What if I told you there was a revolutionary new diet or product out guaranteed to make you lose weight? Do you wanna know about it?? It’s so simple yet so effective I don’t think you can handle it! Still wanna know? Are you just dying to know? Is it a new magic pill? A fad book claiming veganism is the way to go, or even a new take on an old spin saying to avoid fat at all costs? Still curious?? Alright, here it is. I promise if you obey this one rule, you will lose weight, and lose it fast! DON’T drink any water (or any other fluids for that matter)! That’s it!

Now hopefully after telling you that yes, water weighs 8 lbs a gallon and you could easily lose that in a day or two and indeed drop weight, your common sense would also tell you that this isn’t the healthiest way to lose weight. Why then do so many people turn to these ‘magic pills’ or “fat loss secrets” or accelerated programs or whatever the latest and greatest flashy infocomercial product is to lose weight? You might as well not be drinking water. Wanna look great? Wanna feel great? Do it the right way. There are no secrets. Only eat things that you can kill or pick from a plant or tree in the wild (minus a few toxic wild edibles). Long term satisfaction comes only with long term dedication. If you would like to speed it up a bit, follow the 3 Primal Fitness Laws: Move frequently at a slow pace (walking or very easy bike riding), lift heavy things (squats, lunges, pull-ups, push-ups, chair dips, etc. are just fine) and sprint once in a while. Consider the Tabata protocols which can be structured to fulfill both #2 and #3 here. Get in touch with me if you have any questions about any of the Primal content on the site.

Dairy-It’s Back On The Menu- Sort of…

Now, to backtrack a bit on everything I just said, here is something that you can’t kill or pick from a plant that I now consider to be ok to eat, in moderation. I know a lot of you will have a hard time giving up some of those old staples, most notably bread and dairy. Well good news for those of you who just can’t live without dairy. My findings and experiments have allowed a few items back on the menu, even though they are not paleo approved. I wouldn’t say they are paleo unapproved though. Nutritionally, there are two things that led me to let these items sneak back into my diet: 1. HIGH in fat and protein  2. low in carbohydrates. The products I speak of are cheese, sour cream, cottage cheese, heavy cream, plain yogurt, and butter. All of these either involve separating the fat and protein from the sugars (lactose) or having the lactose fermented into a protein. Milk is still a no-no, unless you can find it raw, which is pretty unlikely. If you do decide to include these items in your diet, make sure to look for minimally processed, whole milk derivatives, and NO additives. That great dairy flavor we all like comes from Fat, so when you take the fat away you’re not only negating the dietary benefits of it but replacing it with something else to make up for the flavor, most usually sugar, artificial flavors, or who knows what else? Stay away from flavored yogurts and processed cheeses. Plain, real yogurt like Greek or Bulgarian yogurt can be pretty sour, so I like to add berries, vanilla extract, and sometimes honey. Recently for breakfast, when I feel like cooked eggs over raw, I smother ‘em with Daisy brand all natural sour cream! This is of course after cooking them in the leftover bacon grease from a few strips of bacon (uncured-no nitrates or nitrites, and low sodium!). I also add a small avocado. Talk about guilt free flavor to the max! Bacon makes everything better! Fat-protein-and little more fat to top things off!

I still advise eating such dairy products in moderation, much like dark chocolate or red wine should you choose to consume these. Remember, fat is not the enemy, high glycemic carbs are. I’ve got the race results, health markers, and a lean, athletic body to prove it. Start eating better-stop wasting your money and precious health on junk food and products that don’t help you thrive. To your health,
Caveman

Check out this cool article published in the New York times on January 8, 2010:

The New Age Caveman and the City

Wonderful! I’m not alone in this super high tech, ulta processed, superficial goal setting modern world. One of these guys even eats raw grass fed beef! I think I might start a Caveman club here in Austin after reading this article, that is, if one doesn’t already exist.  Now, I’m not saying you should buy a cooler and stock it full of organ meet and wild game (more power to you if do though) but if you’re still on the fence about the Paleo diet, maybe at least start with baby steps. Trade in the oatmel or breakfast cereal for eggs and berries or other fruit. Trade that dinner roll for some extra veggies. Order a salad instead of a sandwich. Walk more and drive less. You don’t need to go to a gym. Try doing 20 pushups or chair dips on your breaks at work. A little exercise AND an energy boost. See, these are all small attainable steps toward a more Caveman way of life. To your health,

Caveman

So many athletes get down on themselves for falling short of the coveted 1st place, especially when a State Champion jersey is on the line. Not this one. Not since I’ve adopted my “Primal athlete psychology”. You see, success is a journey, not a destination. And this season was a good journey. I finished 2nd in the singlespeed category to Craig Virr, who also went on to finish 3rd in the pro race against a very very tough field. Congrats, Craig. You are a true warrior in my book. Congrats to all who made it to Travis County East Metropolition park to fight the good fight last weekend, especially the single speeders, because it was a very tough course for just having one gear. Very generous rainfalls the week before left the course pretty muddy and torn up after the age group races Saturday. It hurt even if you had gears. It was still a lot of fun though, and I was pleased with the effort, and the season in general. Last year I was 3rd, this year 2nd, next year? Still lots of room for improvement. Now that cross season is over, I turn my focus to the Warda Dirty Dozen. Something tells me the competition will be a little stiffer than last year, so I go to work Monday with some hardcore caveman workouts. A little P90X anyone?

Non-bike related, invitations have been sent out for the wedding. Colleen and I have setup a separate website for more info, check it out if you like:

http://cupcakeandcaveman.wordpress.com

Keep fighting the good fight, but remember, winning isn’t everything. Staying fit, eating well, and having fun are.

Hey. Check out this press release from fellow Paleo Diet advocate and cookbook sponsor Nikki Young of Paleo Cookbook. Click here for the full unabridged interview that I had with Nikki a while back. I’m famous now, sorta. Well, not really, but I’m happy to share my experiences in hopes that others will catch on to the benefits of the diet and lifestyle.  Grok on!

Hold those heads up high boys, for the only shame in losing a game like that is not being grateful for the chance to even be there. Success is a journey, not a destination, and it was one hell of a trip. I was only going to write about the National Championship game if the Longhorns won, but they showed such heart and grace under pressure that despite what the scoreboard said, I feel they were the true winners in the end. Almost overcoming insurmountable odds and shoring up the score to 21-24 late in the fourth quarter without their knight in shining armour, the defense held one more Tide drive to give the new coming of age quarterback a chance at a fairy tale ending. Having already thrown 2 interceptions and been harassed all night, it wasn’t meant to be for the kid from Lake Travis High, nor this group of young men hailing from the Lone Star state, as a hit from the blind side landed the ball back into Tide hands and sealed the victory for good. They gave it their all, and in the end, came up short. People will blame this, or blame that, but truth is, it goes the same for the other side too. You just can’t win them all. And most times, you learn and grow more from loss than you do from victory. Hold those heads up high, for you are the mighty, the proud, the everlasting symbol of the greatest state in all the land, the Texas Longhorns-not some wave of water, or an elephant.

Since switching to the Paleo diet and giving up dairy products, particularly milk itself, I get a lot of questions about where I get my calcium from. Before I even name some paleo foods that have sufficient calcium in them, I’d like to present some facts and thoughts that should alter the way of thinking about Calcium (and dairy consumption) you’ve been conditioned your whole life to believe.

Fact 1: The biological need for Calcium has been overstated. In contrast, excessive Calcium consumption causes osteoporosis. Click on the link and read this well researched, cited, and easy to understand article.

Fact 2: Bone health is not as dependent on Calcium alone as are supporting vitamins and minerals. Too much calcium intake inhibits magnesium absorption. Vitamin D is very crucial (some experts argue more so than Calcium) to bone density and health, and Americans fall grossly short of vitamin D needs.(although sadly, it’s the easiest one to obtain!) Vitamin K and boron are a few more nutrients that are important. (3)

Fact 3: If we really need cows’ milk, man could never have existed.Why? Because we have already been on this planet for millions of years. And we have only consumed milk for a maximum of 0.01 million years. This means that we did not drink a single drop of milk from other animals in more than 99% of human existence; in our entire development from ancient times to now.(1)

Fact 4: Dairy contains a high amount of calcium, but that doesn’t mean it’s bio-available in the body, in-fact research shows calcium from plant sources are absorbed much better than that of calcium in milk. The reason why is that calcium is a mineral that needs an alkaline environment in the body to be absorbed effectively, un-fortunately dairy as a food is acidic (2)

So, we don’t need as much Calcium as we once thought, and we certainly don’t need it from other animals’ milk. We do still need it though, in concert with the other nutrients mentioned above. Here are some good sources, all Paleo approved:

Calcium in mg / 100 g

• 226    Hazelnuts
• 140    Egg yolk
• 132     Brazil nuts
• 96      Olives, green
• 87      Walnuts
• 54      Figs
• 44      Black berries
• 42      Orange
• 40      Raspberries
• 38      Kiwi
• 33      Mandarin
• 32      Human milk (included for reference only)
• 20      Coconut
• 18      Grapes
• 16      Apricot
• 16      Pineapple
• 14      Plum
• 13      Salmon
• 12      Mackerel
• 12      Mango
• 11      Watermelon
• 10      Avocado
• 9      Banana

Some other sources I don’t have numerical values for:

• Leafy greens, notably spinach and broccoli
• Sesame and flax seeds
• Pecans

Remember, more is not really better. You don’t need to go eating hazlenuts like crazy to get tons of calcium. I cannot give you a numerical daily value to shoot for, but I can point out a study that showed vegan nuns consuming less than 400 mg per day had the same bone density as non-vegetarian women who consumed over 1000mg. For reference, the National Academy of Science currently recommends 1000 mg/day for women ages 19-50 and 1200 mg/day for women 50+. Men need slightly less.  Instead of shooting for a number, I advise just eating good Paleo foods and trusting that your body will take what it needs. That is the beauty Paleo eating. As always, for more info on eating better, check out the Primal Nutrition page, or consider buying the Primal Blueprint. For great Paleo recipes that have all the calcium and great taste you need, check out the Paleo Cookbook. Please also take a look at this article that fellow Paleo Diet advocated Don Wiss sent me after reading this very post: http://paleodiet.com/losspts.txt .It offers insight as to how calcium is lost through the body, factors many don’t consider in their ultimate quest to just consume lots of calcium. Thans, Don.

References:

(1) “Excessive Calcium Causes Osteoporosis” http://www.4.waisays.com/ExcessiveCalcium.htm  retrieved 1-4-10

(2) “Dairy Isn’t the Only Answer” http://www.livingpaleo.com/articles/Dairy-Isnt-The-Only-Answer.html  retrieved 1-4-10

(3) “Calcium for Women” http://www.marksdailyapple.com/calcium-for-women/ retrieved 1-4-10

Are the things we attach happiness to causing more heartache than joy? A powerful, high paying job? A big house? Nice car? High tech gadgets? Designer clothes? Vanity? Food indulgence? Drugs/alcohol? Maybe you consider yourself more “down to earth” but are a competitive athlete like me and base your happiness on results, splits, arbitrary distances, paces, or regimented workout schedules. This New Year, I challenge you to throw conventional wisdom out of the window. Rethink your goals. Reject what society dictates as happiness and embark on your own journey towards true happiness.

Thursday I said goodbye to a good year, Friday I said hello to a new one. I’ve forgone new year’s resolutions in favor of life resolutions. After an engagement, a trip to Colorado, three months off work, and a little bit of light reading, my views on life have changed, particularly relating to goals, fitness, and happiness. I cannot tell you what happiness means to you, only what it means to me, but in doing so I hope to provide you inspiration and direction for what to look for in your search for happiness.

• I will spend less time in front of a computer screen and more time in front of a good book
• Even more of the food I eat will come straight from the good earth, and less of it from a package
• I will spend less time indoors and more time outside
• I will not associate athletic accomplishment with race results or arbitrary numerical markers. Instead, I will focus on developing a broad range of skills and attributes that allow me to do whatever I want with a substantial degree of competence and minimal risk of injury. Yes, this means I will race less and will likely even have poorer results at the ones I do choose to do, but realizing that racing is not life and that the constant bombarding of our bodies that modern training principles dictate can lead to chronic health problems has been one of the most eye opening revelations to me
• I already live a comparatively low stress life, but I will continue to pursue ways to eliminate artificial stresses- driving, artificial lights, urban noise, finances, work related stresses, life insurance, health insurance, family, diet, fitness, etc. This list of stress factors these days is endless. Other than food security, shelter, and protection from predators, our primal ancestors had no such silly stresses as we do today. Sometimes, ignorance really is bliss! Don’t worry, be happy!
• I already live a comparatively frugal life, but I will continue to search out ways to eliminate non-essentials. I openly confess that I’ve had a thing for cappuccinos since getting laid off. Partly because my new office has been coffee shops around town and I need a purchase for internet access, but really, I seem to have a weak spot for expresso flavored frothed milk. At about $3 a drink, this tasty concoctions can phantomly drain my bank account without me realizing it. At my peak, I was maybe buying 3 drinks ($9) a week. That would eventually add up to  $468 a year. Imagine all the little things like this that people unncessarily splurge on. I’ve a ton a friends back home that easily plop down $15-20 a week for cigarettes or snuff, all for a “buzz” that they are now immune to. What about those little food add-ons we get at regular dining places? $1.50 for avacodo on a taco? $.50 for cheese or sour cream? Getting a large drink when a small will do just fine, or even ordering a drink when water is the best thing in the first place? These decisions hardly seem expensive at the time of purchase, but over they add up. I recommend indulgence on special occasions, to make those small little extras go a longer way, as well as your bank account. And what about all you gear junkies out there? Do you seriously think a $6000 full suspension superlight carbon top of the line component bike will make you a faster rider?? Let me remind you that the 2009 24 Hours Of Rocky Hill was won a a bike with no suspension and only one gear. The Houston Bikesport 3/4 CX race was won a heavy steel framed singlespeed cross bike. Do not be swayed by the dark side of manufacturer’s sleek marketing to get you to spend that extra $$ when something more basic and more affordable will do the job just as well.
• Since getting laid off, I’ve been particularly good about getting more sleep. When I do get full time work again, I’m going to make sure I keep it this way!

Happy New Year, and best of luck in realizing your new potential

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zYOKFjpm9s&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

I got [pig smoking outside the cave]
Got a three [month] beard I don’t plan to shave
And it’s a goofy thing but I just gotta say
Hey I’m doing alright

Yeah I think I’ll make me some [caveman stew]
Feelin pretty good and that’s the truth
It’s neither drink nor drug induced
No I’m just doin alright

And it’s a great day to be alive
I know the sun’s still shinin when I close my eyes
There’s some hard times in the neigborhood
But why can’t every day be just this good?

It’s a Great Day to Be Alive, Lyrics by Darrell Scott, Sung by Travis Tritt

Here we are, the last day of 2009. It is indeed a great day to be alive. I shall spare you the soap opera recap as I did this time one year ago, because the year is past us now, but a wise man once said “How do you know where you are going if you don’t know where you are at?” And I would add “You don’t know where you’re at unless you know where you’ve been!”

So, how about just the biggest events of 2009? One of the most important events occurred right off the bat: Colleen and I discovered the Paleo Diet. This would not only drastically change the way I looked at food and base my nutrition decisions on, but it would “evolve” into a whole new way of thinking about life (adopting primal behaviors that promote positive gene expression and thus improve the quality of life in the modern world). I had slowly developed my own thoughts on the matter, but didn’t have a good way of organizing them until reading Mark Sisson’s The Primal Blueprint in November. If you were only allowed one more book to read for the rest of your life, this would have to be it!  Seriously, it is that profound. I’ll discuss this a bit more in New Years Day post though.

Athletically, I sustained no major injury this year, unless you count a few stubbed toes and lost toenails, and set some new milestones. Swimming and running improved enough to move into the top 10 at the regional Xterras, I upgraded to a Cat 3 in road racing, won the 12 hour MTB race at Warda, unsuccessfully tried my hand at the Breckenridge 100 mountain bike race, completed my first Olympic distance road triathlon, won my biggest race of the year-24 Hours of Rocky Hill, and still had a little left in the tank to get a few more cyclocross wins on a single speed. These accomplishments were nice, and all mean something to me, but starting next year, I won’t put as much emphasis on such events and results (read tomorrow’s post!)

Life-wise, the tanking economy was probably everyone’s story of the year. It didn’t concern me too much until the architecture firm I worked for ran out of work and disbanded. The layoff came at a really interesting juncture in my life. Not only had Colleen and I planned a nice vacation to Colorado the day that would be my last at that job, but I had been busy shopping for an engagement ring to give my bride to be the same week I got news of the sinking ship. Prior to the engagement, Colleen and I had already talked pretty seriously about moving to Colorado, both of us smitten with this new place following our trip to Breckenridge that summer. Following the engagement, I went ahead and made the announcement that we would do so after getting married, although, comically, everyone somehow thought we were moving right away! The trip to Colorado was in part vacation, but also in part to search out a new town to live in. We visited a lot of cool towns, and aren’t 100% sure yet, but Durango is looking pretty good at the moment.

Also, not mentioned much, is the fact that the job was starting to get a bit stale for me. Not the firm so much, just the profession in general. I was beginning to consider taking time off and trying my hand at some other jobs, something a bit more blue collar and less time sitting at a desk. I have since been living freely and have been enjoying the time off with little intention of seeking out new work. Following Christmas, though, finances are starting to look a little tight so I will likely take up job hunting in January.

Enough about me though. I wanna thank the good Lord for all the blessings stowed upon me, my friends, and my family for this year. Yeah, times are a little tough in the neighborhood, but I’m optimistic that things will work out for the best, as they always have. I will not be setting any New Year’s Resolutions, as I advise you to.  Instead, focus on Life Resolutions. You know the things in life that bring discomfort and dissatisfaction. It might be too much time playing on video games or phones, vegging out in front of the TV excessively, eating like crap, not enjoying your job, not getting enough sleep, not getting outside enough, substance abuse, the list goes on and on. You and only you have the power to enact positive change. You can start this weekend! Have a happy and safe New Year’s Eve.

Caveman

This past Thursday brought some new and exciting things. The “new” website was finally launched. It still has a long ways until completion, but I got a good start on it. I’m very excited to publish the whole new “Live like a Caveman” pages. I hope you find some time to look them over and gain some insight into living simpler.

Thursday night, I put my new pedicab license to work by hitting the streets of downtown for my first official shift. I had about two hour or so of training and getting a feel for the cab, but after that, I was on my own. Unfortunately, the cold weather made for a slow night for all pedicabbers and I brought home less than $40, but hey, you gotta start somewhere! When you actually do get a fare and aren’t sitting or cruising around looking for customers, it’s actually a lot of fun. Having to work from 9pm-2:30am will definitely keep me from making a regular outing of this side job though.

Last but not least, the new cross frame arrived. I didn’t have time to get it built that night due to work, but I was pretty excited stopping by The Peddler bike shop to pick up this beauty. The Peddler and Raleigh USA both worked out a small deal for me on this frame, nothing free or anything, but a little help is nice when you’re unemployed, and many of the parts came from my sponsor shop, Eastside Pedalpushers. Please consider patronizing these guys. I’m very appreciative for their generosity, especially in these lean times.

I got it running Friday, just in time for a little cross race action Saturday near San Marcos.  Course conditions were pretty brutal, but what better way to break this baby in than upper 30’s, misty/light rain, and peanut butter mud?? Lots of brake clogging, chainstay tire stopping, grass collecting peanut butter mud. Well, sandy or sloppy mud could’ve been better, but being on a singlespeed would be a small advantage in itself as a lot of riders had to bow out due to mechanical problems. Unfortunately, I was WAY over geared for these conditions and suffered the entire race. I took the pain in stride though, and gave the hecklers some entertainment adjusting leg warmers and taking beer feeds. The bike needs some tweaking and dialing in, but it’s definitely here to stay. Without further ado, I give you Miller, a Raleigh Hi Life frame built with a few parts I had laying around. 17.3 lbs. It is the champagne of cross bikes.

It’s funny how things can change in the course of a week. Following a pretty bad race in Dallas last Saturday that had me swearing off cyclocross for the remainder of the season, yours truly had a change of heart come Friday night. Weather conditions seemed too perfect for cyclocross racing to pass up two proven race courses that I had a blast on last year, so early Saturday morning Colleen and I took the short 3 hour jaunt to Memorial park next to downtown Houston.

Indeed, the forces of nature had conspired to give Texans the closest conditions to true cyclocross racing that we could hope for, in the balmy humid city of Houston, of all places. A strong norther’ combined with generous gulf moisture on Friday to dump as much as 6 inches of snow in some suburbs of the city. The park itself only got 1-2”, but there actually was a little bit of snow on the course when we got there, and yes, it was still pretty dang cold. This year’s course featured a muddy creek crossing with a nasty, slippery run-up on the other side. Of course, what crosses the creek once, must cross it again. At first the second crossing was ridable, if you were good enough, but after a while, it was a pure slopfest that demanded dismounting and sludging. The ensuing 30 yards up to the barriers was also a field of energy sucking muck, just to dismount again, and then remount up a slight incline. You then had maybe another 100 yards of flats to recover before another runup. This one was rideable by the stronger riders…unless you were on a singlespeed.

Yes, undeterred by last week’s crummy performance on the beloved IRO singlespeed, I again brought it along after making a few tweaks during the week to shave some weight and decrease rolling resistance with some skinnier tires, setup tubeless. The tubeless setup was untested and had me a bit worried. Luckily, I was the only one in the singlespeed category to go off in the morning, so this would be a good opportunity to test it out. They started me with the women and Men’s 4. I had no obligation to compete with the 4’s, but I wanted to give the setup a good test before racing the open category, plus someone incorrectly told me that this was the Men’s ¾ category and I thought it would be even more fun to see how I stacked up against my old category, so I pushed this first race pretty dang hard. I felt pretty good annihilating everyone out there until I figured out it was the Men’s 4, not the 3/4 . Oh well, I still beat 30 other guys with one gear. It would be good confidence to take into the open race.

It wore off a bit as I toed the line against the open category racers. That early morning race in the cold had seared my lungs, I hadn’t had anything good to eat since 7am, and felt really thirsty. I could tell I wouldn’t be in contention for top 10, but at least I felt I could hang in there til the end and beat a few people. I was also looking forward to a beer feed around minute 50 (of 60) I instructed Colleen to give if I were still in the race at that point. I was able to hang with the main group for lap 1, and then a middle group for a few more laps, but then fell back to the rear on my own for the rest of the race. I was still ahead of about 6 racers, so I didn’t let up. Come the bell lap, I was still in it, and Colleen delivered the beer feed in textbook fashion. That cup of St. Arnold’s didn’t last long.

My thirst was quenched, but now I had a new problem: burping and leg cramps. Just keep pushing. Finish. Excellent. 18 of 24. Not pretty, but a moral victory nonetheless. Here I was a tired and hungry guy from an earlier hard race, pushing just one gear, on a steel bike not even designed for this stuff, lining up with the fastest guys in Texas. I’ll take it.

It was time to go to our hotel, a gem of a place we randomly found last year while searching for a cheap and safe place to stay close to the Sunday venue. After settling in, we commenced in cleaning our muddy shoes, pedals, and clothes, thus turning the stark white bathroom into a gritty and dirty brown. Still starving from lack of food and an excess of racing, we walked over to an adjacent Tex Mex restaurant to refuel. Upon returning to the room, we continued cleaning clothing and bikes while watching the Crimson Tide destroy the Florida gators to claim the SEC championship game. Come 7pm, it was time to watch the Horns take on Nebraska for the Big XII title. What a heartthrobbing game that turned out to be! A 46 yard field goal narrowly clearing the left stay as time expired to win 13-12. Texas needed quite a bit of luck to pull that one off, but they found a way. Major props to the Cornhusker defense! A victory against that team is never easy and never by that much.

Sunday morning brought a crappy continental breakfast and a quick trip over to Mason Park for the Bikesport CX. It was on this fabled course that I won my first CX race and the single speed found a permanent home in Caveman’s stable one year ago. I made the decision to race the ¾ in lieu of the open category this very day. Blasphemy, I know, but I was influenced by a few factors: a lackluster finish the day before in the open, a sense that the ¾ category is stronger this year than last, a $100 payout for 1^st place (very nice when you are unemployed), and just the fact that racing with people closer to your ability is more fun.

There was again a SS category and this time I had one competitor. They started us with the women 3/4 , a few minutes back of the masters 40+ and 50+. I planned to sit this one in to save more for the later race, and I pretty much did. The other singlespeeder had the same intentions and finishing ahead of him wasn’t that hard.

Come the ¾ race, I again wasn’t feeling 100%, and wasn’t confident I could compete for 1^st place, but I felt a top 5 would still be nice. I was sitting back around 8^th on the first lap, 4^th on the second lap, then caught up to 1^st on the third. I feel that the ¾ race starts out about as fast as the open category, one of the main differences is that in the open race, they keep the pace going. Seeing as how the leaders in this ¾ race were tired already, I capitalized and made the decision to ramp it up hard and build a gap. The gap grew more each lap as I was relentless through the multitude of 180 degree turns, a small field of muddy grass, barriers, and the slick run-up. Right as I got the signal from the refs that I had two laps to go, I noticed my tires were getting a bit soft. I was riding them hard, and evidently they were burping air each time I remounted or hit a root hard. Fearing that I might roll the tires off on any sharp turns, I had to let up a bit and let that gap shrink. I was also starting to cramp, quite painfully in my right quad. I was really scared of tire and muscle failure on the last lap, but stayed calm and focused and nailed everything I needed to. Everything held together, and the $100 payout was mine.

Yes, in hindsight, I feel like a sandbagger, and for sure that will probably be the last ¾ race I ever do, however, I feel the decision was justified that day. After all, I gave the other racers a decent handicap with my choice of machine, and I only ended up crossing the line 10-15 seconds ahead of 2^nd.

As of today, there is a new machine on the way that might very well be the last cyclocross bike I ever buy. While not anything like a fancy Blue Norcross, Ridley X-Night, Kona Major Jake, or Redline Conquest Team that are popular among top end racers, it will be at the same level. I will not drop any hints (except that it doesn’t have gears-of course!) until it comes in and gets built up, but it is a beauty. The IRO did a nice transitional job, but it’s limitations become more and more apparent every time I race it. This new rig should inspire all the confidence I need to return to the Open category and compete well there.

Thanks for reading, stay warm out there.