New Swag is in!

Check the new kits! Pretty fly if you ask me. They're going to look good as they zoom past everyone this season. 

Purdue season starts this weekend at Murray State down in Kentucky...which means one thing. WAFFLE HOUSE!!! The most delicious pre-race and post-race meal anyone could ask for. I can't wait. I'm feeling pretty good (at least I think so). Be sure to check back at the beginning of next week for a race recap and an overall analysis of my weekend and whether or not all of my winter training paid off.

Wish me luck!

P.S.

I ran 5 miles with this girl yesterday (yes, it's a Snuggie)....hopefully that will turn out to be my secret weapon for racin'. Thanks Brit!

New Website

Check out Sustainable Cycling's brand spankin' website!

teamsustainablecycling.com

Man, I can't wait for the season to start!

For Once, I'm satisfied to be in Indiana

Rain, rain, rain. The Amgen Tour of California started this week, and it has been a wet one so far. I was really excited for this race to get underway mainly because it is always a star-studded field racing in the good ol' USA. They say that this years field is the greatest to ever have been assembled on North American soil. Three Tour champions, multiple World Champions, winners of many monuments like Paris-Roubaix....pretty cool. However, aside from the 4 minute prologue on Saturday, the race has seen the worst weather possible....cold, windy, and wet as an ocean. It has been so rainy and dreary, that just watching it makes me cringe and stress out. I hate being forced to ride when it is crappy out....let alone for a 5 hour stage! Also, in the back of my head, I'm wondering if all of these super stars of cycling are developing a passionate hatred for all things American because of the crappy weather that HAD to hit at the same time and place of this great bike race. Ivan Basso already said that he wishes this race was in April to be used as a Giro d'Italia warm up...and Christian VandeVelde said it best when he said "Golden Gate, schmolden gate, give us sun! Dry and sunny for the last 5k today, that was a kick in the ding ding.." It was cool to see the riders cross over the Golden Gate Bridge, but the weather sucked for it. Man, thanks for ruining everything, weather!

My training is coming along. Our season opener is two weeks from this past Saturday, and I wouldn't be the first to tell you that I'm chompin' at the bit to get some bike racing under way! I'm feeling pretty strong...stronger that I have ever felt pre-season, so that is a good thing. Or, it could be a horrible thing, because I could just be delusional and end up getting my butt whooped on Feb. 28 down at Murray State, KY. I guess there's only one way to find out and that's waiting until race day!

Until then, I'm trying to enjoy my chances being able to train outside while I think of all the pros out in Cali getting kicked in their collective "ding ding".

Great Weather = Happiness

I've put in around 200 miles in the last 4 days, which, after months on the trainer fighting to stay riding for longer than an hour, is a wonderful thing. It reminds me of what life is like outside of winter. Happy and good.

Being able to ride outside improves a lot of things. First, you're able to get a much better workout in due to factors such as wind, elevation changes, friction from the road, and not getting distracted by that really rad part in the movie you're watching. Second, you're able to shake the cabin fever. Granted, I leave my apartment at least twice a day for classes, but that's only 30 minutes worth of outside time....and not good outside time because most of my energy goes to trying not to have a panic attack because of the sub-freezing temperatures. Coming back home from a long ride outside makes you enjoy being home again. Being able to sit on the couch and watch TV becomes a fun thing versus a way to break up the monotony of your two bedroom apartment. Lastly, seeing hawks and squirrels and dead possums on the road is sweet...so much better than watching your roommate eat Cheez-Its on your futon.

In other good news, here's my proposed schedule for 2009 (although it may adjust slightly):

 2009 Collegiate Road Schedule

Feb 28 Murray State RR (Murray, KY)
Mar 1: Murray State Crit
Mar 7: Depauw RR (Heritage Lake, IN)
Mar 8: Depauw Crit (Crawfordsville, IN)
Mar 21: Notre Dame RR (South Bend, IN)
Mar 22: Notre Dame Crit
Mar 28: Michigan State RR (Lansing, MI)
Mar 29: Michigan RR (Ann Arbor, MI)
Apr 4: Purdue RR & TTT (West Lafayette, IN)
Apr 5: Marian Crit (Indianapolis, IN)
Apr 18: UW Madison Crit (Madison, WI) 
Apr 19: Milwaukee RR (Sheboygan, WI)
Apr 25: Ohio State (Regionals) (Columbus, OH
Apr 26: Ohio State (Regionals)

May 8: TTT Nationals (Fort Collins, CO)
May 9: RR Nationals
May 10: Crit Nationals

2009 USA Cycling Schedule

March 14: BlueClicks L'Esprit (Louisville, KY)
March 21: Hueston Woods (Oxford, OH)
April 18: Ceraland Classic (Columbus, IN)
May 2: Winona Lake Road Race (Warsaw, IN)
May 3: Winona Lake Criterium (Warsaw, IN)
May 30: Morgan Monroe S.F. (Brown County, IN)
June 6: Indiana State RR Champs (Indy, IN)
TBD: Bloomington Criterium (Bloomington, IN)
June 27: Hyde Park Blast (Cincinnati, OH)
July 26: Chicago Criterium (Chicago, Ill)
August 15: Mass Ave. Crit (Indianapolis, IN)
August 16: Zipp West Clay Crit (Carmel, IN)
August 26: Marion Classic (Marion, IN)

Should be a great season with some great results from the team.

Summer in Spain...

....at least that's what it feels like. Right now it is 39 degrees F, which after a month of arctic temperatures and wind that feels like knives, it's pretty much the warmest day I can remember. Sad, I know, but welcome to winters in the mid-west. 

Being a cyclist in the mid-west is overall a great thing. There are always a lot of races that are in close proximity, springs and autumns are very mild, the summers are nice when you're on the bike with a nice breeze. The one BIG downfall is falling into a lack-of-motivation-depression that basically either makes you fat because you never train, or turns you in to a cabin-fever maniac because all you do for months on end is hop on the rollers in front of the tv and ride for a couple of boring, monotonous, stationary hours. The most fun it can get is when you ride inside with a few teammates...but really, how much fun can that be?

You can understand why I am so excited to ride outside today for the first time in a month!

Circus Monkeys

Is it just me, or are career fairs the worst experiences in any college student's life? I absolutely hate them. I had a career fair this past week and it was a stressful experience. For one, you have to dress up, second you have do you all your research on the companies you'll be talking to, and third, you have to make sure that you look yourself in the mirror and promise that you won't cry like a little child. I'd consider myself a pretty confident and outgoing person in normal life...I don't have problems with talking with strangers, or forming coherent sentences in the English language. At the career fair, that is all out the window. I turn into an anxious nut that suddenly forgets how to speak and wander around aimlessly like a lost puppy looking for someone to throw him a half eaten Little Debbie treat (preferably a Nutty Bar or Zebra Cake).

I mean, really...what are you supposed to say when someone asks you "What makes you think you are qualified enough to work at (insert company name here)?" Ummm...well sir...because I....errrr....then my face turns red and whoever I'm talking to starts to sweat because of the excess heat radiating off of my nervous, fragile body. Then they carefully lean forward as their eyes slowly begin to squint while they attempt to decipher the blubbering noise that is coming out of my mouth. At least I am able to throw in strategic words like "Kaizen" or "Innovative" or "I'm really not this retarded in real life" so that they know I am a functioning human being capable of working for them.

Overall, though, it went pretty well. There were a few companies that I really liked and that seemed to like me. I came out of it feeling pretty confident that I won't have to spend my career training a pet monkey to steal change for me so I can eat, support a family, and pay my mortgage. The monkey would have to be pretty big to carry that much change around.

 More updates to come on my job search as well as a hopeful break in the monotony of training in my room on the rollers in front of the TV watching trashy reality shows. I know at first glance that sounds like a dream....but boy am I itchin' to get outside and put some real miles on the bike. The weather this coming week is looking promising, so cross your fingers for me that accuweather.com stays true to its forecast.