Last day of the year.......

999.9 miles. almost there....
Rollin' thru Black Hawk Park....
Another wet day....
1000 miles....!!!!
Napping in her TWIN SIX outfit....
Baby Rhea and Daddy Jackal.... (yes, he's bad...)
Peek-a-boo....

(Clic the pics to enlarge)

It's been a wet weekend so far. I definitely overdressed for the ride today but it was fine when I started unzipping......

Made the 1000 mile goal on the Surly with 12 hours to spare!

Have a safe and happy New Year!

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

Damp, drizzly Saturday....

Kathleen Porter and crew....
The Surly 1x1....
Canoeing on the Cedar on the 30th of December....
Almost home....
Wet....

It could be worse..... :)

My middle son, Eric, was born on this day in 1977 in Bad Caanstadt, Germany. Happy Birthday, Eric!!!!

Left for my ride before 9 this morning knowing that it was going to be a damp, gray day with zero chance of getting better. The temp was 41 F and the wind was out of the east at 10 mph. Not bad conditions for a ride at the end of December in Iowa. I rode the dikes on both sides of the river and met Russ and Cindy on their tandem riding with Tom as I was getting ready to enter George Wyth Park on the East Lake Trail. Rode through the park and headed out to Black Hawk where I was passed by Kathleen and a couple of her friends on road bikes. They were all smiling and pedaling! I made the trip through the park then headed back to Cedar Falls on the Cottage Row Trail. Back through GW to the Hwy 218 bridge and home. A bit under 27 1/2 miles in 2:08. That leaves me with about 17 miles to go to reach my goal of 1000 miles on the Surly by the end of the year! Woohoo!

Judy went shopping with Amy this morning and just got home. Ready for lunch!

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

25.5 miles on the Surly last night in 1:58:00. 12.9 mph average speed. I was pretty happy about that!

My goal is to hit 1000 miles on that bike before the end of the year. (it went into service on 19 Sep) I have 46 miles to go. Sooooo close, with rain in the forecast. I might be getting wet!

I see that Paddy has formally announced his June Epic! Holy Balls! Look at the climbing!

Ari from Chicago had asked about the Ergon grips. I love them! Once they are adjusted properly for the rider they are great! I also added FSA carbon riser bars to the Surly a couple of weeks ago hoping they might suck up some vibration on the gravel. They work great also. Super combination!

That's it for now. Have a great Friday!

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

It's all good....

Eric, younger brother of Jackal....
Adam and Owen, Jackal, Moo and Baby Rhea....
Baby Rhea and her new Twin-Six onesie....
Visions of sugar plums danced in her head....
Adam and baby Owen....
Sleeping in her new hat....
Smiling....
Moo and Baby Rhea....
Judy and Baby Jake....

Christmas at the Buchanan house was most excellent! We had 8 adults and six young 'ens running around at one time. Judy and Amy made breakfast for the family while Jackal and I finished wrapping presents. I think that everyone left happy....

Judy and I, Jackal and Moo, Adam and Krystal, Guitar Ted, A.Lo, and B. Bottke met later in the evening at Toad's for some good conversation and a little imbibing. That, also, was excellent. I haven't talked to Adam today but I suspect he had a headache this morning. Light weight.

I rode 20 miles through the parks after dark tonight. It's somewhat chilly but at 28 F, not at all uncomfortable. I love it when the Doubleshot lights up all the critter's eyes at night. You'd never believe that there are so many of them running around out there in the woods!

That's it for now.

Ride safe!

Peace out yo!

Christmas.....

Blue, G-Ted, Jackal....
Travis Mead, Jackal....
Guitar Ted, Buchanandale, A.Lo, B. Bottke....
Buchanandale, A.Lo, Bottke......
Ummmmmm, yeah........

It was a great evening. Copius amounts of alcohol were consumed. It seems that everyone behaved except myself and Hansmeister. Well, I kinda behaved..... Hansmeister will have a headache tomorrow for sure. I will definitely be sleeping in tomorrow morning.

Thanks to all that showed up....

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Christmas Eve....

Jackal at the mall....
Vickie's Little Secret....
"Look at the doggie...."
Baby Jake with crayons and paper....
Baby Rhea napping through lunch....
Sans Souci at night....

Christmas Eve day is for men to shop for Christmas. That's an unwritten rule. It's just the way it is. If women want to shop on our day they should learn not to be rude. They shouldn't get pushy in the video aisles of the electronics store. They shouldn't get to the checkout register and then go back to get "that one last item" after the cashier has rung them up. They shouldn't argue with the cashier when told that they can't use the "after Christmas coupon" on Christmas Eve. What part of "after Christmas" don't you understand? Don't wait until you get to the register to ask if they have "another airplane desk clock". If you wanted two of them, you should have asked a floor clerk for it before you got in the checkout line. Duh! Anyway, like I said before, Christmas Eve is men's shopping day. That isn't too much to ask, is it? If you MUST go out that day, follow the rules. Be polite. Take your time. Make sure you're ready to check out when you go to check out. It's simple!

Jackal and I went shopping this morning and had a fairly good time. The malls weren't busy and there seemed to be plenty of product available to pick and choose from. I love Christmas Eve shopping! I got everything I needed and didn't have to wait in line very long. It was good!

After we got done shopping we went to Toad's for lunch with Jackal and Moo and Eric and Nikki. I had HOT wings. Mmmmmmmmm..... Yummy! The only problem with that was that I went riding the Surly after lunch and felt like I wanted to hurl the entire time. 25 miles in 34 X 17.... I've been at it long enough to know better! Oh well.....

Baby brother of Jackal is here now. I'm going to take a shower and tip a couple Guinness' with him.

I hope that each and every one of you and your families have a wonderful Christmas. Take a moment to remember what it's really all about........

Think of our servicemen and women and perhaps say prayer for them and their loved ones.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Christmas Eve morning.....

I rode the Surly 25 miles yesterday. It was damp so it felt cold but the temps weren't all that bad. The little bit of gravel tha I rode was gooey and thick. Made a mess of the Surly....

Judy talked me in to going to Kohl's last night to do a little shopping. Surprisingly, that wasn't bad either. I have to get out this morning to get my serious shopping done! Saw Mr. Bidwell at Kohl's last night. It seems that he was involved in an "endurance" shopping session wth the missus. He told me that he was planning to get a ride in this morning "no matter what". Hope you got everything taken care of Jeremy! I stopped by Bike Tech to wish Brent a Merry Christmas. He looked good in his blue Santa hat!

That's it for now. I need to go get my shopping done so I can get a ride in today. I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Solstice....

Yesterday was the first day of winter and the shortest day of the year. If we lived in the southern hemisphere it would be the beginning of summer and the longest day of the year. Plan accordingly :)

The Buchanan Clan will have a small gathering on Christmas night at Toad's. It will happen sometime after 6. We'll probably drink (small amounts) of beer and such so c'mon down!

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

The boys of summer....

Jackal as Race Director....
Deerslayer taking the inside line....
Bidwell....
The Twins....
Eduardo....
Kerkove being Kerkove....

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Remember last summer?

Friday night gravel grinder 29 September. 59 F. It rained....
June 10th. 38 F. No shit.
Jackal smiling. Gravel Grinder 6 Oct. 44 F

Gravel Grinder 6 Oct. 58F
Kerkove at Ferryville. May 13 41 F
Drafting Buchanandale.... August 4th. 79 F
Riding with the BNC on the 4th of July. 84 F
Caught in the rain. Again. June 25th.
July 9th. 94 F

It was warmer then.....

Paddy, don't drink my gin.....

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

OOPS!!!!

Santa was landing at the Blue Room....
A tree got in the way. Ouch....
Yeah, I'm cute....
Stretching.....

Peace out, yo!

Dylan....

Sitting home relaxing and listening to Bobby D. through the ear buds. The man is a musical genius and an awesome story teller!

I did a night ride through the parks this evening. A little over 22 miles at about 40 F. It's a bit foggy but not terrible. The average speed on the Surly is coming up ever so slowly, but up just the same. The Cateye Doubleshot still amazes me with it's brightness. I love it!

That's it for now.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Saturday....

Jackal and his Duc.... Another view....
Baby Jake....
Kyle & Jacob....

Jackal stopped by on his way home from work this morning. I heard the Ducati coming....

Eric and Nikki stopped by with the boys for awhile this morning also. Good seeing them!

45 degrees and cloudy today. Shouldn't be too bad riding.

I need to stop down and see Brent about another Timbuktu seat bag sometime soon....

I wonder how the TI v.3 "lottery" is going? I know some people have lost sleep over this. Just like kids at Christmas!

I'm thinking of proposing to the "Dictators for Life of Trans Iowa" that I be appointed "Guardian of the Preems". Hmmmmm...... Yeah, that would be a good idea. :)

I'm starting to get a little anxious about the new Cannondale..... When I ordered it the ship date was 23 December and it now appears as though it may not be until 20 January. That would be a big "boo hoo" for me.... The shop in Chicago where Ari works received theirs over a week ago. I'm not losing sleep over it..... yet. :)

As Jackal would say.... "patience, grasshopper"

That's it for now.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

HELP!!!!

Am I the only "non-beta" blogger finding it impossible to post comments on "beta" blogs? Is there a secret to it? Is Google associated with MSN? You know..... "Can't use this version any longer. You must upgrade now...."

Anyone else having these problems? I think it must be a vast left wing conspiracy designed to frustrate and drive ME crazy!!!!!

Drink more beer!

Peace out, yo!

Sunny day....

Woohoo.....
The Yellow Bike....
Unseasonably warm....
Today....
Waiting for a train....
XC ski training behind me....

A very nice day, temperature wise. The winds were out of the SW at 20 to 30 and were an absolute bear! Out of the saddle to get 10 mph on the Lone Tree Road Trail heading west to Black Hawk Park from Big Woods Lake. Good thing it's only a couple of miles! Goddddddddd........ I met Super Saul just outside the entrance to BH Park and we talked for a couple of minutes. He was smiling, as usual. Was that one of those bikes with the big wheels, Ron? I rode up to the north end of the park and turned around and hit the trail back to Cedar Falls via Cottage Row Road. I rode past the RIPE sewage treatment facility and then over the dike by the golf course and had to wait for a stopped train that had delivered coal to the Utilities complex. Some guy on a newer Raleigh 800 (?) came up beside me and waited for a couple of minutes then picked up his bike up and crawled over the coupling between 2 train cars. SCARY!!!! DUMB!!! STUPID!!!! I waited a couple more minutes then rode through the grass of the practice fields beside the golf course and came out on the Utilities Parkway by the entrance to Washington Park. When I got up to Pfeiffer, Mr. Raleigh was sitting on the bench beside the trail. He could have been squished!

25 miles on The (clean) Yellow Bike and a chat with Mr. Saul..... It's all good! (I spent about two hours last night cleaning all the gravel dust off of it from the Octobe 6th ride. I know.... slow! Clean and lubed now!)

Thanks for responding to yesterday's post, Eduardo. You warmed my heart! :) Kerkove called me old and you said we were friends! Oh yeah!

I still cannot believe that someone wants to build housing down by the sewage treatment facility in CF! Smells like a lawsuit brewing somewhere down the road. (Ha Ha, that was good!)

Ride safe....

Peace out, yo!

This says it all..... :)



Ride safe....

Peace out, yo!

Afternoon ride....

Jackal....
Saw this billboard when leaving town....

I don't read Spanish.

Seemed colder than the thermometer said it was....
A wet, chilly day....
Saw this billboard coming back into town....

The translation.

Rode Blue down to Hudson and back this afternoon. The therometer on the north edge of town said 35 degrees. It was 40 or 41 downtown, depending on when you looked at the thermometer at the bank. It kept bouncing back and forth. The 'puter says it's 38. Ah well, technology....

It didn't seem all that cold as I left the house but within a mile or so I knew it would be a chilly ride. Winds were out of the wsw at 15.... It's one of those damp afternoons with a wind that just cuts right through you. I dressed warmer than I thought I would need to and I'm glad I did. Wore the Gators but my toes still got cold. I wore the Cannondale gloves a couple of days ago when the temps were lower than today's and was fine. I got cold fingers today. Must be getting old!

That's it for now.

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

Foggy....


It's foggy outside this morning but the temps are in the mid 40's. Think I'll ride Blue today!

Peace out, yo!

Gray day....

This trail is blocked....
Gravel grinding....?
All the geese in the world are parked on the Cedar....
The "old" dam in Cedar Falls....
Tis' the season....

40 or so degrees and overcast today for a 25 miler on the Surly. It was good! Didn't have to dress too warm and didn't get wet.

It seems that everyone is playing "tag". Kerkove was the last to check in but it was worth the wait! The game has taken on a life of it's own. See what you've done, Shona? Whoooooaaaaaaaaaaaa....... :)

The International Motorcycle Show is in Minneapolis in February. Should be good! Hooters for lunch?

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

This is December....?

Jackal and Baby Rhea at Toad's....
Unbelievable temps for this time of year....

I'm not complaining....

10 Dec 06 at noon....
Yup, it's a bike....
Gators....
Neoprene faced tights....
Saw a lot of this. Scared a couple of walkers today....

25 mile loop through the parks today. Started out at 36 F and ended up at 50 degrees! It's the 10th of December and it's warm in IOWA!!!!! Quite a few walkers out today. Most of them in pairs and most with dogs. Scared the hell out of a couple of them. I always give plenty of notice that I'm coming up behind them and I don't feel bad any longer when it scares hell out of them. It's typically the inconsiderate ones who aren't paying attention to those that they are supposed to be sharing the trail with that end up startled. Walk to the side of the trail. Take the headphones off.....

Tagged....!

I've been tagged by shOna up in Winnepeg. Some of you will get TAGGED too.... Pay attention now, boys and girls.... The point of the exercise is this: If you get tagged you have to post six "interesting" things about yourself on your blog and then tag six more people. Pretty simple, huh? Here goes....

1. I have 3 sons and only one of them has the ambition to get out and ride a bicycle. That would be Carl, AKA: Jackal. He rides a lot and rides endurance MTB races for Cannondale! His other nickname is Buchanandale.

2. Jackal thinks that I have an addiction to bicycles. I only have a couple of them (6) and one on the way. I'm not planning to buy anymore in the near future. I have ridden at least 5 of them in the last 12 months.

3. I can't bring myself to sell a bicycle, even if I don't ride it any longer.

4. I own 3 motorcycles. My wife thinks that's too many. I love motorcycle roadracing, especially Moto GP. Valentino Rossi is 'da BOMB!!!!! All three of my sons own or have owned motorcycles... The fastest I've ever ridden is 191 mph at the track in Brainerd, Minnesota.

5. I dig pink. So does Baby Rhea.... Someday I'll have a pink Surly....

6. Some of my friends are trying to get me to go back out on the ice and play hockey again. Not sure I'm up to that though. How hard can it be for a goalie, right?

See how easy that was? Didn't even hurt at all! Now, some of you are going to get tagged. If you've already forgotten how it's played you can read the instructions above or you can check out shOna's blog for instructions.

Jackal, Kerkove, Chris in Austin, Ari in Chicago, Jeremy in Clarksville, and Mark..... You have been tagged!

Jackal was just here on his Ducati 996. Says he's going for a ride!

That's it for now.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Curiouser and curiouser.....

So sweet!

Grandpa's girl....

My little sweetie Rhea is curious about everything around her. I think she likes bikes.... There are plenty of them in grandpa's basement. Grandma might say "too many", but she'd be wrong. I think she wants a pink singlespeed! It's all good!
Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

Balmy....

I left work at 5:15 tonight and beat feet home to ride! It was 34 degrees when i got out the door at 6:15 and headed for the gravel that runs through the Hartman North Unit. After Sunday night it felt almost like summer!!! Judy wanted to order pizza so I told her I'd be back around 7:30 which meant I'd have to keep it fairly short tonight. (she gave me that look..... you know, the one that says "it would be the right thing to do". I think she worries about me.) From the gravel I headed out the South Riverside Trail to Kriegs and over into GW then up to Gateway and Bigwoods Lake. Turned around at the shelter on the north end of the lake and headed back all the way through Wyth and crossed the Cedar at the Greenhill exit. 15 miles in under 1:15 on the Surly. Not bad! Walked in the door to hot pizza at 7:29!!! Woohoo! I'm no ball of fire on the Surly but it was fun. Wore the Gators rather than the booties and my feet felt fine. I was drenched in sweat when I got back. The Cateye Doubleshot that Buchanandale gave me for my birthday/Christmas present is one of the most useful and appreciated gifts I've ever received! Did you check out the Monster he has posted on his blog? I AM IN LOVE!!!!! That is the sweetest motorcycle I've ever seen. I am seriously considering trading my RC51 and my R1 for one of those! I've been touched! Such simple beauty! Go on over and check it out!

Ari from Chicago commented on the previous post to this blog that he liked the way everyone here (in the cycling community) talks to each other. What is it about this group that allows that to happen? (other than all the sweetnees, lovability, and innocence of those involved?) Your thoughts, please.....

Question of the week: Do you think that The Smack_Down will ever let me ride one of his bikes?

That's it for now.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Furnaces and such....

Left work right about 4:30 last night so that I could get home and ride the bike for awhile. You know what they say about "the best layed plans...." I was starting to change my clothes at about 5 when Judy walked in and then the phone rang. It was my brother Dan telling me that his furnace wouldn't fire and that it was COLD in his house. He wanted me to come look at it and see if I could get it going. CRAP!!! Well, being the nice guy that I am, I took Judy and we grabbed some food at Mac's then went to Dan's house. I think he had 4 space heaters going in there. We determined fairly quickly that the problem was electrical and started to track it down. After about an hour he told me "ya know, I did change the thermostat this summer because the air conditioner wasn't working right...." Hmmmmmm........ Jumping the thermostat wires at the terminal board on the furnace produced flame! Voila' A quick trip upstairs to place the red wire on terminal RW in the thermostat rather than RC took care of the problem. Sorta. The furnace was short cycling so an adjustment to the heat anticipator had to be made. It's all good. He offered a beer for my trouble then laughed and informed me that he didn't have any. How's that for cruel! Ahhhhh well, it's all good. I was home by 8:15 and went to bed without a bike ride, but baby brother was warm and cozy.....

That's it for now.

Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

It is December, after all....

16 degrees when I started, 12 when I got back home....
The Cedar is pretty much frozen....

So is the water bottle :(
Icicles....

Went up to the shop at noon today and ordered the new Cannondale from Kerkove. It'll be 3 or 4 weeks until it gets here and I'm sure I'll lose a wee little bit of sleep while waiting. Just like a kid at Christmas! He also sold me a pair of winter socks and a pair of insulated wind tights, which I wore on my ride this afternoon. Good choice, Jeff. Thanks!

We had lunch at Toad's with Buchanandale and Moo and baby Rhea. Never heard a peep out of her as she slept the entire time. We watched Deerslayer roll by on his 29er on his way out to meet John for some singletracking in George Wyth.

After lunch we stopped back up at Europa Cycle & Ski and saw Kerkove, Super Saul, and Joel Ross Mills then headed home to go riding. I headed out on the Trolley Car Trail then up by Cattle Congress and across the river where I took the dike to the East Lake Trail and up throuh GW. It was 16 F when I got back to Cedar Falls where I headed out across the bridge and through Island Park to do the Black Hawk Park loop. Came back through Big Woods Lake Park to Gateway Park. It was 12 F when I came back by the sign at the Chamber of Commerce building. Headed over to Pfeiffer Park then east on the South Riverside Trail to Hackett then all the way up the hill to Parrish and back down Rainbow to the house. 25 1/2 miles in just a touch over 2 hours. Not bad for the Surly!!!! My feet were just starting to get cold in my Pearl booties with the new socks. I wonder how it would work if I put my Gators on under my booties? I should try that sometime. It might keep the toes a little warmer.....

That's it for now.

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!

Silliness....

A chairful....
Jacob, Jake, and Kyle....
Baby Jake gettin down....

Eric and Nikki dropped the boys off last night so that they could participate in some holiday fun with co-workers. We had some kind of fun too! It's all good!

The 'puter says it's 7 F outside right now and I want to ride my bike. Geez! I know it isn't going to hit 20 today but I think I'll wait another hour or so to see if it gets up to at least 10 degrees. I think I'll look for a pair of snowboarding goggles to wear when it's cold outside.

That's it for now. Ride safe.

Peace out, yo!

Saturday....

Ron Saul let me try out his Cannondale Optimo Disc cross bike today to make sure that I order the right size. He and I are about the same size and we ride the same size road bikes and mountain bikes so Jackal thought it would be a good idea for me to try it out to be sure. I'm glad I did! His cross bike is a 52 and I had my doubts about sizing since it is 4 cm smaller than my Colnago. Whoa! It is the perfect size! Thanks Ron! The order goes in tomorrow at the shop!!

Thanks also to Cindy, Jackal, and Kerkove for making things happen!

Grandsons are here now and pizza is in the oven. Time to go!

Ride safe!

Peace out, yo!