Frost, sun, red rocks. No more words. Just photos.
Photo Essay: Red Rock and Mount Falcon
“Roadie? Oh”: Six flats and an MTB detour.
Sometimes you plan on rolling out and doing 100 miles in the mountains with friends. Sometimes you get distracted and have an adventure.
Peder and Matt and myself chanced upon the 2nd option recently. We had expected to put in some huge base miles for the upcoming race season. Plenty of smooth ups and downs were on tap, and we were geared up and ready for it.
We should have known from the start that something was amiss though. Before leaving the house Peder found both of his tires flat from thorns. Similarly, I found a flat and a thorn while leaving my house for the meetup. While en route I suffered a 2nd flat. The ride hadn’t even begun and we were 45 minutes behind “schedule” and 4 flats down.
Are Unicycles Rodeo? Yes.
Barry Corker from Manassas, Virginia, posed an interesting question.
So recumbents are out…but can I wear my new kit in this?
Well Barry, your video rocks, and the unequivocal answer is: Yes.
High Line Iditabike
When not exploring the mountains or on a local group ride in Denver, Colorado, the High Line canal is a go-to route for quick miles. My favorite section is south of Hampden Blvd where the trail turns to gravel and meanders for over twenty miles, south and west, around Chatfield reservoir and to Waterton Canyon.
Denver-Sedalia Dirty Century
21 January 2014
Having this week off work in January meant base miles, and as many as possible in a few short days, since the flanking weekends would be spent skiing with the family. The weather in Colorado had been very temperate the past few days, and the forecast for this day was a high of 60-65 F (15-18 C). Knowing I would not have another opportunity like this for a long while, I decided to go big on this day of days. I had gone on a long ride the previous day with Stephen and Larsen up Golden Gate Canyon and Robinson Hill, but given the temperature and time available, a ride of 100 mi (160k), or more, was in clear view. After a 68 mi (110 km) ride with 6000 ft (1850 m) the day before, a flat loop seemed wisest, but I like to climb, so I convinced myself that a little climbing would be acceptable. Climbing a little (or a lot) would open up much more interesting route options, for the flat routes around Denver on the plains are rather tedious.
Kits are happening!
Rodeo Kit 1.0 is locked and loaded. Orders start later this week. Check it out here.
Cyclocross Mount Falcon
My training is falling off a cliff these days due to diminishing sunlight and increasing workload in the office. Thus swings the pendulum of life. Trying to stay in shape for CX is getting tricky and takes some creativity. On top of the time challenges, the fatigue challenge complicates the picture. How do you stay motivated on the bike when the local roads are getting long in the tooth and the interesting roads are too far away to get to?
Salida RR – State Road Championships
This is a repost from the 2013 season. We are selecting a few member’s blog posts to show here in order to fill out the Rodeo vibe while we get 2014 up and running.
“&^*#$^!!!! NEVER WORK ON YOUR BIKE ON RACE DAY!”
These are the words I muttered to myself on my back patio at 11:07 this last Sunday morning. I had just threaded a new rear shifter cable into it’s housing only to find out that it was about six inches too short to do the job. Turns out it was a front shifter cable! More $@%@! No matter, I had a complete bike in the basement that I could rob another cable from. I promptly removed and installed that cable only to find that it was about 1/4″ too short as well.
“WHAT AM I DOING HERE RIGHT NOW, I’M SUPPOSED TO BE ON MY WAY TO SALIDA”
Leadville 100. Unsorted musings.
This is a repost from last season. We are selecting a few blog entries from members to fill out our vibe and style while we boot up the new year and new adventures.
What is the inherent value of an athletic endeavor? This is the question I find myself asking after participating in the 2013 edition of the Leadville 100 mountain bike race.
Wanderlust
This is a repost from 2013 while we get 2014 up and running.
By my own measuring stick I’ve been training a lot this year. It is funny because each year I can look back at whatever I accomplished on the bike and hopefully feel pretty good about it, but then I think about the next upcoming season and think “how can I top or even match that?”. I ride for fun, and training isn’t always fun, so when one season ends and the next one starts I’m left looking for ways to keep the pursuit of speed on two wheels enjoyable.