Guns, Knives, Yard Animals, and the Liberty Crit

this is split ear. He's a rabbit that has lived in our yard for years. We call him split hear, well because his one ear is split, and has been for years. We are proud to have this animal in our front yard.

now this guy, this guy makes our split ear look a little weak. time to step you game up buddy. We have a rabbit in our front yard this guy well he has these:

Totally Rad.

I'm not one to bring a knife to a gun fight, and generally don't ride the cross bike on the single track too often. The white clay trail system however is so vanilla, that it does offer an amazing opportunity to learn to handle and corner a new cross bike. Saturday, I decided I'd roll with it. Kid Chris, Buddy the Leg Breaker and I met at the base of Redd Park and headed over to White Clay. Buddy set a very honest pace on the accents, and was kind enough on the descents to stay in visual contact with us. Buddy was rocking his mountainbike.  As I said previously, I don't really dig the cross bike on the single track so much. But today, today was different, the bike felt marvelous, and it just rolled. We were climbing our way out of what used to be middle run and into white clay proper when I thought to myself, "I feel pretty good, this is really freaking fun"  Then as if a karmatic reminder to not take a knife to gun fight, my chain, a year old and due for replacement, blew up... the quick change in tension caused the derailleur to shoot into my spokes and rip off my hanger. GAME OVER.

heart breaking

Buddy waited with me, and Kid Chris went to get a car to take my now impotent cross bike home. I guess I'll be putting on a new chain sooner than I thought...

Sunday Monkey and I headed out to Great Valley in Malvern for the Liberty Crit put on by Philadelphia Ciclismo. This was monkey's first crit, or mass start road race ever, so we were both a little nervous. I told her that she had done the Thursday Night Training Crit, that this wouldn't be harder than that...

Stacy and Diane talk strategy

Monk has a nose for the front, she's known (much like myself) for going out too hard and cracking herself. She did a great job today. Stayed in the group, kept her nose out of the wind. She went REALLY early in the sprint, which didn't work out so great, but but she had fun and learned a ton. Finished with the field I'm really proud.

Up next was my race. Cat 3's 60 or so of us. The course doesn't have any super deciding features, so I figured since I was looking for a training race, and with 60 guys all with in 5% of each other in fitness, and to my knowledge no one on EPO, everything would stay together. So for the first 10 laps or so I hung in the pack chilling. I started to move up and stay closer to the front with 15 to go. I was working hard and pretty happy with how things were going. With 7 to go I wanted to show off for my lady a little bit so I took a flyer as we went through the start finish. I was caught as we came to the back half of the lap, but it was fun. Monkey would later ask me why I didn't go on the move with Glenn and Hardy (my teammates in the race). In protest I would say, "baby, I was showing off for you!" Ugh.

The last three laps were super argy-bargy. Lots of people bumping and breaking the no profanity rule. I had decided to not contest the sprint and call it a good day. Then who should come around me but Rob from Morgan Stanley, and damn if he isn't a great wheel. We rolled into the bottom of the course and started to head into the final corner for the sprint, when a "hockey fight broke out in a bike race" (stolen from Richard Fries) as guys started crashing and screaming profanity, and that horrible sound of carbon breaking was being seared into my mind.  I narrowly escaped and rolled into the finish feeling okay with that result.

Luckily no one was hurt in then crash, as when Adam, Kelly and I rode around for another lap, everyone had worked their way back to the finish. I understand in the women's 123 race their was a really gnarly crash, and folks didn't get away so easily. Heal quickly folks, heal quickly...

So all in all, a pretty fun weekend. Just finished up the first half of our group project for school. Got 2 weeks, 3 exams, 1 group quiz, and a final group project to go. I'll be very pleased when this class is wrapped up.

thanks for reading... I gotta get started on my yard T-Rex.

respect
vanderbacon

One more from the trip...

got out on the bike tonight and frankly years of work to improve my cadence went out the window. My RPMs must have been like 6, maybe 7... Gotta do a better job there...

in better new the flesh eating bateria that I was certain would be my ultimate ruin is starting to clear up nicely.

thank god, that was a pain in the ass.

best to you all.

respect
m

Boston

Diane and I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days in Boston this past weekend. I know looking at your buddy's vacation slides kinda sucks, but we had fun, indulge me a little:

Friday:

Rolled out of the house at 4:30 am Friday. Flew into Boston dropped off our bags and hit the town.

yes, monkey I know I love it.

This History of this town was rad, and Boston knows it.

So we had never been to Boston, and figured what's a better way to see a town than on a bike. We took a bike tour, and  were joined by a kind gentleman, his 3 kids and a very helpful and informative guide.

waiting to roll out..

On one of the many bike paths we took during our tour.

We were both shocked with the bike culture in Boston. Totally blew us away.

Diane rolls by the beautiful Church of Jesus Christ  Scientist. Our guide was quick to point out that these are not  Scientologist, and no aliens helped create these buildings.

The tour was great fun and I recommend it for anyone. We learned  a ton about Boston, saw amazing stuff , had  a great guide and got to bomb around town on some Kona City bikes that were totally bomb proof. Strava information available.

one of the kids in our group looked a little green the entire ride. He was having a tough time in some sections and at our last stop he just started barfing all over the place. He had apparently eaten a bad burger just before the tour. Our tour guide asked him if he was okay, and he smiled, the first time I saw him smile the entire tour, and said, "I feel better than I have all day!"

every winner of the Boston Marathon has their name etched into the ground  at this park.  History is rad.

we also learned this church is sinking into the ground at a rate of 1cm a year.

Day 2:

We met up with Skinny Craig and Beth. Our first stop was the Isabella Stewart Garden Museum (which we learned about from out tour the day before.) No pictures, but trust me is was amazing stuff. You should check out some pictures here . The story of the theft is interesting too.

let me tell you a secret, these giant baby heads were totally freakin' me out.

it's important to make sure you fuel all of your efforts...

Bar under the bleachers at Fenway... Amazing...

looking out the Garage door at the blue jays warming up...

best urinal ever? You can see who is hitting on your lady while you are taking a leak.

The origin of this trip was to see a ballgame at Fenway. But it really grew into so much more. One of the best vacation/getaways we have been on...

I have to say that this didn't suck:

The Big Green MAHNSTAH !

I still get goosebumps thinking about this clip:

Sunday, we got up early and got our asses on a plane back home and back to reality. Got home in time to study for a couple of hours, be astonished at my gnarly saddle sore, and to prep for the real world again. If everything comes together, Diane wants to get back up to New England 3-4 times to race cross this fall. We're hopeful that comes together... In the meantime, thank you Boston for being such a great host... Totally blown away...

respect

fatmarc

Cross Frames for Sale- you know since I'm not racing this year.

My apologies to perfect penmanship, mr. mumbles and pony boy. It would appear that we got a really  good grade on that group case last week. I’ll be honest, when I looked at the grade, I assumed the professor threw a wicked curve on the grade. (wicked brought to you by new England). This turns out to not be the case. We did well. I’ll take it. I still don’t like group cases. For what it is worth, I’m not sure what mr. mumbles contributed. I am also beginning to think that Ponyboy is a savant. Next time around maybe I won't argue with him anymore... I was a freakin' liberal arts major! UGH. 4 more weeks of this class.


I have two Fuji cross frame and forks, with front derailleurs, bottom brackets, and headsets for sale. I’d sell the set for $300, and if you are nice I’ll throw in a crankset or two. Full carbon forks, and heck I'll throw in the old alum forks too if you'd like them. If you are only interested in one frame set they are $170. But seriously, if you are racing cross you have to have two matching bikes, otherwise you aren't even trying. They are size 56. Picture of them here: (and maybe somewhere else on this blog hmmm.)

they are for sale because I'm not racing bikes anymore, remember.


This changed my life forever :

William Shatner sings Pulp "Common People" by fab2609


FWIW I just saw a Granogue CROSS T-shirt sell for $1000 on ebay. FOR REALS.

respect
fatmarc

Doing the Belgian...

I told my legs to shut up, and they told me to suck it.

respect
vanderbacon

Another one in the books...

I had an exam tonight.
It was an at home, electronic, timed test.
I thought I might be more relaxed taking this one.
After the case study fiasco earlier this week, I was feeling some stress for sure.
I'm guessing having a clock on the screen counting down the time I had left didn't help my anxiety.

Scored a solid result, sweat through two more t-shirts.

slipped out for a ride afterwards, just to find some normalcy. whatever that means. Road bike feels kinda magical lately...

2 more exams in this block.

This is my favorite thing about strava is this:

Okay, my consistency hasn't been so hot lately. I'll try to do better...

best to you.

respect
vanderbacon, fatmarc

Anarchy Sucks

Look, I am not the smartest person in the world.  

In fact, I would venture to guess, that I’m really not all that smart at all in the scheme of things.

I have met really smart people- Brilliant people. I am not those people.

My strengths lie in tenacity, and resilience. In short I’m not smart enough to know when to quit.

My current class is total fucking Chaos. I’ve tried to keep my cool, I’m working the material, I like the material, but the class is chaos.

People come and go the entire class, cell phones, tape recorders, god knows what else is going on it’s nuts. All along I tell myself it’s okay, because I’m working the material, and focus on my studying and get through this. It’s a fucking accounting class. I’m not an accountant.

Last night we had a group case study at the end of class. Groups were random, and I kinda got swarmed by the folks around me. I ended up in a group made up of perfect penmanship, pony boy and muttering man. I’m not saying that I was the intellectual anchor of our team:

BECAUSE I SHOULD NEVER BE THE INTELLECUAL ANCHOR OF ANY TEAM- ESPECIALLY IN AN ACCOUNTING CLASS!

As there were 10 groups of 3 and 4, the class was really loud. It was, and I’m not using this term too liberally- Total Fucking Anarchy.

We worked the case, 20 questions in all. I’m not even 100% sure what we answered and turned in. I’m disappointed in myself because the entire time I sat there thinking I would rather do this by myself. I wallowed as muttering man, would mutter out something unintelligible and then go back to reading the exercise, but frankly I’m not sure he answered any questions. I just sat there thinking, “I have watched pony boy walk in and out of this class 3x, and show up 15 minutes late, I’m supposed to trust when he wants to take a stand on an answer?”

Look, I'm sure mumbles, perfect penmanship, pony boy had the same reaction, only it was "fuck, I'm with creepy weirdo sideburns man." So this really isn't about them,  no disrespect intended. I just hate group projects, and a group case was just mean spirited. 

I should have stepped back. I should have kept my cool. I should have been a leader, pulled the group out of the chaotic noisy class, and given myself a chance to think. Frankly, I should have answered the questions, and just driven the project. Instead, I answered, I negotiated, I wallowed, I felt rushed trying to verify, and confirm answers, and I felt defeated and deflated. Fuck me.

I like the professor. I like how she breaks down the concepts, but she allows, hell I think she encourages a pretty freakin’ chaotic classroom. I don’t like that. I didn’t enjoy this exercise, and I’m pretty sure my grade is going to suck ass.  I get group work is important, but this sucked.

First exam is Thursday Night. All I can do is focus on that exam, and do well. Focus on the larger Group Project that I am teamed with folks I know and trust from a previous class. And I have to get through the next 5 weeks. I’ll admit I’m in a little bit over my head right now. It’s a little scary.

When I was 14 I can remember drawing the old anarchy sign on everything. Being an angry skater-boy, we drew that shit on everything. Anarchy man, it will be cool.

At 41, experiencing some anarchy lately let me say this: Anarchy sucks. I want to kick my 14 year old self in the nuts.

respect

vanderbacon

Last Time I Rode a Bike:

Stewart Super Six Pack 2012 - Recap from VideoTrailReviews.Com on Vimeo.

vanderbacon love at 1:14 and 2:53.... (for my mom)

good times. good times.

respect
vanderbacon

Nothing to see here

Been sick all week.
Pretty much sleeping on the couch each day.
Venture out for a couple of hours, and then back to nap time.
Watched fireworks from my deck. I'm not sure it's legal what my neighbors were setting off.

Rode myself into the ground. Stewart Six Pack was awesome.

we'll see how the next couple of days go.

Studying the history of accounting standards in our country. FASCINATING.

7 more weeks, it will get better, 7 more weeks.

Oops my 2 hour window of awake just closed, time to nap again...

respect
fatmarc

get some:

Stewart Six Pack

Last weekend Monkey and I traveled to New Windsor New York to compete in the Stewart Six Pack six hour race at the famed Stewart State Forrest. The trip was fun and racing was great.

Sunset the night before the race..

After just over 6 hours of really hard racing, we ended up 2nd place to our fellow Newark/Fairhill locals Randal and Laura, who ended up winning by 12 minutes. good on them.

here's how it went down from my perspective:

Pit Row...

Initially, I was disappointed to hear that they would be sending us off in waves. I generally start pretty well, and in a mass start, I figured I could get Diane out in the top 10-15 overall. But the course, being very tight and twisty, the best option was to start in waves. All teams started in the 4th wave, with one minute gaps to the groups in front of them (solo men, solo single speed, solo women, Solo 45+, Teams, Sport solo). So I'll admit I was extra nervous about the start, knowing we would be flying into the back of 100+ solo riders. I turned to Travis just before the start and said, "this is probably no surprise, but I'm gonna go hard from the gun..." He laughed and said, "I would have never guessed".

Me: "Travis,  I'm gonna start.."Trav,"Yeah I know Eff- you"

waiting to stage..

Gun went off, and I took the holeshot, first to the single track, and maybe 3 minutes in slammed into the back of the 45+ field. I was aggressive about passing cleanLY, but there were also sections where you just had to sit and be patient, because frankly there was no where to go.

The course was excellent. I have heard about the Stewart State Forrest trails for years, and they did not disappoint. I'm pretty sure that it would not be possible to make a course more tailored to my strengths. Fast, twisty, technical bits super rad. The biggest challenge today was the heat. It was stinkin' hot. So much so, that as the first lap ended, I was covered with goosebumps, and had chills. This was not good. I sat up on a fire-road, trying to take down some water and get the heartrate down a bit, a couple of guys flew around me. "I hope the weren't in the co-ed class." I thought we were getting to the end of the lap, but I couldn't be sure as we hadn't pre-ridden. Sure enough around the corner and there was the finish. I handed off to Diane.

Monkey went out and put down a solid lap.She came back with a smile and said, "it's really hot" sending me out for a second lap.

My second lap was probably my best mentally, I knew the course, was a little more conservative off the blocks and rolled into a good lap. I think the top 5-6 co-ed teams were all very close at this point still. I picked up a spot or too and happily handed off to Diane...

if you want to destroy my sweater, pull this thread as I walk away...

I sat down, drank water, and coke and fell a sleep. I woke up with 10 minutes to meet Diane. When I stood up, everything cramped. My quads felt like they were jumping off my legs. My hamstrin- hamstrung. Blake handed me a handful of electolytes, but it was little it was going to be too late. I met Diane who came in, with her best lap all in smiles. I told her I have having some Bio-mechanicals.

My third lap was ugly. I struggled with cramps the entire lap. If I stood up, my calves cramped, If I sat and spun up, my quads hurt. It was brutal. Luckily the course had flow, and I punched it when I could and rolled when I couldn't . I made it around the course with my worst lap. I came in and said, "I'm not sure I have another. Monkey said, "If I get back by 3, you'll have another..."

our pit

So I took more electrolytes, drank Gatorade, ate watermelon, and beefy jerky and I got my shit together.
As I waited at the transition area, I watched Randal come through. They had the lead and he attacked starting his teams final rotation. They have a pretty solid lead, I'm not gonna get them. Good on them. Second  place comes in. It was Scott from  team no time to train. We had gone back and forth with them and a few other teams all day. " I passed the Twenty 20 woman a bit back..." he said to his teammate Missy. 6 minutes later Monkey came in, before 3.. I was out on course.

monkey half way through

Earlier in the day, I had caught Missy in an early section. I had hoped to get her quickly. I wasn't sure how this lap would play out. I was not cramping as much, but I was going faster than I wanted. Around twisty turn after twisty turn, I didn't see her. Past the half way point, I'm still going, but I thought I'd have her by now. Maybe, it's not gonna happen. doubt creeps in. stay cool, just keep rolling. Into a tight another tight and twisty section, I can;t see around the corner. "WHOA! there she is!" Quiet pass. Wish her luck, turn onto a fire-road, stand on it.

Blake stacked it on her first lap and jacked up her knees, but still put in 2 more laps

Travis also stacked it and has an awesome hipper... Rumor is they staked on the  rock drop down...

Get a small gap, ride steady, take second place. Dive in  the singletrack, hook bar end on tree and yard sale. I find myself laying on my stomach on the ground. "oh shit, that wasn't the plan..." I pick myself up, look around, she's not there...  Okay dude, be cool... just get across the line... I get rolling again, this time much more conservatively, no more yardsales, and I finish up my fourth lap destroyed, but happy. 2nd place Co-ed after a hot, super sweaty, crampy hard fought day.

Podium Shot- roles of Laura and Randal played by the NJMTB kids..

I got a sweet NJMTB Coffee mug...

It is at this point that I must apologize to the Promoters of the Cranky Monkey. While I have always said they put on a great race in the 12 hours of cranky monkey is well promoted, well run but the course kinda was fatmarc kryptonite and not that fun. While in my mind, I think that course is kinda vanilla, I have to say it is far more me, than Quantico. I am no so great when it's really hot. I can't feed, I can't recover, and I just don't enjoy racing in July and the 90+degree days. Which last weekend the Stewart Six Pack was on a course that I couldn't have made better for myself. Quantico, which I have told many I hate, but I'm big enough to realize it's  probably much more me than your race course. I'm sorry for tell people I hate that course.

thanks to our great friends Blake and Travis for camping and listening to Monk and I whine all day. Thanks to Randall and Laura for a great dinner the night before the race.

Dinner with Randal and Laura

Most of all thanks to the MTBNJ team and Norm who put on a kick ass event, so much fun, and a great day to boot. Thanks for all your hard work. How about for next year you dial back the heat a couple of degrees? 

best trophy ever 

sorry for the long report, it was that kinda day.

respect
Vanderbacon