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• Discount on OrganicAthlete event

Attention OrganicAthlete Members: you can now share your photos from your events on flickr!  You will need to be invited to join our group, so if you're interested send an email to bradley@organicathlete.org.

http://www.flickr.com/groups/organicathlete/

After a speaking engagement in Boston on Wednesday night, the OA team headed west to Fitchburg, MA.

Fitchburg-Longsjo is the second oldest pro-am cycling race in the U.S. For the Pro/1 category, this 4 stage event features a 6.2 mile time trial, a 78 mile curcuit race, a 104 mile road race, and a 50 mile criterium.  Akira, Dave Glick, and I entered the Pro/1 category, while Ben Lyon raced the category 2 field. 

Dave put in a solid ride in the time trial to start the race off in the top 40.  Akira and I have finished within 10 seconds of each other at almost every time trial we've done this year.  This race was no exception. 

In the curcuit race, Ben cracked when he ran out of water with 5 laps to go, thanks to his teammates for being too self-absorbed to think about going out to offer him a bottle.  Akira raced the front of the curcuit race, as he always does, while Dave and I surfed the back.  I started having shifting troubles after 5 laps that quickly deteriorated.  I stopped for a wheel change, then within 2 minutes my chain broke.  I rode a SRAM spare bike two sizes too small for the rest of the race.  I started having shifting problems with that bike with 3 laps to go.

The course for Saturday's Wachusett Road Race is an 11 mile lap with a tough, steep climb each lap.  After 9 laps for the Pro/1 field, the race finishes on top of Mt. Wachusett.  After getting shelled early in the race, I never saw the finish climb, as I headed back to the van.  Dave and Akira both rode well in the main group and finished next to one another.  Ben suffered but rode in a gruppeto finished together.

Sunday's criterium was a 1 mile loop through downtown Fitchburg.  With wide, open roads, the course does not favor breakaways, and both the men's 2 and Pro/1 races finished in a field sprint.  Akira, Dave, and Ben all finished safely in their respective field.


Overall Results

Pro/1
Dave Glick - 32nd
Akira Wong - 49th

Cat. 2
Ben Lyon - 110th

Click here for the complete results.

From Fitchburg, Ben, Akira, and I headed to Milan, NY where we'll be staying with OA member Pam Neimeth for a few days before we head into New York City.

Between the general anxiety I get in big cities, the incessant honking, and the fact that we were about to run out of fuel on a 10 lane highway, driving into New York City yesterday raised my stress levels beyond where they needed to be.  By the time we reached Yonkers, my excitement for visiting the Big Apple vanished, and I was ready to head back to our previous host's country hamlet in Dutchess County.

By the time the fuel tank was full and we crossed the 3rd Ave bridge, I felt much better.  The taxi cab wrath, strangely enough, felt good.  I figured life couldn't be better when we found space to park right across the street from where we're staying (which apparently used up all my parking karma).  

Ben, Akira, and I moved in.  We sat down.  We met our host, Pamela.  We got on a bus.  We gave a talk at Lifethyme Market.  We hung out with the rockin' group of folks known as TeamOrganicNYC (OA's New York Chapter).  We went out to eat at Gobo.  Last night was good times.

I also uncovered a fact that has befuddled me for the past year.  I'm on this chapter's email list, and though I rarely, if ever, read the emails; I'm astounded by the sheer volume of emails that pass between the members of the OANYC chapter.  Literally, I get 2-4 digest emails of 25 or more messages per day! 

It has to do with crackberries.  I've never tasted this fruit, but if you taste it you will feel compelled to write text messages.  I see stores selling crackberries and the like up and down 5th Ave, so apparently this addiction is quite common.

Pamela relayed some of the smack talk being passed between the group today.  Within the span of 10 minutes, people had written messages longer than the total amount of writing I do in one day (of course, people should consider themselves lucky if they get more than a 1 sentence reply from me.  I'm pretty short with the email stick.) 

I find this all pretty amazing, but what impresses me most about OANYC is the sense of community among its members.  Sure they have a incessant cyber-dialogue, but that's because, I think, they have good relations in the real world.  They train together.  They race together.  They have fun together.  And it wouldn't surprise me if they probably text each other from opposite ends of the paceline.  Kidding aside, in a sense, they are doing this.

Not everyone is vegan.  Not everyone is "organic."  And that's the point.  OrganicAthlete is about bringing people together.  It's about bringing people into the fold.  Yes, the organization promotes a plant-based diet, but that doesn't mean that every member has to be a vegan.  I think it means that we, as a community, as a group, are open to a healthy, compassionate way of living.

Last night, someone asked me why I'm a vegan - whether it's health or the environment or ethical reasons.  I stumbled over my answer because I have a hard time giving one reason or another for something that seems so integral.

As I was parking the van this morning for 3 and a half hours (yes, that's 210 minutes), I got to thinking about why I'm a vegan.  I think it comes down to love and holons.  But I'll have to keep thinking about it.

This appeared at one of PETA's blogs yesterday:

In addition to being just a really exceptionally good cyclist, Levi is passionate about helping animals, and he recently took some time to talk to PETA about the role that animal protection plays in his life....

Read it here...

This is an interview with Aaro Heinonen, one of the founders of a group called Tri Vegan.

In what ways did Tri Vegan promote a vegan lifestyle?

We basically wanted to advertise that vegetarians could not only participate, but win events. We were fortunate that right after we started the local Indy paper did a big feature article on us, with pictures and veggie recipes that we used

Read the full interview here...

Fruit and vegetable consumption decreasing in youth
Guess what? Fruits and veggies are healthy. Apparently youth in the United States didn’t get the memo. A sample of adolescents from Minnesota was studied to assess current produce intake. There were decreases in fruit and vegetable intake during the transition from early to late adolescence. Two habits may lead to better fruit and veggie consumption.

 

1. Having fruits and vegetables available at home/work/school to snack on

 

2. Eating meals together as a family

Larson NI, et al. Trends in adolescent fruit and vegetable consumption, 1999-2004: project EAT. Am J Prev Med. 2007;32:147-150.

Stretch away plantar fasciitis pain
Plantar fasciitis is a common exercise related foot injury. It may also be one of the easiest to alleviate. A study in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery indicated that patients suffering from plantar fasciitis who did a specific stretch three times a day had a 75% chance of needing no further treatment and staying pain-free!! They even had a return to full activity within three to six months.

 

How: Sit on the floor or a chair, with the affected leg crossed over the other knee. Stretch the arch of your top foot by pulling your toes back toward the shin for a count of 10. Do 10 reps, at least three times a day.

 

When: Perform this stretch before you take your first step in the morning and prior to standing after you’ve been sitting for a long time.

 

If pain lingers, you should consult your doctor.

Digiovanni BF, et al. Plantar fascia-specific stretching exercise improves outcomes in patients with chronic plantar fasciitis. J Bone Joint Surg Amer. 2006;88:1775-1781.

Soy isoflavones - no impact on thyroid
Due to the numerous health claims and safety concerns, soy intake continues to be a subject for research. Isoflavones, a component of soybeans and protein matrix supplements, have the potential to inhibit thyroid hormone synthesis. A study tested this potential inhibition health claim on 35 healthy men and concluded that even large doses of high isoflavone soy protein isolate (about 65 mg/day) does not significantly influence thyroid hormones. These results remain consistent with similar soy food related human intervention studies.

Dillingham BL, et al. Soy protein isolates of varied isoflavone content do not influence serum thyroid hormones in healthy young men. Thyroid. 2007;17:131-137.

More alcohol = less brain?
Research presented earlier this year at the American Academy of Neurology’s 59^th Annual Meeting indicated that heavy drinking over a long period of time may decrease the volume of the brain. Brain volume is thought to measure brain aging. More than 14 drinks per week was the threshold for brain volume decrease. For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit http://www.aan.com.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/528875/?sc=dwtp

Thanks to OA's health editor, Ryan Andrews, for this month's news.

Brent Poulsen, a professional triathlete, has joined OrganicAthlete's Pro-Activist Team of elite and professional vegan athletes.  He joined the team because he believes "the team has a great purpose."

Click here to read his complete profile...

If there's an easy way to wake up at 4:30 am, I don't know it and I'd rather not learn it.   Racing at 6am in the morning is a learned habit.  Ben, David, Akira, and I don't have this habit.  9am is early.

But we rolled to the line of the Lou Maltese Memorial on time, though I wouldn't say that we represented well.  The course was a 6 mile loop around Central Park for 7 laps. 

The 4 of us somehow missed the 17 rider split with 2 laps remaining.  It was one of those breaks that just rolled away.  By the time the gap had ballooned to 20 seconds, it was too late.  Er.

But we did have a big fan...



Click here for photos of the event.

Posted by Bradley.

I was in a break with Adam for the last several laps, but we were caught with 1 to go.  Ben got his first payout this year.  Go Ben!  I nearly died of heatstroke after the race.  Watermelon tastes good in such cases.




Posted by Bradley.

OAer Hyland Fisher recently participated in the Cascade Creampuff 100 Mountain Bike Race.  He has a report on his website here: http://vuduvgn.com/.

Justin Torrellas has been hitting the trail runs around Boulder.  Expect him on top of the podium soon.  Check out his Zaadz blog: http://justintorrellas.zaadz.com/blog.

Preface: After having enough points to move up to a 2 from my w

Preface: After having enough points to move up to a 2 from my win at Kern County, the San Marcos Circuit Race was my first race as a 2 and my first race in six weeks. Why? After an upsetting third place finish in the KCC hill climb, I’ve spent the past month and a half trying to become a pure climber. Impossible? Maybe. But hill intervals are so fun. Also, I’ve only done two crits in my life, and both of them were part of stage races/omniums (one in 2001 at Canadian Nats and one this April in the Counquer the Canyons Cat 4 race.) Needless to say, there’s a dearth of road races in SoCal from June onwards, so I finally sucked in up and decided to dive in.

The SMCR is a 1.7 mile, four corner course with 60 feet of climbing per lap. The 1-2-3 race was a pleasant 50 minute ordeal with preems every other lap for the first 10 laps. It was HOT, over 30 degrees celcius, and WINDY, around 15 km/h. The field size was around 35 and contained several teams, the largest of which was Helen’s Cycles with 6 women. Needless to say, I was the only OA member present. On a side note, one team’s slogan, I’m not sure which, was “You slay ‘em, we fillet ‘em.” I’m sure they weren’t referring to Tuno™.

I took the first preem and won, ironically, an Amgen jacket. After that, team strategy seemed to take over. There were lots of attacks and counter attacks, with the stupidly small, yet remarkably painful hill as the sight for most of the action. The corners were good, and it was relatively easy to stay in the mix by cutting tight inside lines. Around the half way point I thought that another benefit to taking riskier lines was that if I crashed I would be put out of my misery. In retrospect I’m lucky this didn’t happen as I managed to stay in the front group and finish in the money (barely) with an 8^th place.

Although I’m not overly pleased with my placing, I suppose it’s a good learning experience as my first race with the hot shots. I’m planning on doing one more crit at the end of this month, and then heading up north for some “real” road racing in August.

Posted by Cara Gillis.

When Akira and I pre-rode the nationals course on Saturday, we said to ourselves afterwards, "Can we go to Superweek now?"  One lap of the national course is borderline ridiculous - 3000 ft of climbing in under 30 miles. 

Monday morning Dave, Akira and I made the trek up to Seven Springs Ski Resort.  Knowing that my fitness isn't prime, my plan was to attack from the gun. 

I was the third person to attack.  Steve Tilford, myself, and another rider from Bob's Bikes rode off the front.  I think our breakaway lasted 4 or 5 miles.  Tilly rode me off his wheel on the start of the first climb.  The field caught and eventually passed me by the top of the climb.  Tilford would finish 16th at the end of the day.

Davide Glick0 has been under the weather for the past week and pulled out after two laps.  I continued to march on, figuring I may as well finish the race.  I hooked up with Ian Birlem of the Battley Harley-Davidson /Hudson Trail team, and we rode together till the last lap when my chain broke.  I hitched a ride home.  Akira finished 29th. Rock on Akira.

Posted by Bradley.

After driving all day, the OA cycling team gave a presentation last night at Veggie Bite in south Chicago.  Thanks to Silvia for organizing this event!  This is our last speaking engagement on this tour, and we appreciate the positive feedback.  If you're interested in organizing a speaking engagement for the  world's only all vegan elite cycling team for next year, go ahead and get in touch with us!

Last night, the OA team lined up for our first race at Superweek. The was a classic Mid-West criterium: BBQ, big crowds, parties, flat, fast, and over 100 fast dudes on two wheels.  A ten rider break formed halfway through the 100K race, and we weren't in it.  Akira nabbed a prime in the final few laps of the race.  Ben and I surfed the middle and back of the field.  I managed to sneak up to the front for a couple of laps, but slipped back in the final laps.

Here are the results.

Here are few photos of OA member Tim Quinn, courtesy of Liza Mohr.

OrganicAthlete would like to welcome Carmen Tunis and ONE Group as a new business member.   Organic and Natural Enterprise Group (or ONE Group) is an Australian based company who creates and manufactures the world's first Certified Organic skincare, haircare, personal care, health care and cosmetic products.  Click here for their website.

For information about becoming a business member, click here.

Ben and I made the drive up to Waukesha for the Carl Lake Cycling Classic last night.   Akira is feeling under the weather, so he stayed home.  Now in its 14th year, this is a classic Superweek race.  We were treated to big crowds and the smell of grilling hamburgers in the first corner.  I'm not sure whether that stench gets my go vegan butt going fast or not.  Tonight it certainly didn't. 

Two crashes in the first 10 laps stopped the race, and I was stuck at the back after both restarts.  After the third start, gaps formed and I was in one of the back splits with Ben.  Game over.

You should've seen Ben and Akira race tonight.  It was a thing of beauty. 

This was the first ever Evanston Grand Prix, and I hope this race
continues for years.  A well-designed course wound through beautiful
downtown Evanston, IL, the home of Northwestern University. 

I drove down to the race with every intention of racing, but on the way down I mentally cracked.  My task list for the Tour d'Organics and the West County Revolution have piled up, and the stress of work is affecting my racing (more on this at my blog soon).  So I went shopping and watched the race instead.

An eight rider break formed in the final 10 laps that stayed away to
the finish, but I was stoked to see Ben at the front of the peloton
with 3 laps remaining.  Akira was caught behind a crash in the final lap, but Ben finished top 20 in the field sprint and was JUST out of the money.  Go team!



Posted by Bradley.

by OA member X-tine Goodreau

Some say vegetable and some say fruit. And, some say poisonous, some say aphrodisiac! The tomato is a sweet, yet sour fruit indeed. Loaded with lycopene and folklore, the ubiquitous tomato has been both feared and revered!

The original “wild” tomatoes, indigenous to Peru, are the size of small peas. And now, we have all manner of tomato shapes, sizes and flavors, including a tasteless, bland impostor found in your local supermarket. (And, lest we not forget the ill-fated, gene-spliced FlavrSavr tomato! Yikes!) Brought from the Americas to the Mediterranean region during the 16^th century, tomatoes were primarily used as ornamentals during that time. Ironically, tomatoes made their way back to the Americas with the colonists.

Tomatoes are related to potatoes, eggplant, tobacco, and – deadly nightshade! As you can imagine, tomatoes initially weren’t readily accepted in Europe and didn’t lose their poisonous stigma in the Americas until the late 1800s. Eventually, tomatoes became quite popular edibles with the French calling them “pomme d’amour” (love apples) and the Italians calling them “pomodoro” (golden apples). The leaves of the plant are, in fact, poisonous, and some people can exhibit varying degrees of sensitivity or allergic reactions to the high levels of solanine alkaloids found in the nightshade family of foods. Cooking tomatoes may neutralize some of these effects; though people prone to kidney stones, low bone density or arthritis may benefit from limiting nightshades altogether. However, most people can enjoy tomatoes with no ill effects, and can benefit from the low calories and high levels of lycopene, potassium, vitamin C and soluble fiber. In fact, tomatoes are listed as one of author/lecturer Gary Null’s top fifteen “Power Foods” for better health. Just make sure they’re homegrown, heirloom, and/or organically grown (which contain higher levels of lycopene vs. conventional). Also, serve your tomatoes with olive oil, nuts or other fats to improve absorption of their fat-soluble, cancer-protective lycopene—which, coincidentally, is highest in the reddest of red varieties. (Sorry, green tomato lovers!) And, speaking of absorption, never cook your tomatoes in aluminum pans! The acidic nature of the tomatoes interacts with the metal (including cast iron), which can leach into your food. Much to many a chef’s chagrin, don’t remove the seeds either. Although tomatoes may be more aesthetically pleasing that way, nutrients are concentrated around the seeds and skin. Store tomatoes at room temperature (not in the fridge!), and if unripe, place them in a paper bag with a banana or apple to hasten the process.

Thanks to OA member Angela Lucarelli for this month's recipes!

Salad Caprese

Serves 2

• 6-½ inch thick slices ripe tomato
• 6 basil leaves, left whole
• 1 cup pinenuts
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1-2 tablespoons water
• sea salt and fresh ground pepper
• balsamic vinaigrette (optional)

1. In a food processor, combine pinenuts, nutritional yeast, olive oil, 1 tablespoon water and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pulse until mixture is a rough, creamy paste. If it is too dry, add another tablespoon of water and blend for another couple of seconds.
2. On 2 salad plates, drizzle about a teaspoon of the balsamic vinaigrette (this is optional).
3. Place 1 tomato slice in the center of each plate and top with 1 basil leaf and about 2 teaspoons of the pinenut mixture.
4. Layer another slice of the tomato on each plate, another basil leaf and another 2 teaspoons on each tomato slice.
5. Top each tomato stack with the last slice of tomato and 1 basil leaf.
6. Serve.

Blueberry-Almond Smoothie

Serves 1

 

• ½ cup fresh almond milk (see recipe below)
• ½ cup frozen blueberries
• ½ cup frozen banana slices
• agave nectar, to taste
• garnish: sliced almonds, fresh mint, fresh blueberries (optional)

1. In a blender, combine all ingredients and process until smooth.
2. Pour into a glass and garnish with fresh mint, sliced almonds and fresh blueberries.
3. Serve.

Almond milk

Makes 3-4 cups

• 1 cup raw almonds
• 3 cups filtered water

1. Cover almonds with filtered water and soak for about an hour or overnight.
2. Drain water from almonds and place almonds in a high-powered blender with the 3 cups of filtered water.
3. Blend on high for about 2 minutes.
4. At this point, you can strain the milk through a sieve or nut-milk strainer, or use the milk with unstrained.
5. May be kept sealed in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

There are 22 places in the world where OrganicAthlete either has a chapter, has a chapter forming, or has people interested in starting a chapter.

Don't you want to be number 23?

Check out the map of OA chapters.

New! -  Washington D.C.
We have a new chapter forming.  Click here to join their online group:
http://groups.google.com/group/oawashdc

Ontario-North
This month the chapter participated in the Inco Walden Firecracker 5k run.  Next month, sprint kayak training and rowing will be on the forefront.  Now it is also time to put in mileage on the roads for the marathon in October.

Victoria
Wed Aug 8th 6:30pm - OrganicAthlete Victoria meeting, discuss plant-based nutrition for athletes! Side room at Green Cuisine, come at 6pm if you're getting food, meeting starts at 6:30! Please RSVP with Dave.

Portland
There are members here in the Portland area that we have never met and some that don't even know there is a Portland chapter.  We are planning a vegan potluck to get together and meet everyone.  Anyone interested please email me at portland@organicathlete.org.  The time frame we are looking at is the end of August, we hope to see everyone there.
We have had many people tell us that they would like to have us start a running group.  We think this is a great idea, but we need those interested to contact us so we can get this started.  There are some great races and runs coming up in the next six months and it would be great to have a bunch of OrganicAthlete shirts in the events.  Email us at portland@organicathlete.org or call 503-775-3160.