Thursday, June 30, 2011

the root...

Rim strip has slipped, exposing about a half dozen spoke holes.  I've had blinders on because I've been rolling tires at the twilight of their lives and I never looked at the rim closely...dumb-ass.  "Fixed" the latest last night & took my chances, made it another hour & eventually home without another incident.  This road-side repair stand (in the shade) made the task a bit more tolerable... 


On an unrelated note...2 new Swiss Gold #4 filters in the house...


So it's getting hot out & only going to get hotter.  No shit...it's summer.

Later,

TK




Monday, June 27, 2011

my turn...

It started two Sundays ago when I ran over something sharp coming through the Alps into Denton. A sneaky cut tire was the result that lay dormant until the following Friday when I flatted again on the back roads of Battle Creek. Then again the next morning when I finally discovered the problem. So how long can a dollar bill boot last? How about until the following Thursday when I wore through the boot & flatted again. Actually I had forgotten about it until Thursday's flat but the stupidity of not dealing with it became evident quickly. I booted it with a fresh green back & off I went. 30 minutes later I flatted again, not the boot this time, something else. Friday night I threw that tire out & put on a "new" rear from the garage stock & assumed I would be good to go for a bit. Nope, Saturday morning I flatted again. Not even sure what caused Saturday's flat, didn't find anything & I rode it again Sunday with no problems.

Yep...past due. Hard to remember when I flatted last before this spree. Shit, I've done three DK's & two TI's (one shortened) without a flat. I can't even remember the last flat I had, had to have been sometime in the last year? Maybe...
An alternative to the extended arm self-portrait, a work in progress...
This Thursday's weather was amazing after two punishing days of hellacious wind. I spent a little extra time staring into the sky as I mulled over my latest predicament...




Later,

TK

Monday, June 20, 2011

bean sack...

Ended up in Madison Co. Saturday afternoon. Hit the pavement around 4:30, mighty flat around the family compound. They've been resurfacing the back road to Battle Creek so a few stretches are smoooooth. With one end closed for construction a local was out in his 70's 911 doing a couple speed runs on the new blacktop. Change-0-pace from the usual farm traffic I encounter in these parts...
So nice out I decided to flat & enjoy the scenery. Shit, no tire lever! Tried part of my pump handle, no good. Ended up using my rear skewer, no problem. Pulled out the new tube & out falls 2 tire levers, dumb-ass...
Hi! It was exactly a year ago that the Elkhorn overflowed causing all kinds of problems, my wife's Grandma & Aunt were lucky to just have a bit of water in their basement. Their house is just a few 100 yards from the river. I mentioned how nice it was out didn't I? Damn nice...
Sunday morning cuppa with my oldest...
An hour later...I enjoyed yesterday's flat so much I tried it again. I never found out what stopped me yesterday so this time I took the tire all the way off & took a serious look at the situation. See this was about 8 minutes in to a 3 hour ride & I was about to put in my only tube. The culprit...a slice all the way through. A dollar bill-boot later & I was rolling...
Why were we up North anyway? My wife's Great Aunt was having a 90th birthday jam. Yeah 90's getting up their but her older sister was also there & she's 97, damn! Tucked in bee-hind a truck full of hives, coming home from wintering in TX some say...
The payoff...yeah I know it's just a Mexican coke in a PCL coozie, big deal. IT'S A FREAKIN' 500 ML MEXICAN COKE IN A PCL COOZIE!!!! First time I've seen a 1/2 liter! Oh yeah! Best part was I spied these on the rocks at the last minute in an ice chest while standing in line at the convenience store. Icy cold. Chugged it...
Later,

TK

Friday, June 17, 2011

a collision course...

http://tourdivide.org/leaderboard

Both directions are melting butter, only a week in. Due to lingering snow this year's course has been rerouted, no records will be set as a result but these folks are bad ass!

MN/IA/CO guy kref is in the lead group from those who started up top...

hell...there going to be done in a week at this pace! Maybe...

Later,

TK

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Long live the PCL...

I know where I will not be Tuesday night's...

Sunday, June 12, 2011

dimanche...

Haven't raced down there since 2008, but watched last night's & some of todays racing on velonews.com. Coverage was pretty good with lots of cameras covering the courses, actually I was pretty impressed. In honor of those throwing down to the South I wore my Tulsa Tough t-shirt while I mowed the lawn at work today...
Next project...removed two of the good wheels & tires off the van that I got whacked in two months ago & swapped them out for some questionable rubber on another van...
My trusty 4-way, she's seen a fair amount of use in the 15 years I've toiled at my j.o.b...
Project # 3...I removed the driver's seat outta the trashed ride & put it in a van that had a worn out seat. Below: van waiting for its new saddle...
The "new" saddle. This is actually a junk yard find from a couple years ago, but it's in way better shape than the one I took out...
Injury report: two scuffed knuckles, bonked my head, & dented my shin on the shop vac after tripping over the cord. Another day in paradise...

Rewind a bit...I did get in a 50 mile road ride this morning, beautiful out today!

Later,

TK

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

here we go...

I started this last Sunday night but got lost, more lost. I decided to fire it back up, here we go yo...

Why? What am I thinking? As usual I have post-epic event syndrome, reader's of this site have heard it from me before. Can I keep doing these huge races? The physical aspect is part of it but the mental energy that is required to push through the self-doubting moments is the punisher, it lingers long after the event. Ask me right now...I'm done. Retired from gravel grinding. I can't do it any more. Sure I was happy to finish, but I was never really happy doing it. Miserable at times. Yeah that's part of it, I know give it some time, let the pain diminish & you'll be back. Or will I?

The MWC crew pre-start (minus Falloon)
Around mile 30, this race turned into a survival test for me. Never felt comfortable from mile 30 to my lowest point in the miles leading up to about 130. Crawled into the 1/2 way point (mile 102) in serious doubt if I could continue. I knew the next 60 mile leg would be tailwind, so a push to checkpoint 3 is a good thing right? Actually it was the worst part of the day. All it did was allow me to cook with the sun beating down on me from behind & my core temp was on the rise. At my lowest point, struggling to keep 10 mph with said tailwind I decided the next farmhouse I see I would stop. I wasn't out of water but refilling what I could & trying to cool the system down in some shade was mandatory. Rafal & I had been mostly together since the last checkpoint, he had dropped back a bit, but as I turned into the farm's driveway I could see him coming up the road. He joined me as I smoothed the way with our host. Lois had lived on this land all her life, I guess she was in her 70's somewhere, her mother (who was also there) was 97. Small world moment - her mother's last name is the same as mine, spelled the same as well. Wild. Lois showed us the pump & invited us to stay as long as we liked. Rafal & I laid in the shade in the lawn under the enormous cottonwood trees & both drifted off for a 15 minute nap. I could have stayed there for hours. We probably spent 30 minutes there but during our break clouds started to roll in. Thanks Lois! With new found energy & the clouds shielding us from the direct sun we pushed on feeling alive again. Before long, the cloud cover began to look ominous & we found ourselves running for cover in a shed at a farm. Full on thunderstorm with insane winds. Spent 30 minutes in the shed waiting the storm out with a few other traveler's JT, Dennis Grelk, & Tim Mohn. 15 miles from CP 3, almost there.

An hour or so earlier I was in a very bad way, as we left the shelter I was wet & shaking. The temp had dropped around 30 degrees. The shaking wouldn't last long because some work was about to begin. Less than a mile after seeking shelter we hit the first MMR, post thunderstorm. TI was more clay-like, around here it's really clay-like, but this shit was a sloppy thick goop. Blah, blah, blah muddy b-roads. At the end of the first section a sheriff was camped out with somber news...a 3rd g-narly cell was looming & we were advised to seek shelter. As we discussed the plan his radio crackled with a weather downgrade, we carried on. Not so fast, Rafal's chainring is effed. Farewell my friend, he was forced to call for help. Jim Rank had found us, so it was me JT (from St. Lou) & Jim pushing on to the 3rd. We rolled about 200 yards & my drivetrain seized up! Don't know how, but I must have just stopped pedaling to coast at that point because I didn't tear my rear der off. Here's the culprit, wedged tightly in my lower pulley. Damn, that was close! I took this as a sign...I'd be finishing this event.
CP 3 had our amazing support crew of Matt & Meagen. Unbelievable support, thank you! Meagen said Rafal had called & got his bike going! What! I was hoping he would roll down the road any minute so we could finish this together. He did roll down the road about 15 minutes later but was looking a little rough. He needed some rest, he urged JT & I to carry on...we did. So I said goodbye to him for a 2nd time, bummer. My spirits were high. Gatorade & a banana & I was ready to rock. I had no doubt I would finish at this point, only 40 & change to go. No problem. Put some lights on & JT & I hit the road. Finished a few hours later, around 11 pm.

*short list of some things that made me happy last weekend...

- Traveling with Corey & James, meeting Matt (our support) & all of us finishing
- Seeing lots of old friends & making new ones (JT you were great to ride with)
- my semi-philosophical conversation about life & cycling with Mark Krause Friday evening (no relation) but a great soul, enjoyed our visit
- Spending a big portion of the day riding, napping, & hiding out with Rafal - thanks my friend, I only wish we could have crossed the line together
- having Dennis find us in the shed during the storm, we had seen him fixing a flat (out in the open) right before the storm pounded us, I was worried dude
- having Eki greet me at the finish with a hug, much appreciated & much needed
- here's my ride of the day award...Keith Walberg. I've known Keith for probably 5-6 years, great guy. The silent assassin, he killed it! Road to a 9th in the men's open. Hell yeah! Way to go man!
- I saved the best for last...getting home midday on Sunday & spending the afternoon napping with my wife & dogs

There's more good & more bad (not going into it) but like I said, it was a short list.

One more...a case of Mexican Coke waiting for me at home!

OK, one more...the clematis blooming on our front porch:)
So much more happened but that's it for this episode.

Later, maybe...

TK

Monday, June 6, 2011

thank you Lois...

Harder than TI, personally. I finished, but man it wasn't pretty. More later, maybe...

Thursday, June 2, 2011

filler again...

I'm really strapped for time right now so going to throw up some DK post's from the last 2 years, both crazy experiences that are still burned in my brain. DK is something else, beautiful in the Flint Hills. On paper, 200+ miles of gravel is not that big of deal but mix in high temps, humidity, & wind then you've got the DK...




This year's forecast, sunny in the lower 90's...no problem.

See ya on the other side.

TK