Ride Reports from Flatland, USA

So Catherine and I found ourselves in her part of the Southeast, Savannah, GA. In two days we've logged 123.5 miles of cycling around these flat-as-pancake territories. So I figured I'd throw a quick blog summarizing the rides.

Yesterday Catherine and I set out to ride with a friendly group for a 70 miler. Turns out that Cat and I were the only ones ambitious enough to log that many miles, so at the 20-mile mark, everyone turned around and we kept pedalling away from our start in Hardeeville, GA (yes, it's actually Called Hardeeville). Here are my stats:

Distance: 67.1 miles
Average Speed: 18.3 mph
Max Heart Rate: 178
Average Heart Rate: 148

It was a hot, long ride on some rough roads, so even on the flats it was just painful on all of the little parts of my body that I never think about. From my crotch taking the beating of the saddle, to my hands becoming sore from absorbing the vibration on the bars. It was one hell of a fatiguing, hot ride. None the less, not a bad day to log some miles.

This morning we suited up in GW swag for the "Galleria Ride." A so-called hammerfest of 40 miles. As a cyclist, it's important to know that the term hammerfest is generally not an overstatement. It's really not even a ride at all. These rich southern tri-geeks bring out their high-end equipment on a Sunday morning to beat each other's ego's into submission. Luckily for me, this is the sort of ride I needed. Interestingly enough, though, even with a new Tour-calibre bike, I probably had the cheapest rig there.

The ride started out slow getting out of town. But it doesn't take long to get out of town, so it got fast in no time. I was playing this ride like a race, staying up front and only putting effort in when I needed to. I took a few pulls, but limited my effort, because the group was cruising. At around 50 minutes, I found myself in 4th wheel as the group accelerated to about 30 miles per hour. WTF?!?! Apparently, we were coming into the first town-line sprint, 2 kilometers away. Great then, I had perfect positioning. Or not.

The two idiots up front were afraid of popping too early, so with about 1.5 kilometers to go, I said "F this" and kicked to the front like a banshee. Hearing Peter, one of the ride leaders, yell "Keep going Bert!" in his Irish accent, I thought I was dragging the entire group into the sprint at 34 mph. Whoops. Turns out this lead-out had become an attack a la Fabian Cancellara, and Peter was enjoying the free ride. So I'm pretty sure I earned my street cred dragging him to the line 50 meters in front of the nearest guys. He crossed the town line first, pointing back at me smiling. Harden that up, boys.

After that sprint, the "group ride" went to sh*t because of some idiots on aero-bars that had no intention of riding in a group anyways. They took off, and the entire 15 person group was splintered into 2s and 3s. After giving up the chase on the 3 amigos Team Time Trialing with aero-bars, I was stuck in no-man's land for a while with one other guy, and we sat up to let 3 guys catch us who were just as cooked. This was all an hour into the ride.

Eventually, 7 of us joined forces and continued the ride, deciding not-so-surely to do a longer route. We cycled through 56 miles on smoother Savannah roads fairly quickly, but slowing our average speed to a measely 21 mph (note sarcasm). Holy hell, tough, fun group ride. Here were my stats:

Distance: 56.4 miles
Time: 2 hours, 43 minutes
Average Speed: 21 mph
Average Heart Rate: 164 beats/minute
Max Heart Rate: 199 beats/minute (during the lead-out)

Lunchtime. Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone back home is having a wonderful weekend. See ya'll for the 4th of July.

Meet the Relay Team - 2008 Montclair Tri

For the third consecutive year, I will be participating... err... scratch that. Racing in the Lake Montclair Triathlon. Now, I hate triathlons and triathletes, but when a race takes place in the neighborhood you grew up on, you can't count yourself out of the competition. Two years ago, I signed up to Montclair as my first triathlon to support a new event. Last year, I signed up and did the entire race myself again, but focused solely on the bike leg as my event. I got 13th place out of 568 tri-geeks on the bike leg. I was up there with the pro's on cheaper equipment and a severe lack of training.

This year, I'm not wasting time with the swim or the run. I'm not wasting time, period. So I recruited a few of my hometown buddies - specifically a former collegiate swimmer and a kid who's becoming one of the best cross country runners in the state - and they're going to start and finish this race off for me. Here's who will be racing...

1K SWIM -- Nicole Martinez: I met Nicole in high school when she moved to town as a military brat. Friend-of-a-friend back then, we're happy hour pals now with a bit of a mutual feeling of hometown teen angst left in our bodies. Nicole has always been a swimmer, in high school and as an NCAA swimmer/water polo player at JMU. I asked her a while back to race with me, and she promises to easily beat my personal 1-mile-swim best time of 2,372 seconds (I'm a slow swimmer, so what?). I think she'll up the ante significantly, and will be one hell of a strong start to our race.

30K BIKE -- Bert Garcia: That's me. I'm a Category 4 cyclist with a major chip on my shoulder towards triathletes. At heart, I will always be a rower, but the bike is a good substitute for a guy who loves suffering through races. I've been riding bikes on these roads since I was 4 years old, so I know them better than anyone. I still train on them weekly, and the hilly terrain fits my style of riding perfectly. To any type of racer, there is no extra motivation than racing on your own turf in front of your family, so you can bet your @$$ I'll be moving quickly. This year, I'll have my godfather (my uncle) and cousins watching as well, and this will be the first race on my new bike. All this extra motivation just makes my legs twitch faster. I love it. My only disappointment is that they shortened the bike leg by 10 kilometers, making it easier. What a crock of BS.

8K RUN -- Andrew Hull: I know Andrew because I still act as an instructor and trail guide for my local scout troop. Him, his brother, myself, and our dads use to venture out into the woods on our own and climb some mountains. Andrew, a fellow Eagle Scout and the youngest of the 3 of us kids, was always a step ahead beating us to the top. I had originally asked Andrew's big brother Kris to run the final leg for me, but his departure for the Air Force Academy didn't fit the calendar. Kris himself suggested his little brother, who had quite literally followed in his [fast] footsteps as a member of the Brentsville High cross country team, arguably one of the best XC teams in the country. I have total faith that Andrew, having the honor of crossing the finish line, can anchor our team in a fast and respectable fashion.

For a while, because of Calendar issues, I wasn't sure if I'd have the team I wanted to race this event with me. Well, when Nicole and Andrew both confirmed, I was ecstatic to know that I'd be racing with my fastest pals for each event. I wouldn't want to race this relay any other way. I wasn't going to enter a team in this race for fun. I wanted to put a young, totally amateur team together that was competitive with the top times, and I think I've got just that.

July 13th. 7AM. We race.

Ride Report - S-Works Speed Test #2

Just finished up a ride in the neighborhood, Montclair, and only my second ride on the new bike. Man, it's a a peice of machinery, all right! Here's a quick summary:

Time: 1 hour, 22 minutes, 34 seconds
Dist: Appr 25 miles, give or take. Don't really know.
Average Heart Rate: 168
Max Heart Rate: 195
Minimum Heart Rate: 134

Included in my little Tour de Montclair workout tonight, I did a few consecutive intervals around a block I like after an hour of hard riding. The block is a perfect 1-mile square, but crooked so either way it's a bit up hill and a bit downhill. I did a 4-lap peice, but checked the clock each lap:

- The first lap took me about 3 minutes. About 20 mph.

- The next lap took me 2 minutes, 48 seconds. About 21.4 mph.

- The third lap took me 2 minutes, 38 seconds. About 22.8 mph.

- The fourth lap and final interval took me 2 minutes and 29 seconds. 24.2 MPH.

Having ridden only 60 miles in the past month, it suffices to say that I'm content. This bike is gonna push me. I love it.

Showertime. Dinnertime. Thanks for reading.

Some people go to church, I ride my bike.

Yesterday, after a Father's Day brunch with my parents, a trip to target, and a trip to the new Wegman's supermarket in town, I decided, with less than half an hour until sunset, that I had to get out on the new bike. I had to get out and test it. Luckily, Catherine obliged to keep me company (she seemed pretty eager to spin the legs after her 40k TT on Saturday) for a not-so-romantic Sunday evening sunset bike ride. While suiting up in GW smurf-blue argyle I sent my best riding mate Drew a message saying that I was going for a twilight ride around Hains. He called me back saying, "You read my mind" and met us at the point.

So, with my girl and best riding pal, I went for the maiden bike ride on my new S-Works Tarmac SL. It suffices to say that the bike is top shelf. For a cyclist, buying a new bike is a religious experience. It's a matter of change, investment, and dedication to a new part of yourself. You will spend hours riding this bicycle, so it's significant. Riding a new bicycle for the first time can be a renaissance for the inner child in any one of us. Any cyclist - old or young - on a new bike, acts the same way. We're smiling like evil children, pedalling a bit too reckless for our own good.

Since 2004, I had been riding an '03 Fuji Team aluminum frame, which was uber light for that material, with Shimano Ultegra 9-speed. It was a big jump in purchasing the S-Works, since I also I upgraded the components to Dura Ace to build myself a pro-level bicycle. The thing is nuts. When you ride something that's built to move fast, you want to give it such respect. You want to go fast. So when Drew asked me if I had "speed tested" the bike, I responded pretty anxiously that no, I hadn't yet tested the ultimate factor in the performance of a racing bike: How fast can you make it go?

I was pretty jittery on it, with new components under my fingertips and a different position, much less the stiffness of the carbon frame. Everything felt so different. So I told drew we'd have a "half wheel" sprint, staying next to each other, gradually building up the speed. So, after the turnaround at Hains point, we kicked it up a notch and unleashed some fury, now under dark skies.

The bike is fast. Everything about it is built for pure speed (except my old wheels, perhaps). I could feel the power from my legs transfer smoothly to the road while grinding low and fast on the saddle. When I did stand up to sprint, I was more stable than I had been in a long, long time out of the saddle. Even on an unfamiliar bike, I felt calm and balanced. Maybe a bit of excitement added to the feeling, but the change between my old aluminum steed and this machine is incredible.

We finished off the ride with a quick tour of the Monuments. We passed by the Washington Monument, headed passed the Smithsonian towards and around the Capital to pass by the Supreme Court, and flew home again past the Washington Monument towards the White house. Aside from the bugs, it was a beautiful, cool night with my two best riding buddies, a new bike, and clear night-time skies. I couldn't have asked for more in an hour's ride.

So here I am, sitting in my office. Every now and then I turn and look at my new bicycle, which is impatiently leaning on a bookshelf. Subconsciously I feel like I'm caging a hyperactive puppy. No bicycle is meant to be a paperweight, bookend, or ornament. Bikes are meant go somewhere. This bike, it just so happens, is meant to go somewhere fast. And darnit, I'm gonna let it teach me a few lessons on how to do that.

Brainwashing myself with Gerolsteiner

Yesterday at the grocery store, I made sure to pick up a liter of Gerolsteiner mineral water. At the time, it was just filling the craving of wanting fizzy water for work today. Now I realize what I subconsciously did to myself: I brainwashed myself into believing that Specialized bicycles are, in fact, special. And so it goes, I just locked down a screaming deal on a new 2007 S-Works Tarmac SL bicycle frame in the colors Team Gerolsteiner. Yes, that's the same frame Levi Leipheimer rode when he won the 2006 Criterium de Dauphine-Libere, and in the Tour that year. (On a related note, Levi won the prologue to the Dauphine yesterday.)



For over a year I've been telling myself that I'd buy a new bicycle when I felt that my 2003 Fuji Team was slowing me down. Until May 22, 2008, it had served me in such a capacity that I felt sufficiently fast. But on that evening, in an all-out sprint at my usual stomping grounds, the rear derailleur took an unusual detour into the rear wheel. It locked up and sent me skidding on the pavement, leaving me bleeding just feet from an imaginary finish line at Hains Point. Two weeks and $200 dollars of tegaderm, gauze, and neosporin later, I started bike shopping. The Fuji would be retired. I started racing bicycles on that machine, and after nearly 10,000 miles, well, we've had a good run.

I kept joking that I should get drunk and just see what bicycle I end up buying. Well, in some ways, I'm drunk on Gerolsteiner water. So I locked down the insane deal on the Tarmac SL and here's the the planned build-up:

Frame: 2007 Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL (Gerolsteiner Paint Job)
Shifters: DuraAce 7800 (10sp)
Crank/BB: S-works Carbon Compact 50-34, BB30 Compatible
Rear Dérailleur: DuraAce
Front Dérailleur: DuraAce
Brakes: Ultegra
Cassette: SRAM 11-26
Bars/Stem: Ritchey Pro
Seatpost: FSA Non-Setback
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite. It makes my crotch happy on 4-hour rides.

I'm predicting that the build with my old wheels should come in under 16 pounds, and that will drop eventually when I upgrade those old things. I guess I should give the plug to Capital Bicycle in Annapolis, a Specialized "Concept Store," for an incredible deal on a Tour caliber frame. Hands down, though, the coolest thing about the new bike will be the specialized "S" logo:



Now I have to fight my impatience until it's all built up.

A Message to the local weatherman.

Never, ever again, will I let you interrupt Jeopardy just for a measley tornado warning, Mr. Weatherman (I'm talking to you, Doug Hill). I can hear the thunder. I can see the flashes of lightning through the window blinds. But now, I cannot hear nor can I see the clues that Alex Trebek is announcing, and I can't answer in the form of a question.

To think - I left work right on time to be able to watch Jeopardy tonight. And darnit, I was on a roll in the Double Jeopardy round. So much for that.

I don't care what the weather is doing. I want to watch jeopardy, Mr. Doug Hill of ABC. Dammit, I didn't complain when you made jeopardy microscopic to scroll weather information on the sidebars. That's fine. That still gives me the choice of paying attention to the never-ending tornado warnings or the daily double.

It's been 7 minutes since you started talking about the tornados. You informed me about the "imminent threat" against me, but, I'm still here in the comfort of my kitchen, eating leftover pizza, and you're standing in my way of trivial self-education. And you're still talking, repeating the same facts over and over.

Viewers in the affected areas would be listening to the storm outside. If they were already watching TV, they'd see the endless scrolling alerts. They'd be informed. You're just overkill, Mr. Hill. I want to watch Jeopardy. And now I'm going to miss Final Jeopardy, because you're giving me a summary of where lightning is hitting in the entire DC metropolitan area.