Been pretty dull as of late. Rain has kept us off the trails the last couple weeks. Pics of new trail we put in at Tranq. Very challenging, very fun. Can't wait till they get packed in and settled. Section is gonna rock!

booooring....

finally got rain, so i snuck out to tranq for a bit Wed. Rode the hilly field side doing big gear low rpm grinders. My knees are killin me, but it is good strength work. Need to get on my a-game before the season is over. Actually, this season is a write off but i'd like to have some fitness going into winter so i don't suck in the spring...

Race prep went well. Ran out there last week and was railing.

Got to the race Saturday and decided to not get to serious. Big mistake. Who ever says that the start doesn't matter is on crack. I rolled out in last in no hurry and picked a couple peeps off on the first climb. Got stuck behind a guy that hadn't pre-rode and was struggling with the trail. By time we got by the leaders were long gone and there was a conga line forming behind him. Feel bad tho, someone passed him and immediately crashed and took him out. Once i got open trail i tried to see how many spots i could grab. The trail was kinda greasy due to no rain and a dusty trail. I got some people on the climbs and more on the descents. Got caught by the guy from earlier and we traded spots thru the race. Realized i lost my 2nd water bottle 1/2 way thru the 2nd lap and ran the rest of the race with no water. I backed it down and held my spot. Mid pack finish is ok in my book.

Ran Platte wed night and had a good time. Quasi's didn't hook as well as hoped but it was more rider error than tire issues. I need to ride out there more often to get the pucker factor down and just let it flow. Need to force a bigger gear too. I could have rode several laps at the pace we were running without any worry. Having gears is kinda nice at times....

busy, busy...

Trailwork at tranq is aboot whooped. Got a few things to touch up tomorrow and might head to Manawa for some work if needed. I'd really rather ride tho. Got the flat bars and longer stem on the Sycip last week and gave them a whirl at Schram. Worked very well climbing and on the flats. Descending isn't bad, just have to on your game. Got the quasi-motos mounted today and am anxious to try them out. Race is a week from today and i'm really not ready. Might just do it to support the scene and cruise the race. Who knows, my competitive side probably won't let that happen...

Wonder how the bro is doing at the Tour of KC...

another fun day...

Got up early and headed to tranq to get a jumpstart on trail day. Got a couple hours in before the crew got there and ended up working till 11:30. Tried to get a lap in but had nasty arm cramps and gave up after a 1/2 lap. Might go in tomorrow and finish a few things up we didn't get to. Dunno, it is midnight and still 90+ degrees with no relief till Tues. Got 2 weeks before the race. Riding might be more important at this time but i don't know if i'm going to race or not. I'm going to work the beginner/junior race so i can cheer Kaylie on and get some pics. Ugh, wish M would get done with her babysitting gig so i can pick her up. I'm shelled....

busy week...

Got in a buncha laps at Schram with the bike way guys wed night. Went out Thursday night and rode with Dale and some of the local pro's. Actually hung in with them for a 1/2 lap and then got spit out the back. Rode another lap after with Dale and got to chat a bit. That dude is so wicked on his fixie. It is truly jedi the way he clears logs and rails descents with that thing.

Tomorrow morn is the tranq work day. Going to head out early and try and fix a few things that the trail workers don't need to deal with. It's going to take some time as it is to get the couple sections benched in. Wanna get stuff done now before the 110 heat index Sunday....

sweet, brought the kids car home and wanted to have the truck home as well, so i grabbed the bike a rode to work to pick it up. 30 minute commute on a bike just cruising. Not too shabby. Only one freak tried to kill me, so not a bad ride. Rolled to tranq and rode half a lap afterwards. Saw some tweaking that needed to be done on the downhill. Parked the bike and grabbed the mcleod to fix things up. Soft, damp dirt moves so much better than the concrete that i usually try to dig. Rode it to test and it rails. It is a true, no brakes section now. Some more tweaking to be done and we will be good to go...

Time to get the punk from work. Can't wait for him to get his license. Then i can commute more!

funagain..funapalooza..funigin..whateva...

Hot, ick, more liquids! Finished the downhill at Tranq tonight. Hot, sticky, buggy. Got to chat with Dale for a bit. Trail is close to being done. A little more left for the trail day. Ought to be short and sweet and get some riding in.

more fun...

Got out to tranq early to get some work done before the heat got bad. 4 hours of benching and shaping later, i was cooked. Got alot done but still needed to finish the downhill. Came home, cleaned up and took the kids over to the ex's. Loaded the bike and mcleod thinking i would touch up a bit and head out for a ride. A couple of hours of working on the downhill and i was spent from the heat. Figured i'd roll a lap, wrong. Half way thru i started cramping and my body was fried from swinging that mcleod for 6 hours. Duh, should have just rode this afternoon but things need to get done before the race. Still have more to do but it is going to have to wait till the heat backs off a bit.

Punks car runs. Going to finish it up tomorrow and start driving it. Hope his drum set and everything else we haul fits in it. Pretty nice lil rig for what i've got in it. 3 weeks till school starts. He really needs to get his license soon!

fun, fun, fun...

Swung by Tranq Thursday night to check things out and do a bit of weed eating and tree trimming. Parked on the iceplex side and wandered out. All done...damn, Doug is good. Went to the other side and ran into the man himself. I guess someone got hurt on a off trail rut last week so he asked me to fix it. Ended up re-benching the last downhill. Going to head out tomorrow and finish that mess up and start on some bench work in the prairie section. Trying to get things ready for the race in a couple of weeks. Should be getting me ready but gotta give the home trail some love. Hope we get more riders out of it. It is hands down the best maintained trail in town this summer.

Honda parts finally showed up today. Can't believe it took a week to get rings/bearings for a d16. Got her built and running today. Going to go in tomorrow aft and finish it up so we can start driving it next week. Little bugger runs pretty good. Gotta get better mileage than the short bus....

it's engine building time! Bought the punk a civic with a blown engine last week. Got the engine pulled and it is killed. Rod thru the pan. Replacements are $1000+ for worn out 100k mile engines. Found out all the d16 honda engines use the same short block. Pulled the vtec head off the old engine, replaced the bent valves and did a valve job on 'er. Bought a non vtec engine for $300 and pulled it down. Slapping new rings/bearings in tomorrow and hopefully have time to assemble everything and get it back in the car. $850 for a fresh engine isn't too shabby considering what the used junk is going for. Might try and sell the old non vtec stuff and make a little change back. Dang engine from the boneyard is spotless. Says alot for honda quality. Pretty sweet when a 170K engine looks like a 10K engine inside. I'll take the camera in tomorrow and take some pics of the progress. Like anyone cares, but atleast this way maybe the punk will see how much work is going into getting his car running.

Wanna get close tomorrow so i can ride Wed! The Bike Way ride at Schram. Ugh, that place freakin sucks. They don't wanna go to platte because they have some newbs coming along...

got out today at Manawa to try and measure up some stuff for a new skills area i'm writing a proposal for. Totally unrideable. Gotta give the trail crew credit. They are getting stuff chopped up but leaving the trail blocked to try and keep people off of it. After 45 minutes of trying to get back where i wanted to be, i said screw it and left.

Headed over to Swanson to continue tweaking the bike to get it where i want to be. First lap with low pressures sucked, to much drag. Decided to go back for a fresh bottle and decided to flip the stem and bump up the tire pressures. Holy crap, sooo much better. Climbing, handling and turning are all very much improved. Gotta try some different gloves or something. Hands and wrists are really taking a beating on a rigid bike. Either way, got some laps in and feel better about the bike again.

This week will be spent building the engine for my kids car and getting it going. Gotta get him driving again so he can finally get his license. Feel bad for him but he needs to learn to drive whatever, not just small cars. I'm sure it will come with time...

Rode Swanson Sunday but wasn't feeling it. Rode a lap with lead legs and gave up. Hit Tranq later and kept plowing the front end everywhere i went. Playing with tire pressures helped some on the traction issues but felt like someone strapped a 10lb weight on the bars. Gotta find the happy medium between traction and rolling resistance. Think i am going to try the quasi-motos tubeless and see it is any better. I could do the super knee dragging turns on the 29er, just can't do it here. I'm nervous laying it over deep in the turns because i can hear the tires sliding before i can dive in. Might try a longer stem and see if it helps. Really wondering if it is the rigid thing too. Maybe the reba gave me enough bounce in the corners to dig in instead of skipping across the bumps. I hate to mess with it too much. The bike rails the straights, climbs like a scalding monkey on crack and can be flicked around like a bmxer. Maybe i just suck too. Time to grow a set and quit farting around....

woo, got some laps in @ tranq Wed. Tried riding the Sycip like an SS and ripped off some better times. Played with tire pressures and got better hook in the turns. Going to keep playing till i can get a good balance of grip and rolling resistance. That and i need to quit being a puss and ride that sucker into the corners. Can't afford to screw up the body again has me not pushing it into the corners like i used to. Need a new helmet, shoes n gloves. Everything is cracked, broken or just worn out. Either way, got 2 laps in at a decent pace and without stopping. Probably hit Platte for the trail day this weekend...

Permission to ride granted!!!!!!!!!

No more than one lap, in the easiest 2 gears i have. Then i can either start adding laps or using harder gears. Rode a 3/4 lap Wed. Got a full lap in this morning @ tranq and a 3/4 lap in this evening before fireworks. Hit my g-out waaay to fast tonight and about bought it. I wasn't ready and tried to choke up right before the jump. About went over the bars big time... I tossed it into warp mode the rest of the way down the hill. Holy crap, that bike is a hoot with a 36X12 spun out. Fastest i've been on a bike in forever...

wooo...i'm must be ready to croak. 166lbs this morning. Can't eat, makes me sick. Last day of the meds yesterday. Hope my body clears itself quickly. I wanna freakin ride!!!!!!!!!

Finally got power back on after 3 days. Had to toss everything in the fridge/freezer. Didn't really miss the power tho. I need some new books to read. Wish Dan Brown would come out with another book. I like his stuff but it isn't much the 2nd time around.

I wanted to do a bit of trail work today, but my gut won't let me. Can't get more than a 1/2 hour between bathroom breaks. Wonder how Tranq is doing after the storms. Hope i can get out there and ride next week...

one good thing about being sick, weight loss!! Down to 172 lbs this morning from 188. Guess having the scoots 30 times a day is paying off. Off the meds Sat, hoping to ride easy on Sunday. If that goes ok, then it is time to ease into some milage and start commuting a bit. Really can't wait to hit Swanson and Tranq on the Sycip and see how she really goes without killing myself.

what happened to cheap cars? looking for a beater for the kid and can't find anything. A 15 yr old, 130K+ miled car for 3 grand? WTF? I wouldn't have paid 500 bux for this junk years ago and now it is gold. Where was this big money when i was selling my cars? Hope i can dig up something by time he gets his license...

yay, back in the Er again. They aren't sure what i have but they gave the monster drugs to try and kill what ever it is. If this doesn't work in the next 8 days then it is cat scans on sinus and some more tests on the lungs. I guess the scarring from the flu last time left my lungs such a mess that the x-rays aren't working out. If this doesn't pan out, i get a series of shots and iv meds followed by a month of shots and drugs. Doc is kinda getting freaked out that he can't kill what's making me sick. Nothing shows up in blood, strep, whooping cough or any other test they run. If i was a horse, i'd have been shot long ago.... Can't wait for this series of bills to roll in. I'm already 6K in debt from this cold, what's next....

woooo, got to ride the new bullet last night. Man, did i suck. Cold has gotten worse and i could barely ride a lap without my lungs trying to jump out of my body. New bike, unseated brakes on a trail i've never ridden that was full of silt and big landscaping ties across the trail. Needless to say the motor was weak so the ride was nothing impressive. Sycip rode well just didn't have it in me to push anything. Going to ride a trail i know once i get better and really put it thru the paces.

Off to the doc in the morn. They think i have walking pneumonia, so we will see. I just need to get better so i can get back on my game. I am so sick of being miserable. 3 Months of continual sickness is too much. I am wooped just sitting around...

no ride this morning as a monsoon hit the area. Still waiting for the rest of the storm to roll thru. Looks like we will be hoping for lots of sun so that we can still ride by Wed.

Dumb question i've been pondering....

Better to ride alot of laps 34X18 or a few laps 40X18? Been busting a move with the 40 the last few rides and it feels good but definetly wears me out. 34 i could ride all day and not break a sweat. Until my lungs heal don't suppose it matters. Coughing till ya puke on the trail sucks, also going thru a full water bottle per lap as opposed to last year where i could get 3 laps out of a bottle. Damn, i need to get my fat ass in shape....

wooo...i rode a bike again! Got in a lap an a half this afternoon at Tranq. Little swampy in a few places but very rideable. Going to go out early tomorrow and do some filling on a few muddy spots and try and get a few more laps in. Gotta get my game face on now. Sycip is getting picked up Wed and i need to ride alot better to not be the dork on the 6K bike...

Dale took some pics of my g-out/jump. He appropriately named it Barbwire Pump. Man, that fits... Sucked to build, fun to ride!

I rode a bike today!!!!!!!! Got almost a lap in at tranq before the storm rolled in. Bailed home to the kids as the sirens went off. Tornados in Lincoln, Platte and Bellevue. Truck got hammered by hail, hope it was enough to get some cash. Just missed the 2.5" hail by a mile or so. Sirens have been going off for an hour and it will be no time soon that they end... Hope Tom and crew misses out on this one. Flooding is crazy. The street is a flowing river... Manawa is underwater enough someone saw a mink swimming down the singletrack...lol. Damn, should have kept the roadie...

wow, dodged that bullet. Tornado touched down less than a block from the house and just kept hopping across town. Started out in Millard and really tore the heck out of things out there. The old neighborhood looks like a war zone. Lots of tree damage and debris damage to houses. Pretty scary evening. Kids handled it really well. Time for a nap, i'm cooked...

omg-wtf...i am freakin sick again!!!!!!!!!

How the hell do you get pneumonia twice in a couple months?

This freakin sucks, much to do and no time to be sick. Just had a guy quit at work so i actually have a chance to make some money again. The boss is an idiot, so if i call in sick and we get slammed, he will probably hire someone and we will go back to starving to death again...

nyqil, ibuprofen..sleep goooood..

tornado sirens...bad...crap...

Got some more time in at Tranq last night. Did some tweaking on the wall ride. Going to go out and add some smallish berms after the corner to keep the flow/speed up. If you apex early, it shoots you off the trail, if you apex late is shoots you into the next corner really hot. I am going to add something to hit so that no matter where you exit the berm it will will flow you into the straight.

hit the new jump/g-out last night. Heh, it is sweeeeeet....

Saw Doug broke his 2 week old Niner last night. That sucks. Damn guy deserves a break after the incredible amount of time he spends working the trails and all he's been thru this year....

Another all day sucker at Tranq this weekend. Spent a few hours Sat smoothing tread on the long south hill. Spent all day Sunday building a huge g-out/jump on the 2nd downhill. It is pretty freakin sweet. Like to find the clown that buried a barbed wire fence + posts in the dirt pile. Took 3 hours just to dig that out before i could get started. Going to finish the monster wall ride this weekend and then it is time to start plotting things out for the future. Got some ideas i want to toss to Doug for his meeting with the city guys.... Forgot the camera, pics later...

Another 15 hours this weekend, sunburnt to all get out...

closer.....

just damn sexy...

tranq all mowed and clear...and it freakin rains and rains and rains...

if any consolation, at least the benching goes so much easier when the ground is soft. Got the trenches cleared and reshaped on the trail entrance and i need a little more shaping on the grooved climb but it is getting better. Gonna finish that this weekend hopefully and then move back onto the second downhill and get the trail widened. Then it is time to start smoothing the plains out. hmmm, might have to fit a ride in there somewhere. Sycip should be done this week. Hope something goes good on ebay so i can actually pay for it....

ugh, Kula didn't go on ebay first round. Guess i get to drop the reserve a bit and see if it will go. Man, i am gonna lose my ass on this bike....

Got more weedeatin done at tranq. Trail head to the road is done in both directions. The side i did sunday is already growing out. this crap is impossible to keep up with. Think i will do a bit tomorrow night and then ride my loaner bike from the bike way guys. First non-29er in 3 years. feels kind funky but gets the job done...

Another 3 hrs at Tranq last night. Everything on ebay again. Last of the bikes are up for sale. Really hate to let the Kula go but funds are needed to finsh the Sycip. Even letting the Univega go. I've had that bike in the stable for 25 years. Really wish work would get better....

what i do all weekend now that i'm bikeless....

getting closer... time to get it done so i can ride as much as i am working. 3 hours at tranq last night...

wow, nothing better than a night in the ER. Got the chills, then the shakes, chest pains...hmmm, virus or heart attack? Luckly after being on an ekg for hours and lots of x-rays, they figured out it was broncial pnemonia. Once i get this cleared out, i get to go for a stress test. They weren't happy with some of the numbers from the ekg but it was nothing dangerous. Guess this takes me out of the game for awhile...

It just keeps getting better...

Son is practicing driving for his license next month. He got his pedals mixed up pulling in the driveway...

The new bullet has arrived... Custom Sycip 650b. No racing for me this weekend. Got kiddie bday party and bike to build...

ugh, life can be interesting at times...

Lost a very good friend a little over a week ago. Not many understand the grief of losing a friend of this type and many tell me i am weird for feeling this way. Milo, my first parrot, passed away from a heart attack at 14 years old. We survived a divorce, watched babies grow into young adults and had to deal with Milo losing his upper beak 3 years ago due to his aggressive behavior with my macaw. Milo was a little conure but knew me very well. He would hang out on my shoulder and give me kisses and whisper in my ear. He didn't talk much. He didn't need to. He was my confidant. I could tell him all my troubles and he reacted differently to my emotions. He was a good friend and will be missed. See ya on the other side buddy...

Other than that...

no riding has been done. Either too sloppy or too dang cold. I'm bikeless atm anyway. Reba is in for a rebuild and everything else went to ebay. Hope the good weather this week will bring the trails around and my bike will be ready by Wed. so we can try to go for a ride...

Kids have been busy with plays, cheer tryouts and the rest of living as teenagers. Birthdays are coming up soon as is summer vacations, jobs, drivers ed and racing season. Youngest is going for the junior championships this year. Hope we can get her out riding before the season starts. Oldest is gearing up for bmx season. New bike and gear are ready, just need a track to ride on...

wow, been a while. Been doing some snow riding and a whole lot of nothing. Getting plans together for this years race bike. Custom Sycip in 650b form. Probably going to go 1x9 but not sure. L&C and Platte can kick my arse some days. That and the 44t might be needed to play in sport class this year. Not much i can do till almost May anyway. If i am lucky, i might see the frame in April... Guess i get to rock the Kula SS for the first few races and see how it goes. Not too worried aboot it now anyway. I'm pushing 190lbs again and need some co-operation from mother nature to work this lard off. Winter sucks! Was hoping for snow today to get a ride in but it missed us and everything is just slop. Suppose i'll watch some Nascar till the THOR meeting...