Hans Kellner Dot Com

Dropped in at *the* party along the Tour of CA route and grabbed a little bit of footage as the race passed through.

Felt halfway alive on this one. The start was nice since we rolled down Bohemian and then over and down Hwy 1. This allowed me some time to warm up. When we hit the first steep longer climb a little after Jenner, I settled back and a large portion of the pack pulled away. I could have pushed it a bit harder to stick with them but I knew it was a long race and this climb connected with Meyers Grade which was even harder. So I kept a good RPM and spun up. At Meyers I continued with an even pace and started to catch a few riders.

Once on the ridge, with the rollers, I was alone and started pushing a nice pace. Came across another rider who jumped on my wheel. Then another that also joined. Lost both of them on the descent towards and down Timber Cove to Hwy 1. Headed north on Hwy 1 solo until the two of them caught me again. But then one of them dropped off and the other guy stuck with me which was nice. When we hit Kruse we did a quick pit stop then rolled onto the dirt. I was feeling good and liked the grade and dirt. So I settled into a nice pace and at some point lost the other guy. Well, he just disappeared on me since I was just focused on climb. Btw, I was riding with Continental 28 Gatorskins which were perfect for the potholes and dirt section. Great tires.

Popped up out of the last section of Kruse (ouch) and turned left onto the road towards Hauser Bridge. Passed an old team mate of mine, Steve Peleaz, who blew from the earlier effort.

Dropped down Hauser to the bridge, paused to watch the brown current, and then began the evil climb. Oh man that is a steep pitch at the start. But not as bad as I thought it would be. Passed another guy mid-way up. Continued at an even pace, watching my cadence, and finally rolled up to the top and where the sag wagon was hanging out. Grabbed another bottle. The guy told me 5 guys were just here. That motivated me to keep moving and possibly catch them. Oh, he also said, good job, no more big hills… ha! I guess he didn’t realize King Ridge is still a climb this direction.

Made sure to eat some more and drink. Kept the pace up on the rollers of the ridge. But couldn’t see the pack of 5 he mentioned. I kept rolling at an effort that I gauged would allow me to finish without blowing up on the last climb. Finally caught another rider but he just dropped off. Then another that rode a short bit but then fell off on the next little pitch. Then it was lonely time. All the way up to the top of the ridge I saw nobody.

Descending down King Ridge I came across nobody. Out through Cazedero to River Road it was me and a few cars that passed by. Down River to Moscow Rd, into the headwind, it was me alone. But I kept on sensing riders behind me.

Back on Moscow it was a nice tailwind. But nobody else.

Onto Bohemian and there was… nobody. My legs were now getting a little achy. Finished off the food I had and most of my drink. Pushed the pace but stayed seated and to keep the cadence up. I could feel a small bit of cramping when I stood and pushed a hard effort. And I kept getting that sensation of riders coming up behind. That motivated me.

At the final pitch up to Occidental I made a big push and then rolled into town to the finish.

Of the 51 or so starters, I rolled in a 31st with a time of 5:04. The leaders (Barry Wicks) finished in 4:08. I’m actually happy with my time considering how much I rode solo. And looking at the finish times of some of the other riders, I could see I was only 20 min or so behind those that I would think i should be finishing with. So overall I consider this a good day and happy with my result.

Changes I would make for next time would be easier gearing. I thought the 28 rear, up from 25, would be enough but I could have used more on Meyers Grade and Hauser. The rest of the time the gearing was fine. I also need to eat and drink more. Definitely didn’t have enough of either.

Thanks Mig and crew for another fun weekend “ride”.

A time-lapse view from the Berkeley High pit during race #2 of the 2012 NorCal High School MTB League series.

The view is of the “Pit Zone” with the start/finish off in the distance. You can spot the uphill start in the upper left. Started recording around 8am and stopped around 5pm.

Lots of wind, rain, some hail, and spots of sun during the day. One gust knocked the camera over (sideways shot).

Captured using my GoPro Hero2 in interval mode. One photo every 30 seconds.

The FUCI Approved Frame sticker has been extended for the year 2012. The decision was made after a long deliberation by the overlords in the top secret FUCI sweat lodge atop the Matterhorn. It was a difficult decision but eventually concluded when supplies of mountain mushrooms and goat blood grog ran low.

Of course, fees will rise slightly for this year’s sticker. There are costs to cover. And new supplies to purchase…

(thanks to http://stickerobot.com/ for production)

OK – I have a small batch of stickers for a select few.

These are the larger 3″ diameter stickers.  Great for larger surfaces.  If you would like one then here’s how to get some.  Send a S.A.S.E.  (google it) through snail mail.  Wha???  Yup, the old fashioned way.  Step-by-step:

1. You will need two envelopes.  One large enough to hold the second smaller envelope.  The second should be large enough to hold a sticker or two.
2. Address the outer envelope to me:
   
3. Address the inner envelope to yourself.  This envelope needs to fit inside the outer envelope (see step #1). Place a stamp on the inner envelope.  Do NOT forget the stamp.  If you forget the stamp it will be like heading to the trail without your front wheel.  Not  going anywhere soon.  One stamp should be enough.
1. BONUS – If you include something for me along with the inner envelope then I will consider that when counting out stickers to return in your envelope.  Draw a picture of what you think of the UCI, send along your sticker, or something creative.  Cool.
4. Now that you have everything together, place the smaller envelope (and optionally your bonus item) inside the first envelope.  Seal only this first envelope.  Make sure it’s addressed (step #2) and has a stamp.
5. Ride out to your local mail box and drop it in.

Btw – Once you get your sticker and have applied it to the surface of your choice, grab a picture of it and e-mail it to me.  I’ll add it to the FUCI Approved gallery.

Cheers!

Official List of 2012 FUCI Approved

The following are responses to the FUCI Approved sticker program.  These individuals, entities, hooligans, are to be considered officially recognized as FUCI Approved.

Official List of 2011 FUCI Approved

Previous 2011 FUCI Approved hooligans.

Here’s the start of Levi Leipheimer’s King Ridge GranFondo. It’s a little group ride with myself and 7499 other folks up in Sonoma.

More information here: http://www.levisgranfondo.com/

http://eastbayalleycx.blogspot.com

This “rally” included a mix of city riding, semi-rural roads, fire roads and single-track. The East Bay is very hilly and this was no exception. Steep hill climbs, bumpy downhill dirt descents, dirt climbs and whatever else can be thrown at you. Bike of choice is the one that you will have fun on and will get you through the course safely. A cross bike would do the trick, but so would a nice hardtail with skinny tires. Hell, even a road bike with fatty tires will suffice, although not recommended.

p.s. Watch the video full screen (unscaled) and with the sound/music on