To the Races?

I've been thinking about whether or not to do any road racing this year. I should explain that I'm not a road racer. I'm really not much of any kind of racer, getting into the game far too late in life to be serious about any of it. But I've had a couple fun seasons in the Master B cross races, and had almost as much fun in a few short track mountain bike races last summer. I also did a handful (as in 5) of road races last year. As a 48-year old cat-5 rider, maybe I'm using "race" rather loosely. We were all breathing hard and trying to get to the front or avoid being dropped, and I pretty much held my mid-pack own while avoiding crashing or taking anyone else out. But the kind of tactics and form and teamwork practiced by guys who are "real" racers were in pretty short supply in the cat 5's.

My first road race was the Piece of Cake race in Woodland WA. I remember two things about this race. One was how, despite the sprint at the finish - where I finished somewhere near the rear of the main pack - I felt fresher than I ever remember feeling after riding 30+ miles. The second was how frustrating it was to want to move up, to feel like I had the legs to move up, but to be boxed in for miles and unable to find the room - or maybe the nerve? - to squeeze forward. I finished in the same place I was stuck in for over half the race. I also learned my sprint sucks.

My next 4 road races were really more like crits, without the tight corners or crashes. The Mount Tabor series was where I first learned you really can fall over from exhaustion and after a hard race you really do taste blood. But the 400+ feet of climbing/descending per 1.3 mile loop tends to string the pack out quickly, so there's not much blocking and it's hard for anyone to control the pace in a race lasting only 40 minutes. Which is not to say it was fun, exactly, but there was a kind of satisfaction for me in seeing how long I could stay in before getting dropped.

In OBRA, the rules for moving up from cat 5 to 4 are pretty simple: 10 mass-start races (time trials don't count). I'm half-way there regardless of how I place. And I really can't imagine getting beyond Cat 4. The 3's scare me - testosterone seems to be at least as important as talent in their races, and smiles are rare but fiery crashes common.

But cat-ing up seems like a dumb reason to race. I mean, I'm all about goals and everything, but if I'm not really having fun, and I'm not making the world a better place, what's the point? That's where I'm at. Here's some reasons why I may not road race.

1 - Money. It cost $20-$30 per race. On my self-imposed allowance, that's 1/4 or more of my spending money for the month. A couple races could get me one of these. And it's not like I can't just go out and ride for free anyway. I'm not winning anything - which was never the point anyway. And if I do race I'm on my cross bike (with disc brakes) which gets some funny looks, though others have made it work. But a dedicated road race bike is more money than I can even think about spending right now, even if I build up some old steel frame from scrounged parts.

2 - Crashing. It happens, often and quickly. I've passed guys lying under a bike or cradling a broken clavicle. Six weeks in a sling unable to put weight on my arm would suck, and seriously mess up my commute and family life. My rib injury from practicing in the dirt this last fall was enough for me this year. I heal well, but I'm not young and rubbery any more either.

3 - Desire. Road racing is kind of weird. Hanging out in a pack for an hour for the opportunity to sprint 200 yards. Compared to mtb and cross races, roadies are a grim lot. I like the idea of the culture, like I like the idea of being in U2, but I suspect it doesn't fit me very well. I'm serious enough sitting in a chair all alone. I need leisure activities that relax my shoulders, and road racing doesn't do that.

But on the other shoulder, this voice whispers:

1 - Teamwork. Road racing is a team sport. Being a domestique, helping place a teammate with fresh legs in the sprint, is part of the craft and worth learning. Maybe I have something to contribute. And there's no denying the fluid beauty of a well-oiled paceline. Only roadies get it.

2 - Sport. I am competitive. I don't celebrate it, and in fact it's a bit embarassing, but if I'm honest with myself I realize it just IS. I look at my race placement. I take it seriously and I analyze every race to figure out what went right and, more often, where I can improve. This could be seen as a negative as well. My wife sees it that way. But I have to admit I'm goal oriented and that's part of the appeal.

Right now, I'm leaning pretty strongly away from the fast and furious and more toward long and slow.

Three Good Days

I needed this three-day weekend. Feeling stretched thin and dog-tired. Fighting the bug that laid my poor girls out for a week. Dug out a couple ancient rhododendron stumps out to make room for fruit trees. Flowers are nice, but I want to grow something I can eat; we're thinking maybe a fig and an Asian pear? I also went for a long run, and joined a team mate for a couple hours on a mountain bike in the mud of Forest Park. It felt good to do some riding that was out of my usual element. I'm still too tentative on downhills, but the practice was good and he was patient with me.

I've recently found myself uninspired by my bike commute. Normally, this time is precious to me, when I clear my head, fill my lungs, and get tuned into the weather of the day, or coming home when I unwind from a day spent with hormonal and awkward adolescents. Maybe it's the Coho, which seems worse this winter. Or maybe the cold rain we had last week, or the weeks or riding both ways in the dark, shoulders tensed by traffic and icy patches. Even my bike seemed weary, groaning and creaking pitifully. I suspected some drivetrain malady and took it in for a diagnosis. "Your chain is beyond stretched." was the verdict. So another thing I did this weekend was some bike doctoring. I installed a new chain, recycled a pretty decent Shimano 600 6-speed freewheel. overhauled the hubs, and replaced the cables, housing, and brake pads. Now it rides like a new bike, but cheaper. And the past two days have been glorious; clear and windless, frosty in the morning, and just a hint that any day now the sun will crest the horizon before I get to work. My bike is purring happily as well.

As I pulled around the back of the building this morning, looking down at the football field I saw this:

Daybreak, gulls face east

gilded by the sun's first flame

in a frost-bound field

I also got out for a Valentine's day date with T for brunch at the Country Cat, and our own little economic stimulus pilgrimage. Now I know I've recently been preaching the virtues of saving and I'm not backing away from that. Indeed, part of me wants to see the economy tank even further in the belief that, like an alcoholic who has to hit bottom before he can begin recovery, our economy is not yet at a place where those in charge will acknowledge the folly of a system dependent on consumer debt. However, the government cut us a check last week. Or rather, returned the part of our taxes owed back to us, and we spent part of it on a new camera. The old Canon died on us just before Christmas, and T has been talking for over two years about getting a "real" camera that takes better pictures than the dinky point & shoot we've relied on. I think we made a good decision.

It's been a revelation how much we've been missing. Colors are vivid and skin looks alive, not pasty or washed out, and we can capture motion instead of complaining about blur. With three kids who are growing up too quickly, it's a purchase I don't feel guilty about making. It helped that we were able to get a good deal from a local company instead of going the online or big-box route. I'm trying to keep my money close to home, even if a bunch of it eventually goes to a Chinese camera factory.

I also tried to get one of these so I could make one of these. Almost pulled the trigger because I thought I had a big team discount at River City, but it turns out the discount I hoped for didn't apply to "bikes and frames" which the xtracycle apparently is - because you attach a wheel to it. And feeling cheap and stubborn, I balked at the lesser discount they offered. I'm regretting it, a little, but we're getting closer to the transformation from THIS

To THIS

Finally, as February wears on, the allowance envelope was getting thin. I was down to my last $14 and was unsure if it would be enough for the new M Ward which was released Tuesday. So that night, after washing up the dinner dishes I did what any desperate music fan would do - scrounged up some cans and headed to Safeway. 4 dollars richer I figured I could swing the purchase and skip the lattes until the end of the month. Even better, MM had it on sale, (My 30+ year love affair with Music Millennium, and my regrets for straying in search of better prices at Best Buy/Target/Amazon I'll save for another post) so I took a look through the used bin and found this. T and I had just been talking about Tapestry at dinner - how it's one of those seminal albums that I never actually owned, probably because in my younger days I just wasn't into "chick" music. Now that I have a wife and 2 daughters who are big fans of the Gilmore Girls, and I listen to the lyrics more than I used to, so I've developed an appreciation for some music that I used to ridicule. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac is another example - I can remember in high school how much the music nerds I hung out with hated them (though I'll bet more than one had a Stevie Nicks poster in his bedroom.) Now I see Rumours for the masterpiece it is, and though I still don't much care for Stevie Nicks, I have to admit that "Dreams" is a pretty decent piece of writing for a 28-year old heartbroken coke-head. And Lindsey Buckingham was - and is - a genius.