Last week was sort of shit for riding. High wind and rain were the biggest factor, fallowed by family activities and ongoing general mental malaise. I did get out for a bit on Saturday up at Hanson Hills. It wasn’t quite what I was hoping for, but it was something, and something is better than nothing.
After Friday’s sandy slug-fest aboard the Farley, I spent Saturday being a soccer dad and then later hanging out with Wifey watching bad TV and drinking a few beers. On Sunday I did the whole soccer dad thing all over again, but afterwards headed up to MMCC for a lap on the Superfly.
There is nothing quite like spending a week riding a fat bike then switching to a carbon, full suspension race bike. It felt really, darn OK and it was great to get out and enjoy a semi-warm and sunny fall Michigan day, especially since I think it’s supposed to be nasty all this week. Great.
The only downfall to the ride was seeing one section of trail done up with ghosts, gravestones and other Halloween type accoutrements as the college readies for the “haunted trail” thing they do every fall for kids. Nothing against Halloween, I just hate seeing the stuff ’cause it reminds me that the Tri-Fecta of Misery that is Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years will soon be here, followed by four to six months of cold, dark, Hoth-like weather (depending on what Ma Nature decides for Michigan in Winter 2014/15). Sigh.
Hoping, praying, and crying into my pillow that having a worth-while fat bike to ride and race will help ease the pain of the coming winter… well, that booze, antidepressants and if I can get my hands on some; horse tranquilizers.
Speaking of racing and the coming winter, the Northern Michigan Fat Bike Series Festival of Lights race at Timber Ridge on December 21st will MOST likely be my first fat race of the season. Still have to see what races Fun Promotions does this year and weigh the options (distance, price, etc.,). Not matter the event, after a season of little riding and racing I sure to put on one hell of a frozen shit show. Stay tuned for all that.
Riding may be sparse this week, so blogging will be too [collective groans now heard internet-wide].
Later.
My plan on Friday was to drive a bit up north to ride some seasonal roads, snowmobile trails and ORV roads on the fat bike before hard core, shoot everything that moves, firearm deer season starts next month. As of now, all I have to worry about is an arrow hurling through the air and plunging into my chest, I can live with that (or die like that).
I’ve done this ride three or four times before and have been pushing a bit further in my exploration each time. I didn’t push as far distance wise this time, but I did explore a bit more.
For the second day in a row, the Michiganderburgh winds were howling like a bean fueled anus in exit mode après an all you can eat chili bar with an endless Old Milwaukee keg that is two months past due. Gusts were getting well over 20 mph or more and a voice in my head was heard to say the phrase “FUCK THAT! I ain’t doin’ no dirt road ridin in THAT shit’.”
At this time in my life, I would never dare say that what I do on a bike is “intense,” “epic,” or the most overused word in the modern day cyclist’s lexicon– “rad.” However, I do usually have a loose plan for what I want to do. Most of my rides are based on time in the saddle (but usually by how much time I have), while others are merely based on a desired loop or the amount of miles I want to cover. What I rarely do is just putz around. What I mean by “putz around” is to ride without a planned route or set goal. I also rarely ride the trails of Deerfield Park, a local county park just a few minutes by car from my house. Today though, I not only putzed around, I putzed around on a bike at Deerfield Park.
It’s been some time since my last post. I figured it was best not to post since the weather has been windy, rainy and crap-tastic, I haven’t been riding and I’ve been taking the Black Dog for a long, LONG walk of late. People barely want to read about an old, fat dude riding his bike, let alone read about an old, fat, depressed dude NOT riding his bike. Sigh (drink)… Those days are now sort of, almost, not quite behind me now, and I have moved on (sort of) by getting a new bike that I have no right to have really got (Is that right? It doesn’t sound right… gotten?..purchased?… fuck it, we all know I’m an ass hat).
Thanks to selling some shit, a generous Wifey and the amazing bare assed folks (don’t ask) at Terry’s Cycle in beautiful downtown Alma, Michigan, my winter racing and riding plans are now as solid as a post-Golden Corral buffet bowel movement: KAPLUNK!!! Yep, today I took delivery of the very black and very anodized Trek Farley 6. It’s sort of like Jay Z and Wham! guest starring on Drop Dead Diva. I have to say, I am pretty darn, nonplussed about it.
Well, it hasn’t even been a year and I am selling the Pugsley. No, not because I haven’t taken to riding girthly wheels, but because I have.
The past few days have been filled with three things: beer, football (er, soccer) and dirt. In other words, three things I dig.
I skipped riding on Thursday to drive down to beautiful downtown Alma, Michigan and pay a visit to Terry’s Cycle where I picked up a Trek Farley 8 demo bike. I spent some time getting it dialed and had it out on the trails Friday morning for a lap at MMCC.
Trek’s Farley 8 is SOOOOOO light compared to my heavy assed Pugs! It really is an awesome bike… sort of.
The thing that sucks about the mythical land of Michiganderburgh is the lack of open space we have.
I’m trying to make up for last week’s time off the bike by getting in what I can this week. So far I’m up to about 6:20 of gravel roads and singletrack. Sadly, my aging, talentless, flabby, all too often beer fueled body, on the rebound from last week’s illness, is feeling every minute I’ve put in thus far– even today’s 32 mile ride on the flatter gravel roads north of town.
Since I’m tired and have important things to do like lay on the couch, watch soccer, fall asleep for an hour, drag my ass up to my bed, stare at the ceiling for two hours wondering how I became such a useless, hollow, shell of a man, who contributes nothing to society, fall into a fitful sleep and get up at 6 a.m. and do it all over again (whatever “it” is), I will just post up some pics in a gallery below. They’re from today’s ride, so it’s dirt roads, barns and shit like that. You know the routine.
