The Aftermath

After crossing the finish line for Single Speed USA, I was spent (remember my interview?)

The fun didn’t stop there though.  With no water to drink (and not wanting to climb down into the mountain stream for fear of not getting out), I went right back to beer.  I did my best to help finish off the kegs with Thom, Dejay, Paul, and George.

And watching Thom get his ass blown off by firecrackers…

And the subsequent “brawl” between Thom and Dejay…

After that I had to ride all the way across town to get back to my truck at the start, putting my total mileage for the day over forty.  I had the option of riding my bike to the start, and after passing by my hotel on the way I knew I had made a mistake.

After what seemed like forever, I made it.  I drank about a gallon of water, got some food, and drove back to my room to clean myself up.  It was time to hit the afterparty, where the Black Owls were playing.

Dough and George seemed to be enjoying the show…

Until George started busting out his fancy dance moves on Thom.

It was a good way to wind down.  I had a few beers (including some with Eddie and Namrita), and cut out of there to get some sleep.  The next morning I had plans to get out and ride, but I was pretty much worthless. 

Instead I did a little sightseeing…

And found some of Vermont’s finest cuisine:

Later that evening, we had another get together, and this time it was pretty tame.  More beer (including the leftovers form the keg), and Dejay even cooked us some burgers.  Before we ate though, George showed off his awesome track standing skills.

And we hung out until the sun went down (and beyond.)

Since Dicky never showed up, the kiddie pool we setup for him became a place to discard the empty beer cans.

The next morning I had to hit the road, and I was sad to leave Vermont.  It was a great “race”, drank some good (and not so good) beer, ate great food, and I met a lot of cool people.  Well, since all the cool kids ride single speeds, I guess that was easy to do.  I really appreciate the hospitality that George, Mandy, and the rest of the Vermont folks showed me while I was there.  I brought home a lot of great memories for sure.

But, I brought home a lot more than memories…

Yeah, I’ll get into that another day.

Before I forget, there is a bike festival this weekend.  Southern Spokes, is coming up quick.  I’ve been so busy, that I actually forgot to mention it.  It will be held this weekend at Lake Norman State Park, and will start Friday night with an open house at First Flight Bikes in nearby Statesville.  Saturday will be all about riding bikes, and there will be a movie and even camping.  Today is the last day to register, so head over to the website to get your name on the list.

I’ll be there, and maybe I’ll tell you some of the “behind the scenes” stuff from SSUSA that I didn’t talk about on here.

Almost Time

And you know what that means…

It’s the Final Countdown of course:

That’s right.  Tonight, the little lady and I are hitting the road.  Even though Single Speed USA is this Saturday, I’ve already told y’all that we’re heading to Buffalo, NY for a few days first.  It’s been a while since I’ve been there, and it will be the first time I’ll be there in the Summer.  There’s usually a shitload of snow on the ground, so I’m hoping that this time it will be gone.  Things could be mighty different this time around.

After spending a few days there on the farm, I’ll head over to Vermont and hopefully catch George at the shop.  I have a present for him for being the host with the most.

It’s customary to bring a gift when you’re invited to a party.

I’ve never been anywhere close to Vermont, but I’m pretty sure I’ll have a good time.  Music, beer, and bike racing are on tap, and that’s right up my alley.  I mean, the place is gonna be overrun with single speeders from all over the country, and you know those folks like to party.  It will probably end up looking a lot like Mos Eisley Spaceport when we all get in town.

Single Speed USA in Stowe, Vermont.  You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.  I must be cautious.

The blog will suffer while I’m gone, but at least you won’t have to suffer through my nonsense until I get back.  I’m sure I’ll have plenty to talk about when I come home, but in the meantime I won’t be here at all.  I’d like to tell you that I will blog during the trip, but that probably won’t happen.  If you want to know what’s going on while I’m away, you can follow me on Twitter.

I’ll at least try to keep that updated in my drunken, worn out from bike riding state.

See y’all next Friday, as in more than a week and a half from now.

Easy As 1…2…3

You know, like A…B…C…

So yeah, it’s time to finalize my plans for Single Speed USA.  Little Miss Sunshine and I are leaving after work next Tuesday, and driving as far north towards Buffalo, NY that we can that night.  We’ll stop for some rest, and continue on until we arrive on her parents’ farm sometime the next morning.

The cows will be so excited.

I’ll stay for a few days and hit the road, East bound and down…

I have a long way to go, and a short time to get there.

I think I have a good route to Vermont, and that’s thanks to many folks.  Since I’ve been mentioning my trip up there ( to local folks and here on the Internets), I’ve had people come out of the woodwork to tell me that they have either lived in Vermont, or they’ve been there many times.  I really appreciate the advice, because I sure as shit don’t want to get lost.  I’m trying to make it to the Bike29 mothership in Waterbury before the shop closes, and hopefully I can deliver George some smuggled beer from out of state.  I mean, why else would I have used a Smokey and the Bandit Reference?

Other than that, I don’t have a whole lot else to do.  I just need to bring my bike, suitable cycling clothing, and my ability to drink tons of beer.  The bike will get switched over to a 20T cog sometime this weekend, so I don’t have a lot of bike prep to do.  Oh, the joys of single speeding.

I still have a few more days of blogging before we go, so hopefully I can keep this shit going without boring y’all to death with my trip planning.  At least I should have a ton of stuff to talk about when I get back though.

It’s gonna be fun, so forgive me if I can’t shut up about it.

Oh damn, I almost forgot.  I should probably bring a jug to get some maple syrup.  I hear I can get it right off the tap up there.

Bringing It Up North

No, I’m not talking about my Southern charm or my penchant for chugging RC Cola and eating Moon Pies.  I mean, it’s really time to start making plans to bring my ass to Vermont this summer for Single Speed USA.  It’s less than two months away, and I haven’t even really thought much about the logistics of such a trip.

Sure, the portion of the trip that takes me to my in-laws’ farm near Buffalo, NY is all planned out, but after I leave there the Friday before the race, I have no idea what I’m doing.  I’m hoping to arrive at the Bike29 mothership in the early afternoon (if George is still there), but after than I don’t know where to go.  I haven’t even thought about my accommodations for the few days I’m there, although I have been looking around a little bit on the Internets.

Maybe George will let me sleep on the floor in the shop. 

  

Since I’m really starting to think about the little details involving my summer adventure, I’ve turned my eyes to my single speed bike.  I’ve been riding a comfortable (finally) 32X18 around here and in the smaller mountain areas near Charlotte, but I’ve been told that may need something a little bit easier.  George said a 20 or 21 tooth cog would be better, but I’m having a hard time dealing with the fact that I have to make a change.  Even though I have no idea what the trails up there are like, I decided that I will go for a 20.

I just so happens that I got one of those fancy cogs sent to me from Endless Bike Co.

Kick Ass, indeed.

I’ve never used one of these, but D-Wayne told me that they are pretty good.  He also said that he has yet to tear one up, which is good news since I tend to put the hammer down when I climb.  I guess I’ll find out on my own soon enough.

I also bought a new chain (not pictured because chains aren’t really sexy), so the plan is to switch everything over sometime this weekend so I can get a feel for my new, smaller gearing.  I’ll put everything back to the “regular” gearing soon after, and swap everything out again prior to my departure.  I know for sure I won’t like such an easy gear around here, but I bet I’ll be glad I had it when I’m climbing in the mountains of Vermont.

Beer is next on the list.  While I’m sure that there are many fine brews available up there, I wanted to take the opportunity to bring some down south love up north.  So George, if you’re reading (you are, right?), I need a list of brews you can’t usually get your hands on.  Otherwise, you’re stuck with whatever I decide is best.  I guess either way won’t be a disappointment.

I’m really looking forward to my trip (and the race I suppose.)  I guess that’s why I’m talking about it so far in advance.  It should be a great time, and I can’t wait for it to get here. 

In the meantime, I guess I’ll start drinking maple syrup to prepare myself. 

Perhaps a literacola would be much easier to drink.

Trip Planning

Not just any trip, mind you, but THE trip of the summer. Although July is quite a few months away, I still like to have my ducks in a row before I head out to Single Speed USA. It will be here before I know it, which means I need to plan ahead if I want to make it there.


On the surface, it seems pretty simple. Hop in my truck, drive to Vermont, race, drink beer, sleep it off, drive back home. It’s not that simple though. This will be more of an adventure, especially since I won’t be driving directly to Vermont from Charlotte. I have to take a small detour by way of Buffalo, NY.


That’s where Little Miss Sunshine hails from, and in order for me to be able to “race” in Vermont this summer I had to give her a little incentive to let me go without her. We decided that a visit to the farm (yes, her parents own a farm) was in order.


So, it looks like I’ll be doing quite a bit of driving. SSUSA is on Saturday the 28th of July, but I will be departing Charlotte on Wednesday the 25th. We’ll arrive there in the evening (after a 10 hour drive), and I’ll spend the next day there visiting her family, herding cattle, and delivering grain to Amish people. Maybe we’ll even get in a mountain bike ride. I hear they have awesome trails around there.


Friday morning I’ll depart in the wee hours of the morning (leaving the little lady on the farm), hop on Interstate 90, and head east towards Albany. That’s where shit gets tricky.


I have two options. The first one is that I can go all the way to Albany, and head north towards Vermont. It looks like pretty easy driving (according to Google maps anyway), but it will cost me a few extra miles.


The other option scares the shit outta me.


In option two, I can start heading northeast towards Vermont when I reach Utica, NY. I noticed that the directions for that option said, “This route includes a ferry.” I don’t care much for ferries (even though I reluctantly use them whenever we go to the Outer Banks), because basically I’m always thinking that one of those bitches will sink with me and my truck on it. I saw what happened to the Titanic, and I think that shit will happen to me too.




The ferry in question is called the Lake Champlain Ferry, which, get this, crosses over Lake Champlain on the border of New York and Vermont. I started doing some research on the Internets, and found some videos of it.

Here’s one:




I got seasick just watching that.


I keep meaning to call George to see if he’s been on it before, but I figured that he would tell me I was chicken shit for even worrying about it. Chicken Shit? Do Vermonters even use that phrase? I'm sure they don't talk all "southern" up there.

Anyway, what's worse is that whatever he tells me about it would scare me even more.

Yes, I have an irrational fear of boats that go far away from the shore, and also of bridges that go over large bodies of water. That's weird because where I grew up I spent most of my time on a lake (full of alligators even), but it was usually well within eyesight of the shore. As long as I think I can swim back to safety, I'm good (alligators generally don't give a shit about you unless you provoke them.)

Being on a ferry while sitting in my truck doesn't seem to safe to me.


So yeah, I’m driving to Vermont from Charlotte, NC via Buffalo, NY. I’ll be there Friday afternoon sometime, hopefully before George closes the shop. I’ll be there for the whole weekend, and leaving for Buffalo on Monday morning (and back home after that, obviously.) That much I know for sure. It’s the small details of the trip that concern me.


Do I drive a few extra miles through Albany, or should I risk my life on a rickety ass boat across a lake that probably has some kind of monster in it?


I’m as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.


Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope. Vader keeps touching me inappropriately.