Cutting It Short

This is the end of my work week. Tomorrow is my birthday, and for the first time in many years I’ve decided to take the day off (from work and blogging.) I was gonna hire some strippers and have a big party, but I couldn’t find anything that would get me “excited.”





So, I have a plan to do something on the bike. That’s not any different than anything else I’d be doing on my day off, so it sounds good to me. I’m heading to the mountains for some kind of an epic solo ride. I have all day to ride, so I can get lost, have a shitload of mechanicals, or pretty much anything else. As soon as I ship Lunchbox off to school in the wee hours of the morning, I’m hitting the road. Riding until I can’t ride any more seems like the best way to celebrate the first day of my 39th year on this planet. I’ll try to come up with a ride report or something, or maybe even a shitty video.


With a three day weekend, I can ride my ass off (and drink shitloads of beer to celebrate my birfday.) I’ll probably be too tired after tomorrow’s adventures though, so I have some mechanical action planned. I just got this yesterday:



What’s inside?



A new Cane Creek 110 headset. I have one on The Big O already, but this is sorta for an upgrade on my singlespeed bike. It has some generic Cane Creek knock off headset, and it’s about time I upgraded it. I’ll put the shiny new red one on The Big O to match the rest of the red accessories, and the black one will go on my singlespeed. Should be an easy enough, since all I have to do is swap out the top cap and bearings (it’s an integrated headset.)


That little act of mechanic work can’t possibly take all day, but I have other work to do. My bike is squeaking in a few places, so it’s time for a tear down and rebuild. That will be fun, since I like building bikes (and tearing shit up.) I also got some stuff from Bike29, but I’ll get to that next week.


After the bike work, the plan is to head over to my new “secret” trail and put in some more singletrack. The route has been marked, and now it’s time to lay some trail in them thar woods. I like construction.





I think I was just looking for an excuse to use this video clip, since it’s one of my favorite scenes from one of my favorite movies, which talks about one of my other favorite movies.


Thanks to those of you that came over here looking to buy a Dirt Diva calendar. Since Dicky talked about it yesterday, my hits over here more than doubled. That’s pretty awesome, but more of you need to buy some. You can't just keep scouring the Internets for free previews and junk.



Anyway, I’ll see y’all Monday.

It’s A Secret

But, it looks like I’m gonna blab it all over the Internets anyway.



Don’t worry though, I’ll use some Jedi Mind Trick action to keep you from remembering what you are about to read.



I found some land near the B-43 Worldwide Headquarters that’s just begging to have some trail on it. Actually I’ve been contemplating putting some singletrack on this particular piece of property for years, but I haven’t really been able to find the time. Now is the time.

It’s not much land, but it has potential. And while it won’t replace any of our fine local trail systems, it will be something close to the house that’s fun. The main use will probably be for top secret new parts testing, since now I usually just ride up and down the street when I install new shit. Now I can ride some “real” singletrack and do a proper test. If shit fails, then I can walk home in a matter of minutes.


Sunday was my first trail work day. I’ve walked the property several times before, and I have a good idea of how I want to route the trail. There is actually some good elevation change in there, along with the potential for technical trail features. For now though, I have to start small.





I took these photos, and did a little more finish work to the first section. After completing it, I rode back to the house to get Lunchbox. He put down his bowl of Fruity Pebbles, grabbed his bike, and we went for a little test ride.

Me: What do you think?

Lunchbox: Wow.

Me: What do you mean, “wow?”

LB: It’s pretty fun for being so short. Can we put some jumps in?

Me: Yup. Just be here for the next trail workday.


After laying out the next section, we found some good-sized logs to use as jumps/rollovers. The plan is to cut the next section of trail this weekend, and it will have some jumps, bermed turns, and a fast downhill section. I’m pretty excited about it, which explains why I’m posting about it up here. When it’s all finished, only a privileged few will get to partake in its goodness. It’s not a destination trail by any means, but if word gets out on its location it could see more traffic than I intended. You can bet your ass I don’t plan on blabbing that all over the Internets.


It’s designed to me my own private playground, and also for Lunchbox to get in a few laps after school without having someone drive him to one of our local trails. Trailbuilding is fun, and even better when it’s so close to home. While I’m not the master of trail design and construction, this should be good for me when nothing else is rideable. I should’ve done this a long time ago.


In other news, we did another night ride last night. I didn’t get a chance to go through the photos, but if they are worth a shit then I will have a ride report. If not, then I probably won’t have a damn thing to talk about. Tune in next time to see what happens.


One last thing. Dicky did a write-up for the new Dirt Diva calendars, with lots of previews and such. Don’t worry, no women were harmed in the cropping of photos. Go check it out, but make sure your boss isn’t watching over your shoulder.

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.

Ribbon Cutting

Saturday was the big day. We headed out to The Uwharrie National Forest for the big ol’ grand opening, and I was excited. Uwharrie is one of my favorite places to ride, and from what I’d heard it was much better. I guess the only way to find out was to ride.




Lunchbox, the Space Cowboy, and I hit the trail, and couldn’t wait to see what kind of improvements were done out there.


I saw a few surprises out there, like this freshly-made log ride:




And some slickrock:




And Lunchbox riding over the slickrock:




Wow, just wow. This trail has been reworked in such a way that makes it not only more sustainable, buy way more fun. Some may feel that it has been “dumbed-down”, but I say horseshit. Some roots may have been removed, and some rocky sections bypassed, but the trail definitely still has its same rugged charm. Besides, all the climbing is still there, as well as some super-fast, hauling ass downhill. The climbs are still just as challenging, since they used all parts of these ancient mountains for the new trails







So yeah, the trails are even more awesome that ever. The goal is to make Uwharrie a destination trail, and I think we are well on our way. I didn’t get as many photos on the trail as I wanted, but that should tell you how fun it was. I was too busy riding to worry about busting out the camera. Next time I'll bring my GoPro. By the way, there was a celebration in addition to the riding.





This new trail was made possible by local sponsors, our local clubs, the U.S. Forest Service, IMBA/SORBA, and a host of individuals and their efforts. We did have a ceremony, which included a huge check.


And yes, they cut the ribbon.





There was food, raffle prizes, and something that even surprised the shit outta me…a pushup contest.


Photo credit: Todd Tucker

Brian, host of the event and former owner of Middle Ring Cycles (I rode for them a while back), asked for anyone in the crowd that had participated in an XTERRA event in Uwharrie. I raised my hand, and (along with another guy) I was called to the head of the class. Brian said that we would do pushups for 20 seconds, and the winner would get a prize. “Aw shit”, I thought.

And we were off. I normally do pushups regularly as part of my upper body strength workout, and I can usually knock out 100 in a row. Since I hurt my wrist a while back though, I was worried about being able to even do one. I heard the cheers of the crowd though, and I couldn’t let my fans down. I got busy, and showed everyone how to do perfect pushups.




I guess all those years in the Army paid off.


I ended up with 21 in 20 seconds, but the other guy said he did 22 (he kept going after time expired.). The crowd saw it differently, and knew that I had won. To avoid any conflict, we both got a prize. I want a rematch though. I’m sure that I beat him, but I need him to know that. It’s always fun to humiliate your competition.

I walked out of there with a little bit of loot though.



I am the swag master, and I do pushups better than you.

Into The Night

I got out for yet another night ride this week. This time, it was at Fisher Farm Park in Davidson, NC. I’ve never ridden there at night, but the local shop owner and trail coordinator started hosting weekly excursions at the park after the sun went down. I couldn’t pass it up.



We had a group of about nine or so, including my pal Mr. Ryde. He led us around the trail for a little while.



The temperature outside was cool, but not too cold. I took some photos while we were riding, but I didn’t use the flash for fear of messing up our night vision. It made for shitty pictures.







The ride wasn’t at a super fast pace, and we stopped every so often to regroup.



On the last lap I ran sweeper, which gave me more time to experiment with the lighting.





It was a great ride. I love riding at night for sure, and I definitely love riding two days in a row. Now, if I can only figure out a way to ride every day.


In other news, this weekend is the Grand Opening/Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the new Uwharrie trails in Troy, NC. These trails were fun before, but lots of grant money and professional-type trail work is turning that place into something much better. People from all over North Carolina will be there at high noon tomorrow for the festivities, which include riding (duh) and some food. There also may be some hobnobbing with the locals, and an impromptu hunt for Bigfoot may break out. Come join us.


Oh yeah, here’s an update for the Dirt Divas Calendar. You can pick one up at the following local establishments:

Cool Breeze Cyclery and the Trek Store of Charlotte

Queen City Bicycles

The Cycle Path

Blood Sweat Gears


One last thing. Happy Veterans Day to all of my fellow veterans. Thank you.


See y’all Monday.

More Nighttime Fun

I went to a cyclocross race da udda night. Not to race, since I don’t do that type of riding. There is a local CX series here, and it’s located at the same park as one of our trails. We watched a little bit of the action, and it was kinda cool to see.




I still don’t see myself getting into it, but I understand why people do it. It’s difficult and it’s really great training. I was a little disappointed that I didn’t see any of this though:



That is the now-famous “second view.”



Anyway, we didn’t really go out just to watch cyclocross. Since we knew the park was open late, it was a prime opportunity for night riding.




Okay, sorry about that. I meant that it was our chance to ride our mountain bicycles in the dark on the trail. I got to take Lunchbox out for his first-ever night ride, and he was a little nervous about it. The Dirty Party Cycle and several other local cycling folks met us out there, and we took a spin out on the singletrack.


I didn’t get any photos since we were so busy riding, but I can tell you that Lunchbox had a blast. He had plenty of light, and actually did well out there. At one point on the ride he shot past the DPC and I on a long climb, then proceeded to drop our slow asses in the woods. That kid is fast, and he loves to let me know it. After talking about our ride on the way home, he agreed that night riding is the bee’s knees. That means we’ll be doing quite a bit of it in the near future. That’s good since it gets dark so early now.


On another note, I’ve been getting reminders lately that I’m not drinking enough beer. Throughout my travels around this fine city, I keep spotting subtle hits that I shouldn’t stray too far from the delicious hoppy beverage.





Well, so much for trying to cut back in the offseason. “Drink up” I say.


In other news, I wanted to mention that George wrote in interesting blog yesterday regarding the history of Bike29. I posed the question, and he answered it. Go read it. It’s a good story.


I’ll be back tomorrow with who knows what else. I’m sure I’ll shit out something good before then.

And The Sun Went Down

After the ride on Saturday, it was time to party. With all the crashing behind me, I dug into the cooler and the beer started flowing. It was the best medicine ever. There was a ton of food too. We dug right in. After filling my belly, they held a big raffle for lots of prizes.




I bought lots of raffle tickets. Unlike the last couple of these events though, I didn’t win a damn thing. Lunchbox and Little Miss Sunshine took home some goodies, so I guess that means I can’t cry about my bad luck.


After the food and raffle, it was time to play with fire.




Actually we just gathered around it and finished off the beer in my cooler.




Then Lunchbox started doing magic tricks.


Now you see him…



Now you don’t…





Bike riding, beer, and food. I can’t think of a better way to party. There was something else going on out there though. Over the last few months, the Dirt Divas have been secretly working on a calendar. I say “secretly” because it’s a little risqué.

Apparently some ladies in the club gathered on several different occasions to photograph themselves for the calendar, but I received no other details. These photo sessions no doubt involved pillow fights and tickling, but the general public was not invited. Well, I finally got a chance to see the calendar. They went on sale for the first time at the party on Saturday.



Hmmm.


I peeked inside, and sure enough it was a calendar. It has dates, days of the week, and perfectly symmetrical squares. You know, all the stuff you would normally find in a calendar.



It was tastefully done. It’s not some perverted nudie calendar. The ladies are portrayed in a classy way. While I could go through and photograph all the pictures in there, I won’t. You’ll have to buy one. I can give you a sneak peek though.




Did you notice the Awesome Strap? Did you even notice that there was a bike in that picture? Hello? Are you there?


I’m not telling you which one of our local Divas that is. You’ll have to buy one and see for yourself. They will be for sale in a few local shops here in Charlotte, as well at some upcoming events. I’ll let you know when I know the exact locations. If you aren’t local and you want one, we can figure out a way to ship one to you. They are well worth the $20 investment (and they support the Dirt Divas.) Shoot me an e-mail -The Mutt 43 AT gmail DOT com. I’m sure you know not to use spaces and to replace the capitalized words with the appropriate Internets symbols, right?


Operators are standing by. Well, sitting, but whatever.