Natz wrap-up

Back in the South or as Little Nicky would say the "Deep South" from Nats.
So here is how I shall sum up the trip:

TT- 33km of fun....start-cool little golf cart path roads and it goes up for 4.5miles-*so far so good*-almost catch my minute man at the top (he's fast) *smiling so far* - downhill- false flat into headwind = :( - i then go into hibernation mode for the rest of the TT as it is just crosswind or headwind on these flat or steep rollers then i got off of my bike, crawled into a hole and died.

Crit- Location: Anaheim Angels stadium. Distance: 60km divided into 35 laps of joyous fun. Before I begin I would like to describe the National crit courses. For having the best crit racers in the world we put on a crappy crit course for NATIONALS. Its in a freaking parking lot for Pete's sake. We might as well went into the Angels stadium and rounded the bases for an hour and 15mins. As usual there are crashes in a wide open race. Big crash with one lap to go. I was sitting around 40th just staying out of trouble. Guys start stacking it on the right into the barriers. I see fans scattering. I begin to move to the left...nope...guys crashing there. Go up the gut! Dude falls into me I let out a battle cry that resembles that little raccoon off of Pocahontas and I manage to not fall. 1 point David

Road Race- YAWN....120 miles no big deal...20 mile circuit or hot dog loop go up a road turn around go through start/finish turn around at the same road and do it again in the suburbs. The course was wide open as in who would win and 3 lanes of roads on each side divided by a nice median. 2 nice 2-3min climbs and a 1km uphill to the finish. We averaged 28-29mph for the first two laps then the break got away. Butler and I just covered the attacks before and of course that went and we were out before we knew what happened. But we tried anyway. There is also a rule where you would be pulled if you are more then 3 mins behind the race. Which is dumb b/c what if you crash, flat, mechanical, you could still come back. So out of the 150 something that got started, 13 "finished". I made it around the 90mile mark. Butler 100mile mark. They scored Butler but missed me somehow (whateva...). The officials never told us what was our final lap so we rolled at the back when we could have sprinted for some good placings. If the race would have been run the right way Butler would have a Top 15 and me a top 25 which is a decent result for us considering we only had 3 guys while most teams had quite a bit but I dont think we could have touched Slipstream with the shear horsepower and #'s. So congratz to 'em.

Hopefully next year TheOC will put on little better courses (may be with some hills??)


Now Im in Athens, GA for the fall Athens Twilight commonly known as college. I shall be holding the fort down here for a bit. Next races:
River Gorge (aug 23rd)
US 100km
Dahlonega, GA (sp??)
Saul Raisn Crit
Michelin Crit

I shall try to keep you up to date...
David

OMG!!! New Post!!!

Well I am on a cross the country trip currently in Albuquerque after two days of traveling from Chattanooga. I got a couple of stories and some info about states you should(nt) visit.

First:
In order to get ready for Nationals, I had to stock up on some food and drink. So I wonder over to the GNC store which sells anything from vitamins to gun powder. If you havent been into one then let me give you a little layout. The cashiers desk is in the middle surrounded on all sides are certain sections one with vitamins, whey protein, gels/bars, pills for football players, and the untouched herbel-natual-vitamin section. The employees are not some typical teenager but a really big-muscular-body-building-freak who-for-some-reason-has-very-little-patience and-has-a-high-temper working at the desk. I go in looking for muscle milk (for the ladies and the taste) and some gels. He is talking to another meat head while I head over to the muscle milk section. I listen in:

[macho man talk/on]
Meathead: Yeah...I work out like...5 days a week. You know the biceps and all.
Employee: Awesome
Meathead: I was wondering if I use this type of protein powder it will help me.
E: Totally...this protein powder helps you build muscle and recover quicker.
M: Cool so when do I drink it and stuff?
E: After each workout session.
M: I like to eat chicken not much of a read meat person but I try to when Im doing like 3 hour workouts.
E: Yeah...so what flavor you want?
[Macho man talk/off]
*at this point I have succesfully found my strawberry flavored cytomax muscle milk..tastes awful but i know its fine within the doping controls AND its on sell!!!*
[Macho man talk/on]
M: Where's the chocolate? Yeah I dont want none of that girly strawberry stuff
E: Yeah chocolate is the best flavor
[Mach man talk/off]
*I stare down at my discounted-strawberry-flavored-muscle-milk and almost cry but I manage to compose myself and hide the label from 'em and quickly escape to the gel and bar aisle.*

So I have been to a couple of states I have never been to before: Arkansas and Oklahoma. Arkansas was alright saw the Mississippi River through Memphis which was nice. Anywho, Fort Smith, Arkansas was home to a very nice Marriott and the Lil Wayne concert down the street. After being asked and declining...oh say...10 offers to buy Lil Wayne tickets I decided to drink my strawberry muscle milk instead and watch some TV.
Oklahoma is pretty much a flat Alabama. Bad roads, hot, and no teeth.
Texas or the panhandle part of Texas, also known as hell. I mean there is NOTHING in this part of this desolate country. It looked like something filmed off of No Country For Old Men. The wind was howling and the heat was brutal. Carpenter summed it up best, "David, you must really hate this place, flat, windy, hot, and desolate." I responded, "I guess this is where Satan spends his winter and spends his summer in Belgium."
After driving through my hell, we appeared in the great land of New Mexico. Just take Texas and take the macho-Texan cowboy motto out and add a little bit of green and some taller shrubs and that sums the first part of New Mexico up. The second part of New Mexico is hell for everybody else as it is mountainous. We got caught up in a cool lightning storm outside of Albuquerque so New Mexico is moving up on my list a bit...So tomorrow we head out to the border of Cali and Arizona. Should be nice and hot....

David