Trust No One...

... then let a few people prove you wrong. Sound Philosophy.

The webstore for the Epic is nearly complete. Final phases of my smart ass, but to the point disclaimer are about all that remains. Details available shortly on the race blog.

Midwest Mileage Shortage

If you felt shortchanged by the weather at TI,
Saturday is the Signup for the Epic. I can't promise continuous rainfall. If it makes anyone feel any better though, it could snow.

Sologoat answers the CyclingNews quiz. "Worlds" Champ this year?

Good reads on CN's MTB RoundUp too.

This blog kills fascists.

TransIowa Recap Part Four: Always Another Race

Sam and I waited at the Cenex in Paulina for four hours after we shut it down. I think we stopped shivering after the first two. The highlight of our stay was Sam falling asleep and leaving a nice little drool puddle on the table.

Once Team RamRodd (two D's) arrived, we went to Algona to get our gear. Luckily Paddy was there with Guinness and, in the finest tradition, Sam went to the local liquor store to get more. Apparently the clerk said, "It's about time someone bought some good beer today." Damn Right.

It was nice to actually talk with familar names in person. Thanks again to Jeff and Mark for making it happen.

In short order, we have the Platte Marathon, Kanza and the 12hr all back to back to back. No reason to cry over the rain, plenty coming up.

TransIowa Recap Part Three: Sauna in My Pants

Race morning came as painlessly as a 2:30am alarm clock can. I got up and found Team RamRod (Butch and Dave) firing up breakfast with our hosts. (Dave has a nice shot of this on his site. The site from which the photo of the Sam-and-I warrior was also unceremoniously stolen.) Omlettes and coffee were a great start to the day.

We rode to the start, gear bags in hand and ready to rock. G-Ted had the back of his van loaded with gear (including his new On-One and several Monkeytrons) ready to lead the way to the course. There was a small group of riders gathered and when Mark moved the van into starting position, I rode right up behind him. Sam came up next to me and we chatted with Mark for a bit. Great guy, great attitude. He remembered that someone was hoping to not have Cindy Lauper stuck in their head and I beamed, "That's YOU!!" to Sam. Luckily for us both, Mark didn't sing "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," instead he just smiled and laughed.

Right before we took off I keep trying to find MW but couldn't. Sam wasn't too worried which mellowed me out. We had a pretty simple plan in mind. When the van pulled off we would ride put it down. Not XC style, but at a pretty good clip and stick with it for as long as made sense. As the van rolled out, Sam and I stuck right behind it. In hindsight, I probably should have felt a little chilly at this point but didn't. We cruised at a bit under 15mph and that three miles of paved riding was probably about as fast as it got all day.

When the van pulled aside I flew out front with Sam and Matt Maxwell right there. After not too long, MW pulled up right in front of me and had me grinning from ear to ear as he was spinning it out like a madman. Sweet!! After about five miles, I started to feel a little sick, even though my heart rate was pretty low.

I had a sauna in my pants.

I started to drop back a bit, taste a little of the morning's breakfast while I wondered what in the fuck the deal was. At about that time, Paddy smoothly slid by on my right, then CreepyFriendly snaked his way through some traffic on my left. The Darkness came next and I was just getting pissed that I didn't feel right. "That's the fucking group," came out of my mouth to no one in particular. That group was about ten strong at that point and I would guess that was the heart of the eight that lead most of the race.

I floated back to Sam, who was wearing the same lower body setup I was and he said, "You wanna loose the pants??" Hell yes, was the answer. It was way to early in the race to stop but we had to do it. Taking those damn things off was like holding your breath for as long as you can and then gasping for air. We were instantly feeling better and Sam said it best: "Feeling better equals faster."

Thoughts of bridging up passed through my mind as we passed a couple of riders. We guessed we were floating around 15th place. Could have been more, could have been less. It's hard to say.

It was about this time we also realized that a quick check of the abacus showed we weren't going to make it to Algona in time.

The B roads are getting a ton of discussion and rightfully so. Had I not ridden last year, I would have been through a bit. The first B section came near the top of a climb so you couldn't really see it coming, particularly with the rain and slight headwind in your face.

"I'd like an order of grease soup, please." I just headed straight for the ditch, but it wasn't as if there was a clear definition between B road mud and corn field mud. Unable to ride, I broke into a "late for class" walk. Sam and I were moving pretty well and passed a guy or two. At one point, I looked back and Sam was fairly far back. The next thing I knew, he was behind me telling me my wheel had stopped moving. "You've got to clean it off and carry it, man." Great advice. I took a piece of a corn stalk, scraped my tires and drivetrain and picked the Niner up, resting the saddle on my shoulder. For us, I think that first B road was the worst, maybe not by condition, but because we didn't just go cross style and shoulder our bikes. There was a couple of times I jogged a bit, but then felt stupid because it's wasn't as if it mattered.

As we neared the first pass-through town, we saw a rider in full bright-yellow rain gear on a paved road pulling out and heading in. It occurred to me that while we may have been at the front of the race early, we could now be at the back simply due to people pulling out. It was a brutal kind of day.

Sam-and-I pushed on through the city and as we popped back on to gravel, saw Team RamRod in the back of the EuroVan, which is when Dave snapped the above picture. The cat behind us in the pick was rocking a geared Surly with tassles hanging from the top tube. He looked in very good order as he went by.

I had just stopped and put on a pair of snowboarding mittens to keep out the damp as my Nike mtb gloves were completely soaked through and my hands were getting cold. Of course, they weren't exactly made for 50 degrees and it wasn't long before I had little pools of sweat tickling the end of my finger tips.

At this point, the cue sheets were really not needed unless you were at a pass-through town. You could always make out tire tracks in the gravel and muck so I never bothered turning my cue sheets most of the time.

Sam-and-I were just riding and talking for a good deal of the time. Some of the time there really wasn't much to say, either. We just rode, continued to be wet and pressed on.

At some point, I got a "Hello," on my left and was surprised to see Joe Partridge pulling up beside me. Joe and I chatted for a bit and he said he was already in a mode to just make it to Algona. I told him we thought the same and we worked together for a while. Joe was strong enough though that he needed to pressed on so he politely moved ahead.

A few minutes after that, I just started at my cyclometer and evaluated things. I was soaked through up to my shoulders. My core was warm, but it wouldn't be too long before that wasn't the case and that time would be far before Algona. Sam had a look on his face that said he'd about had enough, so we just talked about what we thought was prudent.

Neither of us wanted to push an unwinable situation, get sick and miss races further down the road, so we decided to pull the plug. We got another B road section under our belt as the rain came down a bit harder, then we road to a gas store in Pauleena and shut it down.

There were quite a few people already there and I was feeling like a grumpy old snob. We grabbed some coffee, sat and listened to the locals and waited for Team RamRod to arrive.

As a Charter Member of Team OverAnalysis, I then sat and continually brought up bits and pieces about the race. I wish I had done this... Remember when this happened...

A sauna in your pants isn't as cool as it sounds...

No waiting until next year... Bring on Kanza.

TransIowa Recap Part Two: Riders at the Ranch

The only negative about the Rider's Meeting at the Pizza Ranch was the lack of hangout time due to the early morning start. We walked in just behind Marko and Jesse (who MW now refers to as the Darkness Twins) and found a table after ordering some food.

Jeff and Mark called out rider's names and we'd step forward and grab our number plates and drop bag for the race. Afterword, I chatted briefly with Paul, Matt, Paddy and Dallas, and would have loved to chat more, but in the back of my mind I kept thinking about having to get up to be ready to race at 4am.

We bolted after the meeting and went straight to the grocery, Feista Foods. "I have a Feista in my pants," was said as we pulled in the lot.

Inside, I grabbed some sinus meds and poptarts, Sam grabbed some water jugs. As we walked through, I heard a "Snob" from aisle three and CreepyFriendly and the Darkness were doing a little pre-race grocery trip as well. (I think I saw a jar of grape jelly.) Unfortunately, it was a quick hello and on with the countdown.

We returned to our host house and started working out the details on our bikes. It was here I made two choices I would love to have back. One, I went with a CamelBak instead of just bottles for the first section of the race. Two, I decided to wear rain paints over my shorts and knee warmers. Sam also saved one of my wheels from a potentially horrible fate. Thanks again, Dawg.

I set an alarm for 2:30am and we cashed in for the night.

Back to the basement. The Niner is still jacked.

TransIowa Recap Part One: Road Trip

My mind is saturated with thoughts about this weekend, so in faux-journalistic fashion, I am going to post in parts over the day and recap in sections.

Friday started off on a high note. About a half hour before Sam picked me up, I was walking to Leon's to pick up a bottle of wine for the folks who were bunking us up for the night, when I saw Butch walking to Leon's from the other direction. Smiles, laughter and a bottle of 40lb Rooster Wine later, I walked back to the house, walked Seven to school and Sam arrived as I was walking back.

The drive was fun in the truest sense of the Hangout Factor. Good conversation, underlined with excitement and concern for the weather. We stopped in at the Trek Store, chatted with MOD about bikes and snowflake displays in April and headed out again.

At some point after leaving Omaha, Dave turned into the Spider Monkey photographer and was snapping shots at all angles around the van, a few of which are up on MomBok. The drive remained pretty faceless until we hit Route 12 in Iowa. Scenic Byway doesn't do it justice. River on your left, Bluffs on the right and greenery all around. Sam commented several times it would be a sweet road ride. Absolutely right.

When we arrived in Hawarden, we drove about for a bit and then found our host families house, where Tom Kane was waiting for us with a big smile and "how-can-we-help-you" attitude. I have been very lucky to stay with them the last two years. Tom and Elaine also had several bikes hanging in their garage. Word.

After we settled things in, Butch, Dave and MW took a spin around the town, while Sam and I went downstair, tilted back a couple of recliners and napped. Consider the had to get up at 2:30am to get ready, I was pretty stoked to have fallen asleep. Unfortunately, the chairs also reminded me of the Chandler and Joey chair setup from friends.

From there, we headed to the Pizza Ranch for the pre-race meeting. Too be continued.

Time to head downstair and continue cleaning my bike. My chain is rust-red. My clothes smell like a drowning pool.

Rain In, Mobile Blogging Out

Due to the forecast of rain for pretty much the entire race, I doubt that I will be able to do any mobile blogging as I had planned.

The TI site plans to try to do some audio posts throughout the race, but, of course, they will not be focused specifically on the Snob, Lincolnites and our friends, when clearly we should be the focus of the race. : )

DANG, SNAP, CRUD.

IM is a Useful Tool- The EnduroSnob Interview

regina says:
so have you started to pack for this thing
Snob says:
I have a lot of stuff laid out
Snob says:
it will take about ten minutes to pack
regina says:
what is the oddest thing you are taking, are you taking wheels, is Matt really taking wheels, am I far to freaked out about the thought that you are carrying stuff like that with you?
Snob says:
(are you working me over interview style?)
regina says:
because me baraging you with these kind of questions is odd?
Snob says:
maybe
Snob says:
I am not taking anything odd with me
regina says:
i do not think this kind of questioning from me is odd
Snob says:
matt's taking tires
Snob says:
not wheels
regina says:
ok, then what is the heaviest thing that is not liquid that you are taking
Snob says:
my fat ass
Snob says:
on the ride itself?
regina says:
excluding that too, and yes
Snob says:
I suppose my multitool actually weighs the most
regina says:
interesting,
Snob says:
and yes, you are too freaked out
regina says:
so what are you going to eat, I am actually eating two whopper juniors with extra pickle that I removed half the bun and made into a double, out of sympathy of course, did you think of the word you trying to think of
Snob says:
I am eating lots of Hammer Perpetuem and a couple of Tuna salad sandwiches
Snob says:
I am sure I will suck down some Hammer Heed and the occassional gel as well
regina says:
ok I do not know what those Hammer products are, some kind of endurance circle food stuff?
Snob says:
yes
Snob says:
they used to sponsor my team for adventure racing so I know their stuff works well for me
regina says:
well that is handy,
regina says:
oh and what the heck is up with hulk or thing, like they are the only two
regina says:
what about ice man?
Snob says:
name an x-men less powerful than Ice Man
Snob says:
the idea is that they are similar
Snob says:
so of the marvel comics strongmen
regina says:
hmmmmm
Snob says:
who would you pick
Snob says:
plus
Snob says:
there are thing and hulk gloves you can buy
Snob says:
WAIT
Snob says:
that is the strangest thing I am taking
Snob says:
thing gloves
Snob says:
the thing gloves say "It's Clobberin' Time"
Snob says:
Again, more cool than Big Green.

Bring the Pink - The Matt Wills Interview

With less than a week to go, what's running through your melon regarding TransIowa?
The weather and all the shit i have to get together for the event. Making sure i've thought of everything i'll need. Should i pack a camera?
What would you say is your biggest concern regarding the race?
I'm mostly worried about the overnight portion. I've done plenty of nightriding but anything longer than 12hrs in the saddle will be uncharted territory as far as exhaustion and mental soundness.
Hulk or Thing?
Thing. he seems pretty chill all in all.
What's the bike and how's it setup?
Custom rigid Soulcraft SS 29er diskbrakes. 180mm cranks. 36x17 with1.8bontis. salsa flat bar, WTB pure-v saddle. Endurenz light.
Post race beverage of choice?
Coca-Cola.
Acid is not a banned substance for this race. Should you consider listening to Butch's advice?
Never done acid. Probably can live without doing it either.
Any last words?
Hope we can keep the homies togther for most of the event. Some companions for the voyage will certainly make the suffering more bareable. And maybe remembering everything a bit easier.

Savior in Waiting - The Butch Interview

What are your general thoughts in heading to Iowa with the 'Lincoln Three?'
I am excited. I am glad that i jumped on the wagon to go. I hang out with Willz a bit, but don't get to see Sam or Skip enough so a lot of car time with buddies will be fun. I am excited to see how you all react to the race and how weird you are after your body is depleted of all its energy (or at least most of it). I told Willz he should ride the race on acid, but he just told me that i was a bad influence. Is acid against the rules?
What's your favorite car game and will you use it to pass the time?
I usually masterbate a lot in the car.(if you would consider that a game) Unfortunately, i don't think that will be my main form of entertainment. I might go with scrabble, but not on a bumpy road.
Hulk or Thing?
Thing is 10 billion times cooler than the Hulk.
1.) He can function in a team like environment.
2.) Green is only a color for plants and bicycles.
3.) The Hulk is too passive aggressive.
How can riders collect Butch points while riding across Iowa?
I have set-up a list of ways, but will not reveal it until we step into the van to start the trip. Most of them include doing stupid things on your bike while i drive by taking pictures. The biggest award point though I will reveal now so that fellow trip company can think about the issue. The biggest amount of points will go to whomever keeps Sam from picking up truckers at truck stops. We just can't afford to wait outside truck stops with a time schedule like we have.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how strong do you expect that smack talk in the van to be?
I am way better at emailing smack than talking smack in a van. On my bike, i would say i am above average and in a tank i would say that i am excellent.
That being said, i expect Sam to slide open the door and start swinging shit right away. I mean 8-9-10 rate material. He probably is sitting at home right now talking shit with Jenny just to practice. Plus, he has been driving to OMaha everyday. With an hour to spend just thinking up shit you gotta have some good ones thought up. I would say that that will continue until about 1 hour before the race. During the race i would say about 3 rate material because i want to take it easy on everyone. The ride home? Who knows. Sam and/or anyone else might be out of their mind enough to say just about anything. I am hoping that a banter will continue with 10 rate material, but i just think everyone will be too tired or delirious to really say much at all. That way i can run my mouth as much as I want. Well...Until i get smacked down with the Thing Glove.

Pre TransIowa Interview - Sam Rosenau

SamClimb
Originally uploaded by Endurosnob.

How about a short interview for the blog?
-Sure, why not.

How do you feel now with TI so close?
-Excited, nervous and ready to throw down in a very relaxing 30 hour style.

What bike are you riding?
-I'll be riding a Gary Fisher Rig, looks like around a 34x16-18, or a 20 if the wind is angry.

Have any tactics or strategies for the race?
-Hopefully I can ride with someone the whole way, other than that, eat a lot, drink more and keep moving.

Song you'd least like to get stuck in your head?
-Any Cindy Lauper.

Times you plan to stop?
-Once every hour or two to piddle. As little as possible until Algona, maybe more to find pizza between there and Decorah.

Number of Beers consumed after you finish?
-At least 12, no time frame though.

Hulk or Thing?
-Hulk.

The Fuzzy Science

Before David Letterman became famous, he was a weatherman in Muncie, Indiana and was famous for saying there was hail the size of canned hams dropping on the city. Compared to other meteorologists, he was really just as accurate, which is why reading this doesn't bother me in the least.

The forecast across the state reads in two words: Scattered Showers.

My two word response: Bring It.

When Not on the Bike...

Found on BobDob.com

OK Commuter

I work with some willing cats. Recently, I found out that yet another person in our office is making the effort to commute occassionaly by bike.

My loose theory is that people need to see it's possible. Incubation then takes place. Most will always think it's crazy, but some will keep the idea in some safe corner of their mind. "Maybe on nice days, I'll pay less for gas, it will help me get in shape... " At some point, a few will give it a go. If that happens, anything is possible.

A once is a while cyclist is better than an all the time driver.

Latest tale of the tape:

Two Indy Fabs purchased.
One Kona purchased.
Four Tour Registrations (maybe more).
Seven sometime commuters (Out of 47 people).

Spring is here. Time for number 8.

Pat the Bunny

Okay, Now I understand.

Understand what? I believe MW would call it, "9erness."

The Niner and I went out to Wilderness for just under three hours of single track solitude. The goal was to keep the pace pretty high the whole time. Mission Accomplished. Apparently, Easter and some of the locals heading to Manawa meant empty trails for me.

While there is the sense of riding slower, a few measurements seemed to prove that I am pushing pedals faster than ever before and the bike is certainly to blame for some of this. Plus, my marginal technical skills now have a nice crutch with this bike. I am looking forward to getting out to Platte.

Your team kit doesn't look this good... BareKnuckleBrigade.

"Why do you wear that Stupid Bunny Suit?"

14 days... "six hours... 42 minutes... 12 seconds. That... is when the world... will end. "

Bike maintence today, yes. In fact, as I type this Mrs. Snob is struggling to put some new Michelin Jets on her Jamis Nova. Getting the last of that bead in... almost always a pain.

All which is loose must become tight again. Such the state of the Niner.

Easter morning with the family. Easter afternoon is gravelicious. No Manawa for me, just local lines.

"Why do you wear that stupid man suit?"

Office Closed

That's a wrap!!

No, I am not pulling a Paddy. The world outside beckons a little too loudly today. 85 degrees and Sunny. A little bit of a wind, but that's what hiding in the trees is for. Wilderness for a few hours, home by the time I would normally return from work. Heaven.

Fade to black.

And Then There Were Three

Well, for a variety of reasons, the Lincoln Mafia is now down to Three riders taking on TransIowa.

The Sam-R-I Warrior.
Matt Wills.
Da Snob.

The details are all coming together nicely. Butch and Dave Story are our support crew. We have excellent hosts in Hawarden. Now there is just that little matter of riding across the State of Iowa.

I just set up AudioBlogging a few minutes ago. Will I have the color that our local man on the scene brings? No way.

Here's to 340 Miles Cominatcha.

"Lies and Betrayals...

"Fruit covered nails... Electricity and LUST..."

Photo from IFbikes. Click the Pic and See.

Michigan's North Country Trail

Nearly every year, my family and I take a week's vacation in Onekema, MI. It's a very small town along the central Lake Shore just North of Manistee. One of the great things about the vacation is that it's near a trail head for the North Country Trail. So, every year, I slip away for a few hours most days and rock out some single track.

A little research shows that the North Country Trail runs the length of the state. I know some of it isn't open to bikes, but do we have a sleeping Giant of Endurance Events? Is there some sort of record for running the length of the trail? Pipe dreams all? Maybe, but I will most likely be back in Michigan in early July with nothing better to do than explore.

Give a guy a shot if you've got the goods.

Have Headwind, Will Mash

What kind of cat finishes TransIowa? How about a guy who pulls inventory duty all night, then rocks it for a few hours of gravel on the bike, putting up with a jackass who has decided to ride into the headwind. The Sam-R-I warrior in full effect.

Actually, the wind put a damper on the conversation as I hadn't been able to catch up with one of my favorite smart asses for quite a while. Great day. Nice Ride. Lots of TI talk. Sam hasn't chosen a bike yet and is even mulling the One Gear. Yield to the darkside, I say. It is your Destiny.

Combing the prairies for Oreo Cows.



No Sleep? No Problem. Sam training sleep deprivation style.



Two quick notes on Roubaix:

Good call, KW.

Snap a steer tube? WTF?

Yard Art and Oreo Cows

Rock D and I wandered some gravel for a few hours this morning and came across this beauty sitting out by the road.

On the other side of the road were Oreo Cows. Black cows who all had a white stripe around thier torso. Genetic manipulation began long ago. We'll have to go back again for a photo of the cows.

As fate would have it, as I was passing D St on the way home, CVO was pulling up to pick up Corey for their Crowder journey. I am looking forward to hearing how things went.

Fun with MS Publisher

Naproxen Sodium

Also know as Aleve. My legs are tired, have been tired, and are slightly sore. Time to add some teeth to the back cog.

Recon for the Epic has been bagged for this weekend. The weather looks mediocre at best and the race isn't until November, so I'm pretty sure well find a better weekend.

The Niner saw this first single track in Wilderness yesterday, but only a teasing tasteful. I see good things in my riding future.

Listen... You can smell Iowa coming.

The Execution of All Things

The Not-So-Secret Machine.



A little tweak...



And we're off...



Thanks JB for the assist.

Singing in the Rain

No race for the Lincolnites this weekend thanks to Mother Nature's Revolt, but RF brought Kansas soil back to Omaha. I like the foul weather so it's a bit of a mixed bag to me. In the end, I think CVO's call was the right one.

I did however manage to ride twice today. Maybe I should have just raced. If you are going to get soaked, it might as well "mean" something.

The plus side is that I did get a lot done for the Epic. The webstore is ready to rock. Rock D and I have outlined a recon trip for this weekend, mainly to ride what will be the unsupported section of the race.

The new look may be short lived. I tried for a bit to make the background pink instead of red but can't seem to pull it off. The comment section also works in a very funky way and I have yet to be able to straight that out either. If you really want to read the comments and see who they are from, you have to click on "post a comment." Otherwise, you don't get to know who said what and sometimes not all of them show.

Webmaster, I am not.

G-Ted has some nice photos of how the gravel currently looks in parts of Iowa. Maybe I should look into fenders.

RED RUM... RED RUM

What do you mean? I don't notice anything different.

I've added a few addtional changes aside from the look. Adventure Racing has been dropped from the scene to be replace by Fear of the One Gear. AR is dead. And probably should have been dead with me a year or two ago.

Adam has been added in the Think Tank. Also something that should have been some time ago.

Plus, I just dig the little guy on the bottom left. I need a sticker of him to put on the Niner over the verbage on the Top Tube. "Pedal Damn It" is nice. But, let's face it. If I start cursing myself in a race, I will be saying things far worse than Damn It.

Any Time Now

That is, TI can get here anytime. In some ways, my last two posts are just a confirmation of plans I really made some time ago. I am ready to gather our Coalition of the Willful and go. Now.

First race of the year Sunday, which means my levels of anxiousness will begin rising shortly. It will be fun to see what happens. I think.

Maybe I'll just assume lotus position and sing Elk's Fight Song to myself. That should get me "centered."

Two Humped Camel

I have traded in my Abacus for a Ruler this evening.

The latest thoughts on TransIowa is currently how to handle Algona. As opposed to last year when we could actually have a support crew, this year you get a drop bag from our friends at Wingnut Gear. The bag is 10"x 20". I will be putting a ready to rock and roll Camelbak Hawg. Roll in, switch Camelbaks and roll out. At the start, I will be going light with an old school Rogue. Thin on the back. Makes your jersey pockets accessible. Light. Fast. Efficient.

MW and I may end up running nearly an identical gear and the same tires. JINX!!

I am completely bored with the look of the blog at the moment. Be patient if changes start occuring. We won't be under construction. We'll be under demolition.

Have Abacus, Will Travel

And so it begins...

My season of racing not to finish last takes off Sunday. Marathon in KS. 3Hrs of racing. Not much longer than a XC race really, but I am really looking forward to it regardless. Lantern Rouge, here I come.

The louder you say, "On your left," the faster I will get over.

G-Ted has Paddy on the record. Canadian Class.

Speaking of internet content and mal-content. Two new links are added. TwoWheeledLocust and Gwadzilla.

The TransIowa discussion on MTBR has turned to gear choice by the SS crew (as well and winds and gas stations.) This made me break out my less than stellar math skills and refer to the SurlyBlog for a little mental assistance in SPEW.

Having just bumped up my wheels to Niner sizing, I thought I would work out what in the hell the measurable difference was in the work my tiny legs are doing. I just stuck with Gear Inches because I wasn't about to jump into the deep end of the pool and calculate Gain Ratio.

My floaties and I are just fine in the shallow end.

What I found was that I am content to be running something slightly smaller than the folks that listed their selections on the thread. Basically, Joe and I seem to be on the same page. I am with Dallas though, in that I will bring what I need to make a last minute switch if needed. Flexible plans have always worked best for me.

Now I remember why I took Logic to get out of any math in college.

How Do I Really Feel?

Place Your Bets

Which picture best represents what conditions will be like during the TransIowa?

Muddy Mess


Christmas Remembered


The Snob will be going into seclusion over the weekend. Ride Hard. Check you Monday.

Single Speed Hell Train

How's this for a Single Speed team for 24-9?

CreepyFriendly. Eric Roman. Marko Darko. Travis Brown.

That's a lot of laps for me listening to the words, "on your left."

Tweaker Rides and Slush

The Niner is now fully functional. I spent the vast majority of Saturday morning and early afternoon in and out of the both my basement and the shop, finishing the build. Saturday afternoon and early evening was then spent riding, stopping, tweaking, riding, stopping, tweaking, etc.

Props and thanks to all the folks who helped this clueless wrench get things in working order. I think at some point nearly everyone at the shop gave me a helping hand. Zach, who really saved my ass on Saturday afternoon, also finished his Niner, which is a nice looking TwoWheeledWeapon as well.

While I was dinking around with the One, MW, CVO and Big Skinny rocked a six hour in KS Lincoln style. RF and Captain Cowbell showed strongly for Omaha as well. (I still don't know who the Captain actually is though.)

CVO, embrace the pink helmet. The best pink helmet still goes to Sam for rocking the pink flamed helmet. Whatever happened to that thing?

Wind and slushy snow yesterday and riding was less than joyful. I bailed after a short one.

What a baby.

myinherentawesomeness.blogspot.com

Recently more dust got kicked into the air in the "debate" over 29ers vs. 26ers. Cyclingnews went to print, G-Ted posted, Dave Harris commented, then our own KW killed it with this well-written wonder. It deserves more eyes I threw it up here.

"I did my own tests. You might have read about them on my blog, myinherentawesomeness.blogspot.com. In these highly personal studies I used two separate tests to see which of my bikes I could ride faster. After each lap of the course, I’d excitedly high five myself. Based on the color of my palm, I concluded that my bike with the Time pedals generated a much more enthusiastic hand slap than my bike with Shimano pedals, and thus a much more red (redder?) palm. Not scientific enough, you say? Well you should also consider that I used a color wheel that I bought on sale from the art supply store, and my observations were based on its near-perfect range of magenta.

On another day, on the same course, I strategically placed logs and medium-sized boulders so as to aggravate other trail users. I’d then hide in the trees and when one of them rode by, I’d jump out and yell, “Enough about me … what do YOU think about me?” and watch as they collided with my well-laid obstacles. As they chased me down—many times bleeding and nursing bent wrists and/or collar bones—I’d start my stopwatch and measure how long it took them to catch me on my bike that had the chain lubed with WD-40 as opposed to the one that had the chain obsessively coated with a perfectly nerdy layer of beeswax. I’m sure these findings will bring a ton of naysayer commentary down on my head, and that’s exactly the point. The point is me. In both tests, I was faster. No doubt about it. Forget wheel size, forget blogs, forget your knee centered over your pedal spindle, and the optimum power output of eggs in China.

If we all just focused a bit more on me, this world would be a much better place to live.

You’re welcome,

—kw"

Notes from Dejay

"when i look in to a depth
what beauty it brings
to set myself free
so i can study the pieces
inside a hole i can not see
when i wave good bye
it sets me
to say hello
to the crack inside
that lets me know who is me




















when i look in to a depth
what beauty it brings
to set myself free
so i can study the pieces
inside a hole i can not see
when i wave good bye
it sets me
to say hello
to the crack inside
that lets me know who is me"

"Notes from Dejay" are musings from NewBelgiumAles/Niner Bikes rider Dejay Birtch.

24 Hours of 9 Mile

You Bastards.

So, I read the Comments under my last post and go look at the 9 Mile site.

Solo for GrannyGear at Landahl is $330.

9 Mile is $78? Am I reading this correctly? WTF?

At that price, I doubt I would care if I was still recovering from Cedar Valley. The entertainment and hangout factors would be worth $78.

Damn you, people.

($78)

06 Schedule and a lot of Rancid

"With the music execution and the talk of revolution..."

March 25. Tranquility XC.

"Don't worry 'bout me gonna make it all right."

April 29. TransIowa.

"The worst of times, they don't phase me..."

May 13th. Platte Marathon

"If I fall back down, you're gonna help me back up again..."

May 20. Dirty Kanza.

"She's a punk rocker. She don't trust no one..."

May 28th. Branched Oak 12HR.

"Under the Red Hot Moon take a bus downtown to the graveyard shift tonight."

June 10th. Poncha Marathon.

"Not my time to go, not my time to die."

July 8th. 12HRS of Blue Mound.

"Black coat, black shoes, black hat, Cadillac..."

July 22nd. 12HRS of Cedar Valley.

"Yeah, the boy's a time bomb."

August 19th. State Championship at Swanson.

"I want your salvation..."

Sept. 23rd. Rave in the Cave Marathon.

"It takes disaster to learn a lesson. Your gonna make it through the darkest times..."

Keeping the schedule open for the 24HRS of Afton as well. Those cats need to set a date for 06.

You guessed it. A lot of the songs were on 'repeat.'

"... And Out Come the Wolves."

Blister in the Sun

Spent just under three hours riding Platte today with a nice bunch of cats. Lots of highlights including a nice over the bars, rodeo clown manuever on my first lap.

MW's black w/ pink highlights Soulcraft is an absolutely gorgeous bike. (I would love to have a picture up, but it wouldn't do it justice anyway.)

Jesse had Icon with him, which was the first time I had ever ridden with a dog cruising along. I am pretty sure Icon was picking better lines than I was the entire time.

Corey and I had a pretty interesting discussion about how different people ride different parts of that course. It really pointed out that a big motor is only part of the story in mountain biking. Case in point, there are a couple of points at Platte where you dip down into the little gulley and need to take a hard right as you come up on the other side. Three ways you can go. Nimrods like me will grab a huge amount of brake and turn right. Corey taps the front brake, let's the back end whip around and is now darting off in the right direction. Then there are cats like Matt Slaven (who certainly wasn't there today but Corey described it well), he will apparently summon his bmx skills and take it airborn, letting the gyroscopic effect take him up, over and right down the trail. Rank of Master, he has.

As MW pointed out today, the Fascist Killer has seen its last Platte ride for quite a while. The Niner nears completion.

CycleBetter.com is now cross-posting this snobbish material. I believe the Jackal is also suppling a feed.

Paddy killed his blog. There are only a couple of blogs I personally check more than once a day. His was one. At least I known he'll still kick my ass in Iowa.

Last but not least, in the category of "Holy Hell." The prizes for the Marathon races in the Psychopath Series are:

1st: $300
2nd: $200
3rd: $100

Damn, that was a long post.

Slanted and Enchanted

As I mentioned previously, the 29 vs 26 debate is alive and well all over the web. G-Ted had another quick installment today which prompted my usual headache from thinking.

Dave Harris tried to effectively measure the difference for him in a physical sense, but how about the psychology of the rider? In short, I am willing to bet that if you firmly believe you are faster on wheel X for whatever reason, you probably are if the true physical differences are close.

Then again, what do I know.

Shortly, I will be riding the shop on my 26 Fascist Killing SS to continue to build up my 29 SS Yet to Be Named Niner.

"Zurich is Stained and it's not my fault." Pavement

Oh, and if a single speeder is a Viking and geared is a Ninja, I don't know what you call someone rocking it fixed. But, I do know that it's sweet as hell.

On Course

There will be a few parts of the Epic where we will mark the course. Enter the Jolly Rodger.

Installed the cranks on the Niner tonight. Fork also arrived today as well.

Tools of my own destruction are now nearly complete.

"I Love This Plan...

...and I am excited to be a part of it."

The first Twenty into the Dirty Kanza contain a few familar names.

The Locals: Jeff Avey, Rock D, and myself.

The TransIowa Connection: G-Ted, Paddy, Joe Partridge and Rob Pennell.

That's a lot of Vikings jumping into both races.

Scenes from Sunday

When I left to ride this morning the Rock Island was wet so I assumed that Platte would be unrideable. I hear I couldn't have been more wrong.

This is Saltillo Road, but it was also the view for nearly the whole ride.



The "Mr. Obvious" of traffic signs. By the time you can see what's on the sign, the steeple is on top of you.



Almost home. I wonder how long that sign has been standing there.



Ending the day with some fun. Wilderness Single Track.

No Attention for Detail

Big Skinny and I were swapping out the rear cog on the Fascist Killer to discover that the 16 tooth ring I thought I was running was actually a 15. Brillant. Luckily, I was going to 14 anyway so I didn't wrench my way to redundancy.

Yet another reason why my place was on the sales floor.

Leaving the Casa at 10:30 tomorrow to hit Wilderness and then head to Platte. Need a long one. TI is not too far away.

I am a little bummed that the Fish Hunter had to pull out of TI. Now who am I going to trade pulls with?

Well Yeah, But...

If you're feeling argumentative, the internet is the place for you right now.

Single-Speeding vs. Geared. Team Dicky brings you what may turn out to be the best posts of the year. Make sure you read The Viking Theory.

26 vs. 29. Dave Harris experiment moves from MTBR to CyclingNews.

I have a theory too. The thoery is that I enjoy life more and feel better when I ride a lot. I will let you know if testing bares this out.

"Life is too important to be taken seriously." Oscar Wilde.

Getting Up to Get Down.

March is coming in screaming for me to pay attention to detail. TI looms ever larger in my already crowded mind. Not to mention the XC events kick into gear this month. The current plan is to ride to Tranquility and then race with the One Gears. That could mean flying the black flag at the back of the bunch, but I don't really care.

Is anyone interested in going for Six Hours in Kansas the weekend before? Big Skinny, I am looking at you.

For those of you who like riding in Colorado, you could further complicate your race schedule by considering the 24hrs of EROCK.

Mmmm espresso.

"Tune In, Freak Out, Get Beaten" - HST

It would seem that both Rock D and I will be in for the Dirty Kanza. There is a note on the Heartland Race site which says that there are slots still open.

Riding out to Wilderness for some more saddle time tonight with the Avey-ator.

Only two parts remaining outstanding before the new ride gets constructed (until I realize what else I have forgotten.) No Switchblade, No Pace, No carbon bling fork. Good old steel from the folks at Niner will be the option for the Snob.

Local racing begins this month. Time to stop typing and get back to riding.

Visual Note from Dejay

Mural
Originally uploaded by Endurosnob.

I don't trust that guy on the stilts.

Pimp My Shop

Stopped by the shop yesterday before pushing pedals for three hours. Gravel to intervals to Wilderness. MW, MG and Jeff Bonsall were also out enjoying the day. Riding out to Branched Oak to meet the gathering of the tribe at 1pm. If you're looking to ride out, I am leaving at 11:30 from the Casa de Snob.



Mrs. Snob likes pink. The shop looks better than I can ever remember. Nice work everyone.



"Everything is under control, Sir."



Suburban Bohemian.



Kris working that sales floor magic.



29er ready and able.



Jeff in tears as I leave to ride.

Counting Calories

EBBscale
Originally uploaded by Endurosnob.

Dejay, the weight weenie, sent along this shot. It, of course, happens to be what I will run as well.

Mr. 24 finally got his bike situation ironed out. Now he can relax and start cracking skulls.

Who's riding this weekend?

Listen... Do You Smell That?

Jesse's prognosticated winner for TI is out, but now he's in himself. Nice. (Maybe Marko would like Big Skinny's spot.)

Speaking of Big Skinny, he joined Jeff and I on a quick one gear jaunt through Wilderness last night.

The Pic is Dejay kicking it Old Pueblo style.

Need something to do on the weekend after TransIowa? You can always register for the EnduroSnob Epic. May 6th. 5pm Central Standard Time. (Gotta get the morning ride in.) 50 Riders Total.

Are You In?