Golden brown

The winter bike commute routine: 6am wake up call. Get up, check outside temperature, clothe accordingly. Let dogs out to go potty and stand out there with them to make sure Bear doesn't snack. Go inside and grub cereal, FRS, and warm up the espresso machine. Pull a couple of shots and sit with my girl watching the outside world wake up while enjoying the warm sweet bitters of the coffee. Say goodbye to all, board bike, and ride off down the road. Get to work an hour and 20 minutes later (the "direct route") and sit at my desk for 8 hours - mix in a meeting or two and call it a normal day. Quitting time puts me back on the bike riding the 5-ish miles back into town to the station where the bus shuttles me back up the 17 miles to Ned. I dismount the metal tube and motivate for the cold and likely windy 4 mile ride back home in the dark. Get home, pet dogs, grab beer and make fire. Eat, sleep, repeat.

The golden brown grass in the morning light is one of my favorite scenes of winter here. Some people call this place "too brown" or "not green enough" but for me it's hard to imagine a more beautiful place.

Today, 12 degrees and over 80% humidity at the house = Siberian Valley Ranch strikes again. As i climb out of the creek, it warms significantly and only one car passes me this time up the dirt road climb. What is up with that?! I even stopped to take a picture and still only one car passed me!

The elk were out today in the big meadow. Two bull elk were practicing their moves and bugling. They noticed me watching them from at least 1500 feet away. There's something about bikes they don't like...they spook more easily when they see me on bike but not when I'm in a car. Guess I look more like a predator (or alien?).

Up on the rolling dirt road you see above it's warm(er), no mitts needed, but I leave them on for the 4 plus mile, 3000 ft. descent into the canyon where there are some places that don't get sun for weeks in the winter. It's not too bad today and the fingers and toes thankfully stay warm. I usually don't do the math or cite stats, but I actually had never figured out the ascent/descent/length from my most recent abode to work. So here it is once and only once, not like anyone's keeping track: 24 miles, 1280 ft ascent, 3026 ft descent. Summertime I occasionally reverse that by riding home too but heck no in winter.

A ride back from the bus with the Redneck tonight. Talking or shall I saw scheming of skiing and new techniques to keep the hands warm whilst skiing and riding. If I only knew how to sew and had an industrial-type sewing machine! I'd make some cool stuff and test it out on these commutes. Hmm...

Abyss Stout

This beer you have to ask for by name. The people that stock it keep it for themselves, in the back, and hope no one asks for it. I think I got the last bottle in Boulder. It sells out in a few days upon arrival from Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon...it's THAT good. It's insanely good; the best stout on earth as I see it. Timmy saw the future and bought a few bottles when he saw it at Bottles, but now it's gone and I had to ask (beg) LM guys to look in the back for one. THE last one. It's my lucky night!

Silverton Mountain

If you can, check out the December 2009 issue of Backcountry Magazine. Not only is it the photo annual getting us overly psyched up for skiing when there's no good snow to be had in these parts at least (yet), on page 43 is a short writeup of Silverton Mountain reflecting on our day at the mountain last February.

Time for the Moosemits

I like getting back into the pattern of the bike commute. Yesterday and today have been sub-20 at the house and a mile away climbed at least 5 degress above that thankfully. The road in the above shot is the normal winter route as the trails are more or less shut down by snow (for Tank's small tires at least). It's only a 1 mile, 400+ vertical feet ascent but it seems like it takes forever. Although it is a good warm up or wake up after the first 3-4 miles of downhill along Cold Creek. Today, not one car passed me going up this road, something i don't think has ever happened to me before. The holidays see so many fewer people on the road.

Winter's a unique time to be out there at the start and end of the days. The light is incredible (if it's not dark like after the bus ride home) and the temperatures and the road conditions keep you on your toes. I finally broke out the Moosemitts after some scolding by my poor fingers who seem to get cold when they even look at the thermometer. I have ruined my nerves in my fingers and toes via winter commuting and skiing. I think I've finally learned that there is no glove on earth that will keep my fingers warm - the gloves aren't the problem, it's all me. So therefore, i've learned over the last 8 years of doing these mountain commutes is to put on the Moosemitts when it's sub-20...period. No questions asked, just do it. Has anyone ever complained of their hands being too warm? Don't think so. The Moosemitts are a bit cumbersome, but you can wear a lighter glove for better dexterity and still stay warm. NOTE: I noticed tonight that the makers of the mitts have a new version out! -- for drop-bars (yes, Timmy, you heard me right!) and the regular model works for ski poles (yes, Redneck, you heard me right!).

Back on the bike

Friday Nov. 20.

It's been a couple of weeks since I've ridden a bike. (I know some of you may be saying sarcastically, "WHoA! That's crazy!") Lots of excuses that are too personal to blog about but I'll just say it was great to get back on the bike even if it was just for a couple commutes on ice and snow packed roads. The start of the week we woke up to the coldest morning of the season so far at zero degrees, but it warmed up throughout the week and my rides on Thursday and Friday were a relatively pleasant 20 degrees. Had to find all the winter riding gear, which gloves to use at which temperature range (my perennial issue even though my fingers get cold no matter what), and so on.

It's amazing how fast the fitness goes. (FAST. now i go SLOW.) It was the longest time of the bike in over least two years. The body does strange things adapting to a life without much movement. I get sore in weird places, my back goes out where i hurt it 18 years ago, I get grumpy easier and am more quick to anger, the list goes on.

Over time, humans have replaced the practical purpose of adrenaline and testosterone from fight or flight (survival) to a staged fight and flight (sports). I wonder why the body has kept this addictive tendency towards adrenaline when the real need has subsided (we don't need to do sports to truly survive; we don't need to hunt to survive any longer)? I don't think it happens to everyone, but some are more prone to the addiction. Once you stop for awhile, it subsides a bit, but the draw is always there. I have to keep moving and pushing myself or I fee unsatisfied and anxious. Maybe sports keep these functions in the genome whereas they would otherwise disappear over centuries of the population as a whole being sedentary? Do the fittest survive (pun intended)? But do they have fewer of their genes in the pool? Will the fast food dieters win out in the end only to spell out certain death for the human race?

I did not reproduce, but I did ride my bike today.

Old and new

Some things I learned this week that I somehow missed in the last decade. Please comment to correct me if I'm wrong but this is what I've heard. (Eh, sonny!? Retrogrouch needs you to speak louder!)

1) if you try to use a new the new external-bearing-bottom bracket/crankset (what is that called anyways?) on an old cross bike (Y2K), it don't work (see picture). It'll work if you run a 1x1 or 1x9 and mount the inner chainring on the outside, but then it's an issue to have an outer chainguide (unless possibly you use Paul's awesome new chain guide). What is up with that?! Seriously, did they make everyone change their frame specifications to shift the BB to the driveside or something when I wasn't looking? I tried spacers but over 5mm of spacers on the driveside is needed and then the cranks press so hard on the bearings they don't turn round and round. Go figure. So either back to the 10yr old Ultegra octalink cranks or jerryrig this crankset with a new chainguide spacing kit. The Cyclesport boys have it in their control now - I've given up (that is a first, i NEVER give my bikes for someone else to work on but I'm done...too much time and money spent already!).

2) New cross bikes have 1 1/8" steerer tubes, and even newer ones have a split-flaring diameter somehow going from 1 1/8" to 1 1/4". Stiffness with those carbon forks is paramount I guess as they shutter and occasionally break. (However, a good 1" steel fork is hard to beat. Isn't disposable after a crash and bends back into place! Yeah yeah, they're much heavier, but train a little harder or lift some weights.)

3) New cross bike rear hub spacing is 135mm like mountain bikes instead of 130mm road spacing. This is cool actually (if it weren't for my old wheels being 130mm) because you can use nice a lightweight mountain wheelset - like tubeless Stans (even with discs!?) - and trade out with your cross specific race wheelset. I like when they use the same specs between bike types as you don't have to have multiple of the same things for all your bikes. Interchangeability = cool.

Ok, all for now. Anything else you can think of?

Snowy weekend

The Finter season is here. Not fall, not winter: Finter. Trails are getting closed from the snow (unless you got a Pugsley-type ride), and skiing can't happen yet as it's just too thin out there. I'm ready for full on winter now. My skis are calling.

Wednesday AM Cross Ride

Nice work Dubba:

http://www.velonews.com/article/99980/boulder-s-weekly--cross-ride-is-like-a-disease-that-keeps

It's been a long time since it started, and it's added a TON of people since it was just the Pilots at Vics. It's cool to see Cross get so popular and so much airtime in Boulder.

Sans Cross

You've probably noticed I'm not writing about Cyclocross anymore. Well, that's because I've stopped riding and racing for the year sadly. No injury, but a bunch of other things of higher priority and obligation, have come up that make it nearly impossible for me to train well and race this season. I seem to be on an 'every other year' plan anyways. I love racing cross, but if I can't ride enough and race enough to be at a certain fitness level, I just don't want to pay the cash and take travel time to race just for the sake of racing and get my ass handed to me.

Next year I plan to be back. Maybe with a revived spirit to race, and an updated cross bike I hope. No, not a newfangled carbon frame and fork. I like steel, I'll pay in training for the extra two pounds. The IF is great, it rides PERFECTLY...it fits live a glove. But is now 9 years old and there's some chipping paint and surface rust forming in several spots. At the very least he'll need a new powder coat. But more likely knowing me, I'll get a powdercoat and a new training and racing set of wheels - my current ones are over 10 years old! I gotta say, that it's impressive (the wheels, not me) to be riding and racing on a set of wheels built by Sean at Vecchios for 10 years...! Nicely done Sean!

So there it is, next year I'll be back. And to Pilot and Dubba, I'll be gunning to at least keep you in my sights...if not occasionally drop you. Word.

Jessie doesn't need a lucky rabbit's foot, she has her lucky stuffed
orangutan foot!

Morning double-shot with Bear wondering where his is?!

333 skis

This is one of the cooler things I've seen involving skiing in a long time:
www.333skis.com
Custom skis for $333 and handmade in a solar-powered trailer....?
Hoping to inspire more locally built and relatively low-impact skis he offers builders shop specs and tips. To quote Backcountry mag's interview, "Let's not be stupid consumers, all we're trying to do is claw back market share from Chinese manufacturing. Let's bring it back - one ski at a time."