June 6, 2010 – San Diego Rock n’ Roll Marathon
Good afternoon friends!
Well, it is official. Five hours, 26.2 miles, six pounds lost, and my buddies Mark Estrada, Patrick Moneda and I crossed the finish line to complete the 2010 Rock n’ Roll Marathon. But the journey did not begin so smoothly…
As you know, I had injured my back just days before the marathon and was having difficulty standing, much less walking or even running. It certainly concerned me and I wondered if I would be able to complete a challenge my friends and I set out to complete over six months ago. More insult to injury, I ended up getting a full blown cold two days before the Sunday race. Certainly, by this point, I came to realize that there were a lot of signs telling me that I shouldn’t have shown up.
So I played it by ear, and said that I’d see how I felt by Saturday, June 5th. Showed up to the Health and Fitness Expo with fellow runners Estrada, Mark Joya, Reynan as well as Pat and my cousin Roland, and luckily for me, found a booth giving away free samples of Salonpas (medicated heat pads) and providing free back and leg massages, so that certainly helped ease the pain. Also had a chance to get a picture of this great sign. Love it.
Come race day, I was still in quite a bit of pain and snot was coming out of my nose every other minute, but I promised myself that if I was anywhere close to 70%, there wasn’t anything that was going to stop me from running on Sunday. After the National Anthem, the race was off, and the Kenyans and professional runners took off (I later discovered that the winner of the Rock n’ Roll this year did it in just over two hours, which is ridiculous).
Its amazing what adrenaline can do. Once our corral (wave of runners) got going, I felt the usual aches and pains when my body is resisting my intention to make it run. Once I started hitting my stride, its almost as if the back pain, the illness, and soreness in my hips was non-existent and we started pushing forward on a great pace at just about a 9:30 – 9:45 mile heading through the 13 mile mark. One thing of note is that we were flying down the 163 heading down the hill northbound to Friars Road, which certainly cut out a lot of time off the clock.
Fans were cheering, gatorade spilling and some people were starting to hit the wall come mile 20. Its funny when you watch the news and get footage of marathons and you typically see the normal footage of waves of runners all dressed with their running clothes and chest numbers seemingly moving in a successive movement in the same direction. But what you don’t see is all of the strange behaviors the camera can’t show you when you’re in the moment running it with the rest of these crazed hooligans.
Along the way, I am certain I’ve seen it all. People vomiting on the side of the road, 
urinating on the other, taking a drink of water, spilling over their head and throwing it to their right only to hit another runner, and even a runner who decided to go #2 while she was running. Yeah, seriously. As for me and my teammates, we had a fun moment when we got to the halfway marker and I laughed at my buddy Mark and pointed at his Challenged Athletes Foundation shirt as he noticed that he had a blood spot coming off of his chest from nipple abrasion. He then laughed at me in return as it happened to me. Those dang bloody nipples, why didn’t anyone ever tell me about this? Oh wait, ultramarathoner and fellow QMDC teammate Alex Hamlow already warned me, but I seem to have forgotten! We couldn’t just help but laugh at one another because none of us felt it happening. Must be the adrenaline.
So there we were, chugging away at mile 20, keeping a decent pace until about mile 22 when the dreaded WALL came. All of the back pain, illness, hip and calf pain for me and quad pain for Pat came rushing back full steam and forced us to have to walk for about three miles while we sent Mark headed for the finish line. After running 22 miles, it was amazing how far 3 miles felt, it was almost like walking through quicksand or wading through shallow water. And we weren’t alone. Numbers of runners were slowing at the Fiesta Island turnaround point, and a couple poor runners were being tended to on the sidelines by medical staff.
Pat and I decided that we would walk it out until about mile 25, stretch, and then dig deep to finish hard. And we certainly did. There’s nothing like the rush of energy you get from the crowd, the cheers and the whistles, the sight of family at the finish line. Becky was there, screaming and yelling for me to finish and the finish line is dead in sight. When marathon training, its one of those moments you envision after every run, how it would feel to finally make it to the end, and finish a race that you’ve been training six months to complete.
Runner by runner, finisher by finisher, there we were amongst them, hands raised in the air as we crossed the finish line — an accomplishment of a lifetime and huge invisible check off a personal list.
Take care friends, keep on running and stay tuned for the June 2010 update when I share our adventures from our trip to Japan!
-BB
May 2010 – Return of the QMDC Training Rides and a Marathon Training Setback…
Hello Friends!
Summer’s here, and while the month of May brings us a change of weather, a start to the Major League Baseball season (way to go Padres!) and the end of American Idol, what May means for me is the final preparations for the Rock n’ Roll Marathon on June 6th. My training buds Mark and Pat have put me through the most rigorous of training regimens and we worked our way from the half marathon mileage of 13.1 miles all the way to 22 miles within six months and are primed and ready for the big 26.2 mile challenge ahead. Except for one thing. INJURY. But we’ll get back to that in a sec.
As many of you know, much of the productivity that comes from endurance sports comes from not only being out there on your bike, pedaling away for eight hours straight, or running for four hours, but from careful preparation and cross training. While many folks just focus their training towards one discipline, lets say running, their entire focus is to improve their leg strength and cardiovascular capacity to prepare themselves for a foot race. Others who train for a cycling event, will spend time on trainers, in the gym working their legs and core, and do interval hill climbing or sprints to focus on their quads.
For me, I’m training for both. With the marathon coming up around the corner and the return of the Challenged Athletes Foundation’s Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge, I have to spend equal amounts of time putting in mileage on foot and on my bike in order to keep my endurance and leg strength for both at as high a level as I can. For preparation purposes, that means training 5-6 days per week, with time spent running, cycling, weight lifting and more running and cycling.
Which brings us to the big event in October, the 2010 QMDC – another wonderful trip from San Francisco to San Diego in October of this year. We have a fantastic turnout of fundraisers and riders this year with a number of familiar friends and return veterans from last year, including many of my fellow XX1090 Scott & BR 2009 Radio Riders, and a great amount of new faces as well! Adam Beck, last year’s 2009 Scott & BR Champ has joined the 2008 Champ Mike Henderson to train the brand new 2010 Scott & BR Riders for their upcoming challenge ahead. Seeing this new batch of contestants brings me back to last year when I was in the radio contest, and all of the excitement, anxiety and fun that it brought to me. However, I sure am glad I’m no longer on a hot seat and wondering if I’m gonna make the next cut. It’ll be fun to see how this year’s drama unfolds.
This year also welcomes new ride leaders and Head Coach as well, as Pat Jak from Fitness Quest (well known for training the likes of Drew Brees
and LaDainian Tomlinson) has taken the helm. After last year’s Fitness Quest training day, Pat Jak gave us all excellent tips for endurance athletes on weight lifting techniques we can use to get stronger and prevent injury. In fact, over the last year, I’ve taken his advice and added two days of weight training and believe that it’s certainly helped me get faster on both my feet and my bike. At least I believe I’m faster, and that’s half the battle:)
One thing of note from the first training ride for the QMDC is that I somehow found myself in Group One, riding with the super fast studs (like my bud Don Parker pictured here) at a pace between 22-24 mph. I’d like to note that this was not my intention to start out in Group One, as it was quite a jump from working with the 16-18 mph Group Three all last year. But, it turns out that Radio Joe Weickgenant, top seven finisher in last year’s contest and roommate of mine down the coast last year, along with ultra fast Chance Whitaker are the Group One Ride leaders, and Joe kindly requested (by pulling me by my jersey), to ride in his group. I’ll tell you what, I had a heck of a time. There’s absolutely nothing like throwing down the pedals as fast and as hard as you can to hold onto someone’s wheel, race up hills faster than you have before, and having a big smile while doing it. I certainly enjoyed riding with the group, and I hope that I can continue to ride with these speedsters for weeks to come. Was I dropped a couple of times? Absolutely, but Chance and Joe came back to reel me back in, and even when I wanted to slow down, they kindly encouraged me (via yelling and name calling) that the only way I’m going to improve is to push my limits.
Which brings me back full circle to my current dilemma. With a week to go before the RnR Marathon, I headed down to the gym for my Tuesday leg routine, and while doing squats, I came up funny and felt a sharp pain in my lower back which led to back spasms. I knew it right when it happened and said to myself, “OH FUDGE” (or words to that effect) and over the last two days, I’ve been in a pretty good amount of pain and can’t hardly stand, much less run.
But we’re not throwing in the towel yet my friends. I’ve been rehabbing it, and with great advice from my cousin Roland (a physical therapist and marathoner) and Alex Hamlow (my favorite ultramarathoner), I’ve iced, heated, massaged, stretched and rested my way back to about 60% mobility, so I’m crossing my fingers that I’ll be at about 80% come Sunday, so I can complete the challenge that my teammates and I set out to accomplish over half a year ago.
Stay tuned for next month’s update to see if I complete my 26.2 mile journey on Sunday and until then, if you’d like to make a donation to the Challenged Athletes Foundation and support me in my upcoming quest for the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge in October, you can click on the green ribbon to the right or check out my fundraising page at:
http://mdcalumni2010.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=342248&supId=258041656
Take care everyone and keep on riding!
-BB
April 2010 – Runs, Rides, Weddings and … a New Bike?
Hello there friends!
What’s this? We’re already in May? What happened to April?
April sure flew by for us as the month was stacked full of activities. The big event was my cousin Kristine’s wedding to her longtime beau Jay, who
after dating for 13 years (yeah, that’s no typo), had a beautiful wedding at the Immaculata at USD followed by a gorgeous reception at the Prado at Balboa Park.
For the wedding, Becky and I were paid a special visit by my brother Justin, sister-in-law Karen and my three year old nephew Mateo who stayed with us for a week. My nephew absolutely cracks me up. I understand that every kid has their own genuine personality all their own, but this kid takes the cake. As he was the ring bearer for the wedding, Karen and my brother wanted to make it easier for him to get down the long aisle, so they put “Ben 10″, “Ironman” and “Spiderman” stickers on the inside of his tuxedo jacket so he’d keep it on, and even bought him a new toy that they kept at the altar so he would walk up the aisle to go and get it. Unfortunately, Mateo got stage fright and ended up lying down in the middle of the aisle and never made it to the altar, but he was still adorable.
Mateo and Bailey were absolutely inseparable and our house was filled with laughter as you’d often see Mateo racing around the corner with Bailey running after him, and then Bailey running for cover as Mateo was chasing after him. They had a heck of a time. One funny moment was when Bailey was lying on his back letting Mateo scratch his belly and I walked by to hear Mateo counting. I said to him, “Mateo, what are you counting?” to which he replied “counting legs, Uncle Bobbin.” So I said, “okay then, how many legs does Bailey have”, to which Mateo replied “FIVE!” After correcting him, saying that Bailey only had four legs, Mateo got upset and said “NO UNCLE BOBBIN, FIVE” as he counted each leg out loud and then ended by pointing at Bailey’s “rocket”. Toddlers are hilarious.
Riding buddy Pat and I finished my brother’s new road bike, a 2010 Bailey D-503 just in time for my brother’s arrival. Got
him fitted, adjusted and he was amped to go out for a ride! Perhaps one of my favorite parts about riding bikes is the way it makes you feel, not just physically with the endorphins pumping and the calories you burn, but the way it takes you back to being a kid.
My brother and I grew up in Mira Mesa in a home to two loving and hardworking parents who provided for us the best they could and always had a hot meal on the table at the end of the day. Products of the baby boomer generation, both my parents worked full time and my dad, for as long as I can remember worked two jobs to support his family. Because of this, my brother and I formed a special bond, and with 5 1/2 years between us, my brother was always a very important person in my life, serving many roles — babysitter, wrestling coach, bully and best friend.
Growing up as a kid in Mira Mesa, I distinctly remember us frequenting Black Mountain Bikes, on the corner of Mira
Mesa Boulevard and Black Mountain Road. We’d often walk in and stare at the beautiful bikes that adorned the shop, GT BMX bikes, Schwinn road bikes, beach cruisers, tandems, and always recalled the smiles people had walking in and out of the shop. But we were still kids, and knew that while our folks loved and gave us everything they could growing up, that we couldn’t afford any of these expensive bikes. So we just admired these beautiful steeds from a distance, and happily rode back home on our Sears brand bikes mom and dad provided.
As we’ve grown older, it appears that there comes a point in one’s life where he fulfills the passions of his past, and endeavors to make the dreams of his childhood a reality, and I believe that’s why we got into cycling. The kids who frequented the bike shop as children are all grown up now, and they’ve returned with a newfound joy for riding. And now my brother has the bike perfect for him, one that he’ll enjoy for years to come. Sure, it’s not his Sears brand “Bull Cruiser”, but it’ll do just fine:)
After we headed out for a one on one bike ride from my house to Coronado and back, I arranged for some of the buds to get together for my brother’s first group ride the following weekend, and friends Chris Macaraeg and David Dias joined regular riding buds Mark Estrada, Pat Moneda and I on our regular hill training ride from Eastlake to Jamul and up the dreaded Honey Springs. 
We had an amazing time, great friends laughing, joking, sharing stories and experiences both on and off the bike on our way up the 2300 feet of elevation to the top. We even saw a rattler lurking on the side of the road, but I was the only one to notice it because everyone was either laughing their way through the ride or huffing and puffing it up some of the climbs.
The month of April also brings heavy training off the bike and on my feet as it marks the second to last month before the Rock n’ Roll Marathon on June 6, 2010, which according to my calendar, means that my longest run before the marathon would take place this month. And it did. On the last Sunday in April, me and running buds Estrada and Moneda ventured out to Miramar Lake where we ran four laps, totaling 20 miles in 3 1/2 hours. It was a grueling experience, and we were all pretty beat afterwards.
The crazy thing about marathon training, is that you’d assume that after doing that kind of distance, you’d expect to be 
hunched over at the finish line, gasping for air, but the reality is that you’ve trained your body and lungs to repetitively run for such a long distance that you just plain stop. No gasping, no collapsing on the ground, you just stop. And after a Jamba Juice and an hour to let your body relax, you’re back to normal again. It’s funny how the human body works and surprises us every day.
A NEW MISTRESS?
After much deliberation, I finally decided to take the plunge and dismantle the 2007 Gary Fisher HiFi and pop it on craigslist. After numerous bites 
from potential buyers, an unexpected and yet fortunate opportunity came when I received a message from QMDC alumni and top fundraiser Dr. Jeffrey Keeny, who is looking to get into mountain biking! During our conversations, he mentioned that he was looking at bikes and I mentioned that my frame was for sale and he said “DONE” and now the G-Fish HiFi is in a new home and will take on new adventures with Dr. Jeff as he pursues his next challenges of taking on the Xterra races.
As for me, I met up with my friend and frame designer John Bailey of Bailey-Bikes.com and decided to finally match the mountain bike to the road bike and picked up a 2010 Bailey Carbon Hardtail. The best part is that John’s still teetering the fence on deciding if the company is going to head into the world of mountain bikes, so this one’s not on the website yet. In such a prototypical stage, it makes it one of a kind, and he and I are the only ones that have these beauties for now:)
Built it up, packed it in the car, and took it out for a couple local rides in and around San Diego from Sweetwater Canyon to Daley Ranch, and the bike rides like an XC dream, climbs insanely fast, is incredible on the flats and while the descents are still superior on the full-suspension HiFi, I’ll just have to relearn how to use my legs as my rear shocks. All in all, I’m amped about my new Bailey and couldn’t be happier.
Until next time, have a great month of May, do something nice for your mom on Mother’s Day and keep on riding…
-BB
March 2010 – From San Diego to Vancouver, B.C. and Back Again…
Happy Easter Friends!
March was a month of training and preparation. It was a month of seeing new sights and meeting new runners, riders and having a week of training outside the U.S. as well!
Took a bit of a break from road riding this month and heeded the call of the Gary Fisher to take the HiFi out for a bunch of rides. I’ll tell you what, I’ve discovered that I’m not a very good mountain biker:) Back in 2005 when we first started mountain riding, there was a certain fearlessness to it all, and the more we did it, the easier it got for the technical sections, over the roots and rocks and through the sand. And then we started road riding…
The best part about road riding is the amount of distance a rider can cover in the same amount of time and the fitness and cardio you gain is immeasurable. The only downfall is the time you take away from the mountains takes away from all of those technical skills you gain with your balance and weight shifting, not to mention the short quick bursts that you need to power your way up the technical portions.
Becky and I got to do some traveling this month, and we made our way north to the winter wonderland of Vancouver, British Columbia.
Getting there, we flew from San Diego to Seattle and then jumped onto a twin propeller plane to Vancouver. What a beautiful place! Marking the first time Becky and I ventured into Canada, we were surprised to see the different influences that make up the Canadian culture, from the French background, to the ancestral Haida culture and the large Japanese and Chinese community that makes up Vancouver as well.
Arriving just a week after the Closing Ceremony for the 2010 Winter Olympics where our nations heroes like Apolo Anton Ohno, local San Diegan Shawn White and the many other olympic medalists that made history, we were delighted to see all of the Olympic decor that adorned British Columbia from Vancouver all the way to Whistler. At Whistler, not only did we get to ride on the Peak to Peak Gondolas that take you from the bottom of Whistler Village 6000 feet up to the top of the mountains on a gondola ride that takes over an hour, but we also got to sit in a bobsled, and also pay respects to the late Olympic Luger Nodar Kumaritashvili.
As it usually goes for Becky and I whenever we visit new and interesting countries, we make sure to try all of the local foods, from British inspired shepherds pie and fish and chips, to Tim Horton’s donuts and the “Japadog” made famous on Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations”. But with all of this eating, I had to keep in mind that I’m still training for a marathon, and made sure to work out every day I was there, even if it was only to “break even” on all of the heavy eating that was to be expected from being on vacation. Logged about 24 miles worth of running for the week, including one 13 miler where I ran along the coastline of Vancouver, passing B.C. Place, Olympic Village and GM Arena, home to the NHL hockey team Vancouver Canucks.
One thing that absolutely cracked me up about our friends from the North is the Canadian “relax, eh” attitude. On one day at the gym, I got to witness a trainer spotting a dude on the bench press. Where your local 24 Hour Fitness trainer would yell “PUSH!” while you put up another painful rep, the Canadian trainer yelled, “PUSH, but don’t strain yourself. If you’re not feeling up to it, there’s always tomorrow.” Just classic.
After getting back, I weighed in a little heavy at 165, so I had about 6 lbs to get rid of last week to get back to my comfortable weight. The Sunday after we arrived back in sunny San Diego, Mark Estrada and I had a chance to do a mountain ride at Escondido’s Daley Ranch. For a quick history of Daley Ranch, this is one of those cardio heavy hill climbing days that absolutely kicked our butts when we first started mountain biking. On a normal day, we’d be looking at finishing the course in a little over 1 hr and 30 minutes. On this Sunday, we absolutely rocketed through the course in an hour flat! As another runner training for his first marathon, Mark and I agreed that training for a marathon does make everything easier:)
LESSON FOR THE MONTH
Yesterday, I had a chance to ride with the SWK Riders of the South Bay and the Mira Mesa Cycling Club on a 46 miler from Telegraph Canyon to 
Jamul, all the way up to Honey Springs and back. Excellent riders, great friends and great people. While the course, in and of itself, is nothing out of the ordinary and the heavy climbing through Honey Springs is a ride that I do quite often, the lesson for the month is a lesson simply in eating.
The afternoon before, I played basketball with my best buds up in 4S Ranch near Rancho Bernardo. After playing for about 3 hours (and being reminded that basketball uses completely different muscles and movements from running and cycling), I finally got home at just around 8 in the evening and was more tired than hungry, so I had a glass of orange juice and headed to bed.
The next morning, I was running late and forgot to have breakfast, so I did the ride with the only fuel coming from 2 GUs that I had along the way. After keeping a high pace to climbing up the hills of Honey Springs, my body felt okay, nothing out of the ordinary. But, by mile 38 or so, it all came crashing down as I got to experience my first feeling of BONKING, a cycling term similar to what runners call “hitting the wall.”
Its exactly as people describe it. One moment, you’re pedaling at full steam, pumping the legs, keeping the lungs burning and all of a sudden there’s NOTHING. And I mean nothing! Just like a light switch, your body just shuts off and no matter how unwaivering a will you think you have to push through pain, your desire to pedal is gone and your vision goes wall eyed. It was the first time that I’ve ever had to actually get off my bike and stop. Luckily for me, the Trek Store in Eastlake was close by and I headed in for two Powerbars that I had to down and wait for my blood sugar to rush back before getting in the saddle. And just like
that, after getting dropped by the group, I powered a 20 mph pace back to the start location. Some of the riders from the MMCC said that the best thing about bonking is that you know how awful it feels and learning from the experience.
So here’s the lesson for the month. Eat. If you have a ride the next morning, don’t skip meals, even if you’re too tired to eat dinner after a long day at work. And most importantly, always eat breakfast. It does no good to be a slim 158 lbs heading into a ride when you’ve got no food in your system to burn. Just like when QMDC’s 2009 Head Coach Mari Holden said to keep hydrated throughout the week to prepare for the summer rides to avoid dehydration, making sure to eat energy packed healthy foods 
goes a long way and keeps us from hitting our wall. So along with your helmet, I.D., cell phone, shoes and water, always remember to keep nutrition on your pre-ride checklist and you won’t experience bonking.
One last thing, this month, my buddy Pat Moneda and I finished the bike build for my brother Justin who will be coming down for our cousin Kristine’s wedding in mid-April. The bike build went well, and with the help of John Bailey of Bailey Bikes, Pat and I finished my brother’s Bailey D-503 complete with Ksyrium wheels and a SRAM Rival group, perfect for his new ride.
Until next time, have a Happy Easter with you and your family, and I certainly hope you were all safe during the 7.2 magnitude earthquake we all felt yesterday (not to mention the lingering aftershocks)!
-BB
February 2010 – Runs, Rides, Family, Friends and Toys
Hello Friends!
The month of February, though short, was full of great training. As far as my training and preparations for the Rock n’ Roll Marathon coming up in June, my mileage in my running shoes has been going great. From all of the tips that I’ve received from my cousin Roland Castro, a Oceanside Physical Therapist and avid marathoner and from XX1090 teammate and ultra marathoner Alex Hamlow, I’ve added more hill training on and off the road into my marathon training, including one day of strength training per week which includes lunges, squats and resistance training.
Also, from reading about how plyometrics can assist in both running and riding, I’ve added a Kendo workout once a week, which combines a lot of short burst lunges and movements to help with the fast twitch muscles. It also helps to keep my shoulders, back and core strong, not to mention keeping me from losing my Kendo muscle memory.
This month, we were paid a visit from Becky’s sister Missy and her husband Scott Michie. The Michies are always a lot of fun, and I’m glad to have them as
my sister and brother-in-law. They’re both active like us, which makes it fun to include them on runs and rides. As eating out is part of entertaining our guests, we went to all kinds of great restaurants like L&Ls Hawaiian BBQ, La Quinta Grill in Chula Vista, Pizza Port in Solana Beach as well as a number of restaurants that Missy and Scott don’t have back home in chilly Chicago. To offset the massive eating we were doing, Scott and I made it a point to work out everyday they were here and we put in 12 miles of running, a fun mountain bike ride and some hiking with Becky and Missy in Torrey Pines as well!
Scott and I headed out for a local mountain ride at the Sweetwater Canyon reserve on one of the days they were here. Unlike some of the local city riding they do in Chicago, this marked Scott’s first official mountain ride, so he was pretty 
amped to head out on the trails. Luckily for us, the rain stopped just a couple days before, and while the trails were still damp and even riddled with puddles in some areas, we still had an awesome time. I treated Scott to some delicious fish tacos at Lolita’s Mexican Restaurant in Bonita right afterwards and he agreed that San Diego’s Mexican food is unreal. Big thanks to Mark Estrada for letting me hold onto his GT Avalanche for Scott to use on his ride.
While the road riding has been tapered back to rides only on Saturday and Sunday, I’ve still managed to meet up with some great 
friends for rides in and around San Diego County. Last week, Patrick Moneda, Edson Bandoy and I ventured out on a road ride from Mission Bay to Encinitas and back for a total of 50 miles.
While the trip wasn’t anything extraordinary, with hills and routes that we’ve all gained confidence on from doing a number of times, we were all watching the forecast all week to check out the status of the upcoming rain that was scheduled to hit San Diego. So, there we were, the three of us making our way up from Mission Bay, through Pacific Beach and onward to La Jolla, cutting through UCSD on our way to Torrey Pines. On the road towards Encinitas, I had a chance to ride next to familiar faces as, after all, I was on QMDC turf as a lot of the Qualcomm Riders live in and around the North County all the way up to Oceanside. Friends like Radio Joe Weickgenant and Joe Da Rosa either passed by heading in the opposite direction or rode next to the three of us along our way!
So there we were, plowing through 3/4’s of the ride as we made our way up the inside Forest Reserve track of Torrey Pines, when the rain came crashing down on us all the way from La Jolla, through Pacific Beach and down to Mission Bay. There were moments where I couldn’t even see out of my sunglasses and had better visibility without them on. This, of course, was a “Catch 22″, as I couldn’t see while riding behind one of my buds, as water, dirt and mud was flying off his rear wheel and into my face and eyes:)
We couldn’t help but just laugh at the ridiculousness of it all, trying to ride through water and mud, while trying to keep a pace fast
enough to get out of the rain, and at the same time not going too fast where a costly mistake could lead to an easy crash. As we made our way back to our cars, we had to snap a couple of shots of the rain and mud that sprayed up our bibs and jerseys. It was, by far, the wrong day to wear all white:)
So, the last ride that I did with my cousin Eugene last month, where we rode with the SWK Riders and Mira Mesa Cycling Club marked the last ride I’ll be doing with Eugene for the next couple months to a year as Eugene got accepted into the Academy for Corrections and Rehabilitations and after a 4 month Police Academy-like training, will be working at the Correctional Facility in Salinas, CA. While he brought his newly SRAM Red’ed out Trek Madone with him, I imagine he’ll be super busy with his new job and his family and I surely wish him the best in his new and long awaited career, after working at Performance Bikes since college.
As a parting gift and the result of having a great aero wheelset in the Spinergy Stealths with the white PBO spokes that he popped
onto his brand spanking new Fuji D6 Time Trial bike, Eugene hooked me up with the stock aero wheelset that came off his D6, which I happily popped onto the Bailey. While they’re certainly heavier than the Mavic Ksyrium ES’s, by far, they’re great as a training wheelset and absolutely fly on the flats and downhills, which I found out quickly on the descent at Torrey Pines!
Along with the training wheelset, I also finally adapted to the better technological advancements in cellular phones and picked up an iPhone 3Gs, which I was at first hesitant to try out, but am certainly glad that I did. Along with having access to my e-mail account and Facebook account, I also have the ability to update this website at my fingertips, am completely addicted to “Words with Friends” and “Chess with Friends”, and picked up the “Lose It” app, which allows me to obtain a stronghold on my diet as I get to input the food and exercise that I put in everyday. ”Lose It” lets me know how my diet is going, how many calories I can eat and how much weight I need to lose to reach my goal of 150 lbs. So far so good, I weighed in at 156 today, but that’s completely weakened after a 16 mile run. We’ll see if I can shed off the weight by June for the RnR!
Hope all is well with you all, that you’re training is going strong, that you had a great Valentine’s Day with your loved ones and that you keep your goals going strong. Until then, stay tuned for my next update for March 2010!
-BB
January 2010 – Month One of Marathon Training and Rides with Friends
Hello and Happy New Year Friends!
This month has been a change of pace for training, as I’m now switching gears not for a cycling event, but for a new focus: The Rock n’ Roll Marathon in June 2010!
In the previous months, the training had a 60:40 ratio of cycling to running, but with the months approaching, I have to set my game plan on tackling the biggest challenge I’ve ever faced, running 26.2 miles! So my new regimen is now more running focused, and the ratio has changed to 80:20 running to cycling.
While I definitely miss riding my bike as I only get a chance to ride either the Bailey or the Hi Fi once or twice a week, I know that I have to focus on the challenge ahead. So here’s my new schedule:
January 2010 – Mon/2-3 mile run; Tuesday/weight training; Wednesday/6 mile run; Thurs/Rest; Friday/16 mile run; Sat-Sun/Riding
February 2010 – Mon/3-4 mile run; Tuesday/weight training; Wednesday/7 mile run; Thurs/Rest; Friday/18 mile run; Sat-Sun/Riding
March 2010 – Mon/3-5 mile run; Tuesday/weight training; Wednesday/8 mile run; Thurs/Rest; Friday/20 mile run; Sat-Sun/Riding
April 2010 – Mon/3-5 mile run; Tuesday/weight training; Wednesday/8 mile run; Thurs/Rest; Friday/22 mile run; Sat-Sun/Riding
June 2010 – Mon/3-5 mile run; Tuesday/weight training; Wednesday/8 mile run; Thurs/Rest; Friday/18-20 mile run; Sat-Sun/Riding
I hope that my gameplan works well and I don’t burn out, and at the same time know that I’ve done enough to prepare myself for the long battle in June! I’ll tell you one thing about running. It’s perhaps the most miserable of endurance sports. On my long days, I leave my house with iPod, fuel belt, and running shoes and pound my feet into the concrete for 8 miles from Ocean View Hills all the way to the end of the Imperial Beach Pier and 8 miles back again in just under 3 hours. Have I seen any cool sites? Not really. Have I stopped to take a photo or two? Nope. Have I met some interesting people along the way? Maybe a couple of weirdos in I.B. But in and of itself, its not as social, scenic or fun as cycling. But it’s only until June:) Just as my buddy Mark Estrada and I agreed — after June, we’ll never have to run 26.2 miles again!
So what about the riding? Had a couple of great rides this month with some new friends and some old friends. 
Earlier this month, I had a chance to ride with the XX1090 riders, Qualcomm riders and the Church of Cycling for a QMDC Reunion Ride, which was an absolute blast. Riding alongside the friends I’ve made from June 2009 all the way to our amazing trip down the coast from San Francisco was a once in a lifetime experience, but more so rewarding when they become friends you keep well after the trip is over. We rode from our old stomping grounds of Solana Beach all the way to Del Dios Highway and back again. Big smiles all around, just they way it should be.
Mid January, I had a chance to ride with Mark Estrada, Edson Bandoy and newcomer Sam Magtanong on a loop from Poway to Del Mar and back around San Dieguito. Riding out with these fellas was a lot of fun and we’re all keeping the mileage up in preparation for the American Diabetes Association Tour de Cure coming up again this April. Team Follow will be returning the same riders as last year along with new goals for fundraising to find a cure for diabetes. Along with the previous riders, we’ll be joined by a bunch of
new faces that we’re happy to have on the team. As a side note, Sam Magtanong did a great job hanging with speedsters like Estrada and Edson and his great cardio that he’s gained through torturous seasons of wrestling from RB High to Syracuse and military training definitely showed in his “no quit” attitude! Now all he needs is a pair of road shoes and road pedals so he can stop using his mountain shoes on his $2000 S-Works Tarmac:)
Had a great opportunity yesterday to ride out with the SWK Riders from here in the Chula Vista area along with the Mira Mesa Cycling Club on a 50 miler from Telegraph Canyon, up Honey Springs to Jamul and back. With about 30 riders there, I had an awesome opportunity to meet some new faces and ride alongside some great riders. My cousin Eugene and I took to the front as we usually do, trying to set the pace before the mountains, but as it usually goes, we always seem to fall into our own trap as taking too many pulls up front doesn’t leave a lot in the tank for the climb:) Luckily for me, I went into yesterday’s ride fresh off running a 16 miler
(with a hangover) the day before, so my legs felt pretty awesome already.
Among some of the folks I got to ride with yesterday, I had a chance to ride with Ron Evangelista and Dan Layson, who I always enjoy riding with. These two guys are training for the Gran Fondo coming up around the 
corner and are the kind of riders, where no matter how fast you think you’re going, or how great of a climbing day you have, they’re always right on your rear tire the entire way. Along with them, I met a beast of a rider named Curt Josh, who I found out lives just down the street from me. The dude’s a stud athlete and an officer in the Army, and riding alongside and getting to know this guy who’s going to be leading his Infantry Division in Afganistan in a couple months was a great experience. A big congratulations goes out to him and his wife who are expecting their first child in a couple of months!
Overall, it was a great month in the books, and had it not been for the Chargers sad defeat at the hands of USC alumni and “The Most Interesting Man in the World” Mark Sanchez, it could’ve very well been the Chargers against the Saints, pitting a plethora of storylines from Rivers vs. Brees to LT vs. Reggie Bush, but I suppose that’ll be a story for another time. Thanks again to Nate Kaeding for yet again being the most automatic kicker throughout the NFL regular season, but missing the uprights in the post season. Ughh. Another gut-wrenching way to end a Chargers season:(
Until then friends, have a great weekend, a safe February 2010, enjoy Valentines Day with your special someone, and keep on riding, keep on running and keep on pushing towards your next goal!
-BB
December 2009 – BACK TO ACTION!
Hello friends!
Well, the hand, shoulder, hip and pride are healed and I was back on the bike a week after the crash, all bandaged up but happy to get back on the bike! The very first ride after an accident is always a bit sketchy, especially when going at faster speeds — I could feel my feet wobble a bit at the pedals. The nerves didn’t last too long, however, and after a good 20 miles, my body felt like it was back to normal!
Discovered a new ride to add to my weekly venture, a ride that begins in Eastlake and heads eastbound towards the 5, heads north to the 54, eastbound to Bonita and from Bonita through National City and Eastlake, goes through 5 wicked climbs in less than 12 miles. Its one of those rides where you can wake up at 7 in the morning, get a good strong ride in and be back at your house by 1000. Love it.
I’ve made the decision to take the plunge and finally put something to rest that I’ve been thinking about for a long time since the AFC Half-Marathon back in August 2009 — and sign up for the Rock n’ Roll Marathon scheduled for June 2010. I am a bit nervous about the run as 26.2 miles is going to be quite the painful ordeal, and the training to get there will be rough, but I’m excited for the challenge and from all my riding buds who do double duty as runners including a number of great friends made from the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge, I’ll have a great amount of people who can give me great advice on my training over the next 6 months.
This winter, my wife Becky and I had a chance to head out to visit her family in Minnesota, which was a fantastic experience, getting to spend time with her family, who for the record, makes the best food, from prime rib, to lasagna, to homemade desserts that only the Midwest can offer. While I gained a hearty 7 lbs from the great experience, it would’ve been so much more had it not been for the snowshoeing I did with my sister-in-law Missy and her husband Scott and putting in time at my dad-in-law’s great home gym which allowed me to pop in 14 miles on the treadmill! And for the record, snowshoeing really is like cycling and it uses almost all of the same muscles and cardiovascular movements to hammer up hills and spin on the flats by taking short quick steps. It’s the perfect cross training for folks who don’t live in ideal cycling weather like us spoiled San Diegans!
I hope everyone has a great new year and I hope you take the opportunity to get back in the saddle, lace up the running shoes, hit the gym or pull out the yoga mat and burn off all those calories you gained over the holidays! Nothing brings balance like burning muscles and clearing your mind of all of the stress and challenges that we face everyday.
If you want to set some goals for future races/rides both on and off the saddle, now is the time to start training and put your goals in motion!
Gran Fondo Century Ride – 3/7/2010 – http://granfondosandiego.com/
American Diabetes Association – Tour de Cure – 4/17/2010 – http://tour.diabetes.org/site/TR/TourdeCure/TDC551018030?pg=entry&fr_id=6800
La Jolla Half Marathon – 4/25/2010 – http://www.lajollahalfmarathon.com/events/events5e3a.htm
Rock n’ Roll Marathon San Diego – 6/6/2010 – http://san-diego.competitor.com/
Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge – 10/17/10 – 10/23/10 – http://www.challengedathletes.org/news/events.htm
Happy New Year everyone and thanks for all of the great feedback along the way!
Also, as a huge San Diego Chargers fan, I speak for a bunch of San Diegans in showing both my excitement and support in the Bolts comeback from a 2-3 season record back in October, to finishing at an amazing 13-3 with an 11 game win streak heading into the playoffs!
As yours truly finally won his very first Fantasy Football Championship in 6 years, I’m hoping the “happy karma” can spread to my Chargers.
Hopefully this is our year to go all the way and bring home a championship! GO CHARGERS!
-BB
11/27/09 – Bike Crash on Way Home from Work:(
Good morning friends,
Yesterday marks the first time I’ve taken a fall on my road bike. Mountain biking? That happens fairly frequently due to the uneven terrain, rock gardens, roots and just plain old tricky handling. But road biking? Usually, one can see everything that comes into your path from quite a ways away. Yesterday, however, was not the case!
The thing that everyone who has experienced an accident says, including my friend and XX1090 teammate, Alex Hamlow, is that when it happens, it comes out of nowhere, almost in a flash, and next thing you know, you’re on the ground assessing the damage. If you remember correctly, Alex has experienced a number of crashes throughout his excellent cycling career, but experienced a bad crash when his front tire blew out while he was flying down Palomar Mountain and was brought to the nearby emergency room with a broken collarbone.
I was on my way home from work in Downtown San Diego, just passing the 32nd Street Naval Base and heading south towards the Marina in Chula Vista when I grabbed my waterbottle and took my hands off the handlebars to stretch my lower back. I was thinking about what I wanted to eat for dinner with my wife. Earlier in the morning, I mentioned to Becky that I wanted Vietnamese food for dinner and, as many cyclists do, we obsess over what we’re having for dinner during our rides. Laying off the handlebars to stretch my back wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. It was something I did every so often, but this time was the wrong time to let go of my handlebars!
All of a sudden, a pothole came out of nowhere and I went flying over the handlebars at 16 mph! Next thing I know, I slammed down on the asphalt and my bike went flying into some nearby brush. After bouncing off the ground, I found myself skidding across the street on my left shoulder and head until I came to a stop.
As curiously humorous as it is, all I could think about was, “Is my bike okay?” I got my sorry butt off the ground and limped over to my bike to assess the damage. Luckily, no damage, just a couple of scuffs and a front wheel that needs a minor truing. Things could’ve been worse, as carbon bikes are a tricky material. Unlike aluminum, titanium or especially steel, carbon fiber is more brittle and though extremely lightweight is also prone to “hairline fractures” and could be dangerous to ride on after a crash. Luckily for me, it wasn’t that bad of a crash and the Bailey is fine!
After my assessment of the bike, I made an assessment of my injuries. Starting from my head, I took a look at my helmet, checked my skull,
face, neck and went down the line. While my left shoulder and hip were absolutely burning from skidding on the street, I knew nothing was broken as I had full mobility of all of my joints including my hip and shoulder. The majority of my bleeding was coming from my hands as I used them to break my fall and had pretty good sized cuts on my hands and my left hand was pretty swollen.
I tried to get back on my bike and ride for another couple feet until I decided to call it a day and called my wife to come and pick me up. Becky was amazing, getting me in the car, the bike in the trunk and helped me with my cuts and road rash after I got out of the shower.
Needless to say, I never got my Vietnamese food, thanks to my stupidity!
So, word of advice for the day, don’t take both of your hands off your handlebars unless you’re certain there’s no holes or bumps on the road and immediately put your hands (or at least one hand) back on the bars. In addition, never take your eyes off the road, as you never know what’s on the road in front of you. Basically stated, use common sense when riding and don’t be a moron like me!
See you in a couple weeks when I get back in the saddle!
-BB
11/11 through 11/14/09 – Lion’s Valley and Laguna/Cuyamaca Rides!
Good afternoon friends,
Today has left me ill from the effects of the change of weather, germies spread from the sick kids at my wife’s work, a ride in 40 degree weather, and probably just plain old exhaustion. Slept about 6 hours today, but still feel pretty sluggish. And NO, it’s not the Swine Flu:)
Last week was a fun week with some great rides. On Wednesday, since many of us “govies” (Government Employees), had the day off for Veteran’s Day, we decided to take on the Lion’s Valley Ride in the Jamul area. This is a 45 mile loop and is an extension of the Honey Springs Ride where we take off from the Eastlake area, head east on Otay Lakes towards Jamul, make a right up the grueling climb of Honey Springs Road, then turn off to Lion’s Valley towards the Filippi’s at the top of the hill and loop back around again. 
Wednesday’s ride had Cardio-freak turned road biker Mark Estrada, Pat Moneda in his first road ride back from hiatus due to hardcore studying for an Engineering exam, and 
Mr. Alpe d’Huez himself, Ben Herrera joining in for the fun.
One of the best parts about Wednesday’s rides was the Lion’s Valley portion, where after a couple of rollers through the Jamul area, we got to take on some wicked downhill descents where we reached speeds of over 45 mph!
Now, here’s a lesson for the day for all of you readers from highly experienced road and mountain bikers to newbies just enjoying the weekend rides — ALWAYS MONITOR YOUR EQUIPMENT BEFORE RIDING AND IF ANYTHING NEEDS REPLACING, REPLACE IMMEDIATELY. So you might wonder what happened that sparked this issue?
On a part of the descent through Lion’s Valley where the switchbacks have you leaning as much as a 45 degree angle through some of the turns, I was leaning heavy into one of the left turns when I heard a loud POP and my right foot came flying off the pedal at 30 mph kicking my chain off! My buddy Pat behind me said he froze as my whole bike wobbled as I had to regain my balance with oncoming traffic flying by on the other side of this two lane road. What was the problem? I had a worn down cleat for my Look Keo pedals that needed replacing, but stupid me, I decided that I could switch the left cleat to the right foot and vice versa and buy myself “one more ride” before heading to the bike shop to pick up replacement cleats. When I pulled off to a safe spot on the road, I examined the cleat and the entire front portion of the cleat broke off. So, essentially, I could only pull up on my left pedal for the rest of the 15 miles of riding we had to do to finish up the ride. Not so much fun.
On Saturday morning, Pat, Ben and I ventured out for a 50 mile ride through the Laguna/Cuyamaca area. This ride went through portions of the previous QMDC – Pine Valley training ride that we did a couple of months ago. Tons of climbing. This was a brutal ride, but absolutely beautiful as it went though the mountains of Laguna and Cuyamaca leaving you with some breathtaking views that one normally doesn’t see on rides through the North County.
Saturday’s ride was completely different from the Pine Valley ride not only on the route that we took (we didn’t go through Cleveland National Forest), but was drastically different in terms of weather. Prior to the Pine Valley ride, all of the riders were given notice to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate throughout the week because of the high temperatures on this ride due to the sweltering heat that the valley portions had awaiting us. Saturday? Completely the opposite. When we
started the ride, it was about 40 degrees and was completely miserable. Armwarmers, knee warmers, high socks, Nike dri-fit underneath the jersey and wind vest were no match for these conditions.
Oh yeah? And remember how I hate wearing gloves on road rides? The Laguna/Cuyamaca ride was definitely my breaking point. Which brings us to the second tip for the day:
DON’T BE A MORON: Because of the fact that on the coldest of cold days on the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge when our brave Qualcomm riders and Challenged Athletes rode through the mountains of Big Sur, I shed my gloves off after the first five minutes of climbing, I made the idiotic decision that I never have to bring my gloves on any of the rides from here on out. WRONG. After the first descent of Saturday’s ride, my fingers weren’t only numb, but I could hardly clinch my hands on my brake levers making it not only hard, but painful to use my hands because they were frozen. Luckily for me, I have a great support crew, and my buddy Ben, the surly veteran he is, had an extra pair of gloves that he gave me only after my hardheaded will was broken and gave in to using gloves. It turned out that I had to wear them for the entire ride just to defrost my frozen fingers!
Overall, we had a great day. The cleats were replaced and we had an awesome time climbing through some great ascents up Cuyamaca and through the Pine Valley area and also got to enjoy some fun descents on the way back around. The winds were also quite a factor around Lake Cuyamaca and we definitely had to stay close through portions of the ride where we felt like we were pedaling a 19 mph pace, but were only going 12! After the ride, we were all happy to pack up, and jump back into Pat’s truck where we could enjoy the heater on our way back home.
NUTS AND BOLTS:
As a quick update to some other things off the bike, my wife and I celebrated our 2nd year wedding anniversary on 11/9/09 and we had a great time as we headed out to Mister A’s in downtown for a delicious lunch followed by a gondola ride through the Coronado Cays for a lovely day!
Last week I had a chance to check out an awesome movie that is only playing at select theaters at select times and documents the amazing feat for your hero and mine, Lance Armstrong who recently won what is perhaps the most grueling mountain bike ride in North America that takes place every year called the Leadville 100 – RACE ACROSS THE SKY. If you get a chance, definitely check this one out. It was so worth my $12.50 for a ticket and $15 for popcorn and a soda! Check it out at www.raceacrossthesky.com
One last thing, if you didn’t notice from the pics from the Laguna Ride, the Bailey got a facelift last week as the new Ksryrium ES wheelset came in! Not only are they gorgeous with their shiny red anodized hubs and single red spoke, but they’re absolutely “zippy” on the road as well. Maybe it’s the close to half pound difference in weight from my previous wheelset, or the shaved portions on the rims between each spoke, but these wheels made for some fun climbing on Saturday. I’m just happy the missus wrote it off as “YOUR ANNIVERSARY PRESENT” and didn’t give me too much grief for a new wheelset:)
Have a great week everybody and its back to bed for this guy.
-BB
11-6 through 11-7-09 – Around My Neck of the Woods
Good evening friends!
This weekend has been a blast for riding. While it was awesome to get in a bunch of great rides up around the North County for the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge training rides, there’s something comforting to revisit my favorite rides close to home. On Friday, I had a chance to ride out with one of my favorite riding partners, my cousin Eugene Brillo. Friday’s ride took us to Eastlake and started us on a fun 40 miler from the Trek Store in Eastlake all the way to Jamul and into the mouth of the dragon, a 2500 foot climb up Honey Springs.
Here’s a bit of history about the Honey Springs ride. This ride, for a very long time, was THE ride that I absolutely hated with a passion. For years, every time I took on this ride with my riding buds, it destroyed me. What’s more, is that because I couldn’t hang on the wheel with my buds, I constantly found myself emptying my tank just to catch up with them on the 15 miles of flats to get to the start of the climb only to be completely drained to the point of puking by the time the climb actually started. For this reason, I avoided doing this ride at all costs.
But this has been a great year. With a stranglehold on my diet, exercise at a priority, 6 
months of excellent training and coaching from the QMDC, wonderful experience at hitting some of the hardest climbs that not only San Diego, but California has to offer, and 40 lbs of weight lost, I’ve gained a newfound love for climbing and was excited to see how I’d do against this formidable Honey Springs opponent.
Here’s what I always enjoy about riding with Eugene. He and I took on cycling together over 5 years ago and we never looked back. In fact, he loved it so much, he got a job at Performance Bike, where he still works today. In fact, while we both started out with mountain riding, he was the one who took the plunge into road biking and eventually got me into it. Something great about Eugene is there is absolutely no quit in him. He’s a stud rider and has an unending willingness to push himself through an entire ride. Flats, climbs and descents, he gives 100% all of the time and doesn’t hold back at all. While a piece of it is due to the “Brillo” never say die attitude, it’s also based on the fact that while we treat each other like brothers, we’re also fierce competitors, which always makes for a great ride.
So how did I do against Honey Springs today? I pushed myself to the red zone and kept a 12 mph average riding up to the top! What a difference a year makes:)
This morning, I had an excellent adventure planned. I had a chance to give the Bailey a rest and heed the calling (more like incessant mocking) from my Gary Fisher Hi Fi, and went out for a mountain bike ride! This morning took me to pay a visit to one of my best riding buds, Patrick Moneda, where he and I, along with buds Art, Ben and Mike, had a chance to venture out into the wilderness and take on the Rockhouse Ride at Mount Miguel. For the geographically challenged, like yours truly, this ride takes place in and around the outskirts of the Sweetwater Reserve area and headed towards the Eastlake canyon areas.
We started today’s ride at 630 this morning, pretty early for a ride, but as weekends usually go, especially riding with fathers and husbands, we have to start early so we can all get home to take care of our “honey do’s” from the wives, watch the kids, or even catch our favorite college football games. The crazy part of the Rockhouse ride is that it starts the climb about 30 feet after you get onto the trail. The beginning of the ride is completely unforgiving. It’s a vicious climb that stretches through switchbacks for a good 45 minutes until you reach the summit. Furthermore, with the thick coating of fog all around the mountains today, you could hardly see what’s ahead, so with every switchback and every technical climb, it almost seemed never ending!
We all had our tough moments and had to get off our bikes to “hike a bike” some of the trickier sections or due to the fact that on an incline, it’s so frickin’ hard to get back on the bike, especially when you’re sucking wind!
One thing that I’ve learned from this ride, is that I’m a pretty awful mountain biker:) After sitting on my road bike for months and months with only a mountain ride here and there, its so hard to get back in the swing of getting all of the balance, technical aspects and just plain old bike handling confidence that comes from practice. The cardio? Nothing wrong with that, so every time I had to get off my bike, I made sure to sling the bike over my shoulder “cyclocross style” and run my sorry butt up the hills until I could find a flat spot to get back on the dang thing!
Riding with those guys was a lot of fun. This was a first for me to ride with Art and Mike. Art was our seasoned vet who was a sure-footed billy goat climbing up Rockhouse today. He’s a stud rider who has awesome bike handling skills. Mike is a workhorse, and on his Santa Cruz Heckler, he powered his way up the mountain today, with a great big smile on his face when he got to the top.
Ben is another great rider. He may not be the fastest, but he’s got skills and the dude’s cardio is amazing. If you want to know about some of the greater climbs he has in his resume, he’s done the Alpe d’Huez. Wowee Zowee. Pat’s another one. A super technical rider, Pat’s a student of the game and when it comes to either road riding or mountain biking, he’s got great balance and form. Today was a rough day for him based on a riding hiatus due to an engineering exam he’s spent the last couple months studying for. But there’s no quit in him, he pushes himself to his limits every time, all the time, and once he gets his cardio back, he’ll be back to his top form — on either of his beautiful steeds (his 14 lb Colnago road bike or his insane S-Works mountain bike).
At the top of Rockhouse, there was this massive pile of rocks waiting for us with a sign that said “DANGER, ROCKS AND WALL MAY FALL WITHOUT WARNING.” Yikes! Also up there is an actual rock house, a rock walled maze that looks like a house without a roof. We all got off our bikes, took in some food and water, smiled at our great accomplishment of reaching the top and took on the Rockhouse rite of passage — placing a rock on the the rock mountain, before getting back on our bikes for some killer downhilling.
That’s the best part about mountain biking; for every long, grueling and punishing climb, we always get
rewarded with some amazing downhilling where we get to fly down the singletracks, fearlessly fishtailing around all of the switchbacks and sweet turns. For this guy, I had a fun time flying head over handlebars when I completely overshot a turn and rolled into some bushes! But as it always goes, you have to get up and run to your bike as fast as you can so no one sees that you just ate it:)
All in all, this weekend has been an awesome two days of riding. With my wedding anniversary approaching, I’m gonna take a few days off to spend with the wonderful wife. Two years of a happiness and many more to come!
-BB