Pleading with Mother...

I still haven't managed to skip out on an entire northern Midwest winter in my life, and another one is beginning. I woke up to this thing we call "fall flurries". This means snow is falling, but nowhere close to enough of it to make the leap from summer and winter outdoor fun. Mother Nature- if you're going to kill off another year of cycling and climbing for those of us residing in this part of the world, do it quick and nasty. Yank the band-aid. Seriously, give us five feet of powder to play in! Give me a honest reason to own snowshoes after leaving the Wasatch. Do not let us suffer the boredom of another year of brown, frigid, windy, barely-any-snow conditions! I'm warning you, I'll leave every weekend for more impressive venues if you don't start to rock out on MN like we all know you can. Do your thing well if you insist on the cold dark months...

SLC Weekend

One nice thing about working for an airline is that you can travel several states away for a Saturday. Alison and I went back to Salt Lake last weekend, and it was the best couple days I've had this year. (Pretty much since I lived there.) It was great to be where I want to be again, spending my free time in places like Little Cottonwood Canyon. Kelly got me to pull down on some great boulder problems (like a rock climbing route, but close to the ground utilizing a crash pad instead of ropes), and I was happy to find out my fingers and toes have not forgotten how to play on high quality northern UT granite. I have a feeling climbing will always be something addicting for me until the day I'm too old and busted up to do it anymore. And I'll probably still try it then. Sitting in front of a TV all the time is not for me. Canyons and mountains and fresh air! Until next time...

Us in front of 1,000 feet of granite and waterfall greatness...




















The UT gang- the Paasch's, Patrick's, and Jensen's...(I'm missing cuz I took the shot).














Who wouldn't dig the Quarry Trail?



















Kelly laying out the crash pad for many sudden landings...

I am still alive...

Catching up. Been way to long. Lots of things have occurred. Some good, some bad. The bad seem to have affected my motivation with blogging. Luckily I’ve been hit with a few good moments in the last couple months when I’ve been temporarily able to see that there is more to a person’s life than trying to figure out what to do with it. I’ll have to give the short account of each, because the time period I’ve failed to record here can’t be described in full without needing a editor and publisher.

I mentioned a trip back west in last months entry. Alison and I spent a week in the Black Hills of SD in between my job at the shop and my current new job. I may not get to share pictures, because our hard drive crashed before I had a chance to back them up. (Another reason the blog’s been dry.) They may still be on the camera itself but it’s coming back from the shop as well because we broke it on the trip. Not a good month for our gadgets. I’m waiting for my cell phone to fritz out.
It was a wonderful, recharging trip back out West. Some may not consider the Black Hills to be much on the mountain scene, but that’s what make them great. They are in fact very impressive to those that come to see them, them being a much smaller number of tourist masses than the Rockies see every day. This means more wilderness for each visitor. We hiked, climbed, paddled, and pedaled. It rained much of the week, but it was surprisingly very relaxing to lay in a tent reading a good Edward Abbey novel listening to the rain and smelling the fresh air at 6500 feet. Definitely moments of peace. I think I could camp for a year and not miss my bed. Maybe. I have a nice bed. But I would not miss the city or work.

Next adventure was this year’s edition of the Headwaters 100, which I missed last year on account of our first attempt and permanent western living. Park Rapids is a much different part of MN than the Twin Cities, and I can solidly say it is better for me. Slower, cleaner living. People seem way more at ease. Passing through the Northwoods fall colors for 109 miles on a trusted bicycle next to friends one doesn’t see enough is a great way to spend a Saturday.

Somehow I found my way back to Rocky Mountain National Park for three non-consecutive days. Work sent me on a rather confusing three week long training trip to Denver, and due to the lack of organization of my schedule, I ended up with some days to get out of the hotel. I’ve been to the Park before, but due to my solo status and lack of any agenda on this round I spent more time hiking and simply sitting out in some of the world’s best scenery. I’d have to say the most memorable moment was hiking up to Mills Lake in Glacier Gorge, underneath Longs Peak. Glaciers are one of God’s best paintbrushes. I sat and stared at what was in front of me for a very long time before reluctantly heading back down the trail which would take me to my rental car and hotel back in the city. When I got back to my room, I opened up a Backpacker magazine, and to my surprised, flipped to a picture of the exact place I had just been. The editors there have apparently put Mills Lake on one of their “Life List” hikes that everyone loving to hike should see. I will have to agree with their pick. I’m going back when I can take Alison and share the experience. I’d also like to return in the summer to hike some of the alpine tundra above 11,500 feet. It’s a completely different world up there. Something to see at the right time.
Also of note in the Park is that the elk were rutting. It’s quite a thing to witness when two bulls within 200 feet of you decide to lock antlers over who gets to do the year’s honors. I’m glad Alison agreed to marry me without my having to ram my head into anybody.

Last night I went “Into the Wild”, directed by Sean Penn. It’s the theatrical version of Jon Krakauer’s book about Chris McCandless. I blogged about the book a couple years ago, as it’s a favorite of mine, based on a true story of a young man that left a life of wealth for a series of outdoor experiences, ending up in Alaska. I recommend the book and the movie, even if you’re not a outdoor enthusiast. It’s interesting as a story on human nature too. You won’t experience the account without it getting your mind moving.

And to get closer to wrapping up, I went rock climbing in Taylor’s Falls, MN today with a friend that just moved to the area. We had a sunny, 70 degree, windless day after a whole week of rain, and it was fabulous to be out on the basalt guarding the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway. I miss climbing regularly, but MN doesn’t house many climbers. I’ll have to soak in the most I can of the rare days like today.

I’ll try not to be such a stranger as I pass further into fleece and wool season. I’m hoping to find ways to enjoy the long Northern Winter that I know is probably close at hand.

My apologies for the dry blog this month. Roller coasters aren't the best place to do your writing. I recently returned back West for a week long vacation, and still have to report on that. However, after the rest in the mountains I've found myself among the ranks of the bleary eyed metro commuters, and it's taken it's toll on me. I do intend on writing regularly again soon...

In the Patagonia parking lot...

This is from the Patagonia blog recently...
Climbers will understand, non-climbers will not. Very funny...

Calculate your carbon footprint...

at Native Energy's website.

Birthday # 26

My 26^th birthday went pretty darn well. I spent most of the day riding- no surprises there. I hadn’t ridden a century yet in ’07, and I skipped riding one at all in ’06, so I decided to celebrate another year with some big miles on the Lemond. 109.4 big hot miles. The temperature along my route (the Hovde house in Coon Rapids, MN to Taylor’s Falls, MN) was around 95 degrees most of the day. Sweaty. Not sure how many bottles of water I went through. It was definitely one of those outdoor adventures where you push right up to the line between what you can and can’t handle. So far in my adventurous pursuits, I’ve been cautious enough not to cross the line many times, and yesterday went well. I took a lot of breaks in air conditioned gas stations where the teenage clerks wondered what kind of freak I must be in my lycra attire and funny shoes, as well as an organic grocery store in Chisago City, MN, where the owner would have joined me for the rest of my ride if he didn’t have to finish the work day. I also spent a lot of time in shady ditches pouring water over myself to cool off. I kept looking for a lake to jump in, as we apparently have 10,000 of them here in MN, but all of the ones I passed were surrounded by a 1/8 mile of cat tail populated marsh that would be miserable to pass through to get to the actual dipping water. Shady ditches and a/c’d building worked fine. I’m also going to give a quick saddle and short review. I just bought a Specialized Toupe Team saddle for my road bike, which is a very minimalist racing saddle, and I was hesitant as to whether or not it would be appropriate for big miles, but I’m going to give it my approval after yesterday. The saddle was pretty comfy, supportive on the sit bones, and stays out of areas where it is not invited, preserving future young cyclists’ chances of being born, if you understand. My shorts, Pearl Izumi Attack’s, however, are clearly a horrible item to own. The chamois is tolerable, but not impressive. The stitching is where they enter the classification of a miserable cycling product. It is way to raised and overdone, and leaves an impression on your bum that none will enjoy. 109 miles of pedal strokes will guarantee that you wear the markings of such bad design for several days afterwards. Do not buy these shorts. Save up the money for something nice. But the ride was still a success, despite the heat and terrible shorts. The next century I see myself taking part in is the Headwaters 100 in September, which I missed last year while living in beautiful UT. I didn’t mind that much. J But it will be nice to ride it again.

In other birthday news, I need to thank all of you that contributed to my gift, which is very much appreciated. Alison got several relatives together to pick up the tab of what I was missing to pro-form a new mountain bike from the shop after the sales of a couple of my older bikes (the 8000 and the fixie have moved on). So the result was a ’07 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp showing up mid last week, and I’ve already enjoyed a couple great rides on it. Thanks all!! I posted a picture of it for all to drool over. I also posted a picture of the above mentioned Toupe saddle. Enjoy, and thanks again!

Tubby children and chromies...

I had two little chubby kids on BMX bike come into the shop tonight looking for inner tube valve caps. I showed them the usual “chromies” (stupid chromed skull, eight-balls, and other ridiculous shapes of caps that kids dig), but of course they did not have enough allowance money from the chores I’m sure they ignore. So, being a softy manager like I am, I dug around in the back and found some used plastic caps we had laying around and hooked them up for free. They left excited. Half and hour later they show up asking for another set. I realized my mistake in creating a new set of local mooches that will now bother me on a regular basis. I told them the freebies were a one time favor, and that they’d be charged for any more. My sales guy on staff tonight joked with them that he didn’t know why they were coming in to see us when there was a parking lot full of cars that had the same kind of valve caps. Kids of course do not recognize sarcasm, and my sales guy does not know how to relate to kids. Ten minutes later I spotted our chubby little friends taking the valve caps off my own pickup (today was one of the very few days I actually drove in to work, rather than ride a bike.) Not knowing that I watched their little heist, they marched in later to show me how smart they were- that they had come up with some caps on their own. I asked where, and they said they “found” them. So I asked if they had happened to “find” them on the pickup outside, and how the owner might feel about their “find”. They actually determined on their own that the truck must be mine and handed over the caps. I gave them a little lesson, and they appeared genuinely sorry. After they left, I went out to put the caps they gave me back on my pickup, only to discover that they gave me back the free plastic caps I had given them, as I had chrome caps originally on the truck. Little bastards…

Short trip through a long time...

This past weekend, Alison and I took a very short trip through quite a few places. Adam and Jamie (my brother and his wife) drove from their home in Texas up to Minot, ND, where my parents live, so we decided to swing up ourselves to see everyone. The trip was only a couple days, but took me through quite a few memories of places I’ve spent a great deal of time. Friday night, we drove to Grand Forks, where we spent our first night at our friend David’s. I started getting the feeling that I’d never left last August, and that we were still Grand Forks residents. There were so many cues everywhere that were so familiar that it felt I’d never moved on. Green and tan Pipers overhead, UND campus, all my old apartments, the highways I’ve spent literally thousands of miles road biking on, Happy Harry’s (the dirty IV in the arm of Grand Forks), the list goes on. Even filling our car with gas at a pump I’d visited regularly on the way out of town (towards the airport) gave me serious de ja vue. Edward told me once on a visit back to GF after he had been gone a while that it was really weird to be back, and I sure felt it this trip. Everything was exactly the same, except that almost no one I know still lives there. Anyhow. Next up was Minot, where I grew up. That was a little less familiar, cuz it’s been so long since I lived there. The thing I noticed there was how “Minot-y” everybody is. I can’t quite explain it, but every location in the world builds a sort of conformity of feel to it’s residents. Everyone fits a sort of mold after enough time, and you don’t find it anywhere else. And when your town is located far away from nearly everything out on the prairie, it sure becomes it’s own world. Glenburn was next, which is the farm community my mom was raise near, and the family farm just outside of “town”. The people there are nothing like the suburban families I’m surrounded by here in the Cities. They live a life in the open, doing work completely foreign to those in the urban/suburban hustle. It seems to be a shrinking world with nonetheless deep roots. Interesting to see. We traveled through Bismarck on the way back to the Cities to attend a birthday party for my uncle Randy and my aunt Lynn. Once again, Bismarck has it’s own “feel”, completely different from any of the other places mentioned. I’d describe it as a the product of open prairie roots with Midwestern and Native values, combined with the modern suburban need to expand. Once again interesting. Basically, in even a short time, a traveler can pick up on drastically different “feels” of the place traveled, even if they are only a couple hours apart. The other places I’ve lived and traveled- SLC, St. Louis, Moab, Kenora, San Fransico, CO, WV, the Pacific NW, etc., etc., have such diverse living experiences. There are no two places exactly alike, and that makes traveling one of my favorite ways to spend my time. Too many experiences in life to sit in front of the TV.

On another note, I was also able to hear Adam play his trombone again during this trip. My aunt Avis in Minot, plays with a jazz combo call Java Jive Jazz, and they invited Adam to be a featured guest artist at their Saturday night show. Adam can manage to not play for months, and then get up in front of a venue and play a whole nights set of pieces he may or may not have ever seen. Impressive. And beyond that being entertaining, it was good just to focus on some music. Even though I don’t do much playing myself anymore, music has always been important to me. I’ve always thought of it as a sort of audible form of feeling. But I’ll save that for another day, this entry is getting entirely too long. As you were…

Return to rock?

Alison and I went out to visit Interstate State Park NE of the Twin Cities this past Sunday in search of rock climbing options here in SE MN. I'm pleased to say that the park does contain some decent rock for the midwest. I will be able to keep slightly interested in rock climbing during my continued time in the mostly flat lands. We are receiving a new rope from a good friend of mine (thanks again David!) in exchange for some bicycle overhauling, so we'll be able to dust of our other gear and get back on the real stuff. I'm out of climbing shape, but bike wrenching has kept my forearms and fingers in decent condition (beat up and calloused), so I should transition back ok.
In other news, I received the best tip I've ever gotten at a job yesterday. I sold a pair of Speedplay Zero Series pedals (friggin' sweet) to a local roadie, and he gave me his pair of Speedplay X Series pedals that he was upgrading from as a tip! Nice. I had to pick up a set of cleats for them, but thats a small price to pay for a $150 set of pedals. Not so bad. Al and I rode out in the Stillwater, MN area yesterday for the 4th, and they performs quite nicely. They're much freer than the Looks I've been riding in regards to the float, but that's the point (sorry to bore those non-cyclists reading). Anyhow, it was an impressive tip.
Alison and I are heading to ND for the weekend. Adam and Jamie are coming up from TX to visit home, so we decided to meet them there so everyone would be together for once. Doesn't happen much. We're pumped to see them, and Mullet too! We haven't seen our fat pet since we moved back from UT in January, and we miss him! Mullet, you better not die before we move to a place that allows pets again. I think he's got several years left if we control his fattening. The little guy's not fond of exercise. Anyhow, we'll be staying in Grand Forks tomorrow night (that will be weird), and continuing on Saturday morning for Minot, where I did my growing up. Well, part of my growing up. That seems to be a continuing project.
Well, I've got to rest up for another big shop day (today was 12 hours; more tomorrow). Don't waste the summer, get outside!

Pro Cycling Live...

Last night I got my first live viewing of a pro cycling race. The Nature Valley Grand Prix is going on here in the Twin Cities area, and I rode the fixie into downtown Minneapolis for the 4th stage, which was a criterium. I forgot my camera, which I was bummed about, but you can view some pictures of the event at it's website. I was amazed at the amount of wind stirred up by a peloton (the main group of riders). Every time the peloton went by, the flags on the building I was standing next to stuck straight out, and rested again when it had passed. Pretty cool. It was great to see such a good turnout for a cycling event in the States. People still seem to think that throwing balls is more fun, but cycling is catching on. If you ever get a chance to check out a race, do it. It's worth the trip. And if you're in the Twin Cities tomorrow, Stillwater is hosting the final stage of the Nature Valley Grand Prix.

FSR Test Ride

I got the chance to ride the mountain bike that I'd like to replace mine today. It won't happen, but a dude can dream. It's actually not that expensive of a machine as full suspension cross country trail bikes go, but it's more than a dude with college debt can swing. But that's why I ride is at work. Anyway, it's the '07 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp, and I got so excited riding it I might have pee'd a little. Not really. But seriously, Specialized has their suspension design figured out. And they have had for the past 14 years. Many bike companies are using it (and have to list Specialized's name on their own bikes- it's patented) on their own rigs, and it's way efficient. The whole deal with FSR (future rear shock) technology is that the drivetrain's geometry is not effected by pedal or braking forces, and also does not change as the suspension is going through it's range of travel. This means a super efficient, comfortable ride over the whole mountain. If you dig mountain riding, and have a spare $2,200 looking for a home, buy the FSR.
2007 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp

1,000

Bike Mileage Update:

2007 miles: 1,001
Total since recording: 7,522

Let's go another thousand!

A bit slower than 65

I was browsing the Surly Blog today, and apparently part of 35W was closed for construction here in the cities, and one bike fanatic adult took a few bike fanatic kids for a car free spin. I guess he ended up in handcuffs and had to pay a huge fine, but they all enjoyed themselves. All that pent up aggression from getting harassed by motor vehicles while commuting by bike will drive a person to rejoice in riding their bike on the Interstate. :) Pretty nuts.

Front yard circus...

Did some slacklining in the Hovde's front yard tonight. I finally have some action pictures, as Alison was around to man (or woman) the camera. I'm not sure the neighbors share my enthusiasm for stupid things such as walking the slackline. I'm one of the only young poor people on the block that goes to such measures to entertain myself. I have a good time though, and they seem to enjoy the show to some extent.

Quote of the day...

Once again I've been reading from Mr. Edward Abbey's work, and was struck with another quote that hit home. I think I might just have to have the Ed Abbey quote of the day on my blog from time to time, seeing as I've collected so many of them. Here's today's:

”If America could be, once again, a nation of self-reliant farmers, craftsmen, hunters, ranchers, and artists, then the rich would have little power to dominate others. Neither to serve nor to rule: That was the American dream.” -Edward Abbey

Mileage update...

2007: 813 miles (respectable, but less than I'd expected)
Since recording mileages: 7,334 miles

Keep peddalin'...

More slacklining...

I thought I'd post some more slackline pix as well as long I'm in the blogging mood. I really need to get some pictures of me actually on a line, but I'm always by myself when I'm out. So for now you'll have to pretend to enjoy pictures of the slackline itself. This was quite a long line I set up in Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park down the road from where we are staying. It was somewhat secluded, with a lightly traveled bike path running nearby. The riders all stopped to wonder what on earth I was doing balancing on my little strip of nylon. Having fun is what.
It took a 9 to 1 tensioning system to get the line tight enough considering it's length. The mess of carabiners, knots and cord that you see at the left of the line is the tensioning system to pull the mainline that is walked tight (although it is always somewhat slack compared to a tightrope, hence the name slackline.)

This picture sure shows a bit of my nature, the slackline itself is one venture, the touring bike another entirely, and the wood grip on the tensioning system is a bit of an old walking stick picked up while backpacking in the Northwoods. Many methods of outdoor escape.

Update

The past month has been confusing, to say the least, and I have not been entirely in the mood to blog. Thus the long gap since my last post. The short of the long is that my airline job did not work out for me. I left by choice, but I don't know that I'm going to post all of the reasons on this blog. Most of you linked to my site have no doubt talked to me directly anyhow, so there's probably no big news for you to read. Anyhow, life must go on , and it will. It appears I'll be returning to my old job for now, and will be returning to my usually outdoor distractions as well. I have already been back to the Superior Hiking Trail since returning from Missouri, and it was very theropuetic to walk deep into the woods away from the normal concerns I face. Ty and Chris backpacked with me, and we enjoyed the section of the trail that passes from Gooseberry Falls State Park through the Split Rock River Loop. My left knee gave me quite a bit of pain towards the end of the trip, which is a problem that's been developing over the past year when I hike. Even though I cycle at least 1,300 miles a summer, and ride the indoor trainer in the cold months, it is very different on the knees that hiking over uneven terrain supporting a backpack full of gear. Backpacking is very high impact on joints where riding is not, so I suppose I better start day hiking somewhat regularly to build up my knees for the times when I do get out on the bigger loaded walks.

Doing some household chores at camp: drying off some wet stinky tent after a night of rain...if I look leaner than normal, I am. I've lost 27 lbs since moving to MN in Jan. by way of cycling and stress. Time to start climbing again now that I've regained a better strength to weight ratio.














Ty doing some other camp chores: filtering our drinking water out of the Split Rock River. Yum. It tastes better than any city water I've come across. It's just water, and not full of chlorine. Yum.

Slackin' in Mercy Park...

Seeing as it was beautiful out tonight after work, Alison and I decided to do something outdoors, and we happened to pick slacklining. It's only the second time I've set up a line, and it was the first time I was actually able to get up on it and stand for a while. Sweet. Al got up too; we both had our epiphany moments on the line where we figured out how to do it. It will be fun to keep slacking and get better. It seems like such a goofy passtime, but man it's fun, and you can do it just about anywhere. I didn't get any pictures of us actually up on the line, because we were spotting each other, but next time I'll try to get a couple. And for those of you who don't know what slacklining is, follow the Yogaslackers link on the right side of this blog to check it out. Our friends Jason and Sam are pretty involved with it. Anyhow...

Getting on is the hardest part...














Is your wife open to doing stupid things like balancing on an inch of nylon webbing with you? :)

Mexico

So I'm finally getting around to posting a few pix from our recent trip to Mexico. Enjoy:

Lying around on beach (I was already fighting Montezuma's Revenge in this picture- I look much happier than I was.. :) )














The view from our hotel room balcony:














Logging some hammock time on Isla Muerta:



















Alison eating (and discovering she dislikes) octopus at one of the fine restaurants on the resort:














After snorkeling, and swimming with the "Nemo fish", and coming close to being stung by a few small jellyfist (a few people in our group came back hurting)...














The next several pictures are from Chechen Itza, the ancient Mayan/Totec ruins about three hours inland from Cancun-

The planetarium/observatory (pretty wild that they had so much science back then)...



















A face in a wall much like a totem pole...














Scattered ruins of decorated rock...














A ruin that I can't remember what it was but it's pretty big and sweet...














Yet again..














Part of the main temple. The Mayans were big on snakes and eagles. They represented how God rules the ground and the heavens...














If you look at the edge of the pyramid, the steps form diamonds that make up the scales of the snakes on the edge of the stairs, running down to their heads at the ground. Wild.














A couple of very white people in hot Mexican weather enjoying the main temple of Chechen Itza...














Ruins seen through the jungle (there are actually still several jaguars in the area, although people have done what they do with anything they don't understand and are afraid of with the rest of them and killed them off)...














Flying away from Mexico. It was 85 degrees in Cancun, and three and a half hours later it was 39 degrees in MPLS. I went road biking when we got home anyway. :)

Quote of the holiday...

As some of you may know, today is Earth Day. The Discovery Channel was running many episodes of it's series called "Planet Earth", which displays a huge variety of scenery, creatures, and science from all over the planet we live on. It's pretty fascinating. It really gets me thinking of how small my daily routine really is, and just how much more is out there. I really don't want to be stuck in just one place for many years at a time when there is so much creation to see. And I'd sure like to do what I can to make sure future generations get to feel the same awe when they look outside.
And as talk of the environment and creation does quite often, it got me searching through quotes of my favorite author, the late Edward Abbey, who is hailed as somewhat of an environmentalist, even though I don't know whether or not he would apply the term to himself. He was most assuredly floored by the power of nature, and dumbstruck at how complacent the Earth's inhabitants can become as to their own surroundings. This quote is simple but fitting for Earth Day, and worth tossing around in your head if you're the pondering type:

“The world is older and bigger than we are. This is a hard truth for some folks to swallow.”
-Edward Abbey

Happy Earth Day. Don't forgot that our grandkids need to live here too.

Memories...

So from time to time I look through the millions of digital pix on my computer from days past, and this time I ran across a picture of a place I just stood this past Sunday, the parking lot of Palisade Head along the North Shore of Lake Superior in Northern MN. I'm not sure exactly what year it was taken in, but it was definitely during college. It sure brought up good memories of forcing very good trips into a hectic schedule and spending priceless time with my best friends that I'd never trade for anything. It seems that with age many of us forget to have this fun. I like this particular picture not because of its quality (it's a pretty crummy picture really), but because it really sums up a time period of my life. Putting tons of outdoor gear in someone's beat up old vehicle that might make it to the desired playground, and hanging out in the best places on earth. Sweet. Who wants to go on another adventure?

North Shore Riding Day...

Because I'm going off to training for a couple months, Alison and I may not get to see each other as much as we'd like pretty soon, so we took advantage of both having this past Sunday off and took a day trip up to the North Shore of Lake Superior for some road biking and scenery. We rode from Split Rock River State Park to Palisade Head and back. Very nice. Spring on the North Shore is pretty great, as the droves of mosquitoes have not yet taken over the place. The weather was wonderful, and we totally enjoyed ourselves. In addition to the riding and refreshing Northwoods atmosphere, we also took in some very tasty pie, at Two Harbors famous "Betty's Pies" restaurant. We had the Great Lakes crunch, which incorporates all the local berries, plus apple and rhubarb. Oh yes.
In other bike-type news, my touring bike has gained another splendid feature. This latest upgrade is a Brooks B-17 leather touring saddle, which is raved about in the long distance trekking circles as being the must have saddle for seeing the world on your loaded rig. So far I've only ridden new-school plastic saddles, so it will be interesting to log some miles on a classic unit such as this. There are many who swear by pure cow-butt saddles; we'll see if I join this eccentric group. It does require more care than most bicycle saddles, and there is a break in period as the leather wears and forms to an individual riders south end. It requires a special treatment of goop called "Proofide", which is several natural substances put together to essential oil the saddle without making it oily. Neat. I'll let you all know how it works out. I'm sure you're excited. :)
Pix from Sunday's ride:

Alison at the top of the climb up Palisade Head. It's not long like the climbs in UT, but it is fiercely steep...














Breaking for a Clif Bar and scenery soak on Palisade Head...














Overlooking the Beaver River along North Shore Scenic Highway 61...














Alison found a school bus she felt like picking up along the road...

From STL to Mexico to Snow...

Crazy crazy week. Started out with my trip to St. Louis to interview with Trans States Airlines. I flew down last Monday evening for a Tuesday morning interview. I didn't sleep much Sunday night out of nerves, and I didn't really sleep at all on Monday night for the same reason, so I was super tired, but the interview went really well and I got the job! I was actually pretty stupefied at just how easy it was. My interview at UND to be a flight instructor was waaaay more difficult than my interview at Trans States to fly a jet full of people. Nuts. I guess UND is intense on purpose. Anyhow, I'll start training on May 7th down in STL. I'll either be assigned there or in Richmond, VA. Neither are places I want to live at all, but this job is a stepping stone. If I dig the airline thing afterall, I think I'll just apply at Skywest in a few months and move back west, where life is good, the weather's not muggy, and the earth rises high. That's in the future though. Anyhow, after the interview, I was supposed to fly out standby at 1pm so I could get back to MSP for my flight to Cancun the following morning (I needed to be checking in at MSP at 4am). As is common in the muggy South (yes STL is in the South, even though some argue that it is not; I think of it as the Gateway to the South, not West), thunderstorms rocked the afternoon, and my flight was cancelled. Not good for a standby passenger, cuz everyone displaced by that flight wanted seats on the following flights. Long story short, I was bumped on one flight after another, and was still sitting in the airport after 11pm, wondering if I was going to have to by a last minute ticket from STL to Cancun to make the family vacation (I know, I know, rough problem going on vacation, but quite a pile of money was on the line). I did get on the last flight out at 11:45 pm, and pulled in the driveway in Coon Rapids at 2:30 am. We left to return to the MSP airport at 3:30 am to go to Cancun. (Remember I had not slept much in a couple days). We got on a 737-800, and I was assigned a middle seat. This means no sleep for me as I am taller than that plane allows any shred of comfort for. We got to Mexico, and I was a walking zombie for the first day, before finally getting a decent amount of rest that night. The rest of the trip went really well, minus some Mexican stomach trouble the last day. The resort we stayed at was all-inclusive, which translates to way too much eating and drinking, and a general gluttonous fattening condition of relaxing. We enjoyed the beach, the wedding of Alison's brother (the reason for the trip), touring Mayan ruins, and all in all relaxing away the normal stresses of being young and new to the American search for work and currency. (I might add that we were treated to this trip, for those wondering how we managed to be included on an international trip to an all inclusive resort, as many know we are generally young and broke. Thank you Hovde's!) Anyhow, we are now back, and have returned to bike-wrenching, bank-tellering, and getting ready for the airline life (and of course biking). The weather here is playing nasty games with Minnesotan's hearts, however. The North has ways of picking on it's residents, as after long gray cold months, it usually warms up for a while (a couple weeks ago), allowing everyone to believe summer is here, and then it friggin' snows several inches again (today). Come on. I bought new road bike tires. Sweet ones. Come on. Well, I have taxes to do. Yes, I'm last minute Jones this year. My W-2's took awhile to find me through our confusing network of recent addresses. Later.

Gary Fischer for a few minutes...

More beard shaving fun- this time I went for the Gary Fischer flavor savor... :) (If you don't know, GF is one of the founding fathers of mountain biking, and is usually seen with crazy sunglasses, flashy jerseys, and one long flavor savor (soul patch if you prefer))...

Life is quite random...

Yeah, so here's something random and surprising. I have been called in for an interview at Trans States Airlines to take place this Tuesday! I know, I know, I've spent a while bashing the flying industry for it's poor pay and treatment of pilots, but I'm going to give this opportunity a shot, as the shop hasn't ended up being what it sold itself as. They sent me a 26 page application, a 9-page study guide on several things, including the jet they fly, the ERJ-145. Busy time. I interview in St. Louis the day before I fly out of Minneapolis to go to Mexico for my brother in law's wedding. Nuts. For the last few months I couldn't find anything to do, and know I'm Mr. Popular. Life is quite random. Here's a couple shots of the jet I'd be flying if I got this job:

It's here....

Forecast for southern MN today...70 degrees and awesome, with chance of afternoon severe thunderstorms in the afternoon. Spring is here. Ride your bike.

Felt like old days...

This morning I got out flying again at Anoka County Airport. More like afternoon actually. The upper Midwest had some serious morning fog today, which the forecasts called for burning off by 9 am. I knew this would not happen from all my days of flight instructing. I was going with Dave, my father in law, and would be giving him free flight lesson in exchange for living in his house. (No, I don't usually charge several months rent for a lesson. It just seems to have worked out that way this time.) We were supposed to have launched at 9:30am, but got off at 1pm, after waiting for the fog to dissipate. We got home at 4pm. So, a morning flight took the whole day, and little was actually accomplished. Felt just like my old job. :) It was good to get up for the hour and a half flight though. We both had fun and plan on doing it again soon. Hopefully it won't eat up the whole Saturday though. I missed some sweet riding weather.

Random Rants from a Mechanic....

Thoughts brought on by my dear shop customers, which I cannot voice to them aloud, but spend the whole days wishing I could-

No. Huffy's (as well as Pacific's, Magna's Roadmasterss and vairous other WalMartish steeds) are not good bikes. I don't know how that idea ever entered America's head. They are sold in cheap department stores, are equipped with the lowest quality components on the market, have heavy, cheaply welded frames that bend/break easily, and when not absolutely babied constantly by someone who knows how to work on a bike, become down right dangerous to ride because of their low-quality standards. No, they are not good bikes. Don't get mad at me when I tell you how much it will cost just to make your slightly used Huffy safe to ride. Save up for a real machine.

-Phone calls from customers- I have no idea what it will cost you to fix the "thing" on your bike that doesn't work.

-Don't expect me to be able to send you home with a "standard bike tire", to fit your "standard bike".

Sorry, I know not everyone is a bike nut, but seriously....

-

Miles and Miles and Miles....

So like a real bike nerd I've kept pretty good track of the mileage I've pedaled over the years on my various steeds, and I finally got around to organizing that information tonight on a spreadsheet to see how far I've gone. With the recorded mileages I have (this doesn't count rides that weren't accurately measured with a cycling computer, or simply weren't ever recorded), I've come up with a pretty decent total for being a young cyclist. My records currently add up to 6,680.6 miles of recorded riding. Couple oil changes worth of road/trail. I think I'll try to get into the habit of posting my miles on this blog once and a while, as I've seen many other bikers do, mainly to keep myself tuned to how I'm moving along in my two wheeled ventures. So far this year, my totals on recorded outdoor rides on my current bicycles are as follows:

Road Bike: 81 miles
Touring Bike: 49 miles
Fixie: 30 miles
Mountain Bike: Fat Zero (I live in the Midwest again)

Total 2007: 160 miles
Overal Total: 6,680.6 miles (10,750 km in the rest of the cycling world!)

Weather's warming up, and the mileage ticker should too...

Cycle Touring News...

My touring bike keeps getting cooler and cooler. The latest addition is a set of long-haul racks. There are a lot of good rack companies out there, so I opted to go with a bike company whose not let me down so far- Surly Bikes. Their touring racks, of course obnoxiously named the Surly "Nice Racks", are made of chromoly (steel alloy of chromium and molybdenum), are ultra tough and capable of just about any touring load, and unlike aluminum are weld-able at just about any Joe-Welder small town repair station in the world if you should ever break down (which probably won't happen due to their studliness). So no matter where my tours end up taking me in future years, these racks should get the job done. Now those of you who I am waiting to get tour equipped need to catch up, cuz my rig's ready. You know who you are Edward and Ty. California, Utah, Coast to Coast, dig it. Let's ride, camp, and repeat.

Some non-sissy mounts that will take a beating...














Front rack rated to 70lbs, though I have no plans of burdening myself that much...














Rear rack rated to 80lbs, though once again, just a safeguard letting me know that my loads will not take out my mounting platform; I better not carry around 80lbs of crap to go camping...

Whoops...disappeared for a while...

Sorry for the delayed return to bloggin', especially after such a riveting cliffhanger. :) What I meant in my last entry was that I've gone and upgraded the drivetrain on my fixed gear commuter bicycle. I'm sure some of you don't care, but some of you do. I appreciate it. :) The "Dingle", is Surly's new track cog that is a non-freewheeling unit (fixed gear) that incorporates two gears instead of one. So now I can choose to ride a 42 (front ring) x 21 tooth fixed gear for days when I expect some resistance from the wind (which is abundant here) or hills (which there are none here), or a 42x17 for the quicker days. The chain is tensioned the normal fixie way by sliding the axle forward or backward in the frame dropout. Neat. However, the weather has gotten fantastic around here the past couple of days, so I'm actually planning on commuting on my touring bike. I'm sure there will be more foul weather for the fixie though. It was so nice yesterday that I got ambitious, having the day off, and rode my second outdoor road ride of 2007. I was so excited to be outside that I ended up riding a half-century (50 miles). I brought more food that I thought I'd need, but I thought I'd only be out for about 30 miles, so my two Clif bars and one Clif Shot did the trick just perfect. I could have eaten a bit more though, seeing as my heart rate monitor estimated a 2,800 calorie burn over the entire ride. Loosing the winter tub already. Here's a fairly non-entertaining shot along yesterday's ride. Still lots of snow in the ditches, but it sure was nice out.














But it will be sad to see all the snow go away with respect to snowshoeing. We had two blizzards since last time I blogged (MN is nutz) and Al and I only got out once in the powder to walk. Here's a couple shots:














I told Alison to pose like the silly REI catalog models, who always seem more concerned with lookin' good than actually doing anything outside. :)




















In other news, I am the newest part time flight instructor at Twin Cities Flight Training at the Anoka County Airport here in MN. Doesn't mean much, I mainly took the job to have on my resume, because I don't really think they'll have much work for me anyhow. I haven't gotten much satisfaction from what I thought would be a relaxed fun job at the shop, and I'm pondering returning to the flying world already. Didn't take much time, but the job is definitely not what is was described as in my interview. Live and learn. I'm probably going to bite the bullet and apply at a regional airline to give that a shot. Life takes you for a lot of wild rides. So I've been studying the Airline Transport Pilot written exam guide quite a bit lately, and should be ready to apply for interviews soon. As always, we'll see what happens. But anyhow, I need to go to work, so I'm off....

My fixie's got a dingle...

Try to figure out what that could mean. I'll tell you later...

Those who toot their own horn...

Well, I'm thankful for having my new job, but it sure hasn't turned out to be what it was made out to be in my interview. I've been in the Coon Rapids shop for the past week, and it's pretty much been a return to Scheels, where I worked before during college and during some flight instructing days. I spend most of my days in a chemical bath of sorts, degreasing very neglected low quality bicycles that customers have dragged out of the corners of their dirty garages with demands that they perform like a $1000 plus bike. I've been putting in 10.5 hour days working alongside my supervisor, who has bloody bullet holes tattooed on his neck, and who recently asked me if I "blaze" (smoke weed), apparently looking for more people to waste away with. My managers have also clued me into the fact that the company off-loads 9 out of 10 mechanics as soon as the busy season is over (July or August), so job security and promotion opportunities that were boasted about in my interview my have been fluff to get me excited to work there. I can't say as of now, but needless to say the week was less than motivating. Maybe I'll end of eating all my words about the flight industry and return to the air sometime. I wouldn't make any money, but work would be interesting. Doesn't seem to be a lot of places were you can do both. Anyhow, my point today was not to bum anyone out, just to give an update. For now I'm going to watch the Tour of California on my day off...sweet...

Heat wave...

MN has been pretty cold lately. Cold and dry. This is the 3rd-least-snowy winter in recorded history, according to the local weather folks. And now we had a random warm spell, hitting the forties during the day, so the snow is not making it. Probably because I just acquired new snowshoes. But not to fear, there is much more to do outside. Alison and I decided to sleep out last night, seeing as the forecast low was 25 degrees F, and she doesn't have any winter camping experience yet. The actual low was 33 degrees F, and needless to say we were quite comfortable. We're plenty equipped for some winter backpacking when time allows. We haven't seen the Superior Hiking Trail in the winter yet, so hopefully that will happen before Spring is here to stay. And speaking of Spring, this heat wave also allowed for my first 2007 road ride here in MN. I donned my cold weather cycling garb and spun a nice 31 mile ride on fairly dry roads. I had all the usual Midwest cycling experiences- cool temps, wind, the smell of cow ass, and tubby dudes driving huge motor vehicles yelling at me in their belief that bicycles don't have a right to be on the road. But it was honestly really fun. It was no UT, but that's asking a whole lot. This will do for now. I'm just thankful that the really frigid days of the Northern winter might be over, and I got a good primer for the cycling season.

50 hours later...

My new job required me to go through a busy week of commuting to Bloomington (and hour drive each way due to traffic) for training. I don't know that I really learned anything, as I've already gained two years of bike mechanic experience, but I did get paid for fifty hours of easy work, and now I'm certified to fix your bike at Erik's and give your money to my boss. I'll be starting at the Coon Rapids store on Monday, and will be able to commute by bicycle and stop burning gas and money unnecessarily. I'm going to have to find some cyclocross tires for my fixed gear bike, because my mountain bike is up for sale (don't want to get it all sloppy), and I don't subject my touring bike to the salty winter MN roads. Anyhow, my schedule is somewhat slow for the next week at the shop, and the weather is supposed to warm up so that temps at night will be a balmy 18 degrees, so I may have to spend a night out winter camping. It would be nice to breath some fresh air. I don't own a four season tent just to fill my closet. As you were...

The Fool's Progress

Last night I finished Edward Abbey's The Fool's Progress. This was perhaps the best book I've read in quite a while. I say that not because I think everyone will like it, or that it contained a message that I think everybody needs to be exposed to, but because it hit a nerve within me. The best books you'll read are the ones in which you can tell the author has felt the same feelings that you are feeling, or have felt, so you relate, and it's not just a story. There were certain qualities, ideals, and opinions that the main character of the book had that I share (but certainly some that I did not). I guess sometimes it's comforting to know that others have the same delirium that you suffer from, and that there's more than one mindset in the world. The book is basically Abbey's autobiography morphed into fiction. Made me feel like writing my own. Maybe I will someday, for my own sake more than to try to sell a book. I'm definitely going to read more of Abbey's works. If you like to read, check out The Fool's Progress. It will hit you or it won't. Depends on what's already in your head, I suppose.

New place to spend my time...

I just accepted a new job at Erik's Bikes and Boards here in Coon Rapids. I'll be working as a full time bicycle mechanic again. In some of my spare time I'll be helping my father in law with some flight training, as he is going after an instrument rating. I may or may not be working at a small flight school in the area too, depending on scheduling. An escape from "full-time" flying should feel good, as there never was any stability or pay in that, but it would be nice to keep my foot in the door of that industry if I should ever decide that I can't live without an unstable, underpaid, under appreciated career that demands a high level of training and expertise. We'll see. I may just have too much fun in the outdoor industry. Biking to work, working on bikes, biking after work. Not bad. This of course puts me in the position of needing a winter worthy two wheeled human powered machine, as I sold my old 1x1 in SLC. My Trek 8000 is up for sale if anyone wants it. So for now, this is everyone's notice that I found work. You can call me for more details; I'll be working through calling everyone soon.

Yogaslackers...

Our old friends Sam and Jason from NHRG in Grand Forks, ND have started somewhat of a revolution in outdoor sports world. They've combined slacklining with yoga, and produced a DVD and website: yogaslackers. It's pretty wild, and looks like fun. I can't imagine how much it would build core strength and concentration abilities for climbing and any other sport requiring balance and focus. Check it out.

Scruff...

I've got job interviews coming up this week, so I decided to shave off the beard I've been wearing for the past month. Somebody out there decided that beards are unprofessional, causing men everywhere the agony of having to shave everyday in order to look how we're supposed to. Uggh. At least my wife is cool and likes my beard. Anyhow, when you shave a beard off, it's always a good idea to take some nasty pictures of how terrible some variations of facial scruff can look on a young white dude. Particularly the mustache. A mustache can look quite good on some men; my father for example. Airline captains fit the bill as well (hairy knuckles are also require for this venue- so I'm told). But a twenty five year old Scandinavian super white guy with blondish facial hair is not the individual to rock the 'stache. It must be a full beard. Pictures to follow:

Pre shave:














Hip and relaxed with beard and shades. Everyone knows I'm hip. Wait, I guess I already gave away that I'm a super white Scandinavian...















Mid shave, and descent into facial nastiness.














Further into shave and entry into full facial nastiness. Prime example of the dangers of underage mustache'ing: