Colorado Springs, Day 2

I'm writing this one for you. Yeah, you, you hardcore reader. I'm gonna make this weekend blog-read worth it. No, really. I may be writing from having just closed the Finish Line, a bar across the street from the Olympic Training Center, where we drank Beam and Miller Lite (and Watermelon Pucker and Fat Tire) but I'm serious. Stay tuned.

The 14 hour today included the following classes: power meters; racer bike fit; road, tt, and crit neutral suport; bike washing ;packing, shipping, and inventory; wheel changes; mountain bike support; and track support. Seem like a lot for one day? Yeah, you and I are in agreement.

Here's what I learned, without the wonky installation/mechanic details: powertaps are ok, but only SRM's are truly accurate; racers should be fit to their bikes reflecting the needs of the event they're in, and never EVER forget the calibration of how they like their bike in case one is lost in transit; wheel changes are always ok, bike changes take time, drive behind the pack but ideally have a moto for the break, and only the commissar can tell you to move to the break; suds in your soap are good and biodegradable is relative; cover your suspension and brakes when you wash; airlines are jerks and keep your toolbox under 50 lb, and bring pins and stickers to bribe your way through; look before you jump out of a car or off a moto and always carry your wheels with quick releases together- front in your left- and let riders change front wheels if you have more than one bike to attend to, and always gap your wheels- make it so that there's no spinning the skewer involved but just flipping the lever to get the wheel in right; non-UCI mtb events have NO PIT and riders can't accept support in NORBA; for the track, have a 15 box (duh), and change gears fast, and riders have 1300m to get in the pack for free- about 4-5 laps- if you need to change their wheel on a points-madison-scratch race (only).

and then there are the little tricks. the tool for opening the water flow, the tool for cutting the zip-ties. the junior gears. the easy way to change a wheel. the tube sealant that race mechanics feel is worth the weight, and what works for tire bead sealant. i feel like i'm so suddenly jampacked with knowledge that i'll forget it if i don't tell everyone. but i don't want to tell everyone. email me if you wanna know some tricks or if you want me in your pit.

note to self: have a flat clinic for our team's road squad. note to self 2: make sure all MTB riders go out with the right kit. note to self three: holy cow do people in the midwest race low-tech and without many of the amenities that the coastal crowds have. note to self four: it's late. tomorrow's classes start in 4 hours. sleep, julie. sleep. (wanna learn? watch the Park Tools head mechanic wash a bike... oh, hells yeah.)