Also hit up the tourist invested town of Tombstone (basically just took some pics and jetted.)
Fly back to San Antone Saturday. Can't wait to get back on Roxanne (the flux).
7/29/08
Southeastern Arizona
Checked out the old mining town of Bisbee last weekend. Cool town, what I think Boulder was like in the early 90s (but a bit smaller). Met some good people, including a local bike shop owner. Ken (pictured) has been collecting hand-made bikes from the US and Europe since 1971. (He was not familiar with MTB United, but someday...oh yeah.)
7/24/08
Closer.......
-Thoughts, comments, changes, questions?
-half zip is 15" long, actually more like the standard 3/4 zip
-I'm working on getting a sizing kit
-I'm working on getting an actual piece of the fabric with our brown color on it
-The white line you see above the back pocket actually won't be there, it's visible because the back pocket is a seperate piece, so their template is the same way. Dye is laid on a flat uncut piece of fabric, then the pieces are cut and sewn.
There has been a request for a chance at all uppercase font. Ignore the gold color. Please voice opinions.
-half zip is 15" long, actually more like the standard 3/4 zip
-I'm working on getting a sizing kit
-I'm working on getting an actual piece of the fabric with our brown color on it
-The white line you see above the back pocket actually won't be there, it's visible because the back pocket is a seperate piece, so their template is the same way. Dye is laid on a flat uncut piece of fabric, then the pieces are cut and sewn.
There has been a request for a chance at all uppercase font. Ignore the gold color. Please voice opinions.
7/22/08
My First Adventure Race
Alright Gentlemen, here goes.
I convinced a good friend of mine, John, to partner up with me for a sprint length adventure race (I believe that means <6 hours) at Lake Perry SP right around Lawrence, KS. Bonkhard Racings Sunflower State Games Adventure Race. The website didn't go into much detail about the course, except to tell us that it consisted of 2-3 miles paddling, 10-15 on mtb, and 4-6 hiking/trail running. Sure why not, I feel like I'm better than average at all of those, and my buddy, while having only 1 bicycle outing on off-road trails under his belt, is a college runner and a pretty well rounded athlete. We'll be fine.
Friday evening after work we headed to KC where we shacked up with a college friend of John's, and got our things prepped for the following morning. The plan was to depart KC around 5:45, and arrive at the park around 7 a.m. 5:15 rolls around, and we're both stiff from a bad nights sleep, but moving and ready to get out nonetheless. We got in the car and had some breakfast in the form of clif bars and trail mix, and headed down the hwy 70 toward Lawrence. We got off at the Lawrence exit, passed a gas station, and headed north toward the park. After driving for almost 15 minutes, I noticed that we hadn't passed any more gas stations, the roads were looking pretty desolate and my tank was approaching E. Worry sets in. I turned us around and headed back to 70 to fill up at the station that we had passed. No big deal, we can spare the time. Filled up, and turned back toward the park. We passed the point that we had previously turned around, and then we passed a couple of nice looking gas stations, shit. Kept driving and finally spotted the big sign for Lake Perry SP, and we turned in. The main road took us by many campsites, and around the giant reservoir, over a dam, and with the clock only a few minutes from 7:30, we were wondering why we hadn't seen any race signs, or signs of a race taking place. When 7:30 hit we were on the other end of the lake that we had began at, and panic had taken over. There was some loud cussing and my voice tone was one of worry that I had just made our trip completely pointless. Finally after seeing very few people in the park, we saw a ranger and he informed us that we were on the wrong side of the lake, and that we had in fact turned into the park 1 turn too early. By now its 7:45, 15 minutes after check-in closed, and 15 minutes late for the pre-race meeting, the latter we would come to find out being pretty important. So here I am, whizzing around state park roads at 65 mph, trying to get us the campground where the start is.
As we rolled into the Turkey Run campsite, the racers were lined up at the start, and someone was singing the national anthem. I kicked John out of the car to go see if we could still check in and race and I went and parked and prepped the bikes. He came back with a passport and map with 11 checkpoints on it, said we were cool to go, so we packed up and headed out about 10 minutes after the starting gun shot off. We ran about a half mile to the water, grabbed a canoe, loaded it in the water, and started paddling. Over the 1.5 mile canoe we were able to overtake a few teams, and while some may say that our extra exertion on the water was useless, it was just what I needed to get my body warmed up. We got back to shore, stamped our 2nd checkpoint (1st was at the start), and followed the rest of the racers toward the woods to find checkpoints 3, 4, and 5. Here is where we made our first mistake. Instead of tracking ourselves immediately, we followed some racers into the woods and onto a trail before we took a serious look at the map. Checkpoints 3 and 4 were never found, even after marching over what seemed to be all of the trails the park had to offer. This ordeal took about and hour and a half. No one else was around, and we didn't really have any idea where we were. We hopped onto a nearby road, found ourselves, and headed toward checkpoint 5. Once there we realized that we had missed some critical details in missing the pre-race meeting. On our first 2 checkpoints there were race officials that stamped our passports, and we were expecting to have people doing the same at the rest of the checkpoints. Well it turns out that we were supposed to be locating orienteering flags that were hung from trees, not dudes in lawn chairs with coolers of beer, camped out and creeks and such. Anyway, by this point we had decided that it was no longer a race for us, and that we just wanted to push through the rest and get the best time we could. Checkpoint 6 was back at the start line, and it was there that we would mount the bikes and ride to 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, and finish. While jogging back to the start we were passed by two groups on their bikes, heading to the finish. Had to laugh because clearly we screwed up pretty bad if people were finishing already. No big, we were still having a great time. Got on the bikes and headed to the trailhead. We took our time on the trails, making sure to make the correct turns, and still failing. After finding the remaining checkpoints the only way back to the start was by road, and up one monster of a hill. I was pretty stoked that even after all of the mess, I still felt well enough to pedal the singlespeed up that hill, and encourage John to stay close on my tail and push to the finish. We did, and there were only 5 teams behind us. However the missed CPs would kill us. We ended up getting 2nd…to last. One team DNFd so YEEAAAHHH. 41st out of 42, and damn proud of it. Things can only go up from there.
Lessons learned:
-Arrive early, plan ahead
-Don’t follow other teams unless they are going the way that you yourself decided to go
-Sprint races probably don’t require bringing an abundance of food and water
-Use the map, correctly
-Pace yourself, but don’t stop moving
-No matter how bad things go, and even though the odds may seem heavily against you, this is supposed to be fun, and a team can still lose with style and class.
-Let race organizers know how much you enjoyed the race, they appreciate it and without these people we would all be bored.
Results Team Lame Name
I convinced a good friend of mine, John, to partner up with me for a sprint length adventure race (I believe that means <6 hours) at Lake Perry SP right around Lawrence, KS. Bonkhard Racings Sunflower State Games Adventure Race. The website didn't go into much detail about the course, except to tell us that it consisted of 2-3 miles paddling, 10-15 on mtb, and 4-6 hiking/trail running. Sure why not, I feel like I'm better than average at all of those, and my buddy, while having only 1 bicycle outing on off-road trails under his belt, is a college runner and a pretty well rounded athlete. We'll be fine.
Friday evening after work we headed to KC where we shacked up with a college friend of John's, and got our things prepped for the following morning. The plan was to depart KC around 5:45, and arrive at the park around 7 a.m. 5:15 rolls around, and we're both stiff from a bad nights sleep, but moving and ready to get out nonetheless. We got in the car and had some breakfast in the form of clif bars and trail mix, and headed down the hwy 70 toward Lawrence. We got off at the Lawrence exit, passed a gas station, and headed north toward the park. After driving for almost 15 minutes, I noticed that we hadn't passed any more gas stations, the roads were looking pretty desolate and my tank was approaching E. Worry sets in. I turned us around and headed back to 70 to fill up at the station that we had passed. No big deal, we can spare the time. Filled up, and turned back toward the park. We passed the point that we had previously turned around, and then we passed a couple of nice looking gas stations, shit. Kept driving and finally spotted the big sign for Lake Perry SP, and we turned in. The main road took us by many campsites, and around the giant reservoir, over a dam, and with the clock only a few minutes from 7:30, we were wondering why we hadn't seen any race signs, or signs of a race taking place. When 7:30 hit we were on the other end of the lake that we had began at, and panic had taken over. There was some loud cussing and my voice tone was one of worry that I had just made our trip completely pointless. Finally after seeing very few people in the park, we saw a ranger and he informed us that we were on the wrong side of the lake, and that we had in fact turned into the park 1 turn too early. By now its 7:45, 15 minutes after check-in closed, and 15 minutes late for the pre-race meeting, the latter we would come to find out being pretty important. So here I am, whizzing around state park roads at 65 mph, trying to get us the campground where the start is.
As we rolled into the Turkey Run campsite, the racers were lined up at the start, and someone was singing the national anthem. I kicked John out of the car to go see if we could still check in and race and I went and parked and prepped the bikes. He came back with a passport and map with 11 checkpoints on it, said we were cool to go, so we packed up and headed out about 10 minutes after the starting gun shot off. We ran about a half mile to the water, grabbed a canoe, loaded it in the water, and started paddling. Over the 1.5 mile canoe we were able to overtake a few teams, and while some may say that our extra exertion on the water was useless, it was just what I needed to get my body warmed up. We got back to shore, stamped our 2nd checkpoint (1st was at the start), and followed the rest of the racers toward the woods to find checkpoints 3, 4, and 5. Here is where we made our first mistake. Instead of tracking ourselves immediately, we followed some racers into the woods and onto a trail before we took a serious look at the map. Checkpoints 3 and 4 were never found, even after marching over what seemed to be all of the trails the park had to offer. This ordeal took about and hour and a half. No one else was around, and we didn't really have any idea where we were. We hopped onto a nearby road, found ourselves, and headed toward checkpoint 5. Once there we realized that we had missed some critical details in missing the pre-race meeting. On our first 2 checkpoints there were race officials that stamped our passports, and we were expecting to have people doing the same at the rest of the checkpoints. Well it turns out that we were supposed to be locating orienteering flags that were hung from trees, not dudes in lawn chairs with coolers of beer, camped out and creeks and such. Anyway, by this point we had decided that it was no longer a race for us, and that we just wanted to push through the rest and get the best time we could. Checkpoint 6 was back at the start line, and it was there that we would mount the bikes and ride to 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, and finish. While jogging back to the start we were passed by two groups on their bikes, heading to the finish. Had to laugh because clearly we screwed up pretty bad if people were finishing already. No big, we were still having a great time. Got on the bikes and headed to the trailhead. We took our time on the trails, making sure to make the correct turns, and still failing. After finding the remaining checkpoints the only way back to the start was by road, and up one monster of a hill. I was pretty stoked that even after all of the mess, I still felt well enough to pedal the singlespeed up that hill, and encourage John to stay close on my tail and push to the finish. We did, and there were only 5 teams behind us. However the missed CPs would kill us. We ended up getting 2nd…to last. One team DNFd so YEEAAAHHH. 41st out of 42, and damn proud of it. Things can only go up from there.
Lessons learned:
-Arrive early, plan ahead
-Don’t follow other teams unless they are going the way that you yourself decided to go
-Sprint races probably don’t require bringing an abundance of food and water
-Use the map, correctly
-Pace yourself, but don’t stop moving
-No matter how bad things go, and even though the odds may seem heavily against you, this is supposed to be fun, and a team can still lose with style and class.
-Let race organizers know how much you enjoyed the race, they appreciate it and without these people we would all be bored.
Results Team Lame Name
7/21/08
Mountain Biking
Just wanted to sneak in another post-ride post. Rented a rig and hit the Huachuca's again this passed weekend. Turned into a pretty epic ride from the start. I depressed the front brake lever while wrangling the bike out of my gas efficient but impractical rental car, so the Juicy 7's pads locked up on me and I ditched the front rotor to go commando. This developed into a key component of the ride as after I climbed about 1,000 feet the sky opened up and the inevitable fun-filled, hard-charging downhill turned into a rock-studded slip and slide with washed out corners. Still fun as hell, especially when I made it to the bottom sans bent apendages. Had the boot-legging dagger on me but never encounted any migrators (see first pic).
MTB United on the Podium
Shawnee Mission 3/6 Hour Mountain Bike Race. For those of you who don't know this race format, I'll explain. You have the option of racing the 3 hour race solo or the 6 hour race solo, or the 6 hour race as a duo. There are no beginner, sport, expert type designations, all race together. The course is a marked loop, in this case I believe around 5.5 miles, of which you ride as many laps as possible. After the 3 hour or the 6 hour mark passes you are not allowed to start another lap. If you come in at 2:59:59 or 5:59:59 you can go out for another lap. The rider/duo with the most laps in the quickest time wins. Laps trump time. If a 6 hour rider rides 5 laps in 7 hours, and another 6 hour rider rides 4 laps in 6 hours, the rider with 5 laps still wins. If laps completed are the same then ranking defers to time.
Matt and I both planned to enter the 6 hour solo race. I can't speak for his, but my mission for the day was just to ride the entire 6 hours plus at a pace I knew I could maintain, and enjoy the experience.
The bus picked me up around 6:45 AM Saturday for the trip to Shawnee KS. We were either well hydrated or nervous, I think there were 3 stops on the way. Arrived at the park to see a decent number of vehicles already assembled. In a long race like this it's great to have a pitstop so Matt backed the bus up to the sideline about 50 yards past the start finish. Registration was handled and we ran in to the Team Seagal guys. Casey Ryback, Mason Storm, and Nico Toscani had made the trip as well. They all also entered the 6 hour solo. We were in for a good day. Got the pit all setup with food and drink, then got changed and chilled out for a bit. Matt went out for a recon lap and pulled in just as the racers meeting was beginning. As we listened he gave me his overview of the trail. It was right up my alley, lots of rock and no super climbs.
The start was to be lemans style (run to your bike) so we set up the bikes by the lap/finish and went about 200 yards up the trail to the starting area. I've never done this before but had thought about it a little. Should I try and get ahead and get a good spot or take it easy and pace myself? I took it easy. There was plenty of time to ride. There were 101 people in the start so it was an interesting run.
Lap 1 was pretty congested and I probably passed 10 riders or so as we all tried to find our pace. At the lap/finish line you had to dismount and run/walk through a chute while they recorded your number. Our pit was just after that. I didn't stop before heading out on lap 2 but that was the only time I did that all day. I felt fine and was still passing/being passed, trying to settle in. The rest of the day I stopped each time I came through, sometimes just to quickly stretch my back and grab a new bottle, sometimes to sit down and eat, drink, stretch, and talk.
I stopped after lap 2 for a quick stretch and bottle change and was on my way. Lap 3 or so I was keeping pace behind a really fast rider on a slight downhill curvy section of the course, dug hard in a corner when the rear skipped over a sharp rock and started squirting Stans. Couldn't get it to seal, so I popped in a tube, aired it up and off again. Sounds quick but I probably fumbled around for 10 minutes.
David and his buddy John stopped by on the way back from their first adventure race (hopefully he'll write it up) and it was nice to see them and talk for a bit. Despite a rough start they did pretty well, especially for a first attempt. Plus, they had Burger King afterward. They were there for two pit stops, after lap 3 and 4, then took off for Columbia.
On the second of those pits, Matt came in a couple minutes after me. He was a lap ahead of course. This was around the 3 hour mark I believe. I could tell he was in pain. He couldn't feel the front half of his feet and every pedal stroke shot pain up his leg. He couldn't apply any pressure at all. He was done. I felt really bad for him. We checked out his shoes and they were done too. The cleat plate was protruding through the inside of the shoes. It would be like pedaling on the head of a railroad spike.
I said bye to the three of them and went out again. That lap went fine, fairly quick. Hit the pit again, talked with Matt a bit more, out again. That lap didn't go as well. I flatted twice. Both were pinch flats. Both were due to not enough pressure in the tire and were my fault. It sucks pumping up your tire with those mini pumps. Casey Ryback rolled up on me as I was fixing the first flat and stopped to chat. He waited with we until I was ready, then we rolled together. It was nice to have some company, it was also nice to see him float his rigid SS over those nasty rocks. Smooth. We stayed together until I flatted again. He lent me a tube and rolled on. Got that changed and finished up the lap.
It was about 4:45 PM when I rolled out for my 7th lap. I assumed I'd have two more to go as I didn't think I could finish the 2nd before the 6 PM cutoff. About halfway through that lap I started feeling stronger, finished up the 7th, pitted, and went out for the 8th around 5:25PM? or so. I felt really strong that lap and started pushing myself. As the lap went on I pushed harder. I wasn't exactly sure about the time but I knew I would be close to making the cutoff and heading out for another lap. By the end of the lap I was standing, sprinting for the line to try and get in before 6PM so I could head out for another. Came across at 6:03. Oh well. I finished and still felt strong. Happy camper.
Got back to the bus and settled out. We picked up and got loaded to head home. Went up and checked the results and saw that I had placed 3rd in my age group. 9th out of 29. Awesome, MTB United on the podium.
We did the raffle and awards then took off. Unfortunately we had to pass on an invite to hang out with Team Seagal/PBR for the night. That would have been a blast. We weren't really that hungry so we exited KC metro without eating. Stopped for gas between KC and Columbia at a very impressive rest stop. They had more truck accessories, junk, and swords than I've ever seen. They also had a Dairy Queen. We got hungry. I had a double cheese and Blizzard in mind. Got in line, looked up, no burgers. It was some truck stop special edition menu, Dairy Queen Lite. (in options, not calories) We rolled on and shortly became famished. Called up David, he pointed us to the El Maguey up the street from his place in Columbia. We met him and John and Joseph there. Margaritas, Coronas, salsa, guac, and fajitas.
Home by midnight.
Results
So, Rapture in Misery at Landahl in KC is August 16th at noon. The 12 hour has a solo, duo, and trio option. I'd love to do the 12 with a partner or partners. Anyone interested?
From Team Seagal's Perspective
Some Pics
Some more pics
The Spot
The Spoils
Matt and I both planned to enter the 6 hour solo race. I can't speak for his, but my mission for the day was just to ride the entire 6 hours plus at a pace I knew I could maintain, and enjoy the experience.
The bus picked me up around 6:45 AM Saturday for the trip to Shawnee KS. We were either well hydrated or nervous, I think there were 3 stops on the way. Arrived at the park to see a decent number of vehicles already assembled. In a long race like this it's great to have a pitstop so Matt backed the bus up to the sideline about 50 yards past the start finish. Registration was handled and we ran in to the Team Seagal guys. Casey Ryback, Mason Storm, and Nico Toscani had made the trip as well. They all also entered the 6 hour solo. We were in for a good day. Got the pit all setup with food and drink, then got changed and chilled out for a bit. Matt went out for a recon lap and pulled in just as the racers meeting was beginning. As we listened he gave me his overview of the trail. It was right up my alley, lots of rock and no super climbs.
The start was to be lemans style (run to your bike) so we set up the bikes by the lap/finish and went about 200 yards up the trail to the starting area. I've never done this before but had thought about it a little. Should I try and get ahead and get a good spot or take it easy and pace myself? I took it easy. There was plenty of time to ride. There were 101 people in the start so it was an interesting run.
Lap 1 was pretty congested and I probably passed 10 riders or so as we all tried to find our pace. At the lap/finish line you had to dismount and run/walk through a chute while they recorded your number. Our pit was just after that. I didn't stop before heading out on lap 2 but that was the only time I did that all day. I felt fine and was still passing/being passed, trying to settle in. The rest of the day I stopped each time I came through, sometimes just to quickly stretch my back and grab a new bottle, sometimes to sit down and eat, drink, stretch, and talk.
I stopped after lap 2 for a quick stretch and bottle change and was on my way. Lap 3 or so I was keeping pace behind a really fast rider on a slight downhill curvy section of the course, dug hard in a corner when the rear skipped over a sharp rock and started squirting Stans. Couldn't get it to seal, so I popped in a tube, aired it up and off again. Sounds quick but I probably fumbled around for 10 minutes.
David and his buddy John stopped by on the way back from their first adventure race (hopefully he'll write it up) and it was nice to see them and talk for a bit. Despite a rough start they did pretty well, especially for a first attempt. Plus, they had Burger King afterward. They were there for two pit stops, after lap 3 and 4, then took off for Columbia.
On the second of those pits, Matt came in a couple minutes after me. He was a lap ahead of course. This was around the 3 hour mark I believe. I could tell he was in pain. He couldn't feel the front half of his feet and every pedal stroke shot pain up his leg. He couldn't apply any pressure at all. He was done. I felt really bad for him. We checked out his shoes and they were done too. The cleat plate was protruding through the inside of the shoes. It would be like pedaling on the head of a railroad spike.
I said bye to the three of them and went out again. That lap went fine, fairly quick. Hit the pit again, talked with Matt a bit more, out again. That lap didn't go as well. I flatted twice. Both were pinch flats. Both were due to not enough pressure in the tire and were my fault. It sucks pumping up your tire with those mini pumps. Casey Ryback rolled up on me as I was fixing the first flat and stopped to chat. He waited with we until I was ready, then we rolled together. It was nice to have some company, it was also nice to see him float his rigid SS over those nasty rocks. Smooth. We stayed together until I flatted again. He lent me a tube and rolled on. Got that changed and finished up the lap.
It was about 4:45 PM when I rolled out for my 7th lap. I assumed I'd have two more to go as I didn't think I could finish the 2nd before the 6 PM cutoff. About halfway through that lap I started feeling stronger, finished up the 7th, pitted, and went out for the 8th around 5:25PM? or so. I felt really strong that lap and started pushing myself. As the lap went on I pushed harder. I wasn't exactly sure about the time but I knew I would be close to making the cutoff and heading out for another lap. By the end of the lap I was standing, sprinting for the line to try and get in before 6PM so I could head out for another. Came across at 6:03. Oh well. I finished and still felt strong. Happy camper.
Got back to the bus and settled out. We picked up and got loaded to head home. Went up and checked the results and saw that I had placed 3rd in my age group. 9th out of 29. Awesome, MTB United on the podium.
We did the raffle and awards then took off. Unfortunately we had to pass on an invite to hang out with Team Seagal/PBR for the night. That would have been a blast. We weren't really that hungry so we exited KC metro without eating. Stopped for gas between KC and Columbia at a very impressive rest stop. They had more truck accessories, junk, and swords than I've ever seen. They also had a Dairy Queen. We got hungry. I had a double cheese and Blizzard in mind. Got in line, looked up, no burgers. It was some truck stop special edition menu, Dairy Queen Lite. (in options, not calories) We rolled on and shortly became famished. Called up David, he pointed us to the El Maguey up the street from his place in Columbia. We met him and John and Joseph there. Margaritas, Coronas, salsa, guac, and fajitas.
Home by midnight.
Results
So, Rapture in Misery at Landahl in KC is August 16th at noon. The 12 hour has a solo, duo, and trio option. I'd love to do the 12 with a partner or partners. Anyone interested?
From Team Seagal's Perspective
Some Pics
Some more pics
The Spot
The Spoils
7/20/08
7/18/08
Guess who's back?
Scotte's back!!
Are you sure ya'll negroes ready for this?
Blame Stitz, he invited me.
Are you sure ya'll negroes ready for this?
Blame Stitz, he invited me.
Logos
Half of me is kidding with these, the other half is impressed that I whipped it out in AutoCAD in about 45 minutes, and the third half is constantly looking over my shoulder for my bosses. Anyway, it was fun, and if there was time and we weren't all so damn impatient, something pretty neat could probably come out of it. Not of the Moby quality, more like Microsoft Paint quality. Overall, I still like the original with the blocky text the best, option B.
MTB United Logos
So I whipped up some logos. Take a look. I thought it might be cool to use "MTBU or MTB United" on the front then on the back spell out "mountain bike united". It really won't hurt my feelings if you don't use or like any of the logos. I practically did these in about an hour so they are still very rough. Peace out suckers.
Pick and Choose
I've got call and figure out the time frame for jersey production. If we don't have time to wait for a logo design, and after gathering responses, here are the jersey design options.
A
B
C
A
B
C
7/17/08
MTBU Mantra
"It never gets easier, you just go faster."Greg LeMond
Cycle tracks abound in Utopia. -H.G. Wells
Get a bicycle. You will certainly not regret it, if you live. -Mark Twain
Anyway, you get the point. Lots of quotes here.
http://www.longviewbicycleclub.org/reference/quotes.htm
Some good ones from Breaking Away.
http://www.10ktruth.com/the_quotes/cycle.htm
http://sorellaforte.com/html/quotes.html
http://www.quotegarden.com/bicycling.html
http://www.richardpettinger.com/cycling/cycling-quotes
Pretty much what google yielded after a search. We could always try to be original, maybe a haiku? 5-7-5 on the syllables gentlemen. Garth, that was a haiku.
Cycle tracks abound in Utopia. -H.G. Wells
Get a bicycle. You will certainly not regret it, if you live. -Mark Twain
Anyway, you get the point. Lots of quotes here.
http://www.longviewbicycleclub.org/reference/quotes.htm
Some good ones from Breaking Away.
http://www.10ktruth.com/the_quotes/cycle.htm
http://sorellaforte.com/html/quotes.html
http://www.quotegarden.com/bicycling.html
http://www.richardpettinger.com/cycling/cycling-quotes
Pretty much what google yielded after a search. We could always try to be original, maybe a haiku? 5-7-5 on the syllables gentlemen. Garth, that was a haiku.
7/15/08
Custom Jersey?
Anyone interested in a custom MTB United jersey? There are a number of companies out there that will produce full custom or semi custom jerseys. It would be pretty cool to sport the "team jersey". I'll throw a few links out there, check them out. Most places have a full custom option and a semi custom option. Lots of cool stuff. I personally dig the simple, understated, retro type look. Comment up if you may be interested. Maybe we could get Moby on board, and he could lend his touch. I should add, also, for anyone who hasn't tried a jersey yet, they're great. Cool, comfy, wicking, 3 back pockets. Great for all physical endeavors including cycling, running, and paddling.
Companies
http://www.voler.com/
http://www.velowear.com/semicustomoverview.aspx
http://www.bikeatac.com/
http://www.customsublimation.com/
http://www.akapparel.com/index.php
Ideas
http://www.totalcycling.com/index.php/product/apparel_shoes/jerseys_short_sleeve/index.html
http://www.twinsix.com/gear/gear_t608j01.htm
http://www.twinsix.com/gear/gear_t608j15.htm
http://www.portlandcyclewear.com/woolcyclingjersey.html
Semi Custom Options that caught my eye:
http://www.velowear.com/products/1019016RED2XL.aspx
http://www.velowear.com/products/1019302BLK2XL.aspx
Trad, Retro 1, Retro 2
http://www.bikeatac.com/semicustom/semi-custom.html
Leader
http://www.customsublimation.com/index.asp?pageID=customdesign
Fourth from last one
http://www.akapparel.com/custom-apparel/jersey-builder.php
My favorite so far
Done in some cool color scheme.
Logo Placement
A MTB United logo/font as the main logo, maybe front and back, then possibly a few other logos, or none at all. mtbunited.blogspot.com or www.benschwab.com running up the side, or maybe some other logo here or there. Or, again, maybe just MTB United in the right design / font.
Maybe something like this? Have to make sure the brown is really brown, not orange or whatever. The text up the sides is "mtbunited.blogspot.com".
My favorite setup.
Other rear color options per Matt.
Companies
http://www.voler.com/
http://www.velowear.com/semicustomoverview.aspx
http://www.bikeatac.com/
http://www.customsublimation.com/
http://www.akapparel.com/index.php
Ideas
http://www.totalcycling.com/index.php/product/apparel_shoes/jerseys_short_sleeve/index.html
http://www.twinsix.com/gear/gear_t608j01.htm
http://www.twinsix.com/gear/gear_t608j15.htm
http://www.portlandcyclewear.com/woolcyclingjersey.html
Semi Custom Options that caught my eye:
http://www.velowear.com/products/1019016RED2XL.aspx
http://www.velowear.com/products/1019302BLK2XL.aspx
Trad, Retro 1, Retro 2
http://www.bikeatac.com/semicustom/semi-custom.html
Leader
http://www.customsublimation.com/index.asp?pageID=customdesign
Fourth from last one
http://www.akapparel.com/custom-apparel/jersey-builder.php
My favorite so far
Done in some cool color scheme.
Logo Placement
A MTB United logo/font as the main logo, maybe front and back, then possibly a few other logos, or none at all. mtbunited.blogspot.com or www.benschwab.com running up the side, or maybe some other logo here or there. Or, again, maybe just MTB United in the right design / font.
Maybe something like this? Have to make sure the brown is really brown, not orange or whatever. The text up the sides is "mtbunited.blogspot.com".
My favorite setup.
Other rear color options per Matt.
7/14/08
Stitz's in Colorado Take 2
Here's a non-specific and out of order write-up that I'm going to post on Walt's Bike Shop website.
So my family decided to take a vacation over 4th of July week to Colorado. For many it was a first time, and for me it was my first summer trip out there. Right from the start I found the trip to be a much more fulfilling one, able to satisfy my adventurous personality in many different ways. The bleak white landscape of a snow covered Kansas was replaced with green range as far as the eye could see, with clear blue skies meeting the green at the horizon. When I wasn’t catching z’s this picture held my attention with no problem. After driving through the also flat eastern CO, we stopped just outside Denver and got a hotel room for the night. The next morning we got out bright and early and headed into the city to walk around for a few hours and see some sights before heading into the mountains. Post lunch we got back in the car and pointed it west. The 1.5 hour drive into Breck gave us spectacular views of the Rockies, in my opinion much more beautiful in the summer than the winter. My mom said the views were worth the drive in themselves, which they are. When we finally reached our destination we were pleased to find that the pictures we based our lodging rental on had done a nice job of making the condo look quite a bit smaller than it was, a spacious space to relax, bonus. Now to earn that relaxation.
After grabbing every brochure from every rest stop we made, and having made plans to do certain things before we left St. Louis, we had enough to keep our days filled. Monday rolled around, and everyone was up and moving around 7 a.m., a time that I have unfortunately been seeing a lot over my summer vacation. But that’s good, more daytime to wear myself out doing stuff. After breakfast my brother and I rode down to Main St. and stopped into a shop to ask where the nearest single-track trailhead was. Right down the street, hmm, that rocks. So we rode for an hour and a half or so, caught some nice photos doing wheelies with a mountainy backdrop, and then we headed back to the condo to regroup. The afternoon trip took us just down the way to Lake Dillon, where we rented a boat and took it out on the water for a couple hours. To be on a lake with the 80 degree sun keeping you toasty, and the snow capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains all around you is a view that is engraved in my head, we couldn’t have asked for a prettier day.
Things got a bit more aggressive on Tuesday; we went to the Arkansas River for some white water rafting. After donning some super sweet wetsuits, splash jackets, and PFDs (all of which had an indescribable odor to them), we were ready to hit the rapids. Our guide was pretty standard, he took off one summer to lead raft trips and hasn’t been back since; I can understand the appeal in that. He steered us down some Class III+ rapids with my brother and I riding in front, and my sister, sister in-law, and parents in the rows behind us. We took some pretty big hits while enjoying the scenery, and I looked back at my mom on numerous occasions to a) make sure she was still there, and b) laugh at the ridiculous mix of happiness, wonder and awe, and wet and freezing on her face(the water was 40 deg or so). After the trip we stopped off in Buena Vista, which we found out is pronounced ‘byoona vista’ because the founder apparently wasn’t familiar with Hispanic phonetics. Anyway, we got some Mexican food and I ate way too much, end of story.
Wednesday. Family bike ride down the nice paved path between Breck and Frisco, and afterward my dad and I went up the ski slope to investigate a good looking trail that we had driven by on Monday. The hike took us through some flowy rocky single-track that frequently crossed over man made bridges that spanned roaring mountain streams, and for some reason I found myself craving a can of Busch beer. We snapped some great photos, chatted with a park service worker and his Siberian husky, and then headed back to the condo. I knew one thing for sure, next time I was on that trail I was going to be on two wheels.
Thursday was an especially early morning. Up before dawn, my dad, brother and I had decided to hike our first fourteener, Mt. Quandary Peak, just outside Breckenridge. It’s a Class I hike, which is the easiest, most user friendly hike…a somewhat truthful statement. Thankfully on the way up the sun was not overhead, and at times it was even a bit chilly. The trail was a highway with people heading up in front and behind us, and we yo-yoed back and forth with many of the same people multiple times on the way to the top. Here is what the trip up consisted of: start in woods on steep dirt trail, trees start to thin out, trail becomes rocky, trees gone, trail become steep and rocky, trail becomes large loose rock and sometimes trail disappears, then trail gets really steep and rocky, and forward progress is made in small 10 step increments before catching breath, then you walk through some snow for a while, slip a few times, posthole a few times, until finally you reach the peak. Then you look around and realize that it was worth it. I’m sure at this point many people, as I did, wished that afternoon mountain weather wasn’t stormy, and that they could just stay on the peak for the evening. Unfortunately, the weather is predictably unpredictable. You know you’re going to have storm clouds forming, but you don’t know if or how much rain and lighting they bring. So don’t take your chances. After taking some photos from the peak we began the downward trek. What began as an upbeat and fun descent eventually turned into three guys with their heads down shuffling slowly along the trail. The sun had been directly overhead for the down climb, and it drained us. About two and a half hours later (the whole thing took us about 7 hours) we reached the car smiling, and I realized that I didn’t put on enough sunscreen. As I sit here now at my non-Walt’s job and type this, I smell like women’s lotion after attempting to settle the peeling, dry skin on my neck and face.
Friday rolled around and it was a big day. Fourth of July in Breckenridge is a celebration, with a parade and fireworks, but most importantly, the parade kicks off with hundreds of mountain bikers riding down Main Street in the USA Cycling Marathon MTB National Championships!!! My brother and I had considered doing it, but he backed out because he didn’t want to cut that much time out of our family vacation for himself (allegedly) and I didn’t do it because I’m a wuss and don’t have the legs yet for something like that, not to mention we were both pretty beat from the hike the day before. We had driven the first 6 or so miles of the course earlier that week and it was a slow climb up even in a 4WD vehicle. While we were not able to represent Missouri, I have to give props to Walt’s employees Jon Schottler and Travis Cordoza, as well as their friend Lou Reilly, who all sported their tiger striped Mizzou jerseys and partook in the race.
We may not have raced that day, but seeing all those riders made my brother and I want to ride. So what did we do you ask? Remember that trail I mentioned earlier, well we went up there and rode it the 10 miles to Frisco. It was an awesome trail, gain some elevation for a few miles, and then the rest of the trail drops straight into Frisco. It was a bit bumpy for my rigid frame, and at times I was worried that my grip would give out and cause me to eat my stem, which would have resulted in many lost teeth considering I was smiling so big the whole time. It was awesome.
Saturday was dedicated to 16 hours of driving and reminiscing, and even though I love being out there, there was something nice about getting home at midnight, showering, and plopping down in front of the TV to fall asleep.
So my family decided to take a vacation over 4th of July week to Colorado. For many it was a first time, and for me it was my first summer trip out there. Right from the start I found the trip to be a much more fulfilling one, able to satisfy my adventurous personality in many different ways. The bleak white landscape of a snow covered Kansas was replaced with green range as far as the eye could see, with clear blue skies meeting the green at the horizon. When I wasn’t catching z’s this picture held my attention with no problem. After driving through the also flat eastern CO, we stopped just outside Denver and got a hotel room for the night. The next morning we got out bright and early and headed into the city to walk around for a few hours and see some sights before heading into the mountains. Post lunch we got back in the car and pointed it west. The 1.5 hour drive into Breck gave us spectacular views of the Rockies, in my opinion much more beautiful in the summer than the winter. My mom said the views were worth the drive in themselves, which they are. When we finally reached our destination we were pleased to find that the pictures we based our lodging rental on had done a nice job of making the condo look quite a bit smaller than it was, a spacious space to relax, bonus. Now to earn that relaxation.
After grabbing every brochure from every rest stop we made, and having made plans to do certain things before we left St. Louis, we had enough to keep our days filled. Monday rolled around, and everyone was up and moving around 7 a.m., a time that I have unfortunately been seeing a lot over my summer vacation. But that’s good, more daytime to wear myself out doing stuff. After breakfast my brother and I rode down to Main St. and stopped into a shop to ask where the nearest single-track trailhead was. Right down the street, hmm, that rocks. So we rode for an hour and a half or so, caught some nice photos doing wheelies with a mountainy backdrop, and then we headed back to the condo to regroup. The afternoon trip took us just down the way to Lake Dillon, where we rented a boat and took it out on the water for a couple hours. To be on a lake with the 80 degree sun keeping you toasty, and the snow capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains all around you is a view that is engraved in my head, we couldn’t have asked for a prettier day.
Things got a bit more aggressive on Tuesday; we went to the Arkansas River for some white water rafting. After donning some super sweet wetsuits, splash jackets, and PFDs (all of which had an indescribable odor to them), we were ready to hit the rapids. Our guide was pretty standard, he took off one summer to lead raft trips and hasn’t been back since; I can understand the appeal in that. He steered us down some Class III+ rapids with my brother and I riding in front, and my sister, sister in-law, and parents in the rows behind us. We took some pretty big hits while enjoying the scenery, and I looked back at my mom on numerous occasions to a) make sure she was still there, and b) laugh at the ridiculous mix of happiness, wonder and awe, and wet and freezing on her face(the water was 40 deg or so). After the trip we stopped off in Buena Vista, which we found out is pronounced ‘byoona vista’ because the founder apparently wasn’t familiar with Hispanic phonetics. Anyway, we got some Mexican food and I ate way too much, end of story.
Wednesday. Family bike ride down the nice paved path between Breck and Frisco, and afterward my dad and I went up the ski slope to investigate a good looking trail that we had driven by on Monday. The hike took us through some flowy rocky single-track that frequently crossed over man made bridges that spanned roaring mountain streams, and for some reason I found myself craving a can of Busch beer. We snapped some great photos, chatted with a park service worker and his Siberian husky, and then headed back to the condo. I knew one thing for sure, next time I was on that trail I was going to be on two wheels.
Thursday was an especially early morning. Up before dawn, my dad, brother and I had decided to hike our first fourteener, Mt. Quandary Peak, just outside Breckenridge. It’s a Class I hike, which is the easiest, most user friendly hike…a somewhat truthful statement. Thankfully on the way up the sun was not overhead, and at times it was even a bit chilly. The trail was a highway with people heading up in front and behind us, and we yo-yoed back and forth with many of the same people multiple times on the way to the top. Here is what the trip up consisted of: start in woods on steep dirt trail, trees start to thin out, trail becomes rocky, trees gone, trail become steep and rocky, trail becomes large loose rock and sometimes trail disappears, then trail gets really steep and rocky, and forward progress is made in small 10 step increments before catching breath, then you walk through some snow for a while, slip a few times, posthole a few times, until finally you reach the peak. Then you look around and realize that it was worth it. I’m sure at this point many people, as I did, wished that afternoon mountain weather wasn’t stormy, and that they could just stay on the peak for the evening. Unfortunately, the weather is predictably unpredictable. You know you’re going to have storm clouds forming, but you don’t know if or how much rain and lighting they bring. So don’t take your chances. After taking some photos from the peak we began the downward trek. What began as an upbeat and fun descent eventually turned into three guys with their heads down shuffling slowly along the trail. The sun had been directly overhead for the down climb, and it drained us. About two and a half hours later (the whole thing took us about 7 hours) we reached the car smiling, and I realized that I didn’t put on enough sunscreen. As I sit here now at my non-Walt’s job and type this, I smell like women’s lotion after attempting to settle the peeling, dry skin on my neck and face.
Friday rolled around and it was a big day. Fourth of July in Breckenridge is a celebration, with a parade and fireworks, but most importantly, the parade kicks off with hundreds of mountain bikers riding down Main Street in the USA Cycling Marathon MTB National Championships!!! My brother and I had considered doing it, but he backed out because he didn’t want to cut that much time out of our family vacation for himself (allegedly) and I didn’t do it because I’m a wuss and don’t have the legs yet for something like that, not to mention we were both pretty beat from the hike the day before. We had driven the first 6 or so miles of the course earlier that week and it was a slow climb up even in a 4WD vehicle. While we were not able to represent Missouri, I have to give props to Walt’s employees Jon Schottler and Travis Cordoza, as well as their friend Lou Reilly, who all sported their tiger striped Mizzou jerseys and partook in the race.
We may not have raced that day, but seeing all those riders made my brother and I want to ride. So what did we do you ask? Remember that trail I mentioned earlier, well we went up there and rode it the 10 miles to Frisco. It was an awesome trail, gain some elevation for a few miles, and then the rest of the trail drops straight into Frisco. It was a bit bumpy for my rigid frame, and at times I was worried that my grip would give out and cause me to eat my stem, which would have resulted in many lost teeth considering I was smiling so big the whole time. It was awesome.
Saturday was dedicated to 16 hours of driving and reminiscing, and even though I love being out there, there was something nice about getting home at midnight, showering, and plopping down in front of the TV to fall asleep.
7/12/08
Huachuca Range
This won't be much of a post compared to Stitz' romp session, but it's a post at least.
Out at Ft. Huachuca for another 3 weeks. In southern Arizona but it's monsoon season here (been raining at least once a day.) Otherwise, the temp is perfect and there are moutain trails everywhere. Photos:
Rain moving across the mountains on base
(shot from the back of my hotel)
Rented a bike Saturday and hit the nearest loop
(yeah, it's a men's girl-blue stumpy)
Poured the first 2 mile climb, but the water
didn't affect traction (although the elevation
seemed to affect me)
The rain let off eventually and the gritty rock trail
was in perfect condition (this pic is looking back
on the last big climb)
Fun stuff. I was stoked the whole 2 hours I rode, even with my huffing and puffing and the rain and feeling compelled to stop and take pics every couple miles. I'm gonna hit the same trail tomorrow and try to rip it a little more.
Out at Ft. Huachuca for another 3 weeks. In southern Arizona but it's monsoon season here (been raining at least once a day.) Otherwise, the temp is perfect and there are moutain trails everywhere. Photos:
Rain moving across the mountains on base
(shot from the back of my hotel)
Rented a bike Saturday and hit the nearest loop
(yeah, it's a men's girl-blue stumpy)
Poured the first 2 mile climb, but the water
didn't affect traction (although the elevation
seemed to affect me)
The rain let off eventually and the gritty rock trail
was in perfect condition (this pic is looking back
on the last big climb)
Fun stuff. I was stoked the whole 2 hours I rode, even with my huffing and puffing and the rain and feeling compelled to stop and take pics every couple miles. I'm gonna hit the same trail tomorrow and try to rip it a little more.
7/11/08
Stitzs in Colorado
Pop a squat, this may be a while.
Dad, Mom, Me, Jess, Anna, and David headed out for a week in Colorado. Dad had never been further in to the state than business trips to Denver, Mom and Anna had never been at all, and David had only been in the winter. The new experience had everyone extra excited to get out of town.
Jess and I rented a car because after calculating the gas mileage we'd get in the CR-V it would only run us $100 more or so to rent and fuel a sedan of some sort. The rest of the family took the Taurus. Our "Ford Fusion or similar" ended up being a Hyundai Sonata. This had Jess very nervous, as if it's not a Honda or Toyota, it's crap. No offense to anyone, but I'm almost in agreement. Can't forget the amazing silver Nissan Altima. Anyway, the Hyundai was nice and it drove pretty well so we packed it up.
We departed Wentzville Saturday morning around 7:30AM anticipating a stay in Limon, Colorado that night to rest up and have a nice morning drive in to Denver to hang out. Tim Russert's "Big Russ and Me" audiobook was our entertainment for the day. Great "read", evoking all of the emotions and keeping us interested all the way through.
The drive through Missouri was uneventful. Kansas was different to me for some reason though. Usually, it seems so boring, maybe because I usually drive through at night. This time, however, it was beautiful. We had one of those sunny, blue, puffy cloud days and that must have changed my perception. I won't bad mouth the drive through Kansas anymore.
I will begin badmouthing our rental Hyundai Sonata. Somewhere in the middle of Kansas (I think we were between Salida and Hays) the ride started giving us trouble. I was using the cruise, doing about 78, when the cruise just shut off and the check engine light turned on. Hopefully no big deal, I'll just go manual and restart the cruise. I stepped on the accellerator and nothing. I stomped on the accellerator and nothing. The car was idling but I couldn't give it any gas. Pulled on to the shoulder of the interstate to assess the situation. The car was running but I couldn't give it any gas. We decided to restart the car to see if that would restart the drive by wire system. It worked, and we were on our way. This happened two more times. Once to Jess and again to me. There was no way we wanted to continue the entire trip with this vehicle so as Jess drove I called around to try and find a replacement. The closest rental car office was at Denver International, but we were just past Hays. They would tow us a new vehicle from Denver if ours broke down, but who knows how long that would've taken. We decided to cruise right on through Limon and go straight to Denver International. Everyone was more than happy to do that as we had been making good time. At the rental office they were extremely helpful. They took us right in, gave us no hassle, and let us pick any car on the lot for the same price. We decided on a brand new 4WD 4Runner, figuring it would be great for the mountains. It was the 6cyl and we still ended up getting 22MPG on the way home. We made our way to a hotel, checked in, had some dinner and drinks, and went to bed. Things actually worked out better than our initial plan.
Up the next morning, awesome free breakfast, spent some time in the LoDo area of Denver. Then we were on our way to Breckenridge. Of course, the drive to Breck is amazing and we really enjoyed it. Lake Dillon looked especially nice and we decided we wanted to spend some time there. We arrived at our condo, 3 bed 3 bath, 3 decks, all wood and stone, walk to Main St., perfect. Thanks Mom and Dad, nice work.
We did a lot of fun things, and just kind of enjoyed being away. Relaxing, dining, hiking, biking, shopping, boating, rafting. I'll let the photos talk from here. Click to enlarge. I have a lot more pics if anyone is interested.
The Town Of Breckenridge was our home base.
Monday we rented a boat on Lake Dillon. Weather was perfect. You're not allowed to touch the water in the lake. $50 fine if you do. The folks in Denver drink the stuff so they try to keep us dirty humans out of it.
David and I did some riding.
We rafted Brown's Canyon on the Arkansas, outside of Buena Vista. Class 3+ water according to the outfitter, though they were at record water levels due to the snowy winter. I think Mom was the most excited for the rafting, and it showed. When given the option she was always the first to tell the guide to hit the big holes head on. She wants to try the Royal Gorge next time. Sounds perfect.
After the rafting, we hit the local Mexican joint for some fajitas, Coronas, and margaritas. Coyote Cantina was right down the street, and it was obvious they were used to catering to hungry rafters. Good stuff. We get around to the Mexican restaurants, and this place had very impressive salsa. Everything else was great as well.
So, the entire family did some bike riding as well. We spent some time on the multi-use trail that ran from Breck to Frisco. It would be great if we had more stuff like that around here.
We met this bad ass on the trail. Her bike was equally bad.
Spent some time at The Brown. Flowers intoduced us to this place a few years back. More of a local hangout. It hasn't seen any rehab since it opened I don't think. They say it's haunted. It's perfect.
Caught the 4th of July Parade. There were thousands of people on hand to take in the fun.
One for Jeremy.
Caught the Firecracker 50. I wanted to participate but there just wasn't enough time, more important things to do.
The race leads out the parade. You can see how many people were on hand to wish the riders luck.
900 or so riders registered, I believe a bit more than half finished.
Pro men lined up.
The lead out.
Pro men start.
Pro women.
Dad, David, and I decided to try and tackle a 14er. Specifically, Quandry Peak, just south of town. 14,265 feet above sea level. As far as fourteeners go, relatively easy. But not easy in the big scheme of things. No one had any problems except for me. Got a throbbing altitude headache at the peak. Went away pretty quickly upon descent. We took our time, rested often, and enjoyed the views. 3.3 miles, 3300 feet up, took just under 8 hours. Dad kicked ass. He had absolutely no problems, what a badass. This was really a great experience that I'm glad the three of us got to share.
Hoosier Pass in the background, heading toward Alma and Fairplay. That's the way we took to Buena Vista to raft.
Where's Waldo?
Almost there.
At the top.
We saw some wildlife on the trip. Pretty sure on the names, not positive.
Pica.
Ptarmigan.
Marmot. (Alpine Groundhog)
Mountain Goat.
The fanny pack brigade. These things rocked. I need one myself.
So the best part of the trip without a doubt was getting to spend time with one another. This was a great idea and a wonderful vacation. I love all of you guys. What's next?
The drive home was not too bad. Kerouac's On The Road audiobook was our entertainment. Somewhat fitting. We stopped at Gate's BBQ in KC for dinner.
THE END
Dad, Mom, Me, Jess, Anna, and David headed out for a week in Colorado. Dad had never been further in to the state than business trips to Denver, Mom and Anna had never been at all, and David had only been in the winter. The new experience had everyone extra excited to get out of town.
Jess and I rented a car because after calculating the gas mileage we'd get in the CR-V it would only run us $100 more or so to rent and fuel a sedan of some sort. The rest of the family took the Taurus. Our "Ford Fusion or similar" ended up being a Hyundai Sonata. This had Jess very nervous, as if it's not a Honda or Toyota, it's crap. No offense to anyone, but I'm almost in agreement. Can't forget the amazing silver Nissan Altima. Anyway, the Hyundai was nice and it drove pretty well so we packed it up.
We departed Wentzville Saturday morning around 7:30AM anticipating a stay in Limon, Colorado that night to rest up and have a nice morning drive in to Denver to hang out. Tim Russert's "Big Russ and Me" audiobook was our entertainment for the day. Great "read", evoking all of the emotions and keeping us interested all the way through.
The drive through Missouri was uneventful. Kansas was different to me for some reason though. Usually, it seems so boring, maybe because I usually drive through at night. This time, however, it was beautiful. We had one of those sunny, blue, puffy cloud days and that must have changed my perception. I won't bad mouth the drive through Kansas anymore.
I will begin badmouthing our rental Hyundai Sonata. Somewhere in the middle of Kansas (I think we were between Salida and Hays) the ride started giving us trouble. I was using the cruise, doing about 78, when the cruise just shut off and the check engine light turned on. Hopefully no big deal, I'll just go manual and restart the cruise. I stepped on the accellerator and nothing. I stomped on the accellerator and nothing. The car was idling but I couldn't give it any gas. Pulled on to the shoulder of the interstate to assess the situation. The car was running but I couldn't give it any gas. We decided to restart the car to see if that would restart the drive by wire system. It worked, and we were on our way. This happened two more times. Once to Jess and again to me. There was no way we wanted to continue the entire trip with this vehicle so as Jess drove I called around to try and find a replacement. The closest rental car office was at Denver International, but we were just past Hays. They would tow us a new vehicle from Denver if ours broke down, but who knows how long that would've taken. We decided to cruise right on through Limon and go straight to Denver International. Everyone was more than happy to do that as we had been making good time. At the rental office they were extremely helpful. They took us right in, gave us no hassle, and let us pick any car on the lot for the same price. We decided on a brand new 4WD 4Runner, figuring it would be great for the mountains. It was the 6cyl and we still ended up getting 22MPG on the way home. We made our way to a hotel, checked in, had some dinner and drinks, and went to bed. Things actually worked out better than our initial plan.
Up the next morning, awesome free breakfast, spent some time in the LoDo area of Denver. Then we were on our way to Breckenridge. Of course, the drive to Breck is amazing and we really enjoyed it. Lake Dillon looked especially nice and we decided we wanted to spend some time there. We arrived at our condo, 3 bed 3 bath, 3 decks, all wood and stone, walk to Main St., perfect. Thanks Mom and Dad, nice work.
We did a lot of fun things, and just kind of enjoyed being away. Relaxing, dining, hiking, biking, shopping, boating, rafting. I'll let the photos talk from here. Click to enlarge. I have a lot more pics if anyone is interested.
The Town Of Breckenridge was our home base.
Monday we rented a boat on Lake Dillon. Weather was perfect. You're not allowed to touch the water in the lake. $50 fine if you do. The folks in Denver drink the stuff so they try to keep us dirty humans out of it.
David and I did some riding.
We rafted Brown's Canyon on the Arkansas, outside of Buena Vista. Class 3+ water according to the outfitter, though they were at record water levels due to the snowy winter. I think Mom was the most excited for the rafting, and it showed. When given the option she was always the first to tell the guide to hit the big holes head on. She wants to try the Royal Gorge next time. Sounds perfect.
After the rafting, we hit the local Mexican joint for some fajitas, Coronas, and margaritas. Coyote Cantina was right down the street, and it was obvious they were used to catering to hungry rafters. Good stuff. We get around to the Mexican restaurants, and this place had very impressive salsa. Everything else was great as well.
So, the entire family did some bike riding as well. We spent some time on the multi-use trail that ran from Breck to Frisco. It would be great if we had more stuff like that around here.
We met this bad ass on the trail. Her bike was equally bad.
Spent some time at The Brown. Flowers intoduced us to this place a few years back. More of a local hangout. It hasn't seen any rehab since it opened I don't think. They say it's haunted. It's perfect.
Caught the 4th of July Parade. There were thousands of people on hand to take in the fun.
One for Jeremy.
Caught the Firecracker 50. I wanted to participate but there just wasn't enough time, more important things to do.
The race leads out the parade. You can see how many people were on hand to wish the riders luck.
900 or so riders registered, I believe a bit more than half finished.
Pro men lined up.
The lead out.
Pro men start.
Pro women.
Dad, David, and I decided to try and tackle a 14er. Specifically, Quandry Peak, just south of town. 14,265 feet above sea level. As far as fourteeners go, relatively easy. But not easy in the big scheme of things. No one had any problems except for me. Got a throbbing altitude headache at the peak. Went away pretty quickly upon descent. We took our time, rested often, and enjoyed the views. 3.3 miles, 3300 feet up, took just under 8 hours. Dad kicked ass. He had absolutely no problems, what a badass. This was really a great experience that I'm glad the three of us got to share.
Hoosier Pass in the background, heading toward Alma and Fairplay. That's the way we took to Buena Vista to raft.
Where's Waldo?
Almost there.
At the top.
We saw some wildlife on the trip. Pretty sure on the names, not positive.
Pica.
Ptarmigan.
Marmot. (Alpine Groundhog)
Mountain Goat.
The fanny pack brigade. These things rocked. I need one myself.
So the best part of the trip without a doubt was getting to spend time with one another. This was a great idea and a wonderful vacation. I love all of you guys. What's next?
The drive home was not too bad. Kerouac's On The Road audiobook was our entertainment. Somewhat fitting. We stopped at Gate's BBQ in KC for dinner.
THE END
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
