So I was thinking...

So would the idea of Superfly Version 2.0 (versions 1.1-1.9 followed minor changes throughout the season) be absolutely crazy? I would really like to get a geared race bike, but in all reality, I can't see myself on anything other than a super high end carbon race rocket. Now with the addition of some new parts, or should I say almost entire revamp of the SSuperfly, I could save some cash and go big for the 2011 season. Then I would also be able to keep the SSuperfly.

With the winter bike being secured for the coming seasons, I will have a little extra budget room for 2011. It would take a pretty big revamp to bring the bike around to where I would want it. The goal would be to be aroun 19.5lbs with the Fox fork, and somewhere right around 17lbs with a rigid (Niner or the new Switchblade.) I know it is crazy, but I figure I can sell off the parts that are on the bike now for what I'd need to put into it to get a crazy light build out of the machine. And that is including selling off some things that don't need to be replaced, but could be for the sake of fashion/changing things up a bit.

Those are my current musings. I went and XC skied today. Man am I terrible. Granted I do better when there is more than 2-3 inches of hardpack with ice beneath it, but man it was tough. It seemed like they had only groomed for skate as well. I am a classic kind of guy due to the fact that they are the type of skis I own and I am too cheap to get anything else. Well maybe I'm thinking about it. I just need to get better.

It's Official! CXMagazine Rules!

Thanks to the guys at CXMagazine! Thanks to the contest they had, and semi-quick speed (similar to my racing) I landed a new set of carbon tubulars from Edge Composites. I am more stoked than you could ever imagine. I have been dreaming about a set of their mountain bike wheels for a long time, but as poor as I am at cross, these sure would help a lot. I am freaking out a little bit so that's all I got. Thanks Edge Composites and CXMagazine!

Crazy Week

Well leading into finals, I had been pretty nervous seeing as it was the first ones I had taken in college ever. On top of that CX Nationals were held the Sunday before, which meant I would be doing some major cramming. I followed the live text based coverage over at CXMagazine which was awesome. They covered the Portland GP the week before, of which I only caught Sunday (didn't have a clue they provided free coverage.) Either way those guys do one heck of a job. It isn't quite the same as it being on TV, but until cycling gets larger in the States, that won't be happening soon.

Well CXMagazine had a contest to win some amazingly sweet Edge Composites wheels. The same ones in fact that Jonathan Page rides and races on depending on the course. I decided it would be in my best interest to see if I could give it my college best and attempt to win. I am still awaiting the official news, but I have high hopes. Either way just the coverage alone took some stress off for the weekend, as well as added a little with the last minute review on Sunday and Monday.

On top of that, the Big T finally handled my X0-1 frame warranty and got me a new frame. I really like to stand behind companies that stand behind their product (against defect) for life. There are many different situations that can occur, but I have seen them even warranty things that have easily reached the life's end. Thanks again.

Finals went pretty ok. I kind of slashed my English final, and my final paper was probably my least developed of the semester, but the revision schedule was a little short. The math final went a little more confidently, and I ended up getting a B+ in the class. Totally awesome. I did not expect to do that well in a math class that I hadn't taken in high school which was 7 years ago.

On top of that, I began this week with a nice 5 hours on my Karate Monkey (not the best idea seeing it weighs 30lbs) with Adam and Shockey. We hit all sorts of gravel roads as well as Level B's that were anywhere from ice and snow covered, to completely drifted over. Needless to say with about 3-4 hours of it spent with actual snow flying, things got progressively more interesting. We ended up starving and thirsty. Luckily Karen was in town and completely took care of us, getting us pizza and beer within 10 minutes of us arriving at Adam's. Awesome day and I'm cooked. Hopefully Shockey made it home ok.

And things have been moved around and with some finger crossing involved, it looks like my 2010 bike quest might be clearing up. I will have to see, but I feel much better knowing that I might actually have some perspective on what is going to happen.

I'm wrecked and going to bed. Maybe after one more beer.

New Years Eve

Well things have been crazy and not this fall. Started going to that college thing again. Things are going well and are about to wrap up my first successful semester. About time. On the riding front I haven't been doing anything. Which for some reason is great. I am amazingly well rested. I started training 4 weeks ago to regain my off season strength. I am training with CrossFit. I know, I know it sounds cultish (and I'm pretty sure it is to some degree), but it is for real. I guess I don't have any results yet, but I am really stoked. It definitely reflects the type of strength training I was looking for, with major cardiovascular and nutritional/metabolic benefits.

I am eating better, and after suffering for the first three weeks, am ready to get back on the bike again. Even after 4 weeks, I can feel major core stability increases, as well as lower back strength. Also the additional upper body strength returning from a season of neglect, feel great. If you are a cyclist that is hesitant to hit the gym to lift, look into a the little phenomenon called CrossFit.

On other news fronts I am coming to another difficult decision. I don't know whether or not I am going to be able to afford a geared race bike for the 2010 mountain season unless I sell the Superfly SS. So the question becomes, stick with SS for one more season (maybe not a bad idea considering that in season training is going to be lacking due to wedding efforts), or sell that sucker and move on. What do I do? I have no clue. I know I like the bike, but there are definite improvements geometry wise SS or not that could be made to optimize performance on tighter courses. On the other hand, materials-wise, the bike is so far superior to anything else I have been on that I don't know if I want to sacrifice that.

I know I ponder the stupid bike thing too much, but with "training" becoming more dialed, and my focus clearing to mountain bike racing specifically, equipment is becoming more and more important.

Otherwise my new revelation is in regards to the New Year. I don't know about any other cyclists, but I would have to personally declare December 1 as my New Year. January 1 is all good and everything, but with the mountain bike season ending around October, and since I don't mind ignoring cyclocross, I am well rested by this point. I am a month into weight training/light cardio conditioning, and no signs of burning out. If anything I am going to start hitting those "base" miles. And by that I mean just riding to work. So today is New Years Eve.

Happy New Years to all the cyclists of the world. It all starts here. At least for me.

Let's just say I'm over it.

In so many words I'm over it. I'm over the little slump. I'm over being lazy in so many ways it is refreshing. I got kicked out of my riding funk today by a cop. Well actually it was the other day, which I didn't realize. And then another one made me realize that the other one had kicked me out of my funk. Needless to say, F*ck cars. Bring on some snow. I am equipped and ready to go. I never did get around to setting the Monster Truck up with a freewheel and a rear brake, but screw it. I need a new rear tire (the Mythos is trashed) so it is either time for an XDX or some studs. Then I will have an ice bike, and a snow bike. I don't really know if a fixed bike is good for ice, but we'll see.

I have also been lazy in tearing down the SSuperfly. It definitely needs some love in the bb/hub area. Yeah they are both King, but screw it, they are easy enough to overhaul and probably should be done once a year (especially after what I put it through.)

I.am. over. it.

All right time

All right it is time to start thinking about 2010. We are only a couple of months off and it is time as I am relaxing from riding to determine what the heck I am going to do in 2010. Number 1 above all else is get married. That is huge. So racing may take a little bit of a side seat to riding. I'll still be riding, and racing too, I will just be picking more selectively. Which means that my goals for 2010 vs. 2009 will be different. My winter is going to have to be pretty good to ensure that next season is going to be worth a darn.

So screw the racing stuff. What am I going to do for a geared race bike? I really want to give racing gears a chance next season. I have options upon options, but I really think I would like to go steel. Obviously in comparison to my Superfly SS, it would be a crazy decision, but my Karate Monkey is so stiff and comfortable ride quality wise, that I could save a little cash and go that route. I could just pull the drivetrain off of the Zombie Monkey and internal that sucker out. That option will also leave the Superfly in the garage instead of in the MTBR Classified section just in case I decide to scrap the geared idea.

So the next question is which builder? I have three in mind. All three are no frills, straight bike kind of guys. Nothing wacky, or cool, just no bull shit frames. One option is actually fillet brazed, and quite honestly I feel an industry secret. Not to bring it up, but one of his frames was reviewed in MTB Action years ago and even then they raved about how well the bike rode. I have wanted one of his frames for years, and now would be a great chance to own one.

So let me know, who should build my bike? Doug Curtiss would be my no.1, followed by Walt Wehner, then Tom Teesdale. Tom is a local guy and has been building frames for 30+ years. I would love to own a bike from him, but it would almost have to be a single speed. Remember, I don't want a show queen of a bike. If you've ever seen my Superfly, the frame is raced and well used (thus the reason I kind of want a steel bike for racing, ti is going to be my 5-10 year anniversary present). So let me know who else is blowing you away. I am picky, but these builders are top notch for sure.

I just don't know what to do. I am questioning everything right now about next mountain bike race season. I just want the ride to be the last thing I am worried about. There will be plenty of other things on my mind.

In the mean time, Suck it bike. I'm relaxing.

Where have I been?

I've been racing, then not racing, training and now, after many months of training ( and then racing) I'm out! No more racing! Well except for Jingle Cross, and maybe a couple of other selected races. What has happened since Seven Oaks? 30 day's in the saddle (approximation) some of those hard days, some of them lazy. 30 beers (not an approximation, actually a down right lie.) One Gnomefest (and one super rocked, Iowa packed Alleycat top 3!) Many other things including cross bike and road bikes (although not in that order.)

Needless to say I wrap up my first actual season of racing with many thoughts in mind. All of which I have gained endless knowledge and good times from, but now which I happily leave in the past. Now is the time for Zombie Monkey's, studies, wool, snow, and XC skis. Oh and beer. Thanks to everyone for the craziness that has been the 2009 race season.

Thanks Kent for kickin' it off back on March 8. It sucked and I hate you. But you hate yourself for that day too. Thanks to the folks down in Arkansas. Not only do I hate you, but you hate you enough not to even run the 80 mile Ouachita Challenge again. I'm glad that I participated in that one before you axed it. 'Cause it was more brutal than 75/120 people realized.

Otherwise thanks to the new work family I so graciously was accepted into this season. Thanks for welcoming me in and kicking me in my ass. Sorry to all the family folk. I miss you Price, Lazio, and D'Quack Attack (Fridays just aren't the same...)

Otherwise I can't say enough. What one year brings. Not that this is the end of it, but hell if I am going to describe anything else that happened. Maybe a couple of other small details about the remainder, but it was a whirlwind ride that not even I was prepared for. I never knew how crazy racing some mountain bikes could be nor how far I could push myself. All in all a crazy awesome year of riding with all my friends. Now time for mas beers and many days spent on the Zombie Monkey.

Tranquility.

Seven Oaks Race Report

Well I definitely felt about as unprepared as you could get for a race going into last weekend. I was completely trashed after the Lake Ahquabi weekend and just plain needed a break. I only rode into work for over a week. Finally last Wednesday, after getting all registered for school, getting my FASFA crap in line, I came home and knew I needed a ride. Having only been on a bike about 5-6 times for about 90-100 miles of commuting, I was interested to see how I felt. Rode some gravel and everything responded well after warming up. My back had also been really tight after Ahquabi and I of course did nothing before race weekend to make it better.

So Sunday rolled around and I rolled up to Boone with a crew of the usual suspects. The stupid weather made it so pre-riding the course sometime previously during that week an impossibility. So I was pretty much going into race day blind. I hate that. That is what this season is about though. Getting familiar with the IMBCS races. So I hit up a pre-ride lap that was quite abbreviated with Nick. Based on it I stupidly left my 36-19 on and called it good. That turned out to be a mistake.

The gear worked well for the start. Seeing as I hadn't ridden too much I was tentative at the start. Knowing full well I shouldn't but knowing that I had missed some of the course, I decided it was better to settle in behind some that were more familiar with the course. It turned out not to be too bad of a move. I should have grabbed Jed's wheel though seeing as he has been really strong and that we have been riding at a somewhat similar level. His fitness/strength is definitely higher that mine and he was definitely familiar with the course. My bad. I did however get into a group with Kevin and Shockey who after my fumbles gapped off of me a little.

So slowly things settled in and I found the backside of the course laden with freaking uphill switchbacks, punchy steep climbs, and slow weird drawn out climbs. About 3/4's of the way through lap one I felt like crap. My gear choice felt huge and I was sort of struggling to keep up with Kev and Shockey. I already knew I was out of the money (beer) for the unofficial SS MTB State Champs. Jed was checked out. Kevin pulled away from Shockey, and I finally gapped back up to him. Descending into the lower ski area, I came around Ben due to my larger gear and signalled for him to grab on and draft off of me. He was climbing well and I wanted to pull him up to Kevin. Didn't work out.

I got up to Kev and rode with him for around half of the lap. He got caught up where I had during lap one and I went around him. We rode together for a while, but I had to punch it on the climbs. At the end of the lap I was feeling a little squirrelyness from my front tire, but I had set my pressure low so I ignored it. I had a decent gap on the other two so I just held strong and kept trucking.

Going into lap 3 I ran most of the steep parts of the openning singletrack section and then dove into the descent to the bottom of the beginning of the course. Once I hit the base I heard the dreaded hiss of a cut. Shit. It was slightly spewing Stan's every revolution. I stopped and let the fluid pool to get it to seal. It did and I kept riding. Then it busted open again 100ft down the trail. I stopped this time and sealed it. I hesitated and knew I had to hit it with CO2. As I was hitting it Kev came around and gave me a little sympathy. He was riding strong and bouncing back. I never caught him.

I had to settle for 4th on the day. After the flat I was just a little knocked down. I haven't ever had a "mechanical" in a race before so I was due. I've been really lucky. After I hit the tire with CO2 I had too much pressure and just couldn't get back in the groove. I did manage to keep the gap at 20 seconds though and that was good.

Congrats to Cam for shredding our collective faces off one more time. You are on another planet. For sure. Gears might be coming, but not this season for fear of the of sticks and cable cutters. Jed good race. Wish I would have known the course and gotten my panties out of a bunch and just started as strong as I should have. You still would have cleaned house. Kevin, much earned "win". Keep those legs going during the week. Shockey good race too. Glad to be able to drink some beers with you and sorry about the van/beer incident. To everyone else see you sometime soon. Not the time trials weekend though. I'll be Gnomefesting.

Mid-Season Break.

Well it is mid season. My legs are telling me so, and so is my mind. I can hardly even comprehend the races so far. CIRREM, Ouachita Challenge 80 mile, Sylvan Island, Banner Lakes, State Crit, ScoCoPa Chase, Camp Ingawanis, Lake Ahquabi. Somewhere around 8 races. One gravel metric, one epic mountain bike race, one road bike race, and 5 other mountain bike races. All the IMBCS so far have been Expert level races. All but two done 100% SS. One aided by suspension (yeah I know cheater cheater). My legs haven't been this used since.. well never.

Coming up on the schedule brings Boone XC, Des Moines Crit weekend, off weekend (supposed to be 24 hours of Boone) or maybe Colesburg gravel race, Gnomefest weekend, maybe SSWC09 weekend, Lake Manawa, off weekend, then Sugar Bottom Scramble. It wouldn't be all bad if most of those were just hour long cross races, but the shortest one so far has been 22.5 miles (other than State Crit weekend) and 1.5 hours in the saddle.

I need a mid-season pick me up. Tomorrow brings some testing, registering, and a road ride. Hell maybe I'll even go ride gravel to spice things up. This last stretch is going to tax my brain and body for sure. Anyone pushing me to race cross is crazy. My Zombie Monkey is just calling my name for some good rock bashing, town shredding, snow riding good times. Oh and chilling out and drinking beer. Just way more beer than average.

On top of all that I think tentative plans are beginning to be put into works for next season's race ride. A diversion of an asset and some funds to accomodate a change in the right direction for the future of my racing. A descision I thought would never come/be really hard to come to terms with is running through my mind with ease.

Oh what October 5th will bring.

Sunday Photo Session

Getting the ZM a little dirty for the photo session. Found a sweet little side trail while returning a movie and seeing Brett before finding a photo location. In front of the garage just gets boring. It sure is nice to have a geared mountain bike again. This one is a bruiser in the weight category, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I do need to change out that rear tire though until winter.

Zombie Monkey Musings

Tonight was a chill night following a chill week. Tomorrow brings DB's wedding and again a chill day in the saddle. The ZM project (Surly Karate Monkey, here on out known as the Zombie Monkey or ZM) officially wrapped tonight with the first test session being had. I had very little light beeming out of my puny Cateye. Initial impressions lead to too high of saddle height (gotta cut that post 20mm more), 10mm too short of stem (sorry NS) and short wheelbase. Hopefully I can slide the saddle back a little more, and maybe even rake the front wheel out a little more.

A custom fork would feel amazing on this thing. 472-474mm axle to crown, and 47mm of rake. Just enough to kick that front wheel out there a little more, and keep the handling in the ballpark. I might have to throw the old On One Carbon fork on the ZM for Gnome Fest.

I can't even believe how well balanced and behaved this machine is. Everything that led me to get the ZM turned out to hit the nail on the head. I now truly believe that if one of Surly's sizes fits you, you should have a Karate Monkey in some form. If you love 29er's you owe it to yourself to own one or give one a shot. Mine was transformed into the ZM though liberal usage of purple ano and lots of slow planning and care. Zombie's dislike purple and black. Known fact.

Only a true Zombie Apocalypse transportation device would recieve this much planning preemtively. Most post Apocalypse machines have to be whittled together from the last remaining remanants of post Apocalyptic society.

So to all: Do your homework. Prepare your bike well. If zombies should come, you are going to need some form of transportation, protection, etc. It's not like it's really going to happen, but hell, in my case it got me to build a sweet new 29er.

Lake Ahquabi Race Report

Well going into this weekend I knew what was coming. Unless I put gears on my bike, Cam was going to walk away with this one, while a chase group sat back and duked it out between each other. Needless to say my expectations were to get smoked by 5-10 minutes and Cam didn't disappoint. He took it by 8 minutes.

On the other hand I avenged my worst race ever from last season. I ended up in a chase group with Jed Gammel, Nate Kullbom, and Kent Carlson. Kent did well to hang on and keep pulling back to the group, but Nate, Jed and I were keeping the pace high all race. I don't know why that was needed, but I wasn't slowing down for anyone either. All three of us worked together really well which was refreshing.

There were various times when things would get stretched. Jed dropped a bottle once. He was riding awesome, so I asked Nate to sit up til' he came back. Then at the end of lap 3 Jed had to stop for bottles seeing as he didn't have a hand up, so we let up to keep him in the group. He was riding way strong, so we kept things civil and gentlemanly seeing as he was earning his keep just as much as anyone else in the group, if not more.

At the beginning of lap 4 the three of us were all still together, so I upped the pace to see who still had legs/ who wasn't cramping yet. I sure was close but had been managing to really fight the cramps off. About 1/2-3/4 through the lap Jed asked if we were alone and I let him know that Nate had popped a while back. I also let him know that since everything had been cooperative and all that I wasn't far from cramping and that he'd probably pop me on the asphalt climb. He laughed at that and said he'd been feeling the same thing. He did open up the gap quite thoroughly and I thought I was done.

I noticed through the last 1/4 of the course that he wasn't openning the gap at all and it was holding. I gave it everything I had to keep the gap at 5 seconds. After the asphalt descent I saw the signs of him fading through the grass so I gave it the last of the gas in the tank and gapped up to his wheel. I don't think he liked seeing me there as I kind of came out of no where.

We hit the base of the finishing climb and I was on his wheel. I could see his strain pushing his 32-15 vs. my 36-18 and knew that the climb was mine. I put the hammer down. A couple of kids were caught unaware as we came flying by them uphill. Jed realized a little too late I was coming strong and moved over to try and block me. Shoulders were thrown from both parties. We went down about 50 yards from the line. I patted him on the shoulder as we laughed/cramped and decided to foot sprint for the line.

I took 2nd in the end. Cam gapped us big time. Jed took 3rd. Nate only lost a minute for 4th and Kent came in 5th. Thanks to Bruce Brown and everyone that volunteered on Sunday. Hopefully Boone will be a little better seeing as the course is a little more technical which suits my riding style very well. I am keeping the IMBCS points gap civil until Gnome Fest weekend. That will bury me into 2nd for sure. Still not bad for my first season racing Expert, and not hitting anywhere near all of the races.

Gears?

Shadow

Bored

Not much going on this evening. I actually got in a good but odd day of riding today. I had my crown installed this morning so the mouth is all back to normal. I cruised back home and met my Dad to get some corn he picked up after work. He hung around for a while and drank a beer. My tentative plan to ride Amana gravel out and back was being foiled by answered phone calls or not answered.

I finally got a return call from Brett at about 10:45 and Sugar was on the schedule. We cruised out and decided on a lighter ride and choose mostly greens with some blues/blacks thrown into the mix. The pace wasn't super high seeing how Brett was rolling his 32-18 on his Monocog, and I was rolling the 36-18 on the 'Fly. I set it up with front and rear S-Works Fast Traks the day before and was curious about the lack of cush in the front end, as well as traction.

Fortunately my fears/concerns were washed away when the Fast Trak just refused to give up grip under hard cornering. They didn't always hold the line I wanted, but they did admirable for a 50mm wide tire. What they did do awesomely was climb and roll flats. My 36-18 felt like nothing today. I was worried that gear at Sugar would feel ridiculous, but pushing the bigger tires I have this season made the setup feel effortless.

We rolled a lap and then headed to town for a beer and Mexican buffet. Yeah I said it. It was good. We got his chain retensioned after a mystery de-tensioning and headed back out. We cruised another green lap and Brett decided to head back to the truck. When we got there I was going to take my backpack and just cruise the road home, but a one Mr. Black's truck was there. He rolled up no more than a minute later and had only put in a half lap due to a lost bottle. I encouraged that we head out on a rescue mission to get it back seeing as it was an insulated bottle. Mr. Black agreed.

We proceeded to scorch a pretty fast 80% complete lap to end the day. It was an odd one seeing as the first two laps were really low pace, which I wasn't looking for. I think it turned out to be just right. We'll see after BBR ride Thursday, off-day Friday, and pre-race road bike Saturday.

Camp Ingawanis Race Report

I had mixed feelings going into this past weekend. No riding on Wednesday or Thursday. Friday I rode to work and then home. Saturday I rolled the road bike and pushed some big gears on the way home. I was feeling ok, but after Banner Lakes and then a 3rd at ScoCo, I didn't if the legs had the big efforts in them. Plus the previous season held some pretty wicked terrain.

I was psyched about riding the opposite side of the Camp though. I had no idea of what was in store, but I had a feeling it was going to be fast. I heard that it was going to be flowy, which usually means really fast. I also didn't know who was going to be showing up. I rolled up to the race with the Geoff's crew. We had a strong showing 6 deep. 2 Expert Men, 2 Expert Women, and 2 Sport Men.

Kevin and I were signed up for the Expert open. We pre-rode the course and almost immediately I knew that it was going to be the first time I'd ever bust out a 2:1 gear on my SSuperfly. It was kind of intimidating, but I knew if I was going to hang with the big boys on gears, I was going to need to roll a big gear. I set it up and patiently waited.

At the line I was feeling good. My plan was to follow Cam and Kevin for as long as possible. Both those boys can roll, and I knew on this course it would be important. Luckily the gear choice was awesome and I got into the singletrack 2nd on Cam's wheel. Things settled in immediately and somewhat comfortably. I knew the pace was going to get elevated, but it seemed like Cam was willing to keep things mellow for a little bit. About 3/4's of the way through the first lap Kev had to hold up a little and settle into his own pace.

The next two and a half laps were uneventful. I just sat in Cam's wheel and tried to hand as best as possible. It was good to sit in as there were a couple of long doubletrack and he would punch it through these every chance he got. He definitely didn't want me to get around in these sections. I held it as long as I could.

About 3/4's of the way through lap 4 I knew I had to back off a little. I had no idea how for back Kev was, but my legs were just starting to talk a little. I still felt great, I just knew I couldn't match the pace. I rolled through the start/finish with Cam still in sight, but creeping away. I held my own pace through the rest of the last lap to hold onto 2nd. Cam only openned up 33 seconds this time around so again, I'm getting closer.

This race was important as I'd never actually hung around at that pace before. The boys at ScoCo had my number lap 1. I was overtrained going into that weekend, but was ok. I still felt great but I knew I had to chill out prior to race weekend. This weekend brings Lake Aquahbi which will be another fast one. My high end is definitely there, it's just a question of again how long I'll be able to hold the strongest rider's wheels. I'm not going to be able to attack them but hopefully I'll be able to keep it close. The course is Chequemagon-ish.

Hopefully I'll be able to roll a big enough gear to not make it a blow out. I'm also going to scout Boone tomorrow and the week after. I haven't ever ridden there, so recon is imperative to take away the "local" advantage. I have a feeling it won't be the same result as Banner.

Best Ride Home

Had a great ride home. It was peaceful, serene, anything you would want in a ride home. It was right at sunset and there was all kinds of wildlife stirring. It was totally relaxing. Awesomely huge salad for dinner, followed by dessert. Now just lounging around. Tomorrow the same. Followed by racing on Sunday.

ScoCoPa Chase Race Report

Raceday came this past Sunday. Two weeks previous of hard work and only two days on the mountain bike. I hadn't preridden the course, but from reports, I knew it was tight and twisty. I left tire selection to my heavy but trusted Rampage front and newly mounted and new favorite Racing Ralph Snakeskin. I pre-rode everything and felt pretty good, but never end up doing well with a pre-ride on raceday.

Plans for the day were to take the holeshot seeing how at Banner Lakes it had a huge outcome in the results. I had a "bad" day that day anyways (felt great, just didn't have it type day.) I got in a decent pre-ride, but knew that the legs probably didn't have a top spot effort in them. At the start there were a lot of unfamiliar faces. About 5 of them were from the Peoria area Guinness team. I could tell that they were going to be my main competition.

The start chute was about a 250-300 meter section of grass that was board flat. I kind of wrote off my chance for the holeshot. At the start the official asked if the distance was ok and there was a lot of mumbles mostly in the direction of us only doing 4. Myself being an idiot said we should keep it at 5 since it was an expert level race. Bad idea.

I definitely surprised myself and held off the rest of the field pushing a measly 36-19. From the pre-ride I knew things were loose in the first 1/4 of the course so I rode kind of conservatively. I couldn't hold the pace of Aaron McCombs and let him by probably around 2 miles into the lap. Shortly there after his team mate was tailing me and I just didn't have it and let him by as well. I just couldn't keep the pace as high as them through some of the technical stuff. Those guys were just plain shredding.

Anyways I held decently steady for the first three laps which was a terrible idea. I knew I'd have to back the pace off and it was getting warmer all the time it seemed like. Finally at the end of lap 3 I took my second bottle. I had a stupid fumble that lap and had a minor bobble (ok yeah I crashed trying to Gu in a way too short double track section) and lost some time. At the end of every lap was a super technical section. This would hold to be the descisive section to keep me in my place.

Anyways I held onto third overall from a hard charging guy on another SuperflySS. He rolled a tire no less than 20 feet down the trail after I let him roll through. I held him off all of lap 5. He caught me going into the last section on lap 5 but I had been saving my energy most of lap 5 and laid it down. He looped out again due to the pace/time/distance combo and came in a strong 4th.

I had higher hopes for the weekend, but the base I have going into the final stretch of the season is good. I took the overall lead in the IMBCS Expert series this weekend which I had no hopes of ever achieving. Cam won't let me hold onto that one for long, but I'll take it while it lasts. Not bad for my first season racing expert.

I also want to thank the QCFORC guys and gals for putting on an awesome race. They seriously do the best job out of anyone in the whole IMBCS series. I love going to their races. Plus they build and maintain ripping awesome trails and do wonders for trail advocacy in the Quad Cities area.

Holeshot.

Beginning of the End.

Tomorrow begins the next 5 weeks of mayhem. 4-5 Expert level races in the next 6 weeks. One of the weekends might be a double header with State Road Champs and Waverly MTB race. I'm feeling really good and have gotten in a lot of saddle time in recently. I can't say enough about how much better I feel this season. It is mostly in part due to the people around me. I have a loving family, an awesome job, and an amazing group of friends around me. They have pushed me all season more than they realize to bring me to the level I have achieved.

If you asked me a year ago if I would be able to compete in an almost full season of expert level of mtb racing I would have laughed at you. I tried my first expert level distance in the end of September. At the end of the season I became a little mentally obsessed with doing some 100 mile NUE races. I got a wild hair to go down to Arkansas to try my hand at an 80 miler, but one of the toughest single day races around. I figured if I could survive that, I could survive anything. It helped push me through the beginning of the season as well as my compatriot in pain, Adam.

Things have changed more than I could have ever imagined in the past 6 months. What will the rest of the next two months bring. 6 weekends of racing, potentially including SSWC09, GnomeFest 7, and all sorts of other craziness. This stretch is going to be the most intense stretch I've faced. Nothing huge, just lots of mountain biking.

End of the Beginning.

Hard Work

Things have been crazy at the shop leading up to RAGBRAI. I am ready for it to be over so I can focus a little more on riding. That being said I have been fitting quite a bit in. I have two early morning sessions at Sugar in before this weekends race. Got a good road ride in on Sunday. I have to thank the Sunday morning crew for picking up numbers and making the ride more and more fun.

I don't know what else to say. Feeling good. Broke my temp tooth. Eating a big bowl of eggs, corned beef hash, and toast. I like carbon by the way. The SS is still amazing. I'm not giving it up for a nothing.

Dentist.

State Crit

Things went well at Gold Pointe State crit. Took a preem on lap 4 or 5, stayed upright when someone flaked out and went down in front of me, did some work on the front to pull back a solo break. Followed by having an intelligent rider immediately attack right off the front and and stay solo. One racer went down two turns to go and blew out a tire which made most of the field hesitate. Nate and I ended up sprinting it out in a drag race. I got him by about half a wheel. Felt good in my first Cat4 crit. Now I just need to do some work and a couple more.

My hipitis is flaring a little as well. I'm going to maybe just hang out today and do some stretching and core work. Maybe head out for a light spin on the road bike. No big ringin'.

Crit.

Well since I haven't raced for about 2 months now, I'm diving in. I have a new road bike, no reason that shouldn't make me faster. NOT! But I'm going to try my hand at my first Cat4 crit anyways. Cedar Rapids here I come.

Rain Sucks.

Dude screw all this rain. Time to get some restructuring done. I want/need to ride my mtbike sometime. And get in a good road ride or two. Tomorrow hopefully Adam and I can get in some gravel miles. Boring 4th.

Into the Blackness

Night rides are in full effect. Vampires beware: I will be out hunting. Main objective is no exposure to sun. I am on drugs that make it so I can't be in the sun for long periods of time. Or I could roll biker style and rock a bandana. Which I'm totally going to do by the way.

I am looking forward to getting out on some night rides though. Too bad it isn't winter and that the days are the longest for a 4 week period of the year. Oh well the days are waning. And at least it will force me to get on the mountain bike one way or the other. I'm totally jonesing for some Levis Mounds singletrack right now. I've been having dreams about them.

Oh well PBR and night rides for now. And Levis will wait til September. I decided that's when the Gold Label will get popped as well. I also might have to make a trip down to Missouri to do some riding in August. Any suggestions?

Black.

Compact version.

Last 30 days. Got drunk. Wrecked. Got a couple of stitches, chipped half a tooth. Still healing. Got a new road frame. Roubaix Pro SL. Barmac bars. Rebuilt old Record/CXP33/ Competition rear wheel into Record/RR1.1/Revolution. Used my 24h DuraAce/Venus/ Revo front for a light combo. The thing is a beast and rides like the wind and is super comfy and at home on everything from flats, to climbs, to shredding some gravel.

Things continue on in the shop and I am gassed after a bunch of coworkers being in and out. More out than in. I am in need of some serious mileage. I am getting out in the am tomorrow for more road miles. It is a good thing I switched to a lighter road bike seeing as I now live in Portland, WA (a suburb of Iowa City IA.) We are currently in the rainy season and won't be able to ride mountain bikes til August more than likely.

I am also collecting stuff for my future Winter Bike Project. So far all I am short is a Surly 34t Chainring, Salsa guard, X9 short cage derailleur, 9spd shifter (grip or trigger), Thomson stem, 73x110mm square taper BB. I think that's all. Oh and a frame and fork. I'm thinking Karate Monkey or maybe a Misfit Cycles DiSSent or even a QBall. Or maybe I might have a little something else up my sleeve. If anyone has any of those parts and they want to rid themselves of them let me know.

Road miles in the AM.

Amana

I took the good old road bike out yesterday for the gorgeous ride that is the Amana ride. Let me say this though, while gorgeous there is a ton of climbing on the way out to drop into the valley. Then on the way home you have to climb out of it. The you roll across some big Iowa hills to get back to Solon. I clocked it in at around 3:15 which isn't trucking, but at 61 miles for the ride it ain't bad. Oh and almost got blasted by some lady head on. That was awesome. Probably the first time I've ever flipped someone off out of anger instead of just joking around.

The old road bike is still ticking along well, but I have some money coming my way and I already have a b*tchin' new handlebar/stem setup that is going to rip. I just can't turn down a good deal! Anyways as much as I've been riding road this year it's probably time to make the switch. The Gios will not be being retired though. It is going to be "restored" as close as possible back to it's original state. I use quotations because I'm not going to use the original Gios blue. I'm going to get the original decal package and then go from there.

Anyways it sounds like Banner Lakes got the rain it needed as opposed to getting trounced which is awesome. I don't know what gearing to run, but I'm going to get out there for the am pre-ride to check it out and get an idea. I'll be heading that way after work on Saturday and staying with the Short Cake's sister/brother-in-law/nephew/and niece. I'm looking forward to racing.

Resting today with short ride into work and back, then hitting it hard again tomorrow.

Indy

Went over to Indianapolis this weekend to watch the 500. Most people look at auto racing and automatically think of NASCAR. This race is anything but. Imagine over three weeks of testing, qualifying, and racing. That's some serious business. Anyways I stayed at the farm as usual, and as usual got put to work after a late night Saturday night. We hit it off right, woke up early and then hit the yard for a couple of hours. John hadn't mowed his lawn for a week or so and it was looking long. I got weed wacking duty. Sounds easy enough, but the farm is a big place with a lot of buildings to go around.

After that I got to bust out the ladder and slap in some screens. That took about another hour or so. After that John called his friend Leo over to school Greg and I in some cribbage. Yeah yeah you're saying cribbage is for old people. Not so. Cribbage is for people looking to have a good time and drink some beer and count some cards. Probably the best card game ever.

Sunday brought around race day which brings about pandemonium. 300,000 fans and the 100th year since the inception of the Indy 500. Things filled up fast. The race was a little slow action wise for most, but I always dig it. Listening to those motors makes your hair stand on end. Easily one of the most awesome sounds ever. The only thing better are probably F1 cars or Moto GP bikes.

Needless to say I ate well, drank better, and had awesome company as usual. There is magic out there I tell you. Indy is a special place. Enough with the fluffy stuff.

Anyways that came right after a pretty intensive round of training. I hit it super hard 5 days before and could have used more over the weekend. That's life I guess. At least now the muscles are topped off with glycogen and such. The legs felt good today and I tempo'd home in the rain at a good pace. I've really been digging riding gears recently. I know that is a travesty and all, but my legs have really been digging the tempo thing. Especially at higher efforts.

Tomorrow will probably bring rain and crap. I don't know the status of the Indianola race this weekend so we'll have to see. I'm going to get out no matter what and straight blaze 2 hours on the bike. I need some super high levels of intensity. We're talking puking levels. And I don't puke while riding. I'm going to try tomorrow. I'm feeling a new road bike.

Pro SL.

Today = 25.

Today I turn 25. What does that mean? A quarter century down and no significant change to the world's policies, beliefs or anything else for that matter. I'm getting "older" and don't give a flying crap one way or the other. If by older it means getting stronger, then I'm all for it. I've been working my butt of to get fit, stay fit, and train within bounds my body has never reached or felt.

One thing about cycling is time is a great factor. If you keep riding you will get faster. There will be times when you are slow. There will be times when you are fast. If you keep riding and training year round you will ineveitably get stronger. You will get more comfortable. I am on an upsweep that started 4 years ago and is still moving forwards. My legs aren't all there yet. Mentally I feel great.

Last night I got dropped off of College Green group ride so hard that some would probably shell out and quit. I mean bad habit. I mean guttered to the 'enth degree. Yoyo'd off the back. Making the dumbest decisions on which wheels to grab and not being able to do anything about it. My legs were toast. This came after 4 previously rough days of windy (both pronunciations of the word) roads and two days of big gear SS mountain bike riding. I saw that the old Creepy was rolling a similar gear up at Iola. Maybe I'm getting a little stronger. Maybe a little dumber.

Either way cheers to all of those hitting the grind and the pedals today. This is to you oh Biker Guy who rides his bike everyday. Keep getting on that saddle and riding. It'll only make you stronger. Maybe. Or dumber.

Life lesson of being 25- Riding mountain bike fixies with huge gears can be the dumbest decision you ever make. Think long and hard before you do.

Hair cut.

H1N1

Not to be confused with M1A1. My computer got itself some swine flu. A dose of me f'ing with it for a week and sucumbing to taking it to the shop got it better. That and a half gB of RAM never hurts. Not much going on in my world other than theorizing the impending zombie apocolypse stemming from this outbreak of swine flu. Umbrella Corp is behind it and I know it. Too much Resident Evil 5 and Zombie Strippers for sure.

The computer is better and everything in bike land is feeling great. The 'Fly is well and now a new carbon project is being cobbled together in my head. Let me drop the hint that I'm glad I switched when I did.

Drank some PBR and GB Premium tonight. Rode my bike with no lights in the dark which was sweet. I am on a imposed 3 week fixie recovery plan as well. I read a mind breaking article on single speed bikes/riding a couple of weeks ago which went along with my early season/new bike assumptions. The beer thing is a humongous plus. Thanks GTed. And that BA guy from Twin Six.

Glad to be back.

I guess it's still April

Well the wind hasn't let up around Iowa yet. But it is still April. We got a serious dose of temperature increase today which was amazing. On top of that the Big Boss Man let me take out his old 2008 Sworks Tarmac SL2 to get a feel for the frame sizing and ride quality. The wind was only noticible when getting hit with a decent cross wind. It was also my first ride on some decently deep carbon wheels which was amazing as well. Also my first ride on a bike featuring a BB30 standard bottom bracket. Whew that was a mouth full.

The bike rode awesome and I rode decent. I have a tweaked tendon running from my knee through my shin from the lack of warm up this weekend. It was cold enough and raining hard enough that I just forgoed it. It wasn't needed. Besides the whole slight injury thing. Oh well. That's life and racing. My legs felt pretty good as well. Big ringing some of the bigger climbs on Sugar Bottom like an idiot and then cruised into the headwind all the way home. Dropped it into the little ring for that whole stretch to let the tendon spin out and relax.

So now the decision comes down to do I pick up a 52cm or a 54cm frameset. The 54cm works with the 100mm stem that is on it and even with the 20mm offset seatpost. I took some measurements off the Gios and dropped the bars a little bit. The whole fit thing is really coming around when it comes to setting up my bikes. It really doesn't take me long any more to get them really dialed. I just don't know if I want to ride a 120mm stem. Looks goofy but even with that added length the shorter wheelbase of the bike will handle a little better as well.

Oh decisions, decisions. That new frameset will really help with the road training aspect of things. The old Gios just leaves you gassed and soaks up efforts on training rides. That isn't always bad, it just leaves you more fatigued. Also I might have to see what the old Boss man might take for his old SL2. The Sram Red components really worked well. Shifting was super fast and very snappy compared to Rival or Force. I would have to say that when next season comes around, I will definitely be thinking about them for a kit should I get just a frameset.

That's all.

Sylvan Island Stampede Race Report

I crossed the line yesterday way faster than expected. The conditions were about as bad as they could have possibly been, which caters to my riding experience. The mud, slop, cold and sheer attrocious conditions were right up my mental alley. As I write this my eyes are still shedding crap out of them and go blurry every now and then. Talk about a crappy but good day to ride a bike.

I hit the singletrack in probably about 10-11th place and was ready to get my mud bearings pumping. It's been about 8-9 years since I've irresponsibly ridden singletrack in downright destructive conditions. Luckily most of the other people in the field were not ready to handle it. In Iowa, there aren't too many trail systems that are rain friendly. After working past 1 or 2 people in the first mile I had my first mud mishap. I slammed the front of my saddle and the nose of my saddle rocked down into a negative 45 degree angle. Talk about crappy.

I hopped off the bike in an open doubletrack section and with one solid punch put the saddle back to about a negative 10 degree angle. Far from great, but for a day like this one it was perfect. So I was behind a slower gentleman on a FS Hifi 29er who just kept tapping his pedals on just about anything he could. The weather was just taking it's toll. And at this point we were only 2 miles into the race! So I got to catch up to the two people who passed me, one on another SuperflySS and the other guy I don't remember. SuperflySS guy and I started to do some work. We rode the remainder of the lap together and into the second.

At that point we had picked off about 5-6 riders and were working well together. Only problem was all the mud he was kicking into my eyes! My eyes and face were getting slammed and it wasn't helping my situation at all. So come the next gravel section it was game on. Passed him on the short gravel and just headed into the singletrack pushing my own pace. Apparently this cracked him cause at the next trail overlap he was gone. It could have been the pits of mud that were 3-5 inches deep in places as well as all the roots and rock buried in them to immediately stop your progress.

At this point I was riding by myself. I felt really good, but didn't see anyone ahead, nor did I hear anyone cheering for anyone behind me. Oh well just keep pumping the pace. I finally got my second handup thanks to Adam doing some bottle searching. Nate had to drop out cause he smoked a tree with his knee. I felt bad, but that's mud racing on a course that is basically a rocky, rooty pump track. Attention, attention, attention.

I finally saw someone which turned out to be Kevin. He was about a while section ahead on the singletrack. I just kept riding my same pace because I felt like it was a good one and I wasn't 100% killing myself. I actually caught up to him as he stopped to tighten his cleat. It had worked it's way loose and luckily he hadn't lost a bolt. At this point I knew there could only be a couple of people in front of me. I knew it was Nenniger, Shockey, and Cam. As it turns out I had passed Shockey earlier, but hadn't even remembered or realized it. At this point I was on a mission. My mind and body just hit some weird rythym. I can't even explain it.

I caught Nenninger in the muddiest section of all. He tried to put some pace in during a couple of the little open sections, but these were now mud pits as well and his shifting was gone. I just motored past in one of the nastiest sections of all. I don't think he was expecting that. That killed off all but one rider (I thought it was actually two) and I knew next one in line was Cam. He kept pulling through just ahead on the next section of singletrack in multiple places. We kept crossing paths. I couldn't tell if I was gaining or not. I was getting pretty gassed at this point anyways.

I hit the 6th lap with hopes of just holding my position and that's what I did. I did end up putting time into Cam (as far as catching up) but didn't reel him back. My first lap was over 1 minute slower than his, and my next 3 were faster. My 5th was slower, but I know my sixth was faster. One of my lap times didn't register on the Accu-Split. He posted a 22.xx lap and I knew I closed some on that lap.

Overall I took second in Expert on my Superfly SS. The bike is amazing. It is the hands down best race rig I have ever had. My brake pads are 100% gone my the way. The rear brake stopped working with about .5 miles to go which was fortunate. My front isn't fairing much better but does have some pad left. Those are getting replaced as well as the chain.

Thanks to all the FORC crew for and awesome race. Next time I'm working on a better start position. Watch yourselves. All you all.

Muddy.

Ready?

Well tomorrow is the first step up of the year. CIRREM brought pain, cold and good mental training. Ouachita Challenge brought physical hardship and training that brought about a better mood for the beginning of the season. Now it is time to stretch the legs on an actual race day. The course will be a load of fun. Rock, glass, and nothing but 2.5 hours of flowy technical singletrack. It will be interesting to hit a rythym and see if it can stick for that long. The course is short, fast and demands 100% attention at almost all times.

I feel ready. Legs felt about 80-90% today which is about perfect. Rain forecast looks like the gearing choice could be a tough one, but could bring about better than average performance. Or it could bring shreded legs. We'll see.

Concentration.

Sylvan Pre-ride

All I'm saying is put on your beer goggles kiddies, cause things are going to get dizzy! Whoa! That course is tight, twisty, rocky, glass strewn in areas and above all else, pump track-a-riffic. I am all about it besides the fact that I won't be able to see straight after around lap 5. Gearing selection is spot on, and the On One carbon fork feels great back on the Fly. Front wheel is a little more tucked underneath me which is perfect. Also dialed in tire pressure front and rear as well. I am loving my Rampage on the front. As long as it doesn't rain too much the Python will be staying on the rear as well.

I was feeling a little tired early on today, but started to come around on lap two. After that is was game on. I also took a little too much pressure out of the front tire. No rolling of the sidewall, just a little too soft for race day. Conditions were 85% dry with a couple of sloppy parts and only a couple of tacky spots. The trails are pretty much ripping right now. Seems like they are eeking out a pretty decent course this year. And I know cause I didn't race it last year. So take that one with a grain of salt.

Grilling.

Legs are Officially Back.

Hit up my first College Green Group ride since about 2006 or 2007. I don't remember that clearly which year. I rode well on that one but quickly got shelled during a chase situation shortly outside of Morse. Not smart riding on my part. This time around things went better. I rode smarter, pulled when I could, chased when I could, and sat in when needed. I probably could have worked a little more, but oh well. Screw it. I'm a Cat 5 right now (truly if I renewed my liscence probably automatically upgraded to a 4).

I was in trouble in a couple of spots, but it couldn't have gone beter. My back is starting to feel better now as well. My legs feel pretty ridiculously good. I couldn't ask for more. A week and two days after a single speed 80 mile race, I was hitting it up with some of the faster cats in the area. I know if they put the hammer down I'd get eaten alive, but hey, I survived on this day. The Sunday-Monday off didn't hurt and if anything really helped. Maybe it was the Taco Pizza following the Chili for lunch.

Feels good.

Coming back around

What you know about crystals? Timeline crystal. Meditate on past and future. And across the alternate timelines. Mine is special because of the alternate timeline ability.

My legs are finally starting to come back to regular function. My lower back is still a little tender when really trying to crank out a decent pace seated up climbs. I upped the gearing on the 'Fly for this season which is a little early. I just rode Sugar Bottom and it is soft and there are about 2-3 inches deep of pine needles in areas. The 1.89 ratio is definitely high. I am hopefully going to get out to Sylvan this weekend to check out the situation. I also might have to order a 35t chainring for those inbetween gears.

I am really going to improve my singlespeed approach this season. I have been of the set it and forget it contingent for a long time, but it is time to kick that habbit. I just know that for certain courses I am going to need a little smaller or a little bigger. I know what my legs can push, but I need to step it up (or consequently down.) Only got one lap in this morning and I know I'll have to step it down a gear for the old SB during this early season wetness/needleness. I also was craving the rigid fork as well. I'll have to slap that on tomorrow or something. I also need to pick up a more serious spacer kit. I am just running those thin 4.5mm 7spd spacers right now and my cog definitley shifts a little back and forth even thought it is tight. I can hear the chain rubbing due to the torque and it not being super tight.

Yay pictures!

Before

After

Ouachita Challenge Race Report

Well everything went down without a hitch. Well sort of. Pre-ride day left Adam with 2 nastily cut tires. We were just cruising some singletrack when all of a sudden down a really wet section, I hear hissing out of Adams tires. Upon inspection he cut the sidewall and side knobs on both his front and rear tires. They were nasty cuts at that. We drove to Hot Springs and loaded up on tires and Stans fluid. Adam decided on a Rampage front and XDX rear. The shop was Parkside Cycles and they were super cool and let us use their compressor. Thanks to those guys. They had a really nice and cool shop. We got back to the camp site and hung out and ate dinner. We headed off to bed to get some sleep before the big day.

We woke up to pretty gray skies. It was 6a.m. and cloudy. So it was a little dark and and looking like rain might be moving into the area. We headed over to Oden at about 6:45. We stayed at the Ouachita River Haven Resort which was a super nice little spot. It was located right in the middle of the race course and just 3 or 4 miles from Oden. We got there and picked up our race packets and headed to the car to get ready. It was really looking like rain at this point. We got over to the pre-race meeting and then headed to the start line. There was quite the crowd of riders. We aren't talking about Chequemagon big, but these two races are pretty brutal compared to that one.

The start rolled us out on some road for around 2 miles to gravel. Then on the gravel we turned into the sky and climbed and climbed. Once we were ready to dump onto some doubletrack it just kept going up. You could see peoples spirits drop when they saw that. My 32-20 had me spinning quite a bit on the road section, but once we hit the gravel climb and the doubletrack it was perfect. At the top of the climb we finally descended into some singletrack. I was really feeling good.

We road the Womble section I had ridden in the past and I felt like my pace was spot on. My gear selection forced me to take it easy which was great. I took one stop to grab some food out of my bag about half way through. At the end of the first Womble section 21 miles in was the first aid station which I just blew through. I had water and electrolyte drink so I just kept rolling. The legs were starting to twinge a little but nothing serious. This was my first serious singletrack ride of the year so it was going to get pretty brutal and I knew it. I rolled the next section pretty well. Adam caught back up to me and we hit aid station two at about the same time. I reloaded on water and this time some Cytomax, ate a 'nana and some cookies and rolled out.

The next section in store for us was going to be a long one. We were 38 miles in and the next aid the way I figured it was in about 22 miles. I was feeling fatigued now for sure, but I just kept on rolling. I knew that I had to stick this section as well as possible. I was worried about going to hard through this section, but I knew if I didn't I wouldn't make aid station 4 and the 4 o'clock cut-off. This section also had the first "real" hike a bike. There was a really good one in the previous section, but we knew one was coming up. We got to it and hiked for probably around 20 minutes it felt like. We got to the top and cruised for a while. By this time my muscles were really starting to feel some fatigue. My Ergon bag also decided to seperate from my shoulders in this section. Stupid short bolt. I knew I should have replaced it. Fixed it and kept rolling.

Adam started feeling a lot better through the end of this section and started actually riding the climbs again instead of hiking. Unfortunately my legs were way to fatigued at this point to even remotely think about attempting to crank even some of the lower grade rises. I came around a little towards the end of the section and rode some of the last grades and then popped off onto the fire road. Here we had an awesome warning sign for a dangerous descent. Finally! This race makes you forget what a descent is and puts climbing in your face all the time. I know you have to have descents, but it sure doesn't feel like it on this course. At the end of the descent I hit aid station 3.

I topped off with some water downed another banana and headed out towards Blowout. This section of trail had me hiking for probably around a good hour it felt like. Times can probably all be rounded down approx. 25% from what I thought it felt like. I didn't wear a watch (I forgot it) so I just kept one foot over the other. At this point, I had barely anything left in the tank. The decision to ride SS in a race of this distance and caliber this early in the season was kind of dumb, but a good challenge none the less. I know I would have been able to ride more of this race had I had a geared bike. Oh well. Should have bought a geared Superfly, not a single speed. Blowout felt like it took forever. It just kept going up and up. I just couldn't climb any of it unless it was a 2-3% grade. I just kept going into aid station 4. By this time at Blowout, I had some fellow single speeders around. We rolled into the aid together.

The other two I was with rolled out to Big Brushy ahead of me. I just got some Cytomax and headed the claimed 6 miles to the other side of the mountain to the last checkpoint. One thing about the checkpoints/aid stations the last half of the race was no one stationed at them that knew the actual distance to the next point. Oh well I just kept going. I knew that I was pretty much home free. I hiked a fair amount of the first two miles, but then it leveled out and luckily didn't go up the ridge. It just wound around the mountain so I was able to get back on the bike. My legs were spent but I hit that point where your body just finally shuts up and you mind takes over. I passed a couple of people in this section who were in bad shape. I was so happy to get to the top and start descending. There was a guy on a Specialized FS who was my carrot. We had gone back and forth earlier in the race a little and I knew the way I was feeling I would descend better than him. It didn't matter cause he got me back later.

I rolled up to the last checkpoint to find Adam standing there. He was just grabbing a last little hit of water from some bottles they had there. He had only been there a minute or two so I had made some ground back on him. He had a puncture before aid 4 and had to stop and pump it up there. We found out it was only 8.5 miles of gravel and road to the finish. We just cruised it in together. Adam was pretty cracked as was myself. My legs were just so happy to spin that it didn't matter that they were borderline balled up. I was hitting the climbs better than Adam, but I just waited up. We got into this mess together so we may as well finish it together. When we hit the gravel the major temp drop hit me pretty hard. About 1-2pm in the afternoon I put my arm warmers on to prevent sunburn and I was glad I hadn't thrown those in my drop bag to be returned to the school.

All in all we finished in 9 hours and 26 minutes. Slower than I had wanted, but we finished which is saying enough. The 80 mile race is designed for people not to finish. The amount of singletrack before the last 20 miles is great, but pounds you into the ground. The last 20 miles decides who is stupid enough to keep going. In the 60, they miss out on that 22 miles section of singletrack which is replaced by a road/gravel section that saves a lot of energy. I have no qualms with my slow time seeing as A.) I finished, B.) it was waaay early in my mountain bike season, and C.) this was my first race or mountain bike ride over 50 miles ever. There were a lot of people behind us that didn't even finish for any reason imaginable.

So I'm not sure if I got the bug for longer races yet or not. I hurt pretty thoroughly and even as I write this, I am thinking about driving to work. We'll see. I had a blast the first 40 miles and suffered pretty thoroughly on and off during the last 40. I will say one thing, I'll probably never go back and ride that race on a single speed. I would like to try it on a geared bike though.

I'm spent.

Lack of Riding

Well not much riding has gone down this week. I have been doing a good core workout since Sunday. I've only ridden on Sunday and Tuesday. Things have been crappy around these parts as far as riding goes. I am really looking forward to riding Saturday though. I just have to get Adam to do it. If not I can always spin to the trails and get in some light road miles and just do about an hour to an hour and a half on the trails. I would really like to get some hurt and miles in the legs. I just feel better come race day when I do. Get's the glycogen in the legs juiced up after a storage cycle. That starts today.

Looks like there are some tornado watches for lower Arkansas right now as well. That is kind of crazy. I headed to work yesterday to get everything on the bike dialed in. I installed a Panaracer Rampage front tire and left the Hutchinson Python on. The newer Pythons have the knobs spaced out farther and taller side knobs. I am digging it. It can be run at a stupid low pressure as well. It is a firm feeling tire. The Rampage is going to be my new jam this season. It just rolls fast. Just as fast as the Weirwolf due to it's tread design, but the chunk of the knobs leaves it a gripper.

I also got some things worked up for my fuel storage. I had some awesome clips on a BioNuclear Hazmat suit bag my friend from the Army gave me that I taped up to my gel flasks. They are bad *ss. They have a sliding clip mechanism so when things get nasty, I can slide them down and then they cannot fly off. Otherwise they will stick in place really well.

I am decided on my setup as well. 32-20 gear and my rigid fork. Minus the gear, it is the setup I've ran for the past 3-4 seasons. I just don't think before a race is a great time to change the setup. I did change tires, but that was a no brainer. I got some good advice from Squirrel as far as the gearing. He was just down there this past weekend and said things were wet on the low parts and amazing anywhere there was elevation. I'm getting antsy....

Feeling Good.

I don't know why, but I am feeling good. I got a good race shakedown, and as I thought, we are headed the direction on the Womble which I thought we were. That is a good thing. It has a pretty good climb early, but otherwise descends for a while. Then some ups and downs, then some flat, then some more ups and downs. After that I am unfamiliar. I am really questioning the 32-20 and I think I could handle something larger, but I really want to finish.

The other thing I had been worried about is whether or not the climbs on the Ouachita Trail would be punishing. I found out that they will, but that they are borderline unridable with even a standard triple/9 speed setup. I heard there was much hiking going on in that section last year. The only other thing I am hoping for is that I can switch my registration to the 80 mile SS class. If not whatever. Either way I'll be timed and know where I finished overall.

I need to do some planning and preping. I'm going to pick up a tent tonight and have a beer or two. I probably won't be back til after Ouachita so wish me good luck.

Up and up.

Screw Gears

So I put gears on the Superfly SS. It was a good idea in theory, but a pain in the end. I snapped the head of my crank extractor bolt trying to take the cranks off. The first removal and it failed. Thin aluminum. I used some snap ring pliers to get the stupid threaded portion out of the arm. Then I tried to put on a Jump-Stop. The seat tube flares at the BB high enough to stop that from working. I could use a road FD I have but I hate that. Doesn't work well.

I got everything rigged up at home, then took it to the shop for finishing touches. It feels fast, but scares me that there is nothing to prevent the chain from falling off the chainring. F**k it. I'm riding Ouachita SS baby! Screw that s**t. I'm doing it. I hope I don't die. I'm slapping on the Fox fork and am going to ride a 32-20. It is going to feel like an easy gear at times in the beginning, but I'm banking on the fact that by the end, it'll feel imposible. Just the way it should. It's my first enduro so I just want to finish.

I'm also slapping on the Fox Fork. I don't want to have to swap my tubeless setup and the XDX tire I'm running on the front is large enough, especially if I have some squish. It has a lockout and compression damping. I'm getting everything setup tomorrow. I'm returning the XT cassette. I'm also going to be selling the Monster Truck. After much internal debate, there will be a new frame and fork coming along to take care of me. It just does not, I repeat does not work for my hip. I don't know what it is, but it didn't and still isn't working.

Those are my ramblings. The relief and fear are setting in. I'm relieved that I'm not riding gears in some ways. Then I think about the climbs on the Womble and think about how I rode them in a 34-32 on my 26 and how a 32-20 on my SSuperfly is going to be interesting.

I'm dreaming of rocks and singletrack.

Climb, Climbs, Climbing

You ever look at that word? It's a weird word. Mega weird. Well that's how I spent yesterday. Hitting all the nastier rides in the area. I hit each of them around 3 times. I got in some off road action as well. I hit up the golf course trails as well as the east side mountain bike spot. Everything was a little moist but not terrible. Most of the ride was kind of forced. Temps were 35F and a little windy. As well as gray. Not rain gray but cold and crappy gray. I spent another Wednesday on the Superfly. I think all the work on it built as a single speed will be good prep for slapping some gears on for the climbfest that will be the 80 mile version of the Ouachita Challenge.

Even after a day of rain, I was surprised to find most of the trails in dryish conditions. Most low lying areas even after the flashflooding were in decent shape. There is a lot of rutting from the melt off though. And hikers. Oh man don't get me started. Where as most of the time I try and ride around muddy areas to avoid rutting, they decide it is a great idea to just plow through and leave 4-5 inch deep foot prints. I know that riding around creates a wider trail, but so do downed trees and other things and situations like flooding that cause reroutes. It's not that bad. Intentional damage is still intentional damage.

Anyways it was a good day. The sun came out around 4:30 or so. About an hour after my ride was done. I got 4 hours in the saddle which is about half of what I'll be doing in around a week. Gears while a cop-out, are going to be a welcome addition. I don't even remotely care. It'll be nice to have a 32-34 to ride at about mile 70. If I am even still riding then.

No pictures because it sucked out. Off to ride the Litespeed for a while before work. I need to work the kinks out of my legs.

BikeCAD Musings

Well after learning of the possibility of an early production run, I might have the chance to yet again score another rather ground breaking frame. I can't let the who's go or the when's but I have steel on the brain. Don't get me wrong, for an aluminum bike I love my Dillinger, but I just have a hankering for anything not aluminum. Specifically nice steel. Oh and Titanium. But that is for when I make a ton of money. Which will never happen. I'm a bike mechanic. I'll have to build my own Ti frames for a living to even think about making myself one. I own one, but it doesn't count. At all.

Anyways, I found a little program known as BikeCAD. Probably the most fun and f*cking coolest thing I've played with in a while. Just seeing what angles and lengths can be used to make a frame is awesome. Just seeing the different tricks used to get various chainstay length's is crazy. I am currently a little obsessed with trail figures. The SuperflySS is built around an interesting set of numbers. I of course haven't even ridden it with the suspension fork it came with so it handles a little slower than what I expect. Once I get dialed to the ride though it'll be nice.

I have had a hankering for a while to order a custom steel frame. I just know what works for me, what I like, and how I would like it built. The only thing I would like to know is what butting profiles I'd like to run. The hookup option for the custom frame would have me picking the butting profiles. Kind of yikes. I have a pretty good idea though of what I'd do where and why. I've been keeping my eyes open when reading articles. I especially dig Merlin's philosophy on Top Tube butting profiles and their affect on ride quality.

The second option would be a little more guided. I really dig the geometry setup I've picked. It is around an inch shorter wheelbase, half inch shorter top tube, built around a ti offset seatpost (mmmm comfortable flex) and purple. I am getting some purple ano stuff for this build. The second option also custom builds forks as well. I am almost leaning this way as he is very experienced. Also if the first option is any more than $700 it's not going down. I just don't want to pay someone a ton of money building me a mountain bike who had never really built more than a couple before mine. I don't care how many frames you built before, switching to a completely new frame style with as many caveats and attentions to geometric detail I have in mind, I just don't want to pay for the screw ups. Cause they are going to happen.

Nothing is going to be even crazy bent or anything. I don't like Jeff Jones style monster bend bikes. The cruiser retro-ish 29er thing hasn't really caught my fancy. Except for Steve Garro of Coconino Cycles. He builds some clean frames. And I wouldn't call them cruisers so much as upward curving top tube sweet machines. Similar to Black Sheep except steel. I like classic double diamond frames. Maybe the would never be as vertically compliant, but I think it is more than possible.

I don't even know if Builder No.1 would understand some of the ideas I have concerning the build. Oh well screw it. It's a crazy idea anyways. I am just going to have some money to invest soon and well with the market the way it is, I'd rather invest it into a end of the world, zombie apocalypse style build. Not a ridiculously heavy frame, just custom fit to me with no carbon. My SuperflySS just seems to fragile in my brain. Maybe I'm just a slut for new bikes.

Play with BikeCAD and build your Dream!

A week it was...

Yeah I know a week and no updates. Well things got crazy around here. Actually mostly in my head. I had a hard enough time waiting for the week countdown to the Shortcake's birthday. I had quite a gift in mind, and I just couldn't focus on anything. Planning, family cordination for the party, trying to keep the secret under raps. I'm talking about popping the question by the way.

I had the job switch as well which threw off my work day schedule, but luckily Mr.Price worked the last half of the day for me. I got to come home and get the black refried beans ready (home made of course) and chop up two baskets of strawberries. All while knowing I had to pop the question when she came home. Talk about pressure. I almost chopped my finger off more than once.

On the way home I grabbed the ring, the 23 long stem white roses, and then carefully drove home. I took my time so I didn't run into anything. I was having a hard time focusing. I also couldn't eat and had a crazy ringing going on in my ears. I don't know why I was so nervous, but I was. I got all the food ready and bided my time patiently.

Waiting for her to show up the last half an hour was the worst. She finally pulled up in the driveway and I got staged. Flowers in hand and ring box sitting on the table right inside the door. I didn't want to give her a second to react, think, do anything. I just wanted to hit her with it immediately. She walked in, I gave her the flowers, took her purse and jacket, sat them down, and got down on one knee. Then the question ( I was going to say some things before hand, but my heart was racing so fast that I just had to get it out.)

I pulled the ring out of the box to put it on and she tackles me! She didn't even let me put the ring on before she mauled me with kisses and I love you's. No crying went down, but tears were in the eyes. The next hour before heading to her parents house for dinner with the families was spent running around with huge smiles, completely speachless and dumbfounded actions, and kisses and hugs.

I know it sounds all girly and all but it truly was special. I was pretty shaken up throughout the afternoon as well as into the evening. Nothing a couple beers and a load of Mexican food couldn't solve. I hadn't eaten since 10am so one beer went down with the effect of three, and the food actually went down like it was half the amount.

Thank you everyone who knew and didn't say anything. Oh wait. That was just me. Her father was so excited that he "leaked" the info to his son (I'll give him that one, it's hard to keep things like that back) but then told one of Emily's sister. My mom went and snuck a peak at the ring two weeks before I popped the question. Pretty much Emily was the last to know. Oh well. The important thing was that she was the last to know.

Much Love. I'm out to ride the Superfly SS today. Time to start getting used to the ride of that mama-jama.

CIRREM Race Report

Well CIRREM went down without a hiccup. It was cold, windy, rainy, snowy, you name it. 62 miles of balling up your hand in a fist to squish the water out of it. Awesomeness. I ended up in the lead group after about 5-6 miles or so. Kent had an unfortunate breakdown with his freehub. Which was later found out to have been fixed on a farm. Now that is Iowa for you.

The lead group was formed with Jed Gammel, Jared Osterlough, Sean Walker and myself. The gravel conditions kept things rolling well. It would have been slow, but Madison County seems to have some solid pack underneath it's gravel. Considering we had rain 48 hours previous to the race and the day of, the roads couldn't have been in better shape.

Once it started raining, any hopes of myself feeling good went out the window. I just couldn't get warm. The climbs on the course were the only place where I would get warmed back up again. My legs didn't want to respond on the flats. They just couldn't handle a very long pull into the head wind sections. So needless to say Jed and Sean did a lot of work, with Jared working by himself just off the back to avoid getting caked in sand.

Jared is definitely a strong rider. He put in a crazy two days with a gravel road race (rode out and back to the race) and then threw down on CIRREM. At about mile 48-50 my legs decided to give out. I couldn't keep the pace of the other leaders. I had let my "nutrition" regiment slide, which for me equals light top heavy bonkage. Luckily this day it meant light. I slammed two Powergels with caffeine and was ready to rock about 20 minutes later.

The climbing in the race was kind of broken up. Rolling gravel roads followed by a turn onto another road into the heavens. It was kind of crazy. You would be stomping the rollers one after the other only to forget that Kent Carlson put the race on and that it was going to have some elevation gain. Luckly the last major leg killer was in the 45-46 mile range. That is what killed off the last remaining fuel in my system.

Anyways Sean ended up hanging back and finishing the course off with me. If he hadn't I would have had to navigate and it would have been a brutal ride into Cummings. Which was another kick in the pants on this cold windy day. To hit the 100k mark, Kent had to bring us in just north of town and then run us back out two miles and back in. It was a mind f*ck and a half.

I had a good time and the legs are still hurting. On other fronts, I started my new job on Monday. I am working at a shop in downtown IC now. Working for the corp just wasn't working out. Hard to believe after that many years things would go down. Oh well. I have a new home and a group of people that feel like family. I had that before, except instead of having a positive owner figure, there was a douche eye in the sky. I love all the people I have worked with except a few who I will live on without in happiness. Here is to new beginnings ( I know, I know I keep saying that, but it is that time in my life.)

I am taking a true day off. My legs still need a little more recovery before I hit them again.

CIRREM

CIRREM is going to be brutal this weekend. I'm not even going to look at the forecast. All I know is I found out I might have a wheel to suck for a while tomorrow. Or to not suck considering that wheel is going to be spewing crap all over me. So that'll be a terrible idea. I'm shooting for a finish time somewhere in the 6 hour range. It's going to be nasty with a capital every letter that spells nasty. I hope I made the right bike decision for the weekend. Skinny's with big knobs. It'll throw crap around, but knowing KC he'll be throwing some of his own tricks around the course.

I wish everyone luck tomorrow. I forgot to grab my flask of intestinal fortitude aka my flask full of Jame-O for the ride. It would actually be more like a mental relief. Oh well. Good hard miles are what I am in need of anyways. This will also be my first race reppin' under a different shop. That's right I made a move. It sucks and is good all at the same time. I'm going to make some other big changes in my life real soon. I'm looking forward to the future.

Race (suffer) On!

Things go around...

Well I'm going to have a couple of days off before starting a new job. Crazy as it sounds I sit here a little relieved. I definitely apologize to those I've left behind, but man, are things going to be a little more mellow. There won't be as much free change floating around, but I've got a pretty nice stash laying around and in the garage. I am excited about the new beginning. New beginnings. Emphasis on the plural. Things go on as planned.

I tried to shore up my options immediately. That went ok, so we'll see. As for the rest of the details, I have a couple of days off. Weather today is going to be 60F. Oh shame. Then about the same tomorrow. Again. A shame. I'll edit up later with some details of the ride.

Gravel Nothing

Temps this weekend stayed nice and chilly. I swore that I was hearing things last night on the radio. They said a high near 50F. It is currently 22F under cloudy skies (generated Weather Channel voice) and now your local Doppler Radar. That sucks too. The forecast for the weekend looks promising though. I am hoping to head to CIRREM on Sunday AM. The ShortCake is heading to MN to get her sister packed up to head to Brazil. Permanently. Crazy I know.

I am trying to bring myself to motivate and go ride outdoors. The hips is a little sensitive from riding the Fixie for the past couple of days. I haven't been off the bike for a while and am feeling really good. Last Tuesday was just such a nice day. I suppose I should get on a bike. I have people to pay, people to get registration from, people to ask questions. I really want to ride the Superfly. I just don't want to get the damn thing dirty! I'll just have to ride the Fixie, hip be damned. I don't want to put new tires on my cross bike and it's needs them terribly bad.

I suppose I should get that sucker all tuned up. It is going to be that bike or the Litespeed. This March is supposed to be spent with me being on a SS the entire month except when I puss out and ride gears on the trainer. I really want to give Ouachita a go on a SS seeing as I have a pretty awesome SS to ride. It would be a shame to try and strap gears on the thing. Oh well.

Who will win? Outdoors and the Superfly? Outdoors and the Fixie? The trainer? Or maybe a little of both. A nice cold cruise outdoors, pay up, reg up, then throw down mid-afternoon on the trainer. I think I'll go crazy if I ride the trainer too long, so I'm heading outdoors. I'll take the camera along to play with.

Inside Out! Out InSide!

Edit- I definitely hit all the above requirements besides riding indoors. That was a dumb idea anyways. I made it 3 hours in the saddle in strong 15mph SE winds. All on the Fixie. That bike is always a joy to ride, but after 3 hours and loads of climbing, my legs feel a little shot. Nothing that some wings ribs and one large Fat Tire couldn't take care of. The Fat Tire was to ease the nerves for one of the above requirements. More on that later. PEACE!

Gravel Explore

I rode the trainer last night after dinner. It was ok, but my heart is officially outside. No matter the temps. There isn't enough snow to deter me now. I am going to get up early and pound some pavement and gravel. Hopefully a nice mix of both. I really need to pick up a nice little elevation recording device. Maybe I'll have to strap that evil computer of mine on, and overlay the details with GMAP.

Nate and I have been tooling around with this little dandy of a program for a couple of weeks now. It really opens things up in your mind as to riding locally. There is a lot of good terrain around here to be ridden, you just have to plan for it. I am hoping for a three hour stroll tomorrow morning. I also really need to crank up the intensity once it is 4 weeks and counting. Currently I am about 4.5 weeks out. So it is time.

In other news I just got the fit dialed on the 'Fly. The long wheelbase will be a little on the interesting side. I got a half link installed which helped. I got an 80mm XXX Lite stem as well. That fit like a glove once I hopped on. Cockpit length is a tad longer than on my Scout, but that is perfect. Or at least it feels longer due to the wheel base. I also figured out my little disc rotor click. It was rubbing the disc adaptor. I really wish we had a IS Disc Tab facing tool. That would help out a ton.

The biggest factor on this bike is going to be the G2 geometry. It rolls through corners. Kind of telepathically. As I said before it rips downhill, but once it gets tight (and this is on bike paths not offroad trails) it isn't the sharpest bike. But I don't have the discs fully bedded, nor do I have a 7" rotor, nor do I have metallic pads installed yet. I don't believe the 7" rotor option will be needed, but the metallics might.

Also I think that the Arches are pretty awesome rims, but I think I am already missing the size of my Delgado's. The extra width creates so much more stability to the tire at lower pressures. I might have to relace my front wheel with a Flow or a Duster. Probably leaning towards the Duster due to the 30gr lighter weight. Although I could probably just tape the stupid thing and keep it even lighter. Their bead hooks on their rims are what handles the tire's bead so well.

Enough babble. Sleep, Eat, then Ride.

Ride day

It had been a couple of days since I got out for a good outdoor ride. I decided to take some time off considering my schedule and it was needed. Now it is time to hit the pavement again. This time around it is going to be brutal. Miles followed by intensity. I have to contact the man and have him work me up a little plan. He's good at that kind of thing.

Anyways today I completely lost track of time. And it was pretty self explanitory. Add one new bike + 48F max temp + a day off and you get a lot of riding and stopping to show off the new wares. I hit up work, then to Adams, then to "drop" him off at class. Then south of town, along the river and to Geoff's. Then across town again to get some climbing in on the way home. It was sloppy and the bike got real dirty.

The verdict is the bike feels long. I think the cockpit length feels pretty good. Within 10mm on stem length as well as within 5mm on saddle fore/aft as well as height. The bike is a straight up rocket ship. I can feel the huge difference that G2 offers. It almost doesn't make sense why it handles that well. It's just numbers on paper, but this thing bombs downhill. I definitely need to add a half link and minus one full link to bring the wheel in a little. That'll shore up the wheelbase situation.

The bike is a dream on climbs. This is where you can really feel the massive downtube/bb area doing it's job. It transfers all the power to the rear hub. I'm glad that I picked a pretty stiff rear wheel combo, because it thus intern transfers all that power to the ground. If it were lighter it would climb faster, but I honestly think I hit it out of the ball park in terms of all around build. 18.2lbs is good enough for anyone. The weight makes it so you just spin just the right rpm up climbs. Even off road.

I am going to have to step it up this year as this bike is straight fast. I am a huge damper on it's performance. The handling is going to take some getting used to. Especially on tighter trails. It'll be just fine though. The On One fork has kept things nice and crisp in the handling department, and is way stiffer than expected. I chose it due to the fact that it features no weight restrictions, and no rotor size restrictions. This equals stiffness.

Overall a great beginning to the week. If this is my race bike for the year the long wheelbase will cater to the longer distances that I'm planning on hitting up. Registration for Levis Trow 100 just openned up and I might have to hit one more of that series. They make you pay some trail fee or something, so it's worth it to do 2-3 races at least. Oh what a shame (Big wink inserted here.)

Done.