A free weekend!

October 2010 had 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays! That's a whole extra weekend for biking. This is the first time this has happened since 2006. Not wanting to waste it our youngest and I rode to church, he on his Felt and me on the Austro-Daimler, we had the best parking spot there. That gave me 4.94 miles for the day. And that closes the books on October with 609.02 miles.

The Haunted Hustle.

Last night was the Haunted Hustle put on by Kat with help from SHECLISMO It was a well orchestrated race, and by far the biggest hustle ever held in Lincoln, it seemed like nearly everyone was there. We met up at Robbers Cave then began by racing to Camp Wilderness where we had to hunt for candy on a haunted bridge in the woods. Racers were then sent to the tunnel at 3rd and F st where we had to search through a kiddie pool filled with ramen noodles to find an eyeball before being allowed to continue to the old State Fair grounds where the No Coast Derby Girls were zombies quizzing us on state capitals. We then hurried into a headwind to the 27th & Capital Parkway tunnel to toss a severed head across the river of blood. Once we'd mastered that we went to the YWCA to be blindfolded and verbally told how to find our way through a maze by youth leadership girls. The last stop was Buzzard Billy's in the Haymarket. I came in 6th out of 50 and won a set of bike lights! This was a fund-raiser for SHECLISMO and they had raffle prizes including a new Globe bike that was won by Maggie! You'll see Amber is thumbs up after coming in first among the girls and Ian won the boys race. Yesterday's work commute and the Hustle totaled up to 41.78 miles for my Friday.

The 6,000 mile Nacho Ride!

When I first started biking 3 years ago I read an article about a guy who rode 6,000 miles a year. At the time I thought that was amazing. Now I realize it's not, and that many of my readers and cycling friends get 6,000 miles every year.

But for some reason that number has always stuck in my head. 6,000 miles was my goal for 2010, and tonight at the shack 1/2 way to Eagle I rolled over the 6K mark for the year with a bang (Patches!). We stopped to celebrate then continued into Eagle where we ran into a few other biking friends. The guys decided to commemorate the occasion by dressing to the nines. They are always so fun and great to ride with. Tonight's accomplishment felt great, and gave us a chance to remember all the great times we've had riding this year.

There was a killer West wind all day that made riding a challenge. After riding to work and the Nacho Ride I ended up with 48.8 miles for the day.

A family ride to the zoo and Ivanna Cone.

It was a busy day with the family and this afternoon we took a ride to the zoo to see the new penguins. We even got to visit with John Chapo who said visitors had complained about finding parking and that he thought it was cool that we'd biked. Afterward we went to Ivanna Cone for a treat. We also got to see runners finish the Market To Market Relay. It was a great day for a ride and tomorrow is packed full of tons of biking events in Lincoln. Hope to see you out tomorrow! Today's miles = 14.9

Super Sunday Century - Lincoln to Nebraska City and back.

Patches recently had the idea that we ride another century yet this year and wanted to go to Nebraska City. I was game and invited others to come along for part of the way, or the whole day. Six of us met up at Holmes Lake at 7:00 this morning even though it was only 35'F.

We took the Antelope Creek Trail out to Highway 2 and turned east. By about 9:00 all but Patches and I had peeled off to ride to Eagle or back to Lincoln.

Patches and I rode into a light headwind to Nebraska City and made a b-line for downtown. We found a great restaurant and had dinner (not to be confused with supper). Then we rode around Nebraska City a little. We made our way to Arbor Lodge and the Lied Lodge then rode down some of Nebraska City's bike path.

We got back on Highway 2 and with a breeze at our backs we rolled back to Lincoln. We got back a couple of miles short of a century so we rode a lap around Holmes Lake to hit 100 miles for the day. It was Patches 3rd century after the one on TDN and Gravel Worlds earlier this year. Today was my 2nd for 2010 after the one I got on TDN. This was the first time either of us had rode to Nebraska City. It was a great day to spend on bikes and definitely the easiest century I've ever done. Today's miles = 101.3

Nacho Riders Count.

I neglected to snap a picture, but volunteers from the GPTN were set up at the trail head on the Mopac counting trail users.

The Mopac has had brush trimmed back, but last night's storms left twigs scattered along the way. Evidently Patches tried to clear off debris by picking up branches with his bike.

We pushed against a bit of a head wind and rolled into Eagle as the wind died down. There was a fun group out tonight and we talked about this weekends Fox Hole 100 ride.

I had fun showing off my new Felt ZA tonight and it seemed happy to be on the Nacho Ride.

Shortly after leaving the trailhead I hit my 5,000th mile for 2010, my goal is 6,000 for the year, it'll be close!

Today's miles on the work commute and Nacho Ride = 48.5

The Felt ZA's first day at work.

I rode into the office this morning in light fog and 100 percent humidity. The Felt is oh so sweet. I love it! The ride home was fun and easy too.

The Felt ZA's maiden ride.

Yeah! I'm loving my new Felt ZA frame and fork and the new drive-train is sweet. I finally got a chance to sneak out tonight about 7PM to try it out. Matt from Bike Pedalers did a great job building it and it is an amazing bike! I took it to Holmes Lake, then East out of town on Hwy 2. I got back after dark with a grand total for the day of 31.51 miles.

I'm SO excited!

Look! Look! Look!!!

I got the call today from Bike Pedalers that my new Felt ZA frame and parts are in and ready. I picked it up, but had a busy evening with the family, so tomorrow I'll get to take it out. I can't wait!

Good things come to those who wait.

I biked to work, then rode to Bike Pedalers when I got off. My Felt isn't ready yet because we still had to pick out a new crank and bottom bracket, I also added in a new rear set and chain.

I got a chance to see the new Felt ZA frame. It is SO sweet! And crazy light too. If the parts come in on time I should be riding it this weekend. I can't wait! Today's miles = 21.9

A big crowd came out for a perfect night on the Nacho Ride.

Today should be the last full commute on my loaner Surly Cross Check from Bike Pedalers. My new Felt ZA frame is in and if they have the bottom bracket parts I should be able to pick it up tomorrow after work! The morning was crisp and by the afternoon it'd become perfect outside for biking.

Tonight was another fun filled Nacho Ride down the Mopac to Eagle. We took off hard and fast and made it to Eagle in record time, getting there in 34 minutes. Scott was celebrating his birthday during supper. We spun home at an easier pace passing more nachoers still making the trek to the OED.

Today's work commute and Nacho Ride came to 47.9 miles.

Felt Z70 frame - RIP

10 months and 4757 miles on this bike.

This morning was gorgeous, but about 1/2 way to work my chain mysteriously jumped off the middle ring to the little ring. It continued to do that every time I was in low gears on the rear set. It was becoming a pain. No problem. Bike Pedalers gives a years worth of free tune-ups with a new bike purchase, and the Felt is only 10 months old. So after work I rode over to Bike Pedalers to have them adjust the front derailer and send me on my way.

Once they put it on the stand I pointed out the play in my bottom bracket, they opened it up to find my bearings were bad and that I'd wore a deep groove in the steal crank!

I also pointed out the cracks my Felt had developed where the rear drop outs connect to the carbon fiber seat stay. What began as a hairline paint crack eventually fatigued and separated clear through. The front fork also has some slight cracks in the carbon fiber, they haven't seemed to get worse like the ones in the back though.

Well, the wise folks at Bike Pedalers urged me to stop riding it until the frame could be replaced for safety reasons. Felt makes amazing bikes, and they guarantee their frames for as long as you own the bike.

I have plans to do lots of riding, and can't be with out a good bike for the 2 weeks or so it'll probably take to get a new frame, so, get this, Bike Pedalers graciously pulled a brand new bike off the floor and put my wheels, pedals, seat, etc on it for me to use till my new Felt frame comes in! Talk about service!

I have a LOT of love for my Felt. And hate to go without it for even a week or two. But, I'm thankful to have another quality bike to use in the meantime. Bike Pedalers has sold about a zillion Felts. And mine is the very first frame (besides shipping damaged ones) to ever need warrantied. I don't blame Felt. But, it'll be interesting to see what they warranty it with since 2009 was the last year they had the Z70. Hopefully they still have one laying around somewhere. If not, I hope I'll be as happy with the new frame set as I was with the Z70.

I still can't get over the great service Bike Pedalers is giving me. We've bought a lot of bikes (6) from them, but it's a true testimonial when you feel delighted with their service when you have a serious problem. There is a lot to be said for buying from a reputable local shop rather than used, on-line, or from a big box store. I've always liked Surly Cross Checks when I've tried them in the bike shop parking lots. But it'll be fun to see how I get along with it on some weekend rides and work commutes.

Stay tuned to see what happens.

2010 Gravel Worlds

Here's Gravel Worlds through my eyes. It was a excellent event! Entry costs nothing and everyone is eligible. That is very cool. The Pirate Cycling League did an amazing job running the race. Sign up was fast and easy, thanks in part to an opportunity to sign waivers the night before in downtown Lincoln. Saturday morning all we had to do was check in and have a number wrote on our leg. Cornbread made some announcements before hand, and at 6am we started with a neutral roll out. There were 98(?) official racers that started and a few others that rode out as well. As the day wore on most dropped out. 30-some ended up pedaling the whole 150 miles. Congrats to each of them! It was an epic accomplishment! The roads of course were not closed, but we had very little traffic, and everyone was really cool about sharing the road as far as I could tell. There were separate classes for single speed, mens and womens, even tandem. The single speed riders (bikes with no gears) are hardcore and really were tested to the limit on some of those big hills! I got in behind Guitar Ted for a spell and snapped this picture. You should read his take on Gravel Worlds. There was a light fog as the sun rose. There was basically no wind most of the day. And some of the country we rode through was really scenic. Again, congrats needs to go out to the PCL guys for picking an amazing route. Yeah, I was sucking wind. Riding on gravel, or in many cases on dirt roads has a lot more resistance than pavement. And they don't grade the hills or fill in the valleys on the county roads like they do on the highways. Riding gravel is a true test. And riding in a big group gives you a sense of urgency and extra energy, the moral support we give each other is amazing. I always ride better when I'm with others. To prove we'd made it to the edges of the course we had to stop at three checkpoints and buy a Nebraska lottery ticket. Powerball tickets show what time they were purchased. These stops gave us a chance to pickup drinks and food too. Some of the dirt roads were still damp from rains earlier this week. The clay soil made for some tacky riding and since I was using my Felt road bike with the widest tires I could fit on it (28mm) the mud would pack up the fork making it even harder to pedal. Most riders use cycle cross. But there were mountain bikes and even some other road bikes. Between Valparaiso and Malcolm I was struggling to keep my core body temp down and was starting to bonk. Patches rode with me the whole time, and I was asking to take breaks more and more. In this picture I had to lay down in the ditch for a few minutes before getting back on to ride more. By the time we'd hit Malcolm it was about 12:15 (I think) and I was shot. I could have gone more but it would have been slow and painful. This is where it went from being fun to being brutal. And since I am a casual cyclist and not an athlete I had no problem calling my wife and getting my sorry butt hauled back to Lincoln. I left my phone with Patches and told him to call me when he got tired and I'd go get him. Patches took the liberty of snapping some pictures with my phone. This is a 'sign' directing racers to an 'oasis' for water, snacks and rest. A few locals that lived along the route offered up their property, food, water, hospitality and more and were a welcome site to riders who were feeling sapped after all those miles! When I got back to Lincoln I picked up some gallon jugs of water and left them on the route around 4th road & Hwy 2 at about mile 120 for anyone who might be running out of water at that point. Then I called Patches to see if he wanted picked up yet. He asked me to meet him in Hickman. I waited outside of Hickman with this group from Omaha that knew about Gravel Worlds and decided on their own that it'd be cool to set up a stop. They took a day to sit out in the sun and they spent their own money on pop, beer, ice, water, pizza, pb&j, candy, etc. to give out to cyclist. How cool is that? These guys rocked! The hospitality of everyone throughout the day was overwhelming. Here Patches rolls into the 3rd and final checkpoint before the end in Hickman. Yes, it's 98' on the bank clock. He had 115 miles on his mountain bike. Since he usually rides a recumbent, the first thing he said to me was, "I could keep going, but my ass is killing me. Next year we're going to train for this and finish it!" This was around 4pm after 10 hours of riding! I picked up a couple of others from Lincoln in Hickman who were too thrashed to go on and gave them a ride back to the fairgrounds where the race started and ended. When I was there Jon Vandracek rolled in and took 1st place in the Masters Men division. You can find all the results on the PCL blog. Take a look at the dust on my legs once I took my shoes and socks off!

All in all I made it to the first two out of the three checkpoints before pulling the plug. I felt pretty shelled and hot by the time I quit, but otherwise was ok. I quit the 150 mile gravel race with an average speed of 12.6 mph, average cadence of 72 rpm, ride time of 5 hrs 13 min, and a total of 66.1 miles.