This weekend, I ventured to Mount Diablo with some coworkers. We participated in the Mount Diablo Challenge, a timed non-competitive climb of 3350 feet over 10.96 miles. I posted full ride data from the climb.
The usual disclaimer applies: I'm out of shape, haven't been riding much, and don't have the genetic graces to have the wiry climber build. Watching me climb is like watching an A380 take off: you can't give it grief for being slow, since it's amazing that it gets off the ground at all.
With that said, my time on the course - 51 minutes 22.8 seconds - was a new personal best by default, and good for 23rd place overall, 5th in the 19-29 age bracket. The course record floats around 44 minutes, and a ProTour climber could probably do it in about 40. (I raced with bib #10. I switched places with Rich Stevens.) I had my brand-new Zipp 303s on my Fuji Aloha with Quarq power meter, yielding a 16.8 pound bike. My goal for next year is below 50 minutes.
At the top of the hill, I met none other than Frank Day, proprietor of PowerCranks. We had a good chat about my results with the cranks.
2009-10-05
2009-10-04
Apartment Photos
Friends and family have asked to see what the new apartment looks like. I've posted a photo album with some images of the place. Enjoy!
2009-10-01
Bicycle of Theseus
I described the Ship of Theseus problem in a blog post not too long ago, and this made me start thinking of how this would apply to the bicycle. Clearly, a bicycle is comprised of many parts. Each surface of every part can be carefully tuned for light weight, durability, aerodynamic qualities, and so on. If I walk into a shop today and buy a new road bike, then change the wheels and brakes, is it still the same bike? This is a simple thought experiment, but its result helps me keep track of my bicycles.
My solution is to choose one immutable part of the bicycle to encompass the whole thing, and that's the bottom bracket shell of the frame. I find that this definition nicely handles the edge cases:
My solution is to choose one immutable part of the bicycle to encompass the whole thing, and that's the bottom bracket shell of the frame. I find that this definition nicely handles the edge cases:
- intuitively, a frame defines the bicycle's fit, handling, and performance characteristics, so it makes sense to define the atomicity of "bicycle" by a frame, or at least part of its frame.
- it is relatively simple, and sometimes necessary, to change the fork, wheels, and other components on the bicycle.
- the bottom bracket shell is the point about which the cyclist applies almost all motive power to the bicycle frame.
- it is possible to repair or replace a dented or broken frame section, or paint the frame, while leaving the bottom bracket shell intact.
- replacement of an entire frame, due to upgrade or repair, constitutes a new bicycle.
- the bottom bracket area traditionally contains the bicycle's serial number.
2009-09-29
Lunch Ride
Ride data at http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14802363 .
Today, I joined Boris (a co-worker at Model N) on the Lunch Ride. It's an excuse for all of the local fast riders to go for a spin every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. The ride is quite fast, just under race pace. I was the youngest and least experienced rider out today, and that's saying something.
The level of experience here is really something. The stronger riders in today's ride seemed to be Cat 1 and Cat 2 racers. In terms of speed and experience, there is a big jump from collegiate racing to Pro/1/2 racing. I'm imagining races full of clones of Josh Lipka and Nick Frey. I'm looking forward to climbing yet another steep learning curve.
I spoke with some members of the SugarCRM/Los Gatos elite team. It's one of the teams in the area that I'm interested in joining; I'm still in an information gathering phase. This is probably a good time to discuss some of the things I'm looking for in an elite team, in no particular order.
Today, I joined Boris (a co-worker at Model N) on the Lunch Ride. It's an excuse for all of the local fast riders to go for a spin every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. The ride is quite fast, just under race pace. I was the youngest and least experienced rider out today, and that's saying something.
The level of experience here is really something. The stronger riders in today's ride seemed to be Cat 1 and Cat 2 racers. In terms of speed and experience, there is a big jump from collegiate racing to Pro/1/2 racing. I'm imagining races full of clones of Josh Lipka and Nick Frey. I'm looking forward to climbing yet another steep learning curve.
I spoke with some members of the SugarCRM/Los Gatos elite team. It's one of the teams in the area that I'm interested in joining; I'm still in an information gathering phase. This is probably a good time to discuss some of the things I'm looking for in an elite team, in no particular order.
- Mentorship. Racing bicycles at a high level requires many years of experience. An elite team can have, between its members, well over a century of race knowledge. I've just begun to notice trends in races - the pace in a points race slows after a bell lap, most of the breaks get caught in road races. Though discovery is fun and useful, learning through shared experience is way more time efficient.
- Structure. I'm pretty good about setting aside time to ride, falling into a routine, and achieving training goals. Still, having a well matched group is beneficial in setting a training and racing plan.
- Transportation. A subtle but key point. I don't own a motor vehicle, nor do I want one. I'd like reliable carpool buddies to races. I think it's a crying shame that we need to burn so much gas to race our bicycles, but like flat tires, it's part of the sport.
- A Compatible Approach. I couldn't think of a good single word to describe this. As a cyclist, I'm very detail oriented, and heavily favor the use of technology in obtaining real-time and after-the-fact data. I've learned so much from cyclists who are also detail-oriented and willing to patiently share what they've learned, instead of sharing generalizations and vagaries.
- Friends. Enjoying the company of teammates on and off the bike is key to performance. Race weekends can feature 6 hours of racing, 12 hours of driving, and 10 hours of down time. I race best when I'm happy and just out to have fun. When I asked Mike Garrett why he rode with Kahala/La Grange for so many years, the answer was simple: "they're a good bunch of guys."
2009-09-27
More Photos from Track Nationals
I just received some links from some teammates.
Nick Loomis sent some photos from the weekend and a video of the men's team pursuit. Matt Blackburn sent in his own photos from the weekend.
I'll post more as it comes in.
Nick Loomis sent some photos from the weekend and a video of the men's team pursuit. Matt Blackburn sent in his own photos from the weekend.
I'll post more as it comes in.
2009-09-26
Track Nationals: Day Three
I woke up this morning and checked the weather. Rain at 5pm! Uh oh! As a result, today's schedule was heavily altered. The men's tema pursuit qualifier became the finals, the women's match sprints all happened in the morning, and the points race, the headline event, was bumped forward to 4pm. A highly unusual move for a highly unusual situation.
The 3km team pursuit was not our finest. We had a mechanical at the start, and were unable to stay together. Our first two laps were reasonably fast, and I think that if we were to do it again, we would be faster. Our time did not give us a podium position, but did fetch us some team omnium points.
Laura Ralson made it into the match sprints. She won one of her heats in the reps, but was relegated after coming out of the sprinter's lane for the second time. D'oh! It was a really impressive performance nevertheless.
Mike Garrett and I were in two separate points race qualifiers. The points race awards points to the first four across the line every six laps. The top 15 (out of about 25) in each qualifier made it to the grand final. Mike more than qualified - he lapped the field twice! I managed to get a single point, qualifying for the real race. How cool is that?
The 30km, 90-lap points race final was fast and furious. My goal of scoring a single point was unattainable. I was able to work for Mike, helping to block and to establish his break. Mike and four others lapped the field, with Mike placing fifth in the points race.
Our distributed strong results put MIT in a strong position for the Division II Team Omnium standings. We earned some 900-plus points, with the second place team earning some 500 or so points. (Full results will be on usacycling.org shortly.) Our points lead means that the members of the 2009 MIT track nationals team are...
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!
I got a stars and stripes jersey and a gold medal. We all did our part, and it was a fantastic weekend. I'm so glad that I made the trip.
I can also obey USA Cycling rule 1N5(e), regarding national champion regalia. I can't wear my jersey when racing anything other than collegiate track, but Ican wear Stars and Stripes trims on my race jerseys, forever!
The 3km team pursuit was not our finest. We had a mechanical at the start, and were unable to stay together. Our first two laps were reasonably fast, and I think that if we were to do it again, we would be faster. Our time did not give us a podium position, but did fetch us some team omnium points.
Laura Ralson made it into the match sprints. She won one of her heats in the reps, but was relegated after coming out of the sprinter's lane for the second time. D'oh! It was a really impressive performance nevertheless.
Mike Garrett and I were in two separate points race qualifiers. The points race awards points to the first four across the line every six laps. The top 15 (out of about 25) in each qualifier made it to the grand final. Mike more than qualified - he lapped the field twice! I managed to get a single point, qualifying for the real race. How cool is that?
The 30km, 90-lap points race final was fast and furious. My goal of scoring a single point was unattainable. I was able to work for Mike, helping to block and to establish his break. Mike and four others lapped the field, with Mike placing fifth in the points race.
Our distributed strong results put MIT in a strong position for the Division II Team Omnium standings. We earned some 900-plus points, with the second place team earning some 500 or so points. (Full results will be on usacycling.org shortly.) Our points lead means that the members of the 2009 MIT track nationals team are...
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!
I got a stars and stripes jersey and a gold medal. We all did our part, and it was a fantastic weekend. I'm so glad that I made the trip.
I can also obey USA Cycling rule 1N5(e), regarding national champion regalia. I can't wear my jersey when racing anything other than collegiate track, but I
2009-09-25
Track Nationals: Day Two
"It's only forty-five pedal strokes!" This was my realization today, regarding the number of pedal strokes needed to get around the 333m velodrome once. I'm glad I figured this out in time for our collegiate team pursuit (two women, four men). We got a silver medal! Take a look!
The second day of track nationals was a good day for MIT. Guo-Liang Chew (Chewie) placed 16th in the 200m flying sprint competition, good enough to enter the match sprint competition. My time, of 12.625 seconds, was enough for 19th place. This did not get me into the match sprint competition, but did earn us some team points.
Our collegiate sprint was a success. We demonstrated beautiful teamwork and placed second in the qualifying round. This got us into the final, gold medal heat. We held on to second and won silver medals for our effort. The women (Laura Ralson, Yuri Matsumoto, Martha Buckley) placed fifth in the women's team pursuit, another good strong result.
MIT has a good lead in the Division 2 Team Omnium competition. If all goes well, we will hold on to our lead in tomorrow's men's team pursuit and points race. Stay tuned!
The second day of track nationals was a good day for MIT. Guo-Liang Chew (Chewie) placed 16th in the 200m flying sprint competition, good enough to enter the match sprint competition. My time, of 12.625 seconds, was enough for 19th place. This did not get me into the match sprint competition, but did earn us some team points.
Our collegiate sprint was a success. We demonstrated beautiful teamwork and placed second in the qualifying round. This got us into the final, gold medal heat. We held on to second and won silver medals for our effort. The women (Laura Ralson, Yuri Matsumoto, Martha Buckley) placed fifth in the women's team pursuit, another good strong result.
MIT has a good lead in the Division 2 Team Omnium competition. If all goes well, we will hold on to our lead in tomorrow's men's team pursuit and points race. Stay tuned!
2009-09-24
Track Nationals: Day One
I've received an unusual number of requests to be prompt with information about Nats. I'm glad that so many people are interested in this race!
I graduated from MIT in August, but I'm here with the MIT team at track nationals. Since I was a summer student (working on my thesis), I am still eligible to participate at Nationals. I'm happy to be here - it's a good chance to see some old friends and have some fun on the bicycle. I had to fly out just for the race, on the velodrome here in Trexlertown, PA.
Today's events were the individual pursuits. In the morning, the men raced the clock over 4km (12 laps), the women over 3km (9 laps). In the afternoon, the men chased the kilometer, and the women, 500 meters.
Our results were strong. I raced a 4k time of 5m10.246s, enough for 19th place (top third) in a strong field, and just enough to earn some team omnium points. I did not race the kilo. My gearing for the 4k - 50/14 - made me faster, but it will take some time for me to really dial my gearing. Of course, I'm not a track specialist, certainly not a sprint specialist, and far from top form. I'm happy to post competitive times.
MIT's results today:
4k (3k) 1k (500m)
Mike Garrett 4:57.222 1:10.975
Jose Soltren 5:10.246 null
Tim Humpton 5:33.604 1:19.940
Nick Loomis 5:44.101 1:16.155
Guo-Liang Chew 5:43.416 1:16.760
Zach LaBry 5:24.666 1:20.814
Matt Blackburn 6:11.296 1:25.957
Martha Buckley 4:27.192
Laura Ralston 4:18.380 42.x
Yuri Matsumoto null 44.x
We're in the Division 2 team omnium lead after the morning's events, with our closest competitors Kutztown performing very well. We're looking forward to tomorrow.
For complete results or more information, please see usacycling.org.
I graduated from MIT in August, but I'm here with the MIT team at track nationals. Since I was a summer student (working on my thesis), I am still eligible to participate at Nationals. I'm happy to be here - it's a good chance to see some old friends and have some fun on the bicycle. I had to fly out just for the race, on the velodrome here in Trexlertown, PA.
Today's events were the individual pursuits. In the morning, the men raced the clock over 4km (12 laps), the women over 3km (9 laps). In the afternoon, the men chased the kilometer, and the women, 500 meters.
Our results were strong. I raced a 4k time of 5m10.246s, enough for 19th place (top third) in a strong field, and just enough to earn some team omnium points. I did not race the kilo. My gearing for the 4k - 50/14 - made me faster, but it will take some time for me to really dial my gearing. Of course, I'm not a track specialist, certainly not a sprint specialist, and far from top form. I'm happy to post competitive times.
MIT's results today:
4k (3k) 1k (500m)
Mike Garrett 4:57.222 1:10.975
Jose Soltren 5:10.246 null
Tim Humpton 5:33.604 1:19.940
Nick Loomis 5:44.101 1:16.155
Guo-Liang Chew 5:43.416 1:16.760
Zach LaBry 5:24.666 1:20.814
Matt Blackburn 6:11.296 1:25.957
Martha Buckley 4:27.192
Laura Ralston 4:18.380 42.x
Yuri Matsumoto null 44.x
We're in the Division 2 team omnium lead after the morning's events, with our closest competitors Kutztown performing very well. We're looking forward to tomorrow.
For complete results or more information, please see usacycling.org.
2009-09-21
Roubaix Warranty?
(I'm being delinquent about posting the many fun things that I've done in the past month. I'll add more updates later this week.)
My primary road bike, since March of 2006, has been a 2005 Specialized Roubaix Elite. Much like the Ship of Theseus, I've replaced every single part on the frame but it's still the same bike. It has at least 15K miles on it, including two cross-USA bicycle tours, many races, and several NYC to Boston trips. No problems yet.
I was surprised on Saturday when the cable stop nearest to the rear hub on the drive side chainstay snapped, making it impossible to shift the rear derailleur. Some older Roubaix models with a single-rivet cable stop were subject to a recall earlier this year, but my bike is not covered under the recall. I brought it to my LBS in haste on Saturday, and am waiting for a response. I'm very glad this happened at home, and not while climbing, say, King Mountain Road.
It's times like this that I am glad to have multiple bikes. Geez.
My primary road bike, since March of 2006, has been a 2005 Specialized Roubaix Elite. Much like the Ship of Theseus, I've replaced every single part on the frame but it's still the same bike. It has at least 15K miles on it, including two cross-USA bicycle tours, many races, and several NYC to Boston trips. No problems yet.
I was surprised on Saturday when the cable stop nearest to the rear hub on the drive side chainstay snapped, making it impossible to shift the rear derailleur. Some older Roubaix models with a single-rivet cable stop were subject to a recall earlier this year, but my bike is not covered under the recall. I brought it to my LBS in haste on Saturday, and am waiting for a response. I'm very glad this happened at home, and not while climbing, say, King Mountain Road.
It's times like this that I am glad to have multiple bikes. Geez.
2009-09-14
Cross Country Drive Photos - Geotagged!
I'm still very busy with work, moving in, and riding. I found a little time to geotag all of the photos we took on the drive from Boston to California. We used our GPS log to assign a latitude/longitude to every photo we took. I'm working on a "best of" album that will show the whole trip, but for now, have a look! I think the map feature is really neat.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jsoltren/WeDroveToCalifornia#
http://picasaweb.google.com/jsoltren/WeDroveToCalifornia#
2009-09-06
California - Quick Update
After a drive across the US in a rental truck, I've relocated from MIT to Menlo Park, CA. I'm working on a longer post, including a neat way of posting all of my geo-tagged photos from the trip. For now, feel free to drop me a line if you're in the area.
2009-08-24
Thesis Done
I handed in my Master's of Engineering thesis today. The completion of my project marks the end of my time at MIT.
My advisor and I didn't see eye to eye on a few things. Hopefully, my next manager/supervisor/advisor/superior/boss will be someone with whom I have more in common. I've had some great - and terrible - experiences with these in the past. In general, I do best with superiors who I feel comfortable chatting with.
Now that Jane and I are both done with MIT, it's time to move on! The drive to California will commence tomorrow. I'm looking forward to the new life on the sunny side.
My advisor and I didn't see eye to eye on a few things. Hopefully, my next manager/supervisor/advisor/superior/boss will be someone with whom I have more in common. I've had some great - and terrible - experiences with these in the past. In general, I do best with superiors who I feel comfortable chatting with.
Now that Jane and I are both done with MIT, it's time to move on! The drive to California will commence tomorrow. I'm looking forward to the new life on the sunny side.
2009-08-16
California is Beautiful
I was in California from Aug 3 to Aug 12, a week and a half not too long ago. In that time, I learned how Model N (my new employer) functions, found a new apartment, visited Dave Miller, beat Super Mario Bros. 3, saw a real live airship, found a delicious farmer's market and, courtesy of my hard case, rode my bicycle plenty.
Except for one morning of rain, the weather was perfect. 82F (28C), clear, and dry during the day, 55F (13C) and slightly humid to foggy overnight. Compared to Boston's two choices - hot and humid or raining - I'm wondering why I bothered to come back at all. Oh, right. Thesis.
The cycling around the Silicon Valley is just amazing. To the east, there are little paths that go along the water. North and south is all flat. To the west, there are mountains - real mountains! I really enjoyed doing legitimate, tough climbs that took an hour.
I set a personal best on the local Old La Honda Road climb, of 18m48s. I should immediately discredit this and say that I wasn't really trying. As it's hard to watch what I eat when traveling, I was about 5 lbs overweight. I was riding my Fuji Aloha CF2 with Zipp 808 clinchers, a tool bag, and two full water bottles (heavy!). I was also carrying Dave's wallet, phone, arm warmers, and bottle. So, if I can break 19 minutes in Sherpa mode, maybe I can break 17m or even 16m once everything is properly dialed in?
I did manage to pass Dave up the climb. (Sorry Dave! This is one of the best photos I have of the trip!)
Except for one morning of rain, the weather was perfect. 82F (28C), clear, and dry during the day, 55F (13C) and slightly humid to foggy overnight. Compared to Boston's two choices - hot and humid or raining - I'm wondering why I bothered to come back at all. Oh, right. Thesis.
The cycling around the Silicon Valley is just amazing. To the east, there are little paths that go along the water. North and south is all flat. To the west, there are mountains - real mountains! I really enjoyed doing legitimate, tough climbs that took an hour.
I set a personal best on the local Old La Honda Road climb, of 18m48s. I should immediately discredit this and say that I wasn't really trying. As it's hard to watch what I eat when traveling, I was about 5 lbs overweight. I was riding my Fuji Aloha CF2 with Zipp 808 clinchers, a tool bag, and two full water bottles (heavy!). I was also carrying Dave's wallet, phone, arm warmers, and bottle. So, if I can break 19 minutes in Sherpa mode, maybe I can break 17m or even 16m once everything is properly dialed in?
I did manage to pass Dave up the climb. (Sorry Dave! This is one of the best photos I have of the trip!)
2009-07-25
Paterson Pass Road Race
I'll be in California for job training with Model N for the first week in August. I'll be starting as a junior Java developer there in the middle of September. There are good jobs out there in this economy - you just have to look hard, and be patient. I'm very excited.
I'm staying for a few extra days, with girlfriend and bicycles in tow. This is our opportunity to find housing before we head out, and we're glad that we have the chance to do so.
Dave Miller is trying to get me to do the Paterson Pass road race. It would take a logistical miracle to get everything together for this, so the jury is still out. Needless to say, this would be my first Pro/1/2 race. A 92-mile road race with four goes up a 1300 foot climb sounds just plain hard, much like the Easterns course up the Black Mo. Add in local pros who know the race well and are in peak form, and it's the makings of what could be an interesting learning experience. We'll see.
If nothing else, I can look forward to an abundance of really fast riders in the Bay Area. There are mountains AND a velodrome! So many decisions.
I'm staying for a few extra days, with girlfriend and bicycles in tow. This is our opportunity to find housing before we head out, and we're glad that we have the chance to do so.
Dave Miller is trying to get me to do the Paterson Pass road race. It would take a logistical miracle to get everything together for this, so the jury is still out. Needless to say, this would be my first Pro/1/2 race. A 92-mile road race with four goes up a 1300 foot climb sounds just plain hard, much like the Easterns course up the Black Mo. Add in local pros who know the race well and are in peak form, and it's the makings of what could be an interesting learning experience. We'll see.
If nothing else, I can look forward to an abundance of really fast riders in the Bay Area. There are mountains AND a velodrome! So many decisions.
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