The Dragon Breathes Fire

A Story to Share

2012-01-23T05:15:00.000-08:00

Lisa and her son Nick Robinson stopped by the TT1 tent on the last stage of the Jayco Herald Suntour back in October. Nick was a young kid psyched to race, but he has one thing against him - he's fighting Type 1 diabetes. He was wearing a baggy set of cycling shorts and an unmatched jersey on top. All smiles.

This reminds me of the days when I put on all my 1 cycling kit that i owned, used a cotton t as a baselayer, a turtleneck as my long sleever and went out to jam with the rest on a cold day. It wasn't about looking good or having all the right stuff. It was about getting out and getting it done in great spirits.

I kept in touch with Nick since October. I told his mother, Lisa, that I had a kit that might fit him better. She jumped on it. The kid races track. TT1 has a future from Victora, AUS.

A Brief Return to Burlington

2012-01-21T05:22:00.000-08:00

Unable to take photos whilst in one of the most beautiful places to ride, I relied on teammate and young talent Joey Rosskopf to share with me and ultimately you some of the sights from our camp in Italy. The majority of the team put in 1500-1600kms in 9 days, amounting to something around 45 hours. Because it was my first week on the bike, I was given a little reign and able to take Day 3 as a recovery day and rest completely on Day 6. So, despite the fact that I was hammered and beaten by all of my teammates who are impressively fit, I'm happy to say that the camp was a complete success. I am injury free at present and I got to ride around on panoramic mountains for 10 days with the motivation of new teammates from all over the world. Check a couple of these cool shots below.

Arriverderci

2012-01-19T00:28:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's the last day in Terracina that I get to ride long hours and get cracked by my extraordinarily fit-compared-to-me-teammates... We're going for 4-5hrs. I had a birthday on the 15th. I received an orange with a candle carefully balenced in the proper navel orange. 2012 has started out incredibly well. I've been to Italy. I've done my 25 consecutive pushups just about every day regardless of how tired I've been since my 25th birthday, and I've survived a 25hr training week the first week back on the old two-wheeler. Here are a few photos from camp so far. Two are from dinner on the 15th, one is from the beginning of a training ride when Ronny (soigneur) was admiring my set of sharp D2 shoes that I'll be using this 2012 season.

Welcome to Italy

2012-01-11T00:12:00.001-08:00

You may or may not know that Team Type 1 is in Italy for it's second training camp in preparation of the 2012 season. Three weeks ago, the team parted ways in Tucson, AZ from its introductory camp that lasted 1.5 weeks (above photo showing team on one of it's first rides together. The sore thumb? Remy Cusin, one of two former Cofidis riders new to the team). Here in Italy, the focus is less on media and acquaintances and more on the riders' business. We're here to put in miles and get used to the different riding styles we each bring to the common ground of TT1, tweak our positions on new bikes, get some speed training in before the first race of the season (Tour of Wellington, where 6 riders will go a couple of days before camp ends), and perfect team efforts like lead-outs and talk race strategies. This is the type of camp the riders didn't get last year with eachother. It's a response from the directorship to the veterans' call for an imperative development camp so that when we get to a race, riders will know how to communicate effectively and achieve victory by strength of camaraderie.

I haven't touched my ride since the last camp and am refreshed, motivated and ready to put my body through the ringer for the third season with TT1 this 2012, a season that I hope will get me a UCI victory and a step closer to a Grand Tour.

Terracina, Italy is known for it's Mazzarella di Buffala, admittedly delicious. The first day of riding ended after 140km. It was a "vision quest" for me. I was completely blown -just one day on the bike and I was in the hole! But, that was nothing, because yesterday, the second day on the bike for me, the team was to ride for ~6 hrs total and race on open roads for the last hour! Well, that was all a possibility (however small) until I started to crack 3 hrs into the ride. I didn't race, but I did bonk harder than I've ever hit the wall at about 150km and ended by myself, bringing up the rear for 176km, the last 30km solo. It was a rude awakening about how much fitness can be lost when you take 3 weeks off the bike, but these guys are ramping up their training now, whereas I'm just beginning. Races like Marseille in France, Tour of Wellington, Tour de Mediterranean, etc are all coming quickly and if we want a shot at racing a Grand Tour this year, we've got to start winning races early to prove ourselves worthy of wildcard invitations to those races. So, in two days, I've ridden for about 10.5hrs and done 315km.

Today's schedule? 2-3hrs AM and sprint workouts this afternoon on a marked circuit. The team has been split into two groups, each with 3 designated sprinters. I think we're supposed to race eachother. Frederik Moncoussin, our French director gave a presentation last night and named the teams, nominating each rider to a position in the group's lead-out, saying in less than perfect english and one of those thick french accents, "I'm almost sure I know the strengths of each rider after the past two days of riding, but if we need to make changes, we can." In a moment of shock at the expectations of me on my own Day 3 of Training and an attempt at some comic relief, I prompted "And just about what am I good for?"

It turns out nothing can break the cold intensity of Europeans so next time I'll try to say it in Italian...

When I can, I'll post phographs and even rider bios to bring you closer to the team and not just the rider you may already know as Will Dugan. Thanks for all your support and interest. Happy New Year.

Arrivederci Tutti.

Rock You Like a Hurricane

2011-08-28T08:13:00.001-07:00

The last stage. As Irene sweeps over the East Coast, TT1 will be storming Colorado for the last time, fighting for another stage victory.

Yesterday happened. It was a hard race from the gun and by the end, only 50 made it over the final lump in the road with 15km to go to fight for the stage. TT1 had 2 in that final group: Javier and Vladimir, but we came up a bit short. I was in a small group of 12 or so just behind. Here's a video clip that recaps a bit of the stage. I'm starring in it!

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?desktop_uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DjrvHy7I835U%26feature%3Dshare&feature=share&v=jrvHy7I835U&gl=US

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Queen Stage UPCC

2011-08-26T10:11:00.001-07:00

My day:
I followed a lot of moves early on, pushing for the breakaway, but it wasn't going anywhere.
A horrific crashed on a cattle guard across the road sent teammate Daniele Callegarin home. He is recovering well in the Denver Hospital and his girlfriend is coming to keep him company. The team is down to 7 without Daniele and were lamenting his absence as today's stage would be one of the few that are better for a rider like Daniele: a handy guy in a bunch sprint.
The crowds on Cottonwood and Independence were extraordinary. On TV, I watched roads crowded with spectators divide as Tour riders screamed to the top of climbs. Racing here felt just like that. Even in a group further back, fans were equally emphatic. It is super motivating for the riders, and a great sign for the sport to see these die hard fans appearing in the USA!

The TT yesterday was lined almost the entire length with people. Vail's crowds around town and within the first K of the start tent were particularly exciting. I usually embrace the warmth that the crowds bring to us. In the start house, I toss my sipping-bottle to supporters as close as 10 seconds to the start. A small wave. 5 seconds to go I start breathing and the gun goes! You can do your job and have fun with it at the same time. It ain't all serious! I did nearly drop myself on the last turn out of town. I was doing a hell of a clip through town but we couldn't practice the course at much speed and I must've lost around 15 seconds nearly combing to a complete stop ion a big gear on a small incline. I was bogged down, but there was no need to really panic: I'm no contender for the win and I was also confident in my ability to finish within the time limit. Still, my TT abilities which remain one of my weaknesses are improving and each race is an opportunity to improve.

These final days these final 3 stages are the Team's real days to shine. We are going for the break and for stage wins. Success will come. Follow along on shacktracker.usaprocyclingchallenge.com! Live video coverage.

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Breathing through straws

2011-08-24T06:42:00.001-07:00

8,000 ft. Only 1,000 ft to go before we arrive at start elevation(stage1)! Having done Tour of Utah, we're not ill-prepared, though racing groom 9,000-12,000 ft is a whole different animal than proud 5-6,000.

No service prevented that quick post yesterday AM.

I spent about 35-40 minutes in an attempt to bridge solo to a breakaway yesterday as the first attack I went with was stifled quickly. It had ~1min or so when I attacked and was within 15-20sec, but the would not wait seeing I was a threat to the KOM Jersey. Today is another day, though, and I'm not one to wait around, as you know. It's the queen stage of 210km today. Wish us luck! The GC will most likely be decided today, but a stage win or breakaway success is not out of the question.

Cheerio.

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ivan basso

2011-08-22T06:21:00.001-07:00

First words exchanged with evan basso were him at breakfast saying saying "shit food, man." Me: giorno. Welcome to america hotels, ivan! (Not the second part).

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The last supper

2011-08-21T20:56:00.001-07:00

We had our last dinner before the USA PRO CYCLING CHALLENGE begins with tomorrow's 8.3km downhill time trial. Tonight, we're all doing what we do best before the excitement begins: surfing on our computers listening to music, catching up with family on the phone and, in the Efimkins' case, talking to his twin brother!

Tomorrow marks a day to present the teams to the onlookers and produce a basic General Classification construct. The winner tomorrow might not win the race overall, but a short individual prologue stage does a lot for setting a tone and taking out the jitters from a possibly nervous field. Personally, I feel very relaxed going into the race, but I know that it will be among the most challenging I will have ever done.

I'm going to get into the habit of including my daily breakfast on this thing for you. Today I had a couple of bowls of chopped fruit (peach, strawberries, cantaloupe) on Kashi Crunch! granola. I had a piece of bread smattered with Nutella, once I found that stash of gold. Coffee included.

Until tomorrow. Don't forget that I make updates during the day on Twitter under the @Will_Dragon. Log in, register for free and stay in touch that way as well to see photos I upload during the day. It's free and it takes 2 minutes.

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2011-08-20T15:47:00.001-07:00

Callegarin put the Italian into the pasta last night while I cooked on the grill at D.S. Michael Carter's house. Today we zipped over to the Crown Plaza race hotel in time for a short nap, massages, dinner and team presentation ceremony. Tomorrow, the race will start tomorrow.

PS I have el cellular back so call me, baby.

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Colorado Prep

2011-08-18T21:33:00.000-07:00

Having left my phone at the Texas Roadhouse after dinner tonight, I can't post all the gooey photos of today's ride for you. Well, I'll get to that. We saw Buffalo Bill's Grave at the top of Lookout Mtn, a climb we do on the last stage of the USA Pro Cycling Challenge.

I'm rooming with Alexander Efimkin, twin of Vladimir Efimkin (the newest addition to TT1). The two rode together on AG2R last year and are back racing together on TT1. A profile of a few new faces is due to you, including Danielle Callegarin, one of TT1's Italian riders that joined us in Scott Stewart's absence for this upcoming tour in Colorado. Scott has come down with something still to be determined and left the Tour of Utah early to go home to Michigan. I was sad to see my only American compatriot leave, but I've got to work on my italian sometime...

Wish me luck locating my cellular device.

Utah Finito

2011-08-15T17:04:00.001-07:00

We crawled into the pain cave Utah provided and emerged unscathed, and hopefully stronger than we were before. The last day was incredibly difficult from the moment the nearby bank CEO who shot the starting gun, shot the gun. Within 15 minutes I thought I had given everything I had! And then I kept going. I surprised myself with the number of moves I could follow in the beginning of the race, but I knew that those efforts would take their toll. The team did a good job rotating and marking moves. To everyone's astonishment (not only the awe of Team Type 1 - Sanofi), no breaks went before the first climb! But, that left our lungs a-burnin' and our legs swollen in pain when the climb came. The KOM jersey no longer belonged to us, but up to the chance of the race up the road. And so we had fought for it early and risked our chips.

I fell off the back for the first 10 minutes and needed to recover, finding my own rhythm. As I climbed, I found a tempo I could hold, riding through groups of riders (debatably, it wasn't the most classy thing to do as I rode from a group that got in the broomwagon up to friend Jamey Driscoll and Kelly Benefit Strategies rider Jason Donald who rode with me at a decent clip for the last 40 miles). We actually, the 3 of us, rode so well together that we caught those that had gotten dropped from the front group on the final climb up to Snowbird. An aggravation comes over me when the word "Groupetto" rings: I can't settle just to ride and let the race go unless I have completely shut down. Not only is it defeating, but it almost serves no purpose. Why even finish? If I've got gas in the tank that I can find, I'll use it up before the end, that's it. So, I was mighty happy to ride through about 5 groups of riders by the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon, happily finding a familiar riding partner in James and another for a more animated, enjoyable day skimming Utah's mountainous topography. There is an air about the Groupetto that can be fun in its laxity when your legs have lost all hope of energy, but I did that in 2009 on this very stage. This year, I wouldn't have it. It would've been too frustrating for me. I suppose I knew already that I had been riding a strong tour and that if my efforts were expended differently, I might have been fighting in the final group that rode 15 minutes ahead of us. There was that, and plus, why not get a little training in before the USA Pro Cycling Challenge next week in Colorado? The fun I had riding up on this day ended up being well beyond that of my favorite training loop. Check out what The Man in Camo had for me as I rode through a shute of awesome spectators at 4km to go!

The Morning of The Queen Stage (5)

2011-08-14T08:20:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, the field split up early and we had Javier and Rubens representing. It was a hot day and attrition took it's toll. With 5 laps to go of a 12km circuit (starting at 12 laps), the attacks from the peleton started. Unfortunately, going into 2 to go I found myself in poor positioning to make the selection, which was very frustrating. However, the race up front by the team was ridden nearly perfectly as we rounded 2nd and 3rd on the podium. Team Type 1 has photos of the race on facebook.

This morning is the hardest stage. 160km but a kills profile. We need Rubens in the break early to take KOM points and to secure his lead. I will do my best to be there with him. We are riding low profile wheels-the lightest setup for today's stage. Now, in the team bus, we're transferring to the race. Here are some shots. The one of me was from the hotel room after breakfast - a few relaxing moments: the calm before the storm.

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Stage 4 Utah

2011-08-13T15:47:00.001-07:00

After a crazy day, I was a little disappointed in myself, but Ii know I am riding strong so....TOMORROW, ATTACK!!!!

Javier 2nd today, Rubens 3rd! Details to come!

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The Raw-ness of the Ride

2011-08-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

In order to bring some readers closer to the sport and my experience as a growing rider, I want to try a few things. I want comments on this, also. I will include a few race-related shots if I can once in a while that show the behind-the-scenes activities of racers (in this case, me and a lucky, occasionally willing roommate). I'll include a shot of me shaving my legs this morning before race departure. Maybe I can get breakfast tomorrow for you. Today I had a cut up peach and banana with granola, walnuts and chopped almonds. 2 cups of coffee (yippee) and maybe a snack here and there of a few other things, but that was the meat of it. Before the race, I'll eat a delicious bacon, egg, cheese, chopped tomato combination sandwiched between a cinnamon raisin bagel buttered and jellied with some fig jam I spotted on the Liquigas-Cannondale table, courtesy of Ted King (found on Twitter @iamtedking). Food is our fuel and nutrition has been a growing interest in endurance sports over the last few years. Maybe a week or so of including my pre-race or training diets would help give perspective for others and help me realize some improvements I can make myself! Alora.

Time Trial Recap:
I was going about that hard and I finished 92nd... How's that for a summary?? A flat time trial on an F1 race course. It was hot and dry. My start time was 2 minutes before 6pm. One of the latest TT's I've ever done! Another day under the belt.

Our interest lies in keeping Rubens' KOM jersey and in winning a stage. We have 2 more to go. There are no KOM points awarded today (Stage 4), so the stage win will be a focus. You can follow on cyclingfans.com I believe.

Please participate in the poll above. I've kept it active until I return to the East Coast after the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado.

Utah Prologue

2011-08-09T20:40:00.001-07:00

Today was the prologue. It was a mere 2km, but as short as it was, it hurt more than a tooth filling without novacaine. Anyhow, I was 88th of 118 riders. The result is unimpressive, but not to worry, if I got down on a prologue result at every stage race I've ever done, I'd be a really unhappy little dude. Above is a view from the team bus of where the prologue took place. I'm glad I don't have anyone with a gun to my head telling me to ski jump off of that thing. Yikes.

Tomorrow we will race 180km and climb like 10,000ft and hopefully do it better than all the other cycling dorks out there. Kill them all.

A domani.

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2011-08-07T15:18:00.001-07:00

I left Aunt Melanie in Santa Fe this morning for Salt Lake City. There, I encountered a few surprises. First, as I was waiting for the shuttle and trying to meet up with my new teammate Vladimir Efimkin, brother of A. Efimkin, both former AG2R riders, he took the very shuttle I had called while I was looking for him and sped off. Nothing short of an extra round hour at the airport, I met up with Fabio to take the next ride to the Sheraton.

The next surprise was meeting up with old friends at the restaurant for a mid-summer luncheon, but what was really the cap of it all, was all this new kit that awaited me in an unassuming white trashbag, presented by seigneur Ronny Goicochea. See attached photos.

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2011-08-07T14:56:00.001-07:00

My Ridin' Ain't On The Rodeo Circuit Out Here

2011-08-06T08:19:00.000-07:00

Blogger hasn't been doing me well over the last month! I've been riding locally in Burlington since the Tour of Qinghai Lake in China (last post was on the way there). It might be time for my own URL, no? Should I get a poll on that? Let me see what I can do, here. Meanwhile, read on.

I'm in Santa Fe for the second time in just over 7 months. My aunt Melanie Dugan lives here in a great adobe style single-level house outside of the city. As much as I love to see Melanie, part of the draw to visit her before racing Tour of Utah and the USA Pro Cycling Challenge (in Colorado) was the elevation. I thought I could kill 2 birds with one stone by spending a week out here before racing two of the hardest stage races in the US in a dry climate at significant elevation. Santa Fe sits at 7,000 ft and Melanie is up the hill from there, so I'd say this is perfect! There's a beautiful 25k road not far away that goes up to the Santa Fe Ski Basin, reaching 10,350 ft that I first explored on Christmas Day this past winter. I had an unfortunate experience laying it out on black ice on that brisk morning, but the summers are gorgeous up there - it gets nice and cool as you work your way up.

Tour of Utah starts August 9th and finishes on the 14th. The USA Pro Cycling Challenge is soon after from the 22-28th. After that, I get to go back to New England for a respite before another CCA (Chinese Cultural Adventure) at Tour of China in mid-September.

Today is my last ride in Santa Fe. Tomorrow I'll leave for Salt Lake City to regroup with Team Type 1 before the show begins. Tour of Utah was actually my first race with Team Type 1 in 2009. I had a great time and suffered a whole lot.

Tour of Qinghai Lake

2011-06-27T09:09:00.001-07:00

Yes! I'm leaving today. I'm on my flight to Beijing right now. See all the people boarding? This is China, people. I'm not headed to Shanghai, Hong Kong, Thailand or any other great cities. Sure, I fly to Beijing, but I'm going to the boondocks. I'm going out where people defile the streets with excrement and families work in fields, sunrise to sunset, to feed their children. Foot massages mean "more-than-that" massages. I went to this high-elevation competition two weeks less than 1 year ago. I suffered, coming from Vermont and racing at 7-13,000ft, sure I did, but that's how you make a man out of a child! Hairs on the chest, please. Teammate Martijn exclaimed before Stage 5 of Tour de Beauce at my healthy patch of chest hair "Woah, Dugan, you have hairy chest, man!" Indeed, I do, and don't you forget it, Marty, I ain't a sissy that shaves! I embrace my gifts. It's the simple things that bring us joy in life. Is your life monotonous? Do something fun like grow your chest hair. Try as hard as you can to grow it out. Push. Squeeze, Grunt, Lift, Flex. It's all scientifically proven.

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Beauce Stage 2 Victory

2011-06-16T05:38:00.001-07:00

This is Mr. FAB. we are roommates everywhere we go together. After a killer lead-out by non other than #1 himself, I helped the boys get in decent position for the sprint. We went 1st, 5th and 6th. Martijn Verschoor was el campione. FAB ran 4th and Alexei Schmidt had a 6th place finish. It was a great final 3 km for TT1, and our first stage win of the year.

Today, a mountain top finish await us on Mont Megantic (only the Canadians would really get pumped on a name for a large mountain that combines "mega" and "gigantic," thinking, "yes, this is really the best name for this, here, mountain. It truly elicits the awe and grandeur that you feel when you stand before this magnificent earthly growth."

Off to the start. My job is to make ben king go as fast as he can up the mountain so he doesn't lose too much time. That way, he will crush the TT and get in the top 5 on GC. Sonic Boom.

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Beauce Stage 1

2011-06-14T12:45:00.001-07:00

We started off going really fast and then 22 riders got away and though Team Type 1 and United Health Care each only had 1 rider to represent, we couldn't bring it back. Then we went really slow. And so, the race happened. I heard the break finished with about 20 min on the field. Wild stuff, we're talking, here.

Luckily, Ben King for Team Type 1 can time trial better than the Big Willy Style album sounds (I know, hard to believe), so having him place 6th for the day gives us confidence in a GC result from him. He rode like a machine for me in Korea, and I'm pumped to help him get on the podium overall.

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Tour de Beauce

2011-06-13T18:27:00.000-07:00

There are two reasons to go to Canada: to go to a bike race or go buckwild. If you don't know what going buckwild is like, all you have to do is drive to Canada without the intention of going to a bike race, and you will most likely find yourself doing just that.

Last weekend there was the F1 race in Montreal. I guess that's a third reason to go to Canada, but I'm pretty sure you'd go buckwild if you were there, so it still doesn't fall into it's own priority category.

Beauce June 14-19, 2011

The season seems to be moving along quickly. It's hard to believe I did my first race in January this year. Previously, I started March 1st or at the end of February.

Tour de Beauce begins tomorrow. I drove up the "Jetta" after getting it all fixed up for top performance with new brakes, struts and all-season tires. I jammed up to Canada this afternoon with lots of loud techno and didn't see a single officer. Which was good, because they might have seen how good my new tires look and decided to pull me over.

After some great training at Tim and Lyne's new Topsfield location, I hope I'm good and prepared for the 6 day event in Quebec. I raced here last year as a support rider with Team Type 1 and had a solid race, despite touching down 3 separate times.

This is my first time with the team since Tour of California last month, and it's great to see some familiar faces. I'm rooming with Fabio, my usual mate when we race together. I'll get a candid photo of him at 6am when he least expects it to post tomorrow. Stay tuned and wish us luck. I hear if TT1 gets enough UCI points we can go Protour...

My off-weeks

2011-06-12T06:04:00.001-07:00

I walked up and down my street a whole lot. Here are two drag queens that couldn't resist me while Marshalling at the Burlington Marathon. I spent some quality time and money setting up my new studio apartment here on the Marketplace to make it comfortable for #1. The brick walkway is entertaining enough for people-watching, anyway, and this cat seems to enjoy doing the same. A regular on the marketplace, himself, this Tabby sits atop the handlebars of his bike and passes the day lazily, free of worry.

I travel to Quebec tomorrow for my 2nd Tour de Beauce. I'll be making the drive up and racing from the 14-19th. So, today will be my final weekend in Burlington for about a week. I'm looking forward to a fun group ride or two between today and tomorrow AM. I'll be online throughout Tour de Beauce. Follow along! This is my first team race since my tumble on Stage 3 of Tour of California. Hope you all are well and have room to make this a routine stop online during your morning coffee sipping. Cheers.

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GO TED KING

2011-05-30T12:09:00.001-07:00

He's in the break and I want you all to know that while I'm resting my helmet head, I'm cheering for the new england star who deserves nothing less than stars and bars everywhere.

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Recovering

2011-05-27T06:40:00.001-07:00

I've had a little time away from the hype of California and the accident that gave me and many others a bit of a scare. I'm doing well and recovering mind and body in no better place than Burlington, VT among some close friends from my days in Uni. I took an apartment up here for the duration of the summer months and will use this place as my training locus for the next set of upcoming races.

I will not be attending the USPRO National Road Championships this weekend but instead, use this time to refocus on the next half of the season's goals. Tour de Beauce in Quebec will be from June 14-19, and immediately following that I will be one of the lucky riders from TT1 going back to China for Tour of Qinghai Lake July 1-10.

Here are some classic Burlington VT photos. Today doesn't look as nice as these shots do, but sometimes it just has to rain, and I'm going to embrace the hell out of it!

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California Stage 4 DNS

2011-05-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

I didn't start this morning. The call was made by a collaboration of team doctors and directors, and it was the smartest decision. I was ready to hop on and fight for the team another day, but the difficulty with a bump to the head is that nobody really knows the extent of the injury. There is no visible symptom one can use to diagnose accurately. I need some time to recover, yes, but I feel ok. Velonews.com wrote something on me. Here's the link, if it will work:

http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/05/news/will-dugan-leaves-tour-of-california-with-head-injur_174220

I have to say that though this article does capture the necessity of my withdrawal from the race, almost everybody was interviewed except me! It would've been nice to have gotten a few words on that page. I hope next time it will be considered. But, since you are reading this because you are interested in not just the what, but the details of the why and how, I invite you to continue reading!

After some posts on facebook, I caught a glimpse of the video of my crash a few hours ago. I don't have much road rash. My right cheek (not the one I shave) has an awesome bruise and I have a scrape here and there, but my head and back did take the brunt of the impact as the video shows. Luck was with me: nobody hit me once I was down. What's more, our team is also outfitted with Doctors knowledgeable enough to limit me sensibly and for that I am thankful. I was really ready to start this morning.

I'm currently catching a flight back to Burlington, VT, my most recent home. It's as difficult to hang around a race in which you cannot participate as it is to stop competing. As I've mentioned before, every rider in that peleton wants to race for at least one of several reasons involving themselves or their teammates.

The team could have used my help today and would do better with me there as the race goes on, but accidents do happen. It is hard not to be disappointed. The circumstances of yesterday's crash prevent me from continuing, and I want to help these guys win. I really do. My role was generally to act as a supporting rider for Alexander Efimkin, recent winner of the Tour of Turkey 2 weeks ago, while I was finishing in South Korea. Still, we have decent chances at road race stage wins with all of the riders. Time trial specialists Laszlo Bodrogi and Rubens Bertagliati both have a great shot on Stage 6. Watch these guys. They are very experienced and they speak 5 different languages, each. It's a great group to be with.

My next race will be the USPRO National Road Race Championships in Greenville, SC on May 30th. Tour de Beauce will follow that from June 14-19 in Quebec, Canada.

Crash Stage 3

2011-05-17T21:42:00.001-07:00

I went down as some of you may know. There was a short article on VeloNews:

http://m.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fvelonews.competitor.com%2F2011%2F05%2Fnews%2Fdugan-voigt-recovering-after-late-crash-in-modesto_174036&h=60246&refid=7

Not to worry. I plan to start stage 4 tomorrow at 11:45.

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Stage 2 shortened

2011-05-16T07:55:00.001-07:00

We're transferring this morning for a 12:30 start somewhere lower with better weather. The race will be a hells-fast 100km instead of a fast 215km. We just killed breakfast and smashed some coffees. We stayed in ski condos last night. The team split in two, so four to a condo. Felt like I was a downhiller again on a ski weekend, only I had no skis to tune at 5am. Javi and I are roommates still and I'm working on my espanol espanol, if you know what I mean. Gotta practice my lisp. Entiendas?Before bed my sugar was 85mg/do, morning 88, now on the way from breakfast I am 107.

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Snowy stage 1

2011-05-16T07:49:00.001-07:00

Photos from the car

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Post Stage 1

2011-05-15T14:38:00.001-07:00

The blogger app on my phone is a bit touch and go right now, so I appreciate your patience. I am having trouble updating photos and especially videos. We are currently in the team bus driving to the hotel in Northstar, CA, just on the north side of Lake T. I refuse to type the word to which T belongs anymore. I feel like a NY yuppie just saying it. SO, It's slightly less than a blizzard out there, and though the peleton got kitted and lined up on the start line, the consensus was made that it was far too dangerous to ride even a third of the stage today. The roads are icy and the visibility is low. It sure would make for an epic training day, and reminds me of the riding I would do while I was at UVM. I've ridden through worse, but racing in it is a different story. If I can edit this and add photos, I will do so, ASAP.

On another note, one of my posts that was rejected because of the videos attached to it included the research that which Dr. Frias had asked TT1 to participate. 5 riders including me have attached glucose sensors to our bodies. They insert subcutaneously into interstitial tissue. Some have them on their stomachs and I have mine on my lower back, right next to that tattoo of a butterfly and two chinese characters symbolizing regret and immaturity that I got on my 18th birthday. I wrestled with the sensor all day yesterday and had to install 2 new ones to get comfortable. The sensor transmits Wirelessly to a monitor about the size of a flip-phone. I will carry it in my pocket and keep it within 5 feet of my body at all times through the week. The research will focus on the differences in blood sugar levels between riders with and without diabetes throughout the week of racing at a world class level. As a non-diabetic my levels are relatively stable, thanks to a healthy pancreaspancreas, but I still see variability occasionally. The research also has an added element and will record data riders' performance using SRM powermeters (the participants got them installed yesterday, wohoo), and it will be used to see if there is a correlation between blood glucose levels at all levels and performance measured in wattage output. Later, Dr. Frias hopes to send the participants to San Diego for a physiological screening including VOmax testing and a common ramp test which shows, among other things,at what power levels an individual transitions into different levels of exertion (endurance, lactic threshold, etc...)

I will keep info and my own educated findings on how my sugar fluctuates coming in. Don't hesitate to ask any questions, please!

Morning Stage 1

2011-05-15T07:40:00.001-07:00

It looks like hell frozen over on S. Lake Tahoe. We doubt the race will start with snow accumulation of a few inches and a high of 35F today. They might postpone the race a few hours, but the outlook isn't great. Take to the slopes, boys! Where's James Driscoll when I need him? Photo coming after breakfast.

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NYVeloCity

2011-05-14T07:59:00.001-07:00

I also did a small interview with NYvelovity.com:

http://nyvelocity.com/content/2011/will-dugan-interview#comment-89382

This was my first week with this sort of attention. It's been exciting being able to stay in touch with the rest of the world from the race, which starts tomorrow. Breakfast now!

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I was on TV yesterday afternoon

2011-05-13T18:57:00.001-07:00

Follow this link!

http://www.kcra.com/video/27877983/detail.html

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PreCali Day 3

2011-05-13T16:22:00.001-07:00

Yesterday TT1 had a busy day. First, a training ride with 2 beautiful climbs, then interviews with KARA Channel 3 Sacramento News (me, Aldo and Javi), followed by a transfer to Lake Tahoe's race hotel. One video I took was on a climb (sorry if it needs to be rotated). I had to cut it short because I couldn't attack them hard enough riding with only 1 hand. Wink.

More special news to come this afternoon. Please stay tuned.

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PreTOC Day 2

2011-05-11T13:25:00.001-07:00

After a 4 hr training ride on narrow, twisty roads with picturesque climbs and descents, we headed to one of the locals' favorite stops for dinner. It was a delicious Bistro restaurant, but the catch was that it was attached to a Mercedes dealership. So, as we were waiting for our appetizers, we perused the inventory, an entertaining distraction- the Italians didn't understand where the diesel models were...

The bathrooms there had 2 televisions above the two urinals. And, in addition, one situated behind the mirror above the sink. In the pictures shown, you will notice that it is not a reflection of a monitor on the wall, but one sitting right within the mirror. My only questions were: who urinates for more than 1 minute, maximum? And, how long will you be washing your hands. There were no televisions in the stalls, sadly. Hogwash!

The chef actually worked for Team BMC in the past and brought us elegant platters of salmon, steak and chicken. Asparagus, roasted potatoes with peppers and a variety of salads. Don't forget there was plenty of vino and bread with olio to go around. We ate like champions until dessert came. Then we ate like kings. Homemade donut holes after mango sorbet, then chocolate souffle came and so did creme brulees and all sorts of dips and sauces with homemade whipped cream. Delish! I wouldn't want you to be jealous of me with all of this biking business but, damn, that meal was one to remember!

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Pre-California Training in Loomis, CA

2011-05-10T09:16:00.001-07:00

A lot happened on Day 1. We got to our spectacular new digs where we will be for 3 more days. There are chickens with hairy legs (must be non-cyclists, rec riders or at least recumbent enthusiasts), lots of team equipment, comfortable beds, bmws with team logos in the parking lot, etc... Rubens, our swiss time trial national champion celebrated his 18th birthday yesterday by buying the team frozen yogurt for a mid-ride snack. Then, the restaurant for dinner presented him with a martini glass full of chocolate mousse, a secret many time-trialists will load with before a big race. I have to keep it short. Today we're heading out for roughly 4hrs, then lunch around 3 with some long awaited massages after the long trip here.

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The road to our pre-california digs

2011-05-09T15:15:00.001-07:00

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László Bodrogi

2011-05-09T09:14:00.001-07:00

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We call him "The Terminator." This is my Hungarian teammate, Laszlo. He now resides in Ney, France with citizenship there. You can read all about his accomplishments on his wikipedia page.

I left Burlington last night and flew into Sacramento via Philadelphia. Since Laszlo is on European time, he wanted to stay up mighty late and turn on all the lights and talk on the phone to his Mrs. Asleep, I fell, content with my earplugs. When it was time to wake, however, I was quickly reminded of European culture I've been missing: I was bending down to put on some socks when he tossed aside his sheets and headed toward the bathroom, crossing the carpet before me. A full frontal! The full monty. I looked up and the dark, shadowy room with curtains drawn at 8am still allowed enough light through for me to be shockingly blinded by the sight before me. Well, it's normal, no? Of course. European culture beckons comfort with one's body. To hell with self-conscious tendencies and being judgemental! Relax! Right? Well, maybe about some things. The Euros can be really intense, at least in Belgium and Holland, but go south to Spain and douse yourself in wine and cheese until 2am in a sea of delight.

We will do some riding in the next 5 days and enjoy some media presentations and welcome dinners before the start of the Amgen Tour of California on the 15th.

Korea Finished, on to California

2011-05-03T06:19:00.001-07:00

After a great success at the Tour de Korea (3rd on GC), I am back in New England rediscovering my adoration for inconsistent weather and having a chance to reconnect with old friends and competitors.

Last weekend, I raced the Tour of the Dragons in Bennington, Vt (a fitting name for a stage race, no?). I had a great time hanging out with the CCB crowd who helped raise me. 2nd in the Criterium and 1st in the Road Race were a couple of decent local results, not to mention that I was able to secure the King of the Mountains Jersey (KOM) with a bazillion red dragons all over it serving as polka-dot substitutes (it was the best looking jersey to win over the weekend).

And so, my form is coming along. I'm still recovering a little from Korea and have now changed the course of my plans to build for the Tour of California, where I will be riding as a support rider for teammates Efimkin, Bodrogi, Bertogliati, a few GC contenders. This will be my first Tour of California, and I'm very excited to have been selected to compete there.

Jim Camut, Editor and Founder of www.bestincycling.com has just posted my second column contribution to his website. And, before I post it here, I'd like it if you checked it out at that location! It's a great spot to see a few experienced riders, other than myself (I'm still kind of new) giving advice and sharing bicycling-related experiences with the likes of you!

Will

Tour de Korea

2011-04-19T23:36:00.000-07:00

Hello all, I have been traveling and inconsistently getting internet. My apologies to loyal followers.

Stage 6 is over. I gave it what I had and that is that. Tomorrow we have a rest day before the final three stages of the Tour. So far, I got into a breakaway earning 2nd on Stage 1 that finished a minute over the chasing peleton. On Stage 3, I lost a few seconds to the teammate of the first placed rider on GC, setting me back to 3rd overall by 4 seconds. Since then, though the race has been grueling as we (Team Type 1) have faced an onslought of relentless attacks from the Tabriz Petrochemical Team on each stage. Joe Eldridge worked hard for the team and missed the time cut on Stage 2, forcing him to abandon the race. With our 5 remaining riders, we have earned several podium finishes and have been able to maintain my 3rd overall in the general classification. This is a great result so far, but there are 3 stages remaing [Stages 7 (193km), 8 (150km), and 9 (50km)]. I also crashed near the end of Stage 5 and am recovering as best I can. A little road rash only feeds the fire.

Today's race update for Stage 6 is as follows:

i tried my best but nobody would work together over the climb. we had about 10 guys, no yellow jersey or 2nd place. tabriz had 1 rider (mizbahni, a phenomenal climber, just covering the move). he would get in the rotation and screw up our break after the descent. there was no hope of staying away without organizaton and the yellow jersey and 2nd on gc eventually caught our group, turning the move from 10 into the peleton of about 50-60 i think. it was a bunch sprint at the end, but i gave it what i had. i am a bit sore from the crash. there's a rest day tomorrow. the day after is 192km and it's supposed to rain and be pretty cold.

either way, it's a great day because i should still be 3rd on GC.

so, with that, i am confident that i can maintain and maybe seize another opportunity in the final three stages to move up.

Chase The Dragon.

Alex Cox Visits SB and Me

2011-04-01T08:37:00.001-07:00

This weekend, Alex (UVM roommate, CCB teammate) is here to visit and scope the paradisaical Central Coast. Today, we ride and see sights. Tomorrow we race (and meet Jesse Chebot, another UVMer, still in crime).

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You saw it here

2011-03-28T09:22:00.001-07:00

The best things in the world can be seen where thedragonbreathesfire. D2 outfitted me with a beautiful second pair of shoes while I was in Europe. Voila.

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Bathroom Return

2011-03-27T09:46:00.001-07:00

Thank you for listening. I successfully overcame my fear of interfering with their loathsome rest and I am now comfortably trapped in my corner, once again. Our previous discussion on Airplane bathroom etiquette reminded me of an encounter I had at customs while entering the international terminal at brussels airport.

This encounter struck such a tone with me that I will have to tell it in a fashion that is so uncomfortable, you will disbelieve it, similarly to the last. But, it, like the last was more real than Lindsay Lohan's left testicle.

He was no more than 50, 5'9" and overweight to the point that purchasing pants to fit the circumference of his midsection-measured at the diaphragm, secured without a belt or straps- made more sense fashionably-speaking, than owning an XXXL collared shirt capable of circumnavigating his bulging ventral hemisphere to finally settle in his trousers, where I and many others would have them sit, at the hips. These trousers were beige khakis. He had a hardshell overcoat, unzipped, a already small Eastpack backpack that was further dwarfed by his size that a fanny pack behind my neck would almost give this character a convincing double. He had two more items of particular importance, though, aside from his overall, disheveled look topped with a cotton brimmed cap, advertising Alaska's Denali National Forest in dull colored embroidering. Jason wore a pair of glasses that appeared to be a pair of those self-dimming ones that pedophiles and Dan Cassidy typically wear. This time, though, these slim, rectangular glasses, a fine vogue attempt, remained dark and ominous, even in the dull lighting of our customs line. I could see nothing more than the shadows of his eyesockets. Maybe he had shamefully ugly eyesockets. Jason also wore a final article of appalling, magnetic draw. He had a nametag. Jason something. Jason Millionaire. He looked like the product of a lucky draw, Office Space's Milton, born into real-life, a semi-functioning animation to meet me in queue. He clearly, to me, had found a discarded Lottery card on the ground, picked it up and got lucky. He then decided for whatever reason that going to Brussels would be the best location ever.

Jason crept up to me, breathing onto the few hairs on the back of my neck. So, I moved left, distancing myself from this oversized frog. He was American. He had a problem with figeting, looking over his left shoulder every 30 seconds. What was it? I even looked twice, it was so convincing. Usually it's the Euros that push up against you in line because that is where they feel comfortable, literally on top of you if they could. I was in an unforgiving mode, and, happening upon his display of self-proclaiming identification, I would give him no reigns of personal space invasion or, God forbid, close talking, that a Belgian might have gotten. I watched as the line moved forward, paying attention to how close he was to moving passed me, deciding, at what moment I was deemed "cut" in the queue. He was behind my bag, situated before me, by 3 inches. But, okay, 3 inches is 3 inches, no confrontation. I was playing the game. No longer peeved by his insolent nature, I was toying with it. A moment of entertainment, it was. We all scrolled forward, and I reached for my bag. And then! Yes! He crossed the line! But what now?! He had moved around me, to my right, and closed the gap between me and the woman before me! How insulting! He obviously had no regard for the rules of order, we all were drilled in Kindergarten.

"Excuse me, Jason..." It came out. I didn't need to finish the sentence.

In a string of blubbering jargon his response came swiftly and unapologetic. "Well...(words not captured)...not like...linear line...anyway..." What!? Hold this PHONE. Was he carrying a little red stapler in his pocket!? I mean, Hell, did he just reference our queue as "linear!?" You bet your ass he did. This man was exactly who he looked like. Who says you can't judge an emperor for the clothes he doesn't wear? Or the book because the cover just told it all!?

I was so dumbfounded, I was at a loss for words at this very moment. Every word that social education and common courtesy taught about stereotypes and judgement had been ripped from its very pages, flipped upside down and backwards. Then words fell from me again, only this time, to match his level of maturity of disregard for things we should have known long ago, I went ahead and took us both straight back to grade-school.

"I'm sorry, I'm having a hard time hearing you. You seem to be mumbling a whole lot."

And WHAMMY, that was the end of that. I stood, facing forward for a moment, and it was my turn. To think, that nitwit could have charged ahead of me when I had only 20 minutes until take-off. Have people lost all sense of philanthropy? And what about the people that get trample the trampled on black Friday at WalMarts? Is there no remorse? Any apology? Does anybody give a damn? I nearly told the customs officer that this Michael Moore maniac was acting weird, but I was in too much of a hurry. I checked to see if he got on my plane. Negative.

Take me to my plane because everyone's boarded and they are calling my name...and the story behind that is a lot shorter and equally entertaining. Read on.

Our anonymous driver to the airport this morning put Unleaded Fuel in the Diesel VW fuel tank and didn't know what to do so I looked online and decided we were fucked and then we hired 3 cabs and a tow truck as help and the cabs took forever but drove at 180k/hr to get us there on time, but it was terrifying because our driver was dialing phone numbers and toying with the GPS the whole time in an already damaged Mercedes SUV, leaving me happy to be alive and a chance to meet Jason Millionaire.

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US Airways Takes Me Home

2011-03-27T09:45:00.001-07:00

Take me home tonight... Eddie Money.

What is the general etiquette when you are in a window seat and hydrate better than the others? As you can imagine based on my inquiry, I am struggling with a full bladder and ready to crawl over the two individuals slumped next to me in an undisturbed airplane slumber. Every 20 minutes, I decide to wait another 20. We took off three hours ago, though, and I got up once already. Won't the 4 eyed dutchy sitting middle take a hint? Does he have to release any matter? He sure likes to waste time with Sudoku and Word Searches. Not only that, he used money to buy a book full of them!

If you are one of those people, just don't.

I am just going to get my own plane so I don't have to deal with the difficulties of flying. Would I have to go through security? I can pilot a plane, please. Can't be any more complicated than the law, and the people that enforce that generally aren't doing anything impressive on the SAT's... if they took them.

I need to write another column for Jim on bestincycling.com. Sure, I have ideas, but I wouldn't mind if anyone had special requests for certain topics. Does anyone want me to discuss anything in particular? I'm open to pretty much anything from chocolate chip cookies to skydiving, but it should probably be related to cycling. Contact me. I'm at 30,000ft. If you are Chris, you'll text me at 3:00AM knowing I'm in Europe, asking me why I'm not having a St. Patrick's Day beer with him. I wasn't aware, but that comes of no surprise....whoosh! This dutchy just sneezed 5 consecutive times into his word search page. Oh, and he's holding back numberrrrrr! Whammy. Number 6. Gross. While I am traveling, these holidays..7...creep up on me. In 2009 New Year's...8...9?!...10 and he held his nose this time...11...this will be a book of numbers, soon...12... is this even worth recording? Abso-13-lutely. New Year's passed without a glimmering image of champagne and confetti or even a ridiculously large ball dropping.

For anyone wary 14 of the truth of this, I can only prove to you that the time it takes for him to sneeze is literally within the time it takes me to type the characters between each "sneeze number" at roughly 25 wpm. Fathom it. Oh, you might also catch some of his germs just 15 by reading this. At least he's awake. Maybe I will take this opportunity to go to the restroom and suggest he follows 16 suit. This 4 eyed dutch baldy is really lucky I am already pretty ill, otherwise I might have to...hell, I'd probably bite my lip and suffer the next 4 hrs just the same. Hell.

What isn't Lady Gaga Thinking?

Relocate. Stomp. Force. Antiaircraft missiles, Strenuous activity. Serenity, Black Panthers, Simplicity. Order, marks, dutch, ankle, monopoly, fabricate, anthrax, delicate, menagerie, new, brake, truth, keep, jowls, bass, stream.

Say, what do you think about the Mt. Washington Hillclimb? I want to do it sometime. I definitely want to do it correctly, though. I'd want an 8 lb bike and a dimpled skin to keep my edge on the competition. Either that or id like to do it in a gorilla suit on a mtn bike. Just to make my point.

Our team got everything stolen from them at Coppi e Bartali in Italy this week. Bikes, wheels, cables, housing, bike measuring tools, time trial bikes, tt bike measurements, everything. Nothing was left behind. I hope that shimano and colnago will be able to outfit the team soon enough with new equipment. Check ebay for our bikes and equipment...maybe you can get a good deal on some Shimano discs...

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2011-03-24T02:10:00.001-07:00

Bet you didn't know I was best friends with Phil Liggett since the start of Stage 4 in South Africa... I can hardly wait to see what this does to my blog visitor hits. You'd be hard pressed to find this kind of material on Lance's blog.

Still ill today so just waiting to get better by riding easy and resting.

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Best In Cycling Debut

2011-03-22T11:40:00.001-07:00

Below is a link I am testing from my debut writing columns on the www.bestincycling.com website. A friend of mine, Jim Camus, is editor in chief and runs the show there. Check it out! I hope I can write relatively consistently (as I am mostly doing it from my phone). If you have questions or comments, don't be afeared. I am wildly open to criticism.

I also start E3 on Saturday and I've been a little sick. The last two days I didn't ride, but I am confident I will be healthy to start.

How to handle challenges of unpredictable training | Best in Cycling | The best content in cycling

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March 23

2011-03-22T00:36:00.001-07:00

Today is, again, another beautiful day, but I really am feeling a bit sick so I won't be going to pre-ride the E3 Prijs climbs with the team. Instead, I will probably rest at the hotel and wallow in a sea of boredom.

To appease my throat, I think speculoos ice cream will suffice as proper medication. After coffee. And truffles.

Here are a few photos for you that I took yesterday in Brugge. A canal with swans and some delicate chocolate sculptures we only dream about found around the main square.

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Weekend Update

2011-03-20T13:10:00.001-07:00

It's Sunday night. Yesterday we recovered by riding around really easy, today was again, not a hard day for some. I decided to do the longer ride with a group of five over to Flanders and Oodenarde. We hit some of the classics' climbs and got back in just over 4:15. Quickly, I ran in for a sandwich before lunch was over and then headed out for another 2 hrs. I wanted some time to myself and was enjoying the day-even though my legs were hurting a little. Now I'm good and tired, fully expecting a sound night's sleep. Tomorrow will be a rest day and then Tuesday we will shuttle over to preview the E3 Prijs climbs and ride for 100-150km. Wednesday we MIGHT get into another 1.1 race. Battery dies.

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Handzame Finished

2011-03-18T14:12:00.001-07:00

I crashed on cobbles 60-70km into the race and it was cold and miserable with rain and I'm psyched that it's over. Oh, then I gave a wheel to my teammate Fabio with about 36km to go and I got led off course with 11km to go so I just turned around and headed to the finish. I wasn't having that much fun, but I certainly wasn't a quitter. I still logged the 200km. Anyway, consider me last finisher!

I am planning on doing E3 Prijs next Saturday. It might be on Versus, but I'm not sure. It's a big one over here, though. Training for 8 days until then.

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Handzame Classic

2011-03-17T15:09:00.001-07:00

I race this tomorrow. Fortunately, there will be less cobbles and a few more hills (so I hear). Still trying to figure out how to go forwards on bumps when I have more than 20psi in my tires (in cross, its a lot easier).

Next Saturday I will be entered into the E3 Prijs Harlebeken, a very famous classic that hits many of the titled climbs in Flanders.

The Vampires woke me up this morning for a taste of my red juice. If I get tested enough, can I write that off, too? Maybe someone can post a link to the race so others know where to view it online. www.steephill.tv is usually a good start. Good night.

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Race Finished

2011-03-16T10:33:00.001-07:00

Driving home in the van: The race was aggressive. Chaotic doesn't really begin to describe the style. Racing here basically has the intensity of a cross race but for about 5hrs instead of 1. Damn. There were hills and I stayed up front for the first hour, even finding myself "winning" off the front for a short period. We blazed through town centers and small villages on cobbles and bike path-sized roads. There were something like 220 starters. Totally wild. We lucked out with warm weather. It was about 50F all day. After an hour, I whipped out a Mars bar and enjoying it by sliding to the back was my big mistake of the day. But, boy the caramel stuck between my teeth and gums gave me something to focus on besides ny legs for a few minutes.

I somehow caught back on after being off the back of the peleton in a groups of 20 for maybe 50-60km. A strong crosswind did this. Damn those. As the break was chased, I refueled and slammed my perineum and balls, too on an unexpected bump. It was simply a reaction to groan, "Uhhh! My balls!" Even at 50k/hr I heard a spectator burst out laughing. Even robotic athletes are fucking hilarious, sometimes.

Then I did what I could for the Martijn Verschoor in the last two circuits knowing I was not at my best after the last week's preparation. But, I still went for it and ended up somewhere in the top third or something.

Overall, it was a good race and I exceeded my expectations and learned things. I even jumpstarted my recovery with a cold one from spectators, who were baffled that a rider would want beer so badly. That's right, children, there's a man in the house. Hey, and how the heck do these people have postcards and photos of me of last year, my name and all, that I have never seen?! They have me in their books with my own special signature box outlined next to ones for my teammates. Maybe when I come back for the Green Mountain Stage Race I will be swarmed by a dozen sworn supporters all with "Chase The Dragon" apparel.

Comment away--> Gratzie

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Correction-Nokere Koerse

2011-03-16T01:12:00.001-07:00

The name is Nokere, not Noerse. So, off I go. 80k to the 196km course. We do 80k to an 8 lap 15k circuit or something. Merde!

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Noerse Koerse

2011-03-15T09:18:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is the first race. I'm getting adjusted slowly (woke up at 4:30 this morning, but that's better than 3:30). It's a beautiful afternoon here and I found my way onto the roof of our hotel, which has about 25 rooms in the center of a small town called Oostkamp, just outside of Brugge. I ate too many croissants this morning. But, nay, I don't think it's possible to eat too many, so I take that back. When I was about ten to twelve years younger, I remember going to Landsdown Resort with my cousin for 5 days. It was a 4 star resort hotel complete with a golf course, squash courts and swimming pool that his father, my uncle, Gerard used to manage. We watched 'Payback' and 'The Siege,' two movies that kicked ass and cost $6.99 (bill it to the room, please). Did I mention they had fine dining? I would hit breakfast there like Guidos hit the gym. I remember my Aunt Mary Coale commenting on the number of croissants I had taken to supplement the rest of my feast. I believe there were about 5 or 6 in me by that time. Anyway, I didn't regret a single bite. I simply wished my stomach would digest without delay so that I could stuff a few more buttery treats in me before I had to go back to Northampton, Massachusetts.

Anyway, I told my team after they were scoping out what everyone ate for lunch today. I told them that I had no intention of coming to Belgium to get skinny. My intention was to do these races and prepare for S. Korea while enjoying the fruits of this culture with wild indulgence in order to make sure I get my rightful dosage of beer, frites and waffles to make up for the year and a half that's passed since my last Belgian escapade. And hell, I'll have one for each of you, too.

I arrived on the 14th at 6:35AM. The van came to pick me up at 10:30AM. When I got to the hotel after a 1:5hr drive, I took a nap while everyone rode and had lunch. I slept too long and it ruined last night's sleep, but I awoke refreshed after 3hrs, completely under. So, up at 4:30AM I was, rode for a few hrs to regain some consistency in my legs since I need that. Tomorrow will hurt, but I am ready to suffer. I had a brief 30 minute rest after lunch and I expect to get at least a straight 7 hrs tonight, uninterrupted. Ok sheen, that's my story on getting used to a 9hr time change in 1.5 days. Kill them all.

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2011-03-10T08:18:00.001-08:00

Here's a peek at Refugio beach, about 1.5 hrs further west. Cody O'Reilly and I stopped for a breather here yesterday morning.

It's hard to believe I'll be leaving for Belgium in just two days... I can hardly wait for my 6am flight to catch another flight to catch yet another flight to Europe.

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Nuun arrives

2011-03-10T08:06:00.001-08:00

I couldn't do much better getting these photos situated properly, so I will leave it as it was meant to be...

Check out what Nuun came up with! A treasure on my doorstep after my first day of riding in a week. Great timing because I sweat a lot in the heat! The only problem with Nuun is when I run out. My addiction to tasty electrolytes is incredible. Better hope you're not around when I drop my last tablet. Oh, and one more thing: these things are great for average people that go out and get tanked. If you hate hangovers, pop a bottle and drop a tab into your forced glass of water before you go to bed. It's better than Gatorade.

What's more, I stopped at Ken's house on my way home and crazy Shawn is in town. I feel a big dinner tonight with the boys in the hood.

Shower me.

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Nuun post

2011-03-08T23:08:00.001-08:00

There was an issue with my post earlier today. I'll have it fixed in the morning, if possible. Hold on to your hats and DON'T let go.

The Week Drags On

2011-03-06T22:49:00.001-08:00

I didn't get my bike for a few days after the trip, and the afternoon I did, I headed out to the Refugio climb and came back at dark. I felt horribly, but I halfway expected I would, still keeping a halfway decent pace with the wind. The next day, though, yesterday, I was worse. I turned around early and crawled home. Today I needed the day. I had a 3hr nap yesterday and woke up with aches and a little illness today. Day off. I want to train but I can't train if I can't pedal and I can't race if I can't train... so I exercise some more patience. It's frustrating facing this immediately after the delayed bike. So it goes. Another 3hr nap today. Hopefully I'll be weapons of mass destruction again soon. Hell, I leave for Belgium in a week.

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Up and at 'em

2011-03-03T07:55:00.001-08:00

Since sleeping is wildly overrated, I went for a run as the clouds were burning away early this morning down on the beach. I'm going to be one sore sucker later on, but it was really great to be alongside the awesome ocean.

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Back to SB

2011-03-03T05:51:00.001-08:00

I've temporarily reached my final destination, though it's been over two days since I've seen my trusted ally in competition. No, blue steel didn't make it. She's posted up in Frankfurt, Germany for a pit stop after the first 11 hr flight from Cape Town, South Africa. Thinking about it, now, it was probably the best move to follow suit and get a hotel room had I known how memorable my second 11hr flight would be after a 4hr layover: two germans sat behind my, the wife was directly situated. She was large. At a reasonable altitude I reclined my seat hoping to catch some shut-eye only to get pushed back upright. I slowly reclined again. Jerked upright. I turned around, peering between my seats as the husband met my eye with his headphones, and in an overly audible startle I go, "Que pass!?" "No spreuken ze deutche or whatever. English ou francais." He made hand signals saying, "not enough room for my wife when your seat is back." "SERIOUSLY? Dude, that's messed up." Ok fine, I'm limitedly confrontational. I went to the middle seat and reclined, contemplating the circumstances, awake, for the next 7 hrs as I just got jostled and jolted every time someone switched positions back there. Sheesh.

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Final Day

2011-02-26T07:00:00.000-08:00

It was another hot day out there. 105km finished in under 2.5hrs. An early break went that was soon brought back by MTN and Nippoli, two teams without representation, eager for the sprint. By the final circuit, 11k, we had Martijn, Scott, Fabio, Alexei and me all together in the front. The run in to the sprint was fast and chaotic. We were doing 70k/hr down hill and onto the flats with a bend to the left and a quarter of a turn on a roundabout - remember, in South Africa, we drive on the left side of the road, so we go left on the roundabouts - and that left us at 300m to go. I was floundering in the wind on the left side after the whipping downhill and Scott was with Martijn in the last turn. Then the sprint for the win and....Martijn SECOND. Not bad for an uphill sprint! Great job Martijn. I'm glad we brought home a podium result from this race. I'm still waiting to see the GC results and hoping there wasn't a gap between me and the 30 in front of me in that quick kick to the finish.

I have a few stories to offer from this trip but I have to get a few things straightened out for the trip home (CA).

Spring Schedule
I'll be going to Santa Barbara until the 13th, traveling to Brussels for 2 races on March 16 (Nokere Koerse) and 18 (Handzame Classic) and staying until the 27th because I'm on reserve for the E3 prijs Harelbeke, another Classic in BEL. Santa Barbara will welcome me from the raw Belgium weather where I can train for either the Tour of South Korea or the Tour of Mexico in April. Man, I'll be missing home after all of that! Oh, and no Battenkill for me this year, SHAM! Sorry Deiter Drake and East Coasters.

Queen Stage 6

2011-02-25T06:24:00.000-08:00

It was the stage everyone saw to be the hardest.

I am the most frustrated rider in the peleton today.

The group was 15 maximum by the final climb. I was there and Darren Lill attacked at 5k to go just when I was slightly uncomfortable. I hesitated. Another went slowly, and then the young rider's jersey took off, and I went with it. 3k to go.

He spent himself too soon and it was then up to me. I clawed my way up the climb. I dug freaking deep and punished myself with everything I had. I looked back a few times and knew it would be close. I had 10 seconds consistently but it was just too little. At 1k to go I was all cards in and at 200m to go, the first of them came around me! Hell. I'll tell you what: I needed to try to at least maintain my GC spot and sprinting after you've been going balls to the wall for 10 minutes is a brutality.

The team worked so well today, I wanted to finish the race with a reward to prove how well we did today. The team did their job for me and it was then mine to do for them and I tried and almost succeeded. I could practically feel the podium under my feet. The fact that I was able to do it, though, was great. I simply have to remember that my fitness is there and that the result will come as I learn and when the next opportunity arises. It's early in the season and all of that, too, but it was such a great opportunity. What it really feels like, is when you go to high five a buddy and you hit nothing but air because he sneaks it away at the last moment and goes "too slow." Frustration and irritation. You want to slap him, and most of all you want to get a re-do.

All in all, it's been a great race so far. Scott and I finished Stage 4 in the final group and because his legs weren't "sprinting" legs, I was down to go for the finale. He sold out for me then, too. I got boxed in for that stage and kind of blew it, but the idea is that we're out here mixing it up with some great racers early in the season and going for it. The reality is that in a short time, things will probably start coming together with some perseverance.

Cyclingnews

2011-02-22T10:08:00.001-08:00

www.cyclingnews.com has results and race synopses if you're more interested in the less partial view.

Windy Stage 3

2011-02-22T06:59:00.000-08:00

It was nice and tranquil averaging 38k/hr for the first 2+hrs. There were elephants, and some riders saw Zebras and Giraffes, though I missed these spectacles. Then we turned and HIT IT 60k from the finish. Everyone was in an echelon from the left to the right and from the front group, I was caught too far on the right, in the gutter. One guy couldn't hold the wheel and that was it for me! Off the back I went. And the second group was large and another 100m behind. I swung around for a while, flailing like a helpless baby in some brutal wind and then accepted defeat. The next 50k were a fight even in the next group, but I got into the rotation, which was much easier than fighting for a wheel (though there were still plenty of elbows thrown). Then Scott and I flatted. We ended up in the gutter for a split second and mashed a piece of sharp, metal debris. Luckily I managed to get back on after a hard effort.

For those who don't know what an echelon is - here's a photo below. It is a formation that occurs because a strong wind comes from an angle. The guys on the diagonal in front have it a lot easier than the poor saps fighting in a line, pinned in the gutter.

Anyway, I haven't seen results yet. I contested the "bunch kick" for something like 10th place and I don't know where I ended up. I threw the bike on the line with 5 other guys and it looked too close to call right away.

Today was frustrating, I was there, and then I wasn't. The wind is tough for everyone, but it's really hard to fight for a wheel when you're a little guy. Last year, I was worse in the wind, though, so at least I'm improving...

Also, writing these after the stage gives an immediate update, but all of this comes in from a delusional stream of consciousness. I don't proofread this stuff, and all I really want is a nap (but, I'm holding off to make sure I stick on this whole new time-zone thing). Sitting in bed will just have to suffice. The TV is on. Fabio wants his computer back, and Mythbusters is on (wish I could do without the annoying geek banter right now...really want to punch everyone on the show in the balls...don't even know what the hell they're testing anyway...).

Until tomorrow: there will be a bunch of punchy climbs and it'll be hard. We have a 2 hr drive to the start, and another hour to the hotel in Cape Town after the Stage. Each stage starts at 10:00am. We'll be leaving at 6:45am tomorrow. Wahoo. Great planning.

rest day tour of SA

2011-02-21T10:53:00.000-08:00

rest day today.

went to beach. did not ride bike. it was beautiful. team wondered why i didn't ride and i said because the beach calls.

training was a stroll, instead.

i also had a massage.

i got a mcflurry for the first time. it wasn't that great.

i was drug tested after stage 1 and i was disappointed they didn't take blood. isn't that the most important part? that makes 4 tests so far this season, though.

tomorrow is 180km. the next 5 days will be especially hard because yesterday's stage was nullified after we stopped 3 times due to traffic. the chief cop disappeared and then cars were everywhere. so, rapha condor got out lucky before everyone started attacking left and right to try to steal the yellow jersey.

tomorrow is another day. we drove the last 7k or so and there are two steep 1km climbs that will tear up the field. then 4km descent to a right hand turn 350m from the finish line. AWESOME.

i slept for 10hrs solid last night. it was the coma i needed to recharge. i'm looking forward to the rest of the race. thanks for reading. sorry it's so brief.

Tour of South Africa, Stage 1 Report

2011-02-19T10:51:00.000-08:00

hi everyone. i'm excluding a proofread and giving myself all sorts of exceptions on grammer and what have you. i have 20 minutes to give you the deal on what's been going on. 2 weeks before i left for SA i went to san diego and entered the boulevard road race and the red trolley criterium the day after. i have a race report that i wrote for all of you that unfortunately i didn't get online because of spotty internet and limited time. my results respectively were 1st and 7th.

february 15th, i traveled to south africa. never been here before. there are a lot more black people than there are in vermont, but not as many as there are in baltimore, md. i'm getting ready for stage 2 tomorrow. we are 10 hrs ahead. i had a 2 hr flight to san fransisco (from santa barbara), then a 10.5 hr flight to munich, and then another 10.5 from there to johannesburg, sa where i am now. we started and finished in town today - a 155k course.

i was trying my legs on the first kom and was 5th or 6th coming over the top (my legs feel like a beaten pulp). the winner of the race and 1 other were a few meters up ahead and pushed over the top. thinking they would never stay away from a strung-out field, i didn't bury myself to bridge that gap, but kristian house attacked his companion and soloed in for the finish well ahead of the field. it was a dangerous move, but feeling lethargic and it being only the first stage, it made more sense to wait out for the field sprint and try our luck with sprinters alexei schmidt and martijn verschoor.

scott and i lined it up on the front. we came in with the sprinters on our wheel with 2km to go. having studied the race bible. we understood that the last 3 km had 3 roundabouts and a few other corners. it would be very technical. when we came around a gradual left hand bend and started an uphill grind, i pulled through and ended up gapping the field with the exception of 1 eurocar rider who was on my wheel. i hesitated and asked him to roll through (thinking maybe we'd work for a couple of k until the finish), but then there was a banner up ahead!!! too soon, i thought! no way was the finish 200m from now! well, a group jumped me and i figured maybe it was a 1k to go banner. so i chased their wheels, but there was martijn, too. i finished 7th in the kick, putting me 8th for the day. martijn was 5th. what the hell happened? everyone on team type 1 rolled through dazed and confused. we had a perfect setup despite the circumstances. in fact, what had happened, is that we had all looked at the race vehicle detour and assumed that as the race route! we confused which way we went, and the finish was in fact sooner than we anticipated, and far less technical. next time we will look closer...but that was the issue we faced today. a few of us were really frustrated, but that's how it goes.

my legs don't feel very good. i felt great at boulevard road race, but now, after a flight like that, my body feels a little lethargic and i'm trying to get used to a 10hr time difference. i think it will take 1-2 more days before i am going fine again. until then, i'm going to be smart and a bit conservative - there are still 6 race days left.

tomorrow is 166km. it will be aggressive. after that, we come back to the hotel, shower, get on a train to the airport, take a 7:40pm flight to a different town, and have a rest day on monday. the team staff will drive for 12 hrs and meet us at the hotel with all equipment. pretty wild stuff.

i met phil liggett. you know, the announcer that's on tv for the tour de france who works with paul sherwin. he's announcing here. uniquely, though, i was urinating in the hotel bathroom before a training ride. he entered, and unzipped to do the same. i looked over and our eyes met (very uncouth). well, he struck up conversation and i told him that i saw him on tv a lot and that my college friends would get a kick out of that story.

i'll get back to you with more. for now, i have to do all sorts of emailing. i'm trying to go to europe after this race because i'm racing in belgium on the 16, 18 march. going back to california for 2 weeks will be a waste of time and energy between. i MUST change my itinerary!

goodnight and goodday.

all the best, will

out with the old, in with the new

2011-02-09T11:34:00.001-08:00

My new shoes! A post about last weekend is around the corner. The internet has been rough this morning.

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Santa Barbara

2011-01-10T08:53:00.000-08:00

I got here on precisely the same day I did last year, Jan. 5th. Driving from Tucson until 2AM, Scott and I stayed a night in a Pasadena Holiday Inn Express, and finished the drive the next morning. Before he drove north to Morgan Hill to meet with Specialized to review their 2011 Demo Fleet plans, I gave Scott a tour of Santa Barbara (he'd never been here before). I felt it was my responsibility to show him what he was missing...

Above is a view from Gibraltar, a climb right behind Santa Barbara's coastline. Below, is one of my favorite homes in SB that I was able to find online - oh! and it's for sale. Only $9,300,000.

This French Villa has 4BR and 6 full BA, a 3 car garage on the south corner, a pool, courtyard, etc, etc... It also happens to have an unbelievable view.

Moving on, you might like to see a few bicycling-related things. Please pay a visit to www.teamtype1.org. There, you can see me like this:

There are five problems with this photo. Because you are loyal followers, I will hit you with the knowledge. 1) Je m'appelle William Dugan. 2) I am wearing Olaf Kerkhof's Shimano shoes. 3) I am holding a bike that looks like Aldo's. 4) I wasn't supposed to wear a cycling cap, but I wanted my hair out of the photo, so I just...did. 5) It was taken at 37F and I'm shivering uncontrollably.

On the website, you will also find that I am 22 years old. Maybe I shouldn't let it be known, but I'll be 24 in just a few days. 22 was a nice buffer from 25, but I'm creeping up on it slowly. Maybe I should buy a motorcycle soon and rip across America, while I'm still a young, carefree adventurous free spirit. Freebird.

To keep you informed, there is a problem with this blog's Html and I'm not savvy enough to know the solution. Maybe someone could volunteer and I'll grant you access to this beast to help me out.

Previous post has un-editable flaws.

2011-01-07T23:31:00.000-08:00

Just be wily and read through them. Enjoy.

Vitesse

2011-01-07T22:18:00.002-08:00

Que veut dire speed, en francais? Vitesse.

In english, that way "how do you say speed, in french?"

Well, you'd start with: achocolate lab that will moisten you from head to toe, fold up your rugs with skid-stops and make you just a little nauseous because her mouth stinks of the crayfish she wolfed down at the Beverl

y, MA waterfront earlier that day.

Vitesse is a lot more than that, though. She represents an epoch for Tim and Lyne.

Timmy.

Soon, he'll be heading to Europe with James and Jeremy for some good old European racing - 2 World Cup weekends and finally, the World Championships.

People forget about life at home, and what that ca

n do to lives on the road. We gossip about what people are doing, about their achievements, or what whistled at the bartender at 3AM, or what @Johnswah posted 9hrs ago about Vitesse. Our Johnson - Bessette household mascot is ill with lymphoma, what could be Vitesse's final call. With this news, it brings attention to the cheer that Vitesse has brought to many at races Nationwide. Her insatiable desire to cover you with kisses will be missed, yes! But, she ain't dead! The diagnosis isn't good, but this post is about more than grieving. Remember what Vitesse brought to us all and especially Tim and Lyne.

Remember that our lives are full of complications. The world is not concentric around our own thoughts and actions! The sun does not orbit the earth! We are all individuals caught in, often times, an overbearing cyclone of events that leave us feeling out of control. Yes, this news is tragic and devastating, but let's celebrate the gifts of life, the gifts that Vitesse has given to us. Don't let us get sucked into a depression, but engage in positive mentality that gives us all strength. Let's celebrate that you made it to work today without getting killed. I'm grateful to have overcome so much to be left with the chance to race at an international level this year. Tim is going to World Championships, and he could realistically make the podium! Lyne's all over the map herself!

Getting a flat tire on the way to a job interview is never ideal, but it always seems like it goes that way, doesn't it? Failure happens more than success, but we have goals for a reason. It's important not to forget those even when seemingly in the face of calamity.

Everyone leads his own life and bears his own personal weights. We don't publicize everything in our private lives - please. But, let Vitesse be, once again, a representation, but this time, for what people can achieve with the background drama of their lives that we don't hear about. She will be our consideration, our awe, our understanding and then our wisdom. Celebrate the fruits of your earnings and those of your friends through everything they've faced. Be thankful for the charity of those around you. And thanks to Vitesse for reminding us of these fundamental routes to better helping us understand our lives.

And so we look forward. Good luck in Europe, dudes:

A Hard Day in the Saddle

2011-01-01T18:21:00.001-08:00

And I'm only saying that because my saddle made my fanny hurt like the wooden spoon did years ago (in actuality, I was never spanked).

I have to spit this out quickly so that those who chainsmoke and bite their fingernails until the next post comes out can live until January 2. In all honesty, it was one of the days I'll remember for the rest of my...shall I say...days?

I went out today in search of a loop around Mt. Lemmon. Oh, I found it alright. The online map told me there might not be a water/food stop for 45 miles - okay, I can deal with that. I rode the first 45 minutes and filled up at a Circle K gas station in preparation for this potential 2.5hr drought depending on the climbing. And speaking of climbing, I should've made sure to check the elevation profile of this ride because there were about 3,000ft to cover up, then down and then some more before this next stop. Did I mention the riding surface? I was just on the phone with Joe. You know Joe. He's Joe. My words went something like this (earmuffs for the younglings), "Dude, it was so fucking epic. I was basically Mtn biking for 50 miles. I couldn't understand how it kept going...I started up the paved road and passed Phil Zajicek and his wife and coach or something and they looked at me all weird for some reason. 'Happy New Year,' I huffed, and went on... I found out what the heck that look was for! I was riding faster than the pickups and SUV's (some were towing ATV's and had lots of guns in them) up this rutty, washed out rocky climb. I went over ice and snow and mud and everything you can imagine. And I was using my brand new Colnago M10 that the team has just given me. I christened it, you could say. I got it nice and dirty and had a great day of training on it. But I stopped at the 9th mile marker and asked some folks with a timid looking dog how much further the road was dirt. Pause. "It goes on forever." "Oh, I continued, maybe 10 miles or so?" "Probably, maybe more. It's pretty nasty up that way." PSH! What do people know!? NOTHING! MUAHHAHAHAHA. I pressed on and saw a hunter with a healthy looking compound bow at mile 14. "Hey man..." I asked the same question. "It's been years since I went that way around the Mtn, but I'd say you might be about half way. I'm not sure, though." Ok, well 15 more miles, I guess I could handle that. No. It was closer to 35 more miles. I climbed and descended and went slower down than up because of ice and all sorts of insanity and bumps and berms and such and at MILE 52 - NO JOKE - 52!!! I hit a paved road. My ass, excuse me. But, my ASS was so sore and brutalized from the washboards for the 15 flat miles I had been riding (gosh I was hoping the flats would be my saving grace, here, but God isn't so forgiving), that I was practically praying for the end. I hadn't seen anyone for miles at this point. I couldn't understand where everyone was, and why there was a road that led me to hell in Arizona - isn't that supposed to be in Texas, somewhere? I finally found a bike parked on the side of the road and a small Mexican doing gosh knows what off the shoulder next to a cactus. Hi Amigo, he said. He wasn't Mexican. "Hi, do you know where San Manuel is (the town that was supposed to be 4 miles earlier)?" "Just keep going another 3 miles." I rode 5 miles and hit my gas station. Salt 'N Peppa!!! Wahoo. I was so freaking psyched that I let my penny-pinching self grab a tall boy of Coca Cola and 2 candy bars (Snickers and Payday). Finally, I got a second flat (oh yes, I flatted earlier, of course) at the top of another lengthy climb at mile 75 according to my map. 7,000ft of total elevation gain in 75 mi wasn't bad. I hitchiked.

I did! Yes, it was going to be dark in 1.5 hrs so I just had to. I had nothing else. F it. A small family in a small Honda SUV stopped and helped me look for a bike shop on their smartphones (oh yeah, I'm going to get one of those someday, I promise). We called and none of the numbers worked for some transcending reason. Well, they wanted to drive me to my house. A husband, wife and Kiri, the little sleepy one in the back. So I guess I let them. They wouldn't have it any other way - save their souls - no gas money or anything. They were triathletes and wanted to get into the Karma of the whole ordeal, which I decided not to quibble about. We exchanged stories and experiences. I got home, and they continued to Phoenix. They will look for me on this thing. Thank you so much for the ride. Tomorrow's another day!

Good Morning 2011

2011-01-01T08:40:00.000-08:00

I haven't yet spoken today. I haven't had to. My buttermilk pancakes, bacon, fruit and nuts were all words enough this morning.

It's 29F in Tucson, AZ and these are the final days of my preseason operation, part 1. My final preparation for this fine 2011 cyclocosm will be in familiar Santa Barbara territory; a climatic paradise I discovered 1 year and 3 days ago with the help of close friends Tim and Lyne as well as teammates Ken Hanson and Shawn Milne. You might say: Santa Barbara is one of the most expensive locations you could choose. Why? As I mentioned, it's beautiful here, but my theory is to use last year's preseason location to mature as a rider by training by comparison in a healthy atmosphere and on familiar roads.

My off season was a refreshing experience. For many, I disappeared for over a month. I was enjoying a period of relaxation from the bike that I have never really had. Cyclocross has always had a place on each of my race calendars, but as 2011 beckoned a larger volume and focused mindset, I had to make efforts to be properly prepared.

I was stationed in Burlington and finished working part time in UVM's Psychology Department as a Lab Technician, available to help graduate students that were working under one of my former Professors. On October 12th, I broke my right arm. I was in a car that crashed into another car. I was in the death seat and broadsided in the middle of a left-hander. The car spun almost 360 degrees until it halted. Awaiting a second hit by any of the other cars in the intersection, I braced myself: it never came. Crawling out the driver's side door. I held my right arm close, just a little shocked. Some ulnar nerve damage and a distal radius fracture. Really, it wasn't so bad considering what could have happened. The only gripe I had was with the Doctors who swore nothing was wrong until 2 weeks after the accident! Then I fit comfortably into a cast, then splint, etc... I'm now almost fully recovered and well into my 2011 season's training plan.

Those updates should bring you right here to my studio cottage in Tucson. I got here on Dec. 1, went to training camp from Dec. 15-22 and met my awesomely international teammates (Anglophones are outnumbered by those fluent in Italian by a large number, so Rosetta Stone, take my money), and will be departing the area for California on the 4th of January. I do hope that the weather shapes up for my arrival. As I understand it, it's been a little rough on that coastline.

Please follow me through the season. I'm preparing for my first race in South Africa from February 19-26. The photo above is of our new, handsome kits this season (I hope you feel the same way). To a successful and safe season had by all!

Also, Happy Birthday, Dad.

Almost

2010-10-27T07:13:00.000-07:00

You've signed again with Team Type 1 and they're reaching for their Pro Continental License, which means you'll be doing more races that are also longer and harder than what you did last year; albeit, with better support. The question still arises:

How will you best prepare for the upcoming season, Will?

Back to Santa Barbara, California like last year? That was worth it to me, but would Tucson, Arizona be any better?

The Team will hopefully send a schedule that I can review in a week or so to make these winter decisions easier.

I rode for 6 hours or more the day after the Boston Mayor's Cup from Beverly, MA up to the New Hampshire border and over to Steve Pooch's house in West Newbury and back down again before my car got towed at 7pm from the Wildlife Preserve parking lot. Since then, I haven't really touched my bike. I have been thinking about it, though. A lot. I even pulled up some videos last night on YouTube.com.

The Morning Before

2010-09-19T06:22:00.001-07:00

I went to bed at 10:30PM and was awake for about 45 minutes before finally dozing off. Thoughts about the race, my legs, my bike, the wheels I'd be using, my roommates in Burlington, my 'Cross teammates racing in Vermont, my mom, Olivia and what I'd eat for breakfast swirled. As each thought came into my mind, I found a way to reason with a stressful disturbance and solved the problems so that I'd mitigate anxiety or stressful importance of each. I thought about my training and my nap earlier in the day when I thought about my legs. I thought about breakfast when I thought about the race. I thought about my thrashed training bike and how I'd get my new stuff from the mechanic to bring home for the winter months. I thought about the contract I'd signed for next year with Team Type 1 and how I'd need to be well prepared for next year. I decided my racing this past season was good and that there was nothing here for me to lose. But, I do have another chance to chase the coveted "Stars and Stripes Jersey."

Last year, I raced each race like it was the last race of my life. I found myself struggling with that former excitement for a while this year. My fire was burning low, but after a Green Mtn Stage Race with friends on CCB and guest rider Justin Spinelli ('Cross Teammate), I reignited the flame and hurt all the way through the GMSR. I was coming off an injury and fought hard, ending up 6th GC and with the KOM Jersey on poor form. Great things can happen when your mind is in the game. Each race might be the last one I'll ever do, so why not go as hard as you bloody can? Not senselessly, but don't be afraid to get in and hurt. Otherwise, it's not fun if you're not risking anything for the glory. This is my time!

Don't mind the disconnectivity of points made. That was an example of how I, personally, can talk myself into a positive emotional state around a big race. Mental motivation is #1 for a competition. One must be in control of the things he can be. As Tim Johnson told me, "You can only control the controllable." A good competitor will do just that and forget about the rest. "Forget about what your legs feel like," Mike Creed told me, "Just go out there and be ready to hurt." It's all about the mental preparation. Take it and link it to imagery, and your'e ready to fire the missiles.

US PRO ROAD NATIONALS

2010-09-18T06:42:00.000-07:00

Good Morning America.

I flew down to South Carolina yesterday afternoon for the US Pro Road National Championships tomorrow (Sunday) in Greenville from Burlington, VT. I'm psyched for this final race to try to prove myself that I've grown since last year. If you remember, I started with TT1 a little over a whole year ago as a Stagiere in Tour of Utah and a few weeks later here in Greenville.

We're prepping for some course reconnaissance in a few minutes. In Burlington, my thermostat was turned to 70F and the heat kicked in. Here, the room thermostat reads the same, but the air conditioning whirrs instead. It's that time of year.

Seasons are changing.

Fall is coming, and that means I have one more race with Team Type 1 and the rest are planned with Mr. Richard Sachs himself through December. The schedule of Richard Sachs - RGM Watches - Radix follows.

18.9.10 Schoolhouse Cyclo-cross Williston, Vermont USA C2
19.9.10 Catamount Grand Prix Williston, Vermont USA C2 ME WE
25.9.10 The Nor Easter Cyclo-cross at Loon Mountain Lincoln, New Hampshire USA C2
2.10.10 Gran Prix of Gloucester 1 Gloucester, MA USA C2
3.10.10 Gran Prix of Gloucester 2 Gloucester, MA USA C2
9.10.10 Providence Cyclo-cross Providence, RI USA C2
10.10.10 Providence Cyclo-cross Providence, RI USA C2
16.10.10 Granogue Cross Wilmington USA C2
17.10.10 Granogue Cross Wilmington USA C2
23.10.10 Downeast Cyclo-cross Day 1 New Gloucester, MA USA C2
24.10.10 Downeast Cyclo-cross Day 2 New Gloucester, MA USA C2
30.10.10 Beacon Cross Bridgeton, NJ USA C2
31.10.10 HPCX Jamesburg, New Jersey USA C2
6.11.10 The Cycle-Smart International 1 Northampton, Massachusetts USA C2
7.11.10 The Cycle-Smart International 2 Northampton, Massachusetts USA C2
13.11.10 ?
14.11.10 ?
20.11.10 Super Cross Cup 1 Southampton, NY USA C2
21.11.10 Super Cross Cup 2 Southampton, NY USA C2
27.11.10 Baystate Cyclo-cross Sterling, MA USA C2
28.11.10 Baystate Cyclo-cross Sterling, MA USA C2
4.12.10 NBX GP 1 Warwick, RI USA C2
5.12.10 NBX GP 2 Warwick, RI USA C2

8-12.12.10 Nationals Bend, OR

New Mexico

2010-04-22T21:31:00.000-07:00

After Buttenkill (Vassili decided this would be the Russian-spelling of Battenkill way back in January when the first team schedule was sent to us), I took another visit to Burlington, Vermont for a few days before my New Mexico campaign.

There, I got to spend some quality hours with Olivia and took her for a 2.5+hr bike ride touring the Charlotte and Shelburne areas along the GMBC loop. I was also able to reconnect with Josh Dillon (teammate on Richard's cyclocross program) and take his recent 125cc scoot purchase for an evening spin. I told him that If I were he and he was me, at 100mpg, it could be smart to rig a fork-mount thule bike rack to the back of the scoot (vertically) and use it as economical travel to races around New England. As an amateur racer, living off race winnings and a part-time job is no simple task. I remember (and often still) conjure what seem to be profitable and economical ideas that never come to fruition because they lack in practicality, or, upon a further examination, realistic benefit. Dissect the idea above and one realizes that a scooter only has 1 gas tank (but surely, I could fill up every 75 miles or so...), and that it may be uncomfortable on longer trips and that there is no space for your luggage without paniers, and what if it rains? An alternative vehicle would be necessary. So, is it worth spending $1,500 for a scoot without owning a car before-hand? Probably not.

Another example of this might have been my soap-making business. What's stopping me? Well I don't really have an address I can call my own, presently. That's a problem only because the process takes about 3 weeks and if I find myself in a new location after a few days, I can't be tied down by a bunch of lye, glycerine and hundreds of dollars spent on equipment. However, this doesn't mean it can never happen, it only means I must postpone my arrangements for my newest insanely fast get rich quick scheme until I secure an apartment with Alex in Burlington for the summer.

Until I get back to Burlington, though, I must survive Team Type 1's push in New Mexico. First, the Road Runner Classic Omnium (10km time trial AM, 100km rr PM) will take place this Saturday in Albuquerque (I'm on the plane from Albany International as I type). It sounds as though there will be some press conferences between the race and the American Diabetes Association has indicated they would be interested in having a few riders stop by their expo setup at the race venue. I told them I'd be glad to help continue spread awareness for Type 1 and motivation to live healthy lifestyles by inspiring proper, safe management the disease. I will then drive to Silver City, NM for the Tour of the Gila beginning on April 28th and ending on May 2nd. Rumor has it LANCE will be there. There's nothing like high altitude racing when you're coming from sea-level, but, I enjoy the challenge of rising to the occasion, so, bring it on.

And, in conclusion, I welcome all of my followers to offer me a free, operational vehicle to better my travel around New England while I'm there. I needed to rent a sweet Hyundai Accent from Budget last night to drive down to Albany. I was happy with it's handling, features and level of comfort. I spent most of the time around 50mph and on the highway I found a semi to sit behind at 60mph who then alerted the police that they were being "tailgated." The cop appeared at a turnaround in the median (at which point I was following at a very reasonable distance) and stopped me to tell me this information. Surprised, my reply was "Oh?!" He ran a standard check on my license which nearly rendered me shitless knowing that I've got a speeding ticket in NY state which is pending payment... Chris tells me that NY State now has a warrant for my arrest. Fortunately, I did not get arrested as the State Officer found no record of this insolent behavior of mine. Before the Officer returned my license, he said "Huh, well I guess the truck driver just found it odd that a car was following him at 60mph, but thanks for driving safely." I continued on my merry way well below the speed limit. This morning I filled up before I returned the silver bullet at the airport: I managed 47mpg with the car and spent under $10.00 on gas, which helped me feel better about buying lunch in the airport.

Tour Of The Battenkill UCI 1.2

2010-04-18T05:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here I am fixated on the computer, refreshing my accuweather tab. The decision I'm making right now is: Leg warmers or no leg warmers? I have some Morgan Blue oil that Chris brought me back from Belgium that's just screaming to get used today. I'm thinking about going the oil-route. Lyne might kill me for making that decision, so don't tell her.

In this photo, courtesy of Fabio who will forever be my happily assigned roommate, is the reenacted Ace Ventura's "White Devil" character. Can you see the resemblance? Nobody messes....with the do...

Playing Catch-Up

2010-04-16T07:14:00.000-07:00

Redlands, my last appearance while I was living in California was a step above San Dimas. I had a mediocre prologue (60th), an uneventful stage 1 road race (finished in the bunch sprint in the top 25), an active and team oriented criterium (made a break that might have stuck but got caught after about 7 laps and then helped organize for the sprint finale), and a solid road race (finishing the infamous Sunset Loop in 12th). There were no results had, but finishing in the front of the front group on the final day was confidence-building. I'm still trying to wrap my hands around my muscle-twitch issues, but matters are improving.

The amateur Battenkill race last Saturday was a good bit of fun. I felt slightly marked out of the field, but I probably would've done the same if I was who I was last year racing someone in my shoes. It's only sensible. Coming up with 3rd place was a result I'm happy with: I got some delicious complementary chocolate milk from the Battenkill Farm for making the podium and was lucky enough to have Olivia, Dad, little Eddie and my other Vermont friends to enjoy the afternoon with me. Before we parted ways, Chris, Dad, Eddie and I hit a local diner for some quick grub. Then Chris drove me (with his car loaded bearing all of my Californian belongings) home and we spent the night to enjoy a solid 4 hr endurance ride touring the southern Berkshires the next day. It was a very welcoming weekend home, indeed.

Dieter Drake will present the UCI 1.2 Tour of the Battenkill this Sunday. I'm invited! Last week was a good prelude to this bigger race. I hope Team Type 1 gets to bring home the glory.

As for all of my training and moving around through my move from California (arrived on the east coast at 12:00AM on April 9th), things have been busy. Stationed comfortably at home with Mom, I'm leaving again on Thursday, April 22nd for Albuquerque, New Mexico. There I'll do the Road Runner Classic Omnium on the 24th consisting of a 10km morning prologue time trial and a 63 mile afternoon road race. That all happens at about 5,200ft above sea level. While I'm there, I hope to meet up with my Aunt Melanie who settled in Santa Fe. I don't think she's ever been to a bike race, so that will be a grand old time to catch up! Then I will travel down to Silver City for the Tour of the Gila (April 28-May 2). I currently have a one-way ticket. There's a chance I might be on the roster for Joe Martin Stage Race in Arkansas 4 days after Gila, but that remains to be seen.

I finally got a powertap. I rode with it this week. If you're dying to know my numbers I can't give any to you except that my threshold is 380w and I'm 50kilos. In actuality, I'm not 50 kilos and I haven't done any real threshold tests. But it is nice to have a good training tool to put to use when the time is right.

PS If you're looking for some other interesting blogs to peruse, check out Cycle Chic themed on following the fashion, lifestyle and trends of the European commuters and recreational cyclists.

April Already?

2010-04-15T19:47:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened since San Dimas, Redlands and the Battenkill Pro/Am race. I will update you I promise. First, I must post a photo of my sister Paige Ferratto who I visited tonight. She won (3rd consecutive victory) the triple jump in a track competition this afternoon. It was a good time to wish her a happy birthday and get some kick ass frozen yogurt. Man I need a haircut.

San Dimas Stage Race Closed

2010-03-22T10:58:00.001-07:00

I had a disappointing encounter with cramps during the road race on Saturday. They claimed me from the lead group with 1 lap (7mi) to go and I rode in solo in front of the rest of the field. I usually supplement my salts with ''Endurolytes" by Hammer Nutrition. Someone recently told me they might be under investigation for contamination so I left them behind on Saturday. In a discussion with my teammates about the day's events, we concluded that the 1 case that was in contention happened several years ago and was also never proven. Therefore, I will continue to rely on my familiar methods for training and competition.

-Obama just signed the Health Care Reform Bill-

Sunday I found great legs and was very active in the technical criterium. I even got in the mix to help Ken hold a half-way decent position coming into the finish where he finished 4th. We did fairly well with a bunch of smaller guys in our first criterium as a group together, but there will be better things to come.

It's Tuesday. We didn't need our TT bikes for the San Dimas prologue (seen in above photo), so the team is setting them up for the first time to make adjustments to find a balance between comfort, power and drag. I could draw a venn diagram of overlapping circles to show this, but I hope my readers can visualize adequately. Typically power goes up with increased comfort and increased ability to put out watts, though you sacrifice a degree of aerodynamics by increasing your frontal area.

As I've been writing this post, I've been going back and forth trying to determine my stand on this new health care law. There's a lot of goodness in the bill, but a certain class of citizens might find themselves in more trouble than they did before, depending on the numbers. It'll be interesting to follow the drama in the wake of this new law, but I think most of us can comfortably say that a change was needed and that this might be a good first step.

For now, a good ride on a new bike. Please feel free to leave comments below. Ciao.

San Dimas Prologue Closed

2010-03-19T22:17:00.000-07:00

Most of you are sleeping right now. We had a later start tonight so I'm writing this as I cool down for an evening's rest. I would like to point out that 8 of the 15 names listed on the poll finished within the top 30 this afternoon. The abbreviated results are as follows, tailored for the convenience of familiarity.

Place Name Team Time

1   Day, Benjamin   Fly V Australia            12:53.79

2   mach, paul      BISSELL Pro Cycling        12:58.81
4   Amaran, Luis    Jamis...                   13:10.15
6   Baldwin, Chris  UnitedHealthcare-Maxxis    13:12.51
12  Parisien, Francois   SPIDERTECH            13:31.27
15  Sonntag, Benjamin  Mastermind Athl. Acad.  13:38.47      16  Menzies, Karl   Unitedhealthcare-maxxis    13:42.50
20  Howes, Alex     Holowesko Partners U23     13:45.88 21  Shirely, Neil   Kelly Benefit Strategies   13:46.36
24  DUGAN, WILLIAM  Team Type 1                13:50.98

29 Wamsley, Kyle BISSELL Pro Cycling 13:52.41

43 Driscoll, Jamey Jamis Sutter Home 14:17.07
49 Stewart, Scott Team Type 1 14:21.58
50 FRATTINI, DAVIDE Team Type 1 14:21.80
55 Calbria, Fabio Team Type 14:24.78
58 Anthony, Jesse Kelly Benefit Strategies 14:27.50
116 Howe, Isacc Mountain Khakis 15:29.75
145 Jaskiewicz, Colin AXA Equitable / CRCA 16:39.17

The race went better than I expected. To keep those dying for the details happy, I'll spill a couple. I was torn between cassettes at the beginning of the day up until the start. Originally I was planning to roll the big ring up the climb and using an 11-28t cassette, but once I understood that the wind at the top wasn't as subtle as it was the day before, I decided I might ride the race in my little ring up front. 10 minutes before the start I met the mechanic at the gate to replace the 11-28t with an 11-25t. Bruno Langlois (a good old quebecois friend), was my 30 second man. I caught him around the half-way point which my have been a little soon. I didn't put too much time into him after that, probably due to the harder effort before. But, given that it was the first time trial of the year, I am satisfied with the result. All of that back and forth business before the race was for nothing: I rode the big ring the whole time anyway! All in all, I'm where I should be, but I still have some work to do to improve.

The UVM former national champions reunited for the day to compete, but this time in opposition. Jamey Driscoll had a very good ride today, showing that training in Vermont in the winter isn't all bad. Isaac is getting better form as an all-arounder, but will try to make his mark in sprint finishes, as will Colin. It was very nostalgic to see them again. Even Thom Coupe came for the weekend representing Bikereg.com/Cannondale with a phenomenal result (33rd). The East Coast continues to represent. One quick anecdote: Ben Sonntag was second to both me and Zach Macdonald at the 2008 and 2009 Collegiate Cyclocross National Championships, respectively. He got the better of me today with some seriously happy legs.

Those that voted for Ben Day are probably really psyched that they were correct, and indeed, good job. But, don't forget that we're racing without radios this year, and plenty of action can happen in the next two days. For all I know, a break could slip away and someone all the way in 24th place could take the overall victory - optimistic thought to sleep with. Goodnight.

Pre-San Dimas Stage Race

2010-03-18T22:12:00.000-07:00

It's the night before the prologue, a 3.7mi uphill individual time trial. My start time is 5:09:30 PM.

Ken and I drove from Santa Barbara down to the start at the base of Glendora Mountain to pre-ride the course. It honestly looks fairly suitable to my style of riding. It's a false flat for the first kilometer and then it kicks up ranging from 4-8% for the next 3 miles. The hill has no brutally steep sections and with the right wind, there will be some very fast times. After some thought, I've opted for 50mm deep section Shimano Dura Ace

wheels on my road bike to use for the race tomorrow. No shallow rims, but no disc, either. If I can get my hands on a time trial helmet, I'll wear that as well. The team doesn't have skinsuits ready yet, unfortunately, so if I don't win, I have my excuse ready. Craig (left) is riding the new DA C50 in the front and a C75 rear.

After the pre-ride we jumped back into the car for another hour or so with some music by the Killers. The management and mechanics are staying at a Holiday Inn Express, so that's where I handed off my bike, got the wheels mounted as well as a computer so I know how fast I ride tomorrow. Last year's winning time by Chris Baldwin averaged 29 kph. That's about 18mph, for you knuckleheads who can't convert yet. After this blog post, you'll be able to convert because 1mi is about 0.6km. So, I'll just stare at my average speed and make sure it's as close as I can make it to last year's. The conditions (wind direction and speed) as well as temperature, etc... will create some differences, but it's something to aim for.

I'm trying to stay focused. I don't feel slow, and I hope that I go really fast. I feel there is some level of expectation for me to pop a great race because I am small and should be able to race uphill really fast. But that kind of disregards details. Anyway, I'm going to do whatever I'm going to do and that's about as much as I can do.

A friend of mine once said something along the lines of, "You can only control the controllable." This is a great mentality for competition preparation that I like to think about. Ride well and rest better. Goodnight.

A New Face

2010-03-09T20:29:00.001-08:00

I decided it might be time to make the blog more personable. Does this help? You can help by answering the poll question.

Yesterday I spent an hour on a motorcycle and it was a little too fast for me. I might stick to 4 wheeled motorized vehicles for a little while - at least on the highway. That's all I have to say about that.

My recent interest is Soapmaking. Should I be telling you all of this? It's really something that I'd like to keep within the circle of William Himself alone. I need to make money somehow, right? But in all seriousness, your life is in grave danger if you begin to make soap to upstage my newfound talent. I simply won't tolerate competition of any sort. I'm good friends with Pucci and his extended family who happens to owe me countless favors and will be happy

to whack you for me.

That's right, I'm a homebody. I made bread tonight. I am looking into the soap industry,

and I'm a changed man. Oh I still ride a little bit, yes, but my mind

gets restless and I have to occupy it somehow. What a better way to occupy my time than to explore profitable hobbies like the chemistry of soap making. Would you like to see the mechanism for the reaction? Let's see if I can get it on here for you. Voila. To your right is a beautiful mechanism for saponification. The Hydroxyl (OH-) group comes from Lye (aka Sodium Hydroxide, NaOH). The target reaction in soap actually comes from mixing Lye with Triglycerides (your own combination of heated oils - vegetable oils are better for the skin).

Be careful with the Lye, though, and don't follow the scene in "Fight Club" by neutralizing your burn wound with vinegar. The base and acid mixture actually produces a really hot reaction, so it's best to rinse with water and then add a little vinegar just after you rinse well.

I'm really debating starting this experimentation before or after I head back east. I'll have to make some purchases that I'll have to end up traveling with - that's the problem with moving around, I hear: you have to bring all your belongings with you, and the more you have, the harder it is to move. Maybe that's how I'll know exactly where my final home will be. I'll eventually have too much stuff to move and there I'll be. Happy as a clam amidst all of my stuff, tying me down...

My races last weekend were solid. I raced in Merced, CA and worked out the early season kinks of peleton navigation and bike handling in 150 deep fields. The criterium left me with a 20th and the 120mi road race a 17th. It's impressive how fast the Californians are at this time of the season. They're real rippers. Well good for them. Let's see how they go in July. As for this weekend, I am calling it off because the logistics were too complicated. Mais pas grave. There will be plenty of racing. San Dimas is just around the corner.

March Opener

2010-03-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

Riding in Santa Barbara has its treats. This gem of a statue is on Mountain Drive. The fanny actually opens as a depository for mail! Perfect invention.

Sunday, I began my ride with World Championships, but broke off the group ride after 40 minutes or so to get some longer miles in. I wanted to do something I hadn't before so I rode over Casitas Lake Pass (below) and into Ojai Valley eventually to Santa Paula and back. That clocked almost 200k, the longest ride I've done since I've been here. That day, it was my intent to ride not just endurance, but hard, and for a long time - to bring back the reminiscent sentiments of my rides last year in Burlington.

At hour 4, I had eaten all my food. I needed more fuel than I anticipated and I could envision the proceeding hour and a half melting into a blurry delirium. As I fatigued, I started to dose my effort. I climbed for 10 minutes pondering my plans. There were no real stores until Carpinteria, a good 40 minutes away. I drank my water. I decided at the top of the climb I'd stop a cyclist or even a driver and ask for a gift in snack-form.

There were no riders there, but there was an obese couple who had stopped their white s

edan to soak in a view of Lake Casitas on this 72 degree day. Trying my luck, I pulled up slowly and found words. "Hi. I'm sorry to have to ask this, but I'm trying to get to Santa Barbara and I'm all out of food. Would you happen to have anything in the car?"

"No," was the initial answer, but the girl waddled to the car saying she "might have a pack of M&M'S."

"That'd work," I answered. Incidentally, this spurred some sort of cascade effect and the man made his way sideways to the front door and popped the trunk. "I've got some Pepsi, you want a Pepsi?" Inside there were six 12-packs of Pepsi, three Diet, three Regular. "You want Diet?" I held back my instinctive, earnest and introspective reactions of shouting "I want all the calories I can get!" and pointing out the clearly obvious correlation between their diet and physique, I asked kindly for "Regular, please." I got a bottle of water out of the deal as well. I didn't know what to give them for their help, but they seemed not to mind and happy to contribute to my epic journey. Thankful, pockets full and feeling the pump of caffeine, I hopped on and finished the ride with some pimp in my step.

Every once in a while, going on humbling rides like this one sends me back to the exhilaration that I felt when I first began riding - when I would go out in 45 degree weather in shorts and a jersey (my only riding clothing), and when I'd be out so late I'd have to stop at a stranger's house and ask to borrow a flashlight, and when my mom would come looking for me at 9pm and I'd make her drive behind me so that I could finish off the ride with the lights from the car.

The importance of being mentally and physically challenged and stimulated by the flow experience, while getting your basic needs met are the fundamentals of life! Cycling can do that for some of us. For others it's driving a car really fast, shooting guns, golfing, swimming with dolphins, solving math problems, or going to Mars. But, this is why I do what I love to do and why I hope I can continue to do it as long as I want until I find something else that brings me the same euphoria.

Tomorrow I leave for Merced where I will compete in a flat 90 minute criterium on Saturday and a 120mile road race on Sunday. These will be the first races of my 2010 season and I'm psyched to make the 5hr road trip up there in teammate Ken's 740 Turbo Volvo from 1991 or something. I'll be solo, but Tim will join me on the rebound. Hopefully I can get him to pay for my In-N-Out Burger on the way home. What?

Camelback Advertisement...

2010-02-27T15:37:00.000-08:00

You are driving along a narrow, two lane road with a "NO PASSING FOR 2 MILES" sign posted. Approaching a slow-moving bicycle rider, do you,

A: Follow the rider at 13 mph for two miles, or

B: Break the law and pass this sucker?

Answer Below

Answer: Why take unnecessary risks and get a ticket?

Tim Johnson won something once...

2010-02-22T23:21:00.000-08:00

I've been totally drained for the last couple of days. Tomorrow morning Tim and I will pick up a ride at 9am and ride around Lake Casitas. Sheesh, here's a shot from back in the day. Can I get a year on this photo? Feel free to attack the comment box. I think it's gotten less action than Bill Clinton has in the last 10 years.

Tribute to Tim and the amateur days. They were memorable and all of that.

Before I forget: those following the TT1 issue equipment, these are the Shimano R310 team shoes I'm wrestling with to get the perfect fit. As I mentioned before, I've been on the Time shoes and pedals for 3 years now.

Voila, Unedited 1st Ed. + 2nd Ed.

2010-02-22T08:09:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I made the deadline of posting this by the end of Sunday night's NASCAR race, but if I could guess who won, I'd say Jeff Gordon. Here he is spicing things up on the track after one of his many race wins.
There's no doubt that Jeff Gordon is extremely successful, evidenced by his attractive trophy wife, always proudly standing by, but would you say that he is a successful athlete? What IS sport? What IS athleticism? Does being totally strung out on caffeine and adrenaline, peeing into a cup, and driving for 5 hrs make you an athlete? What does one need to do to be considered a real live athlete, that's what I've been wondering. I've always come to the conclusion that athleticism requires a combination of endurance, skill and mental flow, something cycling can provide. So, when curling is displayed on the television as an Olympic sport, something turns inside me, wondering, "how long will it take until cyclocross makes it?"

But for now, I'm on the road, and we'll see the Road Olympics on the 'tube in 2012. At camp, I got one team kit (size small) from Biemme because the rest were held up at customs coming from Italy. I have to say it's a slick look. Here's me in my hotel room after the photo shoot. Fabio Calabria, my teammate and roommate during camp was kind enough to use his handy iPhone to take the photo. I'm waiting for my XS kits come. My guess is that they'll arrive just in time for the San Dimas Stage Race, my first team race.

I had a brief meeting with Team Directors Vassili Davidenko, Michael Carter and CEO Phil Southerland discussing some of my goals and early season race schedule. I'm on the team roster for the San Dimas Stage Race and the Redlands Cycling Classic, two great spring races in Southern California. I'm really pushing to get into the Tour of Battenkill (UCI 1.2) in Cambridge, NY on April 18th, but it's an A-team race. I might not get first dibs since I'm the new guy, but keep your fingers crossed! I enjoy racing on the East Coast. In fact, I miss it so much, that I'm looking forward to returning early in April so that I can mix it up on my home territory and get to the races I like best. The Battenkill promoters are actually hosting a Pro/Am race on the 10th of April, the weekend before that I'd like to do as a prelude to the following week.

*A recent update from one of my favorite young riders at UVM, Matthew Buckley warns me that the UCI Battenkill race is in jeopardy!

The Team Camp was great. The camaraderie is fantastic and I feel that I fit well into the personality of the team. The mood of a 10 man amateur team where only 6 are regulars is a lot different than a 17 man professional squad. One can only imagine what it is like trying to feel comfortable enough around each of 17 teammates to spend weeks on end together jammed in foreign hotel rooms, luckily, it didn't take much work. The guys on the team are fun and ambitious for the season. Martijn Verschoor (Ned) got the first victory of the season at a local race in Atlanta last Saturday. Congratulations to Martijn.

Thinking about posting during camp, I jotted some notes down (dated) that I'll include here:

10:30 PM - 2.15.10

"I know many of you are on the edge of your seats chewing your fingernails off awaiting this next piece. I have only a few minutes before I have to get out on the bike to tell you a bit what it's been like, so in a few words, follow along...
I arrived in ATL at about 7pm and I was taken to a Marriott Evergreen Conference Center where there was a lot of food, but a little less riding. The first day was devoted entirely to public relations and media training for our sponsors Sonafi Aventis who make insulins Lantus and Apidra for those out there suffering from Diabetes. The meetings ended an hour early, but only the lucky few who begged Alex Banyay, one of our mechanics for their bikes (he was busy trying to build some of them) got to go for a 1 hr spin. For me, I chose a 1.5hr brisk stroll in the woods around a lake, and yes I was sore afterwards. On day 2 we got to ride and I pulled a strong 4 hrs only to be coaxed to the warmth of Marriott hospitality because of the blizzard that began with about 45 min to go. I didn't bring shoecovers, so I relied heavily on my cyclocross cajones to carry me through the raw and unusually inclement weather. The next day was even worse for riding, though. The plowing around here isn't extensive enough to cover many roads so it involved dodging patches of ice, and drinking some good road spray. I called it a day when my toes froze after an hour. Oh, I forgot to mention that we were riding on a 4 mile rolling loop, so I'd already gotten dizzy from riding it dozens of times. After the festivities of meeting the Triathlon team, the RAAM team, the new addition of Team Type 2, the Elite and Development teams, the Pro guys and gals took off to Gainesville for some better bonding and more riding. I got my feet checked and orthotic prints made. My cleats were moved back about an inch. It made me feel like a helpless 10 year old trying to ride for 4 hrs next to Lance. My legs are shot from the new position, but that's what happens, I guess. Today I'm going back to my old shoes and pedals for a 5.5hr ride. I'm missing the beautiful summer climate of California."

Team Type 1 put more "k's" in than we expected, though, and I was able to test some fitness while riding with my new, more experienced teammates. Lyne has helped get me off to a very solid start so far this year (I almost won the KOM at camp, but my attack came meters too late). I have room to grow and a modest but fresh outlook on the season, which will be challenging, but not overwhelming. This morning, in fact, Lyne and I had a brief breakfast rendezvous (yes francais out of respect pour La Quebecoise) to discuss the season's progression and goals for the next 5 weeks (some of which I mentioned above). In preparation for San Dimas and Redlands, I get to choose a couple of races in the weeks prior in order to get my feel for the peleton back! After Redlands, I want to get down to the most serious of all of this business by training on my own stomping grounds back east.

Almost...

2010-02-20T22:00:00.000-08:00

I just got back from Team Type 1 Camp. I'm regrouping.

There will be a post tomorrow. It will be ready before the NASCAR race Sunday evening, but if you must wait until work Monday, by all means, read it then.

If you want to complain, send your emails to cworden@uvm.edu, my editor.

If you want a snack, you should get a Raw Revolution nutrition bar and enjoy it. They're my new big thing.

If you want to see new, Dragon-related photos, scroll down. Any photos forwarded to me might be lucky enough to get posted online. Try me.

I'm going to post something nice for everyone to read. It'll be ready before the NASCAR race this Sunday evening, but if you must wait until work Monday, by all means, read it then.

Team Camp Continued

2010-02-07T19:54:00.000-08:00

The Things You Expected:

Steve's response to the quiz on my future:

stay until april 1

get a car back here. you can get a very good car for $3k...

not something cool but a very good car

dont say the word marriage until yr 30 and making 90k a year at least

dont talk on the phone so much

thats my story.

If you don't know The Pooch, this pretty much sums it up, except there are too many full sentences and there isn't a post script unintroduced as "post script" after his famed signature. Right Pooch?
To the right is a photo of all the Cinnamons that Isaac could find. Here they're prepping in the studio and signing up on the bulletin board for whatever games Isaac wanted to play with them.

Ok, on to my fitness. I'm going ok right now. I'm definitely going better than I was last winter while I was in the hospital, but I'm not quite in great race shape. I bet I could hold my own in a road race, though. My base is there, and my strong cross season is definitely contributing to steady training now. I am able to put in longer miles this year and handle a larger training load.

Because I did so much racing last year, I'm really enjoying my time out of competition. Racing takes a lot of focus. I'm a relatively competitive person and find it easy to shift into that motivated state, but 10 months straight warrants a decent rest. That feeling is coming around and I don't see myself straying from races too much longer.

Last week Colin Jaskiewicz came for a visit for 5 days and I got to show him some of the beautiful riding around here. It was really nice having someone from home come for a visit. It's amazing how people can come from the same place, travel so far separately, and find themselves in the same place again. I'll try not to be so philosophical, but the World does seem smaller as I get older. After a few batches our classic pancake mix, Colin left feeling pretty good about Santa Barbara, I think, and with some strong miles in his legs to take back to Pasadena. If I'm not doing much right after camp, we'll have to reunite for some more training again at the end of February. After all, San Dimas Stage Race begins with a hillclimb out Colin's back door that I might like to explore before race day.

The itinerary for team camp entails the first few days of photo shoots, meetings, and more meetings educating us about Diabetes and some of the companies that sponsor us. Rule #1 is that riders on our team that suffer from Type 1 are riders with Type 1 Diabetes, not Diabetics. The riders are not defined by their diseases. The last 3 days we move from Atlanta to a more mountainous area for better riding and we'll get a better chance for time on our new bikes. The feeling I get is that we won't be riding much within the first few days so my plan is to go to camp with full legs, recover a bit, and then get some quality K's in with the team. Yes, it will be 40F and raining.

One of the kids I'm coaching lost his virginity last weekend. That's all I'm going to say. Oh, and he hasn't talked to her since. I guess now he can look for true love now that he smoothed out the rough spots of his game. Was that too far? Sorry kid.Funny Photo with many Hearts of Coach Lyne Bessette on T-Mobile.

Tonight, Lyne and I made a trip to The Habit for burgers tonight after a long ride on the bike. After that we cruised over to Yogurtland, my new favorite place in the world where you pay for the amount of frozen yogurt that you serve yourself and even get to add your own toppings from a very wide selection. I tried Nutter Butters for the first time on top of Peanut Butter, Cheesecake and Vanilla Wafer & Cookie Dough flavored yogurts. Delicious.

The quality of the burgers topped Silvergreens', though Silvergreens did have tasty buns made on-site (pun not really intended but might be suitable based on the employees and their working hours). The teriyaki burger was tastier than the bbq, in my opinion. Both were outfitted with crispy, well-cooked bacon, cheese and avocado. I highly recommend making a stop at The Habit. The only problem with these burgers were that they were so soft, they went down the hatch quickly, leaving me less time to savor the flavor. I am trying to work on eating less quickly, but it's been difficult. Maybe THAT can be my new year's resolution... I also went to the In-N-Out Burger with Colin while he was here and found that the Animal Style Double Double burger was quite satisfactory after a 4hr day in the saddle. Animal style isn't on the menu: it's a secret locals only know about. Animal style means they slather secret sauce and grilled onions on the burger. You can also get your fries Animal Style as well (with cheese and maybe some beef or something). Either way, The Habit beats In-N-Out, but In-N-Out tops all other burger franchises. Bam.

Team Camp Coming

2010-02-06T21:33:00.000-08:00

I'm in my bed. It's dark. I'm tired. Bachelors of Science is playing. Alex introduced me to them. Yes, personally. Duh.

The Equipment
Since my new bike came (see previous entry), I made a few small adjustments and spun for 35 min last night on the new rig. Today I spent a few hours on the thing, but new bikes are always a bit funky feeling. I have to beat the funk out of it in order to be comfortable with it, I guess. Handlebars are a little wider than the Time's, and the saddle's a little smaller and harder (above, Selle Italia SLR Team Edition). I've been trying to get used to one point of contact on the bike at a time (Handlebars, Saddle, cleats/shoes/pedals, still to come). I was sent my new pedals and cleats, which I think I'll throw on for Monday and Tuesday before I leave for camp. I've never used a Shimano pedal setup before and I'm kind of looking forward to it. The Time system has done me well for the last 3 years, and before that Look pedals were my first experience on the road after stunning my competition with old SPD mountain pedals as a junior. We're on PRO (Shimano) handlebars and stem. The seatpost matches the Colnago frame. Shimano Ultegra componentry outfits the training bike (still getting used to the hoods coming from SRAM). This year, Biemme instead of Louis Garneau will cloth our bony nakedosity with more skin-tight lycra (when will they get over that?) My fingers are crossed for the Biemme kits because my last experience with them provided a mediocre level of comfort. The final piece of equipment that I'm eager to meddle with is the Time Trial Bicycle. Colnago will also provide TT bikes for us (and pretty ones, at that). This will be my first experience with a bike for this discipline. In the past, I would construct what one would call a Frankenstein TT bike from a mashup of odd parts and an old road frame. If you aren't positive what this looks like, you might be able to see some differences if you view either this image of me time trialing at the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic, or the one below where I've actually attached SRAM Red shifters to my aerobar extensions and used the Time road frame to facilitate a faster TT.

I'm closing my lids to slip into a tranquil slumber. But, that's only to wake up to Lyne hammering me into the ground for 5hrs tomorrow.

To Be Continued...

What to expect:
*Fitness evaluation and its pertinence to Team Camp
*Past week spent with former teammate Colino Jaskievelli
*My itinerary for Team Camp
*Publicizing the recent accomplishments of the UVM Cycling team members I coach through sheer embarrassment
*A survey with a hidden bias condoning drinking well under the age of 14
*15 strippers each named Cinnamon with whom Isaac Howe did not have relations of any sort
*What Steve Pucci has to say, personally about my future for the next year (remember that survey you all took?). His response will be posted. Verbatim. Tune in!