Legit Reasons for Throat Punches

Some updates and random bits.

My frame is moving along.

Sean is diligently toiling away in his arts and crafts studio to make sure that I will have the ability to make great bike race in less than a month at the 6 Hours of Warrior Creek and then (weather dependent) Dragon's Tale.  Given that I've had much time to rethink certain thoughts, I've decided to go from a 135mm rear to a 142X12. 

Why?

Partly because "the industry" tells me I need it.  Partly because I think it has its benefits, slight as they are.  Mostly because of this:

It took some finagling, but I'm finally ditching the bolt-on 5mm skewers for something else.

I've always like the concept of the DT Swiss Thru skewer.  I even had one on my Tallboy.

That was the first generation.  Clodgy design though.  Abysmal. 

The second generation looked better, but still left me confuse.

Less stupid looking, but still... when you consider which surface will be pushed on when tightening the skewer, sense it does not make.

So I've been in love with the Specialized version for quite some time.  Problem is, they are for the most part only available on complete bikes and wheelsets.  The 9mm front is more rare than an albino monk.  I got lucky and snagged one on eBay.  My local bike shop pulled some strings and the rear is on the way.  No more keeping a 5mm handy and this is cause for some other changes I may or may not entertain.  I'll be taking the skewers (and endcaps) to work with  me today to see how much this is gonna cost me in terms of lost watts.  If only the firm had a wind tunnel to go with the postal scale...

The Big Red S... I know.   I'm gonna just tell myself the S stands for Sizzlin'.

In the world of somewhat more random and down the road, I saw that Maxxis is coming forward with a 29+ tire, which was pretty much my idea.

Introducing the Chronicle.

photo cred: Bike Rumor

Frazzled

I'm feeling it.

photo cred: Team Nicky

I finally added a few things to the "season."  Things that complicate things more than they complement other things. 

May was already packed with PMBAR, Pisgah 111k/55.5k and the Trans-Sylvania Epic.  Nothing more to add, but I wanted to do the TWO DAY VERSION of the Pisgah Enduro in June... but it's now the weekend right after I get back from the seven day TSE.  Too many weekends away in May, nine days in a row for TSE the week before.  The Enduro won't happen for me in 2014.

What about the rest of June?  What to do with all that fitness earned at TSE?

Nothing until Iron Mountain 100k on the 29th.  A little too much time between earning some stage race legs and that race and now perhaps a little too close to something I refused to miss this year, the 19th Annual Tour de Burg.  Basically I'd be going three hours up to Virginia to race 100k on Sunday, coming home for two days to work, and then going five hours back up to Virginia to race for five days.  I've been wanting to do the Iron Mountain race for years... there was always a conflict with ORAMM.  Finally decide to not do ORAMM and now the old conflict is gone just to be replaced with a new one.

Speaking of ORAMM, a big load of riding in early July usually puts me in great shape for it.  Now I've got nothing to use my TdB fitness on except perhaps setting a PR mowing the lawn.  After the Tour de Burg is over on July 6th, the next thing I have to look forward to is a MANCATION.

Yep, I chose a bro-down over the Breck Epic this August.  Why?   Because someone came up with the idea.   This trip basically takes any attempt to do SSWC or SSUSA off the table which is fine with me.  Yes, I did already register for SSUSA, so there's $65 less I can spend on cycling caps this year.  The trip itself?  Bill Nye, Wirun and I.  Out West.  Moab to start...

My Spurcycle Ringer™ bell(s)

I did get my Spurcycle Ringer™ bell(s) on Saturday via the postman.  I was much excite when I came home and found them in my mail receptacle.

I immediately mounted them up.

One on The Fastest Bike in the World.

The other... well, I was going to save it for the Vertigo build, but the stoke levels were too high.  Besides, I woulda had to mount a rear brake lever to my the handlebar to figure out the positioning, and I've already done too much prebuilding of the Vertigo that might need unbuilding when the building begins.  Not wanting it to sit unused and ignored, it was mounted on my personal Enduro™ machine, complete with Enduro™ approved and highly recommended 27.2 Thomson Elite Drooper.

The brake lever was the limiting factor.  Hard to get the bell in a place where it can be readily actuated without too much effort.  It will also (maybe) fill up with rain mounted like this... who knows? The lever slightly protrudes above the bars, so it is slightly exposed to possible damage.

Tidy from the front though.

Except for that paper clip looking lever sticking out, it's hardly recognizable.

As far as performance goes...

The Official Unofficial Guide to 2014 NAHBS Charlotte

Getting quickly to the point, I believe the information regarding what to see, do and eat in Charlotte during NAHBS is quite lacking on the official site.  Only six restaurants listed (one of which being a high dollar steak house type place with no prices on the menu... pretty sure they serve shark), five "THINGS TO SEE" that are all motor sport related (Wooooooooo Earnhardt!), and only seven places listed under "NIGHT LIFE" (three of which I've actually been inside).

I decided I would add my two cents, which is actually more like one cent since I really stopped doing anything entertaining in the uptown over a decade ago.  A 44 year old messenger in a city with only four messengers... let's just say the hey day of the messenger scene has come and gone.  Some of my information will be dated, some current, little of it actually relevant.  Enjoy.

Team Dicky's Official Unofficial Guide to Making Great Happy Fun Times at NAHBS 2014 Charlotte

Best transportation to see the town if you don't have a car or bike: Charlotte has a sweet light rail line called LYNX that goes right through the Convention Center.  All kinds of cool places to go along the line, super cheap, and runs till just after midnight... and then you're on your own.

Best place to call if you can't leave the convention center but start feeling hungry:  Good Runnings will bring you food stuffs from many local eateries and whatnot, and they'll bring it to you on a (non-handmade) bike.

Best place to drink local brew: Triple C Brewery.  Why there?  You can get there by light rail (New Bern stop), it's open till 9:00 so you'll be out in plenty of time to enjoy something else later, and they serve Baby Maker... I love Baby Maker.

Best place to drink free beer:  Here, of course:

The Spoke Easy Afterparty, Saturday night.  Beer, gold sprints, beer, food, beer... also accessible by light rail... just don't forget the whole "turn into a pumpkin" thing around midnight.  A very easy ride from uptown.  It takes me twelve minutes when I get off work from the dead center of town.  Good times will be had, memories will be erased.

Best place to drink cheap beer:  Common Market Southend.  Upsides?  You can walk or take the light rail there, you can walk in, buy a six pack at six pack prices and drink it there, and they have a nice patio.  Downsides?  It's pretty much a hipster scene, expect to get mustache wax on you, and due to it's popularity, it might (will) get crowded.

Time to change my underwear

So there was one other thing of much excite on Tuesday.  More excite than finding out my bells are nearer?


Yes, more so than that.

More than getting my 27.2 Thomson drooper that will make riding in the Pisgah seven times better than cookies for every meal?

Yes, even more so than that.

Sean from Vertigo let me know that he was posting some images of my frame getting built up over on flickr.  So far, I'd been hanging onto the image of three tubes and a frame drawing to stimulate my imagination.

And that was all I had until the bent seat tube image showed up a few days ago.

I was not sure what to expect.  I clicked over to the gallery, hands shaking, pupils bouncing, sweat on my forehead... probably had more to do with all the No-Bake cookies I just ate.  More than probably.

Anyways, I started poring over the images.

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmitering.  Good sign.  The tubes don't fit together all too well without a little bit of this.  That is almost the limit of my knowledge of the world of frame building.

I asked Sean why he was using such a portly chainstay brace.  My bad.  Apparently that thing that looks like a die one would roll in a game of Dungeons and Dragons is part of the whole frame building apparatus/process.  Who knew?

And boom, just like that, he was welding pieces parts to one another.  My bike had begun to take shape.

That was all, and then I forgot to check back on the flickr page for awhile....

until Sean posted this on Facebook last night.

Qu'est que c'est?

Such Excite

Just when things seemed so slow, so mundane, so February...

Tuesday, I had three reasons for much excite.

Firstly, my bells are in a box and coming towards me now.

Never has there been such a powerful draw between two things occupying space since Connor MacLeod met the Kurgan.  We were meant to be together, and soon I will be complete just as will they.  Ask not for whom the bell tolls, as it tolls for anyone in my way, be it crosswalk, bike path, trail, or NAHBS showroom floor.


Other excite?

The final solution to all my KS LEV drooper woes.

Yes, I have the rarely seen in the wild (because it's not quite yet in production) 27.2 Thomson Elite drooper.  Why did I get it?  Because I can be really persuasive (begging).

Brief historical stuff.

The Meat Carver was purchased because the only thing I liked about the Specialized FSR something something full squish shifty bit bike was the drooper and the big fjork.  I wanted a fun bike of mine own, but all my bikes were 27.2... and I did not see a viable option out at the time.  Some may point out that there were two, maybe three companies making 27.2 droopers then.  They just weren't an option (for me).

So I bought the Meat Carver and installed a 31.6 Thomson drooper.  Much happiness followed.

Except, as we are all aware, the Meat Carver had its shortcomings.  When I made plans to get a Vertigo, there was no point in keeping a fourth single speed as there was now a 27.2 option from KS LEV that appeared to be viable, Thomson drooper on the horizon.

The Return of the Prodigal Post... Baby Steps

I got it back... again.

It works... again.

I don't think I'll have to worry about it anymore.  You'll understand later or not.

More progress on the Vertigo... I know what you're thinking.  It's not the arrival of the most incredible bell ever .

I wish.  Almost as good though.

That's my seat tube. Remember when I said my frame will be worked into the mix?  Well, this is "the mix," and it's getting worked.  I am very excite.  With this certain amount of inability to ride a mountain bike I've experienced lately, I've passed some time looking at crabon instant gratification.  You can ask The Gentle Ginger.  He'll tell you as much.  I'm a weak man, or just a bored one.  Or both.

Other good news from the Pacific Northwest?

This is going to work on my frame.

Sorta.  The way it's supposed to be put together, it has a 51mm chainline, which is a no-go....

but take the ring off and flip it?  Boom.  57mm chainline.  Sean figured that out.  I just read the email.  Bonus aspect of this brilliance?  I get a much more subdued looking machine from the drive side.

I like it... because it's blek.