The Official Guide to the World between the Wheels

2012 & Two Wheels

So this IS the "Official Guide to the World Between Two Wheels" so This year I'm expanding that from simple racing in the dirt to Pounding the Pavemnet in the Urban Areas not only by pedal power but also by Throttle!

I've been riding Evil Earl a lot lately and with the addition of the Belt Drive District I should have no shortage of terrific bikes to ride in the concrete jungle. The District, like most bikes and part of the fun of owning, will be upgraded and customized a little...two speed hub?? maybe. There may be a second Earl build on the horizon for which my friend may be responsible for. Stick around to see.

I have also finished my build of a fantastic DS 8.3 which as always will be my road bike for the season, unless of course a Domane finds its way to the "Storks Nest".

Since not having my own car for awhile I decided that a moto was required to provide a true guide to the world between two wheels. I also found that many friends who commute, race and travel by bicycle also ride motos. Now dont cast me off already..we all know cycling is tops for me! So please enjoy the upcoming season and return to read my adventures...theres sure to be plenty.

 

First get out there to your Trek dealer and grab a bike before the weather is consitantly nice and model selections are low!!!

 

Stork

Spring Roll

 

Learning to follow directions...helps

So many exciting and fantastic things to write about. I've been trying to finish up my safety training classes for a group at work so its been a little harder to get in great ride time but recently i've spent 2 weeks in Solvang CA on Trek Travel Ride Camps. Absolutely wonderful trips and I highly recommend that you research these before taking a bike vacation. Worth every dollar spent.

My first trip out to Solvang was in January. I got plenty of riding but due to a slight miscalculation on my part I never did climb the Figueroa to the correct location that Trek Travel had supported. Instead I made a turn onto a forestry road and climbed to the Lookout on my Ride Camp issued Madone 5.2 heck I didn't mind and the view was majestic to say the least. The gravel road climb added an extra level of excitement to the climb. Shortly after making the split i realized this was not the approved route but never the less i'm a mountain biker at heart and the Madone was tearing this gravel road apart like it owned the dirt.

This days ride began with a few extra people including Gary Fisher himself but once the rolling canyon road turned to an upward state and the pavement started winding in an around every nook of the mountain I found myself alone untill the support van drove by. Once coming to the van I was told it was only a few more miles to the top. Then I made the mistake a mile or so later when I saw the sign that listed the Lookout 2.5 miles ahead. I was actually suppose to stay on the pavement but as i said earlier...I didn't.

I went mountain biking the next day and on the last and final day I tried to get to the top but just ran out of time before having to leave so I only made the climb to the gravel road split where I had previously went the wrong way.

"No problem" I thought

"I will come back and I will show this mountain who I am" I said to myself

With a smile on my face I descended back to the canyon floor and pedaled to Solvang to pack up.

 

stork

 

2012 Start & Solvang

Wow where do I start? It's been a fantastic start to 2012! Recently I was in CA to visit my brother and to attend a Trek Travel Ride Camp in Solvang.
Sorry for the lack of posting but its been a busy start to the year. I will try to catch everyone up on things over the next few days here.
Anyway the people riding and views were absolutely grand. I got to hang with the main man Gary Fisher. Lots of Time with several Trek Product managers and inside people getting the scoop on new stuff. I also went to San Diego and did some product testing for some Bontrager stuff.

This photo was taken just 2.5 miles from the top of a nice 9 mile climb.
Stork

Road Riding

Heres a ride being navigated by none other than Tim Lyons with Rob and Don following. Once this group disbanded I sold my road bike. There just isnt many guys willing to follow my buddy Tim Lyons on roads like these.

stork

Unspoken

just me alone on my bike out on the foggy unoccupied back roads after dark or at least I thought I was alone.  With my Lupine Betty burning a hole in the night I quickly realized that I was sharing this time with others as I spotted many sets of reflective eyes from the nighttime creatures. I am not the only one that loves the Autumn Nights! 

Rolling along lonely roads while listening to symphonic metal from Draconian, Night Wish, Un Sun and Within Temptation gave me a slightly eerie feeling which was a motivator to keep moving yet I didn't feel unsafe or threatened but more alive and felt as if I belonged just as much as the raccoons, deer, possums cats and any other beings. In my mind I started to think of the Winter Nights when the Moon is bright enough that I shut down my artifical illumination (bike light) and ride the snow covered, extremely desolate roads by natural light only. If only more people could experience such a tranquil atmosphere like night riding!

Autumn RULES!

One smiling Stork.

Demo days

Come out to Moraine State Park this Sunday and try one of the many fantastic bikes from Trek. I will have a short trail marked off on the South Shore to demo mountain bikes and the road loop around the south shore will be used for the road bikes.
Bring a helmet, drivers license, major credit card and your riding gear including shoes. If you have an extra set of pedal bring them also. It makes it easier for the mechanics.
FYI. There will not be bikes or sale here it's just a great way to test out the products, ask questions and get a close up look at the Bikes. I will be around all day to field any questions and go for a couple of short rides with those interested.

Stork

South Shore just past the Park Office (left) and beyond the maint building on the right.

Time to Play in the Gray

Cool Dark Gray Days are so hard to work through! No Sun means awesome riding days! Night riding becomes more common and in no time at all we'll be seeing Winter and the best training environment....snow! muhhahahaha (evil laugh)

 

stork

Riding Season Starts

The official start of the riding season was September 23 which means its time to start putting away the short bibs and getting out the knickers and long sleeve baselayers.

The cooler weather has found me riding more often in Pittsburgh since its easier to go out for dinner and run errands on the bike without getting myself soaked from sweating.

With the coming of shorter days and much colder nights I've already begun transitioning the cold weather gear bins to the drawers. I've also ordered up my drivetrain for this winters bike and checked out all my cables headlamps and batteries to be prepared. Oh this is the season so see ya out on the trails or back roads!

stork

TW12 pt 2

So After pie on monday night with the locals I drove 25mins out of Madison to a park and rode with 3 Trek employees who invited me along, two of which currently race for the official Madison Store Mtb team. All 3 were very polite in showing me the course for the upcoming WORS event. The first thing I noticed was all 3 of them were riding 26" bikes? Whats up with that?? I tried to convince them to step up to an adult bike. Well the course here was extremely tight and twisty. Basically 8 miles of trails built in a Whole Foods Parking lot sized area! Coming fresh off of a Michaux Race this was a very hard adjustment for me. Those reading from the PA area will understand what I mean, Michaux is a 40 plus mile loop of the rockiest singletrack i've ever seen and its spread out using 40 miles of a huge 85,000 acre Forest. Well the course here in WI was fun fast and hard for me to keep up with Matt, Abby & Erik during the pre ride. With an extremely high heat index we only managed a lap and a half before we were all dry. I introduced Abby and Erik to the use of Peppermint Oil to reduce bugs and providing a cooling sensation to your neck.

We finished up and departed. back to the Hotel that I was calling home for 10 days and retired to bed. Wednesday morning was breakfast at IHop and then to the terrace to help assemble the Trek World Showroom floor. This is a job! Luckily I come from a construction background so its not hard for me to see the big picture of a finished job out of all the boxes and crates of material. I quickly got an assignment to assemble the bike display racks. A small group of us formulated a system and the racks came together quicker than you could imagine. 

I had to leave by 2:30 or so to head back to headquarters where i was meeting with the Pro Shop mechanics to see how they could help out with a creak i was getting on my Superfly. How cool was this? I rolled my bike into this secure workshop with pristine white walls and shiny floor. Bikes and parts for all the Pros rides were hanging and bagged neatly on shelves waiting to hit the next World Cup Race!

On the rack went my bike then I got asked several questions from 2 of the best mechanics. They  hit me left and right like i was on the lightning round of a game show. When all the questions stopped I was dizzy and somehow missed them disassembling most of my bike. They transitioned from questioning to answering almost immediately. Gosh Darn how did they do that??

Drop outs where off the bike and my ceramic bearing were laying on the bench.

"Here is your problem" they said

"your drop-outs got loose and wore off the edges and the bearing on the non-drive side is blown out" they continued

"Not a problem  just leave it here over night and everything will be complete tomorrow, and take this prototype bike to use on the trails"

Who was I to argue, so i took the full suspension 26" bike and left my bike in the Operating Room style Mechanics shops!

Sorry no pics allowed in the Pro Shop.

*stork