Specialized next gen shoes???

Still need to add the cleats though!

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Unsung Heroes

Bottle Bitch. Water Wench. Fluid Floozy. Liquid Lackey. Hydration Whore. We have been called many things, most of them derogatory. But let me introduce you to a new term for those of us who wait out in the heat, dirt, and bugs for the cyclists to come by to grab a bottle of perfectly chilled water without so much as a thanks. Hero. We are heroes. Amazing heroes who loom in the shadows, behind trees and rocks waiting to support their team of riders on their quest to the finish line. Alas, we will never see the view from atop the podium. We will never taste the sweet, sweet, slightly tangy, sort of citrusy taste of victory. But the riders wouldn’t either, not without their heroes.

Heroes have to train. This blogger learned that the hard way last summer. I’m 6’2, 220 lbs. and when the Adventure 212/Specialized team recruited me to pass out bottles at the legendary race known as “Ore to Shore” on the frozen tundra of Marquette Michigan, I thought that it was the role I was born to play. I vastly underestimated the task at hand. I was given a cooler full of colorful plastic bottles, each containing the optimal amount of pure, nourishing, 43 degree water. With bottles in hand, I headed out to a popular bottle distribution area on the course. I was confident…almost cocky. The temperature was hot that day, I quickly sweat through my red Adventure 212 “we ride, we rule” t-shirt. I contemplated breaking into my stash of water. But no! That was for the athletes.

The race began. I knew that, because Adventure 212 had the fastest and best looking riders, they would be at the front of the pack. I was right, for off in the distance, I could see the lead pack and there were several skinny, sinewy riders adorned with the traditional grey, orange, and red super-tight spandex shorts with butt/chode pads. It was my time to shine. I grabbed for the first bottle and immediately made eye contact with the one they call “Big D.” He appeared to be very thirsty. I extended my arm and we made the exchange, no problem. However, he turned and threw an empty bottle back at me. It found its mark on my forehead, knocking me to the unforgiving concrete. The wound stung like a bite from a demon cobra from the bowels of hell. I came to just in time to see Ryan ride by. Without a fresh bottle of water, Ryan became angry and called me a name that would be inappropriate to repeat. I’ll give you a hint, it rhymed with brother trucker. After that ordeal, I readied myself to pass a bottle to none other than the captain of the Adventure 212 team, Chris. He approached at an amazing speed, a vibrant blur against a backdrop of native coniferous trees of the tundra. I once again grabbed for a bottle and thrust it forward, stretching for the dehydrated rider. Oh no, in my childish haste I had forgotten to check the tightness of the cap. It was much too loose. Chris lunged for the life-bringing water container and as he made contact, the cap flew off into the fresh northern air. Time seemed to stand still as the bottle spiraled through the atmosphere spewing its contents all over me as Chris rode off, shaking his head in bitter disappointment. I was soaked. Luckily, the water that cascaded down my head effectively hid my tears.

Others came and went with similar results. Spit, fowl names, even a kick or two came my way. Lisa even attacked my ethnic heritage. The physical damage hurt, but it was nothing compared to the emotional torture that I had to endure. The deep mental cuts of that day are now scars with which I must live. I have vowed to never allow such events to occur again. I have begun a rigorous training regimen to be sure that 2011 will be a season of plentiful hydration. Squats, lunges, curls, plenty of cardio, and strict, focused ninja meditation fill my days. I even sleep with water bottles every night…not in the sex-type way, my relationship with the bottles is strictly business this year.

Who knows what the future brings? 2011 is mystery, an enigma wrapped in a riddle, wrapped in spandex. But one thing is for sure, with heroic efforts from the trained, professional bottle crew, Adventure 212/Specialized will surely take its place among the elites, reigning supreme in the world of mountain bike racing once again.

Roll'a Mania

With the temps the way they have been and the horror from my last outside ride, which had me thinking that crawling in the ditch and suffering a slow death from hypothermia was my easiest option, I chose the rollers this weekend!

Lets start with the last outside adventure!

Who needs a fat tire, bow legged causing(due to the width of the bottom bracket!), extra bike to maintain, pugsly!  I like to think of it as skills training!  After a winter of this on a cross bike, a mud race is nothing!

So now to the freezing part, I think my toes were the same!  Will say the knees and toes were purple!  Hurt warming back up!

 This is my new aero package on the cross bike! Not proving in the wind tunnel yet, but sure to be seen at the TT this year at the tour!  I am sure of it!

The other winter necessity! Bar Mitts!  Once the hours start ticking upward above the 3 and 4 hr mark, gloves do not cut it anymore!  Also notice the rust protection on the bike, nothing has better rust inhibiting factors than carbon and titanium!  Thanks Specialized! 

No onto my refueling!  Coach luckily does not get on me about my diet!  I could argue that this is essential nutrients needed!  Here are the specs!

Features & specs:

•Dimensions: 9" x 5.5" x 3.5"
•Equivalent of 1400 regular-size gummy bears
•Weighs approximately 5 pounds
•12,600 calories!
•Hand-made in the USA with domestic ingredients
•Gluten-free
•One year shelf life

The is the best I Could do at killing it in one setting!  Might have to carry it in my jersey pocket at Cohutta!

So now onto the rollers.  It sucks starring at the wall.  Luckily yesterday we had a good group of 6 to pass the time.  At least to the 2 hr mark, until everyone abandoned me!  I was then solo for the remainder of my ride.  Luckily the temps are warming up this week so I can finish myself off before getting some relaxation in Vegas this weekend.  Then Michelle and I are home for a couple weeks, then off to Guam!  Yup, Guam. Kind of a last minute random decision after some discussion with bossman. He went to a race there in November and said it was awesome.  So there is another race there in February that we are going to head to, get some warm weather riding in, and some more relaxation.  I cannot wait!  Therefore the rollers are a temporary, necessary, evil! 

Adventure 212 Team: Season Preview

After such an amazing 2010 season as a team, we are really excited to see what the team can do for 2011 and have a few new faces to introduce.

Returning for 2011 is…EVERYONE!!! Yep…1st year without any turnover which is only going to make us that much stronger!

New for 2011 we’re adding 3 new (or maybe not so new faces) to the Elite team:

Sarah Agena-Wright: Now that she’s finally gotten hitched she can focus on training instead of wedding planning! Even though she didn’t train too much last year she still won her Cat2 age group and WORS and this year Sarah is focused and moving up to Cat 1 to support the other girls on the team. We are going to be smoking fast!

Myles Beech: Myle’s comes to us with numerous accolades to his name at such a young age. Having raced the previous years for the EXPO Junior team, Myles last year was the Midwest X-Country Junior Champion, the 2010 WI State Champion, along with the coveted Iceman Cometh MYC Scholarship. This year Myle’s will be racing for Adventure 212 off road and training with the USA Cycling Development team on-road.

Mark Cole: Mark has been with the team in the background for many years…making our bike and helmet decals, helping with bike maintenance, training with us and in general making all of us riders “look” good. This year Mark will be moving up to Cat 1 taking on the extra lap challenge!


So Who’s all on the TEAM for 2011?
Pro Men
Chris Peariso
Mike Phillips
Darrin Braun
Scott Cole

Pro Women
Lisa Krayer

Cat 1 Men
Ryan Krayer
Myles Beech
Mark Cole

Cat 1 Women
Michelle Peariso
Sarah Agena-Wright

Amazing Support Staff!!
Tim Wright
Lynn Meyer
Kylie Krayer
Kelsey Krayer

What are the 212 Team Plans:
WORS, NUE racing and both Marathon and X-County National Championships

At least some, if not all of the team, will be attending the following races:

The Adventure 212/Specialized team would like to thank our following sponsors for 2011 for making this team possible:
· Specialized Bicycles
· Adventure 212 Fitness
· Hidden Bay Custom Team Apparel
· Hostel Shoppe
· Raw Revolution

The Cold Isn't So Bad When You're Suffering Together!

I've always had this rule, no training outside unless it's at least freezing or above...but for Christmas Chris got me a whole new Specialized winter riding wardrobe (Yeah! Thanks Honey!) which I just had to take for a test ride. So on New Year's Day a group of our friends and teammates from Baraboo commenced on their annual "First Ride" ride...and it was FREEZING!!!!! (Like -15F with 25 mile winds)But I've learned a few good lessons from the 2 hour ride we got in:

1. My competitor self won't let me say no if there's someone else that says they can do it (i.e. Suffering together isn't so bad!)

2. My new Specialized coat and Cold Weather tights were AWESOME!!! (So good I went out by myself the next day for 1.5hours without needing other people's encouragement)

So thank you to all the cool people down in Baraboo that let us join you on your "First Ride" and then at the pary that ensued promptly after (in hopes of warming us up from the inside out!). We had a Blast!