The first part of the plan was for us to land in Zurich and then head to the track for the Tuesday night racing. For those of you that don’t know, Tuesday night racing in Zurich is epic. Think of your ordinary Tuesday race at your local track (if your track is a 100 year old historic monument), then add a field of international caliber riders and Six Day racers, and sprinkle in three to four thousand paying fans. Oh, and add a big dose of sausage barbecuing and a long line of customers. That’s what the Tuesday night racing is like.

The historic Zurich Rennbahn.

The track is truly something special. It’s a 333m concrete bowl but the banking is pretty steep and it’s a wide track. It’s hosted world cups and world championships and the council of volunteers that keep it going do a stellar job. We got there and I built my bike, still in the box from the flight. Then, it started to rain. And rain. Everyone said that the rain would pass and it did but racing was delayed an hour, which meant that the program would be shortened. Consequently, I only could do a couple of keirin rounds and a points race.

Getting off the plane and jumping into a race has never been my strong suit but somehow, I do it every chance I get. It was clear from the keirin that I didn’t have any leg speed (I kept getting thirds) so for the 72 lap points race, I geared up. It’s a heavy track and I was sort of warned against it but if you don’t have leg speed, you need more gear (and maybe more cowbell). I raced okay with the bigger gear. Not great but not badly. I kept attacking and following attacks but couldn’t stay out long enough for any big points gains. Also, it wasn’t easy when you don’t know the style of racing or who’s who and that’s something that I’m working on. I ended up with 5 points, which was good enough to be in the money. It was fortunate, too, as I had no Swiss Francs with me and this was money that I used for the whole week. It was pretty special to be part of the racing at such a historic track and I look forward to coming back for more. After that, Franco’s mom made us a really wonderful dinner and Franco realized that we would have to go to Austria the following day to meet with an important sponsor. So we packed our stuff and got ready for an early morning drive.

Hills of Austria.

I’ve never been to Austria. Given the length of the drive, 750km each way, I can’t say I was particularly excited but once we got going, it was a lot of fun. Driving through Switzerland, then Germany, then Austria was neat. We drove through a valley for almost the whole thing that I can only describe as something like going from the middle of Vail pass to East Vail, except repeated for 6 hours. And with castles. Tons of castles. We saw over 30 castles and all were like the Disney style castles, not the medieval style ones. It was incredibly surreal.

Eventually,we got to our destination and after introductions and some brief meetings, I left to go on a bike ride while Franco dealt with the more serious business. I found a couple of small roads that went up and just started climbing. Before long, I was up into the surrounding hillsides on narrow roads that led to hill top farmhouses. I would climb the 10km or so, descend and find another road. It was crazy. All of these roads and no other cyclists around. At one point when I was climbing, I heard some clunky sounding bells and I figured that an old church was probably at the top. I turned the corner looking for the church only to run into a herd of dairy cows. Austria was awesome.

More mountain roads to train on.

Eventually, I made it back as Franco was finishing and we drove back to Zurich through a crazy rainstorm. Franco is sponsored by Skoda and they supply him with a turbo Skoda Octavia RS wagon. The closest thing we have in the US is maybe an Audi S4 wagon. Anyway, we were able to make good time on the Autobahn and reach home without too much trouble.

Following that, I did some good training on the roads around Zurich for the remainder of the week. One day we did a ride around Lake Zurich, checking out all of the lake houses and hillsides. It really opened my eyes to the beauty of Zurich and the surrounding countryside. Another great thing is that it didn’t take a lot to get out of the city and into the country into the lakes and farms. One day we rode into Germany and back across the border over a river through an old fortress city. There is always something about the roads of Europe that constantly remind you how old all of these countries are; something that I miss in the western US.

Just another day in Switzerland.

Finally, the time came for us to drive to Italy for the Sei Giorni delle Rose, the Six Days of the Roses, which is the first Six Day of the season on the calendar. Once again, we loaded up the Skoda and headed for the border. We made a stop at one of Franco’s main sponsors, Assos, on the way and then headed into Italy. It was beautiful. We passed by some gorgeous lakes and mountains. After nearly six hours, we got to the hotel just in time for the riders meeting which was at the track.

Next installment: The Sei Giorni!

When I flew in from Minneapolis, it was later evening and before landing, I could see the woods and farms in the valley in a really neat light and after not being here in 11 years, I finally remember how beautiful this place is. Once my luggage came, I was picked up  and made it to my home for the week – the infamous “Stone House.” The Stone House is home currently home to my bad ass teammate Kacey Manderfield but over the years it housed many top cyclists from all over the world. I was lucky enough to get an air mattress in a corner of the living room which was perfect for me. It was great.

The Stone House

This was really nice stop because not going did I get some more racing in, I got to hang out with some of the people that I have not seen in a long time. Not only did I get to hang out with Kacey and her other roommates but people like my teammate Liz Reap Carlson, as well as Erin Hartwell, Marty Nothstein, Jackie Simes (both III and IV), and Bobby Lea. Those guys were great company during the week.

Erin started pumping me for the Tuesday night racing, which had started a couple of weeks before. When I was here back in 1999 (the year I got my Cat 1 upgrade on the road here), Tuesday was off limits to pros and Cat 1s. Only development. Now, it’s not only open to pros but it’s very hotly contested. While there are no points and the results don’t really matter (I was told), everyone uses it to test tactics, strategies, and gears in some very fast racing. Eventually, I decided to use the night to try some big gear stuff, as everyone seemed to be putting on some large gears – 100 to 106 inch gears but only after starting the night with a 91 inch gear. We had a mix of scratch and points races and I remember just spinning out my gear while attacking in the points race. I remember thinking it was like I had nothing under my feet. I don’t remember what my results were (something okay but nothing spectacular) but at Erin’s suggestion, I decided to put on a much bigger gear for the last few races. Consequently, I went out and had no trouble following attacks with the large gears but really felt that it was too big when I went on the attack. It was a worthwhile experiment though and I was glad to have tried it out – especially come Friday.

During the week, I did some great rides around the area with Erin and later, Jackie. The roads around there are something out of a cyclist’s dream, at least at this time of year. Erin took my on a ride where we rode up some ridgelines and hills through some really spectacular roads. Then we met up The Derby, which is Trexlertown’s well known fast group ride. I actually had a blast with this, even though I had no clue where I was going. At one point, I broke away and had Rodney Santiago from Puerto Rico with me and he would shout where the turns were. As it turned, I ended up leading out  Shane Kline perfectly to a sign that, lo and behold, turned out to be the actual finish of The Derby. We laughed about that afterward. It was great fun.

Typical gorgeous Lehigh Valley roads to train on.

The Friday night race arrived and with much fanfare, the start of the track season in T-town had arrived. The evening’s feature was the US 10 Mile Championship. There is no recognized 10 mile championship in the US so this is the next closest thing. There’s no jersey or medal or anything but it is pretty damn cool to win it. I have to say, even with very little racing in my legs for the season, I liked my chances. I couldn’t quite decide on gears so I decided to start on something on the small side and go bigger if I needed. The racing was fast. I got a top 5 in the preme race, one of the early races, but could see that I would need something a little bigger. So I went up for the 10 mile final. Long story short, I played the whole thing wrong- very wrong. I expected it to be a high consistent pace throughout with guys falling off the back. So I would make a turn at the front and pull up, expecting everyone else to do their pull. Well, when I did that early on, about 9 guys pulled up behind me and  slowed way down. Right then, Bobby and couple of other guys attacked at the bottom. Pinned up at the top, I tried to get guys out of the way but to no avail. Eventually, I had enough daylight to get through the pack and bridge but the break had nearly a half lap. I got pretty close – maybe about 15 meters away but couldn’t close. Eventually, I got caught by the field but kept trying. I had the right gear on, I felt good, and I knew I could do it. However, I just couldn’t get in the right break. That’s how it goes sometimes. But I didn’t bother to sit in and wait for the sprint. I just kept trying until the end. I figured I still needed the workout and so I got it.

I got to watch Liz dominate the women’s races with her typical aplomb. Liz is something like six time national sprint champion and a rager on the track.

Following that race, Jackie (IV) and I did a great 3 hour ride through some hills and the Holy Valley and back through Kutztown. It was super nice and great to do some good climbing. We hadn’t planned on doing that much as we had the Skycraper Classic the next day but, as Danny Stam likes to tell me, “Hey, the sun is shining and we are on our bikes. What’s the hurry to get back?” It was a nice day and a fun ride. A great way to cap off my time in the Lehigh Valley.

There are actual climbs here too.

Huge thanks to Rockstar Games for sponsoring this.

Next was the Rockstar Games Skyscraper Classic in Harlem. This was held around Marcus Garvey Park. I had never been to Harlem before and it was an incredible experience. New York City isn’t someplace that I’ve ever felt particularly comfortable. The fast pace, all the crowds, and all the concrete have never been my cup of tea. However, I felt right at home the minute we got out of the car in Harlem. The race was being set up, the park was beautiful, and the gathering crown very friendly and fun.

For this year, the format was changed from a straight crit to a points race format following by an elimination race with a keirin at the end. Furthermore, it was by invitation only and they made a clear effort to make it track focused by bringing several Six Days stars, namely Franco, Leif Lampater, Ben Edmuller, and some others. In all, there were 40 of us or so, and that was a clear nod to keep the quality of the field high and the race safe. In the past, it’s been known as the Skinscraper Classic because of all the crashes.

Shortly after getting there, fellow track racer Colin Prenksy, who was there for the keirin, and his father Jay, took me on a ride through Central Park for a warm up. I have seen Central Park before but never ridden through it. And not only did I ride through it but I did so on a Sunday. Holy cow that was madness. All sorts of walkers, rollerbladers, tourists, slow bike riders, fast bike riders (like the Zipp disc and aero helmet in the park kind of fast) were all over the place. It was cool. We rode around a bit and then made it back to the race course. Rockstar Games, the presenting sponsor, had a VIP tent for their people and some of the racers. It was extremely well done. I went into the tent to watch some of the warm up races, while chatting with some of the invited guests of the sponsor. It made for an excellent place to prepare and get ready for our races.

The course before the action gets going.

The points race was pretty solid. We raced for 30 laps with sprints every five laps. With all the players having teams around them, I knew that I wouldn’t have a real chance to do much so I decided to work for a couple of other guys by keeping things together for the sprint. So I spent the race getting in some breaks and pulling back several others. It was very worthwhile. Not only did I get a good workout but seeing the leadout trains that Leif and Europeans had as well as Jackie’s Jamis-Sutter Home team, I would have been a moron to aim for sprints all day. As it was, I did a pretty good job and was happy with the performance.

After that, we had and elimination race. An elimination race on the track is crazy but in a crit it was even nuttier. Essentially, we would sort of sprint to the line but if you were in the back 10 or 20, you had no place to go. I did a good job of staying up near the front but things went a little pear shaped when another rider tried to cut out of the group and took out my front wheel. I stayed upright but my tire was punctured. So that was the end of my day.

All in all, it was a great race and a great experience. John Eustice did a great job organizing the event and the racing. The new format is great and I look forward to doing it next year.

That race concluded my stay on the east coast and I packed my bags right after the race and got ready for my next stop: Europe!

This race is held on a 250m clone of the track in Barcelona built for the 1992 Olympic Games and NSC director Bob Williams and his crew do an amazing job with the program here. Not only is it a great field of racers but the atmosphere, camaraderie, and timing put it high on our list of priorities of races to do. This year, in addition to all of the great US racers here, the event also had the honour of hosting Franco Marvulli, four time world champ and Six Day star. Franco and I have been friends for a while and I sent him some emails about doing the race last year and this year, Bob Williams made it happen. It was really fun to have him in Minnesota, although a couple of times I did have to do a double take, as did others. Even Luttrell said “it is so strange seeing Franco here.”

Ryan Sabga throws 4 time world champion Franco Marvulli into the fray.

Friday night got off to a good start with both of us getting top 5’s in the Super Sprint to get into the Miss and Out final but shortly after the rain came and we called it a night. The next day would have a long schedule with most of Friday’s racing combined with Saturday’s schedule. Consequently, Saturday started with our racing our scratch race heats. Again, we didn’t have any problem blowing through these to get in the final, but the final looked like it was shaping up to be a good race. Next up was the Miss and Out final, in which we both rode okay. I made the dumb mistake of staying in the box at the bottom track one lap too long and getting 9th and Luttrell managed to stay in for 5th. Franco won but was later relegated to 4th for an inappropriate pass. Following that was the scratch race final where I rode hard to cover moves while Luttrell set up for a sprint finish. It worked out great with Luttrell taking 5th for another top 5.

Then we had the points race heats. Essentially, these are 30 lap mini points races with only 3 sprints so points are key. Luttrell was up first and while he didn’t take any points, he easily made the final. Mine was next and so I figured I would get a couple of points to be safe. I led out Dan Harm for the first sprint then ended up in 4 separate breaks that never got any points. And in our heat, unlike the one before, the points were spread out so you needed points and a good finish to make the final. So I waited for the final sprint, took 3rd, and ended up in the final with only minor drama.

Following that we had the madison kilometer. Franco had asked me earlier to ride with him in the madison events. Normally I ride with Lutrell but to ride with Franco is a great honour so, of course, I accepted. This was our first ride together and the madison kilometer is not something that I’ve done much of. We simply don’t do them here. We did them last year in the Six Day but were never fast enough to crack the top 10 but I knew that we could do a good ride here with one. So we decided that Franco would wind it up, I would do the first two laps and he could finish with the final two laps. The thing about this event is that it’s important to do only two laps per person. Last year, I did almost three laps and Luttrell did a little over one lap and we did a terrible time. This year, I was going to do two full gas laps. As we cranked it up, I was glued to Franco’s wheel. Finally, he gave a kick, moved down, and put his hand out for me. I reached out to grab his hand… and grab his hand… and…our fingers were stuck 3 inches apart. Here I am riding as hard as I can with one hand on the bar and reaching and reaching for hand of the best Six Day racer in the world and our hands are 3 inches apart – for like half a straightaway. Finally we connect and off I went. It was a late exchange but I was determined to make up for it. I did a blistering first lap and the second lap was looking good. I am coming to the finish of the second lap and I look and Franco is already in the turn. Because of the late exchange, the timing was way off. We didn’t make the exchange until well on the back straight, by which time I had lost the speed that I had at the end of the second lap. I threw him in and he went off to accelerate the gear. But it was a big gear and it was rough and we ended up about half a second off the time we needed and about two seconds off what Franco thought we would do if we got it right. But live and learn. We talked about it and got it sorted. Luttrell teamed up with  US Masters Madison Champion and Minnesota stud Andy Kruse and they finished with the same time as us. Figuring out new madison partners can be rough!

The points race final was pretty fun. There were some hotly contested sprints early and Luttrell did a lot of really good attacks while I looked for some good opportunities. Finally, I saw a chance and went for it. Curtis Tolson joined me and we quickly had half a lap. I thought that maybe we might be able to pick up a couple of others and take a lap so I said let’s keep it steady and stay out as long as possible. We picked up the sprint points and started to push but there were some good riders trying to bridge to us and ultimately, it led to our getting caught right before the next sprint. As I took inventory and counted points in my head, I figured I would need to make another go after the next sprint. Right then, a few guys got a little way up the road and Franco controlled it to keep them out there as they would take the remaining points sprints and keep him in the lead for the win. And he was right. He ended up winning with the points he had earlier and the points the guys got in the break kept the other front runners from getting any more points. My 5 points and 6th place finish was only good enough for 9th overall. But I was starting to feel better and my legs were coming around. And that concluded racing for Saturday.

Sunday was a madison day and that was fun. The racing was helping me to get better and better as the weekend went on and I figured that I would get it done in the madison. We got to start with a 40 lap “warm up” madison, which was an exhibition. We had a good time with that and at one point, four teams were off the front and we sort of shut it down to bring it back together, as is the point with and exhibition race.  The idea was for everyone to get used to racing together before the 100 lap showdown. It was good and Franco and I got a feel for each other’s exchanges and got an idea as to who was going to be solid in the final. Luttrell got to ride with Andy again and with it being Andy’s home track they got everything down quickly. Things were looking promising.

Franco Marvulli throws in Ryan Sabga as they lap the field

When the final came around, Franco and I didn’t really talk about the plan. I figured that we would be attacking in between sprints and getting a lap and defending it. Well, it turns out that Franco had the opposite idea – he wanted to win the sprints and had absolutely no desire or intention to take a lap by ourselves. Needless to say, the first part of the race was all screwed up for us: I didn’t set him up for the sprints and when I attacked in between and got us a gap on the chasers, he waited for them to catch up. Honestly, I have to own this one. Even if we were going for the lap, I should have set up for the sprints anyway but furthermore, should have made a point to have a real conversation about the plan. Anyway, after a bit we figured it out and started winning the sprints AND pushing the pace. I kept attacking over and over to see if we could get a lap on our own. As it turned out, we did break away but we had one other team with us. We ended up lapping the field with Dan Harm and Zack Kovalcik from Seattle and while I was winning the sprints, we were in such a point deficit from the first three sprints that we were unable to make it up. They took advantage of our confusion to build and insurmountable lead  with the points. We ended up second. Very disappointing for me but a valuable experience. We had a conversation about it afterward to sorted it out. Again, I really blame myself for the confusion and it could have been easily avoided.

One of the cool things about the race was racing a madison with Luttrell in the actual race with me, instead of being my partner. It was a little weird because this is the first time since 2008 that we have raced the same madison with different partners. He kept looking for me and I kept looking for him and it took a bit to watch our actual partners. Watching him attack and seeing what it’s like to race against him gave me a whole new appreciation for his abilities. It was good.

So after the racing, we had a goodbye barbecue hosted by Andy, packed our bikes and departed. Ryan went back to Colorado and I headed to my next stop: Trexlertown, Pennsylvania and New York City for the Rockstar Games Skyscraper Classic.

BDPC caught up with Sabga as he was preparing to board a flight to Zurich, Switzerland. There, he’ll compete in a series of tune-up races before traveling on to Italy where he and Ryan Luttrell are slated to compete in the Giorni Della Rosa 6 Day, June 27-July 2, 2011.

That’s quite an epic schedule, Ryan? Do you know what time zone you’re in? Well, right now I’m still in New York City so things are sort of normal but tomorrow I’m off to Europe. I’m still on a Mountain Time schedule for the most part so tomorrow is when things get a little thrown out of whack. Luckily, we race well past midnight into the early mornings in Europe, so it’s sort of like US time anyway.

With two weeks of back-to-back racing in your legs and domestic travel, how do you feel? Actually, after a spring with so little racing, I feel good. My legs are starting to come around. I never do well with travel but I have been balancing a lot of training with the plane rides so it’s helping.

Did you put this block into your program specifically to help you prepare for the Six Day in Italy? Yes. Racing. Lots of it. I have had 8 race days in the last 14 and I have 4 race days in Europe next week. The one thing that’s been lacking in my program is racing so I’m hoping that this final piece is what I need to get me in great form for the Six.

Has it worked? Can I answer that in two weeks? I think it’s working but you never know.

Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New York City, Zurich & Fiorenzuola, Italy. That’s quite an itinerary. It’s been great. It’s hard to think that everything in your duffel and bike case are the only things that you’ll have with you for a month as you travel all over the world. But once you get going it all flows pretty well. It’s been great to see all the racers and organizers, though, and compete in such amazing events. T-Town opening night is legendary. I’ve heard about the Skyscraper Classic for years. It makes being a bike racer so worthwhile.

Can you describe the following races in 5 words or less?

National Sports Center – Fixed Gear Classic: An event not to miss

T-Town opening night: Epic crowd-pleasing craziness

Harlem Skyscraper Classic: First Class Rockstar cycling promotion

Fiorenzuola Six-Day: Pure European track cycling monument

Was the Harlem race as sketchy as its’ reputation? I understand its’ called the ‘Skinscraper Classic!’ because of all the crashes. John Eustice does a fantastic job. I can’t say enough great things about this race. It’s a pro-invitational with a Points Race format followed by Miss-and-Out and Keirin. That alone cut down on the carnage and made for more exciting racing at the same time.

That said . . . it was still a bit hairy. I rode at the front for much of the Points Race but in the Elimination, things got a bit sketchy, Someone took out my front wheel on the 6th lap, flatting my tire. It was aggressive and dangerous but, hey–bike racing is like that sometimes. Overall, it was one of the top 5 races I have ever done. The atmosphere, crowd, venue, organization and competition were absolutely top notch.

You and Franco Marvulli raced the Madison together in Minnesota, and he was in T-Town for opening night as well. Will you be pairing with him again in Zurich this week? Possibly. I have 4 races on the schedule for Zurich before we head to Italy. If there are any Madisons, we’ll have to see how it plays out. But riding a Madison with someone like Franco is always a huge honor. He’s the best Six Day rider of our generation and I always learn a lot riding with him.

What about the Six-day in Fiorenzuola? You and Luttrell are taking on top European pros, plus Americans Jackie Simes and Bobby Lea. Care to share your approach heading into the race? I had bike-racing taken from me once before and after that I realized how much it meant to me. Consequently, since returning to the sport, I try to step back and just enjoy it. Sometimes, I think people focus too hard on the end result.

In bike racing, we’re all pursuing our goals and dreams, and we work hard to get there. The goals are important but at the end of the day, we will accomplish what we accomplish. But, if at the end of our careers we look back and can’t say that the whole pursuit was the best time of our lives, then it’s not really all that good. It’s important to enjoy the pursuit as much as possible – I learned that from my dad.

So, for a race like Fiorenzuola, I just try to enjoy the racing as much as possible. I mean come on, I’m lining up to compete against 40 of the best track cyclists in the world–in Italy, no less! It doesn’t get much better than that!

Before we sign off: Do you have any travel tips or words of wisdom for Black Dog Pro Cycling Fans on how to travel for competition and still arrive fresh & ready to race? Drink lots of water, get on the new time zone as soon as possible, and read a lot.

Oh, and don’t talk to strangers!

pSoas.  A medium size muscle I never knew I had that seems to have a unique ability to make me miserable.  It also is damn good at getting other muscles to join forces like the legion of doom to make my inner superman hide in a kryptonite bunker.

It started 18months ago.

Flash back.  One fine sunny august morning I am leaving my house and after inhaling a breath of wonderful fresh air and absorbing a face full of glorious sunlight I turned around and stooped over a bit to lock the door.   A peculiar sensation hit me when I straightened up and put my keys in my pocket.   I could not stand fully upright; I was stuck at a 15 degree waste bend.

Wow that was weird.  I shook it off in a few seconds and went about my day.   It happened 2 or 3 times more in the next month.   Then one morning it was worse and it has never stopped.

I hadn’t and still haven’t crashed in a long time (knock knock).  I hadn’t been lifting weights for 4 or 5 weeks already so it has nothing to do with any heavy lifting.    I had no idea what it was.   The only thing new in my routine was that I had just started dating someone for the first time in several months and all the stuff that goes with that.   Perhaps the relationship had my mind elsewhere and bolstered me up with maybe a little bit too much bravado.   A cavalier attitude is good for some things, but catching and repairing injures is not one of them.

http://www.andrewboyerlmt.com/

Besides, I was in the middle of race season and determined to carry on … so I did.    I tried to do more stretching.  Hamstrings, hip flexors, quads mainly but other stuff as well.  I saw a handful of masseuses and tried a PT.  It seams to keep the pain under control, but it wasn’t getting better… I started to be more and more aware of the discomfort when doing power efforts and starts on the bike as well.   I also noticed that I could no longer sleep on my stomach, something that used to be normal to me.  After a couple minutes it was that same I-can’t-straighten-my-back feeling and it would start to hurt.  I had to roll onto my side and ball up.

And so it went for a year and half.  Maintenance as best as I could, a lot of sprint training as usual, and a healthy amount of pain.

Until my knees went crazy.

They had been a little sore, which is normal for me, for months.  No big deal.  This one day I was out pedaling on a flat road.  I was pretty well rested and mentally had the sensation that I was working hard.    But I look down at my speedometer and I was only doing 12mph.   Then I realized my heart and lungs weren’t really working at all…. I physically couldn’t push the pedals any harder.  Not good.

Around the same time I went up to visit the amazing new Roaring Mouse Cycles shop in San Francisco to do some bike fit stuff with my good friend and fit guru Julie Bates.  At one point she was setting up an alignment lazar on my knee and also doing a more traditional plumb line thing and commented “ah, gio?, why are your knee caps all squishy and moving around when I touch them?”.   Ya,, well, sometimes you need someone to help tell you the obvious.

I had the same experience riding after another 3 or 4 days of rest, and that was it.  I pulled the plug on training until I can seriously get my body working again.   I need to be healthy to be happy, both now and for the rest of my life.  Also, I’ve learned that living with chronic pain you can learn to do, but weather you learn to ignore it or not, the weight of it is still there putting negative preasure  on every aspect of your life.

So now it is time to figure out this pain and fix it.  Here is where mister pSoas and his evil minions abductor, hip flexor, and hamstrings all come into play.   Ganging up like Lex Luthor, Bizarro, Sinestro, and Brainiac to do evil deeds.

Searching for the culprits.

Sorry the story gets a bit vague here … I’d like to explain it all, but I am just barely learning.   Keeping it stretched is important.  Stretches that involve back bends, or lunges, possibly with a slight twist is the way to get at it.   Hydration helps a lot.  But stretching alone will not solve these problems.   The real problem (I think) is that the muscle is misfiring and never or rarely releases.   Also because I did such a bad job of addressing it right away it has got my posture out of whack and that has other things acting up… all of which combined put extra pressure on my already slightly rickety knees.   I did a great job teaching my body how to do things wrong.  Like learning a good powerful pedal stroke for sprinting takes time (years) to training the muscles to fire in the correct sequence,  you can also “train”  parts of your body to do things wrong.  Time to retrain my back, hips, legs to do things correctly.  Posture and flexibility and good habits are everything.  Its possible there is more going on, maybe a damage disk or something…  I don’t know yet.  I’ll let you know if I learn more.

http://startingstrength.com/

Here’s what I think  I know. I’ve been told that often when your back or neck hurts the problem is often actually opposite to there you feel the pain.  In my case I feel it around the Erector spinae, but I believe it is actually just because it is inflamed from trying to balance out a malfunctioning iliopsoas.  This is a cool image.  You can see how shortened hip flexors and over developed quads as well as overactive illiopsoas and a short, bunched up hamstring and long glutes that are accustomed to being in a cycling position can all contribute to a posture of pivoting the hips forward and giving the muscles on the lower back a really really rough go of it…. Even though they are not the source of the trouble at all.

What’s the connection between this in knees?…. I’d have to have Dr. Tolhurst tell you.  But it has to do with the psoas and abducter and hamstrings not being well balanced.   Also it has to do with the bad posture while lifting weights and walking and to some small extent cycling.  Too much force/weight running down the front side of the legs and into the balls of the feet instead of into the heels.

Dr. Hank Tolhurst is my chiropractor.   A super nice guy, avid cyclist, and former racer.  He has worked with just about every top bicycle racer that has come through the San Jose area for the last 20 years… besides he can honestly claim (with photographic evidence) to have dropped Gregg Lemond from a 2 man break away in a race.

Right now my plan is built on Yoga, Dr. Tolhurst (Chiroprator/kinesiologist), and rest.   For sure I will not be doing any hard cycling for at least 4 more weeks.  Then I will see if I can ramp (slowly) back up to my normal routine.  Given my stop and start training all winter.  This means I’ll probably not be very fit for at least the first half of the summer.    I’m hoping to be going full speed by the second half of summer… but healing first.  My priorities are clear.

After 4 weeks rest, my knees are only a little sore and no longer swollen and if it were just that I would probably be back on  the bike….  But it is the larger picture that I need to fix or all my training will be wasted.

Psoas.  You have 2 of them.  Look it up.  Keep them happy.

http://www.somatics.com/psoas.htm

I wanted to write in and let everyone know I am excited to be riding for the Black Dog Track Team this season as I did in 2009. It is a great group of people and always a lot of fun, even though I don’t get to see the team in person very often. So here is my first team blog post and I’ll keep them coming through the season.

I currently live in Pennsylvania, where we struggle with the seasons sometimes. Mid January I got a very kind note from my friend Jenn in response to a Happy New Year’s note I had sent her. Somewhere in the note she mentioned that I should come visit and ride with her in Austin, TX. Little did she know that I would call shortly after just to confirm that she was serious because I was in the process of booking a flight. I needed to escape my bubble and go to warm weather where I could ride for hours a day outside and not freeze! Of course when I arrived in TX they were having a “cold spell” – or so they thought at 40 degrees! I on the other hand was thrilled with 40 degrees and happy to head out. The weather progressively got warmer through my stay and I think it hit 80 degrees my last few days there, which resulted in sun burn on my hands! The trip consisted mainly of riding, eating and sleeping – especially toward the end when I was getting pretty tired!

I managed to get out to a few cool things around Austin and I have a few pictures:

We went to a really cool Bike Western showing!

Did a movie Night with Jenn and Betty

We ate out a few times but mostly Jenn made awesome food like this!

I made Jenn do core exercises with me post ride.

Nothing like a little "home brew" after along ride

I had to take a picture of this...one day I'll get one

On one of my last rides I might have bonked a little!

It was a great time in Austin and a huge thanks goes out to Jenn and Ross for letting me stay with them and introducing me to their friends. A thanks to my friend Danny there as well who I had a great time catching up with and got to ride with a bit. The warm weather was good for my bones and I did end up escaping the snow storms of the the East. At least until my trip home, which was a bit eventful, but overall went off quite well considering.

Thats all for now…

km

For the first time in my cycling career, I got hit by a car.

I went out on a cold day for a training ride. I live near a busy street and I have to be careful about where I cross. For those of you familiar with the city of Denver, I’m talking about Colfax St. Colfax runs east-west and where I live, none of the streets actually go across Colfax; they turn into alleys. The alleys on the north side of the street become streets on the south side and vice versa. Consequently, to cross the street, you either go from alley to street or street to alley. I usually ride west a few blocks before crossing into the widest alley we have and then later getting back on the street. I do this almost every day and I know the best parts to cross. I usually pull up to a stop sign next to a Starbucks and cross the street into an alley on the south side of the street. One that particular day I pulled up to the stop sign, waited for the traffic to subside, and then crossed. As I crossed the street, a driver came tearing out of the alley and without stopping, entered into traffic while looking over her right shoulder. As I reached the middle of the street, she abruptly made a left turn into me, still looking over her right shoulder. I yelled as she hit the gas harder and drove right into me. She still didn’t see me. Somehow, I did a sort of madison throw off the hood of her car and got clipped on my left leg as I launched off. I was badly off balance and then crashed hard on my right side on the side of the road. She got out of the car and asked if I was okay. As I lay on the ground, I said, “You weren’t even looking where you were going!” and she responded that she was looking over her other shoulder at oncoming traffic as she drove. Anyways, my bike was on the side of the road, well damaged, and I wasn’t much better off myself. The police were called and after a lot of investigation and talking amongst themselves, they took our statements. It quickly became apparent that there was a discrepancy in our stories.

First of all, she told the officers that she doubted that she had even hit me. According to her initial statement, I just fell down. Then the officers pointed out the dent in her hood from my left hand, leg and ankle and she changed that part of the story. Then came the matter of the paths we were traveling. I had stopped at the stop sign, and proceeded directly across the street, as is lawful. According to her, I had come out of the Starbucks parking lot and made a diagonal crossing of the street, which is illegal. She wanted me to get a citation for that. Now two things: First, if that were the case, she would not have hit me from the side but rather hit me head on; I would have been perched headfirst halfway through her windscreen. Secondly, if she saw me, and saw where I was coming from, how did she hit me? Was she aiming for me? Obviously, based on her initial comments to me, her actions, and the way things unfolded, she had not seen me at all so this story was coming from someplace else.

Anyways, what was a simple accident and a case of a motorist not seeing a cyclist was becoming something worse. The police officer said that without proof that I came from the stop sign and not from the Starbucks, he couldn’t write her a citation and without a citation I probably would not be able to get the damage to my bike repaired. He asked if I had any proof. At that point, all the witness had left and I had nothing. He said there was nothing he could do and drove off. Needless to say, I was really disappointed. On top of all of this, it had now been several hours and I had missed a day of training and the way I felt physically, it was clear that I might be missing a lot more. I did some quick road side repairs to the bike and managed to get home.

As soon as I got home, I turned off the Garmin. THE GARMIN!!! It was right in front of me the whole time. I quickly ran upstairs and plugged it in to my computer. “Please download! Please download!” I said over and over. Sure enough, it downloaded and the full telemetry of my ride came up, including a map and running time stamp of my ride. Clear as day, you could see where I stopped at the stop sign, where I got hit by the car, and where my bike came to rest. On the corresponding time stamp, you could see the speeds, the stops, and even where my heart rate spiked as she hit me. Then you could see when my bike was moved out of the street, then when I picked it up and fixed it and got it back home. All of it was on there. I called the police department to say I had this but they were reluctant to do anything. They said it was a matter for the insurance companies and refused to add it to the file. That left me a bit disheartened.

Nevertheless, I called the driver’s insurance company in the morning. Not surprisingly, the driver had already made a claim and insisted it was my fault. They wanted me to give my statement, which I did. During my statement, I mentioned the GPS telemetry. Instantly, the agent perked up and asked if I could send it to her. I told her that I was happy to send it to her in any format she wanted: a screen shot, several screen shots,  the whole file, even the Garmin itself, anything she wanted. Anyway, I sent it to her and she was able to see exactly what happened, how it happened, and when it happened. Within a day, the driver’s insurance took responsibility for the accident and I was able to get my bike fixed and once I was able to train properly again, I was back at it. Without my Garmin, I don’t know if this would have happened. It certainly would not have happened as quickly as it did. The insurance company was absolutely top notch. Once they realized what had happened, they acted swiftly and professionally. What proof would I have had without the Garmin? What would the outcome have been?

So, to our fans and followers out there who are thinking about using GPS, here is another important reason to use one. I am very grateful that I had it on that day, and grateful to the insurance company for knowing what they were looking at. I will carry my Garmin with me for much of the foreseeable future. Be careful out there. Best… RS

EDIT: Since I wrote this, someone from Garmin pointed out that I might be running out of date software on my Garmin and that there have been fixes to the various bugs like what I have described. I just uploaded a newer software version and will see if that fixes the glitches. Big thanks to Jeff for that heads up.

Luttrell and Sabga after the Scratch Race Final. Photo: Ryan Belew

Right after I won the Trinidad and Tobago Road Race Championship, it was time to start my second National Championship quest for 2010. I told Erin Hartwell, the Trinidad and Tobago National Team Coach, back in June that one of my goals for the year was be one of the only people to be a national champion of two different countries at the same time. Per UCI rules, a cyclist cannot be on two national teams at the same time but if he or she is a citizen of two countries, they can be a double national champion. Bobby Livingston taught me that a few years ago and this year, my plan was to put it to the test. I have never tried it before and this year I thought that it might be fitting as the timing was good for me and my form.

2009 was my first National Championship in 10 years. I had spent five of those years not riding a bike at all and injuries had cost me a chance to do another two or so. Ultimately, I had no idea what to expect. As it turned out, I got two silver medals – one in the team pursuit and one in the madison. While I am proud of both of them, the silver in the madison was hard to swallow. It still is to this day. Ryan Luttrell and I did a great ride but made a dumb mistake at the end that cost us the title. I didn’t feel so much like we won the silver medal as I feel like we lost the gold. I know that Ryan feels the same way in a lot of ways. So, as you might expect, we have really been looking forward to the 2010 championship to make up for that and erase that from our minds.

Some people think that you show up to a national championship race and there is a lot of strategy and you know what’s going to happen in the races and you plan on getting a certain result. Well, that maybe true for some people but for me, it’s nothing like that. When a race like that rolls around, I have faith in my form and my skills and use that for the racing. I just go out there and ride my best. That means recognizing moves that other make but it also means embracing the opportunity to roll the dice and make things happen. If you’re fit, you’re fit. If you tie yourself up by overthinking the races or being afraid of screwing things up, you have already handicapped yourself. I knew that I had good form and I knew that I had a good chance to win at least one title. The rest of it would just have to play out. Let’s face it: the other top guys are there to win, too. There are probably five to eight guys in each race who are primed to win and another five who have outside shots. It all comes down to who is having the best day and plays their cards right at the time.

Team Pursuit in action. Photo: Giovanni Rey

Thursday was our first event – the team pursuit. There were 9 teams entered, including some powerhouses. We never practice team pursuit. In fact, Luttrell and I hardly ever ride in our aerobars. This is the first year that I had my own aerobars and didn’t have to borrow someone else’s (thanks to Cari Higgins who sold me her old ones two weeks before the championships). I had talked to Kit Karzen a month before and he said he wanted to ride team pursuit with us and then we added Adam Liebovitz a few days before. I figured it would be good. Kit was going very well but our team pursuit came right after his bronze medal winning ride in the omnium –  a grueling six event race, like the decathlon in track and field – so I knew that the remaining three riders would have to carry the load. No big deal as Kit’s key contribution was going to be the start. For TP, the start is crucial and Kit was the perfect guy to do that for us. Adam had done a few TP events lately and had a good idea as to which gear he was going to use. The rest of us just sort of guessed. Kit and I were on the same gear and Luttrell was a little smaller. The goal was to hold a certain lap time and make sure we got into the gold medal final. After that we would have to figure out how to win. We started well but I realized the gear was a little small. We did some good exchanges on the rotation and the whole thing was good. I think that we lost Kit a little before the halfway point, which was expected, and the three of us carried on. Despite the small gear, I felt really comfortable and took some longer pulls near the end. Our strategy was to go just fast enough to make sure we were one of the top two teams, which we did with no problem. As such, we made it to the gold medal final against Team Ouch, who had been in LA practicing the TP for about 7 weeks. They had put in a stellar ride and we had our work cut out for us, especially since they were substituting a new fresh rider for the final. A TP final consists of two teams trying to chase each other down. So there is a simultaneous start and you just go. If one team catches the other, it wins. That is essentially an 8 second gap. Consequently, there are some strategies that can be employed for a final. After a lot of debate on how to ride the final, we decided to just keep it steady and see what we can do. For the final, we had a good start but lost Kit before the end of the first kilometer. Again, it was not totally unexpected. The guy had done a ton of racing and his legs were feeling it. Besides, we were riding at a pretty good pace. We were a good bit ahead of Team Ouch for about half the race, even with the three of us. But in the end, Team Ouch found another gear. They dropped their fourth rider and just hit the turbo and we were caught just outside the final kilometer. Give them all the credit in the world. However, I definitely learned a few things that I will use for next year, though. For example, when I looked at my files from the race, it became clear that I was riding between 126 and 134 rpm for the duration of the race. I will probably go up in gear for next year.

Sabga and Luttrell trying to get a lap. Photo: Pat Benson

The scratch race followed the next morning. We had qualifying and finals. People don’t understand why there are heats at track nationals so I’ll give a brief rundown as to why that is. To get here, you have to be a Pro, Cat 1 or Cat 2. Then you have be one of the top 5 qualifiers out of the regional qualifiers/state championships for the events you want to compete in (within reason). That should make it a small group. However, if you win the points race, you are eligible for things like the scratch race and team pursuit. So, inevitably, for a 24 person points race, there are 70 guys signed up. Given the levels of qualifying, you can bet that they’re all top guys at their home tracks and while not all the tracks have fields of the same quality, there are no battles of track hierarchy until nationals. As you would imagine then, the heats are some pretty hotly contested affairs with three 22+ person heats producing 8 finalists out of each. Every year, top guys don’t make it into all the finals. It always happens. Anyways, the qualifying scratch races went fine and we both made it into the final with not too much drama, although I cut it a little close in mine. We lapped 12 guys so there were 10 of us on the track for only 8 spots so I had to sprint it out. Luttrell made it through his without any sweating for him. In the 60 lap final, we figured we would just alternate moves and see if one of us could get away for lap. After a few decent attacks, there was a point where Luttrell was sort of dangling about 30m off the front of the field and someone tried bridging up. I followed the move and when the rider pulled up, I hit the gas pretty hard. I shouted to Luttrell and he got on my wheel. We got to 3/4 of a lap almost immediately but our companion was starting to struggle. I made a little effort and gapped him off the back but as I did that, Jame Carney came up with another rider and picked up the guy we just dropped. So then we had 5 guys and a move that was about to lap. I pulled hard and we were within about 25m from lapping the field. As I pulled up, Jame took over and kept the gap small, then he pulled up and the two other riders were right there. They each pulled half a lap and in that lap, we lost 60m to the field. Luttrell, Jame, and I then got back about 25m of that in a lap and half and then we lost another 70m. And that’s how it went. I’ll be the first to say that it’s not those two riders’ faults. It was ours. Those guys were trying their best. If Luttrell or I was going to win that race, we should have just dropped them and gone. Eventually we were caught and I attacked again soon after but couldn’t get more than a half lap lead by myself. I was a little sour about how that breakaway went but knew that I still had plenty in the tank and another way would present itself. Finally, as the closing laps started and we were still together, a great move came from Colt Peterson and Rob Evans. I hesitated a little to watch it as I was poorly positioned to go with it but with 4 laps to go, I figured I could get there and win the race or at the very least, set Luttrell up for a good finish. Now, this is one of those things where afterward people ask me why I didn’t wait for the sprint and get a definite top 5 – probably a top 3 with Luttrell leading out. Last time I checked, I think I have something like a dozen national championship podiums. What I don’t have are many championships. I will throw away a 100% chance at a podium finish for a 25% chance to win every day of the week and twice on Sunday. That’s something that my old coach Roger Young ingrained in me. No one cares about who got second. Plus, I figured that Luttrell would be fresh for the sprint and he could take it if things didn’t work out for me. So I went for it. I drilled it and caught those guys with two laps to go. The problem is that after opening a gap on the field with my initial move, a couple of guys managed to bring them up to me and I ended up neutralizing the attack with the field in tow. I gave Luttrell one final half lap pull and then got out of the way for those guys to finish the job with hopefully a gold for Black Dog. He did a pretty good sprint and managed 4th place while Jame won. It was a solid effort and a near miss with that breakaway. I was definitely one of the best guys there and good enough to win. But I couldn’t make it happen. No big deal, it happens sometimes. As I rode off the track, Steve Peleaz stopped me and gave me one of the nicest things I’ve heard from a competitor in a while. He said, “Man, Jame may have won but boy did you steal the show.” I think at the time I was still a little too caught up with what might have been to tell him thanks but it’s something that stuck with me. A nice comment and I appreciated it.

Sabga on a break in the points race. Photo: Erika Fulk

Next up was the points race. I had a pretty strange draw in the points race. 8 guys qualify and in the heat were 3 guys from my team pursuit team, 4 guys from the winning team pursuit team, and other good guys like Jame Carney, who is like a twelve time national points race champion. Definitely a weird draw. With Lutrell in same heat, we had to be careful not to knock each other out of the final. I played it a little impatiently but was off the front solo in my heat for about 15 laps and picked up 6 points, which should put me in the final. I rode the rest of the race just surfing the field, staying out of trouble. Afterwards, I found out that five of my points were not awarded to me because the officials deemed that a previous break had not rejoined the field at the time of the sprint. I was pretty sure that I was announced as winning the sprint, and everyone there said that I had won the sprint, but officially, it was ruled something else. I protested and even Dan Harm and Jame Carney went to the officials to tell them that they were wrong about it but they would not reverse their official ruling and I was left on the sidelines for one of my best events. That was hard.

I watched my teammates race their events and then got ready for the madison. We had a 13 team madison final, which was less than last year, but we had some pretty quality teams. There were eight teams with World Cup and Six Day experience so it was going to be a fight. Almost from the beginning, even though our positioning was good and we were alert to the race action, something was off. It took me a while to figure it out but we weren’t rolling how we normally did. We were both having a pretty off day. That in itself is no big deal because at some point, things start to click. Nonetheless, it was something we had to fight through. At some point, I felt like we were on track and were covering everything, so I just put it out of my mind. We rode hard while waiting to put down a big move but I kept having to close gaps. Other teams were content to let gaps open and we had to close them. We dropped 5 teams in the first 50 laps of the 200 lap race and it was basically an 8 team shoot out. A couple of times, I put in some big moves to get a lap on the field and never got much more than a half lap. We were chased down consistently. Danny Heeley and Ian Moir put down a great move that got a lap and I felt sort of helpless when I was riding relief watching them go. It was not at all how I thought it would go. In the last 50 laps, I put down two heavy bids to get a lap, once with Bobby Lea and Jackie Simes and another with Iggy Silva and Cody O’Reilly but came up short both times. Really, on the day, we just did not have it. Some days are like that. Danny and Ian won with a great ride and I am happy to see them be the champions this year. They deserve it. I remember that last year, I was so depressed after the madison but this year, it was sort of an “oh well” type of feeling. Luttrell and I talked about it as we walked through an empty airport that night: it just wasn’t going to be our day. And that’s okay. That happens.

Sabga and Luttrell in the US National Madison Championship. Photo: Pat Benson

All in all, it was good racing. Other than for the madison, I had really good form and raced well. We both did. We were two of the best guys there. It’s just unfortunate that we didn’t win more things but that’s how it goes some times. I was good enough to win and took some good chances to win but things just didn’t go my way this time. They will next time, or the time after that. I always race from the front and no amount of missed opportunities is going to change that. Really, it’s the only worthy way to win a championship and I have no regrets about any of that. Anyways, I ended up getting the flu essentially right after the madison so I know that I put everything I had into the racing. I made my notes on what modifications to make for next year and can’t wait for another chance at the national title. Who knows. Maybe I’ll be able to pull off that double.

Late race feed from Shane. Photo: John McKell

Another National Championship run is over for the Black Dog team and, like last year, it’s somewhat bitter sweet. We had some success, some disappointment, and a lot of in between. While this hasn’t been anything other than a very wild ride, I never get used to it. This is the first part of our go for our 2010 titles.

Getting some help from Shane as I solo to the finish. Photo: John McKell

As we started on the first group of climbs, there were some short but sharp attacks by some of the pre-race favourites and I sensed a good opportunity to make something happen. It was still about 13 miles from the finish but I put in a pretty deep dig, got some space as the others chased, and then just put my head down and kept going. Given the conditions, I think that everyone was fighting off cramps and even though there was a mid race downpour, it didn’t really help a whole lot. Shane and Gerard had been giving me bottles every lap and I had started with a lot of food, GU products and some sandwiches, in my pockets. I knew I had enough in the tank to finish it off and it was just a matter of riding through the cramps. As I opened up a gap over the lead group, the commissaires let my follow car in behind me and I could hear them yelling encouragement. I just concentrated on being steady into the headwind section and trying to keep the speed over 43 kph over the rolling climbs. That was the number in my head that seemed like the right thing to fixate on. About four miles after my attack, a motorcycle came up to me and I was told that my lead at that point was 1:20. That was pretty good. I felt that I had a lot more to give but had enough of a lead so that I could meter the rest of it out on my terms. I pushed through the rest of the headwind/crosswind section knowing that I could put everything out after the steep hill at the end of the feed zone.  Finally, as I descended from that hill and the circuit made the turn to the finish with about five miles left, I was in my biggest gears just riding – over 50 kph – up, over, and across the final rises and inclines between me and the finish. I went hard all the way to about 100m from the line where I raised my arms and yelled out in excitement. After watching the video of the finish, I can confirm that it wasn’t a very manly sort of yell, but whatever; I was overcome by emotion. According to the Garmin, I finished in 3:59, almost 5 minutes ahead of second place. It was an awesome experience and one that I am truly happy to have. It is also my first elite national road championship. It was a really strong effort, too. Close to 5k KJ’s for the day. The nicest part of the whole thing was sharing it with my mom, uncle, aunt, and cousin. My uncle and cousin were instrumental in helping me. They were dousing me with water during the hottest parts and making sure I had bottles when I needed them. And when I was going on that last lap alone, it gave me some extra strength to know that they were right behind me watching it all. Also of note is that the equipment that I used was awesome for this. I raced on my Parlee Z5, with Edge Composites’ 68mm wheels and I could not have picked any better stuff for this race. I cannot thank my sponsors enough for giving the absolute best gear on which to compete.

Fighting through the headwind. Photo: John McKell

Consequently, I am excited to wear the champion’s jersey in road events for most of 2011. However, it means that I can’t use the road racing solely as preparation for track racing any more. It’s important to honour the jersey and, as such, I will focus more on road for much of year. This doesn’t mean that I am abandoning my track goals. Rather, I am just going to race a more complete schedule and periodize my track training so that it comes later in the year. It should be fun.