Weekend

SuperPrestige CX races have started in Euro. Ruddervoorde was today. Normal course for them...
Gotta love the rhythm section...

Saturday was a good, easy ride with the group. Everyone was jovial, and seemed to enjoy the ride. The wind was howling, so the decision was made to do the IronCross inside the Fort. I hate riding in the Fort anymore, but coming home on Dixie with a 15-20mph tailwind was nice. What started out as a simple loop ended up being a 45 mile ride.
I rode the carbon wheels, and am seriously toying with the idea of selling them. I don't (and likely won't) race anymore, ergo, there is almost no need for a set of 50mm deep carbon wheels. If anyone has interest, send me a note and I'll give you specifics.

This morning, the core group of four met on what can only be described as a 'breezy' morning. We went in the exact opposite way that the wind called on us to ride. Nothing like a tail to cross-tail for the first 2/3 of the ride, only to make the turn and drive directly into a bloc headwind for the last 20 miles.
I felt like garbage for the first 90 minutes...Gilbert for the next 60...and then TVH got a flat. Nothing like taking the engine from optimum operational temps to nil over the course of ten minutes. The 30-ish minute ride home was a stiff-legged affair, to say the least.

On the equipment tip, I rode my 3x/32 hole wheels with Vittoria Open Pave CG tires today. I'd forgotten how good a straight up, no bullshit set of wheels rides. Plenty fast, plenty stiff, plenty smooth, and comfy. I think I may source some FAT Vittoria rubber for the winter (25 or 27c) and just ride those wheels.

News:

GVA won Paris-Tours out of a two man break. Get used to seeing a BMC jersey crossing the line first. It's gonna happen a lot next year!

The weather looked nice in Ft. Collins for CX...

Horner is going to race until he gets his AARP card.

That's it for me...

Have a good Monday everyone!

Simple fucks

This is Roger Hernandez. He is a simple fuck. He refused a dope test at Masters Track Nats, and got suspended for two years. Really, part 1? He posted the above picture on the intarwebs. I'm shocked that this dumbass is on the AvGas, just SHOCKED! Really, part2? Refusing the test is admitting you're a doper, and a douche. Simple fuck!


This is Joe Papp. He is a simple fuck. He's a doper. He's also a drug dealer who set up a shell company to buy/sell EPO, HgH, and (insert the Deity of your choice here) knows what else. I guess turning in everyone he knew didn't quite work out the way he planned. Begging for support on Twitter? Really? I wish I knew who to contact to ask that Papp receive MORE time on his sentence. Simple fuck!

And here's a video commentary about the Government...a legislative body FULL of simple fucks. The guy in the video? Yeah, he's probably brighter, and definitely has a better grasp of the gravity of the situation than 99.5% of those who live inside The Beltway.



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I rode this morning. 2 hours on the CX bike. A couple of really fruitful efforts, one really freaking stung.
On the way back in, I discovered that SCANA (SCE&G) is ostensibly giving a portion of their land off of 12th. St. to the City of West Columbia. What's West Columbia doing with it? Building a public tennis center, a GIANT public park and greenspace, a canoe/kayak portage, and a paved/groomed MUT through the woods.
I will say now, with a large degree of certainty, that WeCola has their shit together when it comes to creating outdoor spaces for the public to enjoy. The Greenway is immeasurably better on that side of the river(s).
It's a damn shame that the City of Columbia, where a lot of us live, and pay an obscene amount of taxes, can't quit bickering with each other, get on the same page, and build out OUR side of the river. I know that most of the land is private property, but it's virtually unusable as commercial property because of the flood threat, and the MASSIVE sewer line that runs through it. These reasons alone should be enough to allow expansion of the Greenway, and the creation of greenspace to enjoy down by the river.
It would be cheap, easy, and maybe put some folks to work in Columbia. Instead, the City is burying powerlines, putting in sidewalks, and installing custom fabricated street lights in neighborhoods that you wouldn't walk in, much less at NIGHT!
In keeping with the theme of this post, our City Council and Mayor are ... well, you know what I'm gonna say...

Sunday ride
9am
Corner of Greene and Laurens
60-ish miles into Lex/Calhoun
C'mon out!

Some days you're the windshield...

...today I was the bug. Just tired, lethargic, and my heart wasn't in it. I thought about turning around and going home when I got stopped by a train on Huger St. (I know, what a shock...a train, in Columbia!), but I invoked Rule #5, and finished the ride. 1:30 of rolling around on the Jericho...

Now to help Junior Mgmt #1 w/homework. That will suck the remaining life straight out of my body.

I need a nap...
Here's something to look at...

News

Levi says Trek sucks, without really saying it...

It seems that Cav may be going to QuickStep instead of Sky...again because of the big S. Same with Tony Martin...

Todd Branham makes good...

Michael Rasmussen needs to go away

Okay enough Euro dog silly season stuff...

(breaktime)




Okay, we're back...

Good Sunday ride. First time doing Eastover in ages. It was a bit breezy out in the country, but easily more manageable than Saturday.



5 days on the bike, and 6 rides if I count the hour of quality time spent riding with #1 son on Friday afternoon. I'm tired today...

Speaking of children...#3 is making pterodactyl noises. Gotta jet...

I don't know much...

...but I know these dudes have large stones!



4th day in a row on the bike for me. The local 'weather caster', and I type that with certain levels of both disdain AND sarcasm, said the wind would be out of the NW at 8-15mph this morning. I will admit that the direction of the wind was correct, so he was 50% right, but 8-15mph? Really? I'm no walking anemometer, but I'll kiss the "weather caster's" ass if that was the correct wind speed.
I knew I had chosen poorly when I was spinning out 12th St. in the big ring @ 45kmh, and my HR was still 125! The ride home from the end of Old Wire was a struggle to maintain 30kmh. Even riding my every day, 30mm wheels, I was getting blown around like the proverbial feather on the breeze, and we know I'm no feather...

Time to go outside in the back yard and enjoy this wonderful Fall day. I can hear the hammock calling me...

Stelvio

The Stelvio and the Mortirolo will be in Il Giro for 2012. Best. Grand. Tour. Period.

A ride, in pictures and song

I only got the sunny hours, the brightest hours of day. I never count the gloomy hours, I let them slip away...

"...swervin' like I'm George Jones..."



Train kept a rollin'...


Option 1: Hoobastank
Option 2: Mix-A-Lot

I've had a headache for 2 days, so instead of going out and riding easy, I decided to kill it with fire. Funny how 1x30 @92% will do that. As Asami so eloquently stated in 'The Audition', "Words create lies, pain can be trusted."

When I was done, I looped through the Greenway and ran into Rob, Casey, and their new addition, Ella Kate. Good eggs those two...well, three now. Seeing them this morning put a smile on my face.
Up Gervais and into campus. Once on Greene St., I stopped to help a college girl whose chain had popped off the pulley in her rear derailleur. A quick and easy fix got her rolling in less than 15 seconds, and helped my cycling karma. Two birds...

TVH, Il Prof and I are going out for a loop of the Fort @ 4:30-5:00 tomorrow. Feel free to join...

Namaste...

Cav wins the WC...and I don't mean Water Closet

Yeah...you just can't take that kid to the line. Some DB on the Twitter said that it was some grand plan for Cav to win so he could be in WC stripes for the Olympics in London. Now, I'm sure the organizers may have had that thought, but 180+ riders and 260km had other plans. Another twidiot said that Cav is the Champion of sprinters, but not a true World Champion. Really? REALLY? That's funny, because I just watched the last 6km, and Cav just put them all back on the truck.
Let the haters hate, because you know they will...

As for me...
102km thru Calhoun County. It was nice to have an actual group this morning. A grand total of SIX rolled out. Cloudy, hazy and low cloud deck when we left...turned into a sunny, windless, albeit humid end of the ride. Can't ask for much more...

Another one of those terrible roads out in the country.

Yeah, it's Sunday... I went to church...

Now to sleep through the rest of the NASCAR race...Peace!

Tubies are faster you say?

I'll call bullshit. Tony Martin just won the WORLD TT championship on CLINCHERS!! Yeah, you read that correctly. HED Jet 9 FR / HED Jet Stallion FR disc.

The question is, what Conti tires is he riding? Betting they weren't off the peg GP4000S...

U23 WC RR

Great race and great finish!

And I'm no mountain biker, but this makes my pants a bit tighter...



The word "FLOW" comes to mind...

2011 WC TT

Blistering ride by Tony Martin. And I have a question...
Did Cancellara's "Trek" look decidedly NOT like a current Speed Concept? Hmmm...

Great pics over at Cycling Tips...

Les Montagnes

3 of us got up sort-of-early on Sunday, loaded into TVH's Subaru and headed to Tryon for a ride. Nothing quite like folding my 6'1", 185 pound frame into the backseat of an import wagon...more on this later.
The idea was to roll out of the park where the Fab 4th ride begins, go UP the Saluda Grade, down The Watershed, then find some loop to roll around on for 25 miles or so, then go back UP The Watershed, and bomb the descent of The Grade, back to the car. The plan was 50-55 miles. The best laid plans of mice and men you say...?

The first part of the plan was going swimmingly...then we deviated for the first time of the day...30 miles into the ride. At the store stop, the decision was made, after talking to a crusty local, to ride into Landrum, do a loop around up to Columbus and drop back into Tryon.
While the route may not have offered any BIG climbs, it was nicely rolling, through beautiful countryside. A couple of stunning valleys, and simply picturesque horse farms were well worth the deviation.
Rolling back to Tryon, Il Prof figured we'd barely have 50 miles, so I, in my finite wisdom, suggested we tack on a few by checking out Howard's Gap, just to see how full of shit folks who ride it regularly may, or may not, be. The first two sections of road went from nearly flat to 5-6%...nothing to really write home about.
A few Euro switchbacks led to the corner that would seal our collective fate. After a relatively flat right turn, the road opened up, and sucker punched all three of us squarely in the chops. To say that we struggled for the next 1.5 miles would be like saying that my Jack Russell struggles with higher math...an understatement at best. Il Prof said he saw 2.9mph on his computer at one point. I do not doubt this statement, and find that it may be optimistic!


The 1.5 mile asskicking AVERAGED 15.4%, and contained 4 portions that hovered between 25 and 30%. Not too difficult to see where those spots are on the profile.
Once at the top, the climb leveled out and we rode, for a WHILE, across the ridgeline, back to Saluda. Then, tired, soaked with sweat, and out of gas, bombed the descent of the Saluda Grade back to the car.
I then folded my 6'1", 185 pound frame BACK into the backseat of the Scooby, which made my hip flexors really happy with me. My trip to Renick yesterday bordered on Marquis de Sade treatment...
Not only did I get folded up into the back of the car, my Ridley did as well! Oh, the indignity...


I guess only the 'team' bike Colnagos go on the roof!



All told...
64.8 miles
6698ft of climbing

It was fun, and I'd do it again this coming weekend if the H.O. would let me out of the house! It was what a ride should be. Time spent outside, on the bike, with friends. There was no negativity, no complaining, but plenty of big smiles/laughs. You know, the reason you go do something like this...

You think Joey's okay?

I think Joey needs a goddamn gurney! There is such a thing as carrying TOO much speed folks!

Went to the mountains this morning with Il Prof and TVH. Wonderful day on the bike. Writeup will follow once all of my synapses are properly rested and synaps-ing...

I leave you with this...

65 miles
6698ft of climbing
Rode up Howard's Gap (1200ft of vertical in 2 miles)

I'm not built for this shit people! But I LIKED it!!!

I think I just innoculated...

The front one...steel...
The back one...ti

Baum Cycles Australia

Cross Vegas 2011

Watch more videos on Cycling Dirt

A humpday photo dump...

They're "improving" Old State Road. Yes, there is a note of cynicism in my typing...

Pimpin' is, in fact, very easy for Eddy...

Will Gilbert win Worlds'? Odds aren't posted yet, but I'm willing to throw $20 in the pot and bet that his kid finishes better than the Schlecks...

Okay, not cycling related, but how can you not like HoverDogs?


Interbike (aka "The Show") is this weekend in Vegas. Guessing Trebon commuted? That saddle to bar drop makes my back hurt as I sit here...on the couch...

Decent ride thru the dirt loop this morning. As the photo above shows, Lexington County is evidently training grader operators out on Old State. It's a bit like Michele Bachmann's head at the moment. Soft...
A good rain wouldn't be altogether bad.

Gilbert wins GpW...


We're going to Tryon to ride on Sunday. If anyone wants to go, I have an open seat in the bus. Loop will be 50-55 miles, up and back over the Watershed and the surrounding area. The weather will be in the 60s. Where'd I put the vest/baselayer/armwarmers?

Velodromo

If you live with about 4 hours of Charlotte, and the idea of having a World Class velodrome/cycling facility available to you doesn't cause excitement, well...You're a dick!

Outstanding

Great ride this morning with Jed, Il Prof, and TVH. We went out through Lexington County, to Swansea, across Hwy 6 to Hwy 21 to Sandy Run, then backtracked it home. 105km in the big bright sun, on smooth rolling roads. To say it didn't suck is an understatement!

Ponies!

Another one of those horrible, high traffic roads out in Calhoun County...

TVH had on enough sunscreen to protect all four of us!

I like old barns!

Former ProDog, and CX National Champeen, Jed S. continuing his quest to go from the couch to CX Nats.

One of the highlights of the ride was the red velvet Twinkies at the gas station. Who knew? I'm quite sure whatever gave them their red hue will likely, in the long run, give me cancer, but DAMN they were good!
Another highlight came from Il Prof having a flat. TWO folks in cars stopped to see if he/we were okay! Shocking and unexpected to say the least, but nice and appreciated nonetheless.

Hope everyone enjoyed their day. Remember what day it is! Forget all of the ancillary political bullshit...just think of THE DAY and why it's important.

9-11-11

Sometimes...

Normally, I don't ride with a plan. Sure, I have a loop in mind, and an idea of variations to mix it up, but rarely do I go out with a "plan". Occasionally, I'll feel chipper after my little spin out, and put down a hard 30 minute "interval", but that may happen once a week.
Most rides these days fall somewhere between a ride for enjoyment, and meandering through new roads.
Yesterday, I meandered...HARD! Between school for the kids, the new bambino, and trying to get the house together to sell, I'm whipped. The ride guilt kicks in though. When it's 68 degrees and sunny with a light breeze, it becomes difficult to sit on the couch.
2 hours of rolling the CX bike through Lexington County was the call.

Smoother than tar and chip in Lower Richland...

Steel is real.

Squirrel's eye view.

Collaborate and listen...

Second ride of the day. This one was good for my soul.

I also got the Salsa 99.5% finished. I just need a longer drop cable hanger for the front so I can flip the stem. I guess a trip to Cycle Center is in order at some point today...

Enjoy your weekend!

A question...?

I need some new bib knicks for the fall/winter. How do the Santini knicks fit? ;)

Good ride yesterday, even though it was a bit dark, and a bit windy. I went out into the wind, hit the heavy/wet dirt, and struggled mightily until the turn onto 12th. Once the wind was at my back, it became quite nice.



Like "taking pictures @ 40kph on 33c tires at 50psi" nice. I normally pop back into the woods, but it's just bad form to not take advantage of a ripping tailwind!

Instead of buying a new bike to ride around town/with the kids/at night, the decision has been made to turn my Salsa Las Cruces into the aforementioned beast. 1x9 with a Deore shifter and XTR rear derailleur, Syncros DH riser bars, Thomson stem/post, carbon cranks...etc.! Yeah, nothing says lovin' like a sub-20 pound townie rig. I'll post pics when the bike is done. For now, I'm less than content sitting here waiting for the parts to hit the door! Grrrrr...

Why do I need a bike like this you ask? Well, riding my custom steel Jericho, or the Ridley, up to school to pick up #1 makes me intolerably nervous. Not the riding part per se, but the 'bike getting knocked over by a spastic 10 year old' scenario. I'd hate to explain to one of the other parents that they owe me $3k for a new frame because their uncontrolled progeny. Betting that would be a thin Christmas around that kid's house!

Enough blathering...Peace! Have a good afternoon!