Back on the horse...a little...

So the knee isn't so painful anymore.  If you come to this little page of dumbness regularly, you know my intense disdain for the trainer.  That has not changed, but the dirty bastard will serve a purpose over the next week or so.
Instead of riding outside, and trying to go too hard, or even falling off the bike...again, I rode the turbo this weekend.  An hour Saturday, and an hour Sunday.
The leg is stiff, but it rolled around without issue.  This shall be the schedule for the next week or so.  Plus it's hot as balls in the ManHole(tm), so while I'm not exactly getting any fitter, I'm sweating like a Lindsay Graham Republican.

And I watched the 2011 Roubaix DVD.  I'd forgotten how big of a pussy Hushovd was in that race...

 Au revoir Big George!  Thanks for the memories.  Maybe we'll see you at Donaldson Center...

 I wore my Doc Martens this morning while watching the stage into Paris.  It just felt right...

 Wiggo wins.  Stamps his authority on the final TT...like a BOSS!  Some said the Tour was boring.  Those same people have probably only watched the Tour since Lance won #5.  No frame of reference.  If you watched the Indurain years, then you know boring...

 Och showing that they only has SMedium shirts left at BMC Service Course...

 My favorite photo of the Tour...

Brian Holm looks pissed.  I would be too.  Zero results.  Highest placed rider in 27th...and it wasn't the angry midget.  He finished 32nd.  Stick to the Classics boys...

I'm ready for a beach trip...

Peace and Phil Wood grease!

End o' the week...

Thankfully...
I'm pretty much over it.  Haven't ridden in two+ weeks.  Been working like a slave around here.  Moved 3 yards of gravel yesterday in just under two hours...by hand.  Rocky training.  Got up this morning and felt like the side of beef that Rocky beat the shit out of in the movie.

Gonna attempt to ride in the morning.  Something slow and easy to see how the knee feels.

 Big George ate it yesterday.  Got up and finished...dragging Cuddles to the line...#profi

 Yeah, the shirtless guy handing out musette's to GreenEdge?  Robbie McEwen.  Nice!

And Cav went from 500+ today, and showed CLEAN wheels to the bunch.  Not even close.
And speaking of Le Tour, a giant Newfoundland dog got loose and ran out today.  Several riders crashed...several didn't.  It was an accident, nothing more.  It's not like the owner deliberately sent the dog out into the road.  Sure, I'd be upset too, but Gilbert went too far.  He went after the dog, and the owner.  In the video, a little girl was cowering in fear.  Really?
I lost a little respect for ole PhilGil today.  That's a punk move, period.  Lucky the big ass dog didn't take it as a threat and eat his boney ass.  Newfies are gentle until you threaten their people...then you get 150+ pounds of black dog gnawing on you!

Go ride this weekend.

Namaste!

A little something...

 Just a quick reminder from Sky's head wrench in case you had plans to fondle Wiggo's back-up bike...

 This one is a two-parter:
1) It's just a nice pic of a tired old dog, and who doesn't like that?
2) Is this where bike companies got the idea for the under stay brake?

Yes Peter, you certainly do...

 Frank is missing Andy something fierce!






>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Yeah...it's nice....>>>>>>>>>>>>>>









And this is just funny...

Nothing going on here.  Waiting for the OK from the Doc to ride.  Probably Thursday...easy.  I'm becoming increasingly difficult to get along with...
I need to get out of the house!   Trips to Lowe's and Target aren't cutting it...

Maybe some retail therapy is in order...

Namaste...

Sunday...

So the Boss is leaving to day for something or other in Charleston.  She'll be back tomorrow night, so I'm single parenting until then, like that's any great change from usual.
It just means no ridey on Sunday morning for the kid.  No big deal.  I tried to ride yesterday, and was borderline one-legging it.  My knee is just not good.  Nothing torn, or broken, just a seriously strained/sprained LCL.  To add insult to injury (literally), I flatted before we ever crossed the river.  Maybe that was sign that I should have just stayed home.  Oh well...

Instead of, I don't know, coming home, icing the knee, and lazing about, I went outside and finished placing the lumber in the driveway.  Nothing like hossing around 200 lb. 6x6x8 timers with a bad wheel.  I did get to break out the chainsaw though.  I like the chainsaw...it keeps my derelict neighbors on their toes.  Either way, the new timbers are DONE.  Now to order the stone to go in the driveway.  Sweey...more manual labor.

I'm guessing you're all watching the Tour, so there's no need for a recap...you know what happened.

Here's a KICKASS video of the Tour anyway...from 1962...pay attention @ 8:30...the more things change...

 Baller knows no age...nor race...

 Yep, that's a whole lot of broken high dollar shit...

 To those who think Cav is a shitty teammate.  Name another WC you've seen going back to the team car for bottles.  Go ahead...I'll wait...

 "You know, without looking, it DOES feel just like Andy's..."

Ok...time to lay around.  Not working today.  Of course, I've already been to Publix, and washed the truck.  It's 10am...

Namaste...

So, the Tour looks to be over...

Is there a feed to the Tour of Poland?  Looks like the racing there is pretty good.  Stybar won the stage in Poland today, over a bunch of dudes with names that are difficult, at best, to pronounce.

As The Rev said earlier, it looks like the Tour will NOT be won by the strongest rider.  Froome and VanGarderen were the horses today, but as one is wont to do with strong horses, they were both required to pull others around.  That's why race radios suck.  While those of us who can remember the 1986 Tour (yes, the Tour is really old) were jumping up and down, hoping Froome could play the part of Hinault to Wiggo's LeMond, poor Chris was called back to the team leader.  Weaksauce...
He should have just kept going and claimed his radio was dead.

And Tejay waiting on Cadel?  Fuck Cuddles.  He's not even gonna get on the podium.  Go up the road young man!  Blow it up!

 Once again, DrunkCyclist hits the nail on the head...

 Speaking of the Tour of Poland, poor Niki Terpstra crashed out, but couldn't leave the race until they frisked him.

And I know Tommy V lost the polka dot jersey today, but the look on his face is priceless.  Reminds me of this scene...

No ridey tonight.  the plan was to go out and spin around, but thunder and rain said NO!  That's cool...a couple more days to rest the knee.  I can tell I've spent enough time off the bike, as I'm getting itchy, and feeling guilty for not riding.

Oh, and file this under bullshit.  Hmmm...not hard to connect the dots.  Kevin Livingston runs Medalist.  Livingston and the UniBaller are chummy.  Andreu runs Kenda/5 Hour.  Somehow, one of the strongest teams in the US gets a snub.  Also curious that Bontrager-Livestrong GOT a bid to Utah...
Remember, a fish goes rotten at the head first....
Is Livingston still living in Lance's basement?

OK...enjoy your evening...

Namaste...

Massa got me workin'...

Jesus...
Yes, I feel like the Mexican guy who lives around the corner.  The Boss has been off work since last Wednesday, and she's been working me like she picked me up in front of Home Depot.
200+ feet of wood fence pressure washed?  Check!
5 cubic yards of gravel and dirt removed from driveway?  Check!
11 6x6x8 timbers picked up from Lowe's?  Check!

And it seems like my days as a back-pimp are over, as I returned the back-hoe this morning.  One would think that running a backhoe is easy, relaxing work.  I'm fried.  My hands are dead from all of the above work, and I'm mentally just gone, like that I was ever really present anyway. 
Constantly paying attention to one's surroundings while operating a 2.5 ton tractor-like backhoe vehicle is taxing.  The opportunity to inflict damage to pretty much everything in a small/medium-sized radius is omnipresent.  Care must be taken...and that made my brain hurt!

Thank Dog she went back to work this morning.  I can get some rest...

This is much how our conversations have gone the past several days....

 Yes, Sagan rode a wheelie up the climb @ Belles Filles.  Badass...!  Video is below...yes, he is riding a wheelie with no hands...

Look, it's the new Clif Bar flavor...salt-cured pork meat....

She must work out...(name the movie...not a hard one!)

Still off the bike.  Knee is getting better.  Still sore, and a bit painful, but it seems all of the manual labor I've been engaged in has served as a sort of physical therapy.  A couple more days off the bike...
And I'm sort of glad I missed the WeCola ride last Thursday.  According to Il Prof, there were a couple of incidents.  A crash due to over-lapping wheels, which is pretty silly on a group ride, and a bicycle vs. car run-in because someone was a bit too eager and ran a red light (the bike).
Guys...it's a group ride.  Running the stop signs @ 321, and running lights?  Really?  Folks in cars are already trying to kill us!  Don't make it easier!

Okay...gotta jet...
Have a Good Monday!

Poor little Tyler...

Okay.  Dude crashes a lot.  When you watch the video, click thru to Youtube and look at all of the related videos.  They are all "Farrar crashes...." from different races.
Get a CX bike man.  You'll be better for it.
And after analyzing the crash video, he took himself out.  The boy tried to push into a line, and Peter Veelers from Argos-Shimano said NOPE!  Then Petacchi slammed the door.  Sorry TyTy, but you're to blame...

Oh, and if you're gonna go after someone in their own team bus, go in hard.  Start pushing and shoving.  Get loud.  Throw a forearm shiver if necessary.  Don't go over, act mad, get man-handled by a couple of 145 pound guys, then whine like 14 year old girl who got cut from cheerleading.  Man up Buttercup!

Look...he had poo-poo face before he crossed the finish line.  Maybe Garmin-Sharp is courting new potential sponsors.  Garmin-Sharp-Kleenex?  Garmin-Sharp-Midol?  Should be Garmin-Sharp-BandAid...

 I can't decide what's going on in this shot of Jens.  Is he listening intently to the question, or is he trying to crush the reporter's head using only his mind?  Is he thinking, "You know, I could kill this guy, and no one would ever question my reasoning..."

 BREAKING NEWS : Leipheimer's TT bike stolen from the OPQS team truck.  Any info should be forwarded to : angrymidget@OPQS.com

And as a closer, I think we should all start following Heidu Klum on Twitter.  No real reason why...


Time to go pressure wash the fence.  Can't ride...knee is still stiff and sore.  May as well be productive.

Have a good Friday. 

Namaste!

Well, that was fun...

...right up to the point of the injury...
Seriously though, it was fun.  JBrstl and I loaded up yesterday, and headed to FATS for a 4th of July adventure.  We met Hackathorne, Damon, Toby S, and one other at the trail head, and rolled out.  Did I mention that they were all on 29ers, and Bristol and I were riding CX bikes?  Yeah, we saw them for 10 minutes in the parking lot, then a couple of times on the trail, and that was it.  No worries though, it was good to see the smiling faces of guys I consider friends, and who actually enjoy riding their bicycles.
(Not to self : Go to Charleston and ride with Hackathorne...soon...)

We did the bottom three loops @ FATS, and I can say with some degree of certainty, that they are big fun, even when getting the shit beaten out of us on skinny CX tires, and very rigid CX bikes.  About 1/2 way, the was a LARGE pine tree across the trail.  It had obviously been there for a long while, as the bark was gone, and someone built a step-up to get over it.  Instead of merely getting off, climbing over, and re-mounting, I chose to be a wiseass and attempt a CX dismount/remount.  My carbon soled Diadoras chose NOT to grip the top of the log, and I slipped off the back side.  My left leg got caught under me, and bent at an angle one can only call, obtuse.  I felt, and heard, a POP, and was on the ground...bike on top of me. 

As I rocked back and forth, much like a Romanian orphan, contemplating the pain/damage, I came to the realization that we were WAAAY back in the woods, and my only real option was to go all Rule #5, and finish the ride.  And so I did...

That mishap notwithstanding, it was a good time, and something different that drove home the fact that i really like to ride bikes!

Today, the knee is STIFF, and SORE, but remarkably undamaged.  Slight sprain...nothing more.  A few days off the bike, then a few easy days, and I'll be back to the low-functioning idiot I was before. 

Only one pic today, but there's so much wrong with it that it should hold you over for a while...

Hydraulic brakes, Di2, and Garmin three-way.  Looks like two octopi making with the bang bang.  What a fucking mess....

Oh, and Il Prof is starting his West Coast Madness Tour in the coming days.  Follow his (mis)adventures...

Have a good day... #namaste

Another Monday? Oy...

 Alan Gilbert is cooler than you...

 Sagan proved that he is, in fact, a full grown man.  Here are his SRM stats from yesterday.  You should sell yours now...

 I'm really torn on this one.  Cool, or does it look jacked up?

 Hope you like your stem slammed though!!!

 Andre GriePool?  Not helping the whole "cyclists are homos" thing guys...just not helping!

DZ didn't do great in the prologue, but this picture is pretty badass, in a jingo-istic, America...Fuck Yeah sort of way...

Ok...stay inside...gonna be 127 again today...

And there's talk of a quick trip to FATS on Wednesday.  CX or MTB bikes.  No Strava sections, or penile comparisons, just some fun in the woods near where the Irish Travelers live.

#namaste

Now that's a fire!!!

If you watched the news at all, or the sky for that matter, you probably saw something about the fire at the recycling plant in Cayce.  This is what remains after burning for 24 hours. 

 The building burned and collapsed in on all of the assembled plastics that the company had accumulated for recycling.  It allowed the fire to burn unabated for HOURS before the fire department could even get water on it.  I spoke to a couple of the firefighters on my ride yesterday, and they said it could smolder for days....SUPER!
And DHEC, in their finite wisdom, says there's little health risk to air and water, yet the fumes were noxious, foul-smelling and foul tasting.  And the run-off has reached the river already. 
I'm no environmental engineer, but I can tell you that the run-off just isn't good.  That plant has been there for decades, ergo, decades of toxins are now washing into the river.  Fish kill in 3...2...1...

 Look at this picture!  I mean REALLY look!  I think she actually rides!

Big George's special BMC for his 17th and last Tour.  Glad they went all out on the font for "Lucky Seventeen" on the seat tube!

Nice little 2+ hour spin on the CXbike yesterday.  It made a couple of things clear.  I need a break from the road bike (no motivation), and my handling skills have dulled from riding the road so much.  There were a couple of "oh shit" moments in the soft stuff yesterday that wouldn't have been a blip on the radar in the early Spring. 
Did I mention that it was BRUTALLY hot and humid?  84 when I left @ 0845, and 94 when I hit Service Course @ 1115.  40+ ounces of water consumed and still felt swimmy for a couple of hours. 

Not riding today...not riding tomorrow...maybe not riding Tuesday...just need a minute away from the road bike.

Oh, and the Tour started.  You will not see re-caps, or blow-by-blow analysis of each stage.  It will be mentioned here and there, but only for oddball reasons, or if something truly insane occurs.  I'll leave the color commentary to the pseudo-Directeurs Sportif.  You know, those folks who didn't know that pro cycling existed 5-10 years ago, but are now experts in all things Euro.  Yeah, you know they are...

Speaking of, it's after 0900...time to watch the Tour. 

Friday filler

 Say what you want about our diminutive friend from the Isle of Man, but he looks like he may have stayed away from the pies on the run up to Le Tour.  Should be fun to watch...

 Garmin picked up a new sponsor.  Looks like they'll now be called, "Team Garmin p/b Giro Helmets' Special Ed Department"

 Is it bad that I want to root for Wiggo?

And here's some Kate for your weekend.  Enjoy...

It was hot last night.  The group was big last night.  The beginning of the ride was pretty brilliant.
Cayce Police escort out to 12th St.  He blocked traffic on 2 separate occasions.  Nice to have a LEO who also rides bikes in the bunch!
Once out to Old Wire, shit went sideways.  People went straight, people turned, cars got in the mix, I got shuffled (and run off the road).  I was behind 4 cars, in a grupetto that I knew wasn't going to help on the climb, or the descent, so I sat up and watched the bunch ride away.
Most of my ride last night was a solo spin through Lexington County.  No worries...it was still a bike ride!
Good to see the faces of some old friends last night.  Still no National Champion though...one ponders...

Once #3 goes down for his nap, I need to pull the front of the Ridley apart.  It's making some unsettling clunking/crunching noises when bumps pass under the wheels.  Hopefully it's something simple, like re-building the headset and greasing everything.  If something is broken, I'm gonna be pissed.

The Tour starts tomorrow.  I'm tempted to stay home to watch, but seeing as it's gonna be 137 degrees, I'm going out and getting it done.  And the fact that NBCSN will re-play it ALL day...I can watch at my leisure.

Time to get the day started...

The roof...the roof...the roof...

 Colorado Springs in on FIRE.  That's the Air Force Academy's football stadium in the foreground.  It may be there today...it may not.  32k folks have been asked to evacuate.  I don't care what, or who, you believe in, but when you get a moment, spare a thought for the fine folks in Colorado.  We ALL know a few that live out there...

 Above Category finished this Monday.  So, So hot!  Cipo, 11v Campag EPS, SRM, Lightweights...nothing like a $20k bike.

 Paging Mr. Edwards, Mr. Edwards, please pick up the green Sidi courtesy phone...

And this was the theme of last night's ride.  I went, I rode for a minute, I decided I didn't want to be riding, so I went home.  My shoulder hurt like a MFer after getting manipulated by the Surgeon yesterday.  In all honesty, I think a few of the manipulations were just him fucking with me.  An arm just isn't supposed to be pull in certain directions unless you have been thrown clear of a high speed motor vehicle accident!

He did figure out the cause of my "discomfort".  The Clavicle is displaced (knew that), and has moved (did NOT know that).  It is rubbing against the acromion (look it up), and causing pain, pinching, swelling, and numbness.
The fix?  Temporary fix is a few cortisone shots to reduce the pain and swelling.  I'm cool with that.  Permanent?  Shoulder surgery to surface the clavicle and create a pocket of space in the shoulder joint.  I'm also cool with that...for now.  Down time SHOULD be 10 days or so, but we all know that the best laid plans of mice and men...blah, blah, blah...
The way my luck runs, there will be rotator cuff, or labrum issues, and I'll be jacked up for 4-6 weeks.  I'd really like to go a year without cameras and scalpels being used on my person as well...

 Time for a nosh...

Enjoy your humpday, as it will be the last day this week in which El Sol isn't trying to melt you into a puddle!

Namaste!