Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Le Tour De Tick

Team,

Another good showing by Cowtown Cycling at Neosho Tour De Tick MTB Race:

Christopher Locke handed out his business card in his field by beating a newcomer local in his race. Although a derailed chain almost derailed his chances for win number 4 in as many races.

Carolynn Locke locked first place up in her field by taking the lead mid-race when the leader (who was a doctor) had to respond to a beeper call. Carolynn rode steady on an admittedly unsteady course of loose rocks and sandy patches.

Neil Orange said "NO" to the Beginner 20-29 field by placing first in
commanding fashion, taking the lead early on and never letting goal. Neil may be responsible for bring the "Mario Mullet" back in fashion. Trends are cyclical.

"Comeback Kid" Rich Anderson finished a fine 3rd in the Sport 30-39 Class after trading pedal strokes with some seasoned veterans in a breakaway-style lead group. Keep an eye out for Rich to improve on this placing in future races.

I didn't catch Leonard's placing, so someone needs to update the report on him. Edit - Leonard got 2nd place....

Chris Locke held second spot in the Expert field until mid-race, when breakfast of waffles eggbeaters and sauasage decided to resurface. Chris had to back off from his position, but can still take comfort in last week's stunning performance.

G Arantowicz chose the singlespeed again for a course that offered just a little bit too much climbing to make it beneficial. He finished mid-pack in the Sport 30+ class after detonating like on tactical nuke on the 3rd lap.

Tune in next week for Perry.....

G

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Cow Town Conquers Lunatic Fringe


Ben tasting some of the food that Carolynn made. Thank goodness we had some hot food for everyone. The weather was more like winter than spring....




New Cow Town member Shad did great. Taking the overall win for the day. His form is on as he also did awesome at 12 miles of hell with a 5th place overall there.









Eric Tiffany had a great day. He helped out at registration and then since his daughters soccer match was cancelled due to snow, decided he would race. He had a few mishaps on the day, but still ended up in 2nd place in the Male 40-49 class.








Good to see Leonard out on the bike again and staying upright. Also a good thing we didn't have to call an ambulance again.....

Leonard: maybe if you pushed you glasses up and looked where you were going you would stop hitting so may trees. Remember, trees don't hit you, you hit trees....

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Back and Body Works

Read the below report about massage then check out one of our team sponsors - Back and Body Works


All Cow Town members receive a 15% discount - just tell them you are a team member....

Massage Therapy for Triathletes and Cyclist?

This report filed - March 29, 2007
Josh Shadle, CMT

Massage can dramatically affect the body on the whole through various techniques and manipulations, improve recovery, and enhance performance. To best understand massage we must first go over a couple basic concepts before we talk about the physiological affects of massage.

Most common types of massage used to help triathletes and/or cyclist.

- Deep Tissue massage is probably the most effective massage technique a triathlete can receive. When deep tissue massage is used properly, it can break down adhesions, remove trigger points, relieve chronic tension holding patterns, break up metabolic waste, prevent injury, increase recovery time, enhance performance, and much more. Deep Tissue massage is best received well before events or throughout training leading up to races.

- Sports massage is usually geared towards athletes. However, it usually doesn't get to deeper layers like deep tissue massage. Sports massage is very individually based, depending on the sport or activity in which the client normally participates. There is a lot of kneading (picking up the muscle and squeezing) techniques used in sports when working in specific areas. It uses a faster pace than most massages and is mainly geared towards athletes to increase circulation of blood flow before the event, increase oxygen during the event, and helps to eliminate waste after the event.

- Swedish massage is considered to be one of the most widely used forms of massage in the United States. Lots of lotion and oil are used to work on superficial layers of the body to increase blood flow. This type of massage is great for relaxation, but it may not get to deep layers where trigger points, adhesions, and possibly scar tissue live. Various techniques are used including effleurage, petrissage, friction, vibration and tapotement.

- Neuromuscular massage is extremely broad in what it can do for an athlete. Neuromuscular massage includes treatments such as myofascial release, trigger point therapy, muscle energy techniques (MET's), cross fiber friction, Cyriax (cross fiber friction on a specific lesion point), isometric strengthening, postural analysis, functional muscle testing or resisted range of motion testing, and much more. This type of massage is best used for someone who has specific issues such as a high hip, buckling knees, pain in a specific area, recurring pain, chronic pain, a postural dysfunction, traveling pain, balance problems, and much more. A client usually comes in with 2-3 areas that need to be worked and normally 60-75 minutes are spent analyzing the posture, checking alignment, testing range of motion, and then breaking the layers down to the specific muscle or problem. A good neuromuscular massage therapist can determine which muscles need to be strengthened and which ones need to be released. They should also be able to give you isometric exercises to strengthen the weak areas. A good therapist should always give you homework. Common problems among triathletes are weak hips. This can be caused by a functional (muscle related) high hip, which is usually misdiagnosed as a leg length discrepancy. This is something a neuromuscular massage therapist can work with to level out the hips and to strengthen them assuming there isn't a structural leg length discrepancy and the only way to verify that is by an x-ray.

How often should you receive massage? Massage is most beneficial when receiving it on a regular basis, especially if you are a very active triathlete. The most common amount is once per week because any less its almost starting over every time you come back in for a massage, depending on the amount of training you participate in. The idea is to make a big difference and the problem with coming in any less is that it is very difficult to break down layers of the body or even the whole body when frequent visits aren't made. Try to find an affordable massage therapist who meets your needs and stick with them, try not to jump around therapists.

There are many physiological affects that happen under a therapist's hands. By decreasing the damage done by heavy training, aiding in recovery, and reducing fatigue, massage allows you to train harder, longer, and more efficient thus giving you better performance while preventing injury. Keeping your body in tune is vital, whether you're going sub-4 hours in a half ironman or doing your first sprint triathlon.

Known benefits of massage therapy:

- According to Elliot Greene of American Massage Therapy Association, when massage has been substituted for rest, massage has been recorded to show 20-75%, even 100% muscle recovery, that is why you usually see boxers getting massage between rounds instead of resting.

- Break up metabolic wastes thus reducing that fatigue feeling when you shouldn't be feeling fatigued, like at the beginning of a workout. Metabolic wastes build up either by vigorous activity or by inactivity. Massage works like a pump, like the heart pumps the blood, massage dramatically moves wastes and lymph though the lymphatic system, which does not have a pump. Metabolic wastes is composed of nitrogenous wastes from the breakdown of proteins, inorganic phosphorus, sodium chloride (salt), excess water, carbon dioxide from increased respiration, and urea (AMTA Elliot Greene & Human Anatomy & Physiology). Basically massage increases the body's ability to make the necessary secretions and excretions.

- The oxygen capacity of the blood can increase 10-15% after a massage (AMTA Elliot Greene).

- Neuromuscular Massage can specifically help with balancing out muscles by loosening contracted (shortened) muscles and stimulating weakened/flaccid (stretched out) muscles. What does this mean to a triathlete? By releasing contracted muscles, it may make the weak ones stronger promoting more efficient training, which increases performance in the long run. Massage gently stretches out the muscle and connective tissue that surrounds the body by reducing tension without irritating the muscle. It is also vital to know which muscles need to be stretched out vs. stretching every single muscle when certain muscles may already be stretched out. A therapist should be able to show and prove this to you.

- Lactic acid and carbonic acid build up after exercise begins. These waste products irritate nerve endings and muscles thus affecting performance. These waste products can lead to cramping if not flushed out. As you exercise, acids are formed when glycogen in the muscles and liver are burned to keep you going. Pain persists until these acids are stored again or flushed out via the lymph system. Once the lymphatic system is flushed out, muscle recovery rates increase.

Aches and pains don't always have to be part of your training; a good coach or a competitive athlete should tell you so. As your training increases for the upcoming season and your body gets in shape, wastes get backed up. Your body needs more oxygen and nutrients than ever before to keep it in tiptop shape. Make sure you listen to your body's needs so it can lead you to your goals.

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Holy Cow what a race!

The 6th annual God's Country Duathlon held out at the Lawrence River trails on Saturday was Heavenly success! The rains from the previous week didn't prevent this course from being the fastest around. The trails were in great condition and the runners and riders took full advantage of it.
It started with a fast 2 mile run, followed by a 10 mile bike divided into two separate 5 mile sections, then finishing with another 2 mile run on the same course. As you can see from the results, there was no shortage of elite racers to take advantage of this race and their times reflect it.

















Trailing slightly after the first run, Tige Lamb regains the lead in the first lap of the bike leg followed closely by Justin Andrews.










































Eventually, Justin Andrews regained the lead in the last mile of the final run and took the hard fought victory followed by Tige Lamb taking second and Juraj Trubiroha bringing in a close and fast third place overall. Each turned in close to a 5:30 mile for each of the 4 miles they ran.















Leann Reed took the win for the women's overall followed by Allison Baker in second and Sara Otto in third. Great Race everyone.