Early Christmas

Every year around November, I get put on a buying hiatus.  I can’t purchase any presents for myself because Christmas is coming and it’s really hard for others to get me "things I want."  It's hard though, because I like to get my own shit.  I obey for the most part, but what do I do if I really need something? 

It might be kinda hard to see in the photo, but the rails are bent on my saddle.  This isn’t the first time that’s happened so I won’t blame it on the holidays.  It’s actually been like that for a month now, and it’s off just enough that I can feel it when I ride.

So, I got a new one.

Yeah, I know.  Replace the one you broke with the same model?  Well, yeah.  I like those saddles.  In fact, it’s the only saddle that feels good on my bony ass.  I’ve been through a few over the years, but not enough to even think about switching to another brand.

What can I say?  I’m loyal.  So shut up.

In other news, it looks like I’ll get to ride twice in the same week.  Our weekly social ride is tonight, and if I’m lucky I’ll get out of work early enough to get in a lap before the group gets there.  This time of year it’s important to ride (for me, anyway) so I’ll take whatever I can get.

Short post today.  So what.  You’ve probably got Christmas shopping to do and all that.

Last Night Was Fantastic

I’m talking about my ride, you perverts.

I rode at our local gem, BYT, and had a blast.  Half in the light and half in the dark, it was the perfect mix for an after work cocktail.  The solitude of being out in the chilly night air was a great end to a long week.  Well, I’m working today, but that doesn’t’ count because it’s Friday.  Still, it was really cool to be out on the trail in the middle of the city, and watching all the people stuck in traffic as I rolled through in the woods next to them.

I did have one small issue though.  I was rolling along, and thought, “Hmmm, I can’t remember the last time I replaced my chain.”  Just then, this happened:

I neglected to bring a quick link with me, so I had to walk out.  I was pretty close to the parking lot, so it wasn’t a big deal.  I already have a new chain in my possession, so this repair will be quick and painless.  That little incident didn’t bother me at all since the rest of the night was so good.    

Anyway, after the ride/hike back to the parking lot I headed over to partake in the Tarheel Trailblazers monthly meeting, and we discussed all sorts of things.  We also had our annual elections, and unlike the “other” election going on right now this one was not full of controversy.  Well, unless you think it’s controversial that I’m returning for another year as the Vice President of our club.  I’m no Joe Biden, but I’ll be alright (and so will the club for that matter.)

Politics aside, this weekend is shaping up to be busy again.  Without a race on the schedule, I’ve still managed to jam pack these next two days with toms o’ shit to do.  Tomorrow is the annual Tarheel Trailblazers/Dirt Divas year-end party down in Fort Mill, SC.  I know, it’s barely November, but we do this one a little before the end of the year.  You know, in case the world ends next month or something.  The day will be filled with group rides, beer drinking, getting our grub on, and me rockin’ the mic for the prize giveaway.  Somehow I was convinced to emcee this thing, so I’ll make sure to get plenty of hoppy goodness in my system to make it worthwhile for all.

The party goers don’t know how good they’re gonna have it.

Sunday, I’m attending something that has for some reason become an annual tradition for me:

Yeah, the Big Stampede is rolling into town once again, and I’m going.  While it’s been disappointing the last few years, I can’t seem to stay away.  Wandering around looking to find a bargain on something I can’t live without is fun, but I think I go just to shoot the shit with the local cycling peeps.  That makes it suck less than usual, since we all usually bitch and complain to each other about how much it sucks like usual.

So, I may find a once in a lifetime bargain one some bicycle part I don’t need, catch up with those folks that I see at every other event around, or just waste away part of my day walking around the Charlotte Motor Speedway.  I’ll finish off the day drinking beer and watching football, so it won’t be a total loss.  The weekend is gonna be busy, and it will keep me from sitting on my ass. 

Hell, I may even get in some trailwork time too.  I haven’t been out digging in the dirt for a while anyway.

Riding For Fun

It's sometimes a lot harder than racing.  Some people call it training, but since my season is pretty much over I just call it getting out on my bike.  This past Saturday, me and the Dirty Party Cycle met up at the local man-made whitewater rafting place to get in some “quality miles.”  We started out early, because we knew it would be hot as shit come high noon.  We just missed a Dirt Diva ride by a few minutes, but I wasn’t totally upset about it.  Riding with a bunch of ladies would’ve been pleasant, but that’s not why we were there.  The plan was for multiple hours on the bikes, and to make it hurt.  Pleasant just wasn’t on the menu. 

We started out on one of the newer trails, and it took me a while to get my legs going.  Pedaling a single speed after not riding for a few days wasn’t going too well at first, but eventually I started feeling good.  After the first loop was complete, I stopped back by my truck to grab a drink.  The pain was about to start.

We took off, trying to keep a fast pace.  The DPC and I took turns leading each other through the woods, and we were having a blast.  I had plenty of power on the climbs, and I felt like I could ride at that pace all day.  When I got to one of the bigger climbs though, I tried to mash up and my foot came unclipped.  I tried to clip back in as I kept pedaling, but it wasn’t working.  I stopped at the top of the hill and told the DPC that I thought there was something wrong with my pedal.

There sure as shit was something wrong.

Yes, I bent the axle of a STEEL pedal.  While I have had issues with crankbrothers pedals in the past, I can chalk this one up to old age (the pedals, not me.)  I’ve had these things for a long time, and I figured that they wouldn’t last forever.  I didn’t think I would break a pedal in this manner though, so I guess I’m just a little shocked.  At 6’4” and 230 pounds I’m not freakishly large, but I’m starting to wonder if maybe I’m too big for little teeny tiny bike parts. 

It’s not like I’m fat or anything.

So anyway, I just so happened to have a spare set of pedals in the truck (because I know shit like this is bound to happen to me), so we took a quick detour back to replace them.  After a short wrenchin’ session, I was ready to roll again.  We picked up where we left off, and resumed the torture. 

We rode for hours, and I barely had enough energy to make the last climb out of there and back to the parking lot.  We packed up our shit, changed our clothes, and walked over to get some grub and a few beers.  We rode our asses off out there, and had a blast.  

My legs were tired, I broke some shit, and drank the hell outta some beer.

I would call that a success.

I’m actually glad I can ride for fun now.

I Am So Fat

When I went to pick up my packet at yesterday’s race in Danville I found a handwritten note on it:



Turns out my pal D-Wayne decided to give me a little shit for my rant on Friday.


I definitely got a kick out of it, and I’m glad he knows that I wasn’t talking about him when I was whining about the woes of being a Clydesdale.


So anyway, a bunch of us big boys lined up at the start, and I was ready. We took off from the line and headed down the fire road, and I wasn’t really happy with the slow pace. I tried to sprint a little bit, and that’s when I noticed that I had trouble clipping in with my left foot. I kept trying, but I also had to keep up with the group.


We had to make a left-hand turn up another fire road, and I will still having trouble clipping in. At least I was still up front.


Photo credit: Lunchbox

I knew something was wrong. I also knew that I had to pull over and check it out, risking my position in the race. I hated to do it, but I had to.


I stopped real quick and looked at my cleat, but I didn’t see anything wrong. I watched as my entire class passed me by. I hopped back on my bike again, and tried to catch up with them.


I still couldn’t clip in, so I stopped again to check out the pedal.

That’s when I found this:



Shit. The spring on my pedal had snapped, which rendered my “clipping in” ability useless. Without being able to clip in, I would have trouble standing to climb, and the descents would be scary as hell with zero stability. Since I wasn’t even a mile into the first lap, I had a few options.


First, I could quit. Quitting a race is a no-no for me, so I dismissed that thought as soon as it popped in my head.


Second, I could ride back to my truck, grab an extra set of pedals (that I just so happened to have there), and replace them. I would get back in the race, but not have a chance in hell to catch up with my group.


Last, I could just keep going. It wouldn’t be easy, but at least I would have a chance at avoiding a DNF.


I felt like I had no choice but to keep going. If I quit, I would feel like shit. If I went back to my truck to change the pedals, I would’ve more than likely just given up and sat on my ass once I got there. I’m glad I kept going, because Lunchbox was just around the next corner to catch me in action.



As I passed him by, I told him that I broke my pedal. He seemed shocked at my luck, but not at the fact that I was still going. I told him I would see him later, and set out to race the best race I could under the circumstances.


I got to work, and made it my goal to catch up to at least one person in my group. I mashed away, and pretty soon I saw someone up ahead. I was having a hard time climbing with only one foot clipped in, but I had somehow managed to ride right on by him. He was in my class, so that lifted up my spirits a bit.


With my little bit of new found confidence, I held on and made my way through the trail. Soon after, I spotted two more guys in my class up ahead. I quickly caught up to them, and made my move.


I passed them both, but one guy tried to stay with me. To lose him, I had to either risk my safety and haul ass on the downhill, or somehow find a way to stand up and climb. Without being able to clip in, I chose both of those options. I really had no choice.


After about three miles, he was nowhere in sight. It seemed as if I lost him for good. I passed a few other people along the way, but no one in my class. I was hurting, but at least I was moving along. With about a half mile to go on lap one, I was happy to see Lunchbox again with the camera.



Every time I see him out there, it keeps me going. Whenever I’m having a rough time, I know he’s still there for me.


Anyway, I had another chance to quit when I went through the start/finish line, but I didn’t do it. I figured that I had already made it through one lap with a broken pedal, and I could make it through one more. I wasn’t in last place, so I could use that as motivation to keep me going. My right leg was feeling the affect of pedaling with only one foot clipped in, and I was starting to cramp a little. I worked as hard as I could to keep going, and I wasn’t about to let up.


After eight more painful miles (with some pedaling, scary slipping off the pedal downhill, and a little walking), I saw my kid waiting for me again.



I was much happier to see him this time, since it meant that my race almost over. I crossed the finish line in 11th place, which is much better than I thought I would do. Well, I didn’t think I would break a pedal and have to worry about settling for “not last”, but I guess I’m good with that.


I worked my ass off out there, and I’m not really disappointed. Shit happens, and at least I finished. I got in a pretty good ride, and I really got a chance to see what I was made of. I’m not a quitter, and I proved that to myself.


I guess the next order of business is to contact Crank Brothers to see if they can help me with my broken spring. The pedals are less than a year old, so I’m sure they will work with me. In the meantime, it looks like it’s back to the single speed for a while.


That’s not necessarily a bad thing.

I Had A Little Accident

I was just riding along, minding my own business, and bam...a stick jumped outta nowhere and attacked my bike. It grabbed my chain tensioner and ripped it off (breaking the derailleur hanger and shredding it in the process.)




And it broke my chain.



The worst was that it didn’t stop there. The tensioner lodged in my new rear wheel, bending the shit outta some spokes.



Damn.

The next day, I took my rear wheel to The Cycle Path for some emergency service. They were kind enough to replace the broken spokes and true the wheel, and did it with a quickness (I picked it up later that day.) They also sold me a new chain that I heard was “bombproof.”



I don’t normally use anything other than SRAM chains, but it was all they had. I tried to put everything back together, but I forgot about one thing.



Since I had no tensioner, I had two options. One was to find that “magic gear” using a half link, and the other was to pour syrup on shit to make it pancakes. I opted for the latter and made the most out of my busted up tensioner.



It worked fine for the most part. I had one little issue, but this is only temporary anyway.

This showed up Monday.



I had wanted to try this tensioner for a while, so I was glad it showed up. I don’t like it at all though. While I have complained (mostly to myself) about the Surly Singelator, this new-fangled spring tensioner is kind of a pain in the ass. The tension is way too high, and there is no way to adjust it. I have a few days to get it right before the Winter Series, but I’m starting to wonder if it will ever work. I thought single speed was supposed to be easy.

Well, my ass was saved again when Little Miss Sunshine brought this home from The Cycle Path yesterday:



Go with what you know, right?

I decided to change it up a bit this time though. I swapped out the “push down” spring with the “push up” one, and it made life a whole lot easier.



Skip-free and perfect tension. Now I’m ready to enjoy the single life once again.


At least all of my broken shit is fixed now. Big shout out to The Cycle Path for fixing my crap in a hurry (and providing me parts to replace other broken crap.) Go see Mark and Mike sometime and give them your money. They truly rock.


You know what else rocks? A new deal going on a DeFeet. Right now, you can save 40% on their long-sleeved UnD-Lite base layer. All you have to do is enter the coupon code KEEPDRY and you save instantly. Hurry up though, because this deal ends on the 15th. DeFeet base layers are the best, and they will keep you dry and warm when you ride (or run, walk, skip to the doughnut store, etc.)



I have one, and you should get one too.

Snow Birds

As you can see from the frost on Little Miss Sunshine’s vehicle, it was “ice cold” in Charlotte over the Thanksgiving holiday. We decided to get the flock outta town and fly south to the Forks Area Trail System (FATS) down near Augusta, Georgia to get away from the cold and ride some sweet flowy singletrack. This would be Mr. Shepherd’s first time on that particular trail, so he was looking forward to it. We got all geared up and hit the trail.



We started on the first loop, Great Wall, and it lived up to the hype. Plenty of fast, rolling downhill, and Mr. Shepherd was enjoying it. Well, that is until he crashed. I have footage from my GoPro of the crash, but I’m not finished editing it. A small log crossing surprised him, and he crashed ever so spectacularly. He hopped back up and we were on our way.


About three and a half miles in though, we had another incident. While traveling along a great speed, I slowed to take tight corner, and squeezed my bike between two trees. Mr. Shepherd was right on my tail, and he wasn’t so lucky.



He hit that tree square on, and escaped with only a few scrapes and cuts.



His bike didn’t fare so well though.



The impact bent the shit outta the chainrings and broke the drive side crank arm near one of the bolts.





With over four miles to go to the trailhead, we had a dilemma. Since Mr. Shepherd didn’t want to walk the whole way out, some improvisational repairs needed to be made. Since we had no fancy tools, it had to be done all “caveman” style.



Somehow those primitive tools worked, and the chainrings were sorta straight.



We started riding again, but it wasn’t long before the full extent of the crash damage was discovered. We had to stop for a looksie.



The damn rear derailleur broke in half.





It was time for another repair. Since his shifty bits were toast, we had to improvise. I pulled out my trusty chain tool and proceeded to turn his bike into a singlespeed.



I was riding my SS bike out there, so I welcomed the company. We discovered one more problem though: the chain had been damaged. I shortened it as best I could, and we got going again. I was happy to be riding, because I sure as hell didn’t plan on spending the whole day working on bikes. There was no beer on the side of the trail, so that made it difficult.

We enjoyed some more flowy goodness.





Not much later, Mr. Shepherd had to stop again. This time, the chain broke in half. It was damaged in multiple places, so fixing it was pretty much impossible. Since he’s a triathlete, he took the opportunity to work on his trail running.



After a painful few miles of Fred Flintstone style trail riding, we made it back to the trailhead. I brought up The Google on my smartphone, and we found a few area bike shops. It took the rest of the day to round up the replacement parts, so our riding was done. We had a few beers and some dinner, then headed back to Charlotte for some late-night mechanic work. At least this time we had the proper tools.

I should have the video of the actual ride finished by tomorrow, so I’ll post it up on here. I’m warning you though, it’s probably not that great (just like the rest of my videos.)

After The Fall

Yep, it’s fall around here. That’s not what I’m talking about though. My fall the other week left me with quite a bit of broken shit, and it was something I had to take care of.

You’ve seen the (not so) serious damage.

Broken bike computer:




My silly little bell:




And of course the most serious, my Mandalorian trail riding companion:





I had to get things right in the galaxy again, so I spent most of my free time last week gathering replacements. I can’t stand to have broken and/or missing shit on my bike.

First up was a new computer.



Nothing fancy, but it is just like the one I had. I didn’t have to do anything special to install it, other than removing the old one from the mount and snapping the new one in place. I love easy shit.



While I was at it, my Mandalorian dude healed up nicely, so I zip-tied his ass back to the bike. I assured him he won’t get hurt again, but I don’t think he’s buying it.



Last, but not least, is my new bell. I use a bell to warm other trail users that I’m approaching, and also on the rare occasion that I need to pass someone in a race.



Wow, real exciting.


What is exciting is the fact that I got a package from the folks at Clean Bottle da udda day. After a whole season of riding with their stuff, I’ve worn out my bottles. They still work fine, but all the rub marks from my bottle cage has made seeing the logo difficult. I’m all about whoring myself out for advertising, so I wanted some new bottles to display the logo proudly.



They’ve added the option of black lids on the bottles, and redesigned the graphics. The bottle is still just as good, but they look a little bit better (in my worthless opinion.) You can still unscrew both ends to clean them better, and they are dishwasher safe. These are the only bottles I’ve ever been able to keep clean, since I have a habit of leaving stuff in them for days after a ride.




These bottles are available from fine retailers like REI and also from the Clean Bottle website for $9.95. If you order from the website you can buy three bottles and get one for free. You can even mix and match blue and black bottles. Plus, ten percent of their profits go to eco-friendly charities. New this year, you can have custom bottles printed. See the website for details.

I’m proud to say “No more riding dirty” again for another season.


I have some other items on the way, but they haven't arrived yet. So, this concludes today’s broadcast. Thanks for suffering through it.