Just Like Us

With Sonya Looney in town, last night’s scheduled ride at Backyard Trail was sure to be an interesting one.  However, the rain we’ve been getting around here forced a change in plans.  Instead of riding in the dirt, we ended up on a group “urban ride” out of the shop (Bike Source in case I forget to mention it later.) 

I arrived plenty early, and while I was getting ready to ride the guest of honor rolled up.  We exchanged pleasantries (pro mountain bikers say “hello” just like the rest of us) and I seized the opportunity to let her know that I had to please Drunk Cyclist Headquarters and get a photo with her.

And just like us regular folks, she also poses for photos.

 Photo cred:  Eastwood

While I was at it, I got the raddest photo ever captured of Faster Mustache rider and Bike Source employee the Gentle Ginger.

And because he said I’ve never mentioned him on my blog before, here’s a random photo of another Bike Source employee, Daniel Lenis.

While I was slightly disappointed that we wouldn’t be riding on the trail, I was sorta looking forward to an urban ride.  Eastwood and I brought bikes that were not really suitable for fast, urban riding.

The Falcon and The Glow Worm.

Good Guy Greg rolled in on his single speed moments later, and the Niner crew (which we’ve been called as of late) took our place in the back of the pack with Sonya, who was riding at a “recovery pace.”

See, she rides bikes too, just like the rest of us.

She told us that single speeders are her favorite, probably because the longer the ride went on, the more we started complaining about the lack of beer.  Well, that and the fact that she’s a single speeder herself (in her spare time I guess.)

We rode through neighborhoods:

Through a cemetery:

Through the city:

And even sprinted down a hill trying to beat a speeding train:

And because local coaching phenom Chad Andrews was riding with us, we stopped in for a visit at Total Cyclist.

On the way back, I knew we were getting tired from spinning our tiny little gears.  Because, you know, some random dude on a New Belgium Fat Tire bike blew past us like we were standing still.

After getting back to the bike shop, it was time for beer (finally.)  We walked down the plaza and ordered up some local tasty goodness in the form of Triple C Greenway IPA.  We also ordered food, but it took forever to get there.  Because of that I had plenty of time to harass local Internets celebrity Rich Dillen to see if he would come out to play with us.  He was busy, so the night went on without him.

See, she drinks beer after a ride just like us.

In all, it was a great ride even if it wasn’t in the dirt.  The pace was surprisingly quite social, even though we had a real live professional mountain biker in our midst. 

I guess she can ride slow too, just like us.

I Slept In

And it was good.

By doing so I eliminated all temptation to race on Sunday.  I was surprised that hanging out there watching people race that I didn’t feel any regrets, and maybe that’s a good thing.  Instead, I chatted with my fellow mountain bikers, watched a new single speeder race against a bunch of geared guys, and helped out my club with another fine event.

Retiring from cross country racing to ride for fun isn’t so bad.

Speaking of fun, I have a ride planned for tonight.  Well, I didn’t plan it but I plan to be there.  Pro mountain biker Sonya Looney is in town and there is a group ride scheduled this evening.

This should be pretty fun, although I’ll probably get dropped before the poo tracks.  At least I can cut out early and start drinking beer though.  Come join me (for the ride and/or the beer.)

Since I got a late start today, I’m way behind with my “other” responsibilities today.  I gotta get outta here.

Tomorrow will be some kind of ride report, either from tonight’s ride or the one I did Saturday.

Or none of the above.

I Still Haven’t Decided

Sorry about yesterday.  I was gone, and I didn’t even tell you I wouldn’t be here.  I’d like to tell you that I was on some super secret training mission in the mountains to help with my decision to race this weekend, but sadly that wasn’t the case.  I was stuck doing my day job, which lasted until well past midnight last night.  To make a long story short and less boring, we had a phone system crash in one of our facilities early yesterday morning.  I spent over sixteen hours getting everything going again.

Not the best way to spend my day, but the money is good.  Now I guess I can start shopping for a crabon Niner fork without any guilt whatsoever.

Anyway, the race.  I don’t know if I want to race on Sunday, and I have lots of reasons.  I’m heading to the mountains tomorrow morning bright and early for a fun ride, but even at a social pace I still plan to do plenty of miles (and climbing.)  If I’m not too worn out when I wake up Sunday morning, I still have to decide if I’m racing or not.

Even then I’ll have to make yet another decision.

Gears or no gears.

The course at the whitewater park is pretty good I guess, but there is no need to have gears or suspension (just ask Eastwood.)  If I race in the single speed class, I’m guaranteed to be nowhere near the podium since I’ll be racing against all those tiny little men.  However, the course is perfect for SS and a rigid fork, and I know I will have a blast.  Sounds good, right?

The other option is to race in the Clydesdale class, which is half the distance but most likely full of sandbaggers.  I used to have fun racing in that class, but it’s become way too serious.  It’s not about trying to get on the podium, rather it’s about racing against guys that have a disadvantage because they weigh a little extra (not “sport” racers that think they can guarantee themselves a top three finish.)  I wouldn’t be competitive in the sport class, so Clydesdale might be my best bet for “friendly competition.”

A quick check of the scale yesterday told me that I’m more than qualified.

That’s right about normal for me I guess.

I know, I blabbed on and didn’t really tell you shit about my decision.  I will most like figure it out when I get there in the morning.  I may just put on my volunteer hat for the whole day, and heckle the riders that want to go out there and race.

I’m sorta retired from cross country racing anyway.

See y’all Monday with some kind of bike riding report.

I Should Start Getting Ready

One of my favorite races is coming up this weekend:

Yes, the 2013 Catawba Riverfront Classic is this Sunday.  No matter what I have going on, I’ve always made sure to enter this one.  After all, I am the 2009 Clydesdale Champion and all that (whatever the hell that’s worth.)  And, it wouldn’t be a bad thing to add to my tiny little trophy/medal collection.

That’s not what it’s all about though.  I race for fun, and like I keep saying, cross country racing just hasn’t been all that fun for me lately.  This year, the Riverfront Classic is the NC State Championship race, and while I’ve finished second in the state for the past two years, that’s not enough motivation either.  I guess I’m still undecided, but I’ll know a little more as the race gets closer.  Probably like the last minute.

I’ll be there either way, because the race is also a fundraiser for our local club, the Tarheel Trailblazers.  I’ll be there to volunteer with all things race-related, and even if I do decide to race that won’t change.  I have a chance to do a fun ride in the mountains on Saturday, and I damn sure don’t want to forgo that just so I can race.

It’s not like I’m guaranteed to get a trophy anyway.

In other news, I’m already starting to make preparations for another race.  My big road trip to Minnesota this summer for Single Speed USA is starting to come together, since I’ve already acquired my accommodations for the week.

Yup.  I got a camper shell put on my truck da udda day, and I’ll be sleeping in that bitch.  Last year in Vermont I stayed in a local motel, and I found out later that the real fun happened at the campground.  Plus, this will save me a few bucks so I can drink more beer (and share with the rest of the Drunk Cyclist crew.)

Now I just gotta work on my travel plans.

And yeah, I guess I’ll decide what to do for the Riverfront Classic on Friday.

Bike Riding Is Fun

You know, in spite of what I wrote yesterday.  Keep those guys in your thoughts (and prayers if you do that sort of thing.)

Saturday was the Big Bingo Ride here in Charlotte, and a whole mess of us met up down on the south end of the city to participate.

The object was to ride through a predetermined route while stopping at certain checkpoints along the way to get numbers for your bingo card.  We rolled out at a casual pace towards the first checkpoint, while some people were treating it like a race.  Good Guy Greg and I spent the first leg chatting with Faster Mustache team member Zac about single speed gear choices and whatnot, and when we arrived at the Common Market South we almost forgot to go in to check our numbers.  I guess we were more concerned with the social aspect and riding rather than the bingo.

We got separated form the group, but eventually we caught back up.  The next stop was the McGill Rose Garden, which was pretty neat I guess.  I’d never been there before, but it was pretty…what with all the flowers and junk. 

We got our bingo numbers, and watched as one staff member sifted through used coffee grounds for some reason.  

The next stop was just up the road at the Trips For Kids Recyclery. 

We nosed around there for a bit, and once again got separated from the group because good Guy Greg and I were too busy checking out bikes.  We eventually caught back up again, but only because I had to really pay attention to the arrows marking the course.  I kid, it was actually the easiest navigation I’ve ever done in my life.

Rolling up the street towards the next stop, we passed a place that wasn’t on the route but we couldn’t pass up.  I mean, I like beer and all.

It was as if the whole group was drawn to the NoDa Brewing Company, and it was a welcome stop on a warm, sunny day.

The ride was good so far, but the fun factor increased exponentially after that.  After only one beer, we managed to pedal up the road to Smelly Cat Coffee.

We had some cold coffee and brownies, grabbed our bingo numbers, and made the trek down to Common Market (again, but this was a different one.)

And of course we had more beer.

Lando Calrissian approved.

And everybody was Kung Fu fighting.

At this point I was really hungry (and still didn’t have Bingo), so I was happy that one of the next stops was for frozen yogurt.

They gave us cups that we could fill up however we wanted, and I made the most of it.

Maybe I was drunk or something.

With only a few stops to go, I was starting to think that I would never get Bingo.  We had to hurry, because all that stopping for beer had put us way too close to the cutoff time.  We rushed though the last couple of checkpoints to head to the finish, and it was still pretty fun.

  

We were one of the last groups to roll in, and I bet we had the most fun.  It was probably the slowest I’ve ever ridden a bike in my adult life, and I don’t even think I got the slightest bit tired.  We drank a few more beers, ate some food, and reflected on how great of an event that was.  Riding around the city for beer and food is pretty cool, and hopefully a lot of people realized how easy it is to get around on a bike in Charlotte.

I know I did.  Now, I’ll have to do it a little more often.

It’s Dangerous Out There

I did some fun stuff over the weekend.  However, last night I heard some news that kinda makes it feel a little less important right now.  A friend of mine from here in Charlotte was riding in the Cap2Cap Ride in Virginia this past Saturday and was seriously injured.  The sum it up, some jackass in a big truck tried to pass some riders in the group and ended up hitting my friend and another cyclist.  They were both air lifted to a local hospital after suffering pretty serious injuries.

Here’s a link to the news story:

Two Bicyclists Injured

The worst part about this is that the truck never stopped.  With a group of riders that big, he had to know he hit someone.  Instead, he kept on going.  The only description they have is that it was a red cab with a white trailer.  That’s really not much to go on, but if you know anything or hear anything, give the Virginia State Police a call at (804) 553-3445.

Riding on the road is dangerous, and that’s why I don’t do it very often.  However, I always enjoy big group rides because I feel much safer with other people around.  The Cap2Cap ride seemed like it would be pretty fun, and I bet the last thing that the riders were thinking was that they would be the target of some truck driver’s shitty actions.

I hope they find out who it was, and I especially hope that the riders are okay.

I might be back to normal stuff tomorrow, but for my friend and the other rider, it’s gonna take a while.  Please keep these guys in your thoughts.

All Bike Stuff

Just the way I like it.

Last night, we had an impromptu trail work day at RTS (formerly known as “The Trail” only days ago.)  We recently acquired some new features via donation.

Since I didn’t want these sitting on the side of my house too long, so Good Guy Greg came over and we met TomTom at the trail to get these out there.  We have an idea for a good use of these skinny little bridges, but we didn’t really have time to get them installed.  Lugging those heavy ass structures out in the woods took a little longer than we thought, but we’ll be back out there soon to put them where they belong.  It’s spring, you know, which means longer daylight hours so we can get shit done.

It also means that we’re gonna start seeing more critters out and about.

Springtime has brought new life to the trail, and it has a whole different feel now.  With all the leaves and new growth, it makes it seem like you’re in a more remote location, rather than in the middle of one of the busiest areas in Charlotte. 

That’s the creek we re-routed back in the winter, and it’s doing quite well, thank you.

Man, it’s so nice out there now.

In other news, I have lots and lots of two-wheeled action planned for this weekend, starting tonight.  As soon as I can get outta work (early I hope) I’m heading down to The Spoke Easy for their Bike Charlotte Party.  I’m not sure what’s going on down there, but it’s all good because there will be beer.

That’s pretty much all I need to party.

Saturday will be a first for me.  Instead of heading out to a local trail, I’ll be riding in the Big Bingo Ride.  I’m not sure what to expect there either, other than the fact that I’ll be riding my bike all over town at a leisurely pace.  And yeah, there will be beer there too.

I like beer, but you already knew that.

I guess that sounds like a full weekend and all, but if the weather cooperates then I’ll get out on my bike somewhere in the woods on Sunday.  I’m sure I’ll be having dirt withdrawal by then, so the rain better stay the hell away.

And now, I’m gonna get outta here.  I told you, Fridays are slow, and most of you have a short attention span on the last day of the week.

Later.