Disco Stu

Random updates

2011-11-07T21:53:00.002-05:00

Coming up is a bit of randomness that has occurred since the last time I posted. First off, I saw a surgeon almost 2 weeks ago regarding my knee. I'be been pretty much pain free for awhile now, and was thinking that I wouldn't need surgery. Well, the meeting with the surgeon confirmed this, and I have the green light to keep on biking as much as I can and avoid going under the knife for now.

I've been getting out for as much riding as I can lately. Since I missed a good chunk of the summer, I'm not burnt out on riding and pretty excited to get out whenever I can. I got out for a loop of the park 2 weeks ago with my buddy Karl, who was rocking a vintage bike and some cool retro Look shoes. We thought that we could do a full loop, including the north loop, which has been closed all summer. We saw other cyclists coming from the other direction, and figured it was rideable. However, we ended up doing too much hike a biking for my liking (especially in road shoes) and decided that the north loop would not be worth it in the future. It ended up being close to 3 hours of riding for me, and I felt great. No knee pain, and endurance was fine.

A shot of the Jock river along one of my usual loops.

Karl's vintage Bianchi.

The view from Champlain lookout.

Nice retro kicks.

On a beer tip, I'm constantly trying new beers, but I've been lazy when it comes to taking pics of them and taking notes. Here are a couple I've tried recently:

An Ontario beer out of Bramptom. This is a tasty, easy drinking lager. Mellow hop flavour...not as hoppy as the can would suggest, though.

Beau's "Dunkel Buck", a strong (6.8%) dark wheat beer. This was a limited run from Beau's. This had a nice fruity, chocolatey aroma, with a sweet chocolate flavour that wasn't too intense. Hopefully they produce this one again, but with any of their wild oats beers (limited run), once they're gone, they're gone.

New Ottawa Brewery...Broadhead

2011-10-26T20:08:00.000-04:00

This is essentially a link to the Great Canadian Beer Blog, but a new brewery has opened up in Ottawa, Broadhead Brewing. It's on the way to my sister's place in Barrhaven, so I think I'll be dropping by when they get their growlers in. Can't wait!

New cross bike

2011-10-24T22:29:00.002-04:00

Yeah, yeah, it's been "awhile" since I've posted anything. I'm not gonna make any excuses or bore you with non biking details of my life. But, on the biking tip, I got out this past Saturday for a ride on my new cross bike. It's an Opus Stelle that I picked up waaaaaaaaay back in June, just before my injury. So for 3 months, I've had a brand new bike hanging up in the basement, just begging to be ridden. Saturday, I mounted some 28c slicks and then mounted the bike for a quick ride. I was hoping that this bike would reduce road chatter compared to my previous cross bike due to the addition of carbon seatstays. Overall, the ride quality isn't as smooth as say, my road bike, and marginally better than my previous full aluminum cross bike. The other key selling point(s) for me was the parts spec. If I find myself not completely happy with the frame, I can see myself sometime in the future upgrading to a different frame and fork, and keeping all of the components. Upgrades compared to my previous cross bike are:

NEW BIKE                                      OLD BIKE
Aluminum with carbon seatstays     Full aluminum frame
Ultegra Drivetrain                          105 drivetrain
FSA Team Issue Carbon Crank         FSA Gossamer alloy crank
Mavic Ksyrium Equipe wheels        Mavic Aksium wheels
TRP Euro-x brakes                         Tektro brakes
Vittoria Cross XG folding tires         Vittoria Cross XG wire bead tires
Selle Italia SL saddle                       Selle Italia ????? saddle

Opus Spark, good while I had it.

Opus Stelle. Pretty sweet upgrades. Got rid of the pizza platter behind the cassette. Not sure how much this bike weighs, but using the good ol' lift it up and bounce it in my hands technique, it's a hell of a lot lighter than the Spark

My first ever carbon crank....pimp!

White wheelset, also pimp!

2012 Trekworld

2011-09-05T22:12:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to get these pictures up for awhile now...they're pics that Sonia took when she went to Madison, Wisconsin, for "Trekworld", a dealer show for, you guessed it, Trek bikes. There was a pretty cool surprise when she arrived at the show...just a few pros from the Leopard-Trek team!! Enjoy.

Jens Voigt and Fabian Cancellera, signing posters.

Cancellera's bike.

Sonia, looking like she's gonna take off with Cancellera's bike.

One day I'll be pro enough to get my own personalized tires....yeah right!

Sonia, pretty excited to be getting an Andy Schleck autographed poster.

Sonia's co-worker Dave...containing his excitement.

Andy's bike.

Frank's bike. Not sure who the foot belongs to, though.

These are the actual bikes used in the Tour de France, complete with scuff marks on the crank.

Sonia and Gary Fisher.

2012 Cannondale

2011-08-21T21:56:00.000-04:00

Blogging has been sporadic as of late...I just haven't been biking much, and since this is a blog about biking (and yes, beer), there's not much to write about. Now that my knee is better (pain free and full range of motion, but not full strength yet), I can now start catching up on projects around the house (painting, re-doing some floors, exterior work, etc, etc..). Sooooo, I have to live vicariously through others, but it seems that a lot of my fellow bloggers have also reduced their blogging activity. That leaves me to get excited about biking through my wife.

Working in a bike shop, she has the perk of viewing next year's bikes before the general public. 4 weeks ago, she was flown down to Utah to view next year's Cannondale bikes, leaving Lil' D and myself to fend for ourselves. It all went down at Deer Valley resort, outside of Park City (about an hour from Salt Lake City).

Mountains surrounding Salt Lake City Airport.

Deer Valley Resort.

These retailer shows consist of presentations, seminars and of course, bike demos. Sonia signed up for two demos, both of them on mountain bikes. The only road demos were for Cannondale Super Six's, and she didn't feel like trying to keep up full on Type A roadies.

Day 1 demo she tried a Jekyll, their"over-mountain" bike, featuring 150mm travel front and rear. One of the cool things with this bike is the ability to switch between fully open rear travel and a semi open mode of 90mm travel. As soon as she started riding there was only one way to go...up. With the bike in 90mm, it climbed amazingly well. Coming back down the hill, she kept the bike in 90mm mode and found it to be surprisingly nimble.

2012 Jekylls.

Scalpel 100 29er.

Day 2, she got to try the eye candy bike of next year's lineup (and a new bike), the scalpel 100 29er. Full carbon frame, 100mm of travel and a spec that would leave anyone drooling. For this ride, she decided to take the chairlift up the hill (cheater!) and boot on down on some nice, twisty, turny singletrack. Being a 26 mtb rider, her impression of the scalpel was much like anyone else trying a 29er for the first time...rolls over obstacles no problem, is fast rolling, but is slow to accelerate. When she did encounter any rough terrain, she noted that the suspension handled like her 120mm 26" bike. For herself, Sonia thinks she would stick to a 26er due to the stop and go nature of trails like Outback or some of the technical trails at Camp Fortune.

View from the top of the resort.

View of Salt Lake and salt flats.

The ultimate bike light????? The first red flag is that you're ordering this out of a catalog on an airplane!

Sonia did pick up for me some all important hardware.

In the mail

2011-08-02T22:18:00.000-04:00

Getting stuff in the mail rocks. A little over a week ago, I got some goodies in my mailbox.

Wouter Weylendt tribute t-shirt from Stomach of Anger.

Issue #5 of Peloton mag. This issue has a French theme to coincide with the tour...I got it 2 days before the Tour ended, but it's still a stellar issue.

The verdict is in

2011-07-22T21:13:00.000-04:00

Saw the sports med doc yesterday for my MRI results, and it turns out that I have a torn medial meniscus. The solution there is of course, surgery. A scope to go in and "clean it up", so to speak.

My tear is on the medial meniscus, the side identified by the "bucket tear" above.

The doc also told me that some of the cartilage on my femur where it articulates with the patella, is compromised. They won't know to what degree it's compromised until the surgery. Worst case scenario, there's a "pothole" where there should be cartilage, and a procedure called a micro-fracture would be performed.

After a look at this pic, I hope I don't have to undergo a microfracture...pretty archaic looking.

So there ya have it. I have to get back in shape, though...I've lost a lot of muscle mass in my left leg over the last month. The good news is is that I've been on the trainer, and hope to get out for a ride this weekend. I have the green light to bike, but running is questionable until I've regained 90% of strength in my left leg compared to the right. So that probably means no cross this year. Besides, I don't want to re-aggravate my knee. The other bad news is I won't get to use my new cross bike. HUH??? New bike, you ask???? Stay tuned.....

Happy Belated Canada Day

2011-07-17T21:16:00.000-04:00

The other day I was in the good ol' LCBO, and came across this:

The Canada Day edition of Innis and Gunn. Brewed once a year, I always find this to be better than the original, which is a damn good beer in its own right. I'm gonna save this one for a cool fall evening. Track one down before they're gone.

Today I got on a bike for the first time in a month. It was however only the trainer, and ended up being 25 minutes (which is better than the 15 minutes I had anticipated). I rode with the resistance on the lowest setting, except for when I did some right leg one leg intervals. My knee felt a little stiff at first, but once I warmed up it felt pretty good. There's still a little swelling in my knee, but no pain, and almost full range of motion. I wanted to make sure that at the least I was pain free before trying any kind of biking. If my knee stays happy with me tomorrow, then I'll just keep on plugging away, a little bit every day on the trainer...I need to work off all this beer that I've been drinking!

Injury update

2011-07-10T21:52:00.000-04:00

So, it's been over 3 weeks now since I've been on a bike of any kind. In the meantime, since my last "injury update", the swelling in my leg has gone down, but there's still a lot of swelling within the knee joint itself. The swelling is limiting range of motion in my knee, so I don't have full extension or flexion. Pain comes and goes, and I sometimes hobble around with a cane. Not much can be done from a physio standpoint until the swelling goes down, so I'm kind of shit out of luck until things calm down.
I did get in to see a sports med doc last Monday who reckons I have either a torn meniscus or osteochondritis (torn cartilage). The only way to know for sure is by having an MRI, which I had done today. The funny thing about the whole MRI experience is that they give you headphones to block out noise because the MRI machine is really loud. The technician asked me if I wanted to listen to the radio, or nothing at all, so I said I'd listen to the radio. She then asked me what station I wanted to listen to, so I said Live 88.5 or CBC. When I put the headphones on, it was tuned to 89.9, so I was stuck, for about 15 minutes, listening to Brittany Spears, Lady Gaga and Black Eyed Peas. Lovely.
Hopefully I don't have to wait too much longer to find out the results of the MRI, 'cause I'm going nuts not being able to bike, or doing anything at all, for that matter. The family and I did get away to Tremblant for a few days last week for a bit of chillin', though, so that provided some mental relief. I'm back to work this week, which I'm sort of looking forward to...I'll be out of the house and moving around a bit more.

Mini vacation with the family at Tremblant.

Giro Code shoes

2011-07-08T20:04:00.005-04:00

For mountain biking this year, I was in desperate need of a new pair of shoes. For the past two seasons I'd been using a pair of Time MXE's, a three strap model with a carbon sole. I was never really happy with the fit of these shoes...I had to throw extra insoles inside to take up space. Also, the upper material was a weird plastic that didn't take to the shape of my foot very well.
Earlier this Spring when I was trying to pick a new pair of shoes for the year, I tried on various models from Bontrager, Sidi, Mavic and Giro. I won't bore you with minute details of the fit of the different brands (besides, your feet are probably a different shape from mine), but in the end, I decided to go with Giro, a newcomer to the shoe game.
They offer two MTB models, The Gauge and the higher end Code. I decided to go with the Code, despite going against a few beliefs I have about mountain bike shoes:
1) I don't believe in having a buckle/ratchet on MTB shoes; to me it's a part that could get damaged or get clogged with dirt and mud and cease to work
2) I've never had a MTB shoe with a super stiff sole. I've always believed that a bit of flex is a good thing, especially if you end up off the bike and have to walk a bit.
3) I try not to buy expensive MTB shoes since they'll get trashed within a couple of seasons and need replacing.
Before getting injured, I got in 5 rides wearing these shoes. With respect to those 3 points above:
1) no issues yet with the buckle...I like being able to cinch the top strap down nice and tight, and it's less velcro to get clogged with dirt.
2) The stiff sole rocks. I can feel the difference it makes when standing up to pedal...instant power transfer. As far as lack of comfort or too stiff when hiking, no issues noted
3) Overall, they are worth the extra coin. They are one of the best fitting shoes I have worn...comparable to my other favourite fitting shoes, Specialized. There are no pressure points, and the upper conforms to my foot perfectly.

Some other features are pointed out below in the picture captions:

The middle strap loops through the D-ring on top of the middle of the foot, which takes pressure off the instep.

One of the buckles has gotten a little scuffed up. If it gets damaged, the buckles are easily replaced.

The sole is made from Easton EC 90 carbon, their top tier carbon. The lugs are soft, giving nice grip on rocks for dismounts or dabs. My only worry is that they might wear out prematurely due to being too soft. Guess I just have to stay clipped in as much as possible. The carbon sole also contributes to these shoes being ridiculously light.

The sole has taken some dings, but the tough ass carbon is standing up to it.

The code comes with an insole with adjustable arch height.

All I can say about these shoes so far is that they rock. Hopfully I get to use them sometime soon. In the meantime, I'm spending my time with "BRIE", Beer, Rest, Ice and Elevation.

DVD's and books: Life Cycles

2011-06-26T21:21:00.000-04:00

What to do, what to do. The other day I decided to torture myself by watching a bike movie, Life Cycles. The first time I watched it was back in the winter, and at that time, I had no idea what to expect. The cover has a weird artsy-fartsy picture and the description on the back cover states "it tells a spectacular story of the bike, from its creation to its eventual demise." Hmmm, sounds a little pretentious to me. Well, lets pop it in and have a look. The opening scenes are shot in the Devinci factory and give a first hand visual account of a bike being built. It then segways to scenes of downtown Vancouver, and then the action eventually makes its way to some trail riding. Now the riding is pretty cool to watch, but it's the cinematography that makes this a must see movie. It's hard to do this movie any justice in a little written blurb, and since I don't consider myself to be a movie reviewer in any capacity, anything I say won't shed light on how amazing this movie is.
You really do have to see it to believe it. The camera angles, the time lapses used, everything in this movie makes you say "Wow". The riding covers the trail to freeriding end of the mountain bike spectrum, but even skinny shaved leg dude (like myself) can appreciate the balls it takes to pull of the airs, tricks and speed of the riding in the movie.
The only downside of the movie is the length, about 45 minutes...I wanted to see more riding. But the bonus features, which show how the movie was made make up for the short length.

Also, as I've been bumming around the house, and killing time online, I was checking out Competitive Cyclist, and I ended up ordering some books. They were all on sale, so I decided why the hell not. It was such a good deal that I couldn't pass it up. They are Le Metier by Michael Barry, The Rouleur 2010 photo annual, and The Peloton by Timm Kolln.

I'm most eager to check out the book by Timm Kolln. The premise behind the book is pretty cool. Over the course of three years, Kolln took portraits of pro riders immediately following races. As you can imagine (and see on The Rouleur website), there are some pretty ragged looking pros after racing hundreds of kilometres. After the pics were taken, Kolln presented them to the riders (usually months later), and then had them write a narrative to accompany the photo. Reviews will eventually come once I have the books in my hands.

Fun times at the hospital

2011-06-22T20:45:00.000-04:00

The title of the post is supposed to be read with a bit of sarcasm. Hospitals are never fun, unless you enjoy waiting around in a room plastered with "aggressive behaviour will not be tolerated" signs and being greeted by overworked/overstressed nurses who are on the brink of aggressive behaviour themselves. The last time I was in a hospital was when Lil' D was born. Labour is not fun, and Sonia will tell you that childbirth was not fun (more specifically, she described as "being ripped in half", definitely not MY idea of fun). But the end result was positive. Weird....an experience that is not fun, or enjoyable, but has a positive outcome. Anyhow, I digress.

The injury saga continues. I went to work on Monday, and despite having crutches to keep weight off my leg, it was still effin' sore, and the swelling got worse. The swelling was pooling around my ankle, to the point that it looked about twice the size of the right. I finished my day at work, got my leg up, and then started to feel like crap. Swelling was worse, and I was feeling feverish...not good. Sooooo, off to the hospital again to go hang out in the emergency ward. I was equipped with a water bottle, snacks and the bike snob book to keep me going for the long haul. When I was finally seen by a doctor, blood tests and x-rays were ordered up. X-ray came back negative, good. Blood tests however, showed an elevated white blood cell count AND positive for blood clot. SHIT. NOT. GOOD. The doc did go on to say that a blood test positive for clots does not necessarily mean that there IS a blood clot, but they have to do an ultrasound to rule it out. Another test they ran was poking my knee with a needle and extracting fluid to rule out an infection. After drawing out the fluid, he noted that it wasn't "pus-y and septic looking", (love the diagnoses), so that was a good thing.

Monday night. Check out the difference in size between the left and right ankles.

The left knee is just "a little" swollen compared to the right. The band-aid is covering the site where the doc extracted fluid from the joint cavity.

Tuesday morning, back to the hospital for the ultrasound. After getting my whole left leg lubed up with gel, the tech started the ultrasound. After 15 to 20 minutes of investigating, another tech and then the radiologist, there was no sign of a blood clot (thank god), but there was definite trauma to the medial gastrocnemius (inner part of the calf). They decided I had a calf strain (what I figured out on my own Saturday), and ordered more rest, ice, elevation and advil.

So here I am at home, bored out of my skull, and I start my summer holidays this Friday. Good news is I have time off for rehab. Bad news is I'm spending my holidays doing rehab.

This SUCKS.

2011-06-19T14:51:00.000-04:00

For the second time this year, I'm injured. And for the second time this year, I'm missing out on racing because I'm injured. Here's how things went down.

Last Tuesday, I met up with my team for Summer Solstice for a ride at Kanata Lakes. Temps were good and it was a little muddy on account of the previous day's rain. Riding was otherwise no different than it normally is...a few dabs here and there, but no real crazy spills that I can recall.

Fast forward to Wednesday morning, and my left knee has swollen up like an orange (well, maybe not that bad, but my knee lacked the bony cadaver like appearance it normally has). As the day went on, the pain in my knee, under the kneecap and behind my knee, got worse. At home, ice, elevation and Advil were the name of the game.

Thursday. Knee is still swollen and sore, had to skip my usual Thursday morning bike ride. As the day went on, swelling and stiffness, especially behind the knee, got worse. At home, ice, elevation and Advil...again.

Friday. All of a sudden now, my calf is now really sore and tender and swollen like a grapefruit. I'd say my right calf is about orange-ish size, so in comparison my left calf was like a grapefruit, a weird oblong oval grapefruit. Not good.

Saturday. Swelling has not gone down, and I'm worried. A trip to hospital indicates no infection in the joint and no sign of a blood clot. The doctor tells me I have an "angry knee" and to rest it up.
Once home, I started thinking....maybe I have a calf strain on account of the pain in my calf and the tightness in the back of my knee. Lets see, can I do a heel raise on my left leg...nope! Can I push forcefully with my left foot...nope. Can I even contract my calf...not really. That gets me thinking that I have a grade 2 calf strain, which isn't quite a full rupture, but will probably have me out of action for 5 to 8 weeks....shitty. As it is right now, I'm limping around and can't put a lot of weight on my left leg.

So, as for the races I'm missing. I was registered for the 50km Ultimate XC race up at Tremblant (today), so that's out, and Summer Solstice is out for next weekend. The cycling gods don't want me racing, but would rather have me gimping around and sitting in front of the computer lusting after stuff I can't afford.

So tomorrow, I'm gonna start some physio and get on the mend as quickly as I can. In the meantime, I'll probably have time to do some beer reviews!

Peloton bike mag

2011-06-12T20:43:00.000-04:00

Some time ago, actually a looooong time ago, back in December, I posted about Paved bike magazine, saying how much I liked it. I came across a newer issue not too long ago, but after a quick flip through it, it didn't look interesting enough to warrant a purchase....lots of pictures and ads, and not a lot of words. On the other hand, I have just picked up my third issue in a row of Peloton magazine, and I am absolutely digging this magazine. I've been thoroughly impressed with every issue to date (except issue #1, which I missed). The latest issue, (June-July, issue number 4) has an Italian theme to it, no doubt to coincide with the Giro (yes, I know it's now over). The legendary Fausto Coppi graces the cover, and articles range from Italian food and drink, to well known companies and the names behind those companies.

Issue #4

The Hotel Gran San Bernardo, an Italian hotel that caters to cyclists. From daily group rides, bike storage, a tailored restaurant menu and even babysitting! I think I know where I want to go for my next vacation...

I've never heard of John Eustice or the Gianni Motta squad, but they were the first American team to race the Giro d'Italia. Gotta love the pose and the 'stache.

An up close look at Sidi shoes.

Stunning pics.This picture accompanies an article about how Tulio Campagnolo was inspired to invent the quick release lever back in 1924 (and later patented it in 1930).

Issues #2 and #3.

Who doesn't love cross pics?

Issue #2. Profiling the greatest season ever in cycling. Eddy Merckx. 1972. 51 wins in 139 races. 'nuff said.

Issue #3. A whole article devoted to the Nevegal time trial stage of the 2011 Giro. I like how they take a single stage of the Giro and devote as much print to it as some publications would for the entire Giro.

Northwest Knee Warmers. A little company out of Oregon producing some fine embrocation.

Although it is a magazine devoted to road biking (I usually prefer mountain bike magazines), I've been so impressed that I've gone ahead and ordered a subscription. I'm sure that future issues will be equally impressive.

Exploding wheel

2011-06-01T21:29:00.000-04:00

Ok, there aren't any exploding wheels in this post (as in KABOOM!!!!), more like disintegrating wheel, but exploding wheel just sounds more dramatic. A while ago, my commuter bike developed some play in the front wheel. I fiddled with the cone nuts, couldn't get it adjusted quite right, but rode it anyway. Not one to be content with something not being quite right, I fiddled again a couple of weeks ago, and the play was gone, but the wheel wasn't spinning freely....there was definitely some resistance. THEN, a couple days ago, I fiddled AGAIN, and again, there was some play, but now the wheel was spinning freely. That leads up to yesterday. On my commute home, my front wheel started to develop A LOT of play, which was followed by some creaking and grinding, and then some MORE creaking and grinding, which eventually stopped, but then it felt like I was biking against resistance the rest of the way home. I was praying that I'd make it home because I had plans to go for a ride after work and had to be home by a certain time. I made it home, and inspection of my wheel revealed.....

The good side of the hub...notice how the bearing (red seal) looks. Essentially, it's intact.

The "exploded side", the seal has come off.

Close up. Where have the ball bearings gone?!?!?!? This is a sealed bearing, exploded and rusted (there's rust on the one ball). I guess that's what continuous commuting, including two winters in a row, will do to a bike. Before each winter, I slap a generous amount of grease on top of the bearings to keep salt, sand and water out, but I guess it wasn't enough. Looks like I'll be commuting on my cross bike until I get this sorted out.

A week of firsts

2011-05-30T22:15:00.000-04:00

Going back 9 days to last Saturday, here's the lowdown on a bunch of firsts for the season:

-Saturday, first Cyclelogik ride of the year: it was a smaller group, on account of many of the "elite" riders racing later that afternoon in the Gatineau Grand Prix. The pace was still high, though, and I managed to hang with the lead group for the whole ride.

-Sunday, first mountain bike ride of the year: got out to Kanata Lakes for a loop, taking in Outback and other trails. (Besides, what's a trip to Kanata Lakes WITHOUT Outback). There were lots of muddy spots and standing water, but for the most part it was dry...Kanata Lakes drains pretty well. Once again I was reminded why I love these trails so much and how I've missed mountain biking for the last 7 or 8 months.

About halfway to getting really muddy.

-Tuesday, first A loop of the year, or Gatineau challenge (whatever you want to call it). Got dropped by the lead pack on Black's, but found myself in some pretty good company in the chase group. The route this year is waaaaaaay harder than a usual loop of the park. After going under the Kingsmere bridge, the pack loops around and heads back, then makes a right to head up towards Champlain...KILLER!

-Saturday, first mountain bike ride in the park: it was a short ride, 2 hours, taking in 15 and 1. I rode trail 1 all the way down to old Chelsea and was hugely disappointed that the section from the parkway to Old Chelsea has been completely graded over. This USED TO BE a super fun section of trail, and now, well, I'm kinda still pissed about it....damn NCC. There were a fair number of bikers and hikers on the trail, and on one section of double track downhill I was pleasantly surprised by a group of hikers who all stepped OFF the trail to let me by, and were all smiles. It was a nice change from the cold stares and grumbles I typically seem to get from hikers on SHARED trails.

Cool and foggy near the MacKenzie King estate. The foliage (yeah, I know, fancy word) in the park is REALLY green right now, and the damp air Saturday morning made it feel like I was biking in a rainforest.

Fixie and gears take on tri

2011-05-27T22:24:00.000-04:00

This post is about a ride I did 3 weeks ago. I had originally posted this a few days after said ride, but then a few days later I discovered that it never actually got posted...something to do with the whole blogger site acting up. I've tried to remember the key details, so here it goes.

I got up at some ungodly hour, and was out the door at 6:40 in the morning, to ride out to Orleans and meet up with my buddy Karl. With no traffic on the roads, I took advantage of the most direct route possible, involving roads I wouldn't normally bike on. Combined with a decent tail wind, I made it out to Orleans in less than an hour. I got to Karl's place...his kids were eating breakfast and his wife wasn't even out of bed yet, grabbed him and we were off. He was on a fixie for our ride so we wouldn't be riding at a crazy clip, but on the flats we kept an average speed around 30km/hr. He powered up short climbs without any trouble...the only limitation of his fixie were the downhills...I'd get ahead of Karl, but it didn't take him long to catch up. We continued past Cumberland, where there was a duathlon race taking place, and continued east towards Rockland. We almost made it to part of the western-most part of the Ride with Rendall Clarence-Rockland course when we turned around and headed back to Karl's. On the way back, we ended up riding with some riders who were racing in the duathlon. Up ahead, I could make out some riders on tri bikes. I was feeling a little cocky and I told Karl I could easily catch them and blow by. He told me to go ahead and he'd catch up later, but instead, I told him to get behind my wheel and in my draft. I picked up the pace, and made sure I didn't drop Karl. In the process, we passed one guy on a tri bike (complete with aero helmet!), then another guy on a tri bike, then another rider. I wanted to make sure that Karl could say he passed a tri bike on his fixie!!!

On the same ride, I broke in a new pair of gloves, some Giro Monaco LF. I'm used to Giro gloves...I've been using a pair of Bravo short gloves for a couple of seasons. I have to say that I'm impressed with Giro's gloves. There is no bunching or stitching that jabs into the hands, no matter the position on the bars. Giro gloves have a fair amount of padding on the palms which may interfere with bar feel, but I'm a fan of the amount of padding, providing comfort for long ride and/or rough rides. The Monaco features a Pittard's leather palm, which provides a bit a tackiness...not a bad thing, just takes getting used to. The material on the top of the hand and fingers is lightweight enough to be worn in warmer weather. Even though I'm a fan of these gloves, it's one of those things that's purely subjective, so they may not work for everyone.

Stomach of Anger. A worthy cause.

2011-05-22T21:44:00.000-04:00

Like all cycling fans, I was shocked to learn of the passing of Weyland Wouter in the Giro. As a father myself, I was touched even further when I found out that his wife was pregnant. About a week ago, as I was perusing the web, I found a link to Stomach of Anger, which is the brainchild of a couple of guys who love cycling, and decided to start making t-shirts. As a fundraising effort for Weyland's family, they are producing a t-shirt with his Giro number, and are taking orders for the shirt until the end of the Giro. All profits will go directly to Weyland's family. Go ahead and order yours.

Ride of the Damned mini re-cap

2011-05-18T22:33:00.000-04:00

A quick re-cap of Sunday's Ride of the Damned. First, let's go back to Saturday, when it was cold and pissing rain all day. The forecast (which I was checking every hour), was calling for a relatively dry day on Sunday. YES! Bust out the road bike. I didn't even give a second thought to a back up plan in case it rained.....woke up Sunday morning and it was...cold and pissing. Fortunately, my cross bike was fendered up and ready to go, so even though my road bike is more comfortable than my cross bike, a dry ass is also very comfortable.

On arrival at Lac Leamy, there was a good sized crowd...looks like people were unfazed by the rain. I was "teamless", so I was waiting to find out who I would be riding with. Before launching, I was assigned to a West Quebec Wheelers group with John Large, Jason and Dave.
We got rolling along, and it didn't take long until the rain stopped, but it felt like we were riding in our own little rain storm with the spray being kicked up by tires.

Jump ahead to the end of the Cascades road where it merges with the 366. Dave informs the group that he's toast and is having thoughts of turning back. John said that as long as we keep him out of the wind, he'd be fine. I asked him if he'd done done a long ride the day before, and he informed me that he's working on his Master's, and so with little time to ride, his longest ride so far this year had been an hour long. Talk about baptism by fire!! Onto the gravel roads, we stuck together...the climbs took their toll on Dave but he toughed it out. We kept on trucking, on to the dam, through Low and all the way back. We ended up riding with another group consisting of a couple of Ride with Rendall riders and a few others. We made it back to Lac Leamy with all team members intact, and were greeted by Glen who promptly filled our hands with a cold beer!

Highlights for me were the gravel roads between the 366 and the Paugan dam, meeting new riders and finishing with the group we started out with.

A big thanks to the Tall Tree for once again organizing such an awesome event.

Photos by Will can be found here.

Lonely weekend riding

2011-05-03T23:01:00.000-04:00

Saturday I wanted to get in a 4 hour ride, and hit up the ol' Cascades-Wakefield loop. Just me, myself and some tunes for company. Weather was great, and I had a window of opportunity that didn't take away from any domestic duties. The roads around Cascades were suprinsingly busy....probably traffic to and from the golf course.

The back road behind Cascades...a bit of a washout, but nothing serious enough to shut down the road.

At the Wakefield bridge...can't decide if I like this pic or not.

On the way back from Wakefield, other cyclists were out in droves, along the road into Wakefield and on the parkway. I also ran into Pascal and his son Felix who were out for a little spin in the park. Felix was rockin' a new Nutcase "8 Ball" helmet, which we agreed was much cooler than an "8 ball jacket" (search for bad 90's fashion trends!). I got home after putting in 115km in a touch over 4 hours, and the legs were still feeling kinda fresh...a good sign!

Going back to the start of my ride, I was listening to DJ Champion's album Chill 'Em All. This is an album I never get tired of listening to. It's sort of housey break-beaty, with a mix of instrumental and vocal tracks. There's a good flow to the album, with enough changes in mood to keep your attention. Whenever I listen to this album, I'm reminded of the couple of times I saw DJ Champion live. His live act goes by "Champion and his G-Strings" as it is comprised of himself (on beats), plus 4 guitarists, a bassist and vocalist. Quite simply, it is one of the best live shows I have ever seen...Champion himself is full of endless energy, jumping up and down behind his laptop and getting the crowd whipped up into a frenzy. The first time I saw was a few years back at Bluesfest, where his show was above and beyond Kanye West, who performed later that night. Check the video below, which captures the energy of the live show.

A couple seasonals

2011-04-30T21:47:00.000-04:00

Better get yo ass off the couch and out the door to try a couple of damn fine brews before they disappear ('till next year). First up is the spring seasonal from Muskoka Brewing. They previously offered two standout seasonals...the Fall Harvest Ale and the Winter Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout. Their summer offering, the Summer Weissbier, does not disappoint. As is the case with most wheat beers, it's slightly hazy, and a nice golden colour. I could pick up on a slight scent of cloves mixed in with the wheat/malt aroma. The cloves are present in the flavour, which is a nice balance of wheat, malt and hops. The flavour is slightly citrusy, and doesn't have that sour aftertaste present in some wheat beers. It also comes in a nice re-usable 750ml swing top bottle.

Perfect for sippin' on a hot summer day.

Next up is the spring offering from everyone's favourite Ottawa area brewery, Beau's. They serve up an IPA, which they have dubbed the Beaver River I.P.Eh. Traditionally, an IPA has more hops than a typical ale. Way back in the day, additional hops were added as a preservative to the beer of British soldiers, to ensure the beer arrived ready for drinkin' after the long voyage to India. The alcohol content was also jacked up (alcohol acts as a preservative), and to do so, extra malt had to be added, thereby giving the beer more flavour. So how does the I.P.Eh stand up. Let me say that I've tried some very hoppy beers, which also tend to have a very long, bitter aftertaste. The Beau's is a strong hoppy beer, but does not have a lingering after taste, which makes it that much more enjoyable. The strong flavour needs to be balanced with food of equal strength. The Beau's site suggests spicy Mexican or Indian food, wild game or strong cheeses.

An excellent IPA, true to the original (unlike Keith's....)

Untitled

2011-04-21T22:41:00.000-04:00

I wasn't sure what to title this post. At first I was thinking of "building character" due to my commute to work on Wednesday morning. While I was battling a STIFF, STIFF wind, with rain and sleet blowing in my face, I thought to myself, more as sarcastic consolation than anthing else, "this is the type of shit that builds character, yeah!!!!" Exposed skin was stinging because of the cold precipitation pelting down, my eyes got watery as the wind whipped past, and I even resorted to riding on the sidewalk because I didn't feel safe on the road. That's why I do this, right???? It toughens me up, just like other "character building" things I've done...24 hour solo races, biking in the cold until I can't feel my extremeties, the list goes on. Some people would call that just plain crazy, but if I call it character building, then I *must* be able to justify it.
I also thought of titling this post "overcoming obstacles", since my back and knee are feeling better, AND I had to battle those aforementioned weather conditions. But, "overcoming obstacles" sounds kind of cheesy, and, well, so does "building character", come to think of it. THEN, I was thinking of titling this post "Is spring ever gonna get here?!?!?!?!?", again because of yesterday's weather, and because of this morning's weather. I got up for a quick ride in the park before work, and no joke, AS SOON as I entered the park from Tache boulevard, I started getting pelted with snow. It was snowing during the whole ride, but I thought to myself that I'd rather have it snow on me instead of rain. Only problem is when the roads become covered in snow, slick tires don't really offer much traction. Even though I was picturing those iconic images of Andy Hampsten in the Giro, I think that biking on my own on snow covered roads would have qualified more as stupidity than character building.

Pink Lake, about three quarters frozen...still.

Is it really almost May????

The road toward Black's, just past the Waterfall trail parking lot.

Tomorrow's forecast looks promising, sunny, and warmer temps than we've been used to for the last while. Not character building riding conditions, but that's fine with me.

Break my body (I'm falling apart)

2011-04-17T20:41:00.000-04:00

Break my body...that's what I feel like is happening to me. Although my back is improving, I've suffered another set-back. In an effort to protect my back, I've been doing all lifting and bending with my legs, and so yesterday morning, while I was squatting to put some shoes on Lil' D, very suddenly, I got an excruciating pain behind my right kneecap. I thought that maybe my quad was tight and needed to be stretched out, but that just compounded the pain. It ended up being bad enough that putting weight on my knee in any position (straight or bent) was painful. Walking hurt, and stairs....forget it. Icing has had almost no effect on making the pain better. The pain is still there today, not as intense, but limiting nonetheless.

Two weekends in a row of not riding, pretty damn frustrating.

At least I got out last night to see (IMO), one of the greatest bands of all time, The Pixies. They're "a little" older than in the above video, but they put on a good show nonetheless. If you're familiar with their work, this tour was the "Doolittle Tour", an album which for me, is tied with Trompe le Monde for their best work. I started listening to The Pixies in high school, so last night's show was sort of a trip down memory lane for me. The only difference is that in high school I didn't have a bad back or a bum knee.

Gettin' There

2011-04-15T22:10:00.000-04:00

This post has two, that's right, count 'em TWO parts. Part one: Yesterday morning, I got out for ride before work, and decided to check out the Gatineau parkway. I didn't get too far, based on a small window before work, but things are starting to look good. There are quite a few sections where the parkway is only partially covered in snow and ice, making riding easy as pie. (Sorry, no pics...my phone died on me. You can check out a more detailed report here.) Every year I always look forward to that first ride on the parkway, even if there's still some snow. It's just being able to get out on some hills, with smooth pavement, no traffic and no other sounds. It was also cool to see a few other people out for a ride.

Part two: Time to talk about my back. Off the bike, on a daily basis, my back feels fine. No pain. I'm stretching every day and working in more and more core exercises. On the bike, I need to build my back's tolerance for saddle time. It was a little stiff on the bike yesterday, but some more LSD riding should build up my stamina. In hindsight, a lack of activity over the winter (including a lack of core exercises), probably contributed to my back going out on me.
In an effort to keep my back pain free, I'm staying home tomorrow and not riding the Paris-Roubaix. Of course I'm disappointed not to be riding..I've ridden this event for the past 4 years, and it's one of the things I look forward to every spring. I thought about just "riding", as opposed to treating it like a race, but I just KNOW that I would try and hammer from the start, and as soon as I would inevitably be dropped, I'd be struggling. Not fun. So hopefully I can get out for a couple rides this weekend and get back into shape.

And this sucks even more

2011-04-08T21:09:00.000-04:00

I've been struggling since Tuesday morning with a bad back; it went out on me when I was picking Lil'D up from her stroller. I've been pretty gimpy since, with things slowly improving, but it means no racing this weekend, and probably not next weekend, either. Needless to say, this sucks.

This is pretty much how I feel, injured and out of shape.

I'm not sure if it's because of all the riding I did last weekend, but I sort of joked that maybe I need a more compliant cross bike, you know, steel, carbon, or titanium. I could argue that it's medically necessary, to take harshness out of the road and prevent future pain. I'm sure my wife would go for that, heh heh!

That kinda sucked

2011-04-04T22:41:00.000-04:00

Some time ago, I booked today off work for one sole reason: to put in a nice long ride. However, when I was looking at the forecast last night, the most I was hoping for was a 3 hour ride based on the little cloud icons with rain drops. Then, when I got up this morning and it was snowing out, I remained optimistic and was still thinking 3 hour ride. Temps didn't increase by much, and my riding buddy for the day wimped out on account of the shite weather. So I suited up...merino socks and base layer, gore-tex socks, booties, wind panel tights and jersey, waterproof gloves...the whole nine yards, and headed out.

So yeah, it was pretty miserable out. Damp, windy and cold. As soon as I got going I didn't feel too bad at all. I headed across to Hull and north towards Old Chelsea. About 40-45 minutes in, it started raining harder and felt like the temps were dropping. This is when I started thinking "this isn't all that fun". Then water started seeping past the outer layers and onto my skin. First it was my arms, then hands,and then my lower legs. Cold and wet...not what I had in mind for a ride. At the 1 hour mark, and turned around and traced my route back home. My hands were getting colder and more wet...my waterproof gloves that I was raving about a few weeks back were letting me down. There was a seam at the base of the palm that seemed to be letting water in. On top of that, the sleeves from my jacket were funneling water into my gloves (next time, arm cuff will go OVER my glove cuff).

I got home after 2 hours, with cold, numb hands (followed by the burn of regaining sensation, OUCH!!). I didn't really feel like I got much out of my ride today, BUT it was 2 hours more than I would normally do in these types of conditions, so I have to at least take that away from today.

4 down, 1 to go...

2011-04-03T21:19:00.000-04:00

...as in 4 days in row of riding, with 1 more to go.

I started things off last Thursday morning...I start work at 11:00 on Thursdays, so I squeezed in a 90 minute ride before work, heading up towards the park and tackling some climbing on Notch road. Good way to start the day.

Friday, I took the afternoon off work and put in 3 hours. It was a brutal ride because the wind was relentless. I planned my ride to start off heading into the wind, but that meant about 1.5 hours of riding into a stiff North-West wind...as Big Ring would say "Fugg me!!!" I was SO looking forward to the part of my loop where I would make a right hand turn towards the East and have the wind at my back. Even with a tailwind, I didn't manage any kind of remarkable cruising speed because of the hurt the wind has put on me. Right towards the end of my ride, my rear wheel flatted, one of those quick "pfffffft!!!!" followed by a loud "whoosh!!!!" and then flat in about 2 seconds. My tire had a nice gash in the sidewall, but luckily I had some trusty Park tire boot with me (never leave home without it!). It was a bittersweeet demise for my tire...it was a brand new tire, a Bontrager R2 25c, but inflated, it only measures 23c. So it sucked that it was a new tire, but it wasn't a big loss since it wasn't what I really wanted in the first place.

This motley crew of wild turkeys was outside a house just off Carling Ave. I rode by here to check out the bike path, which is still covered with patchy snow.

Saturday, Jamie hooked me up with a ride out to Rockland to re-con the course for next weekend's Rockland-Clarence Classic. We picked up Matt and met up with 8 other riders at the ubiquitous Rockland landmark...Wal-Mart. I did this race last year on my road bike (with a 28c up front and a 25c in the rear), so I decided to ride my cross bike with 28's and see how I'd fare. I didn't feel beat up at the end of the ride like I did last year, probably due to a more upright position on my cross bike and a lower average speed. However, the hurt was put on due to the previous day's ride, and once again, the wind. On quite a few occasions I'd lose touch with the lead group, and then suddenly be confronted with an insurmountable gap, pedaling as hard as I could and going nowhere fast, only to be scooped up by the trailing group. It also made me realize what a winter of inactivity does to one's fitness. I have to accept that next weekend's "race" will be more of a "ride". However, it's also early in the season with plenty more riding to be had.

Today was an easy 90 minute recovery spin. Before heading out, I really didn't feel like riding at all...I was tired and sore, but once out on the bike, I felt fine, and enjoyed the sun and brisk temps.

Yup, that's a hockey net in the pic. Winter just seems to be holding on with everything it's got.

Tomorrow I have the day off, so I'm gonna put in one more ride and then be done with this little "training block". The only downside is the forecast....cold, wind and rain. I was hoping to put in 4 hours, but that might get shortened depending on what the weather ends up doing.

Cold enough to....

2011-03-28T22:41:00.000-04:00

....freeze the balls on a brass monkey.

We all know it was cold this past weekend, cold and windy. Not ideal riding weather at all, although the roads are pretty much bone dry. I got in two quickies...two short rides that is...I mean two short BIKE rides. I'm not gonna go into detail about my rides, but talk briefly about some new equipment...BIKE equipment.

First, a new saddle. I've been using my current road saddle for about 5 seasons. It's a Selle Italia SLC Carbonio, and looking at it is enough to make you cross your legs and feign being kicked in the nuts. Over the years, I've had many people ask "Is that comfortable?!?!?!?!" But the thing is, I've ridden it for so long because it IS comfortable. Because of its design, it flexes a lot, and as a result, moves with me. BUT, in the last season and a bit, it's been getting a bit uncomfortable, right where the saddle starts to narrow (where the REAL sensitive bits sit, if you catch my drift).

The old perch. A Selle Italia SLC Carbonio.

For the most part, a comfortable saddle. Lately, it's been bugging me towards the nose of the saddle, near where the cut out ends. Too much pressure/weight on a small amount of material.

I started my quest for a new saddle last year, and demoed a Bontrager Inform saddle, and did not find it comfy at all. The saddle was very flat and didn't distribute pressure very well. I recently decided to give a different Bontrager saddle a go...the Affinity RL. At the beginning of my ride on Sunday, I felt it right away....it felt much harder than my Selle Italia, despite being more cushioned. Towards the end of my ride though (a short 100 minute ride), I hardly noticed it was under me...a good sign. I'll have to see how it holds up after some longer multi hour rides, though.

Bontrager Affinity RL...Already dirty! The middle of the saddle, where that black design is, dips down to take pressure off my "sensitive bits".

The other new component was a pair of Look Keo 2 max pedals. I wanted to replace my current Looks (Keo Sprint), because the plastic body was starting to wear out wear it contacts the cleats. I'm hoping the metal platform of the Keo 2 will have a bit more longevity. The best part about the new pedals though, were the cleats. They're "grippy". No walking around like a stiff legged old man trying not to wipe out on any semi slick surface.

Lots of wear, especially over on the right next to the Look logo.

The metal contact area should hold up to wear and tear.

The old cleat. Good luck trying to walk up and down painted wood stairs (like the staircase in the old Pipolinka).

The new cleat. The dimpled areas at the base and the tip are a softer plastic/rubber that offers traction when off the bike. A welcome addition.

I don't know what else to say about the pedals...I've been using Looks for as long as I've been road biking; I like them and they work. Never have to adjust them or maintain them. That in itself is good enough for me.

Blingy road bikes

2011-03-21T21:52:00.000-04:00

"Should be a perfect day for the blingy all-road bikes that have been hiding indoors all winter."

This was in the email that Matt sent out on Saturday. After a dry ride on Saturday, I thought "Wicked, I'm gonna bust out my road bike for Sunday." After four plus hours and 114km of riding out to Cascades and Wakfield with a good crew, this was my road bike (or the worst of it):

Any bling was gone. Lessons learned: 1) Dry roads on the Ontario side does not mean dry roads on the Quebec side. 2) Don't listen to Matt.

I have to poke just a little fun at Matt, but I was also the only one in a group of 8 who showed up without fenders. DOH!

All in all, a great ride out in the sun, good company, and sore legs today.

Dry roads

2011-03-19T21:04:00.000-04:00

Tried taking pics with my phone today. Figured I should try and figure out how to take advantage of all the features on the damn thing. Not as user friendly as my point and shoot, but if I take a ton of shots, laws of probablility should mean I get at least ONE good pic.

Short-ish ride today (2 hours), on my fendered cross bike, but the roads were in such good shape (as in dry) that I could have ridden my road bike. Spring is here.

The smell of spring is in the air.

Spring is coming!!!

2011-03-13T23:14:00.000-04:00

Usually, the sure-fire sign that spring is here is the unmistakable smell of defrosting dog shit permeating the air. However, that *oh so lovely* smell was absent this past weekend. But by my standards, two tell-tale signs that spring is approaching are:
1) I got out for 2 consecutive road rides, and
2) Seasonal spring beers are starting to hit the shelves.

On Saturday, I took advantage of the (barely) above freezing temps to get out for a ride to the middle of nowhere. "Nowhere" was actually "somewhere" north west of Dunrobin, exploring some roads I've never ridden before. The nice thing about the middle of nowhere is that the country roads are clear and dry. By constrast, the city roads are covered with runoff, dirt, snowbanks encroaching on bike lane space and spray from cars. Sunday was a shorter ride, but higher in intensity due to stronger winds. The bottom line here is that roads on the Ontario side are great for riding.

And now, on to the good stuff...beer, and a seasonal beer to look for, Amsterdam Spring Bock. Bock is a German term for a strong beer; variations include doppelbock and urbock. Doppelbock translates as "double bock", and is traditionally very malty, with little bitterness and an alcohol content ranging from 7 to 13% ABV.

Amsterdam Spring Bock..."respect the bock".

I haven't had many encounters with Bock style beers, and I tend to avoid them...I was turned off by Creemore Springs Urbock which I found to be too bitter for my liking. However, I decided to give this offering from Amsterdam Beer a try.

As you can see, VERY dark for a lager. And check my new drinking vessel!

This beer did not disappoint. It lives up to the expectation of a traditonal dopplebock, very malty, slightly sweet, with no bitterness whatsoever. The bottle stated this was a "2010 vintage", so it was a year old, and well worth the wait. For me, the basic measure of a beer's worth is would I buy it again, and this beer gets a resounding yes.

For an interesting read about the origins of doppelbock, check out the following (from germanbeerinstitute.com):
"Doppelbock emerged in the late eighteenth century as a powerful lager variant of the old monastic strong beer, the monks' "liquid bread," which they traditionally brewed for the Lenten season. Living by the strict rules of their order, the monks were regularly required to castigate themselves by periodic bouts of fasting, when next to no solid food was allowed to pass their lips. The longest and most taxing of these periods of culinary abstinence was, of course, Lent, the 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. Because the monks believed that liquids not only cleansed the body but also the soul, they would make plenty of liquid instead of solid bread from their grain, and then drink it in copious quantities...the more, the holier. Because the monks were society's role models in those religious times...as did the monks so did the common folk. The secular verson of the sacred strong bier was called a Bockbier."

So for those of you who give something up for Lent, it would be sacrilegious to give up beer!

Ultimate XC

2011-03-10T10:58:00.000-05:00

Every year, when I'm thinking about potential races for the upcoming season, I always include one or two events that I've never done before. A couple of months back, I came across The Ultimate XC, a 3 day adventure stage race that takes place at Mt. Tremblant. Day 1 is a 67km kayak, day 2 a 58 km trail run and day 3 a 100km mountain bike. You can choose to do individual days, and distances vary. There was absoulutely no way that I was going to register for the whole shebang...a 67km kayak would probably reduce me to smithereens, and with a lack of long distance kayak experience, my biggest concern would be trying to take a whiz over the side of the boat. Instead, I opted for the 50km mountain bike race. There's a selection criteria to enter the mountain bike races based on results in Quebec enduro races and past race experience. In other words, I had to send in my "race resume", because according to the description, this will be the hardest race I've ever done:

"The races are set on the toughest terrain we found in Tremblant. Although at least 97% of the race course is ridable, you should still expect having to dismount a few times to take a break.You should be prepared for a 7 hour day if you are doing the 50 km race and a good 10 hours if you are registering for the 100 km. Only very experienced riders with extensive background in endurance mountain biking should consider doing the entire distance at a pace faster that 11 km an hour average."

I'm not so sure about 7 hours for a 50 km race....compared with other races I've done, I wouldn't expect more than 3 hours. BUT, I've never ridden at Tremblant, so I'm not too sure what to expect in terms of trails and terrain. However, this convenient little video gives you a taste of what to expect:

So a lot of technical climbing from the looks of it, a bit of downhill biz...I'm starting to think it's going to be almost 50km of straight up technical rocky, rooty singletrack...great. But as long as they play the Beastie Boys during the race, I'm fine with that. Whatever the course has in store, though, it should be challenging (in a good way), and it's only a 2 hour drive away...bonus. At least I have almost 3 months to get ready for this, while the first race of the year that I'm eyeing is only 1 month away. All of this snow is definitely not helping, and as long I know now that I'm gonna suffer, a month from now, I *think* I'll manage. That's what I have to tell myself, anyway, and hope that my bubble doesn't burst.

New Gloves

2011-03-05T22:25:00.000-05:00

Whoa!!! What's going on?!?!?!?! Two posts within a week...crazy talk!!! Ok, silliness aside, today's forecast was essentially crap. Snow in the morning, changing to rain, followed by rain and more rain. I was determined though, to get out for a ride, and despite the cold piss coming down, riding I did go (do I sound like Yoda??????). Within 5 minutes of heading out, I was questioning how smart/safe it was to be out riding. The roads were slushy, with packed snow/ice in places, sometimes hidden by massive puddles. Not what I was hoping for. Add on top of that poor visibility, limited space to ride, and drivers most likely not expecting a cyclist on the roads, I just didn't feel safe riding my bike. After 30 minutes of apprehensive riding, I decided to turn around, head back home and relegate myself to the trainer. However, as I approached my house, I decided to check out some of the major roads south west of my place, as they have wide, paved shoulders. Well, I was in luck, so I "kept on truckin", battling the rain and cold temps. Once I got home, I had put in close to 2 hours of riding...not bad for a crap day.

So, the title of this post alludes to some new gloves I picked up. (You're probably saying to yourself "No sh*t sherlock".) For awhile, I've been trying to find a pair of warm, waterproof gloves for riding in cold, rainy temps like today. I've had my eyes on a pair of Gore Bike Wear Cross gloves or Count Down gloves, but they never seemed to be available when I wanted to get a pair, so instead I settled for the Bontrager RXL Thermal. This glove fit the bill...warm primaloft insulation, and seam sealed to keep water out. I was eager to try out these gloves, which is partly why I was stubborn enough to go for a ride today.

So what can I say about these gloves? The main thing is that they kept my hands dry. Plain and simple. 2 hours of rainy riding, and not a drip of water made it to my hands. The only downside was that the gloves don't have a DWR coating, so they became wet and water logged, which meant that my hands eventually got cold. Every so often I would clench my fist and squeeze the water out of the gloves. I'm gonna spray these suckers down with some Nikwax to make them water repellant and prevent the exterior from absorbing water. It's also nice to have the dexterity of a glove, as opposed to a split finger mitt or "lobster" mitt. All in all, I'm happy with these gloves. They retail for $69, which makes them cheaper than the Gore Bike Wear gloves.

I've been a bum

2011-02-28T21:15:00.013-05:00

Quite the bum. You could also say lazy, a slacker, indifferent, passive, apethetic...you get the idea. Since sometime in, oh I don't know.... November(???), I've seriously neglected my ABC's: activity, blogging and cycling. In that time frame, being active has been a handful of hikes, snowshoe outings, skates on the canal and an afternoon of snowboarding. Blogging has been hoping that people continue to enjoy my Merry Christmas greeting until March, and cycling has been....pretty non-existent. I HAVE been commuting to work all winter, and have only missed three days due to snow, but I usually don't count commuting as any kind of training.

One of the few hikes I got out on this winter, with a little extra resistance training!

Well, it dawned on me last week that I probably have the current fitness level of a couch potato. So I rode the trainer for the FIRST time this winter just 10 days ago, and got out for road rides the past two weekends. Oh, and I went to watch the roller races 2 weekends ago, but that only involved drinking beer. Which also leads to the other subject of my blog...beer. Trust me, drinking beer has NOT been neglected this winter. Come to think of it, I may have been drinking just a little TOO much beer...all the more reason to get my ass in gear. I know I'm in for a real wake up call come spring, but that's OK. I feel like my priorities have shifted a bit, and that means getting odd jobs and small renos done around the house. Of course, these small jobs end up turning into big projects and involve multiple trips to Home Depot, but I'm learning crap like how to replace plumbing pipes and "handy man" stuff like that.

Thankfully, I haven't turned into this...yet.

I'm actually more like this dude these days, right down to the brown overalls and the massive guns.

Hopefully I can show a bit more discipline over the next few weeks and keep up the likes of these roller riding pros come the spring.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T22:50:00.000-05:00

A little holiday cheer with my most favourite Christmas song of all time. Enjoy.

Paved Bike Mag

2010-12-17T21:52:00.000-05:00

I like magazines. I don't read books that often...actually very rarely, but magazines...there's something about the glossy, colourful pages and bright pictures that manages to hold my short attention span "just" long enough. So in a (not so) recent magazine purchasing binge, I discovered a new bike magazine.

Paved bike mag, which states on the cover "A brand new skinny tire magazine from the editors of Bike." As you can guess, the focus is entirely on road biking.

Flipping through the mag, there are lots of pics, some quite amazing pictures, actually. The kind that you look at and appreciate in an arty kind of way, but also make you wanna run out the door and head out for a ride. (Then you realize you're biking through the flat farms around Ottawa instead of the Italian Dolomites).

Col du Glandon, France

After a long ride...

Italian Dolomites.

As well as having lots of pretty pictures to look at, there are also some good articles. For the most part, they are well written and captivating enough to keep me engaged until the end of the article. Topics covered include the Italian Dolomites, The Tour of Flanders, doping (enough already!!) and interviews with Steve Hed and Chris Carmichael among others. There are reviews of some sweet commuter bikes, but the P&A (parts and accessories) reviews were a little lacking, and that's usually my favourite section of any bike magazine...the eye candy that I want to spend my hard earned cash on.

Young Belgian entrepreneurs...that ain't no lemonade that they're selling.

Overall, I'd say that it was a good magazine, with decent mix of incredible pics and interesting articles. On a sidenote, I've never flipped through Rouleur or Embrocation magazines, but I imagine that Paved is going for a similar feel. Issue #2 should be out soon, and I'm curious to see what it has in store.

Another new magazine that I've yet to come across at my local magazine stands (which actually only consists of Chapter's and a tiny magazine shop next to my work) is Peloton magazine. Not much to say here, other than I hope that the magazine is better than their website, which is absolutely horrible...everything is very small, hard to navigate through and feels like it was thrown together with no real thought ...like a lot of Ottawa bike lanes.

I'll have more magazine reviews in the future...I'm currently making my way through Wend (more of a travel magazine) and Mountain Flyer, a mountain bike mag from the western U.S. of A.

'Tis the season

2010-12-05T22:02:00.000-05:00

Wow! It's been 2 weeks since I last showed my face here. This is a brief post, just urging you to head to the LCBO and check the selection of seasonal beers and gift packs. The following is a sampling of some beers that I picked up, but haven't tried yet, so get out there and give them a go for yourself.

Winter ales. Typically darker, stronger and a touch sweeter than conventional ales. I tried the St. Peter's winter ale last year, and found it went really well with, believe it or not, shortbread. The Great Lakes Brewery winter ale features hints of cinnamon, honey, ginger and orange peel, while the Samuel Smith winter welcome ale remains rather mysterious, as there isn't a lot of info on the web about it other than reviews on beer advocate.

Innis and Gunn....'Nuff said. But in case you're wondering, there's a gift pack featuring the regular brew, plus a bottle of rum cask, winter ale and an Innis & Gunn glass. In the green box is the Highland Cask, aged in casks used for a 21 year old single malt scotch.

Southern Tier Imperial Choklat Stout; this heavy weight comes in with 9.5% alc.....proceed with caution! Harviestoun Ola Dubh special 12 reserve; similar to Innis & Gunn, it's matured in single malt scotch casks. There's also a special reserve 16 and a special reserve 30, which costs close to $20 for a 330ml bottle! Cannery Brewing Blackberry Porter (self-explanatory), coming out of Pentiction, BC.

Retired

2010-11-21T22:24:00.000-05:00

I remember the first cross race I ever did...I think it was in 2000 or '01. It was at Britannia park, I rode my mountain bike (a hardtail Devinci), and it was damn hot out for the end of September. I didn't fare very well, but what I remember the most was leading up to the race, asking my buddy Al (MacEachen) if he wanted to join me, and he said, I kid you not, "I'd rather get kicked in the nuts with a pair of frozen mukluks!" I find that cross creates pain in just about the whole body EXCEPT for the nuts (unless you mess up a remount), and I don't think getting kicked in the nuts would actually be more tolerable, but a funny story nonetheless. I just wanted to share that anecdote...it doesn't have much to do with the post or provide a segueway into anything, but it's funny as hell.

As the title of this post would imply, no more cross for me this year. I kind of already knew last week that I was done for the year. I skipped out this weekend because I need to study...I have a practical exam coming up in a week for the Canadian Pedorthic Association (to get my certification as a pedorthist), so that takes priority over getting muddy on my bike. Next week is out due to a family commitment, so there ya go, no more cross...and to be honest, I'm quite happy with that. I've had a bit of a love-hate relationship with cross this year. The courses are fun, technical and demanding, and it's a hell of a workout. However, because it is a race, a bit of my competitive nature comes out, and then I get frustrated with myself in terms of results. There is a long list of reasons why I haven't met my expectations this cross season (which I won't bore you with), but this was really my first "cross season". Before this year, I had done a total of 6 cross races (including that one from almost a decade ago). I did just as many this year alone, so I have learnt quite a bit and know what I need to do to ride better next year. The only goal that I have set for myself for next year, with regards to any biking, is to "do better at cross races". I haven't decided yet what that involves, exactly, but I have a lot of time to think about it. For now, other thoughts of what I want to accomplish next year are on hold while I practice doing plaster casts of Sonia's feet.

Time to pack these up.

Of course, between studying, I have time for "breaks", which means more beer reviews. First up is a seasonal offering from Mill Street, Schleimhammer Roggenbier (don't EVEN ask what that means). A bit of mystery shrouds this beer, as it's not featured on their website. After a bit of research, I found out that it's brewed in the style of a traditional German rye beer, using a mix of rye, wheat and barley malt. The aroma of this beer is really nice...a sweet rye smell combined with toasted malts and a hint of fruitiness. The complex aroma leads you to believe that this will be a full flavoured beer, and unfortunately, it disappoints. The flavour and the finish are faint, and left me wanting more. Probably wouldn't buy this one again.

Another seasonal Ontario offering is the Smoked Oatmeal Stout from Trafalgar Ales and Meads. This beer has all the hallmarks of a stout; hints of caramel, toffee, chocolate, and coffee in the aroma. The initial flavour when it hits the tongue is quite nice, but is quickly taken over by a bitter aftertaste. This beer also has a very light body...almost watery; very uncharacteristic for a stout. Unfortunately, another disappointing beer. This one makes this post 0 for 2, and only 1 for 3 with respect to Trafalgar brewing.

RE-TAR-DED!!

2010-11-18T21:55:00.000-05:00

Hammer and Anvil Day 2 in Pictures

2010-11-15T21:14:00.000-05:00

Some random pics from the Ride with Rendall cross race on Sunday. If you're on facebook, I've got a bunch of pics up there. Caption free 'cause I'm feeling lazy. Enjoy!

Been a long time

2010-11-14T21:27:00.000-05:00

Saturday afternoon, I did something that I haven't done in awhile...go mountain biking. On top of that, I went mountain biking with Sonia. It was the first time in two years that we've gone mountain biking together, and Sonia's first ride at Kanata Lakes in the same amount of time. Despite mentioning in my last post that I have a sore wrist and a lack movtivation to ride, 5 inches of travel definitely makes riding easier, and I've been wanting to go mountain biking for awhile, so the motivation was there. The riding was much needed...good for the soul...that type of thing. Much thanks has to go out to the in-laws who babysat while Sonia and I got out for the afternoon.

Sonia on rockhopper.

Barrelling down outback.

A pause for the cause.

Towards the end of the ride, no joke, about 1 minute from the trailhead, I took a massive spill. Near the trailhead it was wet and muddy, and I was riding through the middle of puddles rather than go around like countless others have (and have contributed in a negative way). I was thinking to myself, "Big Ring would be proud" and then all of a sudden my front wheel dipped dooooown into a puddle, hit a rock, and I ended up in one fine muddy mess. All I could do was laugh, 'cause in the end, it was a great day of riding...exactly what I needed.

Is time up on the season? (Yeah, I know, that was cheesy.)

Anvil'd

2010-11-13T22:04:00.000-05:00

This is a weekend of cyclo cross in Ottawa. Ride with Rendall is hosting two days of racing with their Hammer and Anvil race, and the OBC is chugging along with their series despite the City of Ottawa cancelling their park permits. Three cross races this weekend, and I'm not doing a single one. What?!?!?!?! Blasphemy!!!! Well, I've got my excuses lined up, so take that.

1. Pain. This has nothing to do with the "god I'm suffering" that cross is all about, no. This is more of a "god I'm getting old and falling apart" type of pain. After each cross race, my right wrist is sore, and it hurts to move it. The crunchy noises that it produces with movement aren't very reassuring, either. I ice for a few days, it gets better, then I undo all good by racing again. So that's it. A break this weekend so that I don't speed up arthritis in my wrist.

2. Motivation. A lack of it. I can't get excited about racing, or even just riding. Case in point: I had last Thursday morning off work for Remembrance day. It was a beautiful sunny morning, and I thought for about 2 seconds about going for a ride, and instead, I just ended up slumming around the house in my pajamas.

3. Alcohol. I was in a, shall we say, dehydrated state this morning. NOT conducive to racing. 'Nuff said.

Now, I'm gonna rewind to Friday night, which relates to the "movin' 'n groovin" at the top of my blog (as well as my dehydrated state). I checked out some friends who were in town to play a gig at the Mercury Lounge. Their act is called Bonjay, and basically consists of a DJ/producer (Pho) and a vocalist (Alanna). The vibe is very much on the dancehall reggae tip, but is influenced by other genres, from hip hop to jazzy broken beats. Check out some tracks on their Myspace page.

Muskoka Harvest Ale

2010-11-09T22:37:00.000-05:00

Muskoka brewery in one Ontario brewery who's beers have not disappointed me. Awhile back I got a chance to sample all of their beers when I picked up their mixer pack. There's a good variety of different beers, from ales, to lager and wheat beer (although the pilsner light and the premium lager are pretty similar), but you're sure to find a favorite amongst the bunch.

One of every Muskoka beer is included in the mixer pack.

A seasonal that they have out now, and I wanted to try it and tell you about it before it runs out in stores, is their harvest ale. The description on the (750ml!) bottle reads "this is a well hopped pale ale made with a handpicked selection of locally grown ingredients...(it) is dry hopped to contribute a fresh aroma and a subtle grassy character to the ale, reminiscent of the harvest." Not being the harvesting type, this beer didn't bring back any memories of such, but grassy is one way to describe the flavour and aroma. I would even go so far to say there were hints of pine in there too. The grassy/pine characteristic definitely comes from the hops, and this is one hoppy beer. Of course, that leads to a bitter finish, but I don't mind bitterness when a beer has a real hoppy character. I tried this beer with a nice pot roast, which cut through the lingering bitterness. All that being said, if you want to try a hoppy ale, get this one before it's all gone.

Look at that! I managed to get more use out of our rotting Jack O'Lantern.

No cool props here, except for the Kona beer glass.

Almonte Cross take 2...in pictures

2010-11-08T19:08:00.000-05:00

As most of you know by now, the City of Ottawa has decided to revoke the park permits for the remainder of the cross season, meaning that yesterday's race was moved to the Almonte venue...which is not a bad thing. The course did not dissappoint....tight, technical, twisty, hilly, painful, slick, greasy, cold and wet. All the things that make for good cross riding. Yesterday's race was a family affair, with Sonia and Lil' D coming out to watch the potential carnage. That meant getting out the door a little on the late side, and only about a half lap for warm up...oh well. I'm not gonna talk about how the race went down for me, since it would sound pretty much like all other previous posts. So instead, I'm just gonna throw up some pics that Sonia took and make some feeble attempts to write witty captions. Enjoy!

Photographer and cheerleaders for the day.

Everone lookin pretty clean.

Bushtukah tech #1, Adrian. This corner was tricky, and I had a hard time nailing the perfect line here.

Bushtukah tech #2, Phil. Check the snot dripping from his nose. Taking a cue from the Original Big Ring, it's funny cause it's snot dripping from his nose.

Sonia likes this pic in an arty photo kind of way. Oh, and that's Rob flying up the long run-up from hell.

Not sure how I managed NOT to wipe out here.

According to Sonia, Matt ALMOST wiped out here.

Bushtukah tech #3, Geoff. Another one of Sonia's fave pics.

Darren and I were back and forth for most of the race. He got away from me on on the straights, and then I would catch up on the downhills, get ahead, and then get caught. On and on it went, until I wiped out on the last lap and couldn't make up the lost ground....damn bugger!

I'm pretty sure this is moments before Pascal started DRY HEAVING! That's right, DRY HEAVING!!!! Friggin' hardcore, man.

Rodd, displaying fine form.

This is what it's all about...

....and this too.

Tomorrow, a beer post!

Halloween Cross

2010-11-02T22:54:00.000-04:00

The front lawn Sunday morning.

So, this post might not seem that relevant anymore, since Halloween has come and gone, but I still need to inform the masses (the small mass that it is) about my back of mid pack cross results. Waking up Sunday morning to a blanket of snow and cold temps, I already knew that I'd be doing the cross race that morning, but I couldn't figure out for the life of me what I was going to wear..decisions, decisions. The problem with having bike clothes of different materials, weights etc is trying to figure out the best combo for the weather. In the end, I just packed a ton of stuff, and knowing that my ass was gonna get wet...lubed up.

Lathered up good with this stuff so my ass would, um, feel good while racing?

It was pretty friggin' cold for the start of the race, but I felt ready, clothing-wise. Got the heads up from Glen that the start of the course had some monster puddles and trying to keep the feet dry would be essential. So I threw on my Gore Tex socks, hoping they would do the trick. Off the start, the puddles were DEEP, but my feet stayed dry, and stayed that way for the rest of the race. The problem though, were my fingers. It didn't take long until it felt like I had blocks of ice instead of fingers on the end of my hands. It got so bad that I had to look at my shifter to make sure I was hitting the right lever. As the race went on, I started to get some feeling back, but after the race, my finger tips were BURNING as sensation started to creep back. This was by far the wettest, muddiest and greasiest cross race of the year so far, but for me, one of the most fun.

Don't mind the blank expression...I was focused on thawing out my fingers.

A rinse with the garden hose, some soaking and two washes got my jersey and gear clean.

Brakspear Triple, strong ale.

In keeping with my tradition of a cross and beer post, this week's offering is a strong ale from Brakspear brewing, Brakspear triple. It is a triple fermented beer, with two fermentations in the Brakspear "Double Drop" system (which remains a mystery), and the final fermentation in the bottle. With a higher alcohol content (7.2%), I was expecting a sweeter tasting beer, and that's exactly what I got. There was a hint of fruit in the taste and aroma, and the sweetness was not over-powering. This was balanced by a long finish that wasn't too bitter. This went down nicely after dinner, coupled with some dark chocolate.

The Choice is Yours

2010-10-25T22:34:00.000-04:00

First, an old school throw-back, which will make sense later on in the post.

So I didn't get out to race cross this weekend on account of:
1) a nagging right hip flexor which was most likely aggravated by cross (something to do with wildly swinging my leg over the saddle to re-mount) and would have been made worse by more cross.
2) there was plenty of stuff to do around the house, resulting in some swearing, and a few trips to home depot.
It's too bad, though, 'cause from what I've heard, the Perth course was one of the best in a long time.

I did manage to get out a road ride on Saturday (the hip flexor doesn't hurt when riding, so don't say "well, what about your hip?). I'm not gonna go into much detail, about the ride, since I headed up to the park and have ridden those roads countless times, but what I will say though, is that it was a friggin' workout! But then again, I've ridden an average of 3 hours a week for about the past 2 months, so what was I expecting?!?!?!?

So lastly, that leaves another beer review. This week it's not an Ontario beer, but a British ale, Black Sheep Ale (now you can see why I picked the "Black Sheep" video....get it? Yeah I know, a little cheesy, but aren't you glad I put up that video....A CLASSIC!!) The beer itself is a nice brilliant amber-copper colour, with a mellow aroma. The label describes this as "crisp, dry and bittersweet" and the flavour strikes a nice balance of sweetness and bitterness. The finish is on the bitter side of things, and in the words of the brewery, consists of "Black Sheep's uncompromising long, dry and bitter finish." They got that right! I think this beer would be best enjoyed with some food to offset the bitter finish (I didn't really have a chance to try it with some food since I just guzzled it down to replace carbs from my road ride). To me, this beer tastes like a lot of English Ales that I've tried. It's not a bad beer, I'd drink it again, but there's nothing really making it stand out amongst the sea of ales.

Almonte Cross and Trafalgar Ales and Meads

2010-10-18T22:31:00.000-04:00

Where to start? Talk about biking, or beer. Going by the expression "save the best for last", I'm gonna start with the biking, and finish with the beer.
This past weekend was the much anticipated Almonte cross race. I was looking forward to this one for 2 reasons:
1) the last time I rode an Almonte cross course was 2 years ago, and it was a fun course. Everyone talks about the Almonte courses being among their faves, and I'm sure this year would be no exception
2) I got a new bike!!!!

Looking pretty spiffy. An Opus Spark.

So yes, an Opus Spark. Aluminum frame with a carbon fork, decked out in full 105 components (except for the FSA Omega crank) and Mavic Aksium wheels. (Thanks to Dave at OGC for the hookup).

The Almonte course was, of course, fun, twisty, technical with lots of ups and downs. To start the race, I tried not to pedal my ass off too hard and blow up. Since we started doing laps around a gravel running track, it was easy to keep others in sight and take advantage of the draft. But as soon as the race hit the grass, my legs decided not to show up, and my pedaling generally lumbered for the rest of the race. On the second last and last laps, I managed to pcik up "a bit" of steam, and found myself out of the saddle trying to mash on the gears for small spurts at a time, but it was too little too late. So how did the bike ride? I found it a little twitchy at first, probably because the fit is a little on the small side of things. The shifting and braking were dependable, but I wonder how many muddy races it will take before the shifting starts to deteriorate. Did the bike make me any faster? No. I need to work on that one!

"A little" dirtier in the space of an hour.

So now on to the beer. Trafalgar Ales and Meads is an Ontario craft brewery out of Oakville. I recently tried two of their beers (they have an extensive selection); the Elora Grand Lager and Elora Irish Ale.

Trafalger Elora Grand Lager

The Trafalgar website describes their Grand Lager as "a light colored but full flavored lager, brewed in the Plisner style, at full strength". This beer definitely has a nice initial flavour, but then it has a bitter aftertaste that sort of creeps up on you. Because of this, I wasn't a big fan of this beer.

Trafalgar Elora Irish Ale.

On the other hand, the Elora Irish Ale was a winner. What's an Irish Ale? I'm not exactly sure, but a bit of googling reveals that it's usually a red ale due to roasted barley. The Trafalgar site simply describes it as a "brown ale reminiscent of the old style of ale brewing. Brewed as an “anytime ale” this beer is smooth and refreshing". Smooth and refreshing...damn straight!!!! Overall, in terms of the aroma, flavour and finish, this beer had a nice balance between sweet and bitter, leaning towards the sweet side of things. This was full bodied as you would expect from a dark beer, but didn't leave me feeling full...instead I wanted more. One down side was very little carbonation...not sure if this was an intentional part of the brewing process or not. The other bonus with this beer...a 650ml bottle!

Nice and dark.

Turkey Cross and Pumpkin Ale

2010-10-11T22:42:00.000-04:00

Thanksgiving Sunday and race #3 in the OBC cyclocross series. Since I've determined that I suck at cross, I figured the race would be a good opportunity to work up an appetite for dinner at my parent's (my Mom always whips up a mean meal!).

I might as well include a quick little blurb here about the race itself. The course wasn't very technical, had lots of long straightaways, little climbing and long uphill run-ups....all things that don't work in my favour at all. I had a decent start, and was hoping that I would gain steam as the race progressed. But somewhere along the way, I started to fade, and then completely ran out of steam by the 2nd last lap (which I was hoping was the last lap...not a good sign). I think it had something to do with this:

Great Lakes Brewery Pumpkin Ale

The night before the race, involved a *fair* amount of alcohol consumption, with minimal fluid replacement (never a good combo the day before a race....I'll never learn!). In the mix was a seasonal brew from Great Lakes Brewery, their Pumpkin Ale. The description on the bottle states that a generous amount of pumpkin was added directly to the brew, along with hints of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and allspice. Taking a good whiff of the beer before taking a sip, it smells just like pumpkin pie. On the first sip, there's no taste of pumpkin that I could pick out, just a good tasting ale, with a touch of sweetness. The spices come though in the finish though, reminding you that you're drinking pumpkin pie beer!

A little cloudy, but reminds you that you're drinking a limited run craft beer.

A little bike talk to wrap things up. The next couple of pics show you that this was the muddiest race of the year (so far). I'm just hoping that my new cross bike show up this week so I don't destroy the parts on my Mendotta, which I'm planning to sell. I've got an Opus Spark on the way (can't remember if I mentioned that or not in a previous post...not that it really matters). I'm *hoping* that a proper cross bike gives me some sort of advantage in the upcoming races...it would probably be more of a placebo effect than anything else, but I'll take whatever I can get at this point in time.

The muddiest race so far...I'm getting tired of cleaning my bike every Sunday...my mountain bike doesn't even get this dirty!

My poor drivetrain.

Oktoberfest and Cross

2010-10-04T23:01:00.000-04:00

Oktoberfest and Cycloscross together. I think it's an idea that has potential. Picture it...lots of beer, food and festivities. Guarenteed beer drinking spectators on hand to witness potential carnage. For the racers, tasty food and cold beer after a lung busting effort. What could be better? Food (and beer) for thought....

Saturday, I checked out the Beau's brewery Oktoberfest in Vankleek Hill. Since first hearing about this event, I've wanted to check it out, but for some reason it flew below the radar this year. On Thursday though, my buddy Karl came to the rescue, saying that we were gonna go.

After an hour drive to get to the Vankleek hill fairgrounds, we knew we had found the right place, since the the street (and I do mean the ONE street) was packed with cars. We didn't have to wait long for a parking spot, though. On our way to the gate, we spotted people sporting green hats (there's a name for them, the hats that is, but I have no idea what it is), and we kind of joked about how they were really getting into the spirit of things. Well, lo and behold, our admission included one of our very own funky green hats. Once in the fairgrounds, there were TONS of revelers. It wasn't overly crowded, which was nice, and it was easy to find our way around. The overall mood was...jovial, but not messy. This was at 4 in the afternoon, though.

Click on the pic for a better view of the crowds and the sea of "green hats".

Karl, with beer and sporting his hat!

We drank, we ate, we drank some more. We sat in on a talk called "A beer tour of Germany" hosted by Mirella Amato. Who knew we would get some education while sipping beer? Sitting next to us at the talk was one of the brewmasters for the Clocktower pub, who invited us to drop by some time for a sampling of their seasonals....NICE!

Amongst the multitude of local food vendors, we sampled the following:
Beef Brisket from The Branch.
Warm Choucroute Sandwich from Domus Cafe
Peameal Sandwich from the Royal Restaurant
Festivale chocolate Ice Cream Bar from Pascales's All Natural Ice Cream

There was an assortment of limited edition beers from Beau's that we tried (descriptions from the Beau's website):

Opa’s Gose: An ancient German style of beer that predates the German Purity Act of 1516, this is a wheat beer brewed with coriander and sea salt. Expect to find a crisp, tart and refreshing wheat beer an interesting saltiness and clove and coriander highlights
Late Night Sneaky Dunkel: Dark as night and at 6.3% alc/vol this beer will sneak up on you! A Bavarian style originating from the 16th century, but with roots dating back to 800BC, this is a dark wheat beer and in keeping with the modern Purity Law. Malt forward and lightly hopped with some yummy roastiness; aromas of banana and clove.
Happy Pils: A bohemian pilsner, brewed with 25% local grains and wet hopped with local hops too! Crisp, refreshing and light, but with a malty backbone and a light, peppery spice from the local hops, this special wild oats selection was brewed by brewer Chris Maxfield.
Night Marzen: Bready malt backbone complimented by a firm hop presence and high drinkability.

Hmmm, which beer was this one? Sneaky Dunkel? Night Marzin? It all gets a little blurry after awhile, but the beers were definitely tasty.

Luther Wright and the Wrongs. Catchy name, and for country music (I'm not usually down with country music), not too bad. This was later in the evening, when things started to get, um, messy. Not for me specifically, but I had fun watching the "messiness".

After a night's sleep, not enough water and a lingering cold, it was off to Britannia Park for the Madison race. I was paired up with my buddy Jeff from work. We're actually pretty even when it comes to cross (he beat me by a measly 4 seconds last week), which means we both suck, so that makes for a fair pairing, right? So what about the racing? It was a fun, twisty course (thanks in part to the course marking of the Tall Tree team), but I still struggled. I'm hoping that I can race myself into shape and pull off some sort of a decent result at some point in the series.

Jeff, looking pretty serious, checking out the course.

Post race, green everywhere.

Finally! I'm not the only one sporting a Bushtukah kit. Geoff giving the madison race two thumbs up.

Peter, a fellow "Bushtuker", but sans kit. Looking pretty suave nonetheless.

Cyclocross....and beer!

2010-09-26T22:43:00.000-04:00

Cross and beer go hand in hand...or at least in Europe it does.

For me, beer just helps to numb the pain (more about that later...).

Today was my initiation into the 2010 cross season. Being my 2nd cross race in two years (my only race last year was the Madison), combined with a lack of intensity in the last ummmmmm, while, I didn't exactly have high hope or expectations. I was hoping merely to survive, and yeah, I survived, but DAMN, that shit hurt today. On top of all that, I was using my commuter bike (minus rack and fenders, but plus cross tires) since my cross bike hasn't arrived yet (an Opus Spark).

Here's a quick rundown of how the race went down for me:

-no warm up, except about 5 mins of riding around before the start
-waiting for the start, remembered that my tire pressure was too high from riding over, so I let some (maybe too much) air out of the front and then was worried it was too soft
-tried to gun it off the start, which was a mistake, 'cause by the 2nd or 3rd lap (I can't remember now....it was all a blur), I thought a) I was gonna puke, and b) I wanted to quit. I decided at that point to bring the pace down a bit and try and recover. This meant being passed and gaps growing ahead of me, but I couldn't care less at this point. I just kept pedalling
-my rear tire pressure was WAY too high, which resulted in a lot of rear sliding, including an awesome full 180 slide while staying up!
-by the 2nd last lap, my legs decided to show up, and when the bell rang for the last lap, I had it in me to increase the pace and I managed to make up quite a few spots...my last lap ended up being my fastest

So yeah, today hurt. Cross always hurts...I just don't have the engine for these short intense efforts. But it's still fun, and gives me something to look forward to each weekend.

What the?!?!?! How the...?!?!?!?!? Yup. Grass BETWEEN the rim and tire bead. I have no friggin' idea how this happened, but it just looks cool.

As I mentioned above, drinking beer not only numbs the pain incurred from racing cross, but it also helps replace those precious carbs. Anyway, turns out that there are actually people out there who check this blog for beer reviews, so I'm gonna lay one on ya. Mill Street's Lemon Tea Beer was something I discovered a few months ago, and I can't get enough of this beer. It makes a great summer beer...it's a light and refreshing wheat beer with a hint of lemon, and is also infused with orange pekoe and earl grey tea. But who's kidding, this is a damn fine beer any time of year.

Trailer loop

2010-09-21T22:42:00.000-04:00

This past Sunday, I got out for a family bike ride. We loaded up the car and drove up to Gatineau Park for a loop of the parkway. There were a couple of firsts, so to speak...Sonia's first loop of the park in about 2 years, and my first loop this year with the trailer. Let me just say that if I had known what a workout a loop with the trailer was gonna be, then I would have been doing it all year long. It was HARD! I now know what part of my training will be next year...only downside is that Lil' D will be heavier!

Lil' D slept for a good chunk of the ride, but when she woke up, she was babbling something like "Daddy, go faster! Cross starts in a week and you need to get in shape!"

Sonia and her "I'm having fun!" face. (Click on the pic for a larger view and you'll see what I mean.)

The rest....

2010-09-11T22:22:00.000-04:00

...of my Quebec vacation. Or rather, the rest of my vacation that involved biking. The second half of our trip consisted of 4 nights in Baie Saint Paul, one of the earliest establishments in the Province of Quebec. One thing I was reminded of in Quebec is that it's a province steeped in history dating back to the 1500's. It's easy to forget this when considering that Canada is only 143 years old.
The drive to Baie Saint Paul from Ste Anne de Beaupre was short but eventful...the constant up and down of highway 138 tested the engine on our fully loaded up Hyundai Elantra...I was downshifting A LOT on the climbs. However, the drive down into Baie St. Paul was a stunning plummet into a valley.

So on to the biking. One day we did a little tour of an island called Ile aux Coudres (hazelnut island). On the drive to the ferry, we decended a hill that started out at 10%, and then bottomed out at 18%! This was one of many times on our trip where it felt as though the road we were on was going to plummet into the St. Lawrence. After a quick ferry ride to the island, we put together our bike trailer, loaded up Lil’ D and started riding into a vicious headwind. The roads were relatively flat…and the loop was only 23km. Overall it was a very leisurely ride, which unfortunately was lacking any real points of interest, or any lookouts for that matter. The view across the St. Lawrence to the North Shore however was quite impressive, despite being a hazy and humid day. An interesting thing to note...475 years ago, Jacques Cartier landed on Ile aux Coudres...now there's some history!

This hill starts at 18% then "mellows out" at 10% before reaching the top. (Sorry about the poor picture quality....it was hazy and the shore was pretty far away.)

Cruising around Ile aux Coudres.

Leaving the island, we were parked on this 10% grade while waiting for the ferry. Hills were a recurring theme in the Charlevoix area, and I was blown away by the sheer size of them...to be honest, they're not just hills in this area, but mountains. This a beautiful part of the country, no doubt.

On our last day in Baie St. Paul, I got out for a short ride, that involved a 5km climb out of the town. The average grade of the climb was 10%, and it took me 17 minutes to crest. After it flattened out, I continued on, and when I had reached 25 minutes since the start of the climb, I had already ascended 400 metres! Coming back down the climb, the last 2km provided some amazing views into the valley that comprises Baie St. Paul.

The signs don't lie.

The road just before it plummeted down.

I stopped at a lookout to snap some pics...this is the bay that obviously gives Baie St. Paul its name.

This sign was in Ste. Anne de Beaupre. Unfortunately, this had nothing to do with cycling, or a cyclorama for that matter (whatever a cyclorama might be!). Turns out the building next to this sign houses a 360 degree mural depicting scenes from Jerusalem. Needless to say, I was quite disappointed.

Raid Velo Mag

2010-09-07T21:36:00.000-04:00

Since it's been over a week since I did this race here's a quick easy to read write up (for those like myself with short attention spans):
-largest mass start I’ve ever been in…there were about 500 lined up for the start. It was pretty cool lining up in the heart of old Quebec City in front of the Chateau Frontenac

The start in Old Quebec.

-SKETCHY neutralized start out of Quebec City. Constant accordian effect of the pack…slowing and speeding, narrowing and getting wider…with oncoming traffic at times!! The neutralized start did make for a good warm up, though. The other bonus was having a police escort out of Quebec City.

-once off road, we rode, and rode, and rode on an ATV trail under power lines. At times it was fun…lots of climbing, gnarly rocky downhills and some cool slick rock sections. It was fast riding, but it felt like A LOT of ATV trails, and I was certainly glad when they were done.

-a brutally long climb that started at around the 40km mark. Many riders (myself included) were death marching up this thing.

-this was followed by a long stretch of gravel roads which provided some much needed relief and recovery

-with about 14km to go, we started climbing MSA. This was another TOUGH climb that had me walking for a bit. The course merged with the same road used for the hill climb the day before, and right away I was thinking "great! I'm gonna ride to the top of Mt. Ste. Anne twice within 24 hours!" The climbing didn’t last “too” long though. And we didn't go to the top of MSA, but then...

-the course turned to the right...downhill!!! The last 10km was downhill singletrack….basically a 10km Super D after 67km of racing. This section would have been tons of fun…if it wasn’t at the end of the race! It definitely was tough just to shift gears at times 'cause I had no strength left in my hands after some of the rocky downhill sections.

Crossing the finish, completely spent.

There was a strong contingent of Ottawa riders, all of whom placed really well. Imad, Neil, and Rob all placed in the top 20 overall, while Dave was 34th and I finished 45th. I was surprised and happy with my result, since I found this to be an incredibly hard event, and my fitness this year has not been close to what it was last year.

Would I do this event again? I think so. I would know what to expect terrain wise, and would train specifically for this (lots of climbing!). One thing though, I wouldn't want to do this race in wet conditions. I mean, no one wants to race when it's wet, but this course would be almost demoralizing in wet conditions.

My "prizes" (aka freebies with the race kit). I guess someone thinks that mountain bikers are smelly and hairy. However, that Hydro 5 is GREAT for shaving legs!!

Back....

2010-09-05T22:14:00.000-04:00

....from vacation. I haven't actually been away for 3 weeks; the lack of posting has been due in part to laziness and due in part to being away. But I'm back with got tons of new material to fill up your free time with.

So once again, I had to find ways to combine biking and/or racing with family time. So this was the plan: race in Velo raid, a 3 day stage race at Mont Sainte-Anne. In years past, the Velo Raid has been a one day race from Quebec City to Mt. Ste-Anne, and is usually in July. But with the World championships here this year, they decided to change the date and the format. The format involved a hill climb of MSA Friday night (August 27th), a 78km “Raid” from QC to MSA Saturday, and then a 60km stage on the trails of MSA on Sunday. The cool thing about this event, though, is that you had the option of doing all 3 days, or picking and choosing which stages to do…an “a la carte” option they called it. So in the interest of staying in "the good books", I did the hill climb Friday, the Raid on Saturday, skipped the third day and the following week was family vacation time in Quebec.

The first part of our vacation consisted of 5 nights staying just outside of MSA in a quiet little chalet with a great view of the St. Lawrence. We managed some “touristy” stuff during the day on Friday, and then it was off to the base of MSA for the hill climb start at 6:00. Ran into Neil, Anna and Imad who were down for the Raid, but Imad was also doing the hill climb.

A familiar face at the start, Imad (who happened to win our category...nice one!!)

There were about 200 riders in total lined up for the start.

In comparison, the not quite-as-popular foot race had 6 racers.

At the start line, there was a little confusion (or maybe I was confused because I didn't quite catch the french instructions). In any case, there was a 2 minute staggered start, allowing those who were doing all 3 stages to start first. The start was fast and brutal, mainly because I didn't put in a good warm up and then there was a lot of waiting around at the start, negating any effect my crappy warm up *may* have had. The race was basically straight up a gravel fire road, about 6km in length. It was pretty steep at the start, then was a little less steep, and varied between "this sucks" to "Right on! I can recover a bit" on the steepness scale. The variation in pitch made the race "just hard enough”, but thankfully wasn't brutally tough. I wasn't feeling completely spent afterward, meaning I probably could have ridden harder, but I was happy enough with my effort, AND I wanted to save something for the next day. According to the results, my time was 35 minutes, which put me in third place in my category. However, if I was racing all 3 days, my time would have put me in 15th place. Overall, a nice, short event, and who could complain about a $12 entry fee?

Rounding the last corner before the finish.

This pair won the tandem category before the race even started!

Double Double (attempt)

2010-08-16T22:20:00.000-04:00

My plan for this past Saturday was to ride a double double. That does not have anything to do with this:

or this,

this:

I have no friggin' idea what this is supposed to be, or achieve.

or even this (go ahead and google "double double"...some pretty funny stuff there):

No, double double for me meant go out on the Cyclelogik ride, but cut out early to get in two hours of riding. Once home, load up the mountain bike and head to Kanata Lakes for two hours there. Only problem is that the group ride was crazy, HARD fast! Average speed for 2 hours of riding was 36.7km/hr. On top of that, I spent some time riding at the front. So when the time came for me to head home, I thought "there's no WAY I'm going mountain biking after this...I'm too spent!" I stuck it out for the rest of the ride and then struggled home against the wind. But, I took satisfaction in knowing that I rode the snot out of my legs (whatever the hell that means).

Randomness

2010-08-13T21:41:00.000-04:00

Randomness from the last week:

SATURDAY
Started the Cyclelogik ride and got two, yes TWO flats!
A random rider passing by gave me a tube so I wouldn't have to use patches. (On a side note, no one stops for mechanicals on the Cyclelogik ride).
Arrived home in a pissy mood 'cause I only ended up getting 85 minutes of garbage riding.

SUNDAY
Rode up to Mt. Cascades to meet the fam for an afternoon at the water park.
Decided that waving to cyclists in the opposite direction is a waste of trying to be nice...no one waved back! Oh, wait, I did get one wave, but that was from someone I know, so that doesn't count.
Ran into Rodd, Ariel and Chris outside of Wakefield. You might think "what are the chances?", but in reality, the chances are actually pretty good.
At the Wakefield spring, I signed a petition to have an environmental assessment done on highway work that could potentially affect the spring. In other words, should the highway work go ahead, there might not be a spring anymore.

TUESDAY
Hooked up for the B loop of the park. It was a small group, just 8 of us, but it was still painful. Not doing any intensity for awhile will do that to ya.

THURSDAY
Went for a quick ride and tried to get some pics. Had a good ride, as for the pics, well, they're *alright*, I suppose.

This shot was supposed to be of my shadow on the road. Yeah, I wasn't even close, but I kinda like the way it turned out.

This is a shot of a steady climb on Cedarview road. It doesn't look like much of a climb in this pic, but it's just long enough to make hammering up it a good effort.

Train crossing on Twin Elm road. I didn't have enough time to take a good pic...the train was going at a good clip and it was only 4 cars long, but I felt obliged to get a pic for the sake of the blog. And um, yeah, that's it.

Wildernness 101 report

2010-08-03T22:52:00.001-04:00

It's finally up, my report of Wilderness 101. This was gonna be my biggest race of the year...the one that I wanted to be most prepared for and the one I wanted the most to do well in. On Friday, I made the trip down to Pennsylvania with Mad Mountain Mike who handled all driving duties. Some highlights and lowlights from the drive included:

-1/2 hour wait at the border
-road construction slow downs in PA
-Interstate billboard that read: "Ultima II massage; Tractor trailer parking available"
-Sign outside a church in Milton PA: "All male beauty contest"
-Interstate billboard for syracuseredneckgames.com
-horrible American drivers - Learn how to use the passing lane properly on the Interstates!!
-PA could be best described as green and hilly
-I wanted to make sure that I had eaten enough before the race, so I kept stuffing my face with food on the way down, and all Mike could say way "You're STILL eating?!?!?"

That's right, we're in Amish country.

THE RACE
The best way to describe the race is to break it up in terms of the aid stations. To give you an idea of all the climbing (and descending), check out the elevation profile (it's 3 pages. It's also in the picture of the number plate above...the red part at the bottom is the elevation profile).

Porta-potty lineup before the race...40 people deep with 30 minutes to go until the start.

START to AID STATION 1
The race was slated to start at 7:00 am, with the rider briefing at 6:45. We could hear the briefing from our campsite, and as the time crept closer to7:00, we decided to make our way to the start. Only thing is that as we pulled up to the start the race had already started! So there I was, right at the very back of the pack, pedaling my ass off to get past a good 200 riders. Luckily, the start was neutralized on an asphalt road so I was able to make up for my poor positioning. After the neutralized start was a long gravel climb....now, from here to the first aid station was a bit of a blur, except for me riding with about 10 other riders, and our group eventually swelling to about 20 riders. This meant that we were FLYING along...full on paceline riding on gravel roads, taking downhills at close to 60km/hr (sketchy!!!) We made it to the first aid station in just over an hour, and rolled right through. One of the cool things at the first aid station is that volunteers had FULL water bottles of water and energy drink, handing them to riders as they went by (I got a brand new water bottle this way!).

AID STATION 1 to AID STATION 2
After aid station 1, there was a bit of climbing which split up our big group. All I remember is two long descents...the trail was doubletrack width, but there was only a skinny little trail cutting its way through the grass. These descents were looooooooooong, but there was no need to touch the brakes, as they were pretty straight, and they were FAST! A quick glance down at my computer showed over 50km/hr...holy crap! There was some flat singletrack with with burly rock gardens (everyone kept talking about the rocks!), and then we came up on aid station 2. A little aside...Before the start of the race, we were given two big ziplock bags with our number on it to be used as drop bags which would be taken to aid stations of our choosing. My first drop was at aid station 2. About 50 metres before the aid station, volunteers were calling out rider number plates so that other volunteers could pick out your drop bag and have it ready for you as you pulled up. So as I pulled up, I had a volunteer asking me what I wanted, what I needed, filling up my water bottles for me....it was awesome! On top of that, my rear derailleur had come loose, and there were techs at the aid station ready to help out. They even had extra tubes and CO2 for those that needed it....amazing!

AID STATION 2 TO AID STATION 3
People who had done the 101 before kept talking about "the climb after aid station 2". If you look at the profile, it's one big spike. To be honest, I didn't find it that bad. Yeah, it was long, but I just got into a steady rhythm and maintained it, trying not to go into a "this is painful" zone. What was tough was the descent. Crazy, rocky burly singletrack that had me squeezing the crap out of my brakes, my triceps screeming at me, and my fingers wanting to give up and let go of the handle bar. It was the first time ever that I was wishing for a downhill to be over...it was THAT long and rough!

AID STATION 3 TO AID STATION 4
Another comment I heard from a lot of riders was that the section from aid #2 to aid #4 was the toughest part of the course, but if anything, the stretch from 3 to 4 was like being kicked in the nuts when you're writhing in pain from being nailed with a good ribshot. The climb after aid station 3 was BRUTAL! At this point, the course had covered 100km, and being faced with a slow, rocky, rooty uphill was discouraging. It was the first time this year I had to use my granny ring (I HATE using my granny) and at one point I got off and started walking 'cause I was going WAY too slow pedaling. This at least gave my legs a bit of a break and I felt better once I was back on my bike. This of course was followed by two more crazy ass my-arms-are-gonna-fall-off rocky descents that made me want the descent to be over! Oh yeah, there was some fun singletrack in there, too!

AID STATION 4 TO AID STATION 5 TO THE FINISH
Right after aid #4 was yet another long climb...a slog that reduced me to walking again. Followed by some singletrack and a nice doubletrack downhill. A stop at aid #5 for some coke, and it was the home stretch. There were some stretches of rail trail that included old railway tunnels, and let me tell you... biking in broad daylight and then entering a pitch black tunnel messes with you. I entered the tunnel, and then came to a screaming stop 'cause I had ZERO sense of perception. After about 10 seconds, I could see the light at the other end but still couldn't tell what was in front of me. I ended up walking through the tunnel until there was enough light to see what I was doing. Once through the tunnel, one last climb, one last rocky section and ANOTHER tunnel, I was back at Coburn park, 8 hours, 28 minutes and 101 miles later. Results are up on cyclingnews. In my field I was 48th out of 184 riders, and something like 62nd out of roughly 270 finishers.

Mike, all smiles despite having 4, that's right, FOUR flats!!

So overall, what did I think. First off, this was by far, my best race of the year. I had been dissapointed with my racing so far this year, but I finally felt good about a race, felt good during the race, AND had fun. For a race that was 160km, it was FAST. There were LOTS of gravel road sections, which made the course fast. I think there was just the right amount of singletrack, especially considering it was rocky technical trails. Threre were some fun flowy sections thrown in the mix, too. Given the length of the course, I think you have to limit the amount of singletrack, or else the race would take forever to complete.
Perhaps the best part of this race were the aid stations. The volunteers were awesome...they made it feel like I had my own support crew taking care of things for me. (see above)
My goal for the race was 9 hours, so being able to beat that by 1/2 hour was a huge bonus.

Part of the reason why I rode well: brand new merino socks that didn't match my kit! I've developed a superstition about "lucky race socks".

As I rolled through the finish, I collected by prize, and then filled it up....emptied it, then filled it up....emptied it, then filled it up....you get the picture. The kegs were flowin' and I had carbs to replace!!!

Would I do this race again....yes. Do I want to try some other 100 milers....hell yeah! So I think I covered everything. If I think of anything else important to mention you'll hear it.

Out and back

2010-07-27T22:36:00.000-04:00

Sunday morning, I woke up feeling like I got run over by a truck...*probably* had something to do with the ride from the day before. It wasn't crazy humid out in the morning (for a change), so I got out for a spin at Kanata Lakes. Sadly, it was the first time this year that I've ridden there, and I was greeted by some surprises:

This is on the trail from Goulbourn Forced Side Road. A little fence hopping got me closer to the trails.

This is what the trailhead looks like now...orange fencing and a wooden stake.

I had a pretty awesome ride, doing an out and back of Outback. Despite just my first time this year at Kanata Lakes, I was riding pretty smooth with just a few dabs here and there. Outback is my favourite trail to ride...it challenges me every time I ride it and is a ton of fun. Some of my confidence on the trail was inspired in part by my new front tire, a Bontrager XDX. But the best part of this thing was the size of it....2.4 inches of wide tractor tire goodness.

Bontrager XDX tubeless.

That's right, 2.4 inches of wide ass rubber goodness.

Crappy picture intended to: a) demonstrate the sheer girth of this tire (failed) and b) demonstrate the tread pattern (failed). I guess I could have cropped the pic to better highlight the tread patten, but in the same amount of time I'll create a link to the Bontrager site instead.

It's hard to give a fair review of this tire after just one ride, especially considering it was bone dry out. Here's what it did well:
-roll over ANYTHING in it's path
-grip through corners
-inspire confidence

What it did not do well:
-track well at slow speed...the tire would pick its own path off rocks and roots.

I had it pumped up to around 24psi, and I feel that it could have been a touch lower to take advantage of its size. On another note, I have used 2.2 inch versions of this tire, front and rear, but wasn't crazy about it as a rear tire. It didn't grip as well as other tires on slick rocky sections. I've currently got a Kenda Nevegal 2.1 on the rear right now, which seems to handle all situations like a champ.

And before I sign off, one last pic...

The tour might be over now, but I've got my own little podium girl.

Saturday Century

2010-07-24T22:08:00.000-04:00

Today, I put in some monster mileage and intensity all rolled into one. With a week to go until Wilderness 101, I needed desperately to get in some riding, so I figured, why not try and simulate what's gonna go down next weekend. I accomplished this first by doing the Cyclelogik ride out to Carp. Almost 85km at an average speed of 36.9 km/hr...yeah, that'll cause some pain.
After that bit of suffering, I went out and tacked on a loop of the park. It was a struggle after such a hard group ride, but I reasoned that I would probably be in the same condition at some point in next Saturday's race.
After all was said and done, here's what I ended up with:

A century in under 5 hours.

I deserved this after today's riding. A "Dagwood" club with a side of poutine. That's 4 slices of rye with a ton of deli meat and cheese. And don't forget the beer!

Substance Projects Marathon #2

2010-07-20T23:27:00.000-04:00

Leading up to last weekend, I was a "maybe yes, maybe no" for racing.....ambiguous and undecided. My reason for not racing was as follows: Wilderness 101 is 2 weeks away, and with a lack of riding in the last 5 weeks or so, I needed to maximize my riding on the weekend. If I raced on Sunday, I wouldn't be riding on Saturday, and maybe not in the days after depending on how spent I was. I could easily get in 8 hours of riding between Saturday and Sunday, getting my mileage up to a respectable amount. My reason for racing was that nothing beats racing for training. Plain and simple. Also, I hadn't raced in a while...I was due for a good kick in the ass. So, racing won over lots of riding.

The nice thing about this race was the proximity to Ottawa...for a change. Made the trip down with Matt and Dave (reppin' for Tall Tree) and our chauffeur Imad, rollin' with the Kunstadt van. His speedy driving got us there with plenty of time to register, get our gear together, and even waste a bit of time.

Fast forward to the race. The start was mad fast (I have Matt to thank for that!). I don't normally try and come out of the gate with the engine firing on all cylinders, but knowing that this was a shorter marathon (52km) with a lot of strong riders, the pace was gonna be high and I had to keep up. Well, I think I used everything I had at the start 'cause the rest of the race was a struggle. I have all the excuses lined up, but I'm not gonna bother. Simply put, I didn't have anything in my legs to put in a strong effort. I also didn't have the mental energy to put in a good ride...there were many times when I said to myself "this sucks!". That had a lot to do with riding through grass. Barely chugging along at 13km/hr though patches of mowed fields is not exactly fun. What singletrack was included in the course was fun, but at times a little slow...too twisty/turny, which killed any momentum. I manged to finish in a little over 3 hours, and although it was racing, it didn't really make for good training.

As far as the course goes, I don't think there are enough trails (the race was held at the J&J/Glenburnie trails) to make a true marathon. The better option, as someone said, would be to make the course shorter but have the riders do 2, 3 or however many laps it takes to make it a good 60km or so, with a lot more of the fun singletrack.

The results amongst our crew were noteworthy, especially for Matt, who picked up the win.

Matt wimped out and didn't opt do a winner's cannonball into the pool.

This picture, taken from too far away, is of Trish, who added another first place for the Ottawa crew. She also decided not to cannonball into the pool.

So now, it's 11 days and counting 'till Wilderness 101. I got out tonight to do the A loop, which was a much better ass whupping than the one I got on Sunday. Need some more of that if I'm gonna survive 160km of mountain biking!!

To Perth and Back

2010-07-13T22:40:00.000-04:00

Trying to find ways to fit riding around family time, I was happy with what I accomplished this past Saturday. Our (the fam's) plan was to go to our friend's cottage for the day, just off Big Rideau Lake, outside of Perth. So my plan was to ride to Perth and Sonia would meet me there with the car. We'd then drive the rest of the way to the cottage. In the evening, after a day of swimming and lounging, I did the same thing, but in reverse. From my house to Perth was 70km, which I managed to do in a little over 2 hours. The ride home was a little slower (that happens after a day in the sun), but I managed over 4 hours of riding, along with quality time spent with friends and family. (Doesn't that just make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? :P)

A fun day of riding, swimming and lounging.

Best ride of the year?

2010-07-10T22:50:00.000-04:00

Having not been on the bike much lately, I needed to get some semblance of riding in, so I decided Thursday evening to drive up to the park for a loop. (I would normally ride up, but I figured almost 2.5 hours of riding in this heat might not be the best idea). On the drive up, there were some rain clouds forming, which had me thinking "no, don't rain, please". At the Gamelin parking lot, thunder rumbled as I unloaded my bike from the car..great. Once I got going, the wind was HOWLING, but it was nice and cool, unlike the the furnace-like air we'd been getting. And then, about 10 minutes into my ride, after cresting the Pink Lake hill, it started to rain, just a little at first, and then heavier, then heavier still. It never reached full on downpour status, but it still didn't take long for warm puddles of water to form inside my shoes.
However, the rain was absolutely refreshing, and actually made my ride enjoyable...extremely enjoyable. I was riding well, and just hammering as much as I could. I kept thinking to myself how much fun I was having, riding in the rain, and pushing myself up the climbs as hard as I could. What made this "best ride of the year" was that the rain was unexpected, but it actually made the ride better. It was probably the most fun I've had on a ride this year, or at least a ride on my own. Lets hope for more little pleasant surprises like this one!

Mid-Season Resolution...

2010-07-07T23:02:00.000-04:00

...I need to ride MORE!!!!

Looking back on June, I only put in about 20 hours on the bike...an average of 5 hours a week. YIKES! How did that happen?!?!?? Well, there were a few rainy weekends, I was battling a stomach inflammation (which isn't completely resolved yet), and some moments where I just plain lacked motivation to ride.

So, with 3 and a half weeks to go until the Wilderness 101, I need to ride...A LOT! Problem now of course is this frikkin' heat. How do I get in enough hours to feel ready for a 160km mountain bike race without melting away in the heat? It's gonna be tough, but it's gotta get done somehow. If it means getting up an hour early to get in a quick ride (like I did this morning), then so be it. AND if it means riding in the heat after work tomorrow, well, I'm ready for it. I'll bring along extra water, to drink and to pour on myself. Hopefully I don't chicken out at the last minute!

Lake Placid Weekend...non race stuff.

2010-06-25T22:59:00.001-04:00

Now that I've gotten the race details out of the way, just a quick blurb and some pics about the rest of our trip this past weekend to Lake Placid. It was my first visit to the Adirondacks in almost 15 years...the last time was a snowboard trip to Whiteface mountain back when I was in University (holy crap! has it been THAT long?!?!?). Before leaving, there were two things people made a point of noting, 1) the shoulders on the roads are really wide, and 2) drivers are more respectful of cyclists compared to Ottawa/Gatineau.

Huh? What's that in the distance? A mountain? None of those around Ottawa.

The pics I've included give you a good idea of what the shoulders are like, and yes, the drivers are very courteous.

In a couple of weeks or so, there's an Ironman triathlon taking place in Lake Placid (I can't swim for the life of me, so you'll never catch me doing a tri), and there were some training camps taking place while we were there. As a result, the roads were SWARMING with tri geeks on tricked out bikes.

You get a good idea of the shoulder width from this pic. These were just a couple of literally HUNDREDS of people out training for the Ironman.

Cool shot by Sonia.

Last Sunday was also my first father's day. And I couldn't think of a better way to spend it than to go for a bike ride with the fam in the Adirondacks.

About to set off with Lil' D in the trailer.

Another view of the massive shoulders. This one in particular was as wide as the driving lane for cars.

Outside a bike friendly bakery.

What cracked me up about this was the sign in the window that read "Closed for the day". I think it's been closed for just a *bit* more than a day.

When I first read this sign, I thought "Awesome, a Beer-Dunkin Booth!" But then I realized it probably reads Beer, Dunkin Booth. Either way, they had to make a point of saying that the Independence Day celebration will definitely include BEER!

Lil' D havin' fun in Mirror Lake.

After last weekend, I highly recommend a trip down to the Adirondacks. Great roads for biking, XC and downhill mountain biking at Whiteface mountain, tons of hiking trails, and just being outside the hustle and bustle of the city.

Lake Placid Weekend...Race recap.

2010-06-22T22:26:00.003-04:00

Lemme just start by saying that this past weekend's race (Whiteface Mountain Uphill Bike Race) was definitely one of the HARDEST things I've done on a bike. Just over 8 miles (that's about 13km for us metric folk) at an average grade of 8% (gaining 3500ft in altitude) makes for one frickin' tough ride. Having never done a climb of that length I didn't know what to expect, and didn't really have any way to prepare either.

Pre-race with my good luck charm.

The race started at 5:30 in the evening, and despite being cloudy out, it was hot and muggy. I was in the third wave to be sent off, comprising 30-39 men. I recognized Aaron Fillion in my wave and thought "Chalk up another win for Aaron." The pace was pretty high off the start, which was no surprise given the riders in our wave. I managed to work my way into the lead group...about 6 or 7 guys, but considering that the road went straight up from the get-go, I couldn't hold on for too long, got passed by 3 or 4 riders, then settled into an uncomfortable pace.

The road was pretty straight, with slight curves in it, and it felt as though it kept rising at a consistent pitch....never any relief. A couple times it levelled off for a few hundred metres, but it was hardly enough to provide any kind of recovery. I was in my smallest gear (34x25) from early on, and it stayed that way for most of the race. Before leaving for the weekend, I replaced my 11-23 with my old 12-25, and although it was only a small difference, I'm glad I made the switch. Ocasionally I would shift up about 3 gears and stand for a bit, just to switch things up a bit.

Cue sheet on my stem. Reading from bottom to top, first column is mile, second is km's and third is % grade. The numbers are loosely based on the chart below. The cue sheet proved to be completely USELESS. Seriously, when you're suffering, any change in the grade is not really noticeable.

(click the pic above for larger view)

About halfway up the climb, the summit came into view, and I just remember thinking how FAR AWAY it looked from where I was. It was kind of discouraging, actually. Another thing that made the going tough at times was the wind. Along the road, there were some clearings where you could stop to check out the view (which wasn't happening). On these sections, the wind gusted across the road, making things tough. Closer to the top, there was one switchback, and for the first time, I started to pick up speed, since the road was pretty flat at this point. I continued to pick up speed and actually shifted into my large ring for a bit!

View of the course from the summit.

The summit.

Approaching the finish, I was SUFFERING, but tons of people were lining the road, cheering everyone on. There was even a bagpiper offering, um, inspiration (to get out of earshot!). It was a pretty cool atmosphere, and it made me feel like I was at the finish of a mountaintop stage in the Tour or Giro.

To the right you can see the people lined up and cheering the riders as they came upon the finish.

Here I am hoping I don't need to be rescued by Wilmington's finest.

Completely spent after finishing.

Overall, this was a really cool, unique experience, and definitely something that I would do again. Not sure how I finished relative to the rest of the field, but my time was about 58 minutes...certainly something I think I can improve on in the future.

This dude rocked a hybrid with no front brake and an old-school styrofoam helmet. Hardcore!

Alison and Dave. I had to get out of my jersey 'cause it was soaked and I didn't pack any warm clothes for the top. Alison and Dave were eating greasy food and downing a pint of beer hours before this pic was taken...rock stars! On another note, Alison has ridden in the Alps, and said this was probably harder due to the lack of switchbacks which actually give you a chance to recover.

The results are can be found here.

Lake Placid Weekend Recap

2010-06-21T22:32:00.000-04:00

Coming soon...I promise.

Because Lance says it's cool....

2010-06-17T22:45:00.004-04:00

I came across the link for this video on roadbikerider.com where they mentioned that Lance tweeted that "This is badass". He's right though, it is. Enjoy.

(If you follow the link or watch it directly on youtube, it plays in widescreen mode, which it doesn't seem to do here. oops)

Substance Projects Ontario Marathon #1

2010-06-15T23:18:00.000-04:00

First off, a brief but not so heartfelt apology for the lack of pictures...I was in a bit of a zombie state for a good part of Sunday, the taking pics for the blog completely slipped my mind. So if you were hoping for some pretty pics to look at rather than read my ranting, too bad, so sad.

Sunday marked my first mountain bike race of the year, and only my second time even RIDING my mountain bike this year. So, I decided why not make it a true marathon of a day and wake up before 5am, pick up Mike, and then drive to Ganaraska forest, race for over 4 hours, and then drive all the way back home?

On the drive up we saw:
- a moose on the side of the road, who decided to cross the road in front of us as we got ready to pass him
- a hawk on the side of the road...not exactly sure what it was doing, though
- a sign on the door at Coffee Time that said "Day old doughnuts. $6 for 70". Man, who needs 70 day old doughnuts?

As far the race went, I got off to a slow start (as per usual), and for the first while, had about 6 guys in my sights ahead of me...Yellow kit guy, Mike, Singlespeed Sound Solutions guy, helmet cam guy, red jersey guy and Northern Cycles guy. After some time, the first 3 got away from me, I dropped helmet cam guy, and the last two were right in front of me. On any downhill section, Northern Cycles guy would would scream ahead, but then red jersey guy and I would catch him again on any climbs. The problem though, is that red jersey guy was behind Northern Cycles guy, and couldn't hold his wheel on the downhills, and as a result, was slowing me down a bit, too. After a feed zone, they were both gone while I stopped to top off my bottles. Some time later, I was passed by helmet cam guy (huh???) and then by a singlespeeder, which made me think CRAP, I'm not doing so hot. I decided then to just take it easy for 10 minutes and recover for a bit. This worked out well for me, and I started to ride a bit stronger and smarter. I started to feel good around 2, 2 and a half hours, except for my right hamstring trying to cramp up on me. I then reeled in Sound Solutions guy, then red jersey guy, and even yellow kit guy! Wicked! Time to put the pedal to the metal!! I'm feeling good! But where is everybody? I'm riding fast and not catching anyone! Screw it, just take it easy to finish.

Overall, a great race with TONNES of singletrack, lots of fun trails, a well marked course, and good organization.

Considering that this was only my second time mountain biking this year, AND I have put in A LOT less mileage than last year, I can't be too disappointed with my result...14th overall out of 45 finishers (53 starters), 7th overall in the 40 under category (out of 10 finishers).

Now it's time to rest up and gear up for the Whiteface mountain hillclimb this Saturday.

Blah of a weekend

2010-06-07T22:52:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted anything here in bloggy land, mainly 'cause most of my riding has been "the usual" type stuff....Cyclelogik ride Saturday mornings, A or B loop Tuesday nights, commuting to work, a couple of family outings, and not much else.

Well, this past Saturday, I figured I needed to get in some mileage on my mountain bike, since A) I haven't been on it yet this year (yes, I hang my head in shame) and B) I'm registered for my first race of the year on Sunday. I wanted to get in a good 3.5 to 4 hours riding up in the park, doing the usual trail 15 to 1, ride to Fortune and play around on the trails there etc..

Before heading out the door, wifey gave me the cell phone to take..."just in case" (bet you can see where this is going). The ride was going just as expected...getting the workout that I wanted. Then, over an hour into the ride, I was barrelling down Trail 1 towards Old Chelsea, going over that one super rocky downhill section, when my rear end (the bike, not my ass!) started to feel strange. I thought something was up with my suspension. I bounced around a bit and it felt ok, but then I felt it...the back tire was losing air. CRAP! I think I was more in disbelief, since I've ridden tubeless for YEARS and never suffered a flat. I couldn't find the leak, but I threw a tube in there anyway. Before getting going, the front felt a *little* squishy. Whatever, I'll just top off the air and make my ride a bit shorter. So coming back on Trail 15, which has a lot of downhill sections, I felt the front bottom out on something, and then VERY quickly, the front went flat. CRAP! Double flat and nothing to fix it! This of course is where the cell phone came into play. Called wifey and asked her to come pick me up. An hour later, after getting rained on, reading the interpretive signs at Pink Lake and killing 10 horse flies (or deer flies....I never know the difference), the family showed up to rescue my sorry ass. Once home, I discovered that my front tire had not just one, but TWO punctures. I didn't investigate the rear though, I just said screw it and left the tube in there.

Now there's a moral to this story. No, it's not carry two tubes with you (which seems rather obvious at this point). It's that when your mountain bike has not been ridden in over 8 months (yes, it's been THAT long), tire sealant WILL dry up and NEEDS to be TOPPED UP!!! (stupid me).

One good thing did come out of the ride...I discovered a new riding drink that agrees with me.

Gu Brew!!

Not too sweet, doesn't leave a pasty feeling in your mouth, and the great combo of blueberry and pomegranate. On top of that, one serving has almost 500mg of sodium, perfect for those days when you can scrape the salt off your face.
One canister is $22 and has approx. 35 servings.

Weekend family outing

2010-05-25T22:57:00.000-04:00

On this hot, long weekend, I got out with the fam and put our latest bike accessory to use....a Burley D'Lite Trailer. It was time to initiate Lil' D into the world of biking.

Getting ready to go with the Burley D'Lite and Lil' D in tow.

It was the first time that I've ridden with a trailer, but it didn't take long to get use to it (the extra weight, that is!!). I could definitely feel the weight of trailer pushing me along or slowing me down. The other thing to get use to was spatial awareness of the trailer...it sits a little left of centre. I was pretty conscious of this while cruising along the bike paths, making sure that I stuck to the far right of the path. I used my Mendotta to haul the trailer, since it has a few components that makes it perfect for towing...it has a triple crank in case I hit some serious hills, and has cable pull disc brakes for a little extra oomph when slowing down. (After a few more outings I'll have a more detailed review of the trailer.)

A natural born cyclist...wanted Mom's water bottle instead of her sippy cup.

Chillin' at Kitchisippi Beach (even though it doesn't look like the beach from this pic, but trust me, it's there.)

Ride of the Damned

2010-05-17T23:05:00.000-04:00

This is gonna be a relatively short post, not a lot of words, mostly pics. Mainly because if I don't do it now, it probably won't get up until next weekend. If you haven't already heard about the idea behind the Ride of the Damned, click here for a quick homework assignment.

When I rolled up to the start Sunday morning at Lac Leamy, I was told that I would be on a team with Jamie, Ariel, Thom and Steve. According to the results we were the Tall Tree Hung Squad. Not sure what "Hung" is referring to...I mean yeah, ok, we're all basically riding around in underwear, but come on, who's been checking out packages?!?!?!

Some brief highlights of the ride:

-sunny all day, not too hot

-gravel roads in great condition, with a good amount of climbing

-awesome spread of food at the checkpoint in Low

-Ariel suffered from some bad leg cramps. At one point he was forced off his bike and had to squat in the ditch. One team that rode by thought he was taking a dump.

-great post ride BBQ

A big thanks to Matt and the Tall Tree Crew for putting on a well organized, fun event.

After the neutralized start. Check out Ariel over on the left, looking to see if other teams are "Hung".

It's a Tall Tree Swarm!!!

Rodd cresting the climb before the Dam at Low.

This little guy is at the start of Cross Loop Road. He looks quite happy taking a dump.

Jamie on the last gravel bitch of the day.

Steve, making his way up the Cross Loop climb.

Purty view from Cross Loop Road.

Post ride BBQ action.

I won this pint glass as a door prize. Rodd suggested that I use it for my beer reviews....and that's what I'm gonna do. Thanks Rodd!

This is a good way to sum up the whole day.

Complaining about dirt??????

2010-05-15T22:05:00.000-04:00

Today's stage in the Giro d'Italia turned into a muddy messy affair, when the route passed over dirt roads. Some riders were apparantly complaining about the stage (all quotes from cyclingnews.com)

Friday's stage winner Matt Lloyd was a rider who was not so happy. He made huge effort to win in Marina di Carrara and finished in the gruppetto, 24:10 behind fellow Australian Cadel Evans (BMC).
"I can understand that they want a spectacular stage, but something like what we've just done is ridicoulous if you ask me," he told Cyclingnews after pulling on the green climber's jersey again.

and

"The last 45km were worse than Paris-Roubaix,” Vinokourov said. “It was a terrible stage because we went hard right from the start.

Waaa, Waaa, WAAAAA! (That's supposed to somehow replicate the sound of whining, or crying, pick whichever one you want.) However, some enjoyed the conditions.

"It was a spectacular stage,” said stage winner Evans. “We'd prepared things in fine detail for the dirt roads."

David Millar said: "I actually enjoy it when it's like this. I think this is what racing is all about. In a way, the worse the conditions, the better I seem to go. In the end it was just mano-a-mano and it was actually a lot of fun."

Tomorrow's ride, Tall Tree's Ride of the Damned, will have plenty of dirt, and rain or shine (fortunately, it's gonna be sunny), I won't be complaining.

No time....

2010-05-08T14:03:00.001-04:00

...to blog about bikes, because of this:

If you've ever wondered what the inside of a washing machine looks like, here ya go.

Back on Monday, our washing machine decided that the water wasn't going to drain out...lovely. After running 4 spin cycles, I finally drained the thing, but had to figure out the culprit was. I borrowed the Reader's Digest "Fix it yourself" from my Dad (with the help of this book, I fixed our dryer back in the fall), and tackled the washer.

This is my new Bible. I probably saved myself a few hundred bucks by avoiding repairman calls and using this book.

Got in to check the water pump, and lo and behold, stuck inside, clogging the drain tube....:

For those of you who have been in a household where someone is breast feeding, you might be able to figure out what this is....pretty funny actually. Sonia was dumbstruck: "How did THAT get stuck in there?!?!?!?!?"

So now the washer is working, I have clean bike clothes, and more blogging to come.

A tainted win?

2010-04-30T19:46:00.000-04:00

Wasting time this evening, I came across a couple of good pieces ("The Taint of Suspicion" and "Amibivalence", both on red kite prayer), about Vinokourov's win at Liege-Bastogne-Liege (old news by now). Both are extremely well written and bring up good points. The "Taint of suspicion" article does a good job of summing up why I felt a sense of disappointment when I first read that Vinokourov had won. Check out these articles out if you haven't already.

Almonte Paris Roubaix rundown

2010-04-26T21:27:00.000-04:00

Yesterday marked one of my favourite events of the year...the OBC Paris-Roubaix cyclo-sportif (not race, but cyclo-sportif!). The mix of gravel, dirt, sand, rocks, pavement and hills are a good way to test out the early season legs and the puncture resistance of tires (this comes down to luck of the draw, mind you). It also tests the stamina of ones hands, arms, neck, back...might as well be mountain biking! The only drawback to the whole thing is the start time...8am!

After the formalities of registering, I was off to a bit of a late start, and got in about a 10 minute warm up. On top of that, my computer konked out on me. It had been acting up in the last week, but rather than change the battery and have to reset the settings, I decide to wait until after yesterday's ride. However, I think it proved to be a blessing in disguise, because it meant that I wasn't constantly looking down during the ride to see how many km's were left to go.

We got off to the traditional neutralized start, and then onto the gravel right away. I was taken aback by how loose the gravel was, making for some sketchy riding. Once I settled in, I was at the back of the pack. Damnit! Not where I wanted to be. My problem with riding in a pack, though, is that I'm not aggressive enough to try and move up closer to the front. I knew that I would need to stay close to the front in anticipation of the first wooded section, but that didn't happen, and I was still near the back.

After the first wooded section, the pack was broken up, and the group that I was in eventually swelled to about 25 riders. As we chugged along, we passed other riders at the side of the road, with flats. I saw a familiar Tall Tree kit at one point. Was that Matt off to the side? Shit, I hope not after all the work he has put in this winter with this race in mind. A little later on, hey there's Rodd. We kept plugging along until we got to a point where some of the direction arrows were pointing right, onto a road into the woods. It was a narrow dirt road, wide enough for one car, windy, up and down. We followed the road, and after a couple of minutes, out of nowhere, Aaron Fillion comes barrelling from the opposite direction, yelling "Wrong way!! Turn around!!" Suddenly, more riders appear in pursuit, including one Ride with Rendall rider who flipped over into the woods! We all turned around, and regrouped with what was the lead pack. This put me amongst a group of extremely strong riders, ready to encounter the new addition to the course. However, I think we were all suffering as we dealt with the ups and downs and the twisty gravel turns of this new section. This proved to be my most favourite part of the course, because of the constant changes in the road.

On we went, and I kept thinking to myself "holy crap, I'm with the lead group!" As we approached the "switchback climb", I managed to inch up a few places, and had no trouble with the climb itself, but I couldn't recover afterward, and the road was so sandy that it just sapped me of my energy. Once I made my way to onto the next pavement section, I was caught by 3 other riders, including Todd from Tall Tree, and we basically rode together until we were caught by another group before the last forest section. From there to the finish the last few km's were pretty uneventful, except for Todd and I chatting as we pedaled along.

So, another year, another Paris-Roubaix. Looking at the results, I finished 38th out of 150 finishers. That puts me in the top 25.3333333333333% (we'll just round it to 25%!), which I'm extremely happy with...my best finish at the Roubaix (due in part to the errant arrows though, I'm sure).

Canadians represent!

2010-04-19T22:39:00.000-04:00

I originally started this post re-capping my weekend of riding...not too exciting. But when I was checking out results on cyclingnews.com, I decided to change the topic of my blabbing to point out some notable Canadian (and even local) performances from the past weekend.

The most notable performance definitely has to be Ryder Hesjedal's second place finish at the Amstel Gold Race. 259km of racing, and out of 1st by 2 seconds (actually a large margin, considering that most of the time these races end in a group sprint). It's just downright amazing to see a Canadian place that high in one the pro spring classics.

Last weekend, we heard about the Tall Tree Team competing in the Tour of the Battenkill in New York, America's "Queen of the Classics". This past weekend was the pro race, 2 laps of the 100km circuit. Local boy Aaron Fillion finished 25th, 3'46" behind the race winner, and 1'22" behind second place finisher Floyd Landis!

On to some mountain bike action at the Sea Otter Classic. In the men's pro race, Geoff Kabush battled with Specialized riders to finish second in a sprint finish (check out his doooope bike). And in the women's pro race, Catherine Pendral came in 3rd, while Emily Batty finished a very respectable 6th (I think she's still technically U23, which makes her result all that more impressive).

My next post or two will cover my own racing exploits as I get ready for Ottawa's own classic, the Almonte Paris-Roubaix.

I think I have a problem....part two.

2010-04-16T22:03:00.000-04:00

Last week, I went on about some of the not so hot gloves in my collection (and one good pair...my super old RNH gloves). Today, here are the rest of my gloves, for which I have nothing but praise.

Hincapie merino glove. Nice and cosy. Makes a good liner for colder days. Woven from the fibres of the mythical Merino Man Beast.

Time gloves. (Not sure what model these are.) I can rock these gloves down to about freezing. They keep out the wind, are fleecy inside, and even keep my hands dry in light rain.

Pearl Izumi Cyclone. Another great cool weather glove. Much like the Time's above, I can wear these down to about freezing. The nice thing with these is they have lots of padding for longer and rougher rides. The only downside is they don't offer much protection in medium to heavy rains.

Pearl Izumi AmFib Lobster Mitt (updated to the Barrier Lobster Mitt). My go to winter mitt. I've worn these for 3 winters now. They're starting to pack out a bit, which means in colder weather (minus 10 and below), I need to wear a liner with them. Otherwise, I love these mitts. On top of that, they easily allow me to do the Spock "live long and prosper".

Sugoi RS full glove. Nice light weight glove with just the right amount of padding in the palm. I've worn these for 2 seasons, and are now starting to show signs of wear. The other thing I love about these is no velcro tabs. Just pull 'em on and go!

Giro Bravo glove. Giro is relatively new in the glove game, but I love these gloves. Generous padding in the palm, you can't feel any of the stitching, and a nice soft snot wipe thumb. These gloves and the above Sugois are pretty much my go to gloves during bike season.

So there you have it, a glimpse into the rest of my collection of cycling gloves. And be assured that I'll be getting more gloves this year, whether I need them or not!

First "race" of the year

2010-04-11T22:57:00.000-04:00

Today I raced, er, rode, in the inaugural Ride with Rendall Clarence-Rockland Classic, my um, first real "high intensity ride" of the year. My prep started last night, humming and hawing forever about what to wear...the forecast was saying 5 degrees around the start of the race, but warming up to a high of 13. Jeez, what to wear?!?!?!?! I pulled out a bunch of stuff and figured I'd decide in the morning.

Morning rolled around and I still couldn't decide what to wear. I won't bore you with the details of what I actually did wear, but it turned out to work well.

Once I had all that crap sorted out, OBR came by to pick me up and we were off to make it for the 10 o'clock start time...a nice start time that meant I didn't have to get up at an un-godly hour.

So plan for this race, if you could call it a plan, was to hold on to the lead pack for as long as possible. Simple, right? Seeing as how I haven't done much top-end work this year, I figured that would be reasonable, so whether I hung for 1km or the whole 85kms, I would have met my goal. (Yeah, it's more of a cop out than anything else, but hey, it's only April!)

I held on until about the 19km mark, when the course turned onto a stretch of chunky, loose gravel, and slowed me right down. I was already at the back of the lead pack at this point in time, and I wasn't gonna kill myself trying to hang on, so I sat up and took it easy.

Not much time passed and a group of 3 passed me, but I decided joining them would be too much work, so I waited for the next group, which was about 10 strong, and soon after we caught the group of 3. Our group eventually swelled to about 20, picking up people who had been dropped from the main pack. I was feeling pretty good, until about the 60km mark....

And then I was struck with a severe case of leg cramps, to the point where I got off my bike and tried to stretch out and massage my legs. I got back on my bike as soon as I could, since spinning the legs would be better for them than standing around. What followed was a 27km solo ride to the finish. Not much to talk about for the rest of the ride, unless you want to hear about me complaining about my legs cramping up (excuses, excuses) and the wicked head wind.

Crossing the finish, I came to a stop, which was about the worst thing I could do for my legs. They decided to straighten out like stiff boards....so more spinning to work out the cramps.

The course wasn't as hilly as I was anticipating, but certainly rougher than expected. I felt like I just ridden a mountain bike race. I was using my road bike, with a 28 tire up front and a 25 in the back. A little softer pressure in the front may have eased things *a bit*, but probably not.

For a first time event, I would have to say the organization was great. Use of the hall for registration and lunch afterwards was a good idea, and it was nice to have lunch included...the little chocolate cakes were good but the pasta did leave a bit to be desired.

When I checked the results, I was 50th out of 118 finishers. Alright for the first race of the season, considering I hadn't really prepped at all for it, and road racing is not my strength at all. So now I have two weeks to get ready for the Almonte Paris-Roubaix. Let's see what happens.....

I think I have a problem...(part 1)

2010-04-08T21:55:00.000-04:00

Yes, it's a bike related problem. No, it's not that I own too many bikes. Compared to some of my riding buddies, my fleet (4 bikes) pales in comparison. No, it's a bit of an obsession, a quest for the perfect pair. Some might call it a fetish. I'm not so sure about that, but, I own a ton of gloves. I'm sure that there are others out there who have way more than I do, but 12 pairs of gloves might be a bit of overkill. So, with a bit of time to kill, I'm gonna do mini reviews on my whole collection....

The Collection.

First I'm gonna start with the not so good in my collection, the pairs that aren't really that great and don't get that much use. (Note: A lot of the gloves are at least a few years old, so model names might not be correct).

Sugoi Firewall(?) Glove. I got this glove about 4 years ago hoping it would provide warmth, rain and wind protection for cold commutes. Problem is I ordered them without trying them out first. What I ended up with was something that provides about as much protection as a wet newspaper. I believe this glove has been updated by Sugoi and is much better now.

Pearl Izumi Zephyrr Shell glove. I bought these for the same reason as the above Sugoi gloves. The result in rainy weather? Might as well just dunk my hands in a bucket of ice water. Absolutely ZERO seam sealing, so these things only provide wind resistance, that's it.

I used to LOVE Specialized gloves. I'm not so crazy about them anymore...I find the body geometry padding on the palm to be a little annoying, This pair must be almost 8 years old. They fit well, but they're a little too thick for warm days. I now just use these for commuting.

Specialized Ridge Glove. Nice lightweight full fingered glove. The velcro tabs don't stick anymore, and again, the body geometry pad on the palm gets annoying after awhile, but otherwise, not a bad glove. Gets used for commuting.

Pearl Izumi (unknown model...maybe the select or elite). These gloves have lots of nice features...lightweight lycra back, just the right amount of padding, a fuzzy thumb for wiping snot and a nice fit. Unfortunately, there's a lot of stitching in a lot of places that digs into my hand and gets more painful the longer the ride. These don't get used a whole lot at all.

RNH full finger gloves. I've had these guys for ages. They get used mostly on cooler days, and mostly for commuting. Just the right amount of padding in the palm, soft thumb for snot, and bombproof. What more could you ask for?

Since reading a single post on over 10 pairs of gloves would get a little, oh I don't know, a little like reading reviews over and over on garden sheds (I only use garden sheds as an example 'cause that's exactly what I've been looking at on the Canadian Tire website), I'm gonna hit you back some time later with my ramblings on the rest of my glove collection. Betcha can't wait!!!!!!!!

1 lousy picture?!?!?!?!?

2010-04-04T22:24:00.000-04:00

Got out for 3 rides this long weekend, totalling 8 hours and 235kms, and what do have to show for it?!?!?!? One lousy picture!!!!

You'd have no idea from my crappy pic that there were 10 riders in front of me.

Actually, I got two more pics, but they're just as bad as the first so I'm not gonna even put them up. But how about this one:

Everyone love pics of babies, right? Here's Lil' D just before I headed off Friday morning.

I FINALLY got out for a group ride on Friday. The plans were for a 170 km ride, but I knew I wouldn't be able to pull this off without having my head served to me on a plattter by my loving wife, so I knew from the get go I'd be in for a shorter ride. Shorter, however, still meant a 120km day, capped off with the last 40km being a time trial home so I wouldn't be TOO late. I hammered my way home, and within 35 minutes, I ran out of water. That left me with 45 minutes to go without water, and temps steadily increasing. Things were going ok, until I was about 15 mins out from home, I then I started to fade BIG TIME. I had a hard enough time keeping the pedals going, and the wind, which was strong and hot, was demoralizing. Add to that a feeling aof nausea, and I started to wonder if I was coming down with heat exhaustion. The only good thing was that when I got home, I looked like such a pile of crap that the wife took pity on me.

Also, on Friday I was excited to sport the new kit from Bushtukah. The new design is much better than the old one (IMO), and received a few compliments from others in the group. The other good thing is I can FINALLY ditch the two, stretched out, falling apart jerseys that I've been wearing for the past 4 seasons.

Out with the old.....

...in with the new!

Firsts of the year

2010-03-29T21:01:00.000-04:00

This weekend saw many firsts for my riding season this year:

-first ride to Wakefield
-first non-solo ride (with Craig aka the OBR, see photo #1)
-first ride over 100km
-first climb of the Cascades 18% killer (see photo #2)
-first sore ass of the season
-first time trying Accelerade (see photo #3)

Saturday was pretty damn cold, with a biting wind and evidence of frozen water further north of town. As a result, we kept our stop in Wakefield to a minimum. The return leg home was into a fierce southerly wind that didn't have any warm, southern hospitality.

Craig, cresting one of the climbs near Cascades. This one is relatively short but steep...11%

After climbing the Cascades bee-yatch. I'm in "a bit" of pain here.

So I tried Accelerade for the first time. Not sure what I think of it, yet. My drink of choice for years has been Hammer Perpetuem, but I like to have something else kicking around so I'm not always drinking the same thing, and then getting sick of it. The Accelerade has a good mix of different nutrients, but has a bit of a weird milky taste.

A quick ride on Sunday took me south of Ottawa, amongst the farms and fields.

The thing I like about this part of town is that at times, it almost feels like you could be out West in the middle of the prairies. Yee-Haw!!

This upcoming weekend has LOTS of promise...a long weekend with forecasted highs in the 20's....bring it on!!

Bike fuel....

2010-03-22T22:10:00.000-04:00

I got out for a ride this past Saturday, which started with some fueling on Friday evening:

Montreal smoked meat on rye, a side of poutine and a Mill St. Organic lager at the esteemed ESD (aka Elgin Stree Diner).

This is a pretty crappy picture. I guess it illustrates how crappy it was out Saturday morning...grey cloudy skies and even a few flurries. Made it tough to leave the house.

It's also hard to leave the house when this is what you've got at home.

For my Saturday ride, this is what I had planned: 3 to 3.5 hours, doing a loop to Carp with a couple side trips thrown in the up the mileage. Go easy for the first hour, moderate for the second hour, and easy again for the third hour. With the wind the way it was, my plan got blown (no pun intended) out the window. Instead, it turned into "hammer against the wind" and then "spin it out with the wind". I would "hammer" riding as hard as I could, look down at my computer and think "Jeez, only 23km/hr???? But then I would change direction, and cruise along at 40km/hr without even trying!

Lots of geese hangin' around the Carp river.

Towards the end of my ride, my legs actually started to cramp on me...I'm talking hamstrings seizing up and not letting me pedal. What the f!@#!!!! This shouldn't be happening!!!! I tried to stretch my hams and massage them while pedaling. A few minutes of this worked the cramps out and allowed me to get home.

After all was said and done, I got in almost 100k, averaging 29.1 km/hr. I figure the cramps were probably due to dehydration...I only had two water bottles with me for my whole ride, and in colder temps, I find I sweat quite a bit underneath the wind proof layers.

The forecast ain't lookin' so hot for the rest of the week, and I refuse to get on the trainer, so it looks like the next ride won't be until Saturday. Just means more time to chill with Lil' D.

Wilderness 101, here I come!

2010-03-17T21:56:00.000-04:00

I am officially signed up and registered for what will probably be my biggest, longest, toughest, hilliest, hottest and maybe funnest (I know, funnest is not a real word) event in the upcoming season, Wilderness 101, in Pennsylvania. Just the thought of the race stirs up excitement (this will end up being one hell of an accomplishment), and nervousness....160km in a point to point race, with a sh*t load of climbing and possibly some hella hot temps is something I've never done before.

The above picture makes the race seem like it's not so bad after all. But on closer inspection, apparently, you ride over snakes...snakes and I don't get along. *shudder*

Oh yeah, I guess I should also get my ass in gear and get my passport renewed so I can get into the ol' U.S. of A.

Oh so lonely...

2010-03-15T22:58:00.000-04:00

The lonely road.

Saturday, I dusted off the road bike (pried it out of the trainer, actually), and got out for my first real road ride of the year. Man did it ever feel good...so much faster than what I have been used to for the last 4 months or so (fixie with a studded tire....SLOW). It was a solo ride...my schedule didn't match up with anyone else's, so I was off on my lonesome, to contemplate the upcoming season and what not. And the thing that I was contemplating......I REALLY need to ramp up the mileage. With all the nice weather we've been having, and hearing about all the riding that others are doing, I feel like I'm a little behind the 8 ball this year. Yes, it's early, and there's plenty of time to catch up, but that's the thing...I don't want to be playing catch up. Just have to cram in riding any way that I can, and if it means an extra long commute home or getting up extra early, then so be it.

Shouldn't be too long before all this snow is gone.

First and last of the season.

2010-03-06T21:48:00.000-05:00

Got out riding today, but not bike riding *Gasp!*. I know, it was a glorious day, and the roads were dry as a bone. (Never understood, that one, since the inside of a bone, the marrow, is kinda wet and squishy.) Nope, the riding I did was the on-snow type...snowboarding. I didn't get out at all last year, and this year was also looking bleak. So I seized an open window of opportunity and headed up for a day at Edelweiss. Met my buddy Karl and his brother in-law Matt for a day of snow shreddin'. Conditions were epic (just minus the powder and huge mountains). The sun was out, it was warm, the runs had good coverage and it wasn't too crowded.

View from the chairlift. In the summertime, I can be found in the hills in the back ground on my bike.

The riding KRU.

Poutine and beer. I think next winter I need to go snowboarding more just to make this my staple meal.

Karl said I looked angry here. Maybe it's because my poutine and beer cost 13 bucks.

There was a big air comp goin' down. If you click on the pic, you might be able to see someone going off the hit (he's camouflaged in the trees). I would have entered and showed them how it's done, but I wanted a chill day with my bros.

On the chairlift. The sticker on my board says "Freshjive". I'm fresh. And I can jive, brotha.

The mud field they call a "parking lot".

Glad I managed to get one day in this year. It's biking mode for me now, but I've vowed to go snowboarding more next year (provided we have more snow next winter!).

'Cause you just never know....

2010-03-03T21:58:00.000-05:00

Over the years, I've only had a handful of encounters with dogs while riding my bike. Only once have I ever come across a bear while mountain biking. And thankfully, I've never had a confrontation with an angry motorist. But these are all situations where, according to Competitive Cyclist, you might need a Kimber Pepper Blaster.

The best thing about this product is the write up in Competitive Cyclist. Here's a little snippet:

"We think guns are perfectly fine things to own. We shoot them periodically. We wish there were a form of biathlon that incorporated bikes instead of skis. But taking a gun on a bike ride just doesn't make sense. Foremost, they're heavy. It makes no sense to carry a 4lb weapon when you're astride a 15lb bike. Secondly, they're potentially dangerous to carry (read: Plaxico Burress). Thirdly, while we're comfortable with the idea of pointing a gun at an unwelcome human inside our home, it's tough to envision an uncomplicated outcome when you point a gun at an asshole at an intersection. So, in short, packing heat on a ride is unadvisable."

"Packing heat on a ride is unadvisable." I LOVE IT!!!!! Only in the states! I can't think of anything witty that can top the quoted paragraph, so I'll just leave it at that.

Weekend riding...in February!

2010-03-01T20:54:00.000-05:00

Got in two, that's right, count 'em TWO rides this weekend! Both rides were short, with more focus on intensity than longer base building mileage, mainly due to time constraints.

Saturday, in easy to read point form:

-Sonia sarcastically wished me to "have fun" as I left and she went upstairs to a crying Lil' D.

-Windy, very windy. My route ran from north to south and north again. With a northeasterly wind, my energy was sapped by the end of my ride.

-Riding on a soft,muddy shoulder, against the wind, equals aforementioned sapped energy.

-Because of the wind, riding with music is useless. The draft caused by my speedy riding, combined with the wind, creates so much noise that I have to jack up the volume, making me deaf by the time I get home.

-I witnessed what fluctuations in temperature can do to a smooth stretch of road. It renders in into a wavy, crumbling strip of asphalt. Makes you wonder how much time and effort really goes into repaving our roads.

Sunday's ride was a bonus ride, since I originally had no plans to get out, but I managed to wrangle some time on account of the glorious weather. And I wasn't the only one thinking of riding. I saw a good number of other cyclists on the road, and briefly ran into including Rob, Dave and Trish. They were coming back from riding to Carp...a loop I hope to do in the near future. Only downside was that I completely forgot to bring the camera along with me, but there'll be plenty more opportunities, as I'm ready to welcome spring and pack up the trainer.

February ride

2010-02-20T23:14:00.001-05:00

I had plans for today. BIG plans. Get up early and head out for a ride. Ok, so not BIG plans, but I was looking forward to getting out. So what happens to my "BIG" plans? I woke up late. (I blame that squarely on being addicted to the Olympics, staying up late and watching sports that I wouldn't normally give a rats ass about.) Due to a commitment at noon, my window for riding shrunk. On top of that, I looked outside and saw some fresh snow.

Not much incentive to ride.

It wasn't much snow, though. And I figured most of it would probably be melted by the time I hit the road. So I whipped my gear together and made it out the door around 9am.

Wake up!

My ride ended up being much shorter than I wanted, but it was my first February ride (not including commuting). I was faced with strong winds and at times, blowing snow. But that shit builds character, right??? Come summer time, when I'm complaining about riding in the rain on a 20 degree day, I'm supposed to think back about "those rides" I did in the winter.

My plan now is to get out for a ride every Saturday. Sundays aren't do-able since Lil' D has swim lessons in the late morning. But, if I start getting out for progressively longer rides on the weekends, I'll be ahead of where I was at this time last year.

From the archives

2010-02-15T20:16:00.002-05:00

Another week, another post, and not much to talk about. This holiday weekend was still activity filled: a skate on Friday, a trainer session Saturday, and a run on Sunday. (Today was a lazy day.) However, since this is supposed to be a blog about biking, and everyone likes to look at pictures, I've dug up some old pics related to biking.
First though, a little history. For 2 years and 2 months, from February 2003 to April 2005, Sonia and I were out of the country teaching English in Osaka, Japan. We followed up this stint with 4 months of backpacking in China and South-East Asia, bringing our total time living out of the country to 2 and a half years.
So what follows, are some pics taken in Osaka in June 2003. Enjoy!

Bike parking garage in our neighbourhood of Juso, Osaka.

A blond Sonia demonstrating how to use the bike parking. Pull out the "tray", angle it downwards, load up your bike and lock it up.

Space is at a premium everywhere in Japan, so they try to cram everything together anyway that they can.

Small cars in small spaces.

One of my most favourite pics...ever. I came across this scene as is. Kobe, Japan.

Bike parking outside Kyobashi train station in Osaka. Click on the picture for a larger version, and you can see how far behind me the bikes go on.

As you can see, granny bikes are the bike of choice. In Japanese, they are affectionately called a "Mama Chari". Baskets, fenders, chain guard, bell and kickstand are all standard features for roughly 60 to 70 dollars. With bikes being so affordable, it's no wonder so many people own one.

"Meh" and "Cool"

2010-02-07T22:23:00.000-05:00

Hmmmm, it's been a week since my last post, mainly because there hasn't been much bike-worthy stuff to talk about here in my neck of the woods.
I could talk about my trainer workouts doing x number of intervals for y number of minutes with z minutes of rest, but who wants to read about that.
I could talk about how I replaced the chain and chainring on my fixie, and include step by step pictures, but again, who wants to read about that.
I could talk about the run I went for today, and, well, you get the picture.
So instead, I'm gonna talk about a neat little doo-hickey I picked up last year.

Ritchey Torque Key

Enter the Ritchey Torque Key. A very simple tool, but extremely handy, and worth every little penny. It's a 4mm allen key/torque wrench, preset to 5 N/m. It saves you the trouble of guessing how tight a bolt needs to be, long before you hear the "crunch" of carbon fibre parts failing. The 4 mm wrench is pretty standard for most seatpost clamps, brake levers, shifters, stem face plates, stem top caps and all the other stem bolts (well, that actually just leaves the steere tube clamp bolts). Most bolts in in the stem/handlebar area have a manufacture's spec of 5 N/m, so this dandy little tool is right on the money. When tightening a bolt, the handle "clicks" and gives way once you hit 5 N/m, and therefore doesn't let you tighten any more. Combined with a little carbon paste, there's no worry of slippage.
Not sure if any other companies make a similar tool, but it's one of those things that make you think "what a damn good idea!"

Garbage find

2010-01-30T23:27:00.000-05:00

One night, a while back, I was taking out the garbage and stumbled upon this:

A Steve Bauer "Samiel" road bike frame, sans wheels. I brought it inside and stripped what I could off of it. As soon as I found it, I thought "right on! A winter project." The first (and only) thing that crossed my mind was a fixed gear conversion. A perfect fit, too. 56cm center to center top tube and seat tube. Well, two months have passed, and I haven't even touched the frame. It requires a bit of work...there are a lot of little rust patches...nothing serious, but just lots of them. The thought of sanding, more sanding, even more sanding, priming and painting doesn't really appeal to me right now.

"samiel" - a violent hot sand-laden wind on the deserts of Arabia and North Africa

"some" rust spots

Then I got thinking; when would I actually use the bike? My current fixie is used only for commuting to work, and for running the odd errand. When I look at the riding that I currently do, another fixie probably wouldn't get much, if any use at all. So, what to do with the frame? Considering that I originally wanted to pimp out the bike with expensive, blingy, matching parts, it's not gonna be a cost-effective endeavour. On top of that, all the bike funds that I have right now need to go towards parts for my other bikes, as well as race entry fees, gas for getting to races etc. And because I haven't touched the bike yet, I obviously don't have the time to put into it. What to do, what to do? Well, for anyone out there reading this, who wants a project, I'm offering you this frame. First come, first serve.

If you want a bike project, here you go. If you wanna finish my basement for me, come on over!

Another January ride

2010-01-24T23:03:00.000-05:00

I managed to get out for another road ride today. Not a particularly long one (1hr 40mins, approx 45 km or so), but it was good again to be out on the road...in January no less! Part of my motivation came from knowing that a small group rode out to Wakefield last Sunday for a 4 hour ride...I felt I had some catching up to do! Today's ride wasn't particularly noteworthy or exciting, other than the fact that it was my second road ride in January. I didn't bring along the camera, although I thought about it. But a) I didn't want to end up with a frozen camera and b) I don't think I would have been bothered to stop, take off my mitts, snap a pic, put my camera back, put my mitts back on and be on my way. Yeah yeah, lame excuse. But there was one moment on my ride where I wish I did have my camera...I was riding on a road that cut through some farmland....it was flat all around me, and I was surrounded by nothing but white. It felt kind of surreal. As I rode along, I noticed the snow on the side of the road was piled in evenly spaced drifts, sort of like waves of snow bordering the ditch. It was kind of purty.

I also got to "listen" to some new music today, too. Stuff from the Antlers, Bear in Heaven and The Dodos. Bands I probably never would have heard of if it wasn't for Strictly Bangers, a blog profiling all sorts of music, bands and artists (it was a "Blog of Note" some time ago). Now, I say I got to "listen" to some new music because I'm in serious need of some new earphones for riding. My current pair, made by JVC, are the inner ear type that you jam inside your ear. But even with the smallest size of silicone pads, they still fall out of my ears (this only happens in the summertime...in cooler weather my hat or headband keeps them in place). On top of that, they have great high end, so-so mid range, and non-existent bass. I NEEEEEED to have bass in my music. I've tried the earphones that come with IPods, but they also fall out. I've been checking out future shop and best buy every so often for some ideas, but I'd be welcome to any suggestions of what works for you.

A Dog in a Hat

2010-01-21T22:43:00.001-05:00

I don't read much (except for magazines and the rantings of other bloggers), but once in a while I manage to pick up a book and a make a dedicated effort to finish it. Lucky for me, the last book I picked up was an easy, entertaining read. Of course, it was bike related, which also made things easier (easier as in motivation, and not as in easy because I'm illiterate). The book I'm talking about is "A dog in a hat", by Joe Parkin. I'm sure that by now most of you have heard of this book, and I'm sure that when you heard about the book, you asked yourself "Joe WHO?!?!?" Joe Parkin left the states to become a professional roadie in Belgium in the late 80's/early 90's.

Now, I'm not gonna try my hand at writing a proper book review (although I suppose that this constitutes a book review since I'm talking about a book I just read), but I will say that this was a really good read. You get an upront, honest and blunt insight into the world of bike racing. It's not glamourous at all....there are drugs, payoffs, low race winnings, being yelled at by team directors. It's filled with plenty of hilarious anecdotes...there's the time that he felt like he was FLYING through a time trial, rode the best he EVER has, and still finished last on his team. Turns out that when he was going 55km/hr, the others on his team were doing 95km/hr....they got some "help" from from their directeur on sections of the course that weren't under the watchful eyes of officials.

Like I said before, this is a great book, and for more insight into the world of Joe Parkin, click the link on his name in the first paragraph, or click HERE.

A January ride and of course....

2010-01-17T23:00:00.000-05:00

some beer!!!!!

First, I got out for a ride today...a pretty short ride, just an hour, but a ride nonetheless. With the exception of commuting, this is the first time ever that I've gotten in a road ride in January....and man did I feel out of shape! But that's besides the point. It was good to get out for a ride that wasn't a commute. Sometimes, commuting can seem like a bit of a chore, which is why getting out for just an hour was worth it.

On the beer front, I've finally gotten around to drinking my Samuel Smith beers. Actually, I should say that I've finally gotten around to writing about them. I had 3 styles to try out: an old brewery pale ale, a nut brown ale and an oatmeal stout. These beers are very distinct from one another, and very good!

The pale ale has a nice aroma and flavour, balanced between sweet and bitter. It definitely has a finish that's more on the bitter side of things, it lingers, but it's not too intense.

The nut brown ale has a nice toffee and chocolate aroma and flavour that gets better as the beer warms up a bit. Like the pale ale, it has a bitter finish, but it's not overpowering at all.

Lastly, the oatmeal stout, like most stouts, has a chocolaty and coffee flavour and aroma, with a hint of smokiness. This beer also has a bitter finish that's not too intense.

You can see that there was a bit of a common theme...nice flavour and aroma with a bitter finish. Overall, very good beers, and the other bonus is that the bottles were a true pint, 550mL of beer goodness!

NUE tentative schedule

2010-01-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

The tentative schedule for the 2010 National Ultra Endurance series has been posted. This is a series of 100 mile mountain bike races that take place throughout the bike season around the states. The Mohican, June 5th, is a possibility, and the Wilderness 101, July 31st, is a certainty. If I'm gonna do the Mohican, I need to get some serious training in. One cool way is to get a training plan from the man himself, Chris Eatough. Otherwise, I'll just be plugging away at the mileage and intensity, but there's NO way I'm EVER gonna do a 3 hour trainer session!

AAAHHHHH!!!!! MY LEGS!!!!!!!!!!!...............

2010-01-09T23:23:00.000-05:00

..............ARE GETTING WEAKER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Alright, I'll kill the caps and exclamation marks). Like I mentioned before, my commute to work is shorter now...basically half the distance: 16km round trip instead of 33km round trip. That amounts to a commute that barely gets the legs warmed up. Add to that not getting on the traininer in almost a week, and it feels like my legs are turning to jello.

Ok, my legs aren't THAT bad, but if I don't don something soon, I may as well just keel right over.

New year, new job.

2010-01-05T21:51:00.003-05:00

Today was my first commute of 2010, and my first commute to my new job. Yup, I've started a new job, and I think that this is a move that will have me doing the same thing for the next 20 years or so (scary thought, really). Up until New Year's eve, 2009, I was working as a kinesiologist in a physiotherapy clinic. Basically, I looked after the exercise rehab of our patients. It was an interesting job, challenging, rewarding and with a constant turn around of patients, it never got stale. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a dead end job...there was nowhere else to go with the company I was working for, and the pay, well, it left a little to be desired.

So enter 2010, and I've started working for a company whose main service is assessing lower limb conditions and the manufacturing of foot orthotics. I'll be working towards getting certified as a pedorthist, and eventually managing a clinic. The clinics are basically franchises, so down the line there will be opportunities to buy shares and become an owner. My first ever "degree related" job was working at a similar type of clinic, so although I'm starting a new job, it's all pretty familiar to me.

In addition, my commute for the time being will be shorter, so I don't think I'll hit the same mileage as I did this year. But the bonus is that I'll have a little more free time in the evenings, and possibly get out on some more group rides. The other thing is I won't arrive at work in a sweaty mess...good for me, and my co-workers!

A run, and some beer.

2010-01-03T22:25:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I did something I haven't done in a loooooong time. That was go for a run. Now, I'm not even remotely close to what you would call a runner. The only time I ever really do any running is in the winter, and that's only because I can't bike as much as I'd like to prevent myself from feeling like an inactive bum. BUT, there are some good things about winter running:

-you get a good workout in a short period of time
-even if it's minus 15 out, you can still warm up pretty quickly
-it's kind of fun...jumping over snow banks, dodging ice and puddles, dashing through the snow, on a one horse open sleigh....
-gives my bones a good pounding...I'm afraid of developing brittle bones since biking isn't a weight bearing exercsie
-it's easy on the joints, especially when there's snow underfoot
-it can be pretty tough at times, especially when there's a decent amount of snow of the ground (kind of like running in sand)

So I got out for a 35 minute run of 5 minutes of running, followed by 1 minute of walking. By the time I got back home, I felt like "Damn! I've just worked out good!" 35 minutes might not sound like much, but trust me, I felt it today. Sore quads, hip flexors and tibialis muscles . Because of that, my planned 60 minutes on the trainer today turned into 30 minutes on the rollers. At least I feel like I'll be able to ride the rollers and drink coffee at the same time pretty soon.

As for some beer, I picked up a 6 pack of Creemore Springs urBock. If you click on the link, you get a good description of what an "urBock" is. I was initially intrigued by the packaging, stating that it's a limited release. It's a pretty dark beer, and also a little higher on the alcohol content...6%. Nevertheless, it packs quite a flavour punch, but has a bitter finish that lingers. I found it went well with some cheese to balance out the bitterness. Unfortunately, it didn't give me a feeling that I was part of the "noble class", for which this beer was traditionally reserved for according to the website. If you like beer with a hoppy/bitter finish, pick this up before it's all gone...until next year.