Successful registration was done for the ICEMAN. It’s always a weird feeling when you’re registering for the last MTB race of the year, some 8 months away,  before you’ve even really had a chance to think about your first race for the year, which is still 2 months away. The trip is usually a pretty busy way to start out November. By the time we wake up in the Belle on that Friday we’ll drive 6 hours (usually more like 7-8 but whatever), Preride for an hour or so, Race the next day for 2 hours, and then turn around and drive home for another 6 or so hours. a 20-25% ride to drive ratio. Either way it’s still a sooper fun weekend and a traditional way to finish things off.

In other news the sun and heat (above 30 basically) have been pushing things outdoors. Got out Thursday with Da Fro on the skinny tire bikes. We headed west for a little while till we made the turn for home. The Ganster Langster is a sure fired way to get the bike legs back in order. By the end of the 2 hour jaunt I was feeling it.

Today I did another loop and things felt really good. Comfortable at least. I was having issues with my seat position before as I had it back noticeably far, or at least far enough that I was riding on the tip of the nose for most of the ride. I’ve been getting done with the rides and feel like I just traveled cross county on a windshield-less motorcycle. I could practically peel the layer of grime off of my face.

 Lastly my registration and check is in the mail for the 28th running of the Fat Tire Forty. Make sure that you get it in before March 15th or come mid September it’ll just be you and your little dog left back here

There’s no posturing in the Gym Parking Lot.

 I didn’t realize the irony until just the other day. We’re so ingrained with the “rock star parking” mentality that even when we’re going to the gym, to exercise, you absolutely positively do not want to have to walk any further than necessary. And of course the closer the better. I made the mistake of going down the coveted “1st” aisle near the gym entrance the other day at gym time high noon, weekday evening 4-6. It was like a NY street scene with all the parking traffic that was waiting to come and go. It was pretty funny to be a part of.

So at the gym I figured out that I average roughly 150 steps in a 1/10 of a mile, which in turn would be somewhere in the realm of 1,500 steps in an 8 minute mile. That’s alot of fricking steps. Multiply that times my average distance of 6 miles and we’re looking at 9,000 steps taken while basically not propelling yourself forward more that 1/2 foot at any given time for about or around 48 minutes. I know sounds boring. But the time actually seems to go by pretty fast. I’m counting on March as a partner to help keep me outside a little more as we start to make our transition from winter here shortly.

In other news we made a sneak trip out to land where the Springs are Petrified.

But the trails…….not so much. We found a couple of miles of some packy stuff but at times it was prolly about 3-4 inches wide at best and any dabbing met a quick trip to a waiffed pedal and some serious forward ball lunging action sand headset. It was down right ugly, I wished that I could have recorded some of the acrobatics but for the most part it really seemed that it was all me that was having a hard time. You would have sworn that I never driven a MTB before. So far not alot of trouble areas out there but we’ll see what the Spring brings.

Well now that I’m officially back on 2nd shift It’s almost midnight so I’m burning outta here.

Don’t forget to register for the ICEMAN!!! They’re claiming a cut off this year so get registered HERE

And lastly, Hong Kong Foo-ey!!!!!!

Check it out

That’s a Classis Foo Fighters line.

I was going to go into this big shpeel about how I probably never shared with you that I saw the Foo Fighters live dead smack front center row when they played the Marcus in 2003. I’ve since learned that the digital images that I scoured from the event are no longer, or at least no longer on this computer or anywhere near it that is accessible by either a mouse or a key board.

The Foos have been a fall back go to playlist for years. They sounded perfect today.

Still good to be outdoors and we’re even starting to get our daylight back.

THE END IS NEAR!!!!!!!!!

We got dumped on.

We’re currently digging out from the 12-18 inch dump of snowfall that took place over the last 2 days. That’s definitely going to put a damper on riding the fat tire bikes for a little bit, around here at least it is.

I’ve been reading some books about mountaineering lately. I find it absolutely fascinating. I read Jon Krakaur’s “Into Thin Air” some time ago and just recently re-read it. It tells a story of one of the worst storms ever recorded while climbers were trying to survive a summit of Everest. It’s a pretty intimate account that’s told and shares what it’s like to bonk at 28,000 feet plus. So since then I’ve been looking into other readings dealing with the same thing. Humans powering themselves up great big ol mountains and the peril or personal rewards that could come with it. Most of these peaks are over 27,000 feet above ground level. It makes you wonder how some of these guys can endure climbing day after day in some of the harshest conditions just to say, “Yup, I did it”. My hats off to them.

So with that kind of motivation still looming around I headed to the Belle’s highest peak. The Mountain of Lockwood. There I stood with all of the other sledders in the thin air of 700 feet above sea level.

It was a good thing that I brought my camp stove.