Went to the Doctor today for this crazy swollen eye. I have a ulcer on my cornea which was caused by drinking too much of the neighbors homebrew and then sleeping with my contacts in. I can't wear contacts for a week but I can still drink beer.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
The Eye
Went to the Doctor today for this crazy swollen eye. I have a ulcer on my cornea which was caused by drinking too much of the neighbors homebrew and then sleeping with my contacts in. I can't wear contacts for a week but I can still drink beer.
3 Day Weekend
A couple good rides and some family time pretty much sums up the weekend.
Went for a long mountain bike ride on Saturday that ended up being 58 miles with roughly 3000ft of elevation gain. Left the house to start this ride with a quick five miles on Green Mountain before hitting the roads over to Golden. Met up with SC and friend to head over to White Ranch for a serious climb to get the heart racing. After a some straight up miles we hooked up with some roads/gravel and headed over to Golden Gate State Park. Here we did the Mountain Lion, Buffalo, and Mule Deer trails which brought us to a elevation a tad over 9200ft. A stop at the visitor center to look at trout and fill bottles we headed for home. We had a screaming descent on tar until a right turn that switched to gravel and went directly upward. I was geared with a 32x18 which was not small enough for this 1 mile of gravel hell. Made it to the top with a view of Dever and the front range that was incredible. Bombed down to Golden to cold beer. Down a few and pedaled home the short way to the back side of Green Mountain for one last taste of single track. Home in time for dinner!
Woke Sunday to a glorious day. The legs felt better than the previous day and I had managed to rehydrate. I rode down to BCLP to spin out the legs. Went to the RMO race to watch some suffering. Glad I wasn't out there but wanting to get back to racing form.
The Mountain Flyer is a great magazine about cycling in the mountains. Kristian House, an alum of the Violent Clowns, won the FBD INSURANCE RÁS. Check out Paddy's DK write up.
Off to the doctor today to have the eye looked at, hopefully just a scratch or something.
Peace!
Went for a long mountain bike ride on Saturday that ended up being 58 miles with roughly 3000ft of elevation gain. Left the house to start this ride with a quick five miles on Green Mountain before hitting the roads over to Golden. Met up with SC and friend to head over to White Ranch for a serious climb to get the heart racing. After a some straight up miles we hooked up with some roads/gravel and headed over to Golden Gate State Park. Here we did the Mountain Lion, Buffalo, and Mule Deer trails which brought us to a elevation a tad over 9200ft. A stop at the visitor center to look at trout and fill bottles we headed for home. We had a screaming descent on tar until a right turn that switched to gravel and went directly upward. I was geared with a 32x18 which was not small enough for this 1 mile of gravel hell. Made it to the top with a view of Dever and the front range that was incredible. Bombed down to Golden to cold beer. Down a few and pedaled home the short way to the back side of Green Mountain for one last taste of single track. Home in time for dinner!
Woke Sunday to a glorious day. The legs felt better than the previous day and I had managed to rehydrate. I rode down to BCLP to spin out the legs. Went to the RMO race to watch some suffering. Glad I wasn't out there but wanting to get back to racing form.
The Mountain Flyer is a great magazine about cycling in the mountains. Kristian House, an alum of the Violent Clowns, won the FBD INSURANCE RÁS. Check out Paddy's DK write up.
Off to the doctor today to have the eye looked at, hopefully just a scratch or something.
Peace!
Friday, May 26, 2006
A full week of riding.....
I am back in the swing of riding again, boy it feels good. A solid week back on the bike.
I was planning on racing all this weekend but with the lack of intensity since TI, I decided to save my money and just go for some long rides. Still trying to get my summer race schedule worked out. It looks as CB100 is being nixed but might add either (or both) the Breck100 or Laramie Enduro into the mix. I am also adding 24hr Rage in the Sage. I will add some road racing in where it fits.
I received my Thomson stem the other day and realized that I ordered it for an oversized handlebar. I lurk here to look for good deals from the pros. They have some used bars that might work on the Cross bike. I don't know what I was thinking when I ordered the stem, oh well, I could use some new bars.
Try to work in 3 days of riding!
I was planning on racing all this weekend but with the lack of intensity since TI, I decided to save my money and just go for some long rides. Still trying to get my summer race schedule worked out. It looks as CB100 is being nixed but might add either (or both) the Breck100 or Laramie Enduro into the mix. I am also adding 24hr Rage in the Sage. I will add some road racing in where it fits.
I received my Thomson stem the other day and realized that I ordered it for an oversized handlebar. I lurk here to look for good deals from the pros. They have some used bars that might work on the Cross bike. I don't know what I was thinking when I ordered the stem, oh well, I could use some new bars.
Try to work in 3 days of riding!
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
More DK write-ups
Check these out for more DK adventures.
Rte66
Dave
After seeing the pictures and reading the accounts, it has been like deja vu. I have stayed in the Travel Lodge at one point in my life.
Some random links
The Fixed Gear
Old Skool
Kristian House's Team
All for now
Rte66
Dave
After seeing the pictures and reading the accounts, it has been like deja vu. I have stayed in the Travel Lodge at one point in my life.
Some random links
The Fixed Gear
Old Skool
Kristian House's Team
All for now
Monday, May 22, 2006
Home
I am happy to say that the Family is all home and things are looking better. It will be a long summer but I think in the end all will be well.
I have been able to throw a leg over the saddle the last three days and boy has it been good for the soul. Spending the days in a hospital can really zap your motivation, along with mess with your emotions. Rode Grn Mtn twice over the weekend and even found a new piece of trail crafted by the trail elves. Woke early this morning to a nice ride to BCLP to watch the sunrise over Mt Carbon.
I have spent the rest on the morning with domestic chores and reading about the weekend adventures. Paul, Cory, Matt, GTed, and Joe all rode the DK and lived to write about it. Next year it is on the calendar. I will be lurking for more stories from the weekend. I did sneak onto the computer a couple of times to listen to GTeds audio blog - good stuff.
I will be spending the rest of the week determining my short term racing plan. More change but hey family comes first. I will have to start adding in some running to the mix as WS100 is coming up and I may have to pace my brother (if Rene bows out) or maybe someone else.
Til later, Peace
I have been able to throw a leg over the saddle the last three days and boy has it been good for the soul. Spending the days in a hospital can really zap your motivation, along with mess with your emotions. Rode Grn Mtn twice over the weekend and even found a new piece of trail crafted by the trail elves. Woke early this morning to a nice ride to BCLP to watch the sunrise over Mt Carbon.
I have spent the rest on the morning with domestic chores and reading about the weekend adventures. Paul, Cory, Matt, GTed, and Joe all rode the DK and lived to write about it. Next year it is on the calendar. I will be lurking for more stories from the weekend. I did sneak onto the computer a couple of times to listen to GTeds audio blog - good stuff.
I will be spending the rest of the week determining my short term racing plan. More change but hey family comes first. I will have to start adding in some running to the mix as WS100 is coming up and I may have to pace my brother (if Rene bows out) or maybe someone else.
Til later, Peace
Monday, May 15, 2006
Rolling with the gut punches......
No riding and no posting.
Things have been, well crappy! Spent a lot of time with my daughter in Denver, while she is recovering from a super nasty viral infection. Hope to get her home by the weekend.
Will give a post of that first time I throw a leg over the saddle, till then peace.
Things have been, well crappy! Spent a lot of time with my daughter in Denver, while she is recovering from a super nasty viral infection. Hope to get her home by the weekend.
Will give a post of that first time I throw a leg over the saddle, till then peace.
Friday, May 05, 2006
What's next?
This was suppose to be a time to reflect on the past weekends accomplishments or failures. I was going to spend 2 weeks relaxing with the kids as Rene was enjoying a working vacation in Moses Lake, Washington. Plans are meant to be altered. Now I have been scheming for the next race/event. Lucky for me that from here to the middle of December there is some sort of race – mountain, road, or cross.
What’s next? I am not sure. I wish I could make Dirty Kanza work but Rene arrives home on the 19th and runs a marathon on the 21st. I have done the math and decided that sleep deprivation and driving through western Kansas/eastern Colorado would not be a good idea. I will be signing up for the EnduroSnob Epic in November even though their are USGP CX races scheduled for that weekend in Boulder.
I think my next focus will be the Rocky Mountain Omnium. It consists of an uphill time trial that I may do fixed or at least single speed, a circuit race that is less than a mile from the house, and a twisty crit in downtown Golden. First I need to get some speed in the legs. From there the summer is wide open with the Firecracker 50, Crested Butte 100, Mountain States Cup, Winter Park Series, and many ACA races.
The weather has not been conducive for hauling small children around in the trailer so time has been spent on the trainer trying to work last weeks kinks out. Having spent many mornings throughout the winter on it, I find it hard to motivate to awake before the kids and put in a workout.
On another note, I was surfing around and found an article from a local guy on adding a disc brake adapter to rear hub for mounting up a fixed gear. I found this interesting as my DT Swiss hubs can accommodate this type of setup with their adapter. Boone Ti is the only one I have found who makes a disc brake cog. This way I don’t have to keep switching wheel sets to ride fixed. These are the things I find instead of doing domestic chores when Rene is away.
Is anybody having nightmares about worms?
Time for more coffee and maybe then I'll do some laundry. nah.....
What’s next? I am not sure. I wish I could make Dirty Kanza work but Rene arrives home on the 19th and runs a marathon on the 21st. I have done the math and decided that sleep deprivation and driving through western Kansas/eastern Colorado would not be a good idea. I will be signing up for the EnduroSnob Epic in November even though their are USGP CX races scheduled for that weekend in Boulder.
I think my next focus will be the Rocky Mountain Omnium. It consists of an uphill time trial that I may do fixed or at least single speed, a circuit race that is less than a mile from the house, and a twisty crit in downtown Golden. First I need to get some speed in the legs. From there the summer is wide open with the Firecracker 50, Crested Butte 100, Mountain States Cup, Winter Park Series, and many ACA races.
The weather has not been conducive for hauling small children around in the trailer so time has been spent on the trainer trying to work last weeks kinks out. Having spent many mornings throughout the winter on it, I find it hard to motivate to awake before the kids and put in a workout.
On another note, I was surfing around and found an article from a local guy on adding a disc brake adapter to rear hub for mounting up a fixed gear. I found this interesting as my DT Swiss hubs can accommodate this type of setup with their adapter. Boone Ti is the only one I have found who makes a disc brake cog. This way I don’t have to keep switching wheel sets to ride fixed. These are the things I find instead of doing domestic chores when Rene is away.
Is anybody having nightmares about worms?
Time for more coffee and maybe then I'll do some laundry. nah.....
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
TransIowa.....
An abreviated report of my adventures on this years TransIowa. Despite the weather and all the time preparing for this event, I had a great time. Met some great people and will be able to build on the experience.
Hawarden, the start of the slog. We left Marshalltown at 11:00 am and it rained all the way across the state. I was still optimistic that the gravel would be in a condition that I could complete the race. Needless to say I was wrong.
I was lucky enough to have my brother accompany me on this trip. I have had the opportunity to support him on his epic runs and now I have him supporting me. That support went all the way to Detroit as my Mom was relaying messages from the website to him.
Preparing and overthinking what I should bring with. It was an early wake up call for a 4:00 am start.
Rolling into Alton I was questioning my sanity and gear selection. My legs were expending way more energy than needed, especially if I was going to get to Decorah. I was still falsely believing that I could actually finish the race.
Paullina! I was so happy to roll into this town after 3 miles of ditch riding. The freshly made single track left from the leaders was a guide to navigating. A farmer rode his quad next to me and chatted about the weather, the race, and how the roads were great 2 days ago. Another farmer waved me down to ask what in the heck was going on, I gave him the quick version and headed on in.
I actually felt really good at this point in the ride. I knew I was not going to make the cut off but justing riding made it all fun. 50 miles in and I was still smiling.
I got a kick in the butt with a cup of coffee and chatted will fellow riders before heading out to what appeared to be 2 miles of B level roads (according to the cue sheets). I was somewhat demoralized by this section to Sutherland as I push my bike more than I rode it. I wanted to short cut the course and be done with the ride. I decided to gut it out to and see how I felt in Sutherland. I was spent and ready to be done for the day.
Sutherland is where I pulled the plug.
Hawarden, the start of the slog. We left Marshalltown at 11:00 am and it rained all the way across the state. I was still optimistic that the gravel would be in a condition that I could complete the race. Needless to say I was wrong.
I was lucky enough to have my brother accompany me on this trip. I have had the opportunity to support him on his epic runs and now I have him supporting me. That support went all the way to Detroit as my Mom was relaying messages from the website to him.
Preparing and overthinking what I should bring with. It was an early wake up call for a 4:00 am start. 
Rolling into Alton I was questioning my sanity and gear selection. My legs were expending way more energy than needed, especially if I was going to get to Decorah. I was still falsely believing that I could actually finish the race. 
Paullina! I was so happy to roll into this town after 3 miles of ditch riding. The freshly made single track left from the leaders was a guide to navigating. A farmer rode his quad next to me and chatted about the weather, the race, and how the roads were great 2 days ago. Another farmer waved me down to ask what in the heck was going on, I gave him the quick version and headed on in.
I actually felt really good at this point in the ride. I knew I was not going to make the cut off but justing riding made it all fun. 50 miles in and I was still smiling.
I got a kick in the butt with a cup of coffee and chatted will fellow riders before heading out to what appeared to be 2 miles of B level roads (according to the cue sheets). I was somewhat demoralized by this section to Sutherland as I push my bike more than I rode it. I wanted to short cut the course and be done with the ride. I decided to gut it out to and see how I felt in Sutherland. I was spent and ready to be done for the day.
Sutherland is where I pulled the plug. 
I did make it to Algona. Enjoyed a few beers before heading back to Marshalltown via Ames. The leaders got sucked into the Bar in Mallard instead of me to end their race.
It was a race of epic scale. Sign me up for next year!
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Quick TIv2 Update
Made it home late last night and finally can use a computer than will operate faster than I can pedal.
Started in Hawarden and ended in Sutherland. The cue sheet said 63 miles but I only had 62 on the computer due to an early hike a bike section. Average speed was 7.5 miles per hour. Rolled into Sutherland at around 1:30 pm.
A more detailed race report will follow later today.
Hope all the TI riders made it home safely!
Peace,
Mike
Started in Hawarden and ended in Sutherland. The cue sheet said 63 miles but I only had 62 on the computer due to an early hike a bike section. Average speed was 7.5 miles per hour. Rolled into Sutherland at around 1:30 pm.
A more detailed race report will follow later today.
Hope all the TI riders made it home safely!
Peace,
Mike
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