Warming Winds

January 31st, 2008


Over the weekend we had very strong winds. At night I would wake up hearing stuff blowing around. Saturday morning we found our shed upside down.

This time of year, our strongest winds are usually Chinook winds. This month it’s hardly gotten above freezing but by Sunday it was nearly 60 degrees. Even at Barr Camp at 10,200 feet it got up to 40 degrees.

Now the Chinook winds are gone and it’s cold again. Last night we got a little snow again. Although we still have a couple more cold months, I’m ready for some warm weather riding.

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Free T-shirts and Raffle for a Colnago

January 30th, 2008


Over at Ride-Strong, they are giving away 20 t-shirts just for commenting. I just commented and it looks like 16 are left.

They are also doing a raffle for a Colnago Carbon bike. Only 100 tickets are being sold so you have a 1 in 100 chance of winning the bike.

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Moonlight Hiking

January 29th, 2008

Moon from Near Top of Manitou Incline

On Sunday, a little over a week ago, I was at the top of the Manitou Incline just before dark. It was a couple days before full moon which is the perfect time to hike at night. Hiking in the moonlight changes a familiar trail into a totally different experience. With snow on the ground, the moonlight gets reflected and it’s an even better experience.

It got me thinking how it’s probably been 10 years since I’ve done a winter moonlight ascent of Pikes Peak. On the summit it can be subzero with a howling wind. It’s tough but the experience is well worth it on a clear night. The moon reflecting off the snow is bright enough that no light is needed.

When I’ve done it in the past, I’ve left around 9 PM and gotten to the summit around 4 AM. That puts me just below timberline for an awesome sunrise. Maybe it’s time to do it again.

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Disappointing Day for Katie Compton

January 27th, 2008

As I posted on Friday, Katie Compton, a local cyclist, was racing the 2008 Cyclocross World’s today. She had been having muscle problems and had been seen limping.

According to a report on VeloNews, Katie started today and was going to see how she felt. She ended up pulling out after the 1st lap. It had to be a big disappointment after all the training she has put in. Unfortunately no one gets to choose when they have bad days.

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Local Cyclist in 2008 World Cyclocross Championships

January 25th, 2008

Katie Compton at Local Cyclocross in September
Local cyclist Katie Compton is scheduled to compete in the 2008 World Cyclocross Championships this Sunday in Treviso, Italy. Until a couple weeks ago she was favored to win it.

Last year she won the silver medal as a relatively unknown rider. Althouugh she has been winning the National Championships since 2004, she wasn’t doing any UCI races. She had been piloting a tandem for a blind rider for the Paralympics. Racing UCI races would make her ineligible to compete in the Paralympics.

Last winter she made the decision to move on from the Paralympics and do Cyclocross Worlds. Since she didn’t have UCI points she had to start near the back and it took most of the race for her to work her way to the front. This year she became the 2nd US woman to win a World Cup cyclocross race and went of the win a 2nd one. The other woman to win a World Cup cyclocross race is another local cyclist, Alison Dunlap.

Unfortunately the last couple weeks haven’t gone well for Katie. I haven’t been able to find much information but there was a bit on Cycling News earlier this week. She didn’t race last weekend and said she having some musle problems. She’s struggled with leg cramps in longer races but hasn’t seemed to be a problem in the shorter cyclocross races.

Katie is still on the start list that was updated today. I’m hoping that she has a great day on Sunday and pulls off the win.

Our local paper did a good article on her last week if you want to read more about her.

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Leadville Snow Racing

January 25th, 2008

Leadville Snow Bike Race Course
The Leadville winter mountain bike series starts tomorrow. I keep thinking a should give some snow racing a try.

Jan. 26 The East Side Epic – a great race on fast snowpacked roads and snowmobile trails through the Historic Mining District.

Feb. 9 The Tennessee Pass Night Jam – Bring the lights for this exciting night race on Tennessee Pass Nordic Center’s groomed ski trails.

March 1 Mineral Belt Mayhem – Come to Leadville for the first ever bike race on Lake County’s Mineral Belt Trail. A 12 mile groomed bike/ski loop around town. Afterwards watch the ski-joring on Harrison Ave. Horses pulling skiers over 8ft jumps to a flat landing!

Register online at Active.com or email sterlingmudge@gmail.com for more info.

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Floyd Landis to do 2008 National Ultra-Endurance MTB Series

January 25th, 2008

Floyd Landis Descending Powerline 2007 Leadville 100

Floyd Landis has announced he will be racing the 2008 National Ultra-Endurance MTB Series. The NUE consists of 8 100 mile mountain bike races. It starts with Cohutta 100 on April 19th and finishes with the Tahoe-Sierra 100 on September 6th.

This news created a big storm over at MTBR about letting a doper race. Others didn’t mind him racing and support him. I still don’t understand how he can race since at least some of these races are NORBA races. I believe pretty much all the top pros on the road are doping or at least have been. I’m all for the sport being cleaned up. Landis may very well have doped but the lab work was so sloppy that I have trouble with it being used.

The complete NUE schedule is:
April 19 – Cohutta 100, Tennessee
May 31 – Mohican MTB 100, Ohio
June 14 – Lumberjack 100, Michigan
July 19 – Breckenridge 100, Colorado
July 26 – Wilderness 101, Pennsylvania
August 16 – Fool’s Gold 100, Georgia
August 31 – Shenandoah Mountain 100, Virginia
September 6 – Tahoe-Sierra 100, California

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Leadville 100 MTB FAQ: How Does the Lottery Work?

January 24th, 2008

Leadville 100 MTB Legend Ricky

This post is part of the Leadville 100 MTB FAQ.

Last updated 1/31/10

Because of the popularity of the Leadville 100 mountain bike race, many more entries are received than the field limit. I wouldn’t be surprised if they receive over 10,000 entries for 2010.

It seems each year they slightly increase the limit and in 2009 they let in 1400 entrants. For a while it was in the 800 range. To get into the lottery, entries must be submitted online by 5 PM on January 31st.

In spite of what you might expect, the lottery isn’t totally straight forward. Some people are given preference in the lottery. Those that volunteered for any of the races put on by the Leadville 100 in the past year, doing both the 100 mile run and bike, doing Leadman or Leadwoman, finished 5 or more times, Leadville locals, big name pros, etc. get preference.

The best way to make sure you get in is to volunteer. I’ve only heard of 1 or 2 people that volunteered the year before and didn’t get picked in the lottery. My guess is they somehow didn’t end up on the volunteer list. I always write at the bottom of the entry form where I volunteered the year before. Of course for people that don’t live close, volunteering isn’t an easy option.

Another method people used in the past to help make the lottery was to enter as a group. Groups with up to 6 people could register together. Everyone in the group would either get in or not get in. If you could find someone that had preferential treatment for the lottery, it would increase your chance of getting in. In 2010 the race quit allowing group entries.

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The (Leadville 100) Check is in the Mail

January 23rd, 2008

2006 Leadville 100 MTB Start Line

Yesterday I put my Leadville 100 MTB entry in the mail. Now I have a couple weeks to wait to find out if I make the lottery. I expect to since I volunteered last year but there’s always the chance that I won’t get in.

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Bike Wheels That Make You Go Faster

January 22nd, 2008

Active Spokes

Joe Friel posted about a really cool invention to make you go faster on the bike. It’s called Active Spoke. It’s a little weight and spring that you put on the spokes.

When you’re going fast they move closer to the rim giving you more angular momentum to help keep you moving. When you’re going slow they move closer to the rim so they don’t affect your ability to accelerate. Different springs are used based on expected average speed. Tests on the Boulder Time Trial Series course showed a 2-5 percent improvement in times at a given power output.

A set of 3 springs will cost $120 but are being offered for a pre-launch price of $112. 6 springs will cost $195 but are $175 pre-launch. They can be ordered at activespoke.com.

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