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Monday, May 21, 2007
Well the big party weekend is over....Andrea is officially a Graduate Nurse 
w/ a BSNRN....unfortunately she is already back in the classroom. What a 
drag to graduate and then a day later be forced in the classroom for 40 
hours of Mandatory NCLEX review...I guess one more test...the state 
boards..then its official.
I also went back to school this weekend....it was a sharp learning curve 
too. WORS at Lake Geneva w/ Mom & Dad in attendance...I was feeling good, 
maybe a little tired from the graduation party, but ready to rock. I heard 
good things about the course and was pretty pumped. Lap 1 was fast...I was 
behing AJ in the first singletrack and a little gap opened to the top 3 of 
Jesse, Tristan, & Mike....I rode hard to close the gap and was feeling 
pretty good, Marko was chasing me but couldn't quite get my wheel. By the 
end of lap 1 five of us rode through and started the climb back on to the 
course. Tristan was riding like a girl so I took charge on the climb, a few 
minutes later, I was riding like a 5th grader and couldn't stay on two 
wheels. I crashed and Jesse and Tristan were gone. Mike was just in sight 
and I managaed to catch Marko's wheel. Then it got slippery, I crashed 
again, then it got slipperier.
I composed myself, started chasing caught Marko saw Mike in the woods with 
a flat, but I knew Tristan and Jesse were gone. I think I crashed in front 
of Marko about 17 times....I think he crashed in front of me 13 times....it 
was pretty rad for a while...I should have let out some air pressure, but 
didn't want to flat on the rock garden. Finished up 4th on the day. Great 
day for Trek / Fisher on the podium! The day after and I feel like I got my 
ass kicked in a hockey fight from hitting the ground too many times...

Wings lost a heart breaker...do or die tomorrow night in Anaheim, series is 
3-2 Ducks

Go WINGS!!!

back to work now....



  Polka Time <http://b-matter.blogspot.com/2007/05/polka-time.html>
  I knew it was going to be a good day as we were approaching Iola and I
  switched the radio station....over the airways came the polka version of the
  Partridge Family's 'I Think I Love You' Yah....stranger things have motivated
  me in the past but this time it was a family band from the 70's. All the big
  dogs from Wisconsin showed up for the first Wors race of the year, except for
  Sova who claims to have a girlfriend??? A solid warm up, a solid start, and a
  perfectly tuned Trek Fuel 9.9 had me on my way to the first victory of the
  Wors season. The new Fuel's are amazing...the rear suspension is so active
  when it needs to be yet rigid enough to climb like a champ....the lockout is
  even more impressive and turns the plush fuel suspensin in to a 22 lbs rigid
  bike with the flip of a switch. I followed AJ and Mike up the start climb and
  after a few lead changes on the first couple of climbs I took the lead and
  never looked back. For a while I could feel the presence of Jesse on the SS
  and was impressed with his effort. Our perceived exertion was 2X that of the
  Rockford race, but the different styles of riding the full suspension vs the
  ss continually had him bridging small gaps and soon I was riding solo. I'm not
  sure if it was the power of the Blades, the new Trek, or the Partridge Family,
  but more likely than not it was the help from www.momentumendurance.com <http://www.momentumendurance.com>
  The hard work paid off... I would like to thank Travis for all his help. Even
  if you think you are really fast a coach can help you...an outsiders
  perspective and new found motivation can do you wonders on the bike. Here is
  my GPS from the race...consistent lap times and good HR numbers...what more
  could I ask for...
  

  

Race update: 
Well it has been a while since my last update so I thought I could cheat a 
little and fill everyone in on the last couple of races.
This weekend was the state cross championships.....I 
took home the victory to repeat as CX State Champ.  I was pretty happy with a 
strong ride and good technique. For details of the story I thought I 
would finally get with the times so I decided to start a blog....check it out @ 
('http://b-matter.blogspot.com/')







The biggest race was definitely stop 3 of the Triple Crown....better known as the Iceman!  
One of the best races of the year and definitely the sight of the best post race 
party on the entire circuit.  This year I was uncertain what to expect.  Two 
weeks before the race I was sick as can be....after 4 days of major loss of body 
fluids I was in the emergency room getting an IV of Saline and being diagnosed 
with MONO.  Bummer....Fortunately a few day later I was feeling better and 
decided to test the legs at the local cross race.  Miraculously I felt like a 
champ and had no problem ripping legs off.  So it was off the the Iceman w/ 
Tristan (www.tristanschouten.blogspot.com) to see what I could do. 

  The start was so fast I couldn't beleive it but I felt great...within seconds there 
was a 3 man break including myself Tristan and Mike Simonson...within a mile I 
was 10ft in the air crashing harder than I knew what hit me....Simonson rode 
awat and it was pretty much race over.  I jumped back on the bike bridged to 
Tristan and we traded pulls to no avail.  Simonson won I was 3rd...check out the 
sweet podium shot.  There was also a pretty good article on Velonews.

  We partied at the Bells Beer Post race...Simonson hoisted me over his head a few 
times...lost a couple arm wrestling matches at the bar...elbowed some innocent 
bystanders...classic stuff.  The party bus was there in fine fashion, but it not 
got too crazy before Tristan and I called it a night.   We bailed a little early 
so we could drive homw Sunday and race the Estabrook Park CX race.  We were on 
our mtn bikes, tired, but we still managed to go 1-2 for the day and cover some 
gas money expenses.

  This past weekend was one of the nastiest cross 
races I have ever done.  It was in Janesville and the 4" of snow the night 
before made for some favorable cross condtions.  With 10 minutes to go before 
the race we pulled in the parking lot after misjudging the drive time to find 4" 
to 6" of soupy mud covering the entire course.  I was pretty pumped after racing 
cross in WI for 4 years, this was the first was some adverse conditions.  I 
started off strong and within the first lap I was solo and riding towards 
victory.  The skills and the sweet tires were hooking up and with the victory I 
all but sealed up the overall for the WI Cyclocross series.  Check out 
www.madcross.org for more muddy pictures. 

Thanks again to all the 
sponsors especially Mom & Dad, PCW, Hyundai, Trek, Crankbros, and Oakley




  





Race Report



Dust Devil #1



November 8, 2006  
I forgot how tough bike racing was until today. The day after 
sensations always have me feeling a bit off cue while time seems to take its own 
unique rate as I try to accomplish at least a couple of productive tasks without 
much succes. Updating the site is something at least. Yesterday Chloe and I made 
to the Dust Devil race held at White Tanks Park just to the west of Phoenix. There was 
a small turnout for this first in series of three events, but everyone was 
having a good time and enjoying the low-key event. It was a long race, doing 
five laps of the seven mile circuit had me out there for over two and half hours 
and most everyone else was three plus. Perhaps four laps would have been plenty, 
but it was a good time regardless.I haven’t gone very hard for 
any length of time so at least I know that my legs still work a bit. 
Of course Chloe was the fastest women, unfortunately she was also 
the only women in the field which meant that she got to ride with the guys. 
We put our winning gift certificates together so that I 
could get a much needed SRAM chain and a highly sought after 19mm cone wrench – 
something that I’ve been in search of all season long. While driving to Swiss American 
we got to eat at In-and-Out Burger. My stomach is now two for three with this 
restaurant and it tastes oh-so-good so I'm offically calling my first 
experience a fluke.  This time the potato slicer guy cut his 
finger while going crazy with the machine. If you’ve been to In-and-Out, you’ve 
probably seen the potato cutter, but chances are you haven’t seen a guy get his 
finger cut in it! It wasn’t a bad injury and after a quick clean up and a 
band-aid he was back at it. He got off easy and it could have been way worse- 
exciting to see none the less.
Mid week I dissected my Fox Forx to do some maintenance and 
replace the wiper seals. This was my first Fox surgery, but all 
went successfully and it’s working smoother than ever now. The best part was 
using the kitchen as my shop. Of course the worst part of the job was cleaning 
the kitchen once I finished things up…
And for the weather report…. Yesterday’s race was contested 
in 90 degree heat while today it’s a comfy 75 with full sunshine. The coming 
winter and its fall-likeness can’t come soon enough. 50’s will be perfect, if and when it ever cools off that much here.

Thanks for reading, TJ




As the mountain bike season comes to an end, the weather turns nasty and the 
legs are asking for a break, it mus mean on thing cross season!  Time for the 
true suffering to begin.  Freezing fingers, muddy feet, and lung burning attack 
after attack.  The cross season is only for the tough, the hardcore, and the 
mental.  Two weekends ago was the first cross race in WI, I was still in MTB 
mode so I opted to ride a rigid Trek 9.9 w/ a switchblade fork.  It was fast, 
but not fast enough for the victory as I finished 2nd behind Tristan.  This past 
weekend was Moe's Burrito Cross outside of Milwaukee and I decided to bust out 
the new Trek XO2 cross bike.  I also busted out the victory!  Now I am leading 
the WCA point series.  This weekend is a double header cross up in Whitewater 
and Cam Rock. Check back for the report.

Brian Matter






Why's the 5th lap here so painfull 


What a perfect day for racing. Mid 70's & 
sun. Perfect course conditions led to a fast race. It was a sprint to get to the 
singletrack I had a good start & hit the singletrack in the top ten. After 
riding the course all week I was pretty confident in the trails. The race was 
balls to the walls all 5 laps. After the first lap or 2 the top ten was pretty 
set other than who will be in what position at the finish. Gaps opened up fast. 
The fast start I think put alot of people in the hurt locker without being able 
to come back. I liked the quicker dip into the singletrack. There's already to 
many races with 1 & 2 mile lead outs. Lap 3 I caught Aj & it was a 4 man 
chase group till he pulls off just before the stream crossing with a broken seat 
post. Man that guys had some bad luck this year. Laps 3,4,5 myself, Jesrin & 
Marko battled for 8th-10th. I actually had gotten a small gap on them for awhile 
in the 4th lap but they brought it back.
Jesrin put some attacks in after the stream crossing 
& I dropped off a bit. Marko hung on for a bit longer but by the finish it 
was Jesrin, Marko, Me(10th). All in all It was my best race at sheboygan. In the 
past that course has gotten the better of me. The season went pretty good but 
definitely can be better. I think when all's said & done I will be 9th 
overall in the series. I know if I actually get on a plan & stick to it I 
can crack that top 5 series overall. I was actually right there for awhile this 
year but just didn't put up big enough numbers when needed.
Congrats to Matter for the series win, Peariso & AJ 
for 2nd & 3rd, Mikey for finishing the second part of the season strong to 
pull off 4th by 1 point, & Seth for holding strong to finish 5th. 

Tim Drankus





The Late Season Shuffle 






I should start out with my present education 
situation. I have fallen subject to the hardest semester of my college career. 
This semester is dreaded by all education majors. They call it Block, which 
means practice and methodology in the classroom. This translates to a gargantuan 
amount of time and copious amounts of busy work. I student teach in a small 
school in Chippewa Falls for half the semester. We go all day for eight weeks 
straight, and if that’s not enough work we have to pay for it! However, to a put 
a positive spin on matters I am learning things. For example at recess the other 
day I learned how to play four square. Do you know how? In addition I am 
relearning important life skills which I may have forgotten since elementary 
school, things like listening, cooperation and following direction.

Now 
for the quick and saddening Wisconsin Rapids race recap. Leading the chase train 
after slow start I developed a small leak in my front tire. I reached back for 
my CO2, not there! Rookie mistake I thought as I visualized the cartridge 
setting in the roof rack. For a while I was able to milk it out, but then 
tragedy struck in a root slip log slam on the leg over the bars tire roll crash. 
I was done. Jesrin handed me some air but I had to cut a chunk of trail to catch 
him. I chased back for the remainder of the lap and drop out at the finish. Such 
is racing.

So the training volume has been way down the last couple weeks 
mainly for the reasons listed above, however I have gotten some cool (literally 
and figuratively) night rides in. Tomorrow John and I are heading south to 
Shevegas for the PCW race. Chase has two big exams on Monday so he can’t make 
it. I heard the course has changed so we will be pre-riding tomorrow early 
afternoon, hope to see you there.

Quote of the day:

This is not 
Disneyland, or Hollywood. I'll give you an example: I've read that I flew up the 
hills and mountains of France. But you don't fly up a hill. You struggle slowly 
and painfully up a hill, and maybe, if you work very hard, you get to the top 
ahead of everybody else. -Lance Armstrong



Fat Tire Report

One off the log

Sept 18, 2006

My Chequamegon......


4th Place......the dreaded one spot off the podium, but looking back at the
competition I am pretty happy. Here is how it unfolded. I started off by
actually training for 2 weeks prior to the race. I did 3 days of interval
training and 2 rides over 2.5 hours. That's dedication! Tristan and I drove up
to the race in normal fashion. Fuel 110's on the roof ready to race and 9.9's
ready for emergency. As we arrived we saw more than the normal 2 or 3 riding
around on 29 inch rigid bikes and we started to doubt riding the slightly
heavier Fuel's. Then I remembered the last 3 years in both the Men's and Women's
race Fuel 110's were on the podium! That says a lot for Trek and confirmed my
choice to ride the Fuel. Had it not been for an untimely flat Fuel 110's would
have been on the top of the podium together one more time. I rode from Seeley
Fire Tower to the finish on Friday just to get a feel for the course. It was
fast and dry. The 50 mph tailwind the entire ride had a lot to do with the
speed. While pre-riding I chose my spot to attack for the big race if it were to
come down to another big sprint. I crashed at a cheap motel less than a mile
from the start and had a nice blueberry pancake breakfast the morning of the big
race. After a good warm-up and inspection of Rosie's field I was ready to rock.
The start was a lot smoother for me this year. The 4-wheelers went a little
faster and I think this caused less tire rubbing and less crashes. Before I knew
it I was battling through Rosie's field and jumping on to the Birkie trail in
the top 15. As I looked around me I was blown away. Multiple National Champions,
Multiple Cheqaumegon winners, Multiple World champions, and many others with the
ability to win. As we finished the first section of the Birkie the race blew
apart. Our group of 25 strong was blown into 3 leaders and about 10 chasers. I
was too far back to even consider briding up to Doug....the first mental blow.
Our chase group consisted of Hall, Schouten, Stanford, Woodruff, Sova, Phillips,
Harland, and myself. Three PCW guys, but we were not strong enough to bring back
Doug, Jeremy, and T Brown. At this point I started to feel bad. I was struggling
sitting in the group riding the inconsistent pace the others were setting. I
decided to let a gap open with my two PCW mates of the front. I was hoping it
would stick, but the others in the group saw the move and it was short lived. 20
miles flew by and before I knew it we hit the Fire Tower. I gave it the gas and
got a gap with Tristan up the climb, but our chase group was back together by
the begining of the final section of Birkie.


Jeff Hall slowly rode off the front of our group and I am still kicking myself
for not going with him, but he was able to sneak away from our group and sneak
onto the podium. T Brown feel off the pace of the lead group and was feeling the
pain. I saw him at the spot I was planning on attacking and blasted away from
the remainder of our chase group. Brown tried to get me wheel but had nothing
left. I fininshed 4th w/ T Brown 3 seconds behind me. 3 PCW riders in the top 10
and 6 Treks in the top 10. Not too shabby.... After the event went to the party
at the Fisher / Trek tent, had some pizza's, and went the the awards ceremony.
It was a great weekend of racing and I'm looking forward to the end of the WORS
season and the last Triple Crown race in Traverse City. Thanks to all the
sponsors...PCW, HYUNDAI, TREK, Crank Bros, Oakley and everybody else along the
way.

Brian




2006 Wisconsin State Crit....


August, 26 2006

As you all know Ryan White last year won the State Crit in
Elkhorn. Ryan and I were looking to defend the title and keep the jersey in the
family and on the team of PCW. Ryan picked me up that day at my house on his way
and we talked about how things were going to go that day. I would of like to se
Ryan win it again, but we know that if there was going to be a break one of us
had to be in it. Well, just like any other race we get to the start line and we
look at each other and smile and say Lets Get -R- Done. We took off and there
were a couple of attacks right off the start and than about 15 min. into a 75
min. + 2 lap race. I took off with four other riders and I thought it might of
been to early. If it didn't work I knew that Ryan would counter attack. Ryan
than sat in and blocked AND chased down about every attack that tried to chase
us down. With about half the race over.

Ryan let three other riders bridge up to us and the eight of us in the break 
lapped the field with about six or so laps to go. I went chasing to the front
of the field where Ryan was and told him great job and what the next plan was
so that I was the one winning the field sprint and the State Crit. I told him 
with two laps to go to drill it (give it all you got), and that is what he did. 
There was a Crash on corner two with one lap to go and we weren't a part of it. 
Ryan got me through that corner and the next than pealed off. It was all up to 
me now. I came into the last corner behind Jason Landretti and I went to the 
out side and started sprinting. It was painful but I gave it all I had and to 
the victory. I don't think I could of done it with out the help of Ryan in those
last two laps. But We did it!! We won the race and the state crit two years 
running, and we will be back to defend it next year. Thanks to all the 
sponsors...PCW, HYUNDAI, TREK, Crank Bros, Oakley and everybody else along the
way.


Robert White, Jr.




The Tour Of Elk Grove....


August, 12 2006

Well superweek is over and and Ryan and I  were
waiting for this race all season. Ryan went down the night before and I had to
work that night before the race. Well I got off work at about 6a.m and than went
home, got my younger brother up and had him drive me to Chicago for the race. 
I was trying to sleep on the way their but I was to excited about the race. I told
my brother on our way their that this was my race and I was going to win. Well
it happened, I won the race! It was my first win as a Cat 1-2. Ryan did an
excellent job blocking after I went off in a three man break with about 6 laps
(2.1 mile loop) to go. We worked together to stay away from the field and with
one lap to go I took my pull early in the lap and than with about a half a mile
to go I let one rider ( Dave Stone) go off by himself to see if John Meyers (the
other rider) would chase him, but he didn't. So I sat on his wheel for a couple
hundred meters and with about 1000 meters to go I jumped off his and gave it all
I had and I went blowing by him at about the 500 meter mark and won by a big 1-2
hundred meters. It was a great day for a race and I look forward to doing it
again next year. Thanks to all the sponsors...PCW, HYUNDAI, TREK, Crank Bros, Oakley and everybody else along the
way.  


Robert White, Jr.








August, 17 2006

Just wanted to drop everyone a quick line.  This past weekend was WORS # 11 in 
Wisconin Rapids.  I was able to pull off a victory after attacking in the last 2 
miles to drop Mike Phillips of the Alterra Team.  I think I was a little 
stronger in the end because I was riding my plush Fuel 110 and he was riding a 
hardtail.  The course was 8 miles of some of the best singletrack in Wisconsin.  
The rain the day before kept the dust down and allowed maximum speed into the 
corners and through the tight singletrack.  32 miles later and the victory 
almost guarantee's my 1st place Overall position in the WORS series.  I am very 
proud to have finished 2nd, 1st, 2nd, and now 1st again in the last four years 
of racing the WORS overall series.  I couldn't have done it without the support 
of PCW, Hyundai, Trek, Crank Bros., and Oakley.  Thanks again.  sorry i couldn't 
find any cool pictures yet... 

Brian Matter 
PCW CYCLING TEAM 




My First Night In Jail....



No, not really its just how I feel the morning after Wausau Big Ring 
Classic. It must have been the bumpiest course in history I rode a 
hardtail. I wish I could have ridden a Fuel 110, but no dice. It was the 
9.9 and I did what I could, but came up 35 second shy of the victory. Now 
my back hurts my hands hurt and my legs are in some serious pain from
cramping in the last 2 miles. I love this stuff.


Life in general has been good. Three races under the belt for the year and 
2 3rd's and a 4th. I'm happy. Mostly base training with one week of some 
efforts. No its time to start some group rides and race as much as possible 
to get into shape. I'm feeling better each race and hoping to go fast next 
time around at Kewaunee.


Thanks again to all the sponsors and check back soon for the new PCW Website 
and more frequent updates. This weekend is the State Road Championships so 
it's time for some skinny tire action.


Brian


Sea Otter

Two Days of Action

April 7, 2006




SuperCross Action captured by Tom Rinehart

The first two stages of the Otter have come and gone quickly. Today's TT wasn't even five minutes long, so quick can be taken in literal terms. Both stages were very muddy and required some serious slop riding skill. I'm learning the ropes of mud riding, but most of my energy only had me going sideways yesterday. Off of the bike, most of my time has been spent cleaning things such as dirty bikes, dirty clothes and dirty bikes again. Good thing the Econo Lodge has a nice bike wash setup.



Finding my game face just prior to TT staging.
The xc course is drying up very nicely so if the rain can hold off through Sunday we'll enjoy primo conditions. I joined some fellow pro bloggers for a hot lap on the course today. Martini, Sager, Tristan and I put in a pretty quick ninety minute lap doing a 'Boulder Slow' pace. It was a good time out there and the legs responded well to the ride. There were hundreds of sheep running around in one place so we had Jason get them out of the way for us. Perhaps Nick will post the picture he got of this sheep herding escapade...
So tomorrow the short track field is officially split into top and bottom 1/2 by gc. Unfortunately I'm in the top of that bottom half. Who knows, maybe I can 'win' 60th place. Expect a report tomorrow evening once all the gear has been cleaned once again. Keep it real, TJ




Calm Before the Storm

last workouts in the books

April 3, 2006


Wow, the eve of race season is officially upon us. The Sea Otter starts up on Thursday and weekend races are booked all the way through the end of May, each and every weekend... For now I'll be resting up and just tooling around on the Sewanee a bit before the Otter takes off. 
The training has been done and I feel well prepared to race hard. I've done more hard training in the last two months than in the previous five seasons combined. I guess that's the difference between simply riding and actually training. It's nice to have numbers indicating that I've improved my 20 minute power by 6% when compared to any previous personal bests. Now I just have to put these extra watts to good use on the trail! After all, results are what count. Placing well in the Super Cross and the Time Trial will be key, as they are running fast and 'slow' heats for the Short Track event, splitting the field on current GC standings.
I'm driving up to Monterey on Tuesday so once I'm up there you can expect daily live reports with all the highlights. There should be plenty of race action to talk about, a good change from 'same old' training reports you've read on here all winter. Thanks for checking in. -TJ
I'll leave you with this taken from the EuroSport Flanders recap: 
"Boonen stated in no uncertain terms that even if Hincapie had joined the top-two at the finish, it would have made no difference.
"If they ride with me they ride for second place, but if they wait they go at the end," Boonen concluded.
With confidence like this it is very tough to lose. Tough as nails...