Annual Greenwood Picnic 2010

Wow! I don't blog! HA- what a layoff from September.

Anywho the Annual Nittany MBA Greenwood ride and picnic is in the books. What a great day with awesome people! We rolled out and some up climbed the nasty Sassafras trail while the smart people climbed the fireroad to Pigpile. There we waited for the mentally challenged and discovered the guy who brought the dog, had already lost it. Pontzer went back to help Don find Aemon and gets double points for being helpful and alleviating the wrath of group upon the Princess. Pigpile rocked, Rodney flatted before the gasline then I did after the gasline - easy fix and jumped on tail of the group to hit not-so-flat-road.

From there we hit the typical coopers gap stuff and then headed back over the mountain. Kettle road is still steep but we actually bypassed it with Peep. That was steep but 'felt' shorter, you actually bounce out right before the overlook. After an awesome view of the valley we dropped Sass back to the picnic area.

Burgers, sides, adult beverages, ride recap. U know the story. Sweet day with a great group of folks!!!

Professor...

So yesterday I guest lectured on eCommerce to a soph/jun business class here at PSU. There were actually 2 classes so I had to give it twice - ugggghhh! I changed my talk to include more relevant (re: boring) information and removed the history (re: FUN!) section from last semester. Less fluff, more stuff. But then that made it difficult to keep the class attention. I did ok. I didn't get enough time to polish it up as these changes were last minute. But I got the most salient points across and some the kids thought it was good. The second class was a real challenge tho. After lunch, kids not into answering questions or participating. Tough. Plus I'm not used to doing back to back presentations, so the 'prof' was struggling too. All in all a good day. Beware I might be back in Spring. If anyone wants me to cover their class for a day, my rate is a bad lunch with the option of a cup of coffee later.

Weekend that was

Sat: Erdley, Glover, Mikey, and I (+ some mark guy) do the roughest 70 miles I've done in a while. It rained, it was windy, we added some climbs. We waited for the 'other' guy. We worked together well and the speed was the usual. For some reason I alternated between good and feeling like I could drop off the back.

Sun: 28 riders show for an RB Winter ride! This is the largest turnout for any ride that I can remember. Must be because everyone felt bad for Pontzer and didn't want him to have to ride alone. We ripped it pretty good. No major mechanicals and the group kept an excellent pace through the treacherous trails and long climbs. Really impressed the area has so many skilled riders. State College is seriously becoming mtn bike mecca. Please don't tell anyone!

'cross racing is...

Coming soon. So many of us now ride 'cross (cx) bike but have never raced. It really is a world apart, an alternate reality from road or mountain. Weirder than singlespeeds even.

'Cross is Hard. Lungs searing survive that initial sprint, hold your place, watch that squeeze, dont wreck me you F**k! Hit it, legs go, go, go. Recover lungs, damn you, cmon gain in this section, f'in flats, roadies killing me, hold that wheel. Redline, recover, redline again, off bike, over barriers, shit can't clip in, som bitch lost place, f-er, hit it cmon get it back, breathe, get the lactic out, manage the heart rate, can't keep this close to redline, will pay ltr. rip it. good section, ride it clean, hit it, lap over - only 40 more minutes of hell.

'Cross is training. Tuesday nite chasing the 'fast' guys around State College. Wednesday following a Ferrari around and practicing barriers, sprints, and then finishing with a race. It's knowing you'll suffer the entire time but showing up anyway. Its being slow, its being fast, its falling down, its sliding perfectly through a turn, its winning a sprint. Its being out of gas, hungry and cold. Its finishing in the dark. Its rollers and running. Its wanting to quit all the time, but not being able to.

'Cross is travel. Its riding 4 hours to do a 45 minute race. Its planning your weekends around your travel time, not your races. Its google maps and mapquest. Its gas station questions and interstate information kiosks. Its where am I? Its finding America in the middle of nowhere. Its being alone and appreciating a familiar voice on NPR. Its sleeping on couches, floors, and other people's beds. Its about never being comfortable...until Sunday night.

'Cross is a cool scene. Its beer. Its screaming. Its fan friendly. Its seeing the same racers week after week until you are no longer strangers. Its grabbing a beer while off the back or grabbing one while off the front. Its climbing that run-up to delight the crowd. Its swapping stories with Gunnar while rooting against his wife. Its DJs amping up the crowd. Its the announcer saying your name and hometown after a nifty pass. Its toeing the starting line to AC/DC Highway to Hell. Its sharing the hell, the suffering, the want of it to end. And then showing up again.

'Cross is fun! Its yelling, its screaming, its passing, its flying, its jumping, its sliding, its dancing, its drinking, its chatting, its dogs, its dreams, its addictive. Its sunny days, and snow. Its mud and misery. Its a sausage sprint! Its new friends and old. Its strange and familiar. Its smiles. Its laughter. Its endophins. Its the sharing of the moments. Its 'cross.

Riding Alone

The Lhorba listserv sent an article last week about a guy who went to ride some local trails at a park while on a visit to the area. He apparently lost control on a downhill and hit his head on rock between his eye and temple and died. He was wearing a helmet. It was tragic. Here is the exact contents of the email:

PLEASE POST THIS - NEVER RIDE ALONE - ESPECIALLY ON UNFAMILIAR TRAILS

http://www.timesonline.com/articles/2009/08/24/news/doc4a92092694ad9066878620.txt

This f'in yanked my chain. First it was an accident! Second there is no basis that riding with a partner would have saved his life. I think it is very uncool to add your personal opinion (as fact) to this tragedy. I'm still pretty hot about it.

Why? I admit I like riding with a partner but 'never ride alone'. That is a little draconian. Most beginner riders always ride alone. Most training rides SHOULD be done alone! Commute to work? Wait, never commute to work alone! WTF?

So lets look at some stats. 700 bike fatalities a year, 500,000 injuries. But guess what, 59% of those injured are children (less than 19 yrs). Mortality rate by mtb vs mortality by road vs mortality by commute vs mortality by recreation I could not find. So what about mortality while alone alone vs. mortality not alone? It is going to take someone really serious to pull these stats. I'm talkin' PHD candidate. I doubt the poster had anything remotely factual as they are not available on Google.

The only information I could find was mtb specific. A pre thesis on mtb injuries in New Zealand that is really good. Surprisingly it never broke down the alone/not alone question. But it did tell us without question that downhills cause injuries. The injury rate on downhills is far above any other type of mt biking - NEVER RIDE DOWNHILL! Other interesting studies were done at race events to look at male/female injury rates. They didn't address the alone/not alone question either but did let me know women get injured just as much as men! At least the racers do. Must be the downhills...

So where did this 'never ride alone' mantra come from? Just a tangent of general outdoor safety I think. 'Always let someone know where you are going and when you should return', correct. That's smart but its unrealistic for mtb's. My profile, single, live alone, family far away, neighbors would more likely TRY to kill me. I could tell my dog??? But we have cell phones, the trails are not deserted, and there are no human carnivores in our region of the world (unfortunately!). So is this still accurate?

I checked 3 bike forum for 'riding alone'. Guess what, every single mtb rides alone at some point. So this 'never bike alone' is being ignored by 99.999999% of the biking community. Where the F does this idiot get this sh*t??? Why am I the only one who cares?

I'll be the first to promote riding with a partner. But if it is between riding alone and not riding? RIDE ALONE (cue scary music and evil laughter). Until I see the statistics, the facts, I don't believe riding alone is any more dangerous than riding in a group. And I certainly believe it wasn't the prevailing cause of death in the tragic death in the article.

Now get out and RIDE!!!

On the road again

Old Man Ride goes to Renovo!

A funeral then a bum knee kept me from the Old Man ride the past 2 weeks. Pete was set on Renovo and we were game. 8am start for a big group including the usual suspects with guest appearance by D. Hill and Bob Rad. 12 of us rolled out. A big crew will help with the big miles (125-130). My original plan was to climb up to Snowshoe, check the knee, then maybe turn around on the plateau and head back to cut it short. I pulled to the base of the climb on 144 then had to recover. Found life and started bridging back up, recover, bridge, repeat. Leaders just ahead. Bridge to them at top - great effort, where did these climbing legs suddenly appear? Snowshoe, regroup and eat. Across plateau, f'in roller heaven. 40 miles to Renovo - 40 miles of rollers - crap. Josh convinces me it is easier to stay with the group. Riding partner calls, I tell her I'm not back tracking! Climb up the lip, staying with the group, pressure peter but not enough to break him, he's KOM. Damn, one more pitch? 15%, I blow up but so does everyone else except nifty Todd. Descent to Renovo, ahh relax. I run 'cross gears so I'm spun out early. Bridge to Todd/Josh at bottom. Make a game and try to gap leaders in flats - fun. Renovo! IGA has fruit and choc milk, yum, need to push the liquids. Off again, rollers alongside river. Serious rollers for a 'flat' section. Who built this road, those are f'in hills in a downstream river valley. Who signed up for this? In sprint, James loses something. I double back to get it. Bob picks up the lube. We're off the back by a 100 yds but both strong. My pull, his pull, up a roller, maxing heartrate, my pull, his pull, he's breathing hard, my pull, here's a flat, dig, dig, dig. We're back on. F' that was hard! Not stopping. F' the lube next time. Spent! Roll into Lock Haven, then the sheetz at Mill Hall. Mile 95 at 20mph pace. Second fastest ride in State College, baby! We are freaks this summer. Truly. Glad to get onto Jacksonville. Didn't remember this part during the double but its beautiful. Josh and I spot an osprey on a pull. Runkle sprints from far, can't catch him, but end up doing another pull. Leave it out here on this ride, been going great all day lets see what I'm made of. Easy to recover as need to slow pace - everyone's tired. Longest ride for 2 fellas. Into Bellefonte, my first ride of the year was to Bellefonte and back. Thought that was good, now Bellefonte to State is nothing. Seibert hill. James takes off, f' it, I mark him then pass. Try to recover before the steep, damn it can't. He goes, Todd gets me. Another steep, legs toast, Bob passes but I stay on his wheel on will power alone. Could outsprint him but its pointless. Matching his pace was the victory. Out to the airport, seeya glover, regroup for finish, I am 5th back at light and attack early but perfectedly. I gap the field by a few seconds. Just hold this pace for 300 yards...shit I'm tired. C'mon, TT and dig. Fumes. no response, rounding turn I can see bridge, f' it. Fork is in me. 100 yards short I pull over and field zips by. I'll give myself most combative rider for the day. Pissed, I had it. Happy I left it out there.

Final stats - 125+, 18.8ish, 7600 elevation gain. approx 6 hrs ride time. Effort level - high to very high.

W101

Wow, what can I say???

It started ok, then we climbed into mist and stayed in the mist. I was soaked. I couldn't see. F'in spectacles. Down the dangerous fire road descent. Take hand off handlebars to move glasses so I don't see through them. Bad vision is worse than no vision, right? Ok climbing and moving up, maybe I'll hook up with Todd, Josh, etc. Good there they are! Jump on the train with the friendlies! Miles pass, not feeling it. The little up on crowfield spits me, I'm alone, me and the fork. Stop for a drink before thickhead. Climb it well, can't see tho. Detweiler - blind - omg. Rider in front - LOG! Praise the saints I would never seen it! Up Bear Meadows, f'in fog, I can't tell how steep. Then down, take lead on Lonberger and drop the group - expected. 3 bridges, 1st bridge ok, prudence tells me to get off the second. Haven't walked them in years - bike tries to drag me off 3rd. On for Hollywood, sending it while singing 'Billy Jean' by MJ. Guy wrecks at end and I foot/push/dab to avoid him w/o losing momentum - classy Rothrock move. Up Laurel, hang on to group - hard, mist going. Down Lil' shingletown, muddy. Hard guy pulls everyone until Aide#2, stupid. I don't look good, don't feel good, no energy. 2 sandwiches, banana, and seat adjustment. Go time.

Greenlee, Pooh and I start up, beer station!!! Drop him, but not feeling it. Mathews catches me by top, tires are over-pressured for Croyle so let him go. De-pressure. Croyle sucks, not fast. wet. Onto seager. stop for a dip in the stream. Climbing. Legs coming around I think. A fan up ahead in costume, Centurian? He's going to hit me with his sword. NO! It's CHIP! Hi-five, bro! Huge push, he's the man. Groups coming back, yes! Shit, the climb ends. Down telephone, better than expected, across spenser to aide#3. More sandwich, one for the road.

Push bike (savvy vet move) up Sass-crap. Finish sandwich and get on. Behind grannies but refuse to pass, stupid as I probably burnt more energy instead of saving. Ditch them to go in first on upper. Rippin' it. Picking off riders. Downhill, Nord at turn, then to Lingle, hard, slippery, fun. Up the road, more riders come back. Josh - doesn't look good and cramping. Adios at Beautiful, scorch it. Kikapoo, horrid, endo and stove finger. Endo again. Paying for tiny front tire. Make it down. Alone on road. Love that section - into the 'town', aide #4. Eat, drink, say Hi!. Clay asked for time check. Overhear Eric tell him 10 hr pace. F*ck, can I do it? Put it out of my mind. Long way to go.

Up Stillhouse and find a pace, catch people. SS passes me - barely can turn pedals, I pace behind. Top is there before I know it. Legs are feeling iffy, mind is tiring. Wet clothes. Put it behind you. Good downhill then familiar trail, out to road and see Jim and Mike! I pee and we chat. Bad trail ahead - what? I've been ripping singletrack, might be good. Send Little Poe, absolutely kill it. Hit re-route, f! this is where I got lost 2 years ago! Granny climb, guy ahead tells me rattler is on left. Nothing there, no his left. Biggie, wants to cross in front of me but I sprint ahead, I'm not stopping on this climb. Logging road, good. Then see right turn to follow deer fence, more up! Granny again, down, up, granny two, down up, off bike, f'in ridiculous. Catch group and ride into #5.

Coke! Cookies! Eric lubes bike so I have excuse to stay. Girl from VA punches me and tells me to get on my bike! WTF? She's tired of me passing her - ha! Get on the last leg with J. Williams (master). Nothing left in tank so we don't even work together on the rail trail. Road to Old Mingle I drop the group I'm with. Stop for leak at bottom. It ain't gonna be pretty. Jump in with group and two of us pace together. He's going to walk, I tell him to stand and he gaps me! At top, not bad just nothing in legs. Down to fisherman's path, mojo is gone. Still catching people but ride it worse than I ever have. Back to rail trail, catch VA girl and sandbagger. He leads but drops her, I don't care to bridge so we trade pulls - tired. Over bridge, good photo! Through tunnel, wait for her (gentleman). Pull her on road. Round turn, IS THAT THE FINISH??? Yes, I reply, my GRIN bursting from my face, can't you see my GRIN! I see hers. Its worth every minute of the 10 hrs. Into Coburn, go ahead I tell her. Into the park, Kim shouts 'Oh no' as she wasn't ready with the camera. No matter, get the pic later, I'm done. Happy. Congrats back and forth, Jimbo tells me I finish under 10hrs - 9:56. Did it. Take my glass. Tough day, ready to change and for beer. See Runkle and the Cruikshank - umm beer. Go to change, chaffed. Wet for 10 hrs, what do you expect? More beer. Food. Friends. Tommi jokes that I got 'chicked' at the end. It's all good. Hang with friends. Other finishers - Sam, Rach, and finally the Rockstar known as Leah!!! Biggest cheer of the day, deservedly so. The W101, it will be legend this year.

Looking back I never felt good the entire day. I actually decided I wouldn't do it next year. But oh the short lived discontent. I'll be in, I know I will. The singlespeed is calling...

What biking means to me

So I've been thinking about all the great experiences over the past few years and what my bike has meant to me. So forgive the intraspective nature of this post, I'm still the jackass/badass/asshole you know and love.

1) Biking gave me peace through a difficult divorce. It got me out, improved my mental state, put things in perspective and literally (and metaphorically) moved me to the next step in my life.
2) Biking renewed old friendships and keeps adding new ones. After 8 years of 'horse' friends and couples I really had no one close to me. Darius, my original mtb partner, and I kind of got back into biking at the same time. Now we're close again. I started hanging out with Pontz and K-berg, then Yoda.... Wait is this positive? : )
3) Biking gives me goals and structure. I never believed I could finish 101 miles. I've done the W101 twice now. I never believed I would enjoy a road ride, now I'm hooked. My life is one of job/chores/when can I ride? My vacation is a week of riding!
4) Its not about the bike, is it? Two speeches I have for relationships. The I'm-on-a-ride-dont-know-when-back speech and the dont-make-me-choose-bt-you-and-the-bike speech. Sad. Callous maybe, but true.
5) Biking is my freedom. Do I really have to explain the grin I have when riding? Whether it is in my yard or deep in nowhereville, you are free. Jump a log, ride scary fast, climb like Contador! It's amazing.
6) Biking is healthy. Kind of self-explanatory. I thought I was in shape when I played soccer and ran 3 miles a day. I wasn't, I was just 18. Each year I eat better and put on another layer of fitness - unbelievable. Plus beer is a recovery beverage, dy-no-mite!!!
7) The Cool factor. I admit it - I love the gear. I am at the point where I have to stop myself from buying more. I own 3 mtn bikes, 1 cross, 1 commuter, and 2 junkers. I have jerseys I never wear! Good grief, I like spandex!
8) Racing. Whether it is formal or just competition between friends. How great is it to challenge yourself, to push beyond one's own expectations. Sure I fail. More than I succeed for sure. But I learn so much. Competition is still fun, and I still only race against one person - myself.
9) Can I be your domestique? I'm not very fast. I don't sprint well, climb well, or downhill well. But I have always thought of myself as good enough at each to be of aid. Need a pacer up a climb, a pull back to the pack, that's me. I do have above average technical skills but those aren't really talent, it is more like determination, strength, and self belief that mask my horrible lines.
10) Inspiration. Whether it be the Vista from the Continental Divide or a Rothrock sunset (best in the world) there is inspiration. Seeing others improve and reach goals, riding the w101 with Todd, seeing Leah finish the Iron Cross, watching Madison progress into a Dynamo. Getting that rock garden, hitting that jump. Wow. wow. wow.

And finally the laughter and sharing with you, my friends. If you have ridden with me, put up with my babble, shared a beer, or screamed with me in absolute joy then consider yourself in my debt. Sharing the joy in my life is the best of all.

HO

Vacation week

Wow, I was away last week and it was sooooo nice. I hadn't planned on a vacation but my friend had a plan and needed a partner so off we went. Stayed 3 days in Vermont around Ludlow and rode the Ascutney trails on day one, hit local stuff (couldn't find the dumpster that marked the trailhead) so mostly tranquil fireroads through beautific horse country. Rain on day 3 so opted for a run and yoda. Then the travel to New Hampshire and stop lots. Next day we climbed Mt Washington with 50-100ft visibility, it rained hard that night and had us clearing out the campsite before 8am due to wetness. Nice visit to Starbucks and EMS for a dry layer and we were headed to Boston. Did a walk there as it is just all streets. Next day my college roommate, Jamie, took me fishing - awesome. Wedding in the evening to top off the week. Long drive back but we managed to find a nice rail trail in Bloomsburg. I'm really leaving out all the fun details. Mostly nice not to have internet or cell service. Good ice cream, non-hoppy IPAs.

Sweet Retribution

I take my fair share of ribbing. In fact I probably add to it with my ability to lob 'softball's' in daily conversation. Plus I usually laugh just as hard b/c they are truly funny. Small animal and height jokes never seem to get old. Well every once in a while the hen goes crazy and pecks the fox! If my plans come together 'retribution week' will start next Monday and last for the entire week (cue foreboding music then manical laughing).

My legs hurt

Recovery - this is good time for it but I just can't stop riding! Thursday I was in the vehicle and my friend slapped me on the inside of the knee while were laughing at something. Well my laughter stopped at that point as that slap hit a very tender muscle/bone attachment area. Pain shot though me and almost hit the roof with my head! So that is my test. Just slap someone on the knee. If they wince in pain, they should back off the riding. No pain, good, let's RIP!!!

Downhills of Rothrock 7/8

Wednesday we did the infamous 'Downhills of Rothrock' ride. You climb laurel run, drop a bit of little shingletown, drop sand spring, climb Bear gap, over to Croyle and drop it, then back up wampler, climb gettis, over to Wildcat and drop it. Finally up laurel then climb part way up to the Fire tower and drop Old Laurel. Throw in 3 bridges, gully of lonberger, carcass for good measure. It's a tough ride around 3000ft elevation gain. But the fun, juicy, melt in your mouth downhills make it sooooo sweet!

HO fest 2009!

I think this was the 4th annual HO-fest. What a run! HO-fest is around 4th of July, we ride Black Mo, swim in the lake, then cookout in Port Matilda at the Chateau d'HO. Usually the ride is super rocky, super technical and borders on a death march. This year I changed things. I knew the Century would take it out of us so I decided to go with a easier loop with fireroads.

We started out on the 'beginner' loop doing Ski slope up and down, then across 504 to the group campground, out the road to star mill. Instead of going left on the AFT we headed right on the fireroad and picked up the AFT on shirks after the bridge. This section was pretty overgrown and did not impress the others. We re-grouped at the road and I endured (deservingly) some 'praise' for my route selection. We forged ahead and this section wasn't as bad, but by the time we hit Wolf Rocks rd I sensed everyone had enough 'primitive' trail for the day.

We headed back on strawband beaver and my legs did not respond at all. Fortunately Yoda was on his SS speed so his top end was limited and I could ride with him. We stopped for a photo with my relative. We regrouped at Julian pike and headed over to take the AFT the other direction (north). This section was great! The trail maintainer had just brushed it back. The downhill after crossing smays was absolutely a rip! Good times.

We kicked out on Underwood Rd and decided just to head back. The hills on North Run rd seemed steeper than ever, but snowmobile was peaceful and pleasant. Back at the parking area we enjoyed a refreshing swim in the healthy waters of Lake Black Mo. Then it was down to Port for BBQ, beer, and great conversation.

Thanks to everyone who showed. Another awesome day in woods with awesome folks. Whew, what a weekend!

Casual 4th of July Century

Saturday I decided to join in the 4th of July Century. This year the route was back to the original RB Winter ride. I showed up at the Creamery at 8am to see the usual suspects. We were already trading barbs and dropping f-bombs while we waited. This would foreshadow the days events. We had a strong crew of 10. 7 regulars plus Fred, Sparky and James. I'm thinking the big group would mean an easy ride.

So we take off and have the wind and start out fast. An hour later, we're still fast. I tell Allen not worry we always start out fast, it slows up. Famous last words. The pace wasn't killer but it didn't let up. We sprinted to every sign, pushed the hills, and kicked it in general. We usually average 18-19 but the first 50 miles was 21!

It will slow down once we turn. Yes that was true, we had a good headwind in some spots but that just brought the effort up! Now whoever was on the front wouldn't give in to make this a more friendly ride. Once you get used to pushing it, then it is hard to stop. A flat slowed us after coburn. A stop at the Spring Mills store yeilded the most humor of the day. A guy came in sporting long hair & black t-shirt, late 30s - music blaring. Grabs smokes at the store. Backs up and pulls across the street into the Frosty Hook parking. Like 40 ft. Music blaring. Hops out and goes in the Frosty. Only in PA!

After 100 miles you'd think we'd be tired but noooooo! The pace kept up over the rolling hills that mark the last part of the ride. And of course we KOM every one of them. Finally we get back to Linden Hall. Recovery time for the last 10 miles? Why change now? I added to the mix by splintering the field on a poorly timed breakaway to the Tin Man. Chasers and more attacks ensued. Finally it was over and the we went our different ways. Al, Josh and I still had to climb up Orchard rd. Man was that HARD!

Final stats were a shade under 120 miles, 19+ average, 5K of climbing. Probably the toughest ride of the season. That evening we convened at the Glover household and wondered why we had ridden so hard? We laughed about it over some good cookout and all powerful recovery beverages. What a day!

Wellsboro and back again...

Feeling Strong? Feeling like you can go all day long? No, that's not a pickup line. It's Double Century Time! Around the longest day of the year, the locals ride up to Wellsboro and back. It's about 210 miles round trip. This year our Saturday group has been super strong. We have been doing long miles since early Spring. So a bunch of us were keen to try it. Josh, Allen, Leah, and Glover were willing to start. Rachael and Wee Vicki had also never done one. So the 7 of us joined usuals Thorne, Ferrari, Alcorn, Strauber with Eric Nord, Peter, and Joe Gore rounding out the group.

You start early - meet at 5:15am and ride! I watched the sun come up that was cool. After that things get hazy. We hit Lock Haven, out to Avis and stopped. Then we got on a rail trail for a bit that was awesome but we were going too fast to look around comfortably. We got back on road and saw a sign to ButtonWood. I announced to Rach that I liked buttons and I liked Wood. The rest of day we would laugh at anything we said as we both took a 'dirty' minded meaning!

We took the back way into Wellsboro where a dog bolted into the pack and took out Glover's wheel but not Glover - close call. Lady was cool and even brought out a floor pump to fill the blown tire. Dog and Glover both ok - whew! On the positive we had a great view from up there so we got to enjoy it longer. Down to Wellsboro we ate at the dinner - umm good rice pudding.

Back on the bikes out route 6 I wasn't feeling too peppy. I was burping up lunch. We hit the railtrail and it got nutty. It was a video game of 2 or 3 constantly changing pacelines at high speed while dodging hikers, slow cyclists and gates. What I thought would be the coolest part of the ride was a high stress workout! Another flat so a few of us forged ahead at a more leisurely pace. We arrived at Blackwell and I was glad.

After a brief stop, Pete broke a spoke while leaving the parking lot. This gave us some time to hang out and enjoy the views. Pete's untrue wheel was rubbing but Ferrari remembered I was on a cross bike so Pete and I switched wheels. I still had to unhook the rear brake which concerned me as my fronts were past due replacement. Lucky I ride with mtb shoes so I could Fred Flintstone on stops. Pete also had a smaller cassette so I wouldn't have my lowest gear anymore - no worries we aren't going to climb till Seibert, right? HA!

Off we went on a enjoyable stretch of road. It paralleled the creek and was rolling but not bad. I loved it. We stopped in at Slate Run store and took a break. I was feeling better but just ate an ice cream sandwich. I should have had more. We continued to a decision point. We could new the 'new' Double with 1300 ft of climbing and a waterfall or wussy out and do the old way with 300 ft of horrible rollers. So we climbed at mile 150. It wasn't that bad but it took you to the max for sure. On the plateau we were greeted by SERIOUS rollers - more like hills. GPS confirmed elevation gains of 1500ft ! We finally descended into Lock Haven and I stupidly pressed the limits of my (pete's) rear wheel by taking a few hard lines on the switchback turns.

We rolled into the Sheetz for our final stop. Fruit, chips, green tea, whoopie pie - anything was yummy. State College was within reach! Nourished, we headed out for the final leg. I got the sense that everyone was giddy and just running on fumes. Everyone joined in on the pulls, it would take all of us working together to back. Rach had a great effort on Jacksonville, Wee Vicki paced beside and fortunately didn't cause me too much pain. Into Bellefonte - almost home!

Then we got to Spring creek and I knew we had it. Just the Siebert climb. I thanked Steve for his efforts and leadership on the day. Who would take 7 riders on their 1st Double? Steve!!! I was wishing I had that extra gear on Seibert but it is always bad. Followed pace of Pete and Al while Todd took KOM over Thorne. On top the sun was beautiful and lit up the evening - or maybe I was delirious. Everyone determined we were over 200 miles! Yippee. I waited for Glover and Leah to give them the news. So happy for both of them.

Then we stopped for pics at Rock Road intersection. The group started racing at Toftrees, I learned later that the bridge is the sprint point. We regrouped by Beaver stadium then Al and I turned off to our cars. Back where we started! Double was over! Back home I soaked my leg in the tub and drank cold beer - ahh sweet recovery!

Thanks to everyone along...Rach for laughs, Joe for green tea, Allen for support, the fast guys: Matt, Billy, and Strauber, the Highland Hammer (vicki), Eric the mule, Josh the horse, Todd for everything he does!, Glover for being Glover, Peter for inspiration, Leah for putting me onto this ridiculous endeavor, and Steve for his love of cycling. You guys rock!!!

Raystown - goodbye Ken ride

I headed down to Raystown to do a Farewell ride for my friend Ken who is moving to San Diego. My friend Kim headed down with me as she had ridden the trails a week before and was stoked to hit them again. We got to the parking lot a little late but there was no KEN. More people rolled in, still no KEN. Fast guys who would max my heart rate show up - FORGET KEN, let's go before they get ready!

Our group was great. Good skills, not too much waiting, fun to ride with. We had an awesome ride - one of the best at Raystown yet. All the fun stuff. We got back to the parking lot and waited for everyone to get back. Soon the fast guys returned with Ken! He HAD made it after all! Poor Leah had endo'd and was sporting two bloody knees and some bruises (mostly ego).

We cleaned up a bit and headed down to boxer's for some great recovery beverages and a spicy bean burger- YUM! The food and company were awesome - a great time. Too bad I didn't get to ride with Ken but sharing a great evening with him was enough. He'll be missed!

Fat Tire Challenge

Ouch! My legs hurt, my back hurt for a bit. I thought I was lost. Blew through a couple arrows. Got yelled after blowing by some marshalls. It was muddy. It's mtn bike racing!!! If we wouldn't have had epic rains the day before this would have been an awesome course. As it was it was very fun and challenging. I just didn't have it.

But it was awesome to go up with Pete, plus we met up with JL, WV, and the Rich's. I rode the first part with the Highland Hammer but my back forced me to back off near the top of the 2 mile climb. After recovering my legs started to hurt but I hit some sweet singletrack to get my mind straight. I had missed the riders meeting and didn't realize the experts were doing a second lap and there wasn't a course marshall to be seen. So I kept riding sort of tenuously until I found someone who assured me I was good. I had no food with me so when I got to the water station I ate a few cookies and the last 5 miles were a lot better.

WV got lost but still finished first. Peter got 4th SS. JL flatted out while leading the overall. Straub got 3rd overall. Richie was 4th but 1st in our age. I was 3rd in our age so now I'm trying to get a 'cute' dog pic of Ebby wearing my medal!

Stoopid 50

I hit the pre-ride a little late (8:30am) but I figured I had lots of time to fix anything along the way. I removed a sign left over from the Rothrock Challenge running race, added a few arrows on the extension, then tried to fix a turn near the log landing. Going up thickhead I met Chris in the vehicle coming down doing some last minute marking. After a quick chat, I continued within a few minutes I heard someone, something behind me! Eatough! He was in the midst of an attack and had about 20 seconds. I followed him then Harlin and Schalk up to 'Wall' . There race pace efforts showed as they slowed considerably on the steeps. A singlespeeder passed me and got off to walk the wall then my friend Martin. So I jumped in with him until near the top where I decide to try to clean up a fall that was partially blocking the road.

I went over to the Detweiler intersection and hung there with Eric Scott and cheered everyone as they went by. After a while I was bored and continued to the aide station. I worked their the rest of the day then 'post rode' the course with the last rider and Kberg. It was fun to bomb down detweiler as I had to 'run' it a few days before. We met up with Greg Harris who decided he would sweep with Kev so I skipped Gettis and went back via bear meadows, added in Lonberger and hit the finish line to see a few people cross. Misty was there so we went back to Tussey together and I got to see the awards and see friends. A hard day of work, but well worth it. Much easier to ride in it I think!

Congrats to everyone who finished. I thought the course was much more challenging than the original. I'd kind of like them to keep it that way.

I'm with Stoopid - saturday

A little hungover from celebrating (Pens win!) I headed out to Coopers to finish trail work on the course. I took out a deadfall and moved a lot of crap off the trails. Then I headed over to Sand Hole. We haven't ridden this trail since Deer Tick made it obsolete. So it needed lots of love. I widened it with the clippers, cursing myself for killing so many baby oaks! Then I brushed the lower part with the gas trimmer. It was kind of fun actually as I tried to control the width to add atmosphere (closeness) at certain spots.

Finished I headed back to Tussey for a short ride. I met up with a guy I met from the Griz and we chatted along with his buddy. Hit shingletown a little to stretch legs. Chris called and needed me to pre-ride the first section so the next morning I would be riding early - ugh!

Pens win Stanley Cup

SCRATCH THEIR NAMES IN THAT FABLED CUP, LORD STANLEY!

What a year! What a series! What a final! Does it get any better than Game 7 of a Stanley Cup. All the marbles as Mike Lange said. Wow! I'll post my favorite pics here. There's one of the guys on the bench looking at the clock and the last action and jumping over the boards to celebrate. 20 yr old Jordan Staal with the Cup raised screaming in primal joy. Owner Mario Lemeiux looking at the celebration, his eyes revealing the dream had come true. So many great moments! I can't go through them all. Malkin was possessed at times, Scuderi goal tending, the flower so clutch, Crosby, Talbot, Kennedy, Staal short handed. It was a great run. I have so much more time now that I don't read 'Empty Netters' religiously. If you want to know why the Pens are a 1st class organization, check out the text Mario sent the team after they lost Game 5 BADLY. He sent another before game 7. 'Play without fear and you will succeed. See U at Center Ice' words to live by.