a hike on the trails, a swim in the lake and a busted up shin

Friday afternoon I was running around trying to get all my errands done before work and still get in a short hike with the dogs to burn some of their energy. Needless to say the day got away from me and I ended up having a lot less time to hike than originally planned. I knew if I didn't get them out of the house even for just a short hike they might tear down the place and I might not get any sleep the next morning coming off of nightshift.
I decided in an effort to get the most out of our hike we would hit the closet trail to the house, a trail I'm really not fond of due to it's off camber sections and little to no access to water even though the trail runs parallel to the lake along most of the hike. That side of the lake is really rocky and there is almost no shoreline. It's been a while since we've hiked this trail and Friday reminded me just why that is. The trail to begin with is poorly constructed but if you hike all the way to the end will take you to a beach area great for dog swimming. The problem was we didn't have time to hike all the way to the beach, but some hiking was better than none.
The entire hike Moonshine was constantly looking for a place to go for a swim and eventually she did. She's a pretty agile dog and has scaled some hillsides that have made me wonder if there are goats somewhere in her family tree. Jackson on the other hand is as clumsy as it gets, I really have to keep an eye on him sometimes or he can really get himself hurt.
As we were heading back to the car Jackson followed Moonshine down to the water as she continued to search for a good hole to jump in. I don't think he had any intention of getting in but as approached the water he stepped on a slick rock and in he went. I didn't see it happen but I did hear the splash. Not really much of a swimmer he flopped around in the water with was filled with large rocks trying to get out. His only exit point was a large slap of slick rock too steep and slick for him to climb up. Every time he tried to scale it he would make it about a third of the way up and then slide back into the water below. I tried reaching him from the rock but he was too far away from me. I also tried to coax him to walk up the shore but the rocks were so big and jagged he refused to move after a couple of failed attempts to walk left him falling down. I took a chance and climbed down the rock after I found a small ledge to step on but the rock was too steep and slick for me to drag Jackson's 100 lbs up. In an effort to find another route I slipped and stepped in the water soaking my right foot. Irritated I climbed back out and tried again to get him to walk down the shore but he still refused. After a couple more times of him trying to climb the rock and falling in the water I climbed back down to try and calm him down before he hurt himself.
While I was trying to help Jackson, Moonshine had found an old frisbee and brought it to me tossing it around in my face as I was trying to soothe Jackson. At the time it was really annoying but looking back on it now it was funny that all she cared about was playing when Jackson was all to hell and having a nervous breakdown. I knew once I got him home he would be reminding us of his traumatic experience for a while.
After another failed attempt of trying to get Jackson back up the rock I decided to climb back up and look for another option. As I turned around on the rock my foot slipped again but instead of land on my feet in the water I fell down the rock and landed on my back completely soaking myself and smashing my shin, hip & shoulder into the rocks below. If anyone would have seen us they would really have been entertained.
Completely soaked I climbed back out check myself for cuts and bruises and found only minor scrapes. At this point I was starting to stress as I was close to running late for work and it was looking like my only option was to go back down to the water, get in and force Jackson to swim around to the better exit area. Not really wanting to go that route I tried one final time to get him to make the trek by himself. Instead he made one more attempt to scale the rock but this time he managed to get halfway up and not slide down. I ran over to him and was able to grab his collar and drag him the rest of the way up and out of the water.
Later that evening what I thought were just minor scrapes and bruises turned into some really good sized lumps and a nice dark red bruise on my hip about the size of a golfball.
The next time I'm running short on time and the dogs are in need of some exercise I think we'll stick to a walk around the neighborhood on the leash.

too much to do

Too much to do around the house today to write anything for ya so here's a sweet video for your viewing pleasure.

ps. Alan told me today he might come down to the HOT.

mother nature, please don't let me down

With less than 2 weeks away I think I'm ready, well as ready as I'll ever be since I really don't train. The 12 Hours of the Hill of Truth is just around the corner and I'm pretty excited. Andy, Anthony and I, 3/4 of GRT Racing scoped out this year's race course last Sunday and it looks like it should be a fun fast course with the exception of the dreaded Hill of Truth climb. It wouldn't be the same race with out it so I'm not gonna suggest they remove it from any future courses. It's a nasty loose climb that gets steeper as you go, it's an energy sucker that will leave your heart racing and your legs burning. Every year I hope to clean the climb at least once but as loose as it is especially on the steepest section near the end I don't see it happening. I know deep down I could clean it if the dirt was free of debris and hard packed but hey this is mountain biking. I'm not really sure it's faster to ride it vs walking it but it would be nice to say I did it. I feel pretty strong right now. I'm not as lean as I would like to be but I don't feel over weight either, I just feel, well normal. Too many post ride stops at Papas & Beer or the Mellow Mushroom is part of that problem but hey what a better way to end a good long ride.

I spent a good portion of the day yesterday washing the ECO in preparation for the HOT only to see it get rained on last night. It never fails every time I wash one of our vehicles it rains, I hope I didn't just jinx our weather for next week, we really need a dry year this year. I really don't want to race in the mud again, even if it keeps all the sandbaggers home and out of the Sport category.

So I've got three rides on the new Jet9, I'm tempted to call it, or her Vana since that's the official color of the frame but I'm not sure just yet. Anyway with three rides on the Jet9 I've yet to drop the chain running it as a 1x9. Normally I run the N-Gear Jump Stop chain guide which is simple, cheap and works very well but the rear shox mount design will not allow it. So I'm looking into other options like some of the more fancier chain guide systems out there that mount within the bottom bracket and also incorporate a half moon style bash guard to save a bit of weight. They're a bit more on the pricey side but they look cool and do double duty with chain protection and weight savings. The Jet9 currently weighs in at 27lbs., just barely and I would like to keep it that way. I wish I could post some pics as examples but blogger says no image uploads till 5pm due to maintenance, sheesh.

Two rides are on tap for tomorrow, I didn't mean to schedule two rides in one day but hey it happens. The first one is a Creeper run with some co-workers and then a night ride @ Warriors if I get some takers. I'm really trying to make the night ride a weekly thing and draw a big crowd but it's been slow going so far. We had 4 riders show last week which isn't bad but no bites yet this week. After this weekend I'm taking some time off the bike until next Saturday in an effort to have fresh legs for the race. I was toying with the idea of racing the Fall Fear held at Hungry Mother State Park just up the road a bit but working nights this weekend would make it tough both racing and working on little or no sleep. I think I will skip this one yet again and hope for a free weekend again next year.

The Hero cam will be in full effect this year at the HOT as long as the weather holds out. I've yet to film a race and I've had good intentions before but fell short due to crappy weather or crazy head feeling due to allergies. Seeing dead people really makes filming and riding difficult. I've got a bunch of good ideas for this year's race and if they turn out well it will make those of you who skipped this year's race wish you hadn't.

vana white and big wheels

Today I finally got around to snapping a few pics of the new Jet9. I have to say I'm quite pleased with it. It's still a bit of a work in progress as I continue to dial it in but I think I'm really gonna like it. I did two rides at Warriors last week in an attempt to get all the bugs worked out before I took it out on any road trips.

I have to admit the Jet is one pretty bike. Originally I was supposed to get a Kermit Green one, that was the color that was being discounted but some where along the line there was a screw up and there were no Kermit Green frames in my size so they offered me the Vana White for the same price. If I had my pick of any color it would have been the white so it was a double score for me.

Once I finished the build I picked it up expecting it to weigh a ton but I was pleasantly surprised at how light it felt for a full squish 29er. I though it would be at least 30 lbs but I weighed it today on the bathroom scale with pedals and it showed 27 lbs. Not bad I thought, especially since there are several components that could stand to be upgraded.

Sunday a few peeps and I headed down to Knoxville for a pre-ride of this years HOT course. Really the course was nothing new, I've ridden just about every trail Haw Ridge has to offer and the course is fairly similar to some of the previous courses we've raced in the past. Any excuse to get out of town and ride something differnt is a good excuse in my book and the weather couldn't have been any better. I took the Jet along for this ride curious to see how it would feel in case I decided to race it on a lap or two a couple of weeks from now. It definitely made the big rocks and roots seem much smaller on Soccer, one of the more technical sections of this years course. I'll probably rock the Air9 for most of the race but the Jet9 might see some action later in the day, I have a feeling it will turn some decent laps times if called into action.

pedal damn it!

Remember a couple of weeks back when I was doing a bit of whining about wanting a too many bikes and I couldn't make up my mind on what to do. Yeah I've had the itch for a full suspension 29er for a while now. I know I said a couple of years ago I would save a full suspension for when I get too old to ride anything else. Well I'm not too old or even anywhere close so I guess I'll have to eat those words now. As I pondered on a few different models and brands I did some price checking at my local bike shop and a couple of days later I was at home watching TV with Mel when her cell phone rang. The caller on the other end had a special message for me. There was a closeout special on the Niner JET 9's at a price I could not say no too. I knew this was one of those times when I had to give an answer right then and there because it wouldn't be around the next day. This is what helped me make my decision.

A week and a half later a 2010 "Vana White" JET 9 was in my hands. The only downside to this purchase was the demise of the Karate Monkey. In order to go ahead with the build up I had to strip the Monkey down and use what non singlespeed parts it had. The next part was one of the toughest things I've had to do in a while, sell the Karate Monkey. It's something that's been on my mind for some time and while the KM and I have spent alot of time together some good some bad I will shed a tear when I hand it over to it's new owner. I did sell it to a certain Local Cult Hero who I have no doubt will build it back up into something great and show it the love it deserves. When I told Melinda I sold the KM she was actually disappointed in me, how many of you can say that about your wife? I feel I made the right decision and if I decide to build another singlespeed in the future it will be another steel 29er for sure.

Back to the new ride, I pondered on whether I should go big and get the RIP 9 with more travel but after some thought I figured the lighter less travel version was more my style. I've had the JET 9 in my position for almost a week now and last night was my first actual trail ride on it. The picture at the top is the only actual photo I've taken of it yet. Why? I've been so busy with work I've barely had time to put it together and last nights ride showed just how that can effect a proper build. I really only had time to do a little here and a little there. This build was my first ever complete build of a geared bike with no help what so ever. I may have to enlist the help of a real mechanic later this week if I can't get the bugs worked out.

The first ride aboard any bike always tends to be riddled with multiple stops making small changes and making notes of bigger ones that will need to be done at home. I realized yesterday while suiting up at the trailhead that I had left my multi tool at home so if any problems were to arise I would be walking out. One problem showed up right off the bat. During one of the many test/adjustment laps in the yard I had forgotten to retighten the rear shifter pod so through out the entire ride it moved and bounced around everytime I shifted gears or ran over something in the trail. Basically it rattled around the whole time like a bag full of empty cans on the way to the recycle bin. Next I realized my seat was too low and too far forward, I think this is what contributed to my lower back pain through the whole ride. During the ride I passed two guys who both were riding with they're seats too low, much lower than mine. It's funny how much a thing so small can make such a huge difference in the way you feel on the bike. About 4.5 miles into the ride my right crank arm began to loosen up. Eventually it go so bad that I had to cut the ride short and push it out. The crank arm wasn't a problem on the Monkey so I must have added too many spacers or something. I've yet to research this problem.

The first ride aboard a new bike can be kinda irritating but I try not to let it influence my opinion of the bike because it was all my fault. Even though I was riding an ill fitting bike that was rattling with every bump in the trail I was pleased with the way it smoothed out all the rough stuff. I played around with the Pro Pedal on the rear shox but with it turned off the bike still climbed better than I expected. The only thing I've found that I don't like is that it's hard to flip the Pro Pedal switch during the ride because it's hidden behind the water bottle mount. I'm not sure how much I'll actually be switching it back and forth but I may end up removing the bottle mount in favor of a CamelBak.

I'm off all this week so I plan to really spend some quality time with the JET dialing it in and figuring it out. Hopefully I'll get around to snapping a few pics tomorrow but who knows, my day is going to be very busy preparing for the NTMBA Poker Ride.

If you don't have plans for your Saturday afternoon yet go ahead and load up your bike and the kids and head over to Warriors Path Mountain Bike trails for the 1st Annual NTMBA Poker Ride fundraiser. All the proceeds go back to the trails which you and I know don't build themselves.

Check out the website here for more info and details.

What a great day it was on Sunday, the weather was beautiful, the trails were in perfect condition and I was with Melinda and a great group of peeps riding @ Dupont State Forest. Thanks to Richard H. who decided he wanted to get in a good ride for his birthday, I was more than happy to assist him in his B-day wish.

I really don't have alot of great pics to share from the ride as I've posted so many over the last couple of years. I spent the day just enjoying the scenery and the ride rather than fiddling with a camera. There were 3, yes 3, action cams filming during the ride and not a single one of them was mine. I did get mine back in time to take it on the trip but I opted to leave it at home. I am looking forward to seeing other people's version of the sweet singletrack Dupont has to offer. You know who you are and there is no sense in wasting time and money on a camera if your not going to share the footage with the rest of us. Let's see it!

I wasn't sure how big the turn out was going to be yesterday but I was really surprised at the rather large group we had. I think there were around 15 or 16 riders and about half of them were sporting the new NTMBA kits.

Coming up this weekend, the 1st annual NTMBA Poker Ride on Sat Oct 16th. Come out enjoy the ride & free food, all the proceeds go to a good cause. Building sweet singletrack trails, raise your hand if you think we don't need anymore trails.

I didn't think so, the more the better!

Sunday the plan is to head over to Knoxville for a little Haw Ridge action. Hopefully the organizers of the HOT will have the race course posted up so we can do a little pre-ride action.

changes are a coming

Some big changes going on around here but unfortunately it's too early to say anything. I've had trouble in the past with big changes in my life but I think this one will be a good one, hopefully I won't regret it. If your wondering I didn't quit my job, I'm not going back to school and we're not moving, I'm talking about bike changes. As of right now, if things don't work out I can always go back to the way they were. I did make the Local Cult Hero an offer on a straight up trade that could change that but he's yet to acknowledge me. I'll talk more on the move I made when things are more permanent.


I attended another MSG cyclocross race this weekend but only for a few minutes. Seeing the races has really made me want to throw my hat back into the ring. My first experience with cyclocross was aboard my old Surly 1x1 singlespeed mountain bike. It really wasn't the best weapon to choose especially since I was racing folks with gears. I'd do my passing on the climbs and techy sections and get smoked on the long flat sections. For some reason cyclocross really hurts, more than it looks like it should. Watching the race, your thinking I could do that, racing the race your thinking, "What the heck was I thinking?" Then after it's over your thinking, that was fun. After my first year I decided to go out and buy a CX bike which saw more time as a commuter that a race machine. My first race on the CX bike was a bit disappointing for me. It wasn't what I expected it to be. The beating of a fully rigid aluminium frame was rough and I struggled some with the handling on the drop bars. I'm not really sure if I was any faster aboard the CX bike and going from disc brakes to canti's wasn't helping things either.

As much as I really like the new color scheme of the 2011 Surly CrossCheck I think I will stay away from buying another cyclocross bike for a while. If I do decide to throw my hat back into the CX ring it will be aboard a mountain bike. If MSG ever offers a mountain bike catagory like some other series do I might really be interested, hint hint.
It looks as if the 6 Hours of Warriors Creek is officially sold out. Alot of local peeps got in this year and I hope everyone who registered actually registered to race not just make a profit. For a race that is only 2 years old it sure has grown into a popular event. AKS has even registered for this race. The folks at BMCC have really done a spectacular job at building a great trail system and putting on an event that should be the model that all event coordinators should follow. I just hope the fame doesn't effect their decision making in the future.

pounding the pavement for a good cause

Yes it has happened, Anthony aka Fat Tony has finally re-entered the blogging world. He gave up on his old cycling blog that has cobwebs all over it's homepage and started a new one titled Not My Marathon. F.T. has decided to start training for a marathon to raise money for cancer research.
Will he continue riding? He better, GRT has a big race coming up next month.

All his talk about running got me out yesterday with my worn out running kicks on. I originally planned to ride ETSU and then race short track yesterday but AKS bailed on me in favor of the couch so instead of making the 30 minute drive to ride alone I decided to go for a run. Last minute the LCH rang my phone announcing that he was riding but it was too late for me too re-change my plans. I do enjoy the occasional run and 5k race but I find it hard to to get enough running in to do any big events like a 1/2 or full marathon due to my much stronger interest in riding. I've had a goal for sometime to do a 1/2 marathon and with the creation of a few locally in the last year I may actually try it on next year. Local endurance runner and GRT teammate Brad Reed has been telling tales of his endurance event races that have really peaked my interest. I don't think I'm up for the really long stuff that he runs but that 15 miler at Bays he did this year does sound appealing. Maybe the Double Trouble Mountain duathlon at Bays this December will be just what I'm looking for.

Yesterday I boxed up the Hero cam and shipped it back to GoPro for a replacement. It was starting to freeze up on me and that was becoming very annoying during action shots. The only way to fix the issue was to remove the cam from it's case take out the batteries and reboot the system. The problem was beginning to get worse and it just plain sucked to have to do this in the middle of a ride. My last camera bit the dust with this annoyance happening the very same way but unfortunately it was already out of warranty. Hopefully I'll have a new cam back in my possession before the HOT race. I've already got some fresh ideas for a cool race video. Maybe someone will let me dust the cobwebs off their camera and use it that weekend for some really cool double cam footage.

Unfortunately it looks as if the old Schwinn, "Brownie" will have to wait on being restored due to some other expenses coming my way. No big deal really since winter is on it's way and a CRAWL cruiser really wouldn't see much action in the cold temps. The extra time will allow me to really put some thought into what I want to do with it. For now I may just slap some new tires on and ride it as is.

Tonight's TNR ride, the singletrack edition is still on unless it pouring rain. Yesterday the trails were near perfect, all the previous rain fixed the really loose spots so we should be good. The Weather Channel is only calling for a 30% chance of rain so cross yer fingers. See you at the trails at 6!

My bro in-law posted up a video from one of his recent shows, somebody in the crowd with a really shaky hand filmed his new band "Lost Pages" performing their song "Bloodstains". While the footage may not be the greatest his new band sounds good. Check it

no more whining I promise

No this will not be another post of me talking, (whining) about bikes I would like to have. A call did come via the Bat phone last night,

we don't really have a big red phone here at the house, it's Melinda's phone for some odd reason. Anyway I got the info I needed so enough of that.

Yesterday I headed over to Bays Mtn for a bit of gravel road action thinking the trails would be too wet for riding after two days of rain. I figured some climbing would be good for me with the Hill of Truth race coming up next month. There is one heckuva a nasty climb in that course which I have cleaned but never in a race. Anyway so I started out with the race course loop which starts out with a sucky gravel road semi warm-up then climb climb climb. I made it through the first series of climbs and decended down to the main intersection where I normally hop on the Lake Rd. I stopped to fiddle with my tire pressure and I saw Bill H. And Randy coming up the road toward me. Sweet, some riding partners. Bill said their plan was to head up River Mtn Rd., quite possibly the worst excuse for a fire road ever, hang a left on Bear Run and then down the backside. It sounded like more fun than my planned route so I joined them. Climbing River Mtn Rd. just plain sucks, it's steep, loose and rutted out as hell, descending it is just as bad. I've never climbed up Bear Run, only descended it, ouch that hurt! I was really wishing I had a granny gear about half way through the climb instead of a 1x9 but hey I came to climb and that's exactly what we did. The climb was worth the pain as we descended down the lovely Indian Pipes trail, quite possibly one of the more fun trails to ride at Bays. I've ridden all of the singletraack on the front side that's open to bikes after a big rain and they drain quite well but I was really surprised at how well the backside did too. It turned out to be an excellent day for singletrack riding.

About halfway through the Kiner Hallow loop we stopped to wait on Randy as he'd dropped off the back a bit. Once he came into view we realized why, he had completely severed his rear deraileur from his bike. He told us to go on and he would walk it out. No way I told him, as long as we had all the proper tools we could turn his geared hardtail into his 1st ever singlespeed. I've never actually done this on the trail but I've seen it done on more than one occasion so I knew it would work well enough to get him back to his truck. After about 10 minutes of trailside work he was back up and running and was able to finish the ride.

I'm not sure if the experience was enough to convince Randy to convert to a full time singlespeed but I felt a bit better about my mechanic skills.

Don't forget the NTMBA Poker Ride is coming up next month, if your thinking of coming out go ahead and register here so we can get some sort of head count. I'd hate for Texas Roadhouse not to bring enough food. If your waiting to see what the weather is going to do go ahead and register I made a call to Mother Nature for sunny skies and 70 degrees. If we reach 100 pre-registered riders we may have to close registration due to parking constraints.

and it continues

The past two posts I've done nothing but whine about bikes I would like to own but really can't afford right now and I blame it all on the new stuff appearing like a bad rash all over the internet. I can't stop looking at all that has been exposed since Interbike last week. I actually had an offer to go, all I needed was a plane ticket to Vegas. I was already off all last week and that really made it hard for me to say no. I'm glad I didn't go but at the same time I wished I did. Interbike would have been a really cool experience but I probably would have bought something I shouldn't have.
Since I've already talked about my cycling addiction I might as well continue on and drive myself crazy and no I haven't reached a decision on what to do. I did make a call today and got a few prices but there is still one key bit of information that I'm waiting on. Tomorrow hopefully that bit of info will help me decide what to do. If not, this rambling may continue on for who knows how long.
So anyway, like I said I've been looking around the world wide web gawking at all that has been revealed this week and I came across another frame that has me thinking. Salsa, a few months ago dumped all their Big Mama frames in a very ridiculously cheap way. A sale I could have kicked myself for missing but oh well. This sale stirred up alot of rumors that they were dumping that frame for good and they might be coming out with something new.

This week I saw just what it was they had up their sleeve.




The 2011 Salsa Spearfish

WOW! Thank you Salsa for torturing me that much more. Yes that's they're new 29" full squish rig. I inquired about the cost of the frame today but Salsa has yet to even list this bike on their site. My guess is it won't be cheap.

I've got three days off starting tomorrow and it looks as if the rain will be done with us sometime tonight. If so I may hit Bays Mtn early and ride the gravels while the dirt dries out. If not I'll resort to plan "B", go for a run.

Wednesday the plan is to hit ETSU again and maybe just maybe if the stars are aligned correctly, short track.

Thursday I'm trying to resurrect the club group ride, it was previously held on Friday nights but fizzled out I think mainly because it's the start of the weekend for most and Friday night most folks are doing the family thing. So if your itching to ride this Thursday we're meeting up at 6pm at Warriors.

the fever just got worse

I've really gone and done it now, my last post titled "the fever" has only gotten worse. For some time I've been looking at the new Salsa El Mariachi frame.





It's a sweet design with a sweet paint scheme. The plan I've been running through my head for a couple of weeks now to build full squish rig included tearing down the Karate Monkey for parts. I wasn't planning on selling the KM frame but I've had a couple of offers since my previous blog post that got me thinking. I'm not really sure I want to be without a singlespeed bike. I've had one for almost 7 years now and it's just something I've always enjoyed. As the wheels began turning over the past 24 hours I realized I could build a new pimped out El Mariachi and still have enough $$ to restore the old Schwinn, "Brownie". The full squish Niner plan would officially have to be scratched but oh well.

Now I'm officially torn with what to do. Thank goodness the bike shop is closed allowing me to think on my decision or I might have already placed an order.

I guess you could say I officially have an addiction.

the fever

There was alot of talk about running in my last post, well not really much talk about it more like announcing a few running races I would like to enter. Anyway it got me out running today rather than on the bike. It was a bit rough going at first but the longer I ran the better I felt. I didn't expect to go out and feel great especially since I've not ran since the 10k race I entered almost 2 weeks ago. I've meant to do more running but that new Niner sitting in the bike room has cast it's spell on me for sure. The more I ride that thing the more in tune I feel with the trail. The bad thing is and Alan called it, the Karate Monkey has been hanging on the wall since the arrival of the Niner. What worse is since I bought the Air 9 I've started seriously thinking about getting another Niner. Both the Jet 9 and the RIP 9 have caught my attention.

I've not had a full suspension bike for several years now but in the last couple of months I've had an itch for something big and full squish to bomb down every trail in the area. I'm actually so anxious to build up a full squish 29er that I've decided to put off restoring the old Schwinn I bought from my Dad. I figure by the time it would be finished it would be too cold to ride it anyway. Atop a full squish bike on the other hand would be a great way to spend the winter. I have no idea how long it will take me to come up with the cash but I'm sitting at work right now working overtime just for that very reason.

Yesterday instead of riding around here I headed over to Johnson City to meet up with AKS and hit the newly renovated ETSU trails. Wow was I impressed, Ben the local club's trail guy has put a ton of work into those trails and really made the most of the small space. I almost didn't recognize the place and was thoroughly impressed with the additional amount of trail that has been added over the past year.
The ETSU trails were where Moonshine & I grew up and learned about mountain biking. My first real true experience with singletrack & mountain biking was at Buffalo Mountain and Haw Ridge in Knoxville but ETSU is where I really started to get hooked on the sport that would eventually consume all of my available freetime and take all my extra money. Moonshine was just a pup when I started getting serious about riding. Back then she was off the hook running around our small apartment leaping over the furniture. I quickly realized walking and hiking weren't enough to burn her energy supply. I started taking her on rides with me and my friends and she would run circles around us through the woods as we rode. With almost no training it was if she was bred to run singletrack. Riding ETSU yesterday brought back many memories of her and I catching a few miles on the dirt before the sun went down on a weekday afternoon. Maybe I'll go back next week and take her along to see what she thinks of Ben's handy work.

GRT returns!

This year really hasn't been much of a big season for me and racing. I did enter a couple of races here and there both cycling and running but a couple of them have been a disappointment for me performance wise. With a couple of events on the horizon maybe that will change and hopefully I can redeem myself.
The month of Oct: The Susan G Komen Race for the Cure 5k, the Turkey Trot 5k & the 12 Hours of the Hill of Truth.
I'm paid and entered into the Race for the Cure 5k but the 12 Hours of the Hill of Truth is really where my head is at. Yesterday Fat Tony and I went for a ride at Warriors and the main topic of our discussion was the H.O.T. and our team GRT, otherwise know as Granny's Rotten Teeth. Our team has seen many different faces over the past 5 years since it's creation at our first HOT race. Every year at the HOT we seem to have a different 4th member. Brad has been a consecutive member for the past 3 years and this year we're looking forward to Andy's return for his 3 race with GRT at the HOT.
Last year we saw our 2nd podium at the HOT and our first ever win. Normally once you win a category your expected to move up. Last year was a nasty year weather wise for the HOT and many teams pulled a no show boosting our chances of a podium spot. Had the weather been nice and had there been a huge turnout I wonder if we would have even manged a 3rd place finish. I've been pondering on what to do, move up to Expert or stay in Sport. After a few brief discussion with my teammates I think we've decided to remain in Sport another year. If there is a big turn out and we still podium then we'll move up to Expert.

On tap for December is a new event the Double Trouble Mountain Duathlon. This is a 5k run, 10 mile mountain bike followed by another 5k run all held at Bays mountain. This event is definitely going on my calendar.

With a new bike in the stable and the HOT coming up I really find myself struggling with devoting time to running. Running is something I enjoy but it usually takes a backseat to mountain biking when the weather is nice and everyone is riding. I really enjoy running races but I usually don't know anyone, some races I've shown up alone and the only person I've talked to has been the volunteer working the registration table. Every once in a while I'll run into a fellow cyclist.

Recently I created an online shop through Cafe Press for the mountain bike club where anyone can go online pick a logo and apply it to any of the listed products, tshirts, hoodies, hats, coffee mugs etc. and have them printed and shipped to their house. With the HOT right around the corner I decided to go ahead and create a shop for GRT as well. I can never have enough tshirts and who wouldn't want a GRT tshirt. Get yours now and support one of the coolest, most unruly, anti-training teams out there! Click here!

sunsets, tallboys & trashcan lids

Wow what a weekend, I know it's Tuesday but I've been busy.

If you missed the sunset ride on Holston Mountain you missed one heck of a ride, I know I've said that before but I really mean it this time. I was amazed at the awesome views and mad at myself for living here this long and Friday was my first trip up to Flint Rock. The view was comparable to Buzzard's Rock but with a 3rd of the ride.
We had a good sized group rolling with us, about half girls and half guys which is unusual for mountain bike rides. Kerry was a bit deceiving in his description of the terrain. "A flat fireroad of 3-4 miles out and back. The only correct part was that it was a fireroad but definitely not flat. It wasn't bad by any means but I did hear a few curse words about 2 miles in as we continued to climb. The last leg was a stretch of singletrack probably just under a mile but steep and fun.
Most everyone arrived with a few adult beverages stored in camelbaks but they were quickly tossed back into our vehicles once we saw Kerry's BOB trailer with a full sized cooler strapped to it.

A view of South Holston Lake

The sunset was one of the best I've seen in a long time.

Kerry's Karate Monkey and beverage cart. Surly really makes a do it all bike.

I'm not sure what's going on here but to me it looks as if Olga is either praying or getting up from a fall.

Saturday Melinda and I decided to swing by the first MSG cyclocross race of the year. I haven't been to one in over a year, but I immediately wished I had brought my bike once I saw the riders streaming past us. I've never been to one of these events merely as a spectator and it was nice for a change to be one of the hecklers vs. the one being heckled.

Fortunately to ease my pain of not racing there were several coolers full of Sunshine Wheat graciously donated by New Belgium. I've never been a big fan of wheat beers but I have to say it was quite tasty, maybe the fact that it was free had something to do with it, I dunno.

Somebody once said that 29" wheels are for trashcan lids. I hope whoever it was doesn't see Alan wearing this Niner t-shirt.

I'm glad it's over

Wow what a week, I just finished one of the more grueling weeks at work that I've ever had. Yesterday the last day probably being the worst. Was it physically challenging? Not really, I spent four, 12 hour days staring at several monitors. Yesterday I spent the majority of those 12 hours fighting a part of our process that would not corporate. I lost in the end but was more than happy to give up and walk away, I had enough.
I did manage to squeeze in a ride at Warriors on Wednesday that really seemed to make the week just a little better. The days are officially getting shorter as our ride was finished just before the sun went down. I also learned that riding a CX bike on those particular trails requires alot of skill. I followed the Local Cult Hero through the first mile of Darwin's Revenge as he attempted to maneuver through some of the nastiest stuff Warrior's has to offer aboard his Surly Crosscheck and although it's a sweet bike I would have never ridden it there. I gotta give him props for trying.

Recently I downloaded a cool app. for my phone, a retro camera app. that applies cool effects to your pics. I found this setting fitting for my new cruiser. I stopped by my sister's house last weekend and picked up "Brownie". I hope to drop it off at the shop to begin the restoration process this weekend. When the project is finished I expect this bike to look totally different.










A little birdie told me that on Oct 1st for 24 hours only, registration for the 6 Hours of Warriors Creek will be open at a $20 discount. I totally plan to take advantage of this huge offer especially since the race will be capped at 300 riders. Last year, only the second year of the race, it sold out months in advance leaving alot of folks sitting at the house. This year I plan to make a come back and actually do more than one measly lap. I will be armed with prescription allergy meds that will hopefully keep my head in the game and not out in lala land. That was probably my worst performance in a bike race and it really left me feeling like a turd.

While doing some celebrity blog reading I ran across this trailer online. The 2009 film was pretty cool so I expect the 2010 version to be worth viewing as well.

Race Across The Sky 2010 from Citizen Pictures on Vimeo.

Tonight Melinda and I will be strapping on our lights and heading to Holston Mountain for a sunset ride with a few friends and a few tallboys. We're meeting at 6:30 to ride to a lookout point over the lake and partake in a few refreshments while the sun goes down. If your interested check the NTMBA forum for details.