Picture 1) Matanuska Glacier
Picture 2) Arriving at the Cabin
Picture 3) Crosswind Lake
Picture 4) Knot Art butterfly

Cabin Time

We went to our cabin on Crosswind Lake on the 10th, got back yesterday. I was feeling pretty sick Friday the 9th and wasn't looking forward to being sick in the middle of the wilderness. I went to the dr, got a prescription even though the dr thought I had the flu. Dr said don't take it unless I really feel like I need to and if it was the flu, the antibiotics wouldn't help.

We drive north 2.5 hours to Lake Louise, spend a long time loading sleds to pull behind the snowmachines. We had TONS of stuff to haul in - lumber and shower stall for a new bath house/sauna, windows and a couch for the guest cabin as well as fuel, food, a small ice-fishing house made out of a truck sleeper - in which my dog K.C rode in on the trail, and the ice bike. A very fast snowmachine/mobile ride (1 hour) on a PERFECT trail into the cabin, nice and smooth. It has never been that smooth and fast before.

The temperatures were way down there, it took hours for the cabin to warm up. Finally got everything unloaded, the cabin warm, dinner cooked, a few drinks and went to bed. Everything was great until I woke up the next morning, I was SICK.

Really sick. I am woozy, feeling like I will pass out every time I stand up, etc. I am telling Capt'n Balance he may need to bungee me to an sled, hook me up to a snowmachine and pull me out to Glennallen to the hospital if I don't start feeling a bit better, it was THAT BAD. I choked down some food and coffee and didn't feel like I was going to die, so that was an improvement. Spent the day being miserable and the cabin is no place to feel miserable. We are in the middle of NOWHERE. The wind is blowing, windchill is 25 to 40 below 0, REALLY cold. The kind of cold that makes my fingertips feel like they have been smashed by a hammer after being outside for only a few minutes. Oh yeah, we use an outhouse and being a girl, lets just say I use the outhouse more than the guys (It's a very nice outhouse, big open window for ventilation) and the outhouse is a ways away from the cabin so I have a little walk to it. So I am suffering....I get the medication the dr prescribed, still in the bag from the store with the paperwork on how to take it.

I read how to take it and then notice the pharmacist has a big red circle with a question mark around the allergy alert. It says I am not supposed to take this medication if I have had an allergy to another related medication and the pharmacist circled that I DO have an allergy to the related medication. Great...so what do I do now? I decided to take it anyway, telling all the guys to watch me in case my head swells to the point of exploding. No reaction and I finally started feeling better by day 4.

Temps continued to be COLD, 37 below 0 F. at night, no wind chill. I caught an 18 inch lake trout (too small, released it), took Bike Boy snowboarding, jigged for more fish, drank beer, ate rabbit (Bike Boy got his 1st rabbit, hunting only allowed if it is going to be for food, not sport), ate more food, slept, drank a little, drew on the walls - butterfly with a bike. (Knot Art, using the knots in the plywood for noses, is all over the walls of our cabin - Capt'n Balance is an artist).

Capt'n Balance and I had our own little Crosswind Ice Bike race around the cabins. No one else wanted to brave the cold and the snow. We were frozen by lap 3 but warmed up nicely with Tequila shots afterwards. This is the very 1st bicycle to EVER be at Crosswind Lake. Yeah, I'm famous on the lake now and maybe we will get more bikes up there and make it an annual ride, the winner is who can do the most laps without getting frostbitten. Notice I had on slippers, I was find while riding, but putting my feet down when stopping, the slippers lived up to their name.

I can't get any pictures to download, will post them later.

Bike and Beer T-Shirt Gallery

I recently did a Google search on Bike and Beer. Lots of interesting sites came up.

This one is pretty cool The Beer-Bike Tee Shirt Gallery.

I didn't know Oscar the Grouch drank beer!

Frigid Moose Drewl

Bike Boy, Capt'n Balance aka "The Sweeper" and I did the 1st Annual Frigid Moose Drewl race yesterday and it was a whole lotta fun!

The weather was PERFECT. We had been having some very high winds but they died down and the race was on!

Bike Boy was on his weekend visitation with his dad in Wasilla, so I headed out there to pick him up. I grabbed all the clothing, bikes and other gear I could think of. In the rush, I forgot his COAT. Darn. Fortunately his dad let him borrow a coat, so all was good. We get to the race location and the REAL RIDERS were showing up. Bike Boy and I spent some time trying to decided how may layers to pile on. I decided to go for more layers than I had originally planned. Bike Boy was good to go, even in his tennis shoes - that kid doesn't feel cold, blessing of youth I guess. He did have 2 pairs of socks on - one was a woolen pair.

Then Carlos and Mark, the organizers, start talking about the courses, I'm trying to listen and finish getting my gear on when Capt'n Balance suddenly appears! He wasn't going to come because he had too many other things to do. He decided at the last minute to come and be the course "sweeper", hence the helmet he made from the hand broom we use to sweep up ashes around our wood stove. He cracks me up, what a goof. He's almost always there to support me in my attempts to do this kind of thing. He knows how frustrating it sometimes is for me to be what I am now, because I still remember how it felt to be tough and kick ass like I used to.

The race starts, the most of the real bikers are on fat tire bikes, a few on regular tires. We have on our studded tires. The beginning of the trail was churned up a little then was nicely groomed but full of post holes from horses and moose. This is our 1st real winter trail ride (I mostly ride around a icy, paved road around my home), a new experience. I have to say, those post holes suck. They are not hugely difficult to ride over but they definitely ruin a nicely groomed trail.

We got past the post holes and then the fun really started. Nice, smooth packed trail, little ups and downs and corners - the kind that make me want to yell "WooHoo"! Just plain fun. Then we got to a frozen swamp and it was just beautiful! I just had to stop and look around. That is one of the things that makes me a slow mountain biker. I HAVE to look around. The sun was shining, the mountains were beautiful, it was just perfect. Then Capt'n Balance got out the camera and had me back track a few times for some pictures. Bike Boy took off ahead so we didn't get any pictures of him - he takes racing seriously - HA!

We finished the race, which was a race-at-your own pace, for us, anyway. It was a great ride. It's a lot more work riding snow but packed trails than icy roads. I loved it. Those are not staged smiles!

We chatted with Mark of
Wildfire Designs Bicycles and Carlos of Anchorage's Frigid Bits, I got to plug into some of Carlo's knowledge - Thanks Carlos!

The famous Frigid Bits burn barrel was fired up and I have to say, this is the coolest burn barrel ever. Customized for the Frigid Bits SnoBoys, made by a rider called Thirsty Work. He also made Frigid Bits Burn Barrel Ale labels and relabeled some beer bottles with them. They are really cool also. The best part (to me) is the Government warning on the label. Instead of warning pregnant women not to drink or whatever, these say "GOVERNMENT WARNING: DON'T WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT"

That is like a message from GOD or something...ok, not near that profound, but pretty darn funny. I'm going to take the label to work...I work for the State government issuing federal and state benefits. It can be a grind on a persons very being. We need all the laughs we can get. I think most of my co-workers will get a good laugh.

It was a great day, a great ride, my world has expanded a little. I hope to someday do the long course, it would be great to be as fast as the real riders but for now I'm happy I got out there and did it.

Now Bike Boy wants a Wildfire fat tire bike. Maybe when he stops growing...that should give me a few years to save up some $$.

Check out more pictures of
the burn barrel and the post-ride party

Who's Yo Daddy??

My parents came over to my house last weekend. I was showing my dad my bike shop. I was explaining to him WHY I have so many bikes, the purpose for each one, when I came to my little winter bike.

He thought the winter bike set-up was pretty cool and and decided to take it for a ride. OKAY...I was a little concerned, he is pretty inactive and getting a little long in the tooth. I am sure he will never read this blog, so I feel pretty safe saying "long in the tooth" :) . But he is still THE DAD. So he off he went.

He rode around the barns and was pretty impressed with the grip of the studded tires. He said he went up and down some icy snow berms and the tires started to slip out but then the studs gripped and he was back on track (thank GOD, it would have been awful if he got hurt).

He really enjoyed his little ride, he had a big grin on his face when he was bringing the bike back into the shop (I missed that picture-darn).

Dad and I had a micro-bonding moment.

Watch out Frigid Bits Boys, Dad just might take you guys on....and you better let him win :)

The wind is still out of control here but it's supposed to end tonight, just in time for the Frozen Moose Drewl race tomorrow. It is a race-at-your-own-pace. I have just about talked myself INTO doing it, the hardest part for me is actually getting the guts to show up. I'm not fast or a technical mountain biker. I figure I will be the last rider out there....which is OK because someone has to be last, right??? And being last in a bike ride is better than not riding at all...right? Right.

I just read the Alaska Forum on MTBR.com. Sounds like trail conditions will be good. I only have studded tires, no fat tires or whatever else the real winter riders use. Tomorrow will be interesting!

1st Annual Frigid Moose Drewl Winter Mountain Bike Race

Yep, you read that right. This weekend there will be a winter race put on by a guy with the Valley Mountain Bikers and Hikers (who co-exist and work peacefully together promoting self-propelled activities, trail protection and restoration) - maybe the Wilderness Society should look to the for examples) and Anchorage's Frigid Bits crew. There will be beginner's and advanced courses.

IF I am home this weekend, I think I will participate in the beginner's race. We sort of had plans to go into Anchorage for the Fur Rondy activities. Truth be told, I would rather do the race than go to Anchorage.

WaaaaHOOOOOO! It's FUN in the Valley!

Don't Invade My Solitude: Mountain Biking Clashes With the Purpose of Wilderness

I recently picked up the Feb 2007 edition of Backpacker Magazine. I was enjoying it until I came across "The Big Question: Do Mountain Bikes Belong In Wilderness Areas?"

It is a "yes" and "no" opinion column. The "Yes" opinion was written by Mark Eller, Communications Manager of the IMBA. The "No" opinion was written by Dan Smuts, Deputy Regional Director (CA/NV), The Wilderness Society.

Here is Dan Smuts "NO" opinion:
Wilderness not only protects wildlife habitat, water and air, it also creates space for hiking, climbing and horseback riding. The Wilderness Act's ban on "mechanical transport" clearly includes mountain bikes. Because these bikes can cover many miles in an afternoon, they increase contact among users and reduce solitude - a key aspect of wilderness. Mountain bikers who claim they don't negatively impact trails are missing the point. A bike barreling down a trail at 20 mph not only endangers hikers, but clashes with the purpose of wilderness. However, when drafting proposals, we are always willing to talk with mountain bikers to create conversation plans that support all sides."


Sooo....Mr. Smuts' issue doesn't appear to be about trail destruction (studies show that biking has similar impact in the wilderness as hiking and is less destructive than horses)...it's all about solitude.

According to Mr. Smuts, mountain bikers clash with the purpose of wilderness. bikes can cover many miles in an afternoon and increase contact with other people out in the wilderness which reduces solitude...so the purpose of the wilderness is solitude.

Lets say I go on a hiking trip, walking through the wilderness, enjoying the wild solitude. I come up on someone who is walking slower than I am. I can see them ahead of me, hear them talking, breathing or whatever. Because I see and hear them, they are infringing upon my solitude. It takes me 5 or 10 minutes to actually catch up with the other hikers, I say "excuse me, coming through", they move to the side of the trail, I move to the other side, I pass them and it takes another 5 or 10 minutes before I am out of their sight. So for 10-20 minutes, we have invaded each others solitude, but it's ok, because we are all using our feet.

I continue on my journey, blissful again in the wild solitude. Suddenly I hear "on your right" or "excuse me, passing through", I turn around, see a person on a bike coming, I step to the side of the trail, the biker goes to the other side of the trail, he passes me and is out of my sight within 2 or 3 minutes...but now I am pissed off, my solitude has been invaded and ruined...the purpose of the wilderness has been destroyed....for 3 minutes I had to endure the presence of someone else in my wild solitude...and this time it is not ok....because...they were on 2 wheels.

I think Mark Eller of the IMBA and the "Yes" opinion has it correct when he states "We belive opposition to bikes in the wilderness is a matter of prejudice: Some hikes don't like seeing us on the trails."

(And no, I don't think it is cool for ANY biker, trail runner, faster hiker, crosscountry skier, equesterian to blast down a trail and scare or endanger other trail users. That's just bad manners, which are NOT exclusive to mountain bikers. )

Can't we just all get along and settle this issue so we can focus on REALLY important things like a bald Brittney Spears, Anna Nicole and crying judges???

**image created by THE WARD-O-MATIC

Me on the Zing

As suggested, here are pictures of me on the new set up. I took the pics myself using the timer while actually pedaling, these are the best shots of almost full leg extension.

Any suggestions on positioning and seat hight are welcome. This roadie stuff is a different kind of ride. In the top picture, it looks like my heal is lifted up, but I think that is due to the camera angle.

I rode for an hour, my wrist and shoulder felt better, hands MUCH better with this set up than the previous.

Auction/Bike Drawing

Tour de France cyclist Tyler Hamilton is have an on-line auction to raise funds for the Tyler Hamilton Foundation, which is dedicated to promoting health and personal empowerment through cycling for people with Multiple Sclerosis.
A quote from Tyler:

My greatest motivation has come from my friends within the MS community. Through my work with the MS International Federation, the Heuga Center, the National MS Society, and my own foundation I have found inspiration among an amazing, fearless and undaunted group of cyclists. I'm always reminding people about the power of the bike, and its capacity to help you cope, heal and persevere. And I guess you could say that over the last two years I've been practicing what I've been preaching.

There are some nice cycling related goodies! There also in a drawing for a custom built Independant Fabrications bike which is limited to the first 200 people who donate $. Pretty good odds!

Check it out HERE

Back in Black

Yep, back and better than ever!

Bike Guy came through once again but I could tell it was a mental battle for him, old racers never die.

He replaced the fork with one that didn't have the steerer tube cut down, so he could stack it higher. Then he add about a 35 degree (I think) stem and Felt carbon and alloy bar. He kept the same levers (105's). He was gritting his teeth the entire time I was there, muttering warnings to duck when I go under bridges because I'm up so high I might hit my head, I have lost all aerodynamics, so on and so on. He's still a racer at heart...and I never was nor will be. We can always UNDO what he just did and move it all lower if I ever feel the need.

I had him wrap the bars with black cork instead of the white it came with...The Zing looks pretty cool with the the black tape and carbon bar.

The bar is a bit higher but the main difference is the bar is moved back by about an inch or even 1 1/2 inches. Before this new set-up, I did a rough measurement using my arm, elbow against the front of the seat and there was about a 2 to 2 1/2 inch gap from my finger tips to the bar/stem junction. Now there in only about a 1 inch gap.

It's on the trainer and I took my 1st ride. Much better for my right shoulder and left wrist, old injuries that never seem to go away.

Speaking of "the shoulder", it's been just short of 1 year since the rebuild. Pain and grinding is WAY less but not totally gone and I don't need to make sure I have a few dozen Advil with me at all times. It doesn't move the way it used to yet, doesn't' like the arms in front position very well but I'm still working on it. This road bike is using very different muscles than my mountain bike and commuter hybrid-roadie bike.

Here is a picture of the Zing: before and after, the true color is in the 1st picture.
And post-surgery shoulder, just to remind me where I was about a year ago.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Biking in Halifax

I immediately thought of
Steve when I saw this.

Thanks to www.Roadcycling.com's Chad Nikolz Quick Shot cycling humor

I think this is true in Halifax :)

Keep safe, Steve!

Fresh Snow

It's snowing again, which is fine. Alot of the snow has settled and melted and turns ugly. Fresh snow looks whiter, prettier.

Bike Boy and I are home sick today. He sounds like someone who has been smoking for 50+ years. I don't sound as bad as he does.

I have been riding the Zing daily, except for yesterday to give my lungs a break. Drop bars are WAY different. I have only been on a road bike with drop bars 2 times before, for very short rides.

The weight on my hands/elbows bothers me a bit. I wonder if I am in a "break-in" period for my hands/wrists/elbows....am I just weak in these spots and I will toughen up and be more comfortable or if the levers need some repositioning or maybe am I just not made for drop bars? After about 15 minutes, I have to sit fully upright to rest my hands/wrists to feel ok again. I did rotate the bars up about a 1/4 inch, which helped a little.

1 thing I have noticed about the road bike's lower upper-body positioning is the ability to pedal harder/stronger than in the more upright position of my other bikes. Interesting.

Tired of Winter, Summer Pictures

More Summer Pictures

A Few More

So here are some summer photos

Zing...Again, Moose and Me

The moose are back, they like to eat my lilac bushes.

My Zing, Against a sunset sky

Capt'n Balance made this mini-me mountain biking as a Christmas gift. Yes that is an actual picture of me. As cool as it looks in this pic, it's way cooler in real life. :)

Capt'n Balance and Bike Boy are at our cabin with a big group of guys, it's the annual Superbowl trip. This is the first year Bike Boy has gone. Now he is offically "one of the guys". Ugh. I can just imagine all the "guy" things he is learning.

So on to tommorrow....Superbowl Sunday. I'm not huge into football but I do have a Superbowl pool going on, so I will be watching the game. Only 10 people in the pool, draw number 0-9 and the total of the second digits of both teams school = your number, then you win $50 at half-time, $50 at final score. I drew #9. I hope it's a good game, if I have to watch it, I don't want to watch lousy game. I have to confess, I wouldn't watch it at all if I didn't have $ on it..:)

My Zing

My new beautiful bike.

I picked it up yesterday, it wasn't ready yet so I got to hang out with the bike guy for a few hours while he put it together.

Hours spent hanging out in a bike shop, talking with Bike Guy, watching my bike go from parts to complete, was a good day. Once again, Bike Guy goes above the norm, he is awesome.

I got home, brought the bike into the house, up into the living room so I could stare at it while I cooked myself a steak and play with the bike computer.

The computer has poor instructions. Bike Guy nor I could get the time set, we must have spent close to an hour with it. So I stare at the instuctions, the final step has an arrow to the menu button, then a "u-turn" arrow, which does not point to the menu button. So what does the u-turn arrow mean????

Finally the light goes on, the u-turn means go back to the last arrow and repeat the step or "press this button twice". Sheesh, how about just write "Press, x2" or "press twice". That would be way too easy. So I press it twice, the time is set.

I am going to take it out to my bike shop and put it on the trainer. I have never had a road bike with drop bars and it is a totally different feel. I had riser bars put on my K2 road bike from the start - my hybrid roadie commuting bike. So I'm evolving into a purebreed roadie. Time to get used to the feel of it and learn the shifting.

It's a beautiful day, can't wait until summer!

It's all About the Bike

Last night we watched the Robin William's move RV.

In this movie, Robin Williams rents an RV and takes his family across the country. Its one of those hokey family movies with bratty kids who get it in the end and they all become the loving family they forgot how to be.

The family mounts their bicycles to the back of the RV. During the 1/2 half of the movie, my son is just fixated on the last bike on the rack. The bike finally got a part in the movie; took a mountain bike ride before biting the pavement and bashing into pieces. My son talked non-stop about the
bike the rest of the night. It is a pretty cool bike, specially made for this movie.

Out of all the stuff in the movie, he focuses on the bike. I am PROUD, I have taught him well.

The View From The River

We went snowmachining down to the river behind my home.

It was a beautiful day. We had a fire and roasted hotdogs and spicy buffalo sausages.

Morning Fuel

I like my white chocolate mocha every morning. I can give up beer/booze and food easier than my mocha. I'm an addict and I like it.

Being an addict sometimes causes me to take what I can get, when I can get it.

I recently ran out of coffee beans. I was at X-mart and took a stroll down the coffee/soda isle. Feeling weak and fuzzy from withdrawal, I grabbed a big bag of cheap coffee beans. I swear I felt a tiny surge just knowing I had "the beans" in my cart. I immediately went to the cashier, paid for my stash and went directly home.

Leaving everything else I had just purchased in the bags and in my truck, I grabbed the beans and went into the kitchen. Edgy with anticipation, I ground the beans. The sound sent comforting waves through my brain. I brewed the coffee, steamed the milk to a luscious froth. It was ready, I drank. It did the job. I continued using the cheap beans from X-mart. I got used to them, they became normal, even good.

Then Bike Guy gave me a bag of this coffee for Christmas. The first thing I noticed, even before opening the bag, was the aroma. Ohhh it was goood. And next the color of the beans, deep, dark and oily. I ground and brewed and drank.

Clarity came within seconds. I had sunk very low....I had been drinking anorexic coffee.....pale, dry, small beans, no aroma, not much flavor.

I have pulled myself out of the spent, soggy coffee-ground strewn gutter and am now back to coffee that is worthy of my addiction.

Another reason to ride Bikes

Kona Zing

Ok, I did it. Again. No, this has nothing to do with Brittany Spears gyrating her bellybutton and there is no "oops". Like someone could "accidentially" buy a bike.

My K2 road bike will keep the riser bars, lights, racks, trunk, combo clip/platform pedals and will be my summer commuter bike.

My Zing will be my leasure, long distance road bike. Bike Guy, once again, gave me a great deal.

Capt'n Balance doesn't know it's a done deal yet, I have been telling him "indirectly". Sometimes it's easier to ask for forgiveness that it is to ask for permission. I don't anticipate any issues, he will most likely roll his eyes, ask if I will actually use it (well, YEAH) and go back to his projects.

Thank you George, for passing your wisdom on to me...

"Bikes are like golf clubs, you need a different one for different situations.

It's not like they cost as much as a new car or anything....you only live once:-)"

That just about says it all. I think that will help Capt'n Balance understand.

I looked at a Kona Lisa, the women's specific Zing, but it turns out I am taller than the average

American female...HUH?? I'm 5'6". I never thought I was on the tall side. So the Lisa didn't fit right.

Bike Guy also offered my a deal on a all carbon Felt, but it was, in reality, too much bike for me. I'm not a racer and I am concerned about my shoulder, which has much less pain but still isn't a strong or move quite like it used to.

While I'm admitting secrets, I confess I like the Geico Caveman commercials.

Sean Spence

Is a man with a mission. He is going to ride his bike from Missouri to Manhattan to raise funds and awareness of Multiple Sclerosis. Anyone who has been reading my blog for awhile knows I have been fighting this monster for years and a few times I didn't think I would survive it.

So check out his blog Missouri to Manhattan.

33 Degrees ABOVE 0!

Over a 60 degree difference in just a few days...That's life in Alaska.

Here is a pictured of the mom and baby moose visitors we had the other day.

We were also able to see the McNaught Comet a few days ago. I got a few pictures but they didn't turn out very well.

I was coming up the stairs at my home after I got home from work and looked out the window and there it was...the comet. We had no idea there would be a comet visible, hadn't heard a thing about it, so we are looking out the window, speculating about what it was, way tooo huge to be a jet or plane and it looked like a comet. I friend came over a little later and we told him about it, he comfirmed it was a comet. Check it out at www.space.com. It's a cool site if you're a space cadet. The skys have been cloudy since so we haven't seen it again but it is partially clear today so maybe we will get a glimps of it again tonight.

Supposed to go snowmachining again today, but things don't seem to be working out as planned. The days are starting to get longer here, it's no longer pitch black when I get out of work, there is a little bit of a "glow" in the sky.

I have been debating if I want to get another road bike. I converted my road bike into a commuter with riser bars and that has been the main use for it, going back and forth to work. It's a pain to remove the lights and racks so I can just take it out and go on a long leasure ride. Also after 40 miles, my hands are begging for alternate positions. I have looked into bar ends but I don't like my hands so widely spread to the ends of the bar and I don't have enough room on the bars to put them on the inside of the grips.

Ok, so overall it may be a lame excuse or maybe not, but the pain is real. I could have drop bars put back onto my bike but that will also require a new fork as this one was cut down. I would replace the fork with a carbon one, overall it would cost about $400 to covert it. For a few hundred more, I could have another bike. Or I could buy a new couch. Couch (potato) or Bike.....couch....bike...couc.....bike....cou...Bike......c....BIKE.

I still haven't decided. It will have to be a good fit, Bike Guy has a Felt picked out that he thinks I would be extremely happy with. Of course it has only 2 chainrings....scary, it's like committing to be tougher than I may actually be. I just don't want MORE bike than I am worthy of. And I haven't actually committed to another bike....right??

-31 degrees F. This Morning

Yeah, you are reading that correctly. 31 below 0 F.

My truck heater never let out a single breath of warm air on my drive to work.

We had frozen water pipes. Not good.

Got them thawed out but had a cold shower.

2 moose were in our yard yesterday eating the birch tree. I will post some pictures later.

The ice has been bad, roads are very slick. So far, 3 vehile accidents within 1 mile of my office. 2 in one day, on my way home, 1 on each side of the road.

Today a REALLY bad one, in the same spot as yesterdays. A truck lost control, had a head-on with another truck. Scary. The trucks were ripped apart and crumpled.

Be careful out there, everyone!

Ban Hummers

This is not a political blog, but here is my $.02 on this particular topic.

Bicycles out sell cars in Australia. Will America ever figure it out or will the HUMMER remain the King of Excess Waste?

While I'm not anti-vehicle/gas/oil - survival in Alaska would be very difficult without it (think 3rd world survival mode), I am for using resources responsibly. I am anti-HUMMER and I'm not the only one.

BTW, temperatures are something like 20 degrees BELOW 0. Too cold to ride. My face is chapped/peeling a little from windburn/cold weather, even with a balaclava. Time to let it heal. I don't want to look like THIS - call me vain, I can handle it.

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Traded Tires for Tracks

We decided to go for a snowmachine (snowmobile) ride on New Years day. I haven't been on my machine in 2 years due to lack of snow. We have made up for the lack of snow. So much snow that my office was closed down at 3pm today due to poor weather conditions.

We went down to the huge riverbed behind our home. We tried getting to a place were we go to camp sometimes, but a tributary blocked our path. It was too deep to cross.

My snowmachine does not have reverse, so the guys had to muscle it around.

There is soo much power that it was difficult to see, also the light was so flat it was hard to see any detail or bumps. We just had to be careful and not blast around crazily. Also, it's difficult to determine the edge of the Matanuska River, which is huge. If you go in, you are gone for good. So we were sticking close to areas we knew were well away from the main river.

I LOVE THE SNOW!

Bike SOLD!

We had a busy but enjoyable Christmas. Now I am trying to catch up on missed sleep, just in time to get off schedule again due to New Years, but it's all good!

A friend came over last night and we were hanging out in the bike shop. He spotted the rebuilt Takara and offered to buy it right there. So I sold my first rebuild. WooHoo! Friend also has some other bikes he said he will pay me to tune-up and another friend wants his wife's bike tuned up. So it looks like I may have a few side jobs for minor stuff. It works for me.

Bike Kid's K2 Hardtail is all tuned-up, works as good as new. Now I'm disecting Capt'n Balance's 20 year old rigid Cannondale.

We had a difficult time getting the rear wheel off, the axle bolt on 1 side was seized. Fourtunately he never had a flat tire on any of our rides last summer, there would have been no way to get that tire off with a bike multi-tool. Not impossible to fix a flat with the tire on the bike, but more difficult.

I overhauled the hubs last night, good thing a few friends were over, there was NO WAY I was going to get the freewheel off. It took 2 guys, both well over 6 ft tall, much bigger than Capt'n Balance (although the Capt'n is very strong) and huge hands, as big a frying pan, straining to get that freewheel off. 20 years of tightening with each pedal stroke, you can imagine how tight it was.

Then flushed out the freewheel with lube, put it all back together and mounted the Ice Spikers. Way easier to get those tires on than the Nokian on my bike.

Today I will overhaul the roller-cam brakes, the rollers don't roll anymore. Replace the chain, lube up the cables, replace if necessary. I'm not going to get into the bottom bracket today, maybe in a few weeks. It rotates nice and smooth with no play, so I think it's fine for now.

Hopefully we will be up for a ride tomorrow. I don't plan on celebrating too much tonight, I don't like missing a day to recover.

Happy New Year!

Studs

Sorry guys, I'm not talking about you

I bought Capt'n Balance Schwalbe Ice Spiker studded tires.

They are damn sexy....as studs should be

There is something about bad boys that attract girls, and these are some Bad Boy tires.

Now to all you guys, it's a known fact that bike guys are stud-ly, so puff out your chests, grab a beer, do some struttin and tell some lies, you are a STUD.

Merry Christmas

Christmas Shopping

We rented a hotel room in Anchorage Friday night so we could do our annual massive
Christmas shopping all in 1 trip.

I have only been able to suprise Capt'n Balance 1 time out of the 7 Christmas' we have been married, I THINK this might be year #2!!! This year, he told me about a good sale Lowes was having on a small circular saw/drill combo. I went and got it after work one evening and hid it away when I got home. About 2 days later, he asked me if I got the tools....I said no, like I could really tell him I did. So then he said he was going to head into town and buy it because it's a really good deal. Well, what could I do? I told him I did get it so don't go buy another. Sheesh.

He mentioned a while back that he also would like some power shears. He builds many metal building, such as my bike shop and all the other little outbuildings on the farm here. He used to professionally build metal pole barns, which is why it was relatively inexpensive to build my bike shop. I don't know what he has been using to cut the metal lately, but he said he needed another power shear. So I went back to Lowes the other day and purchased one and hid it away.

So yesterday, while we were still in Anchorage, he takes us to a pawn shop to look at power sheers. I'm thinking "S***" and decide I'm am NOT going to say anything. I will let him buy one and then he will have 2 or he can return the one I purchased. He ended up not purchasing one at the pawn shop, so whew. I think he will be suprised.

I purchased myself a cable stretcher tool from REI as well as 25 ft of cable and brake housing and some teflon coated cables. The REI salesman was asking if we needed any help, only he keeps looking at and talking to Capt'n Balance, ignoring me, although I'm the one holding the tool, cables and housing. Capt'n Balance told him to talk to me, not him, as I'm the one who in into bikes. I told him I had everything I needed, thanks anyway.

I was looking at truing stand, decided against it for now. I am going to start replacing all the cables on Bike Kid's hardtail and put on new chains on his hardtail and my road bike. Maybe I will then start on project bike #2, a Shwinn Super Sport. I was reading about this bike, it has a handbuilt frame with brass brazings or something like that. It's special due to the way it's built, according to the guy who wrote this website.

I took a nice, short ride last night in the falling snow, I love it!! I need to get the lights up on this new used winter bike so I don't get splattered.

What is this tool??

I got the brake cables on the Takara. There must be an easier way to pull the cables taut. I improvised and got them nice and tight but it took some work. I have come to realize I don't have much hand strength. I'm a wimp. I used to rock climb and my hands were much stronger. I have to start working on that.

I used a Dremel tool for the first time to get a clean cut on the cable housing. I have some housing cutters but have a hard time getting a clean cut due to pour hand strength, also the cutter handles spread too far apart, my hands are too small, they are too big. So I got out the dremel. Capt'n Balance fortunately warned me to expect sparks. It was a little scary a first, sparks flying, the sound and the smell. Then it go to be kinda fun. The housing came out nice and smooth, no burrs.

The other day I was using the air compressor to blow dry the bottom bracket bearing/cassette. I had it over my thumb with the bearings on my thumbnail. The air was making it spin really fast, which caused it to make a really cool whirring sound. I thought that was pretty neat so I was playing around with it a little. Then I see a bearing fly out and feel pain in my thumg. The edges of the bearing cassette are pretty thin and flexible. It snagged on my thumb after the bearing flew out. I was sure there would be some missing skin/blood, but no, just some pain. So now I know not to play that way anymore. Then I went to the bike shop and Bike Guy gave me a new bearing.

Anyway, I purchased a cheap box of generic tools a while back. I have this tool, and have NO IDEA what it is used for. Anyone know what it is?

I was also checking out the prices of tensiometers, holy ****. $$$!!!!!!!

It will have to wait a bit.