The Cup

Usually when I'm writing about the Cup its Lord Stanley's...but this time its Don Edberg's!

After Ore To Shore & Trek World I didn't really feel like making the drive over to Mt. Morris for a pre-ride.  I needed to stay home and get as much rest as possible.  So I went with the...its just like any other WORS race approach.  No pre-ride, show up the day of the race, and then let 'er rip.

It seemed to work pretty good.  When I arrived and went to pick up my number "21" I was hopeful that was my call up spot.  I thought a top 10 was easily doable with a good ride.  Unfortunately I got called up a little further back than that....it was just enough back that I was on the brakes hard multiple times in the lead out and then again heading into the first singletrack.  4 minutes into the race I was already 45+ seconds behind the leaders.  Luckily my legs & lungs showed up for the challenge.  After lap 1 I was 18th.  After Lap 2 I was 11th battling with 10, 11, and 12.

I was climbing good, the Top Fuel was eating up the descents and the rocks...I felt like I was going so much faster than anyone on a hardtail on the flat pedaling rocky portions of the race course.


The last lap I was battling for 10th, but didn't have quite enough in the tank.  I was able to climb up to Sam Schultz, but didn't have it to go by him.  Maybe I was saving something for Sunday!  Finished 11th and was pretty happy.

I drove home after some pizza at Christiano's in Wautoma and the mandotory ice cream from the Milty Wilty.  Slept in my own bed and then woke up Sunday morning and did it all over again.

This time I was a little more motivated knowing I was going to have a 2nd row start spot based on Saturdays XC finish.  I opted to ride the Elite 9.9 for the Short Track and I felt good on the warm up.  The big question with a right hand corner 100 feet after the start was line up on the right or the left.  When I saw the Star N Stripes of Todd Wells right in the middle I knew that was my wheel.  I just missed out too...missed out on the big crash that is...not sure exactly what happened but out of the corner of my eye I saw Finsty leaning on JHK who was leaning on the dude that I just managed to get my elbow in front of...I felt the dude land on my back wheel and when I looked up it was 6 guys and a huge gap.  I knew I had to get there and fast...I buried myself in the next 500meters to close the gap to Tristans wheel.

I made it though and then pretty much was secured a solid ride.  I was a little uncomfy on the hardtail with a few flat bumpy pedaling sections.  Not sure if I should have gone with the Fuel.  Half way through the race I found my self riding away from Tristan and another guy and solid in 6th position.  I was closing the gap to D. Zandstra who had won the day before.  I made contact with 2 to go and we were less than 5 seconds from 3rd and 4th, but I just couldn't find that extra .09%  Finished a solid 6th and was pretty happy to walk away from the weekend with 2 good results and two 1st place scores in the WORS overall.

Next up is Suamico this weekend...it feel likes its been 3 weeks since I have been out on a training ride with all the racing, recovering and traveling...excited to try to bring it up another notch in the next month before cross starts.

Rockin'

It's been non-stop and it looks like its going to be that way for a while!!!!  Most important thing though is that I'm having fun and feeling good.

Its been a while since I have updated my blog.  I was training really hard leading up to Ore To Shore and I even stepped over the line for a little bit and had to back it down because I though I was getting sick.  Luckily a few extra days of rest and I fought it off and had a good day at the first Triple Crown of the year.

Andrea and I stuck to tradition and drove up to Marquette w/ the Hyundai loaded down.  2 people - 4 bikes and lots of gear!  We arrived and did the standard pre-ride w/ Tristan and Mike Anderson, back for 10 miles and then flipped it for 10 miles and pre-viewed the finish.  We ate at the Pasta Shoppe and stayed at the MQT Motor Lodge.  Its all so familiar and we do it the same every year...it just makes it easier and it seems to work for good race results.

Andrea had the best race of her life finishing in 7th just 35 seconds away from a top 5!  She had been training super hard and I am really really happy her bike stayed together and there were no mishaps racing with the guys.

Getting ready to put the pressure on over the top of Misery Hill!

I finsihed 2nd.  What I really didn't want was a sprint finish like last year.  What I got was a sprint finish...but this time Cole won.  I spent most of the race trying to drop him.  I attacked multiple times, had the pressure on a lot, but nobody wanted to try to go with me...they just wanted to chase me down.  Tristan and I had a gap after the power line climbs, but it was a little to early.  It was enough to whittle the lead group down to 7 instead of the 15 - 25 we had the previous year so that was good, but again not enough.  Cole raced the smartest race and it paid off in the end.

Cole was going so fast he had to counter steer in the final turn!

After the race it was the standard post race pizza, the awards ceremony and another trip to the Pasta Shoppe!  We were so lucky to have perfect weather all weekend.  We finished the weekend off w/ an awesome trail ride at Mqt Mountain.  The new trails there are awesome!  Gotta check it out if you are every in Marquette.  After the trail ride it was another 3 hours on the bike!  This time it was skinny tires!  Not too skinny though...yep cross season is officially here.  I hosted two cross clinics for the KMK bike club.  It was pretty awesome.  Tons of interest in the UP for cross.  The first clinic was 6 or 7 girls.  Perfect numbers to get lots of 1 on 1 attention.  Then the next clinic was 7 or 8 guys.  We worked on barriers, shouldering the bike, cornering....and of course sand!

Momentum Endurance Cross 101

The fun didn't stop there though.  Sunday night we arrived home at 9pm and spent quite some time upacking and then bright and early Monday morning I was off to Trek World!  I picked up my friend Pete from Athens Bicycle at the Madison airport and then we rolled to Trek HQ for demo days.  I was crushed when I was told there will be no Top Fuel for 2013, but the good news is I did get out on the new Superfly and it truly is 'Superfly'.  After testing multiple bikes it was back to Madison to check out the big show.  Hang with old friends, meet Bo Jackson, and just be pumped to be associated with a great company like Trek.  I finally made it home by midnight.  I'm smashed!

Hanging w/ Joe D...old Belgium cross buddy now turned Super Climber

FOR SALE

Hey Everyone,

Cross season is just around the corner...look what I just found!  The trusty Blue Norcross SL in  a 56cm frame.  An oldie but a goody.  With all new cables and housing, and a new chain, this rig is race ready.  Complete with Shimano Dura Ace 7800 (46tooth DA cross specific big ring) & Easton Carbon Post and  Easton Carbon Bar you can't go wrong.  $1500 and its yours.  Wheels not included, but I do have some for sale...just ask tubulars and clinchers.  I have more pictures too if you want them...Just shoot me an e-mail brimatter@hotmail.com

back to back

Back to back big training weeks and back to back WORS races.

It feels good to take a little breather right now.  Everything seems to be coming together nicely and I'm on track as far as my plan for the season.

I raced the past 3 weekends in a row. Starting with Miners Revenge.  After Miners it was a hard week of training that left me feeling pretty drained for another HOT HOT HOT one at Alterra.

thanks Maja for the cold water

I'm not sure why, but I had it in my head that the Elite 9.9 was the way to go for Alterra and I was wrong.  I was not comfortable on the bike at all and couldn't turn a corner to save my life.  When I got to the climbs I was hoping to be able to stand on the pedals and accelerate, but it was so bumpy I was forced to sit back down and watch the leaders ride away.  In the end I was pretty lucky that a few guys flatted and a few guys crashed and I was able to secure a 3rd place finish after a good final 2 laps.

After Alterra my motivation was a little low and the fatigue was high, but a new road bike always helps that!!!  Meet the new Domane!

complete w/ Ultegra DI2 & a sweet paint job!

I started good and had a pretty solid first 2 laps.  Unfortunately a little lapped traffic mishap opened a small gap between Tristan and I that I just couldn't close.  I'm still missing just a little top end fitness, but I have plenty of time to get there :)  Sunburst is one of those courses where the harder you try the slower you go....and the lapped traffic just made it more challenging for me to get into a good rhythm.  I started to feel the empty burn as Tristan put 15-20 seconds on me per lap.  I thought for sure the chasing duo of Corey and Tyler would catch me, but again you can only go so fast on that course.  I finished a solid 2nd.

I felt great during the week of training, but again it left me a little drained for Sunburst...another scorcher of a race.  This time is was just as hot, but less shade to hide in...totally exposed.  I was actually feeling better after my bigger week of training than the previous week and I was back on the Top Fuel.

thanks Paul for the cold water

I started good and had a pretty solid first 2 laps.  Unfortunately a little lapped traffic mishap opened a small gap between Tristan and I that I just couldn't close.  I'm still missing just a little top end fitness, but I have plenty of time to get there :)  Sunburst is one of those courses where the harder you try the slower you go....and the lapped traffic just made it more challenging for me to get into a good rhythm.  I started to feel the empty burn as Tristan put 20 seconds on me per lap during the last half of the race.  I thought for sure the chasing duo of Corey and Tyler would catch me, but again you can only go so fast on that course.  I finished a solid 2nd.

Now its time for some much deserved R&R before Ore To Shore.  Thanks for reading.

Vacation!

Finished up my first break of the year with an awesome vacation 'up north'.  It was Oscor's first trip to the cabin in Eagle River, July 4th, and our 7 year wedding anniversary!  We celebrated in style with a long weekend of having fun and doing one of the sweetest races around!

exiting the mine

The Miners Revenge....you can't get much more old school and original than this one.  Racing through the Adventure Mine for an extended period of time, in complete darkness, with condensation dripping,  short ceilings (4ft at one point in the cave), huge puddles, cool temps(48 degrees in the cave)......but thats not even the cool part in my book.  The start line drawn in the dirt, the awesome UP atmosphere, the demanding technical climbs, and some real descending!  Add a crazy summer T-Storm to the mix Friday night before the race to make the whole thing a mud bath and you've got one crazy event.

With the mud and the hard climbing I opted to race my brand new Elite 9.9 from Trek.  Yep thats right...the most technical race of the year and this full suspension lover went old school and raced a hardtail.  It was pretty fun too.  The bike was lightning fast on the climbs, the XTR was flawless in the mud w/ a little help from the Pro Gold Xtreme chain lube.  All in all a great way to break in a new bike...check it out

Watch more video of Brian Matter on cyclingdirt.org

I broke my own rule and raced with a GoPro...with a lap to go I crashed and had to stop to put the GoPro in my pocket....thats why I don't race with a GoPro....

It did make for some awesome footage though...especially through the mine...however the lens did fog up a bit along w/ my Oakleys, from the 30+ degree temperature change coming out of the mine!

Andrea was pumped to win a new t-shirt from the raffle!

Back home now and into the next phase of training - intervals...things started off real good with the first 20 minute test of the year!  Looking forward to more intervals on Lakeshore Dr. and some WORS racing after 6 weeks away.  Ore To Shore is now on the radar...I've got my plan all set to go....do you know what you are doing?  If not check this out from Momentum Endurance!

Racing then Restin

Coaching has been great and with race season in full swing I've been busy.  Trying to balance my training, coaching, sponsorship for cross season, and being a full time mechanic is fun, but its challenging and definitely takes up a lot of time!  Especially when the last week of training was big...real big.

My last week of training was pretty tough.  I was shooting for 22 or 23 hours of solid riding.  Add on top of that the core workouts, the yoga, and the heat...yep the heat.  On Tuesday and Wednesday w/ some big hours on the schedule it was scorching.  I was already a little fatigued from Jr. Mtb Camp and racing the Keewenaw Chain Drive.  The heat did me in...I got too dehydrated and my body shut down.  I had to take Thursday and Friday completely off the bike....kind of ruined my plans for finishing big...but as a coach I know things don't always go to plan and you have to adapt.  So I did...I waited till my body was recovered and feeling good and then got back down to business.  Sunday was a solid 3 hours and with a change in schedule a new opportunity presented itself.  TOAD was in my backyard.  An 80 mile road race!

Driving the break w/ John Murphy -
photo credit - Karl

So I pinned on the numbers and went out and had a blast racing with the best guys in the country.  I worked really hard the first half of the race to get in the break...and I made it.  Towards the end I was hurting, but so was everyone else.  I didn't like my chance in the sprint...so I went for the suicide attack with 3k's to go.  I got caught with about 1k to go and ended up last out of the guys in the break....but I went for it!!!

After the race I cruised around for another 20 miles or so to make it 100 on the day.  Then I went out and put the nail in the coffin on Tuesday with a solo 5 hour ride.  By the end I was smashed and ready for a break.







I enjoyed watching the TOAD crit in Sheboygan from the sidelines.  I built up my new secret weapon thanks to Bontrager and Shimano!

I started up with a new client coaching.  I read a book.  I cleaned some bikes.  Andrea, Oscor the In-Laws and I went for a birthday picnic down by the lake.  Just living it up and getting ready for the next phase of training...until then I'll be cold chillin'!

My recliner just got sweeter!!!

Jr. Camp & Chain Drive

It's been a while since the last update, but its been busy and time has been flying.  I'm almost done with base miles and that means the season is just around the corner!

First off - Jr. Mtb Camp.  Part of the Michigan Tech University youth camp programs and still the best week of the year.  It is awesome any time you go to the UP.  They have amazing trails, an awesome laid back mtb atmosphere, and add on top of that being able to give back a little to the kids and have fun with them ripping up the mountains....it can't get any better.  Here is a highlight video I made after 4 days of riding.



Watch more video of Brian Matter on cyclingdirt.org

What makes the weekend even cooler is the Keewenaw Chain Drive.  Its the perfect opportunity to let the juniors go out and practice some of the new skills, and then tell war stories afterwards!  The race itself is really cool.  It starts off in downtown Houghton and rolls across the draw bridge to the Keewenaw Peninsula.  The race gets going with a $50 KOM prime at the top of Cemetary Hill.  Its pretty brutal and this year I had to battle it out with roadie superstar Ryan Baumann.  I might have beat him by a half bike length.

After the KOM the race gets right to it with some pretty good singletrack....Tyler G and I soon separated ourselves from the group and were racing mano y mano for the win.  Tyler pulled the first half - I pulled the second half and started ramping the pace with 6 miles to go.  I bobbled through a river crossing with 2 miles to go and Tyler attacked.  I bridged up to him and then waited for a big sprint.  I had sprinted here before and I was pretty confident I could get the win!

 A couple more days of training big and maybe a TOAD race - then its interval time!

Deja Vu

WORS #3 is in the books and it coulnd't have been more exactly oppostite of last year than it really was.  Last year I suffered, I got dropped, I was scared, I suffered and I won the sprint.  This year totally different.

It started off with a much needed rest week.  After losing Rosco and a hard training week I was smashed and really really looking forward to a rest week.  We even took it up another notch and mid week cruised up to Eagle River for some ultimate relaxation.

Sunday morning we took a short 2:00 drive from Eagle Rive to Wausau to get ready for round #3.  I arrived to the familiar venue to hear the stories of all the course changes, the new start, the rock garden....

The only thing that really concerned me was the different start.  Much much shorter, so I wanted to get to the front and check it out right away.  The full contingent of contenders were present and I knew positioning would be critical with all the two track - dispersed between the singletrack sections.  I felt like I led through the majority of the first lap.  I wasn't afraid of being aggressive and I wanted the riders in 5 - 10th to experience the full yo-yo effect.

Starting lap 2 a few attacks that I didn't really respond too because I was on the front all of Lap 1.  Into the first singletrack Tristan jumped and got a good gap.  The remaining portions of Lap 2 Nathan and I worked hard to bring Tristan back.

Lap 3 was a tough one...Nathan was jamming the singletrack sections on the verge of control.  My left hamstring cramped on the climb in the middle of the lap.  Luckily I could shake it out on the long two track descent.

Starting Lap 4 I think we were all pretty tired.  We rolled pretty slow all the way to the first climb.  I glanced back and I saw Mark and Corey coming up and decided to attack.  I figured we were all hurting the same so might as well go for it....I think right after Nathan flatted/crashed into Tristan.  Tristan bridged up to me and then it was the two of us....

Wausau Sprint 2011

Wausau Sprint 2012

This year I wanted to lead out the sprint...not sure why as it was the wrong decision with the result that I wasn't really looking for....

After the race the real party started...A 5 hour drive to Decorah, IA.  A night at the Bluff's Inn and a new friend first thing Monday morning.  Another rescue Boston Terrier.  He was found as a stray a month ago, lived in a shelter for 15 days, until his time was up.  Luckily the Northeast Iowa Rescue Association saved him and put him up for adoption.  15 days later he was ours.  Welcome to the family OSCOR!

OSCOR - after 2 days

Rosco in 2006

I think they would have been pretty good buddies.

A Man's Best Friend

Rosco loved sunny days.  He would play Kong in the back yard until I was exhausted.  In his prime he would never get tired.  He would come in the house, drink some water, barf on the carpet, and then sleep in the sunshine!  I miss him.

4 weeks ago Rosco had a major seizure on a Monday morning.  Tuesday he was diagnosed with brain cancer. It was the start to the hardest month of my life.  We did everything we could to keep him happy during that last month.  He died Saturday morning May 19th.  It was a sunny day.

It has been pretty quiet around the house this past week without him.  He had a big presence for such a little guy.  Snorting, farting, and always playing Kong.

Our first family portrait!

Rosco was rescued from a puppy mill.  He had a rough go at things for the first year or two.  He lived in 5 different homes until we found him in March of 2003.  Andrea drove through a blizzard to get him and from then on everything was great.  We were lucky.  Andrea and I did everything we could to make his life the best.

Rosco was the best partner in crime I could ever ask for.  He sent me off with a big kiss before every bike ride.  He was the first to come running when I got home.  He spent countless hours chewing his Kong while I would ride the trainer.  He couldn't control his excitement when I would bring the wash bucket in for some soap and water because it was time to clean bikes.  He loved it when the UPS man came to the door w/ new bike parts at the start of each season because it meant a trip to the basement to work on bikes.  He was always waiting for me when I would get home from a weekend at the races.  He loved taking naps with me after hard training days.  He was my faithful companion.

Rosco always loved going for a ride in the car.  Whether it was a trip to the beach, to the cabin, or across the country!  He would get so pumped.  Our last trip to Tuscon was the best.  When we arrived we took him for a walk to play Kong and even though we hadn't been there for a year he knew exactly what was about to happen and as we got closer he started pulling at the end of his leash.  He was so smart.  He ripped it up that first day in Tucson.

He always loved an adventure and never ever looked back.  Well buddy, I hope you are enjoying your new adventure.  Your mommy and your daddy miss you.

Our last family photo.

Rosco was a good boy.  I'll remember him every day of my life.  He was my best friend.

Crystal Clear & Cloudy

Well things have been pretty challenging this month....I kind of feel like I have been walking around in the clouds, not sleeping enough, training hard, and then trying to race on top of it all.  I just finished a really hard 3 weeks of training and it took all my energy just to get my hours in....so now that I'm done and taking a break I can finally do a little update on the last race weekend.

 It started out with the worst possible thing in the world.  Saturday morning at 5am Rosco left us for good.  It was the worst morning in my life.  Unfortunately I was committed to do a Expert Level Race Clinic that same day in Rhinelander.  I thought about bailing, but I had a job to do....

So with a huge question mark I left for the north woods of WI.  I did the race clinic and I think it turned out good and then did one more lap on the course.  It was nice to just go and ride.  I was lucky to find a little peace of mind by spending the night at the cabin in Eagle River where Rosco loved to hang out.  It was perfect weather and he would have loved it....

With a heavy heart I took to the start line for WORS #2.  Luckily Don messed with me a little bit on the start line and it put a smile on my face and changed my attitude about the race.  I was mentally, physically and emotionally exhausted, but somehow I came away with win number two.

Lap 1 was absolutely brutal and was pure shock to my system...I was doing everything I could to hang on the wheel of Mike P for the first half lap.  I took over half way through the lap and tried to slow the pace a bit to something more manageable, only to be attacked heading out for lap 2 by 'the new guy'.

Jesse caught Joe Maloney by the end of the lead out starting lap 2 and then set a good pace.  I was relieved to follow Jesse, somebody who could rip some singletrack, in a smooth, fast, easy manner.  Then the wind picked up, it got dark, and started to rain, I went to the front and went hard!  Jesse told me to keep going - we had a gap.  At the end of the lap it was down to 3.

Nathan took over Lap 3 and the pace was not to my liking.  It hurt again.  I thought I was done for, but hung on.  At one point in time Jesse looked at me with a familiar face and told me that his 36:16 gear used to be easier to push!  I had to smile to myself.  I took over the second half of lap 3 and kept the pace high, but I felt like I had no rhythm or couldn't go hard...I thought it was lights out...




Starting lap 4 I sat in going down 3/4 of the road, but then it was my turn to pull.  No challenge to enter the singletrack so I kept it steady.  As we continued on during the last lap I felt more rain and weather coming in...I also sensed the end of the race near.  I knew everyone was hurting and I knew I had a chance for the win.  I went with the same plan as last year...go hard, then go harder, and finally go really hard.  It worked and I got win number #2.  It was brutal...I finished with a wave of emotion, I missed my dog.  It was no doubt the hardest race of my life due to the circumstances.  I had to go do a 30 minute cool down on the road in the pouring rain and take a little time to myself.

The best part of the weekend was the stop at Duck's in Crandon.  If you are ever there go and get the Ducks Deluxe Burger...mmmmm!

too much?

All of the sudden I feel like I have a lot to say!

First off just finished up a super hard 3 days of training.  4 + hours each day...I'm hurting, but I've got some killer tunes on the radio right now mustering up the last of my energy(see below).

I've been using Strava as my motivation....so if you live in Sheboygan go out and get yourself some KOM's.  I think I've hit every ride in a 45 mile radius from Sheboygan.

Next up is a trip to Rhinelander Saturday morning for a Expert Level Race clinic and a pre-ride of the course and then WORS #2.  You can still register for the clinic if you are fast....8 hours till registration closes.

OK now to the good stuff...I'm pretty sure I'm not going to keep riding the Cronus for training...Its awesome for base miles, super comfortable, smooth, all you really want...except the 46 tooth big ring.  It's just going to be a little small when in 6 weeks time I start up with some intervals.  So this is on my radar!

Trek Domane - should be even smoother than the Cronus CX!

My good buddy Stevie P from MI was kind enough to give me his bike when I was in town for Barry Roubaix!!!!  It was an exact replica of my very first MTN Bike!  It also gave me the motivation for the Trek Project One paint scheme!

I upgraded to a Rock Shox Mag 21!

Thanks Stevie!

So the inspiration and energy from this blog post definitely comes from the passing of Donna Summer.  I guess she died of cancer according the the net.  Too many people dying of cancer lately :(  Our good friend Bill Peterson also recently passed after a battle with lung cancer and of course Rosco is not doing so hot...

We used to rip it up to the Queen of Disco's music back in the day!  Good Times!  Good Times!  On this particular night I remember getting ready to walk out the back door.  Lou asked us if we had any money.  Skyler and I looked at each other smiled and then I pulled a dollar out of my pocket!  Lou laughed called us bums and we were on our way!

Mixed Feelings

WORS #1 is in the books.  First race of the year and first win of the year!  I am pretty pumped that the training is going good, but the week leading up to the race was one of the hardest yet.  Our dog Rosco had a seizure last Monday morning and we had to take him to the emergency vet at 4:30am.  Tuesday he was diagnosed with a brain tumor and he is not doing well.  It was a very emotional week and very hard to even walk out the door to head to Iola.  Luckily the med's he's on have reduced the swelling in his head just enough that he has moments of being the old Rosco, playing Kong and causing trouble!  He was doing well Sunday morning so Andrea opted to skip the race and stay home w/ Rosco and I headed out for a muddy mess....I knew Rosco would have had a blast...he used to love to play in the mud!

Rosco playing Kong & gettin' muddy in Eagle River 2006!

I honestly didn't think Iola was going to get that muddy so I was more concerned about the brand new tires I had just mounted on my bike not holding air.  The front tire was solid, but the rear was down to 15 psi Sunday morning after being at 40psi Saturday night.  I brought Andrea's bike along just in case thinking maybe I would just swap rear wheels.

I arrived at Iola and it was pretty great!  It was like coming home from a long vacation.  I was happy to be back on the race scene.  Friends, coaching clients, Jr. Mtb campers, and competition!  I registered and took a quick look at the course and was pretty surprised at the amount of mud.

Back at the car I wasn't confident with my back tire losing air, nor was I confident with my front tire choice that was holding air....so when in doubt just ride your wife's bike....

Yep it was just easier to swap pedals and take to the start line on an old school (2011 Top Fuel 9.9) bike that was a size too small!  The smaller bike handled awesome in the mud and the beefy Bontrager XR2's were just the ticket!

Don yelled GO and we were off.  Shriver took off from the 3rd row and I was pretty surprised to see Mark Lalonde coming out of retirement and passing me on the first climb from the 5th row!  A little stumble from Shriver and Mark and I got a gap...I think Mark was in shock that with a bit of running, some skills, and just a little hard pedaling we were gapping everybody on the first lap.

The initial shock of race pace hurt me, but I settled down pretty fast.  I was feeling good on the bike and knew I wanted to be at the front.  The group came back together starting lap 2 so I went to the front and went hard for 10 minutes and was alone the rest of the race.  Then I just started having fun and ripping the descents and sliding the bike through the singletrack.  Maybe a little too much fun though as I burped my front tire - stylin too much on some jumps and had to finish the last lap cautiously on 15 psi...good for the flat muddy sections not good for the cornering.

Final thoughts from the race....again it was awesome to get the first race jitters out of the way and come home with a WIN.  I didn't realize this until this morning, but my brand new Bontrager RXL shoes were amazing.  You know a brand new pair of shoes is good when you don't even think about them during a race...plus with all that running I learned they are going to be killer come cross season!

  

Coches Corner: it was a toss up this weekend for my coach's pick of the week...so its a tie.  Congrats to Bill Street for 3rd overall in Comp and congrats to Mike Carney 2nd age group in Sport!  Last weeks coaches Corner was another tie  Congrats to Corey Stelljes who won the Joe Martin Stage 1 TT and to Tom Payn for a 2nd place at the Pontiac Lake TT. 

check please

Well the first Base period is over.  3 weeks of perfect training.  It's the most focused I have ever been.  I am in a super good routine and really pumped for the season.  I finished the phase off last Sunday with a solid 4 hour ride at just over 20mph!  Usually its not until June until I can pull something like that off....maybe it was the wind, but I think it was more my legs!

 I have been feeling good on the bike.  The Cronus is treating me good.  My position feels great.  My feet feel great with my new Bill Peterson PowerPlus insoles and my new XXX Bontrager road shoes.  I'm eating good, I'm sleeping good!

If all goes well this weekend will be the first test of the fitness at Iola.  Its always a big question mark after riding strictly endurance miles, but last year I fared pretty good, and this year I feel better than last.

Another reason to be pumped!  A new super lightweight PowerTap wheelset.  Thanks to my friends at Cycleops & HED wheels I just got a Speedy Delivery of a killer new Ardennes wheelset laced up to a brand new G3 hub.  I might just have to do some TOAD racing!