ThE LoSt

Indeed. Being Lost is a scary feeling.

One time, My good friend and I were on a "journey" in the forest. Late at night, riding the white trail towards the river at Econolokahatchee.

And at some point I just lost the blazes.

I could feel the panic settling in.

It was dark, the Trail Rat lights we have only last 2 hours tops, so soon our lights were gonna die, and I could not figure out where the trail went.

For a moment the thoughts of being lost in the forest raced thru my head. What was I gonna do, where would I go, how would I get out, what is the solution.

I managed to calm myself down and just back tracked till I found the blazes again and we just scrapped the ride to the river mission and headed back to the boardwalk we had been hanging out at.

Eventually, we made it, but the lights died and we had to ride that trail in the dark.

Often my friend and I joke about Superior Jedi skills, well we sure pulled them out that night, navigating that overgrown super buff singletrack with no lights. Did I mention it was rooty with creek crossings.

The Owl is a nocturnal animal that hunts at night and can see in the lowest of light settings. It has very big eyes that it uses to absorb more available light and see thru the darkness.

I need to be able to see thru this darkness right now.

I need my Jedi skills right now.

I need not panic from this Lost feeling.

Happy New Year folks, 2009 GET THE F*** out of here, 2010 has got to be better.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

CaNt Do It!

It was a warm summer morning as I scanned the event listings of Mountain Bike Magazine that I saw the listing for a 50 mile off road Eco tour In San Felasco.

I thought to myself? 50 off road miles. Mind you, this was back in the day when 50 off road miles was something I considered to be insurmountable. I still remember how grueling my first Ididaride was. Coincidentally, my first Ididaride, as hard as it was, was my second fastest only to last years time, on the Fixie War where I KILLED.

Since they have offered the Tour de Felasco I have made the ride and participated. Have not missed a year. BUT, in the past 3 recent years, the registration always seems to hit when I am the most financially distressed. AND, because the thing fills up in 3 days or less, I rarely ever get in. SAD, so SAD.

So every year, I am left to beg and Scramble for a spot.

This year is no different.

If you don't feel up to it, cant make the ride, don't want to make the ride, Let me tell you this up front, I hear its gonna be cold and raining.

Email me at Nakedindian at Singletrack Samurai dot com. I am trying to take the entire Singletrack Samurai Productions crew up there, so Ideally I am looking for 2 tickets.

EDIT, NOW ONLY LOOKING FOR 1 TICKET TO THE TOUR!!!!

HIT ME UP, you know your not up for it, WE ARE.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

ThIS HeAdS NoT BiG EnoUgH foR the Two OF us!

Wow. Tug of war up inside my cranium.

Trying to find peace in all of the perceived chaos my universe has crumbled too.

Seems simple at time. Others, I am left puzzled and perplexed and downright miserable.

This weekend was interesting. Although in my mind I wanted to ride, my heart was not in it. Did 10 rain drenched miles Christmas day and found excuses the rest of the weekend to not ride.

Took out the fixie machine, damn 42 x 17 is a hard gear but relatively easy to maintain a 16mph avg, not alot of effort to achieve that.

BUT man, did it make me sore, in weird places. At one point almost went over the bars when I forgot it I couldn't coast and it majik jaked me into the sickest nose wheelie I have done in a long time.

Part of me wants to find focus in preparing for the Huracan ITT and the Pisgah 36. I am so Leary of cold and wet and yet I am going to sign up to do just that. Do you sleep during the Pisgah 36? I better, cause I get sleepy sometimes. Man, that race is gonna be tough. The logistics are blowing my mind and I am choosing to ignore it and focus instead on the prep.

Whats the prep? New technology and lots of cold rides till I find that the cold doesn't bother me. I somehow need to make sure I tech up, on a budget. Gosh, why does on a budget have to be part of something so crucial as not freezing to death. And snow? I suspect there will be snow. Never ever ridden in Snow, I guess I will slap on my fattest tires, them being the Panaracer Rampages and hope for the best.

Wow, the first time I will get to experience snow will be in that race, along with freezing cold conditions. Preparation is gonna be essential.

The year is coming to a close and I am wanting 2010 to be better than last year. Seems like my head is on right and my mind is moving in the right direction. Seems like I am getting better up in my head space. Accepting some realities, establishing new agreements and truths.

O what challenges lay in my path.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

WhaT R U DoInG!!!

So, its Christmas Eve and I am at work, at my desk doing the good work. BOY I tell you what in these challenging economic times its good to be employed, so no real complaints.

I had vacation time this year and each time I had a vacation it was spent taking care of one problem or another, not such a fun thing to happen when your supposed to be doing nothing. Regardless, I still found time in those off moments to enjoy.

So This evening and tomorrow I get to see my brothers and my nieces and my nephews. This year I plan on being a good Uncle and getting all my nieces and nephews gifts. Truth be told, I am probably the worst Uncle in the world, but I'm working on improving that.

In Fact, thru the advent of the not to be named social networking site, I have been able to improve as an UNCLE. I talk more to my nieces now then I ever had, since they message me all the time when they see me logged on.

So, Family time today and tomorrow. Then what? Well, I made a secret pact with myself to get on the bike everyday this weekend. SO, that means I will go pedal early tomorrow, maybe go to Santos with Rob on Saturday and then maybe some more dirty/solo miles on Sunday. Friday eve? No plans... Saturday Eve, No plans, Sunday Eve, no plans... So who knows, well see what happens. Maybe I will go out and do grown up type things and act like a young man who has no cares and no responsibilities.

Feels kind of good to look at all the possibilities.

Made a funny observation over the past couple of days. Lately, like for the past couple of weeks, I have had trouble sleeping. But the past few nights I have slept well. I think I know and understand why the sudden change, but I care not to elaborate on an explanation, just feels good to get some rest. I don't know if it was a psychological change or just the side effects from 94 dirty miles last Friday. Sometimes that does indeed happen to me, after a seriously hard effort, for days, I will require more rest than usual.

So happy Holidays to you and yours, get out there and enjoy, Life is a highway, and My plan is to keep pedaling along till I see an interesting sight or I reach the next town, whichever comes first!

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

BLuE.....

Normally one of my favorite colors, but recently just the way I have been feeling.

I have been spending way too much time thinking and pondering why things happen in life in certain ways to certain people.

I have had several responses and even a most courageous effort by one of my Nieces who is reading a book about the meaning of life, "to get back to me" when she finishes it. Very sweet.

BUT, this year, was so unbelievably hard, in so many ways, and it doesn't seem to be letting up, in fact, its full steam ahead as the year comes to a close with more bad news and unfortunate happenings.

Maybe its mid life crisis, but lately I have been doing way too much reflecting an way too much looking back and my life and wondering what it all means.

Envious at times when I see people who seem to have all the things I wish I had. Angry that things are not turning out the way I want.

It's a total bummer the way I have been feeling lately. In fact, Last weekend I was hoping to gain some escape and some release for the way I have been feeling, but it seems in a sense that it added to my feelings when it turned out "not so good" and the trip had to be scrapped because of my obligatory time constraints.

Life is so confusing at this juncture. I wish I could have some clarity. I keep looking back to a year ago and remembering how much happier and satisfied I was.

Ain't that something.

Bummer post y'all... Wont make y0u suffer thru too many more of these...

And no you cant ask for the two minutes of your life you just spent reading this back.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

ItS NoT as EaSy As It LooKs: HuRaCaN RePorT

So, I have gotten really good and really effective at packing.

Friday morning, bike was loaded up with packs as I headed up to work, to spend my half day there, cleaning and organizing and preparing to leave by 2pm.

A hustle here a Bustle there and I get Rob Roberts and we haul Ass to Tucker Hill trailhead for the start of the 300 mile tour.

Rob was only gonna do about 100 plus miles of the trip with us, but Heck, He is a great friend and the more the merrier when it comes to adventures.

The weather was Ominous as You could feel the humidity in the air.

When we arrived at Tucker Hill, Low and Behold, where the Hell was "Kanning".

The convo went like this:

Nk: "Kanning, were at Tucker Hill, where are you at?"

Kanning: "Liars"

back and forth for about `10 minutes with the end result being he was still at home.

(say this next part, ala Simpsons Character, the Superintendant Chalmers yelling at Princinple Skinner,)

KANNING~!~!

So TWO HOURS LATER, we roll out.

Now, you sit at home, and you hear about a trip, but, riding a fully loaded bike with a fully loaded pack, is alot harder than you think it is. Food for thought.

Its not impossibly hard, but until you experience it, its real easy to look at these rides and just say, hey, doesnt sound so difficult etc, etc.

We rolled out, 30 miles later, were on the withlacoochee, and its pissing rain and its cold.

15 miles later were at Circle K warming up, eating grub. 1100 calories out of the 2200 I brought were already gone and we still had an estimated 60 or so miles to go.

We ate, warmed up, got batteries, got outside suited up.

From there on Green Swamp, Kanning and Roberts hammer away from me and I am left alone. Its dark, its cold, its wet, and all I can think about is how good it would feel to crawl in my sleeping bag and sleep.

So many people out at 3am, WTF, we finally hit pavement, then back to dirt, then I stop at the fire station. Lube my squeaky chain, refill my water, and pop in my headphones. Roberts said we got 19 miles left. So I get into work it out mode.

AND I start riding strong again, feeling good, ignoring the Freezing temp and the harsh conditions.

THEN, we make a LEFT on US 27 into one the most fearest Headwind I have ever encountered in 2009.

So strong in fact that at top effort all I could muster was 7.1 mph.

On the downhills I could only get up to 9mph and I was working.

Feeling very demorralized and pretty much ready to shoot myself in the face, seriously.

I get to the top of a gradual climb, find Kanning and Roberts there. Here is how the conversation went.

Roberts: We got two miles to Hancock.

NK: According to my count we got two miles left.

Roberts: nah, two miles to the turn, then 7 more miles, then two more miles.

NK: Somebody KILL ME>...

I pull my bike into the grass, break out my sleeping bag and crawl in it fully dressed. I was DONE.

It had taken all my motivation to have ridden the past 19 miles, I did not have 11 more in me.

I bivy'd up and waited for a pick up or the sunlight whichever came first.

I actually, shivering and all, fell asleep, was woken by the strongest urge to pee.

After an 11 minute argument with myself, I unzipped the bag and let loose with the extra water. It had been like the 10th time I peed. Was that over hydration or a sign of hypothermia??

Anyhow, I get back in the bag zip up, and I hear my phone go off, its Rob Roberts, they made it and he was on his way back.

I got scooped up, 11 miles short of the 105 mile total for the stage. 94 miles I did, suffered for about 90 miles of it, LOL.

Some changes are going to be made for the race. For one, we are going to exit the woods a little earlier in Croom. No sense in backtracking its a loop and I want it to be as LOOPY as possible.

For two, we will start every stage at 9am, riding in the dark, was really hard, I had to do it with my Princeton Tec EOS, which at 50 lumens is enough in a pinch, but it does require your eyes to work a little harder, I think that added to my fatigue.

I now realize that after the CFiTT both lights needed to be fixed, the MIni newt is ready, I now need to send the stella in for a repair.

SO, what now. Well, I will send my ETREX in to get replaced or repaired since the SD card slot malfunctioned. Still works, but I want my topo maps to work as well, helps with water sources and referances. In the meantime, I am going to prepare, get back on a steady Yoga routine, and get back to riding steady to prepare for My Individual Time Trial of the Huracan route.

The Route, first part, was beautiful, we've ridden the other parts, and I have every intention of riding all of it, as soon as I get my GPS back!

It was actually in retrospect, pretty awesome, except for the adverse weather.

I think I need to add some rain pants to my arsenal.. I had some goretex, cold/wet weather gloves that I left at home, not expecting it to get so cold on night one, next time I wont be so naive.

I admit, I am still trying to harden up and get a grip of all the variables that go into a self supported enduro. IN retrospect, I wish I would of thrown on all my clothes, changed my sock and rolled miserably slow to finish. But, all I wanted to do was sleep, so I listened to the body, maybe it was all for the best.

At 637am is when the ordeal finished, after sleeping till about 12pm, Our timetable for the rest of the weekend was destroyed. We accepted the truth of our situation, and got a ride back to Croom on Saturday and spent Saturday evening hanging out in Tampa with Kanning and Mucaro.

Next time Huracan!

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

DrY iDeaS

This weekend Mike Kanning, Rob Roberts and I are going to map some if not all of the route ole school style one pedal stroke at a time. Rob is only hanging till Apopka, but thats cool, Mike and I are going the whole way.

Been kind of predicting and expecting rain for this voyage, sure enough the forecast calls for nasty weather when we are expected to roll out tomorrow eve.

What does that mean?
Well it means I got to waterproof all my gear and be ready for what the wicked weather may bring. On top of that, come Sunday night when we are out in the wilderness the weather is suppossed to get down right chilly with the lows in the upper 30's. To some, thats not a big deal, to us in Florida, thats a cold night.

So the mission from Friday Eve, till Saturday Eve, is to keep the gear dry, so I may have an opportunity to sleep well. O what an interesting challenge it will be indeed.

I used to go the expensive route and buy all sorts of zip loc baggies and bag all the items, but now, I just take them excess plastic shopping bags and just wrap the items I dont want to get wet.

In Fact, I had the foresight to order a Bag cover for my Osprey pack. Ordered it with 3 day select shipping so it would arrive in time. BUT, when checking the UPS tracking site today, it shows that they rescheduled my plan delivery to Monday. O just about 3 days short of the day I need it. WTF... Of course I called the retailer and complained and they did the only thing they could and refund me the differance in shipping, but that still leaves me with a lot of tedious prep to do tonight after I get home and do the myriad of other things I have to get done.

BUT, dont mistaken the tone of this post, I find lots of fun in the prospect of waterproofing my gear, preparing well, and dealing with what nature can throw at me. So much, that the fact we are scheduled to pedal 300 mostly off road miles in 2.5 days is not even registering as a concern nor an issue. Its just something that's got to get done.

As I sit in my big office and look out the window, I can already see the Thunderstorms on the horizon teasing me about what is to come. Well thank you creator, you know I like to suffer and you know I love a challenge!

Still plenty of time to fill up a backpack and join us on the ride, Dont be Scared!

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

LeAsE?

The miles don't come easy enough for me as finding time away from my sons and my other obligations really robs my ride time.

BUT, this weekend I was determined to get out and do some exploring.

Using a combination of Google Earth and Topofusion I scouted a short 30 mile dirt road route.

As I sat there sipping my Latte and checking various Internet sites, I finished the details of mapping the route and loaded it on to my etrex gps.

I quickly rush to use the bathroom before I go start heading towards the door and noticed that it is literally raining cats and dogs.

This is Florida and I really do believe in the scattered showers phenomenon so I got in my car hoping the rain would pass quick or not exist when I reached my destination.

No such luck as I drove to my planned parking and starting area it was raining even harder then when I had started driving to the place.

SO, I took quick inventory. I got nothing to do and nowhere to be for hours, best to get to pedaling. I suited up, grabbed my Showers Pass rain jacket and got on the bike. Indeed, it was raining and there was thunder and there was lightning, BUT, I was amazingly comfortable in my showers pass jacket. So comfortable in Fact that I even zipped my jersey underneath the jacket almost all the way open to balance out the temperatures.

The road was offering resistance with the wet sand and the mud and there were several HUGE water crossings. My first destination was the dirt road that ended up by the river and I was well on my way to following my route and heading there.

I hear a beep from my Etrex and discover that the batteries are dying. I stop and ponder going to a store and buying more, but I was low on funds. I pondered going back to the car and grabbing my rechargeables which were in there, but I didn't want to pedal all that I had pedaled all ready. SO Instead, I decided to make quick for the river, and then feel my way back to the road and then make my way back to the car.

The ride was pleasant enough, Except for the constant downpour I was enjoying myself. My chain, was not lubed and I had a couple of incidents of chain suck, but I eventually was able to anticipate it, back pedal and not have to stop. AT one point a small piece of tree got into my front chain ring and derailed my chain. Some of the water crossings LOOKED so deep that I stopped and carried my bike across not wanting to break the number one rule of cycling to not submerge your hubs or your bottom bracket.

And after some pedaling and some challenging soil compositions I found the absolute most beautiful spot by the river. Snapped a rain soaked pic, and on my way back decided to explore a side trail. Eventually it dead ended but I did find an even bigger wide open spot for possible camping.

On my way back, I see a man with Hunter Orange and a big truck, as I roll up he says to me "Am I on the Lease?" I say to him "What's the Lease?" He responds, "This is private managed Land you got to be on the lease to be back here?" Myself being an expert at these types of scenarios, I say, "I didn't know, hadn't seen a single sign saying a single thing, I thought I was on the Water Management property(only sign or marker I had seen)." He said," well one of them down there may know for sure". I said, "don't sweat it, I'm on my way out anyway," and pedaled my way up out of there passing several more trucks fully loaded with recreational animal killers. Hearing Gun shots as I pedaled away.

Got back to the road, made my way across and road the pre construction new bike trail dirty path, till it finally turned paved. Got back to the car, packed up and headed to my place of stay for the evening. 17 miles of FUN..LOL...

This weekend I got a gigantic dirty loop ride that I call the eye of the huracan. Turns out we will be taking out about 8 miles of dirt roads and substituting it with 8 miles of single track. You got to love it!

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

RSvP

The Naked Indian Ride is January 2nd 2010 with an expected 10am roll out.

IF YOU ARE GONNA come and ride.

Email me at nakedindian99 at aol dot com.

I have not heard any definite attendance from anyone and I would like to know if I will be riding alone or not.

thanks,

The NaKeD InDiaN

GUiLTy PLeAsURe...NPR

Recently I have become a "FAN" of NPR.

I have learned so much listening to it...LOL..

Actually part of the motivation to change my Blog colors and Font came from a show I listened to about effectiveness in mediums for electronic media. Spoke on various techniques on what has been "scientifically proven" to be more effective in retention and interest in fonts and colors used for electronic sites and books.

BUT, That was not what inspired my post today. It was actually a story I heard, very interesting story.

This Woman worked for a magazine as an editor. In this Magazine she saw a picture of an author, and she said when she saw his picture, "OMG that is my soul mate". So she wanted to very much meet him, and decided to write him a letter. In this Letter she made up a story about how they had previously met at an airport and spoke before, and that she was really interested in him and had seen his picture and wanted to know if He was the guy and possibly meet. Admittedly she felt embarrassed that she had written this letter and made up the story and after 3 months passed and she had not heard from him, she was actually relieved.

Relieved because, it was a little embarrassing to lie and do something so desperate. One day, while waiting for the Cable Guy to show up, who coincidentally enough was a couple of hours late, she was on the phone with Customer Service and they had told her that he was gonna call any minute to tell her when he was on his way. Just as they told her this, she received another call and clicked over, and the person on the phone said, "I am the guy". For a brief moment she thought this was the cable guy and immediately jumped in with an impatient tone, "where have you been". HE (who was not the cable guy, but the author she wrote the letter to) responded with, "I am so sorry, I have been busy..." . After a couple of minutes she realized that this was not the cable guy but that it was HIM.

Eventually, they made plans to meet. And eventually she met up with him. The entire time, her mind was tricking her, cause they were communicating and he kept bringing up interesting points about the time they had met in the airport, which she found strange, because she had made it all up.

When they did meet, she said he looked nothing like the guy from the picture. She immediately was no longer interested, her obsession and infatuation died in an instant. But, as they continued to converse, she found it odd, even annoying that he kept bringing up their meeting and bringing up things that happened that day when they met at the Airport, and she was irritated by the whole thing, because... It had never even happened. She wondered what kind of game was he playing and why was he messing with her.

Then, finally, she announced she had to go, he wanted a kiss and to see her again, and she said no and then admitted that he was not the guy. He insisted, then she fessed up, that he could not have been the guy and she could not have been the girl, since she had made it all up.

This didn't phase him as even though she was walking out, he insisted that it had happened and that he was the guy, flabbergasted, she left. All the time wondering, if he was playing a game or did he really believe that this Airport meeting had happened.

I found this story fascinating to say the least. And always find something interesting to hear about or learn about on National Public Radio. LOL... A sign of my impending Old age.

LOL.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

So?WhaTs It GoNNa TaKe

For you hard charging riders and cyclist to pony up to the line to ride the Huracan?

If your riding, Go ahead and announce your Intent, in Letter format.

I already got two letters and expect a third.

I know the price is right.

I even took the difficulty down a notch by adding a stage format, the Team option and the Relay Option.

That my friends was done to encourage participation.

Life is too short to be meek and timid. Life is too precious to not go out and challenge the physical limitations of your Creator Given Body.

Do the damn thing!

Email me at nakedindian at Singletrack Samurai dot com.

Laters,

LOS

I CaLL it WoRkIng OuT

After a chilly night spent in the middle of the forest sleeping in the Back of my car, I woke up and got ready for the day.

Broke down my camp quick as I could and made my way towards Borders to have some Coffee and Internet access as I got ready to start my day.

The evening before was WET and COLD, not my favorite combination of adverse conditions. Regardless, I slept well in my make shift campground and felt rested that morning. AS I played on the web and the not to be named social networking site.

The Hits to the Blog have been a plenty regarding the Eye of the 'CAN' Loop. But the Email response has been non existent. It may have to do with the fact that I put the WRONG EMAIL on the original POST, AMATEUR.

As I mature in my cycling or in this current facet or existence of my cycling, I am enjoying exploring. AND I had made a pact to explore this tiny 26 mile section of trail. At work, I got a hold of a trail guide and description, but was unable to find any GPX file for it.

That afternoon around 2pm or so I rolled out, bundled up, with my "EPIC" kit packed up.

Started following the trail, and immediately I notice how BUFF it is. Now BUFF to me is trail that rarely sees traffic and is super technical and offers more then the average challenge or obstacle to the rider. The first time I attempted this traverse I got spit out after 4 miles lost as ever and had to fire off the back to start feature on my Garmin Edge to get back to the parking lot. This time I was determined to be more diligent.

Beauty was abound on this track, discovery was all over the place. Lots of Lil creeks and bridges, as I eventually broke thru the cherry and made it past the initial point that I got lost at the first time. The trail was enjoyable, but it was a conscious effort as I was having to stand and pedal and really work, the entire time.

I got to a point deep in the trail where I could hear Cars hitting a bridge, and then, for what seemed to be 1/4 mile I rode thru a flooded section of the trail constantly in 10 inches give or take of water. On top of that it was super tech and super cold, so I was super diligent to not stumble and get my feet wet.

AFTER, completing that section, the Forest got denser, deeper and even more challenging. To the point, that I stumbled not one time and fell, but about 5 times I stumbled and fell over. Pretty interesting. At one point the trail was like a tunnel thru the brush, with trail on my left, trail below and trail above. It was at this point that I looked at my computer and marveled how far I had traveled in one hour ~5 miles? WTF, at this rate it would take me 4 hours plus to complete the trail, then 2 hours or so more to take the road back to the car. At that point I was cursing the fact that my SD card slot had gone out on my Etrex and without my topo maps I had NO CONCEPT of where the heck I was in that thick brush.

Then It finally happened I stumbled and got my feet wet. So cold feet, toes hurting, then I started thinking of what was missing from my epic kit. WTF, did I forget my extra socks, no lighter???

I was breaking the number one rule in the wild, don't panic, and although it was very small and minuscule, I was a bit panicked. I had to "talk myself down" and just kept the push going and moving forward at my miserable pace. Just as I was peaking in my panic, I emerged into the wide open again. And I started riding some old abandoned double track, which then turned north along Powerlines and I started actually covering some ground. At that point I felt as If I was in a race and I was standing and pedaling and hammering from one marker to the next, time to recover some ground. I had a light, and I had enough calories and my water filter, but I was not in the mood to be out there in the super cold in the dark.

I started eating a little, there were some big sandyish climbs, but I'm a good adverse conditions rider, so It was no biggie. THEN, after a couple of miles I emerged on to the road. Straight was continuing my track, west was heading back towards my car. It was now 430 and It would be dark in one hour so this trail would have to get another visit and another rematch in the future. As I slipped on my arm warmers, zipped up my under shirt and wool shirt, I donned my wool hat under my helmet and began the cold breezy road ride back to the car.

Reached the car after only 15 minutes or so of pedaling, my pace was fast, was I just a beast after all that buff tech trail or was there a tail wind, LOL.

The parking lot, was empty as I packed up my car and headed towards the room I had rented at a ridiculous cheap rate for the evening.

While it was happening, I was not enjoying it, but in the car, I reflected on my adventure and declared that it was indeed fun. Next time, topo maps, extra socks and a lighter.

SHRED.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

FoR ImmEdIaTe ReLeAsE: SinGLeTraCk SaMuRai ProDuCtIonS PrEseNts ThE EyE of The HuRaCAn LooP

The eye of the Huracan is a mostly off road Loop that starts and ends at Croom MTB trails, 3 stages with 3 classes Representing the finest in Self Supported adventure.

The eye of the Huracan is a mostly off road Loop that starts and ends at Croom MTB trails, 3 stages with 3 classes Representing the finest in Self Supported adventure.

Stage 1 Begins on Friday February 26th 2010 at 9am, starts at Croom, and takes you via single track to the withlacoochee rail trail and then you make your way across Rich Loam Tract across to Clermont, ending in Minneola.

Stage 2 Starts Saturday February 27th 2010 at 9am In Minneola and takes you Across the hills of Clermont, across lake apopka, across wekiwa & rock spring runs preserve into the seminole Forest, to Maggie Jones Rd into Paisley Florida along the MTB trail to the Southernly FOrest road route across to Marshall Swamp ending at Santos MTB park.

Stage 3 Starts Sunday Ferbruary 28th 2010 at 9am from Santos and takes you along the Spider Kingdom trail to the Epic MTB Trail to the Limestone wagon road hanging a sharp right on 49th ave trails with all the hard options to Nayl's trails and then across Pruitt and Haltapa Preserve across Potts preserve to the withlacoochee rail trail and back to croom.

At each staging area the Clock stops and then starts at the beginning of the Stage. Best Overall time in each class wins.

There is no entry fee and their are no prizes, this is a ride for HONOR and Bragging rites.

The route is an estimated 300+ or - miles.

Self Supported rules apply. Please refer to the rules section of the upcoming site on Singletrack Samurai dot com.

The classes are SOLO, DUO and RELAY.

SOLO riders are responsible for all their supplies and equipment, must resupply using commercial sites along the way and are required to follow Individual Off roading time trial rules of no drafting and no outside or prearranged support.

DUO riders follow the same rules as solo riders but the Pair function as a team and are allowed to draft off one another and help each other with the responsibilities of the supplies. A DUO must finish together to stop the clock on a stage.

RELAY riders follow the same rules as SOLO riders BUT are able to Hand off their ride at the designated staging areas at the end of each stage. The Relay class could be two or three riders but the hand off's can only be done at the staging areas and they must follow self supported rules between staging areas.


An unofficial GPX file is available upon request for your review. Guide sheets listing the singletrack route you must follow in Croom and Santos will be provided. If your interested in Participating email me at nakedindian at singletrack samurai dot com.

This is not just a ride, not just a route, but a Journey of Self Discovery and pure Unadulterated adventure!

thanks,

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

SiNgLeTraCK MiND!!

Hmmmmm..

Curious enough, this time of Year, every Year, I get a serious Singletrack Itch. I want to ride Lots of singletrack, the rootier the better, the faster the better, the more tech the better.

For years I couldn't figure out why. Why am I so inclined to hunger for singletrack shred specifically at this time of the year.

AND then this past Saturday, as I was sponsoring a 24mph sprint down some trail, I remembered. AWWW, Seasons and Seasons of XC racing usually went down this time of the year every year.

Here is the run down of the track I been shredding:

Pine Log MTB trails, Crooked Creek and Dutchman Trail.

When I go to visit the Warrior's Princess I always ride this system. I do all the Singletrack in as much as a loop fashion as I can to maximize the miles. When I ride Trails like this I usually BIG ring them, to really get the most out of the work out. I figure, hey, got to get some extra resistance out of this somehow.

Some would say that this trail is not worth much, BUT, being the DIRT SLUT that I am, I like it. Its twisty, rooty, pretty and fun. You can go and hammer the hell out of it without consequence. I digg it...

Interesting story from the ride. There's a particular plant in the forest that if you touch instantly makes your hand burn something fierce. I cant remember the name of it, but I came across it on this ride. The one thing that can instantly neutralize the burn and I learned this in the Army, is URINE. Let's just cut the story short and say that it works.

Tom Brown Park Trails: Magnolia Trail and Upper and Lower Cadillac.

Super Rad trail. Super cool features both natural and man made. Some killer drops, some long climbs for Florida. My only beef with the system is the marking system they used. Arrows work so much better, instead, they got you following these little diamonds with numbers on them. They start at 1 and rise or descend in value depending on which way you go and it kind of makes it hard to follow. Would love to see what IMBA would do with this trail. BUT, regardless, tons of flow, super bad ass, great chances at speed, I just loved it. I only rode 7.5 miles or so, but still had a blast and it rained while I rode it which just added to the fun.

SnowHill Road, the entire Enchilada and then some.

This is the Trail I grew up on and I like to claim that I am the KING of Snowhill. Not proven nor tested, but I like to say lots of things that may necessarily be not based on Fact. Took my buddy Rob out there who has ridden that place many a time. AND attempted to show him some new stuff. Ended up rolling my front tire, and then had leak issues almost the entire ride, that was a bummer considering how many tubeless rides I have had. I wont blame the tire set up, I should probably you know pump some air in them things from time to time. BUT fun ride, lots of kick ass super technical trails. I would say that most of the state of Florida Sleeps on how cool this system is and I am Ok with it. The less people that ride it the better, LOL. I know this place like the back of my hand and it shows when I ride it...

So that's two weeks worth of single track shredding. I don't get to ride as often as I would like, but who does right. I think dissatisfaction is a factor of the human condition. I think if I don't travel this weekend, I may want to go do Epic trail on Sunday at Santos, well see what happens. I still got to hit the bike shop and get that front wheel fixed.

Ok, enough for now I recon,

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

PS: Eye of the Huracan Official Announcement this week.

BikePacKiNg On The 18th...

Want to go?

Ever wanted to feel like a Kid again.

Ever wanted to just be on the road, feel the wind at your face and at your back. Riding thru various forest, foraging rivers, camping under the stars.

Ever want to ride dirty but cover a far distance and avoiding the open roads as much as possible?

Then My upcoming tour is perfect for you.

It will be personally guided by me, the Infamous Naked Indian. It will cover plenty of miles. It will be extremely adventurous and fun and it will be all wrapped up by Sunday afternoon.

We are starting at Croom and ending at Croom, crossing 20 or so towns, 7 or so forest and conservation areas, and most of it (80%) will be as dirty as a barely legal adult film star.

You should come and have fun. It actually is easier then you think to get a kit together. Email me at NakedIndian at singletrack samurai dot com. Everyone is welcome.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

The PrOGreSSIOn: PaRt 3

Fast forward to Modern day.....

I have to say apologize upfront for my lack of frequent posting. I have been SO distracted lately. Busy at work, Drama at the house, Emotional Rollercoasters, miles and miles of missions... Its been tough... BUT here it is.

These days my peers are the one's who motivate me and inspire me.

Luis Calderon.

First to take me to Pisgah and help educate me on the finer aspects of riding some serious mountainous terrain. As well, one of the few people adventurous enough to attempt some of my crazy ideas and concepts for rides, and the first to join me on a Group bikepacking trip in the state. Luis Is a good man. On top of that, he motivated me to become an even faster rider. Often when Luis and I would go riding with a group, eventually we would consume them all one by one, LOL. I miss riding with him and cant wait till he gets back on the bike.

Brett Wycoff.

Not even sure how him and I met, but Brett truly supports Singletrack Samurai Productions. In fact he is probably the only rider in the state that has made every bikepacking trip I have done and every crazy concept ride I have done with the Exception of the BIG O. I often wonder if Brett has emotions and feelings or if he is even Human and I must admit, only 1 time did I see him tired and it was on the Renegade Run 09, but before I knew it he recovered and came back stronger than ever. On top of all that, Brett is a man of deep honor and respect. I know for a fact that at the CFiTT he was offered a fully charged light at the 12 mile bailout, with only 6 miles to go in the race, he could have easily grabbed the light and finished and no one but him and the light offerer would have known. That folks is integrity. As well, the Idea for taking a swim at Silver Glenn was his, kids thank Brett!

Rob Roberts.

Out of nowhere, maybe searching for something different to do, showed up for the NK ride. That ride opened up his eyes to a new type of adventure and riding in Florida. And before you know it, he stepped up and helps me immensely in completing these monstrous routes or actually finding great portions of the route. The Entire Santos to Croom Section of the CFiTT was Rob's Baby. People spoke and spoke of Hey "dirty route to Croom", Rob made it happen. To this day he continues to help and develop the routes and has made a huge impact as well on the Eye of the Huracan route. On top of that Him and His wife are some of the best friends a person could ask for and in 2009, he has been there helping to keep me from falling off the edge.


Well Folks that wraps up the progression series. I am truly appreciative of these individuals and how they have helped to create a Butterfly Effect in my current riding and progression. The good news is, I am far from done, and as my riding continues to improve, and as I continue to grow as a cyclist and a person, the list will continue to get longer. It actually was very therapeutic doing this, kind of put things in perspective.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

A NoT So HORrRiBLe RiDe

Were on a mission at SingleTrack Samurai Headquarters to put together an even LONGER mostly off road route around the state of Florida. AND, on this day we set out to map a dirty route from Clermont To Apopka. It started by rolling thru some tall ass overgrown double track, but IT ROLLED.





Before you know it it opened up to nice hard packed fast rolling stuff and we came across this. Above is the President of SSP Rob "THE ANVIL" Roberts.
Then we came to the edge of the lake and found, this interesting thing. I of course had to climb to the top, but it would be a killer spot to camp at. We quickly learned that this Lake has LOTS and LOTS of wildlife. I have ridden around Lake Okeechobee and I saw more wildlife up close and personal on this route. Warning to the racers, be extremely careful traversing this area at Night, there is a real danger of wild animal attack.



Everything was perfect and it all worked according to what Rob Had mapped off the web. Its amazing how much fun we have with our toys. We map off the web, we load it on our GPS and we go see what we got and we simply adore this kind of ridding. December 18th, Mike "The AFRO" Kanning and I will be rolling from Tucker Hill around 3pm to map the HURACAN ROUTE. Anyone who wants to Join is more then welcome, it will be totally recreational and totally fun. Once again, we are this close to putting together another spectacular and pristine route in the state linking together forest and conservation areas and single tracks taking us about 300 miles in one HUGE LOOP. Life is GOOD!

It was FUN, on Sunday seeing all the HOrrible Hundred riders out there. Even Funner climbing by them on the wall, check this link to see my studly self EATING ROADIES ALIVE on the Climb up the WALL. (best part is the look on the teeny girls face, is she giving me the stink eye?)

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

The PrOGreSSIOn: PaRt 2

About damn time.

Behind the scenes I spent several days trying to obtain the last names of some individuals that really inspired my riding and current level, but after an exhausted search no last names and no pictures, which really sucks for an article about showing some reverance, but O well, for what I get paid to do this ( which is nothing) I guess you all will have to suffer along with me.

Bill.

He is the one who coined the famous phrase to me "Friends dont let Friends ride junk". Bill worked at Bikeworks about 11 years ago. It was Bill who built me a Frankenbike, my first real bike, and Bill who was the first of many to kick my ass on the trail and inspire me to pedal faster. Bill, eventually quit biking, and I know that I am way faster then Bill now, but Still, Bill played a very important roll.

Mike. Mike actually told me and Aaron about the Florida State Championship series. Dood was really a good rider and very fast. We would hit without fail every Saturday Snowhill road he was there and I would watch him ride away, but he would wait as we suffered along. He never gave me any tips and tricks on how to get faster but he Gave Jason Abernathy tons of tips and I kind of just eaves dropped on the tips.

Jason Abernathy.
I watched Jason go from a kid showing up in Sneakers to a full on Super hammer head expert and a CAT 1 Roadie. He eventually left team bike works but he is back on there now, and although he may not be as thin as he was back in those days, the man is still incredibly fast and talented on a bicycle. He probably has like some special VO2Max if we were to take a measurement.

Justin Sapp was another of my Bikeworks Team mates. Really nice guy, very motivating and helpful and superfast. In fact it was watching Justin Ride single speeds that inspired me to throw my leg over one. Justin eventually broke his neck at Santos one thanksgiving many moons ago and retired from Racing. BUT, he is back, he still rides and his attitude and personality never changed or faltered.

Joey Desilva. What can I say about this guy. He was not only fast on a bike, but he could do some crazy type BMX stuff. AND he was always into having a bike different then everyone else. I think he really inspired that in me as well. My team pretty much rolls on specialized, IM always the odd man out. I actually didnt even know you could get custom made name stickers for bikes till I saw Desilva do it. He inspired me in so many ways and he is such a good spirited guy. Lot's of fun too, very funny, freaking hilarious.

Renae Blevins was my first and only coach. She actually gave me training tips and advice and we would go on training rides together to Clermont and she would basically yell at me and stuff to pedal harder or go faster or digg deep. She actually was the first to drop advice on the importance of supplement and it wasnt till three years later that I actually took the advice.

Osias Lozano.
It was always fun to ride with him. But I think watching him progress was the first time I noticed the championship mentality. Osias was once a Junior downhill champion back in Columbia. Started XC racing, didnt do so well, but because he had that championship mentality, he started training and doing it all right and within two or three seasons he was racing expert class. I was very impressed. We went from finishing laps at about the same time, to him riding 15 min faster than me. WOW.

Trevor Busby. Team Captain and all around great guy, it was just awesome watching him ride and seeing how smooth and in control he always was. Very strong rider, very fast and very capable of kicking ass no matter the situation. On top of that very humble. Just the salt of the earth. I always looked up to Trevor, no doubt.

Well, thats the list covering my past up until the present, tomorrow or soon after Part 3 I will talk about the riders I encounter in the present that continue to inspire and motivate me.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

The PrOGreSSIOn...

Its Turkey Month. That's Right folks time to give thanks and appreciate the things we value in our lives the most.

2009 has been a real challenging year, BUT, I got to keep the head up. Things definitely took a turn, and I guess in the end all of this will make sense. I have grown from all these trials and tribulations and I have had some victories. BUT, that's not what this post is about. This post is about talking about the people who influenced me to ride harder and to step up my skills to the next level. The ones who I look up too, who may not even know I looked up to them, who inspired me to be where I am today. It will be several articles over the next couple of days but I feel the need during November to reflect and share.

Aaron Watson. Been my friend since I was 12 yrs old. Our association started as Skateboarders. Aaron was and Is an excellent skateboarder, I at the time, very similar to present day was on the Fringe of Deltona Skateboarding and was a lone dog. I would skate alone, not part of any particular clique. Back in those days, there was no videos and no Internet so we were innovators in the sport for our town. Eventually we grew up, but we always kept in touch. Then I discovered MTB and We started riding together. He would straight up kick my ass in all the XC races. He would do some Ned Overend shit and come from behind and beat me. Because of him I worked my ass off to get faster and before he retired from racing, I did manage to beat him a couple times. We are still very good friends but we never ride together anymore, but that's fine cause we still skate.

John Stamstad. Quite Interesting enough, Aaron showed me an article from a magazine cant remember which about Stamstad's ride across the GDMBR. It was funny cause he said to me, I WANT TO DO THIS. Well, for now it looks like Aaron never will, but I kind of carried his tradition. LOL, it was actually Aaron who inspired me to ride single speed and cyclocross and to get into bike packing and the whole Tour Divide thing. BUT Stamstad directly inspired us both. I relegated in the stories of him signing up to do 24 hour races solo before anyone ever thought about it. Indeed Stamstad was a huge influence in the man I am today.

John Moorehouse. As far as I know the first Ultra Endurance athlete from the Central Florida Area. Read alot about his 24 hour efforts and about his rides to Athens, I was just impressed by his raw ability to ride and ride. I heard a story about him, don't know if its true, but he rode from his house in the Orlando Area, to Hardrock in Ocala, raced the expert class then rode home. He definitely inspired all the crazy stuff I do today and he probably is completely unaware of his influence on my cycling. PLUS, on top of all that he was at arms reach, I would go do Urban Assault rides and he would be there riding with us doing wheelies for miles and miles, pretty sick rider and really humble guy.

These individuals helped shaped my thoughts and efforts in my early years of cycling, but they were not the only ones. Check back tomorrow for part 2 and see who else I got hero worship for.

LOL

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

2010 The NaKeD InDiaN RiDe JaNuArY 2nd

For a moment I contemplated not even doing the ride.

Mainly cause I am pretty focused on getting things ready for the Eye of the Huracan Race and then I got the SSAR right after, wow, I'm getting busy...

BUT, its a down home good feeling fun ride and I didn't want to disappoint, plus maybe some new folks will come out and fell the fun of riding a bunch of stuff put together in a conglomerate of swift kick in your ass.

The ride will be extremely informal this year. Basically if you want to participate all you got to do is show up at the start ready to roll by 10 am.

201 Howland Blvd
Deltona, FL 32738

You put that little address right up there in your GPS. You enter the Wal Mart Parking lot from the Howland Blvd side and then hang the first right and drive to the back and park.

Again, keeping it informal, afterwards we will hit a Place called Scorpio's for food and drink not even 5 minutes from the park, we can drive there or pedal there.

Again after, if anyone feels they would be a danger to themselves and other, I offer up my backyard for camping.

Again, all very informal, but fun nonetheless. I don't even know if anyone will show, but I would love for more people to come this year than last year.

The route will pretty much be the same, I will go out and catch a FRESH gpx of the route and will email it to those who express interest in having such information so that they may program it into their GPS unit and have some good ole fashion fun.

I will be glad to personally guide you on the route however, but It will not be marked, save for the marks that never came down from last year. SO, if you can manage my horrible pace you never ever have to worry about where your going.

For those that are unaware, the route is a mix of Urban singletrack, singletrack, double track, dirt roads, technical jeep roads, ATV track, Road, bike path, witch towns, private roads, powerline trails, fence hopping and pristine no trespassing sings. If you are one who fears this type of mix then that's cool the price of admission should keep you home. BUT for those that have come before and enjoyed it will want to come again. For those that DNF'd last year, this is your chance at redemption.

This is the very first and one of the coolest of the SingleTrack Samurai Productions. It offers a no stress ride that is easy to bail out on if you get stuck. It is self supported but plenty of water and food along the route, AND there will be a Photo Scavenger hunt for the Sacred NK 2010 Trophy. Mike Kanning Killed it last year and he will probably come back and KILL IT again.

Regardless, if you want the GPX file when they become available sometime in December, email me nakedindian at singletrack samurai dot com. That way I can put you on the NK Ride GPX mailing list.

BUT, it will be very informal, if you plan to follow me, just show up, it will work that way.

Ok....

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

DiRRRty

The mission was simple. Dirty route from Apopka to the Sanford area.

We succeeded.

The purpose is to finish the Eye of the Huracan Route. In Fact, even more pavement keeps coming off the route, its actually pretty impressive, if I do say so myself.

In Fact, Soon, very soon, Like early December soon, I plan to go out and do the whole thing in its most dirtiest of versions.

After much ado, we met up at the Panera in Heathrow. I intentionally did not have breakfast and Intentionally kept my calories low on the ride, I wanted to burn some excess fat I had unfortunately accumulated. And although I could not put down any big efforts, It worked, I did lose some pounds on Saturday.

We rolled via the Seminole WeKiva Trail out of Heathrow towards Sanford, got off the trail and jumped on the roads snaking over to 46. Once on 46 we continued to the entrance to Rock Springs Run.

It proved a little tricky to follow my route, saw tons of bear tracks, the most I have ever seen. Eventually the track got seriously over grown, and we had to do a bit of bushwhacking. Made it out the other side to find it nice and groomed again. The Mental Note I made was to find the way in from the other side since its so groomed from the opposite direction. We found a kick ass camp site that I will most definitely use in the future right by the river, then back tracked to the spot where Rob was sure that the original mapped route I had traced was going. We went and followed it and had to do even more bushwhacking, but eventually found the river and actually crossed at the spot that we were supposed too. It was shallow enough to wade across and before we knew it we were in Wekiwa Springs state park.

At that point, we explored a little more and made our way out. Then eventually out of the park where we did a little more exploring to examine other entrances. That proved to be only beneficial for the bonus miles. Once done we headed back up the road to the other side of the Seminole Wekiva trail and after what seemed forever back to Panera.

During our exploration of another camp site on the Wekiwa side we came across a group of 60 somethings that were canoe tripping down the river. Seems that we came up at just the right time, I suspect we would have come a little earlier we would have found us some Naked folks. I mean the dude barely had some thing tied around his waist, but its all good, I believe people should be allowed to enjoy nature anyway they want. We actually came across other riders and I wondered as we pedaled out if they were going to be able to find there way out of the park. I reckon eventually they would have gotten out.

Overall, I believe what we found could be used for the Eye Race, and it will prove to be a good addition. Adding that extra level of adventure to the race.

Should be Interesting.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

7 NoV 2009

Some words to describe my ride today, Bear Tracks, Bush wacking, River Crossings and Naked Europeans.

More later,

The NaKeD InDiaN

MaN Vs. UNIVerSe!!

Kind of feels like that sometimes.

Feels Like the Universe is conspiring to "keep a Brotha down".

SO, Let's Talk Turkey.

First I wanted to ride up to see my gorgeous most beautiful princess. BUT, I am the sole caretaker of two beautiful boys and the logistics are Iffy.

THEN, I figured I would ride to my brothers. BUT, he says if I'm not driving then my mom is flying.(He is a pilot for a major airline company, super cheap flights, why not)

THEN, I worked out my eldest boys Turkey arrangements, then worked out the youngest turkey arrangements, but the Warrior's Princess is gonna be busy moving so she cant give me a ride back.

NOW I'm back to square one.

Part of me wants to be a diligent and still pedal the original trip and then leave my bike with W.P. and Take Greyhound back. OR if that proves too difficult, I know some or may know some people in Tallahassee area, and I could do my ride, cut back to Tally and have one of them babysit my bike till I can come back and get it.

THEN, I thought, well I could just stay Local and do a gigantic exploratory ride on a section of trail I have secretly, and I do mean secretly eye balled for the longest time. THEN I thought I could just go out and map the eye of the Huracan and get that done.

Decisions decisions.

I don't know what my motivation and drive is to just get out on the open road, but I "REALLY" need to do it. I am craving, solitude, self reliance and LONG miles and adventure. It sucks to be an addict.

I may not even get to do anything, who knows, we will see. I also thought, maybe I will try to ask some of my "inter web friends" in Tally if I could park my truck at their house and just go out and explore the forest for a couple of days, out and back kind of thing.

I don't know, I guess its good to have options.

BUT, I must satisfy this craving. So much that I want to ride ALL DAY tomorrow. Leave Super Retarded early and get home hopefully before the Sun sinks below the Horizon.

O well...

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

So I Did IT

Dreamt of getting a fixie Road bike, but the Bank account and desires for a multiday bikepacking tour changed my perception.

And I went out to the Garage and rummaged around.

First I found a LX Deore front ring size 44. Then I found two chains both very long, but not long enough to wrap around my 17 tooth ENO hub Cog and the New 44 tooth chain ring I had slapped on.

So with a little work and three separate chain tools, I got the chain the right length all tight and stuff the way Fixie goodness should be.

I then spun the cranks and everything spun great, but the chain line was not perfect. NOW, a renowned bike Mechanic I am not, Renowned shit talker I am, but bike mechanic NOT, I went ahead and made some calls this morning.

The subject, Chain Line.

And after some careful conversations, I was instructed to "attempt" to move it to the inside of the spider, and if it does not fit, then to "not worry" cause it is a nine speed chain and they do allow for a little flex.

Now every time I get out and pedal that fixie, I just simply love it. What can I say, until you have done it, you will not understand the love of the Fix. I think a very drunken conversation I had with the Warriors' Princess very much summarizes the reason I find so much JOY in Fixie riding.

Because there is such a deep connection between man and machine, meaning that wheel moves, your leg move, no compromise. It elevates the physical activity of riding the bike to an Artistic level. It takes so much more skill, so much more conscious effort to keep it all in control, that it evolves the experience from merely being physical activity, to Artistic Creative Poetry in motion.

NOW, the Dilemma. LOL. I got a map ride scheduled with the President of Singletrack Samurai Productions on Saturday. Do I ride the Black and take an automatic easy gearey day, OR do I release the FIXIE BEAST????

I think I know what I will end up doing.

IN other news. Seems my Etrex Vista HCX SD card reader has died. Which is a bummer cause my TOPO maps that provide great detail and such will not load. It still does all else its supposed to do, but its still a bummer. Garmin instructed me to try somethings tonight to see if it "fixes" the problem, but I am pretty sure its fubared. SEE, the Unit is supposed to be water resistant up to a 1 meter water submersion. I have never sunk the thing, but I did have plenty of wet rides this season, and I think the Seal on the battery compartment was defective and water got into the reader and killed it. Garmin said if that was the case they would replace it but it takes about three weeks. I got THREE big Bike Trips I want to do before the year ends and I GOT TO Have my unit, so I will not send that thing till I finish my last trip and then patiently wait for it to return. But BUMMER regardless.

AND, the Grips I put on the WAR MACHINE, which I digg immensely, after four rides are falling apart. BUT, Jeff Kerkove is sending me a new set AND they will be TEAM GREEN which I have always wanted, so Im pretty happy there. AND hopefully Nite Rider will fix my light and send it back soon, in fact, Im going to call and check on it now.

Reluctantly I think I may go see the Fourth Kind, LIL'r NI wants to See it, BIG DADDY NI, is kinda creeped out by it... O well...

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

PLaN B, aN ExCerCiSe IN FleXiBiLiTy

Well,

It may be a tall order to get out and make everything happen like I want for the Turkey Day route. I got two kids I got to care and arrange for and that is proving to be a slight obstacle. However, my brother who lives In Naples offered to pick up LiL'R NI and My Mom, so that means that maybe I could Ride to his place. Not as dirty, but Still, the need to get out and just hit the open road exceeds the need to not do a long solo multi day ride. STILL, lot's to think about and consider. I have the route Laid out, Now I need to incorporate it into map my ride and convert it to a GPX file so that I may successfully load it into my GPS unit.

I would MUCH rather do the SUPER LONG ride for many obvious reasons, one being that its dirtier, two being that I get to enjoy the embrace of the Warriors princess when I am done. BUT, if I must, then I will go with Plan B. Which at least will afford me the experience of multi day travel that I am so desperately wanting for some odd reason.

Well see what happens.

Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

DrEaMinG of a KiLLA RouTE

With Topofusion, Map my ride and google earth, I threw this lil ditty together today... Turkey Trip??? Includes a cycling traverse of the Appalachicola forest! 362~ Miles...




Laters,

The NaKeD InDiaN

ThE DrEaMeR....

My Brain has been on Day Dream over drive lately... Understanding the Law of Attraction even better now I realize the more emotion I put into what I want the quicker these desires will come to me.

Saturday, I plan on heading out with my Partner from SingleTrack Samurai Productions to Link up two parks in hopes of obtaining a dirty route from Apopka To Sanford. My plan is to leave early and pedal out to Heathrow to meet up then go for it. It will make it so I have a nice long day in the saddle and I get to hang out with a good friend, which is always fun, considering I am pretty isolated and rarely get to enjoy the company of fellow grown folk.

Sunday, I'm not sure what I will do, but I plan on going biking with LIL'R NI. We had such a good time last Saturday that I'm really motivated to try and recapture that experience.

Now, here is the Other stuff I'm daydreaming about. I WAS gonna hit the Horrible Hundred and I still may, but I was invited to a BIG O event that same weekend and I have a bone to pick with that route, AND I want to take LiLR' NI on a bike packing trip, two days of camping, 80 miles of dirtyish riding. So, I'm looking at the Calendar and day dreaming about that.

AS WELL, if I got he kids covered for Turkey day, I may take a solo 400 mileish trip from my hometown to Lynn Haven Florida. In the process I would cross the ONF and I have been pointing my satellite eyes at Appalachicola as well. I would cross that beast as well. Lately I have been enamoured with the thought of pedaling long miles and camping out, then getting up and doing it again. So we will see what happens with that. I don't really understand it but its all I have been thinking about lately, a long solo multi day tour, just me and the elements. I guess after my performance at the CFiTT I feel pretty invincible and anything and everything seems possible. Miles mean nothing, LOL, after seeing what the body can do in 24 hours. I feel like I opened some secret Ultra Enduro doorway and for the longest time I was standing on the other side of it, and now I am thru the gate.

This passing thru the gate motivates me to try even harder adventures next year, so we will see, I have been doing nothing but non stop day dreaming lately. Dare I say, Life feels really good again.

Ok, well that's whats up with me..LOL

I will make a formal post tomorrow regarding the Naked Indian ride.

thanks,

The NaKeD InDiaN

OnE LiL TwO LiL tHreE LiL InDiAnS: HaLLoWeeN 2009

Day started great, breakfast at Starbucks! Check out My Male Model Look! I scored some Banana walnut Bread for the Trail, let the fun begin!

We eventually made it to the Pine Log Crooked Creek MTB TRAIL. Conditions were perfect, temp was nice and the trail was in pristine condition. 10 miles of twisty goodness, last time I rode it, it was only 8 miles and not as nice! Absolutely loved it, perfect return ridse to the bike. Yup this is my first ride since The CFiTT I envy You guys that can ride as much as You want!

Got to love the footage, no helmet cam, no auto tune!

Look out video!

Crash!

In the bushes!

Gabriel got tired and had several crashes he eventually walked and worked it all out. The trail was tough on him at the end.

Look at this little guy, prolly the biggest lizard I have ever seen this far north in F L A.

Banana bread, Yumm, taking a break at mile 8 gathering the strength for the final push!

Didnt pack it in, but I couldnt just ride by it and leave garbage on the trail, one tire, one rim and one tube..

weapon of choice, s works single speed

Weapon of choice, redline monocog

Trail weapon, war machine Fixie goodness. I love riding fixed!