2 Months Out...

Missed the three month update! That's alright though, been a steady grind of prep work. If you're not sure what I'm talking about, VB Racing has entered The Tejas Xtreme 24 Hour Race in East Texas this September. I'll be lining up in the Ironman class and trying to hammer out as many laps as possible in the 24 hour time period.

I decided a while back that the preparation was definitely key, so I've researched, trained, wrenched, ridden, and hustled like crazy to get ready for this event (and be better at life in general). After all, strong people are harder to kill and generally more useful, right? Now here we are at the 2 month mark. I'm still fairly close to on track. The only thing I'm coming up short on is ride time aboard my KTM. She's still being rebuilt, but coming together nicely. It's too hot to ride right now anyhow, but I'm hoping to start a weekly night session on my practice track here at the compound. Other than that, I've been grinding away at CrossFit at least 4 days a week. Some days I feel strong, some days I feel like getting hit by a bus would be a more desirable activity. But I'm definitely getting stronger and more agile. This training coupled with the Paleo diet has been a home run for me. I've dropped 20 lbs in the last 6 months! I just wish I had the discipline to go strictly Paleo and avoid the self-destruction that I jump into every weekend. But as Papa Pierce says, "Beer is carbos and painkillers!"

I geeked out and scored a closeout deal on a new Cannondale road bike from the local shop. Never thought I'd find myself on a road bike since I'm too gnar core for skinny tires, but turns out I love it. It's my guilty pleasure, and I haven't told any of my freeride buddies about it yet. If you guys are reading this, I'll race you right now, and no I don't wear spandex! I've got sweatbands, a mirror on my helmet, and a techno mix on my iPod now- it's like I don't even know who I am any more. But it does a lot of good to get out and stay acclimated to the heat, not to mention I can ride all over the place locally and don't have to transport the bike 45 minutes to a good trail. It's good stuff, and I'd recommend it to anyone considering a road bike!

On the mtb front, I've been hustling the SS rig all over. We slayed it with a ton of urban miles around downtown Austin for Fat Tire's Urban Assault Ride. Lots of white trash wheelies and some great food, music, and beer. I always forget how rad Austin is until I've got a pitcher of Lone Star in me and an earful of raucous tunes. Trail rides are happening about every other week, but will get more frequent if I can get my Element back from Candice! I've found myself out cranking Erwin Park in McKinney a few times with good results. It's a very entertaining 8 mile loop of fast hard pack with some great woods sections that's guaranteed to put a grin on your face! In fact, last night was all smiles as me and the CrossFit crew hit the trail in the dark with a few headlamps. That was an absolute blast and will become an integral part of my 24 hour training.

Life is Good, Summer is HOT!!! Big thanks to all the VB crew out there for the support and for repping the VB Gear! Get out and DO STUFF!

Train Robbers National and the nightmare following...

Whoof. Take a race that is usually good for a 50% dnf rate in good conditions, and add nearly 2 feet of rain. My personal first DNF since I started racing enduros. Saturday started well with a nice drive to Bismarck, Arkansas with Bloody J on board and picking up Kiwi a little east of home. We rolled in early to catch the 1st ever Awesomeness Competition that Seat Time was putting on. Absolutely loved how easy the new campground was to get to, and it set a great stage for the crowd that a National Enduro brings. As soon as we got camp set up, we rolled over to registration and the Seat Time setup for some Awesomeness...

The competition was a 100m sprint aboard the Concept2 rower, as well as a tire changing race. I was all over the rower, but it took some convincing before I jumped on the tire changing (one of my least favorite tasks). Glad I did, because I managed to get top three in both events! Highlight video quick edit with some Beasties tunes- Candice even jumped on board and showed her stuff on the rower!

Seat Time Awesomeness Competition from woodybepierced on Vimeo.

Saturday evening got a bit warm, but we had a great camp setup and the box fan proved once again to be worth it's weight in gold. Steaks were grilled (fully paleo legit!), and then Candice and I rolled over to check out the church service they put on before races.
About that time, the sun was going down and the lightning show began. We had a clear view of the sky, and this storm rolled in like a scene from a sci-fi movie. I actually had to say the prayer asking to please not be struck by lightning in a porta potty. Thankfully, I made it out ok and in time to see some more of the show before the rain started in. Soonafter, the perfect Saturday conditions were hurricaned away by yet another brutal storm. Total rainfall for the event was 22". 22 freakin inches. We laughed it off in the camper all night, then racked out thinking the next day would be ok.

Sunday morning was muddy, rainy, and showed no signs of improvement. Kiwi and I were on row 54, just in time to sit and wait through a downpour. Gear was soaked, grips were slippery, and goggles were useless- and the race hadn't even started. Knowing then what I know now, I would have turned around, gone to the trailer, and spent the day listening to the radio and snacking. But that just isn't my M.O., so off we went. It was miserable, so I'll keep it brief- Mud is an understatement, zero visibility, zero traction, brakes went out, and never think you know how deep a mudhole really is.

When my race ended, I was 23 miles in, and nearly 4 feet deep in water. The seat height on my bike is about 40 inches, and it was underwater. Not that nice clean water you see on TV, but the kind of shit you'd expect to stay in the cup if it were turned upside down. Down and out after that notorious gulping sound. I worked on the bike, wrestled it, and tried to make it do something for over 3 hours until the sweepers got there. Then had to get the sweepers un-stuck a couple times and we wrestled the bikes together for nearly two more hours before I was back to camp. Good news is by then I was so exhausted that my cussing fit had subdued to defeated grunts, and I was trying to get my head wrapped around the rebuild.

Which brings us to now...
FULL rebuild time. I need to restore this bike's badassness in time to get back on the horse training for the 24 race, so it's been a steady process of wrenching and bleeding both my knuckles and my wallet. Good news is she'll be like new by the time I'm done, and I'll have a much greater understanding of the inner workings of a KTM 300. Poor girl makes me want to cry every time I see her like this, but I know it's for the greater good.