"Races just don't go as planned sometimes, but we do our best anyhow"
Photos by Brittany Nigh & Danny Marchewka

Cyclocross: I'm looking for a few more clients here. Please let me know if you or somebody you know is looking for a CX coach. Otherwise, our practice sessions started this past week. Looking forward to adding a newbie or two next week. Fun stuff. Glad to be back doing the CX thing.

MTB/WORS Overall Standings as follows:
Citizen = 1 client that is 5th in age group, first year racing MTB, and progressing nicely
Comp = 4 clients all slotting in at 3rd place in their respective age groups
Elite = 1 client that is 1st in age group, and top 5 overall

Otherwise, Chicago Mike is ramping up his workload in preparation for a successful Cyclocross season. He's had a couple more podium finishes on the MTB and CX bikes during August.

Triathlon: looking to grow here in 2011 by adding tri specific training plans (balance run/swim/bike). Potentially going through the USAT certification process. Please stay tuned.

Road: most of the guys are currently on a break and/or preparing for Cyclocross.

Bike Fitting:  business continues to be strong. After working with women on bike fits for the last few years, I have learned the importance of having a properly shaped/padded saddle that is positioned correctly. My female clients & friends that use Terry saddles are the ones that have the most positive comments about their cycling comfort. Therefore, becoming a dealer for Terry Saddles is a great advancement for Cycling Form & Fitness. I have the majority of their options in stock and ready to be fitted. Terry/CFF offers a 30-day comfort guarantee relative to the saddle.
Link to Terry Saddles: http://www.terrybicycles.com/saddles

Personal Results: Three races completed during August. Feeling good about the progressively better results going into the CX season:
1) WCA State 40k TT = 4th in age group out of 12, 15th overall out of 110, averaged 26.9 MPH (near perfect conditions)
2) ABR State 40k TT = 2nd in age group out of 14, 13th overall out of 130, averaged 26.8 MPH (more wind & heat)
3) WORS @ Reforestation = 2nd in age out of 15, 19th overall out of 50

Thanks for reading

This is the first look (click on link below) of my new Trek Speed Concept TT bike (ordered today). I'll have the lower cost Ultegra based model, the 9.5, with Reynolds wheels & Power Tap. Took a fair amount of time/effort to figure out the proper configuration for a TT bike. Project one requires you to specify frame size, seat pole length/offset, and stem length/rise. Mark from Pedal Moraine sent me a fit guide issued to dealers specially for the Speed Concept. That made choosing the right size components & frame much easier based off of my current TT bike, after some careful measurements, and consideration of what I want the new bike to improve relative to the "aeroness" of my fit. Lead time = 20 days. Should be pretty awesome!

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/triathlon/speed_concept_9/speedconcept99/



 
And, this one is now for sale. Picture it with a new set of Bontrager Race Lite Aero wheels instead of the Reynolds. I recently upgraded the aero bars, shifters, and bottom bracket while keeping the rest of it pretty well maintained. Great bike for a person that wants to get into TT or Triathlon for a low cost. 2006 Equinox, 58 cm frame, $1,000 without pedals, bike fit negotiable. Also available without wheels.
 
Thanks for reading!

1st 12.3 mile lap had me 10 seconds off my "stretch" goal, and trying a bit harder than I should have (about 10 watts over target). I suffered a bit as a result during the 3rd quarter (about 10 watts under target), and was 25 seconds down with 4 miles left to go. Had a couple of rabbits to chase, turned the positive self-talk on, and dug deeper than I've ever dug (in a TT) to gain back 15 seconds on the final straightaway = finished 10 seconds off goal with an average speed of 26.9 MPH over the 24.5 mile course, and one place off the podium (the course was shorter than advertised). The competition was way deeper this time around. Last year in the rain I struggled to get 305 watts in the aero position @ 25.9 MPH. This year was 318 watts, and 2 min's faster. Now it's time to go shopping for that new bike; I think I finally deserve it: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/triathlon/speed_concept_7/speedconcept75/

Cyclocross: I'm looking for a few more clients here. Please let me know if you or somebody you know is looking for a CX coach.

MTB/WORS Overall Standings as follows:
Citizen = 1 client that is 5th in age group, first year racing MTB, and progressing nicely
Comp = 4 clients slotting in at 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, and 4th in their respective age groups
Elite = 1 client that is 1st in age group, and top 5 overall

Otherwise, Chicago Mike is ramping up his workload in preparation for a successful Cyclocross season. He's had a few podium finishes on both the MTB and Road Bike during July.

Triathlon: 2 clients, both with great finishes in their respective 1/2 Ironmans. Nice to have been part of their success, from both a coaching and bike fit perspective.

Road: most of the guys are currently on a break and/or preparing for Cyclocross.

Bike Fitting:  business continues to be strong. The Cobb saddles have been a great fit for Time Trialists and Triathletes. Cobb Cycling provided me with demo saddles making it easier to fit clients properly. I personally like their V-Flow Plus & HC170, and am really looking forward to the SHC170 coming in September.
Link to Cobb Cycling: http://www.cobbcycling.com/cart/Seats_C1.cfm

Personal Results:  Only one race for me during July since the WORS @ Crystal Ridge was canceled. I finished 1st in Masters Cat 3 at the Chiropractic Partners Time Trial, 10th overall out of 100 competitors. Averaged 26.1 MPH over the hilly course. Goal accomplished along with gaining more confidence for one of my 2010 goals: > 27 MPH at a 40k TT. The State Championship will be a great opportunity for this in that the course is relatively flat, and that I typically can go about 1 MPH faster there than any other course. Thanks for reading

It's been a full month since the last blog post. I know that blogs are more of a 2008 thing. From a business perspective, I still think it's valuable to highlight my accomplishments, lessons learned, and the accomplishments of my clients. So if you're reading, thanks for coming along for the ride!

MTB Race Results:  continue to have mixed results here with more good than bad. The Road and MTB summaries have a common theme = what Robbie Ventura referred to as the X-factor to bicycle racing. See below for more on this. In any case, the guys are fit enough. It's just getting all the other factors optimized to finally get the results they desire. I do have a few standout performers though in the form of WORS Elite and Comp age group leaders = nice!

Road Results:  Here's one reply I had to a client that "retired". It falls heavily into the "lessons learned" bucket:   Yes, you were my GREATEST failure in that our relationship was solid, your work ethic was superb, and I really enjoyed working with you; but the X-factor is what ultimately did US in. And, I'm really just getting to understand how to apply my motocross and MTB racing background to road racing, and how to improve the X-factor from a technique/tactical/mental standpoint. It all applies. I needed a ToAD experience, along with the TE clinic, to put it all together. But, in the final analysis, road racing is a high risk/high reward sport. That is why I have a hard time saying "Just Do It".

X-factor:  again, I have to thank Robbie Venture for making this distinction clear in my mind as part of his involvement in the Team Extreme Road Racing Clinic. The X-factor is everything else other than fitness. You can lump equipment, technique, tactics and strategy into this category, along with the mental aspects of racing. WOW! That's > 50% of the equation that I've been shying away from because of liabiity, and because clients haven't grabbed on to "paying to learn". So, for my long standing coaching clients I'm working to ride with each one of them, to point out areas of improvement, and to show them how to improve these X-factor limiters.

Bike Fitting:  business is picking up here. Always great to help clients be more comfortable & powerful on their bikes = pretty awesome!

Personal Results:  I met a 2010 goal in my average speed of 27.1 MPH at the the Bong 30K TT. The same day I failed miserably at the WORS Sunburst MTB race by "hitting the wall from a physical perspective", and pulling out of the race after 3 of 5 laps. Additionally, my frame broke during this race, (not because of hitting the wall), and was just recently rebuilt.
Because of the MTB failure, I moved on to the ToAD road racing series. ToAD is a 10 race/10 day Wisconsin based road racing series. It has separate awards for each day, and series awards for the overall. The highs were 2 wins and 1 second place finish; and 3rd overall in the series (Cat 3). The lows were my crash in the finishline sprint at Greenbush along with sitting out 2 days/races afterwards to recuperate. That experience was awesome from an overall perspective; I learned so much. Thanks to all that made it possible!

Overall, a continuation of good results for CFF clients at WORS #3. Seems that a few were negatively affected by the course markings being knocked down in one area = there will be those days. I decided to write this one up from a personal perspective since it was a relatively new experience for me in many ways. I've been racing WORS for 15 years, and still having new experiences that lead to personal growth = pretty cool!

I facilitated the CFF Time Trial on Saturday. It was the typical 10 mile all-out affair. With only 4 in attendance, and 3 racing WORS the next day, we did an easy recovery spin to the local coffee shop afterwards = thanks to Michael, Dan, and Ben S. Going backwards in time I'd say that Thursday was relevant to this post. I rode the new Reynolds wheels on my road bike for the first time and was totally stoked on how they performed. I was equally stoked to decide that racing my MTB on Sunday was something that would truly light my fire; the passion for racing. Odd how that was determined on a long/great road ride. Must have been the 3.5 hours in the saddle, and the contemplation that goes along with it.


photo courtesy of Brittany Nigh

So I'll keep the WORS race review short since most won't read this long. Start was horrible because of me not clipping in well, and being almost last over the line. Oh well, onward through the thick cloud of dust I went. From 60th place, I knew that the moves had to come early. The course was very road like but many passes had to happen on the grassy edges versus main lines. With the temp's in the 90's, the matches seemed to burn with more intensity with every surge. I settled down to ride with Scott Cole for awhile, then up to Ronsta, and finally with age group contender Michael Naughton. I do love the fact that you can make allies in a MTB race by working together with a common purpose of moving up through the field. It was a very cool vibe with some excellent riding partners. I lastly settled with Kevin McConnell (IA) as most everybody else had dropped off his pace. We were polar opposites in that he'd drop me on the climbs and I pull him on the straights. But, it kept the pace high so that was good enough to bring it home in 9th place overall, and 1st in age group. I was so fatigued on the last lap that I had to let Kevin go. It was all good though. The 9th place finish was more than I had hoped for due to the 60th place start, lack of MTB training... 2:15 of a good mixture between learning how to ride single-track again (sorry guys), learning long race pacing/drinking strategy, and fine tuning the race tactics. I'm stronger because of this experience = pretty awesome!

Masters 3: The race started off poorly for me = lesson learned = check your equipment when you arrive at the race. I did much better to get to the race early enough; about 2 hours before start time. Unfortunately, watching the finish line instead of checking my equipment left me to find that I was missing my Power Tap CPU, and now had a wheel that I didn't want on my bike. The wheel was changed along with a cassette for the climbs = ugh. Without data, but with a bike that was fully functional, I rolled out for my 8 minutes of warm-up. Downright laughable! Anyhow, it was warm enough that I didn't think a long warm-up was in my best interest. Race began at a reasonable pace as we started the 1st of four 15 minutes climbs (with sections of false flat in each). Due to a few attacks and chases, I think a split happened up the 2nd climb (Denzer Rd). About 10 of us worked together to increase the gap. After 30 minutes of pace-lining the gap was formed, and the pace slowed considerably. Dwight (Ace Hardware) from Marquette came up to me and said that we should wait until the last climb up Denzer to sort things out. I agreed, and the pack easily rolled on. Sure enough, Dwight ramped it up on Denzer creating a 10 second gap. I rolled up the front to tell my compatriot from the Circuit of Sauk (Doug Braun) that we should make this a 3-man race. I didn't think he'd bite on that, but he did. I followed, half the gap was closed by Doug, so I came around to finish it off ,and we then became an 8-man pack with another ¼ mile of climbing left to go. Shortly thereafer, Dwight's team mate jumped around the front of the pack and we all gave chase. This time there were 6 that made it across. We took this pack down the final descent towards the finish line. They left me on the front so I carefully braked on the descent. We should have been going 45 mph on this descent, but had slowed to 20 mph. Finally somebody jumped and we all gave chase with me on the back. One by one I let these guys draft me towards the front and passed them as they faded. At about 100m, I was getting really excited to go from about the 3rd wheel, but waited, and with 50 m to go I jumped out of the Dwight's slip stream to take him by a wheel. So much fun! Rick came across in 7th and Brian won the field sprint = success for Team Extreme!

picture courtesy of Brittany Nigh

In the last post I forgot to include my newest client on the MTB scene. It's not all about Comp & Elite. Sorry Mike.  His first WORS race ended up with a 47th place finish out of 140 starters. Pretty awesome way to kick start a new hobby.  I think the road bike is now taking a back seat to the MTB

photos courtesy of Brittany Nigh

I have 5 coaching clients racing the Wisconsin Off Road Series for 2010. Interestingly enough, 3 of them have moved up from Sport to the Comp (Cat 2) class this year, one is back in Comp, and the last is flying solo in Elite (Cat 1). Although I don’t provide names unless given permission, here’s how the season has went so far for this group of 5:

Elite Male = 2 races completed, 2 finishes in the top 10, currently top 8 overall

Comp 1 = 2 races, 2 solid finishes, 2^nd in age group

Comp 2 = 2 races, 2 wins in his division, 1^st in that group

Comp 3 = 2 races, solid improvement trend, 8^th in a stacked age group

Comp 4 = 1 race, OK finish with the best yet to come

Off to a great start for 2010. I can’t say enough about how much Comp #2 has improved from last year. His commitment to training smart, along with some equipment upgrades, has made for a huge improvement. Although, the same could be said for all of these guys. It also takes time to put the pieces together after moving up to a higher category. Pretty awesome start to the season!

With the recent releases of the 2nd edition of Training & Racing with a Power Meter (text) and version 3.0 of WKO+ (software) there also comes the added complexity of some new tools. These tools are designed to better utilize power data for prescribing future training based on strengths, weaknesses, and limiters; to improve future racing fitness & results. They include Multi-file Analysis, Quadrant Analysis, Scatter Diagrams, and Fatigue Profiling. I have been working diligently to get my head wrapped around these new tools in order to better assist my coaching clients. Daily progress is being made

The "Tool of the Day" is Fatigue Profiling. This one currently has my full attention. I always thought there was something lacking in Power Profiling because it seemed to not address fatigue resistance unless 60 minute time trials were added (not many clients wanted to do this one). Coupling Fatigue Profiling with the Power Profiling provides me with a tool that allows for better determination of Strengths/Weaknesses/Limiters; better than only using peak power over the chosen durations (5 sec, 1 min, 5 min, 20 min) via. Power Profiling. In all reality, it dissects the Mean Maximal Power Curve to make it more meaningful.

My coaching services are set up ala carte. Basic coaching provides a client with a monthly plan along with weekly interaction based on necessary changes & performance to plan. I also review any significant power files. Most clients believe that this service is a great value in coaching (relative to the $80/month fee, less if a current member of a sponsored team). So with that being said, I'd like to apply Fatigue Profiling to current clients for a nominal fee of $25. This will be about  a 1 hour long process for me. It will provide both of us (coach & client) further insight on what's best for future training. Please let me know if you're interested in learning more. Thanks for reading!