Thursday, September 29, 2011

Nuthin'

Didn't ride a bike today.  And I'm ok with that.  Part of me wanted to get out and ride, but the other part just told me to chill and not do anything.  We had some very strong thunderstorms today, and getting soaked when I wasn't really "feeling" it just wasn't my cup of tea today.

As it is, even though I'm not formally training for any particular race right now, I spend at least 2 hours a day on the bike, 6 days a week.  Now, 12 hours of a week of training riding is by no means anything crazy, but it's a pretty sweet spot for me to keep some fitness while still enjoying to ride for the fun of it. After all, fun is the real reason I'm riding right now.  No stress.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Wow...

I could probably watch this all day...



Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Tuesday Road Ride

Got out on the road bike again today!  Third time in the last 4 days!  The difference I feel in my riding now versus how I did in the middle of my race season is dramatic.  I think I'd be perfect for some 40k TT right now as my power is way up.  However, with that power gain, my weight is about 10-12 pounds heavier than where I was this past summer.  I'm not quite as 'zippy' up the hills, but the flats are just one big blur.  In any regard, I'm happy that my power has gone up.  This will be good if and when I decide to start my 'cross season.

The weather here looks to be taking a turn toward more fall like temps in the next week which has me super psyched to take some day trips to the 'mainland' and do some real techy riding.  Long Island is great if you want some tight and twisty single track, but there isn't too much in the way of technical riding.  I can only think of one trail we have here that has flow to it, allowing for at least some fun downhill action.  Heading to New Jersey or Upstate New York (which are both only a couple hours away) can put you in the mix of more typical East Coast rocky and rooty goodness.  I'm either headed up to Lake Placid for the weekend or taking a day trip over to Ramapo Mountain State park on Sunday.  Either one should fulfill my riding fix.  I'll be sure to ACTUALLY take and post some pics when I go!

Monday, September 26, 2011

Rode the Road

Got my fat ass out on the road bike for two days in a row this weekend.  Sure it was only about 4 hours of total riding over the course of two days, but it did feel good to switch things up a bit.  I don't currently have a cross country mtb buit up, so all my off road riding is done on my 5 and 6 inch full suspension bikes.  Needless to say, they're a bit more sluggish than a nice hardtail 29er.  Heck, even my full sus hifi 29er feels like a hardtail compared to my trail bikes!

I'm still not committing to any racing, but I'm starting to get the itch for cross.  It's still kinda hot and humid here, so the "'cross" weather hasn't completely grabbed me by the neck, but seeing race reports and recaps on line is starting to chip away at me.  Only problem is I gotta get a bike to race first!






Saturday, September 24, 2011

Slept...

Just slept for about 12 hours.  Haven't slept this long for too long.  Rest is something I haven't put a high priority on since I've taken my my little hiatus from racing.  It's been more beer and hanging out than resting, even though I'm still riding almost every day.   Today I think I'll start to focus a little more on nutrition and rest...feels good to feel 'normal' again:).

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Another day, more trails

Getting kinda redundant here, but I got out on the trails AGAIN today.  Nothing really different than what I've been up to for the past month plus.  Just enjoying the act of riding a bike and not thinking about racing.  At this point, I'm really considering forgoing the "cross season" I had planned in favor of just continuing the fun.  If anything, I'll at least do the local cross series, but that doesn't start until December so I've got plenty of time to ease back into it.

I meant to include some pics of my new C-dale Jekyll, but I forgot my camera on the ride today.  A picture of it sitting in my living room won't do it justice-it deserves a nice, dirty background.  What I can say, though, is that the bike is absolutely amazing.  Every bit of " hype" that I'd heard about it is true.  The Dyad shock is amazing.  I wouldn't say it climbs like a cross country bike (it is 27lbs afterall!), but for a bike with 6 inches of rear travel, it more than holds its own. 

When things point down in a hurry is where the bike really shines.  It gobbles up everything in its way, and makes getting air ridiculously fun.  All I can say is I can't wipe the smile off my face the whole time I'm riding!  Pics to come soon!




Monday, September 19, 2011

Shreddin' the track

Nothing is better than shredding singletrack...NOTHING.  Got together with a buddy of mine today and we both got out and rocked it.  He's getting more and more comfortable with being on the dirt, and he's beginning to stick with me on the techy downhills.  Not sure he enjoys flying through the air as much as I do, but either way we had some fun today. 

Funniest quote of the day was when John  said, "See, I have this thing where I can't feel my feet."  The funny thing about this is he really can't feel his feet!  He's a badass.  He was in a serious accident where he was hit by a car on his bike and the doctors said he would never walk again.  He responded by doing multiple Ironman races and pushing me on the mountain bike.  He's seriously inspires me every time we get a chance to ride together.  Google him-John Carson!  Awesome guy!

Tomorrow will be a bit more of the same as the last month: just getting out and riding dirt.  I'm secretly planning a trip out west (CO, AZ, CA?) next month.  I wanna get in some good riding somewhere I've never been before the weather turns.  Well, that and I'm gonna start looking for a new career wherever I land! 


Saturday, September 17, 2011

Kinda of a waste.

Kind of a wasted trip.  As I mentioned yesterday, I was considering a day trip up to some new trails I'd heard were pretty good.  After a little debate this morning, I decided "What the hell" and went for it.  I can't say that it was a complete waste, but if I knew what I was getting for the 90min plus ride, I might have thought twice before taking the plunge.

I was really looking for some good, flowy singletrack with some drops and "pee in your pants" parts.  Jumps would've been nice too, but I wasn't gonna be that picky.  What I got was mostly cross country double track, with some decent single track mixed in.  Sure, it was chunky, rooty, and rocky, but it certainly nothing that couldn't have been ridden on a cross country hardtail bike. 

Basically I think I brought too much bike with me.  Brining six inches of dual suspension travel to this trail was like bringing an atomic bomb to a knife fight.  I'm not saying I'll never ride there again, but I'll be sure to bring my hardtail 29er.

So anyway, the day wasn't a complete waste since I still got to ride my bike for around 4 hours with some newly-met friends, but I could have stayed home and had a much better ride.  I guess the search for good single track continues...









Road Trip? Maybe.

Actually more like a "day trip".  There's a really cool (from what I hear) trail system in a state park that's about 2 hours away from my home.  I hate driving far to ride for the day, but I'm dreadfully bored with what we've got here on Long Island.  Not much elevation change, (duh!), and not many rocks.  We do have some nice, tight and twisty trails, but when you ride them all the time, they get sort of predictable.

So I'm on the fence about taking this trip today.  On one hand, it'll be great fun and a bit of adventure, but on the other hand it's taking a whole day out of a weekend that's already going to be busy and spending money on gas that I'd rather not spend.  In honesty though, the gas money isn't really that big of a deal, and the weekend isn't THAT busy.

Anyway, It'll be a game time decision.  Hopefully, if I do go, my stupid video camera will actually work and I'll get some cool vids to post.  

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Got it!

Finally picked up my new Cannondale Jekyll from the shop today.  I had been trying to sell a few things (bike parts, bikes, etc.) to come up with the scratch to buy this beast, but was still short up until yesterday.  I had put my Superfly Elite up on Ebay and it didn't move.  I got an email from a guy who was interested when the auction began, but couldn't come up with the money at the time.  He told me to contact him if it didn't go, and low and behold, he came through after no one on Ebay bid on it.  Long story short, he gave me a bit more than I was asking and was a super fair buyer.  Looks like I actually might have made a friend out of the deal!

In honesty, I was never a HUGE fan of the Superfly.  I enjoyed the light weight of the bike, but I felt like it wasn't as stiff as I would have liked it to be.  I have a Trek Paragon (same geometry as the Superfly, just in aluminum) and I've always enjoyed the way it rides.  Sure, the ride is a bit more harsh, but I feel that on the dirt you don't notice that as much as you would on the road.  Low tire pressure takes the edge off, so getting beat up isn't too much of a concern.  I'll pay the weight penalty to have that little extra bit of stiffness and responsiveness a hardtail should have.

So with the money I was able to get from the extra "junk" I sold on Ebay, along with the sale of the Superfly, I was able to pull together enough to get my Jekyll.  All I have to say is that this thing is amazing.  It comes with what Fox calls a "DYAD" shock.  Without going into particulars, you can switch from 90mm of travel in the rear to 150mm with the flip of a switch on the handlebars.  In otherwords you can go from a mountain goat climber to daredevil downhill rider in a snap.  This is particularly good for me, as I've taken recently to jumping just about anything I possibly can, and bombing down flowy singletrack like crazy.

I keep saying this, but I'm really enjoying having fun doing things on a mountain bike I never thought I'd be interested in.  It's not like I've become some crazy freeride maniac, but pushing my limits is a lot of fun.  A few months ago a good weekend would have consisted of 8-12 hours of riding, pushing and trying to gain more fitness.  Now, a good weekend includes packing my Camelback with food, hitting new trails, and sitting by a lake enjoying the fall weather.  Racing will be there when I get back.  Right now I just need to get my head straight and actually ENJOY exercise again:).










Wednesday, September 7, 2011



This song's lyrics are a little dated, but it just pumps me up.  Tito Ortiz came out to this once and I haven't heard it since.  Makes me wanna crush something:).

By  the way, the new header pic is the Cannondale Jekyll which will be in my quiver soon!

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Baaaack!

Took a little of a hiatus from the blogosphere to find that my blog had been all twisted and whacked out by some malware nonsense.  Sorry to my 2 loyal readers:).

Anyway, not much new going on.  I've really been enjoying 'just riding' lately.  No structured training. No serious riding.  Just cruising.  Going hard and going easy all depends on the trail and how I feel.  No pressure to do anything I don't wanna do.

Just about 99% of all my riding has been on my 5 inch travel, full suspension trail bike (Trek Fuel EX8).  I'm loving this thing to death.  It's fast, comfy, and plush.  Not the fastest bike on the ups, but man does it cruise on the downs.  Been able to really get some air off the jumps and hit some nice drops I wouldn't attempt on my XC bikes.  I'm in the process of selling one of my bikes and some extra bike parts to buy a 6 inch travel bike, the Cannondale Jekyll, which is by all means my dream bike.  It has an adjustable option for the rear suspension that allows you to run either 90mm or 150mm of travel depending on the trail.  It won't necessarily be a race bike, but just a total rockin' and rollin' fun, balls out bike.  Really it's just what I need in my life right now.

As I've mentioned before, I just don't wanna race right now.  I was finding myself too high-strung and too stressed about racing all the time.  Truth is, it wasn't fun anymore.  Sure, training was fun, and I LOVE riding mountain bikes, but I just don't have the desire to push it right now.  And if I can't push it, and race how I want, then I'm not having fun.  This time in my life just isn't right to race.  I'm sure this will change, but right now I need mountain biking to be an outlet for my stress, not a cause.

Ok, enough of that.   I'm planning on doing some ride specific weekends before the fall gets too crazy.  One Upstate New York trip to Lake Placid, and maybe a couple more to New Jersey and Pennsylvania to ride some rocky stuff.  I'm hoping to get out west sooner rather than later, and certainly before the winter hits.  If I don't get out there before then, Spring will definitely have a trip to Colorado, Utah, or somewhere of the like:).

That's it for now.  Catch ya later...