Well shit, I’ve become a fan of Sun Valley though a good buddy of mine (Chopper) in the last 7 yrs. The attraction hasn’t been just for the winter time, its been for Spring and Summer- once the snow melts that place kicks ass for mountain biking and road riding. Anyways, I had this passed on to me this last week from Chopper. Wether you enter the contest or not, its a pretty funny video. Happy Sunday!
Great road races happening this time of year, here’s a nice little weekender for you. I watched me some AToC this afternoon and boy, some of those guys were putting it in the hurt locker. This clip here is about a once down-hiller convert to roadie. While it may be a bit serious, I like his passion and the camerawork is dope. I may even do myself a little spandy pants race tomorrow. If you’re in Madison, come down and look for the bearded guy in a DC jersey, he’ll hook it up. Now go drink plenty of beer, ya hear?
What better way to start the weekly DC Facebook Roundup than on the day a once homeless graffiti artist becomes worth a half a billion? Yup, today Facebook goes for sale for $104 billion. That’s equal to like 5 of my cupcakes. Chump change for us here at DC. See, for us here at DC, we don’t measure our wealth in dollars. Our currency is babes. Steamy hot babes on bikes (SHBOB, pronounced “shi-bobs”) and the Facebook page is loaded with SHBOB’s for your ocular pleasure. Being the young gun of DC, I’ve taken some of the responsibility to use whatever social networking skills I was born with to put together content to help make your days a bit more salacious.
Here’s a snippet of some of our favorites, and comments by fellow drunk cyclist-ers:
"Yeah, my favorite part of cycling is drafting bare b-hole." - E. Murphy
"I like the denim belt." - D. Furmage
"Camelbike?" - J. Glodo
"Wow! That will be my next ex-wife!" - D. Bissell
"Has a nice kickstand Rack looks well constructed also." - D. McAlpine
"I think it is just the angle of the picture, she has a sweet wattage cottage." - J. Csakany
"Not really high enough to be cumulus, more likely to be altostratus but hard to tell just by looking up from this angle." - M. Walsh
"Would you stop it! Now the rest of my day is downhill...." - W. Morris
"Call the cops, I think this woman stole my ass!" - Y. Hernlund
"It's painted/drawn on, its not a jersey.." - R. Miller
"Downhill is a tough Habit to break." - S. Lindemann
This and lots more…come check us out. #occupybikeseat
I don’t understand a word of any of this aside from the names of the cyclists and the climbs. But I could not take my eyes off it just the same.
Pantani meant a lot to us here at Drunkcyclist. The graphic our very own Snakehawk made at the top right of the page is Pantani.
He died on the other side of the world from Gnome and I as we ground ourselves to pieces in the 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo single speed solo division. The date was February 14, 2004. Three men suffered through that night. One had far heavier baggage. Only two of us ever saw daylight again.
Hat tip: http://www.laekhouse.com/blog/?p=1019.
It’s tough to deny the fact that grassroots, long, self supported endurance events are blowing up. One of the newest events to add to the list is the upcoming Fitz-Barn Ride that starts in Victor, ID and ends in Hamilton, MT. Starts at a bike shope (Fitzgeralds Bicycles in Victor, ID), ends at a bike shop (Red Barn Bikes in Hamilton, MT), and includes a trip through some great terrain in Eastern Idaho and Southwest Montana. The start date is set for August 17, the route will be around 350 miles over a combination of roads, dirt roads, doubletrack, and singletrack. Having spent some time in that neck of the woods, I can assure you that the landscape will be top notch. For all those interested in participating, keep checking the race web page where more information will be made available. Also check out Chad’s (owner of Red Barn Bikes) writings and photos from his bikepacking tour through this area.
Bridge along the route
Bannock Pass, the heigh point of the route
Ahhhhh..Summer is upon us. And nothing says summer like going to a lake with your friends and doing stupid shit.
Here is how our friends the StOMpaRillAz get down after 18 hours of racing:
That seems like something I will be trying this weekend…
I am as ready as I will ever be.
Are you?
It’s not too late to sign up! You know you want to! There are 513 people signed up as of now, so there is still time to get reg’d. I talked Russell from PA (who now lives in Ohio) into signing up, and he’ll be camping with us.
STOKED!
My time on the dirt is limited due to rain, no vehicle unless planned out accordingly, or bumming a ride to the trail with friends. I had the opportunity to ride in Brown County Indiana and it was the most fun I’ve ever had on the dirt. With perfect conditions, these trails were no less than pure awesomeness. Like a freeway, as Russell would say. Rolling hills, some climbing up to Hesitation Point, a few rock gardens, splashes of water, so much freakin’ fun.
We got in about five hours of riding, and my legs were thoroughly trashed when we finished.
The day before the trip to Brown County, I rode 70ish miles on the road. I like those back to back days of long rides on the bike. The day before that, I commuted to work. And the day before that I put in 63 miles on the road. I kinna hate my road bike right now, but one day of rain closes the trails for days and we wait…and wait…for dry trail again.
I mentioned the tandem we bought at the bike co-op last month. We spent $150 for this thing. Dominic went to work on it right away. Stripped her down, primed and painted her, put in about another $100 on parts, and BOOM. We got this beautiful bike.
My husband is an artist when it comes to rehabbing bikes.
Other than that, the month of May is closing in and I am so fucking busy, I can’t think straight.
- Collecting donations for the bike co-op’s annual fundraiser on the 26th.
- Getting last minute details sorted out for Kid’s Night which starts June 11th.
- Century planned for this Sunday the 20th with almost 6000 feet of climbing.
- Dominic’s doing a bike safety class and Flat demo on the 21st for an elementary school near the co-op to promote Bike Month, and Kid’s Night at MoBo.
- Trip to Versailles on the 25th for one last long MTB ride.
- Trying to plan for Gnome’s arrival though I have no clue what his plans are except that he’s supposed to fly in on the 30th. (hint hint).
That’s about it. Ride on.
I’ll leave ya with my favorite Beastie Boys tune.
RIP MCA.
When I was in Ireland last summer, I hung out and drank too much coffee with this guy named Chris. He was down in our fair state of Arizona last week and made this little video for Mountain Flyer of his riding experience in Flagstaff.
The desert summer is heating up and I’m about to head north to the pine trees myself…
So stoked BJ passed the bar, that mofo has been busting his ass for a long damn time to make this happen. Anyways, I thought I’d put something together for him to say fuck yeah.
You make me Proud Big Jonny!
There are two endless sources of frustration for those of us who have followed the news for cyclist’s being struck and injured by automobiles.
One is the seemingly worthless comments about whether or not the cyclist was wearing a helmet. No matter the manner of injury, the article always seems to address this point. I don’t know what purpose is can server other than to place blame upon the cyclist for not acting reasonably under the circumstances. In other words, he wasn’t wearing a helmet so he deserved his injuries.
Never mind the part about the car hitting him. He didn’t have a helmet. And that’s why he’s hurt.
Of course, he would have been injured if he had been wearing a helmet as any of us who have hit the deck well know. The ground hurts.
The second point of endless frustration is the issue of whether the cyclist was obeying the traffic laws. Now, I don’t to dismiss this as inconsequential. The blame properly lies with a party whom disobeys a traffic signal and thus causes an accident on the roadway, be it a person on a bicycle or a person operating a motor vehicle or a pedestrian. There are rules, these rules are meant to prevent injury, and they are important.
On the other hand, this blanket condemnation of cyclists as scofflaws who somehow deserve to be injured is indefensible.
To wit:
Until cyclists obey the rules, they’ll keep on getting killed
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robert-son’s arrogance has given cyclists the misconception that they are entitled to ignore the traffic laws to which the rest of us are bound. Motorists are not responsible for the stupidity of cyclists.
How many times have drivers who are stopped at a red light seen cyclists ride through because there are no oncoming cars? Why are they not ticketed for ignoring a red light?
Until cyclists are made to under-stand they are responsible for their own safety and the rules of the road are applicable to all, they will continue to be injured or killed.
We as cyclists do understand that we are responsible for our own safety. That is why we demand to be treated with respect. We are legally entitled to use the nations roadways (with limited exceptions, or course). We should not be threatened with death and dismemberment for choosing to ride a bicycle.
As far as I know, I’ve never NOT owned a mountain bike. Even as a kid, I had something with two wheels, knobby tires, and pedals, and I rode that machine off road, even then. I didn’t become “serious” about mountain bikes until I was about twelve years old, but like I said, I always rolled on a mountain bike.
So, the good news is, I sold the Gunnar.
The bad news is, the money I got for it immediately went toward paying my rent, student loans, groceries, etc.
That means I can’t afford to replace it.
For the first time in my life, I don’t own a mountain bike…and it’s bumming me out. Hard.
I’ve got the road bike, but I can’t seem to bring myself to ride it. I think it has something to do with feeling unsettled: I’ve spent the last twenty years with a mountain bike in my possession, and it was more than just a toy in the garage: it was a piece of me, a rolling definition of who I am. What happens when that part of me is gone? More importantly, what happens when it cannot be replaced?
So I’m living a life without a bike. If you had asked me a few years ago if I’d be able to do this, I would have laughed. Fuck bikes, I would have told you, because that’s where I was at that point. Fuck bikes, fuck bike people, fuck bike culture, fuck it all.
Well, now I’m fucked, because I’m all off kilter without a bike. Shit, I had no idea the bike had so much control over me. It’s like a limb, and I just got amputated. Self-inflicted gun shot.
When you lose a limb like this, you’re forced to examine exactly how this came to be. Denial, anger, acceptance, blah blah blah…yep, it all applies here. I got myself into this mess. I sold the Gunnar so I could replace it, not so I could pay my bills…but here we are: D2 is an adult and has responsibilities because it’s not just about me anymore. I’ve got people counting on me. So I made the tough choice to forego the nice new shiny bike and pay my bills. Fuck adulthood.
It’s the tough choices that define us, certainly. I’ve been defined so many times throughout my life by the easy choice, the cowardly one. Staying on the trail. Ignoring bad shifting. Getting drunk and getting by. That’s fine. I enjoyed it. I reveled in it, really, for a time.
Now responsibility has come knocking at my door, and there’s nothing to do but pay the piper. I paid with one of the things I love most dearly: my mountain bike.
This is symbolic somehow, I’m sure. But fuck symbolism, too. I made a choice. I made the hard choice. Now it’s time to see if my friends are right when they tell me good things will come to me if I just put it out there for the universe to see.
Well here I am, universe. What have you got for me today?
RIP Gunnar Rock Hound 2008-2012. I’d like to say you’ll be missed, but really, I only miss your replacement…
There isn’t much left to be said about this year’s installment of the Whiskey Off Road that hasn’t already been said. I picked Cupcake up at the airport on Thursday night and we set out on a mission to Prescott. We were armed with nothing but a keg of beer, a couple gallons of whiskey, and some bikes. We didn’t know exactly where we were sleeping and we didn’t know who we would run into. But we did know that we were going to have a whole lot of fun.
We teamed up with the crew from Sunday Cycles and made one of the most kick ass “aid” stations I have ever witnessed. By the time the middle of the pack rolled through on Saturday, it was a legitimate party on the side of the mountain. A big thanks to Sunday and our friends at Boulders on Broadway for their help. We couldn’t have had such a rocking time without you guys.
I put together a bunch of video clips from the weekend in an attempt to sum up what it was like from my perspective. I hope you dig it.
I can’t say enough about how cool the Whiskey weekend is. I look forward to it every year. To me, it’s a model of how mountain biking events can and should be. I have never witnessed a town so welcoming to thousands of dumb mountain bikers than Prescott, Arizona. Thanks to Epic Rides and everybody that makes this weekend possible. See you next year!