting funky) The trails on the PC side were a bit dryer that Millcreek which surprised me. I waved at shadow lake as I kept rolling up to puke hell were the real fun began. There is nothing better than passing 4 guys on $6000 bikes like they are standing still while climbing puke hill and to push the knife in a little deeper, not stopping at the top to take a breather with 20 other clowns. Nope not me I just kept on truckin.

One thing about riding the Crest on the weekend is you have to expect the 80 year old dude on his original Stumpy, the 200lb women trying to get into shape in lycra, and of course the husband and wife or boyfriend girlfriend combo getting to know each other better. *Word to the wise fellas just stop taking them with you, buy them a road bike and introduce them to friends of the same sex* Otherwise your weekend will be filled with slow easy rides and some naggin to the sound of, "just go ahead by yourself I am just slowing you down"

On a day like this I almost hate being somewhat fast on a bike, the constant riding up on someones ass until they finally realize that I am there. Anyone that reads this blog knows what I mean! "Do you wanna pass" they say. Umm no I am really enjoying going 2 mph up this hill but maybe I should pass before I fall over. I ended the ride coming down great western to little water, stoping at least a dozen times to let the bikes go by. I made it back to the car in 3 hours 38minutes. I really havent kept track of the time in the past so its something I can gauge myself on in the coming years as I get old and fat. Over all it was a great ride on one of my favorite routes.

Tomorrow, its back to the grind no more evening naps while watching Dirty Jobs(the best show on television)

170lbs + 5k + 900ft =15:26

Magna Mass Transit

The hillclimb went well last night. Stevo and I rolled up after work. It is crazy how much cooler it is up there at Deer Valley. It felt really nice up there even though it was probably close to 90. I felt good warming up and thought I was going to have a great run up the hill. I came in at 15:26 on my clock. Stevo, who is a good 20 years my elder put in a great climb and beat my fat butt by a good 4 seconds. Good work Stevo, next time I am going up alone!! I took 30 seconds off my time 2 weeks ago and I plan on doing it 30 seconds faster 2 weeks from now and breaking the 15 minute mark. I made the mistake of wearing the skinsuit for some unknown reason. It was hot and uncomfortable squeezing my phat ass into that thing.

I am doing a mountain ride this afternoon after work. I miss them fat tires and plan on getting a good 2-3 hours in tonight up Millcreek. I am counting on the 70's up there..

I think I am in hell

Last night was soo hot! I managed to hold on for the 39 minutes to win the sprint for 1st in the B's. I think I finally officially have my legs back. They have been on leave for a couple months and finally decidsed to come back last week sometime in Reno. Hmmm maybe I should go back to Reno more often.....HELLLLL NO! I think Shrek doesnt like the heat too well and only lets us race for 39 minutes. I was just about to make my big solo break.

Big wedding tonight. Congrats to Tyler and Jesse for tying the knot. I am the official camera guy because I am the most anti-social fella that nobody cares about talking to. Lucky me!

Tomorrow Stevo and myself are going to make the big trip up to PC to race the uphill TT. It should be a lot of fun. Maybe I can talk him into riding the fat tire bike afterword while we are up there...............

Piss - E

Today I am in a pissy mood. I hate my job, I hate my car, I hate it all! So what a better way to manage this anger than RMR in 100 + degree heat? I cant think of a better way then spending some time on the blacktop with my heart at 180 bpm, sweating like a phat girl, drinking hot water from a bottle and dodging the idiots trying to get up close and personal with that blacktop. Cant wait!

I wish I could have stayed with Sly on the climb Saturday. I could have shown him the way and he would have got the T-shirt and Budweiser hat for the Top 50 miler. Sorry Sly I let you down...

Well I'm off, look for the race report late

P Team Dominates!

Another mediocre finish for 5th at the Draper Crit

Big thanks to Chrispy for pulling off the come from behind ride on the last stage of the team relay to take the win for Team Porcupine/Specialized in the E100 relay. He came from 18 minutes down and beat the guy by over 7 minutes at the finish, unbelievable! So we got our T-shirt and first place medal along with a great Budweiser hat for the win. Wow Boris must like taking home all that money! $275 per team and $100 per 50 mile racer adds up to a lot of cash with almost zero going out in prizes. I was a bit dissapointed with the awards. I placed fifth at a crit that costs $20 and recieved $30 in cold hard cash.

The Draper crit was great fun. I am happy to hang on for the finish after killing myself that morning in the relay. I hope my legs are finally back to what they were in April because I got some racing left in me. Congrats to DH and the Team for pulling off yet another win in the 1/2's with DH lapping the group and winning the field sprint.

The legs are super sore today so I took the day off. I think I will take tomorrow off also and hit the RMR on Tuesday and the Hillclimb on Thursday night. I have some points to make up after missing some racing while in the armpit called Reno.

The Armpit

I was in Reno all damn week for the big S 2007 product launch. I must say that city is by far the biggest whole in the earth I have ever had the unpleasure of being in for a week. 6 days in the Silver Legacy Casino breathing smoke and not seeing the sun. I felt as if time had slowed to a crawl. Luckly I got out on the bike a couple times and caught a ride up to Tahoe and rode the fat tires up there. Nothing special after you have ridden Park City your whole life but it was nice to let the lungs rest for a bit. The bikes and product look good so it should be another big year for the S. I got an early start this morning hitting the road for PC and the E100 relay at 4:30 am. I got the 6am slot on the team which was the best stage but waking up that early has got me draggin right now. I pulled off a great ride coming in 10 minutes over the next best team and 5th overall with the E50 guys. I hope the boys can hold on to that lead! Sly was killin it early. I stayed with him for a while but faded late in the climb. I hope he takes the big W on that 20 lb full suspension bike. I am all signed up for the Draper crit this evening so I betta get some shut eye so I can actually keep the bike upright. It should be hot as hell and hard as ever. Last year was also a hot one and not very fun. I am soooooo happy to be back home and really missed the family. The girls greated me at the airport with a "missed you Daddy" sign........It was the best thing I had seen for a while. I am off to bed once I get them rascals asleep for their nap.

Puerto Rico?

Where's Rico?????

The sun is good, have you seen it lately? Not me.

Moooo

Where's Rico? This picture may or may not help.....

I wonder how the Blue Train did last night at the RMR?

How many people are going to ask me if Micheal Rasmussen is my cousin or brother? I keep telling them yes were are in fact brotha's from another motha.

How much longer can I get by with 4 hours of sleep?

When will me eyes stop burning from all the smoke?

Will my legs like racing the E100 Saturday morning at 6am?

I wonder if anyone really reads this silly blog?

cold chillin in ......

To all my pals at the S compound I am working on getting the perfect picture of your favorite co-worker and send it over. He is still grumpy as all hell in this crap hole and ordering people around, gotta love that. Stay tuned.....

Stage 1- 6 days 8 Hours 2 minutes

I rode Stage One of the E100 this morning. I didnt get up there as early as I had hoped so I got to ride in the hot summer sun. I cannot imagine doing the full 100 miles. I was worked after my 20 miles of Mid-mountain singletrack. It starts with a full on dirt road climb in full exposure. At this point I was thinking "Man I could just race a hardtail"I soon found out a hardtail was out of the question. The Mid Mountain trail is rough! I am definetely racing my dually. I have heard this is the easiest Stage, I will take it. If the rest are harder good riddence. Our team is gonna crack the 10 hour mark, which I dont think has been done before. Please tell me if I am wrong?

Damn its hot! The old Cavalier is tough as nails. I took her up Parleys twice this week and it didnt blow up either time. She is a trusty old thing, I guess I should keep her around a little longer. I like Vanilla coke, Ice, and Grandmothers Oatmeal Raisin Cookies. Ohh and Central AC.

I will be bloging from a new frontier tomorrow..stay tuned

Royal Street

I took the day off today and spent some time with the rascals. I love them little humans. If you dont have kids you should find a sweet honey and get busy, they are just amazing. They give this life thing some purpose. I decided to just do the Royal Street Hillclimb in Deer Valley tonight rather than doing that and a night ride. I needed to be home with the kids. I felt good climbing this hill. This being my first time up, I took a wrong turn at the top and surely lost some time. So I did it again and got a much better time. I had a lot of fun suffering up that hill and think I can get my time under 15 minutes next time around which isnt too bad for a 170 lb sprinter. I think I ended up 2nd which should help me out with the points in the UCA series. I hope the White Dove doesnt get eaten by the Millcreek boogeyman tonight!

I wanna be like Mike

DMV went alright last night, at least I wasnt watching the race like last weeks DMV meltdown. I actually hung in there and stayed in the front for most of the race after working my way from the back at the start. I finished like 4th or 5th I think but I think I was more like 3rd but others didnt see it my way, owell I was closing the gap on the hill sprint so that felt good. I should be ready to take back the points race in the B's I hope then move to the A's in late August or September if all goes well. In the A's the Porcupine Crew was slayin it. 1-2 and 3 spots for the team. I wish I had engines like those guys MadMF and AJ were off the front and DH destroyed the group on the last lap to solo in for 3. These guys are good. I was glad to see BadMF get the win. Hillclimb and night ride tomorrow? It could be true if I play my cards right. Good heavens its past my bedtime. I have become a slave to the work email. Check out the new links ->>>>>>>>>

Motorheads

I cruise out to the RMR last night to find that our course was taken over by a bunch of motorheads burning up expensive gas and rubber just because. It would be nice to know that they have taken our Tuesday slot before we all go out there, owell. We got in a good ride out to Saltair with about 30 guys. AJ and DH just destroyed it going out. I finally let them go at Saltair and hung with the slower group then we caught back up at the Int Center. It was kinda fun doing a group ride with all these guys I usually race with. The ride was a little harder than the race would have been. I had high hopes of doing well tonight in the DMV but that is unsure now. I have to redeem myself for last weeks DMV meltdown.

THURSDAY NIGHT RIDE

Charge those lights it the 5th annual Millcreek Mixer. I think we will leave Little Water at about 8 pm for a good 2-3 hour ride. I know its an odd day but I dont think we will run into any trouble in the dark other than the creatures of the night!

Destinctive Competencies

Yesterday was supposed to be my day off the bike but I rode to work super easy and really easy coming home in the heat. While I was at work my wonderful wife decided to clean out my car. I am not sure how she got it done in one day with all the crap its been hauling around but it looks great and that funny smell has gone away. I has been my tool box/team car for the last few months while we were building our house and of course my personal garbage can. I think she just really wants me to keep driving the piece of crap until it goes to car heaven but I am fighting for a new ride. I deserve a new Kia or BMW......right?

So I enjoyed watching some of the home run derby while relaxing in the lazy boy until the rascals got up from their nap. At this point the real fun begins with chasing these two around the house. Of course there are plenty of spare squirt guns lying around the house to shoot dad with while he is not paying attention.

Looks like the RMR for me tonight. I got some peeps trying to take over my top spot in the points so I gotta lay down the road rage or something that resembles that if possible. Stay tuned explorers......

Sir Cramps-a-lot

Yup that's me sir cramps a lot, 80 miles, I felt awesome, and was looking for the win as the group slowly got destroyed from about 20 down to 7 for the finish. I did a lot of work late in the race and felt like I could win until I stood up to sprint for the finish. My legs cramped again. So that is twice in my life and two in a row on a long hot road race in the last 2 weeks. I was so careful about drinking lots of fluids. Water, gatorade and EFS but still cramping at the finish. I was able to hang on to finish 4th but I know I could have been one or two which makes me want to kick somethin. I guess I need to eat 40 bananas before the race, at least that is what everyone tells me. I am looking for suggestion

So I guess the E100 is next so I will need to start riding long hours on the mountain bike, geez thats just too bad. I will really miss that road bike..... or not

goonen

Ready for lift off Dad!

The DMV didn’t go as planned last night. I learned a couple good lessons that I have been told over and over again by much wiser men.

Stay in the front of the group
Trying to bridge solo is hard

#2 should never happen if #1 is always remembered. I tried to bridge solo after sitting in with the slow group way too long. I got within a hundred yards and could not close the gap. At this point my motivation was destroyed as where my legs so I stopped. I haven’t felt like the old Rico for a good while now. Let’s see… T-Point was the highlight of the season so far. It has all gone downhill from there. I hope I can get some legs back for this weekend at the Chalk Creek Road Race.

In other news Team Porcupine is finally filled up and ready to destroy all others at the E100 relay. We got AJ, The throttle, Chrispy, S-War and Myself all on board to tear up the 39 and under field Saturday July 22nd. Single-speed or Stumpy 120? The Stumpy should be about done with its diet by then and ready to roll. I will have to do a couple practice laps to see which is faster.

Today I took a nice easy spin on the crossbike to give the legs a break. Night ride anyone? Get those lights dusted off and batteries charged so you can scare the crap out of yourself hearing things in the deep woods. That lycra suit wont protect you from the boogyman now will it?

Ahhh kids. 2 popsicles, half in there mouth, half on there legs and hands, 2 phone calls to who knows, and 1 big computer shutoff, all in the 10 minutes while writing this.........

Does anyone else think Boonen has a funny looking sprint?

fire beer

I get 2 glorious days off from work. Hitting the trails and drinking soda pop all day long. Sitting in the hot street waiting for the last parade entry to finally come down the street so I can stop sweating and burning my huge forehead to go home and relax in my Lazy boy. Ahh the good times of summer are upon us. The 4th of July is probably the worst of all the holidays in my opinion. I have observed some funny things about this holiday. Out here on the west side where nobody has much extra cash lying around you will find the best and most fireworks in the valley. Every white trash family has taken there last months paycheck up to Evanston in the Chevy Nova to spend it all on beer and fireworks. What better combinations of products are there in any other holiday? We don’t need the Stadium of Fire, we got it at the nearest trailer park. The entertainment is much better and free. After about a dozen beers (Natural Light or as they call it out here Natties) the fireworks and drunken human show begins…The night usually ends with a fight where someone’s wife-beater gets ripped and the cops got to come break it up. I did get a good dirt ride in Monday morning up in PC. These trails are by far the best in the world! I think I say 2 other mountain bikes while I was there. I rode up to Shadow Lake and decided to head back down. I am pretty worked over from the race this weekend so I decided to take today off. My Stumpy is getting pretty dialed in. I got a Fox Talas for the front and lightened up the wheels a bit. I should have a Stans kit soon and some Magura brakes to lighten it even a bit more. Look out E100 relay teams a Porcupine team is in the works! Well off to watch the Tour and then a family shindig at Grandmas….Maybe one of my uncles will have a few too many………….

Damn tweekers

Finished up Gate City with a 4th in the Crit and moved into 6th overall on GC. I won a time prime while trying to break away but got caught after a few good laps. DH got the big W in the crit today with AJ in a 3 man break doing all the work for at least 50 minutes. At one point it looked like they would lap the field but Louder and Burke finaly brought them back.

Last night Little E was coughing a lot keeping her awake so I did a midnight run to the local Pocatello Wal-Mart to get some medicine. I finally find the infant medicine but they only have the little cardboard thing that you have to take to the counter and get the reel stuff because crackheads mix the stuff with embalming fluid and raw sewage to get high on. Of course its midnight and the pharmacy is closed! Come on you losers your ruining it for us parents that need medicine for our little children late at night. I was a little pissed off and was looking for some white trash high on meth to kick in the balls. I am sure there are plenty in the Pokey.

Looks like some high alpine singletrack for me tomorrow in PC. I hope to see some characters from work up there. I turned 28 today so I am gonna go eat my cake. Thanks Mom!

crampin

I felt good on the bike today, 70 miles and it comes down to the sprint which is about the only thing I can do well on a bike. I am sitting 4 men back just waiting to attack or chase down an attack into the finish. Perfect position, perfect timing I stand up to blow these suckers out the back door and my legs cramp.................................. I could'nt believe it. I have never had cramps before.........NEVER! So my legs totaly shut down with 200 meters to the finish when I thought I had the race won, what a piece of crap. I couldnt even sit in with the pack, my legs would not pedal the bike. I had to just sit on the bike and watch the race go by and lose 15 seconds. GRRRRRRRRRRR.

I plan to take that time back tonight in the TT and go for it all in the crit Sunday. I coulda shoulda been in the top spot after today but I guess shit happens to all of us. I am thinking I didnt drink enough water, but again this has never happened.

TT in 3 hours, I think I need a nap, but these 2 rascals like to make noise and break things.

grindin

Coming to you live from the Ameritel Inn in fabulaous Pocatello Idaho! Finished 12 seconds down on the leader of our group in the prologue last night. I put in a time of 2min 43 seconds for the 1 mile uphill TT.

Sunny skies with no chance of shade today for the RR and TT. Look for big water bottles and burnt faces as the Gate City Grind rolls near you!

Ahh and the kids are having a blast playing with the DH and AJ crew.

Stay tuned for more action packed Gate City News........out

Sign Me Up !

Shooooot! I think I may get a call from the Tour de France to come fill in some cycling shoes today. I will keep the cell phone on high vibrate so I can get the call. Looks like they kicked out all the druggies who are dumb enough to get caught so I looks like an all American podium now. Maybe Dave Z can take over as team leader for CSC since the "alien" Basso is out. And I thought these guys just had the right genes. Silly me.

I got about 4 hours of sleep last night because I cant breath out of my nose so I should be ready for the prologue this afternoon in Pocafello. I hope they dont drug test for the Gate City Grind. I may be traced back to Dr.F-burn and his magik Vitamin B shots!!

Look for race reports this weekend if you care......................

On another note Lunch rider and clown extrodinaire Slappy Simpson was cited for speeding on his scooter on his way to House of Chuckles to pick up a couple new noses (one that honks and one that blinks). West Valley Police radared Slappy doing 37 in a 25 school zone during the lunch hour yesterday. You can find Slappy this weekend at 5 different parades around the valley. Make sure to throw beer at him, he likes that!

Release the Fred's

Can you see the GM in this picture. Look closely

Hit the MC last night for the final time without the gate open. I was a great time on the Green Machine. My legs felt like poop so I didnt do to much trail riding but its still nice to get up there in the shade and cool air.

I am relaxing today to give the legs a chance to catch up for the big race this weekend in Pocafello. It looks like we have some good Cat 3's heading up to duke it out. I am borrowing some sweet Corima rear disc and front trispoke wheels from F-Burn so I can dominate for that 20th spot on GC.

Things that must go:

Earwigs, Excel Spreadsheets, Rust, $7 Burritos

RMR and West Side Singletrack

West side single track!
Here is the climb
Oh Yeah thats the BBQ

The RMR went aight last night. It was soooooooooooooo damn hot. I ended up staying on the bike the entire race which was an accomplishment last night it seemed. Everyone gets all frantic on the last 3 laps and starts making stupid decisions that puts them into the 120 deg asphalt. I felt pretty good last night and would have done better if I had better position coming into the final sprint. I got squeezed off on the right and didnt want to pass left over the white line so I backed off and hit the gas late, ending up 5th but I had the sprint to win. I have my sprint back! Finally.

When I got home after dinner I decided something had to be done with the yard. The weeds are outta hand and there is no singletrack going around the whole thing. Its always been dream of mine to have my own singletrack and last night I started building that dream. Mya helped me out with her scooper(shovel) and we made a sweet little loop around the doublewide. I was riding late into the evening with the help of lights with a huge grin on my face. I cant wait to get some more work done tonight.

I will be taking the Green Machine on her maiden voyage tonight, up Millcreek of course. Get your shit on lets roll!

Pinky

I am lucky enough to have some friends in low places that were able to get a picture of the Pink Dude Santa Cruz style. The SLC Pink Dude aint got nothing on this guy! He walks up and down Pacific Avenue super, super slow all day long twirling his little umbrella.

RMR is tonight. Its gonna suck! I think I would rather be in the mountains on the new Green Machine that I built up last night………………

SS in MC

Look ma, no shifters!
Swimming Pool Magna style!
SS in MC
Not a bad weekend. Friday we had a BBQ at the Rasmussen doublewide. We had a good amount of friends show up for the Kabobs and diet Coke on the Barby. Saturday was a lazy day cleaning up and searching for a damn 12m x 1.25 bolt thread tap so I can install a hitch on the Odyssey. If you got one help a brutha out!

We headed to Crispy’s house Saturday night for a Belgian BBQ fest with most of the team. Crispy has a sweet setup, a great house, with a great view, in one of the best spots on earth, Park City. We ended the night with an outdoor viewing of Finding Nemo for the kids. Of course our kids can’t sit still for more than 10 minutes so we headed home early.

Sunday I got up early and wiped off the old single speed for its maiden 2006 voyage. Of course I headed up Millcreek because the clock is ticking. I am worked over after dragging that thing to the overlook. I think the road was harder because I HAD to pass all the roadies I could on the way up. I don’t think they like it when I blow past them with the sweet buzz of the 2.2 tires. I had a couple try to chase me but I laid it down on the steep sections. The trails are in great shape and have had a lot of work done on them the last week. Get out and ride them before the Fred’s are loose!

Saltair Geek Trial

I rode out to the Saltair TT last night in my full on aero TT geek supersuit. TT helmet, skinsuit and all. I was just waiting for some Tooele hillbilly to run me off the highway for looking so stupid. Anyway I had a good time last night, beating my personal best by 15 seconds on a night that others were saying was kinda slow. So I feel good about that. 15 minutes of pure pain. I clocked myself at 14:56 but the "official time" was 15:02 so I guess I still havent cracked the 15 minute mark.

Big BBQ tonight at the Rasmussen doublewide mansion, deep in the heart of the Salt Lake Valley. I have been trying to get things just right for our guest and my wife. Its been a dreadfull week of decorating, painting, and cleaning but the old beast is starting to shine. It should be a good time with a lot of old friends I havent seen in a while. Come joins us, just follow the trail of donuts and cookies through the mean streets of Magna. Bring your own gat and tommy gun!

Dirt

Where are all the dogs?
Millcreek Canyon "wild"life

I got two good days of riding up Millcreek Canyon. Tuesday I rolled up the road then hit Dog Lake on the Stumpy, Yesterday I rolled up the road and took the Great Western to the PC overlook on the Epic. 2:30 hour rides each day give or take a few. I ran into a friend of mine on the trail last night who had ridden from PC over the crest trail and said it was good to go with only a couple snow patches. I think that sounds like a great ride for this Saturday. The trails are in great shape, the temperature is perfect, and of course the gate is closed so all the Fred's can barely get to the trailhead let alone ride up them. I think I ran into 3 people on the trails over 2 days. You will not get that in July.

Thinkin about doing the TT tonight to see how my fitness stands.

I just had to

Maybe this will get my readership up a little.... That is my coworker on the left now that I think about it. I think she is in a different department?????

Yesterdays ride report and photos coming soon.............

Draggin

It is basically a Monday for me today. Coming in to work after 5 days of sleeping in and staying up late like a rock star have got me sippin the sweet Red Bull nectar. I love the stuff.

I got two rides I am thinking about today. Lunch ride- 12pm, Sprint Day, this should wake up the legs in a hurry. Millcreek Canyon- 4pm, dirt, 07 test bike, How far can I get up the trail? Anyone interested in joining me....get your shit on lets roll!

SG Pics

The strike is over!

I ended the cycling strike with 4 hours on one of my favorite trails on earth, Stucki Springs. If you have never done it, its worth the price of gas to get down to SG to ride it. I started from town and rode the great network of paved trails that SG has to Bloomington then rode a few miles to the trailhead. I met Rich at his in-laws at 7:30am and we were off. It was great to be back on the bike for a long ride. I think I may have lost a lot of the weight I had gained over the week in the 100 degree sun. I felt really flat and slow but that was expected. It was overall a great weekend in the sun. I got a sunburn of course, and the wife and kids enjoyed playing in the pool and shopping. We came home late late last night and slept in this morning in our own beds. SG has changed since I roamed the streets in the late 90's. Gone are the days of a ghost town feel during the summer months. But at least the trails are still empty. I now have a week of detox from all the Coke,Mtn Dew, Ice Cream, and Fast food that I found myself enjoying all weekend. Back to business on the bike. It looks like I am 3rd in the points in the Cat 3's and still holding on to the top spot in the B's for the crit series. 2 more weeks of no racing and I will be ready for more.

Day 4

Day 4 was spent sitting in the sun by the pool in St.George chasing the kids around. No bicycle yet. Its still loaded in the van. We are about to head out for some pizza. Staying on course to gain 20 lbs by Monday!!

tres dias

Splinterwood invisioning the Win!
My hot single girfriend. She hasnt been ridden in a while
The Future of Team Rico. 2025 Pro Womens World Champ


Day 3 for the cycling strike or should I call it the physical activity strike. I should have turned this week into a film documentary. I could have made millions!

I headed downtown to meet AJ at Rumbi Grill for lunch. I stopped at the Wild Oats to use the restroom (which was out of paper towels) and just noticed what a weird place it is. On some of the meat packaging it reads “antibiotic free animals”. Now I don’t know about you but I would hate to see the pig that didn’t get his booster shots before they killed him off. Lets just say, I didn’t buy any franks for the barbeque this weekend.

The brand new camera I bought a week ago decided it was ready to make its way to camera heaven. I guess I will have to bring back some old photos to keep things interesting for a while. I should have its replacement within a week.

I am heading south this weekend for some well deserved R&R. I am bringing the fat tire bike and will get in a couple rides later in the week. The cycling strike is near its end, but the "bike racing strike" will start right behind it. Millcreek canyon will be my afternoon hangout from June 20th to June 30th. Come on out and ride with me.

Life is really boring without bikes!

Day 2

Day 2 of the cycling strike and all is well. I can feel the legs recovering as I tear through those 2 dozen Krispy Kremes! A good day for my wallet as I said goodbye to my only car payment. I finally sold the Pilot after a good three months of not trying very hard. I wish the new owners the best of luck. I am now a devoted Honda Odyssey minivan man for life. Its my living room on wheels. I cant wait to drive it to a race and sleep in it. I just gotta get the hitch installed so I can haul all my Specialized toys. Can you hear that? Millcreek canyon has been calling my name since the ride on Sunday. I have a good two weeks after the cycling strike to ride it before the gate opens and all the fatties drive to the trailhead. Hmm maybe I can live up there in the van until July 1.............

Day One

I am off the bike for a while so I thought I better watch what I eat this week so I dont gain 20lbs. So what better than Crown Burger for lunch to start it off right? I wont be eating dinner tonight but damn it tasted good! That of course is a diet Coke..........

pictures

Here are a couple good pics form the weekend

DUMB in DT

What a stupid race it was today downtown. I get sick of the fat boys sitting on the whole time until 3 laps to go they all the sudden they want to work. Sly was tearing it up from the gun, I should have gone with him. Owell, I tried attacking a couple times but everyone would just sit on me.......BORING as hell. So on this course if your not 1-5 going into the second to last straight your done. I got shoved down into the inside the last couple turns and had to gas it to keep up. Stupid race! Its too bad I felt good today. But I did get in a good ride with the family after. We headed up to Millcreek with the rest of the Valley. Of course after about mile 3 there was nobody up there. I rode to the first trail marker on Upper Big Water. I am sure you could get to the lake if you wanted the trails are in great shape other than a few downed trees. I had the cross bike with the kids on the back and my lowest gear was a 39x25. Needless to say I was happy my wife got tired and I dropped the trailer and headed up solo. I felt great for just finishing a stupid 50 minute crit with a bunch of fat errr fast guys! I got a bunch of good picture that I will have to look through and post throughout the week. Now I am off the bike for at least 5 days maybe longer if I can stand it and 2-3 weeks without racing. Team Rico has left the building......................

racing bicycles

Did the sugarhouse crit yesterday. It was nice to see Sly out there attacking the group. Of course the group stayed together the whole time because we have 30 guys that all want to win. I came into the last lap sitting 4th which was good but I was sitting on the wrong wheels and went too late when the winners started there sprint on the downhill. I ended up 4th which is aight but I like winning. Another shot today downtown for the State Title. It should be very fast so I hope the legs have recovered. I think I am going to take the family up Millcreek after the race to see how high I can get on the trail. I should have some great pics tomorrow. I left the USB cord at the compound. I am looking forward to my week off the bike!

Who is ready for some CX?

Do you ever want to feel like a kid again? Then go ride in the rain and the mud for an hour or so. I took the cross bike out during lunch today and hit every possible puddle or mud hole I could find. This picture doesn’t do justice to how dirty I was. I got the P-man a little muddy in the process. I would sprint in front of the group and roll through a 3 inch deep puddle of nasty junkyard water. It was great! I tried getting the Snake but he is just to fast. I haven’t had that much fun on a bike for a while. We did the gates route out by the airport. I think we all miss doing that ride. We stopped riding it once the “MAN” decided Bin Laden was going to use the bike path to take out a SkyWest puddle jumper, so they put up security gates. BOOOO!

The legs felt good today. I hope that means good things for me tomorrow at Sugarhouse. The family and I are heading out to the Spaghetti Factory tonight with some friends to get that carb reserve built up. If your bored tomorrow or Sunday come out to the park and watch some good old fashion crit racing. I recommend Saturday at Sugar because there wont be as many beer cans and cheap wine bottles on the grass. Masters at 1pm, 3’s at 1:50 and the Pro’s at 3pm. Race report tomorrow, stay tuned……….

get your fix

I got my Jamba Juice fix today finally. I saved a little for tomorrow too. I can handle these recovery days. I am a lazy sucker at heart, no not really I am going nuts. I had my first pink dude sighting so I had to take a picture. I got a good one from the car. Who is this guy? Anyone tough enough to wear a pink shirt, let alone the whole outfit including your hair has got to be one bad dude. He probably thinks the same about roadies in skinsuits. Do you think he is on some estrogen hormones to get those man boobs? Now where is my bro-ssiere......

lunch ridin

I took the new camera on the lunch ride today and got a couple shots of the boys. It was a small group today. The group usually thins out when the mercury rises above 90 degrees, but I think 90 degrees is just about right. I sat on wheels the whole ride trying to get in a good recovery spin and I think I did just that. We took the South route to push into the 30 mph winds early. The Snake and Con-Air were beating each other up the whole time. I like having this camera at my disposal.

I have this craving for a Jamba Juice eating at me and there aren’t any within 10 miles of where I hang my hat. I think it’s the free coupons I got from the TGP Stage Race. I hope to cure that craving tonight with 16 oz of Caribbean Passion, fruit smoothie heaven, with the free protein booster of course.
I have been thinking……once I am done doing this bike racing/riding as a hobby I am going to switch to collecting butterflies. I think I have some hidden talent catchin those slippery rascals. And it’s much better than collecting bugs or spiders because butterflies don’t scare me one bit

You seen it?

Has anyone out there seen my pop, my jump, my snap? No I am not talking about the latest drug being cooked up in a trailer near you. I am talking about my sprint. Last night at the RMR was actually very fast the whole time. A couple times we had a few get up the road but we were always able to pull it back. I though I felt good with some power in my legs but it was the slow torque type of power because coming into the final turn I was 10 guys back. On a normal day I can get up and blow past these punks but I struggling to the line for 6th. I hope something clicks in the legs before Saturday/Sunday or I am gonna be grumpy for a few weeks. Any recovery suggestions or message locations please comment.

I got the picture making device last night and I am super excited. The thing is the size of a deck of cards. It will fit nicely in my jersey pocket for some great photo jounalism. I have a 1GB picture card coming, so I can take like 9000 pictures before its full. Here is a picture of my little devils on 6-6-6. I need to work on the red eye filter I guess.

6-6-6

Were are all gonna die today. Victim's of the beast. Anyone check Emo's grave up at the Salt Lake cemetery lately. I am thinking he may have risen today.

Today is the RMR and more importantly the alley cat race downtown. I thought Sly was going to make a return to the crit. I have only heard of his "from the gun" solo victories. I was hoping to witness one first hand, but he is gonna wipe up the field at the alley cat. To bad Stebs is still illin from his face plant down Big Cottonwood or he might be interested in the alley cat. It sounds like a lot of fun but I would just get lost and end up crashing into someone.

I took the wife and kids for a ride last night. We had a lot of fun and my wife really enjoyed just riding the mean streets of Magna for 30 minutes. I think this may become a daily ritual. The digital picture making device should arrive at the doublewide today. I cant wait to get some eye candy for my 3 readers.

munday

Back to the compound on a Monday and it sucks. After a bad weekend of riding and home improvements, I would rather be riding some nice cool singletrack in PC. Hmmmmm I think Chickenskin and The Snake had the same idea. That’s weird I haven’t seen them since this morning. I wonder what trail errrr meeting they are enjoying? “Product testing”, somebody has to do it.

I am going to hit the RMR tomorrow night and it looks like the tar is going to be melting on the drag strip. It is supposed to be near 100 degrees tomorrow. Rumor has it Sly is going to make everyone hurt out there. Did anyone see Spring? I haven’t seen it in a few years. There should be some great racing this weekend at Sugarhouse Park Saturday and Face Down Park (Pioneer) on Sunday. I hope I am good and recovered by then. I need to make up for last weekend with 2 wins!

So I'm 2 for 3

Well the State Road race turned out to be a disaster. On the first lap we had 10 guys slowly get away from the group. We all didnt think anything of it because most of the big hitters where in the back chillin. Well the group kept getting further and further away. A couple of the teams that had guys up the road were blocking so something had to be done. So a few of us start to pick up the pace to catch these guys but werent making any progress. I was content with sittin on the chase until this point so I moved to the front and laid it down. After a couple good pulls from Mike S and myself the group was within reach which is exactly when the next hill started and I could not recover. I watched the group slowly fade away into the sunset. I tried like hell to get back on but I had nothing and I mean nothing. I spent the rest of the morning crying under a big shade tree in the park. My first ever DNF................ GA took a solid 2nd, DH 2nd and AJ 5th. I am going to rest today or take the family for a little ride, get the mtn bike ready to roll and paint some doors on the house. Painting sucks! One more solid week of racing and I am taking a siesta for 5 days. No racing for 2 maybe 3 weeks and a good 5 days totally off the bike. I am ready for a break....

Here come the boys in Blue

We got a good group heading to the State Road Race tomorrow and unless your me you got someone else in your group to race with. Thats OK, that makes thing a little easier for Team Rico. We are busing up to Newton in the Team Odyssey around 6am. Good greif 6 am. I wonder if the cows will be awake at that hour?

So on my commute in this morning I witnessed something that happens often when I ride in. Every so often I pass someone else on a bike and maybe its just me but every mid life crisis that I pass wants to race me in the morning. I am just looking for a relaxing ride into work with the nice cool air and I get in a drag race with Carl on his Rollfast.

I found another good training tip. Ride a 30 lb womens comfort bike with 25 psi in the tires on the lunch ride. I sprinted after Epbalm today and thought I wasnt going to make it back to the compound without a nap.

For my 3 loyal blog readers check in tomorrow for a full race report. Oh and pictures coming soon I just ordered this bad boy under the Fathers Day Gift clause......... http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital/lineup/f470/index.html

Dad training

The word around the water cooler is that the new young guy Steb took on the White Dove today on the hill. The White Dove was talking so much smack before the climb that he forgot he was 10 years his elder and the hill was about to remind him of that. The smack talking stopped once Steb blasted past him and everyone else on his retro 12 speed that probably weighs in at 25lbs. The White Doves Tarmac SL, that weighs in at probably 15 lbs, was just dreaming of riding up that hill with that old steel rig. On a heavier note I think I found how I am going to smoke them skinny boys up the hill next race. I loaded up the girls in the trailer but instead of walking behind it I hooked it up to the cross bike. I rode 10 minutes and was sweating like a fat girl. I think some hill repeats up to Suncrest with the little rascals in tow would do some serious wonders to my lack of climbing skills. Anyone else dreaming of cool late afternoons, after work, in Park City, my Stumpy or Spot and singletrack? I know my pops is thinking of getting up to Dog Lake. He rode up the road last week and got within a mile of the Little Water trailhead before the snow stopped him. I think it may be clear by now. If I could just get rid of the road racing monkey I would be there................ I am working on getting a new digital picture maker device so I can post some more picks. My current picture maker is the size of brick with a whole 2 megapixels.

DMV

I got my first win at the DMV last night. It took me a couple years but it finally happened on a night I didnt think I had it in me. With about 15 minutes on the clock I got the urge to break away from the group so I hit it hard up the hill and harder on the top and gapped the group solo, I did it again on the next lap and got a bigger gap but I knew I was in trouble and would'nt be able to keep it up so I chilled out for a bit and got back in with the group. At this point I felt like I was done, but I kept hangin on to the back of the group. We had some other breaks that went and I just watched, I was hurtin. We finally get a crit that we actually get the full 45 minutes last night. I kept waiting for the 3 laps to go and it seems like forever until I heard those sweet words. Luckly I am starting to find a rythm and feeling a little better so I make my way to the front. With 2 to go a Barbacoa guy takes off and gets a good gap but I just sit in and wait. I got one bullet and I know where I need to use it.....the sprint. I caught the Barbacoa guy on the hill before the finish and took the W.

DH won the A's so it was a sweep for the boys in blue. When I got there at 6:30 DH had already destroyed the A's into 4 groups with one guy sitting on his wheel. Good work!

I am going to take another rest today. State Road race this weekend.