It's already nearly St. Patty's Day & the trees already have buds on them, and the wind continues to howl as it has all winter in Boulder. I'm starting to see scores more triathletes out on the road with the group rides leaving Amante larger and larger each weekend. We are in for a dry summer I suspect--undoubtedly some scorching temps for the souls doing the 5430 series. This will be my first year NOT racing the series in quite a few years. My first year took me to a win in my AG on the 5430 Half, as well as the overall AG series. The next year took me to a Boulder Peak AG win by over a minute (okay, the fast guys never showed up that year), then last year things really took a tumble fighting off this torn hammy/glute tendon thing. But that actually happened 2 years ago--it just really got considerably worse in 2008. It was odd having a lack of training, and race results as well. A first ever over 11 hrs for an Ironman happened in '08 as well...I guess I won't need to wait until I'm almost 50 for that to happen now! Who knows, it could be slower next race as anything can happen in an Ironman. Let's just hope I can keep it in the 9 hr+ range this time around.
This past weekend I took a tour de farm roads with a few snapshots of the 5430 Sprint "twisty corner" where Neva Rd. splits off from Hwy 36. Next up, a couple shots of where the famous LeftHand Canyon & Hwy 36 meet (at the Greenbriar), which is where you come back from the Old Stage Hill on the Boulder Peak. There are a few shots of me taking a rest & slacking by sitting against a stone wall just enjoying the weather. Hard to believe it is only March and I've been able to ride in shorts at least one time each month since December.
For those who have heard of the big wild fire here in Boulder back in January, I have to tell you that the scorched mountainside is no more. It has PLENTY of fresh green grass growing all over, so if you do come to Boulder you will find virtually no traces of any wildfire anywhere. What you will find is a nearly perfect and freshly repaved road for almost the entire Boulder Peak course. Barry Siff just so happened to have a race on the very roads Boulder decided to give a face lift to, so it is a fast course even with the altitude and hills. What goes up must come down right? For example, I hit 44.9 mph on a downhill on Nelson Rd yesterday--which is part of the Boulder Peak. The road was so smooth I had no fear of any high speed crash, in fact, I was drinking a watter bottle & holding on to my bike bars with only one arm in the aero bars!
Lastly today, I wanted to tell you a few things about the 5430 Series. Barry puts on a great series, and fully supports USAT, a yearly charity (this year it is blindness), and has been a leader in efforts to ensure his series leaves a zero carbon footprint. The competition both pro and age group are world class, with THE best in the country (both short & Ironman racers). Not to mention the plethora of athletes from other countries visiting and training in the Boulder area all summer, often use these races to tune up for other major championship races. The thing about these races though, if you want to podium finish--good luck! Some of the top names in the world live here and race these races...Chris Peeters, Tim Hola, Kirk Framke, Eric Peterson, Craig Greenslit, Andy Bigelow, Jeff Keil. These are all guys I know (except for Jeff Keil & Craig Greenslit), these are serious athletes and they are as serious and fierce of competitors as you'll find anywhere in the world. In fact, many of these guys are either national age group champions or have placed in the top 3 in the WOLRD Championships of either Olympic, Half, or Ironman distance. Get out of town and come visit Boulder for the 5430 series...it's too bad I'll be in Cour de Alene for Ironman, otherwise, I'd be on the line ready to knock heads with some of the best guys in the world. I don't mind a few bumps and bruises for a little fun!
This past weekend I took a tour de farm roads with a few snapshots of the 5430 Sprint "twisty corner" where Neva Rd. splits off from Hwy 36. Next up, a couple shots of where the famous LeftHand Canyon & Hwy 36 meet (at the Greenbriar), which is where you come back from the Old Stage Hill on the Boulder Peak. There are a few shots of me taking a rest & slacking by sitting against a stone wall just enjoying the weather. Hard to believe it is only March and I've been able to ride in shorts at least one time each month since December.
For those who have heard of the big wild fire here in Boulder back in January, I have to tell you that the scorched mountainside is no more. It has PLENTY of fresh green grass growing all over, so if you do come to Boulder you will find virtually no traces of any wildfire anywhere. What you will find is a nearly perfect and freshly repaved road for almost the entire Boulder Peak course. Barry Siff just so happened to have a race on the very roads Boulder decided to give a face lift to, so it is a fast course even with the altitude and hills. What goes up must come down right? For example, I hit 44.9 mph on a downhill on Nelson Rd yesterday--which is part of the Boulder Peak. The road was so smooth I had no fear of any high speed crash, in fact, I was drinking a watter bottle & holding on to my bike bars with only one arm in the aero bars!
Lastly today, I wanted to tell you a few things about the 5430 Series. Barry puts on a great series, and fully supports USAT, a yearly charity (this year it is blindness), and has been a leader in efforts to ensure his series leaves a zero carbon footprint. The competition both pro and age group are world class, with THE best in the country (both short & Ironman racers). Not to mention the plethora of athletes from other countries visiting and training in the Boulder area all summer, often use these races to tune up for other major championship races. The thing about these races though, if you want to podium finish--good luck! Some of the top names in the world live here and race these races...Chris Peeters, Tim Hola, Kirk Framke, Eric Peterson, Craig Greenslit, Andy Bigelow, Jeff Keil. These are all guys I know (except for Jeff Keil & Craig Greenslit), these are serious athletes and they are as serious and fierce of competitors as you'll find anywhere in the world. In fact, many of these guys are either national age group champions or have placed in the top 3 in the WOLRD Championships of either Olympic, Half, or Ironman distance. Get out of town and come visit Boulder for the 5430 series...it's too bad I'll be in Cour de Alene for Ironman, otherwise, I'd be on the line ready to knock heads with some of the best guys in the world. I don't mind a few bumps and bruises for a little fun!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment