Wookin' Pah Nub

Lots of Brothers in the Cycling World are looking for an assist for one reason or another. Consider this an EnduroSnob Public Service Announcement.

Dave Nice. Some of you may remember Dave from TransIowa. He was riding the Great Divide Race, stopped at the side of the road for a sleep and someone five fingers his bike and gear. Scott Taylor from Salvagetti Bicycle Workshop is trying to gather some funds so he can continue. I believe they are setting up a PayPal account or you can email me if you want Scott's phone. I am going to be sending Dave his Epic registration bike. He's in for free.

Harlan Price. Leading the National Ultra-Endurance MTB Series can tap a person's mind, body, soul and wallet. He's sitting solid with IF in his corner, but winning ain't easy. You gotta go West at least once in that series. Harlan's got contact and PayPal info on his blog.

Speaking of the IF Team, Buck is trying to get to Stockholm to defend his XC/Go-Cart ominium victory at last year's SS Worlds. I thought I had read somewhere that Elk was putting on a bake sale to help, which I love. Attendence may be tough but you can always email Buck and Elk has more info posted on his blog (Scroll Down).

I'm beat and my saddle is sore. Snob out.

Committed

I officially entered 9 Mile this weekend. SS and Solo. We will see how it goes. I know when I pit I will potentially see Sam, Butch, Corey, CVO and possibly Cameron depending on timing. I imagine he'll be in and out while I am drinking that beer CVO is going to hand me. "Thank you, Sir. May I have another?"

A few Randoms:

SingleSpeeders, Joe needs our help.

Mr. 24 has been Mr. 12.

DNB - Does Not Blog.

Maybe too heavily referenced but just fucking inspirational.

"When life hands you a lemon say, 'I like lemons, what else have you got?'" - Henry Rollins

You Wasted Life...

Why wouldn't you waste the afterlife?

Had to miss what was dubbed as the fixie ride this morning, but I'll be out later today and am really looking forward to it. Wilderness around 2:30 is lock, stock and two smoking barrels.

IF can't pull off the paint job I want so I was in a creative redirect last night. ('Can't' isn't fair. Apparently what I wanted would stand a better than good chance of peeling off.) The new scheme is sweet and disappointment has turned to excitement once again.

Here's a question: What is the perfect place to start a ride? I am envisioning a combination of a coffee house and bike shop, but am wondering what other people would have in a "perfect scenario."

mmmmm espresso.

Street Walk

Twice a day I pass a place called Community Alternatives. I have never researched its purpose but it seems to be a halfway house of sorts. I am not sure.

Occassionally, I will see someone, who looks like an addict in recovery crossing the street from Community Alternatives to the Casey's gas station or vice versa, but only notice because they tend to cross in the middle of the street as opposed to the cross walk and it's not a point in the road where jaywalking makes a great deal of sense.

As I passed this morning, there were several people in a circle being lead in some stretching by a guy in a shirt which read "parole officer." Most of the people weren't really stretching and even the circle seemed half-hearted at best.

When I went home, there was a different scene. An older lady was shuffling back and forth in the middle of the street with cars backing up all around her. In the direction I was heading a queue of five cars had formed as people apparently sat deciding what to do. As I slid by on the right, a few people started honking at this woman then some guy shouted out of his window for her to "move it." When I got up close to her I put my bike in the grass and jogged out help her. I quietly said, "let's get you out of the road" and lead her across to Community Alternatives parking lot. When we reached the lot, there were at least seven or eight people just sitting outside who had been watching this woman stuggle.

I started back toward my bike and could feel myself getting more and more angry as I went. Some guy in a four door looked at me and said, "What was going on there?"

"You were sitting on your ass while some old woman was waiting to get hit in the middle of the street. That's what was going on."

Maybe I'm the ass, but I really don't understand people sometimes.

------

Okay, I just looked it up. Community Alternatives helps people with Developmental Disabilities.

Inches, Not Gear Inches

And on the Seventh Day...



The Genitorturer Devices.



Checking the Niner setup to provide a comparison. "Yes, it is confirmed. You will be slow either way, Mr. Cronin."



The Interview: "Son, exactly where were you on the night of the 5th?"



What's it gonna be?

Peacock Groove

Johnny emailed me recently and mention a builder he works with at Quality, Erik Noren. Erik is the Fabricator for Peacock Groove. To be fair, I only know what Johnny has told me, but anyone who follow this blog knows I value his opinion much higher than most. Plus, Johnny could always turn into Vinnie the Henchman if needed. Check out the slideshow for some interesting work. I tried to get a picture of his clever use of skulls but his site wouldn't let me.

Snob out.

Tough to Focus

and therefore tough to blog.

I have roughly two pounds of paperwork to fill out tonight and none of it is a fit sheet for a custom frame. The new employer has piled it on. Maybe I should slip a 9 Mile registration in just for a fun break in the pain. If I can get through this stack, 24 hours on a single speed should be cake.

I did find my way to the Black Sheep Cycles site today. The geek in me really likes the way the site was put together. Bravo.

The legs must be coming back at least a little. 34x17 is a complete spinout the whole way to work. I probably should have switched things up last week.

The BareKnuckle Brigade has the best kit I have ever seen.

Straight Up Punk as Fuck.

Happy Father's Day

To all the cats balancing family and the bike, Happy Father's Day. (with a general "What up?" to everyone else.)

The Lumberjack sounds like it hurt some people. Check the Think Tank for stories.

Still not tons of riding happening. Riding to work sums most of it up. Sneaking in some runs at lunch to try to make the most of the time I have.

Bah-land Blogging.

Thinking of heading to the XC race this coming weekend for a pain and a less than solid mid-pack to off the back finish.

Custom Cross Bike - "With the Way You Ride..."

From a needs standpoint for me, I think in many ways this becomes a pretty simple process. Feel free to tell me I'm wrong.

A. Frame Material.

Some of you may remember a previous post regarding Leadville last year where I described how Johnny, Jeff and I were having the proverbial, 'what bike would you build if' conversation when Johnny said, "Well, with the way you ride..." and then went on to, in essence, describe how I beat the shit out of bikes like there is no tomorrow and ride with the grace of a pitbull.

Since then, "with the way you ride" has stuck to me like glue and the description is still just as appropriate. Titanium gets the vote here. In fact, it's durablity has occassionaly been called a drawback of several of my friends. The idea being that you now have a Lifer. No need to buy another bike when you have it. My simple response to that? I can always find a reason to get another bike.

B. Hurry up and Wait Time.

Currently, I have no Cross Bike. I could pony up for something like a Redline to get me through, but that seems a bit unneeded if not pointless. For example, I emailed Sacha from a cafe in Leadville right before the race last year and his wait time was well over a year. His frames are well worth it, but time is important to me so a Vanilla will need to wait.

C. Passion.

If I don't dig it going in, there's no point in going there. In other words, I am leaving a little space in my heart on this choice and not just relying on an abacus and checklist to equate my way to a bike selection. I realize not everyone does things this way.

Here's a weird example. I was having a conversation with a friend at work last week about Grammar. He was talking through the classic confusion of whether to use 'I or me' and discussing the need to get it right. I had heard similar conversations numerous times at Purdue and shared this line I often use with my collegue. "In the end, I don't care, because at the end of the day, I would rather speak like a poet. To me, language is art and not an equation."

I feel the same way about bikes. I know there are many good builders out there. I think the ones I mentioned, as well as those G-ted and MW added all fit that bill. I could Team Over-Analysis the whole situation, but I think I lose something if I do. There are builders out there I just dig and I know I will lean toward them.

Really narrows the field, eh?

This post was brought to you by pure silence.

Update: I dropped the fucking ball and forgot to mention THIS.

FUGAZI is Dead

Technically, the blade dropped at Midnight plus one minute.

Fugazi is Dead.

Corporate Music lives.

No Press Release. No deal points released. We've become them have become us.

What does it mean to the Snob and his workaday cohorts? Good question.

I have added the following phrases to my quiver:

"That is unknown at this time."
"To be determined."
"Good question."
"Let me get back to you on that."
"Can I have an extra shot in that? I'm gonna need it."

I do dig the flyer though.

Custom Cross Bike - The Mini-Series

I've alluded to this several times already, but the Network has now approved it for its own spot here on the blog. Shouldn't the Discovery Channel be doing something like this? The Great Biker Buildoff for the machines WE love? I think they're missing it, but I digress.

Everytime going Custom has come up for me, the conversation always dances back and forth between my needs and preferred builders, but let's start with the builders.

Here are the folks that go through my head:

Vanilla Bicycles. Damn Sexy Bicycles.

Matt Chester. Custom. Titanium. Single Gear.

Indy Fab. A fave at the shop.

Ira Ryan. Learned under Sacha. TransIowa V1 Champ.

Badger Cycles. Enduro Freak and Bike Builder.

Who pops into your mind?

This just in...

Slaven was robbed in "The Great Calf Off" on Shannon Skerritt's site. I also noticed Shannon correctly predicted Sir Wilhelm's result at Cross Nats. SS and Fixed Represent!!

Lastly, I have been "attacked" by a Two Wheeled Weapon.

Name That Playlist

Another post to file under "assorted snobbery."

The Snob story that goes along with this band is a classic, if only in my own mind. I got a call to see if I would watch over my cousin and a group of his friends at the Warped Tour. "Absolutely." I remember thinking "what a score," then as we were waiting in line to get in, it hit me. I had somehow evolved into the chaparon. The "Cool Uncle." Holy Shit. When did that happen?

Really, I thought. Who cares? I am here for free. The music is good to great. I'm sailing.

Then, the band with the playlist on the right took the stage. It was early in the day, just after Noon. 95 degrees with heat reflecting off the pavement taking it who knows where. The kids want to go see someone else on another stage. "Nope. We stay here guys." Aww. Come on... "Listen, I will bend with you guys all day, but we see this band."

They kids relent and we stay. Three songs in and thier converted. Loving every minute of it. Happy we stayed. Unfortunately, then it got the best of them. They wanted to get into the pit. "I don't know how smart that is guys." Jeez, I realize I really am the chaparon. Not go into the pit? What am I saying? But before I could end the battle with the Angel and Devil on my shoulders though, they were in. Sneaky little three foot tall cake-sniffers slipped away as I looked up to the stage.

All that runs through my mind is explaining how I let a 13 year old take a jack boot to the head and end up in the hospital. Before I can get into the midst of scrum however, the situation polices itself and the kids get spit out the back, smiling but a little freaked out.

Years later I now know that this would be their favorite part of the show, though had you asked them at the time, they would have said Good Charolette.

How do I tie this to bikes? Aside from the BMX show and the guys from Rancid riding around on Freestyle bikes, I can't. But that's okay. What brought all of this up? This band (you can cheat and click the pic.) is how I spent most of my Sunday.

Quick Release(s)

Yes, that's a painful pun. Everything happened in short bursts today.

PC happened by as I was waiting for the air conditioner repair man to show up. He rocked out four hours today. Out to Branched Oak, a few laps and back. Four hours in the saddle. Pleasantly beat. Good work, PC.

I jumped out on the Niner after the AC man left for a couple of hours. Since it was nearing the end of my first week back in the saddle, I kept the gear safe at 34x17. Rode to the shop where I said hello to the crew. I caught TT and Jerod in a lull, but RockD was selling bikes on the floor. Always good to see.

Hit Wilderness after that. I was suprised to see MG leading a crew through going the other way. I already had him mentally pegged for the podium at Poncha, so that sorta threw me. Speaking of Poncha, our Man on the Scene got some visuals.

Sameron is sitting in Fourth right now at Big Bear. The Sologoat sits in Second. Elk's SS and Seventh. Rock Stars.

Blogging Splendor

There are many nice posts online right now.

Elk on proper beer selection for a 24hr. (And actually has three great reads in a row.)

Not so FatMarc's report titled "twelve o' munchy - 12hrs at Deer Park is laced with soul.

G-Ted makes me smile. (And I believe MW too.)

Harlan Price of the IF crew touches on someone of local (kind of) interest in his update of the Mohican 100. Apparently Sir Wilhelm's Cross nemisis Brad Cole hung tough for second place.

As for me, I'm happy to be getting miles in again. Now if I can make the Monkey Wrench ride next week, things will really be kicking.

Slow and Low

that is the tempo.

Day Two of commuting to work again was a bit of an eye-openner. I wasn't fortunate enough to see Butch like I did yesterday, but it just felt good to be cruising in via the Niner today. There was even a section of the bike path closed off which forced people to drop the curb into the street at one point. Commuters may not have the greatest handling skills, but at least they are riding. Some poor guy curbed his rear wheel for a nice pinch flat so I stopped to help him change it. He was panicked he would be late for work, so I pulled an Avey and just dove in and did it so he could be on his way.

Mulling over two distinctly different items:

*Building a mini-pipe for the RadMan in the backyard. (He loved 'Freedom of Space', btw)
*Blogging the process of ordering a Custom Frame.

Got this in an Anonymous email this morning. "You should ride for the IF Grassroots squad. You're attitude sucks just about the right amount for it." Do what to who? Ummm Yeah.

"I'm so happy, 'cause today I found my friends. They're in my head."

Taking A Mulligan

My unofficial "redo" for the season starts up tomorrow. I am going to try to ride base mile style for the next two weeks with an eye toward Swanson on June 24th.

I am going to start up the morning rides again and log a couple of hours before work everyday, then ride at lunch, then ride home. Luckily, now it won't be 20 degrees in the mornings now as compared to the last time I did this.

Looks like I will be in be in Denver in the middle of July as well. Last year, I got stuck watching drag racing as mandated by our CEO. This year, I hope to take the bike. Trail recommendations are welcome.

This post was brought to you as Modest Mouse filled my living room. The picture was brought to you by Magnet Magazine.

No Mas

This weekend will mark the end of my "vacation" away from the bike. It will be a relief to get the miles going again, expel the stress and feel a bit more alive. The Niner should be smiling too.

The bad news from the day is the the 12hrs of Cedar Valley ended before it got started. Time to rethink July (again).

Blue Collar Optimist

I used that phrase at the office today and immediately thought of my last post. What do I mean by it? Simply that I have to work at being optimistic. Today at work, a friend of mine elaborated to me what he thought the worst case scenario was for a situation our company is dealing with. I responded that I saw his point, but that it wasn't the worse case scenario. After I laid my worst case thoughts on the table, my friend responded with, "The Prince would be proud."

Nothing like a Niccolo Machiavelli reference at work.

How's this for a fiesty new schedule?

July 8. Manawa XC.
July 22. 12Hrs of Cedar Valley
July 29. 24Hrs of On Your Left (aka 9 Mile).
August 19th. Swanson NE State Championships
September 2. 24Hrs of Seven Oaks
September 23. Indian Cave Marathon

August seems a bit barren. I wonder what I missed.

Men judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, for everyone can see and few can feel. Every one sees what you appear to be, few really know what you are.
Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince

Well, That Sucked

The Branched Oak 12hr Race Report post had two potential titles. "I Suck" was in the running for quite a while.

I arrived reasonably early but most of the prime spots were taken so I ended up right by an industrial size trash can. Maybe that was a sign? I pulled most of my gear out of the van, set the crew free to play around the lake, said a quick hello to Mr. 24 and slowly got my act together. I was able to get able from the trash can at some point, and was in a nice spot to pit so I felt okay.

During the rider meeting, they announced that there would be a solo SS category and I will admit that my ego was excited. Despite the three weeks off, I thought I could do pretty well.

We took off on a Lemans style start which was more an exercise in not twisting an ankle. We we got to the bikes, the first thing I tried to do was grab Zach's Niner. For those of you who aren't local, the course starts by following the lake through a secton of the park that's never ridden. The only traffic is probably people walking down to the water's edge. Simply put, it's rough as fuck. Going rigid on it was an exercise in running a jackhammer. Once we hit the actual trail, two things quickly became apparent. No one had cut back the limbs and brush. I was in too big of a gear.

There were a few highlights to my crappy four laps. I was passed by several people who were buzzing right along looking strong, RF, Schlake and Mr. 24 come to mind. Bonsall gave me the best moment though. He pulled up behind me in jackhammer land and said, "Is that one of them singlespeed 29ers?" I started to say "Yes..." when I turned and saw it was Jeff running his 29er Kona SS and smiling. I hope that cat did well.

On my fourth lap, I was walking way too much and said, "Fuck it." I pulled out, sat down in a camping chair and stewed for a long while. The thinking went pretty much as follows. I worked hard over the winter and early spring to really bring up the level of my fitness. Mission accomplished. TI gets rained out. I end up off of the bike for three weeks so basically all of that effort has basically been wasted. Frankly, that's basically how I still feel this morning.

At some point though, I will stop being such a self-centered prick, make some more espresso and go mow my yard. This is the wrong weekend for me to obscess over how poorly I ride a bike.

Snob out.

Small Slice of Normal

Spent some time last night with Corey, Jeff and Sam last night cleaning up the Niner. Sam stayed for the beer and hangout. Brillant!!

The office closed early today so I hung at the shop for a while, threw a new chain on Godzilla and then, I was enjoying myself so much I worked on the build of KKS' Niner.

Looks like the 12hr is the place to be this weekend. Lots of Local Love. Team Crack-N-Fail in the house. As everyone seems to say, Good Times.

Anyone else going Solo?


The RadMan and I will see you sucka's tonight. I wonder where my old Vision Skateboards sweatshirt is?