Friday....

I actually had a sort-of-day-off today.  The Boss bagged work to stay home, oh joy, but that also freed a Brother up to ride this morning.  HWF and I did a little light dirt spin, and did little more than BS the entire time.  It was a good recovery sort of spin.  You know, what you're supposed to do on a Friday morning at the end of November...

Last night was a good time.  I think a few of us were feeling a bit frisky, so we rolled out with the "A" group, which actually turned into THE group, since is was a bit thinner than usual last night.  Even so, there were probably 25 or so who left the parking lot.

On the first section of the River Walk, a group took off, and several of us got stuck behind a certain unnamed rider who missed class the day they were distributing handling skills.  The front 5 or 6?  Horizon after 1/4 mile.  HWF and I finally got past the aforementioned rider, and rode, well...in a largely irresponsible manner for the length of the WeCola River Walk.  Too fast into corners?  Sure.  Over-riding the lights?  Sure.  Pegged at MAX on a fun ride thru a pedestrian area?  Yep, that was us. 
As we discussed this morning, thank goodness it was a bit chillier last night, and the trail was empty, b/c had one of us hit a dark-clothed runner or walker, the results would have been catastrophic, at best! We are jackasses...jackasses are we!
We caught and passed all but Dan, and he was kicking ass and taking names on a SS. 

After that, it was time to ride back across the river, and head for Service Course.  A fun 2 hours in the dark to be sure!

I'm gonna need 5-7 minutes alone...thanks!

That's some seriously custom, one-off shit right there! 

I'm sorry, just what are they selling here, because I have some cash to throw at them!

Old school! Full stop...

And proof of the red-head theory...

I know it's not bicycle-related, but it's my show, and I'll program it as I see fit! 

Hope everyone comes out in the morning.  Gonna be a nice day/weekend! 

Happy Weekend!  Namaste!

Quiet...

It's funny...I've been single-management for the beginning of this week, and the corporation has run more smoothly, been quieter, and the facility has been kept cleaner then when the Boss is here.  Odd....

I haven't ridden either, which is fine.  I'll take the three days to recover a bit more from last week.  Sleep has come easy, and machine feels like it has replenished it's stores.  Urban Ride tonight...2 hours in the dark to get the blood flowing again. 

Know this guy?  No?  Then Shut Yo Mouf!

Every time I toy with the idea of buying a TIG setup, and maybe taking a training course to learn to weld, I go to Firefly's Tumblr page, and perspective is regained.

Please tell me, dear readers, that you've seen Tard the Grumpy Cat...

Sorry, not a lot of cycling related, nor intelligent content today.  Some days are that way...

Time to go get some Christmas shopping done!  Gotta knock it down...

Namaste.

Mmmm...Monday

Most people hate Mondays.  Me, well...not so much.  Sure, it's the start of another week, but it also means that the Boss goes back to the office, and 2 of 3 members of Junior Mgmt. go back to school.  It's a quiet house with just me and Il Bambino here.  Like I said, it ain't so bad...

The 6 day Thanksgiving stack finished yesterday.  I'm feeling better than expected.  It's been a long time since I put 6 straight days in on the bike.  All told, it was dead on 16 hours spent in the saddle.  Doesn't sound like much if you get paid to ride, but when your normal week is 10-12 hours on the bike, 16 is a big week.

 Saturday was big and blue...

As was Sunday...

Sure, it was chilly, but that's really no excuse to stay inside.

And people who didn't ride Sunday missed mini-horses!

And that alone was worth the price of admission...

This is my friend Koko.  To say that this picture pushes the vast majority of my buttons would be an understatement.  Cool car, crushingly beautiful brunette, and that cocked eyebrow...woof!

 Suddenly, the idea of a tandem isn't so off-putting.

 Kill it with fire!  As as the frame is wood, the idea is a solid one.  This puts the capital W in W T F ?  Hipsters...

 And on the other side of that coin, a proper Yamaguchi track bike.  Not sure about the Brooks saddle, but the rest... #yum

Zombie apocalypse?  What zombie apocalypse?  I'll take mine in either desert camo, or flat black, thank you.  Powerball is $425M this week.  If I should be so fortunate as to win so cash, this will be the very first thing I order.

Here's Koksijde from Saturday (last lap) :



@ 5:05, I guess there's no Flemish translation for "mental breakdown"...

Link for the entire broadcast... Koksijde

Sunday's race from Gieten (whole broadcast):




Enough for a Monday...

Enjoy your sunny day!  Namaste...

Stacking miles like cord wood...

Today was the 4th day in a row on the bike.  Definitely feel a bit of fatigue, but nothing that isn't manageable.  Plus, it's been freaking beau-ti-ful over the course of the last 4 days, so NOT riding would be a much larger crime.

Yesterday was a good ride, that started out with a sharp (literally) shot to the beans.  11 minutes (yes, exactly 11 minutes!) into my ride, I rounded a corner, and rolled directly through a pile of broken-TV-tube glass.   Glass 2 - MM ZERO.  I say two, because not only did I get a flat, the fat/chunky glass sliced the tire like it had been in a prison-yard dust up.  Oh, did I mention it was a brand spanking new Veloflex 300tpi cotton-cased tire made with Italian love?  And a Michelin latex tube?  Here's $65, let me just throw that into the street.
I changed it, put just enough air in the tube as not to bottom out, and rolled home.  90 seconds later, a different rear wheel was in the dropouts, and I was gone again.  2.5 hours later, I rolled into Service Course.  Including the initial 30 minutes part one of the ride, 3 hours passed under the wheels.

TVH and I met this morning for a nice spin out thru LexCo.  Easy peasy 2:15 on the bike.  It worked out well, as I dropped The Beast off at Pope-Davis to get the new tires put on @ 9.  I rolled up the hill, met TVH, and we were off.  My phone rang during the ride, and they said the truck was done, so I parted company @ Huger St., and rolled back to P-D and picked it up.  Scheduling done correctly, thank you!

The regular rides are going off this weekend.  It's supposed to be colder, so warm up the chamois cream before schmearing it on your taint.

I was also accused of being an enabler yesterday.  It seems that several folks in Charlotte have been on the receiving end of my advice, and purchased their new bicycles accordingly.  It happened again today.

One of the Charlotte hotties pulled the trigger on this fine piece of Italo-Chinese technology.  It will be wearing Campag Record 11, and Boyd 38mm carbon clinchers, and it will fit her perfectly.  It will NOT be heavy.

I like this picture A LOT...

Not much else to put out there.  Hope everyone had a Happy Turkey Day!  Gotta go wash The Beast.

Namaste!

Gavere 2012

And this should me a message to all the dopes who say that Di2 doesn't work in wet/muddy conditions...

...or that you NEED disc brakes to race in the shit...

Well, that was a full 24 hours...

So, as stated previously, the plan was to head to Charlotte Friday afternoon, and have dinner with the new team principals, then get up Saturday for the "Ride, Mickey RIDE!".

The plan went off, but not without a serious, nearly life threatening hitch.  More on that iin a moment...

The Boss got home early, so I rolled out early.  I-77 N was flowing at a steady 75-80mph, and all was right with the World...until...

The Yukon XL, for all of it's heft, lack of fuel economy, and American largess, is a pretty technically advanced vehicle.
I was rolling along, @ an easy 80mph, and the tire pressure sensor light came on.  I cycled through the computer screen, and the on-board told me there was 14psi in the right rear...then it dropped to 7psi...

At this point, the beast got a bit squirrel-ey, and the stability control kicked in.  Between the on-board brains of the operation (not me), and the monkey behind the wheel (me), we got the 5500 pound cruise missile whoa'd down, and onto the shoulder.
Upon inspection, this is what was found...

 For reference, that's a 13" long garden spade, with a nearly 4" wide blade!  Y'all reckon I done run over somethin'?

I thought, "Yeah, flat change, no big deal...15 minutes, and I'm rolling..."  Not so fast smart-ass!
Here is where I'd like to throw a special shout-out/fuck you to the SC Department of Highways.
When they paved I-77 N, thru Chester, the only paved HALF of the shoulder, so when I pulled off the road, the right wheels of the Beast were sitting approximately 5-6" lower than the left wheels.  Between that, and the flat right rear, getting the jack under the truck was an impossibility.  FUUUUUUUU......
I was on 77, with traffic passing within inches...in the dark...so I bit the bullet and called USAA for roadside assistance.  One simple call, and 30 short minutes later, the tow truck arrived.
The driver used the floor jack, and I changed the tire while he did paperwork.  11 minutes...down and back on the road.
Big love to USAA, and Varnadore's Towing for the fast, efficient, and excellent service.

Doesn't the spare add that special something to the overall class and panache of the Yukon? 

I was only 45 minutes late for dinner too!  Sweeeet!

The next morning, I met the team for the "Ride, Mickey Ride @ Uptown Cycles".  @ 0930, about 200 of us rolled out for the countryside surrounding Charlotte. 

 At this point, I was in the front 1/3 of the group!!

 After the usual shakeout, I ended up in the group with some old friends, including Gordon "The Man of" Stiel, and T-Money Fenig. 

 Also in the group were some of the strongest ladies you'll ever want to ride with...including Mrs. Jocelyne "The WOman of" Stiel. 

As you can see, the vistas on the ride were pretty terrible!

Out little workman, and workwoman, group of 20-ish stayed together for the entire loop, including everyone stopping at the break naturel, and one of the sag stops...you know, like a group should do...
A lot of undualtions, a few kicker climbs, and several city/town/county line sprints later, we'd knocked down 90km with very little drama.  The same loop is used for the Charlotte WBL and is a pretty stellar route.  I will be making the trip back up at some point this Winter to partake in the festivities...

All in all, it was a great ride that collected a pretty substantial pile o' cash for Mickey and his family.  He's a deserving guy, and I was glad to make the trip to be a part of something so cool!  And it was good to see my Charlotte family, even if the trip did cost me $500! 
Big thanks to Fenig, Mel, and especially Ali H. for the warm bed, hospitality, and the copious amounts of yellow lab hair that made the trip back to Cola with me!

And nope, I didn't ride this morning.  Junior Mgmt was at the Lexington Branch Office, so the house was quiet.  I slept in until 0815.  Don't hate...

Hope everyone had a good weekend! 

Namaste!

Rainy day musings

Welcome back to Portland...
Personally, other than the joint stiffness that they bring, I like days like today.  I like listening to the rain.  I like watching the rain.  I even like riding in the rain when the opportunity presents itself.
Nothing says complete ride like coming home cold, tired, wet, muddy, and happy...

OK, enough melancholy...

So Timmy Duggan leaves Liquigas for SpiderTech, which no one understood from the moment it happened...
SpiderTech goes away "for a year...to concentrate on growing the business", and Duggan signs with Saxo Bank?
Duggan must be part cat, because if that isn't landing on your feet, nothing is...



Contador says, "Bienvenido a Saxo Bank.  Su nuevo nombre es "El Gato"...

Livestrong drops "Lance Armstrong Foundation" from it's name completely.  In other news, Lance's kids (all 47 of them) would heretofore like to be known as "the Smith Children".

The UCI, in their finite wisdom, have announced an "anti-doping hotline".  Yeah, sure that'll work...
The Hotline + the Jens Voigt soundboard = hours of fun for the entire family.

The Vaughters Soundboard would be a good one too...

Wanna talk about bad juju?  Stealing barriers from a CX course...in Belgium...
Someone is gonna have a lifetime of flats, or is going to catch a sewer grate the wrong way.
I mean, I DO have 1/2 of a cobblestone from Belgium, but it wasn't dug up out of the road...and I do rub it every once in a while, sort of like Buddha's belly...

Good juju?  This kid!



Methinks he has the whole "pump track" thing figured out!

Tuesday night was a fun ride, even though I nearly had to ride sans front light.  @ 3:30 Tuesday, I was perusing the intarwebs, looking for things to spend my hard earned American dollars on, and one of those targeted Google ads popped up in the sidebar of a website.
It was for "high-power LED lights", and thus I was reminded that I had to be on the bike in about two hours, and my battery wasn't on the charger!  Schidth!  It charged for 2 hours, and made it to 8.0v, which is plenty for the Urban ride.  And the Brady Bunch lesson?  Never run your battery all the way to the nubs, or you may get to stay home with your wife and kids....
From here on out, I'm charging BOTH batteries...

Headed to Charlotte tomorrow night for a bite with co-workers, and then to ride Saturday morning.  As Jimmy Buffett said, "Changes in Latitudes...".  And the ride is for a good cause.  Once of the central figures of the Charlotte scene was hurt pretty badly in a crash, and the ride is a bit of a fundraiser for his medical bills.
Seems to be growing quickly too.  Over 100 have RSVP'd as of last night.  Big Fun!

Anywho, try to enjoy this rainy day.  It makes the sunny days seem that much better!

Here's some bad weather CX action for you...



Namaste!

Cool pics...nothing more

 Cipo @ the Gran Fondo in Miami.  Playa gotta play...

 Why Belgians will always be better at cyclocross...

And, The Hotness....

Well, it was a weekend...

First the important stuff...

Nys is the Boss...



Sorry about the shitty Euro-trash techno music.  What do people think about?

Fidea Jaarmarktcross Niel...



The weather in the part of Europe just looks inviting, eh? 

Decent rides this weekend...definitely put down the miles.
Saturday was a nice 80km ride out thru the Swamp.  Not much of note occurred, other than a warning from some unknown bumpkin...

 Well...okay then...

Hey Portland...keep your bike culture...

My training brick continued upon my return to Service Course.  Nothing like clearing the yard of fallen leaves for a couple of hours, then being dragged to the park by the Boss. 

Of course, it was 75 and sunny...in November. 

Sunday was a similar story.  Good ride out into Swansea and back.  100km under the wheels.  Got home, did little until it was made known that the Boss promised Junior Management that we'd go ride bikes. 
Two on the roof, two on the back, and the Burley in the boot.  Only takes about 20 minutes to pull all of this together.
Another hour fell under wheels, and the boys were happy, so it was all good.  #2 tried his best to visit the ER.  That 6" high, 100m long curb jumped right out in front of him.  I saw the whole thing...

Time to get rolling.  A visit to USPS is in order this morning.  Ebay stuff to ship out.  Then to Publix, like we didn't go there last night...

And I won't be posting weekend rides anymore. 
If you want to show up, great, everyone is welcome, and the rides have been really good, and really fun. 
If you don't, don't...

Have a pleasant Monday...

a long week...almost there...

Anyone else had sort of a long week?  At least I've had a bit of a windfall lately, which begs the question...what to buy?
Wheels...clothes (bike...duh?)...a track bike...

This is available...sort of tasty, in an entry level meets style, meets aspirational sort of way...
I do have a sneaking feeling that I'd buy a track bike, and just not ride it.  Even though the track is an hour away, regular trips would likely not happen.  Self-awareness is a cruel mistress....

I've already begun figuring out potential wheel builds, including correct spoke lengths, using my oh-so-shiny White Industries hubs.  23mm wide hoops built 3x all around on 32 hole hubs.  The words stiff, comfortable, Belgian, jealousy-inducing, and bitchin' all come to mind.  They would be new school meets old school.  Plus, they would look completely swank on the Ridley.  Throw some 25c Vittorias on there...woof!

Speaking of Belgian...

 All aboard the Merckx-Express, with stops in Roubaix, Kortrijk, and Meise.  (Pic Courtesy : Pez)  The pic is taken from the new Merckx Bio, "Merckx 525".  Mine is in transit...

 Another pic of Eddy.  It's like he's saying, "Oh, you want some more?"

Good ride last night.  Big, jovial group too, except for one guy, who seemingly eats a turd sammich prior to every ride.  What a fucking knob!  Funny part?  That's just not MY view.  When the nicest people in the group think the same thing...well....litmus test perhaps?
Other than that, we had big fun, as usual.
Cayce seems to be saving a bit of electricity lately, by not turning on the lights that line the Greenway.  It's a bit spooky, and induces a bit a tunnel vision when blasting thru the dark trail with just a 1000 lumen beam of light pointing the way.  Waiting to see Bigfoot one of these nights...

As usual, I got home with two hours of saddle time, and a smile.  And it wasn't as cold, which is always a plus.

Rides:

Saturday @ Rosewood School  0900
Sunday @ Greene and Laurens  0900
It's gonna be warm, and the sun will be out, so any excuses other than being out of town will be looked down upon.  :)

Namaste...

Not what you know...but who...

So I just dragged all three members of Junior Management up to our local polling place.  Deathwish?  Perhaps, but I was prepared to do my Civic duty...
Once in line for about 5 minutes, I was noticed by the lovely lady who runs our polling place.  Did I mention that we've known each other for nearly 20 years?  Did I mention the polling place is also Junior Management's place of elementary education?
These are both key points, because I was waved to the front of the queue, and got my vote on within the next 90 seconds.
Fortunately, I am an educated voter, and actually took the time to research both candidates, as well as ballot initiatives, and it took me approximately 60 seconds to vote. 
Surprisingly, there was NO grumbling from the others in line.  Shocking...

Like sharks?  Like to go the the beach in SC?  Check this out!!!  My question?  What's up with the jaunt into downtown Charleston?  She's either scoping new eating spots at which to hang during the "Under the Bridge" swim, or she's a normal woman, and just needed to spot for some shopping on her way South.

 OK...very cool TRP color coordinated brakes...but who in the hell set them up?  3" of cable after the pinch bolt?  Really?

Meeusen augured in HARD last weekend on the sandy decent...and he wasn't the only one. 



Enjoy...

Weekend update

So...

This happened...



Last lap from Zonhoven.  There are several instances, and behaviors, in this short video that lead one to believe that Nys and Albert may not exchange Christmas cards on a yearly basis.  As Mr. Froese rightly pointed out, trading paint isn't just for NASCAR anymore!

 When in doubt, rail it....

There's a lot of win in this shot!!

As for your scribe, it was a pretty good weekend...

We had a good group on Saturday.  The weather was a bit chilly at the beginning, but that was my inner-Belgian-hardman's fault.  Embro on the legs and no gloves at 46 degrees can be a poor decision...unless the sun is big (it was) and the temps rise quickly (they did!).
We did a bit shorter loop than usual, but there were a couple of instances where the pace clearly made up for the lack of distance.  A nice, rolling 40kmh paceline on Cabin Creek opened everyone's account.  It seemed The Mope may need to find a good bankruptcy attorney however, as his account was quickly overdrawn.
We gathered to wait...to no avail.  There must have been a time portal on Double Homey, because after an easy roll, we hit Shop, and Shit.  Got.  Real.  And time rolled back to 2003-4-5, when the run in on Shop was just brutal.
Neal took what can only be described as a fucking hero pull.  Not even the still worshiped by some "Kaiser" could have taken this pull.  From the top of Shop, to the end of the overpass @ 45-48kmh is not child's play.  A couple pulled through, then Corndog (more on this in a moment!) hit the front, and the pace went to 55kmh on the run to the sprint.  Cal jumped, and that was that.  I never got out of the saddle, and still kissed the high side of 60kmh at the bridge.  Ouch....
Riding shorter was fine, as my workout brick for Saturday concluded with 90 minutes of leaves.
Sunday was LexCal, and another good group.  Il Prof was a bit snapped from his FULL century the day before, but he was out there!
We rolled the normal-ish loop in Swansea, when Mr. Marc Williams, announced that the Exxon station had biscuits on Sunday morning.  Well, the best laid plans of mice and men...
We got there too late, and the biscuits were gone.  Instead, MW powered down a corndog...with ketchup...at 11am...in Swansea, SC...from a gas station owned by a family of Middle Eastern descent.  Or as he called, "A warm lump of goodness in my tummy...".
From this point forward, or until he consumes some other State Fair-related food, MW will be known as "Corndog" on this page, and anywhere else he's seen.
We rolled easy for a bit, and I listened to a lot of yapping about my estimation of the wind direction for the trip home.
All of this yapping ceased once we turned onto 321, and headed back to Cola.  Now I will admit, it wasn't a dead tailwind, but it was sure-as-shit as cross-tail.  The pace rolled up and stayed around 40kmh until we hit Gaston.  From Gaston to the Farmer's Market, it was anywhere between 35kmh (uphill) and 60kmh (down).  It's always nice to be in the 52/12, feathering the brakes to scrub speed at 60kmh!

At the end, we all got a little Vitamin D...and went the hell home.  Another day, another 100km.

 It was a simply beautiful day!

 You just keep right on telling yourself that riding in Fort Jackson is so great...

 Rolling down 321.  God, those purple kits are fucking terrible...

Ok, I've burned enough of everyone's time...well, except for Cal...get up and get a job you bum!

Enjoy your Monday.  Don't forget to vote tomorrow.  It doesn't matter who you vote for, just as long as you exercise your Right!

Namaste...

Friday quick hit...

Jered Gruber went to Plzen, and all he got was a bunch of GD brilliant photographs!! 

As with everything, talent rises to the top.  Jered was a middle of the road domestic pro, but I will go ahead and say that he's probably the best cycling photographer roaming this big blue marble.  Cor Vos and and the rest just don't see the races like Gruber does...

Rides : Saturday @ Rosewood School  0900
             Sunday @ Greene & Laurens  0900

Womens race from Plzen...



KFC had a completely crap start, but fought back to win alone...

Done...told you it was gonna be quick. 

Hope to see folks out of the rides. 

Almost done...

 This isn't just a pic I grabbed of the Intarwebs.  It's a friend of a friend.  She wins Halloween!

 Giordana clothing is expensive, doesn't last, and the fit is hit or miss.  Their marketing, however, seems to be improving greatly!

Junior Management heading out to raid the 'hood for candy last night.  Should I be worried that the older two have already gone to The Dark Side?  Oh, and don't I look thrilled to be sitting out on the swing, handing out candy?  The highlight of my night was our little sound-activated, pop-up skeleton.  Scared the crap out of the kids that came to the house.
The best was one little thug-let who was dressed like a gang-member (aim high parent(s)).  He came onto the porch acting like the reincarnation of Tupac, leaned over the skeleton, and said, "shooooot, that ain't even scurry...".
About that time, his droopy ass pants brushed the sensor, and the skeleton screamed and popped up.
The squeal he emitted was only heard by the neighborhood dogs.  He turned, ran, tripped down the steps, and fled into the night.  Never did come back for any candy...
Brilliant!

Fun ride Tuesday night.  It was a bit smaller, as the cold temps (it was 55) and wind (not that bad) kept some at home.  Those in attendance were all in good spirits, and many laughs were had, which is what these rides are about for me.  I actually got a little motorpacing in on the way home too.  About 3 minutes @ 30+ on 33c CX tires is big fun.  48/12 baby...48/12!

Gotta jet...a trip to Publix is on the horizon.  And the kids have a noon release from school for teacher conferences.  Oh joy...my ride tonight cannot come soon enough!

Namaste!

EDIT:::::
Here's the last lap of today's KoppenbergCross...sorry no embed...clicky the linky...

Entire Plzen race...