Carp(e) Diem

Storm Chasin, and Bike Racin.....

2009-04-12T20:13:00.003-04:00

Yep- wild weekend. We set off from Chattanoooga at about noon on friday. Typical race weekend, my wife with no sleep, van full of bike stuff and kids and a caravan (spread out as it was) between Aj, our group and Strad.

We get out of the nooga" a bit later then palnned but it's ok as we will still get to Franklin early and get to pre ride the SOTO course with our juniors to get in some much needed recon.

so we're on the road and getting close to Murfreesboro, it's starting to rain but that's fine, we aren't made of sugar and will just be hard men and take the ride as it comes.

Then, I get a call from AJ- he's about 10 minutes up the road- he says, "man, we jsut saw a tornado!!!" so, at this point, I'm like "o.k. that sucks"

so we keep driving and get on 840 towards Franlin. That's when it became apparent taht things were going poorly. With STrad driving behind us we get a glimpse off to teh left of a system forming, and when we get even with it- FULL BLOWN TWISTER!!! Wide and coming towards us. There's people on the side of the road stopped, my wife asks "why ar ehtose people stopped" my response- they are stupid and want to die!

so we're hittin it up the road as fast as I think we can stay on the road and get away from the monster.

so that's the start to the weekend, it had to get better from there. AJ tells me, "seeing the tornado made this trip worth it" man, the thought pattens of a 17 year old- would be nice to have that much of a lack of concern again, I envy that attitude.

so we actually get ont eh bikes at the SOTO course int eh afternoon an dit's warm but horribly windy, we get the ride in, with the wind moving us erratically left and right but it was a good ride.

We also made it to Birmingham saturday to get in the 1/2/3 race against some pretty solid regional competition and a handful fo young pros. Cinthia got 2nd int eh womens race and the guys good expereinece- Blair, Strad and AUbrey rode hard and well, I suffered a bit but rode aggressively and feel good about the effort. ofcourse it ended in a mad dash to the line of 40 guys and without AJet or TY, it's simply a futile attempt for us to combat that.

all in all, a great weekend. But one that I won't forget soon....

carp

Nice Job Guys

2009-03-20T10:03:00.004-04:00

Last weekend the HIncapie DEVO squad took many results- from our domination in Rome, GA withthe 1/2 riders to our girls with cinthia finishing 2nd in an open womens race and Angela winning top cat 4 womens honours to Blar and Strad cleaning up the cat 3 race in SC-----

I take some side joy in this in that they are both KingdomSports.net coached athletes.

great job to all

carp

Happy St Patricks Day!!!

2009-03-17T09:32:00.003-04:00

Yep- I'll have a few this evening. Enjoy responsibly and have a good time.......

and for musical selections throughout the day; U2, Oasis, The Pogues....to name just a few.

RIder Down

2009-03-09T08:54:00.003-04:00

I should have posted this last week but did not. Chattanooga and the world lost a truely good person last week when he was hit by a box van while commuting to work on thursday morning. David was a Husband, Father, Frame Builder, Cyclist, Adventure racer among other things. He was a freind to all on the bike in many ways and his life was shortened by what appears to be at the minimum inattention at the worst criminal. There is one individual who knows the truth but that doesn't bring this beautiful person back. I wasn't in his inner circle but he was always exceptionally approachable even though that wasn't the case.

We could have all learned more from him and I feel for his family. The outpooring of support in Chattanooga and the feelings of loss are incredible. It makes you think and fear that as a rider you will be uligized in a public forum, I hope this never happens in our city again but I am a relist and know that it very well may.

Lets all be careful out there......

the Season is upon us

2009-02-25T20:53:00.002-05:00

so, the season is here. Started racing (or atleast I'll call it racing) in Greenville this past weekend. Saturday didn't go bad but mostly I sat in and just worked on moving around in a field again, Sunday was horrible with strong winds and me missing a gap that formed early- no worries though, I'm a bit further along this year then last so I'm ok with it. it's tough when you take the first few angry pedal strokes each year, but it gets better.

on another note, our team bikes are here- the Scott Addict complete with SRAM Red- they are SWEET!!!!! corner very smoothly, seem to descend nicely (only taken it down 2 so far, both with hard cross winds so I can't make a full assessment- but good initial vibes on it). plus, it weighs 15 pounds!! actually 15.18 pounds of pure fluid artwork is what I call it right now.

so, all is good, looking forward to the season and hopefully to regaining my previous climbing abilities

carp

The Greater Good.........

2009-02-11T16:55:00.002-05:00

Sometimes we don't think about why things happen the way they do. Why ceratin teams come out on top, why soemtimes people fail. But then sometimes, we see the result of that outcome. And in this case, it is definitely for the Greater Good......

When Santonio Holmes made that incredible catch in the Super Bowl a few weeks ago it just looked like another great athletic feat. Now, it is so much more then that.

http://www.cmarket.com/auction/AuctionHome.action?vhost=reebok&cm_re=1-_-Gloves_Constellation_Icon-_-Gloves_Auction

Gets you thinking on how you can give back........

carp

DOPERSSUCK.COM

2009-02-10T11:15:00.001-05:00

check this out- click on the word "aim" under "recent posts"

DOPERSSUCK.COM

Dopers SUCK>>>>>

2009-02-08T09:25:00.003-05:00

yeah, dopers suck. With the news of A-Rod testing positive in 2003, it got me thinking.

It's well documented that sports organizations like MLB, the NFL and the NBA have minimal testing programs and even less sanctions when then actually do (most likely accidentally) catch somebody using banned substances. On the other hand, we hear about cycling's "drug culture" and it being a "drug ridden sport" but nobody is putting things into perspective at all on the matter.

So- here's a very simple 2003 statistic.

In the news it is now being said that 104 MLB players tested + in 2003. That is out of about 1,000 players. NOW, compare that to the USADA statistics for ALL Olympic sports (except Baseball obviously)- there were 7448 tests (in and out of comp) performed by USADA in 2003 and there were 52 findings- yeah, only FIFTY TWO!!!!! And that is not in cycling but in cycling, swimming, track and field, weight lifting, skiing, triathlon, yada, yada, yada.........

Keep in mind these are US tests- the WADA (world anti doping association) in 2003 did over 5000 out of competition tests and only 28 adverse findings- (I couldn't find in comp results)

so, over 10% of athletes tested positive in MLB in 2003- and this is assuming that ALL players were tested- they were probably not testing everyone.

Here is the problem-

MLB penalties for steroid use
First positive: Treatment
Second positive: 15-day suspension or $10,000 fine.
Third positive: 25-day suspension or $25,000 fine.
Fourth positive: 50-day suspension or $50,000 fine.
Fifth positive: one-year suspension or $100,000 fine.
Note: All suspensions are without pay

Yeah, tough penalties for sure-

oh, what are cycling's penalties-

First positive: 2 year ban
Second positive: lifetime ban

yep- that's it, one and you are out for a long time, 2 and you're done.........

And that's just the comparison of MLB. The NFL and NBA aren't any better.

Wake up people, cyclists test positive because they are actually tested often. And the rates at which they test positive is very low compared to other sports.

I know my opinion, hopefully more people will start to look at what really goes on in professional sports and put the pressure on other governing bodies to clean up their sports.....

CARP

Goat Path.......

2009-02-07T20:33:00.005-05:00

Rode what I think it THE toughest climb in the Chattanooga area today-

the Rockly Lane climb on Pigeon Mountain. It's 4K of miserably steep chip and seal in the middle of nowhere and goes even more into nowhere.

(see the link- note that I'm not the most ocmputer savy individual- I would like to actually learn how to embed this)

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=34.661028,-85.364113&spn=0.02718,0.073042&t=h&z=14&lci=lmc:panoramio

As I'm riding it I have the thought, "why in the hell did I do this climb in February?" This climb is beautiful but is most definitely my nemisys. After the 9 switchbacks of bouncy pseudo pavement, gravel and black ice wheel spinning good time, I stopped and caught my breath before I embarked on the way back down.

You see, when you get up to the top, you have 2 choices: 1) descencend the cliff you just climbed 2) ride the non paved-mogul filled rock and dirt path 8 miles to Daugherty gap.

This is the granddaddy of the road less traveled trainign series that I hope to ride again sometime this spring.

---carp

New Kits

2009-01-30T10:26:00.001-05:00

here's a peek........

The Road Less Traveled Training Series

2009-01-29T16:57:00.001-05:00

Took a bit of a diversion today- didn't have much time to ride but hit one of my favorite unpaved roads- this one is about 10K into the River Gorge RR course. Slygo Ridge Road......

I have a few roads that I think I can connect into a single endurance ride soon- Sam, you in for some off road diversions?

see you (off) the road

carp

Team Kits

2009-01-28T09:14:00.000-05:00

Just got a sneak peak at our 2009 Hincapie-Barkley Development Team kits. SWEET!!!!!!

can't post as per orders of Bake, but you'll see them soon enough.

C

life changes

2009-01-28T09:06:00.001-05:00

lot's going on in the Carp household right now, job transition, trying to advance the coaching business and have an exciting but nervous potential with a friend on a business proposal.

the cool thing is I have had more time to figure out the Ipod thing- just got one for my b-day last fall but now am figuring out the cool uses such as putting all the pictures on it that I took on my work phone over the past few years (a phone that I will now be returning in a week).

So, nervous, anxious and excited describes the Carp at this time in his life (yeah, sometimes you gotta go 3rd person)

see you on the road

carp

There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes.......

2009-01-26T09:45:00.000-05:00

It’s mid-winter. That means riding in all weather conditions and making the most of training time. That also means figuring out how to deal with the poor conditions and what are your individual limits/needs for those conditions. Basically, your individual time-temperature curve.

First, let me say I ride in ALL bad weather here in Chattanooga, I do not however ride if I feel the weather is DANGEROUS. The difference to me is in visibility, icy conditions and thunderstorms. The coldest ride start I have had this year was 2 Saturdays ago when it was 7 degrees (Fahrenheit) when I rolled out the door. 3 ½ hours, one climb and a coffee stop later I was still fine when I rolled back in the door.

THE key to me is dressing right. You hear of layers but exactly how do you layer. Here are my key points: Good base layer (especially wool or synthetic fibers that wick away moisture because if you get wet, you’re in trouble), arm warmers on the OUTSIDE of long sleeve jerseys (so you can take them off before a climb- and not get wet!), good gloves and shoe covers (the importance here is that if you wear to many tight layers on your extremities they will get COLDER due to lack of blood flow), a solid chest cover (wind resistant vest or jacket that can again be pulled off if needed), a solid head cover that fits under a helmet (yep- I don’t recommend going without a helmet just to wear a hat- get something that fits under a helmet).

We on the Hincapie Development team are very fortunate to have availability of the best made clothing in the world, I recommend to everyone to compile your winter gear as needed season after season, piece by piece if budget doesn’t allow a big one time purchase

Some Ghetto techniques are plastic bags between shoes/shoe covers, toe or hand warmers, a hot water bottle or warm camel back to make sure you have available water and it can add to the heat retention in the ride, and a “rescue layer” which is basically plastic (rain jacket, bag, etc) you can put on if you run into trouble being wet in a wind.

The recommendation you will hear anyone that rides in cold weather make is you should be cool but not frigid when you leave because you will warm up just from increased heat production from the work. So, if you are warm the first 2 minutes you may get cold later due to sweat.

See you out on the road.

Carp

How do you know when it's cold?

2008-12-18T21:52:00.001-05:00

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Clause........

2008-12-17T20:09:00.001-05:00

so, here's a bit of a story. Last Christmas (not on the exact day, but sometime around the holidays), I was enjoying a Rogue Santa's Private Reserve Ale, a wonderful brew that comes out just once a year. It was at that time when Seth (my then 6 year old) loked at the bottle, saw the picture of Jolly Ole' St. Nick on the label and promptly says "Santa drinks Beer?" My wife was not amused........

Fast Forward to Today. I took the boys out for a bite this evening, santa hats and all. So we had a good dinner, the kids actually behaved and things were good. So I'm waiting on the bill and the waitress tells me "a guy at the bar payed for your meals" What? I'm like, we can't accept it, she's like- "it's done"

so, Now I'm on the recieving end of a pay-it-forward trail and I'll be looking out to help the next soul that appears in need........

and Seth, yes, apparently, Santa Does Drink Beer............

Winter Gear Review-

2008-11-19T09:33:00.000-05:00

alright- just finished a short 90 minute ride outside- it was 19 degrees when I left and 27 when I got back- wore my Hincapie Aerotex winter hat for the first time today and loved it-

my first impression was maybe it needed to be lined a little more as it was cool starting out- but 5 minutes in I was comfy, and my head actually sweated in the thing after about an hour- normally this may spell disaster- BUT- it's windstopping properties are exceptional and I NEVER got cold in it- this is now on the top of my list for the frigid rides.

you won't find it on thier site yet- but check you local Hincapie Retailer (Suck Creek if your in the "nooga)

carp

How do you know your blood sugar has dropped?

2008-11-12T20:37:00.000-05:00

You swear you saw this in the woods while on a small 1 lane road.....

It was just a white tree that had fallen partially over......time to get back to the Van and eat something.

Heff?

2008-11-01T17:45:00.000-04:00

so my boy Sam gets a bit bored and decides he's going to take pictures of himself.

here's the one from the PacesetterCycling team site-It's appeared on multiple blogs in recent weeks but I thoguth I would share it as well.

If the bike racing thing doesn't work out, maybe a future as a Gigilo???

Now that was an expensive flat.........

2008-10-13T20:51:00.000-04:00

Yep- Flatted with 1 1/2 to go in the masters crit saturday in Greenville- was in a 2 man break- cost me between $150 and $200---but, Big props to my Michelin Pro Race 3's- rode the rear totally flat for the finish to hold on for 6th, was drilling it and sliding through corners but it stayed on the rim!

Then I raced it two more times that weekend getting 2nd on Sunday. Best clinchers on the market- BY FAR!!!!

WTF.....

2008-09-28T07:54:00.001-04:00

so Im out with Lewis on our dark:30 ride this morning and from what I could tell out of my peripheral visino at the quick rate of intersect on a foggy road- this came our of nowhere and nailed me in the head....

Yeah, I gat nailed bya a bat- at about 5:59 this early a.m.- Nice, kind of spooked me for a bit too.....

carp (burning the early lumens again)

Metal Dogs – Years 1910 and 1970

2008-09-14T19:10:00.000-04:00

yep- just found out I was born in the Year of the Dog- interresting, and I guess better then the years of the Rat or Monkey. And interrestingly enough, the synopsys of personality fits me pretty well- not perfect, but pretty well---

http://www.chinesezodiac.com/dog.php

That's a shot of my dog- Shes a bit small here but is up to 65+ pounds right now......

2 Hours From Anywhere

2008-09-06T15:31:00.001-04:00

yep- bring it back! Rode up there yesterday- very cool- I never got to actually race this as fall is typically a busy work time but had I known the course was as cool as it is...

so- here's my thought- BRING IT BACK......

NATE.....

2008-08-25T21:10:00.000-04:00

yes, that is Nate Brown invading the Hincapie-Barkley Bus-------he needs to spend alot more time in it next year. Forget that Hot Tubes stuff Nate- know where your roots are and come back to teh southeast.......

River Gorge-

2008-08-25T21:02:00.000-04:00

so it was a good weekend of racing in Chattanooga this weekend- not necessarily for the Hincapie-Barkley boys.....atleast until sunday.

We had a good plan going into saturdays 100K 6000+ feet climb fest, but just didn't have the legs left to pull it off- so all 5 of us DNF'd and then skipped the TT.

But on sunday it was a bit different- just 4 of us lined up (me, AJet, Ben and Talbott)- we had no real plan- it's been a long eyar so far and if the guys don't know how to race their bikes by now then I have not done my job- so pre race was "everyone has a long leash, do what you want, and help me finish ahead of that weak little lamb peters if you can.

We missed the brea, but were active in the race trying to get other things started. Ben puked himself mid race but ws still able to lead out AJet for teh field sprint- they said he got 2nd int eh sprint but I thin he won it- her'es a pick...

And I did finish ahead of peters for the 'Nooga bragging rights........

Update- Nats......

2008-08-15T15:12:00.000-04:00

so here is the lowdown- 9 kids; junior guys, U23 and a really fast girl- 4 podiums, 9 top 10 finishes....... not a bad week at all........we are on the map now, and things are looking great.

PODIUMS!!!!!!!

2008-08-08T22:09:00.000-04:00

so it was a good day for the Hincapie-Barkley Devo kids.

Ben got us rolling with a 5th in the 15/16 crit

Cinthia held on and finished a fine 4th in a field spirnt where she was completely boxed in with 200 to go

Ty crossed a huge gap to tag onto the back of the break right at the finish to get 4th as well. It was a truely impressive effort. AJ then won the field sprint for 9th-

all great results yesterday and more to come

podiums and scorpion zip ties.......

2008-08-07T01:26:00.000-04:00

so, my tt went as expected, slow, hurt, no legs, but it was good to see the course at speed so I could better relate it to the kids. My boty Olheiser did end up second with a good ride, I asked him what it feels like to be the bridesmaid again........

It seems my advice didn't pay off for anyone except....CINTHIA!!!!! the girl rode her heart out and it was a national unveiling for her with a fine 3rd place.........

now, onto the deadly zip tie........I was helping swap out casettes for Cinthia, I found a zip tie and was going to put it on my cassette. It was then when I made the mistake......a moment I wish I had back. A small end of a cut tie was in the zip end of another. One that was too small for me to grab by my fingers, so I pinched it with my teeth and pulled......OUCH! it was then that the "tail" of this tie cocked back and snapped me in the right eye just like the tail of a scorpion. Damn, that hurt. And now, I have a HUGE hematom enveloping about 60% of my sclera and creeping into more area hour by hour. It hurts when I blink, but if I don't blink it dries out and scratches horribly. I tried to get by a opthamologist but everyone was closed, will get up in the a.m. and if it's no better I'll try again.

so, word to the wise, beware of the scoripn zip ties.......

carp

update......day 5

2008-08-07T01:24:00.000-04:00

DAy 5- so we goet htere right at noon, not bad when You can plan a 2,200 mile trip and arrive at exactly the time you said- pat myself on the back......we got everyone registered, went to the course and started our thought patterns on how we coupld approach it.

pretty uneventful day, just glad to get to LA'

Day 4.......

2008-08-04T22:11:00.000-04:00

another day, another time zone......sitting here in Lake Havasu, Az. Interresting place, a bit of a ghost town right now, peters told me something about a parasite in the water so maybe that's the deal.

today was actually a good drive. Drove over the continental divide and atleast 7,500 feet in elevation- the highest I had ever been so that was cool.

the ride was great as well- we only got out for an hour but it was good. I could have ridden that road for 4-5 today I think. We were in Grant's, New Mexico, 6450 feet of elevation, real scenic, tons of high peaks all around.

tomorrow we get to LA.......

day 3.........

2008-08-03T23:39:00.000-04:00

arkansas, oklahoma, texas, new mexico.........750 miles.........11 hours in a bus...........

here is my take on oklahoma, texas and most of new mexico- lots of windfarms, gentlemens clubs right next to bingo parlors and speed limits that SHOULD be 100mph.......

carp

I'm goin back to cali.........

2008-08-02T22:52:00.000-04:00

atleast that's what LL said......

day 1 and day 2 of the trip to Nats......

it started out poor and looked very bleak for a while as the bus once again had some issues in route from the homebase in Greenville to the secondary base in the 'nooga. It seems that we had lost our transmission and had some bad U-joints. I was numb for a while yesterday but Bill Joslin came through and got us hoked up with a shop in nooga that fixed us up.

so, today we leave the homestead at around 10:15 and roll into Fort Smith, Ar at around 8:30- not bad time for the bus. Along the way we stopped to get downtown johnny brown's bike in memphis and me some extra strong java.......I'm starting to think this is going to be a long trip, but it will all be good, I am expecting good things from our kids..........

TN STATE TT

2008-08-01T09:48:00.001-04:00

So, our TN state tt was last weekend- OUCH!!!!!

I can pretty much sum up my performance by saying the 8 pounds I gained over vacation really, really affected me on that hilly course.

The promoter did a real good job with organization and execution of the event, but personally, I hated the course. Absolutely no area to get any sort of a steady rythm on it. But it is what it is and I won't rationalize my underperformance as I was 2nd in my age gorup and 9th overall.

Props to Tatum for the win. Good ride. I'll be better prepared next year........

2008-07-28T17:10:00.000-04:00

AJ and TY of the Hincapie-Barkley Devo Squad (riding for the composite Team Florida) at L'Abitibi. Second and Third in the prologue street sprints to open the event.

showdown in the 'nooga

2008-07-24T17:57:00.001-04:00

it seems that a certain Krystal rider that should remain nameless has insulted carp on the SCV forum. This has now morphed into a full blown 'Nooga feud. To go down in installments begginning with the Crit in the River Gorge omnium. Here are a few shots of the history of our mano-e-mano events........

this one is from the River Gorge Crit last year.....yeah, that's the punk himslef trying to follow my wheel......

then from 2 years ago, the SOTO TT- yeah, I was full TT mode andhe was Merckx, BUT, I put 3 minutes into him before the turn!

Stay Tuned for more...........

When in Rome (or Belgium)

2008-06-17T23:08:00.000-04:00

So, I'm at the tour of Atlanta, and I ask John Murphy (aka the manchild - from his Krystal days) to give Chris Butler some advice on Belgium......among a couple other things I won't actually write on this blog, he says "you have to drink the beer, because it's fantastic" that messagae must have been passed along to young David as well----
have one for me bro....

carp

Hincapie-Barkley tearing up the dirty south....

2008-05-07T21:06:00.000-04:00

Another Great Weekend for the Hincapie-Barkley Team 5 wins in 2 Days!!!!
After about a month of watching Chris work his magic the rest of the guys have come alive (with Chris hitting it strong!). It started with Nick finishing a very strong second in the Athens Twilight amateur finals race and has exploded from there.

Saturday May 3rd.
Sunny King Crit- Anniston, Al. 3 guys, 3 races, 3 wins! This is a great race with an NRC pro race later that night, the coverage is unbelievable with news papers, TV and a Diamond vision screen to see all the action. Ben got us rolling with a win in the junior event in solo fashion. I took the hint and took care of a masters race I have been trying to win for 3 years, lapping the field in a 5 man break and taking the sprint. Then AJ sealed the deal with a fantastic field sprint win in the 2/3 crit after Ben softened up the field with a 10 lap solo break.

Dilworth Criterium, Charlotte, NC While the guys were taking care of business in Alabama I got word that Chris had won solo in the 2/3 race in NC. He got in a 2 man break on the third lap and attacked his partner with 2 to go to take the solo win.

Sunday May 4th.
Nalley Historic Roswell Crit, Roswell, GaWith the results from saturday still fresh on our minds, and now a more complete team with 5 guys (Chris, David T, AJ, Tyler and Nick) in the 2/3 event our plan was to be aggressive and make every move. We represented very well being the aggressor and working announcer David Towle into a frenzy with him calling out us as the eventual winners half way through the event. We almost had a hiccup in the weekend as 4 of our 5 went down in a mass pile up half way through but it all came back together and we had 4 guys left in the race at eh end. Tyler made a move late to keep things together, David (our 120 pound climber!!!) lead out the last lap stringing out the entire field single file, Nick took over on the back side hill and deposited AJet into the last corner where he sealed the deal to come from behind a kid who got the jump and win by 2-3 lengths. It's amazing to see a true junior sprinter with the leg speed of a hummingbird take a win! all in all a very positive weekend both from the standpoint of results and the learning curve that was applied to our kids.

5 wins in 3 races across 3 states!

what's been up........

2008-04-10T19:33:00.000-04:00

pulled in different directions that's what- that's my life- sometimes I have all the time in the world, sometimes I'm doing 3 things at the same time and thinking of 10 minre I need to be doing at that moment.

so, the past month was up and down training- 17 hour weeks and a few 8 's as well. but that'wasnt' too bad. The bad part was the stomach bug that hit the family last week- I lost 8 (yes eight) poinds in less then a day- actually one night- that's like 5% of my body weight. No wonder I was crawling on the floor for mobility for a day later. And tehn I stop and think about how poor the little man felt- being only 18 pounds himself I'm sure he lost a pound or more as much as he filled our bed with fluids...........as far me, My legs still feel like crap and I can just hope they come around saturday morning. The last time I had s bug the week before a race was soto last year- it took me 3 days of racing to feel good again, unfortunately in that time I had missed countless breaks and turned a horendous TT in the process- hopefully that won't happen again. The positive is this is a home town race adn I'm in better condition then last year even in late may so I hope to feel fine.....

until next time....

Todays ride-

2008-03-04T21:03:00.000-05:00

Rain, wind, sunshine, clouds, today had everything except cold and snow-

at times it was difficult to keep the bike on the road.......

TY

2008-02-28T22:22:00.000-05:00

Yes, Ty is THE man on one wheel. I wish I could pull wheelies off like this.

Coming soon to a race near you......

2008-02-23T16:41:00.001-05:00

The Road Less Traveled Series (the full pull)

2008-02-21T22:50:00.000-05:00

So I convinced AJ to join me for the full loop of the ride I started in december. The one up Pigeon mountain on the Crockford preserve climb. It was just as cool as I thought it would be but not quite as long (72 miles total). The top of the mountian wasn't too bad- 8 miles of dirt and gravel, a bit rolling but not bad. One downhill actually had Moguls on it- it was a potential clavicle day but we survived (with ony 2 flats).

I am thinking on beggining a "hell of the south" ride series. It may require a medical waiver to participate though........

Rock City, Lodging, Starbucks?????

2008-02-18T18:43:00.000-05:00

Yeah, so up on Lookout Mountain there are all these direction signs to the attractions. I'm up there the other day doing climb repeats and see this sign. Now, I knew that the starbucks was there, infact, it got me though the last repeat many-o-times. But the sign struck me funny (If you have ever been there it would to you as well)......sing it with me "which one of these is not like the other, which one of these just doesn't belong...."

Team Bikes

2008-02-14T19:47:00.000-05:00

All I can say about these things is they are the best bike I have ever ridden. I've been on 8 different bikes in the last 8 years and was NEVER as comfortable when I first sat on one then this past weekend. My initial impression was that it is very stable, stiff, but still a comfy ride.

All those things were reinforced 10 fold this week. If you are in the market for a high end bike, the Giant TCR Advanced should be your first look.....

Hincapie Barkley Devo team

2008-02-11T08:36:00.001-05:00

WOW! we did a camp this past weekend and besides the fact that we have a great group of kids and support staff, everyone can actually ride......and we now have a kid that looks like he can shoot for the stars....let's just call him the secret weapon right now, the unveiling will be real soon.

Thanks to Rich Hincapie and our other sponsors (Barkley, Giant, Shimano, Northwave, Time, Giro, Oakley, Industry 9 [aka. pimp wheels], Michelin, 10Best, Industrial Capability Systems, Greer co, Bear Stearns, Patients first, Pla d'Adet, and our individual benefactors who have pledged money to the program.).

This is going to be a great year.

-carp

Welcome to the 21st Century...

2008-02-04T19:52:00.000-05:00

I've joined the ranks of the mobile bloggers- got a laptop tody-

hopefully, I'll be able to update more.......or atleast it will give me more of an excuse to hang out in coffee shops, so if you see me sitting in a corner twitching, I'm just od' on caffeine.....

You know it's going to be a bad day.......

2008-01-28T19:45:00.000-05:00

....or maybe it's just west by god virginia.......

Ringgold Victorious AGAIN!!!

2008-01-20T10:18:00.000-05:00

since my last post I've been covered up a bit- we held a Kingdom Sports Junior training camp the weekend prior to new years, a Hincapie/Barkley Devo team camp the next weekend, then It's been work, work, work-but this past weekend it was one of the most positive experiences I've had in regards to my actual profession as Athleteic Trainer at Ringgold High. We took an underrated group of the toughest most determined kids I've ever seen and ran thorugh the GA class AAAA State Wrestling Duals tournament and won it! I think we were a bit under the Radar ans nobody in teh state even expected us to qualify for teh tourney, then nobody thought we'd make it out of our brackett then nobody gave us a cnace against a tough EastSide team- but our kids knew what was up. It was an exciting tourney and although I got virtually no riding in the past week- it was well workth it- I gained a new perspective for the power of will in watching these kids win- during the final, we had 3 of our kids getting drilled only to turn around and win by pin- unbeleivable. We were up by 8 with one match to go so Coach Daniel decided to give up the forfiet and win by a score of 38-36 and not risk any tempers getting in the way on both sides of the mat.

now, maybe I can get back on an actual training schedule.......

The Road Less Traveled

2007-12-23T20:25:00.000-05:00

...atleast by road bikes.....

I got out for a good scouting ride the other day- I had planned to ride down to the Pigeon Mountain preserve just west of Lafayette and ride an unpaved ridge over to Daugherty Gap (the Tour de Georgia went down that last year), into the cove and back towards home- unfortunately I got out a bit later then planned so had to cut it short- BUT, I was able to get there and ride the climb to the ridge- it was fantastic- a one lane, twisty chip and seal road that probably averaged 10-12% over the 4 1/2 K climb- all in the woods- deep in the woods.

The pictures are the sheer cliff I had just ascended and was about to go down and the second is the sign pointing to where I will visit in the future.

This has the makings of an epic ride- I will try to get out to in in a few weeks- hopefully it willbe as foggy as it was on this day.....

Warren Zevon?

2007-12-13T20:14:00.000-05:00

So I'm driving home this evening and I hear an unmistakable tune on the radio- it's Waren Zevon's "Werewolves of London"....WRONG- it's some lame ass Kid Rock tune- My exact thought at that moment was "you've got to be kidding me, I hope Warren's estate got some cash out of this one because it's the exact riff from the original".

So, I listen to this disgrace for about 47 more seconds and change the station- then what do I come across?- as horendous cover of Judas Priests "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" Now I'm in a world of pain, memories of my more formatable years have been significantly dented in the span of less then one minute.

What's next, some unjustified rip off of a Frank Zappa story or destruction of my memories of a Grateful Dead experience? Man, I'm in the dumps, there's nothing wrong with covers, but do the original justice please.....

Snow-

2007-11-23T14:29:00.001-05:00

got in 3 hours today in the snow- nice......I got a couple pics on my phone- if I can figure out how to get them off the phone I'll post them....

just got it done- thanks T....

Todays ride.....

2007-11-22T12:05:00.000-05:00

ahhhh, thanksgiving, time for a trip to the inlaws- me, my wife, our 4 kids and a hyper 5 month onld 45 pound Great Pyrenees puyppy, what a trip.

Got to Southeast Ohio at like 1:30 this morning, got to bed at 3:00, got up at 8:30 and managed to get a ride in- I feel a bit better about our future today as it was COLD, WINDY, DAMP, NO LEAVES ON TREES. Made me smile- this is what late November is supposed to be.....
the thing about riding up here in the appalachian foothills is there are crappy little patchwork, chip and seal roads. Even detoured to a grave road at one point....cool....There are more short 1K 10% climbs then you can imagine and enough dogs to keep things interresting. I hit a few roads I have always looked at but never gone down and I was rewarded with a backwoods feel to todays ride. If you've ever seen Silence of the Lambs- when the move starts and they are driving out to middle of nowhere WV- that's what it's like riding around here- roads go over hill and through hollow and it's pretty cool. Although there is te sense of what's waiting around the next corner. Especially after witnessing a hill jack domestic disturbance on the side of the road......

So I now feel like winter is agian approaching, tomorrow is supposed to be 25 degrees in the morning with flurries, I'll probably get in a 55-60 mile ride over in and around Huntington WV (Go Herd!). It will be nice....(and miserable)

Todays ride.....

2007-11-20T16:09:00.000-05:00

I got out for a decent 2:40 today- and man was it beautiful. I was able to ride one of my favorite roads here, Dripping Springs road in Walker County Georgia. The only thing bad about the road is it's too short before it meets up with a highway but that's life. As I was riding I started to do some thinking in between glances at the power meter. My overwhelming thought was how warm it is. I mean, I was in shorts and thin arm warmers and was sweating. It's just not normal for their to be beutiful multicolored trees and 70+ degrees in late November.

So, my thoughts turned to this whole global warming thing and I started thynking how it would affect things like cycling (not that cycling is something of great worldly importance, but it's part of me so that's a natural thought pattern). Here's what I envision (hope I'm wrong)- in like 20 years cycling in the US won't be a summer sport because it will be like 130 degrees in the southeast, we'll be racing in balmy 80 degree temps in January, on the Canadian Boarder. If the trend continues in like 50 years there really won't be any organized sport because we'll all be cave dwellers living on mushrooms and dead bats, with the skin tone of Sean Kelly (THE MAN) in February no less. Those who choose to still be surface dwellers will face an existance parallel to Mad Max.

Over time, we will evolve into large eyes full pupiled creatures that haven't seen the light of day thier entire existance.

Sorry for being so down but it was an odd thought pattern I thought I'd share. So, in the meantime, hope it doesn't happen, enjoy the ride today and spend some time thinking about how you can effect change for tomorrow.....

BTW- 164.5 post ride today ;-)

170 pounds!!!

2007-11-17T12:43:00.000-05:00

......167.5..........

170 pounds!!!

2007-11-14T14:27:00.001-05:00

.....168.5.......

170 pounds!!!

2007-11-11T11:26:00.000-05:00

Yeah, that's what I weighed this morning- Nice, man I feel poor. It's no secret to my triaing buds that I struggled a bit keeping the pounds off this past season. Instead of my normal 156-158 fighting weight, I fluctuated at 161-164 pretty much all year. I did manage to get down to 159 for our local River Gorge Omnium climb-fest here in the 'Nooga. But that was it. Now, I'm 170 pounds, haven't been this heavy in like 7 years or so.

I'm not one that has to really starve myself to get skinny (and you shouldn't do that either), it's more of a struggle with avoiding the oreo's and ice cream, but lately I've been loosing this battle. Especially with the red holiday double stuff oreo's. My favorite thing is to break 3 apart, scrape the cream out of one and make a triple double stuff oreo....man that's good...But I think those days are over for now, unless I want to not eat during Thanksgiving, and that'ain't happening......

So, AJ, Tyler and all other Devo guys- keep me accountable....I'm a weak minded man sometimes and I need the help...I'll pay you back in quad hours next summer.....

carp

it's finally getting cold

2007-11-07T08:11:00.000-05:00

yeah, for now atleast, it's funny, yesterday I was riding thinking how cold it was at 35 degrees and windy. But a month from now I'll be wishing it was 30 degrees. I ride in pretty much all types of weather, the coldest ride I did last year was 3+ hours at an average of 19 degrees. I remember 2 years ago I did 4 1/2 hours in 35 degrees and raining, but now I'm crying about a little chill in the air. It's alwways the change that gets me. Infact, when we get teh typical warm spell around here mid winter, enjoy it, but it makes it that much harder to readjust to the cold again.

I guess it could be worse.....didn't Erie, Pa get like a foot of snow yesterday???

Go Andy

2007-11-04T08:54:00.000-05:00

This is Andy Meyer- AJ's Dad- just finished IM florida in 9:24:57 yesterday-

great job man

-carp

Family pictures.

2007-11-03T13:58:00.000-04:00

So my wife (Terri) told me a month ago we needed to get a family picture done, which was right as the last time we got one done we had one child now we have 4. So yesterday, we ventured to the Red Bank Cemetary (yeah- the cemetary) to have our photo guy ( www.wildonstudio.net ) do the shots. Let me tell you what it's like getting 4 boys out the door looking presentable to get a group picture- remember that suprebowl commercial a few years ago on herding cats??? That's about what it's like with our guys, not only were we 30 minutes late but then the fun begins with getting the older two to stop arguing and still get the shot with the younger two actually looking somewhat in the direction of the camera.........but we got it, and a good shot of just us to boot (while #3 son was trying to figure out how to climb on top of a small mausoleum)....we just had to ignore that one for a minute to get things over with.

It will be nice to have something recent to actually put on top of the armoir when we get them back....but back to life right now and the 27 loads of laundry that are waiting........

Hincapie DEVO Team

2007-11-03T13:32:00.000-04:00

Much thanks to Rich Hincapie for his vision and desire to promote what is going to be one of the best DEVO teams in the country in a short time.

here's the Roster:

Rich Hincapie- Cat 1 Greenville, SC
Shane Weaver- Cat 1 Greenville, SC
Steve Carpenter- Cat 1 Chattanooga, TN
Randy Owens- Cat 3 Greenville, SC
Jeremy Ellis- Cat 3 Greenville, SC
Steve Colavito-Cat 1 Atlanta, GA
Lynn Joslin-Cat 1 McDonald, TN
Nichole Bossie- Cat 1 Greenville, SC

U-23 Development Riders
David Hutton- U-23 Cat 1, Monroe, OH; Furman University Student
Nick Housley- U23 Cat 2, Marietta, GA
David Talbot- U23 Cat 2, Single Mountain, TN
AJ Meyer- JR Cat 2, Cohutta, GA
Ty Manger- JR Cat 2, Griffen, GA
Ben Gabardi- JR Cat 3, Jackson, MS; 2007 13/14 JR National TT & Criterium Champion
Evan Wynn- JR Cat 3 Asheville, NC
Tyler Karnes- JR Cat 3 Chesapeake, VA
Angela Austin- Greenville, SC
Cynthia Lehner- Greer, SC

This is an incredible project that has an unlimited future.