Not Talkin’ Bout Motorcycles

Yesterday's post was it. No more (unless I sell it of course.) I did do a bit more spring cleaning on Saturday than I told you yesterday though. I actually got to play mechanic on some of the bikes in the B-43 fleet. Since I couldn’t go ride, this was the next best thing. Wrenching on bikes is a great stress reliever, so I was glad to have things to do.


First, was the one and only Tigger, Little Miss Sunshine’s bike. She took it for a spin after work the other day at North Meck, and she had a great time. However, when she got home she told me that there was a “customer bike” in the shop. She proceeded to tell me that there were some shifting issues, and that it should be looked at immediately. Payment would be worked out later (I’m thinking banana pudding.)

After throwing it up on the stand, I looked it over. Was this an issue that was caused by my ineptitude? Nope, it was just your run of the mill cable stretch, which is common on bikes after they have been ridden a while. I made a few adjustments on the rear derailleur, and it was smooth shifting again. Even though it only took me mere seconds to diagnose and fix the problem (yeah, I’m that good), it will still cost her. Why, just yesterday I saw the ingredients for some good ole’ banana puddin’ in the kitchen, and she was mixing it up. She finished it just in time for us to have it for dessert last night. Mmmm, good.


Next up was my one true bike love, Goose. After riding so much lately I think I may have decided on a proper steerer tube length for my fork. No more jacked to the max, or giant stack o’ doom for me. I had placed the headset spacers in different configurations, so I at least knew the shortest length I could get away with.



You see, that shit on the top of the stem just looked too ridiculous. It had to go.


I removed the stem, marked the steerer tube, and grabbed the pipe cutter. It was time to say goodbye to the stock length, and say hello to a normal looking stack.



After I lined it up, I started cutting.



I cut it perfectly the first time (I told y’all I’m that good), and grabbed the file to smooth the rough edges. After that, I decided I would try a little bit lower stack height, and I swapped out the spacers accordingly. Yes I know I just cut it, but remember that I said that it was the shortest length I wanted. Now I am free to try lower positions with the option of going back to the height I initially desired. You can’t uncut it, after all.



It’s not much lower than what I had been riding, but little adjustments like that can make a big difference. I hope to get in plenty of rides between now and the start of the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek next month. If I like it where it is, then I will cut it again. If not, I’ll remove the top spacers and put everything underneath the stem. It’s not rocket science, after all.

After the fork business was done, I gave Goose a well-deserved bath, making sure to get the grit and grime out of every nook and cranny. I washed it after the one race I did on it in the 2010 Winter Short Track Series, but I have to confess that I wasn’t that thorough. The one race we had in the snow was muddy, so I knew I needed to really give it a good cleaning.



I had this really annoying sound from my bottom bracket, and I just knew that it had some dirt in there. I removed the cranks and cleaned out the bottom bracket shell and bearing with a clean rag. Honestly, I’d been meaning to do this for a while now, but the beating my bike took in the Winter Short Track Series was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I regreased everything and put it back together, and I was very happy that no permanent damage was done. After a quick once-over on the drivetrain (and making a few adjustments here and there), good ol’ Goose was as good as new. Now at least my bike will be ready for the six hour sufferfest I’m doing next month. All I have to do is get in a few more rides to decide on a final stack height on the stem, and I’m set.

Since all of the local trails were soaking wet, I knew I wouldn’t get out at all until early in the work week. I still needed some mileage though, so I grabbed the road bike on Sunday for some climbing and car-dodging fun. It wasn’t that fun, mind you, but at least I got to ride. I learned that day that the road bike is good for getting some quality miles, but there is no way I could give up the mountain bike. I also learned that a good day on the road bike is not better than a bad day on the mountain bike. There is no substitute for good old fashioned singletrack fun. I am in no danger of becoming a full time roadie, that’s for sure.

Spring Cleaning

If you read the title of today’s post, you would probably assume that I didn’t make it to the Kerr Scott Trail System this past weekend. Well, you would be correct. After checking the weather report several times a day up until Saturday, the forecast was less than promising. Sure, I knew the weather here wasn’t great, but I was hoping that the rain would miss that area (or at least they would only get a small amount). That turned out not to be the case. I didn’t think that it would be a very good idea to make the trip from Charlotte to Wilkesboro and take a chance on riding in shitty conditions. I’m not sure if the trails actually “close” up there, but I didn’t want to make the hour and a half drive to find out. With my out of town off-road adventure pland thwarted, I chose to head out to the B-43 shop to do a little cleaning.


First, I decided to do something I had been putting off for a long time. Let me elaborate. You see, I’ve been riding motorcycles since I was pretty young. Friends, family, and even strangers would let me ride their two-wheeled machines, and I developed a love for a motor on two wheels. When Lunchbox was still in diapers, I bought myself one of those fancy crotch-rockets, and I rode the shit out of it. Many years later when I met Little Miss Sunshine, I found that she too liked to ride a steel horse on the open road.


We rode together a lot at first, but my love of pedaling eventually took over again. I became less interested in the hassle of motorcycle maintenance, and more concerned with hitting the trails on a less-complicated steed. So, a little less than a year ago I decided to sell my beloved Yamaha FZ-750. Although I never regretted it, I did miss it from time to time. Little Miss Sunshine also lost the love for riding motorcycles, and her trusty steed remained parked in the garage for nearly three years. Sure, I road it from time, but there was no use in keeping something that we really didn’t use.


With that, we decided that it was time to sell it. At first I resisted, thinking that I would ride it every once in a while (enough to justify keeping it I thought.) I tuned it up about six months ago, and took it for a spin around the block. After that, it sat around, unused again. We decided that enough was enough, and that it should be put up for sale. I brought it out of the garage on Saturday morning, and I took it for one last ride. I headed out on a nice windy country road, and I have to say that I really did enjoy it. However, this time it wasn’t enough to make me want to keep it. I would rather pedal one of my many bikes than let a machine do all the work for me. So with that, I parked it in the driveway and decided that I would no longer be a motorcycle rider.


I grabbed some cleaning supplies and got to work. I wanted to get it nice and shiny so I coulod take some photos. There would be no turning back this time. Every time I thought about how much fun it was to ride a motorcycle, I quickly realized that the love was finally gone. No more leather jackets, helmets, or twisting the throttle on an old country road. My two-wheeled adventures would be on a human-powered bike from now on. After I got it all cleaned up, I snapped a few photos:



Yes my friends, it will be put up for sale now. I’ll probably stick it on Craigslist for now and see what kind of interest we get. It is a 2005 Yamaha V-Star Custom, with only 5,561 miles. Yes, that is the real mileage. Most of those miles were accumulated in Florida, with only about 200 put on it here in North Carolina. Am I offering it up to you, my dear readers? Well, yeah, if you want it. That wasn’t really the reason for the blog post today though. I was just sharing my thoughts like I always do, but if you want to buy this beast, you can just shoot me an e-mail. It’s going up on Craigslist later today.


What else did I do this weekend? Well, I guess I’ll save that for tomorrow. I can tell you everything on the first day of the week. What the hell would I write about otherwise? See y’all tomorrow.

When Will It End?

I’m obviously not talking about this week, since today is Friday. I’m talking about the newest bout of shitty weather we’re having here in the Charlotte area. We’ve had a pretty good amount of rain the past few days, and it is much needed, at least according to one of our local weather forecasters. Really? How can we need MORE rain? We are already in a surplus for the year, and it hasn’t been that long since the last round of precipitation. I’m sorry if I’m coming off a little grumpy, but I was just thinking about how this will affect my riding chances this weekend. I know, it’s a little selfish of me, but I don’t give a shit. Most of you that visit this sorry excuse for online reading material every day would probably like to get outside and ride as well. If you don’t, then good for you. Enjoy your video games and television.


We were having such great weather around here earlier in the week, and I’ve been able to take advantage of it. I rode on the nice days, so what’s the big deal, right? Well, I’ll tell ya what the big deal is. I need to ride, and not just for my sanity this time. I’m trying to get in as many miles as possible to get me ready for the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek, which will be here before I know it. Yup, in just three short weeks I’ll be out riding in the mountains for six hours, likely talking to myself and overdosing on gel shots.


Not only do I need to get in good “mileage” for this upcoming endeavor, but I also had plans for this weekend. A couple of us were planning on heading up to the Kerr Scott Trail System this weekend so I can see what the hell I got myself into. As of now, I’m not sure if we are still going. I am hoping like hell the trails will be ready for us sometime this weekend. I haven’t talked to the rest of the crew yet, but I am hoping that it is still a go. Cross your fingers.




Wherever you are, I hope that you can get out and enjoy your weekend, doing whatever it is you like to do. If you plan on sitting around watching the tube or playing video games, then more power to ya. As for me, I’ll do my best to get outside somehow. If I don’t make it up to Wilkesboro this weekend, I’ll have to come up with another plan. Will I have to bust out the roadie machine and ride on wet pavement? Oh hell, I hope not. Will I poach a “closed” local trail just to get some mileage in? Probably not, but I will find something local that doesn’t “officially close” if I have to. So, what will it be? Whatever it is, you can bet I will tell you all about it on Monday. Have some beer while you wait for me to come back. Cheers.

Search and Ye Shall Find

In my spare time (of which I get very little), I like to peruse the Internets. In this day and age, most people do. Of course, most of my time on the Internets is spent looking for cycling-related things, which is most likely how some of you ended up finding my blog in the first place.


During the course of my surfing, I save the various photos I find that would fit nicely in my Internets Art Collection. While I’ve found some pretty good shit, that’s not what I spend most of my time on here doing. No, I usually check out new products and news from the various companies listed over there to your left on the “Click These and Give Them Your Money” section, like Cane Creek Cycling Components, Middle Ring Cycles, Diamondback Bicycles, DeFeet International, Lizard Skins, Kenda USA, and Crank Brothers, among others. Whew, that’s a lot of links to click. Go ahead, I’ll be here when you get back.


If you’ve been around here for a while, you surely have noticed that I have a lot of love for Diamondback Bicycles, since Lunchbox and I both ride bikes from them (and I talk about them incessantly.) Well, I found a nice video featuring one of their models, the Scapegoat. Even if you don’t share my love for Diamondback, this video is still worth a looksie. Check it.


Freakish good times on the Scapegoat




That ride looks awesome, with instant death awaiting you at every turn. And yes, that kind of fun can be had on any kind of bike, so don’t feel bad that you don’t own a Diamondback. I realize that it’s not the ride of choice for most of you. You can change that though.


While this next link has nothing to do with the companies from the “Click These and Give Them Your Money” section, I still found it pretty interesting. These are trendy, hipster-type bikes, but I liked the idea. Check it out:


Build your own bike


I know, it’s not much today, but at least it’s something. The nice weather we’ve been having is gone for a while, and now I’m stuck on the Internets for cycling entertainment. Hopefully this stuff will clear up soon, since I have big plans for this weekend. More on that tomorrow.


By the way, I’d like to say thanks again to Shane at DeFeet International for giving me yet another shout-out via Twitter. My stats on here are blowing up, and I guess I know now that they are paying attention. Y’all do me a favor and show them some love by checking out their website.


World Domination? Please. It seems that we’re getting too big for our britches around here, doesn’t it? Let’s hope that the Internets don’t swallow us up.

Back on the Farm

I can’t believe it. Yesterday was the third day in a row that I’ve been out on my bike. Of course I mentioned yesterday that we had the Tarheel Trailblazers Kids Ride on Sunday. However, I’ve been able to get in a few lunchtime rides in this week as well. Monday I made it over to North Meck, and yesterday I had a chance to ride a place that I hadn’t been to in a while, Fisher Farm.



North Meck is easy for me to get to from work, so I thought I would be destined to ride it every day until I was sick of it. Yesterday however, was different. I happened to be in the area, and had my bike with me, so I said, “What the hell, I’ll hit Fisher.” Since I would be riding solo, I tried to think about what I would write on here, trying to choose my words carefully since I didn't have anyone to take photographs.


The temperature was a perfect 65 degress when I arrived in the parking lot. I quickly changed into my riding gear and hopped on the bike. The beginning of the trail is a quick and twisty descent, and I enjoyed every second of it. I quickly forgot about the daily grind of work and enjoyed a beautiful day outside. I hadn’t been to Fisher Farm since last October, and I was happy to be there again. It is well worth the trip for anyone. I am fortunate that I could ride it during “working hours” and have the trail all to myself.


As I rode along, I started to think about ways that I could get some “action shots” while I was on the trail. I knew that I couldn't rely on just words, since I suck at it, even making some grammatical errors on purpose (I'm sure you knew that already.) When I came across one of the trail features, I saw a nice little tree stump that was just begging for me to let it hold my camera. “I’ll get a photo of you”, I imagined the stump saying. I said, “Sure thing Mr. Stump.” And with that imaginary conversation I planned my photo opportunity. I set up the camera and set the timer, having it take four photos in succession. I pushed the button and hurried to the top of the hill. I only had thirty seconds, so I wanted to make sure it counted. Off I went:






Okay, so the last one didn’t have too much action, unless you consider looking at my crotch some kind of action. You just looked again, didn’t you? That little ramp thingy is one of my favorite features out there, mostly because it is at the start of another long twisty descent filled with funitude. If only I could do this every day.


I did a few laps out there, and called it quits. After all, I had to get back to work. While most of my coworkers (and probably yours too) like to sit around and stuff themselves on their lunch break, I prefer to be active. I guess that makes me seem a little crazy to them, but I don’t mind that label. Besides, it’s a great way to break up the work day, and I’m doing my body a favor by keeping active. Who says you have to eat lunch on your lunch break anyway? Get out and do something, you lazy bastards. See y’all tomorrow.

Back to Kid Stuff

We have been fortunate enough to have wonderful weather here in the Charlotte area, which came just in time to keep me from going crazy. I’ve actually been able to get out on my bike, and I couldn’t be happier. I’ve been out on the occasional lunchtime ride at work, but this past weekend was much bigger. Yep, the good weather means that it is time for us to resume the regularly-scheduled Tarheel Trailblazers Kids Rides.

This past Sunday we headed out to Sherman Branch to enjoy what was to be a beautiful day. The parking lot was as full as I’ve ever seen it, and I wondered if the parents would have a place to park. We met up at 1:00, and there were quite a few kids. We waited a few minutes for some last-minute arrivals, and headed out onto the trail, with Lunchbox in the lead. He was happy to get these rides going again too, since he enjoys being a mentor to the younger riders. These little ones are the future of our sport, and it’s nice to be a part of something so special. Here is a photographic recap:










Even Little Miss Sunshine was on hand to help out, assisting me with Bike Patrol duties. Our services were not needed though, fortunately.



Lunchbox has skillz.









This little girl was out on the trail for the first time ever, with Momma in tow. She worked really hard to make it through the ride, and we were all proud of her.



It’s nice to be back in the saddle for the Kids Rides, especially when I don’t have to think about racing. Riding with these kids makes you realize how much fun you are supposed to have on a bike in the woods. When we finished the ride, the kids headed to the picnic table to enjoy some drinks and snacks. It was a great day, and these kids were outside where kids should be. Big thanks to Little Miss Sunshine, Lunchbox, and the other “big kids” that made this ride a success. I can’t wait for the next one in two weeks.

Monday Blues

I'm sorry if you were here earlier today and found last Friday's post. I was a little busy this morning, so I didn't have time to get anything together to put on here. The weekend was pretty busy, but I'll most likely post a recap tomorrow. Since this blog is not my full time job, sometimes it's hard to post up when I want to. As a consolation prize, here is another installment of my Internets Art Collection. Yeah, I'm being a little lazy again, but so what. Here ya go:


I know, it's not bicycle-related, but no one likes Mondays, do they?



Lets go camping!




This will make your shopping trips mo' better.




Who doesn't like to see a bear on a bike?



Big-ass tandem.



This guy is apparently in search of clowns to ride these unicycles.




That's all for today, folks. I can't show you the whole collection at once, can I? See you tomorrow.