long live long rides

with friday came the rain. with saturday came a crisp cold morning. thick with dew and the sun trying to show its face on what was to be one hell of a trail ride. the scene was relaxed with everyone trying to anticipate what was to come. i had an idea, but really had no idea of what was instore as the ride unfolded. all i knew was that i didn't want to walk out of the woods like a few weeks back, so i figured on sticking with what i know best. pushin' one for fun! the rocktober challenge, in r.b. winter state park, was just what it intended to be, a total challenge! the field was small, which was a shame for such a well organized, backcountry race. my ride plan was to find the sweet spot and stay there all day. all was well until, shizzam!, a huge rock flew up and railed my sprocket pocket and bent it so bad that pedaling was no longer an option. checking out the scenario, it just took a little elbow grease and about 10 minutes until she was spinning smooth again. back on the trail, and i might add rocky as hell, but i like rocks. it's half of rock n' roll!

exiting out of the woods to a dirt road, i had a chance to pull back some of the folks that squeeked by during my wrangling with rocks and sprocket pocket. all of a sudden i picked up a frequency of the worst song ever to have rolling through my head at this point in the race, bon jovi "living on a prayer." all i kept thinking was the line "were halfway there, livin' on a prayer." only the race was no way halfway over! the only way to get a bad song out of your head is to pass it on. thankfully i saw a rider in the distance and much to their dismay, will have bon jovi in their head once i pass by. gotcha!

the rest of the race went by with no issues except some immense efforts on some badass trail. the second loop was surely a hard 35 miles. it had me thinking about some times i used to spend with a few of my friends years ago before i had a career. middle of the week, 10+ hour, onespeeder rides. no cares except for seizing the day! after the second loop, i needed much food and liquids to head out on the third and final loop. the last portion of the ride had some singletrack that was some of the best i have hit in a while. i believe the one trail was white deer trail. if my smile was any wider on that trail i might have eaten some branches! after all was said and done, the race turned out to be about 70 miles. it was truly epic and props go out to kuhn for hosting a great event. it was definitely appreciated! also, props go out to the ranger and old timer that were waiting at the finish for elk and i to clean out our campsite! next time we'll crash in your blazin' bago!

if your wondering what to do next, click here and donate to a great cause! then click here if you love pickles!

a pause for the cause

a few good friends of mine have organized an Ovarian Cancer Fundraiser. The fundraiser is in conjunction with the Escape from Granouge MASS Series Race on May 24th and is in support of the HERA Women's Cancer Foundation. the fundraiser itself is a raffle of some very nice bike goodies and you do not have to be present at the race to win! so click on over to bikereg to buy some raffle tickets, buy some stickers and donate to a great cause.

it's like the polka, of your nightmare!

made it through another. turn it up, loosen up and have a good weekend!

writers block

procrastination is like a chinese finger trap. damn i'm stuck! it's not like i have been putting off my final project for my grad class, but i haven't really started it either. i have a few things jotted down and it is due next wednesday, so it's not that bad. when in times of consternation there is nothing better than a little fresh air. clearing the mind from the burden of the work day, the past few weeks, or the past few months.

lately i have been thinking a lot about the upcoming months. i have some free time, but definitely have some obligations throughout the summer other than riding/racing bikes. i think one thing that i have been missing out on in some off the bike time. it is good to keep the love fresh.

i got some burnout when i was in high school racing bikes and took some time off. set the love free as they say, and if it is true, it will return. it has never really left, just some doors for new things inbetween.

i had a conversation over the weekend and someone mentioned that it is good to read blogs that are not always about bikes. i found that pretty fascinating because here i thought that most people checking out this here space want to read about bikes. i have noticed myself reading more entries that are not bike related.

were i am at, there is really no "bike scene" in the town. there is maybe a few riders, probably no more than five, that get out and ride often. most of the time i am rolling solo for hours on end. there is nothing like having it all to yourself!

one thing i am always grateful for is someone to share the love of the trail with. that's where the whole experience is realized and really can not be portrayed on one of these blogs. pictures can help and every detail of the ride can be elaborated with flowery language, but it really is about the experience.

today was a beautiful day to breathe in the spring smells, but one thing is for sure, i'm still in that finger trap! peeyay sux!

feel like a stranger

at least after racing all weekend, my hands are still a little numb! do people actually read these bliggity blogs?

ride finds

north pisgah rockin'



the king!



an eagle's lair!



an eagle!





the good lord!




a good hangout!



pure bliss!

ramp up the jawn

our motto was simple, destroy the competition!















win or lose we still booze!
















as i sit here enjoying my final minutes as a twenty something, i sit back and reflect on things that have occured in the last ten years of my life. so many roads, so many good people and so much fun! i feel that the minute you start to feel old is when you begin to die. live, life, love. namaste

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!

D-town Single Speed Shennanigans!

Sunday March 30th @ Victory Brewing Company

Single Speed Rally

Pre-Game

9:30 meet at Victory Brew Co.. 420 acorn ln Downingtown PA

10am leg strecher ride up to Marsh Creek - 20 miles

Rally Start

12:00 Bonus points skills Challenge.

12:30 Short Track

1:30 2 person relay.

2:30 Individual Time Trial

Post Game

3:30 return to Victory for the post game celebration and overall
awards.

*Gears welcome but subject to ridicule and tamporing

where's the love?

according to pennsyltucky joe "make sures ya'll rev yer tranny when yins pass that there skinny boy riding his bike on ol' owl crick road." not only does it make me tremble with fear of a diesel engine, but it sounds like there car is about to explode!

once again, bad blogger etiquette has left my camera at home. for there are no self portraits of spinning to and fro. some people did, however, have some digi clickers. check out some cool photos and rants of friday and saturday. also, for your viewing pleasure!

an irish toast!

"may you be in heaven a half hour before the devil knows you are dead."

spring is coming!

brunch till dusk

the delaware river was at flood stage on sunday, so what better way to get a glimpse than to cruise for a ways following the torrent!























the other day i was surfing some blogs and came across one that had a quote from a surfer, Laird Hamilton. Check the blog out for yourself. i wanted to comment on the nice quote, but for some reason, i could not. anyway, it made me remember a conversation i had with a person once about the area i live in and how it must be just like living in a place with killer breaks at your door step. except here it's killer cycling.

more than words...

...if i would only bring my camera! i am becoming less of a bling blogger lately. just being into the, "you should be there for the experience," type of ride guy right now. it is good to share, that's why i am here, but lately i have been rolling camera less on most endeavours. friday, i saw the better half of march first with about 5 inches of snow around 3am. got up early to hit the road, well slippery road with some skinny knobs for what was planned to be an all-day, country road take me home, to the place...where am i ride. instead it turned into a country road, my ass is cold, riding for a few hours in major snow. the snow was falling so hard it was a total white out and was tough to even see anything! i started to head home and to some motorists probably looked like frosty the "what the hell you doing out here?" man. all i can say is that if you want to be eye candy! yesterday proved to be fantastic spinning smooth from the velodrome towards hawk mounatin sanctuary. i love riding through the farmlands, bunning hopping streams of poo-juice and gorging on dutch pastries!

stash

the best site during the dog days of winter is when some fresh snow falls from the morning sky. usually, this gives light to a day off of work and an excuse to roll out the xc skis for some winter adventure. after watching a killer lunar eclipse on wednesday night, i touched base with the dutch eagle. the eagle informed me that he has been spending some time out on the trails, negotiating packs of wild dogs, and overnighting in various rock formations throughout the coal region. amazing stuff! this weekend i got out on two skiing rounds. one was a local huff around the infamous switchback gravity railroad railtrail. perfect for xc skiing when the snow is falling in the early morning. i made it back to my car just as the clouds shifted their deposits to a wintery mix. sunday, the alarm came super early as i met up with jay and downhill dave (dhd). we rolled a little north west towards williamsport, pa, to enjoy the trails at the crystal lake ski center. at crystal lake they have about 30km of groomed/ungroomed ski trails. the vw arrived nice and early to take full advantage of the day and the bluebird skies. it was dhd's first time on xc skis so it was going to be action packed on the downhills. his name is downhill dave! we definitely took full advantage of what crystal lake had to offer, hitting the trails for what seemed to be forever. forever comes with a price, soreness! yesterday was simply a great day in the life.

beware of the quik and the dirty!

the past few weeks i have been moving around very fast. on two feet and in my brain. work, riding, breathing, classes, stretching, sleeping. things i need to do, but things that need to come first before those things. stability becoming unstable circumstances. career paths looking to be as rocky as some of the trails around here. most, if not all of my riding lately has been solo missions day and night to clear my thoughts. i was so grateful to get out this weekend and last weekend with some goodtime folks. the riding on sunday proved to be the coolest ride of the winter. hitting two ridges under blueish skies and snow pack, turned into a righteous downhill off the nose of a snow squall. no need to explain further on that one. some one asked me why i don't update my blog often. i will admit, i have been lax on the posts, but more will come soon. i am trying to upgrade this here blog a bit so stay tuned. i heard this quote today that i really liked, but the person who said it was unjust. "Cowards die many times before their deaths, The valiant never taste of death but once."Julius Caesar (II, ii, 32-37)

chicken soup

A little riding!

A little walking!

Access is beautiful!

pennsyltucky proper

a great weekend for some soul riding. the weather was perfect, the woods were inviting, and the beer flowed like a kentucky waterfall! riding the "illegals" with some folks on saturday, there was talk of peculiar ice creams and birdsboro log jams. very interesting!? soon after my legs got sore, some of us found ourselves whipping around half in the bag, looking for the silver bullet that won't let you down during the inaugural "pennsyltucky punk bike." i should've known where that third one was! dammit! a long saturday for me, my bed couldn't have arrived any quicker. sunday proved to be another fine day for fooling around in the winter woods. with ales loaded and chains lubed, the inaugural "pennsyltucky punk bike" rolled out in full swing with 18 or so riders tackling the pisgah ridge. there were a few events set up, or at least thought up, along the ride. it was a great day for all! the proper etiquette award goes out to the local who was riding his quad with his baby on his lap! no helmets of course! if i had my camera i would have taken some photos? check some out here.

echoes

two concerts in two nights! i feel young and old at the same time. my previous years were spent with many ventures like this usually lasting more than a few nights. rang in '08 with a band that plays pink floyd music called "the machine." they are pretty amazing! a fresh start to a new year is always good for the soul. See ya in the new year!

"And no one sings me lullabyes

And no one makes me close my eyes

So I throw the windows wide

And call to you across the sky...."

happy holidaze!