Hello beautiful...

 Understated Ti bike...

Not-so-understated track bike.
Baum is hitting me where I live lately.  I think it's a sign...

 This Feather is sort of hot too...

Two wheels very good...

Fun rides this weekend...
Charlie, Rox, and I did a long, slow, easy CX ride Saturday.  As it was Charlie's maiden voyage on his new (to him) CX rig, and Rox is still getting her bearings on hers, we didn't exactly kill it.  That being said, Charlie hit the ground once, and Rox fell victim to the deep, and thankfully very soft, LexCo sand.  Gotta keep the speed up thru the loose stuff!
Although I don't like to stop in the middle of a sandpit, this was something we couldn't pass up.

Uh...that'll buff right out.  The LexCo Deputy said there were a lot of empty beer cans inside the little truck.  No shit...REALLY?  Once we chatted for a moment, and Rox got in her run for the day, we ventured onward.
On the way back in, I lit the wick a bit, and did a nice effort from 12th all the way to the K-Rail.  It stung...
Once out of the woods, Charlie looked like he'd just spent a year in 'Nam.

"I've seen things man..."

We looped downtown, and went home.  Just about 3 hours on the bike.  Twas quite fun, other than Charlie's not-toed-in brake squalling like a herniated goose.

Sunday met us with heavy fog.  I guess that was enough to keep folks in bed, as Il Prof, Rox and I were the only ones to show.
10 minutes in, and not even across the damn river, I flatted.  Not a good omen.  Changed, booted, and on our way...
And hour later, Il Prof blew a spoke out of his rear wheel.  Did he go home?  Nope!  We completely undid his rear brake, and he rode that wonky nacho chip for another 2 hours!
Everyone who has ridden with Rox knows she always smiles on the bike.  She also is fond of the old raspberry, as it were...

On the way back in, the fog gave way to a seriously blue sky, a something that almost resembled a tailwind.

Another 3 hours fell under wheel pretty easily, and quickly.  Good rides with good people tend go that way...


The Noah was making all sorts of noise when I got back to Service Course.  Of course, it has really been touched, other than to wipe it down, since it's build date.  Time for a good once over...
That creaking/cracking in the rear wheel?  Yeah, loose frehub...
The creaky pedal?  It seems Keos have a propensity for the bodies to back off the axles.  Second time this has happened.  They got rebuilt, and green Locktite was applied to the threads.
Everything else seemed to be copasetic...
I also affixed the 12/28, as there are plans in the works to go ride in the mountains this weekend.  Supposed to beautimous...
Don't forget about the Cotton Pickin' Metric in Rock Hill on Saturday as well.

And a big "Wheels Down" to the folks who are riding the length of the BRP this week.  Y'all are gonna get a bit damp today.  Once you're wet though, it's not like you can get MORE wet...


Alrighty then...get back to work.  I need to go to Target...

Happy Monday...wear your rain coat...

RIP

As most likely know by now, Amy Dombroski was fatally injured while training in Belgium yesterday. 
She was killed while motorpacing when she, and her moto driver, were struck by a truck. 
She became a terrible statistic at the tender age of 26. 
This happens far too much to cyclists.  It weighs heavy.  I know it did for me last night.  I did not know Amy, but it doesn't matter. 
Amy is us...
I really don't dwell on things when I ride, nor do I let the specter outpace me, but I can tell you, my little concussion-addled brain was racing last night as I soloed home, in the dark.
Ride like they don't see you my friends, 'cause they sure as hell aren't looking...

As for last night, it was a really fun ride.  A bit of a meandering loop, but it was a quality one, and should be remembered for future use.  Some new sections, and some thoughts on how to change the loop in the future to freshen it up.  Twas good...

 From the "Too Much Damn Money" file...

A custom Ti Seven step-thru city bike.  It's replete with discs, and Di2.  Shocked it doesn't have Enve wheels...

And I'm no Orbea fan, but this is pretty near OK with me...

...well, except for the DROP.  That makes my back, and testicles, hurt...

Enough for a Friday.  We'll get back to the inane frivolity soon...

Tangential...

I don't talk about politics on here mainly because, well, it's a fool's errand. Nothing anyone can say is either correct, nor does it please all who read it.
This time is different, and I'm going to make an exception.
What follows is my own, personal, Open Letter to Congress...
Let's just jump in with both feet. You are ALL vile, insipid idiots. Sure, I understand arguing across the aisles. I have degrees in Government and US History after all.
What I don't get is the vitriol...Excuse me...the open CONTEMPT for one another. 
It's like you guys are 10 year old children...oh...wait...that's a throw off on 10 year old children, as the vast majority of them are far smarter, and wiser, than all of Congress...combined.
Why NOW am I lashing out, and ranting about politics? This inane Government shutdown affects ALL of us.
First and foremost are those who are getting furloughed. These poor folks are largely Government employees, and last I checked, not a lot of them are pulling down Congress-type dollars. Hope the bank understands when they can't make their house payments.
And speaking of Congress-type dollars, why are you jackasses still getting paid, while Government employees checks are stopping?
And you those those poor men and women who you chose to send to war zones all of the globe? Yeah, THEY ARE GETTING I.O.U.s.
"Sorry you took that bullet in the thigh...we'll get you paid in a few weeks..."
The freaking PXs @ Fort Jackson are closed.  I guess the folks who live on the largest Army training base in the US don't have to eat, or wipe...
Honestly, for the most part, this doesn't affect my family, except for one very troublesome reason.
My handsome, sensitive, emotional, highly-intelligent, 8 year old was apoplectic when he came home from school Tuesday. Why you ask? His teacher has to explain to her third grade class that they could not go on their field trip to Congaree Swamp National Park today because of the Government shut down.
Sorry, but 8 year old kids shouldn't have to deal with the fact that Congress is behaving in a less mature, and responsible, manner than the kids do on a day to day basis.
I know this seems pretty trivial, given the larger picture, but it serves as an illustration of just how far this shutdown reaches.
Jake wanted to know why? WHY? So I explained it to him with no tint, nor lean to one side or the other. After I finished, he looked me dead in the face, rubbed his nose as 8 year old boys are wont to do, and said, "Well...that's just kind of dumb..."

Yes my son, you are absolutely correct.

Someone on Facebook alluded to the end of Rome.  I can't say that this allusion is not analogous.  The sheer effluence of hubris coming from Washington is shocking.  If one thinks that the majority of the elected officials inside the Beltway, regardless of affiliation, are looking out for any interests, other than their own, then that person is deluded.  
These 'leaders' have forgotten that their duty is to US, the people.  It has become more important to bicker over minutia, than to work in an effort to make things better.  
It's not a perfect solution, but then again, what is?  
I'm leaning towards what our de facto voice of reason said the other night...



Back to our normal, inane programming...

Fun ride Tuesday night.  Lots of new faces, and bikes that were pulled out of the deepest, darkest recesses of garages.  More than a few needed more than some slick tires, and a light!  Lots of popping chains, and mis-shifts.  
Of course, my beat to death CX bike wasn't much different.  It's current needs are a new chain, pulleys, and new cables/housing.  All will be remedied once the chains get here from the UK in a few days.  
I'm sure the month's worth of dried LexCo detritus accumulated on the downtube wasn't exactly helping matters.
It's now clean(ish), and will get overhauled very soon.  I also have some VERY special handlebat tape inbound.  You'll just have to wait and see...
And it's Thursday, so same bat-time, same bat-parking lot for another installment of ... The Night Ride...

Junk had an interesting comment on the Uran crash video from last post.  He said than if ol' Rigoberto had some MTB skillz, he may have saved it...which made me think for a moment.  The only skill that would have saved Senor Uran would have been that of Danny Hart...



The better version of this video?  Here...

OK...get back to work...

Stuff...and other things...

Assos does, in fact, make nice clothing...

Fluoro SO HARD!  Yeah, all this bright paint and fabric that's floating around is probably a re-hash of a fad, but it's cool, and Hi-Vis socks are cheap.
I'm thinking the Jericho frame may get the fluoro treatment.  It's nothing a helping of marine grade paint stripper can't remedy down the road.

What's the proper angle of attack for a double apex corner?  Whatever gets you thru!

He gets this from polydactyl cat...

Speaking of Flouro.  I'm torn here.  I can get a pair of these at a crazy deep discount.  The issue is whether I will be stuck wearing hi-vis shoes in two years, if the fad does, in fact, go the way of the Dodo.  Grrrr.....

So pretty.  Stainless steel Condor...

Uran's crash at Worlds.  Came in a little hot methinks...



Another view of Worlds.  Pretty gnarly day.  Reminiscent of 1993...



And finally, give some love, and some money, to the USC Gamecock Cycling Team.  The kit design has been posted on here, and the pricing is damn good.  The clothes are designed by our very own KindHuman, and will be produced by MOA.  FWIW, MOA makes Rapha clothes...
Now dig thru your couch cushions, and under the seats of your car, and support what Justin Bristol is doing!!
Gamecock Cycling Team is a go...

There are enough of those fugly Clemson kits in this town.

Now, slip and slide...



Urban Ride tonight @ the spot.  6:30pm.  Only come out if you plan on having a good time...

Two days, One ride...

I slept in this weekend...both days.  Hey...Don't hate!  It's a rare thing around here.  Get a wife, THREE boys aged 8 and below, then get back to me how hard your mornings/days are....
Saturday morning, I woke up late, and met our newest dirt road convert/enthusiast for a good ride through a bunch of pretty countryside that's ALL less than 30 minutes from Service Course.
Rox and I did 2.5 hours, and hit 5 sections of dirt.  Smiles were wide.

 See...smiles!

Big blue sky Saturday morning. (I did not manipulate this pic AT ALL!)

Upon return to Service Course, I did yard work, took a nap, and then took The Boss to Ruth's Chris for our anniversary.  12 years on, things are going swimmingly...

Sunday morning hit, and the urges to get out of bed, nor to ride a bicycle, were anywhere in my immediate vicinity, so I slept until 0845.  It was nice.  You should have been there...
Upon rolling my large carcass out of the rack, ratty clothes were thrown on, and the side of the house got a fresh coat of Lowe's best ultra white paint. 
I got leg and core work.  I hate that fucking extension ladder!
A short break was enjoyed @ 1130, to take in the end of the Men's WC RR from Italy. 



Looked like a LOVELY day in Lucca.  Then again, any day in Lucca is better than a day anywhere else on the planet.

Upon making the turn to the back side of This Old House, the discovery of yet more wood trim in need of replacement.  No sense to paint it, and a trip to Lowe's just wasn't going to happen, so I called it a day.  Another nap was enjoyed, and the brood returned. 

Weekend over...and it wasn't half bad!

Now, for your Worlds update(s) :









And Euro CX kicked off yesterday...



Weird to see these guys gunning it on dry ground, in the sunshine...
Oh, and that ditch they were hopping?  Think you can do it?  It was bigger than you think...

Pauwels gettin' it done...

And people complain about dogs on the course. 

OK, now that I've shot your Monday productivity in the keester...sorry about that!

And congrats to Cal!  We're starting pool to see when he becomes a father.  I'll give it 15 months.  Anyone wants some of the action, it's a $20 buy in.  Winner takes all.  Cal, you are not eligible...

That's that...

Well, the Tues/Thurs road rides drew to a close last night.  Fun ride, except for the whole "Leaving Service Course 8 minutes before the ride starts" b/c The Boss 'forgot' it was Thursday.  Uh huh...
I blew out, and opened the account (as Bristol would say) before I got to the stop sign at the end of the street.
I knew getting to Farm Bureau wasn't gonna happen, so I took the shortcut through the neighborhood, bombed a dirt road I'd never ridden before, took a few stupid chances, and got to the bridge by the steel mill in 16 minutes.  Should have had the GPS running, and created a Strava section.  That shit would have been out of reach for everyone not on a KTM Duke.
Matches were burnt getting there.  Fortunately, all of this put me well AHEAD of the group, and I could spin slowly down 12th whilst waiting to be caught.  It didn't happen until the turn @ Old Wire, so that was nice. 
After that recovery, the rest of the ride felt pretty OK.  Maybe I've come up with a warm-up plan?
The Urban Ride starts Tuesday @ 6:30.  Bring your MTB, CX bike, and lights.  Figure on 2 hours or so of big fun in the dark.
And do everyone a favor.  Don'tt complain about the ride if you've never bothered to have done it.  Show up, or shut up...

Not a big fan of the whole 'alleycat' thing, but definitely a fan of attractive women in well-fit wool jerseys...

Where's this, and when do we leave?

Wait...what?

Tell me again how steep a climb you did was...

If/when The Boss ever puts me out, I know where I'm going...

Link Dump :

Because having a carbon soft-tail sounded like a good idea.  Carbon likes flexing repeatedly on a single plane...

If being #FLOURO is wrong, I don't wanna be right...

Lemond threw a website together.  Ironic that as soon as I hit the 'purchase' tab, Norton Anti-Virus popped up and called the site 'untrustworthy'.  Prophetic perhaps?  And ordering a bike, paying for that bike, and having  it called 'a reservation'?  Another solid business plan from old Greg, huh?

Tony Martin beat all comers in the Worlds TT...on a 58 big ring!!!  All of you people who ride compact and claim to "SMASH" things, just stop it!  You aren't smashing shit.  For today, Tony Martin is the only person that can use the word "SMASH".
--as an side, we don't know Martin's power numbers, but Wiggins put down a 445w average...and 98rpm.  Insane...

Go check out my friend JB @ WTF Kits.  He gets it...

Everyone have fun @ Little Mountain tomorrow.  Good loop, low traffic.  Too early, and too much $ for the kid.  I'll be childless this weekend, so I'm sleeping in, and going out on the CX bike for a few hours.

Time to get the day started...

One to go...

Light is a commodity at this point, thus, it pains me to say that the Tri-City road rides will be ending on Thursday.
Just too dark.  We got back @ 7:30 last night, and it was basically dark.  I did a little extra, and rolled into Service Course @ 8:30, and it was BLACK.  Fortunately, I was rocking the MagicShine 808, so there was PLENTY of light being thrown down the road.

Up the upside, the Urban Assault rides will kick off next Tuesday @ 6:30pm.  MTBs and CX bikes.  Bring your lights...front and rear.  Big fun is had by all...

As for last night, it was quite fun.  Good pace, a little chasing, a really nice chat @ 45-50kmh with Mike, the J&B rep, and I got to hear excuses on just why someone didn't win the Post Office sprint.  Sure you didn't know that we sprint to the P.O. sign...uh huh...nevermind that it's been that way for 2 years.
Kind of like years ago, when people would say that the END of the bridge on Shop Rd. was the sprint line...after they lost the kick.

I've also come to the conclusion that I need a new floor pump.  My Silca is 25 years old, and reads low, and my Park travel pump, is hemorrhaging air nearly as fast as I can put it in the tires.  It's only money, I suppose...

And now for some pretty pictures....

So many nice steel rigs out there now...so pretty...

Speaking of, a lot of talk has kicked off after I posed that Rob English frame a few days ago.  Here's the link to his site.  He makes really nice stuff...REALLY nice.

These pencil sketches are glorious.  They were done by an artist named Leo Espinosa.  I may have to buy these...

Two things I noticed here.  Nys isn't riding discs, as they aren't needed, and Trebon is like 11 feet tall...

A Steelman, with Deltas...the brakes that aren't for stopping, just throwing off a little speed.
And we'll end today with things that are good...

 A BMW 1200GS custom (you seeing this Mr. Edwards?)

And Marilyn in a bikini.  There's a LOT that's right about this photo...

With that...I bid you adieu...

Monday

Sorta feels like this, doesn't it....

This flow chart may help...

Oh Greg...$12k for a complete EPS bike you say?  Well hell, order me a full size run.  This will end badly inside 36 months, tops...

Seems like Cav has the best leadout man in the World now...





Also seems that Petacchi is on the good Bunny Juice now too...

And now for the moment of our show that will get your adrenaline levels going...



That was a butt pucker moment @ :29 if there ever was one...

Now get back to work...

And that's the way it is...

Pretty good ride yesterday out in LexCo.  Nice sized group.  All were jovial, and seemed to enjoy the ride.  It was kind of nice to ride those roads again. 
That being said, I cannot see myself rolling out of the sack @ 5:15am with any sort of regularity to go do a 55 mile ride...IN TOWN!  Call me lazy...please, do it...I'm fucking lazy...
Big thanks to Vince for having us out! 

 Yes, that IS the sun rising!!

 I could put a house right there...and a CX loop...and a velodrome...

 I asked TVH if this was a grimace or a smile.  He said "Yes..."

 The little group of merry men...and woman. 

Is Il Prof waving, calling for help, or telling us to go on without him? 

Great roads out there.  Low traffic.  Roll-y terrain (3000ft. in 55 miles).  And plenty of cool stuff to see.

TVH ended up with more miles than the rest of us.  He neglected to turn off his Garmin, and it recorded the ride home.  I'd go ahead and put that section on Strava, and DARE someone to take the KoM. 

Twas a lazy Sunday morning @ Service Course.  Didn't really feel like dragging the Ridley out, so the CX bike got the call.  A solo jaunt out thru The Powerstation went off @ 8:30. 
Note to self : Do NOT leave bottles on the kitchen counter.  2 hours is a long time to be alone with one's own saliva.
It was a pretty damn nice morning, and a pretty damn nice ride.  I had no water, no music, and no computer. 

 Cockpit view.  FWIW, 7800 D/A is STILL the benchmark of 10v parts.

 Funky sky this morning.  Swirly winds...

 Still nice and green out on the dirt.

WWVID?  What Would Vanilla Ice Do? 
Did I stop?  Hell no, I just rolled by...
I did, however, Stop to collaborate, and listen...

Looks like the Tues/Thurs rides will come to an end this coming week.  Just not enough light...
Watch this space for details about the Urban Assault Ride.  When I know what's going on, you'll know...
I do know that it looks like there will be more than few CX bikes out this Winter.  Sweeet...

Hope everyone had a good weekend...

Some mild entertainment

Nothing of real substance today, as if there ever really is around here.  If you come here for enlightenment, you're barking up the wrong tree. :)

Fun ride last night.  Just sort of rolled around on the back, and watched you-know-who foul up the ride at every turn.  Well, I say at every turn, but seeing that he never actually took his turn...
I digress...

It was good nonetheless, and riding home in the dark was a bit better.  It takes a few rides to get the eyes, and wits, back in the game.  Riding in the dark is a different animal.

Saturday will be a LexCo affair.  Several of us are heading out for a loop through LexCo and Saluda counties.  Looks like a good loop, and if those who committed to ride actually show up, it will be a good group.

Here's the LOOP...0800 @ St. Peter's Church @ the corner of St. Peter's and Old Cherokee. 

My buddy Brent, and Mr. Nys, at the show...

Thirsty?

90 days until Christmas...

Speaking of...

How about steel with a carbon seat tube/mast?  Like butter on a bald monkey...

8.86 pounds.  It will probably shatter under you, and leave large shards of carbon impaled through your flesh, but GD it's light!!!!

Two wheels good.  Believe it or not, this is a NEW moto.  A custom Yamaha Star Bolt...so cool.  Me want...

Gotta get the day going.  Need to head out to get some ride food...