Knees are Fine!

Doc said to suck it up and stretch his way.
Sure 'nuff it worked.  Unfortunately I was too much of a pud to complete the Cohutta 100.
I had a blast hanging out with Cricket though.

What, Me Worry?

That's right people, step right into the wide world of neurosis.
I am worried about my knees and thighs.  They ache right now and I think my IT band is a little wonky.  The left knee hurts a bit too.  I'll have to stop riding, but then I'll be out of shape(running!=option).  So I have to wither away, and maybe even miss the Cohutta 100.
I am also worried about my bike(in two ways).
1. it will be damaged on the flight to Canada.  I have a lay over in Texas, and I'm worried on either leg they could load it the wrong way up.
2. there was some damage to my bike from my feet rubbing.  It's on the fancy carbon fiber.  Some of it wore off amazingly enough(or not).  Well one shop said that it's not covered by warranty(understood), and the guy said it was worn paper thin; to my surprise.  It's not that bad, but it's still something to be concerned(needlessly?) about.  I did measure it though, about 2 millimeters was worn off.  To some people that's a lot(lots of people are touchy about carbon), to me that's not much.  But I am about to put 3000+ miles on it(cohutta 100, mohican 100, TD, plus training etc).  Hopefully Jaques can patch it for me.

Ok well now that I've typed all that, it doesn't seem too bad.

There is always beer and duct tape!

It's in!

Paul's book Two Wheels on my Wagon was on my door step.
Yes I did dance around and giggle like a little girl.
I cackled at quite a bit as I paged through it.  There is even and excellent group photo of Me, Paul, Per, and Trevor. woo!
I'm looking forward to reading it many times over.

I have the latest maps.  The updates aren't that much compared to my cue sheets.  I'd like to return them, but it is best to err on the side of caution.
Things to buy:
200$ canadian
new sunglasses lenses
5l dry bag
chamois butter
computer mount
leatherman squirt p4
rite in rain journal
silnylon mits
and I think that's it for the non bike stuff(from REI).
I've got a big list for TVB and Oakley cycles.

I think I'll just ride 3 days a week to nurse my knee back into shape.

Knee Pies

I have been slowly amassing parts and supplies for the TD.
I just bought 3oz of ibuprofen(~270). Too many I should say; I think I'll halve it and buy what I need in Steamboat.
I have the latest maps, and I'll be updating my cue sheets from last year. I've got a list of things to buy from REI, and I need to make a list of things for TVB soon.
Right now I'm icing my knee, which has been hurting a bit.

41lbs 10oz

Fatty mcfat fat fat

04:42:17

Well I beat last month's time by 1:05. whomp whomp whomp.
The Rohloff performed well. I however did not. My chain popped of about 10 times That was not the worst part. My legs started cramping really early, just after the first 15 miles. The big climb was pretty painful, but I only stopped once. Not sure what the deal was, but it's probably my diet.
The last 9 miles were pretty bad, my legs locked up quite a bit.
Well I've got some diet work to figure out and some fancy new parts to buy(yay! bonus from work!).

Rohloff German for Badass

Ok, maybe not, I don't know German.
First big news:
Paul Howard's book, Two Wheels on my Wagon has hit the review circuit. Tour Divide repost of thewashingmachinepost.net review. Guess who took the photo featured in the review?
So technically I'm a "published photographer". Not bad considering all the crap photos I take. It will be out in the UK on April 1st. I don't know when it will make it to the states.

Bam! Rohloff on a Stan's ZTR Flow with Sapim spokes and brass nipples.
It's heavy, with the crossmark tape and stans goop it comes in at 7 lbs.
Installing it was easier than the directions make you think. Mount the speedbone, and the axle plate with the external box thing and you're done. It takes some time, but it's easy. Setting up the cables was a little harder. The instructions aren't entirely clear, but Scott and I got it working. I'll probably have Oakley Cycles fix it up after the Snake. I'll definitely buy a spare set of cables to swap out before I leave for the TD.

Shifting is a little different. You have to pause just a bit, and it's hard to shift while under a load. It's a bit noisy, but that will quieten down after the break in period.
Bike weight with out bags, 28lbs. :(

Third bit of news.
I'm in Adventure Cycling Magazine. The Oct/Nov 09 issue has a little blurb about the TD, and I am one of the riders in the picture. It's small, and it doesn't mention my name, but it's me in the handsom Tomato Head/TVB kit. woo.
I'll buy a few issues as keep sakes, and frame two of them(tastefully) and give one to TVB and keep the other.

The last Knoxicross was that weekend too. TVB was out in full force. Several were gunning for the Gentleman's competition.


Will won.
The rest of the photos are on Flickr.