December

I seemed to get a lot of riding in early this month. The night temperatures were mild and the lack of moisture and freeze/thaw taking place made for some hero dirt. New corridors in and around Busch have been accessed. Quite honestly, the riding early to mid-month was spectacular.

As of late it has been all work and no play. The lack of riding has put me up 7lbs. This is the time of year where I get few days off, the food I eat is horrible for me, and I don't hydrate near enough. I seriously can't wait for the New Year. I am planning at least two long rides a month all winter. The rides will either be Ozark Trail based or my supercross rides (as I like to call them).

Next year I will be pushing towards my 40th year on the earth. My goal is to be in the best shape of my life. I have a new baby on the way come June. I have one baby that is getting ready to turn one in February. Life really could not get much better. Finding time to be healthy will have to take a priority to other things in life. Maybe that post-ride beer will have to wait...

Here are some pics of the months activities:

Happy New Year

JRA

Just riding around. So in the last few weeks I have done quite a bit of just riding around. The Berryman Epic sent me on a 115 mile 'new bike' week. The new Raijin thrashed some serious singletrack. Trails encountered include the Berryman trail, the Courtois section of the Ozark Trail, Council Bluff, Johnson Mountain, Lost Valley and Matson Hill and don't forget to throw in some Busch Wildlife for good measure. Not bad for a weeks worth of sunsets. Then, after the time change, I logged about 50 miles of night riding on the new frame. Here are a few images of the festivities.

BT Epic

The BT Epic was a race that I did not have on my list of things to do this year. Good friend Brian Busken decided that he would come in town from the PNW and do the race so I capitulated. The plan was made to head down and have a good time with good friends in our National Forest.

Keith Weinkein made the arrangements at Bass' River Resort for our lodging. The four of us, Courtney Green included would be holed up in cabin 14 for the duration.

The race to Berryman Campground went as planned and I was feeling decent except for my knee that I bashed on my stem. I had just built up my new bike for this weekend with the help of Gino and The Hub. The Kona Raijin. A Ti frame hand made in Tennessee by Lynsky. The bike rode well with a few adjustments along the way. She still needs to be dialed in a bit. I figure if I can roll 56 miles on a bike I have never ridden before it is going to be a great ride when she is all dialed in.

Somewhere right after the BC checkpoint I must have kicked up a rock in my front chainring. I had chain suck issues and derailments for the rest of the day. Inspecting the cog later I found a bent tooth.

From this point on the race definitely went into ride mode. The weather was borderline for me and I struggled keeping my hands warm most of the day, even having to stop at times to stick them down my bibs to get the circulation flowing. I have a condition called Renaud's where the arteries that supply blood to the skin narrow, limiting circulation to the affected areas. It can be painful at times but is more of a nuisance than a disability. But when you can't feel the bars to brake or control your bike you need to stop and warm them up.

The new section of trail built by the Ozark trail crew was awesome and really help the course flow a bit more towards the end. I ended up finishing in just over 7 hours. I took almost a full hour and a half longer this year. More chill at the checkpoints, chain suck, and the cold hands got the best of me this year. I was just happy to finish and spend some time on the trail with good people. Here are a few pics.

Tilford wins again.

Ramble

Recovery ride and LA

Had a nice recovery ride last night. Funny how the next ride after a big effort never seems to get going. I just cruised with a mellow heart rate and enjoyed the leaves and took in the changing of the seasons. Colors have to be getting close to peaking.

On another note, is anyone else tired of hearing about Lance? He made his way to the top cheating fans and contemporaries alike. He lived a life of power and excess while living the American dream. People cheat, lie, and steal everyday to get ahead in this world, his world just happened to be more influential than most. I think that is what is the real crime here. When someone has that much influence and total power the only next logical step is corruption. So everyone was cheating. Big deal. All pro sports are rife with cheaters. But not everyone can form a corporation of themselves from cheating and lying. So, I am kinda rambling here, but the lesson is simple: stop making sport stars your heroes or role models. Find someone real in your life you can model yourself after. Make your role models tangible, real, and people that can make true change.

Enough of all this. Here are a few pics from last nights ramble.

Burning at the bluff

Well, the race went pretty much as planned, except for the part about the first place team doing so well.

The Blue Ribbon Boyz only managed to pull off a second place even with Keith taking a timeout to go get some Dos Primos before his third and final lap.

Still, all in all, it was a good weekend that could have been better but was still great.

Pics:

Evening ramble around Busch Wildlife

I rode from the house tonight and met up in the conservation area with Stitz and Weinkein for some gravel.

I am back!

Sorta, going to see if I feel like messing with this again.

Cut update: lots of orange tape along path. Surprised a hunter yesterday evening mid-descent from gravel while he was putting up his deer stand about 20 feet from trail.