Fun Friday

Let's starting drinking and get this shit going.

It's race day tomorrow, and I'm pretty excited.


Or maybe a little nervous.

We'll make it short today, for tomorrow I'll be out “racing” with over three hundred of my closest friends. But really, it's all about me.

See y'all Monday

It’s Not That Bad

Despite the fact that I had a shitty race at the Grind On The Greenway, I’m not upset about it.  I seem to recall mentioning to someone,"my goal was six laps, I’ll probably do just five, and even if I got only four then I wouldn’t be disappointed." 

Way to aim high.

Since I’ve been so burned out lately, I was actually just happy enough to be out on my bike. 

Seriously.

I had no aspirations of doing well in that race, and lack of training and a “proper” race strategy helped that come to fruition.  I don’t regret taking off too fast for the first two laps, because it actually might have helped me in the long run.  Riding a bike in an endurance race for me is usually just about pushing myself, and I’m not always out there to compete with others.  It’s just me and my bike against the trail, and that’s just what I needed after a long season of trying to get on the podium.

While I wouldn’t classify a six hour race as a fun ride, I did have a grand ol’ time.  My skills on the bike seemed to be much better, and climbing on the single speed still gives me satisfaction like no other bike can.  That being said, I may take a break from the one gear action for a while.

Since I went without a geared bike for about two months, riding the single speed exclusively really limited my “fun riding.”  With only one gear there would be no easy climbs, no spinning in a low gear to recover, and no shifting to a higher gear on flat sections to set the land speed record.  Don’t get me wrong though…I love the single speed and the fact that it’s made me a helluva lot stronger.

I’m just not having any fun right now with it.

So, I guess I’ll start riding the geared bike for a little while.  With no races on the horizon (aside from the North Carolina Single Speed Championships which I may or may not attend), I get to actually travel to trails and ride for fun, which is something I haven’t been able to do much this year.  I’m really looking forward to it.

I’m definitely not giving up the single speed bike, but I just want to have a different kind of fun right now.

The single speed can still be fun too though…

Thanks to Sandie for the idea to slap that sticker on my bike.

See y'all tomorrow.

Have You Ever Had…

One of those perfect bike rides? You know, the one where everything just feels right? I got out to Sherman Branch yesterday after work, and had one of the greatest rides I’ve had on a mountain bike in a long time. No roadies on mountain bikes going for their personal best lap times and no mechanical issues...just plain fun.


I needed that. After having some stress (some I’ve mentioned and some I’m polite enough not to), it was just me, The Big O, and the trail. I should really do that more often. Tomorrow is yet another race, but I don’t feel any stress at all. Not the usual pre-race jitters, anyway. I am really excited, especially for Little Miss Sunshine. She’s probably nervous as hell, but she will be just fine. The Grind On The Greenway starts tomorrow morning at 11:00 a.m., and we’re as ready as we can be.


Speaking of Little Miss Sunshine, today is her birthday. Unlike most of the people I know, I didn’t need The Facebooks to tell me that either. I can remember it for some reason on my own. What a way to celebrate your birthday, racing in your first endurance race. If you see her out there on the trail tomorrow, wish her the best. I’ll probably build her a cake or something.




Happy Birthday to Little Miss Sunshine, from me, Napoleon, and Pedro.


I’ll be back on Monday, complete with a race report from the Grind On The Greenway. It’s currently raining right now, so I wonder how the trail will hold up. The DPC with be there too (sharing the pit area with us), so it should be a fun day. Lunchbox won’t be back in time (like I said yesterday if you weren’t paying attention), so I have no idea if I’ll have any photos. I’ll come up with something. I do have a little stress from trying to figure out what I’m gonna wear. Maybe I’ll bust out my kilt again. Stay tuned.

Ready As Ever

So yeah, April Fool’s Day was yesterday and I didn’t post up any jokes. I guess I just wasn’t feeling that clever first thing in the morning. The real joke will be when I try to ride, er race for six hours tomorrow. The countdown is nearly over, as I will be in Wilkesboro bright and early for the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek. I’d like to tell you that I’m not nervous about doing my first six hour race, but that would just be a bunch of horse shit.





I talked to the MadSS da udda day, and he helped me calm down a little bit. He basically said to race “my own race”, and not to worry about what everyone else is doing out there. That’s a pretty good philosophy, I guess. I just plan on riding around the course at my own pace, not really worried about keeping up with the Joneses, whoever they are. I’ll attempt to only briefly stop in the pit area to swap out my water bottle and grab a bite to eat, and then I’ll head back out as quickly as possible. However, if I need to rest, I’ll do just that. Other than coming in dead last, I don’t particularly care about which place I come in. My personal goal is to complete a minimum of four laps on the thirteen mile course. That will be enough of a challenge for me.


One good thing about “racing” tomorrow is the fact that I will look Awesome when I do it. My new friends over at Backcountry Research hooked me up with an abundance of Awesome Straps, so I can even have a spare one ready to go in case I have to dig into the one I’m carrying during the race. Big thanks to them on that one. Don’t have one yet? Well, you should get one right now. Coincidentally, they are a sponsor of the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek. I’ll be like a rolling billboard for them, what with my double Awesome action and all.


So , I guess I’m looking forward to the big event tomorrow. I’ll be leaving the B-43 Worldwide Headquarters at 5:30 a.m., so that part kind of sucks. I hate getting up that early in the morning, but I pretty much have to so I can get a good spot (and I have to drive for like an hour and a half to get there.) I’ll be sharing a pit area with the MadSS and his Mrs., plus the Space Cowboy, and whoever else decides to cram into our little tent city. Good times, indeed. I’m taking a much needed R&R day for Monday, so most likely I won’t be here with the race report until Tuesday. I’ll be enjoying a nice, well-deserved massage. See y’all next week, if I survive the “race.”