BTT 8/25/12 with Jamal and Amanda

Great day for a ride.  Fun to show a Michigander around our fine city.  The new artwork by Eastern Market is top notch. 

End of Season wrapup

It has been awhile since I have posted up on here. October was a fun month of racing. I participated in the first ever Grampian Challenge that was just under 40 miles of hilly dirt roads and some singletrack. Awesome event, I really enjoyed it and hope to participate again next year.

Next up was my first ever 6 hour endurance race at Addison Oaks. It was a definite learning experience, the weather was a bit warmer than I had anticipated. By the end I was a bit worse for the wear. Dehydrated, tired and a bit loopy I ended up finishing in second place in the singlespeed category.

Then came the great Mad Anthony Cyclocross race. This is an event I have participated in the past three years which goes back to when it was started. This is a truly unique event and venue. The course gets better each year in regards to its layout. And each year the field of racers gets a bit bigger (209 racers this year). If the weather cooperates, this event could hit its cap of racers next year in the Category 4 group. This race is friendly to mountain bikers as well as true cyclocross racers. If you are looking to jump into the racing fray, I give this race a strong recommendation. I espeically enjoyed seeing all the BTT'ers out there cheering me on almost every time I looked up. Very cool...

Last weekend I joined a bunch of friends for a run through southwest Detroit known as "The Run of the Dead 10K". Since I have not been running a lot recently it was fun to do a race with no expectations and just enjoy the event. The crew I went down there with all finished roughly at the same time, myself included. I think this race will continue to grow in popularity. Lots of entertaining costumes to be seen on the course. Both by people wearing them and people running in them.

Today AndyE and I enjoyed a couple laps of Maybury riding over from downtown Northville. The calendar reads November 5th yet we enjoyed sunny skies and mild temps. The crowds on Maybury were much less than what would be seen up in Traverse City for the Iceman event. BTTer JamalH pulled a 2:01:41 at Iceman. Andy and I enjoyed a great ride and it was a good way to cap what has been a fun year of riding. Thanks to PrecisionMTB crew (especially Team Captain BrianB) and the BTT gang for keeping me company on various rides throughout the season. Its been a fun!

Tour de Troit 9/24/11

Rode in from home with Andy, Andy, and Randy. 2 fixies and one cross bike with me on my singlespeed mtn bike. This ride was gonna be some work from the get-go. Made it down to the Fort and over to the start in Roosevelt Park. I rode with JayB for the whole metric century - he is wonderful company on any ride.

It was damn cold at the start, I remember Jay saying to me as we rolled down Vernor, "It sure is cold out." I was FREEZING and could not agree more. Once the sun came up the temperature was much more tolerable. The ride went well. When we came off our loop of Belle Isle I was greeted with the largest group of cyclist I have ever encountered. It was amazing. Check out a couple pics I took here.

When we finished up the Tour de Troit ride and grabbed some food. From there we mounted up and Andy, Andy, and Randy finished putting the smack down on me with their fixies and cross bikes. But they helped me accomplish my goal of nailing down my first hundred miler on my singlespeed (102 miles to be exact). Aside from the endless lines for beer at the end, this is a well run event and a great way to see the city. Highly recommended ride.

Pics click here

BTT 9/17/11

Fun ride today. FINALLY feeling better after fighting a cold off the past few days. Bob made a special appearance today after breaking his clavicle a few weeks back. He got it surgically repaired. Great to see him back on the bike.

TLove and I had fun rolling together. As we approached Belle Island AndyE opened up a big gap. TLove spoke into his shirt and told the team car to send help to catch the breakaway. Sadly the mike was imaginary as was the team car. But AndyS rolled by and the singlespeed and I were off on our own before too long. TLove said he eventually chased AndyE down but had to work it.

All in all a good day for riding :)

Pics click here

BTT 9/3/11

Jamal, AndyE, AndyS, Will, Lee, and myself met at Hines and made our way to pick up Dearborn Don and Dan in Dearborn. We all made our way to the Fort via Michigan Ave and Livernois.

Jamal and I talked about knocking out at century this day. So I recommended we keep the wheels turning while the rest of the group came together in the parking lot. We made our way to Detroit and discovered the Detroit Jazz Festival was taking place this weekend. More exciting to me, a tent was there advertising fresh smoothies. I told Jamal we would have to come back for one later.

And so we made our way back to the group riding the normal route backwards. We found the rest of the riders but continued on riding to a bakery to get Jamal a breakfast burrito.

We then rode a big chuck of the ride solo and ran across the back-to-school ride group a couple of times. After the cemetery we deceided Eastern Market sounded like a good stop for food and refreshments. We first indulged in a watermelon after the lady loaned us her knife. That was some damn good watermelon, it was a hot one and I was thirsty. A couple of bananas eaten there, a couple more for the road. And off we went to stop by the Brewster Projects to use their restrooms. The place is 5-star all the way.

From here we thought we would make our way to the Jazz Fest and get us a smoothy. No dice, they were still closed. We decided riding up to Grosse Pointe and checking out Lakeshore Drive would make for some good bonus miles. It was a great ride up there with stunning views of the lake and gorgeous homes. We felt strong riding up there. Then we turned around. WTF - that is a strong headwind. And from this point forward a companion until I got home. We finally made our way back to Jazz Fest and were ready for our well-deserved smoothies. As we pulled up, still closed but they were walking up. Luckily they had another tent already up and open in Hart Plaza. Jamal and I got over there quickly and enjoyed a smoothie. But due to the high temps and the crazy amount of ice added, we both suffered some serious brain freeze. Still it was a good treat.

We then made our way home. I felt pretty good until the last 8 or so miles. We were on Paul Street in Detroit by a house with a bunch of lawn decorations out front. The wheels came flying off for me physically. The wind, the heat, did I mention the wind finally added up and took their toll on me. I limped home and finished with 90 miles on the day. Jamal should have ended up well north of 100 miles. Fun day in the saddle. Ride your bike up Lakeshore Drive sometime if you never have, the views do not disappoint.

Pics click here

Garmin GPS Data

BTT 8/27/11

My friend Elaine made it down to the Fort for her first big bike ride through the friendly streets of Detroit. She did quite well aside from a crash in front of the Tim Horton's across from the MacArthur Bridge. I turned around in time to see it happen. The actual cause is to be determined. At this point I am not sure.

Elaine and I hit all the usual places on the loop aside from Belle Isle. A bit of blood and sweat produced no tears on her part. I think she liked it, I enjoyed the ride.

Also of note the "BTT Jersey's" made it in and were a hit. I heard only positive feedback. The design turned out well and looked better in person than it did online. Kudos to our fearless leader AndyS for pulling this together.

Pics click here

Ore to Shore 2011

A great weekend of mountain biking. 4 days, 4 rides and ~120 trail miles later I left town happy. The race course was almost a carbon copy of last year but substantially dustier. All racers were caked in red dirt by the end. One big difference from last years course was a paved climb. It was shortened quite a bit. If I had known of this modification I would have geared the ol' singlespeed up with an extra couple of teeth up front. This race saw something happen to me in the results that I have never experienced. Last year I came in 15th place with a time of 3 hrs 21mins. This year I took my time down to 3 hrs 12mins and came in 23rd. Hmm. I guess the singlespeed crowd is becoming a more competitive group or eveyone knew of this course modification except me. Still I was happy with my effort and got below my goal time of 3hrs 15mins.

AndyE and family pulled off the most impressive group effort of the weekend. Andy did the Hardrock 48 miler, Carmen did the Softrock 28 miler, Ava did the 4 miler, and drew knocked out the 1 miler. Outstanding riding by the whole family! AndyS enjoyed his first O2S event, Jimmie and Melissa had great races, and Jamal was hot on my heels being only 2 mins behind me.

My second trip to the UP of Michigan was successful and a great time. Beautiful country and the town of Marquette does a great job putting this event together. The "South Trails" in town are well worth riding should you make the venture up there for this race. They are tight, twisty, a lot of fun and are not included in the Ore to Shore event.
Pics click here



Garmin Race Result

Mohican Trail 100 mile footrace 6/18/11 - 6/19/11

A special edition post - last weekend I hit the road to pace two of my friends on a 100 mile trail odyssey through some twisty, turning, elevation changing terrain. Friday night Alek, Stephanie and I hit the road for Loudonville, Ohio and crashed in our cabin at the Mohican Adventures Campground. Luckily we had a cabin reserved with Joe and Aaron. A third friend from Michigan Craig stayed next door with his wife and pacer Jay. By sheer dumb luck, I got the best sleeping spot in the joint, lower level right next to the fan. This combo kept me cool and plenty of white noise to drown out the drunkards a few cabins down who saw it fit to play rap into the wee hours of the morning.

At 4:30AM I awoke to find the Joe and Aaron gearing up. There was a light rain falling outside. We walked our way to the start line and passed one hell of a freaky light up head of Jesus. I got a pic of it but it does it no justice, it looks way crazier in the dark. At the start line the announcer mentioned today was Joe's birthday, what a way to spend it. The boys got off to their start at 5AM and the rain had stopped - for good. No more rain the rest of the weekend. Just a brutal humid heat awaited later this day and the next.

Alek, Steph and I went back and took a nap after seeing them off. We got up in time to see Craig, Joe and Aaron come through the start finish area all looking good considering the circumstances. It was my first chance to see the people out here running the event in the daylight. These folks were hardcore. Looking at the faces/body language you could see the course was tough. Many of the 50-milers looked defeated after their first lap of ~25 miles.

After seeing the Michigan contingent pass we went out for a 10 mile run. It was a rather unique run, first time I have ever run on a farmers road through the field. When the road stopped at a dead end we stopped and took a break. It was beautiful to see the rolling hills and the different shades of green growing on the various fields. We then turned back and ran through downtown to find a biker rally taking place. TONS of motorcycles and three runners. I don't think we blended in too well but it was cool to see all the bikes.

Upon coming back we downed some food, changed our clothes and got on our road bikes. We rode up to the mountain bike trailhead to see our boys come through. It was getting really hot. Humidity was ridiculous. We checked with the people working the course to make sure our boys had not come through yet. Bad news, they had about ten minutes before.

After getting back to the cabin, Alek and Steph prepared to pace Joe and Aaron on their third lap. They took off around 6PM. The guys still looked good despite the course and the unrelenting heat. After they left I hung out and tried to nap. Eventually I fell asleep and was awoken around 2:30AM. Time for the final pacer (me) to get these guys around the course.

When Steph and Alek got back, they told me they had picked up a third runner Karen and I was to pace all three. The guys looked a little worse for the wear but nothing that couldn't be overcome. Karen looked the best of the group. I was hoping she could set a pace and I could sweep keeping Joe and Aaron between us. Off we went, flashlights in hand. The first 6 miles were the longest 6 miles I have ever run on fresh legs. I only say that because I could see Joe and Aaron were hitting the wall. Both were exhausted and in need of naps. We pushed on and eventually hit our first aid station. Karen had worked her way up ahead of us and came back to tell us some bad news. The aid station was out of food. I could see Joe and Aaron both take this news hard based on body language.

Nonetheless we went up there to see what they had. Both guys grabbed a seat. I took this moment to repack the gear I had in my hand and jam it into my small Camelback. I also topped off the four water bottles I was carrying for the guys. After all this I looked to see what the guys were doing. Both were sleeping. I gave them another 5 mins of shut eye for 10 mins of rest. I hoped this power nap would bring them back to life. I woke them up at the 10 min mark. Aaron looked like hell, Joe looked worse. At this point Joe decided he had come to the end of his journey at the 83 mile mark. That is an amazing accomplishment based on the terrain and heat he endured all day.

Aaron was debating on continuing. I encouraged him to go to the next aid station and then reevaluate. He decided to so we left Joe at the aid station and continued Aaron's journey. I continued to encourage him to drink up and take his endurolyte capsules. I was like the nagging mother-hen. Drink, drink, drink, take these capsules. At some point we passed the firetower on the course. Aaron started coming around and being able to do a slow jog. I was thrilled. With the sun due up shortly I knew we would be in good shape. I have never been moving in the woods from 3AM to sunrise. Its interesting how you start to hear birds chirping and singing just before sunrise. It is as if the forest is waking up and coming to life.

When we hit the Covered Bridge aid station, it had a drop bag. Aaron grabbed some goodies and I swithced into his Camelback which had a bladder. My Camelback was just for holding gear. I topped off my bottles and the lady working the station said we looked great coming up.

Aaron continued to jog the sections that were reasonably flat or downhill. Eventually we made it to the last aid station and I knew we were home free. A short 5.8 miles was all that kept Aaron from the finish line and his well deserved finishers belt buckle. Aaron was complaining of some pain in his left shin. So I broke off from him to retrieve some muscle spray and see if it helped. I headed back to the cabin to find Joe seated in a chair with Steph and Alek cleaning the cabin up. Steph grabbed the spray, I dumped the Camelback and back out I went to run down Aaron. He applied the spray but it had minimal effect.

Regardless we made our way to the end. There were some absolutely brutal hills in the last section. We eventually made our way past a nice log cabin in the middle of nowhere. Aaron said the worst was behind us. With about a quarter mile to go, I ran ahead to see Aaron finish. Just over 30 hours of non-stop movement. What a great accomplishment! Craig had finished a few hours earlier. Karen from earlier in the night came in third overall for women.

It was cool to pace Joe and Aaron on this big day. "Running" 100 miles is a one hell of an accomplishment and a very personal journey. It was great to play a small part in helping the guys on their way. Good work Craig, Aaron, and Joe.

The Mohican trail is in a word - unrelenting. It is absolutely brutal and never lets you rest. Wheels, how you got your mountain bike around that course for 100 miles pushing a 2:1 gear ratio is beyond me. I have much respect for anyone who completes 100 miles of anything on this trail system. It ain't easy!

Pics click here

BTT 6/11/11 - The White Stripes Tour

I read yesterday Jack White and his wife are throwing a divorce party on their sixth anniversary (see pic #1). Reading that bit of news makes me hope he will get back together with Meg and reform The White Stripes. Sadly the band of two broke up earlier this year. Jack is a total hipster who does absolutely nothing the "normal" way. Throwing a "divorce party" on your anniversary - REALLY? I'm so not a hipster.

So today's bike tour takes us to Indian Village in Detroit where we see Jack and Meg's house here in the D before moving to Nashville (pic 2). Pics 3 - 5 show the Hotel Yorba and the talent there. The tune "Hotel Yorba" is one of my favorite White Stripes tunes.

Pic 6 shows a church in Detroit where the top burned. Not a problem, they simply put a roof on the lower part and reopened it. Hallelujah, way to make due with what you got. Speaking of making do, pic 7 shows the screw I picked up in my back tire riding over to this church. I screwed it in a bit further and it held for the 10 or so miles back home. Today's ride was a swing bang hum dinger. Hipster! (Not really, I lifted that phrase off Jack's invite).

Pics click here

Hotel Yorba Video

Today's ride

Steamboat Springs, Colorado June 2011

I love ski towns. I had never been to Steamboat Springs and had an opportunity to go and run the marathon there with my friend Terry. Unfortunately he got hurt and was only able to run the half marathon.

Sunday I laced up my sneaks and caught a bus ride up to ~8500 feet above sea level to the start line 26.2 miles from town. Temp was 39 degrees up there but after the frigid MI winter it did not feel too bad.

I got more than a couple "are you crazy?" looks thrown my way when I told people I came from Detroit to run this. The hills and elevation are tough to replicate back home.

And so the journey began with a shout from the race director. The steepest climb was between miles 3 & 4. It was a steep grind but I passed a lot of runners and was only passed by two. Then began a long downhill. The miles ticked by quickly. The scenery was magnificent but the spectators were sparse.

When I hit mile 20 I wanted to just hold the status quo. Unfortunately the status quo at that point was similar to a house on fire. My legs were hammered from all the downhill running. Mile 21 I walked down a downhill. I was still able to run hills and flats. And so it began - my battle to the finish.

3-4 runners would pass me on the downhills, I would catch em on the climbs or flats. The race finished on main street in Steamboat where there was a slight incline and elevation was only ~6400 feet. The temp creeped up to 80 degrees. But I was able to finish reasonably strong and placed 46/357 finishers. 3hrs 36mins from start to end.

The next day we hit the Moots Factory Tour. Titanium bikes everywhere - it was like a bikers dream. They produce roughly 1400 bikes a year. They had a bike in their showroom they built up for a handbuilt bike convention. Called the "Rigormootis", the thing looked a bit like a tank on wheels. I asked our tourguide after seeing a couple of dogs on the factory tour how many dogs are typically onsite? She said today was four, but some days the number could balloon up to eight. My buddy and I decided that was a good indicator of how good a place is to work at - do they allow dogs? If the answer is "YES", probably a good gig.

After standing in awe of Moots we headed over to the other Ti bike builder in Steamboat. This guy is Kent Eriksen. He is the founder of Moots, he sold the biz after he got tired of not being able to design at Moots. This place is much smaller, they build approximately 150 bikes a year. When we walked up to the factory's door, a sign said "often riding over lunch". I can tell this is a solid place to work, they have their priorities straight. Upon opening the door we were greeted by Chris the Welder. He was working on three Eriksen "Sweetposts" which are simply the coolest seatposts period. We inquired about a factory tour, dude was all too happy to stop work and talk shop with us. Really a great experience, I think he may have ridden his singlespeed with us if we had our bikes. He said the trails in this area are great for singlespeeding. I will have to come back with a bike next time.

When it comes to custom Ti bikes, there is nothing rational about purchasing one as my friend Jay said. They are so much more than the sum of their parts, I want one ;)

All in all Steamboat Springs did not disappoint, highly recommend a stop here should you be in the neighborhood. If nothing else, come to check out the factory bike tours. Plus the bike shop next to Eriksen Cycles is fabulous. Terry's son got his first ride on a full suspension rig in their parking lot. They have a ton of inventory and rent bikes.

Pics - click here.

4/30/11 Thunderdrome in Detroit

My buddy AndyE and I went down to the ol' velodrome in Detroit for some racing Saturday afternoon. This event could only be held in the city of Detroit. It borders on anarchy. They race all kinds of things 2-wheeled: mopeds, pocket-rockets, scooters, electric scooters, fixies, geared road bikes, and of course mountain bikes. Hell, they even had three go-karts have at it.

The people that show up are well worth the price of admission (which is free). Outlaw biker types, hipsters, and a bunch of other interesting types thrown in for good measure. Some of the races were really competitive and entertaining to watch. The motorized bikes are REALLY fast around the oval.

The mountain bike race was three laps around the velodrome with two of the laps extended around the park on the wet soggy grass. And a nice climb on the soggy grass. During practice I concluded the singlespeed is good for a max of about 18-20 mph on the velodrome. The grass climb was going to hurt as I am geared 36X17 which is pretty stout.

The race began and we were off around the velodrome (graffiti ON the velodrome which I thought was a nice touch) and exited on the top of the fourth turn. Up the wet grassy hill the singlespeed was taking no prisoners, I shot by people trying to gear down while I stood up and hammered. The top of the hill rewarded us with some Detroit downhill action. Roots, ravine from water erosion, and of course some broken glass. Another smaller grassy climb and a flat section back to the velodrome. After starting dead last I was top 5 after lap one. I passed two more people on the velodrome and sat on second place's wheel. I needed a breather before the final attack on the grassy hill. And then it came, the grassy hill. Feeling horrible I stood up and hit it. Second place was mine and first place rider was falling apart. I almost had him reeled in, 10 feet or so by the top. I busted my hump to try and get him before the velodrome. As we approached the velodrome I passed an outlaw biker looking spectator who yells at me, "Get that f^*kin guy! Get it!" Aggressive cheer leading, added bonus to this event. Sadly when we hit the velodrome I was not able to close the gap. I got second. Certainly not bad. If I had one more lap, I could have cracked that guy on the climb and took first. Sept 10th is the next one. Worth checking out if you have never been. In a word - unique.

AndyE took home fourth in a highly competitive fixed gear class.

Thunderdrome Pics

4/21/11 Maybury Laps

First ride in the dirt for 2011, first ride with my hydraulic brakes, first ride with titanium handlebars, first ride post crash.

Oct 30th, 2010 Jamal and I rode together and I crashed out at Poto leading to broken clavicle. April 21st, 2011 Jamal and I head out to try riding together again at Maybury. Lap one went by quickly and was pretty uneventful aside from my ugly lines. Lap two was going by quite nicely until we hit a little jump about 4 miles in. I hear Jamal yell something that begins with the letter "B". I think maybe I lost my water bottle after the jump, I look down and its still there. So I stop and turn around. Me, "What?" Jamal, "I broke my bars!" Sure enough, Jamal broke his handlebar. His brand new, carbon fiber FSA handlebar that he states he torqued down to specifications with a torque wrench. Luckily he was able to stop it without any issues.

Like a trooper, Jamal gets back on the saddle. "They ride bulls with only one hand" he says. True but that ergonomically SUCKS! Dude rode that bike the next couple of miles fast, maybe because he only had one brake. Despite the mechanical a good ride. Great to get some trail miles in FINALLY! I really like my titanium handlebar - I recommend one to Jamal.

Lap 1 = 32:07
Lap 2 = 32:44 (paused for the "holy crap you broke your bar" discussion)

Crash could have ended like this:

4/9/11 That was different...

I have always wanted to run down to the BTT ride, do the ride and ride home. "Why?" you ask. Who knows? But today was the day this thought became action. Got up at 3:55AM, threw down some fluids and headed out the door at 4:00AM. Certainly is dark at that hour, the stars looked beautiful on Hines Drive. As I got closer to the Ford truck plant in Dearborn, I felt even more like an ant than I do when riding my bike through the industrial complex. By the time I hit the Iron Coffins Motorcycle Club at Dearborn and Fort Street, I realized I was ahead of schedule. I got to the Fort's gate and my Garmin showed 13.3 miles. Well since it was cold and I had time, I put in a few extra miles to take the total up to 16 miles and stayed warm. Felt good at an 8min/mile average pace.

Once I was done with running I hit the Fort's parking lot to find AndyS was there with my bike and gear. I put on cycling shorts and a heavier base layer. Should have brought another layer but the weatherman said it was going to warm up. Well it never did warm up. Regardless the ride went off without any major issues. Good group pushing a good pace through the D. Great to see the BTT gang after a rough winter.

Hit Los Galanes for some breakfast with the gang. Once we were done with breakfast I went back to the Fort. BrianB mentioned he had an extra team jersey I could try on and buy if interested. Well timing is everything, I took the jersey off his hands right there. Wore it home and was happy to have it, nice and warm! 45 miles on the bike. Solid morning :)

I would like to thank AndyS for hauling my gear down there, BrianB for selling me the team jersey, Mother Nature for keeping the westward winds down, and the great company on the ride. One request - Mother Nature kick the temp up a few degrees next time please? Don't know if I will ever do this again but at least I did it once. Cool urban adventure.

4/2/11 Spring is coming...

To celebrate the arrival of Spring I ran the Martian half-marathon and set out with a goal of finishing it in under 90 minutes. My personal best is a 89 minute effort. I thought I had a chance of going a bit faster as I had a secret weapon, cycling teammate and running stud Lee "Lefty" Shaw.

I gave it all I had and made my goal with a finish time of 89mins 18secs. BUT I was a bit disappointed when I crossed the line. I thought I was faster - nothing was left in the tank at the end. Then some other runners mentioned the course was a bit long, at 13.5 miles. Well I checked my Garmin and noticed that was the mileage as well. That made me feel better but as race director, you HAVE to get that right. That's a big reason why I'm paying you to participate in the event. Other than that oversight the race was well run. Special thanks to Lefty - couldn't have done it without you bud! Owe ya a beer next time we're out.

As for my bike - I took it on its second ride of the season to cool down. 2 hrs 11mins at 28.4miles through Detroit via Rouge Park. I will point out the new bling on the bike.
New:
*Avid CR hydraulic brakes
*WTB seat
*Titanium handlebars from Moots. Word on the street is they are the "must have" riding accessory when hitting the streets of Detroit this season ;)

I would like to thank "J&M Cycles" in Livonia for their help in getting the bike back up after last seasons crash. Their friendly staff are knowledgeable and they know how to make you feel right at home.

Detroit Racing back to back weekends

Well after a great summer of sun and fun - the past 2 weekends have seen the pinnacle of racing in the D. On October 17th I ran the Detroit Marathon and helped pace a friend to a Boston Marathon qualifying effort on her first marathon. We enjoyed stellar weather, the best conditions I have ever had for a marathon. That was a special day and I was glad to be able to play a small part in her big day.

So how does one recover from a marathon? In my world, you grab your singlespeed mountain bike and clip in for the Mad Anthony Cyclocross mountain bike race. This is one of only two bikes races in the city of Detroit. I did this event last year and had a blast.

So after the BTT ride throught the streets of Detroit, I sweet-talked JimmyH into racing. Teammates PaulM and JohnG joined in the fun. Jimmy, John, and I started dead last in the field. After avoiding 3 crashes within the first quarter mile, we found our groove. At the start of the second lap I came upon PaulM, Paul beat me at this race last year and I expected him to do it again this year. So when I passed him I figured I would be a good rabbit for him to chase as he was going far too slow for his ability at that point in the race.

And chase he did, we had an uneventful second lap. The third lap and final lap went well but my muscles were starting to protest a bit on the hills. There was a loose, steep section at the end of the course and I struggled to make it up laps 1 and 2. Lap 3 I came up a pedal stroke short and stopped. Paul crashed into the back of my bike as he thought I would make it - surprise ;) No big problems for either of us, Paul managed to remount his bike before me and brought home 14th while I took 15th 7 seconds later. The 24th slot belonged to JohnG while Jimmy took the 26th. The field had 65 finishers and 81 riders to start the day. Quite a few DNF's

This year the course was improved upon as it was made a bit longer with the use of the soccer fields which helped stretch the riders out. It made for a better race as the course was less congested. Joe did a splendid job with the event, I think this race has a bright future. It evolved nicely from last year's successful production.

Thanks to Dearborn Don for taking pics, AndyS for helping Joe with the event, and Joe for getting the event together. It was also great to see DonM out there helping at the event. After suffering a heart attack, he survived a bout with cancer. He just got clearance to ride again, just in time for snow. Seeing Don again reminds me every day is a blessing. Glad I was able to enjoy these two great weekends in the D and to my friends, ya'll rock!

Mad Anthony Pics

BTT 10/2/10 - Drownproofing

I awoke to raindrops falling outside my bedroom window. Not a driving rain but not a sprinkle either. It would have been easy to say no way! Too cold, too wet, and just too crappy.

Instead AndyS and I headed out for the D. Dan joined us on Hines. And so we had ourselves a lovely ride, some breakfast, and an opportunity to become art critics. All who made it down today are warriors, that was a less than optimal weather day. Dale actually left work early to come join us - that is a man on a mission. Special thanks to AndyS for taking up the challenge of riding from home as the suck factor was reasonably high.

BTT 9/18/10

A solid group of riders showed up and enjoyed a great spin around our city. The rain held off until I had packed my bike away in my car.

On Sunday, I ran the Richmond to Romeo half marathon. A friend was unable to run it so I ran as her. She won the woman's overall with a time of 1hr 31mins. I wanted to get it under 1hr 30mins but the legs would not hear it. Still I was happy with the effort after the Colorado bike trip.

Colorado Hut to Hut Ride Sept 2010

Link for a slideshow of some pics - click
here.
Saturday (9/4)
Left Durango Mountain Resort and found this trip starts with a bang. We climbed our butts off only to turn back after Ron sheered his rear derailer two miles into the trip. Fortunately the bike shop at the Durango Mountain Resort had a spare hanger. I also took the time to have the mechanic adjust my rear derailer as it was skipping like crazy.

We then proceeded to begin the climb again. Our initial climb was then referred to as "the warmup" and the second time did not prove any easier. But the ride went well until the last few miles. The last few miles proved to be a punishing climb to the hut. We finally made it and I was happy to see it.

Our bunkmates arrived around 6PM after spending 9 hours on the singletrack route which was ~19 miles in length. What have I gotten myself into?! We enjoyed a good dinner but John snores like a freight train. Between not having a good pillow setup and the snoring, compounded by three calls to nature (I drank A LOT after the ride) - I enjoyed a terrible first night of sleep.

Sunday
We enjoyed a screaming fast downhill to start the day. Some big climbs too but nothing loose like yesterday thank god. Ate some wild raspberries along the way which were awesome. Wild edibles, sweet!

We also encountered lots of vehicle traffic and I noticed people seemed to speed up when they saw us. The speed led to a nice dusting of dirt that enveloped us and our bikes. Labor day weekend was a big cause of all this traffic.

Feeling better about the trip after today. My bike still has some shifting issues which kind of sucks but it is fast on the downhills. Access to this hut via singletrack which was the first we have ridden so far. Our bunkmates showed us how to do laundry - it will be nice to be a bit less stinky tomorrow. There are killer views on a bluff past the hut. Sadly TK lost his shades early in today's ride.

Monday
Good hot breakfast this morning. John-boy stoked a nice fire to warmup the hut this morning. It is cold before the sun comes up. Headed out for a gentle but big climb to start the day's festivities. This turned into a fast, technical decent. My favorite riding thus far but I had to be careful to not get carried away. Equipment failure would be a big problem at this point.

We made a wrong turn shortly after completing the downhill section. This resulted in an extra four miles of riding but it was enjoyable as it was an easy climb and a fun decent. We went by a water reservoir and were treated to yet another long, gravely climb. At the top we met up with our bunkmates and descended down a long, fast downhill to the hut.

Today we saw the landscape change from alpine to high desert. Bunkmates also showed us where to get cell service on a bluff by the hut, about a 10 minute walk.

Tuesday
The desert sure gets cold at night. But the stars look amazing, Frank said he saw a shooting star. We headed out early looking to score breakfast at a diner en route to the next hut. We took the standard route and enjoyed a ride on a trail that resembled an old dried up riverbed. This was some cool riding!

Breakfast was awesome, the burrito at the 11 mile mark was a definite high point or the ride today. We continued on the standard route west through the middle of nowhere. We enjoyed great weather an no wind which amazed me. We intended to detour and take the Mexican Mine detour at road "16Z" but did not find it. The mining roads are not easy to navigate and are not always marked. So we ended up taking the standard route all the way to the hut.

This was cool until I sustained a flat tire on my rear. In checking the tire I noticed the sidewall was slightly torn. I slapped some duct tape on the inside of the tire, slammed home a new tube and filled 'er up hoping it would hold. It did - thank god.

TK dealt with an anchor for a front brake all day long. We fixed it up better at the hut but what a pain! It had us longing for the old linear pull style brakes, Avid hydraulics were invented by the devil. That was our conclusion as we turned in for the night.

Wedding Bells Hut is very cool, our bunkmates will be staying here an extra night. This was an easier day in the saddle.

Wednesday
We left our bunkmates after Frank made us a pancake breakfast. I'm gonna miss those guys - great company.

We climbed out from the hut to start the days outing. From there we climbed some more and were rewarded with a rocky, fast decent. This was a very cool 10 mile section of trail. From here the clouds looked bad and we had a big mile plus climb at the 11 mile mark. We quickly repacked our gear (ie cameras) and hit it. This climb was a big effort and some rain fell as it thundered.

At the top we made our way into a flat valley section where all the rainwater collected. Shortly after, we sustained the worst mud-clay mixture I have ever dealt with. After trudging through this crap for a few miles we washed the bikes in a filthy stream. The bikes had tripled in weight.

Shortly after this we came upon the most vicious hike-a-bike I have ever experienced. It was called the "Catch 'em Up Trail" and it descended >1000 feet. I was happy to get through this section with bike and body intact.

Less than a half mile after this hike we hit the county store in Bedrock. I was able to score some fresh produce (most other riders are probably more excited by the ice cream) and I was thrilled. We also hit ourselves and the bikes with a hose on the side of the store. From here we had an uneventful trip to the hut. I called up a local who advertised rides, beer runs, and rides named Heather. I called her and talked her into bringing us breakfast burritos in the morning for $50. We have a big day of climbing tomorrow and need to get an early start. Lots of coyotes down here in Paradox Valley to keep us company last night.

Thursday
The Heather delivery service showed up in a big Ram pickup barreling down the road. Out stepped the breakfast burritos, some fresh produce and the first reasonably attractive female we have seen this whole trip. We were all SHOCKED! Well worth the $50, the food was good and the delivery service better ;)

We left the hut at 8AM and prepared ourselves for the "Tour de LeSal". I have never experienced such a climbing experience in my life. We climbed ~1600 feet in ~4 miles. TK and I were reduced to pushing the bikes up the last 1/4 mile. We were cooked and the day had just started. The views were magnificent at the top.

From here we made our was over to Buckeye Reservoir. Too cold for a swim so we pushed on to the Colorado/Utah border. TK was nearly taken out by a deer on a decent at >30mph. I was right behind him, the deer stated across but stopped. In the meantime TK hit his brakes which startled the deer enough to continue his crossing of our path. That could have been real bad.

Once we crossed into Utah, we found ourselves on a HUGE cattle ranch that would not end. We took a lunch break by a stream. I took this opportunity and enjoyed a bird-bath as the funk was strong. The water was freezing but felt good on my torched legs.

Shortly after resuming our ride after lunch, we diverted off the main road and went past a green gate. The riding surface was now rudded and uneven. TK said this does not look good, it should really put the polish on the shoes. It sure did.

Uphills were steep and the surface loose. Plus cows were everywhere. At one point I chased ~8 heads of cattle on my bike for a 1/4 mile like a cowboy minus the horse and hat. As an added bonus the hut was relocated recently. We did find it without getting lost but it did increase the difficulty.

We arrived at the hut - that was an epic day of riding. We cooked up a big meal, and I just kept eating after that. I was starved. Elk and coyotes kept us company this night.

Friday 9/10
Last ride, my how the time fly's. We got up and had some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast. They were not as good as John-boys but they were good. We headed out and my legs felt like lead. I had to hike up a hill early as my legs just would not work. After a few miles life came back to them. We pushed on and before long we were on screaming fast descents heading for Moab. Cows were still all over the side of the roads we were on but they didn't seem to mind us. It was a cold decent, I had to stop at one point to put on warmer gloves and a windbreaker.

Eventually we made our way to the Kokopelli Trail. Fun Moab singletrack took us to Sand Flats Road and past famous Moab trails such as Porcupine Rim Trail and the Slickrock Bike Trail. We finally reached Moab, scored a much needed shower and some excellent grub. Great trip - thanks to TK, Ron, John, Frank and Rick. Keep the rubber side down...

Detroit Critical Mass Ride 8/27/10

I've decided that this is a must ride at least once in the summer for any cyclist in SE Michigan - this month AndyS and I rode from our front door to Dearborn Don's. From there we met up with five other riders which gave us a good sized contingent as we rolled down Warren Ave to the rides starting point at Warren and Trumbull. For the more casual cyclist, riding in a car to the event seems to be the more popular option.

This months ride found us "corking" some streets (blocking traffic) which puts the corkers at the back of the pack. For those not familiar with corkers, they peel off from the ride and park their bikes and themselves in the intersection so the rest of the riders can safely pass through an intersection despite the traffic signal being red. Some drivers get a bit aggravated with this practice but most seem to take it in stride. From the back of the pack we would sprint up towards the front of the pack to cork another intersection along the ride. A unique way to incorporate interval training on the bike. Beautiful night to hit the streets.

Woodward Dream Crusie Run 8-21-10

Question: Who is crazier, someone catching a bus in Birmingham at 5:40AM and taking it down to Hart Plaza or the Dream Cruise fan setting up their chairs at 5:40AM? I pondered this question yesterday.

Well this week I traded in the bike for running shoes. The last time I rode public transportation in southeast MI was for this exact run but during the winter a couple of years ago.

What a great start to the Dream Cruise weekend. And the bus was pretty much all runners. The traditional photo op for this run in front of the Spirit of Detroit was a no-go this morning, they had the lights turned off. Cost reduction I suppose. So we hopped up onto the "Joe Lois Fist" and had a group shot taken. A bit blurry but you get the idea, a big group of runners training for fall marathons about to head north on Woodward.


And so the miles clicked by, it was nice they had some sections of Woodward torn up in Detroit that made for a cushier running surface. But man was it hot. I burned through my water bottle quickly, stopped by a gas station and bought a couple sportsdrinks. One for backup, one for now. Once we ran up the hill coming out from underneath the 696 overpass the Dream Cruise kicked into full effect. Cool cars everywhere.

When we hit 13 and Woodward, I knew this run was gonna leave a mark. I had a cramp in my right ARM?? Yep, early dehydration symptom. So I slugged down more water and continued on. The group weaved through the many pedestrians - one gentleman said, "Classic runners this way" which made me smile as we trotted down Woodward. When we finally hit the downtown B-ham Starbucks I stopped and walked a few. Definitely feeling the heat. After a couple of blocks I sucked it up and ran back to my car which was parked just over a mile away. 19.5 miles on the Garmin for the day. Where's the water!

Later that day I came back to enjoy the Dream Cruise at a more relaxed pace. There are some amazing vehicles present, some interesting people and even Iggy Pop:



I found this YouTube post comical:

Critical Mass 7/30/10

Dearborn Don, AndyS and I rode down to Detroit for the monthly mass confusion outing. Lots of interesting people, cool bikes and oddly - smokers. I have never seen so many smokers on a bike in my life - one dude was even hittin a pipe (see last pic). Ran TONS of red lights heading as people from the group peel off and block traffic - a ride worth doing.

BTT 7/17/10

Today was the maiden voyage of the new road bike on BTT. It's a lot of fun to ride but not so good for picture taking. Nonetheless it was great to see everyone - big turnout. First time rider John suggested a second lap of Belle Island which was a first for me. He made me work both laps :) AndyS and I accompanied new rider Jimmy home for some bonus mileage. Thanks to Andy for keeping me company as I nailed down a century on the day. Till the next outing, cheers!