Timberman Tri

Well, 'ol G Stewart and I headed up to New Hampshire this past weekend for our second race of the season in the 70.3 series (1st was Rhode Island 70.3). We drove up together and were "roomies" for the weekend as both of our families opted to sit this trip out. It was there loss as the weather was beautiful and our room had a great view overlooking Lake Winnepausaukee (spelling?). Sunday morning was absolutely spectacular with no clouds in the sky and a pleasant 62 degrees to start the day. My wave was the 5th to go off while Greg had to wait until the 12th wave a full half-hour later. Swim conditions were pretty good with just a light chop. In retrospect, my sighting was probably pretty poor but otherwise I felt good during the swim. A good portion of it was done blind as we took a right hand turn into a gorgeous (but blinding) rising sun. My swim split was just under 30 minutes, which was a bit more than I had hoped for (especially after learning that Greg once again bested me on the swim with a 29:07 split).
The bike course is a challenging one with a decent amount of climbing for the first 10 miles before making it out onto some sustained flatter portions. The 56 mile loop then ends with some climbing at the end. Winds were not terrible but definitely present for most of the ride. I felt good for the entire ride and maintained my target HR zone pretty well. As the day wore on, the temp.s began to climb and I definitely made a point of getting plenty of liquids. I managed to chop roughly five minutes off of last year's bike split (2:30:30); in no small part due to the new P2C from TT!
Once out on the run, the temp.s really began to take a toll and I was taking as much water, gatorade, and sponges as I could in order to avoid over-heating. I got a real thrill only a 1/2 mile in as famed pro Michael Lovato came running by me and I managed to keep him within eyesight for the next few miles (yea, he was on his 2nd lap!). This is a really fun run double loop run course which manages to keep things interesting as runners run through bubbles, mardi gras, and one guy dressed as a she-devil (I hope that was a guy!). While my run was some 5 minutes slower than last year's time (gotta get back on the EPO), I was pleased with my effort and running a strong second half of the race (1:31:28). All told, I was 27 seconds slower than last year, but am happy as I knew my run would be nowhere near last years. The effort (4:35:04)ws good for 6th in the AG (wrong AG to be in) and 17th amateur overall.
My compadre Mr. Stewart can provide his race details, but he definitely through down a fine race of his own! Imagine what this guy would do if he ACTUALLY TRAINED!

Lots of rest for now before a final push for IRONMAN ARIZONA!

Cipollini, McKeun, Valverde, Lindine?

I am not going to lie to any of you, my faithful readers; writing the weekly race reports for the TARGETRAINING U-25/Elite Development Bicycle Racing team is not very difficult to do. They are all simply amazing. Each and every week they perform at the highest level, work perfectly together as a team, stick to the plan, intimidate the living heck out of the competition, and always score and mostly win. It is simply beautiful.

Well, at this past weekend's Capital Region Road Race in Ravena, NY the team excelled as always. Some of you may remember this race as a very difficult course with steep farm roads, wind swept flats and fields full of racers trying to redeem their seasons now that it is mid August and GMSR is on the way. TARGETRAINING sent Eneas, Justin, Adam, BFD Dave, Will, Nate and Gabe to use this 83 mile road race as the last prep event for Labor Day's Green Mountain Stage Race. (Don't worry, nicknames will be overused later in this email!) A small but dangerous field was present, including arch rivals Kenda, some stinking Fruities, our NJ fiend Roger and the Nerac boys. Not too shabby of a group.

The plan was simple: get Bomb and New Guy off the front early while everyone was bird dogging Eneas and Wolverine Lindine. Then, as the legs got weary, BAM! the two of them bridge up and we take the win. Seriously, that is simple.

So, on the first lap Adam and Gabe went for it. Turns out that everyone wasn't so willing to just let us do our plan and they were chased back in. Adam tried to explain to the competition that there was a plan, but they were very uncooperative. So, Gabe attacks. Adam attacks. Eneas and Justin counter. The field goes crazy. Then Gabe goes again and drops a Nerac. Then Paul "No Longer Tailgunning" Levis brings Adam Bomb back to the front and whoosh! he attacks down the left side and is away with two others.

A bit later a dangerous Nerac sprinter comes up, but da Bomb is not scared, there is a plan.

Soon, the plan comes into play as a small green dot comes over the horizon at ramming speed: Justin. So, the break comes through the first zone six strong, Adam and Justin, two Kenda, a Nav and the Nerac. They already have a minute on the field as the rest of the feed zone workers and officials shake their heads. Not again they all say. Why won't they just give everyone else a chance they say. I smile quietly. Well, not really, but you get the drift.

For over fifty miles they are away until the last lap when Adam attacks so hard up a hill that he actaully pulls the cleat off of his team issue Crank Bros road pedal. The cleat is still attached to his pedal and three lonely screws are showing on the bottom of his (also team issued) Diadora shoes. Uh oh, the ratios are off. Kenda tries to seize this opportunity and start to double team attack Justin. The Nerac tries to play it cool and stays with them all.

Meanwhile, back in the remnants of the field, Will and Eneas come through the last last two laps about four minutes back. They have decided to start messing with the remnants and one of them said "slow down Eneas". Not smart. He attacks and solos off the field. Zing.

At the pointy end, the rest of the breakaway is trying to hurt Justin, but it is not working. He finally attacks with 1.5k to go to the finish, but they bring him back. So, he goes again at 200 meters to line and it is now a two up sprint with the very quick Nerac. Its Green, then grey, Nerac, then TT, Justin, then the other guy and then the line: a flash of light for the camera. The official: too close to call, they go to the film...then Alan shouts from the tent - Kyle, he's got it.

Holy freaking cow. Justin has won the race in a sprint! It was awesome. The sparse crowd goes wild. I go wild. It was awesome. Then, Eneas comes in for 6th. Then, Monster Will Nowak out sprints the field for 7th and Nate is behind him for 10th! What? Awesome! Two weeks in a row! Thanks for the great day guys!

Special shout out to David Nowak, Will's father who comes to each event to cheer and help and will give neutral water to anyone that asks. Thanks.

There were also some other races: Joe Regan finished in the lead group in the cat 3s while Sprinter Ben and blue Trek guy had mechanicals and Badger, Hh and Dr Rob Weiss did the masters events. Hard course and a tough day.

All of the teams are definitely on form for the upcoming Green Mountain Stage Race! Look for more updates soon! Thanks for reading!


Kyle Wolfe
Director, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
www.targetraining.com

Equipment Corner "Light it Up"

I am sorry to say that Mother Nature is stealing day light from us. Those early morning and end of day rides and runs are becoming restricted by day light. Although we do not advocate training in times of darkness, we often begin and end our rides and runs in low light levels. For this reason we highly recommend the purchase of reflective vests for running and tail and head lights for your bike. A small investment in these products will go a long way to keeping you visible and safe during these times.

Light systems such as the Compact Opticube and TL-R, both made by Cateye and in stock at TARGETRAINING Tri & Cycle, are low cost and low profile solutions for your bike. Want to light the night sky up, then look into a full light system by NiteRider. Please consult your local TARGETRAINING professional for recommendations on the best lighting solutions for your individual needs.

Elite team GMSR camp

Two weeks ago the TARGETRAINING U-25/Elite Development Team held a training camp in Vermont to help prepare for the upcoming Green Mountain Stage Race. Making the drive were Justin Lindine, Dave Hoyle, Will Nowak, Gabe Lloyd and Adam St Germain. Faithful readers to this column know them as Wolverine, BFD, Monster, New Guy and the Bomb.

It should be noted that Bomb was very excited to only have to drive 30 minutes. Since his move to Burlington last winter, Adam has been singularly responsible for global warming by driving approximately 17 hours for each race! The team stayed in the same condo as last year's race and prepared for a tough few days.

Friday afternoon saw two hours of tempo riding with Kyle driving his SUV as the follow vehicle. No green death mobile this weekend as it was down supporting a much better cause with the Pan Mass Challenge. This was a good ride and got everyone back together after a few weeks of rest and no racing plus how Fitchburg had split the cat 1s and cat 2 riders. GMSR will be a combined field so it is important that everyone work together.

On Saturday morning the team cruised down the mountain and rode over to the new time trial course. In the past, GMSR was famous for its first stage mass start hill climb. This was a neat event that mixed the stategeries of a team event with the solo efforts of a time trial. A completely different course needed to be reviewed as it could be decisive. The team did the course twice with Kyle in the car and then twice more as an actual time trial with start times and split and everything. It is a very tough course and only the strongest will win. Good stuff. The lads rode about 50 miles with the course and warmup and down and headed home for lunch.

After two hours of sandwiches and ESPN 8 (The Ocho) the team headed back out to preride the 105 km road race course. The course goes over some interesting roads in central Vermont including both Middlebury and App Gaps, two very steep and difficult mountain cross roads. It was going up Middlebury gap that the rain started to fall and descending the mountain when Gabe started to fall. Yup, that hurt. Gabe hit a water filled pot hole at about 70kph and wiped out. He was a little banged up but survived okay. The rest of the team talked me into letting him climb in the car as they continued to ride.

Above is a picture of the team chasing Justin uphill in the rain. What fun.

Now, as an experiment, I had disconnected the brakes on Justin's bicycle. I seriously don't think he even noticed as this kid never uses them. He is one of the best amateur descenders I have ever seen. They were not even racing and he just flies down the mountains. His plan: get low, trust your tires and just let go. Wow. Super fast.

The rain really started to pour down and they climbed off after about 60 more miles. Over a hundred for the day, good stuff. To the right is a picture of Gabe with what is left of his rain cape. Don't worry folks, he is okay and getting ready for his next Mensa meeting!

The next morning saw lots more rain, but we headed out anyhow. Hey, what did I care, I was in the car with the radio and heater. We went a did a shortened but much harder loop with Lincoln Gap, Baby Gap and then App Gap again before riding back to the condo. Lincoln Gap for those who don't know is almost unrideable. It is about 25% grade for over 2 miles. Adam got off his bike a walked a bit and caught Will and David. Justin did repeats in his big ring and wondered what all the fuss was about. No brakes again by the way.

The training was awesome and the squad really began to work together well as a team again, even playing attacking scenarios up Baby Gap. Good stuff all around and we gained a huge leg up on the competition and will be well prepared for the race on Labor Day weekend.

I do want to say that for the most part the people of Vermont were very nice and understanding and respectful to the team. They waited until there was room to pass the car and riders on the road and almost every one of them beeped and waved. Of course, almost every car had a bike rack and knew Adam. That kid is famous!

Thanks for reading and look for the TARGETRAINING riders at the Capital Region Road Race in Albany this coming weekend!

For family and team

Today was the Tokeneke Road Race held on multiple laps of a tough and hilly 22 mile course in East Hartland, CT. Promoted by local clubs and our friends at Tokeneke, Mossman and Cafeteros, it promised to be a tough day with the masters doing only two laps and the P12 three. With the TARGETRAINING U-25/Elite team getting ready for the upcoming Green Mountain Road Race, this was an important event. Adding to the pressure was how last year Eneas won and Justin took third place.

This year saw the squad send Eneas and Justin again, along with No Nickname Nate, Adam Bomb, BFD Dave, Will Monster, Matt (nickname withheld) and Stylin Ben. Paul "Tailgunner" Levis was also there!

The first lap started quick with multiple attacks until Ben got off the front and away with a Kenda rival. This forced the fruities to chase the next 15 miles and set up Will and Matt going into the big climb. With the Monster pulling full speed, Eneas and Justin pushed the pace with the field right behind them. Eneas coasted through the KOM prize (in his big ring, ouch!) and the mood of the day was set. The field came back together until a touch of wheels put Adam and another rider onto the pavement. Ouch. Adam had to wait a bunch for the service call but got back on with just some scrapes and bruises.

Meanwhile, up the long tough feed zone climb at the end of the second lap, the lone green and blue jersey of Eneas came flying up the climb. About a minute back was Justin just hammering the heck out of a different Kenda and the field about 30 seconds behind with Will and Nate covering moves nicely. Justin dropped his partner and bridged the gap over the next 20 minutes to reach his teammate. They worked well together through a quick rain storm in the valley until their gap hit almost four minutes at the base of the final climb to the finish. They stayed steady up the hill and crossed the line hand in hand with Eneas dedicating the win to his mother in law; who has just finished her cancer treatment. With this type of inspiration, it was no wonder that no other team could keep up with them for almost three hours.

Then, a few minutes later, a flash of green at the finish line shows Will Nowak winning the sprint for third place in front of a fruitie and a nerac. What? Holy crap, that is fantastic! With his teammates up the road, Will got a free rider for the last lap and nailed the remainders for a TARGETRAINING 1-2-3. Nice!!!! Look to see this kid on TV someday soon; strong rider, good skills and does what he is told. I need 9 more! Really, though: I guess we improved on last year the best way possible!

It looks like the team is getting ready for GMSR in the proper fashion and the energy they are producing can be felt with those looking to recover from sickness and continue to influence the lives around us and the team. Our thoughts and prayers are will all of you.

In the Masters 35+ event, you know who won solo, with Scott Bodin 5th, Max L 9th and the best looking man in cycling, Max Viega leading the field up the climb in sterling fashion. Ian just made it home from the Cape to help out too! Nicely done guys!


Kyle Wolfe

Director, TARGETRAINING Racing Teams
http://www.targetraining.com/

The Circle of Life

With less than 24hrs until the start of the Pan Mass Challenge, I find myself reflecting on a cycling season that is not only an athletic endeavor, but a learning experience that has taught me just how precious and at times how fragile our lives can be.

Having been blessed with a son last year, my wife and I spent the beginning of the year struck by how rewarding new life truly is. Yet our world was about to change in a way that neither of us anticipated.

Rick and I had agreed to participate in the Pan Mass Challenge early on and had planned our racing seasons around it. Before we could even think about the start of the year’s 1st road race, Rick was diagnosed with testicular cancer. What went from a worthy cause, in the Pan Mass Challenge, hit close to home when your fellow athlete’s life is threatened by the very disease that you were raising awareness for.

Fortunately Rick’s rehabilitation has gone well and he is back on the bike racing and getting ready to participate in the Pan Mass Challenge with me this weekend.

Yet this story has only just begun. Soon after Rick’s battle, my mother in law was diagnosed with breast cancer. She too has fought her cancer and on mother’s day of 2008 I dedicate my cycling season to her. You may have seen my fabulous pink bar tape, well that’s for Oma!
As part of my pledge to ride the Pan Mass Challenge, I have committed to not only fund raise for the event, but to match my sponsor’s generosity with my own personal challenge.
For every $100 that I have been sponsored for my completion of the Pan Mass Challenge, I will also ride up the simulated Alp D’Huez climb at TARGETRAINING in under 1hr.

This may not be an easy way to raise money, but it’s nothing like the fight against cancer. Looking beyond this weekend’s event, it is my goal to help spread the word about cancer prevention and management through diet and exercise. Mother Nature brings us life, and she provides us with the tools to nourish it.

Training Snack Food of the week

We all know that Fig Newtons are an underground training food for pro cyclists, but for the recreational cyclist they can be a refreshing snack change on your favorite training route.

Want to take a fig bar to the next level? Then try Barbara's whole wheat all natural Fig Bars. They have no artificial colors or flavors, sweetened naturally with fruit juice, and are even tastier and juicier than your traditional Fig Newton. They pack 60 calories and 13g of carbohydrates per bar so you will be sure to keep the gas tank full with a pocket full.