Rain has been hovering over Decorah for what seems like a week. There have been periods of sunshine, but as usual, it has been rainy for the better part of the week whenever a bike event is planned. The Dirt Burger starts tonight and was to be kicked off with a night ride but will now be turned into an urban ride of some sort. The weather seems promising for the weekend so hopefully it holds up.
I have recently heard about the Tour Divide mountain bike race. Holy cow! This thing is the most epic mountain bike race I can imagine! 2745 miles of riding self supported from Canada to the Mexican border. It takes most riders (if they finish) three weeks to complete. I have been following the leader board erratically this week and what these guys are doing is incredible. Definitely something way out there for me to think about doing when I go insane....
Friday, June 19, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Gearing up.....literally.
Travis has placed the order on all of my parts for the La Cruz build up. I'm stoked for this bike. It will be the first one that can actually be "my own" because I have laid out the spec to the way I want it. It should be done in perfect time for the "Dirt Burger" this weekend. If you are around and want to bike, be sure to show up. The flyer is below and more information can be found at Bike Decorah.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Life Back Home
After coming back to reality in Decorah after a week in Colorado it has been a busy few days. I am taking Physics as a summer class at NICC for the month of June from 7:30-12:30 and then working between the bike shop, Pepsi and for Karl when finished each day. I am in the process of building up my new toy for the summer, a Salsa La Cruz! I have been putting quite a bit of thought into how I am going to build it up (opposed to the stock version they have displayed). It is going to be a pretty versatile bike for me allowing for miles and miles on gravel and I will so be able to throw some "slicks" on it for some road excursions. The plan is to ride it to class and back if time allows in order to get back for work in the afternoon to get my base built for longer rides.
Tuesday night was the local time trials. It was a nice, short race that I needed to have for some motivation to get back on the local trails. Even though I biked in Colorado it seems like it has been forever since I have rode in Decorah. Colorado was a blast, but nothing seems to compare to the stuff we have in Decorah. I am pretty lucky that I can roll my bike out of the garage and be on the trails in less than a mile. Not to mention we have some of the best stuff around!
Derek and I went for a ride tonight. The trails are in great shape and have been getting maintained well. Everything about the ride went well except for some obnoxious driver who got under my skin. There has been a lot of vandalism on the road signs that state to "Share The Road" on the way to Bluffton which has stirred some hostility. Apparently, people think it asks too much of them to give 5 seconds of their day to slow down, give a few feet for the biker, pass and carry on with their day. Instead, as Derek and I are biking to the trail head on Ice Cave Road, some punk in a '96 Saturn had the desire to rev up his engine to pass us, just missing while passing and yelling that "biker's (explicit) suck!" We're sorry that our presence is enough to ruin your day and your ignorant driving is more important than our lives. Some people need to get a clue and it's a shame that a few can potentially give Decorah a bad rap for cyclists. In all my years I have never had a problem riding through town without nearly every driving being a courteous, aware driver. What these people have against bikers, I have no idea.
Well, enough of my ranting. Hope everybody is having a great summer.
Do what you like. Like what you do!
Tuesday night was the local time trials. It was a nice, short race that I needed to have for some motivation to get back on the local trails. Even though I biked in Colorado it seems like it has been forever since I have rode in Decorah. Colorado was a blast, but nothing seems to compare to the stuff we have in Decorah. I am pretty lucky that I can roll my bike out of the garage and be on the trails in less than a mile. Not to mention we have some of the best stuff around!
Derek and I went for a ride tonight. The trails are in great shape and have been getting maintained well. Everything about the ride went well except for some obnoxious driver who got under my skin. There has been a lot of vandalism on the road signs that state to "Share The Road" on the way to Bluffton which has stirred some hostility. Apparently, people think it asks too much of them to give 5 seconds of their day to slow down, give a few feet for the biker, pass and carry on with their day. Instead, as Derek and I are biking to the trail head on Ice Cave Road, some punk in a '96 Saturn had the desire to rev up his engine to pass us, just missing while passing and yelling that "biker's (explicit) suck!" We're sorry that our presence is enough to ruin your day and your ignorant driving is more important than our lives. Some people need to get a clue and it's a shame that a few can potentially give Decorah a bad rap for cyclists. In all my years I have never had a problem riding through town without nearly every driving being a courteous, aware driver. What these people have against bikers, I have no idea.
Well, enough of my ranting. Hope everybody is having a great summer.
Do what you like. Like what you do!
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Boulder, CO
Ally and I just got back from spending incredible week Boulder, Colorado with Ally's cousin, Andrew. Andrew is going to be a sophomore at Luther next year and is living in Boulder for the summer while working and training for cross country. He was kind enough to let us crash on his floor for the week while we explored what Boulder and the surrounding area had to offer.
We spent the majority of our time hiking and biking the trails around Boulder and walking downtown around Pearl Street. There are endless miles of trails for outdoor use in Colorado for people of all levels of fitness.
Here are some pictures that highlight some of our outdoor adventures:
Our first hike just north of Boulder
We spent an afternoon painting pottery.....my artistic skills need work, I figured out.
I went on a 12 mile ride by myself at White Ranch near Golden, CO. Nearly 2,000 feet of straight climbing is not fun on a single speed.
A picture during my descent.
Ally, Andrew and I played disc golf in Boulder with some awesome views of the flatirons in the background.
Another picture during frolf (frisbee-golf)
The start of our Twin Sisters hike.
A picture of us on the way up. Pictures do not do any justice for the view we witnessed.
Estes Park at the bottom of the picture.
We made it!
Not a bad place to eat lunch!
Ally and I with the Twin Sisters in the background.
To top off the whole week we were (somehow) able to scalp tickets to O.A.R. playing at Red Rocks Amphitheater. This is the most incredible place to see a concert. It is a "natural" outdoor amphitheater built between two huge rock slabs. OAR is my favorite band and played a wicked concert that I will never forget, along with our struggles to get tickets. It was an awesome way to end the week. I do not have any good pictures from the venue because of the poor lighting but you can google some pictures and see what it was about. The show was sold out and played with clear skies, allowing everybody to see Denver and the surrounding area lit up at night.
We spent the majority of our time hiking and biking the trails around Boulder and walking downtown around Pearl Street. There are endless miles of trails for outdoor use in Colorado for people of all levels of fitness.
Here are some pictures that highlight some of our outdoor adventures:
Our first hike just north of Boulder
We spent an afternoon painting pottery.....my artistic skills need work, I figured out.
I went on a 12 mile ride by myself at White Ranch near Golden, CO. Nearly 2,000 feet of straight climbing is not fun on a single speed.
A picture during my descent.
Ally, Andrew and I played disc golf in Boulder with some awesome views of the flatirons in the background.
Another picture during frolf (frisbee-golf)
The start of our Twin Sisters hike.
A picture of us on the way up. Pictures do not do any justice for the view we witnessed.
Estes Park at the bottom of the picture.
We made it!
Not a bad place to eat lunch!
Ally and I with the Twin Sisters in the background.
To top off the whole week we were (somehow) able to scalp tickets to O.A.R. playing at Red Rocks Amphitheater. This is the most incredible place to see a concert. It is a "natural" outdoor amphitheater built between two huge rock slabs. OAR is my favorite band and played a wicked concert that I will never forget, along with our struggles to get tickets. It was an awesome way to end the week. I do not have any good pictures from the venue because of the poor lighting but you can google some pictures and see what it was about. The show was sold out and played with clear skies, allowing everybody to see Denver and the surrounding area lit up at night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)