SOCKS make you faster?

So as you have read, Kyle, came up last week for a visit and we rode a ton. And after every ride we would get back to the car/house and he would put on these really odd looking socks....and of course i made fun of him. That's what i do. He was convinced that these "magic socks" made him faster and helped him recover quicker from that days effort. Right, OK....your a moron.

(these are my stems, not Kyle's...that would be weird)

In his defense though, if you've done any sort of endurance sports in the last few years you might have seen people wearing these socks in competition, they basically look like old school basketball socks that come up to your knee...Dr. J style(not my wife, but the all time NBA points leader). I've seen them at Ironman, short distance tri's, marathons and evidently Lance Armstrong has been spotted wearing them between stages of the Tour.....so you know they must work cause that dude is old and he made hammer on those young dudes in the tour, except for the Pisterelo, but that's another story. All that to say, "Kyle, Dr. J....I stand corrected....your socks are magic and I will sing their praises."

So....knowing that Kyle is a LEGIT rider and has somewhat of a brain in that head of his.....I picked up a pair of these magic socks at my LBS and decided to give them a shot. I remembered to bring them just to test them out after our "leg burning" ride yesterday and continued wearing them on into the night, basically i didn't know how long you were supposed to wear them, so i went for the longest possible time frame i could. Then today i went out for the weekly ride at Donaldson and to my dismay...nothing. It was like i didn't even ride yesterday. My legs felt amazing, no deep burning, no twinging...they just felt light and sprightly(ya that's a word). Maybe it's all the superior training! or the Muscle Milk(they didn't have basic choco milk, i know, crazy) i had after the ride...but I felt great. Now I'm not normally one to drink the cool-aid so quickly so I'm gonna continue to give these babies test after test, but first impressions are the ones that count, and so far...I like.

Instead of me trying to explain all the "hows and whys" ill just post a few links from smarter people than me....here.....here...and...here. I can tell you one thing though...in two weeks when I'm driving to Leadville, i will be wearing these socks the whole way there, and everyday prior to the event. Grab a pair and test them for yourself....you might be surprised.

Climbing...lots of climbing.

Horses, especially Clydesdale's don't climb very well. You look at anyone who is a good climber in cycling and you can guarantee they don't look ANYTHING like me. Today though...i had to climb. One of the guys from the shop and a buddy of his had a planned ride today of 80+ miles with lots of climbing....all they told me was, "hey, come ride with us Monday, it'll be around 80 miles"...neglecting the whole climbing part. No worries, I'm a trooper. I will say that it is a bit rougher not knowing how hard to push it the whole time because you have no idea what is around the next corner, or how long/steep each climb is...i say that do defend my lack of climbing prowess today. It had nothing to do with the fact that both these dudes where half my size and knew the route....whatever. Here's some pics from our ride up Hwy 215 to the Blue Ridge Pkwy. Absolutely an amazing day, gorgeous weather, and better views that ended with some HEAVY rain fall....luckily the major decents were already done. Good times had by all.

The final tally was 86 miles and just over 10,000 feet of climbing. Really had no idea i was getting into that. Definitely a good training day, and one i wasn't planning on, so that is a definite bonus. The legs felt good all day. No cramps or stomach issues...think i have my nutrition dialed. The altitude was a big surprise. i honestly didn't know there was an Eastern Continental Divide, who knew? or that the roads we were on today were pushing 6000 feet. 18 days till Leadville. Feeling better by the day.

Two-a-days

Once again it's been over a week since my last post. I suck, this is even more confirmation. Regardless of my inadequacies i must press on. Just a quick update today, mainly to dump all the pics from my phone so i can fill it up again on our ride at the FATS trail tomorrow....evidently its an IMBA Epic trail....we'll see about that.

The 12 hour race in Tribble Mill went well, I'll try and rob some pics asap....ended up first in my group and third overall in Expert with 90 miles. Overall pleased with my performance, gear performed well...feeling pretty confident about Leadville. Hopefully the altitude won't deflate me right of the bat, we'll see.

The last four days have been two-a-days on the bike, trying to put in a mammoth effort this week to boost the fitness before a two week slow tapper. Good thing is my good buddy Kyle came all the way up from Mobile for some much needed R&R as well as to help me keep motivated. Nothing more discouraging than watching a dude half your weight FLY up a hill!!! He's a carrot. I'm a rabbit.

Here's some pics from our ride on day two up at Dupont...awesome trail system with amazing waterfalls. I hear it's where the "Last of the Mohicans" was filmed.....it is gorgeous.

It's pretty awesome to be able to ride for hours..never hit the same trail twice..not cover half the trails..and end with a dip in a COLD river to wash off!!! Love that these trails and many more are less than an hour from the doorstep.

You get the idea...plenty of trails....not enough time. Kyle definitely got his share of riding in while here...I'll post more as the week progresses. Out.

LESS THAN A MONTH

Less than 31 days till Leadville. Not really sure how 8 months has gone by so quickly? I'll just assume a move will make the days tick right by. Nevertheless Leadville is quickly approaching, and believe it or not.....i feel ready. The last two weeks I've been hitting it rather hard, long rides in the heat of the day, partly for preparation for the Dirty Spokes 12 hour this Friday and partly just to build some tenacity. Nothing helps more than riding for 3+hrs in the heat and hills. Nothing. I've also been tweaking my bike a bit...tires, bars, stems, saddles, etc....trying to find what's best for me. Notice i said, "for me"...everyone has their own opinion, but for me, these are the clear winners.

First thing that got the boot were my FSA SLK carbon bars. No real reason other than they were over a year old and starting to creak, scary. So they got the swap for the Niner Flat Top bars. The good thing is the Niner bars are about an inch on either side wider which I've been wanting for sometime now, more leverage up hills means faster up hills. So far they are money. A few grams heavier, but the durability/width more than makes up for it. Oh and did i mention that i found them new on Craigs-list for $25!! Very stoked about that little nugget.

I also swapped out the Specialized stem for this FSA one, no real reason. It does have a lower rize to it, which is nice...enabling me to get a little further over the front on climbs, other than that it just looks trick with the carbon faceplate. Oh and it allows me to run my Niner YAWYD top cap...stands for "Your Are What You Drink". Basically it allows you to place your fav beer cap on your top cap... a feature lost with the Specialized over sized cap. Beauty is in the small things..remember that kids.

Next on the list was some new shoes. I tried several tires before settling on the WTB Nanoraptor. I think this tire so far is the "bees knees". It's gonna be perfect for the 12 hr this weekend as well as for Leadville...I'm a balla on a budget, one set of new rubber has to last in this house!! High speed/lightweight tire, with plenty of sidewall protection for Leadville....a perfect mix. Should know more after this weekend, something about riding for 12hrs gives you a pretty strong opinion about what your riding....be it good or bad.

Here's several pics from this weeks and last weeks rides. A couple nice views as well as some ripping single-track was had many times over. Gotta find a good training partner, it is getting rather boring doing it all by your lonesome. Doesn't anyone here actually ride a mtn bike..anyone? Hello?

Most of these are from Paris Mtn, the local 'rock pile' that I ride at. Don't get me wrong, there is all the climbing you could want there...it's actually where G. Hincapie trains when he's in the states....but coming from the West, it's a little shorter that's all. The other is from Spartanburg, Sc the Southside trail. A little trail system about 40 minutes from the house. Actually road there today, not bad...was a good testing ground for the new tires and what pressure i would run.

Till next time...maybe before this weekend. Don't hold your breath.

Misc. Pics

Here are several pics from a couple races over the past few months. I was hoping to have a good one at BUMP(as well as a good race) but somehow I didn't get my pic snapped....probably a good thing, it's best to forget that day all together.

Dirty Spokes Ft. Yargo 12 Hr Event:

Cowbell Challenge Marathon...ie: doorstep of HELL

Kenda Cup East #3, Cowbell Challenge:

You know what they say, "pictures are worth...", whatever that's a stupid quote. You'd rather see pics than hear me ramble. There's a few teammates thrown in there for good measure, Tagg, Kevin, and Ed. Miss racing with those dudes. Hopefully they will be able to make it to the Dirty Spokes 12hr next weekend at Tribble Mill Park. Looks to be a great course. Stay tuned.