Helper Monkey.

Dirty Bike..

Clean Bike..

This is a good use of child labor.

I'd like to thank Des Moines/West for excellent trail care (better than the streets in des moines). Yesterdays 23 miles of trail ride was fun.

Next Crazy Bike rider in training

Spinning hell

Yesterday Morning I decided it was too cold for a ride after work. So I took my backpack with my workout clothes and stop a the YMCA after work.  I always thought it was odd to bike to  health club but the real irony is biking to a spinning class.  I got to the Y right before a spinning class started and I wanted to see the new Dr Bob spinning room.  So I stayed for the hour class.  I do have to say the room is cool and all the flashing lights and disc balls and sound system.... Spinning class still SUCKS.  But I felt better when I got on my bike and headed for Giffs for beer and tacos.  

I'm hoping to make squirrels gravel ride saturday.  Never been on a gravel ride before so it should be interesting.  I think I'll take the mountain bike and leave The Knife at home.

More Snow (again)

This is really getting old rode to work today in 3 inches of fresh powder.  I call first on the bike trail today the only tracks were from a rabbit that ran in front of me.  At this rate someone needs to start a Pugsley rental program in des moines.

Too cold for Beer!

As your reading that headline it's okay you can stand back up and start breathing again.  What I mean is its too cold outside for beer.  I left work last night at about 8 or so with a 12 pack of ice cold bud.  I usually stop at the freeway underpass for a cold one on the way home and finish it before I get to 63rd street but last night it was so cold my battery lights were almost out (for some reason around 0 degrees lights stop working)  at Colby park.

So I got home with 12 cans of beer.(that sounds normal but almost never happens) Maybe I'll cut back and loose weight to.  (ya right)   I'll still be drinking some for the fallen 

2 weeks left till Brr.  I actually register before the cut off for the cheaper price.  That almost never happens.  And for the craziest First Ever I went to the bike collective sale today and left without a new bike.  I walk into a "bike shop" and out without buying anything.

Almost a Dam Good ride

This is the story of how I almost made the Dam.  The saylorville trail was plowed to the first bridge.  I saw 2 other rider that got on at the trestle bridge they where riding recumbents (not a good snow bike)  They gave up at the bridge where the plow gave up.  On the other hand I'm a gluten for punishment and continued on.

A four wheeler had rode the trail before me and made a good set of ruts for me to ride in (5-7mph) for the next 6 miles. I walked the last mile. I got off the trail at the construction site and rode the gravel(MUD) road for a mile then back on the trail.   I never thought I would be glad to see a busy 2 lane highway but today it was a welcome site I came back into town on NW beaver I didn't make it all the way to the Dam.  Next time I need to borrow a Pugsly so I can make it.

32 miles 3:30 (Slowest 32 miles ever)

Any Day in january that you can ride for 4 hours is a good day.

Another good day to ride

Yesterday. Perfect. riding without a ski-mask and goggles is great took a long loop out south grand a little gravel (so like 2 miles) and around jordan creek down 60th and onto the clive greenbelt for some interesting balance and snow work.  The thin layer of snow ontop of the glare ice below makes it very ridable, but very slow I averaged 11 mph.  Hope for another good weekend next week I have 2 saturdays off this month.  Anyone riding next saturday let me know.

Blacktop..or Whitetop?

Today I missed the snowmobile trail ride but after reading the blogs about it I made the right choice.  So I took out the Knife for what I planned to be 25-30 miles of highway, but after seeing the newly plowed connector trail to downtown I decided to try my luck on ice and snow covered trails.  This is a good idea I got in 17 miles in an hour and 45min not the fastest ever.  But good times There are more pictures but Blogger sucks and won't take them don't use blogger whatever you do..

I gave in today.

After the commute home last night at -10 with the wind chill in the -20 range.  I stopped a giffs for a taco and beer.  At that point I couldn't feel my feet very well and my face actually burned from the wind.  After a couple (or a pitcher) I went home and I decided that since school was canceled I would steal the van to drive to work today.  And the actual temp of -17 this morning talked me into it.  So chalk one up to winter.

-8

At 7:30am on my way to work -8.  Bikes are like cars in some ways and at 10 degrees they stop working right the gears don't shift the brakes don't stop right.  So I rode in the only gear that my bike would shift into it was like 34x18 after I got the chain to move I didn't care to unfreeze the derailer.  

Outside again

No riding today but...

Sledding 

SnowMan

Hiking

More Sledding

The Hill on rollercoaster is a cool sledding hill.  It is sunk in enough so it's like a luge 

Rick you should be able to ride rollercoaster it's in better shape than Denmans.  I would end up in the creek probably miss a bridge but it might be fun.

Return to Denmans

Well the above picture looks good, but It's not even close to ridable.  I got 50 feet from here before I gave up.  So I hit some blacktop and some city streets for an awesome 7 miles (in 45 minutes) but the day isn't a total loss This was a lot more fun....

Austyn

Monkey 

BOB

Perkins School 44th street and Collage ave.  Awesome sledding Patrick when 12 times the to "chicken" girls went twice after being promised Ice cream if they would at least try it.

Good day for Cumming Tap

Today I got out at the right time it was sunny and 30 at noon so I went out for a ride.  I took the 18 speed mountain bike I was up for something that coasts. Took a loop through downtown and since the GWT was an Ice rink I took some gravel next to the airport (Thats "gravel" or mud road) I actually got mud on my bike in January.  Then connected to browns woods drive and turned the wrong way on the connector.  But I did get to cumming tap for a beer (actually 2) and rode the connector and HWY28 home the wind had picked up a lot on the way home so I rode into a bad headwind all the way home.   

Wind Ride today

I took The Knife out for a 20 mile wind ride.  17 degrees with 20 mph wind gusts.  Mostly fun though.

I have finally calculated my total milage for last year.  Not accurate down to the foot but pretty good considering 7 different bikes this year 7,200 miles is not to bad,  but in a constant effort for one-upman-ship I will be shooting for 10,000 this year.  Also I will try a triple century.  

106 miles is a good start for the first week of January.

Nothing to do..

It's to cold to ride more than an hour or so.  And I'm left with nothing to do but read blogs and make fun of people.  So for today I looked at Fixedgeargallery.com and I can't help this one 

And I have a pink bike so I won't comment on the color of the frame but.  

Tires Yellow

Stem red

handle bars - blue

seat blue (not the same blue as the handle bars)

grips orange

And it looks to be an awesome snow bike nothing like 700c x 25 tires for winter riding.  my only question and I think whats one everyones mind at this point.  Is the local shop or the internet out of white pedals,  green seat posts, and Gold hubs? 

Not going to make fun of this

I'm not making fun of this bike because I would ride it..

But I am wondering if it would be as cool if it ate regular dog chow and not science diet.

Brakeless goes Brainless

The wonders of Fixedgear Gallery

This is a Brakeless Fixedgear With a Flip flop hub and a freewheel.  So you can set it up to be a brakeless freewhell giving you one option to stop the bike.  Jump into the brushes.

This maybe the worst idea ever This Brakeless bike has studded tires.  To stop a fixie you need to stand up and shift you weight over the front wheel and for anyone who has rode studded tires on ice knows that you never shift your weight if you don't have to.  So riding a bike that forces you to shift your weight around this seems extra smart.

Ice Storm 4

Or is it number 5?  This weeks icestorm left the commute home last night very slow but mostly uneventful.  Except the part where I got home and couldn't get enough traction to get off the bike.  or trying to get up a small hill on the trail.  After I got stuck and put a foot down (then fell over)  I found myself sliding back down it took me a good 3 or 4 minutes to "walk" up this little bump and slide down the other side.  

Test Ride..

Today I got to take my "new" old road bike for a test ride.  I rebuilt my trek last month and haven't got to ride it yet, but today i got a 12 mile ride in.  I wanted to take 40 or 50 but my road shoes are very well vented for summer.  This makes it really really cold at 24 degrees so 12 miles was all I could handle.  

The new Force group is awesome.  When you push the lever it shifts, like right after you push it not 1 minute later or after you get off the bike and mess with the derailer and oil the chain(or pry the chain over with a screwdriver) but it shifts right away..

       The FSA kwing is also cool.  Some of the little bumps and curves looked strange when I was installing it but after riding I now understand.

 

Degree Ride..

Today was the degree ride 26 degrees was the temp (I think) So about 26 miles.  There was a large turnout for a winter ride at least 25 people (I'm really bad with group sizes so I could be off a little) I of course brought a knife to the gun fight...

The Knife

But what fun is being able to keep up with the rest of the group.  I did find the spin out is about 26mph on this Fixed Cross Bike, but I hit 33mph (156 rpm cadence).  I did have a good time even in the cold, if winter could stay like this it wouldn't be so bad.  A good start for the year 42 miles.