Way to Go USA

How cool is it that Jonathan Page and Katie Compton both earned silver medals at the cyclocross worlds. There was even a junior from the USA that earned a silver medal too. Of course it would have been great to have one of them win their race, but this is huge compared to last year.
Maybe this is a sign of things to come. Americans have been very powerful in the TDF and other races, now we are getting in the game with Cross and maybe Jeremiah and others will be more of a powerhouse in the World cup mtn bike series. JB got 8th in the world championships last year (I think) maybe 2007 will be even better.

Went for a nice mtn bike ride with James from BDB today. Did the old standard, Narrowback. Not too cold and the rain that they predicted never materialized. phew. Looking forward to another mtn bike trip on Sat.

Hope everyone got outside on Sat to enjoy the warm temps.

Rollers!?!

I'm not really sure how this is supposed to help my cycling. Everyone always talks about using rollers to get smoother, is this some sort of Karate Kid training technique?

We are back from the ski trip and i have started working on the house to make it look a little better so maybe someday someone will want to buy it....maybe. I've been painting everything that will sit still, but don't worry, i haven't painted anything yellow yet.

This week started out with a really fun visit to the Dr. I went in for one of those exams that i normally wouldn't need for 10-15 more years, apparently Sara found out there was the slightest bit of history and recommended (forced me to) that i have it done. Apparently she wants me to live a long time...crazy huh? Everything was fine, like they said the worst part is the prep. What kind of sick bastard makes you go a whole day without solid food. I normally eat every two to three hours. (I have to say, if i ever go to prison i hope they knock you out before they attack ya, I woke up and it was over, that's the way it should be)

I did sneak out this afternoon for a little bike ride. 40 miles in 37 degree temps. A week and a half off the bike i was hurting by the end. Not sure if it is just out of shape or if i bonked, i think it was a little of both.

Maybe it will warm up again...or maybe i will just get out on the mtn bike.

All this Doping stuff needs to go away

I figured i would vent a bit about something other than skiing

I keep reading these reports about Landis and operation puerto and i just want it to be over.

I think/hope Landis is innocent, I know some people say that they all push the limits of what is legal with testosterone and other chemicals, but after reading through his powerpoint, it seems possible that he is innocent.

The puerto case either needs to poop or get off the pot. If they have more than nicknames on the blood bags, they need to pull that stuff out now. I think that unless they actually convict someone with the puerto thing, the should allow them to race. This not letting people race because of suspicion is just CRAP! Landis failed a test, so he should not be allowed to race, but if you haven't failed a test or been caught breaking a rule, you should be allowed to race.
And don't get me started with the people getting suspended for missing a tests that aren't clearly marked or notified. The sanctioning bodies know where these people are all the time, it would be easy to chase them down and test them. Before taking away someone's livelyhood, they should at least see if they have been using first.

I guess i will never have to take drug test, so it is not a big deal to me, but i like to watch the racing, and i wish they could just stick to that.

More pic's from the trip.

The sky was clear, but the temps were the lowest yet. We could only stay out for a few hours at a time. Still having fun tho. Always better than working.

What a difference a day makes. Sun...but OMG cold!

Last night we hit the town and went to one of it's eating establishments. Nice place with very nice presentation. It's all about the presentation. With a big full belly and our legs warn out from the first day of skiing, we were out like a light.
Woke up this morning and we could see the sun, but with the clear skies come colder temps. The temp at the bottom of the mountain was 4 F at the top of the mountain -7 F!!!! And to top it off, the wind picked up in the afternoon. It actually wasn't that bad, Sara had to go in every few hours to thaw out. So i went with her. (only for support of course, i can handle the cold, i'm macho) We hit a bunch of the runs today, they were much clearer and groomed. We will give it a shot tomorrow, but it is going to be cold, the high is supposed to be 0. The quads are a burning, but by the end of the week maybe they will be in shape.
Dad heads home tomorrow, he's stopping in Montreal to visit a customer. He said two days of skiing is enough for him.

you could bounce a quarter off of this!

I got your 70 deg weather right here mister!!

The high today was 12 F. Yes, you heard me...12!!!! Thank goodness for the clouds and the snow storm to hold the heat in, the high tomorrow is supposed to be 5. Balmy. Dad rolled in last night about 8, thank goodness he had that knee surgery, it's nice to have him skiing with us again. (you know that Sara and I are his favorites, who else invites him to ski every year)

We headed out the door this morning at about 8:30 when the lifts opened, it was cold and snowy. When we got to the top of the mountain you couldn't see anything. They were making snow and the mist/fog drifting across the top of the mountain was so dense you could barely see right in front of you. It was just a big wall of white. The legs are getting used to skiing again, they will probably be just getting into form when the week is over. :-( just in time to go home.





Here are som pic's from today. (fortunately our ski jackets help color code the pics: Sara= Blue, Dad= orange, Me= yellow (like you didn't know)) There are no pics of me today, maybe tomorrow, you'll just have to check back.

-Sambo

It's like it's a whole nother country...Crazy huh.

We finally arrived in Tremblant, very nice place. We were a little concerned because we didn't see any big mountains. We knew that it wasn't going to be like going to the rockies, but we were hoping for a little more elevation than from my house to Russell's.
We went shopping for groceries in NY before we crossed the border this morning, but we were sweating having them throw stuff away, so we waited until Montreal to by fresh meat and veggies. (The darn border guard didn't even ask us about any veggies or meat...d'oh) But you know if we had bought it, Sara and i would both be spreading our cheeks for some RCMP making sure we didn't have anything else to hide.
Here are some pics of the pedestrian village. We are staying at the bottom of the hill, but there is a little gondola that runs from the bottom of the village to where the ski lifts start. I guess they got some money from VW for this thing cause they call it the Cabriolet (that means fast car in German dude!) plus there are VW badges all over.

Till tomorrow-

Saw this cute girl hanging around. I poured on the old Sambo charm and talked her into coming back to my place. Who knows....I may get lucky!

It's snowing here, but is it snowing on the mountain?

Woke up this morning with a light dusting on the 'RU. We are about 30 miles from the 51st state. It's supposed to snow here all week. I bet they are pretty excited about finally getting some snow. I would imagine there are a bunch of locals with their camo coveralls and their snow mobiles all tuned up just dying to get out for a ride. (If i lived up here you know i would have a snowmobile too) But true to my cyclist roots, I would have some really flashy snowmobile kit. It's all about the style.
Be well.

Pray for more Snow!!!!

Who would have thought that Quebec wouldn't have Snow in January. Those darn "Wanna-be" French bastards better get on the ball. Sara and I are heading up to Mont-Tremlant to ski, more than half the runs are open up there, but of course we are thinking we should have gone to Colorado again, they have the crazy snow this year. We could have dropped in on Jim and Trish to check out the new digs and even stopped by to say hello to Taz on one of her many new adventures. Oh well, at least we will be skiing. (maybe)

Maybe i can find a weekend to fly out to Denver this winter. One of the weekends i'm not driving home.

Everybody out there, keep your fingers crossed for more snow in the east.

Cobblestone Cross

So they added another Cyclocross race after the end of the season. I'm not sure why Cobblestone didn't make it into the VACX series this year, i kinda missed racing at Pole Green park. The weather wasn't as nice Sunday as it was on Saturday, but mid 50's is hard to complain about in January, esp after the two races last january in the freezing cold. But this is cyclocross right...it should be sloppy and snowing!!!

I decided to only race A , cause i wanted the most bang for my buck, i guess i could have raced masters too, but they were back to back, and i am old darn it!!! Plus i didn't want to let Deedee smack me around two races in a row. There were only 6 people in the A race and i finished 4th. I was pretty happy with the result, the guys up front were not that far ahead...two time zones tops.

After the race we hit Nacho Mama's with Kevin and crew for some Mexican food. I can ALWAYS eat mexican. To me it's like eating doughnuts "you don't have to be hungry to want a doughnut"

Here are some pic's Kev was nice enough to send to me...

I know it's blurry, but look, I'm second at the start, normally i am DFL by the first turn.

This is as good as it would get for Kevin (2nd) and Me (3rd), it was down hill from here.

Rollin to the finish, you don't post up for fourth, but i had to show off the ECBA jersey. Represent!

Crickets!!! (I should change the blog title to where in the world is Sambo)

Wow! It's been a busy couple of weeks. I know everyone else has been busy too, and yet they still manage to post some comment on their blog. But i did have limited access to computers over Christmas, which i think is a good excuse.

My in-laws were still using dial-up...WHAT THE! They actually made the jump to high speed two days after we left. Thanks Dave! :-)

This was my first Christmas that i did not see my family, which isn't bad considering i am 35. I guess there may be more in my future. Sara and I had a very nice time in Michigan, but it would have been nicer if there had been snow. We are now getting ready for our anual ski trip. We picked a place in Quebec this year, which is not looking so good. We should have gone to Colorado again. D'oh. Well at least there is snow there, and hopefully more will fall before we go. Plus, i can't remember the last time i was in Canada. Keep your fingers crossed for snow in the east.

This weekend there is another cross race, Cobblestone Cross @ pole green park in Richmond. It will be fun to go out and get my race on again. It's been a few weeks. I've taken a little time off the bike, but i'm always training. I'm trying to pick which class to race. Do i stick with the Masters 35+ or just do A...maybe A since i didn't get to race heads up against Mr Horvath all season. (Although from the looks of his blog, he never misses a day of riding, LUCKY!)

I'll try to keep up with my posting, my new computer comes in a few weeks. Hopefully you won't hear the cricket sounds when you check on my site.