Post Winter Solstice

Badger 29er with Ritchey Speedmax Pro CX tires = pretty quick on gravels. Kinda nice to be running gears again for a bit. Tailwinds are nice. I keep finding myself in the 40x12. Might have to get something bigger than a 40T. Tried the tubeless bit with the cross tires but just couldn't get a good seal. Prolly due to my crappy job cutting the valve hole on the new yellow rim tape and the fact that it usually helps to have warmer weather to get a good seal. Guess I'll have to wait a bit to get that working.

Looking forward to getting ahold of some of the new 29er treads out there. That Kenda Nevegal looks nice, but then so does the Panaracer Rampage, WTB Wiefwolf, Specialized Resolution, and Michelin XC.

Made it into the Ouachita Challenge. A few didn't, bummer. Registration filled super fast this year. I wonder when all these other ultra 100 events open up and if they have rider caps. I'm definitely looking forward to this season, bunch of new events and trails to explore, stacked new team for the mtb stuff(wish I could elaborate here but it hasn't been officially cleared yet. Lets just say that I am merely a bench warmer on this team, lots of talent).



Christmas was good. Couple good rides, some much needed articles of clothing, and one of the coolest movies I've seen in awhile: The Fastest Indian. Burt Monroe was one amazing cat. Maybe a bit crude in his methods, but meticulous and unrelenting. Reminds me alot of some of the great HPV builders I've met in my exploits. And I'm afraid I see alot of the same in my own shop, I just haven't taken to sleeping out there(yet). The sound of the moto in this movie re-awakens the motorhead in me. I'm sure I'll get back to the non-hpv stuff eventually. One obcession at a time.

• Finished up the fork for next liner. Nice tight fit on the 451 SA drum wheel, milled the crown to end up with about an 1/8th of an inch clearance from tire to crown. Real nice. Next, I suppose I get to rethink what I'm building and who I'm building it for. My original plans have been put on hold for a multitude of reasons which made for a pretty crappy Monday last week. IE: back to the drawing board. But thats not all bad, means I get to work on a new shell design, and I won't have to figure out who the hell the thing belongs to when I'm finished. Sounds like I just answered my own question. I'll be building the next liner to fit me. It will be dual 451, fwd, dual drum brake, 15deg seat angle, really friggen low and about half the size of the Cuda. Anybody know where to get Dibond around here?

• I did a century in the Cuda last Saturday. 4hours. 15miles of gravel. Yep, gravel roads in a streamliner at about 25mph with a good 10-20mph South crosswind. Actually wasn't too bad. The gravels in Western IL are actually better than some of the "paved" roads over there.

• Other news: I paid off my last credit card, YAY! Now all I have left is the Cuda and the Suby to pay off. Cuda should go quick, I hope.

• New recommended music:
• Radiodread: Radiohead Rasta, nuff said.
• Brandi Carlile: wow
• Linda Ronstadt and Ann Savoy's Adieu False Heart: Beautiful. A little sad if you listen too closely.
• East Village Opera Company: high power rock and roll opera
• Any James Brown you can get your hands on: respect

DG