Crash & Burn

Today in the Downtown Utah State Crit I felt good but blew a tire on one of the four sharp turns and went down hard. Deep road rash on my elbow and down my entire leg. My kit is shot but thankfully Contender is getting new jerseys because Pearl Izumi messed up the design the first time around. My handlebars and seat got scuffed up a little but everything else seems to be alright. The Downtown Crit was very fast and there were several bikers that did not keep there line and cut the corners. A Jr. rider in our group clipped my tire at one point in the race but no harm no foul. It was good experience but I would much rather do a road race.

Last Thursday Jason Linder and I did the Emigration TT for the first time and it was a cold one. I finished first for the first time in my category and Linder had a strong finish too, but as it says on the Utah Crit Series website, "Jason Linder you did not yell your name at finish... email for results." How dare you Mr. Linder!

The best race I have done so far this year is the definitely East Canyon. It is a very good course and the weather was good. I finished fourth and my buddy Pete McMullin added another first place finish to his growing list.

The worst race so far this year was Antelope Island Classic, because it rained the entire time, and is was in the 30's. Soaked and chilled to the bone it took all of the mental strength I had to keep going. I finished 6th place but was disappointed in performance.

All in all everything is going good. Max Testa continues to increase my training and my threshold continues to go up around 20% every eight weeks. I have also made up a few rides that I missed at 19 Sports. I got into a training funk and these rides help snap me out of the funk. I am ready for nicer weather so I can move all of my training rides outdoors.

Next planned race is the Bear Lake RR next weekend, we'll see how I feel.

Thanks for following,
Jess

Surgery

Last Sunday I did my first long ride training at 19 Sports. It was an hour and a half session with just three other people. It went by surprisingly fast and I easily maintained the same average watt output as during my 40 minute threshold test.

Unfortunately, all of my progress will slowly regress because I went in for surgery on Tuesday February 16th. The surgery was mainly to repair a grade 4 deviated septum so I can breathe through my nose for once. Dr. Gull also removed a few of my turbinate bones, and opened up my maxillary orifices from 2mm to 8mm. I still have the stents in my nose and the recovery has been much worse then I expected. I am going in Monday to have the stents removed...can't wait. This is the first time I have ever wanted a weekend to go by fast.

I can't wait to get back on my bike again. The hope is that this procedure helps my cycling in the long run.

The Contender Club

Last Saturday I joined The Contender Club and look forward to riding with a team.

Last week's training session at 19 Sports was one of the hardest training rides I have ever done. The last few sessions have really isolated the muscles that I am not accustomed to using. My pedal stroke is improving but I still compare the difficulty to dropping your pinkie finger without any other fingers moving. Bailey joined us last week and cranked out some serious power at the end of the ride.

Thankfully, pizza and beer at Maxwell's always helps soothe the pain.

Ready to give a hundred and ten per tent!

Thank god for cycling! After doing the BAM triathlon and the Vineman Half Ironman I had to accept the fact that I can no longer run. I finished both races with intense pain in my right knee. Back in 1993 I tore my meniscus and had a piece of it removed. After the injury, I continued to run as much as possible, but if I ran too much the bones would bruise and the pain became to severe. I finally went to see Dr. Cooley in 2009 and was diagnosed with grade three condrosis of the medial compartment. I have been running most of my life and now I had stop. My new found excitement with triathlons was quickly smothered. I was extremely disappointed.

My good friends Jason Linder and Justin Garrett introduced me to the world of triathlons and I quickly caught the bug. I purchased my first road bike the day before the 2008 BAM triathlon and my first road ride was in the race. It was exhilarating and I felt like I had been doing it forever. After accepting that I can no longer run, Jason suggested that I do the 2009 1000 Warriors race with him. This was apparently the hardest stage of the hardest stage race in America. "That sounds great! I'll do it, but I need to train this time;-)" I have always enjoyed competition and physical challenges, but I have never been serious about training. I did upgrade my training to two days a week and was surprised to finish sixth place in the civilian category. It was one of the hardest races I have ever done but it heightened my interest and desire for the sport.

It has now been several months since the 1000 Warrior race and I cannot wait to race again. I have played a lot of different sports in my life, but I have never had as much passion for one sport as I do now. I am determined to become the best rider that I can be. I am ready to give 110% or a hundred and ten per tent (if your name if Candypants and had one too many!!).

Stats from the 1st Session - 40 minute Supermax Test

• Weight: 164lbs

• Heart Rate at Lactate Threshold: 165 bpm

• Lactate Threshold Power (LTP): 229 watts

• Lactate Threshold Power to Weight: 3.1 watts/kg

19 Sports at the Canyons

Started an 8 week training session with Garrett at 19 Sports at the Canyons. Wow! I know so little about cycling. This training course has been as educational as it has been physically strengthening. I now know my power output and understand all of the training zones. It makes it so much easier to set goals and monitor my improvement. Rod Riley informed me at our last training session that I only push down on my pedal stroke. This was good and bad news. The bad news is that I have a long way to a perfect pedal stroke. The good news, and the news that I thrive on, is that I have a lot of room for improvement. I am becoming a stronger rider every week and this course is helping significantly. I recommend this course to all riders.

19 Sports website is http://www.nineteensports.com