Today's Ride

Heady Topper nice IPA tBatt!  Cool pics everyone!

Qustions, always questions. Arlo Guthrie, regarding the Group W bench: "And they all moved away from me on the bench there, and the hairy eyeball and all kinds of mean nasty things, till I said, "And creating a nuisance."

Harvey44 wrote

Hmm this report raises some serious Group W type of questions...

How did the mannequin get decapped?

The story is lost in the mists of time.

Harvey44 wrote

Why would a man allow himself to be photog'd with a picture of his bride 2B as ball and chain?

They are a very open-minded young couple. Kids these days...

Harvey44 wrote

What color are the toes of the woman on the audio intro of the vibey clothing store?

Always blue, of course.

Telemark Dave wrote

Another thing... I've actually never noticed the colour of your bottle cage before...

Lilac? Mauve? Lavender?

I'll go with lilac. Matches the bushes outside the front door. And your SUP shorts.

Back to business. Went on the Tuesday Night Ride with the bike shop guys again. Crew of 15, good age demographic, fortunately some other out-of-shape old farts to sympathize with. Bad news was that this young buck, who was later described as "an animal," showed up and set the pace. Riding a FS 29er 2x1, yes, a 2x1, no typo. Resulting in another high cadence ride, and this time we went to a local stash known as Four Corners. Mostly private property with crazy/fun/swoopy singletrack runs cut by a couple of local doctors. No time to take pics as I was too busy trying to keep up. The downhill bits are fine, it's the darn uphill that slays me! Where's the chairlift?

Sick Bird Rider wrote

Telemark Dave wrote

Another thing... I've actually never noticed the colour of your bottle cage before...

Lilac? Mauve? Lavender?

I'll go with lilac. Matches the bushes outside the front door. And your SUP shorts.

Ouch!!!


Should change your moniker from Sick Bird Rider to Buffalo Rider!

What a great night for a ride....I'm learning there's more to shifting than just shifting.

I also noticed the woodchucks sure R skidish around these parts...hehe

Got in a nice ride this morning before the heat of the day kicked in. I had taken a week off riding to let the worst of allergy season pass, plus recover from a pulled muscle. At least, that's my excuse for the moment. This was my first solo outing after the last group ride and some of the "group-think" aggressiveness must have been lingering, for I set a new personal best time for my local loop, including adding in a short extra section. It helped that the trail was more firm, and therefore faster, and some previous hike-a-bike sections are now ridable.

Not only was there grass to cut (darn stuff keeps growing!), we now have six cords of firewood to stack in the woodshed. What to do? Go for a bike ride. DIY bike stand pic included for MC2's benefit.


I was in quite a groove, riding fast, up hills I never ridden completely, over bridges that previously required a portage, until this moment: while negotiating the technical rooty section, I figured I could bunny-hop over the fallen tree. Unfortunately, I blew the timing on the hop, and discovered that the bow-string-like qualities of the downed spruce, combined with the rebound of the front fork, were extremely effective at stopping the bike and sending it backwards. Thankfully the platform pedals let me hop off the bike before being launched over the bars. And just when I had been thinking about getting clipless pedals...


Got a little muddy but had an interesting wildlife encounter: rode up on a large owl hunting frogs in a puddle (I assume). It flew off, being harassed by two blue jays, then sat in a tree and stared at me as I pushed the bike through the muck. I think it was a barred owl, though it was bigger and lighter in colour than other barred owls I have seen. No pics of the owl, it flew off before I could get the camera out.


Oh, and if anyone is at the tandem bike rally in Saranac Lake this weekend, look for my friends Glenn and Elly. They will be riding a super-trick tandem Glenn just built, complete with a green to orange fade custom paint job. Needless to say, he is the bike shop manager at work.

Looks like you had fun.

But did the grass ever get cut??????

T.D.

Telemark Dave wrote

But did the grass ever get cut??????

Not by me. I did a lot of weed-whacking the day before. It is Blue Toes' turn to push the mower around.

Sick Bird Rider wrote

Got in a nice ride this morning before the heat of the day kicked in.

LOL, did Blue Toes hijack you to Cuba? Been downright chilly down here in the flatlands!

Gunna be hot this week, but still holding out on putting that monster AC unit in the window.  (I'm sure there will be grumbling this week.)

Sweet ride.  I like the mud.  Carry on.

Just some doubletrack on Saturday:



Short report here

The Tuesday Night Ride was cancelled due to dire weather warnings. You know, hail, 100 kph winds (60 mph), heavy rain, that sort of thing. Obviously they are not adhering to Rule # 9. With all my gear in the car, I stopped in my pal Yuill's place, chit-chatted, and after relaxing a bit we decided to go for a short local ride after the storm passed.

Yuill has a crazy old-school Cannondale FS bike and a well-used new Tacoma:


We went to a golf course under construction. Yuill indicated that the property owner had given him permission to hunt on his land, so he extrapolated that to mean we could ride on his land. Later, we checked in with the caretaker and schmoozed him into believing this story. Mostly we rode around on gravel roads and explored the very active gravel pit:


Later we checked out the future Par Three. Yuill is posing on the green. I believe the men's tee is on top of the knoll:

What is worse than mosquitoes inside your helmet? Deer flies inside your helmet! Aaiieee!!!!!!

Mommy make it stop.

You need the Deer Fly Hat:



http://www.deerflypatches.com/

I was thinking that some kind of mesh helmet cover might do the trick. The deer fly patch could be an option. Fortunately I had some bug dope with me (non DEET), took off helmet, slathered the top of my head with the stuff and carried on. It is more of an issue when you are follically challenged.

Riding is good though, dry trails and little mud.

I was on a ride a week or so ago on a difficult climb in the sweltering heat with a deer fly biting my cheek - i was thinking i need a new pastime!

of course i was back at it 3 days later...

I waited till about 4 pm to go on a ride today, foolishly thinking it might cool down in the late afternoon. The outdoor thermometer in the shade of the porch roof read over 30 degrees C (86 F) and it was way hotter in the sun.

On a whim, I turned down a nearby trail that is on private property, though all the neighbours seem to use it. I have walked and skied it but never biked it. It was a fun little loop but the heat fried my brain and I somehow managed to go over the handlebars on a pretty easy stretch. I was cruising down a gentle hill, pondering turning around to go down a side trail, riding the brakes a bit, then, whoop-seee, over I go. Ooooofffff, as I hit the ground and kick the bike away from me. A few scrapes, bruised pride and a bent bike seat were the result. I think I simply was not paying attention and hit a root while riding the front brake.

Gathering myself together and bending the seat back into position, I turned around and took the side trail, then a side-side trail that I recalled skiing a few years ago. Some "trails" are best left to be enjoyed covered with snow:

I ride an MTB but I sorta gave up doing the most technical stuff a few years ago when I went over the handbars and dislocated a finger. It really didn't hurt but work was a drag for months as I couldn't easily use a computer.

Anyway, I digress. We've got some really awesome riding in Western NJ. Having a mountain bike is really cool because even though I'm road riding, if you incorporate dirt roads, you can do some loops where you won't see any cars, and you go through some nice woods.

My main route(s) is a loop that you can extend in a bunch of ways.  If you take this one dirt road (I call it the "medium long ride") it's really peaceful. But it's kind of a risk. If YOU DO actually come across a car, you are going to breath some major dust.  So I always do that route if it's rained recently (like today) because there is no dust.

A few days ago it was dry as a bone, but I risked it. Went flying down the dirt part and as luck would have it a car came from behind.

I don't think the cars realize that when they pass you you are suckin dirt. So I did this major hose move where I got up on the pedals and flew, but right down the middle of the road so the guy couldn't pass me. He was not pleased.

OMG Harve.  Dislocated finger.  That funny sbit.

Yesterday I did something radical. Instead of riding on logging roads and snowmo trails, I packed the bike in my truck and drove to an actual MTB riding destination, paid a trail fee and rode on trails specifically developed for MTB riding. What a concept!


The Buckwallow Cycling Centre is a 45 minute drive from my house, or you happen to find yourself in Toronto, about 2 hours north of there. The trail fee is $10 and well worth it. High-end bikes are available to rent, there are nice people to take your money and give advice. Best of all the trail network is terrific, with options for all levels of riders. As you can see, it was not a busy day.


As I was unloading my bike, I was greeted by Emma, who sold me a trail pass and outlined an "old-guy friendly" ride for a first time visitor. The layout consists of easy wide routes with the more technical singletrack sections branching off and returning to the main trails. Trail entrances are marked, with a "hoof print" rating. Don't let a single hoof rating fool you into to skipping an "easy" ride, that trail will be super fun twisty singletrack with banked corners and high consequence for missing a turn. You might "hug a tree," as Emma explained. I rode everything from a one-hoof to a four-hoof and survived. As the difficulty increases, you will find more rock drops (many with by-pass routes), "up and overs" and other technical challenges. I hiked most of the rock drops, and funnily enough one of the four-hoof trails (Missing Link) was a highlight of the day while another (Moose Mayhem) pretty much kicked my butt.

Gear note: got a fancy new seat, oops, I mean saddle, to replace the one I bent earlier this month. Huge increase in riding comfort from a seat that looks decidedly minimalist. If you are saddle shopping, check out the Specialized Henge Comp. Not cheap, but your butt is worth it.


As I mentioned, there is something for everyone. These lycra-clad studs are "O-Cup" racers on a training ride. And then there was me. I didn't see them very often but could hear them yelling at each other frequently. Note the wacky Cannondale single-leg "Lefty" fork on the bike at left.


The newest trail at Buckwallow, Still Here, is still under construction. This was another highlight of the day. Smooth, fast and swoopy with every corner nicely banked.


One of the nice corners on Still Here.


On the left is Mike, the owner of Buckwallow, doing touch-ups on Still Here with his helper Mark. Mike explained that this trail is a bit of an experiment. Rather than letting the trail run over the natural terrain, banking the odd corner and adding the occasional feature, they are building the trail up off the ground, with the goal of making the end result very smooth and fast. So far they have hiked in over 3000 wheelbarrows worth of dirt to accomplish this. Wow.


Completing all the loops Emma had marked took me about two hours. I did have some challenges finding trail entrances but, hey, it was my first time there. I will definitely be back to Buckwallow. It is the most fun you can have for $10 in this part of the Hinterlands!

I need to stop falling off my bike. Getting too old for that. Trouble is, you ride more, you get more fit and riding skills improve. So you go faster, then things happen. It is just like skiing.

On last week's Tuesday Night Ride, Al the retired cop was absent so I took up the sweep position. Do you remember the tag line from the classic space film, Alien? "In space, no one can hear you scream." Well, when riding sweep, no one can hear (or see) you crash. And scream a little bit. Going fast around a swoopy turn, I went a little wide and something happened. Trapped in a rut? Snagged a bush? Who knows? The bike stopped and I kept going, landing on my side. Ooofff! It was early in the ride, so I picked myself up and kept going. Didn't feel too bad until the next morning when I realized that I had bruised ribs, an injury I have suffered before (sailboarding crash many years ago).

This particular injury really sucks. There is really nothing to be done but wait the 4 to 6 weeks, heal up, and take painkillers. Oh, it's fine dear, only hurts when I breathe. Or sit up. Or move. Actually, I am not getting a lot of sympathy from Blue Toes. A little but not a lot. So, SBR is on the DL for a bit, taking it easy.

While cranked on adrenaline during the ride, I did manage to get a few pics:

Bob, our manic ride leader, builds a little trail karma by rebuilding a landing. Note the jawbone being brandished by the arm in the upper left. We figured it was a lost snowmobiler.


Greg, at 59 the oldest on this outing, checks out the new drop:


Bob the Builder shows nice form on the same drop:

Geez, bummer about your injury.  Get well asap SBR.

Had a somewhat similar fall in Tuesday night's race.  On the second 5-mile lap, on a short but steep drop with a 90-degree turn onto a bridge, the bike went out from under me and I enjoyed a nice slide down a gravel embankment.  No other riders around. Picked myself back up and kept on riding, maybe lost 15 seconds.  Didn't hurt at all then, stung a little later on.  Could have been much worse.

Hope you're back on the bike soon, maybe you can paddle during recovery.  Or get BT to paddle you around.