The last race of the Ascent Cycling Series looms on the horizon. Race 5 of 5 will go down at Bear Creek Park this Wednesday night. It has been a great season and there are a lot of classes battling it out for the final podium positions that will not be decided until the dust settles Wednesday. 

One more race means one more chance for me to experience entering in to race trance mode. That is what I have…

Wow! That was a hard 50 mile race. As I mentioned in my race preamble, this was my third weekend in a row racing a 50 mile mtb race. This was the shortest in distance (just over 48 miles) but the longest finish time by 30 minutes. It was 45 minutes longer than it took my last week when I won the Silver Rush 50 in Leadville. Hard day in the saddle at Cheyenne Mountain State Park.

The race was nine laps and the heart of that being nine times grinding up onto Cougar Shadow and bumping…

With Cheyenne Mountain State Park race promoter Andy Bohlmann will have put on 100 races. That is no small feat and something that I myself am extremely thankful for all his effort. Having lived in Colorado Springs for only four years now I was able to participate in the last part of this run to 100. In the years I have been involved I have had nearly every experience from winning, losing, wrecking, and tons of smiling. The fact that I can have all these rich experiences aboard a bicycle all…

Wednesday night racing at it’s finest.  It was a great mid week race for us at the one and only Palmer Park. Conditions were ideal with cloud cover moving in right on target as we were gathering up the ranks and rolling to the start line. This week we had the pleasant surprise of the whole field taking off together at once. This is very cool and how we should always do it. As we took off in a stampeded up the start hill we all had the extra adrenalin rush of being around 40 charging riders…

You have to walk before you can run and you have to ride before you can race.

I have been spending a lot of time lately thinking about what brings and keep people in cycling and also what are the hurdles that block the way of more people getting involved in this sport. It seems to me that all the benefits of cycling and a bike racing lifestyle are things valued and sought after with much more energy and money than what it costs to pick up a decent bike and helmet and get involved in…

You have to walk before you can run and you have to ride before you can race.

I have been spending a lot of time lately thinking about what brings and keep people in cycling and also what are the hurdles that block the way of more people getting involved in this sport. It seems to me that all the benefits of cycling and a bike racing lifestyle are things valued and…

Often times when I am preparing to race I will have non cyclist friends that wish me luck and ask me something to the effect if I am really pumped up for the race. What they picture is the athletes with Beats headphones on listening to music and getting amped to explode into action. Although that would be great if it was part of the program the facts are that for racing bikes it is counter productive to be on the start line seeing red and psyched to sprint off in a daze of adrenalin. In…

It is time for race #2 already! Wow time does fly when you are having fun, and summer time in Colorado Springs is about as fun as it gets. The added daylight hours and warm temperatures mean big weeks of riding for me. In the winter time it takes 30 minutes just to plan my riding clothes to match the route and temperature and then actually crawl into all those layers. I create a load of laundry every ride at some points in the Winter. Summer time and you throw on shorts and a jersey and…

Ahhh! Sweet satisfaction. Race 1 in the books for the Ascent Cycling Series. Bikes were broken, blood was spilled, and a great time was had by all. The Pro/Cat 1 field was the biggest I have ever seen for a Wednessday night! That is very exciting and several youngsters on the line is a particularily good sign. One thing about lots of youngsters is you know we will go hard from the start, those kiddos are always motivated to sprint from the line.

Youngster extraordinare Kyle…

Local racing is back in action! Tomorrow night kicks off the 2014 Ascent Cycling Sand Creek Series here in Colorado Springs. Race #1 will be held at Palmer Park, the first races starting at 4 pm and the Cat 1 and Pro races cranking away at 6:15 pm.

My first Sand Creek race was 4 years ago and also at Palmer Park. I was fresh in town and had never even ridden in Palmer. My mind was blown! That particular course took you on a substantial chunk of Templeton trail (seeing that for…

I had been excited about 24 hour Nationals for months. Ever since I made the commitment to race back in the late Spring all of my riding had been with the aim to go as fast as I could around and round the 13 mile lap in Palmer Park. Of course I was motivated to try and win the title on home turf and represent in front of so many friends, family and other supporters. Having…

I am bike racing tomorrow at Bear Creek Park. I am bike racing the series. I am bike racing every chance I get.

‘It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is not effort without error or short coming,…

Throughout the day yesterday I looked outside to see rain, sunshine, wind and heard a few rolls of thunder through the afternoon. I was not sure what we would be in for at race time but it is always a bad to think or plan on anything but going to the start line ready. A couple of times I have been in races that were rained out at or just after the start. That is a head trip, you are mentally turned on to race mode, tapered back in your training, fueled ready for high octane performance, and…

If there is something that makes life more fun than Wednesday night Mountain Bike races, it is not coming to mind right now. I am just coming down off the high from the weekend’s adventure at the 12 hours of Snowmass race. On Sunday I was so tired all I could do was sleep and eat. Monday the legs came around and I was able to ride hard for a few hours in the Canyon. Tuesday I had to back it off because I was getting carried away going too hard. Yup it is time to race again.

This was…

Sand Creek Race #3 in the books. Back at Bear Creek for the action this go around. I am still amazed how fun it is to wrap around the little trails of Bear Creek. I always discount the fun factor for that venue but every time I end up having a riot. Last night was no different. Andy claimed this was “his course” meaning he laid it out, and I think it was the best loop yet. Well done Andy!…

Wow, from the last time I wrote up a blog piece a lot has happened. A lot of it has been bad but certainly some has been good. Racing last month at Palmer Park no one could have foreseen what the coming weeks would hold for Colorado Springs. Personally I have never been so close to such widespread devastation and fear. I have never known what it is like to live day after day glued to the media coverage listening for every shred of news with rapt intension. I hope I never have to do it again.…

I won the race! That will get you motivated to write a blog piece. What an outstanding evening at Palmer Park, it was everything that I could have hoped for.

Daniel Matheny and I pedaled away from CTS a little after 4:00. We jumped up on the midland bike path and started towards downtown. It felt great to be on the bike and with a slight decline down the trail it was a…

What came first the race or the ride? I often consider this puzzle and never do I land on a clear answer. Every time I race and have a poor result or a great result, I always am more motivated than ever to get out and train hard to improve. That leads me to going out on bigger rides and exploring new trails that leave me with the unique experiences I crave. At the same time the number of races I do, although a lot, quell in comparison to the number rides that I go on and come back thinking,…

Sand Creek Race Series is underway! Bear Creek race #1 is in the books and the suffering has begun, wait I mean the fun has begun. In classic Sand Creek style Andy and Eldon pieced together a circuit in Bear Creek that was super challenging while keeping with some good ol’ MTB riding fun. The crowds looked great last night as I rolled up to the venue, I was stressed…

Among the many other reasons, Colorado Mountain Bike racing is great because it happens in the summer. I know this may seem like a Duh, but there are many parts of our fair country that do not race bikes in the summer. It is too hot, the spider webs are too bad, or it rains too much are some of the reasons that force racing into the spring or late fall. But summer is good. …