Movin' On Up...

To the new casa!!

Holy shit, after 7 months the wait is almost over!  We are finally leaving the slum house! CAN I GET AN AMEN!!!     AMEN!!!!! 

Later today we sign for it then have all our stuff delivered!  Amazing!!

Oh yea, the neighborhood has the perfect crit course!  Hello neighbor's we are just going to do some hot laps in the hood, hope y'all don't mind!!  Naked Doll prime look out!

Oh yea one other thing....new ride coming up!!!!  Sounds like there are going to be some sprint primes and other prizes!  Maybe we can sneak the Naked Doll in for a silent prize!

New altitude new attitude!

Non Choad Only Apply

I received an e-mail from Endo about a particular group ride in his neck of the woods.

Here is the description of the perfect group ride:

The route is a 35 mile loop through River Hills, Thiensville, and Bayside containing nine agreed-upon markers (mailboxes, stop-ahead signs, etc) for sprints. The point is to get an interval work-out, emphatically it is not to win signs. Risk-taking is much frowned upon and can be cause for exclusion from the ride. Safety comes even before the work-out objective, as does general charity toward each other. Feedback on other people's riding should be kind and constructive and focus on safety aspects. Some people may aim to hone their sprinting skills, others may enjoy leading the sprints out, others again are just happy to follow. You can even pick your sprints, if you absolutely have to.  The pace is supposed to be very slow in between sprints (15-16 mph) to allow for recovery and for stragglers to catch up; the sprints are supposed to be fairly short and snappy (early "attacks" should be ignored by all); newcomers should be told of upcoming sprints, and of the all-important safety orientation; the yellow line rule is very much in force. After entering Lake Drive in Bayside, the group follows a rotation pattern at 22-25 mph, to simulate a race situation break away leading into the final sprint for the Whitefish Bay city limit sign (the wind direction determines which way the rotation rotates). Here, as throughout the ride, novices should pay attention to how more experienced riders do it, while the latter should be helping beginners--not admonish them. The ride is open to all, and is a ride unlike any other training ride with training and socializing opportunities for all.

I would hope one day our cycling community could adopt such a ride.  At this point running stop signs, taking up a whole lane of traffic is absolutely ridiculous.  I could only hope one day some of these rides/riders could pull their collective heads out of their ass's! 

Beer of the Week

Flog, Flogging, Flogged

Flog:  Pronunciation:\ˈfläg\

             Function:

verb

Etymology:

perhaps modification of Latin flagellare to whip — more at flagellate

Date:

circa 1676

transitive verb1 a: to beat with or as if with a rod or whip b: to criticize harshly2: to force or urge into action : drive  This is the defined by Websters Dictionary
Its quite interesting that flog has such a rich history in our dialect. Who would have every thought of this usage in the cycling world? Not me!
Nowadays cyclists usage is slang to the English tongue.  Where is this going...you might be asking yourself...well, here it is.
A bad day at work causes on to feel like the need to do a FLOG session.
The FLOGGING  session consists of one my real favorite climbing sessions, The Three Hills Loop.  Although this time the dynamics is enhanced by the fact I have a new dashboard to look at.  Now the details are very interesting to look at. 
 First of the hills gradient averages 4% with max at 7%...just the warm up baby.
The second hills gradient averages 6% with max at 10%...feeling warmer baby.
To add the whipped cream to the THL this bad boy throws down at 8% with a max of.....13% Holy Shit Batman, this really hurts.  But remember what goes up must come down, I can hold my own and I fall like a rock. (I always try to pretend I'm Il Falco)  I hit a max speed of 48.5 mph, smoking it, baby.
After getting back home I finally am overcome with the official I'm FLOGGED workout feeling.  Now that's how to get rid of your bad day.  Just a little of the Triple F and bam you forget about your bad day, along with that fact you can't sit, stand, or lay down without hurting.  Now that is the perfect stress reliever!!

Da plan is coming together

Now that I have an idea of what I can have as far as 'vacation' now it's time to lay out the cyclocross PROgram.

Well, that must mean a back-up rig, eh?  

Step up to 10spd or leave it old skool  with 9spd?

Need one of these for sure on a aluminum rig!

Oh yea how euro are these?  Notice the quick adjustment on the arm's...

Can't live without these lifeline connections for the rig.

Hope to lay out a plan for all to see by the weekend...as long as the man doesn't keep me down.

Kentucky, I'm coming to see ya!

Jugglin' Ain't No Damn Fun

Well as the title states I have to many pots on the stove, to many coals in the fire,  not enough sandwiches for a picnic wait I didn't mean that one!

The man has his noose around my neck really making it difficult to maintain fitness and sanity.  

The move to the new casa is impending.  Not soon enough!  So looking forward to have a place to call 'home' I haven't had that feeling in 6 friggin months!  Mancave is taking shape in the melon.  

Crit season is starting, MTB season is dying out along with road racing.  Cross season is just around the corner!  Making plans now for some BIG RACES!!  Hopefully get to see Endo and the crew along with singing some Kentucky blues!

It looks like this will definitely be another odd year.  I'm looking at putting all my eggs in one basket for once.  Not used to that one at all, boy does that add self pressure!

Fathers Day Epic

What more could you ask for on one ride?

Good coffee at Benetti's (who opened an hour early for us arseholes)

Dirt roads

Hike a bike sections on a 2x4 over a small creek

30 degree drop in temperature

Clouds swirling above, then dumping rain that felt like hail.

Trying to get swallowed by a storm grade.

Soaking wet- drinking beers at 8% or higher, eating pizza at Grinders. Waiting for the heavens to close.

Making our destination only to find out they closed for Fathers Day.

Really that only highlights some the fun had today!  For more tune into this blog!

That epic won't leave the mind anytime soon!  Thanks for all who participated!!

Things Cross

How much carbon can one cross rig have?
I guess the more the merrier? 

I think Ritchey might have jumped the zipp ship for more of an edge, if you know what I mean!

Note the tires!  Conti is going to start playing now with their tuby!  

Oh yea, I'm on the case now!

Not long now before the trail shoes get some use!

Now I Know Where My Name Came From

Good Things Are Worth Waiting For

I must say I was losing faith in this company.  A one month wait turned into a fiasco of "next week" for a total of three and half month wait.  For the price it was well worth the time.

But I'm throughly impressed with the end product.  Although he did short me the Sapim spokes and extended spoke nipples, I think I can make due with DT Aerolites and ProLock Nipples though.

So make sure you have a bib on as you look at the pictures...

The nice embedded counter balance 

                                The set of stealth wheels
                              

                                     The rear wheel

                                   The front wheel

Now the details:

38mm Edge Composite rim

DT 240's w/Enduro Ceramic Bearings

24 hole front and rear

DT Aerolite spokes

DT Prolock Nipples

Also included were skewers, SwissStop yellow brake pads.

For those of you who know me I don't care about the total weight of a part.  But I can say this is one of the lightest wheels I have handled in sometime.

If you can get a set of wheels from him I would recommend it, the price is about $450 less than what I first shopped for a few months ago.  All the parts are common for all shops and no worries about something being unique to this company.  That said, I'm really not sure how he is making any money doing business this way or how long he can maintain it.

Bike Safety Tips

Monk

Why is it that we find it hard sometimes to get out when we know we should?

Or why is it that we get out when we know we shouldn't?

I'm often asked "What did you watch last night on TV?" "Humm, nothing I rode my bike for a couple of hours is often my response." Ate a little food then showered and went to bed. Then the look of 'Are you completely f'n mad comes upon the face of the questioner.

I often wonder why some chose the life of a monk when the others in our 'outside' world chose a more 'normal life' of crashcar, drinking, or poker. So far those 'outside' interests haven't peaked my curiousity yet. I'm really not sure if that is good or bad?

We peruse bike porn for the latest this or that, look at pictures of the races to see what others are running. Anything new, interesting, something I might not be able to live without? It is quite intriguing to me!

Often I'm asked what 'organic rabbit food' did I bring today for lunch? Or for that matter the four times I eat at work often cause people to ask "How do you stay so damn skinny?" I RIDE!! Sometimes I RIDE alot! Sometimes I RIDE alot more than I should.

Put the body through strength training, dismembering positions for strength and relaxation, drink lots of water. Man, this sounds so strange.

100.67

Miles that is..

Friday, Saturday, Sunday.  Whoa!  Building up sick base miles is hard for a working stiff.  The plan this week, ride, ride, ride!!

Because this weekend is some R & R from the bike.

Here are some shots from the ride today with the boss.  Yea, I stopped to smell the flowers today.