Team may be rather small, yikes
The team of guys doing the entire Tour de France Challenge is supposed to made up of 10-12 people plus two on-the-bike staff members. Thinking here is the more people there are to share the hard work of piercing the wind, the easier it is.
One of the on-the-bike staff members is Josh Powers, my coach. I think this is great. And Josh assures me he can pull like a mule. The only problem is Josh Powers is the size of a toothpick. He's literally 125 pounds. So when Josh rides ahead of you and "pulls" you don't get much of a draft. It's nice to have a big man in front of you.
How nice? Well, when I rode in Austin at the Ride for the Roses, I saw why Lance Armstrong loves George Hincapie. Big George is huge. He has a long back, wide shoulders, and he rides like a bull. So sitting behind Big George is the equivalent of riding in the draft of on 18-wheeler.
When I threw down the gauntlet at Coach Josh's feet, he chuckled and said he was on a group ride and when it was his turn to pull some of the guys groused and said, "Hey, you're too damn skinny. Open your jacket." So he did. Perhaps we can attach large pieces of cardboard to Coach Josh's shoulders, back, and backside to create an adequate draft.
According to Coach Josh, a great many individuals have expressed interest in the trip. Only four have sent in some money. This concerns me greatly. Coach Josh, who will be riding the Tour, assures me that there are people who are thinking about it, they just want to make sure they're in shape before they send in the money.
This strikes me as half assed. How in hell will you get in shape if you haven't committed to the event? There are plenty of days when it's raining, or snowing, or blowing a gale out of the northwest where if you weren't committed to the event, there's no way in hell you'd saddle up. You'd open the shade a crack, look at the unpleasant weather, then jump back into bed.
Coach Josh assures me that most people think the other way, and the fact that I think sign up, train, do it, is a unique and perhaps flawed way of thinking.
Hard to say.
Today is a Field Test, a 20-minute warm up, followed by two all out 3-mile efforts to gauge fitness. Since I had a head cold, I backed off on the training and gained at least 3 pounds, maybe more. We'll see if the legs are still there, or if in fact they have abandoned me.
Lance Armstrong my best dog is home this weekend and I hope he brings me good fortune. I don't want to go out there and throw down a lousy time trial.
That's all for now. I'll put some results down here later.
Speaking of Coach Josh, he's struggling to find a sponsor. Anyone want to sponsor a 125-pound mountain bike racer? Email him at jpowers@trainright.com
One of the on-the-bike staff members is Josh Powers, my coach. I think this is great. And Josh assures me he can pull like a mule. The only problem is Josh Powers is the size of a toothpick. He's literally 125 pounds. So when Josh rides ahead of you and "pulls" you don't get much of a draft. It's nice to have a big man in front of you.
How nice? Well, when I rode in Austin at the Ride for the Roses, I saw why Lance Armstrong loves George Hincapie. Big George is huge. He has a long back, wide shoulders, and he rides like a bull. So sitting behind Big George is the equivalent of riding in the draft of on 18-wheeler.
When I threw down the gauntlet at Coach Josh's feet, he chuckled and said he was on a group ride and when it was his turn to pull some of the guys groused and said, "Hey, you're too damn skinny. Open your jacket." So he did. Perhaps we can attach large pieces of cardboard to Coach Josh's shoulders, back, and backside to create an adequate draft.
According to Coach Josh, a great many individuals have expressed interest in the trip. Only four have sent in some money. This concerns me greatly. Coach Josh, who will be riding the Tour, assures me that there are people who are thinking about it, they just want to make sure they're in shape before they send in the money.
This strikes me as half assed. How in hell will you get in shape if you haven't committed to the event? There are plenty of days when it's raining, or snowing, or blowing a gale out of the northwest where if you weren't committed to the event, there's no way in hell you'd saddle up. You'd open the shade a crack, look at the unpleasant weather, then jump back into bed.
Coach Josh assures me that most people think the other way, and the fact that I think sign up, train, do it, is a unique and perhaps flawed way of thinking.
Hard to say.
Today is a Field Test, a 20-minute warm up, followed by two all out 3-mile efforts to gauge fitness. Since I had a head cold, I backed off on the training and gained at least 3 pounds, maybe more. We'll see if the legs are still there, or if in fact they have abandoned me.
Lance Armstrong my best dog is home this weekend and I hope he brings me good fortune. I don't want to go out there and throw down a lousy time trial.
That's all for now. I'll put some results down here later.
Speaking of Coach Josh, he's struggling to find a sponsor. Anyone want to sponsor a 125-pound mountain bike racer? Email him at jpowers@trainright.com
posted by joe berkeley at 5:16 AM
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