DECIDING ON RACING OR NOT

In the photo you can see Mike mounting another tufo cyclocross tubular.  Cross season is hot and heavy at Sunnyside right now. We have three weeks until Nationals. This year is different, most would be done with cross with the finish of the cross crusade but with Nationals it is a different story. We have a race Thanksgiving weekend, then The GP races in Portland the next weekend with Nationals in Bend the 10TH through the 13TH. Mike and I will be gluing many more tyres on in the next three weeks.
So what about me? I was hoping my doctor or my physical therapist would tell me I was 100% and give me the all clear. That is not going to happen. I am the one who will have to decide, I am the one who knows how I feel, the progress I have made and what it means to me.
Right now I feel 98%, I am not sure if I ever feel 100%.
Ok I have been on my trainer keeping in shape, but I haven't been in a race since the beginning of October
If I do race will I be disappointed if I don't go well, will my back withstand a race? Maybe my back is fine. Is sitting harder on me than riding?
I could keep asking all these questions but in the end I will not know, not even if I wait a year. I still have three weeks to decide, and only I can do that.
Thanks for reading, Don

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New fancy phone

I have a new fancy phone, it is Motorola Cliq. This is not a blog about how cool this phone is, it is a blog about the new world we live in. I like to write timely blogs about current events. I am not really into Twitter, nor Facebook. I like to talk (Write in this case too much). I am at work and I have enclosed a photo of Seth, he doesn't really like to have his photo taken, but he managed a smile anyway. I think that is because he likes work. Somehow we manage to have a good time here.
When I was younger we thought it was crazy that Dick Tracy could talk on his watch. Now everyone not only talks but has GPS, camera and I don't even know what else. We have been trying to keep Sunnyside Sport on the cutting edge of keeping our friends informed. It has to do with being real as opposed to Marketing. We do things and I want you to know about it.
There are a couple of examples of what I mean in the National Cyclocross Guide.
One there is a photo of a racer in one of the ads for another bike store, his bike was here at Sunnyside getting worked on.
Another instance of real in the same guide is something I am proud of. There is an article about the Local Racer Spotlight. The local racer was me. There are a lot of locals in town racing their bikes and to pick me I feel is an honor. It is also real. No amount of marketing will buy what that article gives us.
So that is what I am trying to do with my new phone. More blogs and more current information on what we are up to is what my plan is. Thanks for reading.
Don

Mitchell Stevens

I remember the first day Joanne came in to Sunnyside *. She was new to town and was looking for some shoes. She was a bike racer and she was on a Portland team. Mitchell was a baby. She road raced and soon after the first visit joined the Sunnyside Team. Karen and I talked her into coming to a cross race, she was reluctant but because we were her friends she said yes. Was it love at first sight - NOT. She really didn't like cross. That being said Joanne is one tough woman and after a season or two of love/hate, and the realization that she did not do well in the heat (summer road racing), and the persistent pestering of Karen and I (we love cross) Joanne came around. So then we would go to cross races and sometimes Mitchell would show up. It was up to the team to keep an eye on him while his Mom road around in circles in the mud. He would yell and cheer for us all. I used to love him (a 5 year old) shouting out my name.

Last year he decided it would be fun to do some time trialing on the road, and then this fall why not cross.

I have been to only a couple of races this year, none of the ones that Mitchell has gone to. That is what I have missed most about this season, not seeing this young man do what we love to do- cross. When I found out Mitchell won the state championships I can't deny there were tears in my eyes. I was able to help him out once this year at a practice session. I was crippled at the time, but to see the concentration on his face when he was doing what I asked of him was amazing. I hope to help him out more, and to watch many more races. These photos of him are perfect. The pain on his face as he reaches for the win last Saturday and the joy on his face as he gets to stand on the podium, proudly wearing his Sunnyside Jersey. We are his team and have been since the beginning. I am so proud to be his teammate.

Don

*Sunnyside Sports is just Sunnyside to us that hang out there.

RECOVERY FROM A BAD BACK CAN BE FUN

As most of you know I have an extruded disc on my L-4. This means I have a lot of pain and weakness in my right leg. Not good for a cross racer. The deal is I don't want to be an ex cross racer I want to race again. I have been going to Rebound Physical Therapy Westside. They have a lot going on there, all of it good as far as I can tell. I have been going there to lift weights etc for about 5 years. There are always friends there and it has always been fun to go there. One of the reasons it has been fun is I have not been injured.

Now that I am injured I thought it might be less fun, but it isn't. Now I am doing these seemingly easy exercises that turn out to be quite hard. Every time I show up Matt Lieto is also there, he doesn't have a traumatic injury like me, he has a nagging injury left over from a bad bike crash. What we both have found out is our injuries come from our bodies not using all of our muscles. It is kind of funny to see two accomplished athletes straining to get our hips to move. There is as much laughter as there is groaning. Tim Evens has been our PT. I first met Tim when he was just out of high school. This was in 1998 and he was a student at COCC. He, like a lot of us, was just getting into cyclo cross. I actually taught him how to mount and dismount. Now 11 years later he is helping me. I love stuff like that. He is really awesome at PT and I can really feel a difference after two weeks.

I have also been getting some acupuncture treatments at Rebound. Almine Barton is the Acupuncturist that works there. She used to work at the Nike Athlete in Portland. She used to work on Nike Sponsored Athletes now she is working on me. Matt is also one of her patients. I get about 30 needles in me each treatment. The needles do not hurt, though I have noticed it is better to lie still once they are placed. Each time I get treated I feel just that much better. I am hoping it will speed up my recovery.

On another note the race guide for Cyclo Cross Nationals is now online, there is a nice article about me in it. Check it out at Visit Bend . You have to scroll down a bit. I am hoping we will have snow like we did in the photo. Take care.

Don

CROSS AND HALLOWEEN - ASTORIA

This past weekend I took a trip to Astoria with my team to see some cyclo cross racing. Halloween and cross are great combination. Mud, costumes and feeling of celebration is what prevails in this weekend of fun. From the photos you can see a race face on Gina, but then later we are on the beach dressed as Star Trek characters. Renee is wearing The Science Dress. I guess the characters that wore those dresses were science officers in the show. The cool thing about the fabric the costumes were made off is that it didn't breath and it wasn't waterproof. That must have taken some research. In the photo of me on my bike that was my first outdoor ride since I herniated my disc. I didn't seem to get anywhere though.

I had a great time hanging with the team and cheering them on. I got to watch my group race and cheer on my friends. I won't say I didn't miss being out there, but it was also fun not having any pressure and being able to help with the bikes etc. I have had my best races in Astoria and next year I will be back racing. In the meantime I will continue to ride my trainer and try to stay in shape. Live long and prosper.

SUNNYSIDE'S NEW KIT AND NEW STAR

For many of us bike racers having our name in Velonews would be the high light of our career. I have been racing for over 30 year and my name was in Velonews once. It was an article about someone who I had helped. It was a nice recognition but deep down it would have been nice to have seen my name tied to a result.

Though I will probably never get my name in Velonews connected to a result I have seen our new kit in Velonews the last two weeks. Serena Bishop, Sunnyside's newest star has been in the top three at the last two Cross Crusade races. She was the winner of last years Cross Crusade women's B division so this year she upgraded to A. Going from B to A is a very difficult transition. Winning to not winning in a word. Serena has not only made the transition but she has done it with a bang. She has been in the top 10 in all of her races (two thirds and two wins). She is also quite humble. If you read my blog you will see her's on my list of blogs I follow, it is titled Bend and Beyond.

There is another reason our kit has been in Velonews. Our new kit looks great. It is the best kit in Oregon (according to Don and isn't that what this blog is all about). Jim, who is in the photo next to me, designed our kit. He put a lot of hours and sweat (and some blood) into our kit. I turned out great. I have my skin suit hanging in my bedroom giving me incentive to heal and get back out on the bike.

On a personal note, I did some intervals yesterday and my right leg felt awesome. So I am headed in the right direction. I will be at next week's Cross Crusade cheering and helping.

Don

INTERVALS AND MORE INTERVALS

Extruded disc or not I can still do intervals on the trainer in the shed. It doesn't sound like much fun but it is. I hate not being active and I feel really blessed that sitting on a bike that doesn't move wont' hurt my back. I tell my self I need to be in shape for Nationals in December, but I am really doing it because I like being in shape, I like the challenge and I like the music I listen to on my Ipod. It is weird having one weak leg though. I don't notice for most of the interval, in fact they feel normal. I like to use a higher gear for part of the interval though. I am still pedaling close to 100 rpm, but then I can tell my right leg is not quite as strong. I wish I could come up with some more really mind twisting new age reason why like to do intervals indoors when the mountain bike trails are at their best and the sun is that fall semi warm disc in the sky, but I can't. I think it is because I just don't like the idea of stopping and it is the best I can do.

I do know I am glad I went to Mallorca this year, did the Scottish mountain bike holiday and even managed a trip to France this Fall. I also know when I get to hit the mountain bike trails I am going to be stoked. Maybe I will see you out there. I put this photo is so you know what I would rather be doing.

Don