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All Doom and Gloom

That's the text I sent out the the fellas that I was anticipating getting the "bail out" email/txt/phone call from as morning came to be on Saturday full of thunder and monsoon like rain storms. The plan called for a gravel grinder due to the 60% chance of t-storms predicted for the day.

I intrepidly loaded the car in the pouring rain excited for the wet weather laden ride ahead. About 20 miles of familiar gravel with plans for 40ish of unexplored options after, it was going to be a good day despite the weather dammit.

gRant's new Woodchipper setup.

Despite the poor weather forecast all but one (and he had a good excuse, kinda) were at the start location more or less (less in gRant's case) on time and ready to roll (not so) shortly thereafter. Chilly, wet, and cold to start we hemmed and hawed over what to wear/carry/use then made our way to parts unknown. Twenty or so minutes later the sky turned blue, we dropped layers, then realized our lack of sun preparation. Sounds like TI v3 all over again (can you say lobster burn?).

The sky blued.

Despite the heavy rains much of the gravel dried quickly. We suffered only a few miles of quagmire mud and one cool drifting near losing it moment where I excitedly asked gRant if I looked like Mark as I held the bike on a knifes edge of losing it drifting a super slick descent. gRant confirmed I looked more like a charity case he'd be likely to help out for a publicity promo.

gRant and Parker coming into the slaughter pen.

Part of my portfolio submission to work for Rapha's marketing department.

More of my portfolio submission to work for Rapha's marketing department.

If the Rapha thing doesn't work out, maybe Moots' marketing is hiring?

Page 13 of the 2011 Moots Catalog? Whadaya think Dave?

gRant's MootsterCross

Map Check or possibly re-check. photo cred: CrookedCop

Billy Goat Gruff. photo cred: CrookedCop

Q: Another name for two mules? A: A couple asses. photo cred: CrookedCop

wool Swiftwicks recommended. photo cred: CrookedCop

ingrates.

Rapha cover shot? Homegrown catalog cover?

Rapha Boy in the creek.

Parker getting the creek crossing initiation about 15 times today.

Yet another crossing.

Rockin' Rapha Roadie in the Rearview.

Perfecting the under the pit shot (not to be confused with double pits to chesty).

The gRantenator on his Mootstercross Machine of Mayhem.

Homegrown Parker enjoying the day.

All in all it was a great day to spend exploring long forgotten back roads of Tennessee. The road with the 12+ creek crossings was by far my favorite. Any of the houses along it I would have gladly accepted. It was very unique and scenic. From large creek side homes of paradise to small concrete buildings to old decrepit barns. It was amazing.


Remember when I mentioned erring on the side of irrational paranoia? Well my irrational rationale isn't baseless. I decided I was being silly for not riding the DT hubs and if it was going to be wet and muddy I might as well put them back on for the ride. For much of the ride my hub was making awful noises and skipping. Or what we perceived was my hub as we couldn't find anything glaringly obvious with the drive train. Several stops to try to resolve the issue were fruitless. So I had to carefully ease my way up hills trying to keep the tension steady with a skipped crank every 4th pedal stroke. Finally, grinding up one of the last hills I all popped. Turned out it was only my chain. I removed the offending link and slid my sliders up to compensate the shorter chain and we pedaled on. Gone were all signs of hub issues. As luck would have it, it was only my chain but I'm still taking it as a sign to get the hubs serviced. No more pushing my luck.

Even made it back in time for the Farrier's visit and JD's first trip to the barn since the car incident.

Since we decided to take a shorter way back for fear of my hub exploding (pre-chain snap) I was able to grab some delicious Southern cuisine at Puckett's with the fellas before heading home to catch the Farrier. Despite not leaving Puckett's until the time I was to be home, I still made it with plenty of time to spare before the farrier showed up. Perfect ending to a perfect day.

Nashville Bicycle Lounge Unveiling

I promised under threat of violent death that I wouldn't publish any photos I took when I stopped by the Nashville Bicycle Lounge a week or two back, but I just can't hold it in any longer. The press blog must not succumb to the bullying tactics of rapscallions.

So kids, here's the shop in all it's glory. It's easy to find, just be a little wary of the back ally, the nails, glass, and used syringes are just a ploy to get you to buy more tubes. Free wifi and bitchin' Astana color scheme though.

Dude, no bike rack?

Happy April 1st y'all.

Great Firewall Of China

China Tree says "No Web Albums For You!"

Yesterday's plague of missing picasa web albums has been linked back to China by internet super sluethier OldGreg. Apparently their Great Firewall of China and NetNod weren't playing well together. Kinda like black and purple headsets - oooh which free super spendy headset should my scandahoovian barbie bike wear? Come on, larger problems abound such as missing web albums and gratuitous cute cat shots. Red's the new purple, Dillen. Finger it out.

Seriously, every ride?

Frustrated from being in the box far too long Monday, I wrestled traffic with Central Park chess move precision to check mate fate and make it home not earlier than early, but still early. The benefit of a dealing with a crappy car commute is the opportunity to have a playground out back. I took the Monkey out for a short walk about (he's been cleared to take slow walks on leash to help rehab his leg) then suited up and rolled out to the monkey pit. Armed with fresh WTB markety Mark videos, a muddy (but a dry muddy) bike, and my trusty shuffle I headed out to unwind the wound.


The rolling grass fields on the way to the back are bright green with new growth that looked even greener against the blue clear sky. Since the back field tops out along the ridge before plunging into the Monkey Pit, the green gave way to the drab brown of the woods. Though bits of green are beginning to peak through, I imagine it'll be another week or two before the Monkey Pit changes into it's thicker green canopy.

The only green causes red: The Privet is flourishing.

The late night work hours are really cutting into my bike maintenance time.

After dinner JD started to whimper and I took him out just in time to watch the full moon rise over the ridge line and pierce through the low clouds. It was far more impressive than this photo lets on, but I thought I'd share in case you all missed it.

Back In Pink

Back In Pink.

Since this weekend was going to be a little different than normal, I decided it was time for a change up. OK perhaps it was a thread on mtbr about a recent rash (one single incident) of hub failures (again one single solitary incident) that sparked my swap. My DT Swiss 240s hubs have rarely seen nice weather. They are going on 3 years of abuse in wet, muddy, gnarly conditions ranging from cross, snake, xc, gravel, dsg, angry hours, etc... in all types of conditions and have never been serviced or properly maintained, nor have they given me any issues. But I did have two slight slips, or what I possibly perceived as slight slips, the last two anger hour rides. So combine the post (just reading it means it's more than likely to happen to me) with the potential slight slip encounters and I erred on the side of paranoid obsessive compulsion (The slumlordess often suggests I take pills for this).

All cleaned up just in time to get all dirty again.

Since a long epic of the LBL was planned with fellow riders whose track record for successful completions of said long epic ride of LBL isn't so grand, I felt assured that (having just read the post) if I rolled with my faithful bad-ass Hodge made hoops I'd be hiking out of the woods deflated and left behind after a single mile. The track record is such that one of the bad news bears I was riding with made the comment that he was learning where he was on the trail by the extraction points from previous rides. That's not to say it is any ones' fault that causes the epicnessness of the days, but rather the law of sums. The more people involved + the longer the ride exponentially raises the mechanical issue and time on trail numbers. Pick any two of us to ride the same trail at any given time and it'll be incident free. Add a third, fourth, fifth, or even sixth person and you've just guaranteed a long day in the saddle. With history as my guide, I packed heavy. No tool, tube, or chamois cream left behind.

A great day to be in the woods (photo stolen from the crookedcop)

Along the way the creeks were deep and cold and the trail was mucky in random odd low points and even more random and odd uphill portions. One particularly deep and cold creek crossing had us rolling slowly and ratcheting the pedals to stay upright and dry when Scuba Steve pointed out it being a worthless endeavor, for Monster came splashing through soaking the bunch.

As dire as it initially sounds, the big group rides are always the most fun. The heckling and ribbing that takes place is awe inspiring. The constant pace changes and surprise sprints keeps you on your toes. The temps were upper 60's, the sun was full on shining, and the wind was cooling. A perfect day to spend 7+ hours out on the trail and 45 minutes or so mind numbingly spinning on rolling pavement into the cold cloud infested weather to get the rescue vehicle nursing a slowly leaking front tire.

I think it was 3 tubeless riders and 3 tubed riders with one flat from each camp, though the number advantage slipped to tubed riders 3.5 to 2.5. And of the 3 geared riders and 3 singlespeed riders, one from each camp had some drive train issues. So all things were pretty equal for the day. I can't wait until this weekend's adventures.

Ride for Reading, Rainbows for Drinking

The setting sun peaking out.

The setting sun peaked out at me as I left the windowless box at work and headed towards the car. A perfect bike commute Wednesday had given way to a rainy and stormy Thursday, but things were looking up for Friday.

Casting colors against the gray.

Behind me the Sun was splashing color on the gray in the form of a double rainbow. Perhaps a sign of good things to come? A change of luck or pot of gold? On the phone with Ride For Reading Matthew as I walked he'd stated he had a question to which I quickly spurted "7". He responded great the question is "How many millions are you giving me?" Damn, if only I could find the end of the rainbow. Wait, there it is over there to the right.

The end of the rainbow beckons.

Behold the gold (or amber) at the end of the rainbow.

Low and behold the end of the rainbow took me to WestL.A.B. where a kegerator of gold and amber awaited along with a house, er home brewery, full of friends. A rich man I am in deed.

First!

Up and out early early on the cold cloudy Friday morning, I was the first to arrive at the RideForReading building (donated by Swiftwick) winning the morning sprint, though no donuts or coffee for the winner. Bogus!

Sorting the level readers.

Rather than donuts, coffee, and podium girls the winner was quickly put to work, along with second and third place finishers Chandler and Cindy, sorting level readers to donate to the school. These are for the school to keep and share with the students, the other books we deliver are for the kids to get to pick one to take home and keep.

Taylor and Graham help out.

Other riders rolled in as the hour closed in on 8. Taylor and Graham helped load the boxes into the support car, bob trailer, and our bags/packs. We'd drawn straws before their arrival and Taylor got the short straw, but Graham stepped up and took the bob trailer mule role for the day (bolt on SS hubs were more predominant over skewered wheels).

Taylor dreams big.

Loading up with books to be delivered.

18 wheeled 2 wheeled pace setter.

With very few exceptions, the route was low traffic and peaceful. The wind was to our backs and although the temps were low, spirits were high. The worst stretch was across Harding, unfortunately the only way across I65 along the way. 6 lanes of traffic and merging interstate traffic made getting to the left lane treacherous, but luckily the cars were patient and shared the road. Sitting at the forever long left turn light we found our pace car, er semi.

Beware of sliding and falling people

The crew waiting to turn left at the endless light of Harding & Trousdale.

Mr. Incredible Graham and My Giant Head star Chandler.

Arriving at the school amongst a sea of cheering students.

The worst climbs were saved for the finish stretch. Paragon Mills was a triple stepped beast of a climb with the school awaiting us at the summit finish. Cresting the top the roaring cheers of the students filled the air and our chests as they welcomed the cyclists who rode across town to bring them a treasure trove of 700 books.

Horses and Bikes, what better treasures are there for kids?

There'll be many more deliveries coming from RideForReading. I highly recommend getting involved for a delivery at least once. The gratitude and excitement of the kids and school faculty is infectious and humbling. The ride is a blast and a good way to spend a morning before work. If you can't ride, they can always use SAG drivers to help haul excess boxes and watch over the group on the road. At the very least make it a goal to donate at least one book whenever you can.

Keep and eye out for movie night gatherings at their new building too. Thanks to all who showed up and helped haul books. I look forward to the next delivery.

Knob & Knoll

From the steep hilly knob and knoll roads through sleepy hillside farms to the serene creek side valley antique town of Whites Creek.


Along the river and past the seedy warehouse district and pungent smells of the waste treatment plant. To the bakery smells and bustle of the posh rejuvenated urban jungle.

Second bike commute of ought ten. Wool jersey and long fingered glove cold in the morning, t-shirt warm in the afternoon. This weather is awesome.

Getting My Aspen Gear

Opportunity was my friend today. Coming in just as the bottom fell out.

Welcome to TwentySixInches.com / Bike26.com.

I've been catching some grief from friends and frienemies (SteveS) about my recent tire posts. I'm not a gear reviewer nor do I aspire to be and I've gotten nothing from the companies whose tires I've been testing. The WW LT came from Jeffy after he got it for Wendy and she didn't like the way it rode. For my first two rides I could see why she didn't dig it. However, after spending some time on it, it'll be hard to get me to take it off the front. The Aspen and Ignitor I purchased and the Cortez was a thorn laden dried goop filled hand-me-down from Meanjoe who has left the 26" wheel behind for life on a 29'er.

Wet but in great condition still.

Up until now I just ran whatever tires the bike shops had in stock and stuck with it. The Larsen TT was first which I stuck with until I couldn't get any locally, then I went to Karmas, then to Vertical Pros, Crossmarks (hated), then Ignitors. Now that I have 2 sets of wheels and a test course in the backyard and my main treads were wearing thin after a year of riding and racing and a growing stack of hand-me-down tires, I decided it was the perfect time to actually try different treads back to back and maybe thin the pile out. I thought the class might appreciate me sharing.

Looking up a short, steep, off-camber slick rock whoop. The Aspen hooked up amicably.

Without the convenience of the track out back, I wouldn't have really bothered to try different setups as it's just too time consuming to drive 45 minutes to the closest trail and ride around my schedule and the flakey weather. The track out back allows me to ride anytime, any weather and quickly compare tire treads and air pressures. That is why the sudden infatuation with tires.

Plenty of girth for a 2.25 tire.

So, we've had rain solidly all day long. Around 3:30 pm there was a knock at the window. It was opportunity so I quickly suited up and headed out with Dish. Though it was still sprinkling and the trails were wet, they weren't slop and the leaf covering helped keep the soil from saturating (think MB's yellow/green). It was the perfect time to get out and see how the treads would hook up in wet, Pisgah like conditions (Pisgah-like meaning: creeks, waterfalls, steep assed leaf covered rooty climbs, and twisty rooty leaf-covered off-camber downhills with able-to-ride-in-rain tread).

A now collector's Bolt Bros. bottle kept me hydrated for the 1 1/2 hour ride with minimal mess to clean off the bike.

The 2.25 Aspen has more volume and a plusher ride than the 2.35 Ignitor with a slightly lower weight penalty. The 2.4 Cortez isn't a tire for me. It spun out more than the Aspen did on the wet slimy ups and had a bad habit of breaking loose then grabbing traction suddenly that I didn't care for. On off-camber or drifting turns, the 2.4 Cortez felt like riding on a rug that at any moment someone could (and would) pull out from under you. I think it's the gap between crown knobs, the large blocky edge knobs, and the square profile that cause me to not like it's behavior. They conspire to create the rug pulled out sensation for my riding style.

Climbing while seated, the Aspen plowed up the damp, rooty steeps.

Initially the Aspen was around 32 psi and while standing on climbs I'd get about a 1/4 wheel spin every other pedal stroke, no matter where I centered my weight. After dropping to about 29 psi (ish, it was a pssshh pssshh psssssssshh) the tire hooked up with a 1/6 wheel spin only on the slimiest and steepest grunts when I didn't have my weight back far enough. Seated on the same climb it kept traction like a tractor tire without a hint of breaking loose. Considering the top 1/4" or so of tread is wet leaves and watery soil, the low knob height Aspen kept traction admirably.

When standing, the Aspen would spin a bit on the wet roots.

I'm loving the WW LT up front, especially in the wet. The 3 downhill driftable turns in the slalom chute are ear to ear grinning with the WW LT up front. I never felt like it was going to wash out. I'm far from a master at drifting or railing, but I'm now able to keep on the gas as the bike drifts the turns. Trouble is now I'm clipping the pedals due to pedaling through steep carves. Good problem to have in my eyes, considering I used to grab brake and slide off the trail when the wheels started to drift. The harder you push the WW LT the more sense of trust you get back. The Aspen behaves similarly to the WW LT and feels like the perfect mate for it.

Tracks left from drifting the chute.

This will be my last post on the tires. The Aspen isn't the perfect tire for everyone and I've only had 2 rides on it (one dry, one wet) so I'm still forming my opinion. It's important to note that I've not run the WW LT 2.55 in the rear nor tried the Aspen on the front. However, if PMBAR were tomorrow and I had to pick a tire combo to race not knowing the trail conditions the WW LT Front / Aspen Rear combo would be my choice. Even over the always a solid performer choice of an Ignitor front/rear combo.