Steve Larsen

Its always odd when a former Pro cyclist suddenly dies. You of course start to wonder wether it was from a life of doping or not. Many people point the fingers to 'the dope' when this happens, but of course we are all humans, and we don't know when our clock is going to run out. Most likely these guys clocks simply ran out.

I grew up watching mountain biking on OLN back in 99. It was pretty cool to race all Sunday afternoon as a U15, then drive home and watch the World Cups and Norba races on TV while eating the post race meal of pizza. These were good times that I remember fondly.

Steve Larsen was one of the guys who was at the top of the Mountain Bike world in 1999. He didn't dominate, but he was always there, and did take the odd victory.

It was in early 2000 that the US chose its Olympic mountain bike team to go to Sydney(I think). But to most peoples surprise Steve Larsen wasn't selected. He was easily one of the top 5 guys who probably should have been chosen for the team, but sometimes life sucks like that. There was a lot of protests and angry people that he wasn't selected, but in the end of the day, Steve still didnt go.

Well, Steve didn't like this so much. For the rest of the 2000 year, and a lot of 2001, Steve Larsen pretty much destroyed every other mountain biker in the US. It was almost embarrassing just how much he dominated the races for the rest of the year. He especially took it out on the selected athletes for the US National team.

The rest of the cycling world couldnt help but notice this and slightly poked fun at this happening. For years I kept a ripped-out full page picture of Steve crossing the line at the Norba holding his bike over his head after a dominant victory. It was one thing that gave me goosebumps every time I saw the picture, knowing the back story.

It was a shock to everyone when Steve died last week while on a light run.

I cant seem to find a USB cable, so there will Be no pics...

I've come and gone on old PEI. A little over a week has been good and bad to me. Of course it was great to see the boys, and Katie, but at the same time PEI was very stressful for me. For some reason I have this habit where I plan too much into my day and end up rushing everywhere. I never seem be able to get the important things done, and as a result my day is much more hectic than it should be. WT would say that there simply isn't enough hours in the day.

There was a lot I wanted to do on the Gentle Island, and I guess this made my life more hectic than it needed to be. Either way I still had a great time. I spent a couple cold nights at the cottage, and also had a bonfire with the boys. The times that I made a point of chilling out were definitely worth the trip that's for sure.

I also raced the Fredericton Road Race. The course was tougher than I remembered with quite a bit of climbing. Actually, about half of the race was climbing, which was more than these old legs were use to. Of course the weather was terrible as well. It was about as bad as it could be without snowing. It hovered around 10-15 degrees(50ish for you Yankees) and only stopped down pouring for the last half hour or so. It didn't matter what you wore as you would be wet and cold within 10 minutes.

I rode hard for the first 80km chasing breaks and trying to make the race hard. There are strong guys in the Maritimes and they definitely didn't make it easy. Justin went on a flier that I should have been in, and he rode strong for the whole race, but eventually was brought back on the last lap.

Well, after some hard chasing, and some surges from Brian my legs were pretty cooked. I started to hit the wall, and eventually rolled in for 5th. I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping for a better result, but in retrospect I did ok.

I was pretty hard on myself after the race. Its tough not having the power in the legs that your use to, but thinking about the race afterword, there was nothing bizarre about the result. After 80km of hard climbing and racing in terrible weather after not having any solid days on the bike for a month....man I realized I simply bonked. That's all there is to it.

Directly after the race I migrated to Moncton for a couple days training at coach Luc's place. I spun out the legs on Monday, but Tuesday we had a killer motor pacing session. I did the Fundy climb a number of times and of course the climb on "School Road" which is a steep mother. Anyone who lives in the Maritimes knows these climbs well.

During the Motor Pacing and climbing I felt terrible. At the same time Luc mentioned that my times up the climb and watts really werent as bad as they 'feel.' He said my numbers are still good and it gave me a little bit of a confidence boost.

With that I headed back to the Red Dirt to get my life together and prepare for the next migration.

I'm in Montreal now staying with my good friend/ex gf Jordan. We've known each other for a long time, and staying with her has been really great so far. I've been cruising around Montreal and exploring a bit on my rides and spending some time climbing MT Royal, which is no small hill. (Home of the legendary woman's world cup race)

I'm a firm believer that exploring a city by bike is the best way to truley experience it, and I can honestly say I love Montreal. Its such a cool hip city with so much history. Man, the food is killer too.

The past few days have been real mood boosters. A smile hasn't left my face since I got here, and taking the time to chill out is helping me out I think.

I raced a Crit today in the downtown, about and hour ride away, and it went pretty well. It was super fast, but I think it may have been the best Crit of my life! I felt really great and the legs had the power that I have been looking for for a long time. I netted a top 10, maybe a top 15, but it felt good to get the speed in my legs and fly around a course at about 60km/h.

I could even say it was fun......I didn't think that could happen in a crit before today. Hah

The Lebowski

(Summer is comming)

I've been home for about a week, and things are starting to come together. When I decided to come home I was very torn between the idea of it. On one hand I wanted to relax, and see the boys and the family and develop a new mental base to springboard into the rest of the season on. At the same time I really didn't want to come home in a state where I feel I haven't achieved something. It almost felt like giving up, and returning home without some new notches in the belt.

After a week I know it was the right decision. I've been seeing doctors and getting more blood tests, and I think things are starting to level off. I can feel myself getting back into form. One blood test came back and it turns out I'm pretty close to being anemic. Basically my red blood cell count, hemoglobin count, and hematacrit were on the lowest of the low for a normal human. This proves to be a pretty big deal for a cyclist.

So that's something else I'm working on. On the other side of things though, riding has been great. I went for my first MTB ride of the year a few days ago and I felt great, and had a ton of fun. Riding with your doctor is also a bonus!

JF has been great for explaining what all the numbers mean with so many blood tests under my belt, and also has helped me get some odd tests that might explain some things. His advice and help has been invaluable. Before now Ive been driving myself crazy googling all these odd numbers, trying to figure out what they mean.

(The good Doctor)

This week has changed a lot. For the first time in a long time, right now I have a lot of optimism. Which sometimes is more powerful than any drug.

Eric and I did some Motor pacing today to try to kick start some speed into these old legs. It went really well, but my hips are killing me from not having a good stretch in awhile.

With that I've been pounding the liver into me to try to build up the blood values to normal range. The stuff looks terrible, smells terrible, and of course tastes terrible, but apparently it makes you fast on a bike? It remains to be seen.

At least it falls into the bike racers price range.

This One Goes Out to Slick

I needed some pep in my life. Vancouver Washington was bringing me down. Facing another week alone in the team house, and terrible weather forecasted all week, I decided to jump ship and booked a night-before flight across the continent to old PEI.

When I walked off the plane after a quick hour flight to Vancouver BC, I noticed the air was a little fresher, the trees a little greener, and my head a little clearer. Its the little differences that you notice when crossing the boarder between Canada and the US. Instead of a coat check on the plane you have your hockey stick, lumberjack axe, and pro-socialist flag check. Things of this sort are so awkward to carry on a plane anyway. Also, random nurses and doctors walk around offering people free check -ups and medical advice. Its like people trying to get you to buy prostitutes in Mexico.

Mmonths of hearing about the same three things in the US news, being the recession, President Obama, one of the wars no-one cares about, and now the swine flu. These things have covered the news and of course the front pages of the newspapers. When walking into the airport terminal I noticed a fresh Canadian Globe and Mail....on the cover was a story about seal clubbing.(no joke)

Of course there is the whole bilingual thing as well.

In Canada its also acceptable, and fashionable to wear a hockey jersey with your normal clothes, especially to work.

Suddenly, a one hour plane ride up North, turns the Mexicans into the minorities again.

So a long day of travel was had by me. Living in BC for the past few years has made me accustomed to the jumps across the continent. You begin to know where the best lunches and coffee are hidden in the random spots in the airports.

When I arrived home I noticed it was pretty chilly and rainy. Pretty much the same weather in Portland. I could see my breath as I walked out the plane, but no matter, I was home.

I have this fantasy in my mind of what PEI is like. I hadn't been here in May, since 2005. I've always arrived home in August after the cycling season The weather is nice, and its the perfect time of year and temperature to ride around town, and chill at the coffee shop.

I think I had this idea in my head when I booked the plane ticket. In reality its pretty cold and damp. At the same time I'm happy with that. Suddenly I can ride and train on the same roads I grew up on. For me, PEI roads are like that old pair of jeans that you forget about in the bottom of the droor. You re-discover them every so often and when you pull them on they are worn in just right and you feel comfortable in them. They remind you of good times.

So after a week or so of hanging around, I plan to head up to Montreal to see if there is any intense racing to be had, then I hope to re-join the team for either CSC, Philly, or Nature Vally GP

And I also got to see the little man.

Roman wins In Gila!

Holy Shit....This is so cool.....I'm so proud of that guy! Take that Lance.

Rest?

I thought yesterday was Friday, so I acted accordingly. For me the difference between Friday and the rest of the week is that Friday is when Oakley releases all their new and cool glasses on the website. I was perplexed yesterday when there was no new glasses posted. Friday is also garbage day. I kicked myself for missing it yesterday, then realized I missed it again this morning(as its actually Friday) when I watched the garbage truck pass. (Sorry Norrene)

Its also May 1st as my new phone tells me. I've been using the Garmin as a clock the past few months, its not the best but it got the job done. At least with the phone I have an alarm now.

May is the month that I associate with mountain bike racing. When I was a kid sitting in school, May would always be the month that the trails cleared out of snow on old PEI and I can remember requesting the seat next to the window in JR High so I could smell that mud/spring/farmers fertilizer smell. To me that clicks the switch in my brain that the mountain bike season is here. Also, its when the Canada Cup MTB races start.

I was taken aback when I randomly checked the PEI forecast and found that it was 22 degrees. Holy Crap. At least the temperature went down again to 1, so I can feel good about myself.

Here in Oregon/Washington, it been a pretty steady 55(whatever that is in normal temperatures). Expect a sunny day until you ride, then expect rain. One of the nicest rides I did a couple days ago to test the legs was of course the Germantown climb. It was beauty until I got to the top where I promptly got pounded by a serious downpour of cold-ass rain, then the rain turned to hail for a few minutes. When I rounded the top and started the decent of course it became as dry as can be.

My main activities has been the following......

-Get up, eat Oatmeal

-Go on the Internet and drink coffee all morning

-Ride and/or go to doctors appointment

-come home make dinner/ drink tea/wonder what the hell is wrong with me then worry about it

-Read/go to bed.

That has been every day for the past 3 weeks. It sounds relaxing but its pretty much torture. When you life is built around racing a bike, and every day the legs are patchy and you spend all morning reading about your teammates racing against the best in the world........when YOUR spot is open on the team(they are racing with 8 guys.....with a max of 9 spots). It pretty much gives me panic attacks. hah

I did go out with Eric Tsai(Ping Pong as he is known) the other night. Hes our mechanic/great guy/great rider. I joined him and his Trivia team for a couple beers. They are called 'The Minorities" as everyone there was a minority....Ie Eric's Asian, the black guy, the SWF, and I was the white guy.....but I'm from Canada, so that's enough of a minority I guess.

I'm seeing lots of Portland, and it a pretty killer town I do say so myself. Its May 1st and I'm excited to try my hand at cross racing if I stick around this fall. I might just make this area a home base for awhile. There is that whole job/money problem though.