Laps in the N'east

Desperation

2012-02-01T17:29:00.000-08:00

No new snow here in VT. Skiing was good for a few days, but it has since gone downhill quickly...(get it?) Ok, not funny. I have made a valiant effort to stay active this winter and avoid gaining too much weight. I joined a crossfit gym, and the workouts often leaving me wanting to vomit. It is a good option when the weather is absolutely suck-tastic, but when it isn't sneeting/snaining or just plain raining, I want to be outdoors. So, the logical solution would be to ride the bike. But, what do you do when the trails look like this?

Slip and slide.....

Well, I'll tell you what you do, whether you want to know or not. You get a friend who has a box of screws, a drill and two free hours. When you are done drilling and screwing, you have this.

Like a 60 tpi hedgehog.

Making these death tires is just half the fun. After spending two hours (two guys, two drills, two tires, all in two hours. Not a fast process) you get to mount these m$)#$*)%)($ sharp tires. It took me about a half an hour to get both tires on. It took me another half hour to get the tubes seated correctly.

It was truly something I never want to do again, until I think about how fun this is. With the recent thaw/freeze cycle, our local trails now have an inch thick glaze all over them. This glaze makes them quite treacherous if you don't have some type of spike on your footwear or tire, as I discovered two seconds before I took this picture. I was trying to get across the trail near the tree Marc is turning around, but I ended up almost sliding into the stream bed that is immediately to the left of the frame. Luckily, I was able to grab a small pine tree and get my camera ready before Marc cruised by. The glaze, besides being lethal, also smooths out all the rocks and roots that we typically deal with. It actually made the trails a lot of fun to ride, with quarter inch spikes biting into the ice. They bit so well it was almost like riding with resistance on a trainer. At the very least, I will be able to ride the luge track trails around my house until we get enough snow to get back into the woods.

Not exactly what I was going for.

2011-10-23T15:57:00.001-07:00

So, with a big plan for next summer, I decided to head out and test my ability to ride long on consecutive days after bike camping. New bags arrived a while ago, and the message from the guy who makes them was a sign. At least I took it as a sign. I needed to go out and do a long ride. I convinced my friend Marc to come along, although he rarely needs convincing. We packed up our gear and set out from my house around 3:30 with 2 and a half hours of daylight and charged up lights to see how far we could get. We rode a mix of trail and road towards Stowe. After taking several wrong turns (all uphill) we found where we wanted to go and made it into Stowe's downtown where we decided to set up camp. We rode trails to the high school, and then hit the bike path hoping to make it to a secluded place to camp away from the main drag. Unfortunately, it was getting late and we ended up camping across the river from the bike path behind a stand of fir trees, hoping they keep us out of sight. We set up our tarp tents and got comfy, then made dinner. I chose cous cous, while Marc went for the Ramen. We crashed pretty hard after dinner, as the 4 hours we rode tooks us about 40 miles with 4000 ft of climbing. Sleep came pretty easy, although in the middle of the night a loud "pop" startled me awake. I immediately thought Marc had let his little campfire get to big and my fuel canister exploded. Thankfully, there was no fire, and Marc was sound asleep. I thought nothing of it and went back to sleep. Waking up in the morning was a bit tough, as sleep was fitful. We packed up, made oatmeal for breakfast and started to head out. Marc took off before me to visit a port-o-let on the bike path. That was when I noticed the large tear in my rear tire. I guess it wasn't a great idea to use my 4 year old tires for this journey. To make the morning even better, it started to rain. I had to ride to Marc who was about a mile up the bikepath. It was a slow, wet ride, punctuated by the lump of the valve stem every time my wheel rotated. I actually felt pretty good, but with no cash or cards, there was no chance of repair or finding a new tire. I caught up to Marc resting under a covered bridge, where we called anyone we thought would take pity on us and pick us up. My wife was out running, Marc's parents were out, but his brother came to our rescue. Not the best way to end a bikepacking trip, but I certainly learned a few lessons.

Rationalizing the irrational

2011-10-15T17:50:00.001-07:00

I enjoy riding my bike. Up until 2005, I didn't really think about bike riding. Getting a job at a bike shop helped increase my interest in biking. Living one mile from an outdoor center that holds weekly races, has loads of sweet singletrack, and even a bike camp for kids increased my interest even more.

Then, I learned that I live smack dab in the middle of a mountain bike paradise. I still haven't ridden all the "local" trails, and I would rather ride than do most other things. I guess my point with all this is that biking has become a huge part of my life, and I really enjoy the experiences I have had, the people I have met, and the opportunities that await me because I ride my bike.

From racing at the foot of Mount Washington for 24 hours

To seemingly endless climbs out West, that lead to even longer downhills,

Biking makes me happy.

So I guess it isn't too crazy that I want to attempt the Colorado Trail race next summer. I have read numerous blogs, articles, and even talked to people who did it this year. All of this has helped me realize that I have no idea what I am getting myself into. 500 miles? HIGH altitude? 60,000 feet of climbing? What the hell am I thinking? I know that I am going to have to train, train some more, train a little bit more, and then train a lot more, but I think I can do it. I believe that I am going to have fun, and have an unforgettable experience.

But........I feel a bit selfish. So, I think that my ride should have some positive effect that transcends testing my self, because I may fail. Okay, it is a strong possibility that I will fail, but hey, at least I will have tried.

SO, the positive affect I am going for is sending kids to bike camp. For the past few summers I have worked at Catamount Outdoor Center as a camp counselor. Catamount Mountain Bike Academy (MBA) was started in the 90s by Eric Bowker. If you have ever met him, you know that he is a great guy, and that you will never forget his laugh for as long as you live. He has taught more kids how to mountain bike than Justin Bieber had fans, and he remembers a surprising majority of them. He makes sure that every camper gets to enjoy the nature preserve that his family has created at Catamount, a non profit organization with the mission "to promote family and community well being through activity and education in a natural environment"

So I want to help raise money to send less fortunate kids to camp. I set up a fundraising page, and have a goal of $1,000, which would send about ten kids to camp, and hopefully change their outlook on life, but at very least give them the opportunity to fall in love with the bike.

If you could, please check out my fundraising page, and help me send kids to camp!!!

What the future holds....

2011-10-03T15:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, I do have a blog. I am sure this a surprise to many of you, and I am sure those of you who knew this already are just as surprised that I am writing. Summer is over, although there is still a lot left and it is night riding season! It was a good summer. Trips to Cali, Oregon and riding in beautiful Vermont in between.

All told, it was a great summer for riding, but not a great summer for racing. Lots of flats in Canada, no 24 hour race, and a puking fit 5 miles into the Vermont 50 made it hard to put a lot of importance on racing this year. In retrospect, not having a big race to plan for made racing an afterthought, while riding and having fun was definitely the main priority. Nevertheless, I was feeling a bit left out the weekend of Great Glen. I didn't sign up this year, and my family was having a "camping" reunion in Freedom, NH. I live approximately 155 miles (okay, not approximately) away from Freedom. I wanted to attend the reunion, but I also wanted to get in a bike ride. So, I packed up my camping gear into some dry bags, threw on my hydration pack, and set out to cross the twin states. Just to make things interesting, I wanted to take my mountain bike, and ride as much trail/dirt road as possible. To make things even more interesting, I decided to take my single speed. To make things even MORE interesting, I decide to let google maps decide my route, using the directions function and clicking the "bike" button. Great idea.

As you can see from the map above, there was no way to avoid copious amounts of pavement. However, I was able to stay mostly on dirt, class IV roads, and even some bike path through most of VT. On the way into NH it was mostly pavement and not a ton of fun. I ended up climbing over Kinsman Notch, which I had never visited before. It was breathtaking.

The descent was chilly, but it was good to be heading into civilization after 30 miles through WILDerness. Not much between Woodsville and Campton. At eight at night, light was failing and I started to look for a place to sleep. It was pretty dark, but I found a nice field with a river at the end and a great view of the wide open sky. Sleep came quickly, but the mosquitoes and made sure I didn't get too much rest. The tarp I brought kept me dry, but not bringing a sleeping bag or something bug proof was a mistake.

On the next day, I woke up to see that I had slept below a ridge with a line of houses on it. Oops. I hope they liked watching me change in the morning. I packed up and headed out to visit one of my teenage stomping grounds. I grew up in a small town, and we spent a lot of time in the National Forest to the North of town. Sandwich Notch road goes through the forest and is about 3 miles from my parents house. I rode through memory lane, taking several detours and visiting some landmarks.

I stopped at my parents for lunch and to visit with my father. I even helped him build a compost bin. Then I slept for an hour, packed up and headed out to Freedom. The ride was uneventful, mostly dirt and pavement. I met my sisters and brothers and all their kids at the campground, and hung out for the rest of the weekend. It was a great trip. It also helped me choose my race for next year.

The Colorado Trail Race.

It is going to be a long winter.

Summa time.

2011-08-01T17:05:00.000-07:00

Yeah, so it is summer. Not much time/enthusiasm for blogging. Way back in June I went to Canada to race. Lots of fun, although not the result I was hoping for. 3 flats, 2.5 hours of walking through the Quebec forest and the VICIOUS black flies (I still have scars) and a race director the wouldn't let me drop out led to a 9 hour finish time. Two days later, off to California to watch the wife race, got to ride there, although I should have brought my skis, as most of the good trails were still under the snow.

Once we got back, did some road riding (lots of rain) and have recently ridden more on the trails and even started racing. The last two weeks were full of riding, with two races. The first was the Eastern Cup 6 hour race, which had lots of friends and locals racing and was a ton of fun. I managed to finish second overall racing the singlespeed, which helped after such a debacle in Canada.

This weekend was the Darkhorse 40. The trails here are sweet. Supah sweet. Wicked pissah sweet. My friend Marc described it perfectly;

Marc: "These trails have the best singletrack in New England."

Me: "Marc, New York isn't part of New England."

Marc: "I know, they're just that F-ing good."

The race started off with a 2.5 mile fire road. I hate roads. The pack stayed together through the first half mile, and then I got impatient. I was feeling pretty good, and wanted to get to the singletrack. I started to lead out, and stayed on the front until the second climb on the road. Two people went off the front, and I stayed on them thinking a group of three would work well on the extensive singletrack portion of the race. I snuck to front again and started to break away when I felt the rear end of my bike start to bounce, and then sag. Shit. another flat. I pulled off to the side and frantically pulled my wheel off. My friend Marc stopped to help me fix the flat, despite my protestations. He said he didn't want to be caught in the hectic pace and handed me a tube and was on his way. I topped off the tube with my Co2 cartridge and hopped on the tail end of the sport wave that was passing me. I felt a bit fired up and passed people frantically on the single track. I rode like a man possessed on the first lap, which after the initial road slog was composed of about 17 miles of singletrack. FAST, flowy singletrack. I didn't realize it until the second lap, but I burned quite a few matches trying to catch every rider I saw ahead of me. Midway through the second lap I fizzled out, struggling up every hill and battling to turn the pedals over. I managed to finish the lap with only two geared riders passing me, and met Marc, dressed and showered at the finish. He had ridden 10 miles and pulled the plug, opting to enjoy the barbecue and beverage sponsors rather than suffering. (He thinks that full throttle tubing for 2 hours on Friday night might have taken something out of him.)

Marc thought I finished in 4th, and I was happy with that. We filled up on the post race bbq and enjoyed the company of the other riders. Darkhorse Cycles knows how to put on a race. The events (singlespeedapalooza is also a Darkhorse production) are lots of fun to ride and hang out at. We hung out for results, and it turned out I finished in second, which was a welcome surprise. It was a great weekend of racing, and now I just have to decide on Great Glen.....

Cooked.

2011-05-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

We haven't had much sun so far this spring/summer in VT. Last weekend while everyone else was racing, I went on a gap ride with a friend and forgot what the sun can do. I remember now.

In other super exciting news, I signed up for the VT 50, and Canada is getting closer and closer. Hopefully my arms are no longer neon red for that race.

Flower Power

2011-05-15T15:05:00.000-07:00

Greeting from the Great Soggy North. Time here has been short as the weather lately resembles Bangladesh during monsoon season rather than Vermont in the spring. Record flooding of Lake Champlain and biblical rains kept us off the trails and made it hard to muster any motivation to do anything outside. We got a week and a half of sun and excellent trail drying weather leading right up to the first local race of the year. Lucky for us, the weather turned from sunny and 60 to 50s and steady rain for the 24 hours preceding the race.

The start was rather mellow, with a lot of people choosing to stay inside and couch surf rather than brave the rain, mud and freshly cut grass. Most of the Catamount Outdoor center trails are still drying out so the race was held on the hillside, where they hold the 'cross races in the fall. The course mixed in a good sampling of singletrack including trails like "the gullywhomper" although the majority of the race was wide open field. I felt like dog vomit the first lap, after trying to hang with the three leaders for about 30 seconds. I knew that wasn't going to happen, so I hung back and warmed up, and started to feel okay.

I kept the lead three in sight (sort of, since the course was mostly in open field it wasn't like they could hide) and just kept plugging along. Halfway through the second lap, I caught one of the leaders (the one who is 16 and blinded by the fog on his glasses) and passed him. Yup, no mercy, even for blind teens who, I found out after the race, waited for me so he would have someone to finish the last lap with. I am AWESOME! We rode the rest of the lap together, and I thought he was going to take me in the sprint finish (I am looking back to see where he is in the pic below)

I guess he really was tired though, because I finished two seconds in front of him. I think he just feels bad for me because I am fat and old. And I drive him to cool riding spots sometimes. I am sure that he will kick my ass many times this summer, so I have to enjoy this victory while I can.

Rainy Daze

2011-04-23T08:29:00.000-07:00

The end of vacation is approaching rapidly. It has been great so far, but it has gone too quickly. Rainy weather kills any motivation to ride, but hopefully we will have good weather next week and we can do more riding.

Sh*t show.

2011-04-18T18:07:00.001-07:00

That is the only way to describe it. The night before we were planning to head down to NY for the season opening "Singlespeedapalooza" my ride told me he had to work Saturday instead of driving down........Unless I wanted to hang out until 6 in the evening and then drive 5 hours down to the race with him. After being sick for three weeks and not really caring if I miss the race, or about a long drive through a storm that covered most of the East coast, I said, "Sure, that sounds like a great idea!" We had friends already in NY for the race with a hotel room we could crash at, and I didn't want Marco to miss the race, so I spent Saturday with Wifey and watched her be sick, and sleep, because that is what she does when she is sick. After doing all that exciting stuff, I decided to go for a quick ride at four, thinking Marco wouldn't be back until six. I got done with my ride and he called me to tell me he was 15 minutes from my house. I rushed home, tried to pack everything, and ending forgetting race food, my toothbrush and my knee warmers, but I remember all the essentials.

Still no bridge between VT and NY. The free ferry was fun though.

Single speeders get up early. Also, note the bending trees. It was windy.

The drive was rather uneventful (I slept for about two hours) and we met up with our friends and got a good night's sleep at the hotel. After breakfast and coffee, we got to the race venue at what we thought was a good and early hour, but we still had to park a bit away from the start. Marco and I got dressed and had heard from those that pre-rode the course that it was wet. Standing water up to your hubs wet. From people who ride 29ers. Awesome.

Why is Marco touching me? At least we are happy.

After. I look like I just snorted an ounce of baker's chocolate. Marco looks likes he's pooping.

Good times.

The race started off fast. It was easy to tell who was running a big gear on the 3 mile prolog, because they took off. I stayed towards the front for a bit, and then decided not to explode my legs before we even got to the single track. Once we did hit the single track, there were people everywhere, stop and go, people cutting through the woods to jump ahead, and people falling left and right. I managed to stay up through the prolog singletrack and had a pretty good position. I stayed with a group of four or five guys who were actually in shape through the first section of single track, but then they easily gapped me on the lengthy road section. I managed to keep them in sight through the road sections, and caught them one by one and passed them through the last single track section. One of them stayed behind me for most of the next lap, and it was nice to have someone to talk to. Until he got sick of me when we hit the road section again, and he dropped my like a diaper full of baby diarrhea. Hot, steamy, baby diarrhea. I felt a bit dejected, but kept telling myself that the faster I pedaled, the sooner I would be done. It was getting cold. The copious and deep puddles would nicely clean the bike of all the peanut butter mud that caked on through the first half of the course, but they also constantly doused water all over the riders. 3/4 through the last lap I got off to walk up one climb, and my knees didn't want to bend. I hobbled up and hopped back on the bike, forcing the legs to bend and hoping to make it in before getting caught by too many people. I tried to eat one of the clif bars I bought at a gas station, but those things are awful when you are trying to breathe and don't have access to lots of water. I spit most of it out and just limped towards the finish, getting passed by two guys towards the end. I gave it my all to stick with them through the last section of single track, and then was amused that they kept looking back at me on the long road section before the finish. They thought I might try and sneak up on them, but I was lucky just to keep them in sight. I ended up finishing 14th overall, which I was very happy with. The best part of the race was the Terrapin ale at the after race BBQ. Good stuff from Georgia. Marco and I hung out for a bit, talking to a lot of bike people we don't see during the winter, and then we convinced our friend Andrea to drive home, after she placed third in her race.

Overall, another fun trip to NY.

The plague

2011-04-16T08:27:00.001-07:00

uuughh.......I felt pretty good until the last two weeks. I had been riding alot, getting out daily and feeling strong, then it hit me like a Micky Ward left hook (while I was sick and holding down the couch I watched a few movies) Awesome fever, plugged nose, ears and eyes (yup, even my eyes felt stuffed) Everytime I would get a little better, I would hop on the bike and try to ride, and dig myself deeper into the respiratory hell that this virus is. Finally went to the doctor last Sunday, got some pink horse pill antibiotics and I am starting feel a bit better. Just in time for the drive down to SS-apalooza. My ride got called into work today, so now we are leaving VT until 5. We should get to NY around 11, and sleep in the car. I guess it really doesn't matter, seeing as this will be a participation ride, rather than race. Hopefully I don't vomit on myself, or anyone else, but I am not going to rule it out.

I will let you know how it goes.

Let the sun shine.

2011-03-20T14:33:00.000-07:00

Took a trip down to Massachusetts this weekend for a work related conference. Lucky for me, there is a rather substantial trail network nearby. My friend Marc called me as I was leaving work ( about 45 minutes after I wanted to leave) and he said he wanted to tag along. So, I met him on my way South and about 3 hours later we were checked into the hotel and I was off to my first meeting. After the meeting, we drove to the "alleged" trail head (I had never been to this area before, but a couple of friends told me the street to park on and where to look) We got the bikes out of the car, road down an access road, and right into a foot of snow cover. We cut the ride short and went home and watched Man v. Wild.

Next day, more meetings, then riding in the afternoon. We decided to try and get to the trails from a higher point, because we could see how dry the ridge was and it looked like good terrain for biking. About 2 minutes into the ride, my front brake felt really squishy, and I looked down and noticed my brake pads were popping out of the caliper. The little bolt/C-clip combo that holds the pads in on the Elixirs decided to disappear, and I had to ride DJ style. Not much of a hardship, as we couldn't find any good, bike friendly trails, and we ended up riding roads/bike paths and some walking trails.

The last day of the meetings, I was done at noon, and only had time for a quick ride. We decided to try the main trailhead again. We parked next to a former VT local, a current Framingham local, whose GF is an Amherst local, so we knew we were in the right spot. We found dry trails, lots of rocks, and had a good ride, but anything is better than pavement at this point of the year. check out the vid here: http://www.vimeo.com/21254441

Spring is un-sprung

2011-03-06T04:28:00.000-08:00

Rode outside yesterday again. Lots of melting snow and temps in the 40s made for a tolerable ride outside. The forecast today is for more rain, turning to snow, with snowfall amounts in the 8-16" range. Maybe a little vaca on Monday and some more of this......

Timber likes it, you should too.

The Eternal city and the beginning of the year

2011-02-27T04:37:00.001-08:00

Rome. It is fun to be a teacher. The kids are always entertaining and I get the opportunity to be a geek about the things that interest me. We took a trip to Rome and it was excellent. No crises, good food, good company and lots of old, old, old buildings and art. Italy is a very laid back country, people are friendly, and there are a lot of bikers. Both the moped variety and the pedal variety. I prefer the latter. I was constantly wishing that I had access to a bike so that I could ride. Rome was a bit traffic heavy, but Sorrento had lots of hills and a sweet seaside highway with hills and incredible views. I was a bit skittish (even on the bus) when I looked over the 2,000 foot cliff two feet off the road, but I think I could have handled it on a bike.

Being a classics dork, I was very excited to see Pompeii for the first time. All the pictures I have been staring at in Latin books over the years were there, right in front of me in person. I got to walk down the streets I have read about and imagine what it was like to live 2000 years ago. And then, I climbed in an oven to get a goofy picture.

On another note, only a month to go until the first bike race, singlespeed-a-palooza. It is going to hurt. Hopefully I can get out and ride a bit before then.

Take off, to the Great, white North.

2011-02-11T14:56:00.000-08:00

Just signed up for this years Ultimate XC race. Did last year, and it was one of the best races I have ever done. The race director is the one and only Dan Desrosiers, formerly of Jay Challenge fame. This course is reminiscent of Jay but has better singletrack and a cooler finish line, the village of Tremblant.

This is the closest picture I could find of the last mile of the course. After climbing up the backside of the mountain, then descending part way, and climbing back to the top, you descend down a truly rugged downhill run. THEN, you climb back up and descend the final mile to the lake on the other side of the village.

There is lots of single track and paths and some paved road before this, and this race and the atmosphere is truly different.

And, if a enough people sign up and ride single speed, Dan will give us a category!

Any takers????

3 feet of slow.

2011-02-07T14:14:00.001-08:00

Trying to motivate to ride rollers when there is three feet of snow on the ground is like trying to lasso kittens with dental floss. People look at you funny when you try to do it, and it isn't very gratifying. I have been skiing, and stuff. This goofy video proves it.

Single-speedapalooza is two months away. It is going to be ugly.

CHRISTMAS TIME!

2010-12-25T15:27:00.000-08:00

Guess what I got................A helmet camera!

SNOW DAY!!!!

2010-12-07T11:23:00.000-08:00

It took its sweet ass time, but winter has finally arrived here in VT, and hopefully it will stick around for a while. The current storm started Sunday night, made the drive to school more stressful than necessary, and is still spitting snow here and there in the Green Mountains. I woke up this morning, hoping beyond hope to get the call that school was cancelled. I went through the motions of getting ready and was about to get in the car when Wifey called to tell me that my school was closed for the day! I couldn't believe it, so I turned on the TV and saw the proof myself. Then, I got the call. An automated phone message saying that school was closed for the day!! Needless to say, I was elated. We haven't had much winter up here yet, and friends out West have been sending snooty messages about the killer season that has started out there. Well, today was my turn.

I hung out at home, fed chickens, watched some SNL on the computer, and then headed out. I was one of the first cars in the lot, and one of the first up the hill. I guess that is the benefit of having to get up at 5 for work everyday, when you don't have work, you have lots of time. The skin up was blustery, to put it mildly. There seemed to be pretty good coverage, although there were still quite a few waterbars open and some patches of grass large enough to graze cattle on. When I got to the top of the double, the main trail was untouched. I was in my happy place.

The snow was DEEP, and then very shallow. It was the first time I have ever skied bottomless to bottom in two turns. I was a bit sketched out that there were rocks lurking under the deep, deep drifts waiting to tear my leg off, but I kept the tips up and skied the first run like a true gaper between the waist high drifts and patches of inch deep snow. I hit a traversing trail and realized how much snow actually fell. Although I am short, VVV this is still pretty deep.

The lower half of the trail wasn't quite as wind affected, and I could turn without fear of breaking my kneecaps. I finished up and headed to the tippy-top. It was very worth it.

I ripped off the skins and headed down so the guy I passed on the way up couldn't poach the liftline before me. I headed out and choked on the first 8-10 turns, as the drifts on the skier's left of the trail were substantial. I tried to link the drifts together all the way down the trail, but took a few diggers on buried snow snakes and from the deep snow tripping me up. I guess it is hard to ski powder this early in December.
I made it down without injury and took this (very cold) picture of myself in front of my handywork. It probably doesn't look that handy, as I was all over the place. I took another run with a guy named Matt, and then headed out, in a very good mood now that winter is here.

Too busy to write. A quick photo synopsis instead.

2010-11-28T15:00:00.000-08:00

Yeah, so, lots of stuff going on here in the great Laps North. Trips to Boston, work, holidays and trying to complete that whole Teacher certification thing leave no time to blog it up. Actually, I am just too lazy and would rather be out doing something. Anyway, I took some pics to prove that I am not just holed up eating turkey day leftovers and getting fat.....ter.

Rock climbing. Lots of gear, heights and little shoes. Good times.

Also tried to ski again. Four inches of fluffy snow is not nearly enough to cover up the rocks in Vermont. The highlight of the ski was Timber finding a rabbit carcass. He ran around with a bunny foot in his mouth for the rest of the adventure.

Some snow in town, and the it was cold enough that the trails are frozen. Makes for good riding, although you have to watch the corners. Ice is hard to steer on.

When we are bored in VT we burn stuff. Way better than Television and it keeps the cold away, for the most part. I also look like Satan in this picture, so I had to put it on the web.

Maybe I will write more later. But I prolly won't.

Weekend of Meh.

2010-11-07T17:17:00.000-08:00

Yup. This weekend did not live up to its full potential. This is in no way my fault. I blame it on the time change. And Nancy Pelosi. She is good to for blaming things on, I guess. I am woefully ignorant of government things. Anywho, tried to do some skiing this weekend. We were hoping the Nor'easter they were forecasting would hit, but, as you could probably guess from the picture below, it did not.

We decided to continue on anyway. Timber was in the lead and he had no intention of turning back, and who am I to doubt his judgement? As we headed higher we caught up with some snowboarders. Timber checked them out and decided they were of no use to him, as they had no food. We caught up with two more snowboarder, hiking in full winter garb (sweet new burton puffy coats with very steezy fur lined hats to match) who looked like they were in pain. At least they had Arizona Iced tea cans for hydration. I hope those cans are not in the woods somewhere now. Timber's judgement was excellent, as it usually is, and it got better at the halfway point.

Marc and I followed Timber to the top, and even saw some powder. About a half an inch of it. The snow was less than stellar, but it is only November.

Would this face ever lead you astray?

Some good turns on the way down, although we should have brought our clubs judging by the green on the fairways.

Timber was sated, despite tearing a couple of small holes in his shins while post-holing down chasing us. He is tough, and was able to take his seat as king of the car when we got down.

Less than stellar skiing, and no bike riding, but at least I got to christen the fire pit this weekend. Burning stuff is always cool. Maybe next weekend will be better.

all hallows' eve, eve.

2010-10-30T10:57:00.001-07:00

Not much going on in Lap's land. Running mostly, as the leaves here in VT are falling like Halliburton stock (badum-ching) On my run last night I ran into a friend who is charge of local trails and lot of trail equipment. He had just dropped a gas powered leaf blower at another friends house, and that second friend blew the local trails like a.......guy with a gas powered leaf blower. So, Marc, Timber and I set out for a quick spin on the buff fall trails.

Marc likes the trails without leaves on them. Even when he is hung over.
Timber likes trails no matter what.
You can see the happiness on Marc's face. His winter hat only lasted five minutes before it was taking up space in his jersey pocket. The ride was good, only one catastrophic bike handling failure, in which I ended up hurting the top of my foot. This is a first for me. I don't know how I hurt the top of my foot in a bike crash, but it is still a bit sore. Weather here is iffy, maybe some skiing tomorrow!

Early season

2010-10-16T16:24:00.000-07:00

Yup, I am done with biking. At least until the snow melts. Quick skin and ski with Marc and the dogs. Good times, lots of different muscles than biking, but that same endorphin fueled, singletrack rippin' rush.

Bike packing

2010-10-11T16:06:00.001-07:00

Good weather last weekend, loaded up the bike and heading out with Marc. We rode some tar, a lot of single track, and some dirt roads. Loaded up with my new OR drybags and liked having the weight on the bike, rather than on my back.

Took us about two and a half hours to get to the campsite, but only after I had a great, slow motion, endo right onto my messed up hand. Not good. The best part was when the bike frame scissored down onto my leg and head. Even better. We rode on and set up camp in the dark (lots of fun) We gathered fire wood, cooked dinner and got ready for the cold. Slept well, woke up kind of early, and enjoyed the view.

Good night for my second overnight on a bike. The whole experience makes me wonder if the Tour Divide is a possibility.......

Dog days.

2010-10-07T16:27:00.001-07:00

Timber is a horrible backseat driver.

Timber is my dog. Not just in the hip, Randy from American Idol way, he is also the domestic animal that resides at my house with me and my wife. It is odd that I call him "mine" because he is definitely his own being. I think if he had his druthers (he doesn't anymore, he was neutered) he would live on his own in the swamp of the golf course near our house. He would feast on muskrats and rabbits (he has caught both) and would harass golfers by biting their legs and running off with their titleists.

Fortunately for us, he thinks we are cool and he lets us feed him and occasionally pet him, but only when he feels it is appropriate. He is very independent, and likes to survey his kingdom from interesting vantage points.

Timber, asleep on the very desk I am typing this from.

Timber is 6 now, and thankfully out of the puppy stage, but he still has quite a bit of energy. He likes to run, and whines incessantly if he does not get his typical 4-5 mile allotment per day. If he is really hard up for a run, he scratches the walls. Or the couch. Or your face. He doesn't care which.

He gets crazy when he gets the Syrup in him.

Thankfully, today we went for a long run. After an hour or so of terrorizing every squirrel in the town, Timber can rest peacefully in the back of the snot rocket.

Now all is well in Laps land..............until tomorrow.

Into the now

2010-10-04T17:16:00.000-07:00

We did it. Bit the bullet, gritted our teeth, and joined the 21st century. We are hooked up. Onto the crazy, internets super highway and even some cable channels. I can do without the TV. A nice distraction, but I really didn't miss it all that much. The interwebs is a different story. It is hard to go without the ability to waste hours looking at nothing, reading little and glazing your eyes over. Oh yeah, blogging stuff that no one reads and putting up gratuitous bum shots is fun, but not essential.

Lot to think about in the coming days. What to do this winter? What to do next summer?

At least yesterday's ride was good. No rush, Terrible Timber came with us, and the trails were in good-ish shape. Looking forward to some cold weather, lights on, wool wearing rides.

No wool yet, but the leaves are falling fast.

Marc and Jay getting close. Or communing with nature. You decide.

Timber, the deer colored dog, sneaks in a ride before hunting season.

That is all for now, hopefully more riding and more posting soon!

2010 season, DONE.

2010-10-02T12:29:00.000-07:00

It has been a long year. Not from the blogging standpoint, as I think this makes 5 posts for the season. My bike racing season is done. It should have been done in August, but I tried to squeeze a bit more out of my legs and I paid for it.

August was rather busy; Dark Horse 40, Great Glen, and then Pittsfield. The 40 was fun, so was Great Glen. I felt good and was happy that I fell one short of my lap goal (23 total, I wanted 24 but didn't realize they extended the loop from the past two years, so I guess it evens out) I had a great crew person, and thoroughly enjoyed not having to drive home (Thanks Marc!)

Pittsfield was a fun race, although a bit of a stretch a week after Great Glen. Lots of climbing, lots of descending, and a killer pig roast at the end.

Vermont 50 was not as much fun. Since school started I have not ridden as much as I should have. I felt lots of pain during the 50, and didn't enjoy it, even though it was some of the best weather in recent memory for this event. At least the barbecue at the end and watching my wife finish was well worth it. Hopefully next year I remember to train for this race, and enjoy it.

This weekend, the ABSOLUTE last race for me this year (unless something fun comes up) was the ECCC race near my house ( a mile away, how could I pass that up?) The course was fun, the atmosphere was very low key (college kids don't worry about much, and everyone just wanted to ride bikes) and some of my younger, fast friend were there to help keep things in perspective.

Finished near the top overall, and almost unscathed. About .5 seconds after the above picture was taken, I hit something that stopped my front wheel dead, and I did a slow motion endo onto my wrist. The swelling is pretty good right now, but I think I will be able to pull through.

Now I just want to ride when I can, do some night riding, and wait for the snow to start falling. Hopefully that isn't too far away.

DarkHorse 40

2010-08-04T08:01:00.000-07:00

Well, been a while, but I feel obligated by the fact that I actually have a blog follower (blogower?) so I guess I will write a post about last weekend's race.

I was convinced to do the Dark Horse 40 by my friend Marc. He went down to SS-apalooza with me and he was very excited to race in Montgomery, NY again. THis time, the pre-ride was dry, as well as the race. The course was fast, flowy and DUSTY. We camped at a local campground, and I think we were the only people on the premises that were from out of state, and not related. It seemed like a giant family had taken over the campground and partied most of both the nights we were there. Lots of early morning fireworks, sketchy drive bys of our campsite, and car alarms in the wee hours of the morning.

Marc and Andrea looking for more firecrackers.

Anyway, we headed down on Friday and pre rode the course on Saturday. We took it really easy to help Andrea, Marc's better half, through the course. Unfortunately, I only filled my camelbak halfway, not expecting to need all the water for one lap. About halfway through the lap, I was dry and it was hot. Our ride lasted three hours. Not good for me.

We finished up our ride, visited Dark Horse cycles (the shop, and promoters for SSAP and the 40) and found a place to get dinner.

We bought some BEEF, made hamburgers and pasta for dinner, and sampled some local brew.

I tried to drink as much as possible, but the water at the camp site smelled like egg farts and we had more beer than bottled water. So, I went to bed with a nagging headache, and woke up in the same condition.

We headed to the start, making a quick stop to fill up on water, and I started drinking immediately. I threw some nuun into a water bottle and pounded it. The race started and I felt okay at the start, but about a quarter through the first lap, I booted. I felt a little bit better, and kept riding. I drank some more Nuun out of my camelbak, and then booted again. The people behind me were nice enough not to comment, or just trying hard to avoid the puke puddles I was leaving behind me. The headache started to come back, and I was beginning to think I would just finish and curl up into a ball and die.

Every DH course runs through the abandoned cardboard box factory. Creepy.

I continued on, and actually started to feel a bit better. 3/4 of the way through the lap, I caught the guy (IF rider from Philly) I was riding with and another SSer wearing hammer stuff. IF guy passed the hammer guy, and I thought I would go with him. I was feeling good, and went for the pass on a slightly widened section of trail with some brush on the sides. Unfortunately, lurking in that brush were lots of bar-end -snagging vines, which we don't have in VT. The vines grabbed my bars and threw me to the ground like I insulted their mother.

This is the second pair of shorts I have trashed this year. I think I will still wear them though, as they will let everyone at the start line know that I am a badass. Or just bad at keeping my tires down and my bike up right. So, after the crash, and many obscenities, I hopped back on the bike and tried to catch up. Then my chain fell off. I was a bit flustered, and it took a little while for me to get it back on. However, I did, and I was able to catch the Hammer and IF guys before the end of the lap. We headed through the start area and on of the promoters told us we were 3rd, fourth and fifth. I was surprised by this, but it helped me kick the bad feeling after wiping out and throwing my chain, and puking, and feeling horrible. IF guy and me took off on the road section and rode most of the single track together for the second lap. At the first aid station I had a bit of a gap on Mr. IF, but I stopped to fill my camelbak and figured I would catch him again. Once I got through the next singletrack section to a nice piece of straight road, I couldn't see any sign of him. I felt like he had played me, acting tired so I would try to break away. He was hammering and all I could do was hold on. I continued on, feeling dejected, but near the end of the lap I heard someone behind me, and saw Mr. IF. I shouted "I thought you were in front of me!" and took off, hoping to remain in third. I did, rolling through the roughest sections of the course like puppet tied to a bicycle. I ended up 3 minutes behind the 1st and 2nd, and only 20 seconds in front of IF, but I was pretty happy. To top it off, I won a medal with Homer Simpson on it, and the post race beers and barbecue were excellent.

SUMMER!!!

2010-06-23T06:34:00.000-07:00

I think I was a bit too far forward.....

School is out, work is light (3 days a week, 6 hours a day is pretty schweet) and I am trying to ride as much as possible. The hard part is this week is the week of my first "big" race of the summer. Big meaning I go to Canada and try to race for 100km. I think that is like 60 American miles, but I haven't checked the exchange rate today. The race promoter likes to send emails that scare people, like recommending no one try the race on a bike without squish in the front and back, and also that no one try a single speed and that you should start the race with new brake pads. I have chosen to scoff at all these warnings, and race the single speed. We will see. Either way, I plan on being really sore next week.

Riding in VT continues to be good, when it isn't pouring, but the trails are drying out pretty quick and the options for people to ride with are increasing everyday. Hopefully a 12 hour race in Presque Isle, aka East bum fizzle, will materialize and that would be interesting.

Duck and cover.

2010-06-08T08:09:00.001-07:00

Yeah, the past few weeks have been a bit busy. Lots to do, not a lot of time to write. Trips to NH for family stuff (and a bike race) then a trip to Maine for wifey's race, and an ill-fated rendez-vous with Rick is! Rick and I couldn't get together, so I had to ride Maine singletrack at Bradbury all by myself. Good thing, because Rick wouldn't have been impressed by my pampered, VT style riding. Maine has roots and rocks. So does VT, but we like to space them out a bit, and throw some hills in to keep things interesting. Maine keeps them all together, and packs more twists and turns into one collection of single track than we have in Chittenden county. The riding was still fun, and I was bummed I couldn't finally meet Rick.

Wifey's race went pretty well, and I got to spend Sunday watching people run around in circles for 50, 25 or 15 miles. It made my legs and feet hurt just watching. Sunday afternoon I got to drive home, and then Monday, it was Christmas on Labor day.

It is not everyday the Moots demo van comes to your (friend's) house to share ti goodness with your friends and local riders. We planned a ride from the driveway in the picture (my buddy and grassmoots teammate Jason) up and over two large VT hills on some sweet singletrack and into the Hinesburg town forest to ride with the Mooties and some local bike shop guys. It was

good. We rode for a total of 5 hours, in which I managed to warp the front tire on my single-

speed. First I tried a new, scary large roller (steep rock face with several holes in it, for about a

15 foot drop) I hit the transition and my bike made a cracking noise that made me think I had

just snapped my carbon fork. Luckily, it just looked like a gorilla had tried to twist off my tire.

As this was before we met the Moots guys (about two minutes before) I borrowed a pump and

tried to fix the tire by deflating and inflating it several times. It helped. Then we finished our

ride in the forest and I hit a small jump on the way out, landing heavily on the front tire and

creating the cracking noise again. Long story short, I am in need of new tires.

Oh well, it was fun anyways. This weekend the Pinnacle happens, and I will be there getting

my ass kicked.

Long time, no write.

2010-05-24T10:07:00.000-07:00

Lots has been going on in the Great green north. Lots of racing (two more is a lot) and lots of riding. The riding has been good enough that I am having trouble preparing for races with enough rest. I guess this isn't a bad problem to have. It is just so tempting to ride with friends, right out my door (and down the road a bit, I guess)

My second race of the year was the Single speed championship Supreme put on by bike29.com/five hills bikes. They are cool. This year the field was a bit bigger, (16 total) and we started off pretty fast. My legs felt like lead, as I rode about 12 hours in the week that led up to the race. A four hour ride two days before may not, in hindsight, have been the best idea. But, I was able to hang on and keep the two leaders in sight, finishing third, and winning some sweet fruit-striped socks and a t-shirt. I was pretty happy.

The race this weekend was Willowdale in Ipswich. Very fun. A huge crowd showed up, with an estimate of 400 racers. This was my first "elite race" with the big boys. I chose the single speed to maximize the suffrage, which turned out to be a good choice. The course used some of the trails from a running race I have done, the "Stonecat" trail race. Unfortunately, the course didn't go by the car in the middle of the woods with the working horn and drunk locals cheering us on.

I did get a little too close to one of the trees, while passing a group of novice women, who laughed at my fish-belly colored ass as I passed.

The first lap I rode a bit conservatively, until I latched onto the wheel of a guy wearing sweet (pink) socks that said "I'm with awesome ^^^" They made me laugh. We wear moving along when I heard some rattling and remembered I forgot to fully tighten my rear quick release after I switched my gear before the race. Oops. Hopped off, tightened it and got back on . Rode the next lap trading off with the cool sock guy, then lost him on one of the fire roads. On the last lap I passed a lot of people with flats, and managed to stay flat free. I finished in tenth, just behind really fast single speeder Will Crissman, who also informed me he has read this loose collection of pictures and ramblings bringing the total readership up to three, if my mom still reads this.

OVerall a very fun race and I look forward to the Pinnacle.

all palooza-ed out.

2010-04-27T05:48:00.000-07:00

Singlespeedapalooza was pretty frickin' awesome. The ride down on Saturday was a beautiful day. I packed into the car with three good friends and we headed out for NY. We got some funny looks from a lot of people on the ferry, with four grown men packed into a car with four bikes on top.
We were on the FREE ferry because the old bridge to NY is in need of some repair.
We got to the trailhead around 5 and there were quite a few people preriding the course. West coast Ti meets east coast Ti. I would rock a IF, but I don't have enough tattoos and I can't grow cool facial hair. I also love my Mooto-x.
After the dusty dry lap on super fun singletrack on Saturday, it rained most of the night and Sunday morning, turning the course into a big ribbon of greasy glop. I was able to get a good starting position and stayed with the lead group on the fire road start, and into the singletrack. I waited to pass people until we popped out onto the road again, where I took advantage of the big (for the course) climb to catch up to Eric (our driver) and pass him right before we entered the first long section of single track. I made a few more passes on the newly cut single track (which turned into a mudslick by the second lap) and was alone for most of the remainder of the lap. I was feeling pretty good and in the top fifteen as I finished my first lap, and then I felt a bit of a wobble in my pedal stroke. I figured I could most likely finish the lap and be done, but I was mistaken. Half way through the final lap my crank arm on the drive side decided it was done and started to point toward the ground, just like the non-drive crankarm. I hopped off the trail and waited for Eric, who was nice enough to throw me his multi tool. I retightened and kept going, hoping to make it home. Unfortunately, I had to tightened the crank arm at the top of most of the climbs, about six times total. I finished in 18th and immediately downed a few hotdogs and some mighty tasty terrapin ale. I would go to Georgia just for more. I was kind of bummed at the end of the race, but overall it was a great time and I got to meet Dejay Birtch after. He even gave me a sticker, making this trip wicked frickin' good.

Tapering is hard.

2010-04-22T07:48:00.000-07:00

It is really hard to stop riding as much as I want. This weekend is the first race of the season, and I am finding it hard to limit my riding and want to jump out of the car and tackle people I see out riding while I have to be "smart." Last night I went for a ride anyway. What was going to be quick and low key, turned into an 2 hour sprint. The trails near my house are open and there were tons of people out, even at 6 o'clock. I started my ride and had lots of people out enjoying the trails who I felt I had to pass. I guess I got my comeuppance, (I am reading lots of Dickens') and in the last mile of trail I passed a group, then got a stick caught in my spokes which snapped my UST valve stem in half. Not much I could do without a tube or pump, so I got to walk out.

Tonight will be the first ever meeting of my new school's mountain Bike club, we are going for a ride after school, and I hope to take some pics.

Pic-shurs

2010-04-13T09:41:00.001-07:00

Jason, holding up that tree.
A little crash.

Trails so dry you can still read the letters.

The identity of this single speeder has been withheld for his safety.

Jason, picking his line.

Wet and not so wild.

2010-03-31T09:21:00.001-07:00

Last weekend was alright, bike wise. Got to ride on Saturday on a very cold (30 degrees) day. The toes were not happy, but I was able to stop in the Hollow to take the pic above. At least it was a sunny day.
Sunday brought trailwork and some MTB riding. The trail work was fun, met some new people and found out the locals trails were dry. They aren't now that they are under an inch of water, but hopefully they will dry soon.

^^^^^^ Tucker, the 3 legged dog, master squirrel hunter^^^^^
This week has been a wash so far. Two days of cold rain and I haven't motivated to do anything. I did do some hiking and trail work on Monday, but yesterday was a complete bust. Watched tv with Wifey and went to bed a 8. Hopefully the coming sunshine will allow me to commute Thursday and Friday, and then maybe a trip to Mass. on Saturday for a long, long MTB ride.

The Maiden Voyage

2010-03-25T07:14:00.001-07:00

All dressed up and ready to ride

Today was the first ride on the new bike. I am pretty excited about it, seeing as it is most likely the last bike my wife will ever let me buy. All built up, with pedals and cages it weighs in at 22lbs. Not too bad, considering the bargain basement deals on the parts used to build it up (very cheap fork, free crankset and seat) The wheels, bar and seat post I paid for, and they could be lighter, but I like the way they ride and I am happy for now. The cleanest this bike will ever be.

I got home around 4 after driving sideways down the highway due to the gale force winds. The thought of a road ride by myself was a bit of a downer. I wanted to ride the single speed since I hadn't ridden it yet and it was just mocking me from a corner of my shed. Then, my friend Marc called and wanted to ride over to a quick drying collection of trails that are a good warm up ride away from his house. I was ready in 5 minutes and we were out the door.

After a fun ride over some recently flooded bridges and through rush hour traffic, the trailhead greeted us with dry ground and blue skies. The riding was excellent. Not just because it was the first ride on my new bike, or because it was the first dirt ride of the year, but also because the trails were in great shape. There were quite a few leaves on the ground, but the mud was minimal (better than after a summer rainstorm) and the trails were riding well. We both were a bit disoriented and the loop we rode did a fair amount of doubling back, but we found the best parts of the trails and rode for a total of two hours. A great maiden voyage on the new single and for the first dirt ride of the year.

The ride end with recovery beverages at my house, and was way, way better than suffering through the Northern Vermont wind tunnel on the road bike.

The slow ascent into the Pain Cave

2010-03-23T08:01:00.000-07:00

The last pitch (it ends at the cell tower)

The hills, mocking me from afar.

This weekend's ride was planned so I could meet wifey at our friends house in Warren Vt. This sounded fun at the beginning, because we were going to have brunch when I arrived. It was not so fun when I got to the start of the climb (2 miles of climbing, Appalachian Gap) and was greeted by snow, hail and finally, sun.

The ride was pretty low key, although it was a lot more climbing than I had planned for. The snow didn't stick to the road, and the descent into Warren was very dry. I am not the most accomplished descender, and I was very thankful for the good conditions on the way down.

I was also able to build up my new frame, although all hopes of riding it this week are washing down into the sewer in the torrential rain we are having.

IT'S HERE!!!!

2010-03-19T07:27:00.001-07:00

^^^This pic is fuzzy because I am shaking with anticipation^^^^
My new frame!!!! One of the best benefits (aside from riding really, really sick bikes) of joining the GrassMoots team is that I was somehow able to convince my wife that I needed another bike. Not just any bike, but a new Moots. I was able to sell my niner frame and keep all the parts, (pretty nice parts, too, I might add) and I ordered a new Mooto-X frame, with sliders for my new single speed. I used to think that steel was the perfect, economical choice for a single speed. But, I had a chance to get a Ti single speed, the holy grail of bikes (okay, maybe just in my opinion) and I plan on riding it until I die. Or get tired and need to rest, whichever comes first.

I am excited to try the sliders for single speed, as I have tried everything else. Eccentric bottom brackets are alright, although they can get noisy and they change the Bottom bracket height for different cog sizes. Horizontal drops are a pain, chains going slack, removing the brake to change a tube, too much work. I am thinking the sliders will be the perfect solution.

I also got a bunch of goodies, like a kit and socks. Sorry, no pics of them, I am still coming to grips with my new smurf suit. Maybe next week.

Uuuuggggghhhh.

2010-03-15T09:28:00.001-07:00

This weekend was good, but much too quick. Saturday I had to take a Latin test (so I can become an official teacher) The test went okay, I think. I will find out for sure in 4 weeks. After the test a friend stopped by my house on his way home from the airport and invited me on a "chill, 2 hour spin" It ended up lasting 3 and a half hours, in which we were both pushing each other. Or, at least, he was pushing me and I was nearly pinning it to keep up with him. Sunday was probably the last ice climbing day of this winter, and it was a good one. The FinLaw, My friend Marc and his girlfriend and her sister hit the notch and were pleasantly surprised to find plastic ice and Rain, snow, sun, rain and more snow in about that order. The forecast for the coming week looks nice (50-60 degree temps and sun) and it should be chock full of riding.

Later this weekend, the new bike arrives in a box full of goodies from the new team...........Yay, spandex!

It is starting

2010-03-12T09:07:00.000-08:00

Just registered for Singlespeed-a-palooza and the Gravel grinder.
Singlespeed-a-palooza is a single speed only race (not just a clever name) in NY. I have never ridden in NY before. This should be fun. The gravel grinder is a fundraiser for a local MTB club in the Stowe area. All dirt roads and lots of hills. Fun event and a good 40 plus mile ride.

Hopefully I don't shell myself in the beginning of the year and die at the end.

commute day 2

2010-03-11T15:46:00.000-08:00

Today was a bit rough. After giving blood yesterday and taking in the roadbike today, oh yeah, and riding 17 hours this week, I was a bit tired. My heart rate was ten beats higher than normal and my breathing was pretty labored. I guess it will be a few days before I feel normal again.
The weather was nice and I think I will ride again tomorrow, but I am happy I won't be getting up at 4 tomorrow.

Bloodbath.

2010-03-10T09:02:00.000-08:00

I did it. I gave blood for the first time today. It wasn't that bad. The worst part was the blood technician telling me that he didn't like to look when the needle goes in.

"Oh," I say, "You give blood often?"

"No," he says, "I don't like to watch when it goes into you."

I thought you were supposed to look at what you were doing. He then proceeded to tell me that today was his first day on the job.

Fortunately for me, he was pretty good at what he does and I didn't feel anything more than a slight pinch. I am glad I didn't look, as the needle is actually pretty big.

I filled the bag, ate some sugar, and hopefully won't faint on my ride tonight.

first commute, continued.

2010-03-08T15:46:00.000-08:00

The ride home was rather uneventful. Full of sun and freshly melting manure ice (it is a real thing if you live in VT) I made it home in 15 minutes less than the way in. I guess riding in the dark slowed me down.
Maybe ride in again on Tuesday.

March 8th, first commute of the year.

2010-03-08T05:02:00.000-08:00

It began last night, packing up the way-too-big messenger bag with clothing, food, and more clothing for the ride home. The commute began at 4:45, in the a.m., which is much too early, but it is necessary if I am going to be at school on time, able to change and at least rub on some deoderant before class. The temperature a surprisingly warm 30ish degrees (the extra clothes are for the ride home, when it will be around 40)
It was uneventful to start, the legs warmed up a bit and I was moving along nicely. Then the button on my light changed from blue to red. This is not a good sign. 8 minutes later I was cruising down the back roads of Milton, VT with only a flasher on my back and a rough guess as to where the potholes were. Luckily, I didn't steer into any big ones, and I managed to stay away from oncoming traffice. The sun was up about an hour later, so I will charge my light tonight for Wednesday's ride in. Now the only thing left to do today is ride home, for a total of four hours commuting.
Doesn't that sound like fun?

Spring is springing.

2010-03-05T10:05:00.001-08:00

Two consecutive days of riding outside. Still messy out, so the fixie flyer is getting it done. The first day was warm-ish (High 30s) Last night's ride was a bit cooler, and once the sun was gone it was downright cold. Today should be another ride or a skate ski, and with temps in the 40s this weekend, it is go time.

Ooey, gooey goodness.

2010-02-19T07:18:00.000-08:00

I got an email last night from Chris Kaiser. If you don't know who that is, apparently you know very little about the small batch, artisan peanut butter industry of Vermont.

Chris is the president of the Vermont Peanut butter company. They make organic, kosher, and OSHA approved peanut and almond butters in Stowe. Their peanut butter is so good, it makes bread and Jelly irrelevant. They make peanut butter with chocolate, cherries, apples, Maple Syrup, bananas, and peanut butter, mixed with almond butter. (Peamond butter?)

They agreed to sponsor my trivial attempt to race a bike in fringe races that last way longer than they should. For this, I thank them very much.

My new goal for the season, eat so much peanut butter that I rip my spandex.

Why the hell did they choose me?

2010-02-17T10:03:00.000-08:00

There is a really nice bike under all that dirt.

Several years ago I started working at a bike shop. I liked to bike before this job, but I never really loved it. I always loved skiing and still do. I guess that is what working for a ski company will do to you. Anyway, the guy that hired me is hyperactive and in an effort to keep his wife sane, he tries to tire himself out with lots and lots of exercise. This led to me following him around on the bike, and run and anything else he could convince me to do (pretty much everything) He used to live in Steamboat and told me all about the wonderful bikes that this company called Moots makes. He had several. He still has several. Being as impressionable as I am, he convince me to get one. I chose the Psychlo-x, because it would serve as my road bike and my cross bike (he convinced me to try cross racing as well)

I finally realized what it was to love a bike. I was then able to convince my wife to by me a 29er ybb (special suspension type thingy) and I realized what it was like to really love a bike, made to do what I love to do.

So, this year, my friend Jason got an email from a friend of his who works for Moots. They were looking for riders for their new "Grassmoots" racing team. By some stroke of dumb luck, they said I could join their team (Maybe I earned frequent buyer points) and I am as excited as a Preschooler on finger painting day (yeah, I wet my pants a little)

I am now in the process of training for a good year on the bike, and trying to convince my wife that I need a Ti single speed. (It will be the last bike I ever buy, I promise!!)

I just hope I don't disgrace the bicycle riding alligator.

sweet threads

2010-02-09T16:37:00.000-08:00

Okay. Here it is. I said I would write about my OR clothing later in the week. I didn’t say which week, so this really isn’t later. I motivated my sorry ass on Sunday to get out and ski. We got a few small storms throughout the week, and I decided to head to my secret spot. It was late in the day, and I skinned up for my first lap. The snow was fluffy on top (a good 7-8 inches of fresh-ish snow) on top of solid crust. The snow was light enough that a hard turn would throw some pow into your face. Not true face shots, but still, I will take it.

So, on to the clothing. My favorite piece is the Jacket. The alter ego Jacket is made for backcountry skiing. Goretex pro fabric is nice and rugged. I also like the skin pockets. Instead of throwing your skins into your pack after every lap, you can throw then into the inner pockets and keep them warm and sticky. A good thing for cold, snowy days.

The second piece of clothing is the pants. The mentor pant is the top of line climb/ski/be a winter bad-ass pant. I climb and ski. The first day I got the pant, I put a hole in them. I was skiing and butt checked the snow to stop myself from running into a tree. This is the hole I put in them.

You can see it, the white spot. Okay, itself isn’t very impressive. This is what the butt check did to my thigh (I can’t show my butt on the interweb, it is shy)

It took two weeks for that hematoma to go away. I still have a divot in my thigh where I hit the stump. I think the pants made out better than I did. The hole isn’t even all the way through the goretex.
The final piece of the winter ensemble (italics mean snooty French pronunciation) is the gloves. These surprised me.

The OR Vert glove is made for “active winter endeavors” I have used it for ice climbing, skate skiing, backcountry skiing, running and chicken feeding. Oh yeah, and driving. Leather palm, softshell outer. Durable, breathable and relatively warm. Not the glove to wear resort skiing, but when you are earning your turns or working it in the cold, this glove is the bees knees. All six of them.

Cold miserable weekend.

2010-02-03T07:47:00.000-08:00

This weekend was cold and miserable. My friend Marc and my Father-in-law took me ice climbing on Sunday. The pic above is Marc rappelling off a 60 foot cliff, after asking me if permanent marker deteriorates climbing rope. I said "I don't know, why?" He replied "because I colored the midpoint of my rope with it this week." I am glad Marc chose to rappel first.
Luckily, he made it, and we climbed for a while. Everyone was rather tired, and cold with the 0 degree windchill, so we called it early and went to a fine beverage establishment. I was hoping to meet Lara from OR, and thank her for the sweet winter clothes, but she was out climbing. I will write more about the sweet clothing later this week.

The day before ice climbing (a very ciruitous way of saying "Saturday") I was talked into going for a bike ride with my friends Jason and Brook. The original plan was to go ice climbing, but the windchill was -15 and nobody wanted to hang out on a big ice cube. So, snowbiking sounded like a much better idea. We got all bundled up, and Brook let me ride his Puglsey. Brook is a rabid innovator, retro fitting his karate monkey for a lefty fork, making snow bikes, (with skis, hardtail and full sus) and even his own handlebars

The bike I rode was a Puglsey frame with a 30" tire on the front. How was it 30"? It was a 29er downhill tire riveted to a Schwalbe big apple tire for durablility and grip. The end result was a very heavy tire with a lot of grip, although I struggled to stay upright in the snow.

We rode for 2 and a half hours and I was shelled. I guess the hour and a half on rollers was not necessary beforehand.

Oh, and the huskies, I never thought I would be getting ready for a bike ride while watching a sled dog team getting set up to head out, but, I guess everyone needs to get out on the trails.

24 HOGG

2010-01-28T10:01:00.001-08:00

I did it again. Signed up for solo single speed. I hope this year I can pace myself and do better than last year. Another goal for this year, NO SLEEPING! It is hard to keep up with other riders if you are sleeping. That is the most important lesson I learned in my first summer of racing 24s.

Now I just have to keep training and hope not to suck.

Two firsts

2010-01-27T11:55:00.000-08:00

Two firsts for this season. One, riding outside. Not a bad ride either. Hour and a half on the fixie flyer, then an hour and a half indoors. Kind of cold, not very scenical and a lot of dead end roads to explore. The roads were very low traffic, unless you count the six deer that walked in front of me. The second first (that doesn't sound right) was stretching. I haven't stretched in much too long. It actually makes me feel pretty good. I guess after an hour and a half x fit class and three hours of riding, it is probably a good thing to do. Maybe someday I will be able to touch my toes.

Jinxed

2010-01-25T07:59:00.001-08:00

So, Saturday was a gorgeous day in the Notch (Smugglers, for those non-vermonters) with cold temps and very brittle ice. While my friend Marc and I were cleaning up the anchors at the top of the climb (I am at the "aspiring clown puncher" level of ice climbing, which means top rope everything and use brute strength and ignorance to perform mediocre climbing) we saw several snowmobiles fly through the notch with rescue personnel. Then came the ATV with tracks pulling a sled of firefighters. On our walk out, we see two ambulances, two firetrucks and a group of rescuers waiting around. When we asked what was up, they replied "a snowshoer fell, no big deal." From the thousands of dollars in equipment and man power, it looked like kind of a big deal.
On to Sunday, skiing at Stowe with the college roommate. We see a young-ish kid crumpled under a lift tower, with his friend asking if he is okay. Then we see the sled going down for rescue. Then the ambulance. Then, the Dartmouth helicopter flys into the notch, turns around and sets down. I hope that kid is okay. That must have been one scary ride. I didn't feel much like skiing after seeing the helicopter. Just made me feel like bad luck.

Still no snow.

2010-01-24T13:21:00.001-08:00

Rain in the forecast. At least the ice was okay yesterday, even though it is all going to melt tomorrow and Tuesday. I guess on the bright side the salt will be washed off the roads. Maybe time to ride outside!

2010-01-22T10:12:00.000-08:00

Winter. I miss it. It is warm-ish and sunny out. I haven't been able to ski for a while, and I miss it. I feel like I am having an affair on my favorite winter sport. Too much ice climbing, not nearly enough skiing. The current weather trends have me longing to hop on my bike and ride off into the sunset. Is it over? Will skiing ever take me back? I guess I haven't been totally unfaithful, i have been skate skiing quite a bit. It just isn't the same, though. No face shots, not as much solitude. I shouldn't be so hard on myself. It isn't my fault, the snow should be better. It forced me away. I can't help myself, I am just a man after all.

I need snow. Bad.

roller derby-licious

2010-01-14T17:29:00.000-08:00

Training has begun in earnest. I don't know why, but I feel rather motivated as of late. Holiday break was full of skinning and ice climbing, my new distraction. It is fun to go out in the freezing cold, put pointy things on your feet and in your hands, and try to scale frozen waterfalls. But, I digress. Training has begun with skate skiing. Lots of it. 6 hours last week, 5 hours this week and more tomorrow. The rollers have also made their way from the basement to the bedroom, in front of the tv. Only 4 hours so far, but it feels good to be back on the bike. The only thing better would be if the bike were new.........

Delinquency

2010-01-11T05:07:00.000-08:00

Yes, I am thoroughly delinquent in my posting. Lacking internet connection at my house makes it rather difficult. I am on the verge of some changes in my bike riding life, and I think they will make for more interesting (and much, much more plentiful posts) Hopefully the 3 people who have actually read this in the past will stumble onto the wonderful adventures of "Laps" again. Maybe someone new will read (ya, right) but I may just have enough motivation to get the interweb flowing into my house so I can post some pictures (with my writing skills, pictures are vital to the entertainment content of this blog)
At any rate, training has begun for this summer, skiing is good, and I am VERY excited to ride. New sponsor for the summer and, hopefully, a shiny new bike to suffer on.

now winter is here........sort of

2009-12-15T17:28:00.000-08:00

my last post was about the advent of winter. I guess I was a bit off. I didn't actually get to ski until the Saturday after turkey day (and the Sunday, too) both of which were pretty good. Then the snow went away, so I started biking more. After biking in a bit of snow last Tuesday night, we finally got winter our first winter storm. That brought some good night skiing (via skins and headlamp to make it more exciting). It also brought some cold weather and ICE! I got a chance to use my pointy new ice Axes and shoe fangs. They were sweet, I was not. I felt like a turtle on its back flailing my way up. Oh well, I had fun. Hopefully winter is here to stay and I will be able write more.

Summer is done, bring on the snow!

2009-10-06T02:42:00.000-07:00

This summer went well overall. I rode my bike more than ever before, raced consistently and had a lot of fun. The 24 races were good, although I am not sure they are worth it. I might try more shorter races next year, but we will see. The millstone grind went well. I hope the rumors about the date change next year aren't true so I can do that race again. The 50 started off okay, but went downhill quickly at the end. Three flat tires and only two tubes. He last flat being only five miles from the finish. I could have finished but I didn't see the point in ruining my wheel and I really wanted to be done at that point. Oh well. There is always next year. Some recent good news is I get to wear Outdoor Research clothing for the winter as one of their lab rat type people. I am excited to beat on clothing for this ski season. I promise I am going to ski every chance I get!
That is all for now.

wired

2009-07-16T10:08:00.000-07:00

This is scary. I can now type stuff on my phone and post it. Pat's peak went well and the summer has been full of riding and working and more riding. Hopefully I can get my new wheels soon and get ready in time for great glen. Lot's of fun and hopefully more and more riding.

Last post for a while, back to VT!

2009-05-27T11:31:00.000-07:00

yup. it is over. Done with the New Hampshire job, just have to pack up the car, visit family and then head home. Rainy, nasty day, so not much for riding, but I hope to do something active. I got into the VT 50 again, and Bear brook is this weekend. Then I get to start work for the summer, and look forward to the new job in the fall.
I hope it all works out!

Coyote hill

2009-05-25T18:38:00.000-07:00

I love the Coyote hill course. I hate the fact that you need a license to race there. I am, admittedly, a "wicked noob" when it comes to racing, but I feel like I am physically capable of racing in the expert class. Unfortunately, I am only allowed to race cat 2 at "official" events. I showed up early after carpooling with a friend who was bringing his cousin down to race in the beginner class. His cousin started well, but broke his chain halfway through the lap and had to walk out of the woods. Mike (my carpool buddy) and I got dressed and pre-rode the course way before our 11 o'clock start time. Then we got nice and cold in the rain, and while waiting for the start which was pushed back half an hour. I wanted to race in the open/cat 1 single speed class, but I can't because I have never done a "norba" race before and because there are lots of rules to follow to race bikes with the big kids. Oh well, live and learn. I rode my two laps in the greasy, rooty, mucky, pump park that is the Coyote hill race course. I had a lot of fun riding, and if I ever race there again, I will put my suspension fork on my single speed. My arms are a little sore from riding it rigid. Mike crashed early in his lap and may have broken his arm, so I got to drive home. I had a pretty good day and might actually get more serious about this whole bike racing thing.

Back on the Road

2009-05-21T16:23:00.000-07:00

So today I got to get back on the pavement for a two and a half hour ride. It was hot, and the wind was fierce. I have a bad habit of mistaking a tailwind for a headwind when I set out, probably because I am usually slow to warm up and I feel like I am working harder than I need to. This makes the ride back home a better workout and much more demeaning. If you are damaging your self confidence, then you aren't really training, right? Anyway, the weather was actually really nice today. I believe I increased my freckle count exponentially today riding around in the afternoon sun. My loop followed a big river for the majority of the ride, and views like this are very tempting when it is ninety and humid.

I felt pretty good after warming up (do you really need to warm up on a ninety degree day?) and was able to make good time for the second half of the ride. Just a few more short rides and hopefully a good day down at Coyote hill this Sunday.

World Cup sh*tshow

2009-05-20T11:22:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I went up to Plymouth to get my crankset tightened up and to ride some single track. Plymouth is a cool little town with an inordinate amount of trails for small town in Northern NH. I asked the guys at the LBS about some trails further North. They told me about some logging roads that I tried to check out, but they were still wet, so I headed back to town and rode a super, double secret trail that may or may not be called world cup, as rumor has it. It is super tight, Eff you single track with rocks that eat tires and do funny things to tubeless tires. It has steeps

And a very scenic view of the local thoroughfare.

The first part of the trail runs right along the highway in between the deer catching fence and the pavement. At times, you pop out right next to the trucks and tourist zipping South at 75 miles and hour. After the first part, it gets gnarly and runs along a stream up some old logging roads. It has some very cool rockwork.

I like to ride the trail as an out and back, heading uphill and then coming down. The climb is really technical on the way up, topping out on a rocky section with some cool bridges.

I topped out and turned around back through the rock garden. It is not a good thing when you pinch a tubeless tire between two rocks. Air rushes out very quickly. Somehow, I managed to keep riding after checking to see that the tire wasn't completely flat. I hit some of the steep sections and immediately went over the handle bars, hit the leaf cover on the ground and accelerated downhill on my back. Not fun. I picked myself back up and continued down. On the next steep, I turned the front wheel a little bit, and went over again. I slammed my knee on the stem or ground (I don't remember which) picked my self up again and soldiered on. It wasn't until the third trip over the bars that I realized my front tire was near flat. Anytime I turned the wheel, the tire pressure was so low that tire tried to come off the rim. Miraculously, It didn't. I rode back to the car, refilled the tire (it had a whopping 8 psi) and heard the bead pop back into the rim strip. I am lucky I didn't have to walk back to the car, and I think I will check my tire pressure a bit more often.

Vermont state Single speed championships/Flower Power

2009-05-17T16:49:00.000-07:00

(Pic borrowed from Bike29 blog, please don't sue!)
Today was the first race of the year. The Flower power race at Catamount outdoor center was a new course (much more technical) and lots of fun. I came in second for the VT state single speed championships, which is pretty good for me considering 1st place went to an ex-Sobe/Cannondale racer, who is still really, really fast. I think I rested a bit too much, and hopefully I can ride more this week and get ready for Coyote Hill next Sunday. We will see.

2009-05-16T03:47:00.000-07:00

This week has been a rest week for me, somewhat by choice, but mostly not by choice. I went on the Senior trip, up to Caratunk, Me. It is beautiful up there, and there are a lot of logging roads that look like they could have been fun to ride. We were up there and to raft the Kennebec river. The water was nice and high and the rafting was sweet. What wasn't sweet was staying up until 2 in the morning and then getting up at 5:30. I love to sleep, and this did not working for me. I was excited to ride yesterday when I got home, and I decided to try and ride with my dogs for the first time, since I was only going for a quick spin. The spin was much quicker than I plan, as my chain decided to do this.

I was not very pleased. The icing on the cake was my dog, (the one that was hit by a car two weeks ago) decided to chase a porcupine. Again. I was a little perturbed when, after calling him for five minutes, he showed up with a face full of quills. He got a porcupine about 3 months ago, and apparently his memory is a bit fuzzy. Last time he went to vet, this time I removed them myself. Hopefully, the removal of the quills sans-anesthesia will help him remember that porcupines=bad. I am not going to bet on it, though.

The best part of the ride is that afterwards, the dogs did this

And I did the same. Fell asleep on the floor at 6:30, got into bed at 8, and woke up at 6 this morning. Hopefully I will be nice and rested for Sunday, first race of the year!

Bike porn and bald eagles.

2009-05-12T16:02:00.000-07:00

Today's ride was a repeat of Sunday's ride, only faster and less daudling. I brought my phone so I could take some pictures of the sunny day, and the new ride. It is sweet steel niner that is built up nice and light in hopes of a good result at this weekend's race at Catamount. This has been my first race of the year for three years now, and I think I am in pretty good shape for this year. It is also the VT state Single speed championship, so we will see how that will turn out.

This is the new ride, which is cool, but not nearly as cool as my wife.

The shakedown rides have gone well, and the bike fits like a round peg in a circular hole. It should be fun to ride all summer. The ride was a quick road warm up, then 45 minutes of trail (almost all of the local trail network at Franklin falls) The cool part is riding below the dam. I look almost celestial.

The dam has been our salvation while at school. A very compact area of trail that is a ten minute ride away. It is where I run all winter with the dogs, and where I brought the mountain bike team for most of the fall. We had a lot of fun. The ride back across the dam is unlike any riding I have done in the East. It is almost a moonscape with a big river right down the hill.

On the ride back I got to scare some locals blowing the dope on a logging road that I take to get back to school. Then I saw a bald eagle under the power line commute. Not quite Epic wilderness, but it is cool to see any way.

Not quite so sucktastic

2009-05-10T17:25:00.000-07:00

Got the new bike together, after two days of running around getting all the little parts that were needed, and putting them all in the right places. Thougth I was going to ride early today, motivated and went for a quick spin with Jason who was right, ramped cogs do not work well on a single speed. Then I went to the in laws for an all pig breakfast. Bacon, hash, ham, sausage and some hash fries (they were like garnish for the pig products) After doing my part to save the world from future swine flu outbreaks, we headed home and then left for school. I figured I wasn't going to get to ride again as the weather was crap as we left, but as well pulled into Tilton the sun burned through the clouds and everything cleared up. I got a quick dinner and then headed out for a two hour tempo ride, mostly on single track. I even found a new loop at the local trails. Things have been getting a little better, but it still sucks that the woman has mono. She was training hard and working hard, and I guess she went a little too hard. Hopefully she gets well soon and can still do the 100.

Sucktastic.

2009-05-08T19:29:00.000-07:00

Second day of duty in a row, lots of year end goings-on at school (lots of formal dress and pomp and circumstance and important people making themselves feel more important) Not my cup of tea. The woman might have mono again. I might have it. Won't know for a few weeks, but the plans for the near future may be drastically altered.

Silver lining is we get to go home this weekend because there is no racing with the sickness. I get to build my bike, go for a ride and hope that I am not sick. That should be fun.

A random collection of stuff

2009-05-07T16:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my wife convinced me to go and do the "stairmill" with her for an hour. She is very fit, and she says the stairmill is hard. I was very, very scared. It turns out my fear was completely justified. We set the stairmill for an hour on a ridiculous level, and we were off. 15 minutes into the hour, I was ready to be done. I was sweating so much it looked like someone had wrung out a sponge of salt water on my stairmill. My wife was just bopping along to her music, looking like she just started. I suffered through an hour, and now I never have to do it again.

The best part of the stairmill is that afterward, I ate one of these

They are the best tasting bars, ever, period. No ifs, ands or buts. I would eat these things everyday if I could. The only downside is they don't do too well in the heat (anything over 65 degrees and they get MESSY)

Enough about my sweet tooth. In other randomness, my dog got hit by a car about a week ago. The car was going about 40mph, and it hit him in the rear end. He was not happy (I was pretty pissed at him for being so stupid) and we took him to the emergency vet, fearing that he was done for. But, he is special. The vet picked him up off the emergency gurney and he walked across the room. The x-rays showed no broken bones. The only change we have noticed is that he farts a lot now. He also scares himself when he farts, getting up to see what is going on with his rear end.

He is very special. He looks sweet here, but he is mostly evil.

In more relevant news, I went for a bike ride today. I successfully avoided the rain and got in some good tempo work and some climbing with legs that were really funky. They felt okay to start, then heavy, then springy, then dead, then heavy, then springy, and then okay but tired at the end of the ride. Very weird, but maybe it means I am getting stronger. Or my legs are going to fall off.

This is the first ride of the season that I wore an actually kit for. I feel goofy any time I wear a matching outfit and I am not racing.

Can you tell?

Even my helmet and sunnies match. This is a monumental milestone in my cycling habit/career/infatuation. I didn't plan it, but everything matches. I know the vest isn't part of the "kit" but the colors match, so I am going to say it counts.

The ride was one of my usual out and backs, although I added on some exploring at the end. I got to a road I had looked at on google maps before, and I decided to see where it went. It runs along a river for a while, and then up the side of a mountain.

Lots of private land, and some interesting snowmobile trails that I could see myself exploring. I went out for a while, climbed until the road started descending. I turned back and headed home at this point, and made it home just in time for dinner in the cafeteria. It is very nice to get home and just role into the dining hall with all the food I can eat ready for me. I will miss that part of school, but I think I will get over it quickly.

Waiting Game

2009-05-05T15:34:00.000-07:00

Still waiting, not patiently, for the end of the year. Or, at least to build up my new-to-me frame. Pete had a frame that was too small, and I was done dealing with horizontal drops on my Soma. It was a great bike, fun to to ride and race, but the two flats I had while I owned it were not fun. Walking two hours out of the woods in carbon soled shoes is not a good time. So, now I have to wait to get the parts from Vermont here to the frame so I can build a mountain bike and ride it for the remainder of the time we are in NH.

Anyway, today Aliza and I went for a run at the dam. We escaped the rain and made it through the cold. The trails look to be in great shape, with a lot of raking done for a nice, tacky base. Yesterday was a great set of intervals on the road bike. I limped home after 8 sets, and I am trying to avoid going upstairs at all costs today. Not easy to do when I live on the third floor.

I am hoping to have the bike built at least for the 17th of May. George from Five hills bikes has a really cool race going, which validates the property taxes we have been paying for the past two years while living in New Hampy.

Hope it goes well.

Longest post ever

2009-05-03T17:47:00.000-07:00

The end of the year is rapidly approaching, which means three things. We are done with our "real jobs" soon, we get to go home soon, and we get to start racing/participating/hanging out soon. I am very excited for the summer and the new job next year, but I am also on the verge of soiling myself at the prospect of so many things being able to go wrong or not work out. I know that worrying won't help, but it doesn't mean I am not going to worry.

Anyway, Last week we headed down to Bear brook, a 10,000 acres state park in New Hampy that has a bunch of trails for running (Aliza) and biking (me). We can both leave the car at the same time and be out on trails for 3-4 hours and meet back at the car. The big bonus is there is a really good burrito and smoothie restaurant on the way home, so we can stuff our pie holes before returning to school.

Aliza is very excited to have her picture taken.

My last trip to Bear Brook ended 2o minutes in with a broken chain. This time I was ready to ride. I headed out on the fire roads and snowmachine trails, and then hit one of the best trails in the park, hedgehog ledge. It is built under a huge boulder, with smaller boulders that the trail winds through and a lot of flakes that are used to step the trail up and down the hills. Lots of fun on a rigid single.

After the rock maze, the single track is tight and flowy, with lots of rocks to fling yourself over and ride off of. After the single track, you head past Bear Pond, which is quite picturesque.

I usually head out from the main parking lot to the end of the main road (I believe it is called podunk road, but I am not sure) past bear pond, past the 4-h camp to the best section of single track in the whole park. It is rocky, rooty, twisty, turny, fast, flowy and about seventy more adjectives that I don't have the patience to write out. It is a lot of fun and climbs steadily to a nice rock outcropping that is the end of the trail. I could ride out, stop and eat at the rock, and then bomb back down the single track back to the car for a nice 3 hour ride. Much to my dismay, the majority of the trail now looks like this.

Some of the best single track is now lost under slash and stumps from the recent logging. I know that the state uses the park for logging and research, but this ruined my ride. You can also see the winged harbingers of death, the black flies. I stopped long enough to take this pic and then jumped back on the bike to head home, rather pissed that this section of trail is done.

In happier news, I found a new favorite trail near my house today. There is a certain hill, with lots a very techy climb, to a techy ridge trail, to a very techy descent near my house. Part of the trail was shut down because of a land owner, but new trails have been springing up on top of the hill, and they are fun. I spent three hour riding back and forth, getting lost on top of this hill. I found this

which is one of my new favorite trails. Although, any new trail can easily become my favorite. I am easily entertained and have a very short term memory, so I can be easily won over with shiny new things. Or even just shiny things.

I also found this.

Although it is neither shiny nor new, I thought it was very interesting to find an old tractor on top of a mountain. (I told you I was easily amused) The ride ended with a sprint home to get ready to help out the father-in-law with yard work, and left me tired and excited to get back to VT and be surrounded by killer trails right out the door. Hopefully the end of the year will come quickly, my new-to-me frame will get here soon, and I will have something to entertain myself with for the rest of our time in NH.

a lurge ick.

2009-04-30T05:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know what is in the air, but whatever it was, I am allergic to it. Sunday I spent the day moping around like a zombie. Monday I felt like someone had jammed a can of EZ cheese up my nose and emptied the yellowish, cheese substitute into my nasal cavity. (I still went for a run, I figured I would either sweat it out, or die, both of which would be better than sitting around suffering) Tuesday the EZ cheese had migrated to my ears, so I could hear nothing. I didn't die on my run, and I still hadn't sweated everything out. It was 95 degrees, so I figured a bike ride with some intervals and hill repeats would certainly achieve my goal of death or healing through perspiration. Unfortunately, neither occurred. I went home and spent the evening on the couch with a kick ass migraine. Wednesday I was still hearing impaired, and we went to Bear brook. A 2 and a half hour ride getting lost on singletrack and fire roads was the miracle cure for my allergies. I think I should get a doctor's note saying I need to do that at least three times a week, but I don't like going to the doctors, so maybe I will just self medicate.

Being sick sucks

2009-04-26T18:51:00.000-07:00

SHort ride Friday with wifey, we got lost and then went home. Saturday was supposed to be the first big dirt ride, 3 hours at bear brook to prep for the blast off race at the end of May. I get ready, head out and get the the top of the first ridge, and snapped my chain on a dinky little rise in the trail. 20 minutes of riding, and then half an hour of hiking. I was not pleased. I waited for Aliza to be done running, and then we headed back to school for our last weekend on duty.

To make things even more interesting, I am starting to get sick. I am not sure if it is allergies or a flu, but I feel useless and lethargic. Maybe it is swine flu. That would be perfect.

Duty Night

2009-04-23T18:35:00.000-07:00

Not much to do tonight, besides make sure the kids are all behaving and not killing each other. The end of the year has them running around like, well, high school kids a month before the end of school. I can't say that I am not excited, but I hope that everyone remains calm and respectful and doesn't make my life hell. Anyway, on to more interesting things. After my long ride yesterday Aliza and I headed to the dam to run with the doggies. She powered on for an hour, I skulked behind on the hills and towards the end of the run. Good rest day, hopefully tomorrow will be a nice long dirt ride. I wish we were back in VT already, I have heard lots of good rumors about new trails in my neighborhood. I hope they are true and I hope I get to help ride them in.

Rockets, humanure and rain.

2009-04-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

My wife came back from VT today, after taking care of her father for a few days. He is doing well and going crazy because he is not able to do much of anything for the next 5 weeks. Wifey called me before she left, and asked if I would like to meet her halfway. I thought it would be a good long ride, and set out around noon.

I am still trying to get the riding self portrait down.

The ride is mostly back roads, through Plymouth, into Warren and then onto some interesting dirt roads. It heads past an excellent climbing spot, through a few lumberyards and along the Baker River. The highlight of the ride is the town with the rocket ship.

I am not sure why it is there, or why all my typing is now hyperlinked, but it is. The town with the rocket ship also has really cool cops. Just ask my father, who was pulled over by one when he was driving me up to college my freshman year. The chief doesn't like it when people speed in "his" town. After the rocket, I rode through a field where a farmer was spreading manure. I live in Vermont, and my house is surrounded by dairy farms. I know what cow shit smells like. This guy was not spreading just cowshit. I learned about "humanure" the other day watching the Daily show. I think this guy saw the same show and decided to try his hand at his own form of humanure.

The best part about choking through the field of freshly spread fecal matter was that it was right before the big climb of the ride. Right around mile 50 the road goes up. About 1500 feet in two or three miles. Not fun.

If you look closely, you can see the tractor spreading the doodie.

After the climb, their is a short descent and then rolling hills until the state line. I almost beat Aliza to the bridge, but she picked me up a mile before, right as it started to rain. I was very happy.

Another long weekend

2009-04-21T04:16:00.000-07:00

This weekend was another chance to go home, and move some more stuff back to VT. I say it was a long weekend, when it actually was just a normal, two day weekend. I guess we have to take what we can get. I did get to do some manual labor Saturday night, making raised beds for the garden this summer. Sunday was the gravel grinder, which was a lot of fun. I saw a lot of familiar faces and met some new bike people. I am looking forward to the "Grabber."

That is all.

Trails, hills and white legs.

2009-04-17T18:51:00.000-07:00

It has been a pretty busy week. Some running with the wife (it counts as quality time, and she likes to make me suffer) It was good to get out and run on trails. It was especially good because it meant that the trails were dry, and ready to ride. So, Thursday I got out my trusty One-gle speed, and headed out. Without any knee covers. First time this year, and that can only mean one thing.

WHITE LEGS.

Yup. I gave the guys a little sun. They will be white for a few months yet, but this picture captures the true brilliance of my pasty, white, fish belly legs. It was good to get out and ride in beautiful weather.

The trails were nice and dry. Franklin Falls is a really fun place to ride, and no one knows about it. The CNHMBA (Central New Hampy Mountain Bike Association) has done a great job getting trails in there and planning lots of fun trails for the future. The trails and view are spectacular.

Friday was riding with the team, good young riders and some spinny intervals, and then hill sprints. Lots of fun. Hopefully more trail tomorrow and then the Gravel grinder on Sunday.

Trying to be a cool blogger

2009-04-15T13:50:00.000-07:00

In my effort to become really cool through the wittiness and cool photos on my blog, I tried to take a good self portrait of myself on my ride yesterday. I had three hours to ride, and I set out towards Bridgewater hill road. It is as fun as it sounds. On my way back, I attempted to take a riding self portrait, because that is what cool bike riding, bike blogging people do. Or, at least Rick does it, and he seems cool. So, in my efforts to be cool I attempted to take a sweet, riding my bike, looking cool picture of myself. My first attempt was not so good.

Kind of trippy, but not very badass. My second attempt was a bit better.

Not quite so Fear and loathing in Las Vegas as the first, but still not very befitting such a cool bikeblogger like myself. As they say, the third time is a charm, and it took me three tries to get something that looked okay.

I even got some of the background in, even if it is rather boring. Maybe some day I will take a ride in a more scenic portion of the Greater Franklin area (sarcasm) and take a really cool picture. Or maybe I should just quit while I am ahead.

Long weekend

2009-04-13T17:30:00.000-07:00

We had an unplanned long weekend extending from last Thursday to today. Unfortunately, not for the Easter holiday, but for my father-in-law to have heart surgery. It was great to be back in Vermont, but not the reason we would have chosen to go home. Fortunately, he seems to be doing alright and everyone got to spend some tense, but quality time together. Aliza and I were also able to get out a few times and hang out with some friends. Friday for me was an interval ride, from the big city out to our house and then back in to the hospital. The Burlington bike path is a great place for a ride.

Some single track and some intervals. Thankfully, the intervals ended at the very last uphill before the descent into my hometown. The view isn't that bad.

Stopped at home and picked up some supplies, and then a nice leisurely sprint down the busiest road in Vermont, Williston road from South Burlington right into the metropolis of B-town.

Easter morning I was able to head out with Jason.

Jason is always fun to ride with. He will ride anywhere, no matter how dumb it sounds. He knows a lot about bikes. Plus, he can grow cool facial hair. Like Wolverine. Or a hobo. He also really likes franks and beans, and pierogies.

We ripped some very dry singletrack section maintained by an incredible organization, Fellowship of the Wheel. These guys mobilize and incredible amount of people, make a ton of incredible trails, and they make my rides a lot more interesting. Anyway, back to the weekend. Jason and I rode for about 4 hours, I think. It was a great way to start the "season" riding with a great friend and railing some incredible trails.

Hopefully this week will be a bit more predictable, with some road bike time and some more trails. Hopefully.

Making do.

2009-04-08T16:18:00.001-07:00

Today was going to be good day. Yesterday's ride went out the window with a last minute help session for one of my students (Hopefully now he will pass the tenth grade) So today's ride was going to be a good one, whether it wanted to or not. I had plenty of time, the weather wasn't pissing rain, and I had my inspiration. I suited up and headed out, and rode down this snowmachine trail I have been eyeing for a while. I ran part of it this winter, but it had gotten a bit wetter since then.

I figured it I could make it. Big wheels, single speed, and all afternoon. Sounds like a good idea. And, besides, it can't get much worse, right?

(I don't know what is worse, me trying to convince myself it is good, or providing photographic proof of my rationalization)

So, I ford the stream, and find some double track ATV trails that run all over what used to be a sand pit ( I think) and head down trail after trail, getting lost and finding myself many times. So, given all the rain we have had recently, I should have known it would get worse.

Fortunately, this was one of the last huge puddles/pondlets that I had to ride through. I was already wet anyway, so it wasn't a huge deal. Besides, the trails after this were fun. I cruised through some pump track like atv trails, down fire roads, some trails that even slightly resembled single track.

Okay, maybe not. But, it has been a long winter, and I was really happy just to be in the woods and not on the road. I rode in the sand pit for about and hour, and then I heard the sound of snapping twigs and splashing up ahead. I came over a short rise just in time to see a moose heading into the woods in front of me. It is somewhat scary to see one from 50 feet away, especially when you are wearing spandex and a styrofoam hat. I was glad he was running away, and the footprints he left prove he was big enough to squash me.

I decided then that it was time to head out of the woods. I explored some dirt roads, then some paved roads, and then ended up on some dirt roads I had ridden before. I was able to head down a severely washed out class VI road to make a loop onto some more snowmachine trails before heading home. It was, interesting, to say the least.

It was getting cold, so I started to head back. I hopped onto some more snowmachine trails that I thought I knew pretty well. After half an hour of getting lost, I realized I didn't know them that well. But, it was still fun. I made it back just in time for dinner, and hope to get a good ride in tomorrow.

Soaking wet and bored.

2009-04-06T17:04:00.000-07:00

Went for a run with the dogs today, lots of fun to tromp around in the wet and muck. We were all drenched within the first five minutes of running. The trails are clearing up quick, and the sandy soil under them should help them dry out quickly once they are clear. I can't wait to ride on some dirt!

In fact, my excitement is growing as the races get closer and my new uni came in today!

Aliza made me model it and show it off.

I couldn't just wear it, I had to make sure everything was in proper working order, so I hopped on my bike and took it for a spin. Of course I couldn't go outside, that would be too strenuous. I did laps in the apartment. I always practice safe biking techniques, like wearing a helmet.

I did enough laps that Timber (my super special dog) decided to chase me and try to bite me while I was riding around our apartment. This was the end of my test ride in the new uni. I can't wait until I get to wear it on an actual ride.

Run,run,ride.

2009-04-05T14:56:00.000-07:00

The weather here in NH has not been cooperating lately. It was rainy and cold the past few days, so I was relegated to running for the past two days. Running is okay, but I feel like I need to bike as much as possible. I guess absence does make the heart grow fonder, as I was able to get out on the bike today and I felt good. I rode with a friend who is newer to biking than I am, and we headed out towards the speedway (NASCAR BABY!) with a strong tailwind. Then we turned around, and struggled back home. It was a good effort, as I pulled most of the way and kept it in the little ring to even out the ride for my buddy. I then rode back home with him, and continued on my own for another hour. Hopefully the weather will hold and I can ride some more tomorrow.

First MTB ride of Spring!!!

2009-04-02T16:05:00.000-07:00

We did it today. Aliza and I took the bikes out for a spin down the rail trail and out to explore some dirt roads. We found the rail trail was not "totally clear" as our friend told us, so we had to deal with a bit of snow. Okay, a lot of snow. Then we tried to find the snowmobile path that runs parallel to the highway. Instead, we got escorted off this lady's property. She told us to try the other side of the highway. So, instead, we found some good hills, mostly up, but a lot of down, too. Then I dropped Aliza off at school and kept going. I found some good "Class VI" roads as they are known in NH, with some mud, a lot of water, and quite a bit of snow.

It can only get better from here.

I am officially a bike dork

2009-04-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

I did some testing today. It is called a "lactate threshold test" Much to my dismay, it has nothing to do with cheese, or other tasty lactose containing foods. I bought a copy of Joe Friel's book about Mountain bike training and realized he really knows his stuff when it comes to all that science-y stuff that has to do with physiology and other big 5 syllable words. I also read his blog the other day, and he wrote an idiot proof (I tested it today, it is idiot proof) guide on how to do a Lactate threshold test. I warmed up, the started to go pretty much all out for 30 minutes. Then I took my average heart rate for the last 20 minutes. I guess this tells me where I should be (heart rate wise) when I am doing my intervals and other fun things that make me want to expunge my lunch onto my handlebars. I almost lost it today, but I kept it all in. Maybe next time.

Goats and frost heaves

2009-03-31T15:44:00.000-07:00

The weather was much more ride friendly today, so I took a ride up to Plymouth to pick up the gloves I forgot there last week. This is one of my typical spring rides. It follows the Winnepausaukee river from Tilton almost all the way up to Plymouth, on mostly back roads. Unfortunately, the back roads in NH have potholes in them that rival foxholes from WWI. They are deep. I got my gloves and headed back, and whem I am about 5 miles away from home, I see a furry black thing running towards me as I ride past. I thought it was a dog so I started to sprint, but as it got a lot closer, I heard it bleet. Or baahh, whatever it is that goats do. So, I stopped because the goat was in the middle of the road. I had no idea where it lived (there were several houses that it could have belonged to) So I brought it out of the road and made sure it was safe.
Fun in NH

He made it home safe.

Monday run day

2009-03-30T17:45:00.000-07:00

Quick run with the dogs today. Good run, about an hour, but nothing too exciting. The big news is that it is official, we are moving back to Vermont for good in two months. I am pretty happy. Back to school, good new job, and we get to live in a SICK area for biking. This is a trail system that I can ride to, out my front door. And the best part is that it is a two hour, mostly single track ride to get there. (my title pic is from that trail) You could get there more quickly, but what is fun of that?

Anyway, I am excited to go home. Yup, home. It should be good.

Crouched over my handlebars in the fetal position, with my hands stuffed up my shirt

2009-03-29T19:21:00.000-07:00

That was how I ended my ride outside today. I thought I would get in a quick ride before brunch, then ride after some shopping and call it a day. Unfortunately, like Wheels says it is a tough time of year to ride. I was alright on the way out with the wind, but once I turned and the wind was head on, my hands got cold. Real cold. So, I stopped to warm them up, by sticking them up my shirt. They got a bit warmer (which stung, kind of bad) so that the cars that went by definitely had some interesting thoughts about bikers. Once they were warmed up, I soldiered on. Then I got cold again, warmed my hands again, and continued. Of course, it happened again, and this time when I stopped, I got really cold. I struggled to pull my phone out of my jacket pocket with my deformed popsicle hands, then popped it out of the plastic bag, and dialed Aliza with my frosty nubs. Yup, I called the sag wagon. I couldn't grip the handle bars, and the braking was not up to par, as I like to be able to stop before colliding with inanimate objects.
I guess threes days of fifty degrees and sun made me soft. Friday's ride was excellent, found a new, low traffic route in Concord that made me feel like a hero. Nice, rolling hills with newish pavement. I will have to go back when my hands can hold things again.

Riding with the boys

2009-03-26T16:15:00.000-07:00

Today's ride was a bit of a rest, but it was pretty cool because it was my first ride with the Tilton bike team. I don't coach road biking, but I ride a lot after school, and it is fun to ride with the kids.

Tilton's bike history is minimal, although Tom Coupe, who just placed first and second in the two races at NCCC last weekend, is our most successful alumnus. The road team has just recently been resurrected, and I was able to start the first Mountain bike team last fall.

We played dab. It is fun.

So, for today's ride I got to head out with the fast kids. And they were impressive. I thought I had been training well, getting on the rollers early and often. I led them out, and they were right on my heels. It wasn't until we hit the hills that they started to fall apart (and make me feel a little less old) Then, at the end of the ride, I realized that neither of them brought water. Or food. If only they thought about riding as much as they thought about Xbox. They would be scary.

It is always fun to ride with kids. It took me a while to discover biking and enjoy it, so it always gives me hope when young guys get the bug.

Really? Come on.

2009-03-25T16:37:00.000-07:00

Well, my wife and I have come to discover that nothing is easy in the world of education. In these uncertain times we really like having jobs, and we like have jobs that allow us to keep our house, save some money, and get some really cool toys (MY BIKE!)

Unfortunately, in an effort to better our situation, we decided to look for schools closer to home, or in an area that was more our cup of tea (somewhere we don't get forced of the roads when we ride or run, somewhere there are more than just the two of us who like to do things outdoors, somewhere that isn't where we currently are) But, during our search, the economy had to fail, our current school wants us to commit (quickly, I might add) and the schools that have offered jobs haven't been able to come up with two jobs, or they are dragging their heels to commit.

I guess all the uncertainty and hoping for something better have put us in foul moods. Even though today was a gorgeous day, and I was able to run and then get in a two hour ride, and have dinner with friends from HOME, we are still at home, pissed off that neither one of us knows what to do.

Maybe I will just put a poll on facebook and have the interweb people decide.

Monday, Monday.

2009-03-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a waste of a day, and today was a little bit better. Got a sort of, kind of Job offer that might take us back to the Green Mountain state indefinitely. Plus, more money and the chance to go back to school are also bonuses. Thinking about it, it could give me a lot more time to train, and ride, which is the only real reason to train. I mean, what other point is there? I like to run every now and then, swimming is good to do when you don't want to drown, but there is nothing (in summer) that is as exhilirating as riding. In the woods, maybe with a friend or two, and everything is clicking. I hope that I get to ride more. That would be alright.

Today was running, 1 hour with 7 hill sprints mixed in. Fun. The bike shoes should get here on Wednesday, just in time to go for a nice long ride. Maybe up to Waterville valley. I haven't been there in a while.

I think my first race will be up in VT for Flower Power. Good, fun, local race. Hopefully I will get some pics.

Back in the saddle.

2009-03-22T15:45:00.000-07:00

So, 10 days in Europe, (lots of fun, lots of cities, and some great memories with some very interesting kids) Then a truncated break, with about 20 hours of what resembled exercise, two job interviews and about 15 hours of driving. And the best parts, I forgot bike shoes and pedals in Vermont, so the two bikes I brought back are pretty much useless. Hopefully UPS will get the shoes here quickly, or I might have to run........

What a week

2009-03-05T16:06:00.000-08:00

One of the benefits of working where I do is that I get to take kids out into the Wilderness, and make them do things they wouldn't normally do. Participation is not compulsory, so there are small groups (two in this case) which makes it interesting. This trip was up to Mt. Washington. The forecast for Wednesday (our hiking day) the day before our hike was "wind gusts up to 25 miles per hour, wind chill of -15 and sunny all day. Sounds good. When we got to the visitor center, the forecast had changed a bit. (gusts up to 75 mph, wind chill of -45 increasing clouds after noon) Not so good.

Nick, our gracious guide, checks the weather forecast.

We set out anyway, hoping for a summit, but excited just to be out in some "adverse conditions" and playing on the snow with pointy things in our hands and on our feet. The kids really enjoyed practicing self arrest technique, as I was hoping beyond hope that they would not have to employ that practice on the hike.

We headed up into winds increasing from a dull, overhead roar, to full on, rig up the sails and hang on gusts that we had to lean into in order to stay upright. One of the students was from Brazil, and He was rather excited to be experiencing something so new and gnarly.

Here he is leaning into wind as he hikes up

We made it to the summit of Lion's Head, a small knob about three quarters of the way up to the summit. The wind was howling, and the kids were fading, so decided to turn around. The kids had a great time, even if they didn't start talking until we were down below treeline and headed back to the car. I even found the time to ride the rollers for an hour when we got home, and today I was able to ride outside for an hour and 45 minutes. I have to get everything in now before I leave for Yurp on Saturday.

Ups and downs

2009-02-26T17:28:00.000-08:00

This pic makes me happy. Summer is close!
Today was a beautiful day. Sunny, high forties, and I was stuck inside all day. It can be very rewarding to work with kids. It can also be extremely taxing. This week was the latter. Too many things happening that aren't good. Lots of stress for me with a ridiculously busy week coming up, and then a trip to Europe when I should be on vacation. Not much fun. To make matters worse, I didn't do anything yesterday, after a jarring encounter in the freshman dorm. Today was just skating, on top of duty, and a long, drawn out day in the academic building. Oh well, either way in one week I will be on "sort of" spring break, and then on the 16th it starts for real.

Over the hill

2009-02-24T17:02:00.000-08:00

Today is it. I can no longer call myself 20 something. I know that 30 isn't usually the age that people start to freak out about their midlife crisis, but it is a bit unsettling to know that I am no longer "young." I guess I just have to start hanging out with older people.

Training has been consistent. Sunday was a 2 hour run, which I suffered for afterwards. Too many hills and not enough stretching/water afterwards. Yesterday was an hour on the rollers, to keep things moving. Today was two hours, with 3 one foot pedalling drills (3x5x70 each foot) and some skating with the kids at practice.

I hope that this year goes well for me, race wise. I have been pretty focused on the training and I haven't even been able to ride outside much. I don't want to feel old, and I certainly don't feel mature, so this year is important to me and I hope I perform well.

On that note, I also registered for 24 hours of Great Glen, a race where I am going to give'er, and the Gravel Grinder, led by the local bike savant George at www.bike29.com

Should be fun.

GOALS

2009-02-21T20:14:00.000-08:00

So, after reading Friel's "Mountain biker's bible" I have decided that this was my first week of base building. 12 hours of training, with work and dog walking is not bad. One week from today the winter season is over, and then it is on. Like the monkey game. I guess now would be a good time to write some goals for this year, and put them someplace I can see them.

1. Be more focused!!!!! I need to continue to train over the summer, not tail off like last year. Hopefully I can keep up the training through cross season and actually do some races.

2. 24hr race podium. I know this is a lofty goal, but I think it is achievable. I think if I train and race smart, a local 24 podium spot is within reach. Maybe more than one?

3. Represent at the VT 5o. I love the race, as do 800 other people, but I want to set my sights on the 50 as my "graceland." And I don't mean the Elvis one, but the Paul Simon album. I like that one a lot better.

4. Not race related, but I want to ride A LOT this summer. I think this will help with the other goals. Bike touring, consecutive multi hour days, just a lot of time in the saddle. Or, saddles, of several different bikes.

Well, I guess now is the part where I work towards these goals. Wish me luck.

I hate.......

2009-02-20T16:40:00.000-08:00

Waiting for warm weather, not being able to ski, rollers, not having enough time, rollers, being busy all the time, rollers, and not having enough time.

A bit repetitive, I know, but I am sick of being in "limbo." I always get impatient when one season is winding down, and I can't do either of the activities that I like to do because of work, or weather or any number of reasons. Oh well, I guess I will have to wait for summer and then I will have lots of time to bike.

Yesterday was a quick (not really, 15 minute miles) snowshoe run for 45 minutes. 6 inches of fresh, HEAVY snow, and the dogs running behind.
Today was a roller session, one hour, 3 sets of 5x70 one footers. My right leg was dying.

Maybe the weather will be nice in two weeks and I can get out and do something fun.

Inside out.

2009-02-18T19:06:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a beautiful day, even if it was chilly. 30 degrees with a stiff North wind chilly. I got to ride outside for 2 hours and 2o minutes. Nice, dry roads, not too much ice and a relatively clean bike for a February ride. I rode up to the 45 degree car on River road, mostly 39t with some big ring on the way back.
Today was back to the rollers. Not much fun, but riding outside is a lot more work, and I felt like I could fly on the rollers. 3 sets of one footers, first two were 70x5 each, last set was 50x5 because I only wanted to roll for an hour as a rest day. Maybe slowshoe running tomorrow.

A not so long weekend.

2009-02-16T18:39:00.000-08:00

4 days off from work. It felt like 4 hours. Friday was running, and the lazy day for the weekend. Saturday was an intro to ice climbing. Lots of ice and lots of fun. My father-in-law and a friend (our guide) spent the entire day climbing in the notch. Lots of fun, hopefully next time I can avoid the bleeding.

Sunday was two hours skiing with the dog. He had fun, I was still beat from the day before. It was good to be out, though.

Monday, did some running with the wife. 10 miles, with 8x2 minute hill repeats. Soooo much fun.

Then, Jason called, and we went for a nice fixie ride. 2 hours at a pretty good pace. Fun day to be outside. I am going to be tired tomorrow.

Out of doors....

2009-02-11T15:06:00.000-08:00

I rode outside for the first time today!!!! Warm weather, lots of water and salt. I am going to have to clean my bike pretty well. It was good to be outside, pedalling on something that wasn't dead flat. I felt dogged at first, but then felt some form coming back, and then slipping away, and then coming back again. I hope that this weekend I get to ride a bit more, should be fun with the fixie and the Vermont roads.
Last night I got to ride the rollers, after duty. I hope I get to ride outside a bit more, but I know there is a lot more skiing to be had.

Funky fresh

2009-02-09T18:32:00.000-08:00

Yup. Funky fresh rollers. I am really hoping that I get to ride outside when we go home. 4 hours on rollers this week. Not bad, but I am sure there are more exciting things to do.

I watched Saturday Night Fever while I was rolling. It is really funny. I wish I had tight polyester pants and could dance. Then I would be famous. And rich. And that would be sooooo cool.

I think I like where I am now.

The streak is over...........

2009-02-08T06:35:00.000-08:00

I exercised last night, breaking my one week streak of being a sicko. I rode the rollers for one hour, and this morning I feel like I raced yesterday. I slept for 11 hours, and I feel fine going slowly this morning. I was hoping I might get to do the Rando race next weekend, but at this rate, I think that touring with friends will be the best choice.
At any rate, I am happy that I getting better and I can exercise again.

This Sucks

2009-02-04T19:56:00.000-08:00

Sick for week. Went to the doctor's office, and they told me I have a sinus infection, that started to spread to my lungs. Any sort of activity in cold weather makes me cough uncontrollably. I haven't exercised since last Friday.

Oh well. At least I get to watch Commando on Tv. Arnold was a very entertaining actor back in the day. California is so lucky to have him.