VelocityNation interview
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Please checkout this interview I just did with Andy Shen at Velocitynation. Great site that always has entertaining material and comments!
There will be revenge…
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First off, weather looks marvelous out in cali. Marvelous. Hats off to all those guys toughing it out during the stages. It was awesome cheering on TJ and Cam in the day long breaks each day. Hopefully, that nickel sized hail they are predicting won’t hit today.
I just finished off a solid weekend at the Valley of the Sun stage race in AZ with my teammates Roman and Bobby. After winning the TT, I was able to hold onto the GC win. Roman finished a solid 4th and Bobby 15th. I have amazing teammates. They both road super strong on the front controlling the race, kept me safe, and got my ass in order when I was screwing up. I think Bobby lost a bit of hair getting me through the crit, but after a couple post-race beers we were all calm. First win for OUCH/Maxxis! Sorry, no Arizona rest stop stories this time.
So, a couple days ago, I heard rumors of a certain picture being passed around the interweb. Well, it seems like it has surfaced. Note to all, do not let rival teams hang onto your bike for a night. I have never heard about this “teabaging” of tuptubes but I guess there is a whole site dedicated to that particular “art.” I have combined forces with my roommates and teammates to contrive a masterplan. There will be revenge!
So…
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Someone on my team wears a purse. Anyone willing to take a guess?
Man purse?
Have you seen this guy?
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Have you seen this guy? Honestly, I think he takes the cake for Tucson personality. Grey Wolf ain’t got nothing on him. If you ever down in tucson, do some loops around Mccain Loop in the a.m. and you will see “shmeagal.” If he is in a good mood, he will give you a grunt hello. No matter the temperature, he wears only his natural “coat” and cut off jean shorts. New this year, a shiny specialized road bike.
Shmeagal
Looks fast.
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Looks Fast. Hopefully I can make it go fast. Will be testing out this new “speed machine” at Valley of the Sun this weekend.
Kuota Kween K
Team bike. Yes, thats orange paint and it looks slick!
This is Socal?
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This past weekend I had a pretty epic day for my first pro race. Although my teammates thought I was crazy for driving 5.5 hrs for Boulevard, I made the trek with Sheldon Deeny from Bissell and local racer and Kuota North America dealer Paul Thomas. AZ rest stops are interesting to say the least. In one trip, I saw a brawl between two dudes, a guy with devil horns implanted into his forehead, and some guy covered head to toe in ash, or dust, or something weird.
The Ninja (aka sheldon)
After spending a wonderful night in El Centro (Great town, great town…), we drove up the 4,000 feet or so to the mountain town of Boulevard. Didn’t know I was going into a the great white north of Socal. After struggling to put my kit on in the freezing, wet cold, some warming gel, and a couple curses, we hit the start line. On the 2nd lap of 4, I attacked on the climb and went off the front with 3 other guys including missingsaddles own (carson miller) chasing 2 guys up the road. Worked for 15-20 miles together, than my teammateCam Evans, 3 virgin-blue guys, and Sheldon. I was suffering pretty bad from the cold. LEgs were just sapped, forzen. So hard to eat and drink. Shivering… Worked with them for another 15-20 miles, than my teammate attacked a long ways out with 20 mi to go and I just couldn’t respond. Done… Rode by myself for 10 mi or so, than the remnents of the peloton (including my teammates floyd, rory, and murphy) about 25 guys or so finally caught me and I rolled with them to the finish. Finished off a respectable 19th. A bit dissappointed I wasn’t able to hang on to support my teammate. Although outnumbered by the 4 virgin-blue riders, Cam was able to hold on for 2nd. All said and done, it was a satisfying day in the saddle for sure.
Special indeed...
40 degrees and overheated. Too much clothing!
Bike Race? Your joking, right?
Kickin’ this thing off!
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And we’re off! My name is Jonathan Chodroff and I will be riding as a first year pro for OUCH presented by MAXXIS. I have been living in tucson for the last couple months. The climate is perfect for training and the cycling community is top-notch. I am living with five other cyclists, and their shenanigans keep things exciting.
Apartment view
Team camp just took place a couple weeks ago in Temecula. As a neo-pro, I was full of emotions. Nervous, excited, over-whelmed, awe-struck. However, once I met the guys on the team and management, I knew I had a great support belt under me. The crew is tight-knit and professional. On the riding end, everyone was riding super strong. Being the local, Floyd took us on steepest climbs I had ever seen. Grinding your 39×25 at 40 cadence doing 400-500 watts just to stay upright. Even the photo-shoot was rebranded the “hour of power.” Those are actual faces of grimace. No stage acting necessary. Floyd made sure we had a steady diet of dirt/sand climbs. I ate a lot of dirt that day. A lot… The mechanics loved when we came rolling into the parking lot with our bikes covered in mud. After washing up and digging the dirt out of our ears, we hit the “happening” town of temecula. Karaoke was the name of the game. The notable acts of the night was Floyd’s Kid Rock rendition of “Cowboy.” But, my encore performance of the “Thong Song” severely outclassed him. Now, I have one more nickname to my name “Thong Song.”
Floyd Rockin'
Unknown riders singing god knows what...
Like a kid in a candy shop. He only bought 20 dollars worth.
But, the good times had to end and now I am back in the desert. However, I will be skipping town in a couple weeks before the desert heat takes its toll on me.
