Hey Gang,
This is the time of year when most of the news coming out of the pro ranks
involves rider transfers and new team rosters. It is unfortunate that some
good things have been happening in the domestic racing scene but the
overall news for pro riders is bleak as several teams were not able to
secure sponsors for the next year and have folded or scaled down their
programs. The repercussions of the economy and the drug scandals in the
sport have taken its toll. I would just encourage all of you to be kind to
your sponsors and local race promoters. We have very few local events
compared to other cities. That being said, good news. The Southern Nevada
Stage race is back on the schedule for 2009. I do not have details about
the stages so if you do please feel free to update us. The dates are Feb
28th and march 1st. I encourage all of you to talk up this race as much as
possible. It has a stand alone position on the race calendar for the SoCal
series so lets hope for a big turn out. I know the Paul Tracy team will
fully support a local race so we will be there in force.
My tip of the week involves getting good racing/training advice. On too
many occasions I have seen new racers and riders get tips and techniques
from riders that have limited experience but talk the talk and tout
themselves as experts. I am not an expert and take every opportunity I can
to observe riders more skilled and knowledgable than myself. When seeking
advice the first thing I do is look for a credible source. Ask yourself if
the resume and results of a perspective mentor really match the level of
expertise they claim to have. Does this person race?? Did they get
results?? Asking me about diet based on my rather large belly, probably
not smart. Asking Chicken about Sprinting, probably not smart. Asking
Lance about climbing, probably not smart. Get the picture. Seek
experienced and proven riders and soon your knowlege will grow. Our sport
is filled with little known secrets and tips that you can not learn in
books and videos and the guardians of these traditions are hesitant to give
you the secrets until you earn their respect and trust. It seems elitest
and maybe it is, but I love these traditions and I think it is important
that some things just have to be learned the hard way.
That was a great segway into this little piece of news. Jonathan Edwards
now has a question and answer column in Road Bike Action magazine. We all
know Jonathan well and his experience on coaching and administering first
aid to athletes is well documented. Here is the info he sent me on this
Jimmy, I now have a column in road bike action magazine called " ask the
coach" and it is a question answer type deal. If you could add an
excerpt that this column exists, that would be cool as well. Do you know
anywhere else I should put it? Just to get the word out.
Thanks a ton
Johnathan
For the column - go to www.roadbikeaction.com
click RBA
blogs
click Health and Fitness
click Ask the coach
The Silverman was this weekend and many of you were competing in the relays
or the half. Lots of Vegas locals came out to try their hand at the TT.
The weather and conditions were herendous and my compliments to all those
brave souls that were out in the elements getting pounded by wind and rain.
This may have been the hardest edition yet. The Boss set the fastest time
for the men with Chicken second for Vegas guys. Special note and props out
for Terry Pittman who was one of the few Vegas guys to go under 6 hours and
this was his first TT back after many years off from racing. that is very
impressive and he looked really strong on the bike. As always I try to
point out good performances that may not be the winning move but were
momentous for other reasons. Props out to Jason Lilge who with limited
training came out to help a team at the last minute and turned himself
inside out to finish. Dave Ellis setting a respectable time and he is
older than most of us. Big Ryan J trimmed a ton of time off of his time
from last year so huge improvement for him. Hillary was one of the few
woman from vegas doing the full TT and had a very respectable time. Hansel
looked good when he passed me and his team won the corporate event. Great
job by all. Good job to Jeff's wife Peggy who did the half triathlon.
Sqwak Box and friends have a cyclo cross work out going on Saturday
mornings at Desert Breeze park. Check out Luv2Bike boards for details.
Note out to Bill Wolff. We need some updated topics on the Boards. I can
not post topics so lets get with the program. How about a Tucson category.
Who is going to Tucson??? Let me know. PT is bringing Jay, Boss, Kenny,
Brandido, Fat Man, and Mr Freeze. Cal Pools will have Chicken. Penta will
have ???? Allegiant will have??? CES will have???
Random Thoughts:
Can the Silverman catch a break. The weather the day before and after was
absolutely beutiful. I think the weather gods really like to make this
event hard. The crosswinds on the desents was murder.
Rock Racing signed Dominguez, Caleb and Baldwin from Toy United. Damn.
They look to be the strongest domestic team next year on paper. We will
have to wait and see.
Terry looked really good on that TT bike. Can his return to racing be in
the works??
Great job to all of you that came out to watch the race this weekend. The
weather sucked so I know the competitors appeciated the cheering.
The Boss set a blistering TT pace this weekend. Ouch. Great time
considering the conditions. Chicken improved his time from last year for a
solid performance.
SNSR back on the schedule. Can you say showdown at the OK corral. Who
will retain the bragging rights for another year. Should be a good race
and the place on the calendar a little later in the season may help to
bring some good weather and more competitors. Start training ladies.
Who the hell is Linus Gerdeman. I am not a huge Lance fan but his quote on
Linus is classic Lance. I like it. Reminds me of some of the talk that
goes on around the Vegas scene. Your results and your legs are much better
than petty shit talking. Lay it down hard in a race, get on the podium and
all the talk is just background noise.
I will be having a clinic on race diet and losing weight for fitness. You
can join me at Gordon Biersch where we will sample different styles of beer
for caloric content and recover abilities. Coburn will hold the next
clinic at Cold Stone and the final clinic will be held by Chicken at Mc
Donalds. At the Mc Donalds there will be a bonus segment on the legend of
Tiny Fat and Sponge Bob and how they evolved into a Cat 1 racer. Kenny
Bingham will also be on hand to discuss indoor tanning for offseason good
looks. Please mail your $5000 registration check attention Jim Robbins at
the below address.
Keely, thanks for the Hot Chocolate. Your the best!!! I was freezing
Sunday.
Jim Robbins
This is the time of year when most of the news coming out of the pro ranks
involves rider transfers and new team rosters. It is unfortunate that some
good things have been happening in the domestic racing scene but the
overall news for pro riders is bleak as several teams were not able to
secure sponsors for the next year and have folded or scaled down their
programs. The repercussions of the economy and the drug scandals in the
sport have taken its toll. I would just encourage all of you to be kind to
your sponsors and local race promoters. We have very few local events
compared to other cities. That being said, good news. The Southern Nevada
Stage race is back on the schedule for 2009. I do not have details about
the stages so if you do please feel free to update us. The dates are Feb
28th and march 1st. I encourage all of you to talk up this race as much as
possible. It has a stand alone position on the race calendar for the SoCal
series so lets hope for a big turn out. I know the Paul Tracy team will
fully support a local race so we will be there in force.
My tip of the week involves getting good racing/training advice. On too
many occasions I have seen new racers and riders get tips and techniques
from riders that have limited experience but talk the talk and tout
themselves as experts. I am not an expert and take every opportunity I can
to observe riders more skilled and knowledgable than myself. When seeking
advice the first thing I do is look for a credible source. Ask yourself if
the resume and results of a perspective mentor really match the level of
expertise they claim to have. Does this person race?? Did they get
results?? Asking me about diet based on my rather large belly, probably
not smart. Asking Chicken about Sprinting, probably not smart. Asking
Lance about climbing, probably not smart. Get the picture. Seek
experienced and proven riders and soon your knowlege will grow. Our sport
is filled with little known secrets and tips that you can not learn in
books and videos and the guardians of these traditions are hesitant to give
you the secrets until you earn their respect and trust. It seems elitest
and maybe it is, but I love these traditions and I think it is important
that some things just have to be learned the hard way.
That was a great segway into this little piece of news. Jonathan Edwards
now has a question and answer column in Road Bike Action magazine. We all
know Jonathan well and his experience on coaching and administering first
aid to athletes is well documented. Here is the info he sent me on this
Jimmy, I now have a column in road bike action magazine called " ask the
coach" and it is a question answer type deal. If you could add an
excerpt that this column exists, that would be cool as well. Do you know
anywhere else I should put it? Just to get the word out.
Thanks a ton
Johnathan
For the column - go to www.roadbikeaction.com
click RBA
blogs
click Health and Fitness
click Ask the coach
The Silverman was this weekend and many of you were competing in the relays
or the half. Lots of Vegas locals came out to try their hand at the TT.
The weather and conditions were herendous and my compliments to all those
brave souls that were out in the elements getting pounded by wind and rain.
This may have been the hardest edition yet. The Boss set the fastest time
for the men with Chicken second for Vegas guys. Special note and props out
for Terry Pittman who was one of the few Vegas guys to go under 6 hours and
this was his first TT back after many years off from racing. that is very
impressive and he looked really strong on the bike. As always I try to
point out good performances that may not be the winning move but were
momentous for other reasons. Props out to Jason Lilge who with limited
training came out to help a team at the last minute and turned himself
inside out to finish. Dave Ellis setting a respectable time and he is
older than most of us. Big Ryan J trimmed a ton of time off of his time
from last year so huge improvement for him. Hillary was one of the few
woman from vegas doing the full TT and had a very respectable time. Hansel
looked good when he passed me and his team won the corporate event. Great
job by all. Good job to Jeff's wife Peggy who did the half triathlon.
Sqwak Box and friends have a cyclo cross work out going on Saturday
mornings at Desert Breeze park. Check out Luv2Bike boards for details.
Note out to Bill Wolff. We need some updated topics on the Boards. I can
not post topics so lets get with the program. How about a Tucson category.
Who is going to Tucson??? Let me know. PT is bringing Jay, Boss, Kenny,
Brandido, Fat Man, and Mr Freeze. Cal Pools will have Chicken. Penta will
have ???? Allegiant will have??? CES will have???
Random Thoughts:
Can the Silverman catch a break. The weather the day before and after was
absolutely beutiful. I think the weather gods really like to make this
event hard. The crosswinds on the desents was murder.
Rock Racing signed Dominguez, Caleb and Baldwin from Toy United. Damn.
They look to be the strongest domestic team next year on paper. We will
have to wait and see.
Terry looked really good on that TT bike. Can his return to racing be in
the works??
Great job to all of you that came out to watch the race this weekend. The
weather sucked so I know the competitors appeciated the cheering.
The Boss set a blistering TT pace this weekend. Ouch. Great time
considering the conditions. Chicken improved his time from last year for a
solid performance.
SNSR back on the schedule. Can you say showdown at the OK corral. Who
will retain the bragging rights for another year. Should be a good race
and the place on the calendar a little later in the season may help to
bring some good weather and more competitors. Start training ladies.
Who the hell is Linus Gerdeman. I am not a huge Lance fan but his quote on
Linus is classic Lance. I like it. Reminds me of some of the talk that
goes on around the Vegas scene. Your results and your legs are much better
than petty shit talking. Lay it down hard in a race, get on the podium and
all the talk is just background noise.
I will be having a clinic on race diet and losing weight for fitness. You
can join me at Gordon Biersch where we will sample different styles of beer
for caloric content and recover abilities. Coburn will hold the next
clinic at Cold Stone and the final clinic will be held by Chicken at Mc
Donalds. At the Mc Donalds there will be a bonus segment on the legend of
Tiny Fat and Sponge Bob and how they evolved into a Cat 1 racer. Kenny
Bingham will also be on hand to discuss indoor tanning for offseason good
looks. Please mail your $5000 registration check attention Jim Robbins at
the below address.
Keely, thanks for the Hot Chocolate. Your the best!!! I was freezing
Sunday.
Jim Robbins
