Stoney 1/2 Marathon report

Yeah I know this was supposed to be a marathon race but oh well I guess 30 miles is better than nothing. The weather was nice for the start of the race about 67 degrees and not a breath of wind. DC and I were talking about some strategy...he wanted to go fast out of the gate and see who could hold on...he eventually wanted to catch up with the Elite guys and ride with them. For anyone who has never done the Stoney Marathon the start is a gradual climb which opens up to a shorter steeper climb then eventually feeds into some singletrack. Don was gone off of the start. I was in second with Keith Reige behind me. I was trying to hold on but I soon realized that if I rode that pace the whole race I'd be fried. So I decided to back it down, Keith went past me and we kind of rode like that for a while until Keith and Tim Collins got away on the crest of this climb midway through the 1 st lap and started working together. I eventually caught a younger guy who started ahead of me and we were making up some ground. The only thing was that this guy was stronger than me in the 2 track but he held me up huge in the woods. At one point I had almost got back to Keith (maybe 10 yards) but then he wicked it up on the the 2 track and I couldn't keep up. I really do think there is something about a 29er on the flats he could definately accelerate quickly. Well I decided to back it down a little and the young guy caught up with me again. We worked well together and midway through the single track on lap 3 I got around him and gapped him good. I had just gotten onto to the 2 track that would eventually lead back to the start finish area when I noticed my rear wheel was going flat. You know the feeling you get..the back end gets squirelly and although you hope it is something else you know U R screwed. I stopped and looked at my sidewall which had a nice gash in it. I knew I had a spare tube in the car...I woulda carried one but I lost my 3rd inflator in two weeks the other day and I still hadn't bought a new one so what's the use in carrying a tube. Oh well after a walk to the car I thought about fixing it but I noticed my kids were running over to me...Oh well Marathon done. The best thing was that I got to push Jenna around for her first kids race. All the kids got a medal...It was cool definately the highlight of the day. She was so proud of herself. DC who was watching (he dnf'd after 2 laps because a stick found its way into his new Mavic SLR wheelset and tore out 4 spokes) said we coulda won if I would have pushed faster. Oh well all in all not a bad day. I would have like to have finished but that just wasn't going to happen and I got to push my daughter around on her first race. Pics to follow...TC

The Manitou FS

Does anyone remember this one? Look at the rear triangle basically another fork mounted as a shock. There used to be one of these frames at Tom Nell. I wonder if anyone ever bought it and what this thing was like to ride.

More nostalgia

Who could ever forget this dynamic duo? Tom probably sold more of these in that hot purple color than everone else in all of Michigan combined. The brakes were weak (but I thought those little cutout holes were cool) and the levers were so flimsy it felt like you were pulling on spaghetti noodle. Keep an eye out for future blogs where we will cover the Kooka and Sweet wing cranks, Ringle seatposts (in blue) , and the ever popular mount titan rims. TC

I've moved on to cupcakes

Mmmmm chocolatey (is that a word) goodness. I've moved on from the Ho Ho and I've got to say the cupcakes were much kinder to the stomach then the old Ho Ho's. I've got to thank AK for that one. Today's ride started out in the sweltering heat (think oven) and for as crappy as I thought I was going to feel I actually think my conditioning is starting to come around. After a month of training sporadically and kinda going through the motions on the bike I am now starting to feel stronger. I still don't have the top end yet but it is coming. Maybe after I shed a few more pounds it will get easier. Since 4th of July is right around the corner it is time for every neighborhood wannabe pyrotechnician to start lighting off the fireworks...It seems like we go through a good month of bangs, pops and whistles. As much as I miss my old dog I used to hate this time of the year as she would get so nervous everytime a firework went off that she used to crawl in the bathtub ( it didn't even matter that the kids were in it taking a bath). Ah yes the good old dog days of summer. Well that is all for now. TC

Nostalgia day at ILRA

Today was nostalgia day at ILRA....Well make that yesterday...As DC, Terry and I pulled into the lot at the trailhead we saw two guys with their Y's on their racks. Brought back some memories...I had one just like this back in the day...I'm not sure what year it was but according to Tom Nell I had to have one. These guys were eager to talk about how they have updated their bikes through the years and that even though they ride newer FS bikes they still love the old Y. I have to say while I had a lot of good memories of my bike I wasn't to sad to see it leave. DC had a friend named Ford who wanted to buy it (before the days of EBAY) and I couldn't wait to unload it. I even saw the guy riding it a few times at PLRA and talked to him but that was a few years ago. I'll never forget the feeling of compressing that rear end and waiting for it to rebound or the way that bike used to pogo up the hill when you stood up and tried to hammer. But anyway I knew that today was going to be a ballbuster. Friday's ride was supposed to be an easy recovery ride at PLRA that saw Butt wick it up from the get go ...I love those hot laps. So needless to say I didn't have much more to offer only 12 hrs later. Well the ride did start slow but once we crested the sand hill by the lake that all the tri-geeks swim in it was on..DC was up to warp speed and I was cooked. Terry and I finished off one lap and I was actually contemplating only doind one lap but Terry coaxed me into another lap..."come on we'll take it slow and let Don go" Yeah right...We did let DC go but Terry wasn't taking it easy on me.. He dropped me before the train tracks on the second lap but the gap was always small enough that I could always keep him in my sight on the longer straights. I did finally reel him back in after about 2/3 of the lap and we rode out together. When we got back to the lot another 2 Trek Y's had appeared..DC commented that maybe people that still own those bikes don't ride much so they don't realize what a pile they are. I'm not sure but that was enough for me. I did have an interesting ride planned for sunday that fell through as I took the kids to see this. It was time well spent and after the show we walked around Comerica park and looked at all the wonderful things Downtown has to offer. Gotta go...CYA TC

Jobbie Nooner

Although I've had a boat on lake St. Clair for the last 12 years I've never made it out to this. It did seem however that today at least 5 different people asked me what I was doing later today. "Are you going out to Gull Island"? "What are you doing here today". I'm thinking about running a water taxi service to the end of summer one if I'm in town that week. Better check the calendar and put in for some time off. TC

Just when I think I've got it fugured out

Along comes the Lump man with his new rig...Now WTF. If I would have ordered any Ti bike in the last week I think I would be kicking myself. It looks sweet...actually downright FILTHY. I'm dying to take it for a spin but since Jason is about 4 inches taller than me I'm sure the fit would be for crap. I am interested to see what he thinks about the carbon top and seat tubes. Oh well all I can say is the next time he crashes in front of me I hope that the Ti makes for a more supple landing than the old steelie. Does anyone know what kind of seatpost he is running? Hmmm it looks pretty sweet!!!TC

It is official I'm fat, old and slow

When these become your pre-ride meal you know you have officially thrown in the towel...The were quite tasty but after an hour into my ride I wanted to puke..TC

Random thoughts

As I set out for tonights ride I had several random thoughts running through my mind. I usually don't like wind but today something was different. The lake at Stoney had small whitecaps on it and there were several people windsurfing. I used to teach windsurfing...Orchard lake lessons starting at 10 and 1. It was awesome work for a 17 yr old kid. Five bucks an hour cash under the table it was sweet, sun, little real work and the chance to sail all day (plus occasionally there were the hotties that came up to the boathouse in their bikinis). I would ride my bike from my parents house (about 3 miles away) work until 5pm then ride home or occasionally to my brother's house on cass lake or even PLRA in the day. I had this job for like 5 years until I finished college and I made some of the best friends through working at Michigan Windsurfing. Sadly,Jim Coulter the owner of the shop really didn't have much business sense and ran the place into the ground. The original store which I helped build is still located in the plaza in Keego Harbor but now a store called The Windsurf Company TWC is housed there. Well anyways seeing those people on the lake brought up some old memories. I always loved sailing the only thing is that in Michigan there really isn't much wind except in the late fall or early spring when it is freaking cold and unfortunately I got to the point where unless it was blowing sailing wasn't fun anymore. Well so much for the walk down memory lane. Just wondering if a trail is well marked and suppose you have ridden it before how can one get lost even with a poor sense of direction? Just wondering...TC

Happy Father's day

I still miss you buddy. The last month has been hard but it is getting better. The emotional healing takes time. It was weird taking mom home from the airport the other day I kept on expecting to see you there. The house doesn't seem the same. I wanted to go to the cemetary today but I just couldn't get myself to go. I hope you understand. I talked to Aunt Emma today and she said that she couldn't remember either of my grandparents funeral. I guess she was just 16 when grandmom passed away so she thinks that had something to do with it but she said that she was 38 when grandad passed away and she thinks it is weird that she couldn't remember anything. I guess that time does heal all wounds and while I don't ever think I could forget your passing I do know that things will get better. Keep looking down on us I hope to always make you proud. Your loving son..Tom

MUST READ THE POOTER HOLE

Work was slow this afternoon so a bunch of us got to talking. On the weekends there is alot of contingent staff that works (read college kids that need extra cash). This one girl I work with (we will call her Louie) starts talking about her boyfriend...well not really her boyfriend but a friend with benefits. She was telling us he was like the second guy she has ever been with. Her first relationship ended badly...she thought they were going to get married (even though they only dated for like 4 months) and now she turned into this super horny chick..Well anyway her FWB and her were fooling around and after much work this guy talks her into some bung hole sex. She told him to stop after a couple of seconds as it was to painful...Now imagine here is a room of like 6 people 2 guys and 4 girls that she is telling this story to....3 of the girls had the look of sheer terror in their eyes..The other one just walked away.I wish I could have videotaped the expression on this one girls face...but the story gets better...She told him that she NEVER wanted to do the Poo hole again but the other day when they were having sex again (doggystyle) the FWB "Accidentally" goes again in the region where he wasn't supposed to go...Louie freaks out on him and tells him that she doesn't want to have sex with him again. Now she is asking everyone's opinion... She hasn't talked to him in several days and is wondering what she should do. "Do you guys think I was to hard on him" Everyone is cracking up...I can't believe she is telling us this crap....My money is that in a week she is back with the guy.....Brandon hope that one cheers U up...TC

Stuck at work with nothing to do

It sucks that I have to work today. It is freaking nice outside and I'm jealous of everyone else who is off just enjoying the weather riding their bikes or competing in the Lumberjack. WTF? The only thing good is that on the weekends there is no supervisors around so once you are done with your work it is goof off time. Oh well. I should mention that I crashed earlier this week at PLRA while riding with Don. It happened right after the airplane field on the downhill with the sharp left at the bottom. Yeah I know who the fuck cares where it happened but the funny thing was the whole time as I'm going down I'm thinking screw this I can pull this out.....but apparently I couldn't scraping my hip and lower leg up pretty good. Afterwards I was thinking of about a million excuses as to why I fell. To much pressure in front fork, tires worn down etc etc etc....but DC was having none of it. "how about because you suck" That was probably right on....TC

Bloomer race report

There are a few things that I should have learned in my many years of biking. Rule number one is don't replace a rear derailer cable the day before a race. But oh well you live and learn. Today's race was fun. That is tough to say about Bloomer but coming into the race I didn't have any expectations. I thought that I would finish last. Out of the gate I knew I didn't have the conditioning or the bike (rear casette skipping) to be up front so I settled in midpack. Robert sent us down the sledding hill early and after getting stuck behind Darrell Whatshisfucking name I knew I had to get around him fast or I was going to get stuck in the singletrack. Darrell races cross and I found it funny that he was warming up on his cross bike on the trainer for 1 hr before the race but couldn't make it up the first hill. Oh well whatever I never did like that dude. Anyway I was leading a pack of four riders going through a new section of singletrack when I ate shit hitting my shoulder on a tree and then going over the handlebars. Watching the other guys get away I thought to myself ....oh well just ride and have fun. So that is what I did. Jim caught me and I could tell that he was trying hard to drop me. So I let him burn himself out then I cruised by and pretty much rode with myself until Erin came up looking for the 1st place girl. So together we worked until she caught her and then I decided to pull out after 3 laps. It was nice to finish a race at Bloomer without my back killing me. So what if I didn't finish all 4 laps. I had fun and I realized I missed racing and need to ride more. TC

Bloomer pre ride

Today's Bloomer pre ride was pretty eventful..I've never been a big fan of Bloomer....Although it is about 4 miles from my house I almost never ride out there. The trails just aren't my cup of tea...It was almost whoever laid them out thought to themselves...Hmmm how can we get 7 miles of trails into 6 acres of land ( I know the park is bigger than that but so much of the singletrack is up and down the side of the same hill) Well anyways DC, Butt and myself decided to ride the course this morning for shits and giggles. The sledding hill is in play early which will most likely kill some people right out of the gate. I debated on racing but decided that what the hell if nothing else I'll go hard for two laps and if I crap out whatever...I can either DNF or cruise for the last 2 laps and try not to finish last. But anyway back to Butt...Apparently there was a partially downed tree right at head level around this blind corner..DC and I managed to miss it but Terry cracked it square on with his dome. He tumbled pretty hard from the shock of it and seemed pretty shaken. He even cracked his new Specialized decibel helmet. DC and I had some pretty interesting ideas on some new neck therapy that he could do but he wasn't having anything to do with it. Hopefully I won't suck to bad tomorrow...and if I do oh well at least I'm giving it a shot...Hope to have a full race report tomorrow. My $$$ is on DC to clean up in the expert class and Frenchy to unfortunately beat Joeberon for the elite win...I want Joe to win and hope he does well but Bloomer is Frenchy's home course and that dude flat out cuts that place up like a Ginsu...Gotta fly..TC

26 vs. 29 any thoughts?

I recently rode Joe's Q29 er for a little while at PLRA. I must admit I was kinda in awe at the way it got up to speed and it did seem like it rolled pretty quickly. There were only 2 things that I can say that I didn't like. The first being what appeared to me to be a higher center of gravity which made the bike feel "tippy". The other thing was that the bigger wheels didn't seem to corner as quickly. I imagine if you eased into a corner using more brake then accelerated out it might seem faster but that would definately be something that I would have to work on. Overall I think that in 2 track or backroads the 29er would have an advantage but in tight singletrack I'm not sure and since I prefer riding trails to the backroads I don't know if it would be the right choice for me. Any suggestions?

couchs are coffins

I've decided that the only way to snap out of this funk that I'm in is to keep riding. I guess an attempted lap at PLRA with DC and the Butt wasn't the smartest thing I could have done but I'm so sick of riding alone I had to do something. I have been riding alone lately but my efforts have been pedestrian at best so I finally decided enough is enough and headed out to PLRA. One lap kicked my ass. Maybe it was the heat or maybe it was the fact that my body has turned into a bag of goo. Whatever the reason I have come to realize one thing nothing is going to make me feel better unless I get up off of my ass and get going. Hopefully the plan 4 tomorrow will include 2 laps. TC

The journey of life

I haven't updated this in a long time and there are some things that I need to say. Anyone who knows me knows that I am normally easygoing, a bit of a smartass, and could usually be found riding with my buddies and occasionally trying to smoke some of the local choads at ILRA or PLRA. My world seemed OK..About two years ago my dad was diagnosed with something called chronic myelodysplasia. It was a disease that slowed production of red blood cells and hemoglobin (Hgb). I didn't think much about it. The doctors told him it wasn't leukemia and that with treatment he could live a relatively normal life although he would need to go to the hospital for blood transfusions when his Hgb was low. My dad did OK for two years. He was slowed physically and got tired easily but still managed to do everything for himself. Then earlier this year he began having night sweats. Not a good sign. He was still going in for transfusions every 3-4 weeks but I could tell he was getting weaker. About 5 weeks ago he had another bone marrow biopsy which confirmed that his disease had progressed to an acute leukemia. The doctor told me he would probably only have 3 months to live (although he didn't tell my dad that I suspect he knew that he didn't have much more time left). My dad went home from the hospital 3 days before his 74th birthday and seemed to be doing well. He was getting around at home and we even managed to have a big party with him. I couldn't even imagine how he must have felt knowing that it would most likely be his last. One week later was my parents 51st wedding anniversary and the next day my dad went back to the hospital again. The fevers at night were getting worse and he was rapidly getting weaker. Seeing someone who you love actively dying is the most empty feeling you can ever imagine. I remember asking my dad if he had been watching the hockey games or any basketball and all he said was " no I've been thinking about dying". What can you say to that? I felt helpless. The next few days were the worst as my dad got weaker he became unable to feed himself or even lift his arms. He took his last breath on May 5th and I can say I was there when he passed. Death is inevitable it can't be cheated. I always knew there would come a day when one of my parents would pass away but I could never prepare myself. I am angry. Mad that my dad won't get to see my children grow up or that my kids probably won't remember him. Zach is two and Jenna is four. At the funeral Jenna kept on asking why Pop-pop was sleeping and the other day she said she hopes he gets better soon from his cold so he can come home from the hospital. I told her not to worry he is home. With death comes a great deal of introspection. The Wiz once told me who cares how fast you can ride a bike the only thing anyone is going to remember about you is what kind of father you were and if your kids turned out OK. I never thought much about it at the time but now it seems so very true. I have also had the priveledge of developing a nice case of anxiety and have had some unreal dreams. It seems that riding my bike is something that I should be doing for my own mental health but I am also feeling guilty when I do because I feel like I should be spending that time with my kids. So basically my riding has been very spotty and uninspired to say the least. There have been guys who have always chapped my ass throughout the years...Baldovery, Speky and R2D2 to name a few but like I told DC the other day...It's like I could be out riding at PLRA and all three of these guys could blow past me and I wouldn't care. So I am trying to re-ignite the passion to ride and race but I'm not sure it is there anymore. RS told me something about adversity making you stronger..I believe that to be true but right now I'm having a hard time motivating myself. I am hoping that this blog might help the healing process along. Right now I need any encouragement that I can get. I will try to keep blogging on a more regular basis........TC