Barn Cross Update

Expect temps of around zero inside the barn, a sandy surface, a tight twisty course with many interesting features (such as the beloved whoops), and good times. See all y'all tomorrow.

Barn Cross

A hurt locker kind of race, but this one will smell sort of different. Guaranteed fun for just $10.

He Said/She Said

Top Ten of 2011

After reading The Cycle Chic's top ten list, I was inspired to write my own. So, with apologies to Andrea for ripping off her format, here it is.

Top Ride
November trip to Coach Bill's cottage in Pinawa. Riding trails in November after a busy cx season was a gas. And Bill made pancakes.

Top Bike
My Crosscheck. I was unfaithful during cross season, seduced by one lighter, sexier and cooler who promised Truelove. But like many such flings, it didn't work out so well. So I am back with my first love. With a new lighter fork and a brake upgrade, it is sweeter than ever. And I will never be unfaithful again.

Top Badass
Dallas Sigurdur. No explanation required.

Top Douchebag
Pretty much everyone who drives an Escalade. I ride all the time and thankfully dangerous episodes with vehicles are a rarity for me. But almost every time there was an incident this year, it was with some dumb ass driving an Escalade. If you own one and aren't a douchebag, maybe you should think about getting a different showy pretentious car.

Top Local Race
In a year of great events this took some thought, but I have to pick the New Year's Eve cx throwdown. I didn't have to do any work to make it happen, riding for fun with friends was a great way to close out a great year, and I beat The Awesome One. That won't likely ever happen again.

Top Playlist
Wintersong by Sarah McLachlan. It is my favorite Christmas album. And she's dreamy; She can skate away on my river anytime.

Top Gym
My basement. It's a bit grubby, my old steel plates are rusty, I have black plumbing pipe in the floor joists for pullups and a home made wooden squat rack. Very old school Rocky. And you can't beat the commute.

Top Male Rider
Me. I had my own summer and I won the Butter Belt. Duh. Philippe Gilbert was a distant second.

Top Female Rider
Katie Compton. Apparently she's been winning a lot. And cross is boss.

Top Bike Shop
There are only two shops on my short list for this: Bikes and Beyond and Olympia on Portage. I like both stores; Good staff, good selection and they both are comfortable places for me to hang out and visit. So it's a tie.

Special Bonus Category, Best Group Ride
Everybody knows there is only one place to be Tuesday nights. A TNR is always the highlight of my week.

A Sort of Resolution

2011 has come to an end with me sitting on the couch, watching the Jets, and stuffing my face with all things that go with sports TV. My resolution—get fat as a means to get skinny.

Getting this project off the ground has taken a bit longer than I had hoped, but things are coming together. Using parts that I have laying around and previously forgotten about, the build is nothing special, but should be reliable. One more hour or so to complete the build and "The Joker" will be ready to roll.

Thanks to Larry for hooking me up with his first-generation Purple Pearl Sizzurple Pugsley FF and wheels. It's the shzzit.

In Search of Singletrack

I was bored the other night and decided to search for youtube videos on mountain biking in Minnesota. I guess I was curious to see if there were any quality ride destinations that might be close by. I was pleasantly surprised to find that a brand new, purpose built 22mile/35km trail system recently opened near Crosby, MN, which is a mere 500km away. Yeah, 500km isn't exactly close, but when you consider that I used to drive that distance in order to race at Thunder Hill in Swan River back in the day, it starts to feel like a possible long weekend destination. Judging by this video, the trail designers value flow in their singletrack.



More...



This video gives a taste of some of the more technical trail sections...

Click for the official scoop on the 800 acre mountain biking playground.

I'm all for good riding that doesn't require driving all the way to the Maah Dah Hey, or the Rockies. So, who's up for a July long weekend road trip?

The Red Birch Fort Club Remembrance Day Ride

Thanks to Coach Bill for hosting a small group from the coolest local independent cycling clubs at his cottage in Pinawa. The Thursday evening night ride and the Friday morning scoot out the the Old Pinawa Dam were a fine way to get acquainted with the Pinawa area's fun trail network. Where the prairies meet the Shield means there's a bit of this and a bit of that, and lots of fun times. Throw in a some John Candy and beer for good measure and you have what will hopefully be repeated sometime—maybe sooner than later with Pugsleys and xc skis?

Halloween Race Videos

For this past weekend's Halloween cross race, Tom K of The Training Coop, set up numerous GoPro cameras at strategic points around the course. Edits have been made so you can now view many hours of footage in a number of smaller clips—just click here to enjoy.



Thanks, Tom.