Fare Thee Well

Today is the day.

The 4300 will meet it's new owner.

My after school meeting went long yesterday so I wasn't able to participate in a special edition Tuesday Social... so I got in one last spin on the 4300.  I made final adjustments, got the shifting as smooth as I could, and cleaned it up.  Wow does it look different when it's clean!!  Then, I took it out for a spin around the neighborhood to make sure everything was good to go.  Shifting was good for the most part, with a few glitches here and there, so I tinkered a bit more to make some post ride adjustments... hopefully that will have things straightened out (fingers crossed).

It felt kinda strange.  But, at the same time, cruising through the neighborhood shifting my brains out felt kinda nice too.  Going from the Glow Worm to the 4300 put me in a totally different body position (I raised the handlebars back up to be a bit more beginner friendly) and the seat was a bit low (which I left alone since the buyer is shorter than myself) which were obvious differences as I pedaled around.  Overall, it kinda felt like I was on a BMX bike.  Fun, but different.

The 4300 got me hooked.  It was a bike that I could throw anything at without worry.  These days it has been sitting unused, and would have been relegated to paved streets and grocery gathering if it remained in the Bike Haven.  For it's new owner, it will be the key to unlock the amazingness of mountain biking...  So yeah, that sounds like a much better role to me.  Thank you Annie for getting me the 4300 in the first place, I'm sure you had no idea where it would lead!

up and down

Yesterday was the 7th day of 30 Days of Biking/1st day of rain.  I guess that's not too bad.  But I was NOT looking forward to jumping on the trainer, especially since I still have not taken care of replacing my battery for my speed/cadence so it's kinda lonely just spinning there.  I took it pretty easy, spinning for 30 minutes watching a video from a race at Blankets Creek - looked fun!

I then started tinkering with the 4300 - cleaned the drivetrain, made sure it was shifting (decently enough)... while I was dialing in the derailuer I again realized why I like singlespeed so much!  I'll give it a good cleaning tonight, maybe take one last spin on it (since I doubt the trails will be open for our Tuesday Social today) before sending it off on new adventures Wednesday.

Then it was time for the Uconn game.  What a game (from what I saw)!!  There wasn't a moment of that game where I felt we were comfortable and in control... even when we were up big we still weren't completely solid.  And it's never good when this happens.

The last thing we needed was bickering among teammates...

During halftime I was drowsy.  The second half started and I was struggling to stay awake.  How could that be with such a back and forth game with so many plays and misplays there to keep you on the edge of your seat?  I'm old I guess?  I woke up at 11:44 with no idea what was going on.  It didn't take long to surmise that Uconn had indeed won, and then drag my ass into bed.  Even though I was a tired old man, I'm very proud to be a Husky - the men came through huge last night and shocked more than a few people!!

Now it's up to the women to do it tonight!

6 Days of Biking

So far I've ridden everyday in my quest to get on the bike for 30 straight days.  It has been pretty easy, but this weekend was a bit of a let down in terms of my rides.  Sunday I had some work related stuff that I needed to take care of so I figured I'd build my ride around that since it was scheduled for the middle of the day - so I rode to and from the meeting.  Not bad.

That meant Saturday would be my mountain biking day.  And since I hadn't been hitting the trails lately, I was jonesing for something substantial.    That meant either USNWC or Lake Norman.  At first I was thinking USNWC because I felt like I hadn't ridden there in forever... but then recent reviews on some changes and the fact that I'd have to renew my pass ($40) made my desire to head over there wane a bit.  Lake Norman would surely provide the miles I wanted, and it's free, so a winner was crowned.

Saturday rolled around and Annie informed me that she and Andrew were throwing me a party that evening, so they gave me a deadline for my return.  Part of the party would involve a fire in our outdoor fireplace, which is awesome.  However, that part of the yard needed some post winter attention so I volunteered to give a hand before I went to ride.  I like yard work.  I mean, it's not something I necessarily look forward to, but once I'm getting stuff done I enjoy it... and I tend to find more to do... so naturally my time frame for riding dwindled.  Ok, so change of plans, I'd ride Sherman (much closer, and quicker) so that I could get everything done that needed to get done.  As I'm about to leave Annie tells me that I can't go yet because she has a gift for me in her car that I would see if I left - so I have to wait around until she heads back out before I can take off... I find more work to keep myself busy with.

Once I'm freed to leave I grab everything and pack up the pterodactyl.  I hustle on over to the trail and check the air pressure on the Glow Worm when it dawns on me... I didn't grab my shoes.  Frustration levels explode in my head as I pack up and head back home.  Will I have enough time to turn back around and get back to the trail for a hot lap and then back to the house to shower before people arrive??  It would be super close, and probably not a reality.  So I have to settle for a road ride of sorts.  I grab the Meuse and hit the streets with a bit of anger in my blood.  I wanted dirt!!

My temper tantrum subsides as I roll along, as is the magic of riding a bike.  It was a "make it up as you go" ride, so nothing spectacular.  The weather was great so people were everywhere.  I wanted to avoid the bike path because of that fact, but got suckered into hitting a section of it anyway - SLOW.  It took me through a park where there was a tree climbing championship going on.  Sounds much cooler than it was so I didn't hang around for it.  

Then it was back home to get ready for the party.  Annie's gift to me, some sweet chairs we had seen at an antique store that would go great on the patio I have yet to build outside the Bike Haven.  Food was grilled, beers were drank, the fire was furious, and we played some amazing game for which I forget the name.  Great times.

So although my rides weren't epic, I guess you could say my weekend overall was.

New Beginnings

Media Fridays

We'll post videos or photos that will hopefully inspire trail shredding weekends.

*Media in the sense that there will be a picture, and this will get someone to shred the trails.

So I'm kinda sad.  But, I'm kinda not.

Here's the deal.  A coworker mentioned that she saw me out on our Tuesday Social this week and mentioned that her husband was interested in getting into mountain biking.  We talked a little about what she was looking to get him - something used, and something not expensive (like really cheap).  As we all know, that can be disastrous - especially for someone who doesn't know what they are looking for.  So I offered to check out the local deals to see if there was anything decent out there.  

There were some "deals" on craigslist - but you never know what you are getting there, and half the time the information is incomplete.  Now, I know that you don't need the best bike in order to have a kick ass time out on the trail, but I also fear that if you get the wrong bike you will never really get the chance to totally enjoy riding... so what to do?

I talked to Annie about it... what about selling my 4300?  I don't ride it.  I was going to convert it into a grocery-getter, but I have that old school bike that I could build up for that...  Here is the rub.  Annie bought my that bike.  It's what got this whole crazy thing started.  She thought about it and came to this conclusion - "I'm ok with selling it to a wife who is trying to get her husband into mountain biking."  

I like the idea of having my first bike get someone else into this amazing sport... but I am kinda sad to see it go.

What day is it?

Reebok PUMPS!!

Something about this week has just been crazy.  It's one of those weeks where the days are flying by, but the week seems to be dragging to the point where I have no idea what day it is today.  Maybe it's my age catching up to me??  Yesterday my wife asked how it felt to now be 35 - no different (except now I've entered my Reggie Lewis year).  Today I can't seem to keep things straight.

You know how I talked about pulling out a calendar and sitting down so I can visualize everything I want to do, everything I've committed to doing, and generally just making sure things don't conflict?  Well, I still haven't done that, and things continue to creep up and bite me in the ass.  Events are popping up in the immediate future that haven't been on my radar and thus are causing mass confusion and conflict in my head.

Even as I sit here I'm looking at my work calendar and I'm just feeling sluggish just figuring out when I'm going to catch up on all my paperwork between my scheduled meetings and duties today.  ANYWAY.  The one thing that I HAVE to do today is register for the Tarheel Trailblazer biking/camping weekend next weekend... cause today is the last day of registration and I put off registering because I'm so good at planning.  Once registered then I get to move forward on getting a camping hammock - which will be a first step in making my Appalachian trail journey a reality.  It's a whirlwind I tell you.

Speaking of whirlwinds, I've had a successful (2 day) start to my pledge to ride everyday in April.  Tuesday I hit North Meck for our Tuesday Social.  I got out early and it felt great to be on the trails after being sidelined with illness last week.  As I packed up my bike and was heading to work I realized that I didn't have my multitool and pump.  I was running late and figured everything would be fine so I left without it.... as a cyclist, we always know that on all those rides when you have a tube, pump, CO2, tools, and all the other extra crap we carry - we don't need it.... On my first lap things felt/sounded a little strange.  As I launched off a jump and landed a thought popped in my head - the rear wheel is loose.  The "right" thing to do would be to stop.  But without tools there was nothing I could do to sufficiently tighten my rear axle, so I continued my ride and tried to be a smooth (and grounded) as possible.  I was able to avoid catastrophic failure and finish out my lap.  Then I waited around for TheMutt to show up so I could tighten everything up and join the group safely.

I was definitely feeling like I was still in recovery mode after my first lap so I was glad this would be a social ride.  In the lot we even talked about no matter how small the group we always kept it social.  And then TomTom led off on his new singlespeed and there wasn't much social about our pace.  Of course I wasn't going to let him get away!  It was quicker then social, but we did make two stops so it wasn't an all out race.  But it was fun for sure!  Afterwards, I repaid TomTom in Mexican food for giving up his spot at the Tour de Charlotte since he was "forced" to go down and ride some amazing trails in Anniston, AL.

Yesterday I decided that since the weather was so nice I would grill out on my Birthday rather than go to some fancy restaurant.  But before any grilling could happen I definitely needed to get out for a ride.  I was a little later leaving work, so I knew it would be a neighborhood spin.  For a moment I thought about just making it a ride to the Common Market to pick up some beers, but it was too nice for just a beer run, so I wound my way around the neighborhood for about an hour.

Who knows what I'll do tonight - perhaps ride over to the monthly Trailblazer meeting?

Get it over with already

Ok, I've got to get through this recap already... I'm starting to feel like The Mutt with this slow roll of info.

So where was I?  Ah yes, the promise of beer.  We rolled through NoDa, which probably wasn't too strange of a site for people to see around 100 cyclist passing by, and got to our final destination.  Where there was beer!

We were in an open park with a cyclocross course taped off.  I didn't ride the course, but from watching the riders it was tough!  They came through flying on the first lap, and by the second it looked like EVERYONE was dying.  The park itself is basically the side of a hill, so there was just a little elevation in the course.

Just a reminder of how much riding there is so close to uptown... even if it is a hijacked cyclocross course

And not to be outdone by the other stages - riders still had a little fun through the air on this one.

The "Beer Me" interlude

And the grande finale

Nik was out there doing his thing all day

One last quick meeting before things get really crazy... it's about time to party!

Beer was flowing freely at the party. 

Ties were broken

Underwear shown for drinking speed

Yes, he does have underwear on his hands

And winners were crowned

Like last year, trophies were kickass

3st - Thirst

And I even came out with some schwag

Everyone got a pint glass - SWEET!

I got some Maxxis love for the Meuse

To quickly recap - the Tour de Charlotte was bikes, beer, and fun. 

Why weren't you there?

First

Running late and had to load up the bike so no time to wrap up the Tour today... my bad.

Today is the first day of April, which brings us the start of 30 Days of Biking.  More than anything else it's a personal challenge to stop making excuses and get on your bike everyday.  There is no requirement as to what type of riding, how far, or how hard... just spin them wheels!!  Luckily for me today coincides with our Tuesday social ride, so that makes the kick off pretty easy.

Being the first day of April also brings pranks - it's April Fools Day.  I haven't pulled an April Fool's prank in a very long time... my 3rd grade prank is the only thing that stands out in my mind right now.  Coming in from recess I grabbed some earthworms and put them on my teacher's desk.  Kinda out of left field for me, but it worked.  Not only did it scare my teacher, but I wasn't even a suspect!  Of course I came clean when others got blamed for it.

Anyway, here is something that isn't a joke - it's going to be in the mid-high 70s today.  We have plenty of sweet riding down here in North Carolina, come on down!!