CicLAvia

Pedaling without the worries of traffic and cars came to life on 10/10/10 when CicLAvia took to the streets of Los Angeles for the specified time period of un-motorized bliss!  Just to keep in the spirit of the car-free day, we took the metro to the mid-point of the CicLAvia route.

For the LA Times article of the historic event, read here

For more info and updates of future CicLAvia events, go here

8th place overall

with the conclusion of the 2010 over the hump series, i feel great knowing where i was when i started in the first race of the series and can confidently recognize all of my improvements through the final race.  with much movement in position throughout the series, i am pretty proud of my 8th place overall finish amongst the 30-odd competitors in the men's beginner 1 group.  it was a fun experience to say the least and am glad to have had the chance to meet everyone i did and look forward to meeting many more the the series to come.

almost nearing completion...

the cannondale is almost finished! with the addition of a brand new external cup shimano deore xt bottom bracket paired with a lightly used shimano deore xt 175 mm crankset, i bought from steve, the cannondale is almost nearing completion...

i can really feel the difference in stiffness and weight loss with the installation of the crankset and can't wait for the next race when i can really mash on them.  with these cranks on, it has brought the total riding weight of the bike to a surprising 24lbs 6oz, which i am hopeful to say will help me out during the last 6 races of this over the hump race series.

all there is left to do know is order and put on the deore lx shifters and install the deore xt hydraulic disk brake set i have waiting in the garage - replacing the deore lx brake/shifter combo currently on the bike.

my fullerton curse continues

after thinking my ride went so well yesterday, i wake up this morning to ride and to my un-surprise - i am greeted with another fullerton flat... yes, it's come to the point where i've given them a nickname. my fullerton curse continues. but this time waiting until i get home to reveal itself. both front and rear tires sat lifeless with no air.

top 30% finish

over the hump 2010 race #4
awesome race!  it didn't begin awesome though - before mounting up, walking to my bike this taller fellow does this weird fake-out slap gesture to my face! my face!  although no contact was made it still left me with an uncomfortable feeling of wonder.  race begins - for some reason, i really lost my bearings today and had not a clue as to where i stood in the pack of b1's.  the only way to overcome that was to just go faster... that i did.  aside from being wheel struck from behind during one of the steepest downhills on the course, the race went pretty well.  more comfortable getting closer to others and drafting, making quicker passes and climbing more and more off-saddle.  this 2 1/2 lap course in reverse is receiving no complaints from me.  but really had no clue as to where i stood in the rankings - until they posted them.  surprise!  with a time of 49:16.0, i finished 5th place.

for the first time, i finished in the top 30%... for which i was awarded this pint glass:

getting comfortable and faster

christmas comes early! i received my new fizik antares saddle just in time to be installed for the 3rd over the hump race.

over the hump 2010 race #3

with determination set and eyes on the prize, i was ready to give a good effort at todays race.  the race conditions were different from previous weeks in that june gloom was prominent and there was a steady breeze rolling through.  the lengthened course proved to be a challenge, but none that i was going to ponder much over.  after being bumped off the track in what i call the "alice in wonderland" section (tight single track through damp woods) i fell back about 15-20 racers patiently waiting so as to not jumpt out and cause a pile up... from there, shall we say it was catch up.  i climbed my way all the way to the 12th position, completing the race in a time of 50:38.5.  this time at first glance isn't too impressive compared to my previous times, but lthey did extend the length of the course by a half lap!

over the hump @ irvine lake

since i've only been mountain biking a handful (literally - a handful) of times since starting in january 2010, i thought it would be a good idea to test out what little skills i had - accompanied with even less experience and sign up for the over the hump series @ irvine lake! 

starting my mountain biking adventure with a completely stock '08 cannondale f7, i figured i would upgrade this in order to be the least bit competitive. i have changed almost everything on this bike...everything!  thanks to ebay, jensonusa, performance bicycles and craigslist for being great resources for parts.  i went through and changed the stem (ritchey wcs), handlebars (ritchey wcs), seatpost (thomson elite), saddle (fizik gobi), front fork (fox f100), wheelset (easton xc one), tubes/tires (panaracers), pedals (crank brothers), shifters (shimano), brakes (shimano). the only thing left to change is the bottom bracket and crankset! ...soon to be changed.  once those are changed, all that remains from the bike i originally bought used from a friend of mine is the blue frame, that is all.

this is a current photo of the bike i have raced in the first two over the hump races.  i went with an all-white themed front end and saddle.  i think it gives it some character, kinda like a mullet - business in the front / party in the back!

over the hump 2010 race #1: 

good racing experience!  high intensity!  tough crowds and difficult course.  it was definitely a good learning experience.  from anything i've ever done on the road - this was a truly unique and new experience.  learning to handle the bike through the tight turns and twists while managing to stabilize the bike and myself was trying in itself, but doing it with racers in front and behind you pressurizes the situation by 100! finishing the 7 mile course 23rd out of 28 with a time of 49:18.6 wasn't all too bad for a first time race...even though it put me nearly at the bottom of the grouping.

over the hump 2010 race #2:

huge improvement from race #1.  not only in time, but in comfort on the bike and with the course.  confidence on the downhills and off saddle climbing was present this second time around.  changes to the bike made for this second race included switching from the wtb velociraptor cable bead tire set to the panaracer fire xc pro's was a huge improvement in handling and rolling resistance.  although there were less people entered in the men's beginner 29-under race class, i was still able to improve my time to 43:44.1 for the 7 mile course which put me in 13th position out of 20.