Night Shots

A few shots from around the hotel...

Stinky Tofu and Bacon World Domination

Katie started her assignment today so that left me on my own to explore the city. I headed out to try and find a special spice market and take photos along the way. Unfortunately navigation proved harder than I thought!

I was using Taipei 101 as a reference but it's amazing how the density of the city actually makes it possible to loose sight of a 101 story building. I ended up way south of where I thought I was and was shocked to find out just how lost I was! Everything starts to look the same in a new place. Got some nice shots the cows all over the city. It is the year of the cow so they are doing something similar to the pigs in Seattle or angles in Los Angels by hiring artist to decorate them.

I figured I walked about 8 miles and was pretty tired so I made my way back to the hotel and took a nap before dinner. Her coworkers took us to the Shilin Night Market (one of the largest in Taipei). Thus begins our own rendition of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations.

We started off with fish cakes, squid and shrimp, all deep fried. The fish cakes were OK but I wasn't a huge fan of the other things. We then tried these crazy pastries that are basically double wrapped like a burrito. I tried the peanut flavored one and it reminded me of a Swedish pastry but not as sweet. Next were the kabobs. Grilled bacon wrapped around shallots...YUM! I could live off these! Katie had grilled pork wrapped in sticky rice and fried for a second. Also good but not as much as the bacon. I'm convinced that bacon is the superior food everywhere in the world.

Next was a gellitan drink made of seeds which reminded me of ice tea gello. Not bad! Finaly was the stinky tofu (the sign actually says "House of Stinky Tofu"). Basically it is fermented tofu in a variety of flavors. It's...interesting. It changes flavor about 4 times while you are chewing it. VERY rich and I have no idea how you could eat a lot of it.

We then made our way over to the retain section of the market which is filled with vendors selling everything under the sun. Most clothes and shoes. It felt amazingly busy for a Monday night, very festive and full of energy. The whole crowd just kind of flows through everything.

Suprisingly to us, things didn't appear as cheep as you would think for more popular items, but if it's not a name brand things are dirt cheap.

We were full and exhausted and decided to call it a night. More photos here.

Dinner: It was still moving when they brought it out.

Katie and I had a very interesting dinner this evening! We went over to a steak house at Taipei 101 that had been recommended. It was teppanyaki style without the "onion volcano" and other antics.

The set menu for dinner appeared to be huge but we through caution to the wind. The first course started with small appetizers: cucumber slice with salmon eggs, cherry tomato with caviar and a salmon slice stuffed with what appeared to be crab and some other things.

Then we moved on to a corn soup that was really good followed by some perfectly cooked scallops and cod. Then it got a little interesting...

We watched as the next course was brought out with prawns and then a lobster sliced down the middle, legs still moving! We were wondering who ordered it, turned out it was somehow part of our meal. We got a few ohs and ahhs from the American businessmen who were sitting at our table.

I had never had full-blown lobster tail before. It was prepared with melted cheese, which was a little interesting, but still was awesome and tasted super fresh (as good as I can tell anyway).

We hadn't even got to our main course yet and we were wondering how we were going to finish what we had. The waiter brings out these interesting salads, which were basically fruit on a bed of iceberg lettuce with either orange or blueberry yogurt for dressing. We were a little puzzled by the choice and timing, but after trying it we realized it was very palette cleansing and helped with digestion. I actually felt less full after eating it.

On to the main course! I had chicken with grilled bacon and Katie had the steak. The chef brought out a mound of garlic that was seriously six inches high and proceeded to cook it up while mixing in all the other flavors. YUM!

We were working on that when suddenly he dumps some onions on the grill and quickly cooks them and adds it to the pile. Almost comatose, I'm wondering how we are going to be able to walk back to the hotel when we see desert roll in...

It was a cake with candied pistachios mixed in. Just a small piece but that was plenty! We finished off the evening with a cup of tea and called it.

I think we might have been taken a little with the lobster upgrade, but it proved to be a great experience we won't forget anytime soon. I just hope that is the last time my food is still moving when they bring it to me!

We're here!

We got in around 6am this morning. A little bumpy but otherwise uneventful flight. Business class was worth every penny! We couldn't check in yet so we wandered around the streets of our hotel for a few hours. Not much going on which is a typical Sunday in the city. Lot's of people exercising in the parks (very cool). We wandered down a few of the alleys with the markets starting to get in full swing. VERY noisy but almost poetic as scooters, people, bikes and carts passed within inches of each other. No yelling, no honking, no road rage.

We are noticing that we do stick out a bit and people are definitely not shy about checking you over. Not in a bad way but in three hours on the streets we didn't see one other person that even resembled an American until we got back to the hotel. Checked in and had breakfast, got showered and now we are off to Taipei 101! Snapped a few shots this morning too.

Off to Taipe!

We're headed off to the airport now, stay tuned for more news and photos!

Why I go to work everyday

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Guru Praemio Titanium

It's here! 75 miles down and loving it! I was wondering if I was just playing mind tricks with myself that a custom frame would actually "feel" different. However, my first ride was about 3 1/2 hours and all I had to do was adjust the seat. Flawless! More picks if you are curious...

My first titanium bike, but now I'm a believer! I like a stiffer ride of aluminum but didn't want to get beat up. Most carbon feels too flexy for me. I know you can get carbon frames that are stiffer, but in terms of durability and performance this thing is just incredible.

Guru is HERE!

Dear US Postmaster:

Please expedite the shipping of my SRAM Red group in any way possible. It is VERY important that these parts make it to their final destination.

Sincerely,

Brian

Zen Bicycle

A Zen teacher saw five of his students returning from the market, riding their bicycles. When they arrived at the monastery and had dismounted, the teacher asked the students, "Why are you riding your bicycles?"

The first student replied, "The bicycle is carrying this sack of potatoes. I am glad that I do not have to carry them on my back!" The teacher praised the first student. "You are a smart boy! When you grow old, you will not walk hunched over like I do."

The second student replied, "I love to watch the trees and fields pass by as I roll down the path!" The teacher commended the second student, "Your eyes are open, and you see the world."

The third student replied, "When I ride my bicycle, I am content to chant nam myoho renge kyo." The teacher gave his praise to the third student, "Your mind will roll with the ease of a newly trued wheel."

The fourth student replied, "Riding my bicycle, I live in harmony with all sentient beings." The teacher was pleased and said to the fourth student, "You are riding on the golden path of non-harming."

The fifth student replied, "I ride my bicycle to ride my bicycle." The teacher sat at the feet of the fifth student and said, "I am your student."

Shout Out to our NW Meteorologists

Come on guys... how hard can this be?

Broken but not Beaten

My CX season came to an unfortunate end on Tuesday night (of all times). I had a dinner meeting with my team captain, Steve, and met him up in Capitol Hill.

On my way home I made my way down to 1st ave and was coasting along at about 20mph down the grade which is one of my favorite ways to come home from the city.

As I'm coming to cross Pike I see a car waiting to turn left. Wait...the car IS turning left!

I grabbed both brakes and found that the cobblestones underneath were giving no support. I had just enough time to get out the works "OH SHIT" before hitting the passenger side of the SUV like a bug on a windshield.

Now I'm laying on the ground trying to figure out what just happened. My ride side is absolutely killing me. About 15 people are circled around me.

"Are you OK?"

"No"

"Do you want us to call 911"

"YES!"

That's about all I was good for. I managed to make one more call to my wife who was on her way home from class. I wasn't very convincing in my statement of "I've been hit by a car, I'm OK but the ambulance is on the way".

I got a lovely ride to Swedish and the EMT was nice enough to put my bike in the back of the ambulance so my wife wouldn't have to come back.

The net of the situation is a broken clavicle and lots of bruises. It could have been a LOT worse. My race season is over and that is what I'm probably most bummed about. Especially after getting 6th at state champs last week.

Thanks to all the well wishes and prayers from my friends and family! It's been an overwhelming show of support. :)

State Cyclocross Championship - Will Trade Beer for Food

Back out to Pacific Raceways just one more time...

I had a lot of prep leading into today and was feeling really good. I felt like I finally was back on track with the training plan. Because I helped with course setup yesterday I had an idea as to what the "fun" areas were going to be and I think the course modifications that we made from our race were a HUGE improvement.

The weather was freak'in awesome. Are we sure it's November in Washington?!?

They announce the call for staging and I make my way over and get a good spot in the second row. Some guys start trying to edge there way in and get along the sides outside of the lanes when finally the official comes up and says "to the back guys!". Finally they were starting to regulate on that, their are no friends at staging. :)

I get a good start and I'm sitting in about 12th. Catch a place or two going into the barriers and I can quickly see a pace group developing. Nine of us are in line flying down the back straight. A gap starts developing and I bridge back on to the group but I'm quickly realizing I'm going to destroy myself trying to hang on and I ended up dragging two guys with me.

A group of 5 makes their way off, now it's me, and HB guy and an unattached guy. Lap 2 the HB guy cases it at the bottom of the hill before the run-up and then their were two.

This guy was faster than me in the corners so I just had to try and hang on and follow his line. I had a feeling I could get him on the straights but I needed to be patient.

On the last lap I made sure to be right on his wheel on the back section into the run-up. We hit the flat part by the bleachers and I get in the drops and hit the gas catching him by surprise and opening up about a 15 yard gap.

We're going into the final right bend and I take the turn wide think "Oh crap I blew it!" but got down in the power position and just didn't look up screaming towards the line and crossing in 6th. (best finish of the year! wahooo!) He finished about two bike lengths behind me.

Here is how it played out:



I celebrated with beer (Are you worthy?), beer and beer. It's important to get some variety in your diet!

Since man cannot live on beer alone I made my way over to the food cart to get a burger for myself and my lovely wife who was volunteering in registration. Toting my 32oz Arrogant Bastard ale she promptly ask, "Do you have any more beer?" Uh...is the Pope Catholic?

"If you bring us back a couple lunch is on us!" Nice! I think a cyclocross race is the only place where beer is actually considered currency.

I made my way back for Jill B's single speed race. Promptly after the start she coming running up with a broken chain right off the line! Not a good start.

The pits get her up and running again but she's two laps down. After a little convincing we get her back out there. Ed goes "hey man, crack a beer open for her on the back stretch".

About 7 minutes later she comes around to the back straight greeted by the Starbucks Crew holding out a nice microbrew like Gatorade and the NYC marathon. She promptly pulls through the pits, grabs the beer and DOWNS IT much to the cheers of the spectators. Now we're CX racing!

I also learned from the official monitoring the pit that it is technically illegal to pass liquids to racers. However, if the beer is mounted to the pit bike during an exchange then its OK. What!?!? Who writes these things? Needless to say he was very cool about the whole thing. :)

On to our podium finisher! In his first season as a cat 3 Vern took 3rd in the 45+ division! I only got a photo of him on the podium cuz he was going too fast on the course!
We had an AWESOME showing today from the Starbucks Crew.

I believe the tally is:

Cat 4 35+:
Tim - 7th
Steve - 13th

Cat 4 Men:
Myself - 6th

Cat 3 45+:
Vern - 3rd

SS Women
Jill B - 4th (and that's after the beer!)

A few more action shots:

Tim looking strong:


Steve Z powering through the back stretch:

Can't wait to do it all over again next weekend. :)

The Mud, The Blood & The Beer. - Bremerton CX

It's bad to do a race report just 2 days before your next one, but this work week has just been hell. Come to think of it...the last few have been hell. Work is crazy for everyone I know since it seems like we're all trying to stop the world from ending. Maybe we should all just chill for a second and take wisdom in the words of Dave Matthews...



All that work and not enough play did not give me a good feeling. After doing the math on what time I would have to get up to catch the ferry I decided to get a room and go over the night before. We stayed at a great little B&B, Illahee Manor which was about 10 minutes from the event. Great little place!

The highlight of the day came from our CX Rookie, Liz. This was her first CX race and she just got a hold of a bike the night before. She's a cat 3 road racer and ex-sport mountain biker though so the skills were there. Tim and I were giving her tips on mounting and dismounting. Told her to go out and have fun, be safe and line up near the back... blah...blah...yeah right. :)

Our tent was at the bottom of the hill at the 180 after the start. We see the racers coming down the hill and there is this green and white flash just hauling a$$ down the right side jumping to the front. Her expression was classic, "I WILL make it to the turn before you!". She came in just a little hot and made a nice little power slide working her way around and the crowd goes wild! From there she simply put the hammer down, caught the back of the mens cat 4 masters group within the first lap and proceeded to ride away to the podium. (We then promptly called her a sandbagger even though it was her first race!).

My race felt like one of those slow painful workouts where you just can't wait till it's over. The grassy field sucked the life out of me and I could tell from the first 1/2 lap that today was a day to just have fun and push it for all I had. No big crashes or mistakes but a few of us were playing cat and mouse for most of the race to keep us motivated. I crossed the line in 30th...promptly changed and hit the beer chest.

Training regiment has improved so I'm hoping to crack the top 20 at state champs this sunday.

La Fermata - Bremerton

My wife and I decided to head over to Bremerton on Saturday night so we didn't have to get up so early for the next SCX race at Bremerton Fairgrounds.

We're staying at Illahee Manor B&B and our stay has been excellent! Just one little hicup...

We had asked for a restaurant recommendation and they said if we liked Italian to try La Fermata
down off 11th ave. We made a 7:45 reservation which seemed to come up rather quickly. We show up about 8 minutes early and the host looked at us a little funny but they promptly seated us.

It seemed strange but we went with the flow. Our server proceeded to take us through 3 courses of amazing "downtown Seattle" quality food (and wine...oh well it's just a race right?). When I looked at my watch I was wondering why we finished a 3 course meal in and hour. Hmmmm...

We started to think a little harder, we based our schedule off the room clock and I had forgot my watch. Katie throws out the idea that maybe the clock wasn't set back last week for daylight savings? Nah...

Well...we asked our sever "were we early?" He replies "yep, by about an hour! We just though you were excited to see us!". Good save. :)

Seriously, amazing food, amazing service (and I left an amazing well deserved tip). This place rocks and if I'm in Bremerton again I'll be back!

It's Over...

Well, the Starbucks GP has come and gone. I was in bed by 7:30 that night (thank you daylight savings) and didn't wake up for 12 hours. I missed Donida Farms because I was just too tired.

And I'm totally addicted to race promotion. :)

Overall, the event went really well and my awesome teammates were there to help pull the entire thing off. Rory and Deanna were great. David and Bilko did an incredible job of scoring and announcing. Thanks to my coach David for coming out and racing!

My only downer was that the turnout was so so...but that's to be expected the first year...and the day after Halloween...and on a Saturday with a series race the next day. For an idea hatched in August though we can't complain. Next year we'll get a better date.

The only scare came in the final race of the day on the final lap when a First Rate guy's tire came off the rim, sucked into the fork and LAUNCHED him over the bars. He was slow to get up (understandingly) and I was thinking "I made it the whole day without anyone getting hurt until now!". Much to all of our surprise he got up, grabbed his bike an ran to the finish. Freak'in Hard Core.

I also watched Jeff Anderson from Cucina Fresca run half a lap when he flatted his front tire. And let me tell you our laps were LONG (we'll fix that next year...). There is something pretty awesome about putting on an event and watching people compete. I don't know how to explain it.

If you haven't yet, check out Steven Bisig's photo site. He's donating all proceeds to the Fred Hutch Survivorship program. He's an awesome photographer and also a really great guy.

Now I'm scraping together my training plan and getting ready for the ferry ride. Mud anyone??!?!

Starbucks GP - 2 Days Away!

Where the heck have I been the last 2 weeks? Well hmmmm....Phoenix...then Vegas...family visiting...race seatac...more race planning....race steilacoom...more race planning...no wonder I'm tired!

It's all coming together and it looks like we're going to have a great turnout for our team's first annual CX race! The process has been fun, enlightening and humbling. The crew and Seattle Cyclocross has been EXTREMELY helpful to us.

I'm looking forward to Saturday...and then looking forward to getting back to my "normal" routine..whatever that is. :)

Hour Of Power

"You never ride me anymore..."

"What?"

"It's been two months, where have you been?"

"Well you know...the weather has been bad and my other bike has fenders and..."

"WHAT? Are you leaving me?"

"Of course not... you know how the winters are."

Come on baby...it's cool and crisp outside and dry as a bone. Let's go for a ride!"

I'm unfortunately one of those people who needs the pressure of a hard deadline to get things done sometimes. I'm headed out of town for 7 days, half for business and half for pleasure. Top that off with family arriving 2 days after I get back and a list of projects that MUST be done around the house and the training plan will suffer.

I was supposed to do 2 hours tonight, a zone two tempo ride. But knowing I wouldn't see a bike for 7 days just gave me the urge to go out and hammer.

I had just one hour...8-9pm. Screw zone 2, this is gonna need to be fast! The rain bike is nice, but it's time to take the race bike out before the long, dark days arrive.

I hit my local west Seattle loop, staring out with a race pace just under threshold and then backing off just enough. I came to the first climb and just hit the pedals hard...the cross racing is paying off! After riding cross and a steel bike with fenders and other crap I feel like I'm riding a rocket.

Almost the entire hour was spent in zone 4 with a few jumps into zone 5. Sorry David...I'll follow the plan better next time. I promise! :)

I finished my loop in a new personal best, 3 minutes faster than my previous best.

Crosstoberfest 2008

It was a the perfect day for a cross race. Rain, clouds, cool...but not too cool. I think I finally got the smell out of my kit from starcrossed, just in time!

We had a great turnout today! Ali, Nancy and Kelly (our newest woman's member...all the way from Michigan!) were representing the cat 4 woman's race. Scott and Steve were racing masters. My teammate Dave and I decided to do the 9:30 as a warm up. Plus, I was testing out a "bar cam" from our new sponsors over at VholdR. (the footage is very cool, more on that later!)

Dave and I lined up in the back as to not interfere with the lead group. I was having blast and taking it easy with the POV cam when suddenly I heard "on your right Brian!" only to see Scott from the 45+ race passing me! He later went on to WIN the 45+ in only his 3rd cross race EVER! Can you say natural?

Cat 3 report in one sentence: Vern took 2nd place in his first cat 3 since the upgrade. Nuff said. :)

For the ladies, Ali finished 5th and I remember Nancy and Kelly having strong finished as well (sorry guys, post your place in the comments!). After the race we noticed Nancy did a number on herself and bloodied her lip and STILL finished the race. One tough gal!

I took down a quick recovery drink and lined up for the 10:30 cat 4 race. Had a front row spot and was determined to make it a good start. From the word "GO!" I was charging hard and found myself in 5th going into the twisty sections. Things were looking good until the left corner right in front of the building where you go from grass to concrete. I came in too hot a WHAM...I'm on the ground sliding. I got up and had to re-buckle my shoe and straighten my left brake lever. By this point I'm at the very back. I look down and my knee is bleeding pretty good but I put it out of my mind and hop on.

Now I'm PISSED off for blowing a good start and riding like a man possessed. We hit the first single track and it's a cluster &*%&. Exactly what I was trying to avoid. Everyone was staying in the middle despite the fact that the lane is 15 feet wide so I hop off and run down the right side over the bushes, logs, whatever and pick up about 7 places. We drop into the second singletrack and I just have to be patient until we get to the top. One by one I keep trying to move up and my knee is killing me (along with other parts of my body) but nothing worth stopping over.

My teammates are SCREAMING at me at this point knowing I'm hurting. Dave seems to be everywhere on the course shooting at me. It truly made it easier and a lot more fun!

I crossed the line and managed to go from dead last to 33rd out of about 70 riders. I wonder what might have been if I didn't crash but just had to step back and take it in. That's racing!

What a great course and a great event! Ragnarok should be proud!

Off to sunny Arizona and Las Vegas for work on Wednesday for 5 days!

Shameless plug, if you haven't yet, register for the Starbucks GP on November 1!

Starcrossed

Bike. Run. Mud. Chaos. Repeat 6 times or until puking. Pairs nicely with a microbrew.

Had a blast, finished 26th out of 85 which was a huge improvement over last year. My teammate Ali took 8th place in her first cross race ever, riding her new bike for the first time that morning! Can't wait to see what she does in the series!
Do I look like I'm having fun?



Nancy and Ali at the finish.
I'm still digging the grass out of my drive train. I have it clean just in time for Evergreen this weekend!

I'm in love...

Just got my new rain/commuter bike! I've been drooling over this bike since it came out. I know the whole retro/modern thing is played out, but what I can I say? I'm a sucker for shinny stuff!
It is super light? No. But steel is real and it rides freak'in awesome. And the orange frame is a burst of sunshine it what is sure to be a crappy dark winter.