Sometimes...you just gotta shave the cat

Strange topic...but we had to give Coconut a summer trim. Her back was getting too many tangles.
Did you know that the hotel from The Shining is in Estes Park CO? I didn't until Sunday. Check it...
The ride to Estes was awesome. I rode with the Blue Sky crew and the day was just perfect.
Then it was time for a metal show - The Sword rocked it. 4 guys playing a tight show - the crowd was surprisingly mellow. I've been to Primus concerts that we're rowdier. But I guess I'm getting older b/c I was appreciative of the crowd. Poor Kurt almost got into a fight b/c he felt like getting down and somebody else didn't. We had your back Kurtie!
Less than 3 weeks away now from the UAR in Seattle and Portland. Will somebody please stop all this rain!!!!

DZNuts

I was checking out a clip on VeloNews about Dave Zabriskie (initials: D. Z.) who rides for Slipstream/Chipotle. He's a cool, quirky kinda rider - that I have come to appreciate. In fact he sports a mighty impressive mustache that would give Daniel Day Lewis's There Will be Blood mustache a run for the money. Any way...while checking out this clip, I noticed a very impressive t-shirt.
It appears that Dave has started a business called DZnuts - selling nuts and bolts and other bike accessories. This is my assumption after seeing this photo...but if he's not starting this business - it's a brilliant idea - if I do say so myself.

The one and only Jesse Swift read yesterday's post about the rather funky means of transportation I posted. (I mean really - why even try to improve on the simplicity of the bicycle)...but I guess you have to applaud the creativity of the inventor. Jesse said it reminded him of a South Park episode called "The Entity". I hadn't seen it, so I looked it up and found this site. All the South Park episodes, in full length, streaming free on demand. Enjoy.

Oh yeah...we've been listening to some good music this week. Check out the Black Keys new album (and bad-ass laser tag video) and if you're into something a bit heavier, maybe we'll see you at The Sword show tomorrow night in Denver.

Don't worry...

This will not be an obstacle in the next UAR (it's almost too embarrasing to post)

It's all coming together

We're less than 1 month away from the 1st 2008 UAR. We've done a ton of planning and there's a lot more to wrap up before our 1st venture into Seattle.
But this past weekend..we did everything we could to put it all out of our minds and have some fun. Lots of riding, music, and good food. Hopefully your weekend was just as fun. Check out some of the happenings...
Kurtie Kropp (AKA Weng Weng, or the guy dressed in the kid's dinosaur costume at the Denver UAR) and I rode up to Jamestown, then up and over all the steeps to the Peak to Peak highway. A beautiful day with a ride that made remember why I live in Colorado.


On the way down South St Vrain, we ran into Will Frischkorn, who was back from 3 1/2 months in Europe. He raced Paris Roubaix, Flanders, Tour of California...he's one helluva racer. He was telling about all the gear they get (not boasting...it is what it is) - which is like 4 bikes in 3 different parts of the world. TT bikes, training bikes, race bikes...they don't have to worry about traveling with bikes this way. Keep an eye out for Will in the Tour de France this July.


Then we caught a Ghostland Observatory show in Boulder. A great show and it made me proud to be from Austin (that's where they're from). Check them out at the ACL festival or Lollapalooza. After the show, outside the Fox theater there was even more entertainment. All the college kids were stumbling around in the wee hours of the morning. Then we see this girl in a short skirt doing a yoga-style back bend on the sidewalk (in a crowd of a few hundred people). She comes out of it and says to her date, "See! I told you I could do it!" He just kinda looks around with a smirk on his face. I'll have to remember that trick.

A line up all my own

It's rare in the world of surfing to have the opportunity to paddle out to wave with no other surfers. This has happened a couple times in my life and it's one of the best experiences known to man. A good surfer I'm not (wish I could say otherwise...but I can't) but it's something any surfer cherishes. So today it was beyond sweet to roll up to an empty parking lot at the Devil's Backbone trail head. Kinda the same experience - except this is a REALLY cool trail vs. the lame waves I have the ability to surf. This is a trail that is considered 'at capacity' when the parking lot is full and I wouldn't even think of going on the weekend. But yesterday (probably due to the fact that it was snowing...I had the trail to myself).
As the snow came down, it wet the dirt to create a fragrance that makes you want to deeply breathe the mountain air. And to think it was 80 degrees yesterday. It was such a nice little afternoon ride, I had to celebrate the moment.

My chrome is shining...

...just like an icicle. I'm riding around town on my lowrider bicycle.

New obstacle...coming up!

Beasts of Burden, Cougars, and White Butts

Finally got out for a good ride today (it's been a busy week with bad weather and a couple days under the weather) and saw some interesting things on the trail.
These signs are at pretty much any trail head in Colorado. You get used to them, but today the sign reminded me to keep an eye out for cougars, which I was thinking would be pretty darn hard to spot since the grass matches their coats perfectly. Which I'm sure is no coincidence. I hear cougars are pretty smart. Not to be confused with this sign which is common at most Colorado watering holes.
I saw a gaggle, herd, flock, gang...or whatever you call a group of deer. This variety moved like Mule Deer and had white on their rear, but not their tails. So I decided I must have encountered a pack of White Butt Deer. So I tested it and said, "What up, White Butt?" and they all turned around - so I must be right.
Then I saw something really cool - a couple out walking their goats. The one on the left is supposed to get up to 300lbs. That's a big goat. They're training them to be 'pack goats'. As I rode off, I started singing (in my head) "Beast of Burden" by the Stones. Then I thought about the fact that the acronym for Beast of Burden is B.O.B...and then I wondered if this is why the B.O.B trailer has its name. I looked it up...sure enough - that's what it means. I like the thoughts that go through one's mind when riding a bike.
We got snow yesterday and the good thing about living where we do is that the snow melts and the soil dries o-so-quickly. Hall Ranch was in great shape. This was the only patch of snow on the trail, so I thought I'd show my appreciation for the trails I'm fortunate enough to ride.
My bike wasn't even dirty, just one day after snow. It was a great ride, with good thoughts, now it's time for a TGIF beer.

My new favorite video....

MTV used to actually play music, so I was very excited to see an actual video on TV last weekend (actually it was MTV2). It's got it all: laser guns, a chick in a bikini on a unicorn, the Lone Ranger, Kung Fu....it's an epic tale. Check out Muse's Knights of Cydonia:

We've been working really hard this week. I didn't get out on the bike besides to run errands. The season is coming up fast and the UAR engine is cruising along at 8000 rpms. That's right, we're like a RX-8 - we don't even redline until 9000rpms.

Welcome Hans!

This week, Adventure Fit welcomes Hans to the crew. He's the new man on campus, helping us bring big wheels and beer to the masses. Hans helped us out as a volunteer a couple years ago - now he's a full-time man of the UAR. You got questions about our obstacle courses, our biodiesel truck, or where to find a good band anywhere in the US - talk to Hans.
Today we spent the whole day outside doing a little spring cleaning.

On the ride to lunch Hans was able to protect his head while waving the flag of his European heritage...
So - Welcome aboard Hans! And if any of you are in the Boulder area, we're having one helluva garage sale tomorrow.

The rising tide

It's funny how things evolve...especially within the bike world. When I first started riding a bike, I really liked the simplicity and freedom. Like all kids around the hood, I started off jumping curbs, laying down fat coaster brake skids, and riding the bike to the mini-mart to pick up Nerds and Garbage Pail Kids. I watched the movie Rad over and over and over and it totally changed my life. I loved my BMX bike. I finally talked my Mom into getting me a new bike and we went to Toys R Us...but I didn't like what I saw. All the BMX bike had handbrakes and I liked the simple aesthetics of a handlebar with no cables or levers. I ended up riding a series of Mongooses - with handbrakes. That led to my freestyle phase, which led me to MTBs, then to road...and now it looks like it's back full circle as I'm loving my fixed gear bike (with no brakes).So now there's a whole new type of riding to learn. Well...at least it's new to me. Fixed gears were the 1st bikes around - before freewheels were ever invented. They're getting really popular - for the style, the simplicity, the cost. It's just funny to me how it's all come back around. I'm again riding a simple bike with nothing on the bars but grips and now I want to learn to do this..