Not As Bad

Sometimes you don't know what to expect.  You have preconceived notions about a certain thing, but until you actually do it you have no idea.

Brace yourselves, I'm not talking about bikes.

For Father's Day, Lunchbox wanted to hang out with his old man.  He also had something else to do, so he asked if that could be my present.  I said sure, not knowing what I was getting myself into.  You know, other than hanging out with my kid which is good no matter what we do.  So off we went to the Heroes Convention here in Charlotte. 

Anyway, he goes to comic conventions all the time.  He's a regular on the circuit these days.  I think that's neat, but it just wasn't my thing.  I went in with an open mind though.  Our first stop was something that made my day, no doubt Lunchbox's grand plan to get me to enjoy my day.

Star Wars stuff.  I dig it.

That was pretty cool, and I was definitely having fun.  After that, we walked around a bunch and looked at all the neat stuff.  I took a few photos.

So, nerd stuff.  I guess it's cool these day for most people.  Hell, I'm a Star Wars nerd.  But, people like to have fun, and everyone goes about it in a different way.  I'm really into bikes (and guitars, beer, etc.) and the people I saw at the convention are just as passionate with their hobbies too.  Just like Lunchbox.

That happened all day.  People stopped him to ask for a picture.  It was cool to see how popular he was with the people there, and from what I understand it happens at every one he goes to.  He appreciates the old school stuff like Mortal Kombat, as well as newer comics and movies.  Oh yeah, he's a cool nerd that happens to work in the bike industry too.

And he's one helluva a kid (man.)  I had a good day with my son, and I learned that maybe new things can be fun.  I'm glad that he decided to drag his old man along during his adventure.  I mean, I spent enough time dragging him along to my crap and nonsense.

So I'm not just some selfish bike and beer snob asshole.  I guess I'm a nerd too.

Fun Friday

More rain.  Lovely.  So much for getting outside and getting rad this weekend.

I really hate this weather.  I’d rather have snow because I could actually go out and ride in it.  Snow is fun.  Rain is not fun.

Unless you’re a Stormtrooper.

It’s Friday, which is supposed to be a fun day.  Maybe it’s not raining where you are, or maybe you don’t care.  I care.  There will be short track race watching on Sunday, but I’m pretty sure tomorrow will feature more riding indoors and a Star Wars marathon.  I’m also heading out tomorrow night to listen to my friend’s band play some METAL.

Metal and Star Wars.  Maybe the rain won’t be so bad.

Enough about me.  I’ll cut this post short so you can get to doing whatever it is you wanna do this weekend.

I wanna take the easy way out.

See y’all next week.

Fun Friday

It’s been a long week.  Work sucks as usual, but somehow I made it.  It’s not like I’m the only person that can complain about their job.

Any chance I can throw in a Star Wars reference, I will.  You know this.  Even if it doesn't make any sense.

Anyway, I’m glad it’s the weekend.  I’m sure the folks over at Interbike are glad too.  It’s been a long week for them, and hopefully today they’re packing up and getting out of town today.  Some folks probably had fun, and some, well…

you’ve probably already seen this by now:

That’s something even I wouldn't do.  I have limits, you know.

Anyway, we've made it.  All you have to do now is coast through today and the weekend is here.  Fall is on the way, the temperature is starting to cool down, and the hills are calling.

I think I might head up there tomorrow.  It’s been way too long.  Besides, it’s almost time for the leaves to start falling.

See y’all Monday.

A Great Start

Did you watch Star Wars yesterday?

Good. Good for you.  I did too.

Anyway, Saturday was pretty rad.  I actually got to ride my bike.  No work, and no real responsibilities.  The little lady was out of town and Lunchbox had to work.  Since I'm such a nice guy, I dropped him off at his “other” job.

He was working for our local race promoter, helping out with a duathlon. 

I hung around a bit talking to a few folks I knew.  A little later than I wanted (and after a quick stop for gas and food), I eventually headed for the mountains.  I rolled up to the Ranger station (the start of PMBAR) and got my shit ready for a couple of hours-long ride. 

I was prepared.

Beer in the Camelbak.  It's what you do.

All the PMBAR racer folks were long gone, but I did run into Shanna, who was also heading out for a ride.  I opted to let her go on without me, and instead shot the shit with Eric, Cam, and crew before heading out.   Once I found out the checkpoints for the race I took off...

straight up Black Mountain.

Damn, that sucked.  I'd never ridden up it before, so I was hurting.  Well, after the week I had at work I would've been hurting riding up the hill in my neighborhood.  Anyway, at least the views were nice.

Once I got to the intersection of Maxwell Cove and Black, I stopped to figure out my next move.

Knowing that no one would be coming back down Black for a while towards the finish, I figured that I would keep going up.  So I kept going towards the top of Black.

Still sucked.

I saw people every once in a while, but with almost to hundred racers out there I figured I'd see more.  Maybe if I had planned my day a little better I would have, but it was too late for that now.  When I got to the stop, I took a break and had a beer.  I talked to a few passers-by (non racers too), and just enjoyed being out of work and in the hills.

I'll pick this back up tomorrow where I left off but for now I'll say that even though I was hurting after not being on my bike for so long I had fun.  I looked up in the sky and at the surrounding mountains pretty much the whole day, thankful that I had a free weekend to get out and enjoy myself.

Now that work is slowing down, I'll get back to that kind of stuff.

And don't forget, I'll get back to you tomorrow.

Fun Friday

That's right, we're back here again.  Today couldn't come soon enough, especially since I've been putting in so many hours at work.   All I have to do is make it through the day, then I get to go have some fun of my own.

And I don't mean fun with The Internets either.

I'm headed to the hills tomorrow morning bright and early.  The big race (PMBAR) is going on up there, and I'm just gonna go ride my bike amongst everyone, heckle, and maybe even drink a little beer.

Or a lot of beer, whatever.

It should be a fun day.  I may or may not run into some people I know I guess.  That doesn't matter.  I'll be out on my bike in Pisgah and far away from work.  That's good enough for me.  Will I get some good stories out of it?  I dunno. 

Who gives a shit.

Another big event this weekend is Star Wars Day. May the 4^th, as in May the Fourth be with you.  Okay, it's not really a big event.  Maybe more like a pseudo holiday for us nerdy types that are into that sort of nerdy stuff.  I'm sure I'll watch some movies and all that, but since it's Fun Friday I guess I could do some Star Wars-related stuff on here.

So, here you go:

That's enough for today.  I'll see y'all Monday.

After After After

Three days about one day’s worth of shit?

Well, sorta.

I’m not sure if I mentioned this before, but my Enduro™ bike actually has a name.

Being a Star Wars fan (nerd), of course I came up with something related to the greatest movie series of all time.  I’ve decided to name my bike after Lord Vader’s Star Destroyer, The Executor.  And just like his ship, it’s presence alone is enough to frighten an entire star system into submission.  Or a trail, whatever.

Riding that thing in the “real” mountains was a treat, and totally validates my reason for building such a fine machine.  Sure, Vader’s ship met it’s end at the hands of the Rebel fleet (and subsequently crashed into the Death Star before it too was destroyed), but no worries there.  Mine was just built a few months ago, and like it’s namesake, it will be around to cause terror for quite sometime.

Big, cushy suspension, drooper post, and one fucking gear makes for a great ride pretty much anywhere I take it.  It ate up the bumps, rocks, and partially frozen trail with ease, and going downhill made me feel like I could beat Han Solo’s Kessel Run record by at least three or four parsecs.  The drooper post was a bonus (I probably didn’t need it as much as I thought), but I did have one small issue.

I don’t know what I was thinking, but I put the control for the drooper post too far away to reach.  On some of the descents where I wanted to lower my seat, I had to remove my hand from the grip just to activate it.  I didn’t notice it before because I had been riding locally (where I didn’t need it so I didn’t think it was a problem.)  However, riding fast down the mountain you kinda want to keep your hands on the grips at all times.

Luckily it was an easy fix.

Now I can reach it with no issues, and I’m almost ready to go back.  Almost?  Well, the Executor (Enduro™ version) was mighty dirty from my trip to the frozen hills, but luckily I had plenty of stuff from ProGold to get everything ship shape again.

  

Together with this bike, I’m ready to rule the galaxy, er hills.

May the Enduro™ be with you.

Fun Friday (Christmas Edition)

Yup, another “Fun Friday.”  With Christmas coming up next week, I figured I should “get into the spirit” so to speak.  The best way I can think of is with some Star Wars stuff.

Since I promised Lunchbox I would keep using the gifs he sends me, I'll give y'all one of those too.

I know, I know.  That has nothing to do with Christmas.  Well then, here's a video that does.

And since I'm in such a giving mood, do you need something to do while you're bored at work today?  Watch this piece of crap that should have never been made.

Don't worry, it's been cut down to only fifteen minutes (instead of over and hour and a half of crap.)

You watched it all, didn't you?  Yuck.

See y'all Monday.

A Better Trooper

Let’s talk about my “other” bike, TK421.  You know, the geared one.  Lately I’ve been talking about taking the gears off, but I had a hard time uh, finding the time.  Some people might think that I’m chickening out.  I get that.  Others might even think that I just plain forgot.  Well, it was a little bit of both I guess.

But, the time has come to get rid of that shifty shit.

It took less than one beer to remove the shifter, cable, derailleur, chain, and cassette.  The rest of the beer was spent putting on a 20 tooth Endless cog and lining up the spacers I got from MisfitPsycles.  Somehow, I put them in the right spot on the first try.  And when I put the SS chain on, I had the perfect chainline.

What’s with the bash guard and N-Gear Jump Stop on there?  Well, for one I was too lazy to take them off.  The most important thing though, is that it will be just fine for me to leave them on there.

Are we good?

Good.

Also, I was able to get good chain tension without the use of a tensioner, or even a half-link.  I are happy.

  

Anyway, I guess now I have another “new” single speed.

So other than the road bike I take out about twice a year, I won’t have a geared bike to ride.  I’m pretty damn excited about that.

In fact, it makes me want to do a little dance.

The Dark Side ain’t so bad, you know.

It’s Done

Although I was happy with the bike I had (other than the creaking), I’m really pretty excited about my latest build.  With a new Niner One9 frame in my possession, I grabbed a few beers and went to work.  It didn’t take long (approximately two beers) and I’d assembled my newest toy.

What’s with the squishy fork, you ask?  Well, since my only current rigid fork is white, I thought it would look ridiculous on there.  And let’s face it:  looks are all that matter.

Okay really, it is all that matters, but I’m working on that.  The rigid fork will be painted to match (because I’m too cheap to buy a new one) and it will be back on there shortly.  For now, I guess I’ll just go all soft on y’all.

Now, we move on to the name.  The old One9 was called The Falcon (as in Millennium Falcon from my favorite movie), and I just didn’t feel right recycling that moniker on a totally different bike.  So, after standing around staring at my new build I came up with something else.

This is my apprentice, Darth Maul.

Shitty movie I know, but Darth Maul was still pretty badass.  Well, until he got chopped in half.  They should’ve chopped Jar Jar Binks in half instead.  Bastards.

Anyway, I think he fits nicely with my new bike.

Now there’s no turning back from the Dark Side.

And so I won’t be a complete Star Wars nerd on y’all, here’s the first sticker I put on the new ride.

Of course I’m still a Drunk Cyclist.  You know me , right?

I freaking love this bike so far, even though I didn’t really plan on getting a new one.  The maiden voyage was last night after work at BYT and it sliced through the trail like a double-edged lightsaber.

Big thanks to Niner for a painless warranty process and even bigger thanks to The Cycle Path for taking care of me during the whole thing.

Yes, I have a new single speed, but I didn’t stop there. 

More to come.

A Little Riding

For some reason, I had to tell you all about my Washington, D.C bicycle adventure yesterday.  While I was glad that I got to ride a little bit while I was up there, I wouldn’t really classify it as anything quality.  Sure, it was fun, but I need to be in the woods.

Tuesday night I was.

Finally, the weather cooperated and we were able to get back to our regularly-scheduled Tuesday Social.  This time we went to BackYard Trail, and I was amazed at how many people were out there.  Several group rides were taking place, and ours was the last to roll out.  We had a huge group wandering all over the trail at a social pace, and I have to say that it was the most fun that I’ve had on a bike in a long time.  Well, except that I was riding gears. 

I’ll get into that later.  As in tomorrow.

I'm still not used to riding gears, or suspension.  My geared bike is fun and all that, but sometimes I feel like it's not meant to be ridden locally anymore.  It feels out of place.

I rode TK-421 like a single speed (I haven’t gotten around to converting it yet), most of the time because I would forget to shift.  I still had a good time, and I’m glad so many people came out.  I only took the one photo (see above), which should tell you that I was too busy having a good time to worry about capturing images.

Who gives a shit.

Of course, much beer was consumed at the ride’s conclusion.  Fine hoppy beverages and good food, paired with good conversation made for a great night.

I love this bike shit.

And I love short blog posts.  

I Thought About Riding My Bike

But then I realized that I should take a little break.

After staying up half the night Friday, I finally got to sleep in.  I can’t remember the last time I didn’t have to get up early on a weekend for a race, trail work, or because the critters in the house needed attention.  I slept until about 10 a.m., and I woke up Lunchbox to plan our day.  It was his turn to decide what we should do, and he had been plotting this all along:

Yeah, it was Free Comic Book Day and Lunchbox likes to go every year.  It’s like trick or treating, where you walk around comic book stores and they give you select comics for free.  It’s always the first Saturday in May, and since it was also Star Wars Day (May the 4^th, keep up) I decided to wear one of my favorite shirts.

I’m not into comics really, and I’m definitely not a people person.  I went because my kid wanted to go, and I did my best to have fun. 

It was kinda neat I guess.

I mean, I did get to see Chewbacca hanging out with the ladies.

And some weird chick dressed up as Squirrel Girl.

She was definitely nuttier than a squirrel turd.

Then I saw one of the strangest things of all, a Wonder Woman that was taller than me.

I mean, I’m 6’4” and she towered over me.  There was something really odd about that.  Little Miss Sunshine said that she probably wasn’t a “she.”

You never can tell these days.  Anyway, it was actually pretty fun; especially since my kid was having a good time (he brought his girlfriend along to creep her out too.)  Although I didn’t get to ride my bike, I at least got to see someone else riding a bike.

Boys Weekend was going strong, until we got home.  Lunchbox decided to head to the mall with some of his friends, so I was left at home all by myself.  I hung out in the garage for hours, tinkering with bikes and doing other random shit.  I learned that when I’m left to fend for myself, I tend to make poor choices.

Like my idea of dinner.

Luckily I’m not left alone too often.

Boys Weekend

This weekend, it will just be Lunchbox and I holding down the fort.  The little lady is going out of town with the Dirt Divas for their Spring Trip.  They’ll be in the mountains for yet another weekend of partying, mountain biking, and secret pillow fights.  You know, whatever it is that girls do when they get together.

That means that the kid and I get a bachelor weekend, and as of now we don’t really have much going on in the way of plans.  There are a few things we’re considering, but the beauty of it all is that we don’t really have to do anything.  That means that we’ll probably stay up way too late and sleep half of Saturday and Sunday away.

Actually, I have a pretty good idea what we might do.

Tomorrow, May the 4^th, is Star Wars Day.  May the 4^th be with you, get it?  In honor of this glorious occasion we’ll probably have a Star Wars marathon at the house, I'll drink a few beers, and maybe we'll even ride our bikes while wielding lightsabers.

We can do whatever we want, you know.

And yeah, since Friday is usually a slower day for visitors around here, I’m stopping right now.

See y’all Monday.