iRide

Just a few musings and thoughts…

My blog “stats” say I’m getting between 20 and 35 hits a day over the last few weeks. I sort of find that hard to believe.

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I started working out and eating healthy again. I quit going to the gym in May last year. I started eating junk again right after Moab last April. My weight has suffered for it too. I gained back 20 lbs of the 47 lbs I lost. So as of last Friday I’m back at it. I’ve already lost 3 lbs this week. I’m pretty happy about that.

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We have belt testing at Taekwondo tomorrow night. I’m so excited!! Because of the Holidays, our testing cycle got extended by 3 weeks. I am ready to MOVE ON!! Plus, we go from mid-rank Purple Belts to High rank Blue belts. The belt rank order goes:

White
Orange
Yellow
Camo
Green
Purple
Blue
Brown
Red
Recommended Black Belt (Red/Black colored belt)
1st Degree Black Belt

Notice how far down the list Blue belt is? That’s right. Not far from Black!! I’m not bragging, so please don’t take it that way. I’m just so stoked that we are getting ever closer. Pretty soon I’ll be a certified bad ass, so watch out!!

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I really want a Turner 5Spot frame. I rode one once awhile ago and really liked it. The fact that I have a complete bike build just sitting on my Trek waiting, begging and yearning for a new frame to put it all on isn’t helping matters any. What bums me out the most is I know I will never have one. Why, you may ask. Simple–I don’t need one and can’t justify the money. Take a look at it though:

You don’t have to be a mountain biker to appreciate how beautiful that bike is. Oh well.

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I had an awesome day today and it was squashed by a lousy commute home. I won’t bore you with the details. It sucked though. Don’t you hate it when that happens?

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I can’t wait for Moab. It’s less than 2 months away now. I think J and I are more excited than the rest of the other guys who are going. I think it’s because they’ve never been so they don’t know what’s in store. J and I do. You want awesome trail?? I got somethin’ for ya!!

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I felt really strong and good on our ride today. That made me happy. I turned pretty big gears the whole ride–with ease. I love it when it all works like it’s supposed to.

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I read a thing recently where it said the Human mind takes things like bikes for example, and turns them into a tool, like a hammer or screwdriver. When you are riding a bike, the brain adapts that tool to become part of your body. When I am really flowing down a trail, it seems like I forget the bike is even there. We work together and act as one being gliding down the trail. I have felt it many times. It always sounded corny when I tried to put it into words before. I’m glad it was explained like that. I appreciate the validation. It really isn’t just me being kooky after all. It’s Science yo!

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I am going on a ride Saturday with Dylan and some other friends. I am looking forward to it like I haven’t looked forward to a ride in a while.

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My legs are covered with scars from riding. I think they are pretty toned though. I have all kinds of crazy lines, dips and valleys in my calves when they are flexed/working. My wife told me tonight my legs look awesome and she thinks they are sexy. My wife really knows how to make a guy feel good. It lends validity to my old saying–from the waist down, I’m shaped like a Greek god. From the waist up, more like a Hindu god.

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Seek your bliss

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Ride lots…

So I FINALLY have a complete fork again. I just got the last of the needed parts from Marzocchi to fix my All Mountain 1 SL. As you may recall the ATA travel adjust was winding itself down. It has been happening since the fork was new and Marzocchi had attempted to fix it on 5 separate occasions, all with the same result–a fork that still didn’t work.

So, they developed this new “prototype” locking ATA adjust cap that should fix the problem. The warranty manager sent it directly to my house so I would get it faster. He told me that I’m the first person in the World to try this new cap. He told me this like I was supposed to be impressed or honored by that. I told him I’d rather just have a fork that worked from Day 1.

He also sent me new fork decals, since the factory protective wrap they shipped the fork in took the decals with it when we took it off. Nice “protective” wrap, eh? So, the fork is looking pretty good. Some people like to remove the decals from their fork. I’m just the opposite. To each their own I suppose.

I also got a new Gravity Dropper seat post. What it is, is a seat post that you can raise and lower 4″ with the help of a remote switch you install on your handle bars. Basically, it’s for when you get to really steep downhills, steep rollers or when you come up to something you want to huck, you can lower the seat 4″ by flipping the switch on the handle bar remote. Then, once you’ve cleared the section. you flip the switch again and the seat is back to normal height. It’s awesome because you can do it while riding. Whereas if you wanted to lower your seat with a normal seat post, you have to stop, get off the bike, open the Quick Release, lower the seat post, lock the Quick Release and then get back on the bike and continue on. Then once you’ve cleared the section, you have to stop again and put the seat post back up to the height it was at before. The “on the fly” adjustabilty is so cool!!

I got to use it on today’s ride a bit and it worked well. I’m excited to take it to Moab in April.

Here’s a few pics. I’m not posting any pics of the new ATA cap yet. I’m going to wait until I talk to the guy at Marzocchi again. I know it’s just a prototype and I don’t want to leak anything I’m not supposed to.

Fork–basically new. All new internals, caps and decals:

Gravity Dropper

UP:

DOWN:

Mark and I rode some of the trails here in Ramona today. There’s a trail network up the street and it looks like a lot of fun. We didn’t have a whole lot of time to explorre it, but what we did ride was pretty fun. We are definately going to explore the rest soon!!

It’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow, so I may not get to ride again until Wednesday. We’ll see. At least March is almost here–which means rainy season is almost over. Gimme some of that sweet, SoCal sunshine!!! Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

Since the rain is squashing any mountain rides, I decided to get imaginative and created a little loop on our property. We have an acre on a gentle slope and I was able to put together a little bit of fun.

I started on the 16′ flatbed trailer at the back edge, upper portion of the property. It’s about 2′ high at the end. I wheelied off that…

…cut behind the garage…

…in between the garage, a shed and an old Jeep…

…dropped down a 1′ high dirt ledge in between two patches of ice plant…

…up some stairs made out of railroad ties…

…back in between the garage and the Jeep the other direction…

…in between 2 sheds…

…down onto the patio…

…to a 3 railroad tie skinny…

…up the paved driveway…

…down the railroad tie stairs…

…then back up to a huge dirt mound in the back corner opposite the trailer…

…up the back side of that…

…and down the front side…

…down the paved driveway to jump my kids’ BMX ramp…

All in all, I ran it close to 20 times I think. It was actually a little tiring–what with doing it all on my 40+ pound Haro. Getting up the stairs and up the steep driveway out of the saddle on an inefficient bike took the wind out of the ol’ lungs after doing 9-10 circuits in a row.

It was really fun and with the forecast, looks like I may be working it even more over the next few days. Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

I’ve always wanted to do this. Here is a complete listing of all my bikes and their specs/parts.

‘07 Yeti 575
Shock: Fox RP3 5.75″
Fork: Marzocchi All Mountain 1 SL 120-160mm, ATA, TST
Headset: Chris King
Cranks: Shimano XT 22/32/bash guard
Stem: Thomson
Rear Der: SRAM X9
Front Der: Shimano XT
Shifters: SRAM X9
Cassette: SRAM 990 11-34
Brakes: Shimano Deore hydraulics w/ Gun Metal Dangerboy levers
Bars: Eaton EA70
Wheels: Mavic Crossmax SX
Tires: Tubeless Kenda Nevegal 2.35 fr & 2.1 rr
Seatpost: Gravity Dropper, 4″
Seatpost Collar: Hope
Pedals: Azonic A-Frames

‘06 Haro X7
Shock: Fox DHX 5.0 coil 175 mm
Fork: Marzocchi 66RC 170mm
Cranks: Race Face Diabolous 22/32/MRP chain guide w/bash guard
Stem: Race Face Diabolous
Rear Der: SRAM X9
Front Der: Shimano LX
Shifters: SRAM X9
Cassette: SRAM 980 11-34
Brakes: Hayes Mags
Bars: Deity
Wheels: Azonic Outlaws
Tires: Kenda Nevegal 2.5 fr & rr
Seatpost: Pivit (upgrading to Crank Bros Joplin)
Seatpost Collar: Blk Mrkt
Pedals: Azonic A-Frames

‘07 Fetish Cycles Fixation Single Speed
Fork: Rock Shox Reba SL
Headset: Chris King
Cranks: Shimano LX 32t
Stem: Thomson
Rear Cog: Niner 20t
Brakes: Hayes HFX 9’s w/ Red Dangerboy levers
Bars: Easton EA50
Wheels: Mavic 819’s on XT hubs
Tires: Tubeless Maxxis Ignitors, 2.35 fr, 2.1 rr
Seatpost: Thomson
Seatpost Collar: Salsa
Pedals: Azonic A-Frames

‘07 Zion 737 29er
Fork: Rock Shox Reba SL 29er
Headset: Cane Creek S2 (soon to be Chris King)
Cranks: Race Face Evolve XC 22/32/bash guard
Stem: Thomson
Rear Der: SRAM X9
Front Der: Shimano XT
Shifters: SRAM X9
Cassette: SRAM 980 11-34
Brakes: Shimano Deore Hydraulic w/ Gun Metal Dangerboy levers
Bars: Easton EA50
Wheels: WTB Dual Duty on Shimano Deore hubs
Tires: Kenda Nevegal 2.2 fr & WTB Exiwolf 2.3 rr
Seatpost: Thomson
Seatpost Collar: Blk Mrkt
Pedals: Azonic A-Frames

‘07 Scattante XRL
Fork: Scattante Carbon
Cranks: Campagnolo Chorus
Stem: Forgie XL
Rear Der: Campagnolo Chorus
Front Der: Campagnolo Chorus
Shifters: Campagnolo Chorus
Cassette: Campagnolo Chorus 11-23
Brakes: Campagnolo Chorus
Bars: Ritchey Carbon
Wheels: Mavic Open Pro
Tires: Continental Grand Prix
Pedals: Crank Bros Candy C’s

‘93 Trek 820 (nostalgia build)
Fork: Rigid
Stem: Int.
Cranks: Shimano Deore 22/32/44
Rear Der: Shimano Deore
Front Der: Shimano Deore
Shifters: Shimano XTR
Cassette: Shimano XT 11-30
Brakes: Shimano XT linear pull
Bars: Easton EA30
Wheels: Weinmann ZAC-19
Tires: Geax Evolution fr & rr

‘02 Trek 4500 spare parts holder (I have all the parts to finish it, but haven’t put them on
Fork: Marzocchi MX Pro
Stem: Easton EA70
Cranks: Shimano LX
Rear Der: SRAM X9
Front Der: Shimano XT
Shifters: SRAM X7
Cassette: Shimano XT
Brakes: Hayes HFX 9’s
Bars: Easton EA50
Wheels: Mavic Crossland
Tires: Richey Z-Maxx 2.35 fr, 2.1 rr
Seatpost: Thomson

Haro X24 BMX
3+Tube Chromoly Frame
39t Alloy Sprocket with CNC Machined Teeth
Full Chromoly Fork
16t ACS MainLine Freewheel

Please note the reflectors and plastic chain guard have been removed since this photo was taken

The rain has been coming down pretty good today and more is forecasted for the rest of the week. The good news is that next week is supposed to be warm and dry, with Temps in the high 70’s. I should be able to catch up on rides then. Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

Mark and I returned to TW Saturday after I got off work to re-visit the “hucking platform” from the Pac Man Grows Wings video from the last post. This time Jeremy joined us and I was onboard the Haro instead of the Yeti. The climb up sucked big time. What with the extra 12 lbs the Haro carries, the chain tensioner creating extra drag and the slacker angles, let’s just say I suffered a bit. It was no big deal though. I cleaned about 95% of the climb up and I knew the DH payoff on the way back down was VERY worth it.

I was slightly worried that the Haro would be harder to huck because of its extra weight. It is about 12 lbs heavier than the Yeti and the front fork is about 1.5 lbs heavier than the fork on the Yeti. I am still working on keeping the front end from diving and was worried the extra weight would make it that much harder.

Well, it didn’t end up being any harder at all. In fact, the whole experience was WAY more enjoyable. The extra 1″+ of coiled suspension the Haro has made the landings a lot more comfortable and a lot less jarring. It was similar to jumping a sofa. Those landings were PLUSH baby!!

The way down was a lot of fun too. When Mark and I rode there last Tuesday, I made a wrong turn and didn’t get to take him down our usual DH route. With Jeremy’s help, we went down our usual rote and I think Mark had a better time.

I also totally forgot to post my newest bike “purchase”. I was able to get a crazy deal on this from Haro. My networking skills lead me to an inside source at Haro and let’s just say the deal was nice <cough>free<cough>. My boys got some BMX jump ramps for Christmas and this is my new toy to join them. My next goal is to not kill myself.

http://www.harobikes.com/bmx/bikes/backtrail_x24.php

Haro X24–it brings me to 8 bikes.

Please note that since this pic was taken, I have removed the reflectors and plastic chain guard.

Anyhoot, I am going to be EXTREMELY busy this week with some things and probably won’t get to ride until Friday at the earliest. Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

I took advantage of my day off yesterday by riding–what better way is there? Mark and I rode at Ted Williams. There’s a concrete platform on a mild slope. It’s perfect for learning to huck. The slope creates a height of about 3′ on the high end, tapering all the way down to 1″ on the low end. So, you can start small and work your way up as you get more comfortable and more confident–which is just what I needed.

After a bit of me starting small and gradually working bigger, I was finally ready for the test: hucking off the 3′ high end. I did it and it got less and less scary the more I did it. Mark shot video the whole time and created another awesome mini-movie. The video imbedding isn’t working so here’s a link:

http://furrybeanbag.com/mtb/PacManGrowsWings.mov

It was pretty fun and I wasn’t the least bit scared after the first few hucks. Today at Lake Hodges, I hucked the Marina ledge I’ve been rolling (pictured in the previous posts). I hucked it 3 times and was pretty nervous every time.

I then had a bad endo rolling the new rock roller (seen at the end of the video in the previous post). I nailed it 4 times on Sunday no problems, but today it was really sketchy. I don’t know why it was. I felt like I was going to endo the first 3 times and I endo’d the fourth time. I didn’t want it to get in the last word, so I dusted myself off and rolled it 2 more times–successfully.

All in all it wasn’t too bad. I re-tweaked my already hurt elbow and kind of pulled my right hamstring. Isn’t it weird how one day a certain trail feature ain’t nothin’ at all and the next day it bites you in the @$$?

It is supposed to rain later this week, so this weekend might be (needed) rest time. Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

Mark, Dyl, dad and I hit up Lake Hodges again today with cameras in hand. We shot some pics and video. Mark surprised me by making a little 38 second Pac Man video. I was impressed:

http://furrybeanbag.com/PacManHodges.mov

It was a good time and Mark seems to have a real talent for editing. I really like how the rolling first shot turned out.

So we went back to Lake Hodges today and re-visited the little 3 foot drop we discovered on Friday’s ride (see previous post for story). It wasn’t really any harder or easier on my 26er Yeti as compared to my 29er. It was different, but not really better or worse. At least I remembered to bring the camera this time.

A 3 shot sequence of me rolling it:

Mark hucking it (if only I had the guts):

I also finally sacked up on a steep 12-15 foot high roller I’ve been eyeballing for the last couple months. It isn’t near as verticle as the one pictured above, but it is a lot higher and still a pretty good roll.  All this is making me think of other drops/rolls I have chickened out on the past year or so: rock drop/roller on upper easement road at Lake Hodges; switchback drop on Fallbrook-Red Mountain lower singletrack; roller on Viejo Tie above San Juan; steep rolling stair drops on the De Luz side of the Fallbrook trails; Widow Maker at Noble Canyon; to name a few. I’m starting to get the hang of it a bit and am eager for future shots at redemption. The other drop at Lake Hodges, Widow Maker at Noble and the 2 sections here in Fallbrook are close and will be easy to get in future attempts. The roller at Viejo Tie (in Orange County) not so much.

One of the other guys shot pics and video of me rolling both sections. I will get it from him in the next couple days and post it up too. All in all it was a fun ride. I also got some vids, but don’t know how to post them here. I will try to upload them to YouTube and see if I can imbed them.

We are planning another Hodgy ride Friday and a long ride at Sycamore Canyon Saturday morning. Boy, it sure feels nice to get back into the swing of things. Until then, seek your bliss.

Ride lots…

It’s currently 34 degrees outside. And people say it doesn’t get cold in SoCal. We routinely get down to or just below freezing at night. When you factor in that we also get up to 110 degrees in the summer, I’d say we have a pretty good temp shift throughout the year. I have always been one who prefers the heat to the cold anyway. I am SO ready for Spring and Summer. Gimme gimme gimme.

So I’m really liking my 29er…

I have been riding it a lot lately since the Marzocchi POS fork on my Yeti is still acting up. The more I ride it, the more I like it. The extra 3″ on the wheels makes an incredible difference. On our Friday ride at Lake Hodges, I rolled a pretty steep verticle drop–higher than I ever have before. The bigger wheels gave me the confidence, even though the Head Tube Angle is steeper and there’s no rear suspension. Of course I forgot the camera. So I plan on re-creating the pic this Wednesday on my Yeti.

It will also be a chance for me to see if it is easier or harder on the Yeti as compared to the 29er. I’m very interested to see how it comes out. I have also been giving more thought to upgrading the current frame from the steel hardtail to a full suspension frame. I’m super curious to see how a FS 29er rides. A friend of mine just upgraded her 29er to a 4″ travel frame, so I’m wondering how she likes it.

I have one last request. If you read this blog, please post a comment and let me know you’re out there. I normally would never do this. But I have always wondered just how many people (if any) read this. Maybe I’ll throw in the towel if I’m just humoring myself.

Seek your bliss.

Ride lots.