Preparing Once More

Don’t be sad, but this will be my last post for the week. Tomorrow, I have some out of town corporate nonsense; I mean a meeting, so I don’t imagine that I’ll get on here with enough time to provide anything worth reading. Come to think of it, I hardly do that anyway. Besides, there are plenty of sites on the Internets for you to go enjoy (and waste your time.)

Like this one:

Waste of Time


Now, back to the (not so) good stuff. Race number four of the 2010 Winter Short Track Series is this Saturday. What, Saturday? Yep, the race promoter scheduled the last two races on Saturday, and I think this one in particular is due to Valentines Day falling on Sunday. I don’t get it though. I mean, what better way to say “I love you” than to show your sweetheart how much time and dedication you put into something else you love, like mountain biking. That shows a lot of dedication and passion. Isn’t that what women want to see?


I actually have somewhat of a dilemma this week. Since it appears that we will have a break in the wet weather, the trails should be nice and not so muddy. That being said, I am considering riding my main ride, Goose.



While I am well aware that riding this bike won’t make me faster, it might make the race a little more enjoyable. I’ve spent the last three races riding a polished turd (The Greatest Short Track Bike on Earth), and I am thinking I need to retire it for a while. Well, at least until I get some better components on it.



This thing has been sufficient, to say the least, but I am actually growing tired of riding it. Since I am not known to make snappy decisions on anything, I may just bring both bikes along on Saturday morning and decide at the very last possible moment. I can’t decide. What should I do?


Speaking of the Greatest Short Track Bike on Earth (what a misnomer that is), I have another thing in the works. A big (at least for me) announcement is forthcoming. It’s big because I never thought I would do such an out of (bicycle) character thing. In the spirit of keeping you in suspense, I’ll delay that one until next week sometime. I’ll just say for now that I am expecting a delivery from the Big Brown Truck any day now. The contents will not be revealed just yet, but please be patient. I can tell you that it’s not a new unicycle (I have enough), although I have been considering riding that in the next 2010 Winter Short Track Series race. I mean, why not? I would suffer just as much, and it would be entertaining to all who will be watching. That’s just crazy talk, right? Tune in Monday to see what’s happening.

Just to tide you over, here is another video from Bart at Southpark Cycles. Big thanks to him for racing with the helmet cam, so I can use his footage here on the blog. I gave him credit, so hopefully he won’t mind. Just in case, go to Southpark Cycles and buy something. Thanks.

Race Three (Part Two)

While I did cover race number three of the 2010 Winter Short Track Series on Monday’s post, I have a few things to add. Remember the crash I mentioned at the beginning of my race? Well, local bike shop owner Bart happened to have his camera ready and “accidentally” captured the horrific event. Since he posted one of them on a public forum, I jacked it from the site. Check it out:



As you can see, I am right in the middle of the photo, and prety close to getting tangled up in it. I watched as the action unfolded, and swerved in the nick of time to avoid the danger. The rider on my right tried to do the same, but ended up pretty much running over the guy. I’m happy that I wasn’t either one of those two fellers. Bart actually captured a couple of photos depicting the crash. You can see them here.


Also posted on the same public forum was a link to some photos that were taken by another person (who I do not know, I might add.) He got one of me while I was suffering through the fire road climb. I would give him credit, but I have no idea who he is. We’ll call him B_Rizzi, since that’s what his Photobucket account says.



More pics can be found here


Since I don’t want to spend two days rehashing my shitty race adventures (once is enough), I’ll switch to another subject. I read our local paper yesterday, and there was an article concerning the U.S. National Whitewater Center here in Charlotte. If you’re a local, then you are aware of the massive amount of debt they have acquired (and are unable to pay back) since their opening a few years ago. There has been much debate around here regarding their business practices, including the five dollar parking fee that was instituted almost two years ago. I love riding the trails out there, and the other activities they offer are an asset to our region. Because of this, I have been a supporter of them, even though I’ve had my doubts as to whether they could continue to operate. This latest news story looks promising for the center; even if it means that my tax dollars are still a source of funding.

Here is a link to the story:

Whitewater center's lenders give it a break

Wow, two-thirds of their debt has been forgiven. That is a shocker indeed. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could all get that kind of a break? I mean really, Joe Q. Public would be shit out of luck if he owed that much to his lenders. That would be instant bankruptcy, or a good ol’ fashioned tar and feathering. While I don’t agree with the bailout, I am happy to see that the Whitewater Center has a chance to remain in operation. I just wish that there was another way to go about it. Maybe a regime change is in order out there. I mean, someone else has to be able to run that place and make some money, right?

By the way, this story is pertinent to my blog for obvious reasons (I mountain bike at the Whitewater Center), but there is another notable coincidence. Yes, by coincidence I mean the coincidence number. There are a total of 43 lenders wrapped up in this bailout. Maybe that’s a bad sign.

I May Need Some Help

As I sit here and type this, I’m reminded of how much this racing stuff affects me. Of course, my back still hurts, although I can’t figure out why. Sure I “hurt” it yesterday, but it wasn’t like I was wrestling an alligator or something like that. I just wish that it would go the hell away. Also, a new soreness popped up yesterday morning. My legs hurt like hell for some reason. This is another one I can’t explain, since the course was much easier, and I never had any issues with muscular strength while I rode. While I would love to chalk it up to “getting older”, I’m pretty sure it has to do with poor technique or a bad diet.


The poor technique can be explained by the fact that I haven’t been riding a “real” bike, save for the actual races. Also, I’m starting to think that the Greatest Short Track Bike on Earth is a piece of shit. Well, not really, but some of the components are. I’ve never really spent the time to achieve a proper fit. Actually, I just threw the damn thing together in the nick of time. That has a lot to do with the fact that this was some kind of experiment, since I am very partial to bicycles with full suspension. Hell, I’m still playing around with the fit on my primary bike, Goose.


The bad diet thing is a little more complicated. While I do eat pretty healthy, I’m sure you are all aware of my affinity for beer. Being somewhat of a beer snob, I do enjoy a fair amount of the stuff. That may be wreaking havoc on my racing aspirations, since I haven’t learned to tone it down when there is a race the next day. Hell, I’ve even had beer during a race.


The Saturday before race number three of the 2010 Winter Short Track Series was more of the same, at least as far as beer is concerned. I headed over to The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery to sample some of their stuff, and to also fill up my growlers. While I am not a huge fan of their beer (not hoppy enough for me), I had some things to do on that side of town. It was a matter of convenience for me, I guess.



I walked in the door, and immediately walked up to the bar. I’ve never been there before, so I wasn’t familiar with the way they operated their tasting. I stood there for a bit until someone finally came up and asked if they could help me. I said that I wanted to do a tasting, and they obliged. For two bucks, I could try a half of a half (not really even that much) of a pint glass of each of the three beers they had on tap. While that may sound like a deal, I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t keep the glass like I could at Carolina Beer Company. Hell, they weren’t as friendly at OMB either. Nevertheless, I still sampled some beer.



While nothing jumped out at me as a huge favorite, I decided to fill up my growlers with one of each kind anyway. When the guy noticed that one of my growlers had the Carolina Beer Company logo on it, he asked me if they still brewed beer. Uhhh, what? I told him yes, since I was there only two weeks ago, for two weeks in a row even. He said that he thought they only did packaging, and that they brewed their locally-famous Carolina Blonde in Pennsylvania, or some shit like that. I told him no, I didn’t think that was true, but he persisted. He then said that they came down there a few weeks ago to ask if they (OMB) could brew some beer for them (Carolina Beer Co.) I finally gave up and let him think he was right. Maybe he’s privileged to some insider information, but I was pretty sure of my facts (since I was just there, mind you.) It took forever to fill the growlers, since they use some kind of fancy machine. It was on the fritz for some strange reason, so that took longer than normal.


While I may be a little biased towards the Carolina Beer Company, I really wanted to give these guys a chance. This guy kind of had a snobby attitude though, as if their beer was better or something. That may be fine if you’re a fan of German-style beer, but I am not. While I do prefer hoppy stuff like the Cottonwood Endo IPA (and Little Miss Sunshine likes the Carolina Blonde), I actually liked the personal touch of a true local brewery (like the Carolina Beer Company.) These guys were just too big for their britches, it would seem. Just after I got my growlers filled, there was a scheduled tour of their brewery. I didn’t need to hear anymore fancy talk, so I passed. I make my own brew anyway, so I have a good idea of how the process goes. Besides, you could look through the window and see the facility.



Please don’t take my bad experience as a knock on the folks at The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery. I’ve had some of their beer before, so I sort of knew what to expect. DISCLAMER: Although I am somewhat of a beer snob, that doesn’t make me all-knowing when it comes to beer. We all have our preferences, and mine is definitely not German-style beer. I’m pretty much up for anything though, so I will probably give them another chance (I mean, beer is beer, unless it’s shitty beer like Budweiser.) You should too. If you are in the area, head down to the south side of Charlotte and check them out. Maybe your experience will be better. There were plenty of people there enjoying their beer, so my opinion is obviously not the standard by which to judge beer. I like what I like, and you probably do too. So, go enjoy whatever kind of beer you desire, as I try to figure out a way to improve my racing ability while remaining a beer-drinker. Cheers!

Race Report (For Lack of a Better Title)

Since it’s Monday here at B-43 (and a Monday after a race), it’s only right that I provide a recap. From the looks of things, it would seem that all is not well. From my braking issues to my lack of stamina during the series, I’m starting to wonder if this “season” will be one to remember (or one to forget.) It’s not off to a stellar start, by any stretch of the imagination. While I may sometimes boast that I am some kind of great mountain bike racer, it’s all in jest, trust me. If you can’t detect my sarcasm or my self-deprecating humor, then shame on you.


Sunday morning started as usual, with me waking up to the not-so pleasant sound of my alarm clock, followed by an impromptu stretching session. I made sure I hit all the major muscles in my legs, and then it was off to a nice hot shower to further loosen my tired and achy muscles. That’s when the strangest thing happened. I guess I reached around to far to wash some hard-to-reach spot, and I felt some intense pain. Little Miss Sunshine heard my groaning, and asked what was wrong. I told her I somehow pulled something in my upper back, and that it hurt like hell. She told me that I should have stretched a little more before I got into the shower. While she may be right, I didn’t think I had to worry about getting injured while I performed my daily cleansing routine. I usually do a quick stretch in the morning when I get up, and get a little more in-depth when I get to the race venue. I had no idea that taking a shower had so much potential for injury. Lesson learned. I will heed her advice from now on before I decide to take a shower. Maybe I should just ride my bike in the tub or something. That would be fun.



I got everything ready, and Lunchbox and I headed out the door. The whole ride there I couldn’t stop thinking about how this newly acquired injury would affect my race, and I wondered if I should even attempt it. Well, poor judgment got the better of me, and I signed up anyway. My legs felt fine, so why the hell should a minor injury keep me from competing? My lack of racing ability would do the job just fine in that aspect.


There were a few changes for yesterday’s race. First, there was a course modification. We wouldn’t be starting in the softball field area, which mean that we would skip the horrible spongy climb in the mud to the start/finish line. I was pretty happy about that. Not so much because of the reduced distance, but more because of the energy-sucking power of that particular climb. Maybe I would fare a little better as the race went on. I doubt it though.


Second, there was no rain. That was the biggest surprise to me. While we’ve had plenty of the wet stuff in the last few days, there was not a drop falling from the sky on this day. I knew the course would be muddy still, but not as bad as it had been the last two races. I kept hearing about how the course was in “great shape”, but that was relative to the two prior events. After I took a practice lap, I learned that there was plenty of mud, but it definitely wasn’t as bad as before. I took my place on the starting line and got ready to go.


"Was I sleeping, or just in a shitload of pain?"

After listening to the pre-race announcements, we were ready to start. I had carefully placed myself in the middle of the pack, hoping to keep my position for most of the race. The plan was to gauge my stamina throughout the race, and make my move when the time felt right. When the signal was given, we all took off.



I didn’t have to take off at a super-fast pace, since the pack sort of eased into it. There was quite a bit of rubbing though, and about two seconds into it, one guy went down. He didn’t crash to bad, and was able to recover quickly. However a few seconds after that, I attempted to pass a cluster of fellow racers and another guy went down. This guy wasn’t so lucky. He hit the pavement hard, and took out a few of the other racers too. While it looked pretty bad, I managed to steer clear of that mess. I made a mental note that I would at least be ahead of one person, even if I sucked the big one. I didn’t think that guy would be able to ride very well, since it looked like he hurt himself pretty bad. I later learned that he taco’d his wheel during the crash, causing him to DNF.


We entered the singletrack, and I stayed with the group. I pushed at a moderate pace, trying to maintain my heart rate so that I would have plenty of giddy-up to attack on the climbs. This strategy actually worked pretty well, since I managed to pass a few people on the fire-road climb back to the parking lot. I passed the start/finish line a little ahead of where I started. Lap one was in the books.
Lap two was a little more of the same, but the pack was spreading out. The leaders were leaving he rest of us, so I decided to pick it up a bit. It was then that I noticed that my rear brake was gone (again), but I had plenty of braking power up front. I decided to make due with what I had, so I cane up with a new strategy. I would do my braking before the banked turns, and let my momentum carry me through them. This would have been a great idea, except that the turns were still a bit sloppy. I leaned in hard on every turn to keep from flying over the top. I pushed up the final climb, up over the rock garden, and made my way up the fire road.


It was then that I noticed that my heart was racing, so I took a lot of deep breaths to calm me down. I continued to shift gears up the climb, which made my heart rate increase even more. As I passed the start/finish line, I saw my racing buddy Patrick in hot pursuit. I motioned for him to pass me as we hit the singletrack again. I tried to stick to his wheel, but I was blowing up again. He said, “Come on, I need you.” I tried to use that as motivation, but he kept slipping away. I could see him up ahead for most of the rest of the race, so I tried like hell to get back to him. Our friendly rivalry wouldn't benefit me at all on this day. I just plain sucked.


As the race went on, I slowly recovered. During my recovery time though, a few of the racers I passed eventually regained their lead over me. I was in the back of the middle of the pack, which didn’t really give me a shot of moving up much. All I could do now was survive (which has become a recurring theme for me.) I did manage to pass someone else, but I never did catch Patrick.


As the race came to a close, I started to feel better. Too little too late, which is the usually the case with me. I really need to figure out some way to peak at the right time. My pathetic race outing netted me a finish of 12th place, which isn’t too bad I guess. I found out that in addition to the crashing guy that didn’t finish, there was another. Two DNF’s probably helped me get to 12th place, but there’s no way to tell. I actually felt pretty good when it was all over, aside from the horrible pain in my back.



As the day went on, the trail conditions seemed to improve. The rest of the day’s races probably had a lot to do with it. The trail was packed in pretty good, even though there were still quite a few muddy spots. We headed out on the trail to capture some action from some of the other races. At the very least, maybe I could learn something. One thing I’ve learned already is that I have a lot to learn.


Here we have my friend (and local XTERRA triathlete) Peter having a romp in the mud:



Here is our local Mountain Bike Geezer, Steve, tearing up the Masters class:



Here’s a guy from the American Classic/Kenda Team hitting the rock garden.



Local pro racer Robert Marion made the Expert Class pretty interesting:



That’s all for today, folks. I have more stuff in the works, but I have a week’s worth of blog to fill. This isn't a race, so I can't blow it up on the first day of the week.

Brakin’

Yesterday I spent a lot of time thinking about my current brake situation (not the corny 1980’s cult classic above), and how I can resolve it without throwing a shitload of cash at it. We’re not rolling in dough around here at B-43, so I need to do this a cheaply as possible. Besides, the Greatest Short Track Bike on Earth is not my primary ride, so I can’t really justify any big expenditure on it anyway. I can see myself using that bike a lot more this season, but Goose will always be my primary bike love.


Anyway a friend of mine, local wheelie guru and grill master Benson, ran into a similar situation with his hardtail machine. He purchased a new suspension fork for his older-model hardtail, and it was disc only. Rather than run a front disc brake and a rear v-brake (I've considered this), he decided to take matters into his own hands. Since he has the availability to machine parts in his line of work, he came up with a clever solution. A high-quality, handmade disc brake adapter for his hardtail.



I had heard about this on the Tarheel Trailblazers website, and I was intrigued, although I didn’t have an older-model hardtail of my own at the time. I spotted this close-up photo on his page on The Facebooks, and I thought I would share it here (without permission, but I did give him credit so step off.) As you can see in the photo, it does the job just fine and it looks professionally made too (I guess he is a professional in manufacturing parts anyway.) It sure beats the alternative, a super-expensive disc brake conversion kit.


When I inquired about it a few months ago, he stated that he had another one made, and that I could try it. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but now that I am having issues I asked him about it again. He stated that it would probably be compatible with my bike, but that we should schedule a grillin’ and chillin’ session to do some brainstorming. He is well known around here for his affinity for beer, and also his prowess on the grill. I haven’t replied back to him as of yet, but it looks as if I will be taking a trip to the south end of town to get this party started (so to speak.) I mean really, what do I have to lose? I could even bring him some of my home brew as a token of appreciation. It’s time to get the ball rolling on this one, I guess.


While I don’t foresee this conversion happening before the 2010 Winter Short Track Series is over, it would definitely make it more appealing to use my hardtail for other events or even regular rides. If this works out, I may have to supply him with homebrew for a good long time. Stay tuned.


This weekend is shaping up to be another mudfest, provided we don’t get another round of snow (there is a chance according to our inaccurate weather forecasters.) Race number three of the 2010 Winter Short Track Series is this Sunday, and I can’t wait to get back outside to ride. Although the muddy conditions have been hell on me and my bike, I’m glad to have the opportunity to ride outdoors. I don’t think I can take another day of trainer hell. Full race report next week, if there is a race to report.

Stir Crazy

All of this riding my bicycle indoors crap is really making me go nuts. Between the X-Bike and my own home trainer ride, I’m really starting to forget what it’s like to ride on a trail or a road. I decided to do something last night that would hopefully get my mind off of it.



Yes, beer does help, but that wasn’t what I was talking about. I grabbed one of my favorites from the Carolina Beer Company (the lovely Cottonwood Endo IPA), and set out to figure out why the hell I keep loosing my braking power during the Winter Short Track Series races. It’s not always about the beer around here, but it does help.


Anyway, I started with the front brake, since it puzzled me the most (I hardly use it during the short track races.) I took a look and saw that the cable tension hadn’t changed from the last time I adjusted it. So, why were the pads so far away from the rim?



Please excuse the shitty photos. I was too lazy to go upstairs and get the real camera, so Blackberry photos will have to do for now. I adjusted the cable tension again and tested it out. I had good braking power, which will now give me the ability to endo on cue. That will serve me well in the next race.



Next up was the rear brake. As you can see from the above photo, I snapped this one after I made the adjustment. Again, I couldn’t figure out why the cables were so far out of whack. I know cables stretch, but this was ridiculous. Upon further inspection, I discovered what was happening.



The brake pads (front and rear) were worn down like an old country road. The problem though, is that I have only ridden this particular bike a handful of times. I don’t really brake that often, so it must be the quality of the pads. It could also be the horrible conditions I’ve faced on the trail, but I’d rather blame the components. Keep in mind that I built this bike up on a relatively small budget, especially when it came to the brakes. Since the frame was v-brake only, I couldn’t see spending anything significant for a style of brake that I hated to begin with. I thought I would just make do with sub-par components. The plan was to race this bike and then if I liked it, upgrade to better parts down the road. That’s still the plan, so now I will most likely have to suffer with poor braking ability for the rest of the series.


I guess I can worry about that mess after the race series is over. I have a list of parts that I need, and I shouldn’t have any problems acquiring them. I’ll be looking for new cranks, shifters, rear derailleur, and of course, brakes. I’ll spend the dough this time for good shit, since I kind of like the idea of riding a hardtail bike (on occasion.) I’ll concentrate on that when I go back to riding my full-squish bike, Goose.


Shifting gears (stupid intentional bike pun), I have no idea what’s in store for the weekend. There is another winter storm approaching, so that could put a damper on my racing plans. I hope not, since I don’t know if I could stand another day on the trainer. I’d like to head out and do some skateboarding with Lunchbox this weekend, but even that will be somewhat of a chore. Our favorite local spot, Soul Ride Skatepark, has closed. They are moving to a new location, but that will take up to four months. There are a few other parks around, so we may check out one of them. Hopefully I don’t go crazy by then.

It’s That Time Again

Wow, what a shocker. We are cursed with yet another round of shitty weather here in the Charlotte area. I don’t particularly care to talk about the weather all the time here, but it affects me a lot. When you like riding bicycles and being outside a much as I do, then the weather can have an adverse effect. We did have a good time on our snowy weekend, but now we’ve been dealt a round of cold rain. I’m starting to think that I will never get to ride a bicycle outside ever again. Calgon take me away.


Since there’s not a whole lot of bicycle stuff to talk about today, I thought that it might be time again for another installment of my Internets Art Collection. I have plenty of these things to use on a rainy day (oh how fitting.) Enjoy.


I have to say that I’ve never seen anything like this one before. While I admire his ingenuity, I can’t help but wonder how safe this thing is. Judging from the rolled-up sleeves on the rider, I’d say he’s down for a little danger.



While this is not an actual bicycle, per se, it still has a place amongst the collection. It serves as a warning to riders that you shouldn’t turn your handlebars sideways when there are chunks missing from the road. From the looks of the sign, someone found out the hard way.




This one takes us back to much simpler times. Way back when you could hang out in front of the White House without getting harassed by Secret Service agents, this couple was enjoying a nice day riding down Pennsylvania Avenue. Mr. President, would you like to try this fancy four-wheeled machine?



This one serves as a lesson. If you see your front wheel that far ahead of you, don’t try to reach out and grab it. You could end up dead or worse.



Do you enjoy music, but hate carrying around that bulky Ipod? Well, here’s an idea for you. Bust out the violin and create your own playlist. Just make sure you dress the part. The London Symphony Orchestra may be watching you.



Remember Harrison Ford, the guy who played Han Solo, Indiana Jones, and other action heroes? Well, that guy is apparently no more. He is a kinder, gentler man now. I mean, could you be a tough guy with a flowery basket on your bike?



Keeping with the celebrity theme, here is pop star/actress/former Fly Girl Jennifer Lopez taking it to the streets. I guess J-Lo is trying to keep her giant ass from turning into Jell-O. What the hell is she wearing anyway?



Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. Don’t worry dear sinner, my bicycle-confessional booth and I will come to you. Who has time to go to church these days anyway?



I know cycling can be a dangerous sport, but our boys in the desert have taken it to a whole new level. With 100 pounds of gear, no wonder the back tire is flat. Maybe that’s why the kids are laughing. Or maybe they’re crying because he just traded them a crappy Hummer for that nice bike. Who knows.



That’s it for today, my friends. I hope you enjoyed this latest installment of my Internets Art Collection. And I also hope that the weather around here improves so I can actually talk about my own bicycle-related adventures, rather than living vicariously through others. Tune in tomorrow; same Bat time, same Bat channel.