On the Injured Reserve

OK, it's not as bad as it sounds. I have a minor pull/strain in my hip flexor...it's actually 90% better than it has been the last two days. I've stayed off the bike and administered heavy doses of Rankin/Bass Christmas shows (ie, the Heat Mieser), a couple Sierra Nevada Celebration Ales and a few puppy dog kisses. I'm almost back to snuff.














I assume I injured myself due to the new geometry of the Rig. Make that, I didn't properly adjust my ride for my body type. Note to readers...never ride your bike "as is" when you leave the shop..adjust to fit!

I am taking a lot of days off this month, which means I will be taking a few day trips to ride at various riding hot spots. I hope to hit Avalon this Friday, if the weather holds...meaning if it doesn't rain. If it snows and the wind isn't ridiculous...it's on like Donkey Kong!

Be good!

I'm baaack!

Here's the good, the bad and the skinny:

• The Rig is in, all 29 inches and singlespeed-ness of her (picked up on Thursday).
• I have logged three wintery cold rides since (Thursday, Friday, Saturday)
• I've always rode in the winter, but I don't recall ever being so cold - shoe covers were purchased, Swobo beanie on Xmas wish list.
• Volk is a riding machine with his new Santa Cruz Blur.
• I am going through an adjustment period on the Rig. Still trying to see what tweaks will need to be made.
• The snowboarding season is upon us, which means I lose my riding buddies.

Cammy need Bikey

It's been too long for me. I'm getting the shakes. I need trails...pronto. Between work, house, and other extracurriculars, I haven't spent proper time on the bike. Scratch that. Proper time on the bike trails. I've spent a couple sessions on the trainer...the masochistic contraption. Oh, I smile when I'm on it, but I don't mean it!

I'm waiting for the Rig to get here. At least it's winter, so I don't have to pain for my bike during the best riding days. Speaking of pining for a bike...Volk is ready to rock-n-roll. He heas already taken the maiden voyage on his Blur and received his first flat. Just 'cause they're new, don't mean they're bomb-proof. He also equipped himself with another light, helmet and winter booties. I guess that means we'll be doing plenty of winter/snow rides...I'm down!

Me llamo Bradley called me out this weekend stating that the bike content has gone to the toilet and the beer content has gone way up. Merely a reflection of current times my friend. However, the point is well taken and I will put my best foot forward...Always at least a 50/50 split. Oh by the way Brad, when is the last time you hopped on a bike?? Oh SNAP! (ed note: Brad would probably still school me on the road.)

So what happened this weekend.

Friday: Relaxed with the women. Watched a couple of movies. WARNING BRAD, BEER CONTENT. Had two new beers. Rogue Chocolate Stout...yum-dog. Made with real chocolate. Would be a great dessert beer. Vanilla Ice Cream and Chocolate Stout. YESPLEASE! I also quaffed Magic Hat's Saint Goetz. It's a Dark Wheat Ale. Not my favorite, although I've never had a dark wheat ale before, so I can not base a true comparison. It smelled awful and tasted worse. I wouldn't pawn it off on my worse enemy. Although I wouldn't pawn most beers off to anyone.

Saturday: Had a nice little Saturday again. Did some housework, rolled on the trainer, then headed out on the town to celebrate some bdays with my boys. Brad and Shick turned older so we had a reason to celebrate. Cast of characters: Brad, Schick, Bum, Bucky and me. We headed to Fells Point and ended up in Canton trying to relive our glory years. From the sounds of Schick's voice mail the next day - Bars 1, Guys 0. There was apparently a lot of praying going on the next day. Porcelain God 1, Guys 0. Luckily I got out unscathed. Good times fellas.

Sunday: Are you ready for some football! I went to the Ravens/Steelers game. G-damn there are a ton of fanatics. Lots of fights over overpaid football players due to an enormous amount of alcohol. The game was relatively boring until it got to OT. Then the teams started to play like they were actually enjoying competition. Thanks to Volk for securing the tickets for Hoppe. Thanks to Hoppe for inviting me. We had great seats! Oh, and I think I am going to sue the Ravens for price gouging. I paid $16 for two beers...Miller Lites! That's retarded! I ended the evening by coming home to a nice cheesesteak which my wife secured for me...She's the best.

That's all folks!

Not much

Thought I'd share a few odds-n-ends.

Volk is [cross fingers] getting his long awaited Blur LT this week with conformation from Santa Cruz. He has been getting the run around from Fleet Street Cycles since he ordered his bike through them in June. SIX MONTHS!!! I believe a Wednesday ride is tapped if the weather holds.

I'm in the running to win the Mega-Millions...woo-hoo! Again cross-fingers...I have a 1 in 175 million chance [actual number].

I was lured to the Mega Millions after my hunt for this bad boy. I haven't quaffed yet.

Bliss.

Again with the LONG weekends already!

Here's the punchlist:

FRIDAY - Happy Hour with Hop at Brewer's Art. Volk comes later. We (Hop, Volk, myself) head to a Bachelor Party Eve celebration at Hooters for a college mate, Steve Hallowell. Enter Schrott. Exit stage left to Looney's in Canton. Theme for the evening became AHHWOOO! (think Rick Flair).

THE FLAIR

The Bachelor (aka Steve Hallowell and Bo...Cheers indeed!)

IT'S ONLY JUST BEGUN
The Bachelor (aka Drunk and Hoppe)

The discussion stages of an apparel line were borne from the cup. Hop and I are thinking of the next big thing....stay tuned.

SATURDAY - I had a nice little Saturday planned. Reupholster my dining chiars, hit Joann's Fabric Store...you know all that macho, beer-drinkin', gun-shootin' manly stuff. Actually, it's a guilty pleasure. Pop, the chairs turned out fantastic. Mom, the wall hangings rock! I thought the projects would take 4 hours or 12 hours...whatever's longer.

SUNDAY - CLEAN, HAVE DINNER PARTY, CLEAN, SET UP MY WINTER TORTURE DEVICE**, WRITE BLOG, GO TO BED, DREAM OF NEW BIKE.

In the words of the little German kid in the Sound of Music...GOOOOOD NIIIIIIIIGHT!!!!

**bike trainer and cyclo-core. my winter's morning cup o' butt-kickin'...HOOHAH!

Whistle while you work?

I don't know about you, but I've had notime to whistle - let alone write this blog. Work has been a lil' bit hectic. It's all good though. I've found some time to hit evening mass at the dirt church with my boy Hop.

Last night we rolled with a little "motivation" to get to the mid-point. The trails were slick and I found myself on the ground more than I was in my saddle. Night+Leaves+Slick Mud+Bike That Needs Attention = Cam on Butt. Don't let my words fool you, I love riding at night.

Oh yeah, what was the motivation?

Hit the spot...Probably would pair well with spicier foods and may be the new secret weapon in my famous "in my own head" chili!!

After we divulged in the malty goodness bestowed on us by the hops gods, we christened the trail the Chipotle Trail and we made haste back to the church parking lot.

Riding in the dark is weird. You are so focused on the trail. 100% of your attention is focused on where the trail is and where it is going. You get a better feel of balance and how to deal with wheel slips and other various obstacles. What you don't factor in is your riding buddy ducking into the brush only to scare the living hell out of you. I think a little poop came out when Hop quite artfully scared the living hell hell out of me. For this, he wins RideCam's First Annual Ass of the Week Award (I know annual and week don't mesh, but I probably won't be handing the award out often - so deal).

ASS OF THE WEEK

Congrats Matt!

Until next time..HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Long Weekend

I'm glad to be back at work so I can wind down from the weekend. It was a long one.

Friday evening started off with me heading to Bill Bateman's to get some wings for din-din. As I waited for the wings I had a couple Brewer's Art Ressurections...yum-dog! The wings came and I darted home to see my beautiful wife with wings in tow. I came home to a voice mail that she was going to happy hour and asked me to come down. Well, I had two nice belgian beers in my belly, a peck of little spicy chickens and a sixer of Clipper City's Loose Cannon Hop 3 Ale to be dealt with. So I told her to have fun and I was on my way to lounging with my co-pilot, Cobi.


Loose Cannon, a part of the Rough Seas brews, was a tasty number packed with a powerful hoppy taste. You have to be a fan of hops to enjoy. If not, I do not recommend it. Here's what Clipper City had to say about it:


ABV: 7.5%
Malts: Crisp English Pale, Carapils, and Munich
Hops: Magnum, Centennial, Chinook, Amarillo and Palisade
Loose Cannon Hop3 Ale is a triple hopped IPA containing over 3 pounds of hops per barrel. Not for the faint of palate, it has an intensely floral, spicy, and citrusy hop aroma and flavor. Available year round in October 2005


Saturday, my family came up to help Kris and I paint our family room and hang waincoting in our downstairs bathroom. My pop did a bang up job hanging the waincoting. It's nice having an expert teach this young jedi. I believe my mom found her calling as a ceiling painter. She definitely amazed herself and I was tickled pink to see her knock out the entire ceiling. The basement looks amazing now!

Till next time...See ya!

Evening Mass at the Dirt Church

Where does one go to find a little peace during a Thursday evening...to the Dirt Church (aka, Loch Raven's Seminary Trail). From this point on, all weekday rides will take place under a veil of darkness. Hop and I hit up our first real night ride (other than Big Bear) this year. It definitely switches up the ride a little. Dark + Leaf Covered Trails = Where is the Trail. It was definitely a blast. I took the Sugar out and left her in one gear. I'm still having ghost shift issues, which I plan to take care of this winter with a new drivetrain.

Funniest moment: On the way back to the parking lot Hop and I were discussing how scary it is to see deer in the woods at night. In mid-sentence I must have hit a tree branch and in literally a split second I was face to face with terra firma. And I quote:

Cam: Yeah, seeing deer eyes at night is scary sh....(fall, and without hesitation)...much like this dirt floor.

I guess it was more physical comedy than literal, so I apologize if you do not find this funny. Hop knows the humor!

So, after the fall, I grabbed my bike from out of the tree and we headed back. The End.

Rock and Roll

ROCK

Made a couple iTunes purchases recently. I have been listening to bootleg versions of the John Butler Trio mostly garnered through Kazaa, so finally I decided to pay the man! I picked up his latest album, Sunrise Over Sea, which is everything I have come to expect...very organic and soulful. I'm a huge acoustic anything fan and for most of the album that's what you get. There's a lot of flavor wrapped in his style - a little rock, a little jam band, a little blues, a little bluegrass. I definitely recommend giving it a spin if you get the chance.


I also picked up Jamie Cullum's TwentySomething. This was more of a surprise for the wife, but I ended up taking a liking to it. He's a hard one to pin a label on, but a safe answer would be a Harry Connick-ish type musician with tons and tons of energy. Apparently his live show is a whirlwind and he's not afraid of doing covers, which I guess means that he's not overly in to himself. He did a decent rendition of Hendrix' Wind Cries Mary on the TwentySomething album. Although it hasn't been in heavy rotation, it's been a nice edition to mix up the musical selection.

ROLL

Hop and I are hitting up the season's first real night ride at Loch. Should be a blast. More to come! I am jonesin' for the JohnnyRide to come in! Man, if this is a fraction of what it's like expecting a new born, I may explode!

To commute or not to commute...

The clocks fell backwards and so has the number of days I commute to work. It looks like hunting season is sparking up and commuting season is winding down. There's just not enough time to get back to my truck before the lights go out. I know there are hardcore commuters out there that ride year round and I applaud them, but the backroads of B-more just don't allow for the convenience and safety factors that play a huge role in my morning vehicular decision. So, until the days become longer once again, My road bike will be relegated to the trainer and weekend jaunts...Sorry faithful readers.

However, the Rig will be working overtime, my mechanical skills will be ramped up during my quest to make my Sugar the race weapon it was intended to be, and I'll have other wild antics to discuss in the blog.

I say goodbye!

The Year Halloween Didn't Happen

Bah, work...schmerk! I was in the confines of Fort PHH until 8:00 last night so I missed the little trick-or-treaters. Oh well. When I got home I did get a treat in the form of a voice mail message, relaying the fact that my bike should be ready by mid-November.

In addition to it typical specs, he will adorn a CK headset and Time Pedals. Sweet boobaka! Hopefully in time to get in a Gambrill Turkey Day ride. Of course these rides usually get thwarted by the Macy's T-day Parade, football, Mom's Chex Mix, Turkey Feast, Sleepy time and Turkey Sandwich. I betcha the Rig will motivate this holiday junkie!

Oh, so you noticed I said "he" when I referred to the bike. He's dressed in all black, so with a nod to my Granpap's favorite country singer...The steed will be addressed as the "JohnnyRide".

An avid cyclist and Innocent Criminal (as in Ben Harper's band) wrote the following children's book detailing the freedom a bike brings.














http://www.benharper.biz/mikeandbike.html

We need more books like these for children, which may be the impetous needed to get them off the couch and on the bike....Obesity problem solved! Some people may know the gent who wrote the forward. Avid roadies may know the narrator. I wonder if there is any mention of "dancing on the pedals."

On a weird note, on my drive home last night through the backroads of Northern B-more County I saw a huge green flash. Between staring intently for deer in the fields and it being Halloween...I think a little pee came out. Because I am on the eternal quest for all things useless information I had to track down the possible source of this phenomenon. I present to you the Richmond Times Dispatch...not sure how I ended up with that.

No more, so make like a tree and get the hell out of herre!

A sweet weekend

Not much time to post, but here's the skinny:

Friday: Pre-Homecoming Shindig at Little Havana in Federal Hill. Saw a lot of old heads that I haven't seen in a long, long time. Good times indeed.

Some pictures have been witheld to protect the innocent:

[Frat bros: Keith, Meat, Chuck and yours truly]















[Apparently we were all giving the gas face to Faith as she snapped some pics]















[See, I wasn't lying. Frat bros Craig and Stork]
















Saturday: Homecoming. The frat put on a good show. Most of the Friday night revelers were nursing their wounds. Again, good times!

Sunday: Relax. The Rig has been put on order...more to come!

That's all for now, back to work!!!!

I'll watch..thankyouverymuch!

This event is slightly nutty. Who will sponsor it? Of course Red Bull will! We've had urban bike battles, crazy big hit bike events in remote areas of the world and some off-the-wall mountain bike events sponsored by the "high" energy drink company. Now this:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=features/2005/redbull_road_rage

With riders like this:














And he's a roadie!!! See, they aren't all straight-laced, high-strung elitists!

The Decision

The results of the exhausting, time-consuming, nail-biting, stressful search is over....
Introducing my next steed to the exclusive RideCam Stable:

The Gary Fisher Rig will soon be purchased and I will once again be "singled" out with big boy tires (29 inch). I will make some immediate upgrades to the stock components, like trading out the crappy Cane Creek headset with a Chris King (color choice undetermined), and the Shimano pedals with Time Atacs. I may want to swap the seat post and stem with the Salsa gear I currently have on my Surly and the handlebar with my Surly Torsion.

I feel like a kid in a candy store! I can't wait to get this bad boy on the trail!

The War Wagon

Okay, so for some time I have promised some pictures of my rides. Unfortunately my work horse Surly met an untimely demise, but I'm sure I have some older pics somewhere. I will also be posting the breakage and the creation of the SS converted Karakoram...much like MC7's.

So here's the War Wagon (older model Bianchi touring bike) at work. I have since replaced the saddle. The Selle Italia Bianchi edition saddle looked sweet, but it felt like I was sitting on a jagged brick. She's the beaut' that gets me to and fro on my commute of approximately 29 miles round trip.
















Bike parking at work. Not under cover, but it's a start.




















The route to work. Mostly the last two miles. This doesn't depict the somewhat bustling country road that encompasses the majority of my trek, but it really is the nicest part of my ride, pretty countryside which I can slow down ( a little) and enjoy...horses, old barns, green fields.
















This picture does no justice. This is a steep hill at the end of the ride. after you get past the elipse of the first section of road, it drops off pretty significantly. If you look hard enough you can see the road again a little below the center of the picture.















More pictures of family, friends, bikes, trips, general good times, and my beautiful wifey to come.

Also a decision has almost been reached with my new bike. I believe I'll be going the 29er SS route...The GF Rig! A little more research needs to be done first.

Rainy Saturday Rainy

No Gambrill
No Single Speed
No Wife
No Crap

I'm a little bored today. We had a nice little Saturday planned until God decided otherwise. I was scrambling to piece together a bike for the Gambrill trip. The Karakoram was about to adorn the Empress' (my Surly's) Old Clothes. Then the weather report kicked in and the Gambrill trip was held until November. So no Gambrill.

Yes, the Flying Monkey is a goner. I'll miss her, but a timely phone call from my pops put a little kick in my step. Can you say Christmas present? Gotta love supportive parents who understand where I come from. Now I get to do some soul searching/bike shopping. But still...No Single Speed.

My wife and I were supposed to do movie and dinner last night, but high pressure systems kick her hiney with major headaches (I type with soft fingers this morning). Hoping she feels better so we can head out this evening. But until then...No Wife.

What's a kid to do? Dust off the ol' Cyclo Core video and get my ass handed to me by Graeme Street...you evil bastard. The video workout definitely has shown me that my pain threshold is a lot higher then I thought and the rewards for pushing yourself are endless. Other than that, do some well needed cleaning and playing with Cobi!

Wet Commute

I woke up yesterday having watched the weather report late the night before. Skies are crispy and clear! A little cold, but tolerable. So I head in to work. Feeling great! A Senior VP catches me in the parking lot and said what a wonderful way to start the day. Indeed, it is!

So, the day dredges on and I look out the window in anticipation for my ride home. What are all these dark clouds about? Hmmm. I check out accuweather.com and low and behold rain. I'm not afraid of riding in the rain, but I do fear the drivers. So I ask my boss if I could shove out a little early. With great delight, she said yes. So I get ready to roll out of the parking lot and here comes the rain! Not the typical warm tropical showers of late spring and summer, but the first cold rain of the season. The first couple of minutes were a shock to the system.

Well at least it was 3 o'clock, not too many cars on the road. Wrong. Now what we have are big ol' school busses. Gotta love the ever changing world of commuting.

Got home to a big ol' pasta dinner and a warm shower.

Gambrill isn't looking too good this weekend...updates to come.

Initiation Night for Camma Krakka Frama

Rest in Peace Flying Monkey

To those who don't know, The Flying Monkey said goodbye last night at the Loch Raven Reservoir Bridge Trail. She, a Surly 1x1, had a strong run, but alas her poor ol' heart..er..chainstay coudn't handle the pounding it has received over the years. You see...she was a rescue. A poor slob couldn't take care of her any longer, so I took her under my wing no questions asked. My guess is that she didn't get her shots (of rustproof on the inside of the frame). She held up for 4 to 5 good years with nary a complaint. Her untimely demise was quick and painless (for both of us), but the emotional trauma still is lingering. Her last words were "keep on single speedin' good buddy...keep on keepin' on. I'll miss you Miss Flying Monkey...godspeed!

[Insert Boys II Men's Goodbye to Yesterday]

Now on to look for other SS's. Do I go 29 or stay 26? Surly or Vicious? Go broke or broker? Damn the decisions. When I was a single lad without many priorities the decision was easy. Maybe it's time to get that part time job and build my dream SS. Until then, I think I'm going to convert an old frame so I have something to do during the winter. And you thought you were sent to pasture Kara! My GT Karakoram is coming out of retirement! Okay, I gotsta talk about something else.

The commute today was chilly and somehow I managed to go .4 miles less than usual which I am baffled by...must be a computer glitch. forgot to strap on the arm warmers and paid on the 25-35 mph descents. But after a while the wool got warmed up and the fleece although bulky was appreciated...it seemed like I was still in bed. I saw another biker on the road today. I thought it was a co-worker so I amped up my pace to catch up, which never happened. I saw a red Trek VW jersey, which makes me think it could have been Chris Eatough because he lives out this way. And no, I never even got close. The person took off like fire! My gut says Chris, but odds say Trek VW wearing road general (I was going to poser, but the dude was flying!)

New in the musical rotation is Reverend Run's Distortion. It takes me back to the Raising Hell days, when my brother and I would be playing marathon games of MicroLeague Baseball and in between innings pretending to be Jam Master Jay. The CD is relatively short, but packed with a ton of old school flavor...my favorite being his tribute to Jay with Lynard Skynard's Sweet Home Alabama as the hook. I'm not sure what the connection between the two are, but the lyrics are great and the music is...well...legendary. A great mix of rock and rap...something Run DMC started (or at least brought to the mainstream)...Limp Bizkit who? Maybe the connection is that both group lost the heart and soul of their bands in such a tragic and unnecessary fashion...Oh well, I don't typically dote on musical interpretation too often.

Hop thanks for the CD! And for finding me in the forest last night...I will never take the "shortcut" again.

Stay the essense of pulchritudiness, ya'll.

Up that hill!

THIS JUST IN: I broke 1,000 hits on my website...rock on RideCam!!

Oy...the ride home last night seemed like it took forever and a day!! I had the cyclometer on for the ride home just so I could gauge mileage and see my top speed...I am sort of a speed freak. I wasn't riding for time though. Just get my butt from point A to point B. I rolled in the middle chainring for the entire ride...Lance style. It felt like I was dragging arse through the backroads. When I got back to the truck, it seemed like my time was the worst ever. Oddly enough I posted a 52 minute ride...which I believe is a personal best for me on the ride back.

The last hill into Glyndon proved to be a grinder which had me standing and mashing...hellish!

The good news is that the Smartwool rocks! The midweight LS is toasty when cold , breathable when warm. It also seems like the sweat acts as another thermal layer. Most synthetics chill to the bone on longer road efforts. Damn, I should get sponsored by Smartwool :) No seriously...that would be great.

It's been awhile...I missed ya!

So, what's been going down since we last spoke? Hmm. I had a brief hiatus from the bike and running due to some slight knee aggravation and the 90 feet of rain we received last week!! I hopped on the bike on Friday to commute into work and the "big" hill seemed twice as long.

Saturday, I rocked out with Hoppe and Volk-man at the Maryland Brewers Association's Oktoberfest drinking the finest of swill from the area's brewmasters. Clay Pipe once again proved to be the brew of choice. They had all of their guns blazing - 1andDone, Pursuit of Happiness, Backfin, Blue Tractor, etc. I just wished they would bottle more of their beer. I guess we'll just have to pick up pony kegs. Hoppe was having his way with pumpkin ales in a pursuit to find the finest gourded nectar...I think we decided that Ellicott Mills reigned supreme, while Red Brick should have their pumpkin (ale) smashed. I was hoping it was a tainted keg, but round two much later proved otherwise.

We ended up hanging out and listen to music and Kirk (from the 98 RockMorning show) MC the Beer Belly and Ms. Oktoberfest contest. The Beer Belly winner was an absolute anomaly. His gut hung past his knees...no lie. Matt was given a free pass to punch me directly in the face if I ever got to that point. We got to talk to Kirk for a little while too. What a cool, very approachable guy...he actually walked over to us...he's funny as hell.

After we had our fill, Volk coersed (yeah right) to going to Recher theatre to enjoy some reggae-ish/311-ish music from Colouring Lesson. We grabbed some grub at CVP and hit the first act, Can't Hang...pretty decent. After Colouring Lesson, the Big Hurt came on and their name is spot on...so we rolled. Volk...you deserve a medal for taking care of us two goons...sincere thanks!

Sunday...Cammy sleepy, no ridey to Walkersville like he wanted to. Hung out with my fam and other relatives...most notably my cousin and her baby daughter, Julia...What a sweetheart. We also celebrated my Aunt Dixie's birthday which is tomorrow. We all enjoyed the fruits of my mom's labor in the kitchen. She made a Thanksgiving feast, which is exactly what I needed!!

I commuted today as well, took some pictures of my route which I'll post later. I wore my Smartwool long sleeve and REI fleece vest. The Smartwool is toasty, but I'll need to get a wind jacket or vest. While the fleece is nice, it gets too soggy and heavy.

Hop and I are investigating the world of home brewing...more to come!

Gambrill Saturday? Indeed wit da Single Speed...big hurt!

Until next time RideCam reader's...have a beer for me..