To Ponder...

Here I sit in the dining area of the Copper Center Lodge (thanks for rural wireless) enjoying a bowl of beef barley soup and half a chef salad. Today I rented a 2006 Chevy Silverado with my company credit card and headed north to bring the long awaited pool table slate to the Native Village of Kluti-Kaah and to interview some potential employees. As I left Anchorage, it was raining incredibly hard and although I was driving a big, heavy truck, I could feel the powerful wind gusts pushing against the vehicle. During the four hour drive I was once again marveling at the amazing vistas as I climbed above the Matanuska River and somewhere around the third hour I spotted something dark in the bushes along the side of the left side of the road and as I looked in my rearview mirror, a black bear ran across the road. It was a nice surprise and it yanked me out of my introspective daydream.

My thoughts as of late have been jumbled up more than the Beastie Boys remix of Intergalactic. The primary reason is not the fact that my hair is heading south faster than October geese that will never return... It has three letters, starts with a "J", ends with a "B" and has a vowel shaped like a circle in the middle. Anyhow, I had a great summer and with the support of my family I kept myself busy (distracted) riding and racing my bicycle, though the times in between have been a challenge for me. My family is as good as it gets but too many times lately I have a furrowed brow, act like a jackass-jerk and take them for granted - which is the highest crime because they are my life and will always be there for me. I've been having trouble keeping my apparent inability to effectively deal with my personal issues away from how I treat the ones I love. This has to change. I have to change.

This brief time away from my daily routine affords me some perspective and in this public (global) forum, I will say to myself and whoever is reading that I will make an honest effort to learn from mistakes I have made and grow stronger as a husband, father, sibling, and friend. I feel fortunate that I have been the one to call myself on my own bullshit (this time) but I know that the loved ones in my life won't hesitate to provide the proverbial looking glass for me to see the man in the mirror and keep me from steppin' out of line. Now you're in: You catch me assin' out and I'm counting on you to set me straight because sometimes I really need help getting back in line.

TOA

I completed my first Tour of Anchorage on Sunday and it was a fantastic experience. Last Thursday was the first stage up Potter Valley road - it was really windy and after a mediocre performance, I was sitting in 32nd place. Friday evening was the Fort Rich road race and I stayed near the front for the majority of the race and ended up somewhere toward the back of the top 10. Saturday morning was another crit around the last block of the Park Strip. It was a cold, wet August morning but the race kept a fairly high speed throughout. The only really slippery part you had to watch out for was turn 3 with big "turn only" arrows painted on the street. I was able to stay up at the front for that finish as well and was somewhere between 5th and 7th... the Arctic Bicycle Club doesn't have a sweet OLN instant replay of the finish.

Saturday night brought me the most satisfaction. The Moose Run time trial is a race ABC holds roughly each month during the summer up here and it's a 10 mile (5 out and back) course with a few hundred feet of climbing on the way back. In mid June I alerted my vast readership (grin) of a PR that I had set at Moose Run of 25:02. Tony was a great motivator during this tt as he started 30 seconds behind me and caught and passed me within about 8 minutes. But that was really of no consequence to me because I was really focused on racing my own race and in so doing, I was able to knock over a minute off of my previous best and roll in at 23:57.

I did my best to carry that personal excitement over to the final stage which was the Kincaid Loop road race. Each lap was 3.7 miles with a moderate 3/4 mile climb. We were set to do 16 laps (which in the end equaled 3500 feet of climbing over 60 miles) and I was a bit nervous because the last time I raced this course, I stopped racing and limped home after the 8th lap. Thankfully, this day was different for me. I was there at the front for the finish and was narrowly beat by Tony B. and Tony T. to come in 7th at the line.

Overall, I finished in 14th of the 26 that completed all 5 stages and had a great time - it felt good to be back in the mix. Now there's a 6 race cyclocross series coming up and I'm looking forward to some epic autumn mountain bike rides on the Kenai Peninsula. Thanks for reading (Bobby) and perhaps the next post won't be about cycling (right).

Hello Again

It's obviously been a while since I've posted and this thing was really neat when I started it... I suppose I'll still use it and try to do it a bit more frequently.

I just returned from a phenomenal vacation in Colorado. My kids spent some time with their Grandparents and I got to spend some time with number-one-uplift-mofo-master (otherwise known as Bobby) shredding CO. singletrack, rollin' on the Denver Cruiser Wednesday night ride, nocturnal lurking in the greenbelt, building a bond with his kids, eating great food prepared by his wife, playing catch with a baseball in the park, and drinking ice cold beer from a cooler immediately following more shredding of singletrack. And I rented a mini-van to facilitate transporting bikes and goodies to the trailhead. It was an amazing trip and I was very happy to see my kids again. They're awesome kids and very fun to travel with - you don't hear that every day, do ya? Anyhow, I don't have any photos and I know that they can make an entry more complete but, oh well... there's always next time.

Fireweed

Last Saturday I caught a ride out to Sheep Mountain Lodge for the start of the Fireweed 100 road race with my old friend Tony Brugliera and his teammate Matt Novakovich. The race started fast for me and straight out of the gates we were climbing. After 10 minutes I was spit out the back of the first group and seemed to be working in vain to catch back up. Luckily for me, a few riders caught up with me and we worked together and caught back up with the lead group at the 50 mile turnaround.

On the way back we rode into a slight headwind and, along with the fact that we were tiring a bit, we had quite a bit of climbing to do. They were the kind of climb that you can see for a few miles before you get there and you have to try to not let that get you down. On the last big hill a few of the riders in our group kept a pace that split the rest of us up. There was a flat section and then it was downhill to the finish. Big Ed Sniffen was up ahead and I stood up to sprint downhill and try to close the gap but the finish line came too soon.

I ended up finishing 10th of 62 starters in the men's field with a time of 4:40:39. I was satisfied and had a good time keeping up with fellow racers. I'm only a little bummed that I was too focused to take in any of the amazing scenery.

Sisters

I have two of the best. I know, everybody says that... but I'm right.

I received a call from my older sister Jennifer - The Seester - after work today. It was a welcome surprise because she lives in L.A. and with me in Alaska, we don't get to spend too much time together - but when we do get to, or even talk on the phone, it's a the beat was never missed. She can hear the rhythm for the drums, if you know what I mean. Anyhow, she shared some good life changing news that is in the near future for her and her husband and I could hear true excitement in her voice. When you talk to someone that is happy and energized by whatever may be on the horizon, it gives you perspective on your own life. I'm thankful for her sharing her happiness with me and hopefully I can reciprocate the next time around.

The younger sister, now widely know simply as Maigh, is phenomenal as well. There were times in our distant past when to say that we didn't get along would be a monumental understatement. With the years since those tough times, we've grown closer and have developed a great respect for each other. We also don't get to see each other as much as we like with her living in Atlanta, but when we get to see each other again, there is a laughter induced spark and time stands still. Then it's time for one of us to head back in the direction of our home and it's unspoken that next time we'll pick up right where we left off.

I can only hope that you're as fortunate as me.

Kincaid

This past Saturday at noon we (Team Allez) began the two person 12 hour mountain bike race at Kincaid park. A new friend I made through road racing, John Cole, was the other half and the weather was perfect for us - approaching 70 degrees and sunny. The course was 10.5 miles of fast doubletrack and technical singletrack with 1,100 ft. of climbing per lap. On my first lap, I missed a turn that wasn't marked very well and added about a mile to my lap by backtracking to the point I flew past. That lap was 57:26 and the next five laps were 51:40, 52:53, 54:41, 53:36, and 52:56. The slightly faster last lap was, I believe, due to the fact the my wife Michelle came out at around 10:00 p.m. and brought me some Mirror Pond Pale Ale. It was supposed to be a post-race treat but a cold beer was too good to pass up. I downed the bottle and headed out for my last lap with Ben Harper in the earphones and the sun just beginning to sink toward the horizon. It was a nice way to finish off a day of racing Fango 63 miles up and down hills through the woods. And John was no slouch - he knocked out 5 laps at right around an hour each... and he stayed cool when, on his first lap, he broke his chain. I started freaking out when I missed a turn - I would have gone berserker if I broke my chain. His persistence to head out on to his next lap strong and finish strong with a few positive words in our brief exchange as I rode away for another lap made the event quite enjoyable. Thanks John... see you next time.

The Good and The Bad

This weekend was eventful, to say the least. On Saturday, there was another downtown crit. I won $40.00 for the first lap prime and Alaska Waste had brought out quite a group. We ended up getting third on the day (Evan Hyde) and you can please check out a more detailed breakdown of the race on his site evhyde.blogspot.com Also, please feel free to check out race photos from a link on akbike.org to Andy Romang's site... They're pretty cool.

After the race, my wife went to check out dogs without the kids knowing. She came back and had me go with her to Petco where they have a dog adoption program. I saw Rex and immediately liked him. He's a cool mix of Shar-Pei and miniature Pinscher. I know - it's hard to imagine so I'll post a picture of him soon. After we brought him home and introduced him to the kids, Michelle took them to see Cars and Rex and I took a nap and I found out that he snores... but it's a cute snore. He's very mellow, loves attention, and is not a barker.

Then came the Sunday race. The Kincaid Loop road race is a 3.75 mile lap with a few hills on the back side that proved to be crushers for me. They had us set up to do 14 laps and the hills are really not that bad but on the 7th lap, I got dropped like a bomb from the Enola Gay and had to work my ass off to get back on... only for it to happen again on lap 8 with a strong acceleration from Matt Jordan. My legs filled with shit and I couldn't get my heart rate up. Patented bonk. There is a picture of me on Andy's site dying the death of the Ming-Wang-Dang-Doodle Dynasty and the only thing that looks good is my calf which, shortly after the photo was taken, staged a revolt of it's own in concert with it's cohort - the other calf. I chose to stop racing and limp back home rather than get lapped, which would indeed be worse than getting dropped. It was a bummer but everyone has a bad day and today was one of mine for sure. The good news is that although we didn't get a win (Matt Jordan had a one minute lead by the time I left) we got second. Evan again. Way to go, Evan... I hope I can help more next time.

The evening finished with having Michelle's folks and her sister and brother-in-law over for Father's Day dinner. Michelle made a delicious feast and she and the kids bonused me out with one of my very favorite movies: Uncle Buck.

PR, Bitches... PR

Last night there was another Moose Run time trial. My previous best time was 25:16 over the 10 mile course in 2002 - the summer before the "accident". During my warm up, my right hip was feeling really tight and it felt as if my right leg was running at about 60% power. It started messing with my head and I was getting really nervous because I had already paid for the race and they were just about to post the start list. Luckily, after getting off the bike and stretching, it started to feel a little looser. I had a GREAT mountain bike ride two nights earlier and I felt like I was getting fast again. I told my buddy Clay when we were parting ways at the end of the ride that all I wanted to do was break 25 minutes in the Moose Run and I'd be happy... 24:59 and I'd be happy.

So I rolled up to the line feeling better mentally than I had in my warm up and I was off. I hit the turn around in 11:30 but I knew the way back would be tough. The slight hills would take a little more out of me and there was a gentle head wind. As I approached the line I was giving it all I had as I watched the seconds tick by on my computer. My heart rate hit 185 and I rolled across the line in... 24:59. The race organizer recorded my time as 25:02 and that's o.k. because I know better. I didn't beat the shredders that blazed the course in under 23 minutes but I was very happy with my performance. It was one little personal victory and a Personal Record to let me know that I'm back, baby... I'm back.

Three Years

On June 5, 2003 I was nearly taken out of this life by a pick-up truck while riding my road bike. Much has happened in the three years since and I'm happy to say that, save for some nagging aches that flare up on occasion and make my hips feel like I'm an old German Shepherd, I can still run, jump, & kick and I'm having a blast riding and racing my bicycles. The following is a letter most likely written while under the influence of pain numbing narcotics - perhaps the reason it didn't find its way to the ones that were there for me until now.

7.15.03

Hello all! So it has been about six weeks since a motorist (whose egregious negligence was beyond comprehension) seriously injured me while I was riding my bicycle. After being struck, run over by a 3/4 ton Chevy truck, and suffering a seizure, I was taken to the hospital by ambulance (don't remember that part) where it was discovered that I had a fractured skull producing bruising and swelling of my brain, a fractured scapula, separated left & right shoulders, a fractured pelvis, and multiple cuts and scrapes from my ankle to my head - not to mention deep contusions in the muscles of my legs that continue to be problematic. Considering the extent of my physical damage, I am very thankful that it wasn't worse. I'm healing well due to the care I received at the hospital and - equally as important - all of the love, prayers, and support I got from my family and friends. It has really helped keep my spirits up. I know that it will take quite some time to fully recover but, with the support that I'm getting, I believe that I will be able to return to - and surpass - the level of fitness I had attained at the time of the inconceivably heartless crime.
I want to sincerely thank everyone who came and visited me, said prayers for me, gave me encouraging phone calls during the difficult ten days in the hospital, and for everyone who wished me well along the way. I would also like to extend gracious thanks to the witness who chased down the ruthless perpetrator as he fled and to the witness who stayed with me until the ambulance arrived. This genuine outpouring of compassion, love, and concern does not go unnoticed by any means - in fact, it has had a profound effect on me. I have had the proverbial paradigm shift and it has reassured me that, contrary to some opinions, there really are good people out there. With that, I must say that I believe all of the attention I have received has been of immeasurable assistance on my road to recovery. Happy Trails! (& thanks again).

Love, KRH

Hope Road

Today was the Hope Rd. 40K TT and I got up at 6:30 a.m. to eat breakfast, shower, and drive out to the staging area. It took me an hour and I arrived at 8:00 a.m. with time to sign in but usually takes longer. I was lucky I didn't get a speeding ticket between Anchorage and Girdwood because it has recently been classified as a "safety corridor" and the fines are doubled. Just as it was put in place, they did a story on the news about some sorry jackass that got a $680.00 ticket along Potter Marsh... I digress.

So I got up to a beautiful morning, ate some oatmeal, and headed to the coffee stand on my way south. I threw in the new TOOL (10,000 Days) to get me in the mindset for the self inflicted pain that was in my near future. It was sunny but a bit chilly as I pulled out the rollers and began to warm up. I was the only guy from Team Alaska Waste that was there and I wasn't in the mood to chat with the Kaladi guys that were warming up near me (although they're a great group of guys) so I plugged into my ipod and jammed for about 40 minutes. The start list was posted and I arrived at the starting line just prior to my start time... And then I was off.

The road is now a perfectly smooth ribbon of asphalt and as you head toward Hope there is a swift flowing river on your right and snow capped peaks on either side. There's a whole lotta photosynthesis goin' on with all the vegetation - especially the Birch trees - and the air smells clean and summery. The race was 12.5 miles out, 12.5 miles back, and turned out to have 920 ft. of climbing. Out of the start it was a bit downhill and I was excited to be going so fast but I knew I would have to meter my efforts because the road had many rolling hills. I felt good for about 2/3 of the race but began to fade toward the end. I made it to the turnaround in 29:08 but the time of my return trip was proof of my waning performance - 34:53. Although I really wanted to break an hour, it just wasn't in the cards and overall, I had a good time. Afterward, when most folks had left for home, I tagged along with the Kaladi guys for a mellow ride back to Hope - we just couldn't pass up some more time on that new asphalt coupled with virtually no traffic.

That was the morning. The afternoon consisted of taking out any left over frustrations by physically destroying a "clubhouse" in our backyard that was there when we moved in. It felt good to get rid of it and even better to be bonused out by my wife with a dinner of grilled halibut, bbq chicken breast, baked potato, bbq corn on the cob, a wicked salad, and some Deschutes Brewery Inversion IPA. Big day. Good day. I hope you enjoyed yours.

Rain

After a week of record high temps in the 70's & 80's and a fire that burned 700+ acres at Point McKenzie leaving Los Anchorage smelling like a camp fire, we got a much needed bit of rain. The air is cooler and the skies are grey with a Seattle-like mist of precipitation. The weekend was busy again with bike racing (woke up tired and flat and got 8th of 17 in a crit - at least the weather was nice... if you so desire, you can check out a cool pic of me on bikeak.org in the race photos section under Andy Romang... I haven't taken the time to figure out how to post links yet), yard work, soccer camp & games twice a day and a fun BBQ up at Michelle's folks for BK's birthday. As far as work goes, I've taken a few days off for me.... "I wouldn't say I've been missing it, Bob". With that, I bid you farewell for now and in the spirit of Casey Kasem, keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars (DUUUUUHHH!!).

Nostalgia

For some reason, I'm very nostalgic. Certain songs tug strongly on my heartsrings reminding me of sad or joyous times gone by, I'm deeply effected by almost any kind of anniversary, and when I think of missed opportunities that will never again get a chance to be realized, I can physically feel a pang of sadness in my heart. I think I got it from myMother and my Auntie Moie... and it's not a bad thing. They were/are forever remembering to reach out to family and friends to let them know they were/are thinking about them on important days. I still always remember to call friends on their birthday. Even old friends like Jeff Jarvi, my best friend from kindergarten to 6th grade - though I haven't spent time with him since the mid 80's.

I have dear friends that are like family and we've all been close for roughly 20 years. We've been through it all together - the best and the worst. My brother Brian and my Anam Caras (soul friends) Max, Bobby, Kev, Todd, Tony, and Rick... It's not very common for people that formed friendships in their youth to be as close as family this "late" in life. It's our tight bond that I believe gives us each strength even when we're not together - the knowing that a brother is there just in case.

I was the last of the group to get married and I was in all of their weddings in one form or other: Officiant, Best Man, Groomsmen, Usher. I made sure that they were all in mine. Although it was a day I was blessed to marry the woman of my dreams, it wouldn't have been as amazing as it was without them.

Here's to good friends, family, and the magical times we share on this ride.

Another Sunny One

My recipe for happiness on a hot day: Iced Raspberry Latte... Might not sound good at first but try one and you be glad you did. Enjoy

Global what?

Coming to you live from the sweet new laptop I got from work... Summer has arrived here in Los Anchorage and yesterday we set a new record high temperature of 76 degrees. That might not mean much to folks in the lower 48, but up here it's great news for late May weather. Last night I had a great ride and was so happy not to have to wear arm wamers or shoe covers. Hopefully the weather is treating you well in your town.

What a Weekend

Following the recent theme of my blog, which Bobby pointed out stands for "Bike-LOG", I'll do my best to bore you with a recap of last Saturday's road race around Bodenburg Butte (although these pics are from a downtown crit a few weeks ago). It was a big success for me and an even bigger success for my old friend Tony. The 12 lap, 82 mile race began innocently enough with the group rolling out nice and easy on the chilly morning north of Anchorage. Tony and I increased the pace only slightly and we got a small gap on the group. We decided to see what we could do with it and before we knew it, the group was out of site. After three laps, I was unable to keep the pace Tony was pushing because on Saturday he was 2/3 animal. As Tony raced on, I tried to recover a bit and thought I was going to have to join the group when I noticed that two riders had broken away and had a good gap on the main field. I joined them and we worked together for the rest of the race and ended up having about a 4 minute lead on the field by the end of the race. Tony was on fire and he beat the three of us by 8 minutes! I tried a sprint for second place but started a bit early and got third place by one second. That put Tony's team - Team Alaska - in first, Team Kaladi in second, and I got my team - Team Alaska Waste - a "podium spot".
Later that night at 9:00 we had a soccer game and needless to say, my legs were a bit tired. By the second half I was o.k. and we won 5-4.
Sunday I cut down 10 trees in our backyard and raked leaves unitl my shoulder was about to pop. Another soccer game at 3:00 on Sunday and I was DONE. So, there's that. Check back in about a week or so to see what's up... That's about as often as I can do this thing. Until later, keep the rubber side down.

Spring Omnium

The new spring stage race was held this weekend. Friday night was the Highland Rd. hillclimb and for me it was, in a word, ruthless. I've yet to become a really good climber and this race was incredibly hard for me. It was 2,230 ft. of climbing in just over 8 miles with some pitches of up to 17% grade. To top it off, it started raining/hailing very hard about halfway up. We rode right into it and I was able to hang on to a couple of riders that blocked to cold wind and allowed me to recover a bit. I pulled in front of one of the guys I was drafting and just at the last second he came around me and finished just in front of me. I've been thinking of filing a suit agianst Highland Rd. to seek damages for pain and suffering and for pounding me down lower than I've ever been - crushing my hopes and shattering my confidence. There were times on that dreaded hill that I wanted to quit, crawl into the ditch on the side of the road, curl up in the fetal position, and die... but when it was over, I was happy to have finished.

Next was a crit out at Fort Richardson and it was a blast. The skies were sunny and the temperatures were approaching the 60's. Captain E went off the front with a rider from another team early in the race and held the lead until the finish, only to come in second in the drag race to the line. I finished in 8th place just after a horrible sounding crash in the second to the last corner just behind me to the left. The rider was o.k. but probably has some bruised ribs.

The third and final stage was a time trail, also at Fort Richardson. It was two laps of a 4.7 mile loop with only about 100 ft. climbing per lap. I finished in 22:35 to take 9th place and gain 22 more points. Based on the top three finishers for each of the three teams, our team - Team Alaska Waste - took second... and I was able to hang on for 10th place of 24 riders. Big props to Captain E, Heavy D, and The Seaman for their efforts. Go AK. Waste!

Today the Mrs. had a great Mother's Day and we won our soccer game 5-3 (I put one in the goal after my daughter took a shot and it bounced off of the keeper's hands). Another player and I knocked heads. I hit the turf hard and now have a silver dollar sized knot on my forehead that will turn a beautiful shade of baby shit green in a day or two. At 6:00 pm I have to board a plane to Naknek and then on Wednesday I'll be in Dillingham and arrive home Thursday night. Next Saturday is the first big road race out at Bodenburg Butte for our team. Sunday I'll be spending the day cutting trees down in the backyard with my new chainsaw. Have a good week.

Mars Drive

Here's one for the siblings... I was obviously enjoying teasing my younger sister with my Shake-n-Bake pork chop. Dig the red shag carpet. Ahh, the 70's in Alaska - those were the days... kids ripping around the neighborhood on dirt bikes and three wheelers, a moose eating our hippy neighbors pot garden and getting so stoned it spent the day in our front yard and might as well have been in a wheelchair, all the neighborhood kids getting together to do our version of The Gong Show in our driveway with parents as judges and a big iron skillet as the gong, broken bones, riding bikes, building forts, playing Kick the Can until midnight, getting stung by bees more times than I care to remember, and exploring hillside trails that are now neighborhoods. Those memories are but a drop in the sea of great times I took with me from my youth. After getting my brains scrambled in an accident a few years ago, I'm more thankful than I can say to still have those timeless moments locked in the vault.

Trip North

These are a few shots from my trip to Kotzebue last week. The first shot is of Kotzebue from the hill just out of town. Shot two is the hotel (grin). I had a blast riding Fango above the Arctic Circle on Kotzebue Sound and out onto wide, smooth snowmachine trails that rolled through the hills for miles and miles over frozen tundra. I also rode up to the United States Air Force Long Range Radar Site above town and just beyond that to the Kotzebue Electric Association windmill farm. It was still a bit chilly and on one ride, an icy wind kicked up on my way back to the hotel and I was glad to get there when I did. The trip could have been a real drag but I was able to bring my bike... and that made all the difference.

Got the Junk

I'm back from Kotzebue and that trip was alright... pictures and post to follow. Had a downtown crit on Saturday and finished in the group after giving my a buddy on my team a lead out. We placed 3rd on the day. Stayed home from work today with a head/stomach ache. More travel to the bush soon and family coming to visit.

Hooray

Oh, joy. Work is sending me to Kotzebue for an emergency trip to put out the proverbial fire - or at least keep it from spreading. I told them I'd go... on one condition: They would pay for me to bring my bike with me. (Actually it was my wife's idea... and a good one, at that).