So long to the warm temps! Cold front has settled over the Front Range...and dumped about 2 inches of snow, which has already melted. Now temps struggle to get over 60F. Trails prior to the snow were perrrrrrfect. Now, they are a muddy mess that is going to take some wind and warmth to clear up. The last 2 days have been spent spinning on the road...and riding any trails which are dry. Dry trails are few and far between. I think I found about a 500 yard section of rocky trail to mess around on today.
Weekend is set up for some longer hours...6 hours on Saturday. Hope the weather holds out. Cold front and rain is set to sit over us folks here at 5,000 ft until Monday AM.
Good to be back home after a 2 week road trip. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE to travel, but living out of a suitcase and eating out day after day gets to be a bit much. I like my routine....same thing day after day.
The training this week in focused on recovery. Recovery from racing the Whiskey 50 and recovery from the 2 weeks of travel. Rides are in the 2-3 hour range...but the intensity is low. Upon arrival back to Colorado, I was greeted with green grass and warm temps. This won't last long, as the weather is to take a turn for the wetter and colder.
Today, I spent about 2 hours pedaling out at Blue Sky. Good to see it green....as it will be brown in late June.
Trails are good right now. A little loose/sketchy in spots, but overall, very good!
Overall, LOVING the SRAM XX! Riding a 3x9 system has a lot of copy-cat gearing. With the XX, each gear offers a little bit something different. I love how you can ride a lot of trial in the 42T ring....then toggle between the 10 gears in the back. In fact, my teammates in Europe are running the XX as a 1x10 for the World Cup races. No worries here, don't plan on doing that any time soon.
A small sample of the trail flavor in and around Ft Collins. Looks like AZ....but it is not. Go another 5-10 mile west and you get out of this red ledge-like rock.
Now, just have to sit back and see what mother nature brings us the next few days. Talk is for cold and wet. Don't mind the cold...just want to omit the wet part.
Lastly, I was listed at #39 on a list of the Top 50 Most Influential Cycling Bloggers. Coolness! See the list here!
Some silliness prior to start with Ergon sponsored rider, Yuki Huaswald.
OK, time for the race report!
This is my second go at the Whiskey 50 Off-Road. This 50 mile lollipop loop is a delightful little treat that offers 7,200 ft of climbing in some of the most awesome chunks of trails that north central AZ has to offer.. The Open Men's field was stacked this year...some of the fastest names in the history of the event. The likes of Tinker, Andy Schultz, etc, etc, etc.
The 7:30 AM start was anything but a neutral roll-out of town. Right from the gun, we were single file heading up and out of town. Have to admit, wasn't ready for that and the legs loaded up fast. I managed to stay in the front of the group until the road pitched. Here I dropped back as to not blow up. The group was still in reach and sight....but I would never catch back on. The first 30 minutes of singletrack were painful for me. My legs were heavy and loaded. It wasn't until about 40 minutes into the race did I start to open up.
Glad the legs came around when they did, because the next 10-15 minutes would be spent climbing a double track fire road. At the top of this road began the descent to Skull Valley. As I dropped down to Skull Valley, I took the time to take in lots of water, ELETE, and PowerGels. Near the bottom of Skull Valley, I got to see a group of riders coming back up. This was the 3 leaders. A few minutes later....another group of riders.....then another group containing Yuki Saito. I got to the bottom checked in and headed back up. My legs felt great as I was able to spin the SRAM XX 42T ring up about 80% of the climb. I manage to real in about 8 riders in the process...but the trade off is I was also caught by 2 other riders that were behind me until this point.
Half way up the climb I did a brief stop at the aid station to fill a bottle with water. Once full, I twisted on the lid and pedal on up the climb. At this point I was still feeling good, but I was slowing. I managed to hold off any remaining riders as I pedaled out the remaining singletrack back down into the town square of Prescott.
I would finish 19th overall in the Open Men's race out of like 211 riders. My time was 3 hours and 38 minutes....roughly 5 minutes faster than last year. I'll take it, even though the overall result is not what I was hoping for.
Andy Schultz of Kenda-Felt would go onto win (set a new course record) after Tinker would get lost while riding solo off the front.
Thought SoCal was supposed to be warm and sunny? Well, the ride last night was like riding at 12,000 ft in CO in July...with hit an miss rain showers. The wind was insane at times! Wind chill? Not sure, felt like 40F. Brrrr.
Here is a quick video from one of the mildly techy sections of the evening....
Now I am in Prescott, AZ for the Whiskey 50 Off-Road. Hoping for a good race, but right now I am being ran over by either a head cold or allergies. Hope that being out of a very green SoCal will help my cause a bit.
Hanging out in SoCal for a few day post-Sea Otter on the way to the Whiskey 50 in Prescott, AZ. Got out for a few hours yesterday with the locals to sample the local trails. Awesome times on awesome trails. That is, before the rain moved in.
Another day on the bike in the books. Today was the last little push leading up to a 2 week road trip which will include Sea Otter and the Whiskey 50 Off-Road. Yeah, the legs were a bit toasty after yesterday's climbing efforts. I had some efforts to get in today including another long climb.
The day went past quick with the joy of having a riding partner. Kalan Beisel was in town from Colorado Springs and he was quick on his feet to join in on my little singletrack session. Not a bad guy to train with, since he usually sticks me in my place in the Colorado XC races.
We hit up a lot of the easy access riding here in town: Coyote Ridge, Indian Summer, Blue Sky, and a trip up Towers Rd.
Towers Rd is a good way to work on the climb'n skillz. I felt like I was drag'n a boat anchor. Didn't take Kalan long to zoom up the road....as I mashed my SRAM XX 28 T small chain ring. What a difference a week of solid training can do. Last week I had an easier time, but today, I had a fatigue monster tugging at my jersey.
It's steep....and it pitches. Just enough to mock you.
View from the top looking East and down on Fort Collins.
Turn around....looking West at the snow capped mountains in Rocky Mountain National Park.
From there it was a rip'n descent....followed by a tad more singletrack....then a tempo into town on the paved roads.
Now it is off to California. 2 day drive in store for myself and Yuki.
The road racing season is in full swing here in Colorado, so that means my Saturday training hammerheads are out of town. I swung over to the Oval Ride...but there was only 3 of us, so I went to plan B for the days work out. That is, find a climb that takes about 1 hr to climb, then do 2 efforts up said climb using the ride back down as the recovery period.
Rist Canyon fits perfectly in to the training plan. This climb averages about 6% for the 9.5 miles from top to bottom, but the are plenty of spots on the climb where it kicks to 10-15%....including the last 1/2 mile or so. My personal record from top to bottom is 51 minutes on the road bike. So with that in mind, I went to work.
The first time up went well. I settled in a comfortably high rpm and spun my way up the climb.
It wasn't until the last few switchbacks did I find myself working super hard. I ended up topping out the 2,700 ft climb in 48 minutes and 1 second....some 3 minutes faster than any other attempt. Score! Now I had to descend the climb...and do it again. Before descending I took in some of the new PowerBar Gel Blasts...so it has time to get into me system on the way down. These past few weekends have been good testing of new nutrition....at least new forms of nutrition I have been using in the past.
Effort 2 felt like it took a while to get going. The chilly descent had my legs feeling tight. After about 5 minutes of climbing I was warm again and cruising along.
The 2nd time up felt much harder. I went about as hard as I could....and still make it to the top with out blowing up and coming to a screeching halt. Got to say the last few switch backs hurt.....lots of mashing. I honestly didn't think the second time up would be faster than the first trip up, but it was. I reached the top in a time of 47 minutes and 23 seconds. Double score! What a pleasant surprise for the first time up Rist this calendar year.
On the way back into town, I rode near the Old Country Buffet. It smelled delightful. No lying, I wanted to stop. A block later, it was the Panda Express. Then, the Outback Steakhouse. Finally, it was a personal fav, Carrabba's. Dang the teasing!
Now time for a little recovery before a 3+ hr mtb session on Sunday.
Another season....another new bike....another bike fit. This will be my 3rd year racing on the Wobble-Naught fit. For me, this fit results in a lot of on the bike comfort as well as a solid and powerful pedal stroke. It is worth every penny I spend on it.
You may...or may not know, but there are a lot of top pro male and femal mtb riders on this fit. While it is not my place to name drop...because they might not want to let the cat out of the bag...lets just say, the podium is usually filled with 2 or 3 of them at most national level xc and endurance events.
This AM when down to Loveland, CO to Pro Bike Center, which is now located within Diamond Peaks Physical Therapy. I met with Henry and he took my numbers from my previous fits and got them dialed into the new bike. Below is a video documenting the process.
By far my biggest undertaking on the bike....ever....will be the CTR this August. By far this is the most I have prep'd for an event....especially outside of the training. Lots of gear to get my hands on and lots of testing needs to be done. About the only thing that is pretty certain is the bike I will be riding, and the general idea of how I will go about carrying the gear I need for 4-5 days on the bike.
I went to Eric at Epic Designs up in Alaska to custom build a bag to fit the main triangle of my Rotwild....as well as have him build 2 other bags which will go on this bike. I have a 6+ week wait until I get my bags, but this will be the ticket. Have to find the happy medium of carrying weigh on the bike...and on my body.
Also, see that Magura fork on the bike? Yeah, that is 120mm of terrain ass kick'n fun! Model is the Magura Durin Marathon with external adjustable travel
I am super excited for this adventure. This will be different from the traditional lap/circle races....different goals....different approach.
Yesterdays late afternoon rain/hail storm did wonders for the trails! Traction is about as good as it gets here in Colorado. Enjoy it while you can, as the dry and dusty trails will make a come back when the warmer temps arrive.
Got out for about 2.5 hours this afternoon. Still toy'n around with the new hardtail. I am loving it more than last years bike....feels stiffer and lighter. Plus the SRAM XX is amazing. Surprising it took this long for the 2x10 system to hit the mtb.
As far as racing goes, what is next? I am doing the Sea Otter pro XC. That should hurt and be some good training. Doing it strictly for the training....go 100% and see what happens. The weekend after that is the more important event, the Whiskey 50 in Prescott, AZ.
Yesterday all of the 2010 Topeak-Ergon team equipment landed here in Colorado from Germany. After many hours of sorting...and then building....I was able to get one of my 2 bikes put together. Bike number 2 will be complete after we receive the remaining SRAM XX parts.
Even if I never did ride this bike, it is something to look at...that's for sure!
I did get out today for about 2.5 hours. Dirt is mostly dry here in Ft Collins, so I got to break in the bike proper. Got to say, I love the first ride on the SRAM XX. The shifting is solid and there appears to be enough gearing to go around...regardless of the terrain.
My ride was cut about 15 minutes short today, as the dark clouds seen here made their way over the foothills. The entire way home, I was running from the white curtain of rain coming behind me.
Feels good to get off the road and on the dirt this time of year. Hoping the wet weather stays way west today so I get get in more dirt time the next 3 days. I have a fresh ride I need to break in!
2005 Results
12 Hr Sugar Creek :: 2nd
12 Hr of Metro :: 1st
12 Hr of Thunder :: 2nd
12 Hr of Winter :: 3rd
24 Hr of 9 Mile :: DNF
24 Hr of 7 Oaks :: 1st
24 Hr in Japan :: 1st
2004 Results
Stump Farm 12 Hr :: 2nd
24 Hr of Rapelje :: 1st
12 Hr Nationals :: 3rd
24 Hr of 9 Mile :: 10th
24 Hr Solo World :: 12th
24 Hr of Moab :: DNF
Bio
NAME: Jeff Kerkove
NICKNAME: Mr. 24
COUNTRY: USA (Colorado)
TEAM:Topeak-Ergon DOB: 2.7.1978
HEIGHT: 6 ft.
WEIGHT: 165 lbs.
RACE CATEGORIES:
Pro (XC & Endurance) Click for full Bio
