Pic dump alert. 2 new 09 galleries full of mayhem with Fisher mtn bikes and Echappe Elite Cyclocross

is a video worth? I'm in pinstripes dead center... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiIkGHgutqA

 These past couple day have been a blur as I raced Thursday night in MA, and then drove 5 hours to middle of nowhere New York state for  2 National Racing Calendar crits.

Starting off was the Legacy Banks crit.  It was absolutely ridiculous.  It started at 6:30 pm, capping of the Pittsfield Downtown festival.  This meant there were over 1000 people watching the race.  The start finish stretch was about 300 yards long, we had half the road, the other half was packed solid with people.  As you came through the stretch, you felt the roar of the crowds echoing off the buildings and reverberating right through you.  They had a radio station spinning tunes and the local news station around filming.  I almost took out a camera because the camera man posted up right on the inside edge of turn three as I was trying to move up the inside.  

The kicker is I got the 3rd Call up to the front row.  I was the only non Pro/1 called up.  I had to get prodded to go to the line because I was so shocked to get called up.

It was a great competition as well with all the top MA pros coming out to tune up for the Chris Thater NRC crits.  Hopefully I can find the news story and video.

After the Legacy banks race, I headed off to Binghamton, NY.  Thursday had been the test of the legs against the pros, now I got to pick on the humans.  I took off the front of the race with 6 miles to go in Saturdays 3-4 race and won with 45 seconds to spare.  This collected some attention because there were 4 teams with 5 or 6 guys working for sprinter that got duped.  I also got to talk to a couple of other riders as I search for a team.

Sunday, in  front of another packed house(we were the race right before the Pros) I missed the break of 5 riders who went on to lap the field.  Rather than sit around and mope like the rest of the field, I went on the attack to try to bridge up to the leaders, this didn't quite work, however, I dragged 8 people out of the group to form a solid chase group before I attacked at 3 laps to go for 6th.  I was joking with my friends that I should learn how to sprint so I don't have to work so hard.  However, I learned that when you see someone open it up and rocket out 40+ mph sprints, the only chance I have to beat them is not sprint against them.



I should also add in the math.  In the first race, I beat the field home by over 45 seconds, the second race, the group who lapped the field got 2 minutes up, i made up 1.5 minutes before I ran out of race.  I then beat my chase group who didnt get lapped by 35+ seconds.



After this there is the Green Mountain Stage Race and then its CROSS Season!!!

So I am finishing off my prep work for the season, and I am beginning to realize dealing with something new, even if its better, is a pain in the ass.  Now I am not talking about the east coast, it still sux and is generally miserable.  As an aside, I have the pet project of being the one man freeride team for saddleback mtn in maine.  At least the winter is looking up, I should get a plane though.

http://www.loopd.com/members/rickeyski/Photos.aspx?resourceId=f43dc1b6-79c7-4a4f-b36b-03944d54e18f

Back on task.  I am anemic; however, because I do not menstuate, the doctors I had refused to acknowlege it until I finally met a competent doctor in Durango, CO.  He was willing to put in the effort to get me to normal blood values for the first time since I have begun getting blood work done 9 years ago.  So this means, I actually get 3 hours of benefit out of three hours of training.  I used to get three hours of aerobic work, but only one hour of muscular development.  All of a sudden it makes sense why I had to train 30-40 hours a week to compete at the olympic level, while my competition trained 20 max.

What this change means is all of a sudden, it is very easy to fry my legs, erg.  But sprint workouts will actually have an effect.  Well wish me luck.   NOw I can sprint, but I can over train.  You really cant have your cake and eat it too..

All the best of luck to everybody who actually reads these, and if you avoid them, I really don't blame you. 

~Rickey

My last ski comp of the year was cancelled due to fog and typical east coast weather.  I was bummed, but life happens.  Ski season is winding down and now I am back on the bike.  I got a great motivation gift in the mail...a Connecticut State Champions medal in the mail.  It is finally sinking in that six months ago, I won a state championship without realizing it.  Oops.  This is a good lesson on why it is important to go out and race with everything you have even if you don't feel 100%.



This just needs more emphasis...



I AM THE CT STATE ELITE U-23 CYCLOCROSS CHAMPION.  I'm super stoked and ready to start killing it on the bike again.  Thanks for reading.  Peace

Well, my season is officially off and running.  Yesterday was the Mad River Glen Unconventional Terrain Challenge.  I should have remembered that the east coast doesn't have the same freeskiing comps as we had in Colorado.  This was a glorified mogul comp with a cliff section at the end.  This is the part where I realize that this comp shouldn't have been my first time back in the bumps in a year.  I got tossed 3 times in the bumps, but I stuck all my hucks.  Back to working on EC technique.  There is the MRG Vertical CHallenge on Friday.  At least it will give me lots of time to practice bumping.  Good luck to everyone this season.

Well, since I don't need to worry about the Olympics any more, I have moved on and am working on a ski instructor at Jiminy Peak in MA.  I am excited to be back on snow, even if it isn't the 211 in base in CO.  I am  lining up at the MRG Comp, Magic Mtn, and Jay peak.  Unfortunately, no comps out west.  I'm still saving my pennies to get back out next year.  And now I will be gaining all the skill development I could want.



I would tell you about all the great bike riding now, but I'd be lying.  Rollers are where it's at now.  Nothing excited there.



Hope everyone is having a good winter.

I would like to thank Six Six One for joining Steel MX in supporting my Freeskiing.  This gives me a lot of incentive to try to swing a trip to the Aspen and Taos IFSA comps, and a lot more confidence in competition.



I would also like to thank Odi for supporting my mountain biking.  I look forward to hanging on for the ride.

I hope everyone is looking forward to a great new year.  My main new year's resolution is to get better at networking and being more social in general.  I have always been more of a do'er rather than a talker so I am working on putting myself more "out there."  On that note, please feel free to drop me comments or critiques on my profile or pics, etc.



On to business.  The Olympics is a no go this year, and I am bummed.  Not only did this drag me away from Colorado; the worst part is that I can't compete because my coach didn't put through the proper paperwork to clear me for the team.  It is one thing to get beat, but not even making it to the starting line really really stings.  Oh well, the good part about going to your first Olympic trials at 18 means I have 2 or 3 good shots left.



The flip side to this is I can do a lot more skiing and cycling.  Now that I am healthy and training again, the New England racing scene is in for a rude awakening.  I am motivated and have a lot of fustration to put to the pedals.  My skiing also continues to progress.  Even though there are no more 50 ft cliff hucks to 4+ ft of fresh, learning how to mach over the icy crud bumps is good experience for comps.  I should be able to add a few more tricks to go along with my generic 3's and a few grabs as well.



My targets for 2008 are now:

    -Big Mountain Freeskiing comps at Magic mtn and Jay Peak, possibly either Taos or Aspen IFSA Comp

    -1 more podium mountain biking to upgrade to semi-pro

    -racing pro/1 on the road to prep for Elite Cyclocross

    -Enjoy the 2 to 3 weeks at Ski Portillo in August since I won't be in Beijing for the Olympics.



Thanks for reading, take it easy