2011 Planning- KATY Trail

Already dreaming up plans for next summer. As I am responsible for a group of 14 and 15 year old varsity scouts, I have to help them plan a high adventure activity each summer. Next summer, I will be joining my scouts on an epic ride on the KATY trail, a rails-to-trails trail that runs most of the way across Missouri, from St. Louis to Clinton MO. I have fond memories of this trail. My love for bicycles deepened when I was in my tween years when my best friend's dad would take us riding on this trail near Columbia, MO. The scenery along the Missouri River is fantastic. I look forward to leading a group of a dozen or so on this legendary ride next summer. I'm sure there will be many more postings about this trip coming up in 8 months!

My first INTERBIKE!

For those who don't know what Interbike is, it's only the BIGGEST bike show in the nation! Everybody who is anybody in the bike world goes there to show off their new products for next year and meet with their dealers. I happen to have a few friends in the outdoor industry that were willing to get me in. Once I found the right deal on an airline ticket, it was a done deal.

Monday and Tuesday were the Outdoor Demo. This was held at Boulder City, NV. There were buses to take people out to the demo where there were dozens of bikes, parts, and accessory suppliers camped out and ready to show their stuff. The main reason for being out there however was to ride the 2011 bikes! It reminded me of going to buy a stereo at Nebraska Furniture Mart. I went in to look for a new stereo, and I had never been there before. The selection and options was so HUGE that I turned around and walked out. It was overwelming.

Well, I didn't walk out of the outdoor demo, but I did wander a bit before settling down and going into the Yeti tent. I rode the ASR-7. I also rode the Pivot Firebird and the Trek Remedy 7 the first day. By the time I rode those, I had discovered that there were also 2 trucks with flatbeds on the back that were hauling riders up bootleg canyon. That was the icing on the cake!

The second day of the demo, I rode the S-Works Enduro (still my favorite bike) the Santa Cruz Nomad, and I messed around a little on a Giant. I tried to get on an Ellsworth, but they never had one in my size. That was the hardest part.

Wednesday and Thursday, I attended the tradeshow part of the event. It took most of the day just to walk the floor and see all of the booths. My main goal was to network and meet a few people that I have only talked to on the phone at Shimano and Specialized...mission accomplished. I also picked up plenty of cheap or free items. I can't wait to do this again next year!!...wonder what I'll be doing by then.

Recap of the MS150

Daryl and I had a great time. We left my house at 4am to get to Clever Mo. The ride was well attended. We averaged 16mph on Saturday. The rest stops were well stocked with great high energy foods. The route was excellent- no major nasty hills like you would expect in the Ozarks, just a nice and fairly even route.
Toward the end of the last leg of the day, I still had enough left to lead a group of 3 into Joplin to the finish. Not sure what my speed was, but i was keeping a pretty fast pace.
I wanted to do the century route on Saturday since I wasn't going to ride on Sunday, but Daryl was riding Sunday and didn't want to wear himself out too bad. He did the century without me on Sunday.
I had a great time, and I'm sure I'll do this ride again, and recruit a few friends while I'm at it....guess it's time to find a road bike, or at least by next year.

The eve of the 150

Tomorrow, I will be participating in my first MS150 ride. My friend Daryl, who is turning 40 this weekend, told me years ago that he wanted to do one of these events before he turned 40. Even though he now lives in Nebraska, he is driving down to participate in the event that is only a few hours from where I live in Arkansas. Obviously, I had to join him. Now I don't consider myself a roadie, but I did trade my 29er to my friend Wynn Peterson for his Specialized Roubaix when I got back from the Colorado trip, and that's what I've been riding to work. I confess it is going to be rough going back to the mountain bike as a commuter. I think it's only a matter of time before I have a road bike for commuting.
Am I ready for tomorrow's event? Hardly. I haven't done any extended rides to get ready. I have done a 75 mile ride in one day before when I lived in Amarillo. I participated in the Tour de Cure. However that ride was FLAT. This is the Ozarks!

Weekend in Colorado part 2

Today we rode in Keystone today. Very challenging after wearing ourselves out yesterday at Winter Park. The trails were more technical- more rocks and roots. Most of it was not as flowy, but there were some awesome wood bridges that we loved. The downside today was the 3 flat tires I had. Very frustrating.
I'm wiped out. We made it as far as Colby, KS tonight. Tomorrow, we'll head back to Arkansas, and I'll be back on the road bike next week getting ready for the next big event- MS 150 in mid September.

Weekend in Colorado

What a great year for my bike resume. I will have ridden in three different places in Colorado in 2010 when this weekend is over, and next month after Interbike, Iwill have ridden in Nevada, which will mean I've ridden in the majority of the western United States. I had not ridden at all in Colorado until this year.
My friend Brad, who I do a lot of my riding with in Arkansas, told me last week he was going to bite the bullet and do the Colorado trip that we had talked about for several months. I thought there was no way I would get away with coming, but when my wife didn't say no....well, here I am.
Brad, Randy, Drew and I left on Thursday afternoon and stayed with Brad's uncle Doug that night in Denver. Friday we drove to Winter Park and rode Trestle. It was a 7 minute ride up the lift, and then bombing all the way down the mountain. I gave my brother his helmet camera back last week unfortunately, but there are plenty of youtube videos to show you what the trails are like. We are all beat after 6 or 7 rides down. It was worth the $34 day pass though. We were flying down the mountain and hitting the dirt banks so hard. I had one spill, and Drew did in the same spot later. This was my first experience with body armor and a full face helmet as well.
Today, we are headed to Keystone. Looking forward to more awesome downhill, and hopefully, our bodies will ready for today's session.

on the sidelines

A few events happened today that I wish I could have been a part of. One of them I'm not ready for- The Leadville 100. The event was today, and no way would I be ready for it even if I could get in...but I did watch the movie about last year's event, Race Across the Sky, for the 6th time tonight. I think I will do that event someday if I can take the time to train and get used to the elevation.
The event that I might have been a part of was the Rapture in Misery 12 hour race at Crowder Park today. My mom told me it was happening this weekend, but we were up in Missouri for family stuff and I didn't have the time to participate this year. I participated in this event in 2004 when it was held at Landahl Park, and I'm ready to do it again, and maybe try it solo.... or maybe I've been watching Race Across the Sky a little too much.