alkaline

parts are all there, i just have to put it back together. i might be getting a new fork, so there may be suspension on it too. as far as the t-shirts, do i ever wear anything other than black or grey these days? i got the entire birthday weekend off, so i'll see you then. maybe you can come paint the bithday wall with me.

nic sucks, are you some kind of geeky bike mechanic or something. You sound like a big nerd to me ... with your unicycle and purple car. Hahahaha. Just joshin'. Are you ever gonna call me or what? When are you getting down here? Maybe I'll make you a t-shirt for (y)our birthday.

Hollah!!! So it's been a while. Things have been crazy like nothing else. My computer has been being repaired for like a month now. My wife downloaded some virus or something, so I've barely been online. I've found other things to take up my time though. I got a promotion at work. I'm now Alkaline - Service Manager. All that really means is that I work too much and don't ride enough. I do get Sundays off, so I ride about once a week. I built a new rear wheel for the fixed gear. I used a Surly hub with this 700c disc-only rim from Alex. Black spokes, black nipples, black hub, a black rim with no braking surface and a Bontrager Race X Lite tire (black of course). It looks like it should be on a Stealth Bomber or something. I'll put a picture of it once I get my computer back. Nic sucks also got me one of those cool Cinelli Frog stems. That stem looks so good. I cant wait to build up the matching front wheel and paint the frame. It's going to be rad. It sounds like everyone is doing well. Nice race reports, guys. I'm about to start a full-on training regime in the next week or so with two goals in mind. I plan on riding the Great Divide Trail next summer (with my friend who just moved up to Alaska to be a cycling tour guide) and I want to do an endurance race (12 or 24 hour) solo by the end of the year. I'm not sure if I'll have the chance to do the latter, but I'm going to do what I can. One last thing. Does anybody read bike magazines? I may be the only geek here, but I get them free at work. Anyways, there is a really great pictorial in the new BIKE magazine featuring "dead" bikes from all over Philly. Check it out if you get a chance. I was impressed with it, as I also take pictures of bikes in that condition when I get a chance. I've got some of those that I'll put up too. Anyways, hats off to the two guys that did that spread.

Shit, one more thing. Does anybody know of any tax laws that would allow me to write off my bike and/or gear? Maybe something under alternative transportation exceptions. Any help/links would be much appreciated.

Also ... the North Shore is #1 on the list of dream riding vacations. I was in Vancouver last summer for my honeymoon, but I didn't get any riding in.

Nothing came up. Just email the picture to me. It's funny that you used that line, as Ris was just watching that movie the other night, and I'm watching The Bourne Identity right now. Matt Damon, like whoa! Urban riding is fun. I got my new bike (late christmas present) just the other day, and I had better luck on the ledges and jumps that night. Sadly, the engine to my car threw a piston while I was on the way to Austin to ride yesterday. There is a hole in my engine the size of a cantelope. Now I have to buy a new engine. Looks like I'll be riding a lot more now. I think it's time to invest in some of those GoreTex cables.

Well, well ... it's been a while. Here's some input. R. Heydrich ... Suck it up, dude. Just grab a handful of chain and put it back on. If you're riding a bike with gears, it should take two fingers at most. Now I can understand if you are riding to an interview or a date and you don't want to get dirty, but otherwise, wipe that grease off on your pants/shorts. The big question is why did your chain fall off in the first place? Maybe you need to adjust those limit screws and keep that chain clean. Btw, shifting slowly and/or wet wipes are also good solutions. Steve ... Looks are good. I've also been hearing good things about the new Dura Ace pedals and the new Time Impacts. Egg beaters are okay, but the cleats wear kind of fast, and if anything hits the bottom-side hard enough (say you catch the pedal in a turn for some reason) it will automatically clip you out due to the design. theblindpoet ... You're "not really into mountain biking," but you plunked down the cash for a bike with a SID fork and what looks like a full '03 XTR groupo (minus the wheels)? Interesting. Probably the only way you are going to shave weight off that thing is if you take all the parts off and put them on a better frame. Or you could sell it and get a road bike. As for me, things are good here. I'm working a lot, but it has paid off. I was offered a promotion a couple of days ago. the title of "service manager" will soon go on my business card. I'm also about a week away from getting my new mountain bike. It seems to rain on all my days off lately though, so I don't know when I'll actually get to ride it. I had to ride urban in the rain last night. It didn't really matter that it was raining though after I fell into this fountain that I was attempting to jump. Good times.

Joker, check your email.

Joker ... nice drawing. I like it. As far as your cranks go, you could go the Dura Ace route, or you could put an LX mountain crank (I think that would look cooler) on there. Either way, you'll need a new bottom bracket, as the Pista has a square-tapper bb. D'lush ... Sorry you guys couldn't make it. It's probably just as well, because they made me work all weekend anyways. Nic sucks and I went to the trick skid comp and were there for the start of the Winter Solcitice alley cat, but that's about it. I heard that the SF cutters got all drunk and crazy and started throwing their bikes around and breaking shit on Saturday. I wish I could have seen that. nic sucks ... fuck you, man! You know you thought my shit was the bomb. You're just jealous. Hahahahaha. See you tomorrow. So I think I'm going to race in two upcoming 12 hour races ... solo. We'll see how things go.

Nice race reports, guys. Sounds like fun. I got my Thomson seatpost and stem yesterday. Holy crap, they look good. I'm not putting the stem on until I get my carbon bars on Monday, but my bike is starting to look really nice.

bump nic sucks said it was snowing where he's at a few days ago. Crazy! Thunderstorms are in my fortcast. Time to overhaul the bikes. NAC3 is coming up soon. From what I'm hearing around town, it's gonna be cool. Every body that enters is getting a cowboy hat with a chain around the headband ... so I'm told. For those of you coming (Devilush and crew?), hit my email so we can hook up. whyihatetexas@hotmail.com

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid39/pc281056339d13e959f7cb3fdfd5fb6ff/fd0b30a2.jpg'> http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid39/p68fbdd53a88b4dac86e401407a9a2259/fd0b30a1.jpg'> email ?'s or comments to whyihatetexas@hotmail.com or AIM: evoltwin01

So ever since I got this new job, I've been saying that I'm gonna ride in to work on occasion to save money. Well, on Tuesday, all that talk caught up with me. My wife took the keys to my truck with her to school by accident, and the only way to get to work was on my bike. So I finally rode ... about 20 miles each way. It took me about 2 hours to get there, because I got lost. It was only an hour and a half to get home, Not bad for a single speed commute. I'm going to try to do it about twice a week, now that I know that I can. The only thing that sucks is that we don't have a shower at work, so I have to sink bathe. Congrats on all the good racing, guys. If I keep up my training, and am able to upgrade my bike, I'll be dominating the local SS mountain category next year. Oh, also, we are planning on trading in my truck this weekend for a Toyota Prius. Hybrid vehicle, like what! Btw, I'm selling my Bianchi Pista (57cm) with a front brake so that I can buy more parts. I'm asking $450 + shipping if anybody is interested. Picture to follow.

I got my new Niterider yesterday. I went with the Evolution. The Storm was too much ... even with my discount. I'm anticipating my first night ride (on a trail) this week. My new helmet should be here this week too. So if you guys haven't seen it, you should check out Leapfrog. It's a bike zine from Indianapolis. Cool stuff. Contact Scott at xpeoplespoetx@hotmail.com

You should call them and put the pressure on them. Sometimes they will replace warranty stuff with something better (and brand new) if they know you're breathing down their necks. Better yet, have your LBS do it for you. Shops can sometimes speed the proccess along. Does anybody ride/know anybody that rides Chris King single speed hubs. I'm debating between the Chris King, Spot, and Surley hubs for my mountain bike. Surleys are cheaper, but the Kings look oh so dope.

Nothin scarier than a white dude in an Expedition pulling up next to your bike, that costs more than some cars, and just staring at you because you're skin is darker. Steve, if you sent your wheels back to Ritchey, I hope you have an extra wheelset. Sometimes it takes a while for them to do warranty crap, as it's usually not a priority for them.

It's been raining for about a week and a half. I haven't ridden in a while. The last ride I went on was this annual thing that we have here in town. On the weekend of the October full moon, a shit-load of people (usually in the thousands) meet downtown in the middle of the night and do a 20 mile ride around town. This year there weren't as many people, as the rain kept a few people home, but a good turn-out none the less. It started pouring about a third of the way through the ride, but cleared up after about 30 minutes. Good times.

Where you been, haus? I heard you got an apartment. Did it come with a phone? I think you know where I'm going with that. I'll be at the race. I'm probably not racing either, but whatever. Maybe we can be a two-man team of chumps. I think Devilush and Kissmyass are going to be here with some friends. What did you score at the swapmeat? Anything from my list? I had some, but we turned the into keychains. Sorry. They weren't in the best of shape anyways. So my new fork for my single speed came ... Duke C. I installed it and rode yesterday. I'm much faster now. I need a few more parts and then I can start working on my track bike.

I just ordered a Rock Shox Duke C, from Colorado Cyclist, for my single speed. $94 is a great deal.

That sure is a bummer, Cinnamon. I've been riding quite a bit, lately. I'm actually getting pretty decent on my single speed mountain bike.

... which probably won't happen now that Trek owns them. Go, Steve. That sounds like it was a lot of fun. I really need to start racing.

Thanks for the input, Steve. Congrats on the win! I have to check what my shop discount is on the Storm, but I'm definitely considering it. I'm trying to work out a route to ride to work right now, and having a really bright light will be a huge advantage when I ride home.

If you've got 2 grand, you may also want to check out the Trek road bikes. Two g's will get you a nice carbon fiber ride. I rode today after work, and boy did I get my ass whooped. I fell over and got kidney punched by a knot on a tree. Does anybody own a Niterider light? I'm in the market and I need some opinions. I've heard the Trailrat is a good light for the money. I'm also looking at the Storm HID. Do you know if it's worth the extra money? So far it looks like I'm gonna get the Trailrat, but the Storm HID has almost twice the burn time. The Digital Evolution has too many features that I'd be wasting my money on (SOS signal, flashing option, etc), so that one is out.

I haven't ridden in a while. I'm working 10 hour days at this new shop. It's cool, but by the time I get off of work, it's dark. I need to get a Niterider, but they have this thing about their discount. I have to work there for 30 days before I can get it. Not to mention that I need to buy other things first. Maybe I'll ride this Sunday. On a lighter note ... I got a chance to ride the new Specialized Epic. Let me tell you, if you are a non-believer, get on the thing and try it for yourself. It does exactly what they say it will do. The damn thing rides like a hardtail. When you hit something, it turns into a bump-sucking monster. At some point, this could be my new bike ... although I'll have to get the S-Works version.

Check on ebay for used bikes in your price range. It's a good place to start. Siloe, check with a local bike shop that takes trade-in bikes and/or buys and sells used bikes. There is a blue book for bikes. I saw one at one of my shops' locations the other day. Take the bike with you so they can figure out exactly what it is and it's condition.