Dirty kanza prep

So I am fixin to head south. Last night I did a gravel night ride to make sure that my lights worked
and to spin the kinks out. I was really surprised at how many Pheasants I jumped. I chased a Tom for a good 200 yoards and it took me a while to realize what it was was. I was sorta scared of it at first because I had disturbed a skunk earlier in the evening. I did not want to have to ride in the back of the truck all weekend.
I am pretty stoked that the wind is only suposed to be 5 mph so That will be nice. anyhow I will do a long post with pictures on sunday. stay tuned.

I finally made it home the to pick up my washer/dryer, watch my brother get married, shake the kids, and hit the trails in the southern Appalachian (ap-uh-latch-un) mountains that I have always called home.
Big Al and I drove all night to make the 18 hour trip so that we could have plenty of time to spend with family. We drove through some serious storms on the way out there but as day break saw us into my ol kentucky home of Berea the skys were clear
I got to go ride the Scales trail in The Grayson Highlands State park . This is mostly up and down mountain double track consisting of rocks the size of softballs . I think I shook some fillings loose. I would have hit some of the other stuff in that region but was pushed for time (stupid brother getting married) anyhow Joel got married, saw lots of family, wore a tux ate cake, blah blah.
But I did get a chance to play with the track hoe that dad has been using to clear ground for the new tree crop. I think that I need a track hoe



After the wedding Al and I met her family at Dark mountain in Wilkesboro were they had been camping. The overmountain Victory trail is here. This trail is only a few years old but is a true blast to ride. It is very intensely managed with LOTS of highly bermed turns so it is extremely fast. It was a little wet when I rode but when its dry there is nothing like it. Imagine a BMX/pump track that is 10 miles long and totally in the woods.....its sick! Afterwards we went to Johnson City to visit with the Matney family. I also took this opportunity to ride Buffalo Mountain. Now, up until I came to KS I had never really ridden SS gearing greater than 32-20, and after turning 32-18 for all of this riding I realized why. If I was not such a proud person I would have walked a few spots. I think that a 19 tooth cog is in order for my next trip.
Anyhow I rode from Sara and Brads up to the Fire road access (brad and I usually drive this) Then started to long arduous climb to the top and then accessed the ATV trails. I took these to the uber-secret MTB trails that are unmarked and marginal in quality, but very steep......downhill..... for a long way. I actually had to put on a jacket for the descent. It was good.
Then my ma in law took us to Bojangles (my favorite sketchy fast food joint). It makes life worth living.

Sign of the times

I really get made fun of by other runners. But I did have a glorious gravel ride on saturday sunny, no wind. I guess its my cross to bear.

my love/hate relationship with KS

My opinion of this state really varies wildly according on what the weather is like. Kansas has some really weird weather, and I knew this coming out here but I had no inclinations it would be like this. I got to looking at the climate data for manhattan and the weather data for the upper mountain research station in laurel Springs, NC. the mtn top wind meter records wind speeds that are not all that much less than wind averages here. So whats the big difference?
Well in the mountains you have enough sense to get to the other side of the mountain or down into the holler to get out of the wind (hollers are where all the moonshine and inbreedin happens in case you were wondering)
I went out for a trot this morning and took some new unexplored cowpaths across the prairie north of Manhattan to get my mileage in, see some new ground, and rock out some hills (this is a source of much mocking from my cycling friends that do not approve of my running. They seem to think cycling is a more manly sport. what with shaved legs and socks that match your outfit?).
I loved climbing hills back home both running and cycling, cuz you can always look forward to long descents and easy cruising. There are several long rides in Pisgah that are literally 11 miles of climbing to do a life altering 5 mile descent that is so steep your fore arms will start to cramp from hanging onto the brake levers and steam will come off your rotor when you cross the creek at the bottom (Black mountain, Squirell gap, Clawhammer)
anyway this morning I was really grinding it out up this long hill to get to the top only to be blasted backwards by a 30 mph wind. Getting to the top of a hill around here just means that your gonna get pelted by the wind. So in the midst of my ill fated trot I conceived a new motto for the state of Kansas:

Kansas: It Blows
I have to say that when the weather is good here it is incredible, low humidity, lots of sunshine, and the people are so awesome, but when the weather is bad it can rain like piss pouring out of a boot. I will contact Gov. Sebelius and get this legislation rolling immediately.

SS mediocrity and our brew to brew stew

So it was a big weekend for racing and running here in KS. We hosted the first of the NCCCC road weekends, and saturday morning was the road race consisting of the carnahan creek loop north and east of manhattan. I gazed upon the mass of shiny aluminum and carbon bicycles that were present this cold and windy morning, and thought to my self, "Self, just stay with them until the hills". Well that was easy to do since the first half of the race saw us (the D's) bucking a 30mph headwind. Which created some interesting pack riding (its always interesting riding in a cat 5 pack so I am told). But I was surrounded by a few like minded folks like Josh Patterson, Brian snyder, and John waller (the only other person on a steel frame), and we made it our jobs to be in the outer fringes of the pack. Coming out of the first turn you knew it was gonna be sketchy when you immediately heard the shriek of tires on tires and then the sickening crack of a helmet hitting asphalt. Multiple riders went down, and scott Smchercheck(sp?) split open a brand new LAS helmet, but everyone seemed to be ok. That crash took out our ND boys (Andy, David, and Chad) I think that Mario escaped unscathed. Nick Gruesel also went down, but bounced back up and was able to chase down the pack immediatley. You could always tell when Nick was near you in the packs cuz you could the erratic shifting of his bent Dérailleur and the cursing that followed. Every once in a while a few riders would surge to the front in a attack only to be beaten back by the wind. The group might have done 18mph for the first half of the race.
How do I know that?
cuz I can spin out my 42-18 SS at 21 mph and my cadence stayed relatively low (under 110) most of the ride. But as soon as we turned out of the wind it was on. The leaders shot off and up the hills of carnahan creek. Those kids from Saint Cloud were really hauling. Towards the end Andy from ND caught me, after having gone down in the pack calamity earlier. He was looking bloody but awfully determined. I was really under geared at 42-18 and could have easily turned a 16 and perhaps even a 14 up those hills. But even then I lost so much ground on the backside of the hills it would not have mattered what I had geared. I had a good time and got some cheers from a few. and will try riding a geared bike next weekend.
After a burrito with Brian Snyder, Big Al and I worked the TTT at the turn around point in the afternoon and made fun of lots of stuff while we sat in the KS sunshine. It was really enjoyable.
That evening I made dinner for the ND team and then we went to aggieville to checkout the crit course and indulge in a beverage at the Kathouse lounge to see the KU/UNC game (I always hesitate to tell people that go to a place called the cathouse lounge....it sorta sounds like a strip club)
KU laid the beatdown on UNC!

We were up early the next morning to pick up our Brew 2 Brew team of Josh Patterson, Paul Bassel, Eric Barten, myself and our team driver/coach/DD/eye candy, Alison 'big Al' Stamper.
Patterson had been out reveling in the victory of his team the previous night but appeared bright eyed and bushy tailed and ready to bust out the first leg of our adventure. Which was more than what could be said for me. It became obvious early on that our main competition was gonna be a bunch of yahoos that were one short of a six pack. There were five to our four (Pale Ale, Porter, Wheat, Irish ale, and a Stout) We yo-yo'ed back and forth throughout the race. and Eric (our fastest runner) really smoked the Pale Ale on his last and our next to last lap. Paul was running his third leg as our anchor leg, but he was unable to hold off their "Stout" over the levy section leading to the finish. It was a valiant effort on Pauls part, but those beers just had a little more "hop" in their step than we did. We also found out that Eric Is moving to Portland, OR and has an interview with Nike. We are gonna miss him. Good luck Eric!
We had a great time and were really challenged by the mileage aspect of this race cuz the mileage for each leg was really inaccurate and erratic. You would think that you had a 5 mile leg and it would only be 2.3 miles. That made it hard on you mentally and physically to set pace. Would do it again though!


Notice in this picture Josh and I made Paul and Eric stand downhill on the levy so we did not look so short. We are crafty like that.

The sting of shame

Most people that know me will tell you that I have little shame. I will, with gusto, regale you with tales of how I have unequivocally screwed things up in a grand manner. I try not to be too serious about anything and poking fun at my self is an easy way to live out that mantra.
So Yesterday morning Big Al and I decided that rather than drive to Landahl for the spoke pony extravaganza we would save some money (and face) by going to clinton instead to ride with Brian Snyder after his crit race. We slept in from the night before, and I was feeling kinda rough from Tylers B-day party. Well we are throwing bikes on the car and getting ready, to roll, and I see that the car is low on fuel. I scrutinize it for a moment and detirmine that we should get fuel on the way. We jump in and head outa manhattan. As we are rollin outa town Al asks if we are gonna get fuel. I frown at the inflated gas prices in manhattan and say "nah, we will get fuel on I70".
Those are famous last words in the state of KS.
There are no gas stations on I70 between Ft. Riley and Maple hill (15 miles west of topeka). Well there are but they all appear to have gone outa business in the past decade. It blows my mind how a gas station on the side of a major US interstate can not be profitable. only in KS.
We ran out of gas about a mile from the 24/7 quickstop at maple hill.
The sting of shame came in the form of getting pelted with sand and pebbles as one spins furiously down the side of the interstate on a bike geared 32-20 as trucks whip by.
My chagrin was met with further indignation when the ladies at the gas station laughed and said the had never seen anyone come off the exit ramp on a bike. It probably did not help that I looked like a Iowa hog farmer as I was wearing bib overalls. I failed to share their mirth. In my mind I imagined myself leaping across the counter and throttling this woman, but I could also see the headlines in the newspaper (CRAZED HOG FARMER ON BICYCLE MAULS FILLING STATION ATTENDENT)
So after I paid like $9 for a 1Gal gas can and 3.19 for gas (which was no cheaper than in Manhattan) I turn to see my car driving towards me.
Turns out the car ran out of fuel as we were coming down a hill on 70. The car stopped on a flat section so as the fuel settled back to the tank it was again able to reach the intake.
This seemed to amuse the cashier ladies even more, but they did give me a refund on the gas can so their lives were spared.
We went on the ride at clinton and had a smashing time, and on our return west we had dinner at puffys icehouse (its worth the 2 mile drive off the interstate).
So all in all its a situation that I can laugh about....Now.

its all for me grog

I heard this tune on a KPR radio program about liberal opinions and temperance. I was not amused, but it did have a catchy tune.
the tune

The lyrics

Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog
It's all for me beer and tobacco
For I spent all me tin with the lassies drinking gin
Far across the western ocean I must wander

Where are me boots, me noggin', noggin' boots?
They're all gone for beer and tobacco
For the heels they are worn out and the toes are kicked about
And the soles are looking out for better weather

Where is me shirt, my noggin', noggin' shirt?
It's all gone for beer and tobacco
For the collar is all worn, and the sleeves they are all torn
And the tail is looking out for better weather

I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed
Since first I came ashore with me slumber
For I spent all me dough on the lassies movin' slow
Far across the Western Ocean I must wander

Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog
It's all for me beer and tobacco
I spent all me loot in a house of ill repute
And I think I'll have to go back there tomorrow

Its pretty amazing the things you can learn listening to NPR!