Recovery Of Sorts (Ouch).

Sunday: Off the bike due to the fact that A. My ass and nether regions were rubbed raw, pinched and a real pain in the ass (pun completely intended). B., we were having a Memorial Day party and I needed to get take care of the food, try not to walk like my I just passed a cheese grader out my chute.

Monday: Ass still destroyed. Legs tired, and me even more tired from staying up 'till 2 a.m. hanging out with friends. The thought of sitting my ass in the saddle was NOT appealing in the least, especially with temps in the mid 90s. Eph that.

Today: Finally had enough, and forced myself on the bike. The temps were once again heading into the 90s, but since I got up early and got a bunch of xxcmag.com stuff done, I say "WTF?" and took to the dirt roads on the CX bike.

Ouch! I am still rocking some sort of sore/pinch/irritation on my one cheek and as soon as the ass hit the saddle I knew it was not going to be all that fun. My special mix of Preparation-H, Chamois Butt'r and peanut butter, was not helping the ass. But scootching around on the saddle until I found a "safe place," did. It also didn't help that the wind was gusting something fierce today. So half the ride sucked, and the other half made me feel like at TT champion as the tail wind pushed me home.

Food is starting to grow now.

The sun was pretty blazing too, but I didn't mind. After a winter and suck spring of slogging these roads in mud, ice and snow, it was fine by me to deal with a little hot sun.

I was happy to be out, and it was pretty easy to forget about the sore butt, wind, and dead legs after a bit. I might get out tomorrow, but I do need to step up some work tomorrow too, so who knows.

Except for one stretch of small hills, and a section of fresh dirt being graded, I stuck to a flat route like the pic above. Of course the wind did not make these roads as easy as they were supposed to be.

Fresh grass blowing in the wind,
fresh dirt, and freshly graded.

For the most part I plan to be taking it pretty low key this week, get some low key rides in and then and cap it off on Saturday by playing first base on Wifey's work kickball team (I am very much NOT kidding). In fact, I don't mean to brag, but I was sort of a kickball legend in grade school. LOL! Anxious to see what I'm like 30 years later!! Ha! Looking for a chicks dig ballers t shirt for the game.

Time to soak my buttocks.

Later.

2011 Hanson Hills 100

I have done about 7 or 8 hundies in my racing career, but have not done one since September of 2009. Declining fitness, health problems (2 separate DVTs in two different legs), and moving to Michigan all play a part in my time off from racing in 2009. But I made the commitment to myself to get back to it in 2010. Not racing to win (not that I EVER did) so much as I am racing to compete and to be around the scene. So far, so not so bad.

Thus far in 2010 I have done a couple XC races, the Barry-Roubaix, and a 6 hour race. This past Saturday brought the Hanson Hills 100. *gulp* This would be the furthest I've raced in over a year. I didn't know WHAT to expect.

Weather reports along with my camping gear were all over the place (not to mention I am not a HUGE camping fan), so I opted for the cheap ass Super 8 in Grayling (which actually wasn't too bad, and there were no boogers on the wall which is more than I can say for some past motels). I drove up late Friday afternoon, got registered in at the race and hung out with some friends before checking in at 'the 8', and meeting up with Ryan and Chris for dinner at Spike's in Grayling.

I was starving! I had my heart set on copious amounts of pizza, but alas there was none on the menu. So for some reason I thought it would be a good idea to get the beef burrito. Or as I now refer to it as - The Worst Burrito Evah. Despite it's horrid appearance/smell/taste/etc. I sucked it down, but the "ground meat" was of that creamy, looks like it came from a can variety. UG! But, food is food, and I'm sure that the 1,000,000 mg of sodium that it contained would help me come race day.

The sleep at the Super 8 was peaceful and before I knew it I was in a parking lot of a K-Mart in Grayling, Michigan for the neutralized 40 mph police escorted roll out through town that would lead us to the Hanson Hill Ski area for four 23ish+ mile laps of the single track and double track that would make up the race.

Me = Large ass, green bike in middle.

The turnout wasn't huge, which I found surprising since in my opinion Brent (the promoter) puts on a good race, and other than the Lumberjack there isn't another hundie in Michigan. Especially with all the bitching that folks did when they didn't get in the Lumberjack. Here they had a chance to strut their hundie stuff and didn't show. Hell there was even a team option for folks too. Oh well, not sure on the total starters, but there were about 18 dudes in my Solo 40+ old man class which isn't too bad.

The weather was thankfully much cooler than last week, and just as we started it began to mist and drizzle rain. I normally would be hating life, but with all the sand on the course, the rain would be welcomed, AND it just continued the tradition of EVERY race I do in Michigan taking place in bad weather.

The first part of the pavement was all neutral until we hit the road leading to the ski area, and then it was game on. Well at least for folks who wanted to put the hammer down. I did not really fall into that class. Then it was onto a flat sandy double track for a bit to the single track and the first climb of the day.

Skating, slipping, sliding, and powering through the sand towards the aid station.

I'm not gonna lie, I was hating life. I just had no mental mojo to race. The course had kicked my ass during last week's hot pre ride and left me in a bad way. But I pedaled on. I knew that after some brief single track there would be more than a few miles or more of rolling deep sand double track and I was NOT looking forward to it. But I was looking forward to the twisty singletrack that followed for the rest of the lap, so I just tried to stay focuses on that in between deciding whether or not to bail on the race after lap one, or wait until lap two.

Finally, the lap was over and I made my way through the grassy ski area and across the start/finish line. As I rolled through I saw Napper who was racing on a two person team. He says "How did it go Malarky?" "That was ONE long ass lap!" I said. "Ha! Yeah, and you have to do it THREE more times!" *gulp*. Oh well. I stopped at the pit, filled up the CamelBak and grabbed another bottle of 333, and off I went.

OK, second lap, just maintain... Just. Main. Tain. Now into the second lap I forced myself to change my attitude. It's cooler than last week, the rain and mist is helping the sand, the Spearfish is soaking up all that new 'beat you up good' single track, and all I have to really do is keep pedaling, keep hydrated, keep taking in nutrition, deal with the sand as quickly as possible and enjoy the singletrack. All that seems pretty simple to type, but thinking and doing it was hard, but working!

During the 1st lap and early in my 2nd lap I was yo-yo-ing with some racers who looked like they were in my class (old with bellies), so I tried to stay with them. During the 2nd lap we hit a series of small deep sandy double track climbs and the one dude went right down the middle of the deep sand, and had to walk it as I went up the right on the firmer grass. Then I just pedaled hard and never saw the dude again. The other racer stuck with me about 30 yards back until the aid station. Then I never saw him again either. Soon (actually it didn't feel that 'soon') the 2nd lap was put to rest.

UG! The dreaded 3rd lap. Hard to get motivated for this lap. But I knew if I could knock it out, all that stood between me and the finish line was a mere 24ish miles. Easy, right? Well the 3rd lap ended up being WAY better than I thought. At times it seemed like I was the only racer on the course. I was enjoying the trails, but sort of needed some motivation. Finally I hooked up with a team racer. He asked if I wanted a pass. "Nope, thanks though. If you don't mind I'm just gonna follow you." "Sure, I could use the motivation." Win/win. And it really helped. Focusing on him got my mind off the mind fornicating third lap. I followed him the whole way to the start finish and thanked him as I rolled off for lap four.

I stopped at the pit, took a big bite of Oatmeal Pie, and rolled off ASAP so as not to just lay in the grass and pray for death. I hit the first climb, was spinning up easy, and the racer in front of me pulled off to let me pass. We exchanged hellos, I pedaled off, and I didn't see another racer in front of me for just about the entire lap. Strange.

Any power I had was starting to fade fast about mid lap and the belly showed signs of upset. All the food was staying down, and the pedals were still turning though, so I just kept going. Every lap I would pass the trail sign that indicated my Napper "adopted" this section of trail. Thankfully there was no picture of him, but seeing that sign was my goal every lap. Because if I made it that lap, that meant that the end of the singletrack was coming, and all I would have to do is cross the ski slope, and do a grassy hunk of the novice ski loop to get to the finish line.

Rolling across the front of the ski hill with less than a mile to go in the race was an awesome feeling. I wasn't going to win, but I was going to finish and finish in what I believe at this time to be 8th place out of 17 in my class. I crossed the line, heard the announcer mention say great job to me and mention that I was the publisher of XXC Magazine. I think I was more proud of that than finishing the 100.

After that as I climbed off the bike my friend Ryan met me to talk about the race and handed me a beer, then the team dude I followed lap 3 also stopped by to say nice job and thank me for motivating him the last lap. Then it was out of the kit and into the civvies for some good Mexican food they were serving up during awards. All my friends hit the podium and got some nice shwag. I too was offered some shwag for my 8th place in the 40+ but I opted to just enjoy the satisfaction of finishing my first hundie since the SM100 back in 2009.

In the end the race ended up being about 95-6 miles not 100, they rerouted some single track and lost some mileage during the week, therefore we lost some mileage over the 4 laps, but Brent promised even more single track next year, and less sand! This was not THEE hardest 100 I've ever done, but it was damn hard for sure. On the gas 100% of the time, and the double track did not let your rest due to the soul sucking sand. Not sure on my exact overall time right now, but I should know in a day or so. The final lap stats weren't up when I left (EDIT: 9:11:27 was the time, 8th/17 in class). I was SSSSSSOOOOOO FREAKING GLAD I raced my Spearfish. There was not ONE inch of the course that I wished I had my hard tail (and I love my hard tail, just not for 9 hours, lol).

Even with the cool temps, rain, and good nutrition/hydration, I still turned into a rolling salt lick by the end. And every lap I kept wanting to ditch the arm warmers, and every lap forgot. By the end they were just rolled into tiny sweatbands. I was very UN happy with my start and attitude, but VERY happy with regrouping, my nutrition, and my bike choice. I lucked out with the cool temps, but not sure I will be so lucky at the Lumberjack. I can STILL remember that lap 4 bonk there in 2009. Glad it's 3 laps now!

Recovery has been slow below the equator (ouch), but I am hoping to get back on the bike tomorrow. Next race is the Lumberjack 100 on June 18th.

Later.

All That Nut Talk

I should have known better to bring out the crotch talk the other day. And I should have known better to get all geeked up on all the nice spring weather that we were finally getting here in Michigan. So what happened?

The week's weather has been shit. Plain and simple. This is a tricky one to bitch about due to the fact that there have been whole towns wiped off the map here in the U.S. due to tornadoes. For that I thank God that MP is not experiencing that. BUT 46 degrees and rain at the end of May is NOT something I envisioned. But the rain WILL help firm up all that sand up at Hanson Hills. Pack that shit down, 'cause daddy ain't so fond of the uphill sand pit for 100 miles! OK, so the heat is on in my house rather than the A/C, and it's late spring/early summer. BFD. What about your crotch Jason?

Oh yeah, my crotch. Thanks for asking (I love talking about my crotch. Not as much as burps, farts, and poo, but I dig it). Looks like the taint zit is gone. BONUS! But it also looks like once again I have slightly strained a nut at the gym whilst doing some leg presses. So me and my ballz are pretty pissed right now, because if it WASN'T 46 degrees and raining in late May, I would have been out riding and would have NOT strained a nut. But then again I may have made the taint pimple worse. F*CKING CATCH 22s!! In reality it's not that bad and it gives me an excuse to touch, think, and talk about my crotch. Another bonus!!

I am of the opinion that the crotch is the least talked about parts of cycling, yet one of the most important. Folks will talk about leg strength, heart rates, power meters, and nutrition until they're blue in the face (with a max HR of 189), but avoid talking about the part of the body that is grinding into the saddle for 2 to 24+ hours (depending on which way your endurance hammer swings). Of course if you're riding less than 2 hours, wear jeans and go commando for all I care.

Yeah, yeah, sure, sure, people talk about the crotch, but it's usually covered up with talk of chamois cream and what short pads are best, or talk of sore asses. Truth be told yeah, the ass does play a part in the ride, and yes I have had more than a few cases of scorching chap ass, but in reality it's the crotch that takes much of the abuse. Truth hurts doesn't it?

All this is mostly (if you're a dude) due to the amount of areas that can be affected. Basically you got yourself a "T" zone with a dangling participle. And that's a lot of stuff to be grinding into the saddle and a lot of stuff to try to keep happy. I have done a LOT of research, and would love to go at length about the female crotchial area AKA the "Melvin" (my word, don't bother Googling it), but feel that I shouldn't or risk loosing the one female reader I have (and that is just a guess that I even have that many).

So where am I going with all this? Not sure. Just that yes, the ass can play a part in a rides comfort, and God knows a long ride/race after a night of Mexican food and beer has left me wishing I had put some Preparation-H in my pack. And yes a good saddle can be a great asset (no pun intended, I guess), but you really need to care for the crotch. Become one with it. Love it. It's your only crotch. I've used a variety of lubes, ointments, and direct from China herbs on my loins in attempt to give it well lubed comfort on a ride. Some have worked, some have sucked post-Chili Night chamois pad.

I now believe in lubing anything and everything below the equator with something, anything. The Ol' Chap, the dangling bits, the buttocks, the crevice, the cheeks. Get it all. Right now I am using Chamois Butt'r. But I have used Bag Balm (the term bag balm makes me think of the whole loony Tea Bagger movement, yuck on both parts), Vaseline, and Udderly Smooth, Hell over the past 20 years I've probably used EVOO in a pinch. Word is that the Bag Balm and Vaseline can play havoc with your shorts and also play a part in clogging up the pores in the under carriage, so beware of that. I have had no issues with my shorts, but as I have mentioned here a few times, I have had more than my share of taint zits. I thought it was due to eating chocolate, fried foods and masturbating (not that I do that. Yuck), but turns out it might have been from my lube. My bad.

For the love of God, I STILL don't know where I am going with all this except to keep talking about my crotch. I think I will just end the post now, before I start talking at length about the Melvin. I also apologize for the lack of pics in this post, but I have a feeling that any pics I could have/would have posted would have resulted in termination from your place of employment.

Watch your crotch, 'cause if you ain't watchin' it, who is??

Later.

The Approach Is Not Great

I can't say I am thrilled with the way my week is shaping up in preparation for my first 100 mile race since 2009. Monday was a scheduled day off from "doing stuff," today was to be a quick doctor's visit with Brennan, then home and off for a quick ride. But the doctor was one hour behind schedule, then ordered a test that he wanted done today, so we needed to do that. Ride put on hold until tomorrow. But tomorrow is B-Man's Writer's Cafe at school at 11 AM, and I can't pass up seeing the boy drop some literature knowledge on we parents. There is tomorrow evening, but it's supposed to storm. UG! But then again, it might not.

Then again, like they say "it's just bike racing," and there are more important things than obsessing over which bike to use and how fit I am not. No real fitness can be gained right now anyway, so maybe I will just spin around town to keep the legs spanky. I also am rocking a couple crotch issues. Not exactly saddle sores, but some sort of pimple/pinch/sore right where the ass cheek and the inner thigh meet. Best to let it heal a bit more before heading out for 100 crotch rubbing miles on Saturday. Don't want to risk it turning into some sort of festering pus ball.

Speaking of crotch rubbing.... (or not)...

Who's ranked #1 in Women's World Cup XC right now?

Maja Włoszczowska bitches. photo: mtbs.cz

Here's another great photo from mtbs.cz of Emily Batty.

Very nice stuff. All the white rocks.

Full gallery is HERE. Great stuff as usual from them.

Oh well, sorry for the lack of a post. At least I posted SOMETHING bike related. I almost talked about grilling chicken, which is only slightly better than talking about spanking chicken. Speaking of crotches (were we not?) I saw a woman on TV use the phrase "grab a handful of nuts," without a trace of a giggle. Which is more than I could say for me.

Later.

Low Key Recovery

After yesterday's ball busting 40 mile ride at Hanson, I was inclined to do as I had in the past and take today completely off the bike. But that shit was the old me. The new me (I'm making this shit up by the way) said "what the f*ck," and went for a 2 hour session of low key dirt road riding. I guess most people call them gravel roads, but here in central Michigan, they are dirt, maybe some sand. Very little actual gravel. So I will be calling them dirt roads. Now THAT'S some integrity in mother fornication blogging right there lady dogs!!

This pic is NOT an attempt to hid my double chin. It just happened, and I sort of like this pic. I calls attention to my pointy nose. Some say the best feature, of my otherwise lackluster, oh he must be the "fat friend" appearance.

The temps were warm, even by my 11 AM departure and the sky was filled with blue and a golden orb (see Cold Comfort Farm). Riding the dirt roads right now is strange, 'cause it seems like it was just not too long ago I was riding in snow, slush and ice. I will take tacky dirt, sand, draining two bottles PDQ, and a salt stained kit ANY day, believe you me.

This is one of the finest examples of how freaking flat things can get in my area of Michigan. But....

If you look out towards the houses/barns on the horizon the road does start to turn up, and then does so for a bit. Are they like the mountain roads that I knew in PA? Nope, but they still give a good workout and I am happy to have them so close to my crib. Especially with the lack of douche bags buzzing me and hurling insults.

I can't say I as jazzed to ride, I mean with the race last week, a suck pre ride of Hanson yesterday, the heat, my general inclination to suck long and hard on the teet of being a crap cyclist, and my ass feeling like I spent some serious time in what is known in commonly known as "Federal Pound Me In The Ass Prison," I just didn't have the mojo. BUT... You do what you gotta do, right? Plus the weather was just TOO perfect not to ride. So I just enjoyed the greening pastures, the dry dirt, and the knowledge that in my world this was a bonus ride.

If you click the pic (or have good eyes) you will see that SOMEONE was having a BBQ today. I had the wanted to invite myself, but then thought of the consequence of inviting my sweaty, Lycra clad ass to a BBQ out in the middle of nowhere on the dirt roads and passed. I could have gone for some BBQ chicken though. Mmmmmm.

Bonus ride or no bonus ride, and despite the joy of riding under the blue sky and the "golden orb," AKA the sun, was blazing (not really, but after a llllllong winter this strange VERY warm day too a toll (as I type weather.com says it's 84 degrees!!! Sweet Jesus!!!). Granted it wasn't 84 at 11 AM but still, I went through one bottle in about 45 minutes, and then had to nurse the next one so as to last me the next 1:15. Next time- THREE bottles. Or CamelBak (GASP!!!)

SUMMER RIDE BONUS: The apartments I pass on my way out of town house many college students, including a group of females wishing to sunbathe in bikinis on the lawn of said apartments. Yeah sure, I looked like a douche in my sweaty ass, salt stained kit, but that won't stop me from making a deposit in the bank. Don't judge, and yest I was already yelled at for sharing this info with Wifey. And no, there are no photo. Not because I didn't want to, but because they were just a tad to far out of range of my camera. LOL!

As I made my way down one dirt road I started seeing some bike tracks in the dirt. Eventually they stopped and led me to a 50ish woman on her hybrid talking to another 5oish woman on a riding lawn mower. The woman on the bike, unlike the dude I saw on trail yesterday, was wearing a helmet and had the biggest smile and wave for me when I passed. It's like we ride these road thinking that only über cyclists and DUI bike riding types ride out there, but then you see a woman like this and it truly brings you into the reality that you don't have to be and über cyclist to enjoy riding and/or the beauty of riding dirt and/or gravel roads. (I dig saying "and/or, " can you tell?).

Things sure are FINALLY greening up around here. Just beautiful (if you find green rolling field and agricultural buildings (farms) beautiful.

Just a perfect Sunday, to cap off a pretty damn good weekend. I know that yesterday there was all sorts of talk about the end of the world and Raptures, etc., and what not, and to tell you the truth I was as taken aback by the kooky people that were professing doom, as I was by the folks who went a little too over the top (for my tastes) to make fun of them. Having said all that I have a feeling in my nuggets that the world may indeed be ending. I don't have to read the Bible, or listen to some radio preacher to tell you that, all I need to tell you is that as of late, I am pretty darn happy with my life, and I can count on both hands how many of my nearly 40 years that I have felt that. And THAT my friends is a sure sign that shit is gonna get bad, REAL f*cking fast.

OK, OK, enough mush, tomorrow is an off day from "doing stuff," but not an off day from XXC Magazine. Lots of stuff to do. Next issue is gonna be boss, as long as I don't drop the creative/publisher guy ball.

Later.

That Sort Of Hurt

Next weekend is the Hanson Hills 100. I had never rode Hanson at all, let alone a lap of the 100 mile course (the race will be 4 x 25 mile laps), so I figured I better check it out. Reports I heard from folks ranged from "it's fast" to "definitely a hard tail course" to "you'll love it!" As you will read here, the regular course might be "fast" but between the climbing, the deep sand on the double track, and the freshly added single track, I found it anything but "fast." OK, maybe is what I should say is "I found ME anything but fast on the course." I'm also not sure how much I want to use my hard tail on it for 100 miles or how much I loved it!

Since the course is now marked I figured I would head up and do some laps. Hanson is about an hour a away from my house in MP, but it couldn't be easier to get to. I think I made 4 turns the whole drive. I believe the race is going to start from downtown Grayling and make its way up to the ski area to hit the dirt. I started right from the lodge and following the signs for the race soon found myself on some super sandy double track before I made it to the fist section of single track. The first section of double track was flat, but the sand forces one off to the side to get traction or find a lumpy grassy section to ride in the middle.

As I made my way up some fresh cut singletrack I was being bounced all over the place and wishing I had the Spearfish. Once the climb leveled off, some fun singletrack started. I saw another rider entering the singletrack down a bit. A helmetless, shirtless dude, listening to his iPod on a not trashy Jamis. Money for Jamis mountain bike? Yep. Money for iPod? Yep. Money for future visits to dermatologist to have melanoma lopped off his back? (I assume). Money for helmet? No? Seriously?

So anyway, as the dude enters the singletrack ahead of me he glances back at me. Great, now I am stuck behind this dude. It didn't take long before I catch up with him, thinking he wold pull off to the side. Nope, then we hit a rooty downhill, NOW he decides to look back and BAM!! HE HITS THE DECK LIKE A TON OF BRICKS!! EEESH!!! I wanted to tell him- THAT'S why you wear a friggin' helmet, and a jersey wouldn't be a bad idea either since now you have trail rash all down your bare ass belly. Instead I made sure he was OK (he was), and wished him a good ride. He said I surprised him, and that he didn't think I was that close and he hit a root. I then wanted to point out that he would have heard my loud ass Hope hub IF he wasn't using an iPod. But I of course didn't, he was a nice enough dude, just needs to wear a freaking helmet or end up brain dead.

Story over- back to the ride... After the fun singletrack there was more sandy double track. UG! I found it just has hard going downhill on it as up. At times the bike sort of surfed downhill going where ever the hell it wanted, and on one uphill the bike literally came to a standstill. I soon relized that to get any traction I was going to have to ride the grassy brush to the side of the road. Thank God for Stan's, 'cause I surely would have gotten a flat.

The sand soon turned to grassy double track, and then to fresh cut single track. The single track was more worn in than I expected, but its lumpyness was still beating me up. There isn't a ton of climbing on the course, but the power it took to get up the hills made them seem worse than they were.


At about mile 11 or 12, I started hitting more of the regular Hanson single track. Fast, flowing, and fun. I took some video with the Epic cam of that section (see below). I eventually worked my way up to the top of a climb and wasn't real sure where to go. There were no signs and two trail options. Took one that led me to the bottom of the ski area, and back to the lodge. That loop was about 20 miles. I do know that they were still doing some marking and adding some trail for the course, but it seems I still missed some trail somewhere.

Back at the xB, I felt spent from the hot, sandy, lumpy lap. But I drove an hour to get there, and wasn't ready to stop riding, so I went out for another lap. This one went better since I let some PSI out of my tires, to help with the lumpy trail, and made sure to ride in the grass when I could in the sandy sections. But damn I was not feeling good on the bike today, and have a BAD feeling about my chances next week on this course.

In the end I got 40 miles of riding in. It felt like 100, and I left happy with having got a nice ride in, but sort of upset with how hard I found it. This was made worse by knowing I would still have 60 more miles to go next week. Oh well, it makes for blog fodder I suppose.

On the way home I stopped for what is the Official Sandwich of The 2011 Soiled Chamois Race Season; The McChicken. $1, of spicy, tasty, nasty, processed fast food chicken between two buns. I also opted for a large iced coffee. Little did I know that a large is like 116 ounces. Eeeesh! The 116 oz., along with some Advil did help rid me of the "just got hit by a tractor trailer full of shit" feeling.

Holy salt!!

I came away from this pre ride thinking next week could possibly suck, I am not in the shape I thought I was, and I am dispyte people telling me to use my hard tail, I am using the Spearfish. I also MUST find out why my back hurts EVERY ride I do. Could it be something as simple as cleat placement or saddle height? UG!!!

Going for a relaxing sunny ride on dirt roads today. At least that's the plan.

Later.

Fine By Me

I had an inner glow of smug self satisfaction the other day when I knew I was out riding in the sun and pristine blue sky and most of the east coast, including my former home town, was under a blanket of grey clouds and rain. Something I put up with for 39 of my 39.5 years, and probably is the cause for most of my mental woes. Ha! Well I publicly apologize for my smugness. Now can I get my sun back? I mean I dig the warmer temps we had today, but this Western PA-Type rain and grey could leave now and I'd be OK with that.


When I walked B-Man to school today in the pouring rain, I figured today was a washout for riding and I would end up doing nothing or returning to the gym like yesterday. Yeah, yeah, I went to the gym yesterday and it was super lame. I did some StairMaster, two of my five weight workout and then realized "WOW, this is stupid!!" and left. No getting around it, the gym is good for one thing and one thing only- Biding time until the season starts, and looking at hot college girls in workout gear. Oh wait, that's two things. My bad. Well it's the season and school is out of session, so other than that 50 year old lady with the big... ah.. um.... biceps?... OK, OK, let's just say there is NOOOOO reason to go to the gym if you can ride.

Anyway, I assumed a ride today was out, well I assumed wrong. After some heavy AM rain, and a morning of work on XXC #12/xxcmag.com, the rain moved out, and left me with a window to get some miles in before lunch and fetching B-Man at school. SWEET!

The skies were grey, but the temps were warm and nice and humid (I sort of like that for riding), and even better, my legs felt pretty damn OK (for being two big white meat sticks filled with cheese and beer). The winds weren't as bad as on Tuesday, but to make up for it the dirt roads were a mess of soft, wet sand and mud. But f*ck 'em! That was fine by me, it just made the 2 hours of "doing stuff" that much harder, thus making me more likely to maintain my mid packness (I hope). Which is again... fine by me. Suckers.

I'd say about 85% of the two hours was dirt, the rest was low traffic pavement. I saw a bunch more deer, and a bunch of (jive) turkeys out doin' their thang. I will say I am not a hunter type at all, but damn they make some big deer and turkey up here. EEESH! Giant ass turkeys!

More deer out and about today. Click to actually see the vermin.

Annnnnyway I got two hours in when I thought I would get none in, and that is fine by me. Really, anytime I can ride is fine by me.

Later.

It's Well Known (Sort of)

Over the years I think it has become apparent on this blog that while I occasionally partake in road riding, I am not a HUGE fan of it, nor of Pro road racing. Sure I get sucked into the classics, mostly because they are the closest thing to mountain biking/cross racing that Pros do on a road bike, and I will watch some stages of the Grand Tours (OK, ONLY the Tour de France, because that's the ONLY one that Versus will show, even though I would MUCH rather see the Giro d'italia than the Tour de France or the Tour of California (personal preference only, so take it easy Road Nazis).

Sadly road riding is a necessary evil to mountain bike racing fitness, and one that I am happy to side step (ever so slightly) by my move to Michigan. F*ck riding in traffic when I can ride dirt roads on my cross bike or my mountain bike for an infinite amount of miles, not worry about traffic (except for tractors, cows, and Amish buggies), and not worry about all the "road rules." I am happy to align my road riding beliefs with those who partake in events such as the Almanzo, Dirty Kanza, or Trans Iowa. Not that I've done those events, but to me, those are the NEW classics. REAL riders, REAL racers, putting in sick amounts of miles on gravel, dirt and shit roads, most often (if not always) self supported.

I have lived in Michigan since October of 2010. How many times have I been on my road bike? Once. For about 3 miles. But I have logged hundreds (maybe even thousands now) on my cross and mountain bikes.


Wait, where was I going with all this. Oh yeah, the new Rouleur mag.

Rouleur??? Why would a dirt worshiping, (sort of) anti road ride type dude buy a $20 magazine dedicated to road racing? Well...

A. Each issue of Rouleur is more like a book than a mag, and it looks, feels and looks (did I say that already?) amazing!

B. The BEST thing about Rouleur is that if most often focuses on the racers of yesterday. The "hard men" of the sport that inspire and take one back to the days of REAL racing and riding. No carbon, no doping (except maybe some beer, wine and speed, but that's real life stuff, right?).

Sure, the writing can be a bit flowery for my rude, crude, borderline 7th grade educated brain, but it is an amazing mag.

Issue #23 of Rouleur has a story about Fiorenzo Magni. Dude was amazing. Tough as nails, often getting to races on his own dime (or lack there of), and finding a way to win Flanders and the Giro 3 times! Yet many folks don't even recognize his name! Eeeesh! And to tell you the truth neither would I if it weren't for Rouleur magazine.

Does reading it make me want to actually start using road shoes and pedals, do an (actual) road race, or buy blood mail order from a "doctor" on an island off the coast of Spain? No. But quite often it does make me respect the early days of the sport even more and have me identifying my own "road" riding with what these "real" racers of yesterday did. For that I thank Rouleur, even though THEY could probably give to shits about what I think. On top of all that, it usually has the magazine publisher in me, and the graphic designer in me, in a masturbatory frenzy when I get each issue in the mail. Wow, I've come a long way since that stack of Playboys in my closet.

Just because I dig this, nothing really to do with the post.

Later.

Looking Back

I just realized that my Stony Creek race report was Chamois post #2,000. Looking back I am thankful that post 2,000th post of The Soiled Chamois was a positive race report. I am still freaked out that 2,000 times since the spring of 2005 I felt the need to blather on about something. Sometimes I have been happy with what I have yapped about, other times I woke up the next morning ashamed at what I shared with the WWW. For the most part I could give to flying ephs.

The week finally allowed me to get out on the bike today. The winds were high, with gusts around 24 mph, and there was a chill in the 50 degree air. But the sun was out and there was no rain, which is way better than the reports I am hearing from my old state. I'll take wind, chilly temps and sun over rain and grey any day.

I felt great on the way out of town to ride the dirt roads (that was due to a tail wind), I felt like shit the 2nd half of the ride (head winds/cross winds). I hoped that today would be an easy day in the saddle to burn some fat, etc., It turned into a fight against the wind and I was sort of toasted by the end. In part due to some left over chap ass from Saturday's race.

During a pee break I was taking a pic (not of my pee, or package) turned around as group of deer cavorted towards me. This is what I manged to catch... (click to enlarge of course).

I really thought by mid May I would be riding without arm and knee warmers, and I did. But that doesn't mean I wasn't wishing I HAD worn them. Curse you vile frigid winds. But again, at least it wasn't rainy and grey. I had enough of that shit the last 39.9 years. LOL!

I've looked at the pic above so long I still don't know what it is. It was on my camera though. Might be my arm, might be my ass, might be a ham from Meijer. Who knows?

That's all I got. 2.5 hours in the saddle in the wind. Wifey is gone all week in Traverse City for work, so I am Mr. Mom again. God help the boy.

Later.

Stony Creek 6 Hour Race Stuff

Wow, the fourth race of the year already, but the first "real" race of the year in my opinion. Meaning it was the first endurance race of they year. Woot! Also the fourth race with ball suck weather.

1. Barry-Roubaix: Sunny and 20 freaking frozen nip degrees.
2. Yankee Springs XC TT: Cloudy, blowing snow, 32 degrees.
3. Rust Shaker XC: Cloudy, wet, 45 ish degrees.
4. Stony Creek 6 Hour: Rain, wind, low 50s.

UGGGGG!!!!

But apparently such is life in Michigan. Anyway on to Stony Creek.

I pre registered this week for the race. Not to avoid long lines, or sold out races, but to insure that I would go to the race, because to tell you the truth waking up to temps under 50 degrees, blowing wind, and heavy rain Saturday morning would NOT have encouraged me to race. Being out $50 or whatever would. Of course these days it cost me $80 in gas to drive there. But one tries not to think of the ball suck part of the race life.

Four of us from MP were to go. Only 2 of us did. Me and Mike S. So we drove our asses down to Stony in the rain and wind, expecting the worst that the course could offer. To our surprise the Stony area did NOT get the same amount of rain we did up here and the trails were in fine shape. The muddiest trails were the flat ones were the water couldn't drain well. The single track was fine by me. Some people bitched, but not me. PA/WV mud would have them shitting their chamois'.

The fields for the 6 hour race weren't huge, but as luck would have it, the 40+ age group (which I sadly now qualify for) was the biggest with 17 starters. Prior to the race I met a blog reader from Cleveland who I now dub Cleveland Juan (because his name is Juan and he's from Cleveland), and got a chance to say hi to Mizz Musto getting ready to rock the 6 hour on her Ti El Mariachi (all the cool kids were riding Salsa Ti El Mariachis on Saturday, LOL!)

After changing in the muddiest park bathroom in the world and hoping that I wouldn't get some sort of disease in my chamois that would cause worms to grow in my... ah forget it, and a short pre race meeting, we were on the line and ready to go.

5, 4, 3, 2, 1... GO!

Everyone took off and I sort of, well... followed, and watched the asses of all the fast guys pull away. Fine by me. I never rode at Stony, and didn't know what to expect. Basically the course started flattish, then started climbing to the singletrack. The first section of singletrack was a twisty roller coaster that seemed to go on way to long. In a non race sitch I would have loved it, but for me and my inability to make good right turns in singletrack it was a real pain the buttocks. But I got used to it in due time.

It seemed like before I knew it I was racing alone. Occasionally I would pass or be passed, but for 80% of the race it seemed like I was racing alone. I did hook up with Cleveland Juan a couple times, and we had about the same pace. Dude has a nice pedal stroke, and it was fun to keep leap frogging with him.

The course reminded me a lot of a mix of Bavington and Boyce Park back in the 'Burgh. But with MAYBE (and surprisingly) a little more climbing. For every one part of the course I was not thrilled with there was another that was a blast to ride. On top of that there were plenty of double track sections to take a swig from the bottle and gel flask. That meant NO stupid CamelBak! SWEET!

Of course I could not do a race without an OMG! I'm Such an Idiot Moment. One section of single track had a narrow wooden bridge. As I made my way over it I got distracted by a something (this was 4? laps in, so it didn't take much 'look a bird!') I lost my focus, hit a tree with my shoulder and came to a stand still straddling my top tube with my nuggets, trying not to fall off the bridge into the swampy marsh. It took some doing, a quad cramp and the crushing of a testicle, but I did it and got back on and pedaling before anyone ever saw it. WIN! Of course I did just share it with the WWW., but then again only about 4 people (including me and Wifey) actually read this dross.

The race was odd in that the first lap I was good, the 2nd lap I was OK, the 3rd lap, I hated everyone, the 4th lap I was starting to do the math to plot my escape, especially when it started raining and I was getting sort of cold, the 5th lap, I knew I wanted to hit my personal goal of 6 laps, sucked it up a bit and pressed on, and the 6th lap I found my legs and had a great lap and a lot of fun! Funny how one can be motivated by the finish, and the promise of free hot pizza.

In the end I ended up with 7th place out of 17 with 6 laps (about 66 or 67 miles) in less than 6 hours. The race was more like the Stony Creek 5:30 since you couldn't go out for a lap after 7:30 PM. I scored a mini man purse (I mean small messenger bag), and a travel coffee mug for my efforts. I also got some Michigan Cup Endurance Series points. I did better than my mid pack goal, and felt fairly strong on the bike. My back still kills me every race, but I just try to ignore it.

The worst part, as it always is with lap races, is maintaining the will to continue on the SAME 11 miles over, and over, and over, and over, and over again. Mind games are the trick- look forward to another singletrack sections, or making it back to the pit for a bite of Little Debbie and her tasty Oatmeal Pie goodness.

Given my health issues in the last few year (the multiple DVTs, weigh gain, other medications, etc.,) the 6 hour format/100 mile format (maybe) fits me best. As much as I totally respect the folks that do it and love reading about, the idea of doing a 12 or 24 hour lap race makes me want to stick my head in a bus full of naked, hairy, fat men on the way home from a Chili Cook-Off.

I ended up using the Ti El Mariachi for the race, and only regretted not having the Spearfish 2 or 3 times! LOL! Actually for this course the El M was the best choice. + all the work Napper at Terry Cycle (in Beautiful downtown Alma) did on the drive train paid off with little if any missed shift in the mud. Food wise I went through 2.5 bottles of Gatorade (the powdered continues to be the cheapest/best hydration), 2 flasks of Hammer Gel, and 1 Little Debbie Oatmeal Pie.

The best choice I made was having a fresh pair of gloves ready in the xB/pit area. The rain/humidity slicked up the first pair within 3 laps, and had my hands were like pruned hunks of stinky naked man flesh. Putting on dry gloves felt like heaven. I could have used BIT more chamois cream, and manscaping myself too much earlier in the week left me a bit irritated after 5.5 hours, but such is life as an Enduro-sexual.

Congrats to my friend Mike S. who ended up in 5th. Well done. Nothing too big on tap for the coming week as Wifey is out of town on business leaving me as a full time single Dad type. Then Memorial Day weekend it's the Hanson Hills 100. Hope I got the legs for that one.

Really I am pretty happy with my performance. Sure I was NO threat for a win, but given my lack of inherent talent and love of all things hops and cheese I will take it. At this point in my racing life the goal is to JUST keep doing it and keep pointing out to myself (and others) why endurance mountain bike racing is so f*cking fun. Even when it hurts and you finish 7th.

Later.

The Short 6 Hour Report

Rained all night, and the whole drive to the Stony Creek 6 Hour. The trails were in remarkably good shape though! No peanut butter mud, some wet spots here and there but nothing too nuts. There were 17 riders in my age class. I finished 7th with 6 laps (about 66 miles of single and double track in under 6 hours, but missed a 7th due to coming in after 7:30 and a lack of want/talent) and scored some Michigan Endurance Series points and some shwag. Plus a bunch of free pizza. The vibe of the race was cool, and the folks were too.

Was a LONG day though. Left here at 10 AM, got home at 12:15 AM. Eeesh. Drive home was in rain and gale force winds. NOT cool when you drive a car shaped like a bread truck with two bikes on top. Plus my night vision sucks ass. All in all a good day though. I'll probably blather more later about the race. Right now it's 1 AM and I am STILL up for some freakish reason eating cold pizza and drinking a North Peak Diabolical IPA. Could be worse ways to end a day.

Later.

Let The Real Sh*t Start

Took yesterday off the bike, got a bunch of work done, shipped a bunch of Ts and went to beautiful downtown Alma to pick up the El Mariachi and get some work done on the Jake at Terry's Cycle. A productive day fo show.


Then last night Wifey and I made Thursday our Friday since Friday is the night before the race on Saturday and Saturday I will be gone all day and most of the night. We sat outside on the porch, had a few (or more) good beers and had some nice conversation. After the 2010 we had with Wifey's new job, the move, buying/selling a house, me with another blood clot, trying to run a mag and the marriage stress level pushed to the brink of ending, it is so damn nice to chill and reconnect with her. *sigh*


Today was spent with more work, more Dad duties, more husband stuff, and a quick dirt road ride on the El Mariachi to give it a shake down for tomorrow's 6 hour race at Stoney Creek. The bike felt good, the legs were OK (considering last night), and the temps were like mid 70s at 10 a.m.! SWEEEEEET!! Plus things are REALLY turning green here now and that is super cool. Ha! We're only like 2 months behind the rest of the country!

Intense or grunting out fart? I'd go with fart.

So I am packed with some basic gear and ready to roll the 6 hours tomorrow. Four of us MP type folks are heading down. Maltby, Ryan, Mike S. and myself. At least that is the plan as of now. Hope heavy rains stay away. They have been calling for T-storms all week here and as of now we have had about .00000002" of rain here. Or at least that's what it seems like. I'm not complaining!

The 6 hour doesn't start until 2 PM tomorrow, so at least I can still sleep in and get my poop on here at home before the 2+ hour drive. The suck part is that I won't get home until late tomorrow night, but look forward to Sunday being a day of slack.

If your are racing this weekend- GOOD LUCK! If you're not. Well... Good luck in whatever it is you're gonna do that's not racing. ;)

Later.

When In Doubt, Roll Dirt

I had it in my mind to ride the Jake on dirt roads today. 30-40 miles nothing too major. I readied the bottles, got my gear together, brought the bike up from the basement, looked outside and took the bike back down to the basement. I returned with the Spearfish which I promptly pout on the xB, drove to trails and rolled 20+ miles of singletrack.

Why? Dunno. Just looked outside, felt a tingling in the loins that said "save the dirt roads for another day," and decided there that singletrack was the best prescription for what ails me. Sure I've ridden my local loop 3 times, and 80+ miles within the previous 6 days, but felt no shame in cracking 100 in 7 days today.

In all the bike changing, and change of plans I forgot my camera today. Booo! But really other than the trees JUST starting to bud up in Harrison there is really no pic I could have taken that would have been any different from the pics I took there since the snow melted. So I will just post an old pic of the Spearfish and pretend it was from today (it wasn't.

We had heavy thunderstorms the other night and you would never know it from the ride today. Not a speck of mud on the bike after 20+ miles. That freaking rocks!

I continue to love the Spearfish.* Of course I also continue to think the bottle cage is too low, and makes it a real pain in the ass to reach, but lately I have been using the hydration pack anyway, so no big on that I suppose. I mentioned on Saturday that I slowed down the rebound a bit more too. I felt a little too bouncy, and my endurance pace is slightly slower than my normal slow pace, so a bit slower on the rebound seems to work best for me.

How does the Salsa Spearfish compare to other FS 29er bikes? I have NO idea. What I dig about it you might hate about it and vice versa. Complete bike wise the Gary Fisher, er I mean Trek Hi-Fi ($2,309 - $3,619) would come the closest in design to the Salsa Spearfish. What I like about the Spearfish is that A. you can get it as a frame (as I did) for less than $1,000 and build it as you see fit (mine is a mix of Fox Fork, Sram X0 & Shimano XT components on Hope/Stans wheels built up to about 26.5 lbs.). Or you can buy the complete, with a pretty solid set up for about $2,500. And B. (and this may be the same with the Hi-Fi design too, I don't know... I love the fact that while it is way more comfy and compliant than the Dos Niner, I never feel disconnected from the trail. That was always my major issue with other FS bikes and most recently the Big Mama. I felt like I was pedaling but not getting a "feel" for the trail.

I have yet to have the bike on any long sustained climbs (since there aren't too many locally), but on some of the shorter ones I have taken the climbs in and out of the saddle and noticed no major efficiency issues other than me being far from super shape.

Again, there may be other FS 29er bikes that might be better, or lighter, I don't know, I can only go with what I have ridden in the past and currently. The Spearfish seemed like the right one for me and fits nicely in my collection of bikes (CX, Road, Ti HT 29er, and now a FS 29er).

Been a while since I blathered on about bike nerd stuff. I feel sort of rusty at it. Got a new blog post up on the XXC site today. Check it out if you please. Gotta head down Terry's tomorrow to pick up the El Mariachi. It was getting some more love in the drive train department (that would be a new front derailleur, since the current XTR one went caput somewherez along the way).

*Full disclosure: Once again, this is NOT a review, just my personal experience with the bike. Salsa has been a sponsor of mine in the past, and is currently a paid advertiser with my day job. If I had the time and money I would test, research and experiment with a variety of bikes. Luckily I went with my instinct when the opportunity presented itself to get this bike, 'cause I am really digging it. Will I keep it forever? Who knows? Life is too short to commit to just one bike! ;) But I currently have about 200 miles on the Spearfish, and foresee many more.

Not So Much Rolling Along

Yesterday was a scheduled off day from "doing stuff," but it probably shouldn't have been since Sunday was sort of a "forced for family fun" day off. I had planned to ride today, but then we got some heavy thunderstorms last night and a bunch were in the area this morning. I had no real desire to be caught in the middle of a thunderstorm in open farm country, so that meant either the trainer or the gym for a workout.

I would rather eat cow dung than do either, but I needed to do something to get a sweat on, so I went to the gym. It's no big. I can be just as lackluster with with two (sort of 3 days off) as I can with two. Also no big deal since the last ride I did was 40 miles of pure singletrack, and I have a race this coming Saturday, so it's probably for the best that I take it a tad easy this week (but not too easy so as to harm my potential mid-packness).

Still undecided which bike I am going to use on Saturday for the 6 hour race. Probably going to be the Spearfish. The El Mariachi is still in the shop, I should have it back this week, but as much as I freaking love that bike, I am having a tough time finding a reason not to use the Spearfish. The course doesn't look like it's too technical, so I could probably get away with the El Mariachi for sure. Nice to have such a decision. As with my days "doing stuff," I think I can pull off a lackluster mid pack whichever bike I choose to roll. Of course I have to remember to tighten that spoke on the rear of the Spearfish. Freaking sticks! I swear I am a stick magnet. At least it wasn't a rear derailleur. (Knocking on wood as I type).

Might roll some gravel tomorrow if the thunderstorms throw me a bone. Speaking of gravel, did you see the Gravel Metric trailer up on the XXCMAG.COM site. Well, clicky, clicky and you can see it!

Later.

4 Laps of Motherly Love

Short post here. I'm sure I could blather on, but I'm bit tired, hungry and thirsty right now. I needed to get some long single track tempo work in. No roads, no dirt roads, JUST single track. So I once again went up to MMCC to ride. I would have like to have gone somewhere else with some folks to ride, but everyone was racing the sold out Dirt, Sweat & Beers race today, and I have husband/dad duties tomorrow to celebrate Mother's Day with Wifey and B-Man at the Loons game. So I had to go solo today.

The goal was to do 4 laps of the 10 mile loop, at my endurance race pace, get the body used to the pounding that riding single track at length does, and of course enjoy the incredible weather day that we were blessed with today here in central Michigan. 60ish and sun... The best!!

Sadly the woods have not really started to green up yet. I guess that's what getting snow until the end of April does, but the trails were hard pack and fast (God bless Michigan dirt for sucking up the wet!!). The Ignitors were a little much, I could have got away with a much lower profile tire if I had one. Of course I still have a pair of CrossMarks...

I cranked out 4 laps in about 3:35, a nugget's hair under 40 miles, and didn't stop except to drain the chap, and to lower the rebound speed on the Spearfish. There's not much climbing at MMCC but it is NON stop single track, and you're on the gas the WHOLE time since no major ups, mean no real major down hills to chillax.

In the end I was happy with my performance except that my low back continues to be a problem when riding. Not sure if it's fit issue or just an old, fat and out of shape issue? But it is an issue. I would have liked to have felt a little better after 3:35 than I did considering that there is a 6 hour race next week that I am supposed to do. Has me rethinking if I want to skip it and make the Hanson Hills 100 the first race on the 28th. Hmmmm... Not sure. But for the type of non stop single track I rode I was pretty stoked with me and the bike.

OK I said this would be short, but it appears I blathered on as per my usual. Sorry.

I had planned to grill chicken on the grill tonight, then I decided to make Mexican food, now I think I'm tired and we are just gonna order pizza. Yum-freaking-oh!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mother type folks out there, and to mine. Sadly she passed back in 1999. Still miss her like hell though, and she is STILL a huge influence in my life (except for my trashy mouth, beer drinking, gawking at lady types, and a few other thing I won't mention here! LOL!). But big, giant props to my fave mother type- Wifey!

She baked us up one fine kid and we both love him more than anything. On top of that she is a SUPER mom to B-Man (plus she makes sure that I don't do anything TOO stupid). Big thanks to her and all she does for him, and for our family. Wifey = BEST!

Later.

Gravel, Sand, Dirt, Dust...

Two days of single track goodness had me wanting a 3rd day of single track goodness, but I needed to get some work done and even though I like to think that riding single track 2 hours a day is "work," it's really not. I mean if I REALLY wanted to stretch the truth I could say that if I didn't spend time "doing stuff" on my bike, I couldn't compete in races, and if I didn't compete in race then XXC would suffer in some way. Of course that's not to say that the mag has reaped any big benefits from me finishing mid to back of the back over the years either. Ha! But I digress...

Work needed to be done, but a ride also needed to happen. So rather than drive to do trail ride, I headed out the back door, rode 3.5 miles of pavement and then hit the dirt roads. The ride wasn't that long, coming in at just 2 hours but some newly laid gravel and dirt made for a high heart rate, some near wipe outs, and some power sucking on the hills. Seems like just a couple weeks ago (because it was) I was riding deep mud and goo. This week it was powdery dirt and sand. Damn that happened QUICK! I will still take riding on the dusty sandy dirt roads over snow, cold, ice, mud and slush. Eph that! The grader was out today packing down some roads but it seemed that more than half the roads I rode had yet be hit by it. Drat!

It was nice to once again be able to head out in shorts and short sleeves. Damn the sun felt good! Of course its reflection off my paper white legs could blind a person. The ride was pretty darn not bad, but I was missing the single track. But I have some super mind numbing not so top secret endurance race prep that I want to do this weekend with the Spearfish, so I think I will MORE than make up for no dirt (trails) today.

Even with the fresh power sucking dirt and sandy shoulders the gravel roads treated me well today, and got me 6+ hours of playing in some form of dirt over the past 3 days, with the weekend's plans still ahead of me. Storms in the forecast tomorrow, hopefully they won't be so bad as to derail too much of those ride plans.

I was able to post up a neat blog post by one of my operatives in the UK on the XXC blog today. Pretty neat look at some of the mental things that endurance racers and adventure cyclists face, and how sometimes NOT doing a ride or race isn't as bad as it seems. Check it out HERE.

Gotta split, need to get some stuff done, and then tomorrow more work, and a trip to Terry's for some bike love.

Later.

Camels, Walter Sobchak & Single Track

With the endurance race season fast approaching next week, I figured it was time to dig the CamelBak (not actually a CamelBak, but close enough) out of the basement boxes to see what sort of sludge and mold was living in it waiting to launch an intestinal dropping case of bowl squats. It actually looked pretty good, so I cleaned it out, filled it up, and figured today was good a day as any to remind myself that I hate wearing a hydration pack.

While digging around in the boxes I found some booty (not the good Beyonce rump shaking kind) in the form of an unused unscratched pair of lenses for my Tifosi glasses. SWEET! The only down side is they are the yellow tinted ones. I prefer the rose tint or clear. To be honest I like USING the yellow tints, I just don't dig the way I look in them. I feel like Walter Sobchak...

Sure Walter Sobchak is one of my favorite movie characters, from one of my favorite movies (The Big Lebowski), but when one is try to ride and race mountain bikes, one does not REALLY want to feel like 400 pound psycho. Being a 200 pound psycho is hard enough. They also make me feel like some sort of kooky, NRA, "Out of my cold dead whatever..." type person. Which I am very much not. The only gun I ever fired (or ever plan on firing) was a BB gun when I was about 10. BBBBBBUT having said all that. New lenses beat buying NEW glasses, and I wore them and dug them. I did have the strange urge to pop a cap ins someone's ass by the end of the ride though.

Oh yeah, the ride... I did another 2 quick laps of single track up at MMCC today. The weather was too perfect not to. Plus I have been waiting ALLLL winter to get my single track rocks off, I am not passing up the chance when I get it. And as luck would have it, I got most of the work I needed to do today done last night. BONUS! So another 20+ miles of single track on the Spearfish was on tap. A good time was had by all.

Of course with my cool Sobchak specs the single track sort of looked more like this...

Later... I gotz the urge to bowl.

Jerky Turkey

I was feeling pretty jerky yesterday, not sure why, just was. A pissy ride on Sunday, a lack of riding on Monday and waking up this morning to see that for some reason Issue #11 all of the sudden was all jacked up looking on MagCloud.com (for some unknown reason the logo was no longer on the preview... WTF??) did NOT help. BUT, I remained, calm, controlled the panic attack and got it sorted out. A sigh of relief was heard all over MP once it was!

Then it was off to do some XXC News/Blog work, get to reading some stories for the next issue, and do some research stuff. Somewhere in between I needed to get some dirt time in, so I headed out into the 45 degree (IN FREAKING MAY!!) day to MMCC to roll a couple laps of single track on the Spearfish.

It was SUPER fun and the legs/body felt 110% better than on Sunday. I also used my Spearfish today rather than the hard tail, putting miles 60 thru 80 on it, and continue to LOVE it. Barring some sort of catastrophic failure, the Spearfish will be the main endurance race rig in 2011. When I got it I thought it would be a nice option to the hard tail, but now I am changing my tune a bit. Of course much depends on the course too. But REALLY dig it.

Today I rod the course the opposite direction from the way most people do and the way the race was run a couple weeks ago. This was the first time I ever rode it this direction and I really dug it. Mainly because there are more single track uphill parts to work on, and there are more right turns. I know this is gonna sound ridiculous but I have trouble with right turns, especially on single track! Strange. Anyway, rolling the course this way is a good way to work on that limiter for sure.

I rolled two laps, snapped a couple pics via pee breaks and then headed home to make my shipping run to the post office and get some more work done. In other words is was a busy ass day, divided up with some quality single track time. I'd like to get more time in tomorrow. Not sure if it will be gravel or single track, but after today's session I am sort of geeked for more single track and getting more anxious for the first endurance race on the 14th at the 6 (or 12! I can't make up my mind!!) Hours of Stony Creek. JOY!

Later.