Though both Ken and I have raced solo at a couple races in our respective cities (me the Perogy XC, and Ken the Giver’ 8′r – look for posts on those races soon) we’ll both be at the starting line next weekend at the Iron Lung in Canmore.
If you’re in the neighborhood, hope to see you there!
I have to admit, I’d never really considered the domestique as a glorious position. Whenever I imagined the grand tours, I always revered the Lance Armstrongs, Carlos Sastres, or the like… The heads of the team, the leaders.
For those not well versed in cycling terminology, a domestique is:
A road bicycle racer who works for the benefit of his team and leader.
Domestiques bring water and food from team cars and shield team-mates from opponents. They help teammates with mechanical disasters – should the leader puncture, the domestique will cycle in front to create a slipstream allowing them to reclaim their position. A domestique may sacrifice his bicycle or wheel.
Domestiques race in the interest of the team, or against opposing teams. By putting themselves in a breakaway they force other teams to chase. In turn, they chase a breakaway that threatens their team.
–Wikipedia
After reading a short post by Padraig on Belgium Knee Warmers, my opinion of the humble domestique has definitely warmed. He opened my eyes to the silent honor of a good domestique. From the post:
In watching other riders play the role of draft horse, I was filled with a sense of nationalistic pride; as if taking a bullet at the front of the field was an act of patriotism. The more ignominious the finish, the more self-confident and solid the ride was. Seeing a rider finish five or ten minutes down on the field, but roll in relaxed, without the frantic pedaling of someone showing off for the cameras is large-scale PRO. Soft pedaling across the line means you are secure you’ve done your job well, very well.
It’s a quick read that also highlights the delicate relationship between domentique and team leader as well. I’d suggest giving it a gander.
Ken gave a solid run down on the format of the two races already, so I’ll jump right into my race report.
The Bacon:
I went into the Bacon XC with one goal, to ride hard and place without blowing my legs out for the Trans Stony Superhero Challenge the next day. It seemed to me that the course was pretty short – a little over 6km per loop. Our category was set to do only 3 laps. I thought to myself, “that’s only 20km or so… I ride double or triple that on a weeknight after work. This is going to be a breeze!” haha…
This weekend marked the first races of our season. Both were at Fern & Harvey’s mountain bike farm just outside of Stony Plain (near Edmonton), so I made the trip up and Sheldon and I headed out together. To get you started, here’s a general description of the races:
The Bacon Buffet: This was a short 21km (3 lap) course broken into two main sections, one technical section that wound itself through the trees, and a second rolling section through some open fields. It also featured what was called a “Houffalize” climb (essentially a super steep hill) into the feed zone. Imagine finishing that climb, legs burning, light headed and out of breath and rollling into the feed zone, only instead of handing out Gatorade and bananas, they’re handing out bacon!! Pure awesomeness.
The TransStony Superhero Enduro: Despite a surprising lack of bacon, the following day was host to the enduro course. This race was held on the same track as the Bacon Buffet but with slight modifications, the main one being the reversal of the race direction. I’m not sure which course I liked better, but I found the endurance course incrementally easier. The goal with this race was to do as many laps as possible within a 6 hour window. There were three categories available to racers:
This is the first in a two part post, in this post, I’ll regale you with my thoughts on the two races and in part two Sheldon shall impart his wisdom.
The Tour de France… 23 days. 3,500 kilometers. A team of riders to support you. Thousands of screaming fans lining the roads. Unmatched glory. Massive prize money.
The Race Across America… 10 days. 4,700 kilometers. No on-bike support. No fans. Inner glory. Enough prize money to possibly cover your medical bills.
Talk about a race of attrition. Forget about the physical requirements of a race of this magnitude, the mental fortitude to be able to put yourself through something like this is staggering… And somewhat alluring… I sent this video out to Sheldon this morning, and we both agreed that we’re signing up for 2011 ;-)
via: UpaDowna
All day I was watching the sky out west. On my morning ride it was sunny, but you could see the clouds amassing – the forecast was calling for thunderstorms. By 2 in the afternoon, huge, ominous black clouds where right on top of the city and I thought we were done for – my chance to ride with Gary Fisher was going to be rained out.
Somehow though, that bank of clouds rolled by us, letting go of only a few scattered drops and at 7 pm it was sunny again and I was sitting on my bike next to the man himself.
I was out last night doing hill repeats in the frigid rain until I was soaked, frozen and miserable. I was talking about this with a friend and fellow rider today. He agreed, there is a joy in the agony that comes with riding and if you don’t enjoy suffering to at least some degree, biking might just not be your thing. I think Boonen’s quote after winning the 2009 Paris Roubaix is poignant…
“The race is all about surviving, surviving, surviving; I know I didn’t feel great, but maybe others felt worse”
The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the snow is gone and everybody is out riding except me… ‘Cause I’m sick, and feeling quite sorry for myself to boot.
Boo hoo.
I was sick once over the winter too, but it didn’t really affect my mood as adversely as this bout has. I think it’s because I was simply missing out on some trainer rides, whereas now, I’m missing fun rides outside with my friends. Burning legs… Searing lungs… Awesome times.
Boo hoo.
I can’t say enough about how stoked I am that the valley trails are clear already. Normally, this time of year in Edmonton they would still be under several inches of hard packed snow and ice. In the shade of the trees, it would be another 2-3 weeks yet before they were good to go. And honestly, that might even be optimistic.
Being able to get outside has been fantastic for the training. I willingly ride longer, and harder and suffer the pain with a smile on my face. Well, maybe it’s a grimace, but trust me I’m smiling on the inside.
There are several schools of thought on Lance’s return to cycling, or should I say his return to Le Tour de France. One is that he’ll overshadow the other great riders and future faces of the sport. Another is that he will pull greater numbers of fans, new fans, that the sport needs to help ensure longevity as more people get turned onto it.
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