Two Headed Snake

Last Night
Headed out for a ride in the mud and got a bit more than I bargined for. Head up super prime and rolled straight into the park from there. S0lo and not all that muddy. At the south end of the park - things got interesting. Cutting through Elm Creek Blvd - the storm unleashed and I was going faster than the Cheq 40 roll out... Got home SOAKED but it was a blast...some interesting pics.


This Afternoon
Took the kids out - except for David who sprained his ankel a day ago. We headed from the north side parking lot - south to Lifetime and back. Caught in hail, rain etc on the way back. Got really ugly but 6 miles with the kids on the bike - GREAT!!!!!! Maria did it on Petes old bike - she was....still is sore.

Spotlight

10 of 10
Had a great night with the boy scouts tonight - watched Dave, among others, recognized for some great work and you can say it was a proud parent evening. So after a pot luck meal - and 2 chucks of wild berry pie and homemade goodies and dishes...why not top off the high calories with a ride in the park with the B-train himself...

Work has me about as maxed out as possible...add in the family and cycling soon takes a back seat. I have to be okay with this b/c work is important and family is more important than all things. So a night ride is a good fit. a mile to the park and 3 miles clockwise and ran into Bernie riding the opposite way - turn around and complete a lap in the dark 15 miles then back home 4 more...23 miles without major sacrifice to the family and good talk time with good friends. i thought i had a good light for riding in the park - oh no - Bernie has the 20 gigawatt mini sun attached to his bike - dang - i didn't even need a light. He was burning bugs on the trail with that thing at 10pm.

Over and over again I am impressed with the Elm Creek trails - you cant carry enough speed into the climbs b/c they turn so sharp prior to the climbs...lots of intervals even at a moderate pace. I could get used to night riding - I just might have to enjoy it b/c it is the only time I can really get out.

ac

Chubby Checkers

Well, we got lucky and I hope you can say the same....the winds decided to do a bit of twisting about the north metro yesterday - Sunday - mid afternoon. The wall cloud passed right over our house and then the twister touched down in Coon Rapids the Blaine and ripped into Hugo where a 2 year old died from the tornado demolishing their house. Sad. We had some interesting hail at home, pea sized and then it cleared up and it was 80 and sunny again. Weird. The rain was immense so I figured to hop on the mt bike and cruise through the park and surrounding neighborhoods. No damage to report except that the mt bike/horse trails looked like someone fired off a shot gun in the leaves from the hail....weird.

It was muddy and I actually got lost - which resulted in about 1 hour of extra riding without direction in the woods. I was on a trail that someone else bike before but I had no idea where it was going. Jet Dave has this secret single track deal out there - endless trails and the location is safe Dave....but wow, I should have consulted with you prior to going in. I also shouldn’t have singled it in the gear I had. Between the mud and steep climbs, I was on foot more than I thought I would be. Interesting course....courses. I have never really ridden the single track stuff before - the log jumps and crazy turns and the trees that pop out in front of you. fun but not fun when you are not comfortable with the whole thing. Gear down, practice more.

It was muddy, wet, slimy, gritty and the overall consensus was happy time turbo. with 2.5 hours off road - I was a bit sore but the smiles were big. it felt good to burn the legs and pound the hills with heat - I love the heat....I hate the cold. I came out, after being lost, at the south end of the park - I have NO IDEA how that happened. It was like a time warp, teleport thing. I rounded the ride off on the road back up Jefferson hwy and back on Dayton river road. I have not checked miles - I don’t have a fancy gps thing so I will guess at 25 miles based on my rough configuration on Google maps.

Monday - Memorial Day services with boy scouts play time in the park with the kids and grilled out with the family at home. The internet was down from the storm and that made work impossible - thank God.

solo at 9 am

missed the 7 am ride - b/c the bed was really nice and I never get to be with the kids....9 am and i am the only one. nice spin in the park then spent the rest of the day with the boys.

And remember...Friday is Hawaiian shirt day

Day of Days...both good and bad

I found my limit
today and that limit was in the form of pulled muscle and not ready to roll out as much as I did. Commuted into work today - perfect. Easy roll in the morning and even had a break at the Coon Rapids Dam with some pics - the gates were wide open. Left work a bit early, productive day at work, and rode to the shop for the A ride - I was worried b/c I have not put in good miles at a consistent pace - I was right...not ready.

We headed out to Hanover and up to St.Michael - over to 144 and back. By the time I got to 101 & 144 - my left calf muscle was wound tighter than I have ever experienced before. I one legged it up to the construction on 144 while the group headed up Lawnsdale and over. I thought the short cut would work - they wouldn't let me through the construction b/c they were moving lots of dirt- they even had a squad there and i was out of luck. Had to double back a mile to Zanzabar and south to Diamond Lake road then over - I got my 40 for the ride and my 30 for the commute - 70 miles for the day...thats okay and if I wiped myself out on the last 3 miles...I am happy with that.

Looking back - I had no water today at work - no food (except for ez-mac one hour prior to the ride) so how can my body work right? Lesson learned - more miles needed - better nutrition a must. The ride was fast though - most of the ride was well over 22 according to my count - and that is cool. Thanks Dave and Dave for coming back for me and sorry I held the group up - I trust you had an enjoyable ride back on Dayton River Road....so who got the prime?

KITT

Another Great Day
Work sure has my head spinning lately...not as bad as "some" though. However - aside from the normal do this and do that, I can honestly say that the main focus I have been excited about is starting to come together. I think that most know what I do for work, or at least have an "idea" of what I do but we are moving into some things that are really at a turning point - rather historical and pivotal for the people in Iraq. All I can say is that its a very cool thing to know you are working directly on the project that is being spoken about directly in the evening news. So, good day.... I have not ridden enough. my body slows and wants to stay slow so I literally had to FORCE myself into the mind of biking and headed out at 845pm and got home at 1030 pm and averaged 19.4mph. Night Rider - buzzing through the park and the city of Champlain. very cool. I was playing with some options on the camera phone - the night pic didnt turn out but it looks kinda cool.

Accidental shot - turned out okay

i guess it kinda worked

pretty sure

that I wont ever be able to ride again...a week now and it seems like a year.

hills, hills and more hills

didnt realize i had the headset on...funny

shot while heading to Elk River - thumb included

Stuck waiting for two long trains...

I didnt get done with work until 530 pm and had to get camping stuff ready for the weekend....with that done so quickly - why not ride. I headed out to Elk River for the hill repeat north of town and did four reps and headed home - I think it was like 30 miles or something just over. my legs feel like lead and my body is just not used to riding a lot yet...will get there sooner or later....just need to be set for the big Sept ride in the woods in Cable.

music vids i have enjoyed this evening...jazzy

Brian Setzer Orchestra

Harry Connick Jr.

Midnight Riders

Okay, maybe not midnight but close enough for jazz. Mothers day, maybe not the best day to ditch for a ride unless you are a gluten for the "look" from wife....who is mother of 3 little ones at home. With that, I opted for riding after church tonight and what a night - mid 50's, clear night and flawless. Outer loop in EC park - popped out at 109th to Jefferson Pkwy and north to Dayton River Road and back home. 17 miles and I ran into a rider on the road and he is new to the area from the Tonka area - looking for a riding group...He was out for an extended night ride. We chatted and had a blast, laughed about having to work off the pale ale from over the winter and both agreed that riding with friends is one of the best treats one could ever enjoy - should be a good fit. So, his name is Mark - if he shows up for a ride on a red mt bike fitted for commuting - your type of guy Neil - welcome him - he is very nice.

fun ride...good miles

what a day - filled to the brim with freshness and goodness.


up at 6am, got the the shop late for the 7 am ride so I back-tracked to meet them somewhere halfway or thereabouts reverse on the 144 route. Made it 3rd on super prime after John and Barry...Barry is now named Godzilla. Back to the shop via the park and headed out for the ride at nine. Neil, Barry and I turn around about half way to downtown as we had to get back in time for parent/spouse duties - Neil flats and we still get back in time.

Home in time to shower, see Tina off, take the boys to Culvers, drop off my wheel at the shop - bad spoke again, get some gifts for mothers day - then ice cream and star wars on a rainy day.

Whew, full day and the 56 miles felt great today - easy as pie except for super prime where I just about threw up.

ac

Happy Mothers Day -

gears

with the advent of spinning out to the max...and still not having enough to spare, I am re-installing a big chainring on the cannondale. I figure with having the single speed soon - that i can feel my roots on that and can ride fast with the other. this past weekend was a wake up call to training - it just so happened to be the toughest training ride i had ever had. every sq inch of my legs were sore - spent and otherwise rendered useless the day after.

so last night with my allen wrench and chainrings, i added some gears... 6 gears on a race isnt going to cut it - at all...

impressive -

Marty Bonk Race

Me and my six speed. it was NOT the bike of choice today...it was actually a rough day anyway - 20+ mph winds from the NW demolished every group out there. You could easily see who was naughty and who was diligent this winter.

first of all - i am not going to blame anyone but me...i wasn't ready to ride like they did today. my miles have been stretched out and not consistent. the last two weeks I barely rode the bike at all - enter the Marty Race.... it was only 36 miles but it literally felt like 100. Cheq on my SS was easier. Wind does nothing but upset me. When we turned WITH the wind - BOOM! off like a rocket the group leads out...FAST. 42x 11,12,14,16,18,19 was not the bike today. I saw riders slide into 53x11 and spin out...I cant deal with that at all on my bike.

I climbed well - I helped re-group 4 riders that were shelled off the back and we traded off for lap two....this guy Wade, from Bemidji, and I dropped those two and we two-upped the rest of the ride...it sounds more impressive than it was. we came in near the back - but I understand that quite a few turned back from the group I think...I came to play today but I forgot my fitness at home...Hey, I didn't loose my key...and b/c I finished i won the opportunity to eat my Cheddar burger with pride.

I will say that I felt good when I was done - just not ready for the speed that they rode at today. I have NEVER experienced that kind of riding before - that wind...that wind is evil.

SO the benchmark is set - I am ready to excel from here....I wasn't last, I wasn't first - Bernie did well - top 10 on the race!

Keymaster - Part II

Round two of utter folly. Going to st.cloud to match my wits against better cyclists. Should be fun - I think Bernie is going so at least I will know someone there. I will also be putting the 1x6 to the test...i should get some looks for sure.

my back has been shot for the last two weeks so not much riding - not consistent.

For those that dont know why its called keymaster - the last road race I did, i was stupid enough to put my keys in my back pouch...when i pulled out a powerbar on the last lap - out came the keys...and then the race was over for me...finished alone.

ac