It's a Girl!!

The weather hadn't been very co-operative, so I was stuck taking the bus. Somehow, I managed an amazing connection and got home at 5:45pm. Kelly and David were out, picking up our cat who had teeth pulled that day. I put some dinner together and my family soon joined me. Tuesday the cat looked hilarious in her little T-Shirt (to keep her from going after her tiny drug patch). She was dubbed "Teen Wolf" by my sister. Perfect.

Kelly mentioned she was feeling some discomfort. I laughed and told her she was in labour most likely. I got the watch out and the contractions were about 13 and a half minutes apart. No worries. We continued on, getting David ready for a bath. Kelly kept me up to date on the contraction situation (still 13 minutes apart).

In the middle of the bath, with little warning, she was suddenly down to 6 minutes apart. I wasn't aware that they could change this quickly, I figured it was more gradual. We had to kick it up a notch. I got David out of the tub and ready for a road trip. We gathered up all of his Hot Wheels cars, made sure we had our own provisions and loaded up the Nissan.

In the car, Kelly was in obvious discomfort. And the contractions were now 3 minutes apart. Shit! I was really worried we'd have the baby in the car. Got to Grandma and Granpa's house and unloaded David and his gear. Kelly foolishly came to the door, barely able to walk. David cried and didn't want Mom to go. We sped off to the Peter Lougheed. It was around 8:35pm.

I really hate the check in system when you're giving birth. How stupid is it that Dad (me) has to go down 2 floors to check in two different times? Don't we need to be by the side of our better half? Anyway....

It didn't take long for them to figure out we were not going to be leaving without a child. Kelly was now in the delivery room. Our nurse was a champ. Thank you for all of your help Ingrid!! Kelly's contractions were really intense, lots more pain than with David. She hollered for some drugs for pain. Little did we know there just wasn't going to be time.

Ingrid was the only one in the room with us, no doctors were there yet. Kelly's contractions were very close together now and very painful. Ingrid told us the baby would be here very soon (I thought she was kidding, just being a good coach). She got on the intercom and asked for a doctor ASAP.

At 9:39pm on Nov 5, I became a father for the second time. Julia Ann weighed in at a healthy 7 lbs, 4 3/4 oz and was just over 20 inches long. Mom was amazing!!! We both shed tears of joy as I cut the cord and baby Julia was set down on Mom's chest. 3 and a half hours between supper and birth. holy cow, Kel, you don't waste time do you??

What an amazing few years it has been. So many ups and downs, stressful times. 2007 was a tough year, dealing with the pitfalls of parenthood and a failed pregnancy. We got through, baby. I'm more proud of you, Kelly, than you can possibly imagine.

:-)

The passing of a legend

the word "legend" is a little overused. But I think it's fitting for this man. He's entertained us for over 50 years. And has given some $200 million to charities. Paul Newman had died of Cancer. I think I'm going to have a personal film festival in the next week or so. From The Hustler to Cool Hand Luke, The Sting, Slap Shot, the Color of Money...right to his last picture, Cars. You were the best in the business, we'll miss you.

169

This is an important number for me. I've been chasing it for the last few years. About a decade ago, I did a career change from a moving around all day job to a sit in front of the computer monitor one. It did not do wonders for my weight. All the beer and cigarettes probably didn't help either. I went from about 160lbs to my top out of 208. That doesn't sound huge, but when you're 5'7", it's a damn scary sight. I stepped on the scale this morning to 169. I haven't been below 170 in 10 years at least. that makes me a smilin' dude today.

Transrockies Day 7

Day 7: Crowsnest Pass to Fernie 78.8km 2101m of climbing

This is it. The end. The big finale. One last ride. Amazingly, no trains come by after 10pm last night. I figured for sure we'd be woken up 2 or 3 times. I still don't feel great, but at least I slept. I can barely sit, and the day is gonna be hotter than yesterday even.

We get the National Anthem sung before the start today. A nice touch I thought. We get to climb another ski hill today, thankfully it is small. And it gets most of the climb out of the way early. There is the prerequisite long, shitty hike a bike. The mood was good today. We all knew how close we were. But we still want to beat the shit out of the people who whined that the last stage wasn't tough enough in previous years (they pretty much doubled the length this year).

We sweat buckets right off the start, it's damn hot. And it's barely 9am. I am not riding well today. Niall helps me along as best he can. I can't say enough about his patience. Control station one doesn't have the usual variety of food, being the last day and all. I can't eat another Clif bar. Watermelon does nothing for me. I still love bananas, surprisingly. My peanut butter and honey sandwiches in my bag will have to do.

I get a flat, first one since day 2. On a fireroad no less. Again. It's just that kind of day. I get another almost exactly an hour later. Oh well. We get rolling, some tough, hot climbs and we are finally rewarded with sweet Fernie singletrack. Great way to finish. I crash once for good measure. We hit the streets of Fernie to the sounds of cheering. I hear my family but don't see them. A final high five to Niall and we've done it! Someone shakes my hand and puts a medal around my neck. We set our bikes against a bench and I look for my wife and son who I haven't seen in 8 days. I hear David yell "Daddy!" and I collapse into a dirty, sweaty crying mess. Group family hug on the sidewalk in the middle of a huge crowd of people. I don't care. I am so happy to see them.

I see Mom next and then Dad. It would have been impossible to have completed this without him. He cooked, cleaned, gave pep talks. thanks for believing, Dad! Not to mention letting us use the most stylish lodgings of the entire race.

Thanks to a ton of people I talked to afterward. Deadgoats Gerry, Tim, Tracey, Pat, Trish and Geoff all told me what a great thing I had just accomplished. Dallas Morris had kind words. These things mean a ton coming from racers like yourselves. I'll never forget James and Simon in their impossibly warm looking Tiger costumes. The brave couple on the tandem Ellsworth. Jim Seethram and his wonderful family. Dan the bike mechanic. The Belgian contingent I always seemed to run across going uphill. Met so many people.

The fine lady who sponsored us asked me if I was ready for next year. I didn't say no...

Transrockies Day 6

Day 6 Elkford to Crowsnest Pass 102.4km 2998m of climbing

Another shitty sleep. Sigh. We just don't seem to get a break with quiet spots to camp. Arguing at 1:45am in some site nearby. Assholes.

It's a cool morning, I overfilled my Camelback bladder and I am now soaked. Left Elkford via the highway and straight up a 5km paved climb. Steep grade. Exited to some neat singletrack, queue the logjam of riders as it's a little technical again. Cranked down what would be the first of a few very dusty fireroads (haven't said much about the weather, we've been lucky. Cool the first two days but little rain/snow. Warm and sunny for stages 4, 5 and 6). Fueled up and a renewed Niall towed me in his wake down the fireroad. Then we climbed. And climbed. And climbed some more. That was the story of the day, really.

After the second control station was a steep, dusty hike a bike that seemed to last forever. I was hot and tired from then on. did I mention the 33C heat? We cranked over the continental divide back into Alberta and flew down Race Horse pass. Fun downhill section. Saw some poor person crash hard in the video footage later that night.

The course overview the night before mentioned 3 "up and down" sections near the finish. These were silent death marches. The fun chatter of the peloton disappeared as dirty, sweaty faces concentrated on trying to finish the stage. I run out of water, but we're on the downhill section into Blairmore. I am so relieved at the end. I collapse and Dad grabs me a burger and we rest in the shade a moment.

They have us camped out right beside the railroad tracks. I mean so close the motorhome shakes when the train goes by. I'm in Hell. One more day....

Transrockies Day 5

Day 5 Whiteswan to Elkford 88.5km 2147m of climbing

A very cool start today weather-wise. A nice bonus at the starting gate is that Niall is going to give it a go. Jim is riding with us as well, just in case. Had my sleeveless jersey, it was about 8C, I got some comments of course.

Felt good off the line, fast pace, got to the first checkpoint quickly. Waited for Jim, he told me to go ahead and try to chase down Niall. I had a good day, nothing too special to report. My but is starting to get sore. The rock gardens were awesome, had some fun riding those. Got in just under 7 hours. I'm very tired.

Transrockies Day 4

Day 4: Nipika to Whiteswan Lake 109.7km 2567m of climbing

Wow, what a difference a day makes. Flt like shit this morning, wanted to quit. My knees both ache. I was cold, tired and sore. I headed to the start. Niall was sitting this one out, he was barely able to bend his leg today. I hooked up with Jim in the United Cycle jersey and we took off.

Felt crappy and struggled out of the gate. Jim was warming up slowly with me. We rode a bunch of the same stuff from the previous day. After 5km, the knee brace came off. I took it easy and tried not to aggravate it. Had some slow switchback climbs and a few shorter hike a bikes. My legs have more trouble climbing down than up. Had some killer water crossings, too, with very strong current in one. I was very wary of my wonky knee.

Jim was struggling a bit, got to the outfitter's cabin and pigged out on some food. I started to feel better. My knee is finally loosening up. Picked up the pace and got a nice spin going. After the final check point, it was basically a 30km downhill fireroad sprint. Big ring baby! I cranked it and felt awesome. I'm back!! I can do this!

Transrockies Day 3

Day 3: Nipika Time Trial 49km 1514m of climbing

Ouch. This was our "rest day". A first for the TR, a time trial. We got to sleep in, which was nice. too bad the wonderful logging trucks didn't get that memo, I heard the first one rumble by at 4am. We started just after 10 and it was still chilly. Dad gets a nice break and doesn't have to tear down camp, we stay at Nipika for two days. We do a few quick km on up and down stuff then hit some very bumpy up and down singletrack. Very difficult to get any kind of a rhythm and my knee aches almost instantly. Niall is hurting, too, he tweaked a groin. I feel terrible most of the day, trying to talk myself out of quitting. Tomorrow's stage is very long at 110km, I wonder if I can handle it. I'll be at the starting line, we get in at 4 hours 32 minutes. Niall will not be, his race is over. I hope I can do it tomorrow. I really, really hope....

Transrockies Day 2

Day 2: K2 Ranch to Nipika 73.7km 3813m of climbing

LOL! I thought the day one hike a bike was fun. Day 2's was positively insane. We had about 74km to the finish today. My knee is not doing well. The brace is annoying. But I'm afraid to take it off.

We have a nice warmup on the highway today, nice to get things stretched out before a climb. Then we go up the Fairmont ski hill. It's a lot gentler slope than Panorama (and a lot smaller ski hill) I was spinning fairly steadily. Knee is doing pretty well so far. We hit another fire road downhill. And I get another flat. Our tire change is even quicker this time. I'm pumping these things up to 40 psi. I need tubeless for next time.

We get to some more steep climbs and then the fun begins. We hike a bike up an avalanche chute. A stupidly steep climb. At least we weren't like the poor bastards who were in the lead, the climbed too far and had to come back down. We finally get up the hill and exit to some newly cut trail. It's an instant traffic jam of bikes, I don't move for about 5 minutes. It takes seemingly forever. We finally get moving, alternating between walking and riding. Again, a lot of people just can't ride the trickier terrain. We get to some really fun, rooty, wet downhill stuff. My friends Allison and Adrian would loved this. My partner Niall crashes hard, snapping his seatpost and twisting his body badly. We limp in just under 9 hours. Ugh. Tomorrow is a time trial day, hopefully a nice rest!

Transrockies...... Day 1

I had no internet out in the boonies so I wrote it all down. Here's Day 1:

We pulled into Panorama Saturday afternoon in "The Bus", Dad's amazing motorhome which would be my house on wheels for the next week.

We got a nice quiet spot near the ski hill. Some rent-a-cop threatened to evict all of us as the lot was for "day guest use". I think he figured there wouldn't be a huge influx of people after 7pm on a Saturday so he relented and let us stay. I slept ok, a little nervous. I've never tried something like this before.

Day 1: Panorama to K2 Ranch 52.3km 2478 metres of climbing

Holy shit, that was a long ride. I've never been in a group of riders this large. 500 + riders left Panorama mountain village at 11am for a nasty climb to the top of the ski hill. It was overcast and cool, good for a climb. My gimpy knee was not going to like it. It took 2 whole hours to get up there, I don't do well when there's little warm up before this much climbing. Then came the nastiest hike a bike I've ever done. Then it started to snow. Me, being the smart guy that I am, have no jacket. Way to go, dummy. We then got a nice technical downhill section. Well, it really would have been more fun if there weren't so many bottlenecks. A lot of endurance type riders seem to have limited skills on technical terrain. Actually, it was probably more because of the congestion. Maybe I need to get my ass to be faster so I don't have to worry abut that sort of thing. I wiped out hard twice after people just stopped in very inappropriate parts of the trail.

We hit a long fireroad descent towards K2 ranch. I of course didn't check my tire pressure. Pinch flat. Great. Niall, my Transrockies partner, kicks serious ass in fast tire changes and we're off rather quickly. 6 hours and 26 minutes later, in a slight drizzle, I finish one of my slowest ever 55km rides. And tomorrow's climbing is even tougher. Great.

24 Hours of fun....

wow, what a weekend. Congrats to those who slogged through the shit and finished.

The first lap was great. I spent the morning preparing all my food and my pit area. Didn't want to bother anyone else as I had no crew. My guy was held up and couldn't make it. The weather was great, nice and sunny.

They lined us all up early, solos got to start 15 minutes before the teams. We also got a longer course, 5 more fun filled km for us. We took off in a run with all sorts of people cheering us on. My first Lemans start. I remember again why I don't run anymore. The prologue loop led us through town and then wound back up to the Nordic Centre. I felt pretty good actually. The first part of the course is about 5km of climbing. A long rooty section greets you at the 2km mark. Passed a few guys walking this section.

Next was a nice technical downhill. I love this part. Only touched the brakes a little, mostly just cranked all the way down. Then we come to an evil steep uphill section and the first checkpoint. Dumped some water on my head and kept going. Wound down a little more and cruised through my favourite section. It was a little downhill section off the pavement to a nice rock launch. There was a big crowd there every lap, I made sure to give them a little show even on my last lap there. A fun jump that sent me about 30 feet down the trail. Good times. Then we raced down into Georgetown, a quick downhill section that you needed to pay attention on, a very sharp turn at the bottom of the hill.

Then more climbing. The new section of trail they cut was a bit of a clusterfuck the first few laps as a lot of people were unable to stay on their bikes. I had to holler for some to get out of the way as I cleaned it the first two laps. Then we rode to the 3rd checkpoint and the extra 5 km for the solo guys, a nasty climb that was on soft, wet grass. It was extremely slow even when it was semi-dry. It got really nasty later on. After the climb was a neat whoop de do section that we ran backwards compared to other year's I've raced this course. The finish isn't as nice as it used to be as there is no longer a stadium area to ride into, but is fun nonetheless.

I was still feeling good on lap two. It was very warm out. I think steam came off my head again when I dumped water on it. And again I walked nothing. Had to trackstand on the new singletrack climb as the guy in front of me didn't hear me catching up behind him but I didn't dab. Stuffed some more food in my face at my pit area and headed out for #3.

My knee was starting to bug me on the climbs now. I promised myself a few months ago that I'd stop if I thought my ride was going to jeopardize my Transrockies race. I kept going. Some crappy dark clouds started creeping into the valley. Shit. I was racing the weather, trying to get back before my meager tent blew away in the wind and oncoming rain. I wish I had a pit crew to worry about that. It starts to come down just as I'm approaching the start/finish line. And it is mean. Wind is swirling, rain coming down hard. I get to my pit area and have to save my shitty tent setup. My sports drink container has been blown over and has spilled all over my clean riding gear. The tent has been knocked over, I think someone got nailed by one of the big supports from the timing tent as well. I sit in another pit area and stay dry, planning my next move. It looks like it might blow over.

I head out with my jacket on in the rain. Screw it, lets get another lap in. I don't need the jacket as I am way too hot wearing it. I throw it at a spectator asking him to take it to my pit area. He gets it back there, spectators can be very cool. My knee feels like shit now. The rain is now gone, but not for long. 5 minutes later, it pours even harder than the last time. Fuck. I can't pedal the climbs anymore, too slippery. Every descent turns into a bind gamble. We get teased again with a stoppage in rain. And then it pours again. Just in time for the last difficult climb. I'm freezing now. I stupidly took off my gloves and ended up putting them back on as my hands were being chewed to bits. The lap takes forever. My knee hurts, my hands are toast, I am colder than I can remember. No one is passing me, I think everyone stopped and I am all by my lonesome out there. I get to the transition area and I am finished. I limp in, filthy and dejected. My race is over. Someone takes a pic of me in the tent and immediately apologizes when he sees my hollow eyes stare back at him. I hope I can find a copy of this photo as I probably look absolutely awesome. Cyd Fraser sees me in the pits and tells me not to quit yet, to take some time and clean up. The mechanic across from my pit area agrees. I straighten out my tent again and head for my car to get a towel, time to hit the showers.

I can't even open the door of the shower facility as my hand is shaking too much. Fuck it's cold. I walk in and strip off the filthy riding gear and have the best shower of my whole life. I feel somewhat human again. I am going to rest and see if my knee improves. In the mean time, I make the best of things and go see some new friends in the pit area. Brad, team mechanic for Barry Lyster from BC is awesome. We yap away for awhile about bikes and assorted stuff. He tuned my bike for me when I was getting cleaned up, just in case I wanted to go for it again. I chat up Dallas Morris' pit guy Shredder, what a character!! And I headed over to talk to brand new 24 Hour hall of famer Steve Fassbinder. He's flying out there. Other hall of famers Ed Hunt, Roy Wallack and Brett Wolfe are there as well. Great bunch of guys. Wolfe is one of my cycling heros, very cool to see how down to earth he is. Bummer that John Stamstad isn't there.

I go sleep in my car for 5 or so hours. It rains again. My knee has not improved so I do not head back out. It's tough to not feel like a total failure. I really wanted to hit my goal of 160km on the dirt. It'll have to wait until another day. And I know it was the right move with the Transrockies 2 weeks away.

Thanks to all that helped me. Brad in Barry Lyster's pit area, Shaun Taylor and his wife were a huge help, Dennis Smaggus' crew were great, and Allen Lane was there for me, too. Congrats to all the Deadgoats and Dallas Morris for their great results.

Jumpingpound/Cox Hill

I haven't done this ride in years. Shame on me. Probably the most spectactular trail in the area. I can never talk anyone else into riding it with me. Too damn hard.

It starts with a 15 or so km ride on the Powderface Trail fire road. Good warm up. I feel like shit today. First one knee hurts, then the other. Then my ass. Just can't get into a rythym. That changes in a hurry when we get to the first climb. Damn, it goes up in a hurry. And steep. Did I mention technical, too? It's my turn to get burned, a woman who ran 45km yesterday passes me on the uphill. Damn.

The climb is never ending. Toughest 3km ever. And it's worth every bit of pain and suffering. Nothing like genuine alpine meadow to make you feel like a million bucks. What a view. I feel like kicking my own ass for not bringing the camera.

The other fun thing about this ride is that you get to experience the pain and suffering twice. Yippee! After a fun descent, it's back to grinding uphill. Wow, this hurts a lot more than I remember. I get to the top and check out the view. You can see Moose Mountain, Yamnuska, Baldy, even Mt Assiniboine is showing today. Fantastic.

The downhill is just as tough as the climb. Ultra technical, fast, my hands hurt from braking. It's over before you can blink, back at the car. Gotta do this ride more often.

some real mountain biking, baby

Oh yeah. This is the stuff I live for. My Transrockies partner had a special treat in store for us today. We were going to tie together what would be three rides for most people. I couldn't wait.

Spent last night with my wife and my parents at the Mark Knopfler concert at Jack Singer concert hall. Man, what a show. Amazing band, amazing guitar. And I got to hear the full version of Telegraph Road live. All 14 minutes of it. Awesome. It also meant I got to bed late. Shit.

7:00 came early. I was a dumbass and didn't have my best bibs clean. So I stayed up late to make sure they went through the wash. This became a total waste of time, I'll explain later...

The Calgary Marathon was run today. This made it a lot of fun to get from my house in Harvest Hills to Bowness. We finally get there. And of course, the bag with my bibs my jersey and my digital camera is lying on the floor of my garage. Fuck.

Niall has extra stuff I can wear so we get moving. We drive out to West Bragg. We warm up by spinning up the fireroad (Tom Snow). We drop down on the bottom of Moosepackers for some fun singletrack descending, then climb up a steep pitch and head back down to Station Flats. Before we hit the parking lot, we hang a right and start on Sulfur Springs. The first part is climbing, climbing and more climbing. The Deadgoats ran the Summer (Suffer) Solstice race here a week ago and the trail is in excellent shape. The endless up finally gets us to the Moose Mountain fireroad and we stop for a snack and some much needed water.

We continue upward. Ugh. Niall is flying today. I am not. Well, I'm doing ok, I guess. He's just friggin fast!! We finally head down and take a shortcut to the highway. More spinning: we're headed for the dreaded Powderface. Powderface is one of our longer, steeper climbs. most people take the half loop. We're going all the way up. I can't remember the last time I did this one. No one is usually fool enough to want to come with me.

The trail is in decent shape. The upper part has always had some erosion issues. Did I mention this bastard is steep? Ugh. I actually pass two couples riding up, the only other riders I see going our way. I pull to the side of the trail to let a horse traverse a tricky rocky downhill. I'm impressed at the skill of horse and rider. But I still think they should be required to wear bags out here. I hate horseshit on the trails.

After what seems an eternity, I finally reach the top. That one hurt. I was close to bonking and had to scarf down some food to keep going. I eat a piece of cold pizza at the top. I hate pineapples and this thing tastes delicious. Our reward is a fun descent down to the Powderface trail, which is a fireroad.

We hit some good speed and head for, you guessed it, more climbing. Yay! Up we go, back through the half loop of Powderface via Prairie Creek trail. I don't think I've ever climbed up the half loop this way. It's a good, steady climb. I feel pretty good. Niall is cranking pretty good and isn't waiting too much (I hope). We get a fast downhill back to the parking lot. Niall has some hidden water, we replenish our supply and head back to the highway. A tailwind pushes us toward Moose Mtn fireroad. And more climbing.

My legs are feeling it now. I'm saving an energy gel for later on up the hill. We've got about 8km to get to the top. I think Jon Nutbrown can do this thing in just over 30 minutes. I really need to ride more. Niall kicks it into a gear I just do not have. I keep cranking along, enjoying the occasional dirt bath from the freedride shuttle assholes (ok, they aren't all assholes, but get a clue and slow down when you see someone riding up, ok???). Real mountain bikers ride up, too.

I blast an energy gel, refill my water bottle and get back on the bike. ALmost there, I just passed the 6km mark. There are two last evil pitches and I am finally there!! No more climbing. I like this ride because it saves a nice 14 or so km ride downhill back to the truck. We encounter Ryan Probert at the top, he's the guy who sold me my bike. He is also training for the TR. I also called him Mr Nugent as I was so tired, I couldn't remember his name. Sorry, Ryan. He's never ridden Moosepackers before and is in for a serious treat.

Moosepackers is a wonderful, downhill switchbacked treat. I encounter a second wind and head down. YEEEEEEHA!! Lots of blowdown on the trail, it's been cleared up nicely. They get some nasty winds on Moose Mountain. You know, I've never seen an actual moose here. Maybe they hate the switchbacks. Ryan enjoys his first experience on the trail, we head down Tom Snow and toward the end.

Whew. 74 km, 10,000 or so feet of climbing and 5 hours later, I'm all done. Great ride. Perfect weather. Is anyone else as glad as I am that chocolate milk is an acceptable recovery drink. MMMMMMM!

Roads under construction and fun with the weather

Wanted to get used to spinning flat fireroad type stuff on the mtb, so I figured the now under construction Stoney Trail ring road would be perfect. Yeah, it's marked as closed, but what harm could I possibly do? I throw on the iPod and head north from my place.

It's a nice downhill grade to start as I head west. It's very strange as they already have all the exit signs up. "Shagganappi Trail 5km.." etc. I wish I had brought my camera. I pass a worker in a truck (it's about 9pm) and he pays no attention to me at all. Not a really exciting ride, but I didn't have a lot of choice getting out this late. I turn around on the already paved portion near the NW Costco and head back east.

I pedal all the way to the unfinished bridge over Nose Creek. There are 2 old farmhouses here that I have never seen before. Just far enough away from highway 2 that they are hidden from view. I spin around on some gravel road and decide to head back before my wife gets too worried about me. I've been riding for 2 hours and said I'd only be gone 1.

Packed up the crew Friday and headed for K Country. Highway 40 was calling, figured I'd get some good spinning on the road bike there. I was dropped off at Barrier Lake and off into a glorious headwind. Nice day, for the most part, but I was about to find out that you can't really count on weather in the mountains to be stable.

Just over an hour into the ride, I round the bend and see a huge black cloud. Great. I was hoping to avoid this. It always happens when you happen to drag your wallet with you on the ride that you're bound to get soaked. No jacket, of course. I do an about face and shift into the big gears. 30 seconds later, I'm in the middle of a nice shower. Not too bad. I keep going.

I see a sheet of water in the distance and know immediately that I am fucked. Torrential downpour 1 minute later. Awesome. I try to keep forward momentum, which is easy since I have the world's best tailwind. I am soaked to the skin within seconds. I'm actually enjoying it. 5 minutes later, the rain has passed, the clouds have moved on. 10 more minutes and there's no sign of rain at all. And I'm totally dry. My wallet survived nicely between the spare tube and the energy gel in my pocket.

I wait at the predetermined pickup spot and watch a mountain goat eating and a bald eagle soaring in the distance. Humans weren't meant to be boxed in cubes in front of screens, we were meant to be right here. My wife and son pick me up. David smiles at me and says "Daddy loves mountains". I most certainly do.

road riding goodness

Got out for a nice, long road ride with my TR partner Niall today. What a difference 2 days makes. I did a ride half as long the other day and felt like my ass was going to cave in or something. I just couldn't get comfortable. And that never friggin happens to me.

The day got off to a great start. Flat tire, not even out of Niall's yard. I change it and 5 seconds later ka-pow! Great. I discover there's not much of a rim strip so we try some rim tape. So, tube # 3...... ka-pow!!! WTF??

Ugh. Bow Cycle is only a few minutes away so I start walking. I get there just as it opens and there's already a lineup. I hate delaying the start of the ride as it's hotter than hell already and it's only 10:00. They fix me up with a good new rim strip and I am off (and the thought of flats is of course in my head). I've had 4 flats in 6 years on this bike. 3 of them were today.

We crank it up Sarcee Trail and head out to highway 8. The wind is swirling a bit, but it looks initially like we'll have a nice tailwind to ride home. Lots of traffic today, I really wish they'd clean the shoulders better on the highways. Probably next to impossible, but I can dream, right?

They built a roundabout at the intersection of 8 and 22, it works surprisingly well. I figured Calgary drivers would be too stupid to handle a traffic circle, but they've surprised me. We get to Bragg Creek and grab a smoothie. The largest road rider I've ever seen is sitting outside the cafe. Says he's done a few solo 24's. I hope he's faster than he looks.

We loop around and head back - into a head wind of course. Great. the one good thing that happens is that the clouds roll in and give us some shade. But I'm having a tough time finding my rythym. Niall is flying, I think he had to wait quite a bit for me. Sorry, pal.

The slog continues northbound on 22 approaching Cochrane. The wind is really kicking up and it's spitting rain a little now. I crest the hill and slam it into the big ring. Of course, I hit the red light at the bottom of the hill and lose my momentum. I gulp down an energy gel and hope it gives me some power to climb the dreaded Big Hill (yeah, points for originality on that one. Seriously, it's called Big Hill, WTF?). Even more fun, the wind is a cross/headwind going up. We have added motivation in the form of a huge dark cloud directly behind us. My form is ugly, but I make it to the top. And we turn and get a cross/tailwind home!! Yay!!!

Most of the ride is big ring and we stay ahead of the menacing cloud. I am tired but happy at the end. 4 hours or so and 110km on the odometer. Felt great for the most part, hope to follow it up with a mtn bike ride tomorrow. 4 weeks until the solo 24, 6 until the Transrockies. Gotta ride more.

my first 8 hour race

I said I was going to train a little more than I have, but you do the best you can, right? Sunday was my first ever 8 hour race. By the end of it, it would be the longest I have ever ridden a mountain bike in my life. And boy, did I have fun!!

The start time was super-early: 7am. Set my alarm for 5:30. I, of course, stayed up too damn late and ended up with maybe 6 hours sleep. Ugh. I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off in the am. Luckliy, I had set up most of my stuff the night before. The one nice thing is that the roads are next to deserted at that time so I got there rather quickly. I live on the far side of town so I think I may have been the last racer to arrive.

Unloaded my gear and got myself suited up. It was a tad chilly I gotta say, 10C in lycra and a jersey. BRRRRR. I do apologize to the one person who probably got a good eyeful of my bare ass as I was getting dressed. Too much in a hurry, didn't want to miss the racer's meeting.

It was a Le Mans start to attempt to spread out the field a little bit. Talked to a few friends and suddenly it was time to go! I wasn't running all that hard, was planning to pace it as I have absolutely no clue how fast I can go for 8 hrs.

The first hill was a bit of a backlog, had to gear down to the granny and wait for the lineup to get past the first test of elevation. I had no idea how the course was going to be as I didn't get a chance to pre-ride it. Luckily, my teammate Dustin of the Deadgoats was right with me, giving me a tip or two on what to expect. We wound through some doubletrack and then up a gentle climb, only to run into a really steep one. It would be one of only 2 times I would make it all the way up without walking.

The really fun stuff was the winding twisting singletrack. Some tricky water crossings, wet roots, narrow bridges and really nasty mud were thrown in for good effect. I can't say enough about how fun it was. I think a mountain bike race course needs to have more than just hills to challenge the rider. You gotta have bike skills, baby! Just say no to dirt roadie courses.

Lap two threw me a bit of a snag. One of the aforementioned tricky sections had a big root that I hadn't cleaned the first lap. I was bound and determined, this led to a spinout and a full on knee smash to the stem. Terrific. My first hour and I make a dumb mistake that might cost me my race. I geared down and kept spinning. The knee was throbbing pretty good, but I continued on. The root beat me, I walked around it the rest of the race.

Food was another mystery for me, I had no idea what to eat for a race like this. I brought tons of bananas, some energy gels, bars, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We were also provided with water, Endura energy drink, bananas, bars, gels, etc. I also got half a sausage and egg McMuffin at the beginning of lap 3 or 4. it worked out pretty well, I had energy for the most part. I drank at least a bottle per lap and stayed hydrated. I never bonked, my body sure tired out, though.

The worst lap for me was my 9th. I was very tired. I walked all of the really long hill instead of most of it. I got sloppy and slid shoulder first into a tree. Hard. That shook me up pretty good. I got back on and kept slogging. I hit a fun downhill section and let go of the brakes. I hit a turn at the bottom and my tires didn't grab. High speed dirt. Ouch. I was doing probably close to 40 km/h. I got up with a small chunk out of my left shin, a sore hip and bruised pride. I was in one of those places where no one was there to witness it. I took a few moments to gather myself and untangle the bars and it was back on the bike. It took everything in my power to finish the lap.

The only reason I did lap 10 was my wife. I was very emotional, near tears from pain and exhaustion. She cheered me up and I set out for one more. Thanks, baby! Very happy that I did. I felt good! I left almost all of my energy on the trails. My wife snapped a few photos and I collapsed on the grass.

Wow, what a day! In the end, I finished with 86.88 km and a total of 6 hours and 40 minutes on the bike. I accomplished what I wanted to do: ride for pretty much the entire time.

My old friend Dallas schooled us all with I think 15 laps at the end. The man is a machine! My teammate Pat Doyle was third in the solo category. Well done!

Congrats to all who participated, so many people did so well! And my friends the Deadgoats did an amazing job organizing. I will be back next year!

Thx to Patrick Graham for the photos.

just ride....

Hey, whaddya know? I did some actual riding this weekend. It was too damn nice not to. We hit 29.6C on Friday I believe and 27.5 yesterday. David and I did the Chariot trailer thing Friday. Holy wind, Batman. The hills were such fun. "Daddy, move it" every time I stopped to rest. My own personal coach!

Took the Lemond out for a spin Saturday. Felt great, 2 and a half hours, no clouds. Why are some roadies so damn snobbish? I don't get it. Whatever. Fantastic ride. I think the entire city was out there.

Today I didn't have much time so I headed over to an old gravelpit area to do some hill repeats. Warmed up on an asy one for a few reps and finished on one that I can barely make it up. Spun out the legs and headed home for a nice BBQ with the family.

Going to try to keep the momentum going, only 2 weeks to my first ever 8 hour race. The weather is not going to cooperate, but that's what fenders are for, right? If I don't have time, I'll just have to make time.

Rain and general laziness...

haven't ridden much this week due to the fantastic (not) weather we've had. It's been very dry so I guess we need the rain. Had a good couple of road rides to end last week and one very good mtn bike ride. I should have raced the Salty Dog. I have to get moving on the job search here as well.

If it clears up enough this afternoon I'll take David out in the Chariot.

Sunshine.....finally

Winter may have come to an end this past weekend, but Mother Nature probably still has something in store for us. Had to look after my son on Saturday, but Sunday was looking good. Time to dust off the road bike.

Decided to head out for a couple of hours, legs were a little iffy due to lack of riding because of all the snow. Rode north with the wind to warm up, felt not bad. The sun was a welcome change. Cranked up the intensity and headed east, I wanted to ride more into the wind so my legs could relax on the way back.

One shitty thing about the city going through such a big boom is all the damn construction. The road so far isn't too bad, lots of mud on the shoulders, though, so I have to be wary. Heading south on TWP 264 now I think, I'm going straight into the wind. I feel really good. I'm surprised as I thought my recent inactivity would slow me down.

Now the fun part: the wind at my back!! Big ring it all the way back, 28 km or so. I wish all rides were like this. Except for the road conditions on the way home. I took a different route than the one I went out on, the shoulders were useless, filled with mud, gravel and other crud. I stayed on the road as much as I could, there was more traffic as I got closer to the city so I did ride some in the gravel.

Had a decent commute in as well today. It will be my second last one as my job ends Wednesday. And, of course, the weather forecast sucks just in time for my layoff.

Sigh.

new bike!!!!

There's nothing quite like getting a new ride to get you excited about getting out there for a ride. It was tough, but I parted with the Blur yesterday. Today, I headed down to the Bike Shop to pick up my new ride.

Rocky Mtn ETSX-70. I had an ETSX before and have regretted selling it ever since. Love the ride. And this one has a carbon rear triangle. Rode it back to work and not-so-patiently watched the clock the rest of the day.

The opening chords of "Dancing on Your Grave" by Motorhead are playing as I hit dirt for the first time. The bike tracks like I've owned it for years. There's a fun little singletrack carved into a hillside near my home. I fly through that and head home to grab a water bottle, I've got a group ride with the Deadgoats tonight.

I pedal uphill and into the wind to the top of Nose Hill where 15 or so people are gathered. I see a few familiar faces. Tim is there, Devin, Erik, Dominik, Gerry, Lloyd, Maz, Ivan and a number of others.

We head north and rip some steep stuff, my brand new brakes aren't working well and I almost hit the guy in front of me. Oops. I always forget there's a little break in period. We wind our way down into the valley, it's still a little sloppy. We then have to go back up. Damn, these guys are fast. I'm not used to this bike and it shows. I manage to make it up and we head back down. My brakes are working a little better. The next climb is a killer. I don't do so well on this one. My two hours of riding are catching up to me. I walk a little, we get to the top and drop back down. We take a sharp turn and I blow a shift, instant calf cramp. I'm forced to stop and stretch it out a little.

I get back on the bike and pedal hard to try and catch up. There's little rest as we're climbing an even steeper section this time. I make it 80% up, which I'm happy with considering how far I've ridden already. We play around a little on some cliffs and then head out on some more singletrack. Whoever says Nose Hill is boring simply isn't looking hard enough. I'm exhausted and bid the gang adieu and pedal towards home. One last rip down the hill...

I get home and can't even get my shoe off I'm so tired. Great first day on the new bike. I figure I did about 45km. Can't wait to get in some more, but the weekend is doubtful due to snow in teh forecast. Bummer.

Finally, a great weekend for cycling

We finally broke the 20C mark this weekend, I've been waiting for quite some time for that! Got to ride for the first time with my Trans Rockies partner Niall. Did a nice ride out to Cochrane and back, just over 60km. Had a pretty decent pace, it was windy as hell going out. I'm confident that we're going to be a pretty good match.

I still have to work more on my endurance as he's done a whole bunch of these crazy races and it's just my first one. I was thinking about doing the Salty Dog, but I'm not sure I'm ready for a race that length yet, especially on a new bike. We'll see how I feel in the next week or so.

The Canadiens blew a chance today to take a stranglehold on their series losing in OT to Boston. They need to get Saku Koivu back on the ice as I see poor Plekanec getting hammered on out there. One day for them to rest and they'll get back at it. Hope the Flames play better in the next period and a half as they're behind 3-1 after 3 very quick goals in the first by the Sharks.

Playoff season

A surprising campaign for the Canadiens this year, most pundits picked them to miss the playoffs. Instead, they win the Eastern Conference. Alex Kovalev, who I would have given away for a bag of pucks at the start of the season was the big difference. He decided to play hockey instead of piss and moan this year. He showed the way for the kids (especially the Kostitsyn boys) and the rest is history.

I'm still not expecting a ton from this group, being as young as they are. I also will not be surprised if they do well as they are playing like a confident group.

Got a decent but muddy ride in today, felt pretty good, I was climbing very well. I need to visit a shop and get them to torque my shoes properly. I've never had carbon soles and don't want to screw them up.

just another day....

Nothing ruins the start of your day like a phone call at 5:45am on a Saturday. Especially when it's your turn to sleep in. And, for once, I was actually sleeping well. It was the ADT alarm company, telling my half awake self that the alarm had gone off at my parent's house. Thankfully, it was a false alarm. Still wasn't happy, had to drive there and meet the security guys.

I did get back to sleep and my wonderful wife let me sleep late as she took care of our son and got herself ready to go to work.

I was planning on taking David for a tow behind the bike today, I really need to get out more. I've been great for commuting, but I need to do more riding on the weekends. We had a decent ride, did about 10 km, didn't want to ride too long for David's first time in the trailer this year. I'm going to dust off the roadie and get out there tomorrow afternoon. Hope the wind isn't too bad.