fancy shpants

A Slow Start

2011-06-19T23:06:00.002-04:00

But we're getting there. Official transition to new bloggery begins now:

http://fancyshpants.wordpress.com/2011/06/19/in-the-aeroplane-over-the-race/

The Death of a Blog

2011-05-20T23:02:00.000-04:00

Yes, I reckon it's about time we put this blog to rest. Oh, it done served us well over the past few years, but clearly this site and format simply do not inspire much writing these days. And that is a sad thought, since so much changed just in the last 8 months. I moved out to the Left Coast, moved back to the Right Coast, and then moved again to the Left Coast, this time with some degree of permanence. But I see no reason to retell almost a year of tales here. No no, that simply would not be appropriate. Instead, we will toss the dirt over the coffin of this here deceased blog and put it to rest with all the other forgotten bastions of words circulating the interweb.

But fear not! I'm not quite done spilling my verbose ramblings across the face of this medium. I will be relocating my unvisited home on the web to a new, upgraded site of bloggery, which can be found at this weblocation:

http://fancyshpants.wordpress.com/

Yes, a new hosting site, a new layout, and a new motivation to actually produce things for the fickle audience of the internet. I'm still refining the look of the new site, but I'll begin posting things there within a day.

So from this site, I bid you adieu, but I hope to see you at the new home soon.

-fancyshpants.

Cyclocross National Championship Predictions

2010-12-08T00:44:00.000-05:00

Elite Men
1. Powers (58:32)
2. Trebon
3. Johnson
4. Wells
5. Jones
6. Driscoll
7. Craig
8. Anthony
9. Schouten
10. Myerson

Elite Women
1. Compton
2. Gould
3. Dombroski
4. Miller
5. Bruno

U23 Men
1. McDonald
2. Summerhill
3. N Keough
4. L Keough
5. Dombroski

Make your own predictions (and win some shwag) HERE.

The Game, as Life

2010-11-16T23:48:00.001-05:00

Found this in the "draft" pile. It will have to operate as a substitute to actual posting for now...

"But to say that the race is the metaphor for the life is to miss the point. The race is everything. It obliterates whatever isn't racing. Life is the metaphor for the race."

-Donald Antrim

I find something very unsettling about this quote. It's not that I think Antrim went over-the-top with his assessment, or that the sentences prove irrelevant for our generation. Instead, the quote rattles my mind because it resonates with my ideals; I believe it whole-heartedly. Each time I read this quote, I immediately reprise my week at the Trans-Sylvania Epic and the ensuing lethargy of the week after. I feel like Tyler Durden after his first bout in Fight Club, desperately trying to recapture the magnificence of the experience when every element of the world seems muted and deflated in comparison.

And what competitor doesn't undergo this experience? It seems almost universal for those truly engaged in their activity. We seem to revere our activities with a level of grandeur that reaches religious sentiment, so much so that we can easily loose sight of the big picture.

Even though I experience this degradation of importance in day-to-day routines after competition, I like to think I maintain a fair degree of balance. I know my paycheck does not depend on racing, and with that knowledge I am able to enjoy competition for the sake of competition rather than stressing over results (which may also be why I suck).

In Defense of Page

2010-09-28T03:46:00.001-04:00

[For sake of civility, I will declare an important truth about this post: it is NOT a comprehensive analysis of the situation, and the only expertise I claim is as a spectator and participant of the sport. Many stones may be left unturned, and many biases may be present. I am simply adding my viewpoint to the conversation of the greater cycling community. You are welcome to publicly disagree, but please do so in a manner appropriate for conversational arguments. This will be posted on both my personal blog and on my blog on CyclingDirt.org.]

This past weekend, the cyclocross community suffered the massive tremors (or really, minor rattles) caused by the tension between Jonathan Page and Tim Johnson during the USGP races in Madison. What went down out on the course is a truth molded by the story-teller of the moment. So far, velonews.com has the most balanced account of the transgressions, but the true controversy seems to be contained in the post-race interviews and comments from the riders and, perhaps more poignantly, the reactions of fans across the country.

Some commentators contest the methods used by the participants that seem to be liberal interpretations of the rulebooks. The contact between riders is not illegal (to my knowledge) but presents the ethical dilemma of determining what constitutes "fair play." The answer to this particular dilemma is one best left to the elites of the sport; my mid-pack B finish will not be severely affected by having an elbow thrown at me or my line cut-off in a corner (though it may result in a brief chuckle).

But the majority of the attention on this controversy is not directed towards the actions, but rather the reactions. Many believe that Page's post-race comments are little more than grandiose whining over being dominated by the Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld team members. Others are ready to swear off their personal support Planet Bike because they feel Page is a poor representative of the sport. In any case, Page's frustration with the racing tactics from the USGPs this past weekend resulted in, well, frustration towards Page.

I'll be honest, when I first saw Page interject into Tim Johnson's interview I was ready to lead the witch-hunt to decry his name as a pariah of the sport. But there was something unconscionable about that action. The truth is, despite the rhetoric about being a sore loser, Page's reaction to the race showed a very endearing quality. Page was invested in that race, and in the larger construct of the sport of cyclocross, in a way that I (and probably most sports fans) wished more athletes would emulate. In any competition, I don't want to see a group of dandy gentlemen scattering along a field holding conversations about who should lead into a corner. I want to see athletes who are willing to take the risks (within the rules!) to put themselves in contention for the win. I want to see the frustration, the anger, and the aggression that comes from feeling cheated out of a result. I want to see it, because it is the epitome of a purely human response we yearn for in our spectating.

It is easy for us to cry "villian!" from the safety of our homes, but in this case we are rejecting the essence of what drives us to watch a group of athletes ride around a field for an hour. The cathartic feeling of simply watching a leader come across the finish line after soloing to victory is not lost on us, the spectator, yet we are convinced the subsequent finishers be content and docile to their substandard placing no matter what occurred throughout the event. Sure, learning how to lose is an important quality, but it does not mean a rider has to be detached from his result. Let us not be fools to think that rivalry and competition is limited to the boundaries set by a clock.

Thus, I will continue to support Page in his endeavors, not because I want to revel in controversy, but because I know that in every emotional and frustrated interview is the potential for the exhilarated, magnificent pride that will come from the cherished win. And that, my friends, is what makes sport worth while and Page's actions forgivable.

The Trans-Sylvania Epic: Withdrawal Symptoms

2010-06-09T22:19:00.002-04:00

[EDITOR'S NOTE: All pictures are copyright A.E.Landes Photography. Do yourself a favor and head on over to his web-location to view some of the best cycling photos, ever! He also does weddings, though we hope this will soon become his side job.]

Monday morning I awoke effortlessly at 6:30 AM. The time certainly wasn't my choice, but after a week of rushing out of bed to chow down on camp food, you begin to pick up a few habits.

Even a few days out from the event, I find myself wanting to play the role of Jack from Lost, frantically trying to convince everyone to return to the "island" of the Seven Mountains campgrounds. The Trans-Sylvania Epic was mountain biking in its purest form, and after a complete cycling immersion I find it more and more difficult to convince myself the real world day-to-day grind is sustainable. This race was the gateway drug to a dangerous [and arguably more expensive] addiction to stage racing, and proved to be a renewal of my love for the sport.

I will try not to dwell too much on the details of my racing, because for me this event was about more than results. It's not that I didn't care, it's just that by the time I started to find my legs it was too late to change the GC. I secured my second-to-last finishing place within the first three days, but whittled away the significant deficit between myself and the next higher rider by the end of the week [from over 2 hours to just under 25 mins].

For the short recap, the beginning of the week was marked by having zero power in my legs. In addition, I fought back severe cramping for the first few days, that is until Rachael Mirvish provided me with a weapons-grade electrolyte mix (as well as company during my darker days). By the end of the week, cramps had gone bye-bye and I was flying! In those seven days, I went from having the worst form ever on a bike [and swearing off riding forever!] to scaring myself with how well I was riding.

Some of the days were less enjoyable:

Sad Tim is sad.

Others were freakin' fast:

I think my mustache gives me lift.

And, though I failed to notice, some of the days were in black-and-white:

The riding was nothing short of amazing, but this was expected. The truly incredible aspect of the event was the organizational prowess of the Dynamic Duo of mid-Atlantic bike races, Ray Adams and Mike Kuhn. These guys toiled for hours each night to make sure the race went off without any major snafus, and their hard work paid off; everyone was ecstatic with the event, and no one died (double success!).

As Zach Adams put it, the Trans-Sylvania Epic was a summer camp for big kids, with a bike problem, and maybe a drinking one, but mostly a bike problem. I can't wait for the next time I am able to keep Eagle lodge awake with late-night banjo tunes while happening upon a one-man rave. I could, however, do without the hundreds of bugs which kept me up at night, or the small mouse which ate my best Clif Bars, but these were minor incidents compared to the incredible atmosphere provided by some of the genuinely good and funny cohorts in this adventure (not you Evan Plews). Most of these people even have blogs, and are probably providing more interesting content than me, so go ahead and check them out.

Mike Wissell, who confused the Epic for a duathalon at times.

Peter Keiller, leader of the Misfit Psycles.

Tanya Hanham, perhaps my favorite Canadian.

Rachael Mirvish, most smiley cyclist ever.

Mike Festa, the self-proclaimed "roadie P.O.S."

And, lest we forget, the already infamous Rich Dillen, who you can see in 3-D in this fine video:

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

As for me, I'll be looking forward to seeing all these fine faces next year, and for years to come. Until then, I get to stare at my pretty little medal to remind me of the killer week spent at the TSE.

Trans-Sylvania Epic Preview

2010-05-17T20:31:00.001-04:00

Cycling Videos on CyclingDirt

Before you complain about the shaky video, know that it was filmed one-handed while riding. Enjoy.

Fire and Ice

2010-05-08T22:49:00.000-04:00

Thanks to the wonderful absurdity of weather forecasts, I received this fine announcement on my phone just a few days ago:

A freeze and fire warning at the same time. I wanted to reach into my imagination to sketch out an apocalyptic prophecy for this occurrence, but instead my mind retreated to a more poetic analysis of the situation.

Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I've tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.

-Robert Frost

A fine analysis indeed. But if you were hoping for a more modern approach [or, an approach with more hairspray and guitar shredding] you may always resort to the majestic compositions of one Yngwie Malmsteen:

Word.

Just Warming Up

2010-04-25T13:57:00.000-04:00

After a long disruption, I am approaching some degree of normalcy in my day. While still behind in many things, I am getting work done, which is about all we can hope for these days.

The most recent installment of my preparation for the Trans-Sylvania Epic can be found at this web-location. As always, please read/comment/heckle as much as you like.

For your edification, I present you with the cure for grammar mistakes courtesy of Hyperbole and a Half, as well as some fine new music:

Future Islands - Tin Man from Thrill Jockey Records on Vimeo.

I intend on returning to my regularly verbose writings later this week, once I remember what life is like outside of campus computer labs.

Syndicating like a Pro

2010-04-02T13:30:00.000-04:00

I do a fair amount of bloggery in my spare time. Most of the time, my writings serve only minor purposes: cool videos, good music, rants, and race recaps. However, some of my posts have significantly greater exigence.

Recently, I scribed a few blog posts for CyclingDirt.org (a fantastic resource for MTB lovers) documenting my preparation for the Trans-Sylvania Epic. Please take a few moments to read the posts and leave a comment or two in support. While you are there, check out the incredible coverage CyclingDirt offers for the mountain biking community.

The most recent post can be found here:

http://www.cyclingdirt.org/blogs/blogger/fancyshpants/11176-the-trans-sylvania-epic-take-ii-where-the-rubber-leaves-the-road

And the first post in the series resides at this web-location:

http://www.cyclingdirt.org/blogs/blogger/fancyshpants/10865-the-trans-sylvania-epic-or-how-im-learning-to-stop-fearing-training-programs

Check back in a couple weeks for another installment. Once the race begins, I will be providing video and blog coverage of the event for those of you who aren't able to participate. This event is a huge part of my 2k10 season, and I greatly appreciate your interest and support. Thanks, all!

P.S. Be sure to head over to our racing team blog for even more blog goodness!

http://thebicycleshopincracingteam.blogspot.com/

Music To Shave Your Beard To

2010-03-29T15:02:00.011-04:00

Well ladies and gentlemen, spring time is sneaking its way into our cherishably dreary weather. The warmer temperatures, coupled with the ability to see grass, leaves many of us altering our routines and affects to complement the new season. For me, the most extravagant change happens with the facial hair. Last night I finalized the decision to jettison my winter coat for a lighter - and possibly more "aero"- facial construction.

To commemorate this locally historic event, I present to you some fine tunes to center your chi with the Spring-time spirits (or to simply enjoy, your decision).

Rain Machine - Give Blood

Broken Bells - October

Maps & Atlases - Witch

The Morning Benders - Promises

In other news, I am further expanding my blogging influence to contribute to my new racing team's blog, which can be found at this web-location:

http://thebicycleshopincracingteam.blogspot.com/

The site is still being hacked and hammered, so it looks a little rough right now. But I assure you, within a week or two it will be as pristine and professional as a two-year-old's refrigerator drawing (we aspire for greatness). In the mean time, head on over to the shop's webpage to get a feel for our cohorts and supporters.

The Bicycle Shop Inc.

Cheers for now, I have some scholarly endeavors to endeav about/on/around.

Walkin' Around in our Summertime Clothes

2010-03-16T21:16:00.000-04:00

My recent travels have offset my schedule, so new bloggery will have to wait. Until then, head over to CyclingDirt.org to check out words scribed by yours truly in preparation for the Trans-Sylvania Epic.

Click this link, do it:
http://www.cyclingdirt.org/blogs/blogger/fancyshpants/10865-the-trans-sylvania-epic-or-how-im-learning-to-stop-fearing-training-programs

I will be doing a blog post every couple of weeks until the event to show my progress with a training program provided by Chris Eatough. Then, I get to bring all of the excitement of Trans-Sylvania to the greater public through video coverage of the event. This may be as close as I get to "living the dream," and I reckon I'm pretty excited about it. So, be sure to scan CyclingDirt over the next ten weeks to see how things are progressing.

Also, I plan to have all the tales and visuals from Colorado up by the weekend, but (as always) I promise nothing.

The weather has turned for the better, and I plan to spend more time riding (and pickin' banjo on the porch). Not having to stare at snow is very uplifting, but comes nowhere near the feeling of being back on the mountain bike after a few months break. The other day was consumed by simple fire-road scouting, but I plan to be on the trails by Thursday. I will have a couple hours to play around, so I will most likely try to hit a quick Shingletown loop, then head over to Tussey Ridge to reacquaint myself with its spectacular scenery and stones. Seems like a solid plan if you ask me, but no one ever asks me, so you get it unsolicited (you're welcome).

I will keep this one short, and leave you with this here fine tunage from one of my favorite banjoists: John Hartford. I couldn't seem to keep this song out of my head while flying back home. Plus, this seems like a perfect summery tune to celebrate the change of seasons.

Enjoy, yall.

A Hirsute Topic

2010-03-07T02:29:00.004-05:00

The collegiate cycling season is in full swing. Before you know it, cyclists' class attendance across the nation will drop to yearly lows as training and traveling take full priority over any style of academic endeavors. Through the power of the interweb, we are able to live these competitive experiences vicariously on the ECCC Blogosphere.

While perusing Blogosphere on Friday, I chanced upon the official ECCC decree found on Hugging the Turns, the blog of Kyle Bruley from Boston University. Although the rules established in this post will go a long way towards improving the overall aesthetics and fashion of the Eastern Collegiate Cycling Conference, some riders may be at a loss as to what hair style they should now pursue for this season. Mullets are being restricted, few road racers have the street cred for mohawks, and the high-top went out of style with New Kids on the Block.

Wrong on so many levels.

So, before you go all Britney Spears on us, I implore you to consider the most refined and respected hair alternative: the mustache. Once reserved for high-society, today's mustaches integrate flawlessly into all levels of our lives. Want people to think you have a lot of money? Mustache. Famous Nintendo super star? Mustache. Need a hint of irony to fit in with judgmental hipster crowds? Mustache. Quiz show host? Mustache. Concerned about your diabeetus? Mustache. Defacing a classic painting? Mustache. Adam Craig at SSWC? Mustache.

Even your bike can enjoy a hirsute appendage:

http://bikemustache.blogspot.com/

Many groups hold strong opinions about how a mustache should be presented. The Handlebar Club refuses members who decide to grow beards along with their mustaches, whereas the American Mustache Institute only recently began accepting mustache wearers with additional facial hair. The World Beard & Mustache Championships accepts all styles of facial hair, but clearly prefers intricate mustache designs. From personal experience, combining the beard with the mustache makes the growing process much more tolerable and less awkward (at least until you start waxing the mustache).

Growing a mustache can be a frustrating endeavor. Luckily, many great mustache wearers before me have chronicled their experiences in simple How-To formats. This guy provides a fairly simple procedure for your growing needs (I am able to look past my hatred of baseball for the common goal of increasing mustache prevalence).

Unlike the mullet, the mustache can be crafted into numerous styles. The AMI website contains a list of common mustache styles, but it may be easier if we approach this visually.

The Handlebar
Helping villains tie pretty woman to train tracks since 1822(ish).

The Pencil
Nothing screams "Dread Pirate Roberts" like an adolescent, whispy 'stache...

The Walrus
"The time has come," the Jamie said, "to talk of many things..."

The Imperial
Colonel Sanders?

The Horseshoe (aka tough-guy biker style)
Without the tails of this mustache, you wouldn't be able to tell where his neck starts.

The FuManchu
Seriously, don't mess.

The Dali (my personal favorite)
Because absurdity in one's work can only be met with absurdity in one's facial hair.

The best part about Dali? There is a whole book dedicated to his mustache. First person to get this book for me will be rewarded with a macaroni noodle picture of a dinosaur and your very own tin of mustache wax (and maybe some beer).

As you can see, the possibilities are boundless. So, take these new hair regulations not as a restriction, but as an impetus for further improvement of your hair growth. If you need further inspiration, take a look at this historical approach to mustaches, or just this awesome site.

Or, feast your eyes on the potential of our fine leader:

Au revoir, y'all.

Cabin Fever

2010-03-02T21:32:00.000-05:00

I caught myself daydreaming today. I dreamt it was sunny and warm. I dreamt that all my winter clothes were packed away in some box at the back of my closet. I dreamt of rides with mixtures of leaves and mountain laurel, and perhaps the sounds of cicada in the distance. I dreamt of anything better than what we have now, but it was only a dream.

The snow has cleared up significantly since this picture, but it still sucks.

For a solid twenty minutes, as I sat in a class discussing who-knows-what, I imagined the simple activity of cornering through trails. Wide corners, shallow corners, off-camber, rocky, rooty, fast, and slow, I imagined them all. I sat fixated on cornering. All my rides for the past two months have been on the road, great for training, but incredible boring. Every off-road option is restricted due to the snow; even the fireroads are inaccessible! Hopefully, the warmer weather will be able to melt most of this snow over the next two weeks. Even then, the trails will be drowning and fireroads may be the only option, which is still better than nothing.

When my cabin fever got the best of me, I tried to say "to hell with it!" on Saturday and ride up to Tussey Ridge. In the back of my head, I knew this was going to be a failed ride, but I had to make the attempt. I parked at the forestry lot and began my little spin. The roads were terrible, and I never saw a single inch of pavement the whole ride. For the lower portion of the road, I was able to get traction where car tracks had packed down the snow. But these tracks were inconsistent, and I was constantly losing momentum when the well-packed treads turned to crunchy snow with no warning. As I approached the upper portions of the road, any good treads disappeared, and I was left to muscle for traction for a long time.

I reached the trail-head for Tuxedo to find pristine snow blanketing any sign of trail. Not even hikers had attempted to push their way to the ridge, at least not this way. I humored myself by making the attempt to hike a small portion of the trail, but as soon as I stepped off the road my foot disappeared under the white hue, and left only my kneecap visible. I shuffled through the opening portion of the trail for a minute or two, then went back to my bike to begin the descent.

By this point the sun began to hide behind the ridges, and I was feeling the chill. To complement the decreasing temperature, my descending pace was only slightly faster than my climbing pace thanks to the road conditions. Without a good source of light, it was difficult to predict where and when the snow would transfer from packed to soft. These transitions were often accompanied by loss of control or, on one or two occasions, a crash. I reached my car when it was well past cold and dark, and I was ready to go home. But this lackluster ride was still rewarding, mainly because it wasn't on the road.

Monday night rolls around, and I am beginning to feel like Jack Torrance. But instead of attacking my roommate with an axe, I decided to be moderately productive and give the bikes some love. The end result? The most blingin'-est cable housing ever.

Insert Goldmember reference at your leisure.

I acquired this gold, braided housing over a year ago, and just never found a good reason to use it (mostly because I neglected to change my cables and housing in this time period). I was worried it may end up looking a bit tacky, but I think it worked well with the other colors on the bike.

The fact that everything is clean for once really helps with the aesthetics. I assure you, this will not last long.

The cross bike received a similar treatment, but I neglected to take home derailleur cables from the shop, so the work is incomplete.

Along with the install of the gears and fancy housing, I was able to pinpoint the cause of my brake problems that surfaced recently. My rotors wore down over the past year, and were getting dangerously thin. With the new rotors on, I actually have some substantial braking power (and not as much damn squealing!).

The IF is ready for some good ridin', now we just have to wait for the weather to catch up. As for me, I have to get going on turning fat-tim into racing-tim; I have some pretty big events coming up this year, so fitness is going to take top priority. This prioritizing includes more than a few nutritional changes, too. Who knows, maybe I'll even learn to be fast this year... (don't count on it).

Music Mondays

2010-03-01T00:20:00.004-05:00

Because I'm not a music blogger--and I'm lazy--you get no descriptions... just pure, unadulterated music (and bad grammar).

1) Pearly Gate Music - Sleeping with Bears (Daytrotter Session)

2) jj - ecstasy

3) Nurses - Caterpillar Playground (Daytrotter Session)

4) Local Natives - Sun Hands

Look at this fancy thing; someone learned how to embed [kinda].

We also have this fine tune, which I just can't seem to get tired of.

Oh Appalachia from Chad Hartigan on Vimeo.

I will have a brief tale about my failed scouting ride later today, but for now you will have to make due with these tracks. Enjoy.

When Hypocrites Make Reviews

2010-02-25T12:39:00.000-05:00

When you work in the recumbent universe, you often lose touch with typical cycling gossip. To remedy my ignorance, I will often head over to cyclingnews.com, or some other generic cycling news website, to get caught up on some of the salient topics in the cycling world. Admittedly, I care very little for the news involving pro road cyclists, so I will focus most of my research on mountain/cyclo-cross matters and new products. Over the past week, I came across two different products which manifested dynamically different responses.

My initial discovery was the new Cervelo wonder-frame--dubbed "Project California"--which was supposed to set a new world record for having customers pay more money for less material, or something. The frame retails for $9,600, and weighs in at an estimated 700g. For those not well versed in matters of metric weight, this equals about 1.5 pounds.

Low-quality, fuzzy images make the product seem more intriguing, don't ya think?

So what's the big deal? Almost every new frame claims the same thing: lighter weight, increased stiffness where you need it, and greater comfort. While all this is well and dandy, I just get tired of the same sales pitch that comes along with a price tag ten times the worth of my car. The difference in these qualities are only perceivable in laboratory testing, and the resulting performance increase would most likely be due to placebo effect rather than substantial mechanical advantages. Also, there is little need to perpetually push the boundaries of weight on racing frames, as modern frame and component combinations are constantly edging on the UCI weight limit.

To be frank, product releases that taut more carbon fiber and lighter weight are boring.

The second product not only interested me, but actually excited me. In March, SRAM plans to release a 9 speed version of their XX cassette. All but two cogs are machined from a single piece of steel, and the result is a cassette that is (surprise) lighter, and more expensive, then the original.

Shiny things always catch my attention.

So once again, we have a product that is lighter and comes with a significantly higher price tag (around $300 for the XG999). However, the technology behind this cassette, as opposed to the Cervelo frame, feels more progressive. The machining on the cassette is magnificent and actually improves functionality in the case of shedding mud. In addition, as SRAM increases the production to different gear ranges, we should start seeing this technology seep into their road groupos.

Is there logic behind my bias? I like to think I have justification. Although a good frame makes a significant difference in ride quality, the difference between a great frame and a super-great frame is imperceivable (though your bank account will certainly discern the difference). Drivetrain components, however, have much more noticeable effects on performance. In the end, I just don't consider a new product "news-worthy" just because the company made it lighter. We should be admiring products and bikes that promote cycling to larger populations and improve functional characteristics rather than unnoticeable performance differences.

Although, I will always have a soft spot for shiny components. Nobody said I was unbiased.

Music Mondays

2010-02-22T00:38:00.000-05:00

Over the past year, I acquired a pretty severe addiction to music. Like many people, music provides the background to lengthy portions of my day, and often commands my immediate attention for equal amounts of time as I search for new albums, bands, and sounds. The only task I enjoy more than finding new music, is sharing it. Therefore, I will be using one post a week to play the role of the music geek (albeit, a very undiscerning one) and showcase some of the albums that receive heavy rotation in my library, or have simply peeked my interest in recent days. Some of these albums will be obvious picks, others may prove to be more obscure, and there may even be some to which you respond, "you're just getting around to listening to that?" In any case, you will get to hear some of my favorite tunes (and you'll like it!). This feature may become pretty useful if I ever learn how to embed mp3s, but for now I will simply direct you to where you can find the music.

Yeasayer - Odd Blood (2010)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKXujEphWS8

Band Website: http://www.yeasayer.net/

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/yeasayer

Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest (2009)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjecYugTbIQ

Band Website: http://www.grizzly-bear.net/

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/grizzlybear

Port O'Brien - All We Could Do Was Sing (2008)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uw3Y84zXLwg

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/portobrien

This last album is fantastic for its deceiving title track. You get caught up in this wistful and cheerful anthem, and then are immediately swept into a multitude of songs with incredible depth; it simply throws you guard. I won't say too much. I don't want to bias your listening.

That's all for today. I have academia to conquer.

Just Because You Aren't Listening, Doesn't Mean I'm Going to Stop...

2010-02-20T01:02:00.016-05:00

Look, I'm still alive!

Something special happened today in State College this weekend. We finally got ourselves a little heat wave of sorts. Temperatures rose well into the mid-30s, and even broke into the low 40s on one occasion. After weeks of constant snow storms and ice, even a few degrees above freezing felt like tropical weather. Even the lazy types like myself were motivated enough for a few spins around the countryside.

Sunshine and warm weather is quite the morale lifter this time of year. Unfortunately, good weather does not make up for the fact that I am atrociously slow at climbing these days.

Listed under the "exciting news" category, it looks like I will be taking a little Spring Break trip in a few weeks. Unlike the stereotypical college trip to sunny beaches and bikinis, I will be hiding away in the chilly mountains of Colorado for a few days. I always enjoy an excuse to run away from the mid-atlantic, so this opportunity was hard to pass up. Rumor has it I will even be able to try out my fresh skiing skills on real mountains, though I imagine the result will be absurd at best.

My posting was erratic over the past two or three months, and it is basically pointless to try to make up for lost time. My plan is to post with a significant degree of consistently from this point on, and I may even pursue a "focus" for this monstrosity (I promise nothing). However, I fear a greater quantity of posts may just result in a number of unwarranted rants on the state of cycling industry/focus/etc. Am I really qualified to make such judgements? Probably not, but no one is really there to stop me.

To conclude this warm-up to a [potentially] consistent year of bloggery, I present you with Tim's Random Product Endorsement, February Edition:

You can find this, and other fancy moustache/beard accessories at http://www.oregonwildhair.com/.

[You] Wish You Were Here

2009-12-11T22:09:00.005-05:00

It has been a while since my last post. This certainly does not make up for lost time, but it is a step in the right direction. I'm in Bend, OR for Cyclocross National Championships, and having a hell of a time! More words/pictures to come.

There was a lot of build up to my trip to Oregon this week. Everyone I had talked to had only incredible things to say about Bend. From their outdoor athletics to their beer, everything was highly regarded from those who visited. One individual even went as far as to say Bend was nothing short of "Heaven." With all of this build up, Bend had quite a reputation to uphold, and so far it has lived up to every word.

The town of Bend is home to about 81,000 people (according to a sign, but this number may vary), and everyone I talk to seems to be physically involved in something. Their high school jocks are not football players, but rather alpine skiers. Overweight individuals are a rarity, and in my adventures so far I have only come across a single McDonalds. The lifestyle in the area is that of full-year ski-town, but with so much more going on. The only downside in this area seems to be a lack of jobs. It is almost impossible to find a viable career in your field of study, no matter what it be, and its extremely common to find common workers with expansive educations. My host family tells numerous stories to this fact, including one about a window fitter who received his PhD from Oxford (he rightfully claims to be the most educated window fitter in America).

As for the 'Cross racing, the course originally seemed pretty tame as far as technical aspects go, but did prove a respectable distance (3.2 km). Not much elevation gain, but one stair run-up and one set of barriers. However, the weather in Bend produced a very difficult, and dynamic course. The temperature when I arrived in Bend was -16, or -25 with wind chill factored in (and yes, both of those numbers have negatives on them). I have never been that cold in my life! But the cold resulted in frozen ground (and rivers), making the course have the potential for lots of speed. The snow mixed in on top assured the riders that it wouldn't just be a straight powerfest, as you really had to have good handling to navigate the corners. As the first day of racing progressed, temperatures rose throughout the day and began melting a little bit of the ice. But as soon as the sun tucked itself behind the mountains, the portions of the course that had originally thawed out began to freeze over again. So instead of hard ground, riders were blasting through sheets of ice. More snow is expected to fall over the next few days, so it is tough to predict just what the course will be like by the time the Elites race.

I'm off to explore more of the town this evening, and partake in cycling related activities, but I'll be sure to update more after tomorrow, and especially after I race on Sunday. I'll even post some pictures when I have the chance. Tomorrow I also head over to Mt. Bachelor for some Nordic skiing! Hopefully I won't bust myself up too bad...

The Calm After the Storm

2009-10-28T21:28:00.005-04:00

HAMM:

Go and get two bicycle-wheels.

CLOV:

There are no more bicycle-wheels.

HAMM:

What have you done with your bicycle?

CLOV:

I never had a bicycle.

HAMM:

The thing is impossible.

CLOV:

When there were still bicycles I wept to have one. I crawled at your feet. You told me to go to hell. Now there are none.

Right out of Endgame by Samuel Beckett. Why was my shortwired brain resorting to this reference? I

received this fine package at work on Monday.

So, I have the tubulars, but no wheels. Rumor has it that the rims shipped out today, so I may have them built up and glued by the end of next week. We won't hold our breath though...

I spent most of this past weekend enjoying the fine outdoors of central PA. Saturday was spent on a 32 mile ride through rails to trail for one of my classes. The main group of us spent most of the ride at a casual pace, just enjoying the scenery joking around. I spent the first half of the race perfecting the removal of knee warmers while on the bike. Now I just have to figure out how to put them back on without dismounting... amateurs have so much to learn. For the last quarter of the ride, the Euro racin' powerhouse Jim Camut and I decided to pick up the pace. It was a healthy pace for me, as my legs were definitely feeling heavy by the end (who know a rails-to-trail could actually give you a workout). The most important part of this ride was the ongoing Rock-Paper-Scissors game between the two of us. I, Tim "thrower of all things rock" Darwick, reigned supreme for most of the day, though I imagine there will be challengers soon enough...

I spent a good portion of Sunday hiking around in Rothrock with NMBA to take care of the devastation from the past week's storms. The trails were in really bad shape. On most trails, you were unable to ride for more than 20 seconds before finding another impassable tree fallen. After six hours of trail work, we successfully cleared Charcoal Flats and Lower Shingletown. Having missed breakfast that morning, I was pretty whooped from the day's work, and spent the rest of the afternoon lounging.

My plans for Cyclocross Nationals are almost finalized. Just a few more minutia to figure out, then I will be well on my way to the mystical Bend, OR. I am in love with the place already, and I haven't even stepped foot in the state yet. But, from everything I hear from those who know best (ie. people who are from or have spent time there), the place very well may be perfect for me. A few more weeks and we will find out for ourselves. However, the transition will have to wait for a while, as I just committed to another year in State College. It will be interesting to be around town and not be involved with the university. Actually, interesting is not the right term... relieving is more like it.

For your enjoyment, here is evidence of the "cross-perfect" conditions from Granogue and Wissahickon. I just got around to loading my phone pictures to the computer, so here ya is:

I suppose I should get back to some of that schoolwork, though the motivation certainly is lacking. If you've made it this far, you deserve to know that Stevil, former Swobo employee and architect behind How to Avoid the Bummer Life, has reincarnated his brilliance in a new blog of recognizable form: All Hail the Black Market. Definitely worth checking out. The man has some stories to tell.

MAC Series 3&4: Granogue and Wissahickon

2009-10-25T21:28:00.001-04:00

I certainly meant to do this recap much earlier in the week, but I convinced myself to continually procrastinate and instead take care of some of that education thing. But hey, we all make mistakes...

The week leading up to these races was packed with work. I didn't ride my bike all week. In fact, I hadn't even touched it for at least a week. On thursday, State College got hit with a freak winter storm, in October no less. We accumulated about 4-5 inches of snow over a two or three day period. Many parts of town lost power, including my workplace RBR. Yes, this is a recumbent bike shop, and I implore you to investigate the technology and innovation coming out of the recumbent industry before you start trying to bash them. I will rant more about cycling culture's recumbent bashing later... on to other matters. Although the power was out, it was imperative that I go to work as I had to build 2 wheels before I left town. As the only mechanic at the shop, I often have to fit in important work at very inopportune times. One of the wheels was going on a trike that was outfitted for a quadruple amputee. We had to have the spokes cut custom by the fellows over at Freeze Thaw Cycles (my sponsor!). If I remember correctly, one set of spokes was about 127 mm, the other set was 155 mm, and were used to build a Rohloff hub on a 16 in wheel, and a Nexus on a 20 in.

The wheel builds should have been fairly straight forward, but with size combinations so rare nothing really goes correctly. Oh yea, and we didn't have power... which means we didn't have lights... or heat. The building is old, so it was very close to the outside temperature. I threw a pair of fingerless gloves on so I could retain some heat on my hands while still maintaining dexterity to build wheels. To take care of the lighting issue, I taped a commuter light to my stand and had it pointed at my little corner of the shop (which is not near any windows...). For three hours I built wheels, and I had to re-lace one wheel three times. The flanges were so high, and the rim so small, that running the elbows on the inside of the flange as compared to the outside actually made a huge difference when tensioning the wheel. After a little trial and error, I got it figured out, tensioned and trued the wheels, and ran back home to pack for racing.

My packing was fairly straightforward. I opened up a drawer, found what looked to be cycling clothing, and threw it in a bag. I didn't get any time to really think things through, so I just crammed it in. My bike had already been packed in the car, and of course I had no time to prep that for racing either. So it goes.

Saturday morning, it was raining pretty good. No surprise, as it rained all week in Delaware. We got to the race start and it was pretty obvious how the day was going to be. The parking lot had already started to develop into a sloppy mess of mud. The first race went off, and after the first lap we saw every inch of green turn to brown, and it just got worse from there.

So, after all the "good lines" had disappeared into four inches of mud, we lined up for the Men B race. Very quickly, we found out that there would be a LOT of running. Tires slid out through every corner. The main goal of the race quickly became just staying upright. The bikes accumulated incredible amounts of mud even on the first lap. This made the running sections worse, as instead of shouldering a 20 pound bike, you now had a 30 pound bike (at least). My back took a pretty bad beating from all that shouldering. The run-ups were really steep, and the main one I pretty much limped up after the first lap due to the heavy bike and pitch of the climb. However, the section immediately after the run up was a rewarding series of long switchback turns on a descent down a steep hill. Tons of people were wiping out, but it was a blast to fly down and it took tons of skill to take it at speed. I was able to stay upright throughout the race, but because I sucked at running I wasn't able to capitalize on my technical skills (not that I've been in contention to win a race this season anyway...). Although not a great race for me, it was damn fun. After our race, we watched the elite races and then headed to our weekend home.

Sunday we woke up for Wissahickon. Most of our stuff was dry, but shoes remained damp from the race the day before. My back was in pain from all the running, so I was unsure whether or not I would line up for the race. It was, of course, raining again, though the course would not get nearly as bad as Granogue. Wissahickon was a race on a horse estate, and had some cool features such as a spiral and a long section through a horse pit (all wet sand). I decided to check in and pick up my race number, just incase I decided to actually ride. My back was in pretty bad shape, however I slowly tricked myself to the start line. Incrementally I justified the next step. Well I should at least get a chamois on. Well, I might as well take a pre-ride lap to see what the course is like. Well, I might as well warm up. I'm warmed up, and my back doesn't hurt yet, the least I can do is go to the start line. Before I knew it, the gun fired and my race was on.

I had an okay starting position, about four rows back. However, the start of our race had a nasty crash that happened immediately to my left just 20 meters off the line. The crash opened up a good section of open road between me and the lead pack, and I sprinted like hell to get there. After the first section of the course, I was sitting in the top 20. I actually got a good hole shot for once! From that point on, I just wanted to lose as few positions as possible. Surprisingly, my back responded really well during the race. It gave hints of hurting in the last km, but was in good shape for most of the race. At one point I did wipe out in the middle of the spiral, but I was riding fairly clean other than that. I finished the race in 38th out of just shy of 100 starters. It was, arguably, my best race so far this year. Now I just have to work on that whole power and acceleration deal to reach my goal of a top 20 finish this season.

Sorry for the less than spectacular review. This is the result of waiting too long to write about things.

I am looking forward to this week, as I will be acquiring a few awesome items. First, my winnings from CX Magazine's race report contest (here's the link for the second round of competition) should be arriving, and I may try out the new Kenda tires at the MAC races this weekend. Second, my rims/tubulars are coming in! That means I will have a brand spankin' new wheelset to race on. White industry hubs on velocity escape rims (hoorah for tubulars). Probably won't have them ready for Beacon Cross and HPCX, but they will be in good condition for the rest of the season.

That's all for me. I'll stay on top of this whole blog thing this coming week... hopefully.

Notice to all my dedicated followers:

2009-10-18T20:44:00.004-04:00

If you look down a few posts, you will notice that my report for Breast Cancer Awareness cross and Kelley Acres cross has gone rogue. Actually, it has just been relocated to protect its identity, integrity, and possibly so I can convince you guys into heading over to cxmagazine.com to check out some awesome CX coverage. So, go to the heading on the main page, click on FORUMS, then... nevermind, let me make this easy for you.

Click HERE to check it out, and feel free to peruse the pages of Cyclocross Magazine on the interweb to your heart's content. You will not be disappointed.

Stay tuned, in a day or two I will have a report from the MAC Series 3 & 4 races this past weekend (Granogue and Wissahickon). Exciting stuff!

Timing is Everything

2009-10-11T18:34:00.002-04:00

It's almost like I knew what I was doing. After last weekend's racin', I knew I was in for a much needed rest week. My heart rate was mimicking my car battery this past week: neither one wanted to work. I wouldn't really call it "overtraining," but my body was definitely not in its prime.

So I did what every other self-respecting lazy racer would do, and I took some time off the bike and put my focus elsewhere. My efforts at "rest" culminated last night when I met up with Culbreth, who graced State College with his presence despite swearing off the place when he graduated. It has been well over a month since I actually have gone out on the weekend, so I made sure to enjoy a few margaritas at Mad Mex and stay up well past my arbitrary bedtime.

I continued my week of relaxation for most of today, but I just couldn't resist getting out for a little spin. The weather was beautiful, and I felt like I was overly rested from my week off, so I slapped on a chamois and some knee warmers and hit up the short track trails for a quick hour.

The week off made a huge difference. My legs felt powerful, my lines were clean, and I was able to push the corners without hesitation despite having ridden the mountain bike once in the last two months. The IF is also in single-speed mode now that the mountain season is officially over, which is fine by me. Winter riding doesn't need to be all-out every time. Anyway, I think I'll be in good shape for Granogue and Wissahickon this weekend.

I am very much looking forward to getting my new race wheels built. I've decided to buy into the traditional 'cross hype and go tubular. Velocity Escape tubular rims on White Industry hubs. Should be an awesome race wheelset, and it will drop a pound off of my current wheels. Can't complain there! Now I just have to figure out tire choice. I'm tempted to get some Tufo's, but they retail for about $150/tire. Velocity said the rims will be back ordered until the end of the month, but the hubs are waiting at the shop and are ready to go as soon as the rims get shipped.

MABRA BCA and Kelley Acres - A Comedy of Errors

2009-10-06T21:38:00.007-04:00

Uh oh, where did this post go?

You can now find it stored over at the Cyclocross Magazine website. Seriously, go check it out. They have tons of great coverage from both international and local 'cross events, and plenty of product reviews to keep your bike envy healthy. Don't say I never did nothin' nice for ya.

Pancakes and Bear Claws - 'Cross Season Begins

2009-09-21T23:18:00.016-04:00

Sometimes change is a good thing.

If you were to ask me just a month ago what my plans were for the fall, I would have told you I could be found pursuing collegiate MTN nationals. Ask me now, and it would not take long to realize how little I care about collegiate mountain season. I grew tired of the small fields, the limited competition, and the fact that our conference schedule is a complete joke (only one race this season is under a 10 hour drive from State College, PA). At the end of the day, my heart just was not into it.

Had this been a year like those before, that would have been the end of my story. Grow tired of racing poorly, and go back to just casual riding. But I wasn't done racing, and I became reinvigorated in my efforts with the help of a Belgian and an idea from a good teammate of mine. Screw mountain season, and just race 'cross.

I trained, I registered for races, and last week my ambitious change of demeanor came to a meaningful crescendo: cross season had started.

This past season was the two opening races for the Mid-Atlantic Cyclocross series. Saturday (September 19) was the Nittany Lion Cross, now with a new course which went behind the Lehigh Valley Velodrome. Sunday was and even bigger event: the Charm City Cyclocross in Baltimore, MD (Druid Hill Park). Lion Cross had a field just shy of 80 riders, and Charm City had a sold out race with 125 registered riders. I have never seen fields this big in any of the races I have done, and combined with the fact that it was my first real attempt at cross racing meant the weekend would be a big learning experience.

So, Friday afternoon my roommate and I packed up the car, picked up the Belgian, and headed out to a highly anticipated weekend. Our housing for Friday night was a convenient 40 min away from the race. Saturday morning breakfast was filled with pre-race banter, bets on finishing places, and language instruction from the Belgian. We learned the Flemish word for pancakes (pannenkoeken), which we would proceed to shout incessantly during the Belgian's 9 am race. We would have chosen a much better word to shout, but its all we could remember, so we made the best of it.

The course for Saturday's Lion Cross was fast and flat, with plenty of tight corners and one rooted section. I would have loved to say the course did or did not "suit" me, but with my lack of experience with cross, it was more or less a crap shoot. We lined up and made sure to engage ourselves in the pre-race heckling at the start line. My roommate couldn't believe how relaxed the atmosphere was. He comes from a road racing background, and this type of banter was unfathomable to him. I was loving it, and there were plenty of old faces at the line to verbally assault in good fun. But the relaxed tone faded quickly as the start time drew closer, and as the gun went off it was all business.

My start position was admittedly poor, and I did not do well to move up early on in the race. Going through the race I was unaware at just how high my heart rate was hitting. My max ended up at 197, a number I had never seen before. I felt good through the corners, and was certainly making some good time there. Flats were rough on me, but small inclines tended to favor my style. The barriers were to be a source of many lost places though. My dismounts were pretty smooth, but remounts always slowed me down. For most of the race I had my buddy Denny Reel in my sights, but I was unable to pull him in and ended up giving him more time in the last two laps. However, I was catching up to Jake Davidson, a very respectable racer, and spent my last few laps trying to close in the 5-8 second gap between us. Just before hitting the barriers I had pulled him in to under 2 seconds, but I of course botched the remount and lost his wheel in the last quarter of the last lap. He ended up outsprinting two other riders just ahead of him. I ended up finishing with no one around me, but I did a hard effort to the line anyway just to make sure. My legs felt strong for most of the race, but I definitely lost power in the last two laps. However, I did walk away with the awesome photo op of the day:

That is a ferocious face right there...

With the Belgian cheering me on...

My roommate and I through a corner...

Results posted, and I performed just about as well as I expected to perform. I was mid-pack fill. However, I was still happy with my 44th place finish, as it could have been worse, and yet there was still plenty of room to improve. With the first race of cross season in the bag, we said our farewells to local friends, and packed up the car to travel to the Belgian's house to drink Belgian beer, eat Belgian food, and pretend like we were cool enough to be Belgian.

I woke up on Sunday to the great suprise of fresh legs. Dog-gone-it I had actually recovered well from the race. We arrived at Druid Hill Park and eventually found a parking spot, which was not in great proximity to the start. No worries. We eventually found the registration tent, and then got in a quick pre-lap in between races. This course was distinctly different from Lion Cross. Charm City Cross was filled with four sections to dismount (stairs, barriers, a sand pit, and another form of barriers) and plenty of ups and downs. Warm up was complicated, as there weren't any real good stretches to get in hard efforts. I met up with Ryan Delaney and we found a good enough circuit around the lake to satisfy our efforts... although I did almost take out a small child who decided to cut in front of me during a warm up interval. Conflict avoided, I got about as good a warm up as possible and headed to the start.

Start line for Charm City was based on registration order. I registered pretty late, so I was staged in the 90s out of 110 starters. Less then ideal. I also made the mistake of positioning myself in the middle of the start grid, which did not help my options for moving up when the gun went off.

Race went similar to the previous day, but I actually felt stronger than the day before. Unfortunately, more running sections meant I was losing more time on remounts than before. The course was not nearly as tight as the one at Lion Cross, which made it fun to hit corners at full speed. Once again, uphills I found I could power up really well, but flat sections just sapped the life out of me.

During one of the first few times through the sand pit, a rider tried to ride the sand while I was running right next to him. He started making up some time and began to pass me, but then went over his handlebars in a very amusing crash. On his way down his wheel caught in my handlebars and ripped up my bar tape a bit, but I shoved the wheel out of the entanglement and continued on. My back did start to give me a little trouble towards the end of the race, which made the stair run-ups pretty rough. Towards the end I tried to reel in the "green giant" (John Glodek). I entered the second to last corner, which drops you on pavement, and began a pretty decent sprint to make up the ten second gap him and another rider had on me. Alas we crossed the line just as I made it to their wheel. Close, but just shy of moving up two more places. Twenty more meters would have been enough, but can't do anything about it now. Results were posted to show I had placed 65th in Mens B. Once again, not too bad, but still mid-pack.

Halfway through the race, I noticed a spectator I had not seen in a number of years. Kevin Dillard was there, camera in hand. If you have not seen his work before, do yourself a favor and head over to http://www.demoncats.com/ to check out some fine velo photography. I got to catch up with him post-race, where he took a nice close-up picture.

Plenty of other photographers were out in force too, and this one caught me in my most glorious pose: the bear claw!

I think this has potential of being a really sweet victory salute... if I ever get a victory.

The green giant.

Man was my back killing me on this!

At the end of the day, I was reassured that I made the right choice for the fall season. I love this type of racing; it was all-out the entire time. After the race I was smiling from ear to ear (the Belgian was capable of doing this during races, because of his heritage I can only assume). Man I love cross.

To celebrate a killer weekend, I cracked open what was deemed the "podium beer" we had been saving. Of course, the podium beer was a Belgian style wheat bear from Ommegang, because it was the only fitting choice. The theory behind the podium beer came down to the idea that we did not need to actually be on a podium to drink said beer, but that as long as a podium was near we were justified in enjoying the podium beer. It was a well enacted plan if you ask me.

Podium beer, and another pint glass to add to the collection.

We wound down the day by investigating what was the least appealing pool ever, taking note of the unique park characteristics, and congratulating friends on good finishes. Ryan Fawley deserves a shout out, as he had a killer weekend finishing 9th at Lion Cross and 16th at Charm City.

How a pool gets filled with grass and dirt, we may never no. But rest assured, we did do some simulated grass swimming for novelty.

Who knows.

Lessons learned from the weekend? Love what you do, and race the first minute like a madman.

Also, find proper restrooms. Unless, of course, you like to stay fresh:

Good enough for who it's for?

The Good, the Bad, and the Lime Green: A Product Review

2009-07-28T21:28:00.005-04:00

Instead of griping about my last race, which did not go well, I decided to give my unsolicited opinion on a few products that may or may not have been on your radar (or shopping list).

If there is one thing I enjoy almost as much as riding my bike, it is forgoing on groceries so I can buy new shiny parts to test out. Perhaps one day these companies will let me test their products for free (hint hint), but for now I rely on the ever-so-stable credit system to stay on top of the trends in the industry. I am not sponsored by any of these companies, these are all personal views. These components have had ample testing time in both race and standard riding situations, and I have a reputation of being a very picky (or maybe just grumpy) when it comes to parts. The trails around here in central PA beat up bikes pretty darn good, so my stuff has to work, and work well. So here we go...

The GOOD:

Middleburn RS8 Double Crankset

I originally started looking at double cranksets for two reasons. First, I detested having a little ring that I never used. There had to be a better set-up that would allow greater use of the cassette in both usable rings. Second, I developed hip problems which (after much tinkering) was caused by the wide q-factor of the XT crankset I was running. However, there are only a few options available for double cranksets: the expensive FSA, the insanely expensive and not yet available SRAM XX, and the Middleburn. Due to the fact that FSA is still altering their BCD from year to year, and the fact that I could not justify the price of the cranks even at shop cost, I opted for the cheaper option.

The Middleburn's came with a lifetime guarantee on the ranks as long as you did not use them for dirt jumping or trials (they make a model designed for those modalities though). Also, at just about $265.00 (shipping included), they were a very reasonably priced crankset in relation to most higher end components. You have the option of running the cranks as either ISIS or square taper. I opted for ISIS and slapped them on a new Crank Brothers BB. The cranks were impressively stiff. They did not shift quite as well as the Shimano XT rings, but that really is my only gripe with them. The Middleburns did come in a fair deal lighter than the XTs, but I don't remember the exact numbers. The cranks have a much small q-factor, which means a narrower stance (alleviated my hip problems). Set up correctly, you can get to all the gears in the cassette without rubbing on the front derailleur cage. Also, if you wanted to switch off to a SS drivetrain, you can do so easily by removing the lockring and little ring, which acts as the spider for both rings, and replacing it with their SS ring/spider. You can also purchase different spiders which will allow you to run other chainrings (even XTR). I also really liked the alloy they used for the crankarms, which held up nicely even after a number of good rock bashes. All in all, These cranks feel solid, and are definitely competitive with more expensive cranksets.

If you think external BBs and triple cranksets are overrated, these are definitely worth giving a try. I purchased my crankset from MTB Tandems in GA, and they were at my door within three days.

The BAD and the LIME GREEN:

ERGON GX1 Grips

There are many pro and amateur riders who swear by these grips, so I will make the comment that grips must be similar to saddles in the fact that their comfort varies from individual to individual. The idea behind the ERGON grips is to diffuse pressure placed on the ulnar nerve through greater surface area. The reduced pressure should reduce the incidence of cyclist or ulnar's palsy (or the pain in your hands after long rides). However, in my case the grips caused more problems than they solved. I ended up with pain in the hands much sooner in rides, and the shape felt inhibiting to my control of the handlebars, particularly during descents. They also limited my ability to switch braking fingers (brake lever adjustments failed to solve this problem).

I do have a handlebar which has 12 degrees of sweep. This large sweep may contribute to why the grips caused problems, and a more standard bar may put the grips in a better position that would alleviate the problems. However, I prefer my set-up as is, and would rather maintain my control over the bike. As a result, I have reverted back to my original grip selection: OURY.

Cheap, simple, good cushion, and they are available in some pretty kickin' colors to match any scheme (you know, if you are a rider in a plaid team kit who is picky about matching things sometimes...).

The ERGONs did not work for me, but I do urge you to give them a try to make your own decision.

I was going to review some shoes too, but I am getting a little lazy. Perhaps another day...

Feel free to contact me if you have any specific questions about these components, or anything else... I tend to have more opinions then I need. And I hope these reviews gave you something to think about as you consider upgrades (like XX... if you can even get it. And on that point, 10spd? Really?).

Stoopid 50!

2009-06-18T18:07:00.008-04:00

Sometimes I make silly decisions. This weekend, I surpassed silliness and did something that was just downright stoopid. (Note: no more puns from this point on)

As of last week, I had planned to skip the Stoopid 50 mtb race held in Rothrock State Forest. This decision was mostly due to my performance at Tour de Tykes, which left me beaten and broken. After some decent hours on the bike early in the week, I started to feel a little stronger. But my final decision was still to skip the race, so Saturday I went out with some coworkers for a couple drinks.

I woke up early on Sunday, the day of the race, in order to drop off a jersey so a shop friend. I had only 4 or 5 hours of sleep, and I opted out of breakfast. The race was set to start at 9am. After hanging out for about half an hour I talked to Chris Scott, the organizer. Sometime during this conversation I had convinced myself that I really DID want to race. It was hard to argue against... being a local meant I knew all the trails, and if I didn't finish I could go back and ride parts I missed at any time. The only worry was the fact that I only had a single ride over four hours this year, and it was in February. Fitness be damned, at 8am I drove like hell back to my house to grab my bike and a couple bottles, and then raced back to Tussey to start my race.

I distinctly remember my teammate Clay Chiles come up to me and just start laughing as I prepped for the race. Rightfully so, it was a crazy last minute decision. No breakfast, no sleep, no hydration, and certainly no fitness. Did I really think this was a good idea?

As the race went off, I settled into a comfortable pace climbing up Bear Meadows. At this point in the game, my only goal was to finish the race. Looking back, I wish I had pushed the opening climb a little harder to get ahead of more people coming into the singletrack. We hit one of my favorite trails, Tussey Ridge, and I found that people who can't ride rocks can really slow you down on trails that, well, have rocks. Regardless, the view was spectacular and I couldn't have asked for a better day to be on the bike.

I was enjoying my ride despite the slow pace, and actually felt good on the bike for once! On the Tussey Extension, Sparky (Freeze Thaw Cycles) went down and smashed his face up pretty good. Despite the brutal injury, he muscled on and finished the race. Damn impressive! The rocks can certainly do some damage though...

Pacing was surprisingly steady, and I was doing a good job to keep hydrated (which I'm usually really bad at). As more and more miles passed under my tires, I realized that I could actually put in a decent time and reestablished my goal to finish under 6 hours. I hit the first aid station and had a nice smooth transition. I only spent about 4 minutes at each of the aid stations, which really helped me maintain my pace and not slack off.

The second of the three sections of the race was by far my favorite. A nice big loop through Cooper's Gap made sure to hit tons of great, rocky singletrack. At around mile 30 I could tell I had been riding a while, but was still feeling strong and riding clean lines.

After the second aid station, I started on the last 15 miles of the race. Reviewing my times and pace, I realized that I was doing well enough to reevaluate my goal for a second time. I know was aiming to finish in under 5 hours and 30 minutes. The last section of the course was filled with long, grueling fireroad and trail climbs. Nothing technically difficult, but by this stage in the game every little rock was a major nuisance. I could feel my form and positioning on the bike start to deteriorate a little after mile 40, but it was not significant enough to worry. I was also getting some numbness in the hands, but once again I was able to ride through it. The only thing I could think about by this point was the fact that I was actually going to finish the race.

I reached the top of the last climb, and realized that the final mile or two of trail was Old Laurel, which is a very rocky descent that beats you up even when you're fresh. I did not want to risk crashing in the last mile of the race, so I eased up a bit on my descending. Even so, I was moving down that trail. I crossed the finish line to find out that I had met and exceded every goal for the day. The finishing time? 5 hrs 23 min. This placed me 55th Overall and 29th in the Men Open category.
I went from having one of my worst races ever at Tour de Tykes to having my best race ever at the Stoopid 50. For next year I am setting the lofty goal of breaking the 5 hour mark. I also was astounded with how the rest of the Freeze Thaw team performed. Vicki Barclay took 1st place in the open women, and Matt Ferrari was 3rd in the SS class!

Now that I have proven that I can actually find fitness somewhere in these legs, I am excited to see what the rest of the season has to offer. I actually feel like a Cat 1 too, and that is what we call progress!

Velodrome and Tour de Tykes

2009-06-10T12:49:00.009-04:00

This past weekend marked the end of a extended hiatus from racing due to hip problems. The problems still persist on and off, but are significantly better than before. However, the lack of riding has left me in less than spectacular form, as one would expect. To combat the state of lethargy that marked the recent months, I opted for not one, but two days of racing to shock my system back in to motion. Nothing like a little overcompensation for lost time eh?

Friday afternoon I headed out to Trexlertown with some teammates to hang out with old Penn State Cycling folk, who conveniently lived about 200 yards from the Velodrome. I also had the opportunity to hang out with people much more dedicated to cycling than I will perhaps ever be. People such as Tash, who is part of the New Zealand national team, and Iggy Silva, who is the young, talented rider from Rock Racing and also the U23 National team. Watching these riders on the track was truly an amazing experience, but I digress.

On saturday we were awoken early by Iggy's coach, who stopped by to get directions to a race in Lancaster. After a breakfast at the diner, we headed over to the velodrome for a full day of racing. To keep it simple, I did not do too spectacular, but the track proved to be one of the more exciting days of racing I had in a while. By the end of the day I felt very comfortable with the dynamics of the track, but I kept making the mistake of boxing myself in down low during final laps, thus preventing me from having space to sprint. Now that I learned that mistake, I should be able to do a bit better the next few times out. But for my second day ever racing on the track, I was happy with my results.

But the big event for the weekend was the Tour de Tykes mountain bike race in Danville, PA. Originally, I had planned to head down to the Massanutten Hoo-Ha, but travel arrangements made the PA racing weekend much more cost-effective and convenient. After the previous day of racing at the velodrome, I was suprised to find that my legs felt pretty good... or so I thought.

The expert/elite race was 18.5 miles, but had a claimed elevation change of 4500 ft. To add to the fun, it was a hot day. The course was a single loop, with no real good locations for a feed, so I made the decision to carry three bottles. I found out later, this would not be enough for me.

The race started out on a fireroad climb. After about a mile of climbing, I discovered that my legs had not recovered quite as well as I was hoping, and that I had no substantial power. The climb continued for another mile or two, and was a very brutal start to what would be a very long race. More climbing on open fire roads, the sun blaring down, ensured that I would down water fairly quickly, and before a quarter of the race was over I was well into my second bottle.

As I reached mile 10, sluggishly pushing the granny gear up some steep inclines, I took the final sip from my third and last bottle. Halfway through the race, and I had drained all my resources. I pressed on regardless of my hydration status. Shortly after began the cramps.

Cramps come in a few different flavors. The easy ones to deal with are the ones you know are coming. You start feeling a small tinge in one leg, so you back off a little, but eventually the cramp catches up with you. These you can usually stretch out pretty quickly, or even ride through. The bad cramps are the ones you don't suspect. You're riding along, often hitting a good pace, and then bam. Full leg seizure. These are the cramps that I had, and they took a few minutes each to get through.

No water, legs seizing up every so often, stomach problems, heat, and no power in the legs. This was how I returned to the racing scene. I came through the finish line in an embarrassingly slow time. 2 hours and 53 minutes for a 18.5 mile course. The leaders of the Expert 19-34 class had a solid 40 minutes on me. I was on the edge of delirium coming through the finish. The volunteer was telling me something and handed me something. I think I heard "shwag" somewhere in his talk, but I was too out of it to process anything he told me. I then lowered my head in shame, and rolled over to the main area of the venue to find some water, food, and shade.

I knew this year was going to be tough when I upgraded to Expert/Cat1, but I seem to be making steps backwards rather than forwards when it comes to my fitness. If any of you more experienced folk have suggestions on how to get out of a rut (other than not riding, I've taken enough time off thanks to the hip) I would greatly appreciate the advice.

On a lighter note, I did get my new crankset in!

I decided to try a mountain double set-up for a few reasons. First, except for this past weekend, the little ring is useless. Second, getting rid of external bottom bracket brings the cranks in a little more, which should alleviate the hip problem. I still have to find the right derailleur, but a preliminary test ride shows promising results. I'll give an appropriate review of it once I get some miles in.

The Stoopid 50 is this Sunday, which I will be entering regardless of how poorly I'm riding...

Rough Around the Edges

2009-04-29T18:46:00.004-04:00

This post will seem a lot like someone just sitting around and whining because, well, that is exactly what it is!

There are some days that we are reminded of our vulnerability t0 physical debilitation, repetitive disappointment, and just plain dumb luck. The past two weeks have been full of all three components which have left me severely stressed as I close out my semester and commit to the racing season.

I will begin with the frustrating, yet less worrisome, bothers of the past two weeks. Now to preface this, I have been fairly lucky throughout the last eight months in that I have only gotten about two or three flats with a fair amount of riding. Thinking I had broken my bad riding Karma with my consistent miles, I was not thinking about this too much. That is until I started getting flats again. They (meaning witty people who make proverbs) say that all bad things come in threes. Well, I'm pretty sure someone in the "bad things" department skipped a few days of basic math, because after my 8th flat in two weeks I realized that the "three" theory was abandoned a while back. I was lucky enough to get two of these flats during the Greenbrier race this past weekend, even after going tubeless, causing me to drop out shortly after the first lap.

This here is a picture of my tire, which explains why my tubeless setup was insufficient in preventing my DNF. What you see here is my tire, with my tire lever through the top of the lever. As I am sure most of you know, in a good tire there should be no opportunity for any object to poke through, as it is an enclosed object when inflated (you know, to keep the air in or something). But during the time that I was in my element, catching back some time on rough, rocky decents, I managed to slice through the top of my tire in two locations. I took my time putting a tube in because I know there was no chance it would last through the entire race. It didn't. I got only a couple miles down the trail when I flatted a second time.

That has been one of the recurring features of the past few weeks: endless flats. Up the tire pressure? Flat. Lower the pressure? Flat. Tubeless? Flat. New tires? Flat. Pray to the Buddha for enlightenment? Flat.

But even if I hadn't flattened during the race, there was a much bigger problem lurking which would have greatly hindered me. Along with my misfortune of flats, I have also had the misfortune of my body vehemently protesting activity. My hip flexors have been flairing up lately during rides, causing a severe reduction in power. After a back ally diagnosis, I find out I may have a degenerated disc in my lumbar spine and a case of snapping hip syndrome which is resulting in bursitis. If you know anything about these terms, you know none of this is good. I also found out I have the flexibility of a steel rod in my spine, which is not helping the situation. As a result, I can't seem to ride for any longer than an hour without my hip seizing up with inflammation. I am beginning a stretching regimen to try to help this ailment, but it is a slow process indeed.

To go along with a failing body and the overarching fear of flats, I just can't seem to get into a rhythm while riding these past few days. My overall ability to turn the pedals is mediocre, and my cornering is barbaric at best. The final diagnosis: I'm stale, mentally and physically.

Of course my ego won't let me take time off the bike completely, so I will most likely race this weekend at the Michaux Maximus. Though in this shape I don't expect to have a good result... which is unfortunate because Michaux is the style of course that actually suits me (super rocky and technical).

If these things don't change soon, it is going to be a long season.

MASS Bike Line @ Fair Hill

2009-04-24T09:13:00.006-04:00

This past Sunday marked the commencement of the Mid-Atlantic Super Series with the opening race at Fair Hill in Elkridge, MD. After a solid week of riding, I was feeling good and ready to race. However, feeling good does not always equate to a good day, as I was to find out during my race.

On Sunday morning, Martin Kell, Clay Chiles, and I packed up the car and started the three hour trek into the flatlands (ie MD). Clay was racing the Sport SS class, while Martin and I were doing the Elite and Expert classes, respectfully. Unfortunately, this discrepancy meant we had to arrive a number of hours early for the Sport race start. After watching the Sport field start, I returned to the car for a quick nap.

Clay is the one in the lime green Freeze Thaw Cycles kit and the green fork.

After my rest, I decided to start warming up for my start. I rode the first half of the 7.5 mile loop and was still feeling pretty decent by this point. The course was stupid fast, with minimal hills and nice, hard-packed dirt. Most of the corners flowed very well and there was almost nothing to make you scrub speed except for one or two rocky entrances to creek crossings. It was going to be a "full throttle" style race.

I met up with Clay as I was heading to the start line to learn that he had won the Sport SS class. After words of congratulations, as well as some heckling, I left him to gloat in his well deserved victory. I received some well-deserved heckling of my own at the start line, when I was berated by members of the SS class I raced with earlier in the year for putting those clicky-hang-down things on my bike (that's central PA vocabulary for "shifters and derailleurs"). I then progressed to my start line, and tried to mentally prepare for the whooping I was about to subject myself to.

We left the start line at a balls-out pace. I was in the upper quarter of our field, sitting about 5 or 6 wheels back. The first mile and a half was open fireroad and riders were constantly battling for position and moving back and forth within the field. I entered the singletrack in the top 10, but my body decided it would start falling apart then and there. At about 2 or 3 miles in, my side started cramping up. This resulted in a distinct reduction in power, and the awesome "scared cat" arching back positioning to reduce stress of my respiratory muscles (it works... sort of...). Luckily, the cramping subsided about halfway through the lap. However, in my attempt to make up for lost time I made a very elementary mistake. As I said previously, there is not much to this course technically. However, there was one decent sized log on the half of the course that I did not preride. And in my haste, I assumed the back side of the log was built up as well as the front side (this log came on a slight uphill, so the back was not visible until you were cresting it). It was, in fact, not built very well on the back side. I came over top of it in very poor form, not being able to decide if I wanted to roll it or jump it, and end up wiping out pretty hard.

As you can see, the crash didn't produce any severe carnage, but it certainly did not help me. The creek crossings also did a fine job of reminded me I crashed by washing out the cuts with every pass...

After quickly picking myself up and hopping back on the bike (and waving to the group of spectators who watched my crash) I continued on with my lap. Having lost a fair deal of positions due to the side cramping, and a couple seconds due to the crash, I had planted the seed in my mind that I was just going to pull out of the race at some point. As I finished my first of three laps, I convinced myself to go out for a second lap. Unfortunately, my body was not happy with this decision, as my lower back started to hurt, further reducing my power. I felt absolutely terrible, and was not able to put any serious effort into the course. At every junction I tried to convince myself to DNF, but somehow I kept overriding the idea and pushed through it. With the weak back, I was passed constantly by plenty of riders. The back issue persisted through the third lap as well.

During the second half of the third and last lap, Ryan Delaney (Potomac Velo Club) caught up to me from the SS category which started 2 minutes back from my start. I got a little bit of motivation and was able to tag on to his wheel for the next couple miles. We passed a few riders, which felt really good after doing nothing but getting passed by other people throughout the race. Finally, we got down to about three miles left in the race. I passed Ryan on a rocky uphill section and somehow found enough strength to push through the back pain and put in a little effort to finish out the race. With a final hard effort through the line, I finished the 22.5 mile race in just over 1 hour 43 minutes. The leader of my race finished in about 1 hour 32 minutes (full results can be viewed here), meaning I was a good deal back. My lap times were very showing of what mental and physical shape I was in during the different portions of the race:

Lap 1- 32:42
Lap 2- 36:24
Lap 3- 34:20

But even more telling are the pictures that go along with the different points in the race:

Here is me during the early stages. Calm, collected, aggressive, good positioning, and just overall well put together.

Now here is me a little later in the race:

Jersey open, not as aggressive in the corner, worn out face, and just in general really sloppy.

Usually I do not dwell on the "if" situations of the race, but IF I had not had the problems with the side cramps and the back giving out, I think I could have finished at least three minutes faster, bumping me up from my 17th place finish to about 13th. So it goes.

The only consolation to the race was that I finished it and did not succomb to the temptation of dropping out. Unfortunately, my bad mood about the race would be perpetuated upon return to central PA, where the dreary 40 degree and raining weather would greet me for the next three days. Between the weather, the bad temperment about the race, and school, I managed to get in a single day of riding, and only rode for a little over an hour due to some hip flexor problems. With basically no riding in me for the week, Greenbrier is going to be a hell of a race this coming weekend...

I was able to get some relaxation time to accomodate my artificial "rest" week in the form of the Penn State Cycling club cookout, where these shananigans took place:

With a group of drunk cyclists, a unicycle, and a trampoline, what did you expect to happen?

Hopefully I can get myself out of this little stagnation period of riding, cause it is going to be a long year if it lasts. At least Greenbrier will have rocks, which is more familiar to me than these fast dirt courses in the flatlands.

When life gives you lemons...

2009-04-13T19:57:00.008-04:00

The old adage tells me to make lemonade, but the advice off of Atmosphere's new album (When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold) strikes me as more appropriate. No matter how you choose to deal with the sour parts of your life, I certainly have come across my fair share of that acidic lemony flavor over the past two weeks. With a 30 hour work week on top of school work and riding, I started to hit the mental wall pretty hard. Riding took the biggest hit and last week I was unable to find time to get on the bike all week. Just as well, I left the IF at Freeze Thaw to put some of those clicky-shifty thingys on. Still waiting for them to set up an account with Middleburn so I can try out some of their mountain double cranksets though...

But there is no use in creating an entire post of my gripes and complaints. A little over a week ago, our crew from the Freeze Thaw Cycles team went out to Marysville for the visitPA.com Mass Team Relay (it had a much longer title, which you can look up for yourself). We were able to put the team together last minute thanks to a midnight phone call from Clay and a more than generous credit limit from Visa. The team was comprised of Clay Chiles, Vicki Barclay, Rachel Lauer, and me. Here are some "borrowed" and cited (all photos from here) photos from the event that will let you pretend like you were there.

As you can tell from the first two photos, the course had some very muddy sections to it. The laps were pretty short, which allowed good heckling opportunities, as well as good beer drinking opportunities. Due to the handicapping on the race (which was half arbitrary and half sensible) we did not really stand a good chance of placing. Therefore, I took personal liberties to maximize the beer drinking component of the race starting immediately after my first lap. I only ended up having to do three laps, one of which I was able to meet my goal of a sub-sixteen minutes lap time. This lap time was seven seconds slower than the best time of my good friend/training parter/TBS liason/doppleganger Mr. Denny Reel, shown below.

Denny has been kicking my ass into shape for the last couple years, and it may be starting to show a bit. I met up with Denny at Shingletown today to take advantage of the good weather. However, someone dealt me a bad hand today as I was on the losing end of two flat tires during the ride and a third flat as we reached the parking lot. So it goes. Tubeless may be in my future again.

But as far as Marysville goes, the handicapping ensured we would do pretty poorly in the results field, but I don't think any of us really cared about that. We all had a good time, got the legs burning a bit, and drank beer. That is a pretty complete event in my book.

After a week off from stresses, I was able to get out for a quick spin on Saturday. With time constraints I was only able to hit the Tuxedo/Tussey Ridge combo, but it ended up being a fantastic ride. I love riding the ridge, but haven't been able to get out to it over the past few months. Yesterday I scoped out the core loop portion of the R3 epic route through Rothrock. The route I rode was only 19 miles, but included almost 3,000 feet of climbing. The entire route is 32 miles with over 5,000 ft of climbing. I would have liked to do more of the full route, but I forgot to include any food with me so I ended the ride after two very satisfying hours. The route did take me down Croyle Run, which is an incredibly fun descent. The last time I rode it was while sweeping the Wilderness 101, so I was not able to enjoy it then. Sunday, however, I was able to take it at full pace and ended with a wide grin on my face. The route was a great change of pace to my usual routes, and I felt strong, so it was another good day.

I will be spending most of my week looking forward to the MASS race at Fair Hill this Sunday. But I am even MORE excited about the week after, which is the Greenbrier race! School just can't finish up quick enough for me right now...

So, what do you do when life gives you lemons? I can't say I know the appropriate answer, but I do know after my citrus overdose it feels good to get back to basics. With school winding down I will be back to the simpler lifestyle of riding and making money, with riding as the top priority. So damn the lemons, I like the way things are shaping up these days.

Feelin' the "Sole" Power

2009-03-25T20:10:00.009-04:00

After an exciting first race weekend in the fast, flatlands of Elkridge, MD, I was really looking forward to getting back into the mountains for some nice long climbs, perpetual overcast, and an abundance of rocks to keep me honest. The latter two would prove to hold true, while the first seemed to suffer due to some incidents I will term as "anti-mechanicals."

The first anti-mechanical occurred last week, when my riding gloves decided to shed their winter coat in favor of a spring-time buzz cut. Here is a depiction of my gloves in their brand-spankin'-new form (note: my gloves were actually white, and had a bad-ass rating of 8.2 out of 10):

As you can see, these are some pretty intense gloves. The carbon fiber shell was a great advantage when pushing the pace through tight corners, as I could punch through trees like a downhill slalom course (they also worked well for coercing pedestrians out of my path when riding out to the trails). However, the fake leather used to hold on the carbon fiber bits had decayed the last few months and finally shuffled off this mortal coil, leaving my precious hand carbonless. The result?

By no means a devastating injury, but certainly a minor annoyance as I keep reopening it ad nauseum.

This week's anti-mechanical is equally as benign, yet even more frustrating. Tuesday I went out to the local Short Track series to loosen up the legs and get in some good hard efforts. Halfway through the warm-up lap my plans were thwarted. What follows is a picture of my right shoe, which has nothing wrong with it.

I was fairly impartial to these shoes. The toe-box was a little tight, the buckles loosened up and fell out once already, and I am well on my way of tearing off the tread on the bottom. The buckles were easily fixed, and the tread wear is expected for the rocky terrain in central PA, but what happened on Tuesday was not a normal problem.

What you are looking at is the left shoe, and the sole of the left shoe. Now, if you are familiar with shoes, as I assume most of you are, you would know that the sole actually belongs on the bottom of the shoe. Clearly, this is not the case. The entire sole of the shoe (it is a carbon sole...) was ripped right off the shoe. As you can imagine, it made the rest of the lap uncomfortable as I had to ride with only a thin piece of cloth between my foot and the pedal. Freeze Thaw will be getting some new kicks in on Friday, so I will be taking a hiatus from the bike until this weekend.

Come to think of it, I always had reservations about carbon fiber on the mountain. Sure, I ran a carbon bar for a year or so, but once I replaced it I never looked back (the new bar was only 20 grams heavier than the lightest carbon bar, even weight weenies can appreciate that). I am utilizing carbon spacers under the stem too, but spacers are not really a high failure point. For now, I'm forgoing any major carbon components (except for the cosmetic carbon under my X0 shifters, it is just too pretty). You had your chance carbon fiber, and you blew it. Harden the "f" up and maybe, just maybe, I'll bring you back... if you're lucky.

Aside from finding ways to mend my broken sole, I was in drastic need of a distraction for the afternoon, which came in the form of the Toothfairy/Cobra himself, Mr. Tim Culbreth. After polishing off a bowl of Mac&Cheese, we jumped in the car and headed out to Shingletown for a quick hike. The trails were in great condition and it was fun to get out to some ridges I don't see on the bike. The sky showed us a questionable forcast, but held off on raining in time for us to finish our hike. We stopped by the castle lookout where Tim took a wonderful long-distance picture of a watertower. He swears it is for a class, but I think he just has an affinity for large, bulbous water containers. Here are two shots I took during the hike. Nothing spectacular, but my photography skills are, as the great proverb says, "like monkeys trying to snatch the moon's reflection on water."
I have been spending a lot of time recently pursuing some new music to complement my library. The most recent additions have been newer albums from reputable artists. I picked up new albums from Animal Collective and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (Merriweather Post Pavilian and It's Blitz! respectively) and have been playing both nonstop. But the real treasure from this week was finding a track by Cannibal Ox that just left me stunned. I am a big fan of the lesser known hip-hop scene, and Cannibal Ox was always a consistent favorite of mine. In the first thirty seconds of the song I realized where the sampling for the beat came from: Jaco Pastorius "Portrait of Tracy." Jaco's instrumental is an incredible complement for a lyrically brilliant track, and I highly suggest you taking a listen. I always appreciate when artists put some thought and depth into their songs, and Cannibal Ox almost never dissapoints.

I certainly hope my words have got you rubbing your Buddhas a bit; if this is the worst of my worries for the week then good fortune is certainly taking a few sole-less, limping strides in my direction. Now, go forth and thrive.

Rockburn Reloaded Race Report

2009-03-23T22:03:00.005-04:00

It's finally here! Mountain bike season started out with a bang (or actually, just a somewhat casual start) with the Rockburn Reloaded USAC race this weekend in Elkridge, MD. After over a year off of serious racing, I was really itching to get back into the competitive scene. I even started to do some of the certain serious racer preparations, as evidenced by this photo:

The large explanation point after the title shows dedication, excitement, and an utter disregard for proper grammar (I later added two more for emphasis). So, after a week of being too antsy to progress my knowledge of physiology in the academic setting, I packed up the car and headed to the lowlands for some good 'ole racing.

The reconnaissance work I gathered from various sources pointed to a day of fast, non-technical racing. However, much debate persisted with the likes of the single-speeder contingency as to the proper gear ratio for the course. I met David Kelnberger (Fisher 29er Crew) at the registration booth and we both decided that a 34x18 set-up would be ideal for our 29ers, figuring that the course had very minimal climbing. My only other option was a 20 tooth cog, which I refused to run to avoid spinning out in a blatantly fast course. A short time prior to race start we were both informed that the climbs were a bit more numerous than either of us were led to believe. Being the stubborn old and young mules that we are, David and I dragged our arguably overgeared mule-legs to the start line without changing anything. Unfortunately, I would be the one to suffer from this mistake, whereas David would thrive with a first place finish.

The race went off with grandiose words of encouragement from the official. I can almost remember verbatim his inspirational words of "Ok, um, you guys can go." So much for gun shots, whistles, and horns. With little hesitation, we clipped in and headed up the starting climb through the timing tent. With only five starters in the SS class, we were sure to have an interesting event.

In my eagerness to get moving, I made the personal decision to go out hard in the beginning of the race. I was able to develop a few seconds lead on the field in the first mile or two, but I reached a point where I was neither gaining time on the field nor loosing time back to them. I filed the attempt as a failure and slowly drifted back to the field to stay safely in the pack. However, my attempt did offer a wonderful photo opportunity to display pridefully my new team kit.

http://www.cyclingdirt.org/videos/coverage/view_video/234805-2009-rockburn-reloaded/164359-cat-1-single-speed-start

If you were wondering, plaid is the new argyle, and to my knowledge Freeze Thaw Cycles is the only team up to date on this new fashion trend (ah, shameless plug for the shop...).

With our whole group in tow, we settled in to a pretty fast pace. The course proved to be favorable to the hammerheads, as the only technical features were sand filled corners and a section of roots which offered minimal problems. The climbs were either short and steep 40 meter power efforts or shallower, progressive climbs, but nothing that was too daunting.

The majority of the changes in field position for the single speed class came down to mechanicals. Halfway through the first lap one rider flatted out and refused our offers of a spare tube. Down to four racers, we muscled along. Towards the end of the first lap, another racer snapped his chain after cresting a hill and flipped over his bars onto the concrete. With two riders out, the rest of the race was just determining what the podium will look like. Ryan Delaney (Potomac Velo Club) led our trifecta into the second lap, with me in second and David Kelnberger in third (though position was unimportant, as we were all wheel-to-wheel). Feeling comfortable with my position, as well as my ability to hold pace, I focused on being patient and waiting for someone in our group to make a move. Unfortunately, I would not have time to witness the move. Two-thirds through the second lap I flatted and had to let Dave and Ryan go. I was able to fix the flat quickly, but the remainder of the race was to be a futile attempt at catching up. David would later make an attack on the third lap to pull away from Ryan (who also suffered from the indignity of a flat later in the race).

With only one 16g Co2 cartridge, I returned to the race with a rear tire that was a little softer than I would have preferred, but I was back in nonetheless. I was able to maintain the original pace through most of the third lap, but I definitely began to feel tired from the 34x18 gear on the short, steep ups. By the fourth lap, my legs had been beat to a pulp from the high gear, and I started to test the precarious balance between going fast enough to not lose too much time to 2nd while not going too fast where I would cramp. The end of the fourth lap proved to be increasingly painful as my muscle contractions mimicked piercing needles. As I rounded the turn to the finishing climb/straight, I went out of saddle to do a nice strong (and entirely unnecessary) sprint through the line. It hurt.

Although their were only five starters, I was still very happy with my third place finish. Rockburn provided me a great way to get back into the racing scene and get used to the Cat1 fields in one humbling weekend. I was hoping the race promoters would post the finishing times so I could compare them to the other PRO/Cat1 racers, but when the registration fee is only $20 I'm sure cuts have to be made. However, Ryan will back me up when I say that cutting costs by taking away the food cart shortly after the end of the last race (ie before the racers can get food) does not fly well.

I have about a month before my next race, which gives me plenty of time to work on some of my limiters before the season gets into full swing. Primarily, I need to work on sustaining my high end for longer periods of time. I realize that it may take a while to get used to the longer course lengths for the Cat1 class, but I should be able to make the adjustment. I may even start the ever-dreaded training regimen to maximize my form, though don't hold your breath. I will, however, be looking forward to the PA races to take advantage of my technical riding abilities. Fast courses are fun, but I can take advantage of some rocky terrain to make up for some lack of fitness I may have on some of the more veteran riders.

Rockburn provided a great opportunity to jump into the 2009 season, and I am very glad I was able to make it down to the event. I ended up meeting a lot of cool folk, and was able to catch up with a few familiar faces I had not seen in years. Great thanks to the race promoters for all their effort! Hopefully they will be back next year with a few of the kinks worked out. Also, great job to Colt from CyclingDirt for the race coverage!

As for me, it feels damn good to be back.

Moeny can't buy happiness, but it can buy shpants

2009-03-05T21:24:00.005-05:00

I happen to be a big supporter of "balance." Recently, I have felt very uneven as I had no job, yet kept finding money to spend. You can't really blame me though, if deficit spending is good enough for large banks, it's good enough for me. But my economic karma caught up with me, and I realized that I must correct my wrongs of unemployment in order to be content. Now I am not only working, but I am working two jobs.

Unfortunately, I am terrible with money. So in celebration of having work (and thus, money) I went ahead and ordered not one, but two pairs of shpants. Hopefully my employers will appreciate the great lengths I transverse to stay on top of fashion.

On another high-pitched, tone-deaf note, I stopped in to Freeze Thaw Cycles the other day to confer with the fearless Jordyn about racing stuff this year. After committing to racing consistently, I was presented with a very colorful team kit to wear proudly as I get blown out the back of the field.

For those of you who are not so fashion-savvy, let me inform you that plaid is the new argyle, which was the new pink, which overcame white, who dominated black kits back in 1983 (dates subject to b.s.).

If nothing else, I will be the most stylish DFL to grace the Cat 1 MTB fields (something to be truly proud of).

Seriously, I am very excited to be racing Cat 1 this year (old EXPERT class). I was stagnating at the top of the SPORT field for a while, and upgrading definitely gave me a kick in my fat ass to get riding more. Perhaps I will actually start training correctly too, but I want to wait until life settles down a little bit more before tackling that goal.

And speaking of training... I finally did some work to promote my future! Today I applied for an internship at the Student Fitness Assessment Center here on campus for the fall semester. I am starting to realize that many normal career choices for Kinesiology do not really live up to the lifestyle I hope to lead. I am beginning to get some ideas of what I want to do after I graduate though, so I am going to start getting in touch with the people who know best about these issues for some sagacious wisdom. Lets just hope I haven't burned all of my bridges before I remember how to swim...

Tomorrow I am going to try to hit a lap or two out at the short track trails before heading into class. After tomorrow I will officially be on break, and may stop making excuses to being physically active. The scary part is I actually feel in better shape then I have ever been this time of year. So although I haven't really been doing that training thing, I have been riding enough to keep my legs healthy (I just may have some potential left in me yet...).

Off to study for midterms...

The roof, the roof, the roof is on fire... (we don't need no water because the insurance money is worth so much more to us)

2009-02-22T19:10:00.000-05:00

Usually I find a majority of my days to be cursed with a lackluster demeanor which drags the week along. However, the past few days have proven to be memorable, but for all the wrong reasons.

Thursday, I continued on my epic pursuit of fitness by actually riding my bike. I originally planned to ride out through Shingletown and continue on up to Tussey, and was aiming for about a 4 hour ride. However, at the campsite on Shingletown I was rewarded with the following spectacular site:

A little display of ominous clouds pretty much sealed the deal to end my ride. So I turned my ass around and descended the gap. The trails were in terrible condition though, as the snow from the day before had a very wet consistency and was unwilling to give up a little traction. But the soggy snow was the least of my complaints; the ride home was subject to strong, gusting headwinds for the whole way back. Eventually I became mentally broke and was very happy to arrive back home after pushing through campus like a sloth. This was a sharp contrast to my ride on Tuesday, where the trail conditions led to perhaps one of my fastest rides out in Shingletown and the ridge.

After the ride I engaged in my traditional, yet highly controversial, "refueling" process which involved consuming an entire Digorno pizza. My diet is clearly one of the main limiters to my fitness, but I doubt I have the resolve to change that anytime soon.

Friday was the 20th of February. This statement seems pretty obvious and unneccesary, but becomes incredibly important when I tell you I thought SATURDAY was the 20th, and even more important when I tell you I scheduled an exam on the 20th for my statistics course. This means that I did not think about my exam until Saturday morning, only to find out I had missed my exam altogether. No high GPA for me this semester...

Friday was also the day our electric bill arrived at our house. Lucky for us, the company increases the cost of energy every month during the winter, so inspite of maintaining a constant power usage we get to pay at least 15% more every month, bringing us to over $200 for the month. I still have no job, and no money, so this will be quite a difficult bill for me to pay right now.

I did make a valiant attempt to correct my unemployment today, but I have high doubts any of the places I applied to will hire me. The one place that seemed most promising is only hiring for summer. Now, as I proved earlier, I am not too good with dates and calendars, but I am pretty sure that the summer is a number of weeks (and a number of electric and cable bills) away from now, so the prospect is of little relevance to my current situation.

I am not putting a lot of effort into this post because, well hell no one is reading this anyway, and I am just plain worn down from the weekend. As a result, I will leave you all with a picture of my fixie that I took while practicing how to be homeless, as well as a picture of my new favorite photoshopped moment:

Photo from http://www.cracked.com/article_17079_20-moments-that-would-have-improved-great-movies.html

They have that on computers now?

2009-02-19T11:15:00.000-05:00

Well ladies and gentlemen, the time has come for me to join the infamy and glory of blogging on the interweb. After the downfall of the late, great Mt. Nittany Wheelworks, I found myself with prodigious amounts of free time on my idol hands. Instead of utilizing this time to do what some may consider "important" things (this includes furthering my education, riding my bike, or even looking for a new line of work), I continued to live a fairly delecate existence consisting of syndicated sci-fi shows, banjo picking, and solitaire. If you doubt my devotion to such a listless lifestyle, I have the rotten, mold-ridden fruits of my efforts here:

Notice the "Games played" line... clearly I have been very busy since January... However, I decided to retire from my professional Solitaire career in hopes of more lucrative (or just simply more interesting) ventures.

My first foray into a new lifestyle began yesterday, when I decided to devote my strikingly capable body to clinical testing. During my Cardiovascular Physiology course, I became the guinea pig for a Venous Occlusion Plethysmography, which is a fancy way of saying "blood went into your arm and we're gonna find out how much ended up there." After that, I swung on over to the General Clinical Research Center in Noll Lab to see what other forms of torture they had for me. If you have never been to this part of campus, all the clinicians look more or less like this guy and walk around with 6 inch syringes for no apparent purpose. But I looked past the madness of the Elmore Wing and put my name on the list along with my peer Spencer to undergo some various testing. After a significant amount of paperwork, the nurse practitioner came in to take my blood pressure, height, weight, and hip measurements (luckily these measurements were in metric units, which we Americans don't believe in, and therefore they don't really matter). After that they took my blood and used some weird device to measure light absorption of my skin. Then they handed me a brand spankin' new $20 bill and sent me on my way. Penn State is finally paying me back for my education!

Although that study was not as interesting as I was hoping for, I did get my name put in for a study on control of leg blood flow. The cool part? I will get paid to get a VO2 test! It is almost enough to make me want to do this "training" thing this year, especially now that I am racing with the fast guys (Cat1), but I certainly don't want to get ahead of myself.

I won't call it training, but I do need to get on the bike today. Hopefully the snow/ice storm yesterday didn't put the trails in too poor a condition, 'cause I have been itching to hit the ridge for a while now.

I'll be sure to spill more words over these pages later. Stay tuned.