tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53101671318913001822024-03-13T13:19:35.794-04:00Delight Explode!A Blog. Sort Of.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-40165158436598733752015-05-13T10:47:00.001-04:002015-05-13T10:50:15.247-04:00Power outages and hardware failures.There was a storm in our area the other night and we lost power. Even though my laptop is plugged into a surge protector, I now have a horizontal bar on the lower part of the screen that flickers and won't go away. It appears to be completely hardware related, because if I try to do a screen capture of the flickering bar, it doesn't show up.<br />
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Now I have to call Dell and see what I need to do. I also need to call the power supply people and see if this will qualify for reimbursement if I need to buy a new display or whatever. Which I'm guessing is what I'm going to have to do.<br />
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The storm happened while I was at my friend Chris's place getting my <a href="http://fairdalebikes.com/catalog/2015-goodship-frame-enve-fork/">Fairdale Goodship</a> all ship-shape. I had it mostly built up, but I still needed to do the cables and housing, as well as the bar tape. The handlebar that I bought (3T Tornova LTD) has internal cable routing, so I figured it'd be good to have someone else to help if that got to be at all frustrating.<br />
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The internal routing was way easier than I expected, and it's actually really slick. Once I got everything routed, I didn't need to worry about taping stuff to the bar to hold it in place or anything like that. There was a big scare when we were cabling the right shifter, though.<br />
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A few days earlier, I had taken it off of the CAAD10, clicked it up and down its gear range to make sure it was in the highest gear, and fastened it to the new bar on the Goodship. When we were getting ready to feed the cable into the shifter, Chris tried messing with the shift lever, and it wouldn't move through the gears at all. It seemed like it was broken, but I couldn't come up with any explanation as to why, since it had been fine the other day, and all I had done since was put it on the new bar.<br />
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We took it off the bar and all of a sudden it worked again. Put it back on the bar, and it still worked. Tragedy averted, but mystery not solved. Which is fine, as long as it keeps working. Once we got that settled, we were able to finish everything else without incident. Except for when I wrapped the right side of the handlebar in the wrong direction and had to start over again. But that was pretty easy.<br />
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After the bike was finished, I loaded it up in the car and headed home to a powerless house. Which takes us back to the beginning of this post.<br />
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Speaking of technical difficulties, the next morning I decided to ride the Goodship to work. I use a Garmin Edge 510 to track all of my riding, and I already had my four bikes on there. I added the Goodship as number five, with the intent of removing the CAAD10 from the list since it's no longer in the fold.<br />
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Anyway. The ride recorded and uploaded without issue. At the end of the day, I grabbed the Garmin, hit the power button and... nothing. Held the power button in for a few seconds. Nothing. I tried plugging it back into my computer at work and it wouldn't even power up via USB. Since I had no other options, I did a full reset of the unit, which did work, but of course it also wiped all of the data that I still had on the unit, a lot of which I hadn't saved to Dropbox. Oh well. Note to self: Four bike max on an Edge 510. I guess?<br />
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The fun didn't stop there. After I got it started again, I rode home and uploaded my ride. The map showed a short mapped section from my office to the gym where I change after work, and a short mapped section for about the last mile of my trip. Between those two points was a straight line. The Garmin either stopped listening or stopped talking to the GPS satellites.<br />
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No idea if I should expect more of the same when I go out to ride today. I kind of hope it just works again since I'm headed to Louisville to ride this weekend, and it'd be nice to record those rides accurately. Yes, I know: these are all first world problems.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-19813819748455105212015-05-03T18:01:00.000-04:002015-05-03T18:02:04.624-04:00When last we (okay, I) blogged...So it's been like two years and some months.<br />
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Do I bother with a catch-up post? Am I even going to post again after this one? Are blogs over?<br />
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Highlights:<br />
<ul>
<li>I did a 6-hour MTB race with my friend Chris in May of 2013. We got 3rd Place Men's Duo. Our team name was Cats Of Instagram. I think that, more than anything, was why we finished as well as we did.</li>
<li>I got my first cyclocross podium finish in September of 2013. Finished 5th at Kickoff CX in Point Marion, PA. I didn't finish that well the rest of the season, but I still did okay.</li>
<li>I got hit by a car on March 11th, 2014. Or rather, I ran into a car that turned left right in front of me. That was a fiasco. I was mostly fine. My bike was not. The driver was in her aunt's car, and she wasn't on her aunt's insurance policy. And her aunt lives in Georgia. And the insurance adjuster would never call me back. But I eventually got my check in June and replaced my Blue CX6.5 with a Ritchey Swiss Cross.</li>
<li>We went to Mexico in April of 2014 for a different friend Chris's wedding. Heather got sick the first day we were there and stayed sick the whole time. We didn't get to see any ruins. Can't imagine we'll be going back to Mexico any time soon.</li>
<li>We went to Hawaii (Kauai, specifically) for ten days in June of 2014. Heather didn't get sick. Wedding Chris and his wife Anna stayed with us at our resort for the first seven days. A good time was had by all, and it was over way too soon.</li>
</ul>
2015 has been nuts. Winter didn't go away until... last week? Seriously, it snowed last Saturday. Nigel, one of our cats, had to spend two nights at the emergency vet because he had struvite crystals in his bladder. After he came home, the other three cats got sick, and all four cycled through various ailments for two and a half months. I don't know what we'd do without pet insurance.<br />
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This past week I rode six out of seven days. I can't remember the last time that happened. Although I could look at Strava and find out for you. But I don't feel like it right now. It's been a while, and it felt really good to spend some time on the bike(s). I hope that the coming weeks will bring more of the same and I'll finally get back into some kind of groove.<br />
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Upcoming excitement: Heading to Kentucky with MTB podium Chris and some other good dudes in mid-May. The plan is to drive to Louisville on Friday, ride bikes down to Bardstown on Saturday, tour some distilleries Saturday afternoon, ride back to Louisville on Sunday, tour another distillery, and then drive back to Pittsburgh. Pretty stoked. Hoping for good weather.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-89621486157044079002013-01-22T11:53:00.000-05:002013-01-22T11:53:42.351-05:00Dressing for 7°<b style="font-family: inherit;">Top:</b><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Gore Sleeveless base layer</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Giordana Silverline lightweight long sleeve jersey</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Castelli Insolito Radiation Jacket (with the space blanket liner)</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Bottom:</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Descente Coldout bib tights</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Novara Stratos rain/wind pants</span></li>
</ul>
<b style="font-family: inherit;">Feet:</b><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Descente winter socks</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Toe warmers (that never activated)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Pearl Izumi Barrier GTX winter shoes</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Endura MT500 shoe covers</span></li>
</ul>
<b style="font-family: inherit;">Hands:</b><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Manzella liners</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Outdoor Research Gripper gloves</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Trail's Edge Moose Mitts</span></li>
</ul>
<b style="font-family: inherit;">Head:</b><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">North Face balaclava</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Oakley O Frame MX goggles</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bell Metropolis helmet with winter liner and rain cover</span></li>
</ul>
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All in all, I was very comfortable on my way to work. As you can see, the only exposed skin I had was my nose and just a tiny bit of my face.<br />
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I will say it over and over again. Those <a href="http://delightexplode.blogspot.com/2009/12/moose-mitts-cometh.html">moose mitts</a> are worth their weight in gold. Hardest part is waiting for my fingers to warm up on their own so that the mitts can retain the heat for them.<br />
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Hoping that I can get the toe warmers to activate for the ride home. My feet were fine, but they were starting to get chilly by the end of my twelve mile commute. Without the MT500 shoe covers, they'd have been blocks of ice.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-68467165859914803942013-01-07T23:23:00.000-05:002013-01-07T23:23:02.171-05:00Well, at least THAT'S out of the way.It's only January 7th, but I'm hoping that I've fulfilled my quota of cycling-related injuries for 2013.
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On New Year's Day, while adjusting the calipers on my mountain bike to accommodate a different wheelset, I almost cut off my index finger with a disc brake rotor. That's the second time I've done that. When it happened in March of 2012 it was a lot worse. I was afraid I was going to lose half of the nail on my right index finger. This time it was the right index finger again, but only a minor cut and a bad pinch. Got the brakes adjusted and went out and rode Frick to celebrate another year of cycling.
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So that should cover injuries related to bike maintenance and mechanics.
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On my way to work today, I hit some ice on the Downtown trail between Point Park and the Convention Center. I was traveling somewhere between 15-20 mph when it happened and didn't hit the ground so much with a thud as a slide and some scraping.
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The bike was remarkably unaffected. Some shredded bar tape, but that was basically. Pretty impressive, considering I went down on the drive side. I had to re-seat the chain and nudge the right shifter back in place, but that was about it.
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As for me, I could tell right away that my right knee and elbow had absorbed most of the impact, but nothing terrible. No holes in my tights and at the time, I didn't see any in my jacket (my almost brand-new jacket that I was wearing for only the second time). After walking around a bit, I noticed that the big toe on my right foot was sore. Again, no hole in my shoe or anything like that. I didn't investigate further because a) I still had a mile and a half to get to work, and b) it was only 30° out.
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<br />
Once I got to work, I changed out of my bike clothes and got a good chance to survey the damage. Brush burn on the elbow. Same thing on the knee. A hole in the jacket near the shoulder. A hole in the thumb of my brand new gloves. And my big toe. Just a big old mess of purple under the nail. I have no idea what happened to that poor toe, or how, but it was bruised as all get out. When I checked on it later in the day, I could see that it was also bruising pretty good on the bottom of the toe. Crazy stuff. But still walkable, and riding home this evening was no problem.<br />
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I really hope this means I can be done with injuries related to actually riding my bike for the year.<br />
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I'll be interested to see how my toe progresses overnight and if I'll be able to stuff it back into my cycling shoes for tomorrow's commute. I don't want to have to take any days off when the weather is supposed to get warmer.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-7833685280922751542012-01-06T16:18:00.003-05:002012-01-06T16:22:00.522-05:00The year (on the bike) in review<div>2011 was a pretty good year on the bike. Some numbers (Because everyone loves numbers, right?):</div><div><ul><li>Days on the bike: 282</li><li>Total miles: 7,693</li><li>Miles/day average (over 282 days): 27</li><li>Miles/day average (over 365 days): 21</li><li>Month with the most miles: July (1,053)</li><li>Commuting miles: 5,071</li></ul></div><div>The 7,693 miles I rode in 2011 came out to be 3,566 miles more than I'd ridden in 2010.</div><div><br /></div><div>Can I possibly best that in 2012? Maybe. I'm already 57 miles ahead of where I was on January 6th of last year. And I still have to ride home tonight. </div><div><br /></div><div>Seriously, if it wasn't for commuting, I'd have never racked up that kind of mileage. The 22+ miles/day of commuting is probably my favorite part of the job. I'm pretty sure that would be the case no matter where I worked. I love having the ability to get myself to and from work without a car, under my own power, and without having to sit in/be a part of traffic.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some highlights:</div><div><ul><li>Finished the Hilly Billy Roubaix. I attempted it in 2010 but quit with 32 miles to go. No quitting in 2011.</li><li>Completed my second Dirty Dozen.</li><li>Finished 10th overall in the Men's 3/4 category for the ABRA CX Series.</li></ul></div><div>Lowlights? Not many that I can recall. One that stands out: landing on my face during the first lap of a short-track XC race on the slag heaps adjacent to Frick. Had to go the ER after that one and get stitches above my upper lip.</div><div><br /></div><div>Goals for 2012?</div><div><ol><li>Podium for at least one of the ABRA Cyclocross Men's 3/4 races.</li><li>Do some actual training this year to make No.1 happen.</li><li>Third Dirty Dozen.</li></ol></div><div>That's all I have for right now. I was a horrible blogger in 2011. Will I be better this year? Maybe?</div>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-41507959435925612922011-10-15T21:18:00.004-04:002011-10-17T09:42:52.583-04:00Morgantown Monster Cross, Day 1 (In which our hero misses the start, misses the finish, but still does okay)I raced Morgantown Monster Cross <a href="http://www.crossresults.com/race/1496#r37330">last year</a>. Heather and I drove down, got lost, and ended up getting to the race five minutes before I was supposed to start. I started at the very back of the pack but still ended up placing 13th of 35 riders. Not too bad, all things considered.<br /><br />This year, things were going to be different. I registered for the Mens 3/4 race. Start time was 1:15, so we hit the road for Morgantown at about 10:00. Didn't get lost. Got there sometime around noon. Plenty of time. I got registered, got ready, rode around the park a little bit (there was still a race underway, so I couldn't do a pre-race lap yet), and waited to hear that the course was open.<br /><br />Word finally came. I got on the course along with a number of other 3/4s and started riding. I did not check to see what time it was (<--foreshadowing). I was making my way around, and I thought to myself, "This loop feels longer than last year. It's taking me forever to get around this thing. I wonder what time it is."<br /><br />At that point, I was within view of the starting area. I could see everyone all lined up. I heard cowbells. I saw everyone take off. The race had just started, and I wasn't even there! Meanwhile, I should have been in the second row, based on early registration (and my 9th place finish at Kickoff Cross two weeks earlier).<br /><br />I made a beeline across the field and got to the starting area so that I could try to catch up with the group. Apparently someone in the front of the group took a spill which slowed the whole group, which was pretty beneficial for me. I was able to catch up to the back of the pack without too much trouble.<br /><br />Because I was so hell-bent on continuing my forward progress and passing as many people as I could, I never even noticed where the lap cards were. I kept completing laps, wondering when I'd find out if it was my last one. Heather cheered for me every time she saw me.<br /><br />I finished another lap, and another guy flew past me. I thought it was odd that he was blowing so much energy with at least one lap to go (I still hadn't figured out where the cards were). Shortly after passing me, he slowed down again and I made my way past him easily. I kept going. But I didn't see anyone in front of me. And no one was behind me. I got to about 3/4ths of the way through the course to the big run-up and asked Rick Plowman, who happened to be hanging out there, "Is the race over and no one told me?"<br /><br />He laughed and confirmed that that was indeed the case. Since I had already gone that far, I just finished the lap. Why not, right? I got back to the starting area and Heather asked me if I had missed the sign that said "Finish" the last time I went through. Yup. I missed it. It was also where the lap cards were being displayed. It also explained why the one guy sped up before we got there on that last lap. He overtook me at the finish and I didn't even know we were done. I still finished 12th, but if I'd had any idea where I was, I probably could've finished 11th. Hell, if I'd been in the second row like I was supposed to be when the race started, I might have done even better.<br /><br />That's the way it goes, I guess. Unlike last year, this year's Monster Cross is a two day affair, so I have a chance to make up for it tomorrow. We'll see what happens.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-69522380317354307502011-07-03T22:47:00.004-04:002011-07-04T00:26:47.454-04:00Woo Hoo Hoo Speed: 51.5Great <a href="http://connect.garmin.com/activity/96688666">ride</a> this morning. I'm told that Coxcomb Hill Rd is one of the fastest descents around the Pittsburgh area. The 51.5 my Garmin recorded is certainly as fast as I think I've ever gone anywhere else.<div><br /></div><div>I suppose that means I have bragging rights on this guy:<br /><br /><iframe width="400" height="249" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/zWBg0XCQKc4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div>Yeah, buddy.</div>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-47361320806023581542011-06-27T16:17:00.005-04:002011-06-27T16:26:34.849-04:00HBR Addendum<a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/alucas/HillyBillyRoubaix2011#5622331806179137042" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-docCebtIGOA/TgaI_USwFhI/AAAAAAAAA0s/fAsf1C8hAHo/s640/IMG_00038.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><div>Some additional notes from the Hilly Billy Roubaix:</div><div><ul><li>I Frankensteined a crankset from some parts I had laying around. I swapped the 36t ring from my Gossamer 'cross crankset with an extra 34t ring that wasn't being used. The result was a 46/34 coupled with my existing 11-28 cassette. I probably would have been fine with the 36t ring, but the 34t had to have helped at least a little. Having the 46 in front worked out well, too. I was able to make use of it a lot more frequently than I would have expected, but there was never a point where I was out of high gears. It's not like I'd have been going any faster with a 50t big ring, and sticking with the 46 meant that I didn't have to screw around with the front derailleur.</li></ul><ul><li>There were descents where I thought my knees would explode and my hands would fly off of my hoods. I've never done any downhill mountain biking, but I can only imagine what kind of punishment that entails.</li></ul><ul><li>Overall I finished 58th of 116 (not including DNFs). In the Men's Under 40, I was 26th of 50. I could have been 2nd among Clydesdales and 7th in Women's. Just saying.</li></ul><ul><li>My Blue CX6.5 probably weighs five or six pounds less than my Trek Portland. I think that probably helped this year, too.</li></ul><ul><li>The Blue got a bath yesterday. It's squeaky clean again. The only reminders of the HBR are a scuffed shift lever and a little notch taken out of that hood. I picked a line on one rutted road where the rut just ran into my line. Before I could come to a complete and stable stop I fell over. Oh well.</li></ul></div><div>That's all I have for now.</div>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-12425512906152705522011-06-26T13:46:00.003-04:002011-06-26T20:40:38.573-04:00Hilly Billy Roubaix - The "Finished It This Year" Edition<div><div>Yesterday was the <a href="http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=12173">Hilly Billy Roubaix</a> in Morgantown, WV. It's a 72 mile race on some stupidly nasty "roads" in northern West Virginia. Supposedly they're all recognized by the state as valid roads. I'm not too sure about the creek crossing, though...</div><div><br /></div><div>I started last year, but threw in the towel at mile 40. At the time, I said there would be no way that I’d race in the 2011 event because it was just silly and I didn’t need to prove anything to myself or anyone else. But then Robbie talked about wanting to try it this year. And he wasn’t sure about how he’d get down there. Who was I to keep him from being able to race? If I could redeem myself for last year’s showing, so much the better.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here are some things I took with me: </div><div><ul><li>Camelbak hydration pack with 72oz. bladder (filled with ice and electrolyte water)</li><li>Handpump</li><li>3 C0<sub>2</sub> canisters</li><li>C0<sub>2</sub> pump</li><li>2 tubes</li><li>Tire levers</li><li>Multi-tool</li><li>3 packs of <a href="http://www.clifbar.com/food/products_shot_bloks/">Clif Shot Bloks</a></li><li>3 <a href="http://www.hammernutrition.com/products/hammer-gel.hg.html">Hammer gels</a></li><li>1 <a href="http://theprobar.com/products/original/superfood-slam/">Pro Bar</a></li><li>1 <a href="http://www.clifbar.com/food/products_clif_bar/">Clif Bar</a></li></ul></div><div>Here are the things I used:</div><div><ul><li>Camelbak hydration pack with 72oz. bladder (filled with ice and electrolyte water)</li></ul></div><div>For various reasons, none of the other items were necessary. From a technical standpoint, I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been able to avoid any kind of mechanical malfunctions. No flats, no broken parts, no nothing. Pretty amazing considering the number of people who flatted after the first hill of any consequence.</div><div><br /></div><div>By "hill of any consequence", I'm referring to the first descent (of many) comprised of large, loose gravel. This was maybe three or four miles into the race. At that point, I was probably somewhere toward the back of the middle of the pack. I think I passed seven or eight people on the side of the road wrestling tires off of their wheels. I’m not sure if all of these people were running their tires too low or what. My tires (34x700c, incidentally) were at about 55 psi, but it’s probably also important to note that I weigh a little less than 125, so that may have still been more air than I really needed. Either way, I was flat-free on that hill and all of the others. Being a little guy has its advantages sometimes.</div><div><br /></div><div>In regards to the nutrition situation, there were aid stations every twenty miles, and each one was well-stocked with water, <a href="http://www.hammernutrition.com/products/heed-sports-drink.he.html">Heed</a>, Hammer gels, <a href="http://www.rawrev.com/">Raw bars</a>, bananas, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cookies, Little Debbies, pretzels and more. 1st class all the way. I never needed to dig in to my own personal stash because JR’s volunteers took such good care of all of the racers.</div><div><br /></div><div>When I got to the second aid station at mile 40, I still felt great, unlike last year. There are at least two reasons for this:</div><div><ol><li>The weather. Last year, temps were in the mid-80’s all day and it was really sunny. Yesterday, highs were somewhere near 70 and it was cloudy the whole time. On a few occasions, rain seemed imminent, but that never happened. It was basically perfect.</li><li>I’m in much better shape this year than last. I’m already about 1,500 miles above where I was at this time last year. Working from home for my last job was really nice, but I wasn’t able to get time on the bike like I have this year. 22+ miles every day for my commute makes a big difference.</li></ol></div><div>I finished the whole thing in 5:41:39. I’m not sure where that put me in the standings. JR posted the top 20 and No.20 finished in 5:18. It’s conceivable that I might have finished in the top 40, but who knows. I hope that full results are posted later this week. Finishing 40th out of 120+ riders isn’t like winning or anything, but I’d still like to see how I did compared to everyone else.</div><div><br /></div><div>Will I do it again next year? That’s a good question. Now that I’ve successfully completed it I don’t know if I’ll have as much motivation to consider it. If I thought I had any chance of actually winning (or even placing in the top ten), maybe I’d be more drawn to doing it again, but since there are very few categories (Mens <40, Mens >40, Womens, Single Speed, Clydesdale) that’s not going to happen. When the A, B and C racers are all in the same category, it’s going to take a lot of mechanicals from the top riders to give any of the lesser guys a chance. I say all of this now. I won’t be surprised if I end up doing it anyway.</div><div><br /></div><div>Regardless of placement, I was really excited to finish and happy to have done so without feeling like I was going to pass out when I crossed the finish line. As much as I tried to convince myself last year that I wouldn’t try the HBR again, I’m glad that I went back and made it all the way through. It was nice to be around for the awards ceremony, and unlike last year, you actually had to finish to get your pint glass. I couldn’t leave without another pint glass.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>Before I go, I have to give a huge thanks to <a href="http://www.facebook.com/jpetsko">JR Petsko</a>, <a href="http://www.abraracing.com/">ABRA Racing</a>, and all of the volunteers who helped make the event possible and run so smoothly. The whole course was well marked, volunteers were present at potentially confusing turns and held up car traffic so racers could continue without having to stop, and the aid stations were great.</div><div><br /></div>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-71789163463976099632010-12-13T17:27:00.001-05:002011-01-13T14:41:47.339-05:00Love/Hate<p>Love/Hate: My <a href="http://www.rollspeed.com/w106.html">Nokian Hakkapeliitta W106</a> studded tyres. Really, it's more like Hate/Love, because they're just so heavy. You put them on, and you know you're not going to go anywhere very quickly. At the same time, your chances of staying upright in crappy weather like today are infinitely better. All of the extra effort you have to put into getting the bike to move isn't wasted when you're going <a href="http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=40.417235,-79.925722&spn=0,0.002969&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=40.417236,-79.925213&panoid=zk5P-3u2JJSvaArq1XzmGQ&cbp=12,330.76,,0,-3.43">uphill in crappy conditions</a>.<br /></p><p>Love: <a href="http://www.trails-edge.com/retail/moosemitts/moosemitts.htm">Moose Mitts</a>. I'm rocking the road version on the Portland right now. I can wear <a href="http://www.pearlizumi.com/publish/content/pi_2010/us/en/index/products/men/ride/accessories/4.-productCode-8770.html">PI Cyclones</a><a> in 20° weather and my hands are toasy warm. Love these things. Seriously.<br /></a></p><p><a>I guess that's it for now. I love/hate/love winter commuting.<br /></a></p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-20001561733637187742010-06-13T20:13:00.002-04:002010-06-13T20:47:57.142-04:00Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)<p>Where "it" is crappy shifting, the result of dirty old cables and housing on the mountain bike. It had gotten to the point where the chain basically just refused to drop onto the highest gear in the back.<br /><p>I swapped everything today with a set of Gore's <a href="http://www.rideoncables.com/en_us/products/xlslfsystem.html">sealed low friction cables and housing</a>. Granted, even a plain old new set of housing would have felt sixty or seventy times better than what I was running, thanks to a long, wet, muddy spring, preceded by a muddy/snowy winter. Those poor cables were definitely ready for retirement.<br /><p>Installing the Gore system was a little more involved, with the extra steps added for running the liner, but beyond that it was pretty easy. The hardest part was threading the new cable into the rear shifter. I think that was mainly due to the cable being a little stiffer because of the plastic coating surrounding it. I ended up using some wire from a twist-tie to thread the cable through the channel in the shifter and out to the barrel. It took some time to figure out, but it worked pretty well.<br /><p>Once everything was in place, I started running through all of the gears, and at first I was worried that I had somehow screwed up the shifters because I hardly had to exert any energy at all to shift the rear derailleur. It was ridiculously easy. And smooth. And I could shift up and down through all gears, front and back.<br /><p>Coming soon: a <a href="http://www.magura.com/en/products/older-products/suspension-forks-2009/prod/durin-marathon-1.html">new (2009 model year) fork</a>!Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-60128121087826459732010-03-23T01:23:00.002-04:002010-03-23T01:30:55.200-04:00Fingers: 10. Chainrings: 0.<p>Having just watched <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0193171/">A Sunday In Hell</a> at <a href="http://www.secreteye.org/m/">Morning Glory Coffeehouse</a>, and being a little bored, I decided now was as good a time as any to start converting the Portland from a tripe to a compact double. I've been collecting parts since late last year, and at this point I have almost everything I need.<br /><p>I decided to start with the biggest piece - the crankset. I was determined not to let any chainrings <a href="http://delightexplode.blogspot.com/2009/11/dirty-doesnt.html">get the best of me</a> this time out. I put the bike up on the stand and got started. Just like when I switched cranksets on the Bianchi (the stock FSA Gossamer from that bike would be replacing the 105 triple on the Portland), I had <a href="http://www.crankbrothers.com/eggbeater_sl.php">Crank Brothers Eggbeater SLs</a> installed.<br /><p>The one annoying thing about the SLs is that they don't have a wrench face on them, so you're forced to use an allen key to remove them, putting your hand on the inside of the pedal and in direct view of your carnivorous crankset. I wasn't about to rip up any of my fingers tonight, but I had already removed the chain from the bike and there still wasn't a really easy way to get decent leverage on the crankset.<br /><p>Enter the rubber mallet. I set my <a href="http://www.rei.com/product/709639">Pedro's 8mm Allen Key Pedal Remover</a> into the drive-side crank arm and gave it a decent whack with the mallet. One more time and the pedal loosened. No harm done to the bike, the pedal, or me. All I had to do was repeat the process for the other side and I was out of the woods. I was pretty happy. And relieved.<br /><p>Now the Gossamer is installed on the Portland and the 105 triple is in a box in the garage. Next up: front and rear derailleurs (again, stock parts from the Bianchi that have since been replaced will allow for the conversion) and new cabling and housing. I've never messed with cabling at all, so that should be interesting. I hope this next phase isn't something that I start and have to let <a href="http://www.probikesllc.com/">Pro Bikes</a> finish.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-65729430210928014532010-03-21T20:25:00.011-04:002010-03-22T09:35:03.300-04:00Celtic Cross<p><a href="http://pghalleycat.com/races/the-celtic-cross-more-winter-cross/">Celtic Cross</a> was this afternoon on the slag heaps in (slightly outside of?) Frick. Heather came along to cheer for me, which was awfully nice of her, especially considering the great trek from the parking lot next to the Irish Center up to the slag heaps. She was the only spectator with a cowbell, and most of the racers had no idea why she kept ringing it.<br /></p><p>Tough course. It was about a mile, with a fair amount of loose gravel, two nasty mud bogs, one set of triple barriers, and a really steep run-up. After the second (and easily more punishing) of the bogs, there was this little hill. I think I might have made it up the hill while still on my bike for the first lap. Maybe the second. After that, I got off and slowly trudged up that crappy little hill, too spent to pedal.<br /></p><p>The race was an hour long, and the idea was to finish as many laps as possible within that time. I managed eight, which was more than I thought I'd have been able to do. There was one guy who got eleven, four others with ten, not sure of how many with nine and then eight. </p><p>Either way, highlights for me were:</p><ul><li>Not wrecking<br /></li><li>Not falling off of the edge of the slag heap in multiple and various places<br /></li><li>Grabbing the mud money from whoever it was from Iron City Bikes who was offering it to whoever was willing to grab it. After the race, I dug it out of my back pocket and realized that it was only $1, but hey, a dollar's a dollar, and no one else seemed to want it. I am not a proud person.<br /></li><li>Gorgeous weather. They had been calling for rain today, but that didn't even come close to happening. The sun was shining all day long.</li></ul>Lowlights:<br /><ul><li>Losing my bike computer. It popped off somewhere. I tried keeping an eye out for it after I noticed it had gone missing, but no luck. It's gone and now. Bummer. At least I have a dollar to put toward the cost of the new one.</li></ul><p>This was only my second cyclocross race, and I think it was probably more physically draining than the Murrysville 'cross race, although I think that may have only been 45 minutes long. I wasn't crazy about all of the loose gravel, especially after wiping out thanks to some cinders a few weeks ago, but as mentioned earlier, I was able to avoid wrecking, even if it meant a certain measure of caution when approaching some sections.</p><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_KOU2sjzsplI/S6a39Iu_VoI/AAAAAAAAAYw/gSHbUrDYEUU/portland.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_KOU2sjzsplI/S6a39Iu_VoI/AAAAAAAAAYw/gSHbUrDYEUU/portland.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br><i>So much mud.</i>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-23502264799152818302010-03-12T22:57:00.002-05:002010-03-12T23:13:02.472-05:00First wreck of the New Year!<p>I decided to go for a slightly longer ride at lunch yesterday, since I'd worked the previous night until 10:00, and had to be up and ready to go by 6:30. I figured all that extra time was worth a few extra miles. Plus, it was 65° and sunny. This would be the first day of 2010 for shorts and a short-sleeve jersey!<br /></p><p>I'd have been better off sticking with my short loops. Or maybe doing this loop in reverse. But of course, I did neither of those things. I was close to halfway through the loop, right in the middle of Oakland. I turned from Bouquet to Jonclaire, and then onto Yarrow, gingerly making my way through all of the potholes that have crept up over the course of the last month. The second half of Yarrow is a <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?q=yarrow+street,+pittsburgh,+pa&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Yarrow+St,+Pittsburgh,+Allegheny,+Pennsylvania+15213&gl=us&ei=pw2bS674I8T38Abn-ZWnDg&ved=0CAcQ8gEwAA&ll=40.439646,-79.951069&spn=0.000546,0.001601&t=h&z=20&layer=c&cbll=40.439588,-79.951173&panoid=PYuU_dRXhNlzIh1N9FOmpQ&cbp=12,40.21,,0,20.88">pretty steep downhill</a>, but my own speed was kept in check by the car in front of me slowly inching down the hill. In retrospect, this was a very good thing.<br /></p><p>After the car was out of the way, I started going down the hill. Got myself all positioned for the sharp right onto Boundary at the bottom of the hill. Didn't even really consider the road beneath me. Especially didn't notice the cinders. Ooops. I started to lean to the right and everything slid out to the left. I went down pretty hard, landing on my right hip, forearm/elbow, and shoulder.<br /></p><p>I picked myself and the bike up off the ground and took a look to see how we were doing. The bike looked okay. I didn't see any holes in my shorts, although I knew I'd at least get a nice big bruise out of the impact. The elbow was pretty scraped up, but it wasn't pouring blood or anything. I was still about eight miles from home, so I got back on the bike, tested it out, and decided that it felt solid.<br /></p><p>Continued on. Made my way down the Panther Hollow trail, and that's when I could feel my shoulder starting to burn a little bit. When I got to the jail trail parking lot, I took a closer look and saw some small holes in my jersey, and after unzipping, some more scrapes.<br /></p><p>I made it the rest of the way home without incident. When I took off my jersey, cinders fell out from it. I looked at it a little more closely and noticed some holes in the side, too. Apparently my entire right side made contact with the ground in one way or another.<br /></p><p>I got in the shower, fully aware that I was going to have to do a good job scrubbing the road burn on my elbow, as well as my shoulder. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, and I was able to get everything all clean, with no obvious signs of remaining debris.<br /></p><p>Once I was all dried off, I cleaned the elbow out some more with peroxide and then wrapped it up in gauze. Today it's looking pretty good. Mostly dried out and not weepy at all.<br /></p><p>It was warm enough today that I was able to just wear a t-shirt, so I didn't have to worry about keeping it covered to avoid getting blood all over a long-sleeve shirt. I'll probably cover it tonight just so there's no risk of it opening up and ruining our sheets.<br /></p><p>The good? Well, I still finished the 18.25 mile loop in 1:02. The bike seems to be mostly fine. I washed it today and didn't see any chipped paint anywhere. Which is really surprising, actually. The tops of the shifters are a little dinged up, but that might be it as far as cosmetics.<br /></p><p>When I cleaned the chain, put it back on, and re-oiled it, I noticed the rear derailleur making some clicky noises as I was going through the gears; not sure what's going on there. I didn't see any scratches on the derailleur when I cleaned it, but maybe the hanger got bent or something. I'd been wanting to take it over to Pro Bikes anyway for new cables and a general tune-up, so I dropped it off this evening after work and added that to the list of things I asked them to check.<br /></p><p>Other positives:</p><p></p><ul><li>I was the only person involved. I'm hoping that counts for something. If there's some quota of wrecks that I'm supposed to have, I really hope that I'm knocking them all out now, and by myself. I didn't lose consciousness or have to go to the hospital. </li></ul><ul><li>Not including various spills and scrapes on the MTB, this is my first road accident since <a href="http://delightexplode.blogspot.com/2008/10/oh-my-stupid-head.html">The Great Concussion of '08</a>. I'm glad I was able to pick myself up and get home without any trouble.</li></ul><p></p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-85098928694227107042010-01-31T16:59:00.001-05:002010-01-31T17:00:54.000-05:00One down, eleven to go.<p>January is pretty much over. Crazy month. I can't remember a January with so much snow. And so much cold. Not in recent years, anyway. Still it ended up being a good month for riding, especially when things got nice in the middle of the month. 200+ miles, most of those on the road. Only one day of MTB riding. I need to try to get more of that in February.<br /><p>It'd be great to get as many miles in February as January. The past two years (the only two Februaries that I've had a bike) have been pretty slow in terms of riding. I'd like to think that I have my winter gear up to the point that I should be able to make it out in almost anything, so maybe this year will be better.<br /><p>It was definitely cold this morning. I got out of bed at 9:00 and checked the temperature. The weather channel said it was 8° and sunny. That sounded pretty cold, so I wasn't in a real hurry to get ready and out the door. By the time I did make it outside (closer to 11:00, it was 18° and still sunny. Much better. It's nice to see the temperature more than double in less than two hours.<br /><p>Really, the only time I was really cold was right at the start, and that was just my forehead, which felt like it was going to peel off. I kept telling myself that I was going to pull over and make sure that the balaclava was low enough, but after a few minutes it either got warmer or just numbed to the point that it didn't hurt anymore.<br /><p>I was out for close to two hours, and the sun was around the whole time. Really, it's been surprisingly sunny so far this year. It was sunny all weekeend. It was sunny the previous two Saturdays (followed by disgusting, gross, rainy Sundays, but we won't talk about those right now), and there have been lots of sunny days in between. It might not always be <i>warm</i> and sunny, but I think I'd rather have cold and sunny than warm and grey on most days. Sun and body heat can make up for low temperatures.<br /><p>Not too much else to talk about right now. Just glad to be able to get outside and ride at this time of the year.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-80545526846625959592010-01-02T18:41:00.000-05:002010-01-02T18:42:27.948-05:00Year in a (few) minute(s).<p>Everyone else is doing it. Why can't I?<br /></p><p>2009 was a pretty good year.<br /></p><p>I got a new job. Working from home. That's pretty great. Although I miss the commute to Confluence and back. But I get out at lunch often enough that I mostly make up for it. I'd like to try to push myself to get up early and ride before work more often this year. The problem with that is that I also need to make sure that I get to bed early enough to actually get enough sleep AND get up early. Getting to bed earlier is really the hardest part. I'm terrible at that. Anyway...<br /></p><p>Spent the first part of 2009 in physical therapy, trying to get rid of tendinitis that developed during my month-long layoff in Sept/Oct 2008. It worked. By April, I was pretty much back to normal. That meant that I did my first 200k with no pain. Other than the actual physical torture of the 200k itself.<br /></p><p>Picked up a mountain bike in February. I did a fair amount of riding in Frick over the course of the year. Gave up on trying to do the descent from the one part of the Bowling Green trail after beating up my bike and myself multiple times. I still have some lingering pain in my right thumb after a fall in July. Participated in the Punk Bike Enduro at the beginning of December. It was, by far, the muddiest riding I did all year. Lots of fun, though.<br /></p><p>I started racing at the end of May. My best finish was 15th out of 35. Toward the end of the season I bought an actual road/race bike and got to use that for a few races. I love it. It's amazing how much quicker it feels than the Portland, but I think I lost a little bit of the mystique of being "that guy racing on the Portland" when I started showing up with the Bianchi. Oh well.<br /></p><p>I was also able to work my first cyclocross race in there at the end of October. 6th place out of 26, which was way better than I would have ever expected. For various reasons that was the only 'cross race I was able to do. I'm hoping to do a lot more in 2010.<br /></p><p>Probably the biggest disappointment for 2009 was missing out on the Dirty Dozen after maiming my right middle finger the week before. One small consolation was that I was at least able to get to all thirteen hills, and made it up all of them.<br /></p><p>I managed to ride about 100 miles more than I did in 2008, which was pretty good, considering how many of 2008's miles were the result of the daily 26 mile commute.<br /></p><p>Things I'd like to do in 2010:<br /></p><ul><li>Ride more.<br /></li><li>Race more (road, 'cross, maybe some MTB?).<br /></li><li>Dirty Dozen.<br /></li><li>Probably some other stuff. I'll have all year to think about it.</li></ul>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-50157413763989352042009-12-17T02:54:00.008-05:002009-12-20T21:37:55.457-05:00The Moose Mitts Cometh.<p>The <a href="http://www.trails-edge.com/retail/te_shirts/amfbikemits.htm">Moose Mitts</a> showed up on Wednesday. Lucky for me the mail was running early, and my lunch hour ended up running late, which meant I was able to get the road mitts on the Bianchi and take them out for a test ride.</p><p>Getting them on the bike was easy. They included a sheet with pictures/instructions, so it wasn't like I had to do any guessing. As you can see from the pictures, these things are pretty big. Despite the semi-conical shape, I don't think they're increasing my aerodynamics or anything like that. Really though, all I ask of them is that they keep my hands warm.<br /></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://picasaweb.google.com/alucas/MooseMitts#5415943042091341762"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 384px; height: 288px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_KOU2sjzsplI/SylLgHuaV8I/AAAAAAAAATM/VeiF5SfTI6k/s640/moose_01.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p>It was a pretty great day for a test ride. Temps were somewhere near 28°, and the winds were between 10-15mph. On a day like that, my fingers would be pretty numb after a short time, regardless of whether I was wearing my OR Grippers with liners or the Endura lobster mittens I picked up on Chainlove over the summer. Especially on the downhill stretches.<br /></p><p>With this in mind, I grabbed the Grippers and threw the liners in the pocket of the jacket, just in case the mitts weren't as awesome as they were supposed to be, or even if it was just too cold and windy to expect them to do all of the work.<br /></p><p>The mitts themselves are pretty unobstrusive. They don't get in the way of normal hand postioning, whether on the hoods or in the drops. There's plenty of room to move around in there, which also explains why they look so massive. I feel like my bike looks like some sort of old Battlestar Galactica spacecraft (the old series, not the new one).<br /></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://picasaweb.google.com/alucas/MooseMitts#5415943043354563298"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 384px; height: 512px;" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_KOU2sjzsplI/SylLgMblkuI/AAAAAAAAATQ/83aeikwswr4/s512/moose_02.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p>The first real test was a nice downhill stretch about a mile from my house. I usually get up to around 42mph on the way down, and with temps in the upper 20s, that would mean some pretty frigid hands. Not today. I didn't feel a thing on the way down the hill.<br /></p><p>Or any other hills. Or on any flats. My hands stayed toasty warm. In fact, by the time I got home, they were sweating. I could have just worn the liners (which stayed in my pocket) and left the gloves at home. That's probably what I'll end up doing from now on.<br /></p><p>To sum up, these were worth every penny. Super-warm; warmer than I could ever have imagined. Easy to move around in; switching hand positions didn't require any extra effort, and the mitts weren't a distraction. Did I mention that these things are super-warm?<br /></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://picasaweb.google.com/alucas/MooseMitts#5415943045571885058"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 384px; height: 288px;" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_KOU2sjzsplI/SylLgUsPOAI/AAAAAAAAATU/rY6WEeNX3ZQ/s640/moose_03.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p>Still have to try out the MTB version. I was supposed to get out this afternoon, but neither Brian or I could get it together to make it to Frick. Soon enough.</p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-71037784760282857222009-12-15T22:20:00.001-05:002009-12-15T22:27:00.230-05:00Dancing with myself.<p>Sitting in a coffee shop, supposedly working on some freelance. All by myself with the laptop and headphones. It feels like I haven't done this in roughly ten years or so. Heather really wanted to come with me, and I'd have been happy to have her here, but she can't stay up as late as me, and I really needed to get out of the house. <br /><p>Working from home is great, but after awhile I just need to get away. Especially if I still have to sit and do some work in the evening. If I'm going to keep staring at a computer screen, it's nice to at least switch up the surroundings a little bit.<br /><p>Riding at lunch isn't the same thing as getting away from the house, either. That's getting away, but it's a different thing. That's getting away and clearing the head of work, but it's not like I'm thinking about how I'm away from the house while I'm riding. I'm thinking about riding. I wish I was riding right now, actually.<br /><p>December hasn't been much of a month so far, in regards to riding the bike. I think I've been out maybe five times. In fifteen days! What's up with that? Sure, one of those days was the <a href="http://www.dirtragmag.com/blogarific/punk-bike-enduro-xx-edition">Punk Bike Enduro</a>, but I'm really, seriously itching to get out on the roads and go for a really nice long ride.<br /><p>It'd be nice if I could do that on Saturday, but Verizon's coming to install FIOS, and they're supposed to show up anywhere between 8:00 and 12:00, and they say installation can take up to four hours. <br /><p>With our luck, they'll show up at 12:30, while I've been sitting around waiting all morning for them. And then the day will be shot. At least in terms of riding.<br /><p>If the weather's nice on Sunday, <a href="http://anklebiter.net/log/">Brian</a> and I are supposed to head over to Frick in the afternoon. Really looking forward to that. The Combi is so sparkly clean right now, but I'd love to get back out on some trails that I know. And hope that Brian doesn't insist on going <i>up</i> Iron Grate. That is craziness. Seriously.<br /><p>With any luck my <a href="http://www.trails-edge.com/retail/te_shirts/amfbikemits.htm">moose mitts</a> will show up in the next few days and I can try them out on Sunday. I'm really looking forward to having a good solution for cold hands, but I do worry a little bit about feeling claustrophobic, or that my hands are locked to the handlebars. Full review will be posted once they've been tested.<br /><p>Okay. Back to work. I think this place is only open for another forty minutes or so.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-80804030629489539142009-12-06T22:50:00.002-05:002009-12-06T22:55:30.229-05:00The Dirty Duo and the PBE<p>It was a pretty good weekend on the cycling front.<br /></p><p>Saturday morning, I met Jon Conley down at the bike rental place on the jail trail. The idea was for us to head out and hit all of the Dirty Dozen hills, since neither of us were able to make it last weekend.<br /></p><p>The weather yesterday was definitely not as favorable as it was the day of the actual event. We headed through town with cloudy skies, temps in the low 30s, and light snowfall. A far cry from mid-40s and sunny.<br /></p><p>For whatever reason, there was tons of traffic heading through town. A taxi pulled out right in front of me on Smallman in the Strip District. My knee-jerk reaction to flip off the driver was foiled by the fact that I was wearing my lobster gloves.<br /></p><p>When you only have three fingers on the entire glove, the whole middle finger thing loses some of its effect. Probably for the best. Flipping people off isn't very nice, even if they did see you coming and decided to pull out in front of you anyway.<br /></p><p>The ride up Center was no problem, and Ravine wasn't too bad, either, but by the time we got to the top, the snow was coming down a little bit harder and the roads were getting pretty wet. I felt my rear wheel start to slip in a few places as I neared the top of Ravine.<br /></p><p>Jon's feet were freezing, too. With those things in consideration, and taking into account that Berryhill would be cold, wet, and mossy, we decided to call it a day. We head back down Ravine and back into town. So much for completing the Dirty Dozen.<br /></p><p>I probably wouldn't have made it through all thirteen hills anyway. Aside from the cold and wet, my left knee was giving me considerable grief by the time I made it home. Most likely because I has basically taken a week and a half off from riding while waiting for my finger to heal. I really should have at least been riding on the trainer in the basement.<br /></p><hr /><br />Today, Robbie Sedgewick and I headed out for the Twentieth Annual Dirt Rag Punk Bike Enduro, held in Emmerling Park, over in Indianola. It's an eleven stage race/event, with most stages punctuated by beer breaks. Alas, I forgot to bring an extra vessel and was unable to partake.<br /><p>The riding portions of the day were pretty good. Muddy. Extremely muddy. With huge puddles all over the place. Still, it was fun riding, and I'm sure the bikes enjoy getting caked with mud, even as the derailleurs became so clogged that they were simply no longer able to function (Robbie's single-speed didn't have that issue).<br /></p><p>I'd never been to Emmerling before, but apparently lots of motocross racing happens on those trails, so there were some pretty deeply rutted sections that were fairly ridiculous to try to ride through.<br /></p><p>There were a number of sections where I had to walk the bike through an area like that, try to get back on and clipped in (with pedals and cleats also enrobed in mud), pedal a few strokes and then run into another rutted section. Either that, or there'd be a big log in the way, and I'd have no momentum to even consider trying to ride over it.<br /></p><p>A good time, though. I'm glad I went, and I'm glad that Robbie was able to go, since there weren't too many other people who were there that either of us knew. I'd have to say that I'd have rather done more riding that standing around at beer breaks, but that's a big part of the whole thing, so I'm not asking for any changes or anything like that. If I go next year, I'll have to remember a vessel.</p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-73351801160124963462009-11-28T23:32:00.002-05:002009-11-29T00:28:38.721-05:00Dirty Doesn't<p>*Sigh*<br /></p><p>So today was the <a href="http://dannychew.com/dd.html">Dirty Dozen</a> and... I didn't ride. I wanted to, and the weather was perfect, and I trained for the last few months and got to know all of the hills (some better than others, but I still covered them all). So I was all ready. But then I went and messed up the middle finger on my right hand.<br /></p><p>This past Sunday night, I decided to swap cranksets on the Bianchi. I picked up an Ultegra compact on eBay for a pretty great price. <a href="http://anklebiter.net/log/">Brian</a> was going to help me with it, but I wanted to get it on there before the ride and the instructions looked pretty straightforward (mind you, I've not done much mechanic-ing on my bikes up to this point), so I picked up a bottom bracket tool at <a href="http://www.probikesllc.com/">Pro Bikes</a> and got to work.<br /></p><p>The swap itself was ridiculously easy. As I mentioned, the directions were pretty clear, so everything went off without a hitch. And then I realized that I had left the pedals on the old crankset. Which meant I'd have to wrench them out of there without being able to use the bike for leverage.<br /></p><p>That didn't work out so well. I was working the drive side pedal loose, and all of a sudden (and way more quickly than I was prepared to handle) it did, in fact, come loose. The whole crank set sort of spun around with the crank arm and one of the teeth on the big ring jammed itself into my middle finger, right at the first knuckle.<br /></p><p>One good thing is that it didn't hurt at all. Either that or, I was so focused on getting out of the garage and back into the basement to start trying to get the grease out of the wound that the pain was the furthest thing from my mind. Who knows. I don't <i>remember</i> any pain, and that's all that matters, right?<br /></p><p>After scrubbing it for awhile and not being sure if I was doing a great job, I called up to Heather to come down and lend a hand. She could tell I had some trouble from the trail of blood that led from the garage door to the stationary tub. I asked her to go get a pair of scissors so that we could cut off the little flap of skin on top of my finger and see how clean everything looked.<br /></p><p>Unfortunately, it wasn't a little flap of skin. It was the rest of my finger. The tooth had dug in at a deep enough angle it was pretty much just a puncture wound. I can't imagine it was all that far from the bone.<br /></p><p>We got it cleaned out as best we could and headed over to my parents' house to get my mom's opinion (she's a nurse). She said it looked like we had done a pretty good job of getting everything out of there, but I made a doctor's appointment the next morning (my mom sent me to school with a broken collarbone when I was in high school, so if she says everything's okay, I'm still a little wary) just in case.<br /></p><p>The doctor was also pretty satisfied that everything looked okay, but she gave me a prescription for some antibiotics anyway, AND I got a tetanus shot. All that was left to do was wait and see how long it took to heal.<br /></p><p>And wait.</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlzSq4WV54KsC7YMr85zAtguFPVeiGyADk2TEZKITskU49KrJVjS81GgTjGrrH79Hk3cak1-N_x-Y7NR30fQyDSwAMGFRlPvr-kcURimlar5EVHBOiNz7E9SsJRydkMe9jAiNSfbFXOWN/s1600/the_finger.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZlzSq4WV54KsC7YMr85zAtguFPVeiGyADk2TEZKITskU49KrJVjS81GgTjGrrH79Hk3cak1-N_x-Y7NR30fQyDSwAMGFRlPvr-kcURimlar5EVHBOiNz7E9SsJRydkMe9jAiNSfbFXOWN/s400/the_finger.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5409391929406805986" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">(The Finger on Tuesday)</span></span><br /></p><p>For awhile, I really thought it might be good enough to go today, but then I realized I'd need to have gloves on all day and bear down pretty hard on the bars while climbing the hills. I figured I'd just end up tearing the whole thing open and bleeding all day.<br /></p><p>I was pretty okay with my decision all day today, but then we ran over to the EEFC to pick up a few things. While we were driving through Squirrel Hill, we came up on big groups of cyclists heading down Beechwood.<br /></p><p>Heather rolled down her window and asked if they had just finished the DD (it was about 4:45). They confirmed, and that's when I started feeling really bad about not being able to ride. I wish I had been out there with them. Oh well. Next year.<br /></p><p>I just hope that the finger's in good enough shape for the <a href="http://www.dirtragmag.com/blogarific/2009-punk-bike-enduro-announced">Punk Bike Enduro</a> next Sunday.<br /></p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-87235360662171308502009-11-02T00:31:00.004-05:002009-11-02T00:39:09.610-05:00Ten of Thirteen isn't too bad.<p>Chris Mayhew organized a little Dirty Dozen scouting ride for Sunday morning. This was a good thing because a) Saturday was kind of gross out and I didn't feel like heading down for the WPW training ride, b) having skipped said WPW ride, I really wanted to get out and get some hills under my belt, and 3) Chris's plans were to do the whole thing, and I wanted to see if I could even make it through from start to finish.<br /></p><p>Here are a few details:<br /></p><ul><li>Eight of us started from the Oval at 10:00 AM</li><li>The weather was great. Clear and sunny all day, with temps somewhere in the mid-to-upper 40s.<br /></li><li>Three of us (Chris, Robbie, and I) finished at the top of Flowers/Kilbourne/Tesla sometime around 1:30 or so.<br /></li><li>The five that peeled off at varying points in time did so of their own volition, not because of mechanicals or anything like that.<br /></li><li>In the time between, we climbed ten of the thirteen hills on the DD route.<br /></li><li>We skipped Canton, Boustead, and Barry/Holt/Eleanor.<br /></li></ul><p>All in all, I'd say I felt pretty good. I was still on my bike when I got to the top of each hill. I wasn't flying, but I wasn't puking, either. I was slightly disappointed that we skipped out on Canton, just because I still haven't tried it yet, but I'll just have to make sure I get myself over there this coming weekend.<br /></p><p>At some point I need to swap a 12-27 cassette from the Portland to the Bianchi. I've been doing fine with the 12-25, but those two teeth might make a little bit of a difference.</p>Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-67636901465920665462009-10-24T15:40:00.005-04:002009-10-24T15:52:46.565-04:00Murrysville Cyclocross 2009<p>Finally got my first cyclocross race under my belt. The weather was pretty much perfect. Almost a full day's worth of rain on Friday, with showers tapering off about fifteen minutes before the start of the race left the course sufficiently saturated and ready to be turned from grass to mud. Temps were hovering somewhere near 60.<br /><p>Heather and her dad came along to watch, and we got there somewhere around 9:20. That gave me plenty of time to get a lap around the course to get a feel for how things would be. It wasn't too hard to imagine that things would be muddy.<br /><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_knFoIYqOVyJcpq5oyD6C5rKQC9JfN50PTwOPaiJGbsE6J4tJpWuFfI0atgWKSAdtqFJ2JW08W5Cu2EMHdtS8-wL-rmeixhudWrS9ztpc3rRV8R6Z7kj_SRmFkseUsn5ECQwwCpaM6QvB/s1600-h/cross01.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_knFoIYqOVyJcpq5oyD6C5rKQC9JfN50PTwOPaiJGbsE6J4tJpWuFfI0atgWKSAdtqFJ2JW08W5Cu2EMHdtS8-wL-rmeixhudWrS9ztpc3rRV8R6Z7kj_SRmFkseUsn5ECQwwCpaM6QvB/s400/cross01.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396253962025096498" /></a><br /><p><i><font size=2>Morningside Velo at the starting line. L-R Robbie Sedgewick, Alex Braunstein, Brian Janaszek, Me</font></i><br /><p>I was fortunate to get a spot in the first row before the race started, and once they set us off, I was in fourth or fifth place and a gap was already forming between us and the rest of the pack. There were maybe two other people close behind me: some guy I didn't know, and <a href="http://anklebiter.net/log/">Brian</a>.<br /><p>When we got to the first run-up, Brian passed me. Somewhere not too far after that, the other guy passed me, too. Before the end of the first lap, though, I had managed to pull back in front of Mr. Unknown. Brian was still in front of me, hanging pretty close to some other guy.<br /><p>By the end of the second lap, the guy behind me was pretty far back, and the rest of the group was nowhere in sight. I wasn't too far from Brian and the guy he was battling, but I knew that I didn't have the legs to catch up with them.<br /><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7Vxpfyitpa3PPzvTaYvKfYUEzdYHwx2jfu0NuOIbASe3AqUa7-9nA3GkogS_EzudGrdf3jy44ws6RLic477ftmDV34_0mWx36-772qBT7jZAlx-GzFadJ-SwwZCnGxz1IaYdgLUrZD7x/s1600-h/cross03.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7Vxpfyitpa3PPzvTaYvKfYUEzdYHwx2jfu0NuOIbASe3AqUa7-9nA3GkogS_EzudGrdf3jy44ws6RLic477ftmDV34_0mWx36-772qBT7jZAlx-GzFadJ-SwwZCnGxz1IaYdgLUrZD7x/s400/cross03.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396256317869995954" /></a><br /><p><i><font size=2>Me, shortly before eating it on the last lap.</font></i><br /><p>On the fourth and final lap, I guess I had built up enough distance between me and my closest trailer that when I wiped out on one of the switchbacks and dropped my chain, I was able to stop and get everything back to where it needed to be without any threat of being passed.<br /><p>I ended up finishing 6th in a field of 26. That was way better than I would ever have expected. I might not make it out for another race this season (I screwed up and made other plans before realizing there was another race tomorrow), which really stinks, but it was lots of fun and great incentive to try and get to more races next season.<br /><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXoO7LcFO1Jx-6KHDkVEphSe_T45tbaOQxo1drClHxgHcghFPILe1vhbjRFopeK40rnTkgADVZsC1aJnoiFynbfv_RCP03ifirBeR2M4cnYa0w1HQfTWkwn8VpXLxpJavrR7AQj1rV5tu/s1600-h/cross04.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXoO7LcFO1Jx-6KHDkVEphSe_T45tbaOQxo1drClHxgHcghFPILe1vhbjRFopeK40rnTkgADVZsC1aJnoiFynbfv_RCP03ifirBeR2M4cnYa0w1HQfTWkwn8VpXLxpJavrR7AQj1rV5tu/s400/cross04.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396255616175259874" /></a><br /><p><i><font size=2>The Portland: post-race, pre-bath.</font></i><br /><p>Up next: Dirty Dozen.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-89396528611446773452009-10-03T22:11:00.001-04:002009-10-03T22:11:46.738-04:00*Sigh*. Postponed.<p>Hmm. The start of my cyclocross racing career is still on hold. Pro Bikes didn't have a middle ring, but I didn't find out until I called on Friday to see if there was any news. It's on its way, but won't be in until next week.<br /><p>If I had been smart, I'd have called Wednesday morning to see if they had one in stock and then started calling around to other bikes shops. Alas, I was not smart, so now I have to wait.<br /><p>I'll probably get out on the MTB for a while tomorrow morning. The tentative plan is to meet Jon at Riverview Park and see what that's like. He's spoken highly of it, so I'm looking forward to riding in a new place.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-34409977181736872562009-09-30T00:12:00.002-04:002009-09-30T00:37:00.404-04:00I went to 'cross practice and all I got was this broken tooth.For the first time in, what? Three? Four weeks? the Portland and I finally made it back to Frick for Tuesday night 'cross practice. Of course I didn't get there in time for the 6:00 clinic, but at least I was there before sprints started.<br /><br />When the sprints did start, I realized that I probably should have actually eaten something before heading out. Maybe if I'd had more time. I was okay for the most part, but I could feel it each time on the way back to the starting line.<br /><br />The race laps seemed to go a little bit better, and everything was going really well until we started this one little climbing section. I decided to take advantage of my granny gear, but I was probably already working too hard when I downshifted and the chain popped off of the rings. <br /><br />No big deal there. I got off, reseated the chain, and kept going. The only problem was that it kept wanting to fall back onto the little ring. In fact, the only way I was able to keep the chain on the middle ring was to shift the front derailleur to the big ring trim position. Something wasn't quite right.<br /><br />Since we finished at about 7:25 and I was over in Squirrel Hill anyway, I figured I might as well stop by Pro Bikes to see if anyone had time to look at it. I was fine with leaving it there, too, since I had driven to practice, but I thought maybe I could even learn a thing or two.<br /><br />I got to the shop and there wasn't a whole lot going on, so Jake put the bike in a repair stand and started looking around. At first he thought that it might just be the cables that needed adjusting, but after trying that and messing with the limit screws, the chain still had no desire to hang around on the middle ring.<br /><br />Jake took a closer look, and it was then that he realized that there was a tooth missing on the middle ring. Almost definitely from that ill-timed/advised shift I described a little earlier. Once the crank spun to where the tooth was missing, the chain dropped back down to the granny.<br /><br />Now the Portland's sitting at Pro Bikes, hoping that there's a middle ring somewhere in their basement waiting for it. I hope so, too. I'd really like to have the bike back before the weekend so that I can go up to Grove City for the 'cross race on Sunday. I didn't make it this past Sunday, due to weather and overall tiredness.<br /><br />After getting back to practice tonight, I really want to get on a course and find out how bad I suck. I just want to race. And finish. We'll see what happens. Assuming I get the bike back in time.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5310167131891300182.post-3174150990998453992009-09-25T15:51:00.001-04:002009-09-25T15:54:40.204-04:00Happy Anniversary!<p>It was a year ago yesterday that I <a href="http://delightexplode.blogspot.com/2008/10/oh-my-stupid-head.html">wrecked on the Eliza Furnace trail</a> while riding home from work. I still can't believe that I was lucky enough that my friend Chris was riding with me that day. <br /><p>I'm sure that some stranger would have called an ambulance for me, but who knows what would have happened to my bike. Even if someone else had called, it's still not completely clear that I would have let the EMS guys take me. Chris had to talk me into getting into the ambulance, because apparently I thought I could get back on the bike and ride home by myself. <br /><p>One more time: thanks, Chris!<br /><p>To celebrate the occasion, I hopped on the bike after work last night and rode down to Confluence (my former employer on the North Shore, not Confluence, PA). From there I went across the 31st St. Bridge, up through Polish Hill, Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, and then back home.<br /><p>Stayed on my bike the whole time. Felt pretty great, actually. It's good that I was able to put in more miles than the same day a year ago.<br /><p>It was definitely a little odd being in and around downtown Pittsburgh with all of the G20 stuff going on. There weren't any protesters visible, but the whole city was pretty dead. No traffic on the way through town. Police and national guards on either side of any bridge. I was able to get where I wanted to go without any trouble though, so I was happy about that.<br /><p>Not sure what the weekend will bring. I'm waffling as to whether or not I should register for the cyclocross race at Raccoon Creek on Sunday. Really, I probably should. <br /><p>I'm a little nervous about racing 'cross for the first time, but the only way to get that first one out of the way is to go and do it. It'd probably be better to get this one under my belt before heading up to Grove City next Sunday.Alanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17086065057365303553noreply@blogger.com0