killthedarkness

dont call it a comeback.

off to tn for ssusa. stories from the road to come.

plastic fantastic.

i can get used to this mountain biking thing. with the sun blazing and temps close to eighty,  jesse, t-da, aom, and myself headed over to the kettles for the first time this year. other than half the blue loop being closed, the trails were in great shape. after four or so hours we called it quits. it was good to blaze the trails again. hopefully i can get back on the once a week plan i was on last year. its tough to get sick of riding there. a weekend off is on tap in preparation for SSUSA down in TN. ive heard tales of much climbing. might be time to bust out the surly 22t. we may be releasing the super secret bikes down there as well.

bpw slayers

new race bikes showed up on friday and it was a mad scramble to get em built up before race day. in fact, the bigger scramble was to find some replacements to fill our slots at the shop on sunday. we inadvertently asked off for the do the rock rain date, rather than the actualy race date. we hoped for rain but it appeared as if the race would go on. thanks to pete, shaw, and dan, we made the trip.

all the bits i had procured went on the steel darkness 2.0 without trouble. its always the small things you forget about though. chain, seatpost clamp, tubeless strips. it came out to near the exact weight of the darkness 1.0. a couple of newbies to try out for the season. xtr 960 crankset and some hayes stroker carbon brakes. had no issues. the maiden voyage was about an hour after work on saturday night. the main goal was to make sure everything was tight, working, and stretch the chain.

sunday came too early as we headed to rockford bright and early. we had failed to check the travel time and arrived way too early. after sitting around we finally headed to warmup. they had warned of some muddy spots and a few that were soft. after two miles on the trail it was apparent that it was gonna be a mud fest. mud nests formed around the crank and rear stays. we had a hunch the sixty five and a half gear inches was a little too steep. we were right.

the day started off as nearly all do. up at seven. feed the cats. bathroom. chamois up. out the door to meet jesse at the sw singletrack at quarter to eight. head off down the trail and off to quarry ridge. a couple of laps and jesse is off to work. a couple more for me before  heading down military ridge into the forty mph headwind. by a quarter after ten i was drinkin coffee and eating a few donuts outside the kwik trip in mt horeb. you always get those looks in small towns. well, big towns too i guess. the sight of a skinny dude in lycra isnt so commonplace. after four and a half hours on the ferrous it was off to the shop. first a trip to the madison frame builders compound to pick up a fork. I had ZR build me a long reach fork for my filmore. looks great and should be able to fit near a thirty eight in there. a couple of headset swaps and were in business.

also had a nice package come in today from Surly. Fortunately for myself and Jesse, they agreed to take care of our cog needs for the season. Very pleased to welcome them on, thanks guys.

a weekend of scrambling to be on time. a weekend of drinking beer. a weekend of trash talk w/ friends. my good friends nathan and emily got hitched this weekend down in dubuque. it started off w/ meghan and i scrambling to check into the hotel, pick up my tux, and make it to the rehearsal on time. we were the first ones there. a couple of beers afterwards w/ the wedding party and i was in prime form. constant attacks from the eppens kept me on my toes. wedding day came along w/ the reception. i cut it pretty close on the alcohol front. brian was in prime form. im still waiting to see the crab dance though. as quick as it came, it went. but not before we kicked off the mtb season in style.

black rainbow two

with the forecast and work to be done we hit up the h8tr trail bright and early. standard  meeting at glenway and the path, eight am sharp. i opted for the bonty 96er again w/ jesse aboard the proto. a bold move i thought at the moment. thirty two see slicks, or damn near. to my surprise the snow/ice sections were few are far between. the tunnel of hate is still a rink. the softness added to the resistance as we clipped along into the headwind at what musta been something like, or felt something like, seventeen miles per hour. the first test of fitness comes this weekend, a day after nate's wedding. anchors away.

ive always been a tinkerer. a lot of parts dont stay too long on the bikes. theyre swapped, traded, sold. never ending cycle. one of the latest is the bonty race lite. bob built me a 29er fork for it w/ an axle to crown length that doesnt change the geometry. today i got some solid ride time in on it. a couple hours as the bread with a seven hour shift the meat.

today was the first day in shorts. started with the knee warmers but they were shed within five miles. the ride home was even better. managed a couple of laps at the quarry ridge. its rideable but quite muddy. i needed some singletrack. a week until race one. yeah, i needed it.

black rainbow one

i felt the sweet soggy dirt beneath my tyres today. something i havent felt in a long time. there was plenty of ice and snow in there, enough to put me down hard within the first twenty minutes. bruised knee but not ego. my track record on hittin the deck is getting worse by the day. a day or two of rest will do more good than harm.

for the day theres not much that you cant read here.  the route has another week and a half to melt or dry before the h8tr race. if conditions dont improve its gonna be brutal. hell, it will anyway. if theres no snow its sure to be soft as all get out. the dangerous element is the distance. at a hundred k its short enough to really put yourself in the pain cave. thats  what the h8tr is all about.

the bbbb's handled it well. if it wasnt for prior engagements id be rockin it in the race. jesses jitenshas looked real nice though. the bar fetish is kickin in. maybe a jones bar (anyone wanna sell me one?).