Univest

Univest was over in the first two miles, at least for anyone who was not willing to get there legs going early on, probably before the race began. That's how it was for our team. Although we can always count on Scottie Weiss to be in the early move. I know that he is strong, and that he can finish races when he attacks early.

Scottie missed the initial move but made a strong attack to get into a fast chase group. They left the peleton behind as we were just bumbling along content to smell the fresh cut grass on the side of the road. The climb that was supposed to break the field apart did just that however the officials sent us down the wrong road so everything came back together. Again we began just putzing along enjoying the end part of the season. I tried to go with a couple of Navigators but nothing was going anywhere.

As we got to the finishing circuits the lead groups had so much time on us that we were not even able to do one lap of them. Bummer! So our day ended early and we got to relax and watch the race unfold in a mix of chaos. We had no idea who had lapped who and who was going to win. In the end they got the results all messed up and I have no idea how they are going to score the rest of us.

Tomorrow we will race a hard crit and hopefully we will all be there to the very end.

Over and out...

US Pro Ends Early

The US Pro Championship is the only race that only Americans can race in. It crowns the national champ for the remainder of the season and can establish a rider overnight. Riders that spend thier seasons in Europe come home for the event filling the field with an impressive list of riders.

This year was going to be my first year in the event. I have had good form and my motivation for was high. Scottie Weiss was our go to guy. On a good day he can be there in the end with the best of them. My job on the day was to help him and if his legs where giving out then he would try and help me. But it wasn't too much a problem of my legs working that kept me from helping him. An early crash took me out of the race.

The opening laps of the race felt very comfortable to me. I was sitting easy on the first lap and was moving up on the second lap getting ready to cover some inevitable early moves that were sure to be launched. As I was moving up on the right side of the peloton I hit a pothole that came out of nowhere and slipped my handle bars down. I have hit hundreds of potholes throughout the summer, gone mtn biking on my bike, ridden dirt roads, hopped curbs and other things that I should have caused my bars to slip but a simple man hole did the job. I got on the radio and had my team car come up with a tool so that I could fix it. As I was hanging on to the car we began to go down a hill and pick up speed. We could not get the handle bar to move back and we where wrenching on it. I didn't want to loose too much time on the peloton so we kept the speed high and things began to get real crazy. The speed was too high, there were too many bumps and holes in the road and right as was all realize that we need to wait to the bottom of the hill to continue work I hit a bad hole that whipped my front wheel right under the rear wheel of the car. My bike went under and I went shooting off towards the curb slidding and tumbling. I got up to find my bike in peices about fifty feet up the road. I picked up pieces knowing that my day was over.

The fork was fractured and in two pieces, the wheel was curved like a taco. My race was over just like that. In the first twenty five minutes I was limping home angry that I couldn't even go over Paris Mountain once. My bike was trashed and my team was out there with out me. They were all brave soldiers and faught as long as they could though.

I'm awfully sore today but alive to fight another day.

Mountain Biking at Catamount

Williston, Vermont: home of the Catamount XC ski trail system and home of the best Wednesday night mountain bike group ride in New England. Also home of an amazing B&B where myself Proko, Ravster and Winston are staying. Winston keeps talking about how hungry he is and Proko continues to geek out on his computer. I think he is looking for an i-phone on Ebay but most of the phones are fake. Just like a good pair of jokeleys eye wear, there are a bunch of fake i-phones. At first glance they look great. A second glance reveals that they are pieces of crap.

On the race note: I raced in the Wednesday night Catamount worlds. It was a huge deal! Really. I was riding Adam Craig's old bike that now belongs to Jeff Davison, Lea Davison's dad. It had a broken front break lever but Jeff and I rigged it up with some zip ties and epoxy. I knew I would have to be delicate with it but that wouldn't matter, at the start it was drizzling and it made the mostly grass course very slick. Jeff's bike has good tires on it but not so good on wet grass. Keeping it upright would be my biggest worry.

At the start I saw a ton of people I knew. I underestimated the popularity of the Wednesday Worlds and knew that I would have my work cut out for me. Especially because some of the fast guys were on cyclocross bikes. There was nothing too technical about the course and was mostly on hard packed grass and dirt. These guys would be flying. Four laps of pain.

Lap one started apparently really hard. That's what everyone was saying after the race. I have nothing to judge it against because I have not started a mountain bike race since last fall. I was right with Josh Dillon and his teammate Jaime from the Fiordifrutta team. They were so smooth on the first lap while I was all over the trail. I was clearly rusty. Coming around for the second lap I slid out on an uphill corner and ended up in the tall grass. My cleat was full of grass, chain fell off, and it was just a small skid out. To make matters a little more difficult I was on road pedals that were full of grass and the cleat did not want to clip in.

I finally got up and going but they were gone. The rest of the race was chase chase chase. I never caught the two Fiordifrutta cyclo crossers again. Being able to race on fat tires again cleared my head from all of the hectic travel schedules that have been controlling my life the last two weeks.

This weekend: headed into New York City for a race in Central Park. Oh yea!

Police Buzz on 235 Pearl

Walking home from a pint with my roommate we encountered the police. I saw him from a distance with his lights flashing thinking that it was probably a routine DUI or speeding stop. We (Travis and I) kept walking and chattin like it was nothing and came upon this cop-he was sitting there alone. Okay I was thinking maybe the car drove off already and he had to do some paper work or something. No, the officer stepped out of his car and asked us to walk on the other side of the street. We said that we live at the top of that street there, whats going on? He said that there was a guy running around and they had the K9 force out looking for him. I definitely live in the ghetto. I never really thought I did until tonight. We sat around waiting for the fuzz to say it was okay and he eventually did. We began walking up our street only to notice the police were searching our back yard. Great! Just great. They had their flashlights out and dogs on leashes. We walked quietly and quickly to our front door went in, locked it and now I am hoping that they find the who ever they are looking for before they try to hide in my house. Crazy.

Roosting the Mtns

I think that riding from Helen, GA when doing a ride in the north GA mountains is the way to go. Many more combinations for rides are possible. One of which Travis Hagner, Ando and I went on. They took me on some dirt roads that were epic. These roads that sadly I cannot tell you how to get to-They blindfolded me on our way there-are the best riding I have done in, well probably since I was riding in Vermont. We rode for a solid hour straight uphill, going fast too. There was a ton more vertical than any of the paved roads in the area. We were practically mountain biking, I wish that we were, but it was fun in skinnies too. They pointed out a lot more riding that can be done too. Epics that are over tall gaps that are not paved. Can't wait to get up there again! Also this GA weather is hot as hell!

I wonder if its going to get over 100F today? Probably.

Its late but its here! Some pics from Altoona and a farm that I stayed at in PA.

Proko and I on a cruz through some beautiful PA roads.

The 200+ year old house that I stayed in.

yummm, fresh meat!

Several hours of entertainment with ZAZ playing fetch

Back in GA now and its like 100 degrees every day. ugghhh

The Altoona Buzz

I'm writing this from a free wi-fi hot spot at Panera Bread Co from Altoona, PA. I'm here for them Tour of Toona, one of Americas most prestigious stage races. There are 200 people registered and we will be racing on roads made for wagons. It should be fun, but unfortunately I won't be able to post too many blogs. Later today the race will be on and getting out from our ghetto sorority house will be, well, not really happening.

Yesterday was the TTT. I detonated early and had a terrible race. I guess I need to get my head into the game. I'm having a terribly hard time jump starting my motivator and ability to suffer.

I wonder what all my people in Durango are doing. Probably riding mountain bikes and floating the river in tubes with delicious SKA....

VT time and Little Bellas

Chillin in Vermont looking for Ben and Jerry. I hope I find them. Seriously though I am in Vermont after I was supposed to race Mt. Washington hill climb. That didn't happen because of the rain and nasty weather so...next year. Maybe even in August.

I infiltrated the Little Bellas on Sunday. Little Bellas is a mountain bike program, just for girls, that are just getting into the sport. Lea and Sabra Davison put this program together and are doing such a good job. I was able to see the action first hand and there are some ripping little youngster that are going to be great. Sabra and Lea are amazing, great teachers and were encouraging the kids to have fun above all else, and the kids were. Out on the slippery trails of VT these girls were crashing left and right, but always got right back on their bike and kept on going with the coaching of the two pro mountain bike sisters. Lea and Sabra are like mentors to these girls who are entering a sport dominated by men and that is going to be so good to help promote womens cycling.

The sisters have started a program that I think will be a template for other people to follow who want to start a program like this. If you have not heard of it yet, you will. Its going to be big. Trek bikes is backing them up along with several other donors to make the program happen.

Its the eye of the tigres!

Mt. Washington Delayed

The Mt. Washington Newtons Revenge has been delayed for one day due to crazy weather. I woke up at the un-godly hour of 5a.m to choke down some breakfast. Always hard to do. Rolling out the door my friendly nieghbors at the hotel wished me good luck-as they were going to the race as well. On the way over to the race I stopped into the hotel that Mr. Cesar and Micah were staying at for some good coffee. I rolled up and they were shaking thier heads like: don't even think about bumming coffee off of us Hagman. Then they said that the race was off: winds were at 71 mph, temps at 40, wind chill 27 and
visibility 0.

I probably would have been blown off the mountain, shortly after skinnier Grajales would have been.

The road far below

The Ski Area across the way

These were all the way up the Mtn.

Be a good sport...

The incident that involved three riders (Jame Carney, Mark Hardman, John DeLong) and a fight during the final stage of the tour of Virginia has come to a close. All three have been suspended for one year. The fight was funny as hell, at least from the side lines. I have never seen anyone pick up and throw a bike around like Jame did. Cyclingnews.com has all the details.

This Will Make You Thirsty

WATER

#1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.
(Likely applies to half the world population.)


#2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak
that it is mistaken for hunger.


#3 Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as 3%.


#4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs
for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of
Washington study.


#5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.


#6.... Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of
water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain
for up to 80% of sufferers.


#7 A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term
memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on
the computer screen or on a printed page.


#8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of
colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast
cancer by 79%., and one is 50% less likely to develop
bladder cancer. Are you drinking the amount of water
you should drink every day?

Livin it up in Austin. The race report is down below these are just a few photos from the slaying

A little pre race interview with chad.
I'm telling him how I'm going to butcher myself for Frank

It worked: butchering myself for Frank put him on top for the win

Published in the Aspen Times

One hill at a time

Woody Creek native Alex Hagman learns the ropes of professional cycling the hard way

Woody Creek native Alex Hagman leads the pack in the Cave Springs Road Race, held recently in Cave Springs, Ga. After graduating from Fort Lewis College in December, Hagman relocated to Georgia to join the Athens-based AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork team. (Dorothy Cayocca from TrueSpeedPhoto.com) Click to Enlarge

By Nate Peterson
June 16, 2007




Where does the road lead? The racer can't say for sure. Right now he's only worried about the next thing: Next race. Next training ride. Next prize check. Next chance to prove himself.

Not that Alex Hagman doesn't harbor big dreams outside of those immediate objectives. It's just that he knows better. He's not going to get where he wants without continuing to pedal, so it's best to stay focused on the proximate - the next turn, the next climb, the next sprint - than to wonder what lies farther ahead, out of sight.

"With each week I'm getting a little better, moving up the ladder," says the 23-year-old Woody Creek native, calling from the road, on the way back to his current home in Athens, Ga., after completing the Commerce Bank Triple Crown - a trio of top-flight domestic road races held during the first week of June in Pennsylvania. "I don't exactly know where I want to be in two or three years, I just want to continue to develop and live comfortably off racing the bike." Now that he's a sponsored rider, Hagman actually has multiple racing bikes, all of them top -of-the-line Jamis models - "the Ferraris of road bikes," Hagman says - provided at no cost by his team, AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork. There's also the vagabond lifestyle that comes with his pro contract; Hagman will compete amongst huge pro fields in Austin, Texas, and Rochester, N.Y., within the next two weeks. (The team covers the plane tickets, lodging and meals on the road; it's not a five-star domestic tour - "We find a lot of places with continental breakfasts," he notes - but it works.)

"We're not a huge-budget team, but we get by," Hagman says of his team, an outfit comprising 10 full-time pro riders and four amateur fill-ins. "When I'm on the road, the team does as much as it can."

Woody Creek native Alex Hagman cut his teeth as a young cyclist competing in Aspen Cycling Club races. (Courtesy Alex Hagman) Click to Enlarge

Even with a stipend to help pay rent and buy groceries, Hagman readily admits that his affiliation with AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork doesn't pay all the bills. He is pursuing personal-coaching opportunities with clients looking for endurance training, and also subsidizes his income by competing in lower-level races - or, as he calls it, "cherry-picking" races - to win easy prize money.

"Through an endurance training network based out of Durango I'm working with a couple of guys to develop this coaching thing," says Hagman, who graduated from Fort Lewis College in December with a degree in sports administration. "It's pretty exciting. There's hundreds of athletes who can use a little guidance, and it will help me get by."

With the cherry-pickers and everything else, Hagman estimates he'll compete in more than 70 races this summer. It's a grueling schedule, but for a kid who dreamed of making a living riding his bike, every day is a great day.

"He's living the dream," says his mother, Kay, who with Hagman's father, Tim, runs a Basalt-based architecture firm. "We're absolutely in support of him in all of this. You always want to pursue your dreams as far as you can before you realize maybe it's time to do something else ... We're just so pleased that he's happy and productive and he's doing what he truly loves. We want to see him take it as far as he can."

A long and winding road
Hagman's road to Georgia and his current pro contract began when he started competing in Aspen Cycling Club races as teenager. His older brother, Jonathan, who still lives in the area, encouraged him to tag along to a mountain-biking race, and Hagman was instantly hooked.

"The Aspen Cycling Club became his biking family," says Kay. "They really brought him along."

Hagman quickly graduated to larger National Off-Road Biking Association races, and before long Mom and Dad were devoting their summers to driving Alex and assorted friends around the country to compete on the national circuit.

"It was a lot of effort to attend bike races before he went to college," Kay says. "We spent a lot of summers traveling around for the NORBA series, but we loved it. We really enjoyed watching the events and camaraderie within those races. We'd rent condos at certain places and bring Alex's friends along, and have kids crashing on the floor. I was sort of the den mother. It was a lot, but we enjoyed doing it, and we were so happy to help Alex improve and develop his skills."

When it came time for college (he graduated from Aspen High School in 2002), Hagman was certain he wanted to pursue bike racing, and narrowed his choices to schools with strong club programs. He eventually settled on Fort Lewis in Durango, a mountain-biking Mecca where he honed his skills under cycling coach Rick Crawford.

Hagman realized biking could become a profession when he signed his first contract with Cannondale years ago. At Fort Lewis, he continued riding with those goals in mind and grew into the mountain biking team's best male rider and a repeat national champion.

Before winning his second national mountain biking title in short track and his first cross-country title last fall, Hagman spent the summer in Europe learning the ropes of high-level road racing. He trained and competed with various teams in the United Kingdom, Italy and France, and got his first taste of stage racing while competing in the nine-stage, 1,233 km RAS Tour of Ireland.

He finished ninth in one stage and 14th in another, and came in 25th overall.

"I learned how to suffer," Hagman said of his European summer, after dominating the USA Cycling Collegiate Mountain Bike National Championships and leading Fort Lewis to the team title. "It took me to a whole new level of being able to endure the physical pain of bike racing."

Once the college season was finished, Hagman began weighing his options, and considered offers from various teams before deciding on Georgia-based AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork.

For a Colorado boy who grew up racing his mountain bike in the dirt, moving to Athens to join a road cycling team was more than just a change in latitude. Despite the hot and humid weather, Hagman says he has grown comfortable in his new surroundings. When he actually is at home, that is, considering his hectic travel schedule.

"It is different," he says. "It's hot. That's the first thing that gets to me, the heat and humidity. I buzzed my head just to stay cooler. The culture is different, too. People are really, really nice down here in the South - no matter what, they'll take you with open arms and try to provide what you need. The training isn't as good as the Rocky Mountains, but there's a lot of pros in Georgia."

"Really, it came down to where my opportunities were," he adds. "Right now the opportunities are on the road. I'm getting better and better on the road, and I'm really enjoying it. Road racing compared to mountain biking, it takes so much endurance because the races are so long. It's really testing me."

Woody Creek native Alex Hagman signed with his current team, Athen, Ga.-based AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork, because it presented the best opportunity for him after a stellar collegiate cycling career at Fort Lewis College in Durango. (Courtesy Alex Hagman) Click to Enlarge

The next hill
A strong climber and technical rider, Hagman's role thus far on has been to serve as a domestic (cycling-speak for pack mule) on a team of strong sprinters.

Cycling is a sport that is rooted in a well-established hierarchy, one where newcomers must prove their worth the hard way - by cutting through wind while others draft, or funneling water and food from the team van to the team's established riders - before being given opportunities. There is no moving up the ladder without putting in sweat equity.

"It's a game of respect," Hagman says. "To have the endurance where you can last for a whole week, it really takes time to develop that. Most of our riders are younger, but they're all really strong. Right now I'm in a domestic role, but I'm starting to come on this year, and I've been developing a relationship with the team.

"In cycling, if you've been doing it for years, and people know you're good for it, they'll send you to the front. It takes time to learn the game. It's about being smart and rubbing people's backs a little."

Really, it's about focusing on each little step: Next day, next ride, next push.

There's no way to get over the hills farther down the road without getting over the one right in front of you.

"It's been a steady progression since the beginning," Hagman says. "I don't expect too much year to year, but each year I'd like to see a little more, and just make sure my progression continues. Hopefully next year I'll do a little

The Austin Buzz

How the USA Crit Series Austin Race went down:

There were 120 men who lined up at the start all looking pretty fast. The announcer did the usual call ups and before long we were on our way into a 70 minute race.

Three Toyota riders, one Health net, three Abercrombie Fitch, several Hotel San Jose lads and a large mix of local riders made up the field. I was racing with Yosvany Falcon and Frank Travieso. Two strong as hell riders. Yosvany and me were to look after Frank and make sure that he saved energy until the end.

The course was a flat Nascar course. All left turns and all out. The race began with a bang and we were off at full speed right away. Attacks were going quickly so Yosvany and I had to cover them to make sure nothing got away and potentially lap the field. About 10 minutes in Ivan Stevic attacked hard and so I went to chase him down joining him about a lap later. We had a pretty good gap but riders were bridging up to us and before too long we had about 6 riders. Most of them however were tired from bridging the gap and were not able to put in a big pulls. As soon as that cam back riders began attacking again and again.

Yosvany got into a move at one point and so did Frank. Both guys were marked heavily though and no one wanted them to get away.

As the race ran its natural course of ebbing and flowing a group of three riders got away. Mark Heckman, Sean Sullivan, and another I am not sure about. They built up a substantial lead that could have been dangerous. Mark and Sean are two classy riders that win races like this.

8 laps to go! Yosvany and I got to the front and started drilling it. We closed the gap down fast, but I didn't think that it was fast enough. Sean saw us closing in and attacked his two breakaway companions with three to go. It was going to be close. Yosvany took one last big pull and brought the breakaway within reach with one lap to go. On that final lap Frank took over and worked his magic. He attacked between corners two and three and just kept going the rest of the way to the line. He came in alone with his arms up. If he had a power meter he would have broken it.

The race went down flawlessly and it was one of the best races I have been in with AEG. We worked so well together and ended up with the win. Money in the bank!

Later that night we all went out and partied to celebrate out victory. You all can guess how that went down...aaa yeah!

Austin Tejas

Here I am in the capital of Texas. After an interesting day of travel yesterday myself, Frank and Yosvany made it to Austin. We missed out flight out of Atlanta because there were thousands of people all traveling at the same time, all going through security at the same time too. I have never seen so many people in an airport. They had to route us all the way through the baggage claim, through the lobby and practiacally back again before we even got to the back an forth lines. We missed out flight by about 10 minutes but it ended up being better in the end. We got a direct flight to Austin instead of having to take a detour through Houston, and our bags made it there before us. I don't know how it happened but it worked out for the best.

My good friend Emily Tennison lives here. She grew up here and so I will have a personal tour guide to show me around Austin for the week. She is great. Too bad she is attached....

I'm hoping that the weather will stay dry so for the crit. The Doppler radar shows a blob of green with little red and yellow patches in it (that means really heavy rain) coming right toward Austin. It could be an epic crit tonight.

Philly Week

Well, since it has been about a month since my last entry I thought it would be very fitting that I now post another blog. Here in PA among the humble Amish and Mennonites I have been training and racing for the past week. What an amazing people. They are incredibly self sufficient and every one has a garden that looks so delicious. Its really hard to believe that Floyd Landis grew up in this area, in this environment. The slow pace of living is so opposite to that of a Tour de France Winner. (Well, did he really win? another discussion...)

Anyhow, My legs are the best that they have been all year, and thankfully they are good for Philly week. This is my first experience here and it has been a fine one indeed. I have raced in the CSC Invitational and in Lancaster. Coming up is Reading (Red-ing) and then Philly. Hope my legs will endure the punishment.

Good job to all of my fellow Durangotangs that went to Mt. Hood and kicked ass. Ben Kneller, your a stud!

Tour of Virginia April 24-29

Stage 1:

Stage one in the tour of Virginia was a short prologue that consisted of 4.1 km slightly undulating terrain. It was a pure power mans course. The person who could push the most watts would for sure win the stage. I was the second guy to go off and so I would only have one man in front of me to chase. I was gaining on my 30 second man quickly from the start and did not look back once for fear that my 30 second man would be gaining on me. I ended up catching me man with about 2 minutes of racing left. I caught him on the way back up and over the last rise and he looked totally demoralized. Sorry dude.

My teammate Winston David kicked ass on the stage and ended up third. He was so happy that he proved himself finally. Way to go buddy!

Stage 2:

Stage two was a short Criterium that lasted about an hour. There was a sharp steep ascent and a sharp steep descent in the course making it quite interesting indeed. The descent was scary fast and dropped into a left hand corner that guys were taking full speed. The nerves of the riders could be felt as every one shot down the hill into the straight away and up the climb for another chance be in a crash on the descent. I was lucky however and stayed out of trouble. Some of my friend from the Team Type I race crashed and would be feeling it the rest of the race. My buddy Scottie Weiss was up front most of the day and even laid down the gauntlet Scottie style with some vicious attacks. Too bad he was feeling sick; the peloton would have felt his wrath for sure. The stage finished uneventfully though the next two would be epic in nature.

Stage 3:

Some of the lads who have raced over in Europe said that this stage was a lot like the Ardennes region of France. The roads were never flat and the race wound along some country roads, some of which may have never seen bikers in the proportions that we came through in. Some of the residents along the course were probably thinking, “what are all these city folks doin’ out in my part of the woods, in their tight fancy dance clothes and all?” We were definitely in hick country.

The race split apart about 70-80 km in and I was in the right place at the right time and made the split. I had my teammate Prokic with me and he was feeling good. We were rolling along, every one taking turns up front and I was doing what I could for Prokic. He sat on all day while I tried to keep the group rolling. The course had a large Category 1 climb towards the end and it would be epic in proportions. Far more epic than I would have imagined. We hit the base and I pulled until Prokic took off with a small group of about five. I didn’t see him the rest of the day. Upon getting over the climb I railed the descent hoping to catch some guys but it was far less steep than I thought it would be and didn’t really need to use my breaks at all. I got to the bottom and it was just 20 km to go. I was shot and was riding into a head wind so I just pedaled away knowing that some other guys would be catching me. Sure enough they caught me and we all started working. However Mark the Collegiate National Boy thought that it would be a good idea to try and drop me because I sat on for a few pulls to recover. He was crushing it over these small rises putting every one into difficulty not thinking that he was burning his own chances of moving up on the GC. Not a very bright rider when it comes to tactics. We rode into the finish and I was about two minutes don on GC at the finish and we had a huge day the next stage.

Stage 4:

Today was even more epic that stage one. My legs were totaled from the day before and I knew that I would be hurting today. We had a major Category 1 climb then another Category 3, and then another Category 1. Scottie was tired, Winston was in the U23 Jersey and Prokic was our GC man. Todd and I were just going to do what we could to help the other guys. As we approached the first Cat. 1 every thing was together and Scottie was toast. He put in a great effort but just did not have the legs. The first surges went and I held on but was gradually dropping back. I found my pace and then just tried to maintain the rest of the way up the climb. I survived the first climb along with a group of about 20 guys. We railed the descent and made up some time on the front group, however the official decide to to bring the caravan of cars through our group up to the leading group. We eventually caught onto the caravan right in the feed zone and that was probably the most chaos I have ever seen in a bike race. Far more crazy than in Italy. We bridged up the the lead group and I just sat in knowing that the next two climbs would tear my legs apart. They did. As soon as the slope went up I lost contact from the group again but was able to regain before the final climb. Again at the base of the final climb I lost contact and was off the back just trying to hang on and suffer to the finish. Never have I been on climbs that were so steep thought. I was having trouble keeping my legs turning over. Some of the smaller team cars had to come to a complete stop, rev the engine and drop the clutch just so that they could keep moving their way forward. It was crazy. I made it up and over and just grouped up with some people to ride into the finish. Epic day two was out f the way.

Stage 5:

Stage five was a pretty uneventful and finished in a group sprint. There really is not too much to tell about today except that the country that we went through was beautiful. It is fun to think that the Civil War was fought on the same grounds that we were fighting it out on our bikes.

Stage 6:

Crit. This crit was good because it was not too technical and there was fans lining the start finish area. By this point in the race it was just Todd, Prokic, and I in the race. The idea was to try and get Todd into the front because he probably had the best sprint of all of us. That’s exactly what we did and he just got boxed out in the last 50 meters of what was a very sketchy finish. The winner, Kale, actually was stripped of his win because the race officials thought that he didn’t hold his line and was dangerous. Oh well, I thought that it was fine and that he actually did win the race.

Stage 7:

Yes, just one more day of racing. It would be hard though and my legs were tired from the last stages and it took them forever to get going. Before they began to feel good about 50km had gone by. A break was up the road and was established. It would hold out to the finish of the race. The crazy part of the day came after the race though when a fight broke out between Mark Hardeman (National Boy) and Jame Carney. This is how it went down:

We finished the race on three circuits. We came through and the final lap bell was ringing. Yes! Almost done. We came into the straight and guys were sprinting for like 7^th or something because the break finished up the road already. Then they called out that we had to do another lap. What? Yes another lap. It was ridiculous and it just showed the level of organization that the Tour had all week. So, the group all pretty much sat up and just rode a temp the last lap. It was not officially neutral but we all rode it like it was with the exception of Mark. He came out of nowhere and began attacking the field. What the hell is up with that? He did not get away of course because he was sucking it up that day and just finished with the pack. Apparently on the way through Jame smacked him up side the head for attacking. Later Mark found Jame who was riding through the start finish venue and ghost road his bike into Jame taking him out. Jame got up and a whole fight broke out. A manager in civilian clothes came running in the dropped Marks super hard to the ground. It had to hurt, I saw him wince when he hit. Meanwhile Jame picked up Marks bike and was tossing it around like it was a cheap wall-mart huffy. It was a crazy scene and all I could do was sit back and watch. I guess all who were involved received suspensions from USA cycling. It was a real shit show. What a way to finish a week of good racing.

Rock Hill Spring Omnium

As soon as I moved into my place in Athens I was traveling to another race. I still have to unpack all of my stuff, which isn't all that much considering I fit it all into the back of my Subaru. I went to a Georgia Cup event in Rock Hill, SC. There was a sprint (which I decided to skip), a crit and a road race.

I began the weekend with the crit and had one of the hardest times getting my legs to turn over. It was like they were made out of frozen silly putty. I kept hoping that they would open up and I would be able to throw down some power and help Scottie Wiess launch himself to the line. It never happened and I just barely finished with everyone. It was a great opener however and the road race was bound to be better.

The Road Race:
The race started out with a rather miserable rain storm that was soaking the roads and all of the riders. I love starting races in the rain! However it was warm and I was anxious to see how my legs were going to work. They were blocked again. I decided to sit in the first 45 miles, the first lap and then just attack all the time on lap two. My team mate Prokic would get into a move and then I would get into a move. Eventually my move stuck and we were chasing two guys who were up the road. They were strong but the five of us were going strong as well. We were certainly going to catch the duo. At about 12 miles to go we came upon an intersection and I thought that we were going to need to go straight. But our lead car and the five riders took a right. Damn. I had to slam on my brakes and try to catch my break away group. I was thinking that I had totally butchered my opportunity to win this race because of a silly wrong turn maneuver. However as soon as I was getting close to them they all slowed down and began to turn around. I immediately thought, "yup, they took a wrong turn and i should have gone straight back there." we eventually just rode in nice an casually because everyone was already gone. The race was over because the man in the lead car was talking on his cell phone and the course Marshall were just volunteers who did a great job regardless. Oh well, I will live to race another day in which I don't get lost and I do kick some ass!

Next week is the Tour of Virginia, Oh yeah!

And...The beer does flow like wine

Traveling back to Aspen for a few days to visit my parents and brother has brought me back to winter. I was living in what felt like full blown summer out in California but am now back in early spring. The mornings are all frosty and the afternoons are full of gapers that are walking around in their rear entry ski boots looking like they belong on another planet. Planet gaper.

I am however riding on roads that I have not been on in years. All those old feelings of when I was just beginning to ride came back and wish that I could stay and hit up the local race series. The Aspen Cycling Club puts on a great series with National caliber racing. Maybe I can return to ride a few races and bring the wrath to all the local boys who used to pummel my ass. Looking forward to a long drive out to GA!

NOT!

IndioSpeed

Here I am in Indio. Its somewhere east of L.A. about four hours, if you don"t get stuck in traffic which we did on our drive here yesterday. I'm still hanging with my team: AEG-Toshiba-Jetnetwork. The super 8 motel is a down grade from the Marriott on Venice Beach we were so generously invited to stay at all last week. Thanks Murray. But its a bed to sleep in and I am feeling rested for the race this afternoon. I hope my form is a little better than the S#*T show of a display last weekend in Redlands. I think the team is motivated and will work better together, there is a lot of money on the line. Keith and Frank will be the money makers today. Wish us luck. Adios

I'm out here in Redlands, CA at the Redlands bicycle classic. My first go at the race and definitely have the pre-race jitters. I will be racing in the prologue this afternoon, its short and will be super hard, starting with a few kms a flat and then turning up towards the sky for a few kms. Talking with Matt Shriver he gave me some good advice on what to run as far as equipment goes. I think there is a conflict of interest there...oh well. The rest of the weekend will be survival at best since this is my first race and the first race cob-webs still exist in my legs. Updates will come often, stay tuned...over and out.

alexhagman.com

Get your wolf tickets

Last week worked my ass off at the HBO Comedy Arts Festivalin Aspen. I put in about 75 hours in 7 days. Hard work, mostly. I was working on the Utility crew so our job was to haul all of the stage sets around. My crew was funny as hell. There was Crazy Bill, who loved the shwag. Seth, who loved the ladies and saying a joke about twenty times and then admitting that he needed new material when we stopped laughing. He made the whole week fly by. Caleb, my bro from Durango. Then there was Mr. Arboretum from D.C. not really sure what he was all about, but do know he was a chill, chill guy. When we weren't working we were laughing our ass, or finding free food and drink to pilfer from the hotel or from the talent's stash.

I got to see Geroge Carlin, who forgot have of his material but was still funny as hell. The best acts were the no names trying to make a name. And my boss Mark, a crazy ass english man was a good act himself. He cracked down on people and rac around twon in his Ford like he was still in LA. Good times, and now I have the dough to pay for rent.

Now, back at it training.....

Just another Blog

Here I am, posting yet another blog on the Internet. Like we need any more out there, I mean it seems that just about everyone has one these days. Myspace, Facebook, they just are not enough, I gotta have more, MORE!. Actually, this blog is intended to be used for racing updates, to advertise for my sponsors and to publish my own personal goals and thoughts. Maximizing exposure for myself and sponsors.

I just got back from a trip to Canyonlands, UT with my brother Jonathon. We spent a few days hiking in the Needles district and I must say that if I could I would move there and live there year round. As long as the same conditions existed that are there right now. Warm days, cold nights, and a lot of water every where. There was snow, ice and running water in just about every canyon we went into. But the water does not always flow and the nights do not always stay cold. Soon enough the weather will be hot, jsut about 24hrs a day and the masses, the yahoos, will head out to the desert country Ed Abbey ironically made famous. That is when I feel ike the essence, the very thing that makes the desert what it is, is lost. This time of the year there are few in the desert, and they are spread very thin making it feel like you might be the only one who is out there relying only on yourself. If you have not felt the sensation, you must before you die. The silence and peacefulness of the Needles has rejuvinated me. The desert can be so draining, and harsh but there is really a lot of life to take in and absorb. I wish I could put into words how I really feel about the area. A gift Ed Abbey had indeed.

But, I am now back at the grind of every day life, training again with a enhanced vigour that will surely make 2007 a great year.