1st Annual Frozen Lamb Ride

The First Annual Frozen Lamb Ride

Sunday, January 13th

Meet at 10:00am at the Lamb's (7769 Rose Hill Rd, Lenexa, KS 66216) If you get lost 913.915.4671

Ride pace will be easy (I hope) as we need to build up those base miles. Ride time around 3 hours. Course: rolling hills.

The Cow Town bus leaves the Northland at 9:30 a.m. if you need a ride.

Update: A small hearty group showed up for this fine ride and put in about 50 miles (Studnicki put in about 70 or so because he rode to the start from his house) Tige lead us out a maze of roads that eventually brought us out South West of the city. Not far into the ride Randy flatted going over one of the numerous rail road crossing in Lenexa, KS. I have never seen a city with so many RR crossings and what is up with all the pot holes. I thought Kansas was suppose to have better roads the Missouri? Well based on the roads we went on they don't....Tige promised some hills and on the way back in there were plenty of em. Ride back was helped with a nice tail wind. The only stop on the way back was to fix Damain's rear tire which came off the rim only because that boy can not change tires to save his life....

Thank you to Tige Lamb, Mark Studnicki, Damian Almanza, Mark Sperl and Randy Cartwright from making the 1st Annual Frozen Lamb Ride a success :-)

2008 Race Schedule Taking Shape

My 2008 season is taking shape. So far I have three key events that I am focusing on: the Ouachita Challenge, the Cohutta 100 and the Ironman 70.3 Kansas. Here is a preview of the Ironman 70.3 Kansas which will be my "A" race for the year. I would like to do at least 1 or 2 more 100 mile races. Either the Wilderness 101 with Gerard or the Fools Gold in Georgia where I could visit my sister. Maybe next year I will try the Colorado Trail Race.

I don't know if I will do much XC racing this year. Sort of changing focus to longer distance stuff. Maybe I am just getting older and enjoy riding longer distances. We will see. Jan/Feb will be plenty of long rides/runs. March I will some intensity with Jim's Spring Flings out at Lawrence. In the past the crits have been a good way to build some race form.

On some recovery weeks I also plan to participate in some Hare Scrambles. I say participate because I am not taking it to serous. It has been since my brother got injured back in 1991 that I raced a motorcycle. With time I have realized that accidents happen and that I also could have a serous accident at any time just commuting to work on my bicycle. I had some fun riding with Christopher and we plan to hit the trails and MX tracks this Summer, especially after my 1/2 Ironman.

Speaking of schedules, the 2008 Missouri Race Schedule is out. Still waiting for the Kansas schedule.

De Stad Series Single Speed Champion

Today's Grote Prijs was the final round of the De Stad Series. I needed a little help to win the series title. I had to finish 4th or better and I had to beat Cameron Chambers or have him not show up. Well, both happened today.

Course was about the same as it was two years ago when I promoted this event with Mark Thomas with the exception of the gravel road section through the 'Old Town Shawnee'. I expected really bad conditions given all the snow we had and recent warm weather, but what we got was a course that just muddy enough to cause your wheels to sink in about 2 inches. Not good conditions for a single speed.

Today there were only 6 other single speeds. I started off in third behind Jim Cogans and Bill Anderson. I soon passed Bill on a slick muddy corner and was by Cogans on the next straight. I lead for about a lap when Joshua Stamper came by like I was standing still. Cogan's and Anderson also came by and I thought I was getting a flat tire on my new Kona SS rig because I just could not turn the gears. Once I got back to the wheel pit I traded bikes for my Airborn SS mountain bike that I had been using all cross season. I was soon up to speed again and was closing in on Anderson and Cogan's when it happened again. Darn chain derailed. I could hear Carolynn in the back ground urging me to get going because 5th and 6th place were closing fast. I was soon away again and decided to get back on the Kona even if it did have a low tire. There was no way I was going to reel in Bill or Jim, as both were having very good rides. The rest of the race I kept in 4th just enough to win the series title. Free entry next year for me :-)

Supercross Season Begins

It's Supercross time!.

While it is down time for me with mostly easy rides as I slowly build up my fitness for the 2008 season, the season is just getting started for my second favorite sport -Supercross. To get us ready in proper style, the family meet David Wathen his family at Kemper Arena for the Kansas City Round of the Toytota Arenacross While all the big boys were not at the race as there were other rounds taking place, it was still a fun filled evening.

The Round 1 out at Anaheim took place last night also and I stayed up late after we got back from the Arenacross to watch all the action. While the track was a little muddy and created an interesting race, it was not muddy enough for my favorite ride Kevin Windham did not win. Past champ Chad Reed pulled out the win over James Stewart.

And what is this? The Dakar Rally Cancelled! I usually spin on the trainer while watching this every January. What is the world coming to?

Some pictures from Saturday's Kansas City Arena Cross Below.

Seven Oaks Ski Trip

Christopher really enjoys skiing so we planned a trip up to the Seven Oaks over the Christmas/New Years break. A cool little place up in Boone IA that has 7 runs and a crazy tubing ride where you get going up to 70 mph.

This was only my second time skiing and it showed. I stuck to the bunny slope for most of the first day to try get balance. Once I did I ventured up the hill to a so called green run. Carolynn and Christopher had been on this one and said it was easy. After I figured out how to get on the ski lift and I successfully got off the thing I gave the run a try. "God please help me" was the last thing I could remember saying before I went down.....I spent the rest of the day on the bunny slope.

Christopher talked me into trying out the tubing hill. I don't know which is worst. Not having any control on skis or not having any control flying down a hill in a small tube spinning wildly. Lets just say I was glad to leave Seven Oaks in one piece. Hopefully the slopes out in Colorado will have some powder and not be all iced up when we go out and visit Good Ben.