tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70374730757970896412024-02-07T11:36:09.591-08:00Words And Wheelslife, on bikes, in wordsNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.comBlogger74125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-57087864904202869002010-05-28T16:26:00.000-07:002010-05-28T16:36:11.270-07:00I'mma Tell You a Story......But right now I'm too busy. So check out my other stories <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.embrocationmagazine.com/online/real-life-and-the-search-for-unicorns">here,</a> and my team's antics <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://wheelhouseracing.com">here.</a> When I get back from being too busy, I'll have lots of interesting things to say about racing, life in Albany, future life in North Carolina (what?!) job hunting, Shakespeare with kids, and my crazy Russian landlord. <br /><br />Peace,<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-81502282014485824792010-04-03T08:15:00.000-07:002010-04-07T08:05:00.346-07:00Good Friday and The Damned Ontario WindLast Friday I raced the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.canadiancyclist.com/dailynews.php?id=18638">Good Friday Road Race </a>in Hamilton, Ontario. Last Sunday I wrote a whole race report about it here, but it is so windy up there this time of year that just as I was about to click "publish" the damned thing blew away. True story. So here is a somewhat abbreviated version. <br /><br />I love April, I love racing in Canada, and I love it when you have the first race of the season where your legs feel like they have some depth in them. I didn't win, and I didn't even place in the money, but I raced the hell out of my bike for the first time this year, and considering I am only 3 weeks into riding bikes for the year, that feels like a lot.<br /><br />The race was hard, there was a lot of wind, and those short Ontario hills (glacial drumlins to the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">cognoscenti</span> ) really sting. It's funny but long climbs tend to be ridden at a steadier pace, whereas 300-500 meter rollers, no matter how steep tend to get raced full gas, bottom to top. With 5 of them per lap, I got a pretty solid high-end workout, and it definitely highlighted what I haven't been doing so far this year.<br /><br />With most of Ontario's best amateurs on hand (DSJ notably absent) and Spidertech p/b Planet Energy's Andrew Randell making a solo appearance, it was mostly clear who to watch. The bizarre x-factor of Canadian racing is always hard to figure, though. And you can be sure that in every race up there you will encounter some completely innocuous looking guy in generic kit on a 10-year-old bike, and that guy will shred. This race did not disappoint. <br /><br />The crosswinds were a notable factor, except on the parts of the course where the headwinds were a factor, and that took a little remembering on my part. The JetFuel team was aggressive, as were Garneau and others, and everyone sat on Randell, predictably. One break went, stayed out for a lap, started to look threatening and therefore inspired serious bridge attempts. I jumped across to one (ouch! first time this year) and we motivated a large group behind us, so by the end of the 3rd of 5 laps we were 15 chasing 7, with the rest of the field more or less put pf contention. I took a fair share of pulls to bring us back in contact with the front, covered a bunch of counters after we were all together, started to feel the efforts, and found myself lacking, out of position, or both when the attacks that counted went. <br /><br />In the end a final 6 got away with one tt'ing dude in between and my group racing for 8th. JetFuel won, Randell got 2nd after a monster solo bridge, and me, I burnt my last match closing a gap with 500 meters to go and sat up in the sprint.<br /><br />This was actually a motivating result for me, because considering that I am 3 weeks into my season, I don't have any reason to expect race-winning legs. So I was pleasantly surprised by how much I was able to do at the pointy end of the race, and the uphill accelerations are not at all bad for early April. Go figure. <br /><br />So now comes the much-ballyhooed Battenkill, which sadly I will miss the first, Pro-Am round of. Life calls, this time in the form of a conference in Montreal where Charmaine is presenting. And considering that I don't have any teammates in the race and my form is iffy, I am making the surprisingly mature decision to bag the race in favor of grown-up responsibilities, relationship time, and training. The part of the season I am choosing to care about this year starts in late May, so for now I am biding my time, and keeping things in balance.<br /><br />Next up will be the Tour Of The Battenkill Pro Men's Invitational (UCI 1.2) on 4/18, which I am really looking forward to. If you aren't getting excited about races like that, you shouldn't be racing. I am definitely getting excited, though I have no idea what to expect from myself. Not a bad place to be in; it makes enjoying the moment easier.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-55171510762005295672010-03-30T16:30:00.000-07:002010-03-30T16:33:11.408-07:00I'm not blogging today......nope, no time.<br /><br />If I was blogging today, though, I would be writing a little about Johnny Cake #2, a little about the upcoming Good Friday Road Race in Hamilton, Ontario, and a little about the naked, fat old guy rumpus I endure every time I go to the gym. Hint: possibly bad manners to stand at the sink, en flagrante, and dry you <span style="font-style: italic;">entire </span>body with the hair dryer. Just sayin'.<br /><br />More on all of this, for better and worse, soon.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-50984950830621510032010-03-24T06:10:00.000-07:002010-03-24T07:43:18.212-07:00Yeah Yeah, I'm Still HereHey there blogland! It's been nearly 3 months since my last post, and I feel like a bit of a heel. A couple of you have been really sweet and asked me why I haven't been posting, which was a nice reminder that people actually read this blog. So here I am, large as life and twice as handsome. Eh?<br /><br />The simple story is that following 'cross season I was seriously burned out and needed a break from bikes. Then my longtime training partner and teammate, Matt Purdy, retired from racing, I started playing tournament chess again, it got to be 9 degrees outside and I got depressed as hell. So there went January and February. <br /><br />But now it is spring, the days are getting marvelously longer, and I care about bikes again. And thanks to my students being on break and the weather being ridiculously good, I actually rode 19 hours last week, which is more than I had ridden in the previous 8 weeks combined. So it's a start. I got in my first race of the season last Saturday at the Johnny Cake Lane Spring Series #1, and <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://wheelhouseracing.com/">the team</a> worked incredibly well together to deliver <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2010/03/20-Johnny-Cake-Lane1.asp">Big Dan Greenfield for the win.</a> We were pretty pleased, because despite the fact that it was just a training race, there were some really good guys there. We managed to have guys in every break, and on the last lap we just took over setting up a train for our designated sprinter, Brad Warren, and leaving room for The Danimal to play the role of spoiler, which he did perfectly. Ca-Caaaw!! (cried the paisley Hawk).<br /><br />Thanks for reading, happy spring.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-9613589932656729292009-12-26T13:07:00.000-08:002009-12-26T13:12:52.596-08:00Boxing DayNationals? It sucked. I'll get around to a race report, but the significant detail is merely that I had a sinus infection for ~10 days before leaving, and I decided to take antibiotics rather than risk getting really sick since I wasn't getting better. Infection gone, form gone with it. You ever raced on antibiotics? Then you know what I'm talking about. But more on USAC's annual fundraiser/bake sale/Ice Capades later.<br /><br />Today I am recovering from Christmas, and by recovering I mean playing with the Wii I bought my daughter now that she's back at her mom's house. I haven't lived in a house with a televisi0n for nearly 5 years and I never had a game system as a kid. It isn't so much that I can't leave it alone as the fact that my elbows are really sore and hyper-extended from boxing. 2 weeks off the bike and I'm a wreck.<br /><br />Life is good, though, the job hunt resumes, interesting doings shape up for 2010, and some buddies of mine are racing a World Cup today. Lots to catch up on.<br /><br />Until then, Merry Christmas and thanks for reading.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-64301010085911030532009-12-10T15:22:00.000-08:002009-12-10T16:27:23.419-08:00Layover-d: Sterling and Warwick in Hindsight, and Too Many Hours in an AirportI have been in the Seattle/Tacoma airport since noon (local time) and it is now nearly 3:30. My flight leaves at 5:55. Oops. Funny how I got on a 6:05am flight out of Albany for this...have to plan the itinerary a little more carefully next time.<br /><br />In any event, having explored the nether regions of the terminal to a fare-thee-well, and finally located a quiet corner with an outlet where my computer actually believes in the Wifi signal, this seems like as good a time as any to relive some recent moderate successes by way of a race report or two.<br /><a href="http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/baystate-cyclocross-c2/elite-men/results"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sterling, MA Day 1, 11/28: </span></a><br />(Yes, I have arrived. That's me in the click-through photo for the gallery)<br /><br />I always feel good and ride well on this course. And no I don't think I just jinxed myself. For some combination of reasons having to do with the holiday weekend (more sleep!) and the fact that true 'cross season is now in full effect and road fitness has faded, I always feel pretty fresh and motivated for this race, and my results over the years have been consistently solid. It doesn't hurt that Tom Stevens designs this race and as far as I am concerned he is absolutely the man. His courses are fast and flowy: you pedal a lot, generally on flat ground, but you also turn a lot, and at speed, meaning that good bike handling and smooth riding will save you energy. My kind of course, for sure. Though I was sad to be missing whatever was in store for day 2 of the race this year, I was psyched to be able to spend my one racing day this weekend on the classic Sterling course I have come to know and love, featuring the nearly-rideable run-up and the infamous horse jump.<br /><br />So the race started well for me and I went through the first turn in 5th wheel or so, right behind Jeremy Powers. Somewhere on the run-up I bobbled and got passed by the horde, then passed some guys back (including a super-sketchy inside pass underneath Peter Bradshaw, sorry Pete!) and settled into 11th, with Adam Myerson, Jerome Townsend and Luke Keough right in front of me. Somewhere along here Luke had a mechanical, dropped back, passed me after he got a bike change, and then once he caught Myerson and Jerome again they all sort of stalled and nobody seemed to want to pull into the headwind on the track...except me, so I did, and I caught them.<br /><br />I tried tailgunning the group a bit to recover, but inconsistent and somewhat negative riding between Luke and Jerome, vying for the u23 win, meant there were a lot of gaps to close at the back, so I started to pull instead. I was really happy to be in this group because these guys have been riding better than me all year, and we were 7th-11th on the course, which meant for one thing I was having a good ride, and for another UCI points were a more realistic possibility then they have yet this season.<br /><br />Anyway, hijinx ensued, and Luke and Jerome continued to make work for Adam and I by attacking a lot. Eventually Luke paid for some of his efforts and fell off the pace, and/or quit racing for awhile, but in any event he left our group. Somewhere in here we picked up Mike Broderick who had been alone in 7th for much of the race, but our surges had reeled him in. A solo flying Justin Spinelli was just ahead and I was hoping that with cooperation in our group 6th place was still up or grabs, but it wasn't to be. Feeling optimistic, I attacked hard after the barriers on the last lap but was shut down and passed immediately by all three of my companions. Broderick basically started the sprint by surging well before the last corner, but Jerome gapped us, followed by Myerson, and I got around Broderick, and that was how we finished 7th-10th, respectively. My first UCI points of the season, some reasonable prize money and some seriously restored confidence made for a pleasant drive home, and I was in such a good mood I didn't even mind not racing on Sunday. Especially because I was missing the race to take my daughter, Silas to see the Nutcracker ballet, which was awesome. But that's another story.<br /><a href="http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/nbx-grand-prix-of-cross-day-2-c2/elite-men/results"> </a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/nbx-grand-prix-of-cross-day-2-c2/elite-men/results">Warwick RI Day 2, Verge Series Finale 12/6: </a><br /><br /></span>Of course following one of my best rides of the year in Sterling, I got sick. I had a nasty sore throat that turned into a sinus infection and laryngitis, and kept me off the bike Wednesday, which I had planned to be my last hard training day of the season. (And, truth be told, it would have been my first one in many weeks.) I got out on the road for 2 hours Thursday and managed brief spins on Friday and Saturday, but I was still sick and had no idea what to expect from this race. I decided once again to only race one day this weekend, partly due to being sick, but more due to the fact that My Awesome KidTM was playing the part of the Sour Kangaroo in her school's production of Seussical, and there was no way I was going to miss it. I, you see, am <span style="font-style: italic;">not </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ewn_mtGZ1sQ&feature=related">the biggest blame fool in the jungle of Nool.</a><br /><br />But sick or not sick, I was in a good mood when I got to Goddard park on Sunday. I love this race venue. It's a nice shady pine forest on a calm little bay, which reaches so far inland that the water is almost totally flat, and it looks almost more like a lake than the ocean. There is always a great community vibe at this race, too, because it's the end of the Verge series, and the end of the season save for nationals. One of my favorite times of the 'cross season is hanging around in the carousel building trying to stay warm after the race, and catching up with, and saying good-bye to, friends from all over. Even for me, this is a hard race to feel at all morose about, except maybe for the fact that it has two sand runs in it. Eeek.<br /><br />So owing to my newly minted UCI points and the small, late-season field, I was graced with a front row call-up, which is a first for me in a UCI race and was pretty cool. On the start line I noticed that the buckle of one of my shoes was broken and while still fastened, could basically fall off any time. 2 minutes 'til start time, nothing to do about it now. And anyway, that wasn't as bad as the fact that at 5 minutes to start time I had crashed on my way to the start when I overcooked a slippery corner and had broken the rear shifter on my ti bike into two pieces. Really. So, broken shoe and once again no pit bike. Let 'er rip and hope the bike stays in one piece. Honestly, I have no more angst to spend on bike racing this year, so I put it out of my mind and focused on the racing.<br /><br />Good start, 5th wheel, sand run #1, staying in line, pass Lindine over the barriers, and hang on we're halfway through the lap and I'm still in 5th position! Immediately I began to remind myself not to do anything stupid. The cold air was wrecking my throat but interestingly enough I had good legs, so I went with it. And, finally, there I was having the race I feel like I have had in me all year but haven't been able to get out. Rested enough? Relaxed enough? Who knows, but based on my road season and overall fitness, I really felt like I should belong up front in the local/regional C2's this year, and it's nice to finally be racing at least somewhat near my potential. Really that's all I want is to know that I'm getting everything out of my body that it has to give, whatever that may be...but it's so bloody hard to get there. Anyway.<br /><br />The course was an absolute blast of slippery tacky corners, one groovy mud puddle, 2 sand runs, <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/nbx-grand-prix-of-cross-day-2-c2/elite-men/photos/97568">one of which approaches the UCI 80-meter limit</a>--or feels like it--and some really cool woodsy sections, capped off by a long pavement stretch and a series of parking lot criterium style turns. I love this course! I managed to stay in the front group for 2 laps, which felt like a lot, and to stay within hailing distance for a 3rd. Knowing my limits and not totally trusting my lungs, I listened to the pain when it told me not to try to stay with Will Dugan as he gave chase, and now I don't know, but I think I made the right call. Eventually Dylan McNicholas popped off the front group some time on the 4th lap or so, and we settled in together in 7th and 8th spots and kept racing, consistently putting time into the guys behind us but not making anything up on Will, who would eventually catch and drop Luke Keough and finish alone in 5th place.<br /><br />Dylan and I seemed evenly matched, and worked pretty hard, though I felt like I was doing more pulling. I made a couple of attacks in the last lap and a half but he didn't seem to have any trouble shutting me down. I noticed he wasn't attacking, though, and having lost the sprint out of the last corner on this course twice before, I knew that my plan had to be to lead into the last wooded section from 3 corners out. That's what I did, and it worked. I came through the last turn pretty hot and tight on the inside line to avoid getting schooled again like Jerome did to me last year, and then I sprinted like I meant it, which wound up being pretty convincing. 7th place was good for 6 UCI points and 104 bucks, and put me in another good mood for another drive home. All of a sudden I am really looking forward to nationals! Go freakin' figure.<br /><br />And as a by-the-by: Dan Timmerman won both days at Warwick, thus sealing up his truly dominant win of the overall Verge series title this season. My steadfast teammate and anti-Internet hermit friend, Justin Lindine, proved that his Belgium-bound form is coming well with a strong 3rd place on Saturday and a 4th Sunday.<br /><br />Nationals in Bend, OR this weekend, with the Master's 30-34 race on Saturday and the Elite race on Sunday. In some respects I wish I had another month to keep racing and building this form I seem to have going right now. But as always, I feel the year going to sleep and I am looking forward to family time, snow activities, reading lots, and staying up too late, and generally not having to pack the car and stress about being places on time on weekend mornings.<br /><br />Stay tuned for updates, and thanks for reading.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-80985570587082300682009-12-07T10:08:00.000-08:002009-12-07T10:12:53.079-08:00DecemberingWow, no blogging for ages! I have missed the blogosphere, but for a bunch of reasons have been lacking in time and wherewithal to write.<br /><br />November was an interesting month from all angles. I finally started to come around form-wise and have had some good rides, most recently at Sterling, MA and Warwick, RI where I finally picked up my first UCI points of the year, just in time for nationals!<br /><br />In other news I also got laid off and don't have any classes for the spring semester so it looks like temping is in my future.<br /><br />I'm looking forward to having more time to write in the coming weeks, and I'll have some recent race reports up here in the coming days. Thursday I fly to Bend, OR for Cyclocross national championships and that should produce some good stories. More to come...<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-37467436956681864442009-11-04T07:57:00.000-08:002009-11-04T11:50:26.190-08:00The Right RaceAfter<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2009/10/31-Wicked-Creepy-CX.asp"> Saturday's Wicked Creepy 'Cross in Bennington</a>, I wasn't sure I wanted to race on Sunday. Yes, I had a good ride there, but I felt flat and couldn't get the power to the pedals when I needed to. Really I think I was just blocked from not opening up hard enough on Friday, but mentally I am at a point in the season when I feel like any more bad luck or crappy rides could really break me. So I was actually riding around in 2nd place contemplating dropping out. What the hell is wrong with me?!<br /><br />Anyway I got over it. I was pre-registered for the HPCX UCI race down in New Jersey, but I was dreading the 6 hour round trip and felt ill-equipped to score UCI points given the relatively strong field.<br /><br />So after putting racing out of my mind and going to see Paranormal Activity with Charmaine for Halloween, I wallowed around Sunday morning, packing the car while protesting that I didn't want to race, and really testing Charmaine's patience to its outer limits. Finally I decided to go, but then decided not to once I was on the road, so I turned around and went to Vermont, instead. Really.<br /><img src="file:///Users/thanward/Desktop/4070103102_f3ca718860.jpg" alt="" /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5x5kHhBzkqR7Z29i8bjU2mQKDHPnYRfmu86dzGeOfY39buxE5P34k5gGN1HLpmc3M623GF3SSz7Nnf7TzEXdmp3_NVsJ7LSwYTb2BCsKqi6PpQ8SX60ehUzMRAAB6y3CzTRw-gm6c84w/s1600-h/4070103102_f3ca718860.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5x5kHhBzkqR7Z29i8bjU2mQKDHPnYRfmu86dzGeOfY39buxE5P34k5gGN1HLpmc3M623GF3SSz7Nnf7TzEXdmp3_NVsJ7LSwYTb2BCsKqi6PpQ8SX60ehUzMRAAB6y3CzTRw-gm6c84w/s320/4070103102_f3ca718860.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400295493445658018" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-size:85%;">Ethan Gilmour and Me, running the Birch Logs<br />Photo Courtesy of Alan Atwood<br /><br /></span></div>I mean, I love racing, I love Vermont, and I love cyclocross. I even love the solitary drives through the fall foliage that are a part of cross season, and I love getting amped about prize money and UCI points. But what I really love is that feeling when the balance between community and competition is just right, and for some reason the folks at the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.westhillshop.com/">West Hill Shop</a> in Putney always manage to get that right. In fact, this was the first 'cross race I ever did (2005, 5th in the B race) where I felt like I might actually be good at this, and it was under similarly unlikely circumstances. Maybe it's the mountains, maybe it's the foliage, but Vermont is good for my soul. A solo drive to Jersey in search of UCI points that I may or may not have had the legs to get, however, did not seem good for my soul. <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2009/11/01-West-Hill-Shop-CX.asp">I was right.</a><br /><br />The field was small this year, owing to the fact that there were a ton of local races scattered around New England this weekend, but my buddy Al Donahue was there and we had agreed on a no-holds-barred rematch from the day before. Kirt Fitzpatrick was there, too, and he has been riding well lately, as was local Vermont lad and U23 Euro mountain bike shredder, Ethan Gilmour. So it promised to be a classic Putney: laid back and fun, but with just enough fast guys to make a real race out of it.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">Al got an uncharacteristically quick start, but I sneaked past him for the hole shot and led through the barriers and onto the first batch of slick, muddy turns before the birch log two-step and the whoop-de-doos. Man I love this course! Honestly, there are few courses around that are simply as much fun to ride bikes on. Anyway, I stayed in front all the way around the corn field for the first lap, then Ethan came past me and led us into the run-up the first time. At this point Ethan, Kirt and I had about a 5 second gap on Al, who looked to be closing, and the rest of the field looked far away, save for Evan Huff who was chasing on his own in no man's land. Things stayed this way for the next two laps with Ethan and I doing all of the work until Kirt attacked us as we approached the run up for the 3rd time. He railed the turn at the bottom and sprinted up the hill, opening a small gap which he then lost when he couldn't get into his pedal. It looked frustrating. Once he clipped in he proceeded to sprint out of every turn for the next lap really keeping the pressure on Ethan and I...and then he blew up. After the 4th time up the run-up we kept at it and when we looked back the next time through the corn field Kirt was fading fast and Al was now about 10 seconds down as well.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6NRbe3ngzrxACj1SofjMShmmaj-3iHzG1PQ4bkhfVYkW89R_DREbB_J0hGIG7EYdNIhAQvMH9EH72-h8lxoAItyIrCUzsutWH3F3M7bG5o1fEzOTM7Exshf-HVjjNPPce4D-kVjYp134/s1600-h/4070102510_49715beb62.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6NRbe3ngzrxACj1SofjMShmmaj-3iHzG1PQ4bkhfVYkW89R_DREbB_J0hGIG7EYdNIhAQvMH9EH72-h8lxoAItyIrCUzsutWH3F3M7bG5o1fEzOTM7Exshf-HVjjNPPce4D-kVjYp134/s320/4070102510_49715beb62.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400296522712954642" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">Me leading Ethan into the woods<br />Photo Courtesy of Alan Atwood<br /></span></div><br />This was motivating and we stayed on it, trading pulls, working well together and running the legs off of each other each time up the hill. We kept it steady until 3 laps to go when Ethan got frisky and started to attack me. I didn't really attack him back much since he didn't seem to be hurting at all. I took the opportunity to jump around him and lead the technical stuff a couple of times, hitting it hard out of the corners and hoping to gap him but each time he got right back on with no problem.<br /><br />Now anyone who knows the Putney course knows that if you're racing against an evenly matched rider, then the race is to the top of the run up since the finish line is less than 100 yards away at that point. As a rule, the first rider to clip in at the top of the hill wins the race. I felt like I was pulling a little harder than Ethan, but I also didn't think I could drop him and ride it in solo, so I decided to bank everything on a last lap attack through the cornfield, and if that didn't work I would do whatever I could to win the race to the top of the run-up.<br /><br />Sure enough he jumped me first in the cornfield, I stuck it, then countered, he got right on me, and stayed glued to my back tire through the back-to-back 180's leading to the road. I led onto the road but didn't pull hard and kept my eye on his shadow. When he jumped I made sure he didn't gap me, and then I countered hard to his left when he was looking over his right shoulder. Yes, I did go around the cones in the middle of the dirt road, but in a situation like that, cones seem like a suggestion to me more than a hard and fast rule. We drag raced to the last turn rubbing shoulders, and basically it just came down to him braking first. Fortunately we didn't crash coming into the hill. I'm no great runner but I sprinted as hard as I could up the hill, clipped in and wound it up to the line. Judging by the shadow on the ground it looked like I had enough room to sit up and celebrate but something told me not to, and it's a good thing because Ethan surged hard at the last minute and in the end I only won the sprint by a wheel or so. But I won!<br /><br />Sure, it's a small, local race, but it's a New England classic and honestly, I don't get to win all that often. Given my fatigue and frustration lately, and given the fact that (no secret here) my biggest competitive enemy is my head, I was just really happy to stay focused all the way to the line and not make any mistakes. And taking the win in front of guys I respect like Ethan, Al and Kirt felt really, really good. Maybe November is my month again...I never do exactly the same thing in September, but invariably I seem to go better in November every year. Go figure.<br /><br />Thanks for reading,<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-68107247619462322002009-11-04T07:28:00.001-08:002009-11-04T11:46:29.189-08:00Retro Race Report: Maine #2So to rewind a couple of weeks, let's get back to Sunday Muddy Sunday in Maine.<br /><br />Following that Saturday's freezing cold slip-slop fest, there was a lot of work to do in the way of bike maintenance and laundry. My teammates Justin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Lindine</span> and Emily Curry and I set up a sort of assembly line in the hotel room (Justin did most of the work, he's like that) and soaked and then re-soaked all of our gear, stuffed shoes with newspaper, etc. Sunday morning was spent finding a laundromat and re-cabling our non-shifting bikes. This was not really so unpleasant because the sun had come out and graced us with a beautiful, New England fall day, the kind they make postcards out of.<br /><br />We rolled up to the course a nice leisurely couple of hours early, speculating optimistically that the sun would have dried out the course some, and besides, they can't really be using the same track as yesterday, right? Right?! Wrong.<br /><br />As soon as we saw a mud-drenched Roger <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Aspholm</span> come through for his bell lap (way off the front, nice one Rog!) we knew we were in for another hard day. Only given that it had stopped raining and the sun was out, the mud was no longer soupy, but of a chunky, peanut-butter consistency that sticks to everything and adds 10 lbs to your bike and about 2 lbs to each shoe. The proverbial long day loomed, but at least it was warm and sunny.<br /><br />The long and the short of it for me was a bad start, then a bad crash that left me tangled up with another rider on the ground in 6 inches of mud, still clipped into my pedals. By the time I got up and moving again (this was 2 minutes into the race) I was the last man on the course and about 30 yards--the length of the run/ride up--behind the next rider in front of me. Yes I wanted to quit, but I had been pretty determined to finish both races this weekend because I haven't finished two races in a weekend in many weeks, so I slogged on, passed a lot of people, and much to my surprise worked my way up into the top 15 after a couple of laps. I was finally having a good ride after weeks of crap legs and bad luck! Then my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">seatpost</span> came loose.<br /><br />At first the bold slipped and the saddle just tilted back at a 45 degree angle, which sucked but was bearable. After a lap like that and with 2&1/2 laps to go in the race, the bolt loosened almost completely and I was left with a saddle that had about 3 inches of travel, fore and aft, and almost as much side-to-side wiggle. For whatever reason I was determined to finish my reasonably good ride, so I dealt with it and pressed on, hollering at everyone I knew in the pit that I needed a bike (since I only have one at the moment) but of course nothing was available. I thought about getting my pedals fitted to a neutral bike but it seemed like I would lose more time than if I just kept riding, so I just kept riding. Then I got a flat.<br /><br />Fortunately the flat came about 1/2 a lap to go and the mud was so thick that I was actually able to ride it a good portion of the time, though it did give Phil Wong the opportunity he needed to get away from me before the finish. Through a combination of running and riding on the rim I managed to hold off the next couple of guys behind me for 16<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">th</span> place, but a much more interesting 16<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">th</span> place then the previous day's.<br /><span style="display: block;" id="formatbar_Buttons"><span class="on" style="display: block;" id="formatbar_CreateLink" title="Link" onmouseover="ButtonHoverOn(this);" onmouseout="ButtonHoverOff(this);" onmouseup="" onmousedown="CheckFormatting(event);FormatbarButton('richeditorframe', this, 8);ButtonMouseDown(this);"><img src="img/blank.gif" alt="Link" class="gl_link" border="0" /></span></span><br />And <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/downeast-cyclocross-day-2-c2/elite-men/photos/93445">Justin got 2<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">nd</span>, missing the win by a wheel or so</a>, but that's old news.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-605508815393357682009-11-01T18:46:00.000-08:002009-11-04T11:46:29.190-08:00November Redemption?So last Sunday in Maine I endured every kind of bad luck imaginable and finished 16th, same as Saturday. Yes that does mean that I was actually riding well and feeling good, but that turned out not to be worth a whole lot.<br /><br />Yesterday I got 2nd at the wicked awesome, Wicked Creepy 'Cross in Bennington, and I had a good time rocking around the course with Al until he dropped me and took the win. But more on that later.<br /><br />Today however I had a lot of fun at one of my very favorite races up in Putney, Vermont. And I won! Sure it's a small local race, but it's a New England classic, and I have actually had my heart set on winning it at least once for years now. After all of my existential moaning and frustration lately, a little good news, some sunshine and just enough slippery mud to be fun, paired with pretty good racin' legs was just what the doctor ordered. UCI points are for suckers. And hats off to Ethan Gilmour for racing hard all day and coming within about a wheel of stealing the win from me.<br /><br />Full reports to follow, now it's paper gradin', tryin' to sleep, confused body clock post daylight savings time uh-huh time. KnowhadImean?<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-48852670159474751912009-10-24T19:10:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:02.466-07:00The Rain in Maine Falls Mainly in the Bike Race<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.cycle-smart.com/events/neccs/schedule">Verge NECCS Race #7: </a>Long drive, cold rain, more cold rain, sloppy-slip-slop course conditions, warm-up in the car, shivering, line up, race, crash, race, pass guys, get passed, ride clean lines, fall down some, finish 16th. Pineland Farms is pretty.<br /><br />Not my best ride today, and not my worst. Given the conditions, I'll take it. The victory for me was keeping my head in the race and being competitive enough to keep at it and finish the durned thing. I felt like I had more in me, and I was riding the slop well, but I couldn't run up those hills AT ALL. My legs got so cold I felt like I was dragging cinder blocks around. Then there was a badly timed chain drop and when I took big risks on the sketchy descent to try to make it up, I got stuck in a bad rut and crashed pretty spectacularly. Slightly bruised back, no big deal, keep it movin'. Some good guys dropped out of the race today, so I felt pretty good, given my recent failures and tantrums, that I found a place in my head I could go to have fun and stay mentally present. Small victories.<br /><br />It's still raining, I'm huddled in a hotel room at the Super 8 Motel in Lewiston, Maine, and they don't have a laundromat. Off to find one in the car tomorrow morning...too tired to do it tonight, and we already murdered the bathtub. So much mud!<br /><br />Tomorrow? We'll see.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-84025791105059626402009-10-24T19:01:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:02.466-07:00Toronto #2: BetterI sat on that last post for awhile before I put it up, and although my mood has improved considerably since then, I feel like the hard times are as blogworthy as the good times; it's the arc of the whole experience, the whole season, that creates any sort of story at all.<br /><br />So Sunday in Toronto was much better. The result(a lackluster 24th) doesn't reflect it, but I had a solid start, worked my way up to 15th, and was racing well in a shape-shifting group of 3-5 guys for most of the race. With 2&1/2 to go I got a shifter caught in some course tape when I came wide through a turn and I spent the next couple of minutes wrestling with my bike/chain drop/tape wrap/shit storm. Needless to say a mess of guys passed me while I was doing this and the gap quickly got too big for me to catch them back. That was a bummer, because I was having the first reasonably good ride I've had in weeks...and I still managed to screw it up. Oh well, at least I had fun this time, and Charmaine was skulking around the course, popping out from behind trees, smiling cheerfully, taking pictures and being awesome, which helped. And how about that sunshine? It was a really fantastic weekend, and the Midweek Cycling club is to be commended.<br /><br />Still not there yet, but I'm getting a little closer.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-12440263579115335762009-10-17T17:01:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:02.466-07:00Toronto #1: AgainI'm running out of ways to describe bad races. I suppose that considering the burnout, and the fact that I only rode my bike on Wednesday and Friday (for 45 minutes) this week, and the cracked rib and the sore throat I've been walking around with...well, I suppose the real surprise is that I actually felt good on my wee spin last night and was looking forward to racing today.<br /><br />Long story short, I was having a tough day following a solid first couple of laps when I slid out on an off-camber and dropped my chain. I was in a hard-earned 25th place out of about 40 guys and I was sliding backwards like a stone, the ski hill was killing me. Putting the chain back on took longer than it should have and I was stuck in the middle of the damn hill, or more accurately, right at the bottom of the final pitch. When I contemplated running to the top or trying to remount mid-hill, I just couldn't bring myself to do it, so I quit.<br /><br />I'll start tomorrow and try to have fun and re-discover the reasons that I do this. It's funny how when things are going well with racing it all seems so self-evident, and when it's like it has been for me this past month, well, all of the positive stuff seems pretty far away.<br /><br />Better days.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-88247365838424850122009-10-14T05:31:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:40.768-07:00ColdtoberIt's cold in here. I can see my breath, actually, in my apartment. Yes I have spoken to my landlord, no I am not confident she will figure out before the day is over.<br /><br />On a lighter note I actually finished a bike race on Sunday with no crashes or mechanicals. I did stack it pretty hard in warm-up trying to get used to riding clinchers again, and I bruised a couple of ribs, but what can you do.<br /><br />So yeah, day 2 in Providence was a lot of fun even though I had a pretty mediocre ride. The depth of North American 'cross is getting really impressive, though, which is both encouraging and discouraging all at once.<br /><br />And this week I finally committed to getting all of the rest I actually need and not trying to squeeze in confidence building, energy draining workouts between race weekends anymore. Hopefully my good legs will show up in time for Toronto this coming weekend.<br /><br />That's it for now, back to work.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-29652207419791516952009-10-10T16:21:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:02.467-07:00Divine Providence Part 1I quit bike racing yesterday. It didn't take, though, probably because I was actually riding my bike at the time, and I had to ride for at least long enough to get home, or else ditch the bike and hitch-hike home in my superhero costume. And I thought about it, believe me. I have been slightly sick, and really tired, and awfully frustrated in my last few races. I've been worrying about UCI points, series standings, prize money, sponsor expectations ans a host of other shit that I would really like to think I had evolved beyond the need to measure myself by. And the beauty part is, for today, I have. I had fun racing my bike today, which is a hell of an accomplishment considering that I wasn't convinced I would even start today when I woke up this morning, and I got two flat tires in the race and DNF'd.<br /><br />Last night I got a solid pep-talk from my amazing, brilliant, sexy and fun partner, Charmaine, and that helped me feel like all answers were right answers. Thanks, Baby! Whatever happens in the races, I have an amazing woman to come home to, and that's really as much as I could hope for. If I have to be a head case, and apparently I do, at least I bounce back quickly.<br /><br />So yup, another DNF. The difference was that today I felt like a bike racer again, and I felt pretty snappy, which was a nice surprise. Good enough start, not so good I was likely to get myself in trouble trying to hang with my betters, but just good enough that as the first lap shook out I was comfortably top-20 with good guys all around me, and I was completely confident that I would settle into a group of guys who would race hard for the full hour. And really, that's all you want out of the start. It's a race, and you have to let it happen. But racing close enough to the front that all of those intangibles like UCI points and simple accomplishment are actually within sight produces something my friend Al Donahue refers to as "awesomeness". When you're in among the awesomeness, you keep going fast. When you're in the weeds with the back-markers, it tends to slow you down a little bit, in mind, body and spirit. <br /><br />So why did I DNF? 2/3 of the way through the first lap I got a squishy tire, due either to the fact that the course was paved with glass, or to a sharp curb we had to ride every lap. I rode the tire flat for as long as I could, ran some technical stuff, and rode some technical stuff, which was actually pretty cool in its own disappointing way. Unfortunately I don't have a pit bike yet (this week, I'm hoping) so I got a super fast wheel change from Joe and Joe's Garage stalwart, Doug Aspinwall (thanks guys!) and got rolling again but I was nearly dead last at this point. Bummer. <br /><br />One thing I have learned is that early bad luck in a race takes all the pressure off, if nothing else. So I resigned myself to a race of catch-up and settled into a groove. I was picking guys off at a pretty good clip and steadily moving up. My friend and teammate, Justin Lindine suffered a mechanical, as well, and I caught up to him just as he swung into the pit for a bike change. We were together for a bit but he dropped me pretty quickly. Nevertheless, seeing him killing it kept me motivated and I started to see a pretty large group of guys about 2 sections in front of me, which looked attainable. And then I got the second flat tire, in just about the same place as the first one...<br /><br />I was half a lap or more from the pit, and I really couldn't see what was to be gained by running another half a lap just to try to spend the rest of the race fighting for the lead lap, so I pulled the plug. <br /><br />At least I was mad about it, though. If I was as burned out as I thought I was yesterday then I would have been secretly happy. Sometimes mechanicals are like that: a relief. Not today, though. Today I wanted to race my bike, I was hungry for it. And that was a victory in itself .<br /><br />So tomorrow is another day, and another race down here in Roger Williams park in Providence, RI, which I have to say is still one of my favorite cyclocross venues. And whether I head to Toronto next weekend or stay at home and race in Troy, I'll be more focused on the simple joy and effort of racing than on the outcome. Because, really? I am a pretty lucky human being.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-73537639540115478822009-10-05T07:54:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:24:02.467-07:00Gloucester Race Reports, Etc.There were 'cross races in Gloucester, MA this past weekend, so I hear. I was near them, and I had numbers pinned on, but I couldn't really see the racing from where I was. For the interested, there are a mess of really cool videos over on <a style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold" href="http://www.cyclingdirt.org/">Cyclingdirt</a>, including the <a style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold" href="http://www.cyclingdirt.org/videos/coverage/view_video/235695-nact-3-4-grand-prix-of-gloucester/203121-page-crash-at-gp-gloucester-day-2">infamous and highly entertaining one</a>. Intentional or not, professional or not, grudge matches can only be good for spectating and sponsorship dollars. But I digress.<br /><br />Saturday at Gloucester was ludicrously muddy. I rode well in the mud, better than I ever used to in fact. But an overly aggressive start combined with some mistakes relegated me to racing somewhere in the high-20's, where I stayed, and that was that. I don't have a pit bike yet (next week?) so I pitted onto Joe's 52cm bike with the saddle 3cm too short, which was pretty entertaining. But that has nothing to do with my result. I think my suckiness is attributable to a little fatigue and the need to do some engine work. It's hard to get the balance right between high-end training and maintenance/recovery. With 2 'crosses per weekend it's really easy to overdo it, and the racing pretty much takes care of the high-end work on the weekends. So this week is diesel week, and hopefully I can participate in the races in Providence next weekend.<br /><br />Sunday was just frustrating. I had a better and more reasonable start where I avoided blowing myself up and I was in and around a respectable group racing for 20th or so, with good prospects for moving up when a series of bobbles and dropped chains, some mine, some others', cost me a mess of time. I hate to admit it, but my core is weak, and my back hurt on the bumpy ground, so crunches here I come. After having resigned myself to another ignominious day in the high-20's, I had a final bobble in the buttonhook coming into the barriers with 2 to go and I just couldn't make myself care enough to run. Off came the helmet, exit smoothly under the tape, rest forehead on handlebars for a couple of minutes over by the gazebo, roll to the car, get a drink. Sometimes a little "wasn't-there-didn't-happen" is preferable to actually finding out how bad the result would have been if I had stuck it out. And sometimes not, for sure. But when I come unglued mentally, and the riding stops being fun, it's usually time to bail for the day. No sense getting hurt or breaking the bike when you can't keep your head in the game. So, better days.<br /><br />I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed with where my form seems to be, but the 'cross season is still relatively young. I do seem to be yards better at driving my bike than I used to be, and it is a definite confidence builder to know that I can drop people who are stronger than me in the mud or in technical sections. But it seems like there are a lot of people stronger than me, and that's a little hard to take. I know my body pretty well at this point, though, and I know that I won't be worse than this a month or even 2 months from now, and a lot of guys will be once road and mountain bike season fitness is a distant memory. The 'cross season itself is like a race in a lot of ways, and while a good start is key, steady consistency can pay off, as well. So I'll be tuning my engine, building my threshold and hoping for better results. If I could just get my 2nd lap fitness to match my starts I would be all set, and that has to be coming. Hope so.<br /><br />And in other news I teach English, do awesome dad stuff, and have started to do some freelance editing as well as coaching a few bike racers. Doing knowledge work feels good, making a reasonable living would feel even better.<br /><br />So now that I have caught up on several months worth of navel-gazing, race report style blogging, I will leave you to your workday. Don't forget to check out my articles over on <a style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold" href="http://www.embrocationmagazine.com/online/?author=Nathaniel+Ward">Embrocation Cycling Journal.</a> I get paid by the hit, true story. So click early and often.<br /><br />Thanks for reading,<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-25506021759456554672009-10-01T08:32:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:25:39.283-07:00I Miss You Guys...It's been like that for a few weeks, and I miss blogging. True, I have been writing and if you're curious you can see what about at <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.embrocationmagazine.com/because">Embrocation Cycling Journal.</a><br /><br />But writing here is different, and you folks who read this are my friends. So, an apology for being absent, and a brief account of why, to be followed by more interesting stories.<br /><br />- Teaching is a new challenge. Sometimes rewarding, sometimes maddening.<br />- One win in a local 'cross race<br />- 2 good-enough-but-kinda-disappointing rides in the first Verge Series UCI races of the season last week in Vermont.<br />- Gloucester coming up this weekend<br />- Silas's new school: The good, the pretty damn good, and the unintentional comedy of 21st century liberal intellectualism.<br /><br />Off I go, looking forward to getting back on a blogging schedule.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-2790721362136174282009-09-14T10:04:00.000-07:002009-10-24T19:27:18.137-07:00SeptemberIt must be September because I haven't touched this blog in two weeks and I have that constant feeling of stress and busy-ness. Too much to do and not enough time to do it in.<br /><br />Later this afternoon my most recent column will be up over on Embrocation Cycling Journal, so check that out.<br /><br />In other news, I'll have a recap of the road season including race reports from GMSR and Univest.<br /><br />'Cross season is here, just poke your nose out the door and sniff. Yup, it's time for <span style="font-style: italic;">that. </span><br /><br />And call me Mr. Adjunct. In an effort to actually make a living using my degrees and also doing the things I have worked hard to become good at outside of school, I am now teaching everything I know how to do. Seriously. Mostly I'm teaching English Composition at a community college, but I am also coaching now, and even teaching guitar lessons again, which I haven't done in years.<br /><br />I'll assume none of you are interested in taking English comp, but if you are interested in cycling coaching, contact me at than(removethis)ward at gmail dot com. This is a new adventure for me and I was on the fence about it for awhile, but I love bike racing, I have worked with several really good coaches over the years, I train a lot, and not for nothing but I'm a pretty damned good teacher. As I often write about here, I haven't always been an athlete, and I tend to have a lot of other irons in the fire at any given point in the year. I like to think this makes me a good coach because of the perspective I have on a variety of things, like learning to be competitive later in life, fitting in training around kids and family, and stuff like that.<br /><br />And now back to it. More later in the week, thanks for reading.<br /><br />Cheers,<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-43034751682100874602009-08-27T07:07:00.000-07:002009-08-27T07:26:40.310-07:00The End of an Era<a href="http://ronsilliman.blogspot.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Silliman</span></a> isn't usually all that sentimental, but he is today. RIP Ted Kennedy.<br /><br />Sure we still have the King of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Filibuster</span>, Robert Byrd of West Virginia, but being that he is both older than dirt and was late to the civil rights party, he's really a horse of a different color.<br /><br />I won't make any grand statements for good or ill concerning politicians, but I will say that this morning I am feeling nostalgic for a bygone, Modernist sensibility concerning politics and world affairs. For all of their short-sightedness and failings of one kind and another, the so-called greatest generation approached civic life with a sincerity that not only preceded, but optimistically failed to anticipate today's universal irony. The baby-boomers had different causes, different priorities, but dammit they could still believe in something without cracking a smile or rolling their eyes.<br /><br /> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Obama's</span> easy skill as an orator and effortless and inspirational command of a room give me hope, but I have to wonder how long it will be before we have only leaders who have never known either true hope nor true struggle. I wonder what kind of a country we will live in when we are governed entirely by the children of comfort and privilege, by the generations that know no history and live entirely in the taken-for-granted present.<br /><br />Today, in honor of Ted Kennedy and those who went on before him, I want to do something in analog; in black and white.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-17997098177661304812009-08-25T06:56:00.000-07:002009-08-27T07:27:07.154-07:00Li'l Somethin' for The KidsNo races this past weekend, 'cross season just around the corner, and only two of the hardest races of the year (GMSR and Univest) between now and then. Lots of training, monstrously hard Euro-pro workouts, low cadence work, speedwork, swimming, campfires, novels, it's been a good week.<br /><br />In other news, I seem to have gotten a teaching job. Adjunct instructor of college composition, that's me.<br /><br />For inspirational purposes, I offer my favorite 'cross video. I thought this song was awesome before it was put to this purpose, now I see its true brilliance come to life. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0Rl1bHVUPvg&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0Rl1bHVUPvg&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Nathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-33875436582707617642009-08-17T08:30:00.000-07:002009-08-27T07:27:07.154-07:00Diggin' the Dog DaysIt's Monday again, I'm behind in blogging, but life is pretty good. Today instead of doing bike things I am cleaning my apartment and heading up to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Saratoga</span> to go to the horsey races. I have lived my entire life within 45 minutes of the track, one way or another, and I have never been. Poor me with my <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">conscientious</span>, Bohemian parents...never any mainstream fun. But today I shall sweat and bet, and hoot and holler from the cheap seats. I'm psyched!<br /><br />My latest column is up over on <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.embrocationmagazine.com/">Embrocation Cycling Journal</a>, hope y'all like it. While you're there I highly recommend also taking a look at Jeremy Dunn's latest, which includes a hilarious video, truly worth it.<br /><br />I have a <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.tenetracing.com/?page_id=13">teammate</a> or two who are on me to update the team site, and rightly so. This past weekend we acquitted ourselves admirably taking 2nd, 3rd and 6th at the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2009/08/15-NY-Capital-Region-Road-Race.asp">Capital Region Road Race</a> on Saturday, and then winning the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bikereg.com/Results/2009/08/16-Blount-Seafoods-Criterium.asp">Fall River Crit</a>, plus taking 4th, 5th and 1oth in Eastern Mass on Sunday. Not only are we the nicest elite amateur team in bike racing, we throw down pretty hard, too. Full reports from this weekend, plus recent history dating all the way back to Montreal-Quebec will appear on the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.tenetracing.com/">team's website</a> this week. Look forward to it, it will be good reading.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-20601612003987362772009-08-05T10:09:00.001-07:002009-08-27T07:27:07.154-07:00New Column at Embrocation Cycling JournalMy new, bi-weekly column is now live and online over on <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.embrocationmagazine.com">Embrocation Cycling Journal.</a> Check it out, it's a great magazine, both online and in print.<br /><br />And that's it for now, busy day. Later this week I'll have details from Montreal-Quebec and some exciting news about the upcoming cyclocross season. For now I'll just say I'm going to be riding some<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.ifbikes.com/OurBikes/Cross/Steel_Planet_Cross/"> pretty bikes</a>.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-19704848316366437832009-08-03T08:27:00.000-07:002009-08-03T08:39:22.955-07:00Canoes, Quebec, and Late Summer RecalibrationI'm still overdue on my complete Tour De Quebec race report over on the team site. It's coming up today, I promise.<br /><br />Post TDQ, I took three days off the bike, then headed to Ontario with Char for some light bikin' and quality hang time with her parents. That was followed by another 4 days off the bike that included a marvelous journey deep into the wilds of the St. Regis canoe wilderness with Charmaine. The mosquitoes were the size of my fist, it rained, there were goblins, I carried a canoe on my head for 5k, we ate many marshmallows. Pictures to follow.<br /><br />This past week I got back to training, putting in a big block of 24 hours and ~410 miles or so from Friday through Thursday. My ass is pretty thoroughly kicked but my legs feel like a bike racer's again--which is to say that they hurt.<br /><br />The hurt leggies probably owe more to the fact that I raced La Classique Louis Garneau yesterday, aka Montreal-Quebec, which was 154 miles of rainy bike riding. It was a great race, I flatted 3 times and made it back to the group each time, which was an adventure in itself. We had good luck, then bad, and only put one rider in the money. I did win the field sprint (good news!) but it was for 26th place (bad news..). C'est la vie. Driving home alone from Quebec city took a looooooong time.<br /><br />Today I play catch up and get another job application out to another Community College. Hopefully I'll be gettin' my teach on come September. If I don't get hired somewhere it's going to have to be substitute teaching, I think. We'll see.<br /><br />Race reports and more thoughts to follow.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-4917735297136154022009-07-27T06:54:00.000-07:002009-08-03T08:36:59.213-07:00Time to Rant: on Sandbagging and why I raceThis post began as a reply to a thread on <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://untilthesnowends.blogspot.com/2009/07/hey-guys-lets-race-bikes.html">Colin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Reuter's</span> blog </a>but I realized it was much too long for a comment and hey, I have my own blog, right? This is what happens when I don't race for two weeks...I rant. For the uninitiated, we are discussing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">cyclocross</span> racing, and the categories into which <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">cyclocross</span> racers are sorted based on ability and results. Umm, yes. This is uber-nerd stuff, You've been warned. And yes, I do occasionally have arguments with my girlfriend over the pronunciation of spells in the Harry Potter books. Though just yesterday she astutely pointed out that in the beginning of "The Half Blood Prince" Luna shouldn't have been able to see through Harry's invisibility cloak because it's a Deathly Hallow, and as we all learned in "The Deathly Hallows" you can't use a spell on a Deathly Hallow. Yes, we had this conversation. I digress, but only just.<br /><br />So without further ado, here is my mini-dissertation on sandbagging, why it more or less doesn't exist, and why--in the cases where it does exist--it doesn't matter.<br /><br />Is there an obligation to race "up" a category? Is it <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">dishonorable</span> to do races you can win easily? Is it silly to do races where you are almost guaranteed to get lapped? Does anyone care? Would anyone pay any attention to their license category if we didn't live in the age of Internet stalking? And yes, by the way, this all has not a hell of a lot to do with Colin's original post. But it got me thinking, and then I drank a bunch of Jet Fuel coffee after several caffeine free days, and damned if the rant didn't just start to flow. I needed something to blog about anyway...<br /><br /> To me, "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">sandbagger</span>" is an over-used term, and we're all too concerned with category, mostly because of the Internets, and guys Colin and me who manage our <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">OCD</span> and time between races by mining the racing lifestyle for introspective, ego-boosting minutia. The sandbagging that feels unfair to me is when I used to play chess against Russian immigrant teenagers who were internationally ranked experts but would move to the US and buy a novice license to enter into $20,000 prize purse tournaments and steal the entry fees of hapless <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">patzers</span> like me. In that case, there is a deliberate concealment of ability in pursuit of profit. On the other hand, everyone knows who the guy is who won the B race 3 weeks in a row, there's no concealment. And given that there is an overall season prize, and a B national championship, I think the dominant B's have every right to race in a category they can win right up through nationals. With the new category structure, I think cat 3's have the same right. After all, what's the use of accumulating points toward an overall series win if you're going to be "honor bound" to upgrade after a win or three?<br /><br />For all of us except perhaps riders like Katie Compton, Alberto <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Contador</span>, or Sven <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Nys</span>, any time we win or place in a bike race, it is directly related to the fact that there weren't many riders in the race who were better than us. You could fill an oil tanker with riders who can beat me in a 'cross race. Lucky for me, most of them don't live in New England, so I get to feel like a top 10 or top 15 placing in a <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.cycle-smart.com/neccs/">Verge series</a> race means something. Really what it means is that, in those races there is an echelon of guys who train a lot and are very talented, and then there is a rearguard of guys who train some, and maybe aren't as talented as the front group. In between those two echelons, there is me and the group of guys I race with every weekend: we're sorta kinda talented and we train quite a bit. In that group, I do <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">ok</span>. Yes, I jest and oversimplify, but not by a whole lot.<br /><br />In all seriousness, the main reason I race bikes--other than the fact that it is fun and there is part of me that is perpetually 7 years old, and completely swept away by the simple joy of self-propelled speed and wind whooshing by my ears--is that I have the opportunity every weekend to find out where my limits are and what I am made of. 21st century life is short on opportunities to discover our simple, primal worth, and I think there is tremendous value in involving yourself in games that stimulate the fight-or-flight response under controlled conditions and give us the opportunity to release endorphins and focus the mind <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">intensely</span>, if only for a little while. I get preoccupied by race category, and what people think of me, how my results look online, when my reimbursements will show up from my sponsors, etc etc. But none of that has anything to do with why I really do it, month after month, year after year. When I rant like this, I am mostly reminding myself to focus on the joy and the effort of racing, and what a privilege it is to be able to pursue it to the extent that I do. Seriously.<br /><br />-nNathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7037473075797089641.post-83313874724536931102009-07-21T05:12:00.000-07:002009-07-21T05:19:47.478-07:00Ne2c Climbing Extravaganza live video feedSo my brother Pete puts on the biggest, baddest and most multi-media rock climbing competitions in the world. Seriously, he's becoming a mogul in the outdoor industry, and sells designer clothes on the side.<br /><br />Today (this evening, beginning at 9:45 EST) in SLC at the Outdoor Retailer trade show the pro men's and women's finals of the Mammut Bouldering Championships will be video streamed live at<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://video.ne2cproductions.com/"> this link </a>and <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://live.climbingnarc.com/">live blogged here</a> at the most trafficed climbing blog on the net.<br /><br />North America's top boulderers will be putting on a hell of a show, and the wall they had built this year is really cool. Check it out!<br /><br />-n<br /><p> </p>Nathaniel Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02236557402855582309noreply@blogger.com0