Their Hour of Need

I know some folks on RAAM who need your words. Let's send some big time love to the boys and girls of Team Type 1. They've got a green crew this year, but are out there given 'er their all.

This year a team of Norwegian super monsters has designs on toppling TT1 from the leader board. These big frost apes are doing quite the job as you read this. TT1 did a valiant job of pulling them back once, and I am hoping they have it in them again. I chose not to participate this year, but I fear I've made a bad call. Only a couple of the crew, and 3 of the riders, have RAAM experience, and the learning curve can be tough! I've tried to wear Phil's phone out, discussing this race as it rolls along the western US. It seems he is a little surprised at the addiction, we both feel for this event. I can't help but think that a little more experience, and probably more importantly, fresh bodies, unworn from the past 4 days of sleepless RV and minivan travel, could help bring this race back together. It is absolutely killing me to not be there to help plot, plan, and motivate with the rest of the crew.

Phil had no sooner stepped into his home in Atlanta, after watching the team roll out from Oceanside, then he started to plan his intercept. I thought he was kidding. But he called yesterday and said he had a ticket to St. Louis, where he'd drive to Jefferson City, and meet the Team at the time station. My heart sunk as I looked at all the work stacked on my desk. I've never wanted to put myself into what I know can be a living hell, so bad in all my life.

This damn race has become ingrained in my psyche, or something. It's like an evil virus that I can ignore all year, until it's time for the teams to fly west and begin final preparation. Then it's like I forget all of the sleep and shower deprivation, the whining of both crew and riders alike, and the sheer stress of trying to make no mistakes or errors that may lose any of that time, the riders scratched and fought for.

Even though I chose to sit this one out, my heart still sings with their victories, and aches at their loss. I promise you that the emotional roller coaster those riders are enduring right now is much worse than this blog rant of mine, so pop over to the TT1 blog, and leave a motivational comment for the gang. They read them after their shifts, and it feels good to know people are watching and supporting.

I've Got No Air!

There's a curse following me around the past week or so. Things that contain that which surrounds us everyday, in such a manner as to allow smooth locomotion, refuse to do so when in my possession or presence.

It started the day before we left for Bump-n-Grind. I got up that morning, and there was only about 10lbs of air in my truck's rear tire. That vehicle now being untrustworthy, Paul and I hijacked my poor wife, at 7:00am, to give us a ride to the agreed upon meeting spot for our trip. "I'll deal with it when I come home." I said. Fool.

All is going well in the race. I'm flying on the downhills! After all, as a clydesdale, my climbing is not so great, so I've gotta make up for it somewhere. I love these long, rocky, fast downhill stretches! I'd just gotten around some nervous, sketchy, panic braking, overcautious, skinny guy, when I felt the wind leave my sails, as my rear tire nearly rolled off the rim in a right hand switchback. Apparently, I'd punctured somewhere on my pass attempts. Fool.

Thursday's Joe's ride is going well, for the first half of the ride. But I forgot to eat something right before the ride. During the 2nd half, I'm just holding on. The hot summer air feels like a furnace in my lungs, and I can't go fast anymore. With the fast laps over, a few of us are cruising in at a nice, slow, cool down pace. Pfft. Pfft.Pfft. Pfft. Damn tubulars! I knew I should've been more proactive about selling them, and getting a replacement set of clinchers. Fool.

Friday, Marcus needs to go pick up his rental car, out by the airport. I agree to take an easy ride out there, and we'll drive the rental back. The road bike is still on blocks, so the 'cross bike comes out. I remember, as we roll out from Mark's, I have no more long valve tubes for my rear wheel. Oh well, I'm running Specilaized kevlar belted, puncture resistant tires. What are the odds? The key here is puncture resistant. Fool.

Sunday's mountain bike ride rolls around, and I'm just gassed. I don't really even want to ride, but it's Sunday, and I'm hoping that the ride will clear my angst. I grab my front wheel to put it on my bike, and imagine my lack of surprise to feel a flaccid 15lbs of air pressure. This tire has been losing no more than a couple of lbs. of pressure a week, ever since I first mounted it on the wheel! I pump it up to proper pressure, hope the Stan's sealant will reseal any slow leaks, and roll out. Fool.

That was it. I was cracked. I pumped the tire up again, and headed for home. 30 minutes in, and I was calling it quits. That's right. I quit a ride over a flat tire. Or was it 4 flat tires? Either way, I got home and my wife calls. She's surprised I'm home so early. I tell her my tale, and she sighs and says it's not over, yet. Apparently, she awoke to a flat tire on her car this morning, also.

No more stories now. I'm going to go out to my shop and try to contain some air.

Race Weekend!

You guys are on your own for the weekend. The crew and I are headed for Birmingham, AL; our annual pilgrimage to Bump-n-Grind.

Somebody check on Derwood while we're gone. He called yesterday and sounded like he'd been gargling all of the phlegm I coughed up 2 weeks ago. So he's out. Bed rest and fluids for that boy!

The rest of us are all atwitter. I think Wrecking Ball might throw up today!! His nerves kicked in yesterday! That guy has to be first at everything!

Word came down that 007 is coming down from DC, and in typical 007 fashion, the gauntlet has already been thrown. His challenge has the owner of the slowest overall lap time, between, himself, Wrecking Ball, and yours truly, wearing a skirt at one of the fall Florida Series races. We're working on including All Pro Marcus in our wager, but he's gonna have to spot us about 10 minutes. I'm already trying to work out the logistics of riding in a skirt.

I'm Kinda Back..

Well, the bionic man theory has not played out like I'd hoped. Actually, I feel alot more like a malfunctioning Inspector Gadget , than any kind of bionic anything.

After being sick for a week, I tried to look at it as an unplanned rest week. No such luck! I rode 6 days last week, but tried to come back slowly. Started with short easy rides, and slowly made them harder, leading up to yesterday's race simulation ride. I didn't feel any specific effects linked to my chest cold, but I definitely did not feel very fast. I know that chest colds can diminish aerobic capacity for awhile, even after the main symptoms have cleared out, but I was still hopeful. Well the work is done now, nothing to do but try to enjoy an easy week before we leave for Bump-n-Grind this weekend. I have to say, I really was hoping to pull off something special up there, but the illness has stolen my thunder.

On a more positive note, we used all of Cadillac as part of our loop yesterday, and the upper loop of Cadillac is starting to fill in nicely. I was very annoyed after it was originally built, but one line is starting to emerge now, and it's fast and fun! It's a nice contrast to the sideslope of the lower Cadillac, and I do like being able to do it as a loop.

BTW, I'm about to put out a missing persons ad in the Democrap. But I'll start it here. Bikeposse has lost its Porn 'Stache. If anyone has seen him, please let me know. I hate the thought of Porn 'Stache wandering the trails, all alone, with noone to tell his stories to.

I'm Back.....

Bigworm

A man barely alive

Gentlemen, we can rebuild him

We have the technology

We have the capability to build the world's first bionic man

Bigworm will be that man

We can make him better than he was before

Better. Stronger. Faster

M.I.A.

I know! I know!, I've been missing in action way too long. Lil' Ronnie calls and bitches about the zodiac thing being up too long, which was plenty enough reason to leave it up for another week or two!

It seems like I've been going 1oo mph, but I'm not sure what's getting accomplished. I'm definitely spending big time on the bike, until this week. I woke up yesterday to the dreaded sinus drain. It seems to be worse today. So being off the bike gave me time to hit the site again. But now I don't really feel like thinking, so here I am with nothing to say, except sick sucks!! I guess if I were Chuck Norris, I'd roundhouse kick myself in the nose until my sinuses surrendered.

Now if I could just get Wrecking Ball to chime in with his patented cure all. Something about Motrin and cold showers....

Astrology is for kooks....I think.....

I've never given much credence to the zodiac, or the whole astrology gig, but this month has me wondering. The number of April birthdays for people in my circle, or at least indirectly involved in my circle, is certainly noteworthy.

Flash is, of course, an April Fool's baby. Mrs. Worm falls on the 4th, with me 10 days later. I even had a girlfriend in high school who celebrated her's 4 days after mine. My ex-stepfather's was the 16th. Now I find out that the infamous Juancho has the diamond for a birthstone. I've avoided Big Johnny's site, Drunkcyclist.com, of late(He spilled the beans on who won Paris - Roubaix before it aired on Versus!!), but when I went back, I saw he had just passed his 38th milestone as well. And most recently, Derwood and Marcus' wife, Cortney, shared the same birthday, the 22nd!

Now like I said, I never cared if you were a Leo with a rising Rat sign, pulled to the lower case by a full moon tide, but I am at least a little curious who else out there has an April birthday.