Happy New Year

Three months into the New Year and WoW

How time flies.

I'll post this as a way to keep progress of keeping track of my story.

Sometime ago I was contacted by someone who wanted to re-post 30 year old photos of me and friends riding mountain bikes in Crested Butte Colorado.

I said no. I let him think it was because I wanted money for the images and story. The real reason is I want to manage My Story. So, here I am taking my time to tell my story the way I want to. It will take a long time. I am in no hurry. I have lots of stories to tell, lots of tails to describe and Wow what a great time I have had with friends riding bikes. I'll be back with more...Later.

Independent Minded

Where is my head at?
On my MTB ride today I took off my helmet to take a photo of a flower and left it on the side of the trail.

After going some miles and getting ready to Down Hill I knew I could not go forward but would have to backtrack and get it.

Along the way we asked if any other rider had seen it and sure enough someone said it was 1/3 of the way up the trail, so off we went for an easy recovery.
Not so. No White Bell Helmet.

Asking a rider he said he saw another with one matching the description attached to his seat post.

This information was confirmed at the parking lot.

So, Find me on FaceBook or here and let me know if I can get it back.

AND

For those of you who are here for  the first time - Welcome - Most of the old POSTS will have NO Images - I am in the process of creating watermarks on them all to preserve copyrights.

I only have one person following me as of Today.

If you want me to post more often, Let me know.

Thanks for Sharing...

H

Spring is here-With every new season there are new opportunities for Re-Creation and Renewal.
After nearly 7 years at the same job as part of World Wide Workforce Reduction (WFR) I am in a new season of life looking for new employment opportunities.

My cycling over the winter consisted of indoor training on a turbo trainer attached to the good old 1977 Motobecane. Just enough to keep the leg grease from solidifying. The first jump into the saddle I was out of breath in 15 seconds and my butt screamed Get Off Now! Next go around I rode 3 min. then 15 then over 30-45 min to keep the legs and saddle bones in tune for the upcoming change in season.

I like beer. Not too excess and my belly shows it. Jiffy Pop Belly. My weight is stable so visiting my favorite Boise brewery has health benefits. And the Art Work of Kelly Knopp is fun. Go see sometime.

The end is here.

How do I know the end is here? On Monday I went for a MTB ride with a good friend (10 years older) and he beat me up the hills. On the way back to the parking lot my left crank arm fell off. OK, no big deal. But I am a certified bicycle mechanic. I should have a flawlessly maintained bicycle. 

Another indicator that the cycling season is over for the year. The trails were a bit messy. Snow and melting ice, mud on the north slopes. We turned around at the top of the main trail so as not to leave ruts.

My toes were cold. Not what I want when bicycling. Many people continue riding all year long. Not me. I have the gear but I want to be warm when I ride. When it gets cold, with snow on the ground, let's go skiing.

And

This morning a good friend invited me on a trip to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in September 2014!

So, untill next year (or warmer weather)

Another cycle year comes to a close.

Made in france

A lot of what I like in life was made in France. 

My wife 

and 

a 1977 Motobecane Grand Sprint road bike my step-father gave me for my 50 birthday.

No need to Frankenbike the Kona with drop bars.

When the French bike arrived from California with most all original parts and newer tires, I was not quite comfortable with the seat height and arm reach. I found a longer seat post, my favorite WTB saddle and a stem with flat bars. The brake levers I first used gave braking a very hard feel. The difference in the pulling leverage with traditional vs. linear pull levers was quite apparent especially after putting on a set of levers with 2 positions for the cable pull. Sorry, no photo of the flat bar setup.

How it was

and now much better

And the Wife?

Glad you asked. The most beautiful woman in the world to me...

Buy; Build or Borrow

To help pay for the truck motor re-build I sold my 700c Cross Bike.  This was a Franken bike cobbled together from a frame I found at the Boise Bicycle Project. The groupo came from Andrew Little Boise, ID Owner at Got Fixed bikes. There is not a photo of it as I only had it long enough to get the stem adjusted for my fit 3 days ago. To ride may age on Sept. 15, 2013 I will need a different bike or Drop Bars on my Mountain Bike converted to a ride to work commuter:

From this

to

This

Close shave

I should know better that to try to adjust my set height while clipped in.

Now I know why bicyclists shave. I was not really hurt at the time. Fell over while attempting to track stand and adjust my seat for the asphalt ride back to the cars after a great mountain bike ride with friends old and new.

Pride comes before the...fall. And it sure did this time. Hurt the most this morning pulling off the first bandage to put this one on. I'll be smarter and shave. Changing the bandage pulls the hair, it gets stuck in the wound and hurts way more then the fall in the first place. As I pulled up the bandage I grabbed some scissors and cut the hair. I never really noticed how long my arm hare is. After a close trim with the scissors I got a new disposable double blade razor and went after the rest.

The photo above does not show how close a shave there is around AND THROUGH the wound. Yes, I ran the new razor over the wound and finished off any remaining long hairs with the scissors or pulled them out with tweezers. Ouch.

This event should not prevent me from attempting to ride may age. The half way to eternity ride September 15, 2013 if I can get a friend to partner for it. Two weeks to train.

(I plan on doing the shorter ride from Adrian, Idaho. The round trip from there to the end of the road is about 55 miles.)

Come join us:

SUNDAY, September 15 9:30 am is the- Jason Werst Memorial "Century" Ride.

This is an informal century ride that has no entry fee. Actually in a typical Jasonesque manner the full "century" is 112 miles. Turning around at the base of the Owyhee dam makes it a regular century. The full course goes to the end of the road.  If you want to get the best 50 miles of the ride you could meet the front of the group n Adrian, Oregon between about 11;10 and 11:20 at the Adrian Market.

The ride group meets at the lower dam of Lake Lowell and will roll out at 9:30 am. The ride is quite beautiful, very rural and provides views of the Snake river, Owyhee river and the canyon that it dug.

No Entry fee, No Registration, No insurance, No organized support. No Numbers, No T-Shirts. Just a group ride in great terrain with fellow cyclists in memory of a fine fellow. 

You can learn more about Jason and the impact he had on people at this Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/239774832745484/

The Out & Back route was first ridden by Jason and a group of friends on September 19, 2010 in celebration of 2nd anniversary of Jason's stem cell transplant as he wrestled with his Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

The next edition was being planned when Jason's Leukemia re-emerged in September 2011. This world lost Jason last October.

This should show the route http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/56394906/

We have scheduled the ride for the 3rd Sunday every September as an informal fund raiser for the for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Boise chapter in Jason's honor.

The ride is informal and though there will be some limited support this year from G Corsa thanks to the generosity of Mike Cooley. Volunteers to drive sag/water  on course are welcome.

Stores for fuel and natural breaks are available in
Homedale (Miles 13
Adrian Mile 29 (Adrian Market you can do a 45 or 55 mile beaut of a ride from here)
Adrian Mile 83 (or 72 if you turn at the dam)
Homedale Mile 98 (0r 87 if you turn at the dam)

So carry a little cash and support the local merchants.

If you would like we encourage you to make a donation in Jason's Honor online at

http://www.lls.org/#/waystohelp/donate/donateonline/

Whether you can make a donation or not, and whether you had the pleasure of knowing Jason or not, we welcome and encourage you to join us.

If you would like a shorter ride with the group then drive to Adrian and the round trip from there to the end of the road is about 55 miles.
St. Luke's Sports Medicine/ Lost River Cycling