Ten of Thirteen isn't too bad.

Chris Mayhew organized a little Dirty Dozen scouting ride for Sunday morning. This was a good thing because a) Saturday was kind of gross out and I didn't feel like heading down for the WPW training ride, b) having skipped said WPW ride, I really wanted to get out and get some hills under my belt, and 3) Chris's plans were to do the whole thing, and I wanted to see if I could even make it through from start to finish.

Here are a few details:

• Eight of us started from the Oval at 10:00 AM
• The weather was great. Clear and sunny all day, with temps somewhere in the mid-to-upper 40s.
  
• Three of us (Chris, Robbie, and I) finished at the top of Flowers/Kilbourne/Tesla sometime around 1:30 or so.
  
• The five that peeled off at varying points in time did so of their own volition, not because of mechanicals or anything like that.
  
• In the time between, we climbed ten of the thirteen hills on the DD route.
  
• We skipped Canton, Boustead, and Barry/Holt/Eleanor.
  

All in all, I'd say I felt pretty good. I was still on my bike when I got to the top of each hill. I wasn't flying, but I wasn't puking, either. I was slightly disappointed that we skipped out on Canton, just because I still haven't tried it yet, but I'll just have to make sure I get myself over there this coming weekend.

At some point I need to swap a 12-27 cassette from the Portland to the Bianchi. I've been doing fine with the 12-25, but those two teeth might make a little bit of a difference.

Murrysville Cyclocross 2009

Finally got my first cyclocross race under my belt. The weather was pretty much perfect. Almost a full day's worth of rain on Friday, with showers tapering off about fifteen minutes before the start of the race left the course sufficiently saturated and ready to be turned from grass to mud. Temps were hovering somewhere near 60.

Heather and her dad came along to watch, and we got there somewhere around 9:20. That gave me plenty of time to get a lap around the course to get a feel for how things would be. It wasn't too hard to imagine that things would be muddy.

Morningside Velo at the starting line. L-R Robbie Sedgewick, Alex Braunstein, Brian Janaszek, Me

I was fortunate to get a spot in the first row before the race started, and once they set us off, I was in fourth or fifth place and a gap was already forming between us and the rest of the pack. There were maybe two other people close behind me: some guy I didn't know, and Brian.

When we got to the first run-up, Brian passed me. Somewhere not too far after that, the other guy passed me, too. Before the end of the first lap, though, I had managed to pull back in front of Mr. Unknown. Brian was still in front of me, hanging pretty close to some other guy.

By the end of the second lap, the guy behind me was pretty far back, and the rest of the group was nowhere in sight. I wasn't too far from Brian and the guy he was battling, but I knew that I didn't have the legs to catch up with them.

Me, shortly before eating it on the last lap.

On the fourth and final lap, I guess I had built up enough distance between me and my closest trailer that when I wiped out on one of the switchbacks and dropped my chain, I was able to stop and get everything back to where it needed to be without any threat of being passed.

I ended up finishing 6th in a field of 26. That was way better than I would ever have expected. I might not make it out for another race this season (I screwed up and made other plans before realizing there was another race tomorrow), which really stinks, but it was lots of fun and great incentive to try and get to more races next season.

The Portland: post-race, pre-bath.

Up next: Dirty Dozen.

*Sigh*. Postponed.

Hmm. The start of my cyclocross racing career is still on hold. Pro Bikes didn't have a middle ring, but I didn't find out until I called on Friday to see if there was any news. It's on its way, but won't be in until next week.

If I had been smart, I'd have called Wednesday morning to see if they had one in stock and then started calling around to other bikes shops. Alas, I was not smart, so now I have to wait.

I'll probably get out on the MTB for a while tomorrow morning. The tentative plan is to meet Jon at Riverview Park and see what that's like. He's spoken highly of it, so I'm looking forward to riding in a new place.

I went to 'cross practice and all I got was this broken tooth.

For the first time in, what? Three? Four weeks? the Portland and I finally made it back to Frick for Tuesday night 'cross practice. Of course I didn't get there in time for the 6:00 clinic, but at least I was there before sprints started.

When the sprints did start, I realized that I probably should have actually eaten something before heading out. Maybe if I'd had more time. I was okay for the most part, but I could feel it each time on the way back to the starting line.

The race laps seemed to go a little bit better, and everything was going really well until we started this one little climbing section. I decided to take advantage of my granny gear, but I was probably already working too hard when I downshifted and the chain popped off of the rings.

No big deal there. I got off, reseated the chain, and kept going. The only problem was that it kept wanting to fall back onto the little ring. In fact, the only way I was able to keep the chain on the middle ring was to shift the front derailleur to the big ring trim position. Something wasn't quite right.

Since we finished at about 7:25 and I was over in Squirrel Hill anyway, I figured I might as well stop by Pro Bikes to see if anyone had time to look at it. I was fine with leaving it there, too, since I had driven to practice, but I thought maybe I could even learn a thing or two.

I got to the shop and there wasn't a whole lot going on, so Jake put the bike in a repair stand and started looking around. At first he thought that it might just be the cables that needed adjusting, but after trying that and messing with the limit screws, the chain still had no desire to hang around on the middle ring.

Jake took a closer look, and it was then that he realized that there was a tooth missing on the middle ring. Almost definitely from that ill-timed/advised shift I described a little earlier. Once the crank spun to where the tooth was missing, the chain dropped back down to the granny.

Now the Portland's sitting at Pro Bikes, hoping that there's a middle ring somewhere in their basement waiting for it. I hope so, too. I'd really like to have the bike back before the weekend so that I can go up to Grove City for the 'cross race on Sunday. I didn't make it this past Sunday, due to weather and overall tiredness.

After getting back to practice tonight, I really want to get on a course and find out how bad I suck. I just want to race. And finish. We'll see what happens. Assuming I get the bike back in time.

Happy Anniversary!

It was a year ago yesterday that I wrecked on the Eliza Furnace trail while riding home from work. I still can't believe that I was lucky enough that my friend Chris was riding with me that day.

I'm sure that some stranger would have called an ambulance for me, but who knows what would have happened to my bike. Even if someone else had called, it's still not completely clear that I would have let the EMS guys take me. Chris had to talk me into getting into the ambulance, because apparently I thought I could get back on the bike and ride home by myself.

One more time: thanks, Chris!

To celebrate the occasion, I hopped on the bike after work last night and rode down to Confluence (my former employer on the North Shore, not Confluence, PA). From there I went across the 31st St. Bridge, up through Polish Hill, Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, and then back home.

Stayed on my bike the whole time. Felt pretty great, actually. It's good that I was able to put in more miles than the same day a year ago.

It was definitely a little odd being in and around downtown Pittsburgh with all of the G20 stuff going on. There weren't any protesters visible, but the whole city was pretty dead. No traffic on the way through town. Police and national guards on either side of any bridge. I was able to get where I wanted to go without any trouble though, so I was happy about that.

Not sure what the weekend will bring. I'm waffling as to whether or not I should register for the cyclocross race at Raccoon Creek on Sunday. Really, I probably should.

I'm a little nervous about racing 'cross for the first time, but the only way to get that first one out of the way is to go and do it. It'd probably be better to get this one under my belt before heading up to Grove City next Sunday.

Can you believe it's almost September already?

In an effort two have at least two posts per month, here's a second for August.

Let's see... since the last time, I've raced once. That was interesting. I was doing pretty well for most of the race, probably in the top five or six heading into the last couple laps (knowing full well that even with that positioning, sprinters would throw me into the mid-teens by the time I crossed the finish line).

Coming out of the fourth turn on the second to last lap, I inexplicably moved ahead of the guy whose wheel I'd been following and captured the lap. That's all very nice if there are seven or eight laps to go, or if you have the legs to try to pull something like that. When you're on the second to last lap, and you don't have those kinds of legs, it's pretty stupid.

After having to work through the last of that lap on my own, I was pretty spent, and everyone started passing me. And I mean everyone. I didn't have enough energy to try to keep up, and the field was too tight to really be able to sneak back in. I think I ended up finishing 33rd or 34th of 35. I wasn't dead last, but I was pretty close.

Kind of a let down for my last race of the season, but a good learning experience, I suppose. Next season I'll be racing with Morningside Velo. I'm really looking forward to riding with a team and learning what all is involved with that. I hope I can pull my weight if the occasion to do so arises.

Now that race season is over, it's time for Cyclocross season to get started. I've never raced 'cross before, so I'm going to start going to the practices at Frick every Tuesday night. The Portland should be perfect as a 'cross bike. I'm looking forward to learning more and riding more.

I was able to get plenty of riding in this weekend. Friday night was the PORC beginner ride at Frick. Sans beginners, which meant we mostly stuck to singletrack stuff for the whole evening. I managed to wreck at least four times, mostly because I'd get to the top of something or another and then lose momentum and just sort of fall over.

Falling over isn't so bad, but when you're four feet up on top of a pile of logs, it's a long way down. No broken bones, and I didn't hit my head. No complaints, really. Pain makes you beautiful. Or something.

On Saturday, I ignored the gray skies and took the Bianchi out for a ride. I was near Phipps Conservatory, about seven miles from home when the clouds opened up. I got soaked pretty quickly. The rain let up as I go to Homestead, but it started pouring again with less than a mile to go.

That's the first time I've really been out in the rain this year, so again, no complaints. It's not such a bad thing every now and then. It also gave me a chance to notice one of the major differences between the Bianchi and the Portland: disc brakes vs. rim brakes. Huge difference when it's wet.

The reliability of the brakes on the Portland is constant through any conditions. Not so much with rim brakes on the Bianchi, I had to start braking sooner, and worry a little bit more that I would actually stop where I needed to. I wouldn't say that there was ever impending doom, but I will say that I'm glad I have the Portland for when I know that the conditions won't be sunny and dry.

I rode the Combi again in Frick this morning. I parked over near the bowling greens, since I had to drop a bunch of recyclables at Construction Junction before riding.

The first order of business was to face my arch-nemesis, the stupid descent on the bowling green trail that goes down to the Homewood trail. I've wrecked on that descent on more than one occasion. My right thumb is still giving me trouble from the last time I tried it, back on July 15th.

Knowing that speed is my friend and braking is only going to kill me, I approached the descent and made it almost the whole way down before I realized I had jigged right when I should have stayed left. I braked, and although this wreck wasn't as bad as the last one, I came down hard on my right thigh.

I was able to keep riding for another hour and a half (with only one or two other minor incidents), but I can tell that my thigh will probably screaming at me tomorrow morning. It's bad enough just getting up from a seated position now.

The weather looks great for this week. I hope my leg doesn't force me to rest for any of it.

Non-bike news? Nothing too crazy. Work's been unbelievably busy for the last month or so. Heather started back at school last week. She is also unbelievably busy, and will probably be until June, when school lets out again for the summer.

The kittens are doing well. Almost four months old. Very cute, and not terribly bad. It's great having them around the house now that Heather is back in school. I'd be really lonely without them.

Tuesday Night at the Oval (wherein we average 26mph over the 30 race laps)

First race last night with the Via Nirone 7. I'm pretty sure we had a full field (although it didn't look like hardly anyone was going to be there even half-way through the women's/junior's race).

The big question on everyone's mind, of course, is "Alan! Now that you have an actual road bike, did you win?"

The answer to that question, which should come as no surprise, is "No."

I did finish in 15th, two spots up from the last time I raced. Was it because I was riding on a bike that weighs a few pounds less than the Portland (I haven't taken the time to do an actual comparison to see what the actual weight difference is)? Maybe there were other people who were tired last night, or maybe there were more new people. Who knows.

Regardless, in terms of my own individual performance, I was really happy with the result. I went in not feeling all that great, and I left my water bottle at home while I was getting the car packed and ready to go (and the vending machine at the Oval was broken).

I think I led one lap, and I was pretty close to the front of the group (maybe 5th or 6th) for a decent chunk of the latter part of the race. On the last lap, as usual, everyone started sprinting and I got passed by what seemed to be a ton of people (although apparently it was really only eight or nine, not including the people who were ahead of me already). That's still an area where I need to improve.

No big deal, though.

So yeah, I decided to buy a road bike. I thought I'd be getting an '09 Specialized Allez Elite Compact, but Pro Bikes was all out of my size (or at least, they were out of 52cms, which I thought was my size, based on the Portland being a 52cm) and wouldn't be able to get any more in stock. Same for the Cannondale CAAD9s.

I figured I'd just wait for the 2010 CAAD9s to come in, based on Jake's recommendation. Heather and I stopped in on Sunday because I wanted to make sure that we had the sizing all figured out in the event that I'd have to special order one.

As I said, the Portland is a 52cm, but when I bought it, we decided on the 52 because I was having it converted to a flat bar bike (which was later converted back to drop bars). If I had to order a new road bike, I didn't want it to be too big.

They brought up a Cannondale Six in a 52cm and it was pretty apparent that it was too big. Then they brought out the 50cm Bianchi and told me to go take a ride around the block.

The difference between the Bianchi and the Portland was pretty immediate. It felt so much lighter and quicker. That's not to take anything away from the Portland. It's a fantastic bike and it's never let me down.

The Bianchi felt great, though. Compared to either the Specialzed or the CAAD9 that I was considering, the Bianchi had a better set of components, a better wheelset, and unlike the CAAD9s, it has carbon seatstays.

I think the only thing that the 2010 CAAD9s might have on the Bianchi is the BB30 bottom bracket, but for the maximum amount of power that I'll ever be able to generate, I'm sure that I'll be able to live without it.

Now I have three bikes. I should probably really try to stick with those three for a good long time now. I think I can realistically say I should be able to do that:

• Bianchi Via Nirone 7 for racing, training, and everyday riding in good weather.
  
• Trek Portland for cyclocross, longer rides (centuries and things of that nature), ridiculous hills (dirty dozen), riding in crappy weather (thank you, full fenders), and hauling some things around (thank you, rear rack).
  
• Commençal Combi S for off-road/mountain biking. Honestly, I've considered using the Combi for the dirty dozen. It would seem like a 22t granny would be great for some of those hills, but on the other hand, I'd probably flip backward actually trying to get up the hills. It's something to consider, I guess.
  

I think that covers most situations where I'd need a bike. I don't see myself doing time trials or triathlons. Yet.

To be honest, I can't say that I won't take the Bianchi out for longer rides, becuase I haven't had a chance to take it for any ride longer than 15 miles or so, so I don't know how it'll feel to ride it for hours at a time.

I think the reason I'd favor the Portland in those cases is just that it's so much easier to load it up with lots of stuff that I might need if I'm getting farther away from home and/or civilization.

One thing I can definitely see myself doing is replacing the saddle on the Bianchi. I have a Bontrager Inform on my Portland, and I'm really happy with it. The Bianchi came with a Selle San Marco Ponza, and even after a few shorter rides, I feel like I can tell the difference. It might just be best to make the switch now and try to hawk the Ponza on eBay.