Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Final touches and first ride
With the Gunnar just about finished we just had to add a few final touches, waterbottle cages. We knew when we built it up the cage on the downtube would fit fine. The problem lied in trying to get a cage to somehow fit securely on the seattube as the front derailleur clamped right in the middle of the braze-ons. I had the idea to try and find some longer bolts and just space it out so one could mount over the top of the clamp. Alas, we found some longer ones! Found some small washers and alas, two cages! Who knew frame mounted pumps would be good for anything other than swinging at cars that got too close?! (For those who don't know frame pumps come with longer bolts)
Now that the build was complete, nothing left to do really except weigh it and ride it. When I started the build I was thinking we would be in the same 20 lb area as the Scattante build she was riding prior to this due to the frame being steel and all. I was ok with it as the ride quality was going to be much smoother and plush for her. So I through it up on the digital scale at work. It was like watching the weigh ins on the Biggest Loser. Numbers were jumping all around while the bike steadied itself on the hook. I was elated when the numbers stopped jumping and settled on ......
About a 2 lb loss!
While at the store I picked up a new headlight, CygoLite Pace 135, for Jenn's bike as well as a heart rate monitor for myself. I have big plans for the HRM which I will disclose in a later post. I need to read a book and an online article or two first. Arrived home, charged the light and and awaited Jenn's arrival home from work so we could head out on the open road for Jenn's first ride on the Gunnar and her first night ride.
The light performed really well and I was pleased with the output on it. At 135 lumens this 3.5 hour LED was quite bright and illuminated more of the road than my Cateye Doubleshot. It retails for $99 (usually on sale for around $70) and at that I think it is a steal. Jenn had no problems seeing anything that was coming her way.
She really enjoyed the ride quality on the new bike. We will need to make some small tweaks to get a little pressure off of her hands and thus releasing some tension in her shoulders but all in all the ride is just as nice to ride as it is to look at.
Now that the build was complete, nothing left to do really except weigh it and ride it. When I started the build I was thinking we would be in the same 20 lb area as the Scattante build she was riding prior to this due to the frame being steel and all. I was ok with it as the ride quality was going to be much smoother and plush for her. So I through it up on the digital scale at work. It was like watching the weigh ins on the Biggest Loser. Numbers were jumping all around while the bike steadied itself on the hook. I was elated when the numbers stopped jumping and settled on ......
About a 2 lb loss!
The light performed really well and I was pleased with the output on it. At 135 lumens this 3.5 hour LED was quite bright and illuminated more of the road than my Cateye Doubleshot. It retails for $99 (usually on sale for around $70) and at that I think it is a steal. Jenn had no problems seeing anything that was coming her way.She really enjoyed the ride quality on the new bike. We will need to make some small tweaks to get a little pressure off of her hands and thus releasing some tension in her shoulders but all in all the ride is just as nice to ride as it is to look at.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Woke up early this morning so Jenn and I could get to the polls before going into work. The church which we were supposed to vote at is literally 3 minutes from the house. We left the house right at 6 when the polls opened only to find 430 exactly ahead of us. I know this because the machine that we stuck our ballots in said I was vote number 432. We only had to wait an hour and half for it but well worth it.
When I got to work I was greeted shortly there after by DeShawn our friendly UPS man. He was carrying the last piece of the puzzle for Jenn's new Gunnar build. He was kind enough to pose for a picture. Maybe because it meant he got to be inside out of the rain for just a moment longer. Any guess what he is dropping off? Spoiler down below.
Here are some pictures that do no justice to the beauty of the complete build. The bling list includes Gunnar Roadie frame, Easton EC70 fork, Easton EA70 bars, 2009 SRAM Rival shifters brakes and dérailleurs, FSA SLK cranks and a build wouldn't be complete without a set of Chris King wheels and headset.
When I got to work I was greeted shortly there after by DeShawn our friendly UPS man. He was carrying the last piece of the puzzle for Jenn's new Gunnar build. He was kind enough to pose for a picture. Maybe because it meant he got to be inside out of the rain for just a moment longer. Any guess what he is dropping off? Spoiler down below.
Here are some pictures that do no justice to the beauty of the complete build. The bling list includes Gunnar Roadie frame, Easton EC70 fork, Easton EA70 bars, 2009 SRAM Rival shifters brakes and dérailleurs, FSA SLK cranks and a build wouldn't be complete without a set of Chris King wheels and headset.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Holiday Season Begins...
Seems like just yesterday Jenn and I were talking about buying a home together on New Years Day. We have had a busy year together including buying our first home together, getting engaged, adopting a puppy and receiving a promotion at work. Now its our first holiday season together.
Most people do not consider Halloween part of the holiday season but this year I do and I will get to that in a moment. Started off by carving some jack-o-lanterns while visiting Aprill and Adam a few weeks ago.
Halloween soon came around and Jenn and I were ready to hand out some candy to all the kids in the neighborhood. Well, Jenn was ready to hand it out. I spent the evening dry fitting some components on Jenn's Xmas present.
A couple of months back, I had made the decision to be the cycling coach for the Richmond chapter of Team in Training. Jenn had made the decision to sign up as a participant and train to do her first century. I then started to put the ole brain into overdrive trying to find a new frame for her to ride on to make the long days of training a little more comfortable than the extremely stiff aluminum frame she is/was riding.
The problem was she really wanted a bike with some pink in it and I couldn't find but a few choices of carbon frames in which she would really like and they all would require me to buy a complete bike just so I could use the frame. Solution? I got in touch with Richard and Waterford Cycles and ordered a custom Gunnar Roadie frame. Once the frame was done with the manufacturing Richard gave me a call to make sure their understanding of what I wanted the paint to be like was the same as mine. They were able to recreate my thoughts perfectly; black glossy frame with Gunnar written in pink down the downtube and he also agreed to leave all other decals and markings off the frame. Man does it look clean!
The second picture is a bit blurry because I get excited when I am around it but not anything like Jenn does. We are still waiting on the fork (Easton EC70) and wheels (Chris King Pretty in Pink edition) to arrive. Fork should be today and the wheels hopefully by Thursday or Friday. If they arrive on either of those days Jenn will be riding it for the first time at our first Team in Training session on Saturday as I will stay up all night to get it built if I have to! Meanwhile I have a couple boxes full of new sexy parts waiting to be put to good use and a stand in the house that is driving Jenn bonkers. For some reason I think it would bother her more if it were one of my frames just chillin there lookin pretty, ha!
Most people do not consider Halloween part of the holiday season but this year I do and I will get to that in a moment. Started off by carving some jack-o-lanterns while visiting Aprill and Adam a few weeks ago.
Halloween soon came around and Jenn and I were ready to hand out some candy to all the kids in the neighborhood. Well, Jenn was ready to hand it out. I spent the evening dry fitting some components on Jenn's Xmas present.A couple of months back, I had made the decision to be the cycling coach for the Richmond chapter of Team in Training. Jenn had made the decision to sign up as a participant and train to do her first century. I then started to put the ole brain into overdrive trying to find a new frame for her to ride on to make the long days of training a little more comfortable than the extremely stiff aluminum frame she is/was riding.
The problem was she really wanted a bike with some pink in it and I couldn't find but a few choices of carbon frames in which she would really like and they all would require me to buy a complete bike just so I could use the frame. Solution? I got in touch with Richard and Waterford Cycles and ordered a custom Gunnar Roadie frame. Once the frame was done with the manufacturing Richard gave me a call to make sure their understanding of what I wanted the paint to be like was the same as mine. They were able to recreate my thoughts perfectly; black glossy frame with Gunnar written in pink down the downtube and he also agreed to leave all other decals and markings off the frame. Man does it look clean!
The second picture is a bit blurry because I get excited when I am around it but not anything like Jenn does. We are still waiting on the fork (Easton EC70) and wheels (Chris King Pretty in Pink edition) to arrive. Fork should be today and the wheels hopefully by Thursday or Friday. If they arrive on either of those days Jenn will be riding it for the first time at our first Team in Training session on Saturday as I will stay up all night to get it built if I have to! Meanwhile I have a couple boxes full of new sexy parts waiting to be put to good use and a stand in the house that is driving Jenn bonkers. For some reason I think it would bother her more if it were one of my frames just chillin there lookin pretty, ha!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Addition to the stable...
Saturday, April 26, 2008
No saddle time but ............
' She said yes
And I said wow
And she said when
And I said how about right now
Love can't wait
Then I asked if she believed in fate
And she said yes'
And she said when
And I said how about right now
Love can't wait
Then I asked if she believed in fate
And she said yes'
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Watch the Video!
So another week has come and gone with very little time in the saddle. I was going to post about the first real mtb ride I have gotten in this year where my heart was beating ridicoulous amounts of fastness and my legs had an unrelenting amount of burn in them. That was until I read my sister's blog last night about my pops.
Many of you have met him and for those of you who haven't have surely seen him while he has always so lovingly worked my pits filling waterbottles, making sure I eat and then always finding a way to convince into doing just one more lap a little faster than the last. He is the rock I lean on during those physically and mentally draining events we all consider to be hell while doing it yet smile and joke oh so unrelentlessly about afterwards.
Her writeup says everything so perfectly I am copy/pasting it below. Please watch the video she put together. Every time someone watches it Five for Fighting donates $1 to the Fisher House. For those who don't know, the Fisher House helps support military families.
Many of you have met him and for those of you who haven't have surely seen him while he has always so lovingly worked my pits filling waterbottles, making sure I eat and then always finding a way to convince into doing just one more lap a little faster than the last. He is the rock I lean on during those physically and mentally draining events we all consider to be hell while doing it yet smile and joke oh so unrelentlessly about afterwards.
Her writeup says everything so perfectly I am copy/pasting it below. Please watch the video she put together. Every time someone watches it Five for Fighting donates $1 to the Fisher House. For those who don't know, the Fisher House helps support military families.
_______________________________________
From B's Blog
From B's Blog
Good Deed #29. Dad, this one was for you! I know it wasn't easy for you to be away from us for all those months and years, but we were always so proud to call you dad. Everyday I would look at the cross stitch mom made that said "Any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a Daddy" and would thank God that I was YOUR sweet pea. I made this video for you, the men you served with, the men who are serving now, and for all the children left behind. Friends and family please watch this video till the very end so Five for Fighting can donate $1/view to the Fisher House.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Another day of commuting resulted in another day of dead legs. Normally I can tell within a mire or two if my legs are going to free up or not. Oddly enough they felt good on the flats where I was comfortable cruising between 24 and 26 mph. Once the climbs around the U of R campus came about both legs looked up at me and started yelling at me like angry protesters, "HELL NO WE WONT GO!"
In other news, I've decided on a temporary race schedule for this year. Gonna try and focus on the hundies and 12-18 hr races. The season will start in March at the Camp Hilbert Series, where I am deciding whether to do the 5 hr or the shorter SS class. Leaning towards the 5 hr to help prepare me for the Baker's Dozen about a month later in Leesburg.
Sponsorship News - I am proud to announce I will definitely be pimping the Six again in '08. Got word from Brent and Ryan last week. Still haven't heard from Maxxis or Carbboom! but I should know something by the end of the month. I also have an application in to ride for Team Polar as well. They say that decision will be made by the 15th of Feb.
In other news, I've decided on a temporary race schedule for this year. Gonna try and focus on the hundies and 12-18 hr races. The season will start in March at the Camp Hilbert Series, where I am deciding whether to do the 5 hr or the shorter SS class. Leaning towards the 5 hr to help prepare me for the Baker's Dozen about a month later in Leesburg.
Sponsorship News - I am proud to announce I will definitely be pimping the Six again in '08. Got word from Brent and Ryan last week. Still haven't heard from Maxxis or Carbboom! but I should know something by the end of the month. I also have an application in to ride for Team Polar as well. They say that decision will be made by the 15th of Feb.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Its a new year!
At the start of New Year's Eve, I was 47 miles short of tripping the 3600 mile mark for the 07 season. Being so close I decided to take the new Salsa out for a nice ride.
With the rain passing over night, the weather was perfect. Upper 40's and sunny. I decided to take a spin through Powhatan which is something I had not done in quite some time. So I filled a couple of bottles and loaded my leg up with CarbBoom! and then the CarbBoom! unloaded itself on my leg. Maybe it was its way of telling me that my leg was too fat to fit both my leg and the CarbBoom! packets in my post holiday tighter shorts.
The ride couldn't have been better. Everything seemed to take place so effortlessly. Legs felt great on flats even while fighting through the random gusts of strong wind. Surprisingly my climbing legs were still there as well. Alright so they were there considering the limited amount of saddle time the last couple of months.
On the route home, I took a look at the computer and saw that if I turned towards home I would end up about 6 miles short of my goal of 47 miles. So I decided to take the around my ass to get to my elbow route home. Moments later, chain suck and gear skips from hell. Then nothing! A look down to find there wasn't a chain attached to the bike any longer.
Not having any Shimano connector pins in the bag ( not sure where they went ) it came down to, Do I start walking or call someone? Called someone I did! Dad picked me up and gave me a ride back to the house. I took the time to snap a few pics while sitting on the side of the road.
Hard to make the King hub spin with no chain.
After taking a day off from the saddle on Wed, I met up with Nate yesterday for another longer road ride. We left from his house and road over to meet up with some people from the local road club who were leading a ride from the Hanover Courthouse. On the way over, my chain started to skip around again. Not again I said to myself. A quick diagnosis was that the link I used to put the chain back together had frozen up in the cold. Being about a mile from Cobblestone Bikes, Nate and I swung by there to see if they could loosen it up. Less than 5 minutes later we were back on the road and riding fast over to the courthouse. According to the comp we kept about a 20-21 avg from the shop to the courthouse. My legs felt stupid good and were ready to roll!
Two other brave souls showed for the ride. The route was mostly flat with a two good climbs and one teaser. Again the climbing legs felt pretty good. About half way through the 28 mile loop we were doing with them, my hands began to freeze up. The wind was brutal on them. By the time we finished up that loop my hands had me wanting to step off the bike and cry. 16 more miles back to Nate's and I could do just that. Just that is what I did when we got back!
There were points were I had started to worry about frostbite as the pain would come and go but they would never warm up. Hands were whiter than my pale thighs when I got my gloves off. Took about 20 minutes before I was able to use them to load the bike onto the car. Once I got home I ordered a pair of Amfib Infernos. My hands will never get that cold again!
Commutes to and from work for the next couple of days will be the only saddle time I get until my day off on Sunday. Maybe I can get Jenn out for a ride Sunday afternoon. She is usually the one willing to ride these days. I on the other hand, usually find something else to do. This has got to change and thanks to the La Raza, change has begun.
With the rain passing over night, the weather was perfect. Upper 40's and sunny. I decided to take a spin through Powhatan which is something I had not done in quite some time. So I filled a couple of bottles and loaded my leg up with CarbBoom! and then the CarbBoom! unloaded itself on my leg. Maybe it was its way of telling me that my leg was too fat to fit both my leg and the CarbBoom! packets in my post holiday tighter shorts.
The ride couldn't have been better. Everything seemed to take place so effortlessly. Legs felt great on flats even while fighting through the random gusts of strong wind. Surprisingly my climbing legs were still there as well. Alright so they were there considering the limited amount of saddle time the last couple of months.On the route home, I took a look at the computer and saw that if I turned towards home I would end up about 6 miles short of my goal of 47 miles. So I decided to take the around my ass to get to my elbow route home. Moments later, chain suck and gear skips from hell. Then nothing! A look down to find there wasn't a chain attached to the bike any longer.
Not having any Shimano connector pins in the bag ( not sure where they went ) it came down to, Do I start walking or call someone? Called someone I did! Dad picked me up and gave me a ride back to the house. I took the time to snap a few pics while sitting on the side of the road.
Hard to make the King hub spin with no chain.Later that night, Jenn and I ate dinner with her family. Always nice to spend time with them. Afterwards I decided to try the Luna recovery smoothie sample that was sent to us at the store. Have to say I was pretty disappointed in it. It didn't mix well and therefore was a bit chunky. The taste was far from pleasant as well. The only good thing I can say about it was that I was able to finish the whole glass without vomiting. Now there's a quote they could use in their next ad. Ha!
After taking a day off from the saddle on Wed, I met up with Nate yesterday for another longer road ride. We left from his house and road over to meet up with some people from the local road club who were leading a ride from the Hanover Courthouse. On the way over, my chain started to skip around again. Not again I said to myself. A quick diagnosis was that the link I used to put the chain back together had frozen up in the cold. Being about a mile from Cobblestone Bikes, Nate and I swung by there to see if they could loosen it up. Less than 5 minutes later we were back on the road and riding fast over to the courthouse. According to the comp we kept about a 20-21 avg from the shop to the courthouse. My legs felt stupid good and were ready to roll!
Two other brave souls showed for the ride. The route was mostly flat with a two good climbs and one teaser. Again the climbing legs felt pretty good. About half way through the 28 mile loop we were doing with them, my hands began to freeze up. The wind was brutal on them. By the time we finished up that loop my hands had me wanting to step off the bike and cry. 16 more miles back to Nate's and I could do just that. Just that is what I did when we got back!
There were points were I had started to worry about frostbite as the pain would come and go but they would never warm up. Hands were whiter than my pale thighs when I got my gloves off. Took about 20 minutes before I was able to use them to load the bike onto the car. Once I got home I ordered a pair of Amfib Infernos. My hands will never get that cold again!
Commutes to and from work for the next couple of days will be the only saddle time I get until my day off on Sunday. Maybe I can get Jenn out for a ride Sunday afternoon. She is usually the one willing to ride these days. I on the other hand, usually find something else to do. This has got to change and thanks to the La Raza, change has begun.
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