The RSG Vilstal Classic

This was my last race for the season. It was also the hardest. The club, RSG Vilstal, that sponsors our local military racing team was having their club championships, and invited us to join in on the fun. The even created a seperate category for us.

The course was a 20 kilometer course out in the country. Absolutely beautiful yet hardcore course. It started in a small town called Kofering, did a quick downhill followed by a 9 minute climb. That was followed by 5k of rolling hills, then another 5 k of flat, then another good climb coming back into Kofering. The first lap we were all together, and on the first climb apparently we dropped the other Americans, so it was just me and a bunch of Germans. On the second lap, I got dropped on the main climb, so I went into time trial mode.

I was definitely outclassed by the German racers on this day. It just shows me how much I have to work in the "off-season" so that I don't lose what I gained this year, and so that I can improve next season.

On a positive note, I did beat the second place American by 12 minutes, so I got another cool trophy to go with the collection. After not riding for 15 months, only starting to ride again in mid-April, I have been pleasantly surprised with my performance this year. 3 first places, two fifths.

Just wait til next year.

I Hate Not Having a Car

So I don't get to go to the race this weekend because my ride fell through. I hate not having a car. Next year it won't be an issue though.

Putting All The Pieces Together

1 Corinthians 9:24a: You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard.

Last race of the Flyte1.com USAFE Cycling Series is this Saturday. Right now, I'm second by one point to Chris F. from Aviano. He's got 20 points, and I have 19. Here's hoping that he shows up so that we can battle it out on the track. That's right, I said track. This series has a little bit of everything for every rider. The first race, in Aviano, is a circuit race. I wasn't there this year. The next one in Spangdahlem is a time trial one day, and then a road race the next on rolling courses. The third is a criterium on a really challenging course. This last one in Sembach is going to be a 4km time trial on the 400 meter track with slight banking, and then a points race in the afternoon.

My buddy Bobber told me the first time we ever rode together up in STL back in January of 2003 that I would be great on a track because of my build and my thighs. Well, the thighs want to bring the thunder Saturday, and I might as well let them.

The verse on the top of the blog is just the first part of that verse. I like it a lot because I do train to ride fast, and when I'm out there racing, I only want to ride to win. However, the second part of the verse means a lot more to me:

"They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally."

I was looking at a couple of the trophies I'd won this year this morning while I was doing my daily Bible reading, and a thought entered my head. "You know Shawn, winning is fun, and the training is even more fun, but really, that stuff is pretty worthless. Put more effort into your walk with God, and then you will see what true winning is all about."

Shout out to Newsong's youth group in the Richmond, VA, and their weird spelling, but totally amazing youth pastor. He may not be able to spell that great, but he's still the man.

SD

The First Annual TEAM VSK Century

Yesterday four other guys from the team and myself did a one hundred mile ride. It was a really challenging because of a lot of hills, but we still averaged 17mph for the entire ride so we were able to make it under 6 hours. I was so proud of the guys. A lot of people try and try again to get a century in under 6 hours and never accomplish it. This was the first century for three of the guys, myself and another guy have already done one, and they did it on their first try. I drove the train for the last 10 miles so that we could do it. Our official team time was 5:51. It was awesome. It's been all rainy and cold all week, and then yesterday after about 1030 the sun came out and it warmed up into the 70's. It was awesome.

Last night our top sponsor, First Command Financial Planning, gave us a meal at this Italian restaraunt. Good food, and a lot of fun with the team and families. A good time was had by all.

Have a great weekend. It's a four day for us because of Labor Day.

You Got to Know Where to Look

What is up toute le monde? I hope that all is well with you guys. I had a fun filled weekend with a bunch of Catholics, and while some of it was cool, it didn't change my opinion on the religion of Catholicism much at all. Thank God that I was raised AG, because I don't know if I could handle doing the same exact thing at church each and every week, regardless of where I was at. I only had to go to two masses, and I was already jonesing for some Cape First or even Central A/G in SPFD. One of the masses though was in this HUGE cathedral in Cologne, and that was pretty cool. Retreats for catholics are like retreats for A/G youth though, little sleep. I was glad that I had taken a four day pass so that yesterday I could use it to recover. Other than going on a 2.5 mile run in the afternoon, all I did was chill in the bed, reading and watching tv. So I woke up this morning ready for the pharmacy.

One of the Club Beyond community directors that was there and also not catholic was Ms. Barlow's (PE teacher at RVA) niece. Her best friend in college was from RVA, and she also ended up knowing the Bransford's. Plus she wasn't bad to look at. So, yeah, I got her email address. One of the kids who's a senior, on the way back said, "Only Shawn could go to a Catholic retreat, find a protestant girl, and get her number." What can I say, I got skills.

I'd Rather Be Racing Tomorrow

Tomorrow's a big day for me. It's the August Soldier of the Month competition, and I've been studying like crazy for it. There is so much to know, and my mind is pretty much mush right now. I just pray that when the board starts asking me the questions, that I can recall all that I have studied.

Friday morning was one of the best training rides that I've had in a while. I always am happy about having a training holiday, and so I started the ride in a good mood despite the temps being in the high 40's. I ended up doing 3 hours with an avg of 17.5mph. I wasn't too worn out either, and that's a good thing because the males of Club Beyond had a lockin Friday night, so I ended up not going to bed (in this case a floor) until 0530. So Saturday became a non training day, but I made up for it on Sunday.

Arm Warmers in August?

Tuesdays have become kind of a tough ride day for those of us on TEAM VSK. It's something that we all have come to cherish, and fear. Yesterday what I had in store for the boys took things to a new level for some of them. We rode easy down the Edelfels hill, where we would ride up it for 3 minutes getting our hearts up to zone 5 on each climb. 3 minute recoveries between each hill repeat. Then after our last one, we recovered out to Irlbach where we turned around and TT'ed in the aero in zones 4 and 5. We have a couple of guys who are wheel suckers, so I made sure to mention a few times before we started that there would be no drafting. Drafting would defeat the purpose. I let everyone get about a 30 second head start on me, then ended up beating them all back to Schlict by anywhere from 20 to 45 seconds. The legs were happy. Today though, they are more than tired and they did not enjoy the 2 mile run this morning at PT.

The wildest thing about the ride yesterday is that for the first time in my riding career, I had to put arm warmers on in August. I could not believe it.