Random Chaos

Wow, the whirlwind of chaos continues. XXC Magazine #10 was published today and is available to download for $2.25, or buy in quality print via MagCloud.com for $9.80. Or hell, just hork the preview on Issuu. Just read the damn thing! LOL! Thanks to all the folks that contributed, and to the folks that are willing to part with a couple pennies to keep it going by purchasing a copy. Also big thanks to the advertisers for thinking that XXC Magazine is a worthy vehicle to get their message out.

With XXC #10 out, I can now breath for a couple days before I start up #11, deal with a snowstorm that is going to be knocking on the door tomorrow, get ready for a trip to PA on the weekend, attempt to get registered for the Lumberjack tomorrow night, and try to get my Dos Niner ready to be taken to Terry's to have some parts swapped.

Later.

Pretty Darn Not Bad

Pretty stoked with the weekend. And that is saying something for me to be stoked on a winter weekend WITH snow, and NO riding. I did get a nice ski in with the family on Saturday at XC Ski HQ, and then today solo at Deerfield park right outside of town.


As far as terrain is concerned I think I enjoyed today's ski more than yesterday. It was more rolling, and that made it a bit more fun. The snow was better yesterday though. But what do I know? After all, I put the ghetto in XC skiing. OK, that really doesn't make any sense. I guess it's my way of saying I could ski on rocks and sand, and probably wouldn't notice a difference. I just know I was going faster yesterday getting my glide on. Still praying for the day I can turn a corner without coming to a dead stop.

I did have fun today, but would have liked to have gone longer. Maybe tomorrow or Tuesday I can get out longer.


I did a quick 3 mile-ish loop and then hit the road, as Wifey and B-Man were heading to some WinterFest deal in "Little Bavaria," and I thought it best I tag along. Since come spring and summer, I am a slippery pickle to get hold of for some family stuff. Not to mention it earns be booty points with my female lady. BONUS!

We drove a long way, saw some neat things, spent some time in the (cold) sun, and then drove home. It was a pretty not bad time. Not sure any of us would do it again, but it was neat to see and blow some winter stink off of us.

My snow sculptures from the day...

And this...

But then of course there was this...

Which HAD to be done. While I've "choked" my share of chicken, I didn't know how I would do at chicken bowling. So I let B-Man handle it...

TOSS THAT CHICKEN!!!

All in all a great weekend. Plenty of home cooked White Trash Mexicana, good beer, quality family time, quality Wifey time, outside exercise, and good times.

XXC #10 will hit digital shelves tomorrow. Stay tuned. Then a short work week followed by a trip to PA. I would rather stick a needle in both eyes, and sit in vat of boiling monkey feecus, than drive 13 hours in 4 days to go to PA in February, but duty calls.

Lots to do this week, some good, some a pain in the ass, some boring. But so let the week begin....

Later.

Short & Sweet

Today B-Man, Wifey, and I headed to XC Ski HQ to get our (shocker) XC ski on. There were no speed or endurance records set, but the fact that we got B-Man out on skis for the first time ever, and that he skied well, and for 2.5+ miles was a HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHUGE bonus in our parental books. He did it all with no whining or crying and seemed to have a lot of fun. Wifey also had a ton of fun, and that of course means I did too. And THAT means that I MIGHT mean I score later. But I doubt.

I did one short loop with the (family) unit, and then went out and did a longer loop by myself to get a workout in. It all felt titz (the best feeling ever?). The snow was great, the temps were great and we ALL had a great time out in the snow. It felt SOOOOO good to be out, and it felt even better to have B-Man and Wifey diggin' the XC vibe.

XC ski via aside, I am stoked for the coming XC/XXC season. SOOOOOO many freaking races that I want to do, and so many chances to catch up with good friends.

As of today I am down 7.6 lb. since January 1st, and THAT is pretty good in my book. Another week or two and I will be out of the Clydesdale class. And THAT means a lot to me.

Later.

Yikes! What A Friday!

I packed more in to today, than I used to pack into a week. I got a work done, a workout in, dad/husband stuff, and MORE bite the head off a bat in anger work issues solved. One article this issue has been a thorn in my side. And as expected it did not let up even when it was done. For some reason I could NOT get Adobe Acrobat to insert the pages. As soon as I did it would crash. I tried everything for many hours, and FINALLY did a yinzer-rig to get it together. So I missed my self imposed end of January deadline for Issue #10, but it should be out February 2nd at the latest. Grrrr!!

I also got my lodging for the Lumberjack squared away. NOW I just have to hope I can get registered! LOL! Even if I don't get in, I know I can get on the waiting list, and if THAT doesn't work out, then I guess I will just be "on assignment" for XXC Magazine. Not that I would complain! Especially since I got the new camera. I've only had it one day and already think it's the best P&S digital camera I've ever had.

I also got registered for my first XC race since maybe 2009's Snotcycle race in Leesburg. This one is the Rust Shaker on what I consider "home single track" at Mid Michigan Community College. The only thing is that this race is separate from some of the other Michigan races that base racing age on 12-31-11, this goes by race day age, so I have to race Pro/Expert Open if I want to race two laps. Which of course I do, I mean who the hell wants to pay $20+ for 10 miles? Not me. So I will risk looking like a fat fool to get miles per dollars in. I've done worse, for dumber reasons I suppose.

Got some good news via Terry Cycle today too. More on that later, as I am tired, I want to go to bed and me and the family are heading out for some XC skiing tomorrow.

Later.

The Race Of Half Truths and Innuendo

During the spring and summer, when I fall victim to watching road racing on TV (because it's the only game in town), there is at some point a time trial, to which I tolerate and sometimes get into, but am not a huge fan... of course time trials are much better than the prologue time trial (I'm doing gagging gestures, but you can't see it- unless you are outside my window peeping at me, which is a tad strange if you ask me. Anyway, I always feel like there was something I should have done, could have done, and would have had more fun doing than watching dudes race all out through some town for 5k or whatever, just to establish a leader.

Now a real time trial I can get slightly more into. It's longer, often means something, at times can be pretty exciting and even decide a race. I do wish they just used their regular race bikes though, seem like it would be more "real." But that's just my opinion. At some point within the time trial Paul Sherwen or Phil Ligget will of course bust out "the race of truth" line. Which is true, it's man against man, leaving it all out there on the road, just them and the clock, etc., etc., blah, blah, blah, I get it. Except that in Pro cycling that "truth" is often blurred by the lies of doping, but that's another blog post, on another blog, by someone more knowledgeable than some half wit mountain biker.

I bring this up mainly because I could not get that damn saying out of my mind as I rode on the trainer today. I decided to get warmed up and then just hammer at, or just below threshold for 35 minutes or so, then cool down. Sort of time trial like. Except shorter, so it was more like a prologue, UG!! I hate prologues. But we've established that, so let's move on...

The ride was time trial like. It burned a bit, and felt good. But I kept thinking of that damn phrase "race of truth." And I thought, if they say a Pro racing a time trial for cash money is doing the "race of truth," what do you call a middle aged, mid pack mountain biker riding on the stationary for an hour? I nixed "stupid," just 'cause that's too easy, and decided that the these rides for me should be called "the race of half truths and innuendo." Wordy, I know, but I still like it. I think I will keep it.

I also plan to do a mountain bike TT or two this spring and summer up here in Michigan. The first is The Yankee Springs Time Trial. This I CAN be a fan of because it's 20 miles, on dirt. Joy! I like the idea of the MTB TT due to the fact that me ever getting into the single track first is like watching a midget and a horse race. As you can probably guess, I am not the horse.

I finally got my new camera today, after searching the Net for weeks. The Cannon s95. Pretty stoked. Hope to get out for a ski or a least a hike with it this weekend. Lots of added manual features that I need to get familiar with before ride season. I went with the s95 because it has a nice selection of auto and manual features and a pretty good low light rep. Sort of like a DSLR for someone like me who doesn't want a big ass DSLR, or have to worry about manual settings ALL the time. But like they say "a picture is worth a 1,000 words," so I guess we'll just see about that.

I was supposed to have some info on some bike related sweetness that was due to be in at my shop this week, but has not appeared yet. Curse you vial UPS man. Curse you. I fart in your general direction.

Later.

I'm NOT Homesick

I'm NOT Homesick, but I think I might be "hillsick." Watching the Dirty Dozen special on WQED Pittsburgh online tonight made sure of that. Seeing Steevo (who apparently has a real job now), Montana, young Sam, Pflug, Don (at least I think it was Don in the T6 Metal kit), Gunnar, and others was cool too.

While I do miss the hills of Western, PA, I can't say I miss city riding (haven't done that since I lived IN the city some 9+ (?) years ago, or city hills, but I DO miss the mountain ones. Then again, with all the winter cold, snow and ice I just miss real riding! Maybe this weekend, things will work out.

Short teaser blurb about the next XXC up the site. Check it out.

Gotta split, I am sssssucked into watching Michael Palin's New Europe on Netflix, and bed beckons. And yes I said MICHAEL Palin, he of Monty Python, no relation to Tea Party nut job. Watching this show, really make me want to do a marathon in Europe someday. Just think it would be a really cool way to experience Europe or the UK. Then again, I need to just do more HERE!

Speaking of Euro marathons... I had the head of a sports photography company in Europe ask me what would be some good mountain bike races to cover here in the States. I gave him some suggestions on ones that I thought had a combination of great scenery and good turnouts. 400 to 500 folks. He replied, with a kind thank you but said that there's no way they could cover their costs for just 400 or 500 racers. They are used to covering 4 to 5,000 at some of the Euro marathons to cover costs. DEAR GOD! 5,000 racers/riders! I knew there were some big ones there, but those are some sick numbers. HA!

Later.

Whirlwind, Juicy Buttocks & Love

This past weekend I was rocking some big time winter funk, thankfully that has past for a few hours, and been replaced by a whirlwind of work. XXC Magazine #10 is almost done, and should be ready to hit the digital newsstand later this week or Monday. Pretty geeked. This one game together real nice. The cool thing is that this one isn't even done and I have some tentative plans for the next one going already. That's a good feeling.

The past two days have been a whirlwind blur of what now seems to be my normal winter routine- Up at 6 am, coffee, check e mail, send e mail, read a couple blogs, get B-Man up, get him breakfast, ready for school, walk him to school (100 yards away from my crib), shovel snow walks and drive, clean off Wifey's car, eat breakfast, work, work, ride trainer/go to gym (1 to 2 hours), shower, eat, e-mail, web stuff, work, work, get B-Man from school, work, do some errands if needed, get B-Man started on homework, work, get B-Man a snack, work, fool around on the web, make B-Man dinner, make my dinner, sit on the couch for a bit while I eat, clean up a bit (or pawn it off on Wifey), fool around on Web, work, maybe blog on the Chamois, maybe lay in bed watching Netflix on the lap top, go to bed, sleep off/on again all night, wake up at 4 am, lay there 'till 5, fall back to sleep, up at 6, good to go again. OK maybe not "good to go" but going again nonetheless.

While that does make me look a tad like a less funny Mr. Mom, meets sub par Mrs. Brady blended with a way less successful Maurice Tierney, I actually like all that at times, and I really like it when I am that busy, it makes the day go fast. The only thing missing is a REAL ride. But those will come soon. I actually also need to type all that out sometime, because it makes me see how lucky I am. Something I forget often. While I don't exactly "pay the bills" with my job, it pays SOME bills, and it's something I truly love doing. Plus I get to spend a ton of time with B-Man. When I was B-Man's age my dad was working midnight shift in a factory 7 days a week, sleeping all day, and then squeezing in some sleepy family time in the evening. I'm also lucky to have the support of Wifey. Her brains, support, and more laid back attitude is what keep it all going. OK, love fest over. I'm making myself sick. Plus it's just a matter of time before I start realizing again what I could do for my family if I had a real job and real talent and brains.

Bike stuff- Sort of...

Rumor has it this is the real reason Matt White (Garmin-Cervelo directeur sportif) was recently released from his duties. Suggesting to DZ that he have POMx Antioxidant Recovery rubbed on his buttocks was not approved by Jonathan Vaughters. Or maybe it was that White let slip that he didn't dig the new specs Vaughters is rocking. You know, the Transition Lenses meets bookworm playboy ones. But then again I could be wrong. In fact I know I am.

Should have some more bike stuff to post in the coming day or two. As something is hurling itself towards me as I type. Or at least in the general direction of central Michigan.

Time to watch some movies.

Later.

UGGG!

The high today was about 10 degrees. As I type it is -1 degree. Brilliant. The only consolation for me is that it's only 9 degrees in Pittsburgh right now and going down -2 tonight, so I'm not missing anything by not being there. Well, I guess I am missing "Steeler madness." But I am damn glad of that, They can have it, I have 2 shitz not to be given.

Today was hard because it LOOKED beautiful outside. Bright sun and blue sky. The only bad part was the above mentioned 10 degree temps. So I climbed on the trainer for the last workout of the week and got myself over 8.5 hours of time "doing stuff." this week. Not to bad for a slacker, at the end of January on Hoth.

Oh well, it can't stay cold and snowy forever, right? But then again I would have thought that I would have stopped being a miserable, depressed malcontent prick long ago, yet here I am. Ha!

Time to get some sub par, wake up every hour sleep.

Later.

Day gone, but not forgotten.

I woke up in a deep freeze inspired virtual rope to attic mood. I sat around in my fat pants drinking coffee and working on some XXC layouts, 'till I finally got inspired to go to the basement and ride the trainer. Side note: I miss saying Stankment™. But I can't bring myself to call this basement the Stankment™ due to the fact it's not that stank, skank or nasty. It's just a "basment." Boring.

The almost recovered from a nasty ass cold Wifey wanted the family to go XC skiing today. That sounded great. What didn't sound great was taking a 6 year old out in 5 degree temps. So that was aborted and I was forced to the basement and the trainer.

Two hours were on tap today and that's what I did. Given the "dude, get back on the medication" mood I was in, I sort of can't believe I busted out two hours. Truth be told it went by fast. I had fired up the lap top with some XC race action, had Lemmy on the hi-fi, and just looked at the two hours as four 30 minute intervals. Done. And with only limited numbness to the ol' chap. I did have to jump off one time to scurry my Lycra clad ever expanding ass up to the office to get the power cord for the Mac book, but I did stop the time for that, so the officials ruled that it was allowed.

If I can get a workout in tomorrow on skis or on the trainer I should easily have over 8+ hours of "doing stuff" this week. "Doing stuff" is my new word for training. Training makes it sound like I DO something of worth on the bike. I just ride my bike. If I ever get on the podium again for anything other than being last, I will switch back to training. But if I were you I would just get used to "doing stuff."

Once the 2 hours was in the books, a quick shower and lunch lead to painting the dining room and FINALLY ridding it of that hay-noose egg plant purple color that it was. SOOOO much better now. And I was able to huff paint fumes which is just a notch below the joy I get from huffing rubber balls in those big metal pens that you see at Wal Mart or K-Mart, or new bike tires. Mmmmm... Love me the smell of new bike tires. And that perfume that strippers wear, that's not bad either. I'M KIDDING!! Eeeeesshhh. RELAX!!

Time to have a couple beers, play some video games, and then cook up some low fat, no fat, barley worth eating White Trash Mexican.

Later.

The Sign Says

You know a couple weeks ago I saw a sign at the gym asking people to limit their cardio machine workouts to like 30 minutes. To which I adhere, but as with most "rules" still mentally throw two middle fingers up and fart in their general direction. I mean 30 minutes?? That's like a bartender asking a bar fly to limit their time to 30 minutes on the stool before they give it up. I still think the rule is a result of that 60 minute StairMastering I put in right around Christmas. Grrrr!

Anyway, I did my 30, got off, then proceeded to the chest press machine which seemed to be f*cked and in need of repair so I moved on yet again. Upon completing a shortened circuit of weights I wanted to head back to the StairMaster. But they were booked. All two of them. One of them with a chick that was on before I started about 45 minutes ago. CLEARLY not adhering to the rules. But did I bitch? No. Did I moan? No. Well maybe just a little, but in the end I moved on to the rowing machine. Did 10 minutes of stroking on that and then headed home. 300 calories short of the days goal, but still not going to bitch too much since I am officially down 6 pounds today! Ephing-eph-eph-eph-ity-ephy yeah!

Tomorrow could have been a night XC race in the snow. OR it could have been Snow Cross during the day. As it is, I might try to ski, but it's supposed to be like 1 degree or something obnoxious like that, so I may just end up on the trainer for like 5 hours or something. Or 20 minutes and 6 beers. Who knows? Winter sucks. I would like to bitch more, but the PGH area continues to suffer way more than me up here in Michigan, so I won't. Not yet.

Later.

Out of Control

Lots of work done on XXC today + I squeezed in a trainer ride, and did my dad/husband/house duties. The day flew by.

The things got out of control as I started looking at some races that I want to do this year. I was going to put the list on the side bar, but it looked so freaking ridiculous. I swear there was like 20 endurance and XC races on it. Chances are I will do about 5 to 6 if I'm lucky. I do this every year. I get cabin fever and start thinking that I'm so racer boy. We all know that is not the case.

My goals is to do The Barry Roubaix (32 miles course), The Yankee Springs TT and Rust Shaker XC races, then move on to a couple of the local endurance races. And I of course want to do the Lumberjack 100 this year. Then there are a few races later in the year.

My race goals this year is just to race more! 2009 was OK doing the NUE races, but there was too much travel and money involved to do that many again. Last year was a bust. Weight gain, family stress, and worry. I totally convinced myself that I didn't enjoy racing. And once I was that out of shape I didn't! So this year I just want to first lose some weight (in progress!) and then do some races with the goal of lining up and experiencing some new trails.

But the racing won't be the main goal this season. There is lots I want to see here. I want to do long gravel grinders, I want to see some trails up north, and do some longer epic rides solo and/or with some friends. In between all that I will of course be traveling back to PA to try to do some riding in the mountain, and maybe take a trip to the U.P. with the family as well as to lake a few times.

Oh cabin fever. Your warmth sure can stoke a fire. I guess that is a good thing.

This pic is not from today. It's from a while ago. Just liked it, and don't like posts without any photos. So I'm using this one. I had to sit the E.M. down so I could move a branch across the trail.

After last weeks freeze-yer-ballz off ride, I think I will just try skiing this weekend. Lots to do.

Later.

On Watch

Spend the day working, hitting the gym, and working some more. I need to step up if I want the next issue of XXC out by the end of the month. The great thing is that if I don't I won't exactly get fired, so it's not too big of an issue. Pretty stoked on how this one is coming along. Some funny articles, some inspirational articles, some informative articles, and some great pics.

Also spent some time tonight watching some video my buddy Ben was hosting on his site (and his sponsors site) about sports medicine and performance. Pretty good stuff. Some of it was over my head, but as an aging athlete who is marginally talented at best, it was cool to get some insight into what the body needs beyond just "ride lots" and watching what you eat. Couldn't finish it though, as I have to get some sleep (and do this blog post). Something I don't do very well, and SURPRISE! That has a lot to do with performance and recovery. I wonder if laying awake at 4 a.m. every morning could be an issue? Nahhhhhh....

I am also on watch as Wifey has brought the first cold of the year into the house. These people that go out and work among the public really chap my ass. Freaking germ magnets. I kid... I'mmmmm a kidder. So I am hydrating to excess, and avoiding Wifey way more than usual (again with the kidding).

Got some good and spicy bike news today. Lots of fun stuff going down in 2011. I just need the snow to melt and the trails to dry up. Soon enough I suppose. Until then I'll just keep doin' what I'm doin' and hope for the best come spring!

Later.

Ball Busted

The Boy Wonder busted my balls in the last post's comments for not complaining about riding the trainer as I promised yesterday. So this is that post. Sort of. I did ride the trainer in the semi warm, semi cozy basement yesterday. But I really didn't complain. I was warm, I could feel my extremities (except for one, hey it was an hour + of just sitting there for the most part).

I had freshly ripped tunes on the iPod, and shoveling the driveway and walks of 4+" of fresh snow had me warmed up and ready to go. So there is was no real complaining. Just sweating.

I was also able to finally get some snow tires on the xB yesterday. Woot! Woot! Well worth it. Made a big difference, and now, even though I am not a huge fan of the activity, I am less hesitant to drive it further north for more cross country ski-able snow and terrain.

My replacement studded tire arrived yesterday from Bikeman.com. Just in time for snow that is now too deep to ride a 700 x 40 tire all that well on. Great. BUT maybe by the weekend the back roads will be packed down enough to use it. Or not. Who cares? There will be something to do to get a calorie burn on. BTW that is doing sort of OK now, as I am down about 5 pounds since New Years. I must admit I am anxious to see if I still have ribs, but me thinks I still have some time for that. Maybe by this time next year?

Later.

More Than Unpleasant

Because I spent so much time making that vlog yesterday, I really didn't get to say much else about the ride. Not that it was any big deal. It's not a long ride, it's not a hard ride, and it was the same route I did last week and had a great time, this week (Sunday), I did it and had everything but a good time.

I thought if I dressed as warm as I could, and started pedaling, I would warm up. But I didn't and by the end I could not feel my fingers, or toes. My core was warm though thanks to that new Craft base layer I picked up (sooooo freaking worth it!), my face and legs were OK, but the misery factory was at 110%.

This handy dandy cycling wind chill calculator says that if I was riding at roughly 15 mph (which I was doing at least that on some of the flats) then the wind chill I was riding in was -11.

The chart also seems to indicated that -11 falls in between being "Unpleasant" and "Frostbite likely. Outdoor activity dangerous." Hmmmm... I think it should be dubbed "F*cking Unpleasant." But that didn't seem to fit in the space on the original downloaded graphic, but no worries, no worries... I made the correction.

I have ridden in MUCH colder weather, but never out on open roads like this. Mountain biking in the woods going 6 to 11 mph, is much different, and I find it way more tolerable. Another thing that proved more difficult this week was the amount of snow and soft wet rutted snow on the roads. The roads in the video were the best of the day. There was also some areas were there was some drifting across the road. I hasten to use that term because that implies that is was like 4 feet high. It wasn't, it was just a couple/few inches, but it made traction pretty dicey, especially once I hit some of the rollers out on South Gilmore Road. Last week there were nice grunts up hard pack snow, this week I was slipping, going up them at 6 mph. Grrrrr! I mean Brrrrrr!

Not to mention my camera batteries froze, and my bottles were frozen solid by the 1/2 hour mark. So I pretty much rode the remaining two hours on nothing but snot and the will to get the f*cking ride over with.

I have learned to tolerate the cold up here a bit, and live with the snow (although it seems like east coast is dealing with more crap weather than we are). Riding in the cold and snow can be quite beautiful, but not feeling my toes and finger has me very much re thinking the temperature I just refuse to ride in. I think anything under 20 degrees is going to be it. Unless the sun is shining... Then I might ride then. That seems to warm things up a bit.... Or if I really, REALLY need a ride, then I might go out... Or if I'm really bored....

Anyway I guess you have to do rides like this to learn lessons. You learn what you can mentally and physically handle (for me that isn't much), and you learn which bits of cold weather clothing rock and which ones suck ass. What combos work, and which ones don't. Example- Lake winter boots and two layers of wool socks don't do shit. It cramped my toes, didn't allow blood to flow to my toes and as a result I think my toes froze faster than they would have if I had just gone with one pair and had more wiggle room. I have also learned that every pair of gloves I have sucks ass. Folks keep telling me about the Moose Mitts. I may have to look into them. But I don't know why, because like I said.. 20˚ is my limit now. I'd rather invest in rollers... or a new trainer... or a plane ticket to So Cal.

Tomorrow I will NOT bitch about riding in the cold. I will bitch about how I hate the trainer.

Later.

Flat, Frozen, Frigid, Base

I could have blogged about how this short(ish) 35 mile ride, in 14 degree temps, made me want to stick my head in an oven, or how I seriously thought my toes may have got frost bite, despite wearing two pairs of wools socks and using winter riding shoes. I could, but I won't. I made a short lame-ish video instead.

Later.

Time Spent Doing Nothing Is Something

Busy day in the "office" on Friday, so I was reduced to an hour on the trainer. Woke up to miserable white shit on the streets today, and decided to ride the trainer today, save the ride for tomorrow, and go sled riding with B-Man and Wifey at Deerfield Park.

I would have rather not been on the trainer, but the discovery of an old mix "dj" mix I made a couple years ago in my yet to be fully unpacked 'cause all I listened to is .mp3s now box of CDs in the basement. It was titz. Then today I discovered some new Motorhead to spin to. B-Man was stoked to have me sled riding with him, so that is better than any miserable ride in the snow. There's always tomorrow for that.

It was just nice to burn some calories and get a sweat on this morning, and get outside in the crisp snowy air this afternoon. Not to mention that it's Saturday which means it's BEER NIGHT! WOOT! WOO! Annnnnd, the 2011 Bells Hop Slam is in, so I picked up a couple at The Store (that's literally the name of the place.) Nice selection of beers there, and pretty nice folks, so they get my business.

So at 4:01 today I will crack a beer, sit my ass on the couch, play some FIFA '11 (I'm Liverpool in the F.A. Cup right now, and I must say I am doing way better than the REAL Liverpool! LOL!). FIFA '11 is way harder than my old '09 version and I'm just playing the p*ssy "all play" mode. Eeesh. I'm getting to old for this video game stuff. Then I might watch some of the Steeler game, where I will try to root for the team with less guys accused of crimes. Oh.. wait... Maybe I just better stick to playing video games.

Hope to hit the snow packed roads tomorrow, if the Hops doesn't Slam me, ha!

Later.

The Hazards of Stubble

As you may have read last night (or this morning if your hammer swings that way) my cross bike was a real pain in the arse last night. I screwed up my cantis (then fixed them well enough), then one of my brand new studded tires was giving me grief. Every time I pumped up the tire I was getting a bulge on the side wall. "What the eph?" I repeated under and over my breath more than a few times. Finally upon inspection I noticed that the bead was jacked up in a few places and the tire was just not gonna seat. EVER.

So this a.m. I got on the horn with Bikeman.com and talked to Mr. Bikeman himself (Davis), worked out the exchange. He found me a new tire and it is shipping it on out ASAP. Bikeman.com has always been good to me (even beyond letting me race for them a few years ago, and being an XXC Magazine advertiser). Sure they sell on the Web, but they are also a local shop too, and it shows when you call and talk to them. Anyway, thanks for the help Davis, look forward to SOMEDAY finally getting these damn tire mounted up.

The stubbly hazards of which the title speaks...

I went to the gym today. I know, BFD. Did my thing with the StairMaster, then with the weights. But when it came time to do my 2nd StairMaster thing (the one where I kick it up the sweat all over the machine factor), they were all booked up. Drat! I thought about going over and letting the folks know that me and the StairMaster sort of have a "thing," and that maybe they should just take their workout to some other goofy ass machine (because let's face it, all the freaking machines at the gym are goofy ass stupid). But I thought that MIGHT come off a bit too douchey. So I just went and did the rowing machine.

The rowing machine gives a pretty good workout, but I sort of feel like a knob doing it. BUT it beats the flailing around on that walk/run/step/ballz out stupid looking elliptical machine. Where was I going with this?....

Oh yeah, so I'm doing the rowing thing, and I'm putting down the freaking row boat hammer, letting out some audible grunts, groan and moans. Heaving my ever widening, despite working out 10 hours a week, body to and fro. I mean I was practically having sex with this machine!

You just threw up in your mouth a little, didn't you? That's OK. I get that a lot.

I'm doing my thing, trying to keep good "rowing machine" form (whatever that is?), when I realized I was getting brush burns on my inner bicep. Yep, red, burning discomfort in the inner folds of my grandma-esque biceps. The cause? My freaking legs! I shave my legs (no big deal, used to do it 'cause I considered myself some sort of wanna-be racer boy, now I do it mainly because it makes me feel pretty). Anyway, it's been a couple days since I got intimate with the Lady Bic, so there was is some stubble on the legs. During "the act" of rowing, my arms were occasionally swiping against my "tuspie" like legs and the result was some mild discomfort and irritation.

Why did I feel the need to share this story with you? Um, er, I dunno. Call it a public service announcement or something. Beware of leg stubble when on the rowing machine, or end up at the doctor with bleeding inner biceps and a story only slightly less embarrassing than the guy that "accidentally sat on a dog bone when he was naked."

Does the stubble talk end here. Hell no! I got more baby! Also beware wearing fleece sweat pants (AKA fat pants) when you're rocking the stubble, or upon taking them off you will find that you have tufts of dyed cotton balls sticking all over your legs. Not a good look for a man. Hell, that's not a good look for anyone.

I gotta go shave my legs.

Later.

P.S. Thanks to Urban Dictionary. Because sometimes I know what I WANT to say, but often I am not sure there is actually a word for it. Turns out there often is. So thanks U.D.

Heart Breaker, Wind Stopper

I woke up to a couple more inches of snow today. Joy. Funny thing is, I think the Western PA area got more than we did up here. Can't say I'm sorry about that, OR sorry about missing out on all NFL playoff madness that surely is surely bringing the area to it's knees.

Looks like some of the snow has started to melt off the main roads, which should make it easier for me to get out to the snow packed gravel soon. Maybe before the weekend, but I'm not holding my breath. Whenever I do, I did get my grubby mitz on a Craft Wind Stopper base layer.

While I am a dummy, I am not the dummy in the pic. Although I wish I was built like this dummy. Except for the pasty, gray/tan skin.

I've been wanting one of these for a long time, and just couldn't part with the dough. But then through the magic of the Web I found a killer deal at 6pm.com. One of the last in my size, delivered for $55. Killer. Glad I ordered it when I did, because my size is no longer available. Score.

So, I slowly gather gear to make my winter riding experience more tolerable. Now all I have to do is the acutal riding. Easier said than done these days. Today I had to climb on the trainer and was UUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNmotivated. Still got in an hour of big ring, "strength" intervals, but the REAL interval that I should have done, didn't come close to happening. This is why I suck. But hey I do have sweet new base layer! There is that.

On a side note, I did get around to getting at least one wheel of studded up on the Jake. I needed to make a brake adjustment to the canti's and then of course somehow f*cked up the entire rear brake. Cantilever brakes are the worst invention EVER. I wanted a bike to ride the dirt and gravel roads, but I have no idea why I didn't hold out for a Vaya, other disc brake cross bike. or just get a damn rigid mountain bike. But noooo, I had to get this one. Then on top of all that the tire won't seat right. In the process of getting that straightened out, my tube punctures. Good grief. I should have left it all alone! Grrrrrr. OK cantilever brake hate rant over. Sorry. 10:22 PM EDIT: I sort of got the brake issue solved, so that is good. And sadly solved the tire issue... Upon investigation there is a rip in the bead, and bulges when the tire inflates. CURSES!!! Now to see if I can return the damn thing. By the time I get another one winter will be freaking over. Again, I should have just left well enough alone. LOL! 11:44 A.M. EDIT: Thanks to Davis at Bikeman.com for helping me with the tire issue. Big props to Bikeman.com.

Later.

Just In Time

"The Studs" showed up at 205 late this afternoon.

Good thing too, 'cause we got some snow today, and if the recent past is any indicator, the roads will be covered in ice, snow and slush for 3 weeks or more. It seems the MP area is on a salt free diet for the roads. Still not sure which bike will get studded. Most likely the Jake. I would rather have them on the El Mariachi, but I have some fairly new Stans-goo in those wheels and don't want to f*ck 'em up just yet. Not that they will see any real trail time soon. That AND the fact that I don't have a compressor n'at to redo them myself when the snow melts. Hmmm... I'll try the Jake first. Provided they fit as they are supposed to. They are chunk-tastic, but I read on the Internet that they will fit, so it must be true.

Would like to get them on and fool around in the snow-puke tomorrow, but it looks like I will be confined to the trainer and another dose of Angels... OH WAIT! CRAP! Wifey has the lap top with her and she's out of town for two days. Oh crap-a-hola-de-la-bung-hola!! Then again if Wifey is away, then maybe I will just play in the office with the trainer... Hmmmm.... Or just sit around in my gutchies drinking beer, eating ice cream, and looking at porn.

Or I guess I could do the cross bike studded version of this workout...

Can you imagine studs on a trainer? It would probably start a fire or something.

I have been steadily working on the next XXC due out late Jan/early Feb., but I am on a layout that is just throwing me a real creative c*ck block. The article is sweet, but I just don't know about the layout. Usually as I read something I start getting ideas and a design vibe. Not some much with this on. Again, that's no reflection on the article. It's damn fine. But curse this artists block.

Off topic for a moment (not that ANY of these topics matter to anyone) did you see this new burrito that Taco Bell has? The one with the Fritos in it? Oh, excuse me, it's the Beefy Crunch Burrito. Seriously, why not just SAY "Hey stoners, we got your munchies, right here." I mean what knob even thought that was a good idea. I have been making Mexican dishes for 20 years and not once did I think "what this burrito needs is some Fritos! THEN it would rock!" They should just serve it with bong. There's only 510 calories and 22 grams of fat in it. So that's not too bad! Actually I don't even care that it's bad for your, I care that putting Fritos in burrito is just f*cking stupid. Tomorrow I'm gonna make a PB&J for breakfast and stuff some Cap 'n Crunch in it.

I was forced to the gym today, because of the above mentioned snow and artistic c*ck block. Actually it was pretty good though. I increased my leg press which is good. Of course it's sort of bad too. Adding weight to the leg press machine is embarrassing. I never really want to load it up with 25 lb. weights, so I put the 100 pounders on it. BUT I can hardly lift them to get them on, and I look like a skinny/fat wanker twisting and contorting to get them on. I thought I was gonna drop a ball out my shorts today. Like sweating all over the machines and looking like an aging, sagging, perv-o goof isn't enough. I need to risk dropping a ball or something in the middle of the gym!! I think I will just suck it up and put the 25 pound weights on. I do not need any more drama.

Later.

A Monday Off

Another day that I felt like a did a million things and go nowhere fast. UG! Still waiting on a couple articles for the next XXC, a couple pics, and still searching for some pics for an article. But it will come together, I know that and when it does it will be pretty darn not bad. I did manage to get the XXC kit/cap order in, and found out that I might get them at the end of February rather than early March like I thought. So that was good.

I took the day off the bike/gym/trainer. I put together a nice week last week with about 10 hours of "training." I needed to chill today. Still doing good keeping track of all the calories and fat over at The Daily Plate or Livestrong, or whatever the hell it's called now. It was TheDailyPlate.com and I'm sticking with that. Anyway, had a good week last week of watching the calories, I cut my weekend beer consumption in half, about 10 hours of working out, and I lost about a pound. BOOOO!! I give up!! Kidding of course.

Been doing some searching for a new digital camera for both my personal use and the mag. Part of me wants to get a full on DSLR sort, and while I know a little bit about photography left over from my art school days, I don't want to be bothered. I have narrowed it down between a few possible cameras that can fill the void fill the void between point and shoot and SLR. Good image quality and the ability to do some manual stuff when I want.

One of the cameras I am looking at is the Canon s95 . What I read and see from owners on the web it seems pretty good, but I hate to part with cash and then have it suck. The key thing for me is shutter lag. I HATE shutter lag. Especially since I take a lot of pics on the bike, and I like to shoot at about 400ISO (or less) and have nice quick shutter. I have a few point and shoots, mostly old and eBayed ones. They are OK, but when it comes time for a pic of food, or product, they sort of suck. Oh well, I have a ton of other things I need to invest in first. Like snow tires, race entries and lap band surgery. Anyone out there use an s95 or s90? Would be interested to hear your thoughts. Thanks.

Probably head to the gym tomorrow, or I might find the nearest all you can eat buffet and just belly up and get freaky with it.

Later.

Crushing Snow/Gravel

Many of the side roads here in town (other than the main drags) are still covered in more snow/slush/ice than I would prefer, but after yesterday's taste of sunshine and crisp air, and seeing that the Ignitors gripped the winter puke pretty darn well, I couldn't resist going out to at least see if I could keep the rubbers side down.

Success!!

Some side streets, were slick, and going out Crawford is always sort of hairy (made a wee hairier with some ice on the sides of the roads), but once I turned off of pavement and onto the snow packed dirt roads it was all good and only got passed by about 4 or 5 cars for the next 2 hours. Or at least until I returned to Crawford.

The snow was packed firm, the tires were gripping, the sun was out and the legs felt damn spanky and happy to be out getting some miles in.

I have never been warmer on a winter ride.
I have never been colder on a winter ride.

I have a great pair off Endura winter gloves. They keep my hands nice and toasty. The problem is they don't breath very well. Because of that my hands start sweating, then they get cold. While a waterproof glove is great at keeping out water from the outside, if the water is coming from the inside, it doesn't much help. Because of this I always take a spare lighter pair of gloves with me. So 7 miles in I was sweating like a fool and I think it was only in the 20s! I stopped changed gloves, ditched the balaclava, made some yellow snow, and pushed on. Now that feels good.

Hammer, hammer, hammer, turn left... Right INTO a breeze that feels like the flatulent air of the abominable snow man. DOH! NOW I am cold. My hand are fine, but my face and ears are real freaking cold. Stop take a pic, put the balaclava back on and hammer on. Gooood.

So far the area gravel has not really offered up any extended climbing or any hill worthy of anything other than the big ring, I did try a new road today that was pretty OK... South Gilmore Road. Gilmore offered up some of the nicer lumps I've had a chance to ride. Nice to know, and I will be adding it in to more rides for sure.


OK, now my hands are cold. Frig! I need to put the Endura gloves back on. No easy task considering the inside is damp and getting my fingers in is NOT easy. There was much road side cursing. But I did it and only had about 10 miles to go. Any heat I had in me has left and all I can think about is getting home, making a BIG giant pot of scalding hot chili, dumping it in the bathtub, stripping down, and diving right in.



I had great traction the entire time. The snow was grippy and I was able to avoid the ice (knock on wood). This is sort of easy being that the roads there aren't exactly twisting and turning through the countryside. They are still great, a lot of fun, but I never had to worry about loosing it in a tight corner or anything.

I was able to suck down the first bottle before it froze, but I when I got home I discovered that Bottle #2 was not so lucky.



Even with feeling like a froze dog turd by the end, it was still a great ride. Glad I put balls to the wind and made myself go, and was happy to get a nugget hair under 34 miles in. Not super long, but between the cold, and the constant hammering, it was a hell of work out!

Time to start searching for some breathable freaking winter gloves!

Later.

Fun? I'm Not Sure! I Think So.

The studs are still en route to MP-205, so I was hesitant to hit the Isabella Co. back roads, or at least ride to them on the snowy/icy MP paved roads without them. I probably could have, just didn't want to. Sue me (please don't, I gotz no cash). So I headed to the MMCC trails. The ones that threw me a massive ride block two weeks ago. I figured with the snow melt we had and the limited accumulative snow, they couldn't be too bad. I was right! Sort of.

I took the hiking boots with me as a back up plan. I figured if the trail was ballz deep in snow I would hike the trails and at least do SOMETHING other than drive 50 minutes round trip. Thankfully I didn't need them, but I would still do my share of walking. Thank God for Lake winter shoes!

The snow was crunchy to fluffy, depending on where you were, and as I started I was GEEKED that they were rideable. The thing is there was a enough snow to make everything pretty lumpy. Everything looked the same!! And without the occasional trail marker tied to a tree, it was damn hard to follow the trail. I had gone less than a half mile before I was off for some downed trees, and right about a half mile when I let out my first "where the f*ck am I?"

At times, breaking the virgin trail was damn fun. But at other times it was sssslow going and hiking. Maybe those fat bike elitists (RICK!) could have done a better job, but the 29 x 2.1s and my heavy ass were not exactly "floating" over the snow.

A Sherman floating downhill section
(had to stop for downed treed branch).

When it was good, it was GOOD. Real good, and I was "floating" over the snow... like a graceful Sherman Tank in the middle of Belgium 1945. But when it was bad, I was walking. But having fun walking, enjoying the crystal clear sunny day, and taking some pics.

The only thing that was bad was the fact that I kept losing the trail! The good thing was that many of the deer and critters of Michigan follow the trails and make it easy (they're so smart, must be all the pasties, NOT pasties).

The bad thing is that those critters don't always STAY on the trail (they're so dumb!), and the next thing you know I'm in the middle of the woods bushwhacking, hoping that my final resting place isn't on the grounds of a community college in the middle of Michigan!

At one point I was just walking and couldn't find any freaking trail markers! But then I saw some (human) foot prints that appeared to have been running (hopefully for fun and not from a knife wielding murderer). So I followed those tracks. Then they just ended. WTF??? Where the hell did they go?? I assumed they must have turned around at this point.

Now I am in the middle of the woods and can't find a trail marker. I bushwhacked a bit and found MY tire tracks. Great, I just went in a circle. So I bushwhacked (I've come to the conclusion that I think I like typing bushwhack for some perverted reason) some more until I found one of the double track "non bike" trails. It looked like someone had been XC skiing on it, so I followed the tracks hoping not to encounter some pissed off "why are your riding on the f*cking XC ski trail??" skier, and hoping to find the single track again, or at least a MMCC road.

I found the road.

While I KNEW that I wasn't actually LOST lost, I had still lost the trail and not having fun traipsing around the woods in search of little orange ribbons. So I took the road to the college and the xB.

It was fun, but not in a "wow, what a fun ride sort of way." It was fun in the "Jesus H. at least I'm not in the f*cking basement on the trainer, at the gym or on skis right now" sort of way.

I was out there a couple hours and went about 5 miles. I think. But like I said it was fun (sort of), and that is what it's all about. AND I earned another frozen bottle.

Warning to folks- If you ride the Mid Michigan Community College trails tomorrow, or this coming week. Think twice before following my lead. ;)

Time to have a few beers. My first in 6 days.

Later.

2 Hours Going Nowhere Fast

Busy morning at XXC HQ. Right now I'm still in the constant e mail phase of the next issue. Gathering the stories and photos, confirming stuff, sending out roughs, R&D designs stuff. Not all fun, but all needs done before I gets to the fun stuff. I also had time to catch up with a bike friend via Internet for a bit, so that was fun. Once that was all tied up I got the iPod cued up with some once lost, but now found live Daft Punk (is there really such thing? 2 dudes in helmets standing behind a computer), and got hold of some World Cup XC racin' (Thanks for the heads up on those vids Jeff K.!) cued up on the lap top.

I won't bore with tales of the trainer (EDIT: after reading this post it appears I have. My bad.), but today was just to be steady zone 2/3 aerobic tempo. All I wanted was ass in saddle time and get a sweat on. Must be something to do with watching XC racing (which is 92.3% more fun than spinning to road racing, and 26.2% better than watching CX racing according to a group of leading sports scientists. OK that's a lie.), and the hypnotic beats of Daft Punk, but at 1:20 (my normal mental max of late on the trainer), I felt damn good, then a at 1:30 I felt good, then at 1:40 I was like "might as well keep going now."

Never mind that it says 5:33 on the HR above- I never set the time, ever. so I guess it's set at like German time or something. Today was my first 2 hour trainer session of the season. I really didn't see this one coming. Just sort of happened. I'll take it though. Glad I had the time to crank it out. The only bad thing was that at about 1:35 the video coverage sort of just ended for some reason. And my iPod ran out of Daft Punk and I needed to make a switch.The good new was that all I had to do was lean forward and cue the CyclingDirt.org Iceman coverage, so it was all good and switch to some Mixmast Mike on the Hi-Fi.

Check the vid below from the GVA Trophy GP Nys Baal.
Looks like a good time, like to get a download of this one.

The studs should be here Monday (I hope), then I can maybe ditch the thought of a 2 hour trainer ride for a bit.

Later.

Couple O'Studs

Having had my fill of feeling trapped by the snowy/icy pavement (and the cars waiting to run my ass over after I slide out on the ice) that I need to take to get to any snow packed gravel, I have finally broke down and got some studs. I went with the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 240s based on the fact they were in stock at the shop I had some credit at, and I had read that the fit the Jake The Snake just fine. If they don't I can always put them on one of my 29ers.

Even though I am a chubby chaser, I didn't go fatter, because I would like to use the Jake for the snow packed dirt roads, and the BIG ass Nokians wouldn't have fit. These I can swap, the fatter ones- noooo. Plus like I said, they weren't in stock. I will probably be wanting a fatter tire once I hit the snow/ice packed/rutted roads and am being tossed around like a rag doll and eating snow for lunch. We shall see. Not asking for spikes in the ice, just something to help the confidence.

In the meantime, I headed to the gym today to sweat like a fool for an hour. It was worth 1000+ calories, and the puddle of sweat on the floor that embarrassingly received a comment to me by this dude I know there. As I neared the last half hour of the workout he walks by laughing "Man, you're making a puddle! STOP! STOP!" What else could I do, but crank it up a few notches to the end. As I've mentioned before, not sure any of this is helping me with my cycling, but it is burning some calories, and that combined with my strict calorie watching should have me down 20 pounds in about a week or so. I WISH! This is gonna take time, and real results might not start happening until I can get back out for some multi hour rides. GRRRR!!

Time to catch up on Behind The Barriers (AKA the best reality show that's not on TV).

Later.

Yeah, It Hurt

Woke up to more snow today. Great. I think I have had enough. Yeah, yeah, I know I should XC ski, blah, blah, blah. I dig skiing OK enough once in a while, and it is a hell of a workout, but it just falls short of me digging it. Maybe it's because I am so bad at it? Not sure. It's just NOT riding. *sigh* I might be more into snowshoeing, but I gotz no snowshoes (yet). Anyway I had no desire to go to the gym, and a fresh download from The Sufferfest (See yesterday's post), so I stuffed my dieting, er I mean "calorie restricting" ass into my chamois and headed to the basement to test out the suffering.

It works! I did "Angels," and suffered as promised. It proved harder than any trainer workout I have done for a long while. I was a sweaty heap of Lycra goo and had the jimmy legs big time by the end. This work out had me over my threshold HR more than any workout I have done on my own. One hour was plenty today.

So here is some thoughts on The Sufferfest podcast. Please note I am reviewing this "just 'cause I want to." I did not get the workout free for review, or discounted, nor was I asked. Hell yesterday morning I didn't even know what the hell it was. I bought it with my pennies. Annnyway. Here are some random thoughts...

1. $10.99 is pretty cheap for a quality hour work out that is mine forever.

2. Pro race footage is WAY cooler to ride to than some of those super lame spin videos that are out there with folks riding trainer by ponds and stuff like that. I mean you get to race up Alpe d'Huez for frig sakes! That is pretty cool.

3. The workout is very good, with clear onscreen directions on pace, cadence, etc.

4. The music is better than many videos, but still not my bag. The good news is, that because the instructions are on the screen (no coaching voice other than some sound effects that aren't REALLY needed) and give you a heads up when to start gearing up the pace, I am sure I could listen with the iPod and be happier.

5. The warm up on the track was OK, the workout to race footage was great, but the cool down spin was pretty lame. I would have like more real footage to cool down to.

6. The on screen type/fonts/graphics got the job done, but from the looks of it, it was done on iMovie. I have a Mac and iMovie and I know I can do better intro video graphics than that. BUT the key is that you can read them easy, and that is the point. This is just more my personal issue. I just think it could have been looking super cool at times. And didn't.

7. Sort of sucks having to workout by your computer or lap top. I am lucky that the lap top was around today, so that was great, but if it wasn't I would have had to workout in the office. No thanks. I do have the wires to hook my iPod up to the TV, but not enough room on said iPod to fit any videos. It's all music.

8. I liked enough to want to buy another. Just not sure which one.

That's it.

Time to do some winter research. I want to look into some studded tires, since the problem I having with riding right now is not riding on the snowy dirt roads, but the 3 or 4 miles of slick pavement that I need to ride to get there. Falling is no big deal to me. Falling and getting my head run over by an SUV is (to me). I also need some new winter bibs. Think I saw some Craft ones that I can get a decent price. Might go with those. BUT if we get anymore snow, I just might hit Moosejaw up for some shoes.

Later.

Sufferfest To Come

Day 2 of Slim The Fat Midpacker (an affiliate of Operation Mid Pack 2011) continued today. I was motivated to maybe head out on the frozen dirt roads, but then some house stuff got in the way and then some XXC stuff (AKA work!) got in the way, and I ended up at the gym. On the first Monday after New Years. YIKES!

I walked into the locker room and an older gentleman says to me "lots of new brothers and sisters are with us today." "Ha, pretty crowded up there, eh?" "Yeah, not too bad but lots of new faces... That's good though, I like to see them trying to get back in shape, hope they can keep it going." "I hear you, it's tough."

I made my way up there steps to the gym, just hoping that at least one of the StairMasters would be available, or I would be forced to warm up on the rowing machine. Nothing against the rowing machine, it's a fine machine, but not my preferred warm up apparatus. Thankfully one was open, and I was able to get my 20 minute warm up in. There were indeed some new faces, mostly older folks. I guess retired folks, unemployed, and slacker magazine publishers/marital leeches have time to go to the gym at 10:30 in the a.m.. I betcha it was packed tonight though!

I was miffed I couldn't ride, and once I started my work out I felt like I didn't eat enough (I probably didn't). Freaking egg whites are the BIG LIE (it's so not coke, it's egg whites). You have to eat like 50 them to get any calories, they have no taste and are like all freaking protein. Even adding a couple pieces of whole wheat toast just leaves them waffling in suckyness with a couple pieces of whole wheat toast on the side. What? Where was I? Oh yeah...

Did the warm up, the weights, got back on the SM for more cardio, and just didn't have it. Zero power. So I rode (OK "stepped") out 20 minutes and then aborted. Still got over an hour of workout stuff in, but I needed to make some adjustments to the fueling the rest of the day, by adjusting the carbs. Many folks are into the high protein and Paleo stuff. My body just doesn't work well like that. Timing for the carb intake is surely a lot of it too. Knowing that I do more cardio than strength stuff should have probably had me fueling up with more carbs in the a.m. I didn't. OR I am wrong about all this and just suck. Either way. No big.

The Sufferfest

It looks like I am a little late to the party with seeing the existence of these new training videos, I guess I have had my head lodged in my knobbies on dirt loving buttocks for the past few months, but have you seen the videos from TheSufferfest.com? Looks like good stuff. I have one downloading (Angels) as I type, and surely will be using it in the coming days. Once I do I will give some Mid Pack Opinion on them. The files are pretty huge, and it is taking a bit, but pretty sure I can throw down some feedback later in the week. Then again with Charter Internet it might be this time next week until it downloads.

Heres' a preview of the one I ordered up...

I really dig my Global Ride Production DVDs, and dig the POV camera angles on the trainer, I think the Sufferfest ones appeal a bit more to me because it's real race footage, and that gets the blood pumping a bit faster for me. No word on whether there is any POV Doping Control. Sort of hope not.

I did see that Global Rides does have the Dirty Dozen video out now. Too many folks I know in that one though, that would make training a bit strange. It would be like watching porn with people I know it in. I mean that COULD be hot I suppose, I do know a few attractive female ladies, but still a bit too weird. Anyway, I'll give some opinion on the vids and whether I can keep up with the Pros or not. I have my doubts. If I couldn't keep up with Expert level racers in PA, I can't imagine I can keep up with 125 lb. Pro roadie freaks, even if it is in my basement.

Later.

Drying Out & The 4 A.M. Wake Up

OK, the holidays are over and I am ready to get back to doing what I do (whatever that is!). I got over 8 hours of trainer time, gym time, hike time, and general non sense "training" in this week. For me, during the "off season" that is pretty darn not bad. For most athletes that plan to compete all that it is but a mere wee in the ocean of training. But it's what I can do, so I have to make it the right thing.

Today I capped off a pretty OK, but unexciting week of training off by doing some low key spinning while watching Race Across The Sky. Lately I have been really digging watching DVDs with the subtitles on when I'm on the trainer. That way I can still keep motivated with the iPod, and watch TV too. Win/Win. I also did up an XXC blog post today too. But other than that I didn't leave the house all day. The closest I came was going to the front porch to get the paper. I did spin, cook, do some work e mails, put our treadmill back together (FINALLY!), and a bunch of other stuff, so it's not like I was being lazy, but I just didn't feel like leaving the house.

Gonna Dry This Shit Out....

Since I didn't really do anything on New Years Eve, I decided to let January 1 be my day to bid farewell to 2010 and some bad habits, even though it was now 2011. So I watched hockey, played FIFA '11, and enjoyed more than a few beers. Beer is one of my loves (along with bikes and boobs). BUT I admit I have found myself enjoying a few too many over the past couple years, and the weight crept up on me. It just can't be part of Operation Mid Pack 2011 until I get to my desired fighting weight. I might enjoy some red wine or a beer or two on a Saturday night, but right now I need to drop 20 pounds and I am kidding myself thinking that the added weight AND the inability to shed that weight didn't come from all the beer. Especially since I never really changed my eating habits. So it's time to pull my gutchies up and get to it.

The 4:00 a.m. Wake Up

Possibly and probably related, but who knows? I have been really tired lately. I fall asleep PDQ, but I just can't STAY asleep. I haven't slept well in about 5 or 6 months, maybe longer. The strange thing is that I wake up every night at the same time- 4 a.m. Oh sure, sometimes it's 3:56 or 4:09, but you get the idea. I have no idea why. I have tried everything, including sleeping pills. But even on the pills I wake up at 4 a.m.. They do allow me to get back to sleep faster, but that's about it. Thursday night I went to bed at midnight, woke up at 4 a.m. and never fell back to sleep. 4 hours of freaking sleep??

It's been sort of OK during this holiday break, since I can then make up for the lack of sleep by sleeping in a bit, but on school/work days it's worse. I need to get it sorted. Sooner or later the immune system is just going to give me the middle finger and then give me the flu or something. It's just a sleepless cycle of suck. I really dread even going to bed, because I know I am going to wake up and just lay there. Frig

Oh well, time to try to boost some melatonin levels and get 8 hours of sleep. Someday.

Later.

Ride Blocked. Day One.

Today should have been perfect. The snow has melted from the roadways, the temps (at 10 a.m.) were not bad, and I was well rested (in bed at 10:45 on New Years Eve mo-fo!). I was up pretty early, well fed, and ready to do something. That something was to ride outside. So I aired up the road bike tires (my faithful Salsa Campeon), and got ready to embrace the rolling (OK, flat) roads of the Mount P. area.

1.5 miles away from home I was geeked (except for that sea of broken beer bottle glass that I rode through). Then I made my first real turn and was smacked in the face with a cold 30(?) MPH wind gust. WHHHHAT???? I was pedaling on a flat and going like 9 MPH. It was demoralizing and very unsafe. The wind allowed NO control over the bike, and I was not able to hear anything but a cacophony of wind noise. I pedaled on. I stopped. I pedalled on. I stopped. I said "f*ck it" and then pedaled home. F*ck it.

25 minutes of riding. F*ck.

So I climbed on the trainer. Tempo-ed out a few more minutes and said "f*ck it" (again).

The woods would have been a nice place to seek asylum, but as my hike with B-Man at Deerfield

proved later in the day- the trails had a nice hard pack of ice on them. F*ck it.Yeah, yeah, f*ck 2011 Day One. But hey, I was out on my bike (briefly!!!) and then out in the woods hiking (briefly, with a 6 year old), while many folks were sleeping off 12/31. Me? I was in bed at 10:45 watching mockumentaries, and then a documentary on advertising art (yeah I rock) on the laptop. So I was well rested and ready to get something done. Unlike many others. BUT, it was not to be. Some riding (in/out), some hiking, and some grocery shopping welcomed in 2011. That's fine by me. Just ready to make with the fun stuff of riding, racing, and riding some more.

Resolutions? The none race goal for 2011 is to loose 20 pounds by May 1. This may or may not happen. This means no beer except Saturday night. F*ck it!! HA! I will do it. I know I can. I will.

Thanks for reading in 2010. Ready to completely destroy 2011 (in a really bad B rate XXX porn movie sort of way).

Later.