Joker

Damn Gina!! Is that your race bike? Tell me that's your race bike...

Today, in the rain-hail-snow flurries, I managed to get in 30 miles. Mostly hills but a few good flat sprints thrown in for fun. Concentrating on hills has definitely improved my false-flat rides. I use to get winded going over those but I've noticed a big difference since I started staying seated for 95% of my climbs. When I got home today my toes were so cold that they stung when I took my shoes off. They were getting their natural heat back and it hurt so bad! Even with all that crap I have pulled over my shoes and winter socks. Sheesh! Tomorrow is the big trainning ride day. 85 miles. Out to the "Bridge of the gods" and back... weather permitting. That Croll looks like a demon... I love it! Tearz... c'mon man, where's those photos!!

Hell yeah, Cinnamon!! Hope it works out! Been riding a lot more lately. Last week got about 175 miles in. Didn't ride at all over the weekend. Did about 30 miles today. Had to come home early because my left knee wasn't having this cold weather. Been doing lots of hills to prepare for the first race of the season. It's a mostly flat terrain with two rollers. The course will be two laps at 22 miles each. So I have to get my shit together and train right. I can't get dropped on the rollers or it's all over for me. I want to at least finnish in the top 20. If I can stay with the momentum of the pack over the rollers... I'll be alright. Still having issues shedding some of these excess pounds but after reading the story on weight in the new Procycling magazine... I'll take it one step at a time.

I don't remember reading that either but I'm damn glad it was posted again. I kinda felt like I was reading about myself there for a second. Well, minus the "Style Master" part. I haven't bombed, hit a legal wall or drawn a piece in more than two months. I can't even remember the last time I caught a tag in the streets... much less a train. Maybe I've gone "Dondi"...

Mmmmmmm... pretzels... Mmmmmmm... black and blue knee... Mmmmmmm... bike rides on the clock...

I have those Tayo's, too. I love 'em. When it's not so sunny out I wear these Briko jams. The lenses are semi-dark so if the sun comes out I can still see without squniting. The Tayo glasses are crazy ill though. Speaking of diets... ( sorry, I'm late on the subject ) what's a good thing to snack on? That's my biggest problem, snacking. When I get the urge I always grab a cookie or some M&M's. For a while I was just eating fruit and cereal but my uh... time in the bathroom was rather unpleasant. Any suggestions?

Yeah Cinnamon, if you're going to be riding the bike on the road for anything but a trek around town to a friends or to the store... I'd say put a brake on there. Don't spoil your knees . Tearz, I watched that Paris-Roubaix on OLN last year and it was slick. You can't help but cheer for George Hincapie. Dude was up against three or four Domo guys and still placed fourth. Even more sad was watching the Road to Paris documentary on the US Postal squad. They showed a small section of the P-R race. There's this scene where the camera is in the team car with Johan Bruyneel and he's talking with George on a two-way radio. George is telling him he needs someone from Postal to come to the front to help and Johan is just sitting there with this sad look on his face because he knows there's no one close enough to help him. Johan even calls Armstrong on the phone to ask for advice and Lance has nothing for him. It was just a sad moment.

Cold feet... no good. Here's what yer Uncle Joker does up here in the cold wet Northwest... First, I pull on some nice thick Craft socks to keep the toes cozy. Then I pull on the shoes. Then I pull on these things called Storm Socks. I guess skiers and snowboarders wear them to keep their feet dry and warm. They're basically a neoprene bootie with no holes. But I cut holes in them for my cleats and heel pad on the my shoes. After that I pull on the warm booties. It sounds like a lot but trust me, I feel no cold and no wetness from rain after a good three hour ride. Cold legs... no good either. Here's what I do... First I put on the knee warmers. Then the bib shorts. Then the Assos Prosline bib tights. They got the Airblock sections in the knees and thermal inners all over. Toasty my friends. Cold upper body... no fun there. Here's what I do... I got the Craft Windblocker long sleeve undershirt. Then the Castelli long sleeve jersey and then finally a nice Pro team jersey for style over top. If it's raining, I pull on the castelli rain coat. It's clear and velcros up the middle. Keeps me dry for $19 and even blocks the wind. If it gets really cold I have this Windblocker Assos jacket that makes me sweat in 30 degree weather. It was abit pricey but man... so worth it. Cold Hands... don't be like The Law. Try this... Castelli makes these ral thin undergloves that protect from the wet and wind. I pull those on first. Then I pull on my Windstopper gloves to keep any and all wind from messing with me. Cold noggin... it's like having a headache all day long. Here's what I do... First the Windstopper skull cap. Fits tight and covers the ears. The I pull on the knit cap for extra warmth. If it's raining, I still use the windstopper skull cap, but I also put on a cycling cap and the my helmet. Wet weather always means helmet for me. Otherwise I can do without. I know... not very smart. And for the eyes I use some Rudy Project glasses that I put yellow lenses in. Keeps things bright even at night. Always have an extra set of gloves in your jersey pocket, wrapped in a sandwich bag on rainy days. I do this sometimes and I love myself for it when I'm about two hours in to my rides. I can switch out the undergloves and life is good again. And if it's just too damn cold or wet I do the same thing Cinnamon does. Set the bike on an indoor trainner and put in the TDF 2001 video and race with the best of them. Nice bike up there!! Hot! I might have to get those cranks... how much were they if you don't mind my asking? I hope everyone had a good holiday season. But now that it's over it's time to get back out there and get some rides in. The first race of the season for me is in February and I'm not looking forward to it. I've barely trained at all in the month of december. So I have to get cookin' out there this month and early next. Cinnamon... do you race road in the spring/ summer months? What's the story on the Stonecutters ride? Are2... tell your boyfriend to worry about his own bike! ;)

Yeah, track bars are more comfy. I got those Kirin jams and I love 'em. I've tooled around on the Bull horns a few times and they're fun but nothing I'd want to deal with for more than an hour or so. Bye bye page three...

I hear ya Teaz! I went out yesterday for three hours because it was really nice out. Not a cloud in the sky. I was completely warm thanks to some nice Assos tights I purchased and the Craft windstopper undershirt, but nothing could protect my lungs from the cold-ass air I was breathing in. I feel all crappy today and I'm suppose to do another three hours. Same with tomorrow. I use to love the winters... Jewish, I agree about the Campy for a Pinarello. You could put Campy Mirage on there for mad cheap and still have a good product. Check ebay for parts or use google.com for listings. I found new Campy Record brake callipers for $50. It's all in the searching my friend. Congrats on the placings Cinnamon!!!!

Congrats on your great results this weekend, Cinnamon!!

Yeah, go ahead... rub that shit in. When I come home from a wet cold ride my wife is on the couch bundled up with a bowl of hot soup watching Lifetime. Ain't no towel or no hot shower waiting. Grrrrrrrrrrr....:mad:

Congrats Alakline!! Yes, you should definitely put your "Toys" on the registry as well. You have friends too and maybe they'd feel better about going in on a PS2 for you than hooking up an egg poacher. Some guys won't step foot in Williams Sonoma. Home Depot is also a good spot to register. Target is good. Circuit City. The more you register for the more options your friends and family have. Trust me, you'll get the practical things for sure. It's the fun extras that make the gift opening a good time. Tell your fiance that she needs to think outside the kitchen. Even after you get married you have a year to buy all that stuff at a discounted price. So does your family and friends. Hell, you could always register the "Toys" without her. And then smile real big when she unwraps a DVD player... As for the bike situation, in my home my bikes are basically that. My bikes. If I have the money to spare and that's what I want to spend it on, my wife is cool by it. I buy her a shit-load of stuff all year long anyway. (I work at Nordstrom and she benefits from it) Our system is this... one bank account for bills and going out to dinners or with friends. One account for savings for trips to visit parents or friends. And we both have our own seperate accounts that is our "Play" money. That's where bikes and Macintosh crap gets bought. And soon DVD movies. Storing your bikes does cause a problem. Mine are stored in our dinning room right now because we live in an apartment. If I had a garage or a basement... that's where they would be. I keep my tools and shit in a closed area that guests won't see. That's all the wife cares about. Our house is a bit like a page out of Wallpaper* magazine. Retro-modern furniture and lamps galore. Everything that is unneccesary is hidden. Kinda scary. Sometimes I just love to let go and leave crap on the floor in the kitchen... watch the little lady cringe. Pull out the Swiffer and go to town!

Sleepin' like a motherfucker... I'm not sure what happened, but I just felt the need to sleep for the past three weeks. Felt kinda good. Dlush... congrats!!! Married life isn't that much different from having a boyfriend, really. The only difference is people accept your living together and you get a whole shitload of presents for being in love. Being married is good. I wish you all the happiness and more my two wheeled friend!! Cinnamon... good luck this weekend!! Have you seen the Road to Paris documentary? Apples... that's all I'm gonna say. Hesh... I'll tell you what... you get me the black one for christmas and I'll get you the silver one. Deal? You've got an extra ten grand lying around don't you?

Listen to whinning bitches about your rain! Shit... come to Portland. You'll love the rain in SF after visiting here. I haven't rode very much for the past two weeks because not only does it pour out here, but it's also dark by 4pm lately. Training on the back roads of Portland during rush hour in the dark is not fun. The indoor trainer has been in full swing but isn't the same kind of ride at all. Better than nothing. On a seperate note, I bought a new bag today. It's by a company called Chrome. I fuckin' love it!! Big, bomb proof and the fastner is an added kitsche-cool factor thrown in for looks. Padded shoulder strap built in already... I'm set. It's been a long time since I've had a new bag. My Timbuck is kinda getting thin in some areas. I think I've had it for about six years... still a good bag though. Cinnamon... Did you race yet in Baltimore?

In my personal point of view, 90% of the architecture out there is shit. It's cookie-cutter crap. Sure it was designed by an artist but they have no originality. Kinda like 90% of the writers out there. It amazes me when I see new buildings going up in my city that look just like the building next to it that was built twenty years ago. Where's the progression? The building was dated before it was even built. That's sad. A waste of time, energy and money. Architects like Frank Ghery and Zaha Hadid break ground. They make architecture interesting and controversial. They make you take notice of their artwork. You can walk through a city all day long and when you roll by a Ghery building... you're gonna stop and look. Kinda like 10% of the graffiti out there. When I was heavy into bombing it was about aesthetics and placement. I was an "Aesthetic Terrorist"... If I hit a building not only did the placement on my hit matter but so did the building. I had respect for progressive architecture. Other than that it was fair game. I don't think architects really think about graffiti as a problem to counteract in their design. Nor do they probably care about their buildings getting hit. Especially if the building is art itself. Just a thought.

Cinnamon... I'm sending out good vibes for the nationals for you. I wish I could be there to cheer you on. I have some cycle-heavy friends in B-more so I'll make sure they go. Skot... I know it looks as if they don't lock their bikes but they do. I thought the same thing when I was over there. I found out one night when I was drunk as shit and had a long way to go to get back to the hotel. I was going to steal a bike to make the trip quicker, but my "guide" said they have a locking mechanism in the rear hub area. So it looks as if it's left unlocked... but it's locked. Have fun in Germany and the rest of Europe!! Dibs... the rain is very unfriendly when the road heads south. Make sure you clean your brake pads and rim sidewalls after every wet ride. Or you could be looking at a blown sidewall in the future. Happy riding everyone!!!!

70 miles today and my right knee is killing me. Then the wifey gave me a good thrashing for not wearing a helmet. Women... don't they understand that biking is about how slick you look and not about safety? Hills that are six miles long are not fun... till you get to go down the other side.

This one's for Willy... A courier friend of mine was telling me about his altercation on Friday with an old man driving a Ford Expedition... with the 30 day temporary tag still in the window. Anyway, my friend was rolling along delivering a package when this nut decides to make a left turn real quick like without signaling while my friend is on the back end left side of his vehicle. Totally mushes him into a parked car but without injury. He looks to see if the guy even noticed what he had done and see's that he's looking right at him through his side view mirror... with a smile on his face. So he clips back into his pedals and hauls ass to catch the guy. About two car lengths away he pulls his U-lock out of his back pocket. As the guy slows for a red light, my friend rides by and takes out his side view mirror with his U-lock. He thought at most he just destroyed it, but when he looked back to see the guys reaction, he noticed that the whole mirror had completely come off. The guy got out of his Expedition screaming at my friend and freaking out. So my friend slowly rides ahead... starts to turn left at the light... looks back at the guy and smiles. U-lock justice, baby.

Waterfords are definitely a very well built frame. But with the frames starting out pretty high in price, once you put a decent set of equipment on it you're well over Tearz spending limit. Unless, Tearz you want to build a bike little by little. In which case... sky's the limit. Check out www.worldcycling.com for high end frames. They have a small selection but pretty good. Even Colorado cyclists have some good frames. And everyone is selling at discounted prices righ tnow to make room for next years models.

Tearz... I guess the first thing to do would be to have your local shop do a full measurement on you using a "fit-stik" or a fit-cycle. This is by far the most important step if you ask me. If your bike doesn't fit right... that first long ride is going to tell you so. The second thing is figure out your price range. Be willing to go above that range by at least $100 if need be. And then from there it's a matter of what you like and what is going to fit. I've seen a high-end Giant, similar to the ONCE squad's bike selling for a little more than $2000... that's with Kysriums. Not a bad bike for the buck. Though those blade forks look a bit odd. A higher end Cannondale isn't so bad either. I bought a low end (R400) for my winter/ rain bike and I dig it. The gruppo is for shit but I can eventually change it out. Don't rule out Cannondale. Especially with their new line coming out. Black is back!!! Trek has a good bunch of high-end bikes available. And you can't go wrong with any of them in my opinion. Though I'm a bit biased because I run a Trek5000 myself. Well built bikes and they handle nicely. Good warranty too. Lemond has a few bikes in the under $2000 catagory that are damn nice as well. The problem with Lemond is that they all have a long top tube. Which is great if you have a long torso or long arms. If not... it'll feel like you're on a time-trial bike. Even Scwhinn had (and I do mean had) some nice higher-end models last year. With Dura-Ace, Kysriums and all kinds of crap for about $2200. If you can find a shop that still has a few or can get you one... they might make you a deal. Bianchi has some nice bikes as well. Anywhere from about $1400 to the price of a Honda Civic. When I was looking for my winter bike I saw a bunch in the $1700 range that were full Campy Veloce or Mirage. Not bad my friend. Thing about Bianchi that I've noticed though... they outfit their bikes with really narrow handlebars. Like a 40 or something even smaller. Most shops will switch it out for you though. Nice built Italian frames with Italian gruppo. For the buck you can't beat it. Specialized might be worth looking into as well. I don't know much about them but I'm sure they at least have a $1500 -$2000 model that's worthy. This is also the perfect time to buy a bike. It's the end of the year so shops are selling at discounted prices. Even outdoor stores like REI or Copelands has road bikes for cheap right now. I even saw that Saeco Cannondale, with Campy Record gruppo and Kysriums selling at Costco!! For $2400!! That's a hell of a lot cheaper than any bike shop. As Phil Ligget says... "Give it a go" and good luck in your search!

I've spent the last two days riding my ass off on my Pista and I've come to a few conclusions as well as lessons I learned: 1: Don't tailgate going downhill... or ever for that matter. 2: Pay attention to what's in front of you and who's darting out from a side street. 3: A fixed gear bike works all the muscles an 18 speed doesn't. Which would explain all the sore muscles in my thighs. 4: Skid stops were invented by the devil to rid the weak from riding a fixed gear. Especially in the burbs. I kinda love/ hate him for it. 5: Know your limits... I was hauling downhill towards a light that is always green when I do this route. I had no worries of needing to stop because after the light the road goes up. My luck... the light turns red as I'm about 100 yards away. This is the moment that I learned to skid stop. It was rather amazing, to me. I just hankered down on the crank arm like it was natural and I skidded to a nice slow pace. I looked around with this huge grin on my face as if I was hoping that someone I knew saw it... nope, just a guy in a pick up shaking his head. I haven't had a problem stopping sice that incident. BUT I don't think it was very smart hauling down a hill without knowing what I was doing. Hence #5's lesson for Joker. I have found that riding with track handlebars is a bit difficult when it comes to grip. But I really like the feel of the bends in the top as well as the drops. I don't have them taped all the way so maybe that's part of the problem. Anyway, just thought I'd share my enthusiasm for the fixed rides of the past few days. It's making me consider riding the 12oz. wine country ride on a fixed.

DAMN!!! I think The LAW is cursed by the two-wheeled witch or something... Alright Dibs... I'll give the 'ol revenge a try:dazed:

Oh hell yeah Cinnamon!! Nice flicks and all my best to you for the nationals! Reston, VA. hunh? That's where I started writing 16 years ago... On the bike... I've been training very little this fall so far. Team rides started last weekend and I missed the first day. I made Sundays ride but had to head back home after 85 miles. My legs were aching after staying seated in all the hills we were doing. And after five hours in the saddle, and having not ridden very much... I was wiped out. I think I finally recoverd today. I'm thinking it's time for a energy drink whilst on the bike. Water isn't cutting it. I may have asked this question before, but what's in your water bottle for sustained energy?

The things we do for our bikes...