Balmy Michigan Summer!

Last day of August,

Michigan summer in full effect!

48 oF when I left my house to ride to work this morning!!!!

Bloody hell it's going to be a long winter!

Long sleeves and long fingered gloves - still out on the bike and that's the main thing. Bought a new(ish) car last week so the "Bollux" are a two car family again :(

Thought that might end my rides to work but still cruising - nearly 600 miles of the Mi 1000 clocked up and hopefully rest will happen before darkness/ice make bike commuting a no no. Lights have been installed on the fixie for those gloomy mornings - two last week when rain and cloud meant leaving home before 6:50 am was impossible without illumination.

Happy ridin' guys

DB

Mi 1000

Whooo, two weeks since last post! Wot a lazy SOB!!

Fortunately been some bike time! So not quite so lazy. Still one car family - tho not fort long :( - so the commute continues.

When I moved north I was supposed to put in big miles but never happened. Wanted to get 1000 miles "fixed" in before the family joined me. Nope, not even close.

But last few weeks with the daily fixed commute the miles are slowly piling up. Roads round here are a bit on the challenging side, bloody bumpy - potholes and bad patching. Fixie riding can be a bit teeth chattering. Commute to work is a short 6 mile jaunt, Hulett Rd, Bennet Rd (past MSU beef cattle R&D center) onto College (past MSU swine R&D center, oh yes the commute is an olfactory safari), then Jolly for last bit onto Collins. Few ups and downs (and windy sections) to keep me honest, but nothing that can't be ridden sat down if I really put my mind to it.

Back and I turn a 6 mile jaunt into an 8 miler by tagging on a section north of Jolly (including a nice little hill). 14 miles a day done for 3 weeks now and beginning to feel benefit.

Tuesday also did session with the "track club" and legs have still not fully recovered.

But most important the miles are being done and I am now half way (and more) to the 1000 mile fixed in Mi!!

Till next time!

DB

Heroes and Villains

Scotish Biking Hero: Graeme Obree, read his book "Flying Scotsman". Made his own bikes out of bits of scrap, never made anything like a decent living from cycling, pissed off the UCI just by being "generally a bit mad" and broke Merckx hour record - a feat so bloody hard Lance Armstrong thought about it once but decided it was too hard to be worth trying.

Scotish Biking Villain: David Millar, god I hate this bloke - whinging scotish git who artfully combined constant moaning about how hard biking was, celebrating how little training he did in the off season, drug taking and not actually being all that good

In the groove (at last)

It's been a long time coming!
But the past week and a bit has actually seen some quality biking time!
Turns out we are only ging to have one car for a while (shame) so poor old me has to cycle to work..... like everyday, in the words of the immortal (probably) Belinda Carlile "oooo oo heaven is a place on earth" right now that place is Okemos Mi.
So I've cycled to work on the fixie everyday for the past week - only 6 miles (20 min) but enough to get the heartrate up and to log over 50 miles since Monday. With the 20 mile road ride I did with MLW last Sunday the past 7 days have taken in 6 consecutive days on the fixie totalling over 70 miles. Hardly epic but a start.
Thursday was a departure from the norm in that I didn't ride home but was picked up by SWMBO in the Bolluxmobile so we could head to Burchfield and introduce MLW to both Kevin and the local trails. MLW liked Kevin (and his family) more than she did the trails but overall whole thing totally positive!
Another short post but back in the groove.

Later.......

DB

Philosophy via Youtube

No time for posting but here is a journey through my life via Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuK2A1ZqoWs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9f-lXqUZ18

Enjoy, normal service will be resumed shortly I hope.

Cheers

DB

Two Rides in One Day!

I need to get back in the saddle!

All week life has been crazy! Spent Wednesday and Thursday in Illinois and so it's been eight days since I have even broken sweat. Bad enough, but next Saturday I am running the Baltimore 10 mile Road Race - guess that's gonna hurt!

One week left and a level of fitness that is lower than a midget limbo dancers arse! Time to step it up big stylee.

Friday and there is no bloody option. Finish work, change into running gear and hit the road. First road run in Okemos - how long have I lived here? What the hell have I been doing? Headed up Okemos Rd then turned off to the left along a footpath - pace is kinda fast, trying to stay smooth and keep the stride stretched out. By 10 min I am gasping. By the end I reach the end of the trail I'm winded and wondering if I should cut the run short. Eventually I find my way to Hulett Rd. Hang a right and keep going. Over Bennett, rail tracks and finally hit Okemos again. Left over the river, round the park, finally to Marsh Rd. Right and then Dobie Rd? Heading home but bugger me Dobie is quite hilly! By time I hit Jolly Road I am 55 min in and more than happy to head right and back to the Hotel. In the end 1.05 hrs effort. Sore legs, clogged lungs. All is good.

Saturday, and my mission (if I chose to take it) is to window shop for new cars. Yeah, like I'm not gonna drive so it's me and the Rockhopper. Spend the best part of 6 hours riding and looking at cars.

Sunday and I have two rides planned (Yoo Hoo)! Mark (my adventure racing friend) has lived in Okemos for over 5 years and has never ridden Burchfield! To quote the Pet Shop Boys - "It's a Sin". Arrange to pick Mark up at 2:30 and we head to Burchfield with me (as ever) apologizing for the state of the Bolluxmobile. As I left my helmet in Kevin's car the other evening I am sporting (against the advice of everyone who I've asked) the V1-Pro helmet! It's a bit of a classic ride, cos I'm on my mid-80's Rockhopper and donning my vintage lid and Mark (bless his cotton socks) turns up on a mid-80's Stumpjumper (Biopace chainrings and all).

I'm trying to remember the route we took the previous week and we are tearing it up! Decided Annie's Playground is just about my favorite bit of Mi singletrack (so far). It's in a shallow(ish) depression in the ground but by heck the trail builders have done their best to utilize every bit of elevation possible. The result is a twisty, up and down rooty fun fest. If only a decent hurricane could come along and drop fifty or so logs across the trail it might just be a classic to rival the long lost (but not forgotten) Small Intestine!

Good as Small Intestine (almost)

First obstacle (the titter totter thing) and I balls it completely! Over the bars, not even close! Pick myself up - minus pride - and carry on, at the next obstacle (the elevated boardwalky thing) I have a bit of a half hearted crack but sod it not today. All in all a nice ride - take in the swampy bridge portion and Dragonball Run .Then it's time to get Mary home cos, he has a dinner party and I am supposed to be meeting Kevin for a ride in 15 min!

My Nemesis!!

Fortunately Kevin is as late as me and so we both arrive at 5:00pm for Burchfield Park take two! manage the whole big loop with Kevin - get horribly lost and do a couple of loops around the lake on the back half of the trail, ah well adds a mile or so to the total. By 7pm we are back at the cars and partaking in some rather smashing "High Seas" IPA. Two ride, one day - sore but happy legs, and a bike that is complaining - think I may have nicked a tooth on my back cog!

Next day legs are sore, but sun is out and bugger it I have nothing better to do so I hit Burchfield for third time in two days! That bloody first titter totter thing (My Nemesis) I try to ride it three soddin times and end up arse over tit each time, let's face it "it owns me!". Lost as a lost thing by the raised walkway thing - round and round and round I go, but I'm always seemly heading the wrong way down a rail and no matter which way I go i end up back at the raised walkway! All a bit Blairwitch for my liking!

Scary elevated walkway thing!

About the fourth time I meet a jackass at the raised section - no bloody helmet! Remembering Todd's parable about pointing out the stoopidity of this behavior I decide to keep my mouth shut! I ask the guy if he knows the way out and he completely misunderstands me and replies that "no he isn't going to ride the raised obstacle cos it's his first ride of the season". Something in my head goes ping! Whether it's the humiliation of being lost, the irritation with the plonker with no helmet or what, but I suddenly have a desperate urge to ride the bloody obstacle! Up I go and bloody well get on the raised section!!! Only when I get to it's zenith do I think about how much this is going to hurt when I fall off (it's about 3 feet off the ground). But in my panic I stay upright and even manage to make the left turn to dismount in a vaguely controlled fashion! Don't know if Mr Jackass was impressed, but I was bloody amazed!

Between us, Jackass and DB finally found our way out of the lost world and parted company. About five minutes later, by one of the car parks I ride up behind Mr Jackass again and as I reach him start to chat away - he never even registers my existence, well bugger him! It's not till about 2 minutes later as I pass by him to take the trail to his left that he jumps half out of his skin and declares "Shit, you scared me half to death" and pulls his earplugs out of his ears!!!!! Yep he's the real deal, no helmet and ipod so loud we is completely oblivious to the rest of the world! Glad I came across him while he was riding his bike not driving his car! As I finish my ride I do a bit of exploring and end up in a clearing with just me my bike and a mother dear and her fawn - stand and look at each other for an age - I get out my camera and take a load of photies, she just stamps her hoof occasionally - I decide discretion is the better part of valor and leave them on their own and retracing my tire tracks to the car.

Two's Company

Fantastic - knackered, skeet bitten and happy as a pig in doo doo!

Cheers

DB

1985!

"there was Sprinsteen, Madonna,

way before Nirvana,

there was U2 and Blondie,

and music still on MTV,

her two kids in highschool,

tell her that she's uncool,

cos she's still preoccupied

with 1985!"

Oh yes for us Generation Xers the mid 1980s are days to dream about - days when we could go out biking all day and not have to worry about anything except being home before it got dark - and doing our homework for the next day!

So where is this going? Well as it happens I was doing a bit of exploring in my new "burg" today and passed a consignment store. In the window all forgotten and forlorn was a thing of great beauty, a thing to behold. A thing that took me back to - yep you've got it - 1985!!!!!

A Bell V1-Pro bike helmet!!!!

"That's one BAD HAT Harry!"

An object so 80's I had to have it.

So $3.99 later I am now sporting a fantastic new (old) lid

OOhh I feel just like John Tomac!

So if you spot an older guy on a yellow mid-80's Rockhopper wearing a ridiculous looking helmet (specially if you are riding in Burchfield Park) don't yell abuse or laugh - I know I look stoopid! You've just eyeballed the DogzBollux!

Cheers

DB