So it's been a few weeks but I took a trip up to Sandy Ridge here near Portland in April. I did not know at all what to expect but had heard the trails were some of the "must do" trails in the area.
Since it's been a couple weeks I'll save a lot of the detail. In short it's a 3.5mi road climb, paved. This gets you up to the top of the trail system and a kiosk that is laid out nicely to give access to any of the trails up there. There are a good variety from pretty hard stuff to easier flowier stuff. The difficulty of any of it I rode was generally driven by how fast I was looking to go.
Since the trails were mostly downhill from the top, I dropped the seat on the Scalpel and gave it a rip. The trails were super fun and being from Wisconsin pretty much like nothing I've had a chance to ride out there. It's a bit like trails in Marquette, MI or Duluth but the sustained downhill is much longer making it a ton more fun. I'm also in such awe of the trees and views out here, it's just so different from what we've been able to see locally.
Since it's been a couple weeks I'll hold off from uploading pics, gotta catch up on other things!
Showing posts with label ride. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ride. Show all posts
Friday, May 20, 2016
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Iceman Cometh 2015
Next up was a trip to Michigan for the Iceman Cometh mtb race in/around Traverse City. I'd not done this one before but with it's size and how it looked like a good way to wrap up the mtb season I thought I should give it a shot. I signed up way back in February I think, it's been a long while.
The race is point to point which is probably how I prefer to ride when possible, I like it more than loops of the same trail over and over. The Mt. Borah Epic is similar in length to this one and I really enjoy that as well. This one is about 30mi and a lot of double track with a bit of singletrack mixed in. None of it is really difficult or technical compared to other stuff, the challenge is pushing hard and going as fast as you can. For me, with rides only about 1x a week this year it was going to just be how fast I can go without cramping up and slowing down.
I decided to head over early enough to pre ride the final parts of the course, that is where there is some singletrack, and also the finish loops all over the place and back on itself so it was nice to know where the actual line was. I ran into Ken, Mike, and Chuck when heading for my preride so I had some company.
After the preride I ended up figuring out where I was going to sleep for the night. I'd come with a tent, a sleeping bag, and that's about it. I figured at worst I'd just go to the national forest and get out somewhere and set up camp or even camp in the truck. I ended up slightly better being in a State Forest campground only about 2.5mi from the Rasho Rd parking lot. It was pretty much shut down for the season, I was one of only 3 people in camp. I set up the tent then went to pick up my packet and check out the expo. I grabbed firewood from a local place on the way back to camp.
Sleeping outside was great - I usually sleep pretty well when I camp. The fresh air helps, and the fact that it was pitch black by about 7-8pm meant I went to bed earlier than normal. It was cool, about 25-30 overnight but with my gear I was fine.
In the morning, I got up, went to the parking lot, geared up (in the warm truck), and then got on the shuttle to Kaskala. It was a short wait for the shuttle then a 45min or so ride. It worked out well to go this way as the truck now was at the finish so whenever I was done I could leave reasonably quickly (plan was to get home to GB that evening).
I was in wave 31, as you can imaine, starting with 30 waves of 150? riders ahead of you, many of which have done the race before means there were a lot of people to pass. I am not crazy fast but I definitely don't anticipate being in wave 31 for my start next year as the people who were year 2 and beyond that were in my wave were not people I ever saw after the start. I don't know how these people ride with all this gear on - jackets, hoodies, etc. I was pretty hot in just an under armor and jersey over it.
The course was very fun actually, double track for most with rolling hills. Not incredibly wide in most parts so while there were two tracks there was typically a "good" line and a "bad" one that was less traveled and usually covered in leaves. I'd get into those when it was time for a pass but there were times where there were stuff in the "bad" line that I'd choose to wait a bit before passing. I found that I was must faster down the hills than most people and that more often than not people were walking up all of the hills where I was able to ride them all minus one. The hill I didn't ride was due to a wall of 4-5 people wide walking up the hill so there was no way to keep riding it. I instantly cramped up when I got off the bike so it was excruciating to not be pedaling. This is typical and I just know that if I want to get rid of the cramps I need to be back on the bike and running a higher cadence than typical to get ride of them. That worked and I was back in business.
I ran my 1x10 setup with a 11-36 rear and 32t in the front. I felt like that gearing was good for where I was at but a few of the tough climbs I wanted a shorter gear. That's typically where I feel I am with the 11-36 in the back. Short rides I just muscle up the tough stuff but as rides get longer pushing that taller 32-36 granny gear wears my legs down more than I'd like. I will probably want/need to do something different before any longer stuff with big climbs.
I finished the race in a time under my goal of 3hrs, I was at 2:37. Lots of room to get faster but I was very happy with where I was at in the end given my training.
At the finish I felt great - bike worked amazingly well and while I was pretty spent I felt OK. I needed some cookies and I then headed back to the truck to get moving along towards home.
On my way home I stopped in Petoskey at Beards Brewery. An old rally buddy and his friend started a brewery a few years ago and I'd never checked it out. It was great, awesome brews, really good to catch up with Ben. I really recommend that anybody in the area heads over there.
The race is point to point which is probably how I prefer to ride when possible, I like it more than loops of the same trail over and over. The Mt. Borah Epic is similar in length to this one and I really enjoy that as well. This one is about 30mi and a lot of double track with a bit of singletrack mixed in. None of it is really difficult or technical compared to other stuff, the challenge is pushing hard and going as fast as you can. For me, with rides only about 1x a week this year it was going to just be how fast I can go without cramping up and slowing down.
I decided to head over early enough to pre ride the final parts of the course, that is where there is some singletrack, and also the finish loops all over the place and back on itself so it was nice to know where the actual line was. I ran into Ken, Mike, and Chuck when heading for my preride so I had some company.
After the preride I ended up figuring out where I was going to sleep for the night. I'd come with a tent, a sleeping bag, and that's about it. I figured at worst I'd just go to the national forest and get out somewhere and set up camp or even camp in the truck. I ended up slightly better being in a State Forest campground only about 2.5mi from the Rasho Rd parking lot. It was pretty much shut down for the season, I was one of only 3 people in camp. I set up the tent then went to pick up my packet and check out the expo. I grabbed firewood from a local place on the way back to camp.
Sleeping outside was great - I usually sleep pretty well when I camp. The fresh air helps, and the fact that it was pitch black by about 7-8pm meant I went to bed earlier than normal. It was cool, about 25-30 overnight but with my gear I was fine.
In the morning, I got up, went to the parking lot, geared up (in the warm truck), and then got on the shuttle to Kaskala. It was a short wait for the shuttle then a 45min or so ride. It worked out well to go this way as the truck now was at the finish so whenever I was done I could leave reasonably quickly (plan was to get home to GB that evening).
I was in wave 31, as you can imaine, starting with 30 waves of 150? riders ahead of you, many of which have done the race before means there were a lot of people to pass. I am not crazy fast but I definitely don't anticipate being in wave 31 for my start next year as the people who were year 2 and beyond that were in my wave were not people I ever saw after the start. I don't know how these people ride with all this gear on - jackets, hoodies, etc. I was pretty hot in just an under armor and jersey over it.
The course was very fun actually, double track for most with rolling hills. Not incredibly wide in most parts so while there were two tracks there was typically a "good" line and a "bad" one that was less traveled and usually covered in leaves. I'd get into those when it was time for a pass but there were times where there were stuff in the "bad" line that I'd choose to wait a bit before passing. I found that I was must faster down the hills than most people and that more often than not people were walking up all of the hills where I was able to ride them all minus one. The hill I didn't ride was due to a wall of 4-5 people wide walking up the hill so there was no way to keep riding it. I instantly cramped up when I got off the bike so it was excruciating to not be pedaling. This is typical and I just know that if I want to get rid of the cramps I need to be back on the bike and running a higher cadence than typical to get ride of them. That worked and I was back in business.
I ran my 1x10 setup with a 11-36 rear and 32t in the front. I felt like that gearing was good for where I was at but a few of the tough climbs I wanted a shorter gear. That's typically where I feel I am with the 11-36 in the back. Short rides I just muscle up the tough stuff but as rides get longer pushing that taller 32-36 granny gear wears my legs down more than I'd like. I will probably want/need to do something different before any longer stuff with big climbs.
I finished the race in a time under my goal of 3hrs, I was at 2:37. Lots of room to get faster but I was very happy with where I was at in the end given my training.
At the finish I felt great - bike worked amazingly well and while I was pretty spent I felt OK. I needed some cookies and I then headed back to the truck to get moving along towards home.
On my way home I stopped in Petoskey at Beards Brewery. An old rally buddy and his friend started a brewery a few years ago and I'd never checked it out. It was great, awesome brews, really good to catch up with Ben. I really recommend that anybody in the area heads over there.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Day trip to Marquette
I'm way overdue on writing this report up, but I wanted to get the pictures shared and also while I was at it just spew what I did. What I'm talking about actually happened on Oct 30th. It's been a heck of a year at work and I've not had much time to de-stress myself, so I decided that I'd take a vacation day and head somewhere to ride. I'd done this one other time this year when I did a trip to the kettles, but I figured on doing somewhere different. I considered Levis Mound but then did math and for only 15min more I could make it to Marquette. Sorry Levis, you'll have to wait for another trip.
I decided on a Friday, waited for weather forecast to come in, then made the trip. I loaded up for an early departure (5am I think) and headed up. Until it was light out it was a heck of a trip - tired, questioning what the heck I was doing, etc. Then, the sun came up as I was driving through the UP and I started to get happy. Leaves were still changing, it was a beatiful day (but cold), and it was going to be great.
For bike, I brought the scalpel. Loaded it up with a dropper post borrowed from DR, a Thomson. I am eyeing them up and happened to mention it to him, he was nice enough to let me borrow it. I loved it but more on that another time.
I chose to ride Marquette south for a few reasons - one is I haven't ridden there in summer, and two was it was the best spot I felt to ride all day, tire myself out, and then head home with a great variety of terrain to mess around with. I had ridden some of the trails in the winter during the 906 Polar Roll - actually quite a bit of it once I figured that out.
Trails I took were Carp Eh Diem, then Pioneer Loop, then did some Benson climbing to Eh Line and back up to Down Dogger. After that I took a quick break at the truck then did some of the blue loop. That was pretty challenging with the rocky terrain and being covered by leaves for most of the trail, but it was absolutely beautiful. I got a bit goofed up on the loop there but it was fun. I did the Grom loop too.
All in all, it was about 20mi, 2,300' of climbing. Great day and a good warmup for Iceman for my legs which have really not ridden more than 1x per week all summer long. I'm obviously not as fit as I have been in the past but I'm trying when I do ride to get longer rides in to keep endurance there.
I decided on a Friday, waited for weather forecast to come in, then made the trip. I loaded up for an early departure (5am I think) and headed up. Until it was light out it was a heck of a trip - tired, questioning what the heck I was doing, etc. Then, the sun came up as I was driving through the UP and I started to get happy. Leaves were still changing, it was a beatiful day (but cold), and it was going to be great.
For bike, I brought the scalpel. Loaded it up with a dropper post borrowed from DR, a Thomson. I am eyeing them up and happened to mention it to him, he was nice enough to let me borrow it. I loved it but more on that another time.
I chose to ride Marquette south for a few reasons - one is I haven't ridden there in summer, and two was it was the best spot I felt to ride all day, tire myself out, and then head home with a great variety of terrain to mess around with. I had ridden some of the trails in the winter during the 906 Polar Roll - actually quite a bit of it once I figured that out.
Trails I took were Carp Eh Diem, then Pioneer Loop, then did some Benson climbing to Eh Line and back up to Down Dogger. After that I took a quick break at the truck then did some of the blue loop. That was pretty challenging with the rocky terrain and being covered by leaves for most of the trail, but it was absolutely beautiful. I got a bit goofed up on the loop there but it was fun. I did the Grom loop too.
All in all, it was about 20mi, 2,300' of climbing. Great day and a good warmup for Iceman for my legs which have really not ridden more than 1x per week all summer long. I'm obviously not as fit as I have been in the past but I'm trying when I do ride to get longer rides in to keep endurance there.
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Hibernator 100
I should have done a better job capturing pictures from Saturday's ride, but I was too busy just enjoying the day on the bike.
I rode the 100k version of the Hibernator 100, based out of Laona, WI. Small gravel grinder ride put on by some locals. It was friggin fantastic.
The route was all gravel/dirt, forest road type roads. I chose to ride the scalpel - I hemmed and hawwed back and forth between the caadx with 35c Sammy Slicks and the Scalpel in normal MTB setup (2.25 Ardent Front and 2.1 Racing Ralph rear). I'm glad I chose what I did as the gravel was not super packed for most of the course. It would've been quite doable on the caadx but would have required a bit more concentration and line choice. I wanted to just go and ride.
The scalpel is a great bike. It's light, obviously I would've preferred at least a hardtail but with the lockout on for both shocks it was fine. Plenty comfortable for the 61mi I ended up with an no issues keeping up for speeds I was wanting to go.
I think for my next ride like this though I'm going to put some wider tires on the caadx. I'm thinking something in the 40-42c range would be great, probably I'd set them up tubeless also. I've gotta do some research on what tire size could fit in to my frame and then within that size what tires to choose. I found myself missing the extra hand positions the woodchipper bars would give me and the efficiency of the cross bike versus the FS 29er would be helpful.
Next up my plan is to just get as much time on the bike as I can the next few weeks. Iceman is in about a month and I want to be able to hammer as hard as I can for the whole 30mi. I don't know how well it'll go being in one of the later waves (my first Iceman) but I'm going to give it my best shot. That'll be another one to wonder about bike choice but I'm 95% sure I'll end up on the scalpel again.
I rode the 100k version of the Hibernator 100, based out of Laona, WI. Small gravel grinder ride put on by some locals. It was friggin fantastic.
The route was all gravel/dirt, forest road type roads. I chose to ride the scalpel - I hemmed and hawwed back and forth between the caadx with 35c Sammy Slicks and the Scalpel in normal MTB setup (2.25 Ardent Front and 2.1 Racing Ralph rear). I'm glad I chose what I did as the gravel was not super packed for most of the course. It would've been quite doable on the caadx but would have required a bit more concentration and line choice. I wanted to just go and ride.
The scalpel is a great bike. It's light, obviously I would've preferred at least a hardtail but with the lockout on for both shocks it was fine. Plenty comfortable for the 61mi I ended up with an no issues keeping up for speeds I was wanting to go.
I think for my next ride like this though I'm going to put some wider tires on the caadx. I'm thinking something in the 40-42c range would be great, probably I'd set them up tubeless also. I've gotta do some research on what tire size could fit in to my frame and then within that size what tires to choose. I found myself missing the extra hand positions the woodchipper bars would give me and the efficiency of the cross bike versus the FS 29er would be helpful.
Next up my plan is to just get as much time on the bike as I can the next few weeks. Iceman is in about a month and I want to be able to hammer as hard as I can for the whole 30mi. I don't know how well it'll go being in one of the later waves (my first Iceman) but I'm going to give it my best shot. That'll be another one to wonder about bike choice but I'm 95% sure I'll end up on the scalpel again.
Monday, August 10, 2015
Riding as therapy
For any of you that I know closely, you know work has been tough lately. It's been rough and time has been scarce to ride at all. I have been lucky to get out one day a week lately and when I do get out it's a squeeze. I was able to do one Friday night urban ride with a couple buds a couple weeks ago, then on Saturday I was fortunate enough to have Kris watch the kids so I could go on a ride down at the John Muir trails.
I haven't ridden down there for years, I was trying to figure out how long it's been and I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say it's probably been 10 years.
The trails were great. I got up super early to get on the road in time to ride and then drive back before dinner. I rode blue loop first, then came back and grabbed the fatbike for a loop on Orange then on Red(Brown?). After that, I exchanged the fatbike for the scalpel again, headed down the road to the Emma Carlin connector trail and rode that up and back. There was a race going on at Carlin so I didn't go around those loops, I'll save that for another trip.
It was one of those days where it's humid enough it feels like it could storm at any minute, but never does. It was wet - sticky, and hot enough for me. I left the trails pretty tired but mentally refreshed after a couple real ass kicker weeks at work.
What I need to do is keep finding ways to carve out that time to ride as it definitely lets me clear my head up quite a bit. Short rides help, trail rides help, commuting helps, anything. What I find is that riding a bike just does that for me. I just need to find more time to make that work out for me.
I haven't ridden down there for years, I was trying to figure out how long it's been and I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say it's probably been 10 years.
The trails were great. I got up super early to get on the road in time to ride and then drive back before dinner. I rode blue loop first, then came back and grabbed the fatbike for a loop on Orange then on Red(Brown?). After that, I exchanged the fatbike for the scalpel again, headed down the road to the Emma Carlin connector trail and rode that up and back. There was a race going on at Carlin so I didn't go around those loops, I'll save that for another trip.
It was one of those days where it's humid enough it feels like it could storm at any minute, but never does. It was wet - sticky, and hot enough for me. I left the trails pretty tired but mentally refreshed after a couple real ass kicker weeks at work.
What I need to do is keep finding ways to carve out that time to ride as it definitely lets me clear my head up quite a bit. Short rides help, trail rides help, commuting helps, anything. What I find is that riding a bike just does that for me. I just need to find more time to make that work out for me.
Monday, May 4, 2015
Finding time to ride and a couple longer ones
Work has been crazy busy lately, we're going through a startup after some construction and those times are always hard. That's meant two things - riding time is scarce and energy is low, but the NEED for riding is high.
I'm super lucky that Kris understands that, so I've been able to sneak away the last 2 weekends one of the days in the morning for a longer ride. Two weeks ago I went Sunday morning to the Refo Camp and did 3 laps for a good 30ish miles of riding. The last of the 3 laps was semi-with the Broken Spoke guys, although they were on lap 1 and I on lap 3 so I only hung with them for about a mile.
This weekend I did a fun ride, rode from the house to Baird Creek (about 10mi) then did a lap, then home. It was super fun and the miles came pretty easy. Riding through town on a Saturday morning is pretty fun as it's quiet and there is lots to look at as you ride through the different neighborhoods. Riding home the town had waken up a bit so I didn't go back on the same busy roads I'd gone on to get there. The lap at Baird was unremarkable, I just tried to push up the hills but rode easy on the rest, figured that'd give me a semi-interval workout while I was there. Those trails are really fun, I prefer them to the camp but they're harder to get to so I end up at Camp a bit more often.
A bit of rambling, but the 42t conversion is working well, with exception of the 16t cog that came with it. That thing doesn't shift nearly as well as the Sram cogs do, I'm going to see about getting a 16t from the shop to swap in there, then we'll be solid. The 42t seems to function very well, just a bit more driveline noise than I'm used to is all. I don't want to ever spend all day in that gear but it's nice to have when I need it. Also, I've been riding the scalpel on singletrack lately with the lockout on, seems like the way to go unless it's very rough, I prefer the tighter handling I get that way.
Forgot to mention, Noah and I rode in between those rides to a school think for his Kindergarten next year. We had a massive crash about a block from home, we were riding in the neighborhood road, then Noah just blindly veered over in front of me. I did what I could to stop, but hit him and ended up going over my bars in order to not crush him. I think fortunately I took the brunt of the injuries.
I'm super lucky that Kris understands that, so I've been able to sneak away the last 2 weekends one of the days in the morning for a longer ride. Two weeks ago I went Sunday morning to the Refo Camp and did 3 laps for a good 30ish miles of riding. The last of the 3 laps was semi-with the Broken Spoke guys, although they were on lap 1 and I on lap 3 so I only hung with them for about a mile.
This weekend I did a fun ride, rode from the house to Baird Creek (about 10mi) then did a lap, then home. It was super fun and the miles came pretty easy. Riding through town on a Saturday morning is pretty fun as it's quiet and there is lots to look at as you ride through the different neighborhoods. Riding home the town had waken up a bit so I didn't go back on the same busy roads I'd gone on to get there. The lap at Baird was unremarkable, I just tried to push up the hills but rode easy on the rest, figured that'd give me a semi-interval workout while I was there. Those trails are really fun, I prefer them to the camp but they're harder to get to so I end up at Camp a bit more often.
A bit of rambling, but the 42t conversion is working well, with exception of the 16t cog that came with it. That thing doesn't shift nearly as well as the Sram cogs do, I'm going to see about getting a 16t from the shop to swap in there, then we'll be solid. The 42t seems to function very well, just a bit more driveline noise than I'm used to is all. I don't want to ever spend all day in that gear but it's nice to have when I need it. Also, I've been riding the scalpel on singletrack lately with the lockout on, seems like the way to go unless it's very rough, I prefer the tighter handling I get that way.
Forgot to mention, Noah and I rode in between those rides to a school think for his Kindergarten next year. We had a massive crash about a block from home, we were riding in the neighborhood road, then Noah just blindly veered over in front of me. I did what I could to stop, but hit him and ended up going over my bars in order to not crush him. I think fortunately I took the brunt of the injuries.
Friday, April 24, 2015
Hot lap, sick, then another lap
Last week Wednesday I finally got the bike out on dirt singletrack. It felt like it's been just too long!
I took the fatbike as my scalpel needed some love. I went to the Reforestation Camp, it always dries out faster than Baird's and it's a good place to run some baseline laps and get out there. It helps that it's only 10min from my house vs. 20min for Baird's.
Anyhow, the fatbike has always been and is fun for singletrack and it was fun to get out with the tubeless setup on summer tires on the bike. I ended up setting my fastest lap time for the green loop that I've done ever. I was kind of surprised as I didn't think I was really going fast enough to do that. As I got further into the ride though I knew it was a quicker lap than most I run so I tried to keep the pace up. It was a 54:3x lap which is good but my goal I think for this year is to get <50min. I think that's achievable but I need to really focus to do that. It is good to have a goal.
To get the Scalpel ready, I had to remount tires with new Stan's. I also took the chance to change out my cassette setup. Late last year I went to 1x10 with a 32t front ring and a 11-36 in the rear. I upgraded now so I've got a 42t bailout gear and added a 16t inbetween the 13 and 19 (I think). The goal there is to extend the cassette range a bit. After riding the XX1 setup all winter on the fatbike I knew I wanted more range than what I had.
So, went out yesterday for the first ride I've done in a long time on the Scalpel. It's so different from the fully rigid fatbike and has major advantages in some areas, but at the same time does not have advantages in others. For these local trails the full suspension is a waste, I can say I think the fastest I'd be is on a hardtail 29er with something like a 80-100mm front fork. When riding the fatbike I feel the bumps more (they aren't brutal) but any time the trail is rough downhill with turns I feel I give up a lot of speed. Those are the faster ones on the scalpel but it's hard to beat efficiency of a full rigid setup and the grip of the fatbike is great.
My lap yesterday was only about 25 sec slower than my lap last week. I was not really trying to be fast at the start of the lap so it was surprising to be in that range. I for sure am feeling the benefits of riding the fatbike all winter and also the power class. My legs feel significantly stronger than they did last year.
I took the fatbike as my scalpel needed some love. I went to the Reforestation Camp, it always dries out faster than Baird's and it's a good place to run some baseline laps and get out there. It helps that it's only 10min from my house vs. 20min for Baird's.
Anyhow, the fatbike has always been and is fun for singletrack and it was fun to get out with the tubeless setup on summer tires on the bike. I ended up setting my fastest lap time for the green loop that I've done ever. I was kind of surprised as I didn't think I was really going fast enough to do that. As I got further into the ride though I knew it was a quicker lap than most I run so I tried to keep the pace up. It was a 54:3x lap which is good but my goal I think for this year is to get <50min. I think that's achievable but I need to really focus to do that. It is good to have a goal.
To get the Scalpel ready, I had to remount tires with new Stan's. I also took the chance to change out my cassette setup. Late last year I went to 1x10 with a 32t front ring and a 11-36 in the rear. I upgraded now so I've got a 42t bailout gear and added a 16t inbetween the 13 and 19 (I think). The goal there is to extend the cassette range a bit. After riding the XX1 setup all winter on the fatbike I knew I wanted more range than what I had.
So, went out yesterday for the first ride I've done in a long time on the Scalpel. It's so different from the fully rigid fatbike and has major advantages in some areas, but at the same time does not have advantages in others. For these local trails the full suspension is a waste, I can say I think the fastest I'd be is on a hardtail 29er with something like a 80-100mm front fork. When riding the fatbike I feel the bumps more (they aren't brutal) but any time the trail is rough downhill with turns I feel I give up a lot of speed. Those are the faster ones on the scalpel but it's hard to beat efficiency of a full rigid setup and the grip of the fatbike is great.
My lap yesterday was only about 25 sec slower than my lap last week. I was not really trying to be fast at the start of the lap so it was surprising to be in that range. I for sure am feeling the benefits of riding the fatbike all winter and also the power class. My legs feel significantly stronger than they did last year.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
First real good week of outside riding
Sunday I did a ride on the Mountain Bay Trail, out/back with about 1hr out and a bit over that back. Ended up at about 33ish miles on the caadx. I love the new bars.
Last night I went mountain biking at Reforestation Camp, set a new PR for the green loop on the yampa which I was pretty excited about. That bike is fun but it beats me up a lot. I've gotta get the Scalpel all tuned up and ready to go for a bit more speed/comfort. It looks like my work over winter has paid off a lot.
Last night I went mountain biking at Reforestation Camp, set a new PR for the green loop on the yampa which I was pretty excited about. That bike is fun but it beats me up a lot. I've gotta get the Scalpel all tuned up and ready to go for a bit more speed/comfort. It looks like my work over winter has paid off a lot.
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
New bars for the caadx and Gravel River Road Ride Report
First off, I have been wanting to try some different bars on my caadx. It's not that the ones on there are a problem, it's just they're the stock ones, don't seem to be exactly what I want, and I never use the drops because of the position they put me in. I am still new to a road bike and not really sure I'm doing any of this right anyway, but I want to be comfortable on the bike and have as many hand positions as possible.
Enter the Salsa Woodchipper - I saw these on a few bikes here and there and thought about them. Took the plunge last week and ordered a set of the widest ones (46cm). Got them mounted up Thursday night in anticipation of a group ride Sat (more on that in a sec).
Figuring out exactly where to mount the levers was a bit of a guessing game but I ended up OK, and this is my first time doing tape. George had some of this tape around in red which is the color I'd wanted anyway - it's Zipp CX something and I really like it. A bit more all weather than other tapes I've seen and nice and grippy and comfy. After only one ride I recommend it.
I got a chance to try the setup out on the Gravel River Road Ride Saturday. This was an informal, free ride put on by a local rider. I think this is the 2nd year and I would say there were somewhere like 30-40 people. Weather was a bit cool at 35ish degrees and it turned out pretty windy later in the day. We rode out of a park and ride near Manitowoc, then north to Denmark through a few different roads, then back on the Gravel River Trail (old rail trail). That part was the best, just cruising along.
I have never ridden in a big group ride like this before, I was surprised at how much different it was riding in a pack for overall speed and efficiency. I do not really love it, I prefer long, solo or small groups to big groups still but it is nice to have company. Obviously there are all different speed/capability levels in a group this size so it was pretty spread out by the end.
The ride was a blast, Eric did an awesome job of setting it up and keeping it low key, friendly. I will look to do this type of ride again in the future for sure. Idealy it'll be gravel though for most of it. People say I should try to do the Bear 100 as it's kind of like that but all gravel and nice and low key. I'm going to have to see if I can stretch family schedules to allow for that.
I was pretty happy with the bars on their maiden voyage. I was able to use more different hand positions, still prefering to be on the hoods mostly, but the drop portion of the bars are way more usable for me and much more comfortable. I'd worked on the truck Friday and had bruised my palms a bit (long story), so my hands were hurting by the end of the ride but not terrible. I think the combo of extra hand positions and new bar tape helped a lot.
Hoping to get out on singletrack soon...
Enter the Salsa Woodchipper - I saw these on a few bikes here and there and thought about them. Took the plunge last week and ordered a set of the widest ones (46cm). Got them mounted up Thursday night in anticipation of a group ride Sat (more on that in a sec).
Figuring out exactly where to mount the levers was a bit of a guessing game but I ended up OK, and this is my first time doing tape. George had some of this tape around in red which is the color I'd wanted anyway - it's Zipp CX something and I really like it. A bit more all weather than other tapes I've seen and nice and grippy and comfy. After only one ride I recommend it.
I got a chance to try the setup out on the Gravel River Road Ride Saturday. This was an informal, free ride put on by a local rider. I think this is the 2nd year and I would say there were somewhere like 30-40 people. Weather was a bit cool at 35ish degrees and it turned out pretty windy later in the day. We rode out of a park and ride near Manitowoc, then north to Denmark through a few different roads, then back on the Gravel River Trail (old rail trail). That part was the best, just cruising along.
I have never ridden in a big group ride like this before, I was surprised at how much different it was riding in a pack for overall speed and efficiency. I do not really love it, I prefer long, solo or small groups to big groups still but it is nice to have company. Obviously there are all different speed/capability levels in a group this size so it was pretty spread out by the end.
The ride was a blast, Eric did an awesome job of setting it up and keeping it low key, friendly. I will look to do this type of ride again in the future for sure. Idealy it'll be gravel though for most of it. People say I should try to do the Bear 100 as it's kind of like that but all gravel and nice and low key. I'm going to have to see if I can stretch family schedules to allow for that.
I was pretty happy with the bars on their maiden voyage. I was able to use more different hand positions, still prefering to be on the hoods mostly, but the drop portion of the bars are way more usable for me and much more comfortable. I'd worked on the truck Friday and had bruised my palms a bit (long story), so my hands were hurting by the end of the ride but not terrible. I think the combo of extra hand positions and new bar tape helped a lot.
Hoping to get out on singletrack soon...
Friday, March 13, 2015
Fat Bike Birkie Report
Again I'm a bit delinquent for writing any sort of recap of the race I did, this time though I'm less than a week behind. It's been busy this week with a work trip to Chicago for some training.
The birkie was awesome. I knew from the day I got my fatbike, or even before I'd gotten my fatbike that I was 100% for sure doing this race, no matter what it took. I've skiied the birkie a couple times and I wanted to get back on the trail. For the people reading this, the race is similar but not 100% the same. The long race (47k) races out to OO on the Birkie trail then turns around and heads back to Telemark on the Birkie Classic Trail. The first thing you figure out is how relentless the hills are, it was very fun and very tough.
I have been training pretty hard with my power class but not been able to do a ton of other riding overall, so I knew I could push hard but was not expecting anything great. I was hoping for <3hrs but thought if I had a "good" race I could do 2:45 or less based on how other things have gone.
I lined up and started further up in the start grid than I would've in the past, I was towards the back of the "going for it" grid which was supposed to be 2:15-2:45. Figured I'd want to be up there to avoid getting stuck behind people aiming for slower times. I think where I lined up ended up being pretty good though I did not finish in <2:45.
The race was a blur of down one hill then up the next. Shift up 5 gears to get momentum down then try to hammer up the next hill, all while trying to not blow up. I so far this year have decided that while I'll use HR for training I am not going to pay attention to it while racing and just go on "feel". I don't want to artificially slow down because of a HR number flashing at me on the gps. I do still wear it because I like seeing what zones I was able to maintain and for how long.
I started out feeling pretty good, was doing gels and water here and there. I was not feeling incredibly strong though. About halfway through the race I ended up pacing fairly well with Ross from my team, that was fun to ride with him as I don't think we've ever ridden together before.
Race went fine, just pushing, eating gel, drinking water, but I ended up cramping pretty badly. Looking back I don't think I was getting enough hydration during the race. Going up steep prolonged hills was getting very painful and when I finally got off to walk up one about 5mi from the finish my left leg locked up. I got back on the bike at the top but the next couple miles were really bad until the cramps went away. From there I just tried to stay on the bike at high cadence, the cramps went away but I was not able to push any harder as the cramps returned then.
Course wise I think next year I could easily run a 4" tire for less rotating weight, it was nice and firm and even with warm conditions it was not bad. I just got in the rut and rode out as much as I could there as the track was nicely packed down and faster than if you were out of the rut.
Finish wise, I got in at 2:55, less than my goal but not as good as I'd really hoped I could do. I know there is some good room to improve for next year. It was fun to see/hang with the Broken Spoke guys before/after a bit but I headed home just about immediately so I could make it in time to see the kids before bed (I did make it).
The birkie was awesome. I knew from the day I got my fatbike, or even before I'd gotten my fatbike that I was 100% for sure doing this race, no matter what it took. I've skiied the birkie a couple times and I wanted to get back on the trail. For the people reading this, the race is similar but not 100% the same. The long race (47k) races out to OO on the Birkie trail then turns around and heads back to Telemark on the Birkie Classic Trail. The first thing you figure out is how relentless the hills are, it was very fun and very tough.
I have been training pretty hard with my power class but not been able to do a ton of other riding overall, so I knew I could push hard but was not expecting anything great. I was hoping for <3hrs but thought if I had a "good" race I could do 2:45 or less based on how other things have gone.
I lined up and started further up in the start grid than I would've in the past, I was towards the back of the "going for it" grid which was supposed to be 2:15-2:45. Figured I'd want to be up there to avoid getting stuck behind people aiming for slower times. I think where I lined up ended up being pretty good though I did not finish in <2:45.
The race was a blur of down one hill then up the next. Shift up 5 gears to get momentum down then try to hammer up the next hill, all while trying to not blow up. I so far this year have decided that while I'll use HR for training I am not going to pay attention to it while racing and just go on "feel". I don't want to artificially slow down because of a HR number flashing at me on the gps. I do still wear it because I like seeing what zones I was able to maintain and for how long.
I started out feeling pretty good, was doing gels and water here and there. I was not feeling incredibly strong though. About halfway through the race I ended up pacing fairly well with Ross from my team, that was fun to ride with him as I don't think we've ever ridden together before.
Race went fine, just pushing, eating gel, drinking water, but I ended up cramping pretty badly. Looking back I don't think I was getting enough hydration during the race. Going up steep prolonged hills was getting very painful and when I finally got off to walk up one about 5mi from the finish my left leg locked up. I got back on the bike at the top but the next couple miles were really bad until the cramps went away. From there I just tried to stay on the bike at high cadence, the cramps went away but I was not able to push any harder as the cramps returned then.
Course wise I think next year I could easily run a 4" tire for less rotating weight, it was nice and firm and even with warm conditions it was not bad. I just got in the rut and rode out as much as I could there as the track was nicely packed down and faster than if you were out of the rut.
Finish wise, I got in at 2:55, less than my goal but not as good as I'd really hoped I could do. I know there is some good room to improve for next year. It was fun to see/hang with the Broken Spoke guys before/after a bit but I headed home just about immediately so I could make it in time to see the kids before bed (I did make it).
Monday, February 16, 2015
Exploring Duck Creek
So yesterday's ride was kind of what I love about the fatbike. I did Disney on Ice with Aly in the afternoon then snuck out for a quick ride. Quick being 2hrs. Kris is awesome and watch the kids so I could go not after dark.
Friends have been talking about Duck Creek for a while, it's about 3mi from my house so I just hopped on the bike and rode there. It was cool. Great spot to do training and really a lot less flat/boring then I thought. Lots of curves in the river, lots to look at, great wind cover, generally snowmobile trails to follow, and some little jumps up/down the banks to play on too. I had a good time but really didn't explore a crazy amount of it. I wanted to ride from FF to Overland but came up a bit short of Overland Rd. Cole says west of Overland is even better so we'll see. I may load the bike up and drive there next time so I can maximize time on the river (it's probably 5mi away?). Maybe not though, it's fun to ride the roads too on this thing, it's just fun all over.
I'm excited for my race Saturday but at the same time not excited - 35mi on a fatbike could be as easy as 35mi on a mtb or could be absolute hell depending on weather. For example, I averaged about 7-8mph on the river yesterday on mostly snowmobile tracks, but I can ride the same if not slightly faster on singletrack here in town. On packed trails (non-singletrack) I could anticipate some averages up to 13-15mph. We'll see. I've been training a bit anyway and feel stronger than I did last year - less overall endurance but more power I think.
The other thing I have a bad feeling about for no good reason is my tubeless setup. I'm really hoping it holds up for the race, it's been good so far but I have not pushed it at race pace or that distance yet.
One thing I am certain of - if I keep this up it's going to be very fast come skinny tire mtb season. I'm already super excited to get out on the Scalpel and I'm probably about 2 months away. I think I will ride with the rear lockout engaged a lot this year.
On a semi-related note my ability to wheelie is much improved.
Friends have been talking about Duck Creek for a while, it's about 3mi from my house so I just hopped on the bike and rode there. It was cool. Great spot to do training and really a lot less flat/boring then I thought. Lots of curves in the river, lots to look at, great wind cover, generally snowmobile trails to follow, and some little jumps up/down the banks to play on too. I had a good time but really didn't explore a crazy amount of it. I wanted to ride from FF to Overland but came up a bit short of Overland Rd. Cole says west of Overland is even better so we'll see. I may load the bike up and drive there next time so I can maximize time on the river (it's probably 5mi away?). Maybe not though, it's fun to ride the roads too on this thing, it's just fun all over.
I'm excited for my race Saturday but at the same time not excited - 35mi on a fatbike could be as easy as 35mi on a mtb or could be absolute hell depending on weather. For example, I averaged about 7-8mph on the river yesterday on mostly snowmobile tracks, but I can ride the same if not slightly faster on singletrack here in town. On packed trails (non-singletrack) I could anticipate some averages up to 13-15mph. We'll see. I've been training a bit anyway and feel stronger than I did last year - less overall endurance but more power I think.
The other thing I have a bad feeling about for no good reason is my tubeless setup. I'm really hoping it holds up for the race, it's been good so far but I have not pushed it at race pace or that distance yet.
One thing I am certain of - if I keep this up it's going to be very fast come skinny tire mtb season. I'm already super excited to get out on the Scalpel and I'm probably about 2 months away. I think I will ride with the rear lockout engaged a lot this year.
On a semi-related note my ability to wheelie is much improved.
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Another ride at Baird
Did 3hrs today at Baird. Prepping for the 906 Polar Roll in Marquette in 2 weeks. I needed to get out and really ride for a while, reasonably hard without stopping much. I did that pretty well. I figured doing singletrack for 3hrs will be better training than just riding on something flat - rail trail, river, etc.
Trails were in great shape, we could definitely use more snow but they are good. It is nice to have the studs (I've mentioned that before) and the bike handles really well. I was happy to get 25mi in. The race coming up is 35 miles but I'm not too worried about that, in reading the course description where there is some singletrack (maybe half?) there is enough snowmobile trail/road that the miles on average should be doable. Not looking to break any records but looking forward to pushing hard.
Trails were in great shape, we could definitely use more snow but they are good. It is nice to have the studs (I've mentioned that before) and the bike handles really well. I was happy to get 25mi in. The race coming up is 35 miles but I'm not too worried about that, in reading the course description where there is some singletrack (maybe half?) there is enough snowmobile trail/road that the miles on average should be doable. Not looking to break any records but looking forward to pushing hard.
Monday, February 2, 2015
If you're gonna shoot with the gopro, aim it right!
I got out for a fantastic ride on Saturday at Baird. Two full laps, it was great and the trails were in great shape. Snow everywhere but nice and grippy for the most part. The dillingers helped a lot and I'm very glad I got the studded version.
I shot the first lap with the gopro, I figured why not use it. Used the chest harness, but when I went to watch it last night I saw I had it aimed too low. It is a great view of the trail 5' in front of the bike but too much too close and not enough to see the upcoming trail, making it unwatchable. Guess I'll just have to do it again sometime!
I shot the first lap with the gopro, I figured why not use it. Used the chest harness, but when I went to watch it last night I saw I had it aimed too low. It is a great view of the trail 5' in front of the bike but too much too close and not enough to see the upcoming trail, making it unwatchable. Guess I'll just have to do it again sometime!
Sunday, January 11, 2015
Quick Fat Camp loop in the loose snow
Had one of those days where it was just nice to get out, even if it's just for a little bit. I did one loop at Fat Camp. Snow was really loose, I aired way down but still had poor traction.
I'm really struggling with keeping my head the right temp - in the snowboard helmet it is never cold but I'm sweating and I'd like to avoid that. I think I'll sweat no matter what though. I could wear my normal mtb helmet with a beanie under but I am just as sweaty in that. I'm honestly pretty tempted to drill some more holes in the snowboard helmet for better airflow. We'll see.
I can say, on singletrack I work pretty hard on the fatbike, I can easily dress the same as I do for 45 degrees outside as it's just a lot harder work and lower speed so there is a lot less evaporative cooling.
The Wolvhammer boots are insanely nice - I am super happy I bought them. Feet have yet to be cold and they are very comfortable.
For hands I've been wearing my summer gloves under my bar mitts from my old motorcycle, hands are usually sweaty with that setup. I could probably go no gloves but I don't do that even in the summer.
I'm really struggling with keeping my head the right temp - in the snowboard helmet it is never cold but I'm sweating and I'd like to avoid that. I think I'll sweat no matter what though. I could wear my normal mtb helmet with a beanie under but I am just as sweaty in that. I'm honestly pretty tempted to drill some more holes in the snowboard helmet for better airflow. We'll see.
I can say, on singletrack I work pretty hard on the fatbike, I can easily dress the same as I do for 45 degrees outside as it's just a lot harder work and lower speed so there is a lot less evaporative cooling.
The Wolvhammer boots are insanely nice - I am super happy I bought them. Feet have yet to be cold and they are very comfortable.
For hands I've been wearing my summer gloves under my bar mitts from my old motorcycle, hands are usually sweaty with that setup. I could probably go no gloves but I don't do that even in the summer.
Monday, January 5, 2015
Power class starts tonight
I'm excited for my power class to start - a bit not knowing what to expect but it should be good. I've been told to just push myself as hard as I can tonight as it's the FTP test so I'll get a better baseline if I can go hard tonight and I'll get more gains from the class if I can do it. Trying to eat really well and drink plenty of water today.
I did a 18mi out/back ride on the mountain bay trail Sat, no crazy pace or pushing really hard, just got out and rode. It felt great to be on the bike in fresh snow and get some miles in. I did 2hrs which wasn't long in the grand scheme of bike rides but is a long time for the kids who didn't want me to go biking. I am always trying to balance out kids, work, wife, and then myself. It's hard.
I did a 18mi out/back ride on the mountain bay trail Sat, no crazy pace or pushing really hard, just got out and rode. It felt great to be on the bike in fresh snow and get some miles in. I did 2hrs which wasn't long in the grand scheme of bike rides but is a long time for the kids who didn't want me to go biking. I am always trying to balance out kids, work, wife, and then myself. It's hard.
Monday, November 10, 2014
Friday's half day ride
I took a half day Friday to go ride one last time at the camp before it closes. It was fun to get out there even though weather wasn't awesome. I guess it wasn't bad either, could've been wetter!
I got another damn flat, thank goodness I was within about 25 yards of the truck so I made it back. I'm really happy I didn't get it out further on the trail, I hadn't brought any spares with me so I guess I lucked out.
I'm not going to remount the Knard, I'm going to put the Dillinger 5's on and getting them set up tubeless. I can say for sure once I put the knards back on next summer I'll be setting them up tubeless as well. So over flat tires - I have ridden 1500+mi on my Scalpel tubeless and only one or two times I've burped, but in 115mi on the Yampa now I've had 3 flats. Suck.
This is my favorite section of the trails out there at the camp:
An artsy fartsy shot:
And a shot down the trail from that bridge. I got the flat right after stopping here.
I got another damn flat, thank goodness I was within about 25 yards of the truck so I made it back. I'm really happy I didn't get it out further on the trail, I hadn't brought any spares with me so I guess I lucked out.
I'm not going to remount the Knard, I'm going to put the Dillinger 5's on and getting them set up tubeless. I can say for sure once I put the knards back on next summer I'll be setting them up tubeless as well. So over flat tires - I have ridden 1500+mi on my Scalpel tubeless and only one or two times I've burped, but in 115mi on the Yampa now I've had 3 flats. Suck.
This is my favorite section of the trails out there at the camp:
An artsy fartsy shot:
And a shot down the trail from that bridge. I got the flat right after stopping here.
Friday, October 31, 2014
Exploring town
Wednesday I went out for a quick ride after work, just to get out and do something. I took the Yampa, rode the mountain bay trail, then when that hit the end I just stayed on the tracks. Kind of fun to just see where I ended up for an hour of riding.
Ended up near a fishing spot on Duck Creek, guys were catching some perch, then I also went around and rode back up the sidewalk on Velp. No sense on riding on the street without lights at dusk.
Duck Creek should be good for riding this winter, we will see but I think there is enough snowmobile traffic to groom it and it should be fun to see where I can get to.
Ended up near a fishing spot on Duck Creek, guys were catching some perch, then I also went around and rode back up the sidewalk on Velp. No sense on riding on the street without lights at dusk.
Duck Creek should be good for riding this winter, we will see but I think there is enough snowmobile traffic to groom it and it should be fun to see where I can get to.
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Saturday's Ride - Kewaunee Cluster Huck
Just catching up on posts - I rode a big 30+ person group ride in Kewaunee, WI to learn the trails over there. They called it the Cluster Huck. It was a great time.
We started off on the trails at Ryan Park, they were the ones I did the fatbike race on and were in great shape. I like those trails more and more, and they are more challenging than what is around Green Bay. Short loop though, only 3-4mi I think.
The second loop was maybe called riverview? park? It was trails around some moto trails, they were good but very tight and did not flow well. I'm told if I ride there more I'll like it more but I didn't leave feeling like I was excited to head back there again.
Third was the trails at the ski hill - these were real fun with lots of uphill and then also lots of fun downhill sections. Flow was very good to me on these trails and lots of fun. Not so much crazy tight stuff.
We rode from trail to trail for something around 16mi total. I rode them all on the Yampa, it was great as usual. I really like the bike a lot and it's nice and fast. I however am NOT nice and fast, I was pretty slow and tired for a lot of the day compared to where I'd like to be. Not so much on any technical skills this time but my gas tank is very small currently and my legs get tired fast. I'm a long way off from the endurance I had back in June when I did the Lutsen 99er.
We started off on the trails at Ryan Park, they were the ones I did the fatbike race on and were in great shape. I like those trails more and more, and they are more challenging than what is around Green Bay. Short loop though, only 3-4mi I think.
The second loop was maybe called riverview? park? It was trails around some moto trails, they were good but very tight and did not flow well. I'm told if I ride there more I'll like it more but I didn't leave feeling like I was excited to head back there again.
Third was the trails at the ski hill - these were real fun with lots of uphill and then also lots of fun downhill sections. Flow was very good to me on these trails and lots of fun. Not so much crazy tight stuff.
We rode from trail to trail for something around 16mi total. I rode them all on the Yampa, it was great as usual. I really like the bike a lot and it's nice and fast. I however am NOT nice and fast, I was pretty slow and tired for a lot of the day compared to where I'd like to be. Not so much on any technical skills this time but my gas tank is very small currently and my legs get tired fast. I'm a long way off from the endurance I had back in June when I did the Lutsen 99er.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
I'm 36.
Yesterday I turned 36. Normal day for the most part, went to work then decided on a half day. I would've really loved to just head home and do "nothing" for the rest of the day but with a 0,2, and 4 year old at home that does not really happen ever. Second best was to head out on the fatty for a ride even though the weather was not so good.
It was in the low 50's and wet, not actively raining but it's been a wet week. Due to that I decided on Reforestation Camp as those trails dry out the best. Overall really they weren't awful, just a lot of puddles here and there. Not so muddy as much as just dirty. In other words, the bike ran fine, did not accumulate mud as much as just got wet with a fine layer of sand. When I'd stop riding there would be a puddle under it from water dripping off. Lots of leaves down as well which mean lots of slippery situations with leaves + slick + acorns. The acorns were interesting, I could hear them popping under my tires the whole ride pretty much.
I'm real excited to get the bike out in snow. Having not ridden in snow on a fatbike before it should be a lot of fun, I am curious what to expect from available traction, handling, etc. I know when the trails are packed it should be a super fun, smooth, fast ride. When they're not, it may just be a lot of work. I'm hoping the 5" tires I've got will help a ton with ability to float and run low pressures as needed. I'm still learning what works well on the singletrack and I can say somewhere between 8-10 seems ideal for the knards and my style. Lower seems too floppy? and higher seems too bouncy.
It was fun to get out in the afternoon even if the ride wasn't great from a speed or fun standpoint. The leaves are still pretty even when it's wet and the truth is biking is a great chance for me to get some time on my own to clear my head.
After the ride, went home, had my birthday meal of pizza and a great ice cream cake that Kris made. She is awesome, I can't say that enough.
It was in the low 50's and wet, not actively raining but it's been a wet week. Due to that I decided on Reforestation Camp as those trails dry out the best. Overall really they weren't awful, just a lot of puddles here and there. Not so muddy as much as just dirty. In other words, the bike ran fine, did not accumulate mud as much as just got wet with a fine layer of sand. When I'd stop riding there would be a puddle under it from water dripping off. Lots of leaves down as well which mean lots of slippery situations with leaves + slick + acorns. The acorns were interesting, I could hear them popping under my tires the whole ride pretty much.
I'm real excited to get the bike out in snow. Having not ridden in snow on a fatbike before it should be a lot of fun, I am curious what to expect from available traction, handling, etc. I know when the trails are packed it should be a super fun, smooth, fast ride. When they're not, it may just be a lot of work. I'm hoping the 5" tires I've got will help a ton with ability to float and run low pressures as needed. I'm still learning what works well on the singletrack and I can say somewhere between 8-10 seems ideal for the knards and my style. Lower seems too floppy? and higher seems too bouncy.
It was fun to get out in the afternoon even if the ride wasn't great from a speed or fun standpoint. The leaves are still pretty even when it's wet and the truth is biking is a great chance for me to get some time on my own to clear my head.
After the ride, went home, had my birthday meal of pizza and a great ice cream cake that Kris made. She is awesome, I can't say that enough.
Monday, October 13, 2014
Great weekend in Duluth
So with little man being about 10 weeks old now the two older kids have had a long time with not much besides being around the house. Kris hasn't gotten much of a break either. I figured I'd solve that by taking the two older kids up to Duluth to visit my parents for the weekend. That meant driving about 6hrs to/from Duluth with them for a quick weekend trip.
I did that Friday night, got in about 10pm. It was a long, tiring drive with two little ones asking if we're there yet and needing snacks every 2 minutes. Saturday was fun. The kids woke up very early, woke Grandpa and Grandma up, got some quick breakfast, and checked out the tree fort. It's looking pretty good, Grandpa has been hard at work. He was working at Bentleyville both Sat and Sun from 8-4 so he took off in the morning. Grandma was around, then she had a haircut. That left the kids and I for a morning of playing at the lake, playing outside, going to the tree fort again. Very busy morning for them and they were tired for sure by the time Grandma came back for lunch.
After lunch, I got to leave the kids with Grandma and do a bit of mountain biking. Finally in all my trips to Duluth I had great weather for a ride. I decided on going to Brewer Hill and Piedmont, neither I'd ridden before. I think I've tried to ride there at least 10x but have gotten rained out every single time.
I loved the trails, they were super fun and nice and challenging. I had brought the fatbike so while it's fun I quickly wished I'd have brought the scalpel instead. Brewer Hill was cool but there were a lot of spots where suspension would've been very appreciated. Piedmont was actually better for me, maybe the trails are just more ridden in, but there were a lot more places I could get flow on the bike and roll through/over stuff easily. Very fun crushing along the trails a bit and really beautiful views and leaves.
After the mtb trails I went down to canal park and rode the fatty a bit on the beach of Park Point. I had fun doing that, my first real time riding on anything except singletrack on the fatty. A bit of a taste of what to expect for winter I suppose. It was fun riding but after already running the trails up the hill I didn't go too long, I think I did just under 9 miles all said and done. Riding the beach is pretty calming, beautiful, etc. I have to say though going back I should've done more at Brewer or Piedmont rather than done the beach, it was more fun on the trails.
After I went to Fitgers and filled a growler and that was about it. Sunday we visited great grandma and then grabbed lunch, then headed home. Fun weekend but I was pretty spent when I got home.
All of these pics are from my new iphone and uploaded via instagram, pretty impressed with the phone/camera so far.
I did that Friday night, got in about 10pm. It was a long, tiring drive with two little ones asking if we're there yet and needing snacks every 2 minutes. Saturday was fun. The kids woke up very early, woke Grandpa and Grandma up, got some quick breakfast, and checked out the tree fort. It's looking pretty good, Grandpa has been hard at work. He was working at Bentleyville both Sat and Sun from 8-4 so he took off in the morning. Grandma was around, then she had a haircut. That left the kids and I for a morning of playing at the lake, playing outside, going to the tree fort again. Very busy morning for them and they were tired for sure by the time Grandma came back for lunch.
After lunch, I got to leave the kids with Grandma and do a bit of mountain biking. Finally in all my trips to Duluth I had great weather for a ride. I decided on going to Brewer Hill and Piedmont, neither I'd ridden before. I think I've tried to ride there at least 10x but have gotten rained out every single time.
I loved the trails, they were super fun and nice and challenging. I had brought the fatbike so while it's fun I quickly wished I'd have brought the scalpel instead. Brewer Hill was cool but there were a lot of spots where suspension would've been very appreciated. Piedmont was actually better for me, maybe the trails are just more ridden in, but there were a lot more places I could get flow on the bike and roll through/over stuff easily. Very fun crushing along the trails a bit and really beautiful views and leaves.
After the mtb trails I went down to canal park and rode the fatty a bit on the beach of Park Point. I had fun doing that, my first real time riding on anything except singletrack on the fatty. A bit of a taste of what to expect for winter I suppose. It was fun riding but after already running the trails up the hill I didn't go too long, I think I did just under 9 miles all said and done. Riding the beach is pretty calming, beautiful, etc. I have to say though going back I should've done more at Brewer or Piedmont rather than done the beach, it was more fun on the trails.
After I went to Fitgers and filled a growler and that was about it. Sunday we visited great grandma and then grabbed lunch, then headed home. Fun weekend but I was pretty spent when I got home.
All of these pics are from my new iphone and uploaded via instagram, pretty impressed with the phone/camera so far.
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