Inactivity is expensive!

It's an interesting paradox that the less time I spend actually riding my bikes the more money I spend on them! Not that I ever spend a lot of money but relatively my purchases recently (during a real period of inactivity) has been high.

First of all I used my cycling inactivity as an excuse to finally finish building up my old Specialized Rockhopper. This old beast is a classic! Biopace chain ring, rigid fork, spectacular - probably dates from late 80's. This was the bike I converted to a single speed when my transformation into a SSer was in it's infancy. With the purcahsee of my beloved Redline 29er Monocog the poor old Rockhopper was consigned to a roof hook in my garage - and there she lay abandonned for nearly a year now. But I always wanted to emulate the great John Tomac and the "drop bar" Yeti he rode in the 1990 MTB World championship.

John Tomac in daredevil mode in 1990 on his Yeti

With my free time off the bike now seemed like a good opportunity so I set to work assembling my homage to John Tomac.



And here she is! I must admit as soon as I finished her I realized what a terribly bad idea it probably was - she has the potential to be the mother of all endo's but I love her just the same. The final touch in getting this baby ride ready was the bar tape - so I sneaked down to my LBS and to my amazement who was I served by? Only Jon Posner himself! Trek team manager, best supporting actor for his role in 24 h solo (inexplicably overlooked at last nights Oscars) and now bar tape salesperson extraordinaire - is there no end to this man's talents. Having put the finishing touches to her on Friday pm (MLW ws out) I was icthing to take her for a test run. So Saturady afternoon when an unexpected "free" couple of hours cropped up I didn't need any persuading. On with the cold weather gear and I headed off from the "Bollux mansion" for a exploration ride around Columbia's bike trails. If you know where to look even in a suburban setting like Columbia there is a fair amount of unpaved trail you can hit. I managed around 15 miles of which perhaps 2 miles was on roads, 8 miles was on paved trails and the remaining 5 miles was on either single track or power line tracks. Fan-bloody-tastic! A few minor adjustments were made but on the whole I was very pleasantly surprised how she handled! The decision not to travel to patapsco was justified as sections of the trails had the consistency of overcooked rice pudding - the top layer moving over a soggy underneath. Finished tired, muddy but happy, especially as "the leg" held up and showed no adverse effects.

The going was a bit muddy on the inaugural ride!

Sunday, as the weather had not been cold enough to freeze the trilas that were still recovering from the winterstorm that hit the previous Friday, and Patapsco was still a no-go. However MLW has signed up for a ladies triathlon so needed some roadbike time. Having disposed of children #2 and #3 to a friend we had just over an hour to hit the road. As MLW does not have a road bike and to even things up, MLW took my roadbike and I tagged along on the Rockhopper! We were joined by one of MLW friends and so we heade off into the Maryland countryside. It is a reasonable undulating ride and it soon became very apparent that my 38/20 gear and 26 inch knobblies (oo er missus) were not really up to a roadride. MLW had a great time and soon disappeared into the distance whilst I span like a mad bugger just trying to break 16 mph.

Taking a break at half way on MLW's first Roadride of 2008

The whole ride was just 12 hilly miles but MLW and I were both suitably worn out by the end. She acquitted herself admirably for her first proper road ride and I was left pondering the prospect of switching out the 20 tooth cog for an 18 tooth on the Rockhopper to make her more "cross-friendly"







Cheers all







Dogzbollux

Biking with Sore Legs!

My lack of posting has reflected my general lack of activity. To some degree this has been forced upon me by work related stuff and by injure (of which more in a minute), but as always the truth is that my own bloody laziness has also played a huge role.

With the Hat Run fast approaching some miles needed to go in running - and so of course right on track I get bloody injured! My sore leg (right calf) has been playing up big stylee and really hindering my efforts to get in any kind of shape. Then after a modicum of rest all appeared to be fine and dandy! To celebrate Biker Sean and I headed out on a recent Sunday for a good old fashioned MTB show down. I was up for it big time but family commitments for Sean meant we couldn't head to the Baltimore County (BC) side of Patapsco but instead decided to do a "balls to the wall" effort on the "Long Loop" HC side. Good fun and a pretty reasonable pace maintained all the way round. Then bloody disaster! Last sodding obstacle (the large rock on Cascade) and I come a cropper - been having trouble with this lately, balls it up more often than clear it - with the conditions being a bit muddy I don't get enough speed up and trying to hop over the tiop of the rock I pull the handle bars to hard and the front whell takes off! I fall like a F'in lemon and smack my right knee on said rock with a right old clout. Hurts like heck for a minute or two then subsides and I assume everything is cool. And so it is for the remainder of the ride and a couple of hours after. But then as I try and get up from the dinner table later in the day I can't! Bloody knee is locked solid and swollen to twice it's normal size. No pain but it takes til Wednesday for swelling to go down.

Following weekend I am in Belgium (land of the "cross cyclists"). Being at a loose end on Saturday morning i try and do a long trail run behind the hotel - well, I manage 45 min and my calf is completely shagged again! the last two miles I hobble around like an old man. A gentle effort on Monday confirms that all is not well in "calf-land" so off to the "Docs" it is. Good news - no real damage, bad news - torn calf muscle which will only get better with rest! "You can do anything that doesn't hurt" is the Doc's summation. But with hat only 6 weeks away he gives me less than 50 % chance of being fit! Bollux!

But then there is some good news - On the night of the lunar eclipise a night ride is scheduled with George (back from hand surgery), Mr Todd and fast riding Brian! I'd need to be dead to at least not try and go along! So just as the moon is starting to disappear behind the earth's shadow we hit the trails, snow on the ground, well below freezing and all is well with the world. Calf gives a few twinges but no real pain. We bounce around checking out conditions - a few tire tracks tell us we are not the first (only) folks out tonight. Obstacles taken head on are fine, but the occasional small log at angles across the trail cause a degree of chaos that needed to be seen to be believed. Frozen gears for Brian and George, frozen brakes for Todd and frozen pedals/cleats all round.

The "Three Amigo's"

End up doing the Long Loop again, plus some bits and bobs at the front end. My Nite Hawk (still trucking on like a real trooper) packs in mid way along Cascade so I have to rely on the limited illumination of my Princeton Tech Yukon for a good deal of the way back - just about enough light, but would be challenging on trails I didn't know well.

Finished off with the "new(ish)" section over the big logs and a fantastic time was had by all - after a dodgy start I was overjoyed that the leg held up - and i can feel the cahnces of the Hat happening creeping up!

Back to the cars for a couple of relaxing beers and a good amount of chat (it's been a while since we were all together) before the biting cold finally drives us into the sanctuary of our cars and back to reality for another week. I LOVE NIGHT RIDING!

the guys enjoying a beer post ride - bloody freezing

Summers nearly here guys

Dogzbollux

R & R this weekend!

It has been a complete wash for biking/training this week. The poor Monocog has sat alone and dejected in the garage whilst I have had other priorities. O.K. so I'm a bad person - get over it already!

Mid week there were attempts to get a nightride organized - Brian sent round the invitation but it wasn't to be, other plans one night and the other.... well that's a different story. I must be getting a bit paniced by the upcoming Hat run cos I actually ducked out of the nightride with brian to go for a run. Scheduled to get a 90 min run in and that had to take priority! Did what I call my "hilly run", so named cos , well it's hilly. Took the hills nice a gently and all was well until about 80 min in. My right calf has been giving notice for a while and I've been essentially ignoring it (like any runner would) because although it hurt it never got any worse. Well that changed! After 80 min running, albeit gently, I realized the pain in my calf had substantially increased to a degree where it was effecting the way I ran. BUGGER! So I limped home having covered the miles I wanted (and more) having been out for over 100 min. So some miles in but at what cost I wonder!

The weekend was a complete wash re. biking/general activity as a "boys weekend away" was planned. Biker Sean (Sean I in previous posts) had a friend from the UK over for the week so we decided to use this as an excuse to abandon families and a head west for a night drinking beer! So early(ish) on Saturday Biker Sean, his friend Seamus, Neil and I packed up the minivan and hit the road. Initial plan was to aim for Thomas WV but we are at heart lazy baskets, so after a leisurely lunch at Rocky Gap and a leisurely stroll up Evitt "Mountain" (all 1000 feet of it). We decided enough excercise had been taken and we needed a bar! So we ended up in Frostburg for the night on the basis that "hey it's a college town so Saturday night should be pretty wild".

Now we could have stayed in the Hampton Inn but in our quest for adventure we chose to stay instead at the Failinger's Hotel Gunter http://www.failingershotelgunter.com/ (ranked number 3rd best hotel in Frostburg - out of 3). Checking in we came across an elderly lady who (i) appears to be the owner and (ii) was clearly as mad as a bag of cats! The general theme of insanity was carried thoroughout the hotel with display cases crammed with stuffed animals and artifacts from days of yore and at regular intervals large dolls! It gave the feeling of being an excellent setting for a horror movie. The website proudly states "there is nowhere like it" personally I found that reassuring!

The old lady (rapidly baptised Granny Gunter) solemnly informed us (in great detail) how to unlock and then relock the rear door of the hotel as after 8pm the front desk would not be manned and the doors would be locked! The absolute necessity for locking the backdoor was underlined by her declaration that "there are people who live here full time you know - that's just how it is!" - completely barking!

The rooms were straight out of a Western movie, lace and four poster beds.

Having dumped our stuff we headed out in search of food and entertainment. First bar was called the "Draft House" as it transpired not a refernce to the beers (though it had good beer) but to the act of drafting on a bike! The bar was joined to the bike shop next door and was decorated with biking type decor - a real find. Best bar in Frostburg - ceap beer and good food.

WE were a little surprised by the lack of people in the bar but the realization that it was only 5-45 pm explained that to some degree. Spent a good amount of time in the Draft House but did also vist a bar right by the campus and ended the night in Dante's watching a second rate reggae band - except for Seamus who slept! Finally rolled out of there at 1am and stumbled back to Granny Gunter's. Only to find the back door is bloody open! Too many beers, no exercise but a worthwhile weekend on many levels.

Frostburgs worth a visit and Granny Gunter's is the place to stay if you have a sense of the ridiculous.

Till next time
Dogzbollux