If Heaven Were a Place on Earth

It would have been on 44th Ave, just East of Golden, CO yesterday morning. More on that in a second.

It's remarkable to think about the sheer amount of love and support you have from friends and family. It's even more shocking when you realize you've (not purposely) taken that for granted. These things come to light when you hit a low point. And to save everyone from a long, drawn-out typical story about being an injured athlete, I'll keep it short and get to the real point.

As I've mentioned in posts below, I'm out for the season. I've never been injured, never had to miss a race because of injury, and have certainly never been laid up for an entire summer! This is new - and obviously devastating - to me. What I've come to realize is that it's devastating for everyone who cares for you, too. Mainly people are bummed because they don't like seeing you in pain, missing your favorite activity and seeing you not feel like yourself. However, after a while it becomes more of a pain for them when you mope around and constantly talk about how your world is ending in a slow and horrible death. (I'm, of course, talking bout me. Not you.)

I owe a lot of people, more than I can write in here, for keeping me going through the dark times. For starters, Rachel has gone above and beyond, and even beyond that to cheer me up and make me feel better. I cannot believe the patience this woman has. I'm not inherently a negative person by nature - nor do I believe I've been super negative, but there comes a time when you just can't conjure up the energy to be positive - and Rach has given me some slack.

My family and friends have lifted me up, carried me over some rough patches, and now it's time to start walking with them. The lesson here is that yes, we will no doubt fall, have a low point, hit rock bottom - whatever you want to call it - but no matter what, always show the people around you that you love them. I'm still trying to figure out how to do this for everyone who helped me, made me laugh, and told me their own stories about being injured.

With all that to say, let's get back to heaven on earth. I got the green light to start doing very small rides - and let me tell you, a 25min super easy ride with no left leg strength was one of the best things that I've done in the last two months! I've worked my way up to 1:20 with a ride out to Golden and back. On that stretch of road on 44th Ave just East of Golden, I remember thinking, I have a major headwind and it's about 95 degrees - and I can't imagine anything better at this moment.

The Injured Reserve List

For the past several years, in the month of June I've written about the Race to Sunset, how great it was to be suffering for 10 hours and how I would sneak out to the Badlands to do some riding while visiting my parents in North Dakota. I did visit them again, but this time I spent time in an MRI machine instead of on some sweet singletrack.

To make a long story short. I developed some significant pain in my lower back a few weeks ago that began radiating down my left hamstring and ultimately into my calf. I thought I'd tough it out and see where it went from there. Well, it went South. The pain became debilitating and pretty much put me into a place where I could only lie on a hardwood floor for two days. Rachel was a total angel and basically had to do everything for me for that time.

Judging from my experiences as a young child, I decided to make the trip to ND to see my family - as they've always provided that magical healing touch. My Aunt Sandy (who is the manager at an MRI center) ran an MRI on me and it was clear as day. I have two trouble discs - one herniated and one with a tear. This was probably the hardest moment I've had in a long time. I knew my season was over - and I knew it was going to be a long road to recovery. I don't know what caused it, but I know how I'm going to prevent it in the future.

I did stop by the Race to Sunset and saw all my friends out there. Although it was tough to see everyone racing while I was on the sidelines in pain, it was important to see everyone. My family had already posted up out on course to ring cowbells and cheer. I think seeing that made me realize how great it's been for me to come back and take part in this event. I've received an outpouring of support from the community up there and it has meant a lot. It is amazing when you realize just how many people have faced a similar situation with an injury. It does seem like it's the end of your athletic career, but I know I'll make progress and come back stronger. 2013 will be my strongest and fastest season. This I believe.

In the 'good news' column, I did hit up some North Dakota staple attractions.

Salem Sue. (She's only the world's LARGEST Holstein cow)

Ahhh, the Badlands...

I owe my parents more than I could ever repay. We left ND with a recharged feeling. (until we hit rush hour getting back into Denver, that is)

To all my sponsors and family - I will work harder than ever to get back in action as soon as I can. The amount of support you've shown me has taught me a lot - and getting back to riding and racing is the closest thing I can find to paying you back. Until then, I'll have some extra time to watch the Tour de France this July...

Living to fight another day

And hopefully sooner than later. This year has been an up and down ride for me. Travel and work have been getting in the way of feeling like I have a consistent base of great fitness, but nothing compares to the last two weeks. I've been lucky to not have had any major injuries in my cycling career, sans some broken teeth and a bruised kidney. However, I've learned just how lucky I've been when I found myself struggling to walk from one end of the house to the other last week. I have some serious issues in my back right now that have caused more pain than I've felt before. Not really knowing what it is may be the worst part, although the preliminary diagnosis is somewhere between a pelvic rotation causing sciatica and a herniated disc. It's hard to believe that my big workout for the day has become stretching for 10 minutes. I would wish this on no one. Here's hoping for a quick recovery so I can get back to doing what I love outside. Until then, I'll be on velonews.com catching up on all the dirt.

1 Part Suffering, 1 Part Inspiration.

I've been racing and working and not doing much else. I cannot tell you how great it feels to have some races under the belt and a full calendar of them ahead. For me, I fear the first race of the year more than any other. Even worlds or national championships. I believe that it's the unknown, the fact I've trained all winter and I have no idea where my fitness lies. Until the first lap of the first race and the first burning of the legs and lungs sets in. The season started off well with a good run of events along the front range. A 7th in Pueblo was not what I hoped for, but with a mechanical that took some time to repair, I'd say it was a pretty successful day. I lined up at the Ridgeline Rampage in Castle Rock a couple weeks later with a super group of pro riders including Chris Baddick, Bryan Alders, Mike West, and a handful of other fast guys. This was one of the tougher, yet enjoyable races so far as Bryan, Chris and I battled it out for all 3, 10-mile laps of the race. I faltered a little at the very end which was my demise, but 3rd was solid enough for me. I'm not sure if it's a part of getting older or what, but it takes me forever to recover from a hard crash these days!

I also decided to take in a short track race in Golden to work on some speed. Some people will read that and chuckle since I've been known as the 'Ultra Endurance' guy the past few years. The truth is I love all distances - and honestly, it's nice to finish a race in 30 minutes! One of the funnest races of the year so far was certainly the 12 Hours of Mesa Verde. I was on a coed relay team with ultra fast riders Colin Osborn and Jen Gersbach. We ended winning and Jen set the course record! Needless to say, I was in good company. I'll always take any excuse to head to the Durango area.

Another opportunity that shouldn't be missed is the legendary - and sometimes creepy - Tiny Town! I'll let the photos do the 'splainin'. It started off cute.

We even had a laugh.

Then, upon closer look inside those Tiny windows... It got creepy. Fast.

In other news, I just got back from shooting a project for Ironman down in Texas. Those of you who have hounded me about becoming an Ironman athlete, (Nick Howe, Scott Fliegelman) your wish may be closer to coming true after the experience I had. We met several great people and had a truly inspiring experience - captured in THIS VIDEO. I'd like to say a special thanks to Caitlin Snow for letting me tag along with her from 4AM until midnight. You and your family were a great bunch to hang with and your professionalism inspires me. Our film crew also got to hang with a handful of other athletes for the day and we were all grateful. That's all for this wordy entry. I'm off to Europe in the morning so my next post will surely have a Luxembourg-ish feel... km

If I can't race, I might as well talk about it.

My tenure in Colorado has taught me something: When Mother Nature threatens the mountain folk with her often cruel April snow storms, think twice before taking the Honda Civic over those two slick mountain passes.



I was truly disappointed to pull the plug on the race in Fruita last weekend, but it's a long season and there are plenty of races. (I'd just like to get some under the belt already!) However, I did get some quality training in and the XXCMag podcast which I was invited to be on came out over the weekend. So, if you would like to procrastinate and browse the web while hearing me go on and on... (sound fun?) Well then here you go:

Website

Direct Dowload

All in

I'm not sure if it's the weather, the fact that I've had some forced time off the bike, or the fact that my sponsors have started loading me up with toys in preparation for the season, but I'm like a kid in school with short-timer's syndrome, waiting for the end of the day so I can get outside.

(I managed to snag Rachel's brother, Tim, for a bike ride - making him an honorary Trek team member for the day)



It's been a challenging last few months, but some of the biggest payoffs have come out of that time. I believe everyone needs a little reminder to gain perspective. Let's consider February that reminder for me!

As team camp and the race season approaches, I'm getting excited and nervous all in the same. The funny thing is that I thought I'd get used to pre-race nerves and anxiety after racing for a few years, but that's not the case. (Which, I think, is a good thing) Just the thought of toeing the start line and hearing 'fifteen seconds', makes me nervous.

With all that said, I feel like I'm close to being ready. I even had a lesson on bike handling from Jeny Jo, a member the Front Range's official 'women who shred' gang!



Lastly, I understand that when an athlete thanks their sponsors, it can come across mechanical or repetitive, but I feel like it cannot be said enough - if it wasn't for them, so many of us would not be out there doing what we absolutely love to do. I can honestly say I'm humbled by each and every one of our sponsors who - in good faith - give us product or money to ride our bikes. A 'thank you' often just doesn't feel like it cuts it.

Oh boy.

When I start getting messages from my friends about my lack of updates - I know I must be in the thick of it.

And in the thick of it, I am. I've pulled my fair share of all-nighters in my life, but I think the month of February has buried me deeper than I've ever been! These are problems I've begged for in the past - and I still know the value of being busy, both on and off the bike. My training has been relegated to the trainer, but I've had zero ability to ride for more than 1-2 hours at a time. Yikes...

As March rolls around, I'm looking to take some down time, get the house in order (see photos below), spend time with friends and family, and train like a mad man.

I'll write more later, but I have a teaser for what has been occupying my time in the studio for the last few months. (other than some sweet Israeli episodes of Music Voyager, too! - which I'll post about later)

Our Feature Documentary, 'Dave', world premieres in San Jose at Cinequest, March 2nd. Here's a link to the website where you can find all the info you need - AND a trailer.

Enjoy!