a handful of well-intentioned locals showed up for the sizzler and were almost immediately greeted with rain. increasingly greasy and dangerous trails brought an end to the festivities but most seemed to have a pretty good time regardless. all eyes on boone now...really enjoy that course and looking forward to seeing the group of iowa racers that will inevitably be there.
got in another metric yesterday...truthfully it was completely unintentional. was looking at maybe a 3 hour ride and by the time i hit my halfway point it was obvious i was gonna be in the mid to upper 50 mile range by the time i got home. so, i just kept pedaling and ended up somewhere around 65 miles.
mailday yesterday brought me a stick. ever since i was a kid i have been absolutely terrible about stretching, to the point that it has led to more than one injury. add that to my cramping issues and i have to do something. i know myself well enough to realize that i'll never get myself to stretch appropriately so hopefully this thing will help.
if i work hard enough at it, i too could look like this guy. thanks stick!
5 comments:
Dear Ben: I certainly value your opinions when it comes to the art of racing a single speed both because of your outstanding results (especially in Lance’s race and at the T.I.) and your amicable nature. Would you, therefore, please offer up a bit of advice regarding the 24 Hours @ Seven Oaks? Your opinion on solutions to the following questions is of particular interest to me: a.) all kidding aside, is it “reasonable” to ride the course for such a long period on a rigid fork, given my modest abilities, and aging physique? To give context, currently riding 12 hours on my Gunnar is reasonable, even on tough courses, but I have in the past ridden the relatively smooth 24@9 Mile event on a rigid bike and all three times it beat me up something awful forcing a long recovery period. Is the Seven Oaks course “rough” with lots of bumps, etc.? Is it a techy course with lots of drops, roots, rocks, etc.? I do have access to a nice Fox front suspension shock and while using it would violate my dogmatic approach to racing, I must consider my future as well; b.) having recently joined the Single Speed Brethren I too am committed to purity, but I am worried that the course is such that going with one gear would put me at a significant disadvantage. Does the course hold long sections of flats (causing one to gear out) and/or are there any long climbs that would force long walk ups? I have raced with a single gear on five occasions now and in four of those I did not feel like the one gear held me back, but in the one, which held two long segments of flats combined with a long steep climb, I was at a significant disadvantage. Essentially, in your opinion, does the Seven Oaks course lend itself to a single gear? If so, what ratio would you suggest?
In advance, I thank you for your advice, and I am hopeful that I will see you this fall. Perhaps you will be able to come up for the Heck of the North 100 Miler Gravel race?
Cheers,
Charlie
Email: cfarrow@esko.k12.mn.us
funny enough, i just picked up one of the sticks a couple weeks ago because i too suck at stretching.
My experience with stretching has led me to believe that it is overrated. I never really felt any benefit from it when I did do it. I haven't stretched in probably the last two years and the last two years have been my fastest.
Way to tough it out at the 101, you're more of a man than I am!
See ya at Seven Oaks.
Cam
Ben- I've got a stick and it works well for me when I remember to use it. Basically, its a quick and easy way to do some deep tissue massage. I'm not much on stretching either.
Charlie- you may take a clue from Squirrel on the 24, I beleive he's riding gears and quite possibly a suspension fork as well.
Dear Ben,
Being an ahemm an “older biker” let me give you my 2 cents regarding stretching. After being recently limited in mileage due to Achilles tendon issues, and then severe knee tendonitis I had a visit with my knee surgeon. He told me my hams were too tight, my calves were too tight, my lower back was too tight, and told me you don’t need your 5th knee surgery you need to start a stretching program. So I did, 10 minutes in the morning, and 10 minutes in the evening. I still find it hard to believe but it worked. I don’t like taking the time to stretch, nobody does, but it gives me better rides, so I guess I gotta.
Dave
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