What an amazing weekend! The camp was an absolute success. It was incredibly fun to participate and help out where I could amongst these behemoths of cross. The preparation was amazing by Frank Overton of FasCat Coaching, Albuquerque native and uber-coach to cross hardmen John Verheul of JBV Coaching and Boulder’s own Brandon Dubba Dwight. The camp also had phenomenal support from Donn Kellogg of Clement tires (and each participant got a free set of the new Clement PDX mud tire. Amazing!). Let me give you the blow by blow of the weekend….and if you’re on the fence for doing a camp or you  think you’ve “already got it”, etc, think again and try and make it to next year’s camp. Amazing time spent.

Day 1: Welcome to the camp, fitting and VO2 Max testing

To begin, the camp had some great and passionate participants: Denver-Boulder locals Tim, Ed, Doug and new Boulderite Dave Hackworthy.  Dave is an Elite and U23 rider and Worlds and Euro Camp Participant for new the new Clement | Ridley | Boulder Cycle Sport team. We also had Wes from Indy and Joe from Idaho. Great characters. Make no mistake: This was a crew of passionate ‘crossers who want to get their game dialed. The skill levels ranged from first season to Pro. If a Pro rider is in the midst, you should be too! Everyone should continue to learn. It’ll make you fast!

The first day was spent with essentially a 3:1 ratio of coaches to camper focusing on your fit and your fitness. It was a true 'lab coat' session and wonderfully educational.

Coach John V used 20 + years of experience (and coaching many of YOUR heroes on the cross scene to huge seasons and World Championship podiums) to get YOU dialed on your bike. This is not a road bike fit for your cross bike. This is position-forward, milk-the-power fitting specific for your cyclocross bike, your style of riding and of course your physiology.  The software programs used (primarily Dartfish) were amazing. You could see in amazing slow motion how various changes would radically improve your position which by extension improves your power and most importantly ‘freshness’ on the bike.

While one camper was getting fit, another was in the VO2testing torture chamber. FasCat coach Krista would work with you on the VO2 max/lactate testing. I’d never had this done before and it was…frickin’ hard!

The VO2/lactate testing was very ineteresting. It involves a radically hard ‘escalation’ of effort starting at 150 watts and progresses in blocks until you’ve reached your threshold.  This could be 350 watts for some, 5 or 600w for others. The interesting part is how the body manages lactate during this load. I was told that I was at 2x the amount of lactate produced than any other camper at my threshold (400+ watts for roughly 60 seconds at the end of my testing). Good? I still need to get the analysis walked through but it’s really how you process lactate and manage it under load. Trust me, no Lemond am I but having the data is better than NOT having the data! I am better prepared with how to handle it during races.

To get your lactate measured, you offer your finger for prick

ing. You can see my right hand in the picture to the left about to get pricked. Or, here’s what it looks like close up (right)…

So, again, the effort was massive and was (for me) the first depth I’ve done since coming back from busting myself up. But it felt great to go fully cross-eyed for the first time in 9 weeks.

While one camper was being fit and another wired up in the hurt box, Rebecca’s incredibly capable hands as a PTA would ensure your muscular/skeletal system was in good order from the exertions you were putting out. She was also critical in the fit process to ensure your body dimensions matched the bike fit spot on to keep you injury free…

Day 2: Equipment and Skills…

Saturday morning was a cross geek’s dream. We spent considerable time diving into low level details of cyclocross equipment. Brake set up, tire pressure, gearing ratios, running double versus single rings….you name it. It was discussed. Brandon painstakingly walked the campers through all these details and answered everyone’s questions.

We then kitted up and got ready for our day-of-skills training. We would do an AM session at a large thickly-grassed park, the afternoon session at the infamous Elk’s Lodge: where legends are made and hearts are broken every Wednesday morning.

The instruction and training was infinitely low-level. All ninja tricks were exposed to the campers to ensure fluidity and fun. The smoother you are, the faster you are, and it all adds up to more smiles and podium potential.

For our skills sessions, Paul from CrossPropz was a huge help to the camp by providing TONS of his portable barriers. We had them spread out essentially in mini-courses on the grass with Coach Frank equipped with Dartfish taping EVERYONE’s game.  We'd come through the barriers over and over again. We would watch the films, rewind, critique and try again until ALL the campers felt great and proud of their improvements. Everyone was markedly faster through barriers after seeing themselves and having some of the best coaches in the industry work with them to refine their game. Between sessions, we’d go back to the plush HQ of FasCat Coaching and analyze everyone as a group. It was enlightening to hear everyone help eachother out, no holds barred, just to ensure their camp-patriots were faster…

Later in the evening before team dinner, Coaches John and Frank got together with campers one-on-one to walk through individualized training plans…a HUGE part of this camp’s draw. Campers are worked with on their goals for the season and plans were created accordingly…for each individual. Amazing.

Day 3: Putting it all together…

The prior 24 hours were intense. Tons of watts put out, tons of hot laps put in and LOTS learned. Yet, still tons more to try out! In the morning, coaches John and Frank talked through a general philosophy of training for cross to ensure freshness by the end of the season (sound familiar??). We also talked of how to efficiently warm up. I did a small contribution on race day rituals....quite fun to articulate some of the ninja tricks I've learned over the last 14 years of racing this beautiful sport...

Hot laps and more instruction on handling off-cambers and run ups happened Sunday, the last day of the camp. Coach John dialed in everyone’s technique to show how to save energy, be strategic in taking ‘your space’ through barriers and finding lines that you’d NEVER think about. Only that amount of experience can show you these details.

If you’re interested and have plenty of time to waste, you can look through my Flickr album for the camp. Or, feel free to leave comments to ask any questions about it. Worth every second.

I HIGHLY recommend the camp, or any camp you can attend if traveling is hard to do no matter where you *think* you are in your cross ‘career’. You…Will…Learn…LOTS! You’ll also make some rad new friends in the process who share your passion for what we do on any given weekend in the fall.

Hup hup, buttercups! What did YOU do this weekend to get your head in the game for cross??

P.S. Our camp had Space Legs? Did yours? Ha!

Its that time. The rubber and cotton has been stretching in the basement since the spring. The BCS team will be using  a mixture of Rhinos and Typhoons. Here’s what I am doing at this time of the year.

1. In order to prevent ‘Dugast Rot’, I called upon a great friend  of mine in Belgium, Michel Bajorek. Pro mechanic and cyclo-crosser extraordinaire. Michel, and others I’ve spoke to have insisted that I need to apply AquaSeal before the tire is glued to ensure the hard-to-reach spots where the base tape may be exposed are protected. In the picture to the left, I have applied Aquaseal from the tread all the way to the edges of the base tape. I have intentionally left the base tape ‘naked’ to ensure the best possible contact between the glue on the rim, and the layers of glue that will go on the base tape itself. Only the very edges are covered with AquaSeal.

2. I applied one coat on each side of the tire to cover the cotton completely. I do this off the rim obviously and let them dry off the rim overnight inflated. I then deflate, put back on the rim (no glue yet), re-inflate and do any touch ups on the sides. I’ll let this dry again overnight.

Next up will be gluing so I have an assembly line working….

Dear Andre’: Please start coating your sidewalls as part of your manufacturing process. You’re killing me.

My main man Matt Pacocha gave me some hints that I’d be REALLY happy and low and behold, homie was RIGHT!

While the UCI shit-canned their use in competition at UCI sanctioned races, nothing is precluding us wanna be Sven’s from using them at our ACA or Cross Crusade races…that is until one of us catches a Diablo in the heiney sprinting it out for a box of Gu’s.

They’re $225 each (that’s $450 bones for the math challenged for a pair) and must be special ordered.

Read the whole article Matt wrote here including his on-bike test with featuring a video of Matt versus our home boy, former slipstream seigneur and Subaru Rally whore, Jonny Coln as the drag race cooter style across 27” thick ice.

Boulder Cycle Sport was honored to be one of the first shops (if not THE first shop) in the US to get a sneak peek at the 2011 Ridley Cyclocross bikes we'll be rocking with this upcoming season. Our friends from QBP including good friend Steve Bobusch made the trek down from Minneapolis (ironically bring US great weather from the mid west) to allow the Boulder Cycle Sport and Blue Sky Racing Team s/b BCS 'cross team and a slew of cross geek friends to review some great Belgian products: Ridley bikes and Lazer Helmets. 

World Champ Štybar's (say: Shteebar) incredible 2011 X-Night complete with SRAM Red grouppo and new Avid brakes.

Steve "Sev-ee" Bobusch of QBP showing off the new and incredibly light Lazer Genesis and Helium products.

It would be Belgium without some Belgian Bubbles. Dubba showing some of the night's booty.

Dan Farrell checking out the simplicity of the Lazer's ratcheting system. It truly was SUPER easy to find and spin the dial to adjust the helmet.

The new 'price point' Ridley X-Ride. Sub $2K aluminum goodness.

National AND Colorado State Champion...oh AND terror to European Master's crossers...Pete Webber scoping out, ahem, one of my X-Nights, freshly dragged out of the cellar for the event and to help folks with sizing. Pete will be rocking the Ridley's this season. Hup!

We are indebted to the support Ridley and QBP provide the Boulder Cycle Sport 'cross team. Obviously we can vouch for the quality of the product and hope you check 'em out at your local dealer. Double hup!

See the full slideshow and all the antics here...

My good bud and local cross 'evangelist,' Paul McCarthy, has created an ingenious invention for us 'cross heads: Cross Propz Portable Cyclocross Training Barriers. Let me tell you about 'em....

My friend Sander, and author for Wielrennen Blog in the Netherlands, who was responsible for the article below I translated on the UCI banning the Diablo, sent me the film from Sporza on the Eindhoven ICE SKATING RINK. Ha! A couple of things to notice: Examine Sven's tire pressure on the low angle shots. More importantly, when you hear the pads squeal on his carbon Dura Ace Rims and he braking and turning, not how the wheel moves not one inch. Incredible.

Thanks to Matt Pacocha from VeloNews who forwarded me a brief article about the Dugast Diablo ban and all the hullabaloo it’s been causing since Sven’s testing of it in Eindhoven. I loosely translated this article originally found on http://wielrennen.blog.nl/. Molly Cameron also chimed in to me to state that he thinks the ban has been around for some time (still researching that….):

"Cyclocross riders may not ride with spikes or with small nails during World Cup events. The Dutch tire specialist Andre Dugast had a new tubular, called the Diabolo (Devil), made specifically for the conditions for Tabor. Dugast is no stranger to the cycling world, as most of the worlds best have ties to the company and race on their tires. In a first test of the course in Eindhoven, Sven Nys achieved a speed of up to 30 km / hour (!), Sporza reporter Marcel Wuyts says. During the World Cup broadcast next Sunday on Sporza a special segment on Sven Nys’ test of the tires in Eindhoven with be broadcast. 

Nys said in an initial reaction that the tires are phenomenally good. And a phenomenon they will always remain because the UCI has thrown in a wrench. When rumors reached the UCI on the spiked tires, they quickly reacted to ban. It would distort competition because less wealthy riders on the "old" treads will not be as competitive. Well, on an old tape you have to learn it? Seriously, it is not dangerous to life with nail bands around, crossing? Imagine that you are smacked against the floor by, say, a drunken supporter. See how quickly you’ll have to have a Czech doctor to find and pull all those nails out of your body.

Moreover, the Schwalbe tire manufacturer has a much longer relationship with spikes in its product range, but unfortunately for the racers, this involves an ATP band as well":

Here's a set of my Typhoons. Have a close look. Clearly on their last leg. Glued and sealed in 2008, they are still solidly on, yet starting to peel themselves from the base tape. This is an example of how water...when it seeps in and under the sidewall sealant (AquaSeal in this case) damages the cotton and wreaks havoc on the cotton.

Note that these sidewalls were sealed after the tires were glued on. I will be applying sealant before I glue this year, trying a new product alongside AquaSeal as well to determine which works best. Much like FMB or Challenge treat their products. Dugasts are sealed, yet I'm not sure with what! It simply can not stand up to the elements.

The Ridley's have treated me unbelievably this seson.  A way better arrow than the Indian shooting it. The X-Night is a pretty sophisticated bike and is one of the new-generation frames featuring a carbon seat mast in favor over a seat post. This adds rigidity (especially in large frames like my 58cm) while reducing overall weight.

Out of the box, the X-Night's seat mast must be cut to the rider's appropriate height. The frame comes with a number of shims of various thicknesses as well to get very precise on the positioning. After cutting and getting my seat height dialed, my first couple of mounts and re-mounts demonstrated a noticeable "pop" emanating form the seat mast. A little concerning to say the least yet I couldn't diagnose the problem.

At Interbike, I had the privilege of meeting the Ridely bike crew from Belgium and their US counterparts from QBP and talked through my issue. Very quickly they walked me through the process and I wanted to share that with you as well, family of Ridley X-Night owners.

If you have a 'just-out-of-the-box' X-Night, ensure your shop has this set of instructions for ensuring proper cutting:

In my case, these were followed but even a super slight deviance from the required tolerance can result in the audible popping noise. Essentially, the issue results from the top of the mast not properly sitting in the 'bay' of the aluminum mast clamp. A remount will occasionally cause an ever so slight 'pull' from the top of the mast and yet another occasional mount will 'pop' it back into place...thus the audible noise.

The solution to eliminating the pop is a simple one however and comes direct from the Ridley engineering team and is practiced by both the Fidea and Sunweb Projob team mechanics on their rider's X-Nights in the Motherland.

First remove your seat mast clamp. Ensure you thoroughly clean the inside of the aluminum clamp and the contact area on the seat mast.

Next, use the recommended carbon/aluminum assembly paste which is Tacx (red compound). FSA and Ritchey also make what appear to be the same paste (and is probably all made in the same factory regardless...).Use an acid brush and coat the sides and top of the carbon.

Re-attach the seat mast clamp and tighten to the prescribed tolerances (inscribed on the seat mast clamp itself).

Voila you are done! I have not experienced the popping since I added the compound.

This is a pretty cool video to see how cycling clothing is produced. Vermarc is a great sponsor of ours and I have a deeper appreciation for the kits when I take them out of the bag!

Check it..

Vermarc Sport - english version (with subtitles) from Vermarc Sport on Vimeo.