To be expected from a Van Buren Boy...

Changed the old header at the top of the page again.  Partially outta boredom.  Somewhat due to being sick of looking at the same, now dated image.  Mostly, an acknowledgment of the passage of time.

A sheriff down at the courthouse asked me recently, "you ride one of them bikes without brakes?"

And I had the same conversation I realized I've had for over two decades now.

More than twenty years ago, I took the brake off my converted-to-fixed, semi-horizontal dropped DeBernardi road bike.  It was around the same time that I decided to sell my last geared bike (at the time, an Ellsworth Id) and fully commit to the single speed life by buying a custom Spicer frame to replace my Planet X dirt jumper converted to SS mountain (but def not a jumper)... you know, my "lifer."

I thought that diving into a single speed only life meant no more endurance type events for me after a multi-year deep dive into 12/24 hour racing a couple years previous.  I'd seen Steve Fassbinder aka "Doom" walking around the 2001 24 Hour Solo World Championships with his Mad Max extras/Burning Man club entourage, and all I could think was if that's what it takes to be an endurance single speeder, I ain't it.  That's just what my brain told me.  I was only thirty four years old, so my brain was either still developing or in sharp decline.  Dunno.

Then I did ORAMM and won the SS category, thought "why not a stage race because it looks like no one has ever done that" so La Ruta, and then I was hooked on doing any and all the stupid things.

Turns out, I was pretty okay at bikes (even stupid luddite bikes) after all, sans the animal skin vest, spiked boots, and pilot goggles.  I was a "tryer."  I won some things.  Over time, I slowly added to my palmarès... albeit no other other than me (and mebbe my mom) was keeping track.  

Twenty some years later, it's getting harder and harder to remember when I used to mebbe be slightly better than pretty okay, but it did happen from time to time, but only some (very few) moments stick out.  One of the reasons I started my results page years ago was because I knew I'd have trouble remembering all the things.  Now when someone asks me "didn't you do such and such?"  I know the answer (if I have an Internet connection). 

So anyways, "I used to be pretty okay at bikes."

Now I can say that to myself when I'm climbing up a mountain a little slower than I used to or mebbe touching my brakes more frequently and mebbe more passionately on the descents than I'd like to in the name of saving my body parts for future fun down the road.  It's comforting to know that while I might've possibly slipped from being "pretty okay," I'm still clinging hard to the lukewarm realm of just okay.

I'm totally content with okay at fifty six.  Some people don't get to enjoy that, and I'm truly blethed (although it still takes a decent amount of effort to remain at this moderate level)...

and honestly, I think I'm fitter this July than I have been in years.  

So...

Oh yeah.  If Horny Cat is gonna happen (decision to be made when I get back from Breck), it's gonna be September 27th.