Crazy Week

Last Thursday I left the state on a visit to Creighton University for a grad school interview. The trip was great! Not only did I get a great idea of what Creighton has to offer I had a little time to hang out with some of my cousins that I don't get to see too often. With that being said I owe a huge thank you to my cousin Greg. He drove me around, took me out to eat, the whole nine yards; it was great.

I had a great day at Creighton. The thing that really impressed me with their school is the knowledge and expertise of their faculty. To say I wasn't nervous going into it would be a vast understatement but the faculty and staff there made you feel like you belonged. I went into the interview process thinking it was going to be nothing but me trying to sell my abilities to the school but in all honesty I think it was more of Creighton selling itself to those who attended. Seems like a great place to learn and situated in downtown Omaha, Nebraska provides students with ample things to do, though I'll probably be studying most of the time similar to undergrad...ha!

Got back into town about 2 am Saturday morning and turned around and woke up at 6am to start getting ready for Quals. It was one of the more difficult tasks of my life trying to wake up that day! We had a clean run considering the conditions and ended the day in 2nd place. Starting on the first row right in the middle, not too bad really!

Cool picture taken by Ryan Dorgan during qualifications

Then ITT's or individual time trials were tonight. Although final results are not posted yet I believe as a team we put 4 guys in the top 20/25 so that is definitely a positive going into the weekend where miss-n-out will take place. I was matched up with a decent heat and had the pleasure of following my future teammate on the road this summer, RJ Stuart. I started off the ITT hot, a little too hot really as I could see RJ's distance decreasing with every pedal stroke I took. Knowing how good of a rider RJ is I got a little anxious and went far too hard on my 2nd lap still closing the gap. Then my pacing got the best of me! I knew I was not going to be able to maintain this speed so I slowed down a bit and when I did I never found the strength to get back on top of the gear. From experience I knew about half-way into the third lap I was in trouble and there was no coming out of this one. Live and learn I suppose; can't find those limits unless you test them so although I'm a little upset about mine I learned something that will ultimately help us for race day. Eric won in dramatic fashion and Beaver got 4th so putting 2 guys in the top 5 is great for our quest for the white jersey.

Days are seeming to get faster and faster meaning only one thing: it's Little 5 season!

Here We Go

Well my week here at IU has officially come to an end; now off to Nebraska tomorrow afternoon and eventually my DPT interview at Creighton University. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous mostly because I've never been a part of an interview process of this nature. Been doing a little research this week on topics that may be covered during the conversations and I feel like I'm ready but again worried that they may throw an odd-ball in there. Just like anything else though I'm just going to wing-it somewhat and be myself. If they don't like what I have to offer their establishment than I'll take my talents elsewhere. But really I want to be in Omaha at Creighton so hopefully it goes well, keep your fingers crossed!

Quick turn around as I jump right back on a plane after the interview to head home for qualifications. We were suppose to have a practice run through tonight but the weather wasn't too cooperative so we decided to shit-can our run to stay away from any possible injury that may come of it. I think it was a good decision because the track was not in the best of shape today. It would have been nice to get in one last exchange before leaving town for the next 2 days but it's just another day at the office and I've done a thousand exchanges over the years so looking forward to Saturday. Probably going to be a little tired but if quals doesn't get your blood flowing I don't know what does. I'm definitely getting the itch for race day. I've been preparing for that day for the past 3 years!

Here goes nothing; good thing it was sunny today and had a chance to work on my tan a little. Hopefully I get a lady to interview me and she thinks I'm a cute Indiana boy!

Fueling the Fire

The IDS printed a story today about how The Cutters are responding to the alleged cheating scandal of current rider Eric Young. To put it plainly here's how I'm responding: "Quit being pussies!" IDS news article

Of course this fueled much discussion all of which seems to be directed toward the Cutters hate mail bin; God knows there's plenty of that. With this being said though there's only one thing to do with so much hate-mail and that's to burn it. I think I speak for my teammates as well as myself when I say that all this press and confrontation is doing nothing but fueling the fire. If only these teams would spend have the amount of time training as they do bitching and moaning on the Internet maybe someone other than the Cutters would have won this decade and none of this would be in discussion. I know this is a totally different year and we've won absolutely nothing this year but we've been putting the final pieces of the puzzle together over Spring Break, recovery weeks, and the next 3 weeks prior to race day and are close to being ready to give this year's race everything we've got. Win, lose, or draw the only determining factor of who's the better team that day is who's hoisting the trophy at the end and hopefully I can do this one more time.

This coming Saturday we will be competing in qualifications at 8:20 am. Early start to the day but we're happy with the time that was delegated to us and I think we are ready to leave it out there on the track and give the critics even more to complain about. Bill Armstrong Stadium. 8:20 AM. Be there to witness the start of something great!

These kids are happy to compete... the subtle joys of qualifications I suppose

Come and Gone...

Spring Break has officially come and gone. It went so fast compared to year's past. Staying out at the cabin one last time was a bittersweet and relaxing place to crash while making memories that will last forever. Never a dull moment with this team called The Cutters.

Meeting at the usual team breakfast on Monday morning settling up final ride situations and then left for the cabin. The weather wasn't the nicest for the first two days but after that it turned out to be great, funny enough resembling that close to Florida. Worked on our tans a bit.

A few women's teams blessed our cabin on a couple nights for dinner and campfires: Teter, Theta, Pi Phi, and DG all made the trek out to the cabin and it seemed unanimous that our directions sucked. They all made it though didn't they?

Riding went well this week. In comparison to year's past I felt like we did a lot more speed work and I must say I was impressed with everyone's efforts throughout the week. I think we've nailed down the final four for quals and with a clean run I think we can surprise some people with the firepower we've got this year.

Cleaning up this morning after breakfast was a weird feeling. Upon arriving at the cabin early in the week Jim and I were upstairs and Jim commented, "Last spring break Zack, have to make the most of it!" When locking up the cabin one last time and driving out the steep gravel drive all I can do is smile and remember all those memories that I made out there in the woods surrounding Lake Monroe. From skinny-dipping with the DG's my rookie year to those terrible pacelines on 446 to the raging campfires. Sitting around those fires long into the night talking about all sorts of things are what I'll miss the most when my tenure with this team is finished. I feel like I've made a impression on the team though over the past few years and my biggest is yet to come here in the coming weeks.

As a sit here reflecting I hear the dryer buzz and remember that I am cleaning on the towels from the cabin so I'll get one last visit this afternoon when I take the linens back out and probably sit on the back porch and watch the sun go down one last time.

Big thanks to the Elliott family for allowing our team to use your house again; it's been an incredible 3 years out there.

Spring Break

Well Spring Break is upon us that attend Indiana University and while most venture to warmer climates or back home I will be here in Bloomington riding my bike. And I'm pretty pumped up about it as weird as that may seem to others. Moving into our lake resort tomorrow morning after team breakfast and I'm pulling seniority this year and get a bed! NO more air mattresses and couches for this guy.

Friday night a few of us rolled out of town in search in Louisville, KY to dabble in a little racing. Stayed at a teammates house and it was nice to have a sweet dinner and place to crash for the night to save a little mulah. The course was situated in a little state park on a 1.8 mile circuit. Nice rolling hills circling around a lake/glorified pond but it was super windy! Everyone I went to race with did pretty well but I had a less than spectacular weekend to say the least. I don't really know why but my legs just were not there at all. I know its been a busy last couple of weeks training for Little 5 but my god my legs literally just blew apart. It was pretty frustrating to see guys that I know aren't near the quality of rider as myself simply ride me off their wheels and I had nothing to counter with. Mentally and physically I was drained. Hoping this week goes a bit better and a get a little chance to recover before quals, etc. start coming around in the next couple weeks or I'm going to be a joke out there on the track...

Spring Break 2011; College is crazy!

Bucket List

Received an email today from my cycling coach and the subject was concerning a lifelong dream of his of attending the Tour of Flanders over across the pond in Belgium. For those of you who don't know this race is revered as one of the true "Spring Classics" filled with cobblestones and other cycling obstacles that most races do not have. The problem for him is that he has to miss both Individual Time Trials and Miss'n'Out competitions for Little 5. I know he is very torn but when opportunities like this arise one must take them! How cool would it be to be able to ride the course and view the race the following day all as a part of work? This email somewhat brought to my attention a few things that I would put on my "Bucket List" that I'd like to do as I venture into new stages of my life. I won't go into crazy detail but a few that I would like to accomplish are as follows...

1.) Travel to Alaska and indulge in anything and everything outdoors during the summer months. Fly fishing, hiking, canoe down rivers, and whatever else is unique to the area.

2.) Go to the Olympics. Preferably the summer games but the winter games would be pretty sweet as well. These are the absolute best athletes in the world and to watch them compete against one another would be a great spectacle to see.

3.) Raise kids. Kids that enjoy life and people respect and like to surround themselves with their presence.

4.) Write a book. It may suck but I think thus far I've lived a pretty cool life and hope to keep the current trend going so by the time I'm 50 I should have some decent material.

5.) Complete an Ironman. The ultimate test of endurance and mental toughness. Not trying to break any records but I'd like to push myself decently hard and post a good time. Hopefully I can complete this dream this upcoming summer before heading off to graduate school (hopefully I get in!)

Looking forward to heading out to the cabin for Spring Break. It's nice to get away especially to such a nice, relaxing place in the woods. So quiet and peaceful and an awesome way to recover after trashing the legs all day while riding. Nothing to do but ride, read some books, and enjoy some bonding with the Cutters. I'll take that spring break trip over any drinking binge on a random beach. 1

Whew Glad that's over with

What a week thus far! 3 midterms in the beginning of the week will really take it out of a person. Finished the last one this morning and boy was a weight lifted from my shoulders! Now just have to catch up on a little sleep and I'll be ready to rumble again.

Today was an interesting day at the track; fun but a little weird. Great that two of our coaches, Jim and Fowler, were able to come but not too many people showed up. Everyone blew their load on Mondays as usual. SO we twisted things around a bit and did a couple harder efforts thrown in with some exchanges. Overall I think we had a great day on the track. The best part was having a wide open track to really open it up without the fear of jackasses wrecking into you. It also helps when you've got a big bulls eye on a particular rider that finally decided to show his face and its funny how some things work regarding muscle fatigue. There comes a time in cycling when you think to yourself during a hard effort that your legs may just give out at any moment because of the sheer burning of flesh but upon reaching this moment you gaze up cross-eyed and drooling and see the man who picked a fight with your team in a sense. Suddenly as your legs are locking up and the lactate threshold has far been exceeded you feel great and continue to blow by this person with relative ease; and boy does it bring a smile to your face! When you stoke the fire you're going to get burned and this is why we, The Cutters, are now out for blood. The gloves are off and this is a full blown fight set to air globally on television (HDNet) on April 16, 2011. Bring ya popcorn folks!

I also had the pleasure of meeting with a passionate journalist from the Indiana Daily Student newspaper and had a good conversation about how our team was dealing with the controversy. Really? I responded that we try not to get caught up in the bullshit and concentrate on our task at hand which is training effectively up until the race. We've been dealt our cards and we're playing with what we have. Hopefully with a bit of luck we can put the right combination together. Let the girls whine and complain while we're out riding and preparing the best accommodate our needs come April. There is no controversy so to speak though; my good friend and teammate Eric "Hazelbear" Young will be in attendance for the race and I think its fair to share that "the Hazelbear doesn't like when the family is messed with". Yes, I said family and we go by the Cutters. We're a great group of people that enjoy what we do. Practicing with him for the last 3 years I'll be the first to admit a challenge is exactly what this man strives for and wouldn't everyone like to know what he's challenging himself to? I know! For the right price I might let you in on the secret but I doubt it so probably not worth asking because I like to let wounds in competitors fester, become infected, and then kick them while they're down. Harsh? Possibly but this isn't Little League anymore. Welcome to the Big Leagues (not the PRO's though).

Racing in Louisville this weekend too but let's be honest at this point in the year there's only one thing on my mind and that's Little 5. It is nice to get out of Bloomington every once in a while though and road trip with friends.

Productive Weekend

I decided against traveling to Columbus, Ohio to the collegiate racing scene this weekend because of the sheer amount of work that needed to be completed here. The weather didn't seem to be very cooperative either and bike racing is expensive so I stayed home. I'm glad I did because talking with those who did travel to race seem to all report the same consensus of, "it was wet, cold, and miserable!" It sounds as though IU fared a bit better this weekend in the road race in terms of points toward nationals so that's a good thing.

Finished up 2 study guides for the upcoming midterms this week and feeling pretty confident about my two psychology exams on Monday/Tuesday. Haven't even attempted to study for Exercise Physiology yet but that's not til Wednesday so it looks like no $2 Tuesday at Roys for me.

Driving up to Indianapolis tomorrow morning to ride with Fowler in the morning so it will be nice to get a ride in with him and shoot the shit a little bit; ya know about manly things. Then heading out to Men's Warehouse to purchase some new casual dress ware. Not really looking forward to blowing my tax return on growing up things but I guess that's all part of it. It will be nice to finally have a nice, good-looking suit to wear to special occasions. Have to be looking fly when I head to Omaha here in a couple weeks for the interview at Creighton because first impressions are everything! Everything is coming together so quickly: graduate school, Little 5, senior year, growing up, graduation...surreal!

Spring is in the Air

The last few days have been everything that I could have asked for and more!

Most importantly I received word today from Creighton University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy Program that I have been invited to take part in an interview process being held on March 25^th. I’m so excited to head to Omaha, Nebraska to meet the faculty there in my pursuit of higher education. The one problem though is that this interview is an all-day ordeal and won’t be completed until 5pm and low and behold qualifications are the next day. My mom offered to purchase a plane ticket for me which I thank you for in advance mom, love you! Driving probably would have sucked considering it’s a 10 hour drive…

I know this sounds like one of those sappy speeches but without the love and support I have received from family it would be hard to believe where my life would have taken me. More of those blog entries will consume this site closer to graduation I’m sure so I’ll spare you until then.

Going back to the portion of my life that consumes the majority of my time though which, you guessed it: Little 5! This week was an interesting one to say the least. I won’t go into major details for the sanity of everyone but to make a long story short a rider on another team decided that my teammate, Eric Young, is too good to race because it’s ruining the integrity of the race…

Midterms

With only 2 weeks of school left before Spring break not only is operation beach body in full effect at the respected gyms around the community but also midterms. I've got a Motor Learning midterm tomorrow and then a lab report, social psychology, and exercise physiology midterms next week. Working on getting a good chunk of things done this week before heading to Ohio State this weekend to race again.

Another interesting adventure I'll be taking tonight will be to visit a meeting who's aim is to ban a teammate of mine from racing in this year's Little 500. Amazing how worthless people are when faced with a bit of a challenge. Not only is he marking himself as a pussy but also telling his teammates that he doesn't trust them to do the right things in order to win. True leader there I'd say...

Got a shipment of performance gear from Dogfish today and the things offered through dogfishusa.com and the cutters section are pretty sweet! Glad to be getting our shirt's through such an awesome provider again this year. Please check out the site and order if you need anything; I suggest the performance hoodies! Very comfortable!