talk about nerves. after having gone through the emotional up and downs of canada just two weeks ago, was so looking forward to an easy race day in the dalles. wrong! having won aluminum man last year, and being panic sticken most of the race after taking the lead, i had more butterflies in the old belly than i did for ironman. turns out i REALLY wanted to repeat. last year i had a good swim, a great bike, and a fast enough run to hold off the rest of the field. this year, exactly the same. it was a perfect day for racing. sunny, warm, and not a stich of wind. the columbia river was a sheet of glass and the perfect temperature.
swim is short in the dalles. starts with a running beach start which is an absolute blast. you end up running about 100 yards or so before finally diving in. everytime i looked up i was towards the front of the pack and right on line. no corrective strokes needed, just a good comfortable swim and in position to make a move on the bike.
t1, good. had a great spot for bike and could see most of the other tsunamis in transition - they had all finished right ahead of me in the swim. always very cool to have the boys around!
bike was awesome! i don't know what it is about this bike course, but it just fits me perfectly. it is a rolling course, nothing steep up or down and some good flat stretches. pavement is mostly great too. came out of water in 12th place, passed a couple guys in transition, and started picking them off pretty quick on the bike. just before the turn-around, i passed the final guy (another IM Canada finisher) and it's just me and the lead truck. last year, this scared the shit out of me and i spent the entire rest of the race thinking of horrible things that could happen. this year, i couldn't wait to get in front! felt great in the lead and knew i had to hammer the second half, build a big lead, and then hold on for the run with my legs still a bit fried from ironman. averaged 25.6mph on the bike and had about a 3 minute lead going into the run.
t2, solid. just under 50 seconds, no problems with shoes, gear, etc and best of all - nobody around!
run was all guts. not one step felt good, but i knew that would be the case. had absolutely blistered the bike knowing i wouldn't have much to run with. kept telling myself that i only had 20 minutes. after 12 hours, dude, 20 minutes is nothing! no looking back but knew i still had a big lead at the turn-around. 2nd half of the run, i knew i had it locked up and was able to relax a little bit. ended up doing a 20:30 5k, only about 20 seconds slower than last year and total race time was 1:08:26, went 1:08:22 last year so am pretty consistent on that course!
both on the bike and the run, got tons of encouragement - not only from fellow tsunamis but lots of other racers too. feels pretty cool, never having won much of anything growing up, to be able to have a little glory as an adult, even if it's just a small race in the dalles. as always, was super proud of the rest of the crew as well. nearly everyone took age-group podium spots and absolutely everyone had bright spots in their race to build off for 2009! Best of all, everyone had fun. this is one cool team and an absolute joy to be around...
Monday, September 8, 2008
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
canada - 1 j-hy - 0
my only regret is that the guy didn't say "jeremy hyatt, you are an ironman." while he announced brad and i together as being from portland oregon he forgot that one important thing. the reason for the training, suffering, sacrafice, pain, you name it. i was left to fill that part in on my own and i kept saying it over and over!
racing canada was an amazing experience. there are a hundred goals you have, what you consider will make it a perfect day, what will be acceptable, what is failure. while this wasn't the "perfect" day, it was way more than acceptable. left me healthy, happy, and wanting more. here's how it shook down...
morning
arrived at race site roughly 6am, race at 7am. not much time to get nervous. get your shit together and let's go. perfect. after making final bike check we got wetsuits on, place last minute things in transition bags, and headed down to the water. kept my eyes peeled as my family had a made a last minute surprise trip to penticton. found them up on the shore, got a thumbs-up from pop, and me and the boys were ready to go. george, brad, and i all started in the same spot. about three rows from the front and right about in the middle. 2500 people lined up in the cove right behind us. there are several minutes before the gun (or cannon in this case) goes off that you're left in your own head. if you've ever done one of these for the first time, you probably know what i'm talking about. what's about to happen to me? when's this damn thing gonna start?
swim 1:08:41
first couple hundred yards, easy. smooth sailing, no fighting, just cruising. and then all hell breaks loose. as expected, i am finally in the midst of hundreds of thrashing bodies. 2500 people all going to the same spot. i am now being kicked, pulled, smacked, yanked, submerged. everything coming from a different direction. even though you know it's coming, you ain't ready that first time. patience gets you through. surprisingly i find clean water and hang there for a long time. can see people all around me, can see buoys. we're set, yeah? well...not so fast. 3 or 4 more times, without rhyme or reason, i get pummled. swimming along comfortably and then, BAM, getting hammered. patience gets you through. just ride it out and they'll go away. and they do, every time. thought i could swim a comfortable 1:07 / 1:08 and did exactly that. starting thinking at the first turn i had never swam that far before. no problem, shut up head.
T1 5:06
typically i am pretty fast in transition. 5:06 is not pretty fast. as you exit, strippers (not what you're thinking) pull your suit off and hand it to you and then you grab your transition bag and head to the change tent to get ready for bike. with the exception of hitting port-a-potty, not sure what happened here. felt like i was moving faster than that? goal was to be on the bike before 8:15am, quick check of watch before grabbing bike - 8:13am. perfect. mom and dad on the fence right by my bike. perfect.
Bike 5:35:21
been looking forward to this. every since the boys and i came up here to train i have been looking forward to doing this bike course again. it's beautiful, balanced, and one big loop. while pace seems to be where i want, effort feels harder than i want and i keep wondering if i'm going too hard, losing too much time, eating enough, drinking enough. i have a plan and i'm sticking to it, enough said. shut up head. first big climb up richter pass goes well, 7 rollers to follow go really well, finding my legs now, final climb to yellow lake not as great. getting tired, back tight, looking forward to run? seriously, shut up head. at the top of yellow lake, the crowd is lined up on both sides of the road - similar to what i saw in italy at the giro. it's an amazing feeling, empowering, amazing. final decent to town i spot my folks outside their hotel. they have a sign but i'm in the aeros, going 30+mph, and have no idea what it says. hell, they barely know it's me. goal was to be off the bike and running before 2pm...
T2 3:45
again, slower than i had thought. i guess part of this is getting down logistics. disappointed with my times in transition but easy to correct. catchers take bike, i grab T2 bag and get ready for run. 2 wonderful ladies rub sunscreen all over me and i'm off, only 2nd look at my watch all day and it's 1:52pm. 8 minutes ahead of 2pm and a 4:07 marathon away from goal of breaking 11 hours. easy right? shut up head.
Run 5:17:11
yeah. nothing comes easy at ironman. starting off on the run everything feels great. no pain in feet or legs, turnover good, keep telling myself to slow down and pace better. hit the first few aid stations, walk for a second to get good drink, then keep trucking. fighting running too fast. know brad is ahead of me, george and roland behind me somewhere. as we hit the lake, there's a pretty strong headwind. really strong actually. helps slow down pace. still running station to station and taking a short walk at each one to get drink and / or food. mile 8 - walking through the aid station and i spot brad. he's sitting on a tractor (i'm not even lying) and tells me he's done. "no you're not" i say. "get up, let's go". seems brad's blistering 5:09 bike has left him a bit worse for wear. kids. for the next several hours, brad and i plod along. sometimes he picks a target and says let's run at that sign. sometimes i pick. mostly i count. for the better part of 4 hours i count 100 steps as we run, 50 steps as we walk. i point at things for him to eat, tell him when to get up off the curb. he's done, yeah. but he ain't quitting. about 20 miles in he starts to feel better and we actually start running a bit more. we pick up another buddy from portland for a while, meet some new friends, exchange words with the crowds, etc. coming home at ironman is pretty emotional. having one of your best friends at your side, really cool. knowing your other 2 boys are in and feeling great, really really cool.
as a coach, i couldn't be prouder of the crew. they did all the work, played well together, put up with my shit, and finished what they started. interesting how everything works out in the end. ultimately, i wanted to finish and have all the boys with me or ahead of me. as much as we joke, i don't care about beating them. i do like to push them.
along the way you learn a few things about yourself. what you could have done better in training. that you're prone to violence when someone cheers "you're almost there" 8 miles into a marathon, and that at anytime you can run 100 steps. if you break it up into 100 steps, things seem a bit easier.
thanks to everyone who helped, supported, motivated, and advised along the way. it was pretty cool. everyone's results can be found on the blog, my office door, or at www.ironman.com.
racing canada was an amazing experience. there are a hundred goals you have, what you consider will make it a perfect day, what will be acceptable, what is failure. while this wasn't the "perfect" day, it was way more than acceptable. left me healthy, happy, and wanting more. here's how it shook down...
morning
arrived at race site roughly 6am, race at 7am. not much time to get nervous. get your shit together and let's go. perfect. after making final bike check we got wetsuits on, place last minute things in transition bags, and headed down to the water. kept my eyes peeled as my family had a made a last minute surprise trip to penticton. found them up on the shore, got a thumbs-up from pop, and me and the boys were ready to go. george, brad, and i all started in the same spot. about three rows from the front and right about in the middle. 2500 people lined up in the cove right behind us. there are several minutes before the gun (or cannon in this case) goes off that you're left in your own head. if you've ever done one of these for the first time, you probably know what i'm talking about. what's about to happen to me? when's this damn thing gonna start?
swim 1:08:41
first couple hundred yards, easy. smooth sailing, no fighting, just cruising. and then all hell breaks loose. as expected, i am finally in the midst of hundreds of thrashing bodies. 2500 people all going to the same spot. i am now being kicked, pulled, smacked, yanked, submerged. everything coming from a different direction. even though you know it's coming, you ain't ready that first time. patience gets you through. surprisingly i find clean water and hang there for a long time. can see people all around me, can see buoys. we're set, yeah? well...not so fast. 3 or 4 more times, without rhyme or reason, i get pummled. swimming along comfortably and then, BAM, getting hammered. patience gets you through. just ride it out and they'll go away. and they do, every time. thought i could swim a comfortable 1:07 / 1:08 and did exactly that. starting thinking at the first turn i had never swam that far before. no problem, shut up head.
T1 5:06
typically i am pretty fast in transition. 5:06 is not pretty fast. as you exit, strippers (not what you're thinking) pull your suit off and hand it to you and then you grab your transition bag and head to the change tent to get ready for bike. with the exception of hitting port-a-potty, not sure what happened here. felt like i was moving faster than that? goal was to be on the bike before 8:15am, quick check of watch before grabbing bike - 8:13am. perfect. mom and dad on the fence right by my bike. perfect.
Bike 5:35:21
been looking forward to this. every since the boys and i came up here to train i have been looking forward to doing this bike course again. it's beautiful, balanced, and one big loop. while pace seems to be where i want, effort feels harder than i want and i keep wondering if i'm going too hard, losing too much time, eating enough, drinking enough. i have a plan and i'm sticking to it, enough said. shut up head. first big climb up richter pass goes well, 7 rollers to follow go really well, finding my legs now, final climb to yellow lake not as great. getting tired, back tight, looking forward to run? seriously, shut up head. at the top of yellow lake, the crowd is lined up on both sides of the road - similar to what i saw in italy at the giro. it's an amazing feeling, empowering, amazing. final decent to town i spot my folks outside their hotel. they have a sign but i'm in the aeros, going 30+mph, and have no idea what it says. hell, they barely know it's me. goal was to be off the bike and running before 2pm...
T2 3:45
again, slower than i had thought. i guess part of this is getting down logistics. disappointed with my times in transition but easy to correct. catchers take bike, i grab T2 bag and get ready for run. 2 wonderful ladies rub sunscreen all over me and i'm off, only 2nd look at my watch all day and it's 1:52pm. 8 minutes ahead of 2pm and a 4:07 marathon away from goal of breaking 11 hours. easy right? shut up head.
Run 5:17:11
yeah. nothing comes easy at ironman. starting off on the run everything feels great. no pain in feet or legs, turnover good, keep telling myself to slow down and pace better. hit the first few aid stations, walk for a second to get good drink, then keep trucking. fighting running too fast. know brad is ahead of me, george and roland behind me somewhere. as we hit the lake, there's a pretty strong headwind. really strong actually. helps slow down pace. still running station to station and taking a short walk at each one to get drink and / or food. mile 8 - walking through the aid station and i spot brad. he's sitting on a tractor (i'm not even lying) and tells me he's done. "no you're not" i say. "get up, let's go". seems brad's blistering 5:09 bike has left him a bit worse for wear. kids. for the next several hours, brad and i plod along. sometimes he picks a target and says let's run at that sign. sometimes i pick. mostly i count. for the better part of 4 hours i count 100 steps as we run, 50 steps as we walk. i point at things for him to eat, tell him when to get up off the curb. he's done, yeah. but he ain't quitting. about 20 miles in he starts to feel better and we actually start running a bit more. we pick up another buddy from portland for a while, meet some new friends, exchange words with the crowds, etc. coming home at ironman is pretty emotional. having one of your best friends at your side, really cool. knowing your other 2 boys are in and feeling great, really really cool.
as a coach, i couldn't be prouder of the crew. they did all the work, played well together, put up with my shit, and finished what they started. interesting how everything works out in the end. ultimately, i wanted to finish and have all the boys with me or ahead of me. as much as we joke, i don't care about beating them. i do like to push them.
along the way you learn a few things about yourself. what you could have done better in training. that you're prone to violence when someone cheers "you're almost there" 8 miles into a marathon, and that at anytime you can run 100 steps. if you break it up into 100 steps, things seem a bit easier.
thanks to everyone who helped, supported, motivated, and advised along the way. it was pretty cool. everyone's results can be found on the blog, my office door, or at www.ironman.com.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
in canada, eh!
sorry, that will be the last time i use the canadian cliche. promise. drove into pentcton today and set a p.r. on the drive. hopefully the sign of fast things to come and a sign you should never underestimate the power of the subaru! the boys arrived yesterday and we're scattered all over the okanagan valley but will hook up in the morning for a workout and find something to do for the next three days...
staying at the empire motel, and if that conjures up visions of royalty, think again. there are hearts everywhere. everywhere! i am feeling very loved. speaking of loved, i would like to thank all who have sent well wishes, cards, care packages, cd's, etc. it was awesome having all that support as i left town and will be thinking about all of you as i muddle around this course sunday.
tomorrow, we'll get together for a swim in the race lake (penticton is nestled between 2 lakes) and go for a small run to shake out the drive legs. the lake has dropped 10 degrees after a big storm here yesterday and is now being compared to wickiup reservoir. headache, numb hands cold. ugh. glad i brought both wetsuits although still hoping to go sleeveless. we'll just have to see what shakes down over the next couple days.
if you've never been here, it is a beautiful place. canadian wine country, lakes everywhere. beautiful mountains, high desert. the bike course is tough, but crazy scenic - go to google images and search spotted lake!
thanks again for all your support. can't wait to share stories as the week, the race, and the days to follow unfold!
staying at the empire motel, and if that conjures up visions of royalty, think again. there are hearts everywhere. everywhere! i am feeling very loved. speaking of loved, i would like to thank all who have sent well wishes, cards, care packages, cd's, etc. it was awesome having all that support as i left town and will be thinking about all of you as i muddle around this course sunday.
tomorrow, we'll get together for a swim in the race lake (penticton is nestled between 2 lakes) and go for a small run to shake out the drive legs. the lake has dropped 10 degrees after a big storm here yesterday and is now being compared to wickiup reservoir. headache, numb hands cold. ugh. glad i brought both wetsuits although still hoping to go sleeveless. we'll just have to see what shakes down over the next couple days.
if you've never been here, it is a beautiful place. canadian wine country, lakes everywhere. beautiful mountains, high desert. the bike course is tough, but crazy scenic - go to google images and search spotted lake!
thanks again for all your support. can't wait to share stories as the week, the race, and the days to follow unfold!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
final thoughts...
went low-tech towards the end of the trip, so this will be the last entry and will cover a few days...
after the motorolo, we packed it up and headed to milan. had the chance to see the final day time trial on sunday and it was pretty tight in the race - contador, the spaniard, leading ricco, the italian, by just 4 seconds so there was a lot of anticipation. the lead-up to the race was hilarious, they know how to put on a show over there but the race itself was not what it could have been. contrador dropped the hammer, beating ricco by minutes in the time trial and it never really being close. still, an amazing event and the trip of a lifetime.
the rest of our time in milan we got to sightsee finally, saw the domo (church) and the galleria (shopping) and both were amazing and that night heard the milan symphony live in the piazza domo (church plaza). wow.
i am not quite sure what else to say about this trip. it was the trip of a lifetime! i am so greatful to all of you who helped make this possible, i can't even begin to say thanks enough. know that coach was happy to have the chance to do that, and so proud of the boys i brought me. we're planning our next in 2010, start saving (and training!) now - you won't want to miss this!
after the motorolo, we packed it up and headed to milan. had the chance to see the final day time trial on sunday and it was pretty tight in the race - contador, the spaniard, leading ricco, the italian, by just 4 seconds so there was a lot of anticipation. the lead-up to the race was hilarious, they know how to put on a show over there but the race itself was not what it could have been. contrador dropped the hammer, beating ricco by minutes in the time trial and it never really being close. still, an amazing event and the trip of a lifetime.
the rest of our time in milan we got to sightsee finally, saw the domo (church) and the galleria (shopping) and both were amazing and that night heard the milan symphony live in the piazza domo (church plaza). wow.
i am not quite sure what else to say about this trip. it was the trip of a lifetime! i am so greatful to all of you who helped make this possible, i can't even begin to say thanks enough. know that coach was happy to have the chance to do that, and so proud of the boys i brought me. we're planning our next in 2010, start saving (and training!) now - you won't want to miss this!
Saturday, May 31, 2008
failure and glory
and on the seventh day it rained...and rained, and snowed, and hailed, and there was thunder and lightening. and did i mention it rained? after 6 days of flawless weather, the passo stelvia proved to be the lightening rod. literally. 70k to the start and then the prospect of 6000 ft. of climbing in weather that was as bad as i have ever seen. couldn't see through glasses, was dropping temperature, and we were still in the valley. the passo stelvia loomed high overhead and the portland boys bailed. ugh. yeah. we jumped in the van for a ride to the top. as did about half the group. the half that didn't looked misearable every mile. reassuring us that our choice was right. at the top, they were frostbite, shaking, ghosts. we were at least dry, although the temp at the top was 1 degree celcius. felt misearable the rest of the day. not for the cold, but for stopping. hard to swallow. right choice at the time but you always wonder...
today we had revenge. after our firs night in a new town, bormio, we rode about 40k downhill to matzo and the start of the motorolo. the motorolo is ranked the third hardest climb in europe although doing it fresh was not as bad as we thought. 12k to the top. the middle 6k average over 14%, yeah that's steep. the first and last 3k average over 10% and that seems flat compared to the middle which reaches 18-20% too many times. weather was great again today, really amazing that we had one day of rain! racing to the top, gilden showed his dominance on climbs over 10%. it is no question that that man can climb some steep shit. anything under 10% and i kill him. anything over, he kills me. period. based on the fact that we have climbed so much stuff over 10% this trip...gilden gets the portland polka dot jersey! i had a hard time writing that, but he earned it. tom, i must say, was amazing. ths guy has only been riding a year and conqueered the best the dolomites had to offer. really amazing, and i couldn't be prouder as a coach and as a friend.
as for this trip. not much to say. the best riding in the world. easy. the best staff in the world. easy. the best friends in the world. easy. wish i could share this with everyone reading this, we have already started planning our next trip...2010!
tomorrow to milan and the final time trial and maybe one more blog before i have to come home. get to come home? come home. period.
ciao!
today we had revenge. after our firs night in a new town, bormio, we rode about 40k downhill to matzo and the start of the motorolo. the motorolo is ranked the third hardest climb in europe although doing it fresh was not as bad as we thought. 12k to the top. the middle 6k average over 14%, yeah that's steep. the first and last 3k average over 10% and that seems flat compared to the middle which reaches 18-20% too many times. weather was great again today, really amazing that we had one day of rain! racing to the top, gilden showed his dominance on climbs over 10%. it is no question that that man can climb some steep shit. anything under 10% and i kill him. anything over, he kills me. period. based on the fact that we have climbed so much stuff over 10% this trip...gilden gets the portland polka dot jersey! i had a hard time writing that, but he earned it. tom, i must say, was amazing. ths guy has only been riding a year and conqueered the best the dolomites had to offer. really amazing, and i couldn't be prouder as a coach and as a friend.
as for this trip. not much to say. the best riding in the world. easy. the best staff in the world. easy. the best friends in the world. easy. wish i could share this with everyone reading this, we have already started planning our next trip...2010!
tomorrow to milan and the final time trial and maybe one more blog before i have to come home. get to come home? come home. period.
ciao!
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Ah Bolzano!
bon jorno (that is misspelled beyond belief, sorry)
we are in bolzano again today, nestled in a warm valley between the dolomites and the alps. weather, muggy and high 80's. ride, easy 50k through the valley. a small road running between pear orchards about 4 bikes wide (or one bike and one big truck). all flat and easy tempo. a great way to recover the legs which surprisingly are feeling like legs again.
we've done a little shopping, eaten well, and allison as expected is visiting the ice-man. one thing about bolzano that was readily apparent - there are more beautiful women per city block than anywhere in the world. both classic italian and german / austrian blonde hair blue eyes, but they're everywhere. if i come back to italy with a date - we'll go to lake garda. if i come back with nathan - we're straight to bolzano!
as we're nestled in this valley, that means there is only one way to get out - so tomorrow is back to business. we'll climb another classic, the passo stelvia and then saturday is the motorolo. another tour stage there and the third hardest climb in europe. great. tomorrow's climb has 10k that average over 12%. i wouldn't think it was possible if we hadn't already done what we've done. still ain't gonna be easy.
rest of today is napping, watch the tour in german or italian, and have some dinner...keeping off the feet as much as possible.
ciao!
we are in bolzano again today, nestled in a warm valley between the dolomites and the alps. weather, muggy and high 80's. ride, easy 50k through the valley. a small road running between pear orchards about 4 bikes wide (or one bike and one big truck). all flat and easy tempo. a great way to recover the legs which surprisingly are feeling like legs again.
we've done a little shopping, eaten well, and allison as expected is visiting the ice-man. one thing about bolzano that was readily apparent - there are more beautiful women per city block than anywhere in the world. both classic italian and german / austrian blonde hair blue eyes, but they're everywhere. if i come back to italy with a date - we'll go to lake garda. if i come back with nathan - we're straight to bolzano!
as we're nestled in this valley, that means there is only one way to get out - so tomorrow is back to business. we'll climb another classic, the passo stelvia and then saturday is the motorolo. another tour stage there and the third hardest climb in europe. great. tomorrow's climb has 10k that average over 12%. i wouldn't think it was possible if we hadn't already done what we've done. still ain't gonna be easy.
rest of today is napping, watch the tour in german or italian, and have some dinner...keeping off the feet as much as possible.
ciao!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
san pelligrino
and here i thought it was just a nice mineral water i get down at the QFC...
first, let me apologize in advance as i am on the third different type of keyboard this week. if you have never travelled in europe, each country seems to have a different idea about how these things should be arranged. it took me four minutes to find the '@' (that time it only took me three...) and in german keyboards (more on that in a minute) they have switched the z and the y around. ugh.
today was the hottest yet and a 'transfer day' meaning we moved from our first hotel in alleghe to bolzano. when peter 'transfers' a group, he doesn't do it the easy way. covered about 90k, the first 20 or so down into the town of chechequene and then the start of the pelligrino. 18k, the first 10 at about 4-6%, the next 5 at 12-14% and an easy little 1-2% stretch to finish up. from the top down to the town of Moena and a lunch stop and then climbed the passo castalongo (not to be confused with the campolongo we did the other day). another tough day of climbing although only about 7000 ft. or so and the reward was a 30k descent into bolzano. yes, brad, 30k straight down hill! the only time you pedaled was to go from fast to really really fast or (don't read this mom) to pass busses on the wrong side of the road.
bolzano is cool. very hip with boutiques and young people running around looking fabulous, but we are very close to germany and there is more german history here than italian. german is actually the main lanquage - i'll explain sometime how to survive in germany on two words a day and a weird keyboard. remember the 'ice man' they found about 10 years ago...well, he's here too and there is no doubt what allison will be doing tomorrow.
we, alas, have a rest day tomorrow. 50k through apple and pear orchards along a river and all FLAT! no one is complaining. friday and saturday are the biggest yet, so the rest will be valuable indeed.
here's something to think about. we are averaging about 7.5 hours of bike time a day. when many of you go to work, imagine parking your buns on a saddle instead. when you leave work, we'll have just finished riding. it's kinda amazing that dan, tom, and i are doing this mostly on spin classes and the occassional weekend ride! must have a good teacher :)
ciao!
first, let me apologize in advance as i am on the third different type of keyboard this week. if you have never travelled in europe, each country seems to have a different idea about how these things should be arranged. it took me four minutes to find the '@' (that time it only took me three...) and in german keyboards (more on that in a minute) they have switched the z and the y around. ugh.
today was the hottest yet and a 'transfer day' meaning we moved from our first hotel in alleghe to bolzano. when peter 'transfers' a group, he doesn't do it the easy way. covered about 90k, the first 20 or so down into the town of chechequene and then the start of the pelligrino. 18k, the first 10 at about 4-6%, the next 5 at 12-14% and an easy little 1-2% stretch to finish up. from the top down to the town of Moena and a lunch stop and then climbed the passo castalongo (not to be confused with the campolongo we did the other day). another tough day of climbing although only about 7000 ft. or so and the reward was a 30k descent into bolzano. yes, brad, 30k straight down hill! the only time you pedaled was to go from fast to really really fast or (don't read this mom) to pass busses on the wrong side of the road.
bolzano is cool. very hip with boutiques and young people running around looking fabulous, but we are very close to germany and there is more german history here than italian. german is actually the main lanquage - i'll explain sometime how to survive in germany on two words a day and a weird keyboard. remember the 'ice man' they found about 10 years ago...well, he's here too and there is no doubt what allison will be doing tomorrow.
we, alas, have a rest day tomorrow. 50k through apple and pear orchards along a river and all FLAT! no one is complaining. friday and saturday are the biggest yet, so the rest will be valuable indeed.
here's something to think about. we are averaging about 7.5 hours of bike time a day. when many of you go to work, imagine parking your buns on a saddle instead. when you leave work, we'll have just finished riding. it's kinda amazing that dan, tom, and i are doing this mostly on spin classes and the occassional weekend ride! must have a good teacher :)
ciao!
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
The Classics...
First a question. If italians are so great at all these fine things, cars, wine, art and they are so none for their lovers, why can't they make a decent bed? In two trips to italy i have yet to sleep on anything more than a board? just curious, they're also really bad at toilet paper dispensers...enough of the whining.
Today was the Sella Ronda, a classic italian climb. only problem is that yesterday we climbed one of the four passes that make up the sella (campolongo) so today we altered a bit for variety. first the passo podoi, another absolute monster, 7 miles to the top and averaging about 8%. then the passo sella and the passo gardena, and then the alternate, the passo valporola. the middle two, anywhere else, would be tough climbs - at this point they're getting easy? the valporola - another monster. 14k to the top with 10-13% stretches for the final 4 miles. the best reward, yeah the views are nice too, is the descents. the roads here are in miraculously good condition and your tires stick to the road very well. i have been (don't read this mom) things on a bike i never imagined and feeling extremely comfortable the whole time. i have no computer on my bike but am sure i have hit stuff that brad would be proud of and can hang with the best riders in the group - former racers and current cat 1 guys. climbing is a different story and they're nice enough to wait for me at the top!
the weather today is the best yet. not a cloud to be seen, the temps in the 60's, the views endless and awesome.
some have wondered about dan. he's holding up extremely well for an old guy! he climbed extremely strong the first three days and was in complete control of the portland polka dot jersey but got his ass handed to him today by the coach so we'll see how things go tomorrow.
more amazing things to say, like the 4 italian words i have learned that seem to get me anything i need but it's time to put the feet up and enjoy some cold pinot grigio after another big day.
ciao!
Today was the Sella Ronda, a classic italian climb. only problem is that yesterday we climbed one of the four passes that make up the sella (campolongo) so today we altered a bit for variety. first the passo podoi, another absolute monster, 7 miles to the top and averaging about 8%. then the passo sella and the passo gardena, and then the alternate, the passo valporola. the middle two, anywhere else, would be tough climbs - at this point they're getting easy? the valporola - another monster. 14k to the top with 10-13% stretches for the final 4 miles. the best reward, yeah the views are nice too, is the descents. the roads here are in miraculously good condition and your tires stick to the road very well. i have been (don't read this mom) things on a bike i never imagined and feeling extremely comfortable the whole time. i have no computer on my bike but am sure i have hit stuff that brad would be proud of and can hang with the best riders in the group - former racers and current cat 1 guys. climbing is a different story and they're nice enough to wait for me at the top!
the weather today is the best yet. not a cloud to be seen, the temps in the 60's, the views endless and awesome.
some have wondered about dan. he's holding up extremely well for an old guy! he climbed extremely strong the first three days and was in complete control of the portland polka dot jersey but got his ass handed to him today by the coach so we'll see how things go tomorrow.
more amazing things to say, like the 4 italian words i have learned that seem to get me anything i need but it's time to put the feet up and enjoy some cold pinot grigio after another big day.
ciao!
Monday, May 26, 2008
peter thompson...
is a bastard! peter is the leader of the trip. to be fair, he has done a wonderful job. logistics have been perfect, nice place to stay, great rides. then today. we were supposed to go watch the mountain time trial. a "rest day" of sorts, mostly flat with some climbing at the end. but, the course was going to be closed earlier than expected so he decided to change the route. we started, for referrence, with the triple newbie. a not-even-named climb equivalent to three consectutive trips up newberry. then the campolongo (named for an italian porn star) came next. not bad, about like thompson in distance and grade. then, to finish, the passo furcia - or what we now refer to as the passo fuckme. unreal. 10k, 15%. brutal. first time i've gone to switchbacking up the mountain. needed it, every damn switch. at the top was a little restaurant, part of a ski lodge, and the final stretch before a 5k gravel road to finish the time trial. the portland boys decided to head back early and rode the time trial course faster than the pros! of course, we rode it backwards and down the hill, having to stop as each rider passed by in 1-3 minute increments. all the contenders passed up going up the hill. we, of course, were the stupid americans going down. quite sure we made mention on the race coverage as the helicopter kept buzzing right past us. a great day, another with no rain (3 for 3), and a huge ride tomorrow, the grupo sella, or sella ronda, a famous four peak climb here in the hood...
i have some thoughts on culture that i'll save for a future blog...mostly to do with where the italians may be lacking. yeah, they make fast cars, have pretty girls, and do a decent job on wine, but...
ciao!
i have some thoughts on culture that i'll save for a future blog...mostly to do with where the italians may be lacking. yeah, they make fast cars, have pretty girls, and do a decent job on wine, but...
ciao!
Sunday, May 25, 2008
day 2...OMG!
I don't even know where to start for today. So, I'll start with the big news. today was Tom's birthday (so i let him win). More on that later. We began the day with the hardest climb i have ever done. I read the boys were heading up Larch mountain, think about 3 of those consectutively and a bit steeper, average 10%+, and that's what we did. The Passo Giao was a monster. Weather was great though, we're two for two on good ride days! The van meets at the top of most climbs with food and water, a nice little break and always nice to have that kind of support. After a fantastic downhill, we began the next climb, the Passo Falzarego. Nowhere near as tough as the first. Imagine riding up Larch again, this time only once, and considering that a break...that's the kind of day it was. Another trip to the van for cookies and bananas and then another bomber downhill! Into the town of Caprile, a sharp right, and the final climb of the day - the Passo Fedaia. Steep? High? I'll just tell you we passed people skiing on the way up! first 10k not bad, the second 10k almost killed me. Average of over 12% for the final 5-6 miles, an absolute gut check, suffer fest, whatever metaphor you like. forget about the first climb, this is now the hardest thing I've ever done! But soooo worth it.
We arrived at the top (tom in the lead, coach totally bonked, happy birthday brother!) with a couple hours left before the pros got there. we had three tents, one to change into dry clothes, one with lunch, and one with the english feed of the tour so we could watch the pros do what we had just done (only a bit faster.) as they approached, we went to the road and stood in the street like all the other crazy italians and watched them ride by, so close you could push them up (and some actually asked for that!)
I have seen some cool sports moments. i've seen jordan drop 50 on the blazers at the garden, i've been to the nba finals, i was on franklin st. in downtown chapel hill when the tarheels were in the final four - but I have NEVER SEEN ANYTHING like the crowd at the giro when an italian man breaks away and destroys the field like happened today. "Sella" they were chanting as he blazed up the hill, minutes ahead of the best in the world. an italian taking the mountains of the giro, and we're there to watch. it was awesome!
Oh, and the scenery today...yeah. unreal. like really not real. like you couldn't imagine unless you were standing there unreal. I will add pictures when i return, i'm a little low tech at the moment.
miss you guys and wish you all could experience something like this sometime. and sorry about the metaphor for life crap before...this place just kinda gets to you :)
Ciao!
We arrived at the top (tom in the lead, coach totally bonked, happy birthday brother!) with a couple hours left before the pros got there. we had three tents, one to change into dry clothes, one with lunch, and one with the english feed of the tour so we could watch the pros do what we had just done (only a bit faster.) as they approached, we went to the road and stood in the street like all the other crazy italians and watched them ride by, so close you could push them up (and some actually asked for that!)
I have seen some cool sports moments. i've seen jordan drop 50 on the blazers at the garden, i've been to the nba finals, i was on franklin st. in downtown chapel hill when the tarheels were in the final four - but I have NEVER SEEN ANYTHING like the crowd at the giro when an italian man breaks away and destroys the field like happened today. "Sella" they were chanting as he blazed up the hill, minutes ahead of the best in the world. an italian taking the mountains of the giro, and we're there to watch. it was awesome!
Oh, and the scenery today...yeah. unreal. like really not real. like you couldn't imagine unless you were standing there unreal. I will add pictures when i return, i'm a little low tech at the moment.
miss you guys and wish you all could experience something like this sometime. and sorry about the metaphor for life crap before...this place just kinda gets to you :)
Ciao!
Saturday, May 24, 2008
1 down...
Did our first ride in the dolomites today. After arriving in Alleghe from Lago di Garda, we met up with the tour group (about 30 people in all), had some lunch, built up bikes, and took a 30 mile spin around the neighborhood. All in all, climbed about 2500 feet and had a descent that brad would love and roland would hate. the weather so far is holding but it looks like that could change at any minute. we'll see. tomorrow we watch the tour go through and the town we are in is littered with team cars and buses. as we rode through, the townspeople must have thought we were somebody, they all stopped and starred...sorry folks. we came to alleghe via the passo san pelligrino, which we will ride in a few days. it's scary. scary as hell. think about logie trail x 10, tight switchbacks, 18%, and it doesn't stop... the big problem is that we apparently do about 6 climbs tougher. can't be possible.
can't begin to describe this area. we're on a little lake with the marmalado formation looming overhead. it is shear rock faces jutting up thousands of feet over where we are. snow covered and magnificant, keep thinking it can't get any better...and it does.
can't begin to describe this area. we're on a little lake with the marmalado formation looming overhead. it is shear rock faces jutting up thousands of feet over where we are. snow covered and magnificant, keep thinking it can't get any better...and it does.
Friday, May 23, 2008
3, 2, 1...
3 bottles of wine. A white with lunch, a rose' on the terrace in the early evening, a rossi for dinner in gagnano. this town is incredible, sitting on lago garda at the base of the mountains. strolled in in the evening, expecting nothing really and found the most beautiful place i have ever seen. a wonderful piazza (plaza) nestled down on the waterfront with cafes and restaurants everywhere. people milling about, enjoying wine tastings, shopping, the scenery. orange trees everywhere, and lemon. the highest growing lemon trees anywhere in the world says allison! a small metaphor for life, just keep poking around and you never know what you might find. i could stay here forever.
2 pizzas. they are unlike any you have ever had (save dan's backyard). thin, uncut, light on toppings, and delicious. maybe even healthy? not like the shit we have at home which seems to be a contest on who can stuff the most toppings onto something - these are simple and fantastic.
1 gelato. best ice cream in the world. fersh italian gelato is amazing, especially when made from those same high growing lemon trees!
an amazing way to start the trip, dan and allison are great company and this places takes care of the rest. off to find alleghe and the tour group, a bike, tom and anna marie, and start getting to work...
Ciao!
2 pizzas. they are unlike any you have ever had (save dan's backyard). thin, uncut, light on toppings, and delicious. maybe even healthy? not like the shit we have at home which seems to be a contest on who can stuff the most toppings onto something - these are simple and fantastic.
1 gelato. best ice cream in the world. fersh italian gelato is amazing, especially when made from those same high growing lemon trees!
an amazing way to start the trip, dan and allison are great company and this places takes care of the rest. off to find alleghe and the tour group, a bike, tom and anna marie, and start getting to work...
Ciao!
arrive' a italia!
well folks, we made it! after 13 hours in the air, 2 plus hours sitting on runways, and only enough time for one guiness at newark airport, we have hit italian soil. landing in milan, passing customs, grabbing rental car...all easy. finding way to hotel on the shores of lake garda at the base of dolomites, also easy. thanks to alison's great driving and meticulous planning we have arrived in the town of gardone and the hotel europa. sitting on the patio looking up at the dolomites, one thought keeps passing through my head. "those are a hell of a lot bigger than skyline!" along the way we stopped in the town of salo for pizza and pinot grigio, there is nothing like it when you're here. salo was the stronghold of the facist regime after WWII, at least that's what i remember alison saying. if you don't know al, i am traveling with the walking edition of the encyclopedia britannica. a tireless wealth of information - some useful :)
we stay here tonight and then make our way to alleghe in the morning, through the town of trento - roland can tell you there are some decent wines from that area although we're quite a ways north from tuscany \ chianti. tomorrow we ride an "introduction to the dolomites". only 32 miles. not bad. oh, and 2600 feet of climbing. welcome to italy my friends! the weather in ominous but we're prepared mentally and with all the gear money can buy, so bring it! can't wait to make that first climb...
we stay here tonight and then make our way to alleghe in the morning, through the town of trento - roland can tell you there are some decent wines from that area although we're quite a ways north from tuscany \ chianti. tomorrow we ride an "introduction to the dolomites". only 32 miles. not bad. oh, and 2600 feet of climbing. welcome to italy my friends! the weather in ominous but we're prepared mentally and with all the gear money can buy, so bring it! can't wait to make that first climb...
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
test run for technilogically challenged
hey everyone,
welcome to coach's first blog! as i prepare for this trip, i think about how the tsunamis made this possible. not only do i get to make a living doing something i absolutely love...but you guys paid for this!
here is a link to the trip itinerary, you can look through and see what we're up to. i am not too worried about the mileage or the climbing, really just days 1-8 that scare the hell out of me! but, as in all athletic pursuits, I'm just doing this for the t-shirt so we'll see how it goes!
hope you enjoy checking in. i will try to update with text and pictures as often as possible.
ciao ciao!
http://www.thomsonbiketours.com/trips/Giro-Italia-trip-01/trip_itinerary.html
welcome to coach's first blog! as i prepare for this trip, i think about how the tsunamis made this possible. not only do i get to make a living doing something i absolutely love...but you guys paid for this!
here is a link to the trip itinerary, you can look through and see what we're up to. i am not too worried about the mileage or the climbing, really just days 1-8 that scare the hell out of me! but, as in all athletic pursuits, I'm just doing this for the t-shirt so we'll see how it goes!
hope you enjoy checking in. i will try to update with text and pictures as often as possible.
ciao ciao!
http://www.thomsonbiketours.com/trips/Giro-Italia-trip-01/trip_itinerary.html
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