Monday, May 31, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Friday, May 28, 2010
The CaLM
So last night I met up with some friends and with my kids and I tanked up on Pizza intentionally trying to put an extra layer of fat on me. Been adding on the bad carbs since Wednesday in an effort to go in a little heavy for the impending enduro.
The bike is all loaded up and with the fat tire feels like a dirty Snow bike. If you don't know what a snow bike is, google it. So for the duration of the ride you may hear me refer to it as the SAND bike.
I been doing the math, I think its only like 150 miles to Santos. I think I can get to Santos on Saturday, maybe in 16 to 18 hours, or maybe a little less. Take a NICE LONG REST AND RECOVERY, then Hammer some more miles till I tire or decide I want to rest.
Truthfully, it all remains to be seen, spirit and desire will have so much to do with it, I plan to enjoy myself, think of it more as a speed tour since I doubt that anyone ever will go for it, but again, that's not a given. The CFiTT Fixed gear title will be challenged this October, and I thought that would never happen. Honestly, I think the title is beatable, but it may be too steep of a learning curve for the person who plans to challenge it, the CFiTT route is not to be underestimated.
BUT, even though I have the freedom to cruise and not rush, I still think its critical for me to reach Santos before midnight on Saturday.
So we will see, Tomorrow is the big day. I will load up the bike tonight, stick it in my car, make some sandwiches for the first half of the day, then I will hit the sack. Get up, put on the outfit I will most likely wear all weekend and go for it, should be an interesting adventure.
Watch or don't watch, but there will be blog updates all weekend long,
take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
The bike is all loaded up and with the fat tire feels like a dirty Snow bike. If you don't know what a snow bike is, google it. So for the duration of the ride you may hear me refer to it as the SAND bike.
I been doing the math, I think its only like 150 miles to Santos. I think I can get to Santos on Saturday, maybe in 16 to 18 hours, or maybe a little less. Take a NICE LONG REST AND RECOVERY, then Hammer some more miles till I tire or decide I want to rest.
Truthfully, it all remains to be seen, spirit and desire will have so much to do with it, I plan to enjoy myself, think of it more as a speed tour since I doubt that anyone ever will go for it, but again, that's not a given. The CFiTT Fixed gear title will be challenged this October, and I thought that would never happen. Honestly, I think the title is beatable, but it may be too steep of a learning curve for the person who plans to challenge it, the CFiTT route is not to be underestimated.
BUT, even though I have the freedom to cruise and not rush, I still think its critical for me to reach Santos before midnight on Saturday.
So we will see, Tomorrow is the big day. I will load up the bike tonight, stick it in my car, make some sandwiches for the first half of the day, then I will hit the sack. Get up, put on the outfit I will most likely wear all weekend and go for it, should be an interesting adventure.
Watch or don't watch, but there will be blog updates all weekend long,
take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Thursday, May 27, 2010
The NoSe KnoWs
The Year was 1986. I heard the Beastie Boys Album License to ILL, and it was at that very moment that I decided that if them boys could Rap, I could Rap. So from 1986 till about 1998, I was a Rapper. Used to record music, worked with a Group, worked solo, made several "Albums" even made a Solo Album. I was and Am still pretty good. Even as the "art" form evolved I evolved with it and even became a pretty astute Freestyle Rapper.
Then, everybody got a rap. Then I lost a taste for the businesss when I learned that it was not how good you are, or even who you are, but who you know. I am still in touch with lots of the people I made music with. As in everything I do, I not only helped people and was extremely generous but I inspired people as well. My Rap Pseudonym you ask? It was The UnCanny K Roc (Kay Rock is the pronounciation).
How I got that nickname was pretty simple, K from my first name and Rock from what "rocking" the MIC, but the Uncanny part came from my friends. They used to say I was a MUTANT, because I had an keen sense of sight, smell and taste. What they could barely see I could spot well, what they could not smell I could smell a mile away, to this day I consider my sense of smell a gift and a curse.
Which leads me finally to the topic of todays Post. The clock went off awful early this A.M. I like to leave with plenty of time. Reason being I never know if I am going to get on the bike and decide to fart around instead of throw the Hammer. So as I am riding in I immediately notice that I left my GPS At work, damn will I remember the Route??? I also noticed 5 miles down the Road that I forgot a flat repair kit, well fingers crossed hope I dont flat. I decided Karma would be my flat repair kit today.
Pedal on I did. As I cruised along the first neighborhood I could smell a distinct odor of lavender? A bush? A Plant? Someone applying some in their bathroom>?? As I am cruising along, make my way to Starbucks and Score a drink and a sandwich, I continue on. As I cross the Road there is a big Diesel Pick up truck churning away, and I think to myself, "damn your truck smells like garbage" only to pedal another 1/4 mile and spot a Garbage Truck picking up waste.
As I get closer to my final Stretch of jagged technical road, I smell the hair products of the lady that just drove by, and the cologne of that guy that just drove by and the perfume of that one lady that just passed, Hmmm that one smelled kind of nice.
On I go, picking up various scents as people pass me on the road, wondering all the while, if other cyclist experience a ride like I do. Not only to I experience it by sight and by sound, but also by smell. Indeed.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Then, everybody got a rap. Then I lost a taste for the businesss when I learned that it was not how good you are, or even who you are, but who you know. I am still in touch with lots of the people I made music with. As in everything I do, I not only helped people and was extremely generous but I inspired people as well. My Rap Pseudonym you ask? It was The UnCanny K Roc (Kay Rock is the pronounciation).
How I got that nickname was pretty simple, K from my first name and Rock from what "rocking" the MIC, but the Uncanny part came from my friends. They used to say I was a MUTANT, because I had an keen sense of sight, smell and taste. What they could barely see I could spot well, what they could not smell I could smell a mile away, to this day I consider my sense of smell a gift and a curse.
Which leads me finally to the topic of todays Post. The clock went off awful early this A.M. I like to leave with plenty of time. Reason being I never know if I am going to get on the bike and decide to fart around instead of throw the Hammer. So as I am riding in I immediately notice that I left my GPS At work, damn will I remember the Route??? I also noticed 5 miles down the Road that I forgot a flat repair kit, well fingers crossed hope I dont flat. I decided Karma would be my flat repair kit today.
Pedal on I did. As I cruised along the first neighborhood I could smell a distinct odor of lavender? A bush? A Plant? Someone applying some in their bathroom>?? As I am cruising along, make my way to Starbucks and Score a drink and a sandwich, I continue on. As I cross the Road there is a big Diesel Pick up truck churning away, and I think to myself, "damn your truck smells like garbage" only to pedal another 1/4 mile and spot a Garbage Truck picking up waste.As I get closer to my final Stretch of jagged technical road, I smell the hair products of the lady that just drove by, and the cologne of that guy that just drove by and the perfume of that one lady that just passed, Hmmm that one smelled kind of nice.
On I go, picking up various scents as people pass me on the road, wondering all the while, if other cyclist experience a ride like I do. Not only to I experience it by sight and by sound, but also by smell. Indeed.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
YoUr My OBsESsION!!
Monday Evening I brought the Fat Tire Fixed gear to ride home.
It had been a 10 hour work day and the Boys were already harassing me for dinner, I had resolved to HAMMER that thing home.
Got on the road, keeping the TEMPO high, man was it painful, but 2 hours and 6 minutes later I got to Wal Mart, did a little bit of Groceries, then rode said Groceries home to feed the boys. What a NIGHT.
Indeed, it was hard to keep that fast pace, but I was looking at the speedometer I saw alot of 15's and a lot of 16's and even some 17's on there. Felt good about that. All the riding is paying off. Its as if my fitness is like an IVY plant, that only needs a little bit of nourishment and attention and out of control it grows.
I was planning on riding back to work Tuesday morning, but the legs felt cracked, and the crotch was still a bit chapped. I made a mental note, the harder I ride the easier it is to chap my crack, so, lube well when expecting to put down the hammer. I had done the entire NK ride, in full tilt mode and I had done the 65 miles with out any perennial lube.
Was going to ride in this morning as I have both my cars at work, but at 4am the body still felt tired. I figured with the impending feat I have coming up this weekend, rest is probably a good thing, tomorrow I will ride in with the easy bike and save all my Fixed gear medicine for the Saturday.
I have decided, just recently matter of fact, to start my Huracan LOOP from Minneola so that I may leave my vehicle at Rob Roberts house. I figure it will be safer there since it is Memorial weekend and people may be in especially mischievous alcohol fueled moods.
This changes thing, for weeks I had thought of where I would camp and reload at, now, I still got my reload spots down, but camping is up in the air, specifically night one. How far I will ride and what I will do remains to be seen I have a couple of good Ideas. I know I will need to make sure I restock and eat in Apopka, then maybe pick up some more stuff before I begin the Wekiva to rock springs to Seminole woods to Maggie Jones section. That will be a long stretch with no supplies or real water. Then in Paisley I have to shop for food and restock cause from that point I begin the traverse of the Ocala National Forest and there are no supplies for 60 plus miles. I can get water in the forest, but food is a NO GO.
Once I clear the forest I wonder if I will push thru that first day and try to camp by the Oklawaha river OR will I just camp somewhere along the way or will I push to Santos, It all really depends. I may want to take a little nap after Paisley to fuel and rest at the campgrounds before making the big push, that may allow me to push well into the night if I feel rested and recharged.
Or I may just wanna keep moving till I make it deep into the Forest and push all the way thru or stop along the way, I guess it all depends how I feel at the moment and I plan on planning my stops and at the same time, keeping the options open for flexibility. Once I get that first big night out of the way, the mornings are way too fresh and cool to spend sleeping so early I will be rolling towards Santos, where I will make a modest restock to get me across to SR 200 where I can go off route and hit the Wal Mart for another big restock till I make the Withlacoochee. Now depending on the time of the day, I may be able to restock on the Withlacoochee at any number of the small towns along the way. I will have to watch the clock closely, because if I am getting late into the eve, that may mean that I have to ride 70 miles before I can get more food, so restocks need to be planned and be well thought out which may prove difficult depending on my exhaustion level.
Once I get to Croom, I will ride close to 20 miles of singletrack, being able to freshen up at Tucker hill and refuel on water there, then its decision time. Do I go off course before I get to Ritchloam track and stock up on food for the haul to Clermont, OR, do I PUSH. Most likely I will have no choice but to go off course and refuel as Tucker Hill To Croom is 80 miles thru very remote land areas. Once I get on 27, it will be giant Rollers and huge Hills till I coast back into Minneola and sleigh the Huracan Fixed Gear Record.
NOW you know why this post was called OBSESSION!!!
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
It had been a 10 hour work day and the Boys were already harassing me for dinner, I had resolved to HAMMER that thing home.
Got on the road, keeping the TEMPO high, man was it painful, but 2 hours and 6 minutes later I got to Wal Mart, did a little bit of Groceries, then rode said Groceries home to feed the boys. What a NIGHT.
Indeed, it was hard to keep that fast pace, but I was looking at the speedometer I saw alot of 15's and a lot of 16's and even some 17's on there. Felt good about that. All the riding is paying off. Its as if my fitness is like an IVY plant, that only needs a little bit of nourishment and attention and out of control it grows.
I was planning on riding back to work Tuesday morning, but the legs felt cracked, and the crotch was still a bit chapped. I made a mental note, the harder I ride the easier it is to chap my crack, so, lube well when expecting to put down the hammer. I had done the entire NK ride, in full tilt mode and I had done the 65 miles with out any perennial lube.
Was going to ride in this morning as I have both my cars at work, but at 4am the body still felt tired. I figured with the impending feat I have coming up this weekend, rest is probably a good thing, tomorrow I will ride in with the easy bike and save all my Fixed gear medicine for the Saturday.
I have decided, just recently matter of fact, to start my Huracan LOOP from Minneola so that I may leave my vehicle at Rob Roberts house. I figure it will be safer there since it is Memorial weekend and people may be in especially mischievous alcohol fueled moods.
This changes thing, for weeks I had thought of where I would camp and reload at, now, I still got my reload spots down, but camping is up in the air, specifically night one. How far I will ride and what I will do remains to be seen I have a couple of good Ideas. I know I will need to make sure I restock and eat in Apopka, then maybe pick up some more stuff before I begin the Wekiva to rock springs to Seminole woods to Maggie Jones section. That will be a long stretch with no supplies or real water. Then in Paisley I have to shop for food and restock cause from that point I begin the traverse of the Ocala National Forest and there are no supplies for 60 plus miles. I can get water in the forest, but food is a NO GO.
Once I clear the forest I wonder if I will push thru that first day and try to camp by the Oklawaha river OR will I just camp somewhere along the way or will I push to Santos, It all really depends. I may want to take a little nap after Paisley to fuel and rest at the campgrounds before making the big push, that may allow me to push well into the night if I feel rested and recharged.
Or I may just wanna keep moving till I make it deep into the Forest and push all the way thru or stop along the way, I guess it all depends how I feel at the moment and I plan on planning my stops and at the same time, keeping the options open for flexibility. Once I get that first big night out of the way, the mornings are way too fresh and cool to spend sleeping so early I will be rolling towards Santos, where I will make a modest restock to get me across to SR 200 where I can go off route and hit the Wal Mart for another big restock till I make the Withlacoochee. Now depending on the time of the day, I may be able to restock on the Withlacoochee at any number of the small towns along the way. I will have to watch the clock closely, because if I am getting late into the eve, that may mean that I have to ride 70 miles before I can get more food, so restocks need to be planned and be well thought out which may prove difficult depending on my exhaustion level.
Once I get to Croom, I will ride close to 20 miles of singletrack, being able to freshen up at Tucker hill and refuel on water there, then its decision time. Do I go off course before I get to Ritchloam track and stock up on food for the haul to Clermont, OR, do I PUSH. Most likely I will have no choice but to go off course and refuel as Tucker Hill To Croom is 80 miles thru very remote land areas. Once I get on 27, it will be giant Rollers and huge Hills till I coast back into Minneola and sleigh the Huracan Fixed Gear Record.
NOW you know why this post was called OBSESSION!!!
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Im OffiCiaLLy ANNouNcinG My PoSSiBLe DeMiSE
Such is my Fate.
I am feeling quite spry lately.
Feeling like its time to do something I said I would never do again.
Feeling like its time to push the limits of what I CAN DO on a bike.
At approximately 6am on Saturday May 29Th, 2010 I will roll out on the Fixed Gear War Machine to take a Crack at the Fixed Gear Individual Time Trial Record for the course.
Basically, as long as I can finish it and stay within the prescribed rules the title is mines. I have to be done by Monday as I have work on Tuesday. I have every single belief that it will be painful. I have every single belief that my bum will be chapped when its all said and done.
BUT, I want to do this, nah nix that, I got to do this.
In Life, sometimes through torture we can experience true pleasure, maybe its the therapeutic release from the ordeal, who knows. I have no quit in my heart, I am well aware that on day 2 when I remount the bike my legs maybe toasted, I fully expect that.
I have every intention of going all the way and then some.
How can you be involved??? Well of course send your positive vibes my way as I do what I can to challenge the very limits of what may very well be possible for a person who is pedaling a bicycle that cannot coast. I will have a GPS tracker active during the trip so that you can see the tiny dot move along the course. I cannot guarantee that it will function, but at least you will have something to look at. I will also cast videos on my blog, on the SSP main site and on my Facebook and the SSP Facebook site, hopefully testing the possibilities of all that here in the next couple of days. I want to basically take all the videos and eventually slap them together to make a small documentary of sorts. After all, its hard to ride a bike for a long distance. Its even harder to do said ride under your own support with no vehicles or drops for supplies or anything of the sort. Even more difficult to do it on a fixed gear bicycle. This is after all a mostly off road route and it is after all 300 miles.
SO, best case scenario I plan to be done sometime early Monday morning. Worst Case scenario sometime early or mid day Monday. I hope it rains as the heat will be a factor. Weather is a part of the Huracan, last time Cold and Rain played a factor, this time Heat and Rain will play a factor, I can only go out and do my best, stay moving and stay positive, letting my shear passion carry me through this ordeal.
I like to dedicate big rides. So this ride is Dedicated to the Women I Love. You know who You are, you know how much you mean to me. One way or another, it is because of these two women that I love deeply that I am where I am today and I have the ability to do what I am going to do. This effort is in dedication to you. I hope to tap into your collective energy to conquer this challenge.
I have some things to prove to myself before I throw the hat in for the Tour Divide, and this my friends is at the top of the list for me, to complete the Eye of The Huracan Route, on a one geared Fixed bicycle.
Wish me Luck, better yet, wish me perseverance and strength,
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
I am feeling quite spry lately.
Feeling like its time to do something I said I would never do again.
Feeling like its time to push the limits of what I CAN DO on a bike.
At approximately 6am on Saturday May 29Th, 2010 I will roll out on the Fixed Gear War Machine to take a Crack at the Fixed Gear Individual Time Trial Record for the course.
Basically, as long as I can finish it and stay within the prescribed rules the title is mines. I have to be done by Monday as I have work on Tuesday. I have every single belief that it will be painful. I have every single belief that my bum will be chapped when its all said and done.
BUT, I want to do this, nah nix that, I got to do this.
In Life, sometimes through torture we can experience true pleasure, maybe its the therapeutic release from the ordeal, who knows. I have no quit in my heart, I am well aware that on day 2 when I remount the bike my legs maybe toasted, I fully expect that.
I have every intention of going all the way and then some.
How can you be involved??? Well of course send your positive vibes my way as I do what I can to challenge the very limits of what may very well be possible for a person who is pedaling a bicycle that cannot coast. I will have a GPS tracker active during the trip so that you can see the tiny dot move along the course. I cannot guarantee that it will function, but at least you will have something to look at. I will also cast videos on my blog, on the SSP main site and on my Facebook and the SSP Facebook site, hopefully testing the possibilities of all that here in the next couple of days. I want to basically take all the videos and eventually slap them together to make a small documentary of sorts. After all, its hard to ride a bike for a long distance. Its even harder to do said ride under your own support with no vehicles or drops for supplies or anything of the sort. Even more difficult to do it on a fixed gear bicycle. This is after all a mostly off road route and it is after all 300 miles.
SO, best case scenario I plan to be done sometime early Monday morning. Worst Case scenario sometime early or mid day Monday. I hope it rains as the heat will be a factor. Weather is a part of the Huracan, last time Cold and Rain played a factor, this time Heat and Rain will play a factor, I can only go out and do my best, stay moving and stay positive, letting my shear passion carry me through this ordeal.
I like to dedicate big rides. So this ride is Dedicated to the Women I Love. You know who You are, you know how much you mean to me. One way or another, it is because of these two women that I love deeply that I am where I am today and I have the ability to do what I am going to do. This effort is in dedication to you. I hope to tap into your collective energy to conquer this challenge.
I have some things to prove to myself before I throw the hat in for the Tour Divide, and this my friends is at the top of the list for me, to complete the Eye of The Huracan Route, on a one geared Fixed bicycle.
Wish me Luck, better yet, wish me perseverance and strength,
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Monday, May 24, 2010
2010 NK RiDe, HoT, FaST & AdVenTuRouS
The 2010 NK ride was HOT, FAST and ADVENTUROUS. There you go, that is the short summary you dont have to read further if you dont want to. Thanks for stopping by!
Now for those that want details, here we go. Jonesy Showed up early bearing gifts of Ice Coffee and good conversation. As we meditated we attempted to load topo maps from Gpsfiledepot dot com onto his etrex, but we had meditated so hard that thought abilities had escaped us. We got Dressed and rolled out. Kanning had called saying he would meet us right at 930am. I mistakingly had assumed Kanning had read the directions and knew to meet us at Wal Mart where we were meeting the others. WRONG... On top of that he forgot his PHONE, epic FAIL.
Regardless, 945 am we rolled out after snacks and riders meeting. We headed down 415 to Lemon Bluff road to see if we could connect thru this preserve over to Reed Ellis road that would dump us right onto the Naked Indian Route. I say try cause I forgot the maps at work, We gave it a shot, hiked a biked a huge swath of fire break, then pulled the plugg. Adventure 1, couple of bonus miles was now in the books.
After that it was more happy rolling, me dipping into my Fred Aero bar set up, totally loving the ease, comfort and speed I was getting out of it. We hit Bethel Loop, Hit old enterprise Rail Road Bed, onto Old Titusville, over to the Morality Trail, thru the Brickell connector hike, onto the washboard dirt road, road climb out and we hit 7 11 for water. Already 17 miles in at this point, still a long way to go. Mike Had contacted us thru Facebook and said he would meet us at McDonald's. SO onto the new bike path, we cut thru the powerlines, to encounter a swamp and knee deep water, bushwacked onto a road and made the restaurant, no Mike to be found.
Me, after playing Monkey on the Rail Road thing..
So, they built a fence around the pit we used to ride thru. Then apparently there has been a ton of construction traffic that totally dismatled our usual route thru this section so we had to take the main powerline trail. It was pretty awful but short, I managed to stay on thru 99% of this.
We kept going a little road to Gemini sidewalk to Gemini Trail, to Lake Monroe for another little cooling off break and another attempt to find Mike, but no luck. On we rolled, eventually finding out the pit we loved had been fenced in and we had to ride more powerline then usual cause the path I used to take had been drudged by construction vehicles.
We eventually finished off the first section of Rail Road service road, which was way rougher then I remember, I think we should have taken the low water route which from our vantage point looked alot smoother then what we were on. We popped out and took Dutchman Bends into the Back door of Blue springs and onto the Second section of Railroad which was not bad at all.
Eventually we emerged onto the Lake Beresford Bike path, rode all the single track and were on Fatio Road heading towards a much needed lunch break. All the heat and the effort and extra monkey wrenches had burned lots of calories and we were all ready for some real food.
The rollers on the latter half of Fatio seemed extra brutal, but we pressed on and made lunch and had a good meal and lots of water and cooling off. During the Rail Road Section I hit a pit of sand and totally fell on my side, this has not been the year for me to stay tumble free.
Wolf Pack Run trail was sandy today, but Rob and I stayed on and hammered the rollers thru here.
We rolled out of there a little pavement to sidewalk then back into Deltona, more pavement to sidewalk, then right into Wolf pack run trail. Lots of Sandy ups and downs, but Rob and I pedaled it all and we emerged to a little more sandy road, then a quick trip thru cassadega.
Eventually, we made our way thru lake helen onto the Ranch Road section, a little sandy and dry but rolling good, I look back and Jonesy was doing the frustration push. He had literally said he hated the Wolf Pack run trail and gave it the finger. Me thinks he hated this section too. I attempted to comfort them by letting them know we didn't have much left which was true. Eventually we hit Old Train Road, Rob and I did the Cemetary Trail Bushwack and eventually we stopped at my house, got in just as Curt And Jonesy showed up, they skipped the Cemetery section and took the sidewalk all the way to Wal Mart, good call, cemetery section was just a tad arduous and not a good way to end up if you were already in the pain cave.
Overall, excellent ride, ended with cold showers and good food and conversation. Absolutely Loving the Fred Bars Aero set up, and my "training" Plan is already starting to pay off, as I felt good after the ride, and rode with good stamina and strength all day.
Great ride fellas, thanks for coming out, I really appreciated it, next one will definitely be in January and all the new re routes will be worked out to avoid the SAND traps we endured.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Now for those that want details, here we go. Jonesy Showed up early bearing gifts of Ice Coffee and good conversation. As we meditated we attempted to load topo maps from Gpsfiledepot dot com onto his etrex, but we had meditated so hard that thought abilities had escaped us. We got Dressed and rolled out. Kanning had called saying he would meet us right at 930am. I mistakingly had assumed Kanning had read the directions and knew to meet us at Wal Mart where we were meeting the others. WRONG... On top of that he forgot his PHONE, epic FAIL.
Regardless, 945 am we rolled out after snacks and riders meeting. We headed down 415 to Lemon Bluff road to see if we could connect thru this preserve over to Reed Ellis road that would dump us right onto the Naked Indian Route. I say try cause I forgot the maps at work, We gave it a shot, hiked a biked a huge swath of fire break, then pulled the plugg. Adventure 1, couple of bonus miles was now in the books.
After that it was more happy rolling, me dipping into my Fred Aero bar set up, totally loving the ease, comfort and speed I was getting out of it. We hit Bethel Loop, Hit old enterprise Rail Road Bed, onto Old Titusville, over to the Morality Trail, thru the Brickell connector hike, onto the washboard dirt road, road climb out and we hit 7 11 for water. Already 17 miles in at this point, still a long way to go. Mike Had contacted us thru Facebook and said he would meet us at McDonald's. SO onto the new bike path, we cut thru the powerlines, to encounter a swamp and knee deep water, bushwacked onto a road and made the restaurant, no Mike to be found.
Jonesy Early in the Ride, Still Smiling. Right around mile 55, not so much.
I saw this thing had a ladder and I had to climb it, Had lots of energy on this Naked Indian ride.
Still smiling, never got a picture of him frowning, the section after this was boulders on a railroad service road, kind of sucked, but him and rob hammered away on it.
Curt Joined the ride, rode it on his Long Haul Trucker Surly bike, great attitude and hung tight all day long.
Me, after playing Monkey on the Rail Road thing..
Trying to figure out how to navigate that preserve prooved to be an excercise in futility, I forgot the maps and it was pretty much a waste of time, next time I will figure it out, cause I will take the maps, Im not as smart as I think folks.
So, they built a fence around the pit we used to ride thru. Then apparently there has been a ton of construction traffic that totally dismatled our usual route thru this section so we had to take the main powerline trail. It was pretty awful but short, I managed to stay on thru 99% of this. We kept going a little road to Gemini sidewalk to Gemini Trail, to Lake Monroe for another little cooling off break and another attempt to find Mike, but no luck. On we rolled, eventually finding out the pit we loved had been fenced in and we had to ride more powerline then usual cause the path I used to take had been drudged by construction vehicles.
We eventually finished off the first section of Rail Road service road, which was way rougher then I remember, I think we should have taken the low water route which from our vantage point looked alot smoother then what we were on. We popped out and took Dutchman Bends into the Back door of Blue springs and onto the Second section of Railroad which was not bad at all.
Finally past the rail road tracks on To Dutchman Bend road, all good riding from here till lunch break, singletrack as well once we got in the Deland, the longest portion of singletrack matter of fact.
Eventually we emerged onto the Lake Beresford Bike path, rode all the single track and were on Fatio Road heading towards a much needed lunch break. All the heat and the effort and extra monkey wrenches had burned lots of calories and we were all ready for some real food.
The rollers on the latter half of Fatio seemed extra brutal, but we pressed on and made lunch and had a good meal and lots of water and cooling off. During the Rail Road Section I hit a pit of sand and totally fell on my side, this has not been the year for me to stay tumble free.
Wolf Pack Run trail was sandy today, but Rob and I stayed on and hammered the rollers thru here.We rolled out of there a little pavement to sidewalk then back into Deltona, more pavement to sidewalk, then right into Wolf pack run trail. Lots of Sandy ups and downs, but Rob and I pedaled it all and we emerged to a little more sandy road, then a quick trip thru cassadega.
Eventually, we made our way thru lake helen onto the Ranch Road section, a little sandy and dry but rolling good, I look back and Jonesy was doing the frustration push. He had literally said he hated the Wolf Pack run trail and gave it the finger. Me thinks he hated this section too. I attempted to comfort them by letting them know we didn't have much left which was true. Eventually we hit Old Train Road, Rob and I did the Cemetary Trail Bushwack and eventually we stopped at my house, got in just as Curt And Jonesy showed up, they skipped the Cemetery section and took the sidewalk all the way to Wal Mart, good call, cemetery section was just a tad arduous and not a good way to end up if you were already in the pain cave.
Overall, excellent ride, ended with cold showers and good food and conversation. Absolutely Loving the Fred Bars Aero set up, and my "training" Plan is already starting to pay off, as I felt good after the ride, and rode with good stamina and strength all day.
Great ride fellas, thanks for coming out, I really appreciated it, next one will definitely be in January and all the new re routes will be worked out to avoid the SAND traps we endured.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Friday, May 21, 2010
ThE LonGeSt NK EvEr!!!
So on my ride home from Work Wenesday I cut into an little off road section that leads to a parking lot that I have been wanting to check on for months.
I cut in there, hop the fence and see that they have trails in there that could be biked. I swiped a map and kept pedaling home.
Yesterday after picking up my son, I cut over to where the trail exits on Lemon Bluff road and looked for the entrance and it was an easy find.
So Im thinking with this I can add about 7 miles of off road adventure to the NK ride. Making it possible to extend the ride closer to the 70 something mile mark. The question is, how adventurous will the riders feel tomorrow morning? Will they be up for the extra mileage or desire an easier day.
As well, I have not rode the entire route since sometime in 2009, what will the conditions be like? How has it changed? All of this remains to be seen as I venture on and pedal the route tomorrow.
It will be a warm day so I will plan 3 water breaks instead of one in the middle, and I will have to tell the riders of the possible Bushwacking requirements, all in hopes that everyone keeps a positive attitude and keeps their goals realistic. What's the goal??? To have fun what else.
Hope to see everyone there, would appreciate the company and the ride time...
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
I cut in there, hop the fence and see that they have trails in there that could be biked. I swiped a map and kept pedaling home.
Yesterday after picking up my son, I cut over to where the trail exits on Lemon Bluff road and looked for the entrance and it was an easy find.
So Im thinking with this I can add about 7 miles of off road adventure to the NK ride. Making it possible to extend the ride closer to the 70 something mile mark. The question is, how adventurous will the riders feel tomorrow morning? Will they be up for the extra mileage or desire an easier day.
As well, I have not rode the entire route since sometime in 2009, what will the conditions be like? How has it changed? All of this remains to be seen as I venture on and pedal the route tomorrow.
It will be a warm day so I will plan 3 water breaks instead of one in the middle, and I will have to tell the riders of the possible Bushwacking requirements, all in hopes that everyone keeps a positive attitude and keeps their goals realistic. What's the goal??? To have fun what else.
Hope to see everyone there, would appreciate the company and the ride time...
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Thursday, May 20, 2010
ThE RoAd
Wenesdays Ride home
430 A.M. The alarm went off on my phone waking me to the impending commitment to pedal another 31 miles to work today.
Prep was completed quickly, at 515am I was rolling. The air was crisp, morning had not yet came, darkness was still.
In order to see my pedaling speed I would of had to hit that Toggle on my Garmin Etrex, so instead, I cared not about my rate, my velocity or my pace, I just rode a pace that felt good.
Not before long I was up and over the bridge, all the while admiring the stars, the orange glow that forms around street lights. Finally I was off a long stretch, steady rolling into another.
As I make my way on Florida's Black Heritage Trail (swear that's what the sign says), I start meandering through neighborhoods. The houses all look like they were built in the 70's, which is not a bad thing, it creates a certain vibration for the area, a vibration I appreciate.
Turn off to another back road making my way towards the train tracks and I spot a rider on a BMX bike, probably commuting to work just like me, with a quick Cadence.
Little do they know on this morning the CANNIBAL Is on the route, as I click it up a gear or two and overtake him with quick speed. I am hungry and fellow commuters are on the menu. Turns out I was not the only Indian on a bicycle today, as in a Row, all on similar bikes, all with similar sack packs slung across their backs, I overtook 6, count them, 6 commuters.
Eventually I made the halfway point of the ride 16.5 miles as I rode over the suspension bridge over Interstate four, hey look there, I am on the Florida Trail, you cant ride bikes on the Florida trail, except for this section and about 100 or so other miles of the Florida Trail that are multi use.
I turn onto Seminole Wekiva trail, check the clock, hmmm, 6:10 am, I can make starbucks by 630? I quickly do the math and realize that 20 minutes for the 7 or more miles I had was not possible.
Up ahead, O' what's this, a pack of runners, running shoulder to shoulder spanning the entire 20 feet, fantastic. I have no bell, so I let out a whistle, in fact, I let out about 20 whistles, but no acknowledgement. What's the safest way to do this??? Say on your left and risk them jumping in my path, or just fly by silently on the grass around the shoulders across America jogging crew??? I buzzed them on the grass like something out of Top Gun, I think the girl of the crew got startled, but c'mon folks...
Regardless, I see more joggers, and cyclist all get consumed. I make Starbucks at 649am. Not bad, call home to make sure LiL'r NI is up for school. HE is, I get my drink and a sandwhich and pedal onward to work. 7 more miles to go, rides almost done.
As I continue along, ticking the miles, I see Seniors getting their power walks and think about me and my twilight years, will the power still flow, will I still seek battles.
I start trying to see if I can remember the maze of roads that Google Bike maps has me doing to safely traverse to the Forest City Roubaix section that makes up the final Time Trial before my office.
I did excellent and remembered all the roads, got in the final section, kept the speed high, go to cut across the parking lot that I usually cut across to avoid the intersection of potential death, and my drink goes flying in all directions. DAMMIT, that's the second time that speed bump has made me spill my coffee.. Mental note, do not hit that speed bump with speed anymore.
At the office now I am all cleaned up, sitting at my desk, typing away at the keys. I feel good, real good.
Thursdays Ride into work
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
430 A.M. The alarm went off on my phone waking me to the impending commitment to pedal another 31 miles to work today.
Prep was completed quickly, at 515am I was rolling. The air was crisp, morning had not yet came, darkness was still.
In order to see my pedaling speed I would of had to hit that Toggle on my Garmin Etrex, so instead, I cared not about my rate, my velocity or my pace, I just rode a pace that felt good.
Not before long I was up and over the bridge, all the while admiring the stars, the orange glow that forms around street lights. Finally I was off a long stretch, steady rolling into another.
As I make my way on Florida's Black Heritage Trail (swear that's what the sign says), I start meandering through neighborhoods. The houses all look like they were built in the 70's, which is not a bad thing, it creates a certain vibration for the area, a vibration I appreciate.
Turn off to another back road making my way towards the train tracks and I spot a rider on a BMX bike, probably commuting to work just like me, with a quick Cadence.
Little do they know on this morning the CANNIBAL Is on the route, as I click it up a gear or two and overtake him with quick speed. I am hungry and fellow commuters are on the menu. Turns out I was not the only Indian on a bicycle today, as in a Row, all on similar bikes, all with similar sack packs slung across their backs, I overtook 6, count them, 6 commuters.
Eventually I made the halfway point of the ride 16.5 miles as I rode over the suspension bridge over Interstate four, hey look there, I am on the Florida Trail, you cant ride bikes on the Florida trail, except for this section and about 100 or so other miles of the Florida Trail that are multi use.
I turn onto Seminole Wekiva trail, check the clock, hmmm, 6:10 am, I can make starbucks by 630? I quickly do the math and realize that 20 minutes for the 7 or more miles I had was not possible.
Up ahead, O' what's this, a pack of runners, running shoulder to shoulder spanning the entire 20 feet, fantastic. I have no bell, so I let out a whistle, in fact, I let out about 20 whistles, but no acknowledgement. What's the safest way to do this??? Say on your left and risk them jumping in my path, or just fly by silently on the grass around the shoulders across America jogging crew??? I buzzed them on the grass like something out of Top Gun, I think the girl of the crew got startled, but c'mon folks...
Regardless, I see more joggers, and cyclist all get consumed. I make Starbucks at 649am. Not bad, call home to make sure LiL'r NI is up for school. HE is, I get my drink and a sandwhich and pedal onward to work. 7 more miles to go, rides almost done.
As I continue along, ticking the miles, I see Seniors getting their power walks and think about me and my twilight years, will the power still flow, will I still seek battles.
I start trying to see if I can remember the maze of roads that Google Bike maps has me doing to safely traverse to the Forest City Roubaix section that makes up the final Time Trial before my office.
I did excellent and remembered all the roads, got in the final section, kept the speed high, go to cut across the parking lot that I usually cut across to avoid the intersection of potential death, and my drink goes flying in all directions. DAMMIT, that's the second time that speed bump has made me spill my coffee.. Mental note, do not hit that speed bump with speed anymore.
At the office now I am all cleaned up, sitting at my desk, typing away at the keys. I feel good, real good.
Thursdays Ride into work
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
ConFeSSiONs FRoM the CoMMuTe
I wanted to ride in so so bad today. But when that alarm went off at 4am my body requested 2.5 more hours of sleep instead.
Usually I drive the bike to work, then ride home, then ride back the next day, kind of break it up, use the car like a closet to keep my things.
So I drove to work today and boy was it not nearly as charming as the bicycle ride in.
Its funny the things you see and experience while moving along through areas at a pedaling pace. I see lots of cool roadside goodies and often I am tempted to stop and pick them up.
See lots of interesting looking people who will sometimes smile when they see me or Scowl as if I am trespassing through their sacred land.
Since I rode the cross bike, Im not afraid to hop a curb or a median, or wheelie pop off a speed bump. Not afraid to air out that bike.
And the contemplative almost reflective mood that overcomes you, the slower cadences lend to inner dialogue and reflection on life and things.
A couple was walking along the side the road. Body language lended itself to more of a stroll then a purposeful walk. It was a male and a female. The female was wearing a long dress, very thin clothed, so thin in fact I could tell what kind of underclothing she was wearing, Made me chuckle.
Hey Did I just see a chain tool on the ground or was that just and T handled Allen key???
Even though the sun was bright yesterday it still felt amazingly cool out, The mornings have their charms and sounds, dusk has its own Flavor, Night time its beauty. Its simply magical out there to watch the world from the seat of a bike.
Sure, the heavy traffic roads are a snore and it is tiring to hear cars zip past you or even better hitting the stutter stumps as they make their way around you.
But its still wonderful, when you get home, or get to work the sense of accomplishment is an extra special blessing that everyone should experience.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Usually I drive the bike to work, then ride home, then ride back the next day, kind of break it up, use the car like a closet to keep my things.
So I drove to work today and boy was it not nearly as charming as the bicycle ride in.
Its funny the things you see and experience while moving along through areas at a pedaling pace. I see lots of cool roadside goodies and often I am tempted to stop and pick them up.
See lots of interesting looking people who will sometimes smile when they see me or Scowl as if I am trespassing through their sacred land.
Since I rode the cross bike, Im not afraid to hop a curb or a median, or wheelie pop off a speed bump. Not afraid to air out that bike.
And the contemplative almost reflective mood that overcomes you, the slower cadences lend to inner dialogue and reflection on life and things.
A couple was walking along the side the road. Body language lended itself to more of a stroll then a purposeful walk. It was a male and a female. The female was wearing a long dress, very thin clothed, so thin in fact I could tell what kind of underclothing she was wearing, Made me chuckle.
Hey Did I just see a chain tool on the ground or was that just and T handled Allen key???
Even though the sun was bright yesterday it still felt amazingly cool out, The mornings have their charms and sounds, dusk has its own Flavor, Night time its beauty. Its simply magical out there to watch the world from the seat of a bike.
Sure, the heavy traffic roads are a snore and it is tiring to hear cars zip past you or even better hitting the stutter stumps as they make their way around you.
But its still wonderful, when you get home, or get to work the sense of accomplishment is an extra special blessing that everyone should experience.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
O GooGLe
So I have been meaning to try Google's bike route ever since it came out and I mapped it. Even went thru the meticulous task of tracing it on a map so I could load it on to my Etrex.
The short review from me, Google get's a THUMBS UP!
The route was fun, Longer by my original route by about 3 miles, but way more scenic and interesting.
I rode thru several small neighborhoods, never once fearing for my life or thinking, damn, where the hell am I, better not stop. Saw interesting people and other riders, and beautiful scenery and nature. Even had to bushwack a little as the route takes me thru a gated community that has a pedestrian access on one side, but not on the other, requiring me to off road a little and renegade attack the hedges.
Yesterday I rode the Fat Tire Fixed Gear home, good times, didn't want to over do it, and rode the Surly Cross Check Geared bike to work.
Still took it easy on both rides, and ended up with almost identical moving averages. Why do I ride a geared bike anyhow??? I want to commute to work tomorrow, but alas, I was stuck in the middle ring on the damn geared bike all the way here cause somehow the front derailleur is all out of wack. Front derailleurs might as well be my Kryptonite cause I have no idea how they work or how to adjust them, I will attempt here shortly to do something, apparently there is a major malfunction as the derailleur in its highest setting is not even clearing the big ring.
O well, I could go to the shop but I have been there so much lately, may not have a choice as this needs attention.
Ok, well, I got the HURACAN on my mind as I officially will go ITT the route on the 29th of May with hopes of coming away with a new record, at the very least finishing and surviving it. I want to do the Tour Divide in 2011, but I need to put myself thru several successful ordeals first and prove to myself that I got what it takes to do it, thus the reason I am trying to bike to work as much as possible. Maybe I will just ride the fixie in tomorrow again and just leave super early, we will just have to see.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
The short review from me, Google get's a THUMBS UP!
The route was fun, Longer by my original route by about 3 miles, but way more scenic and interesting.
I rode thru several small neighborhoods, never once fearing for my life or thinking, damn, where the hell am I, better not stop. Saw interesting people and other riders, and beautiful scenery and nature. Even had to bushwack a little as the route takes me thru a gated community that has a pedestrian access on one side, but not on the other, requiring me to off road a little and renegade attack the hedges.
Yesterday I rode the Fat Tire Fixed Gear home, good times, didn't want to over do it, and rode the Surly Cross Check Geared bike to work.
Still took it easy on both rides, and ended up with almost identical moving averages. Why do I ride a geared bike anyhow??? I want to commute to work tomorrow, but alas, I was stuck in the middle ring on the damn geared bike all the way here cause somehow the front derailleur is all out of wack. Front derailleurs might as well be my Kryptonite cause I have no idea how they work or how to adjust them, I will attempt here shortly to do something, apparently there is a major malfunction as the derailleur in its highest setting is not even clearing the big ring.
O well, I could go to the shop but I have been there so much lately, may not have a choice as this needs attention.
Ok, well, I got the HURACAN on my mind as I officially will go ITT the route on the 29th of May with hopes of coming away with a new record, at the very least finishing and surviving it. I want to do the Tour Divide in 2011, but I need to put myself thru several successful ordeals first and prove to myself that I got what it takes to do it, thus the reason I am trying to bike to work as much as possible. Maybe I will just ride the fixie in tomorrow again and just leave super early, we will just have to see.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Monday, May 17, 2010
SATurDaHy
6am I was up and prepping to roll on the Indian on the latest incarnation of the Fixie War Machine. Newest mods were to put a 36 tooth chain ring. Put the 2.35 Rampages back on and a Brooks Saddle.
Was pretty amped to go ride as I prepped myself a Huge sauce pan of garbanzo beans. I am really doing my best for my system to avoid grains so the simple carbs I am trying to use to fuel my rides are Beans. As I sipped my coffee and continued my prep I marveled at how long it was taking, gosh....Finally out the door, the air is crisp, the bike's rolling great, I constantly have to force my Knee Paranoia out of my head, but I could of sworn I felt something not even five minutes into it.
But I ignored it. Got into the Tall Woods section heading towards Old Train Road, decided to stop at the dead end and adjust the bars and just soak in nature for a bit.
I took some pics, started making a mental list of things I would do to make this bike even more comfortable for a SUPER LONG ULTRA LEVEL Epic. Hmmm, More Bar tape, Check, shorter stem? Nah, seems like turning the bars up a bit really helped, internal dialogue is funny.
As I roll on to the other side of Old train Road I start putting the hammer down a bit, having fun,
the twinge in my knee disappeared, (could it have been from over reach all along???) and then when exiting that section of dirt, I notice my rear TUBED tire getting very squishy. I pull out my trusty Topeak Mountain Morph mini pump(which I love) and attempt to pump the tire only to see it deflate rapidly. Apparently the little top cap of the inflater head must of vibrated loose during PMBAR, backed out and I lost all the guts. 
Fantastic, I am stuck walking. So Push, I go.
The first thing I did was Text a friend to see if she was up and could come fetch me. The second part of the plan was to walk to Ace Hardware 1.5 miles away and see if they had a pump that would work with my presta valve and make a flat repair, all the while, keeping an eye open for any real cyclist that may have a pump I could use in their house. Well I asked one guy and he did not have a pump. So walked, I did, eventually reaching ACE. ACE did not have a pump, so on I walked to the bank to get cash, then to Mcdonald's to break down said cash, then to the bus stop.
Everything was timed perfect as I ended up catching the bus and being dropped off to finish my walk home.
While walking I call Broadus from Bikeworks Orlando and ask him if he has supplies to make tubeless, I did not want to go thru this again. He said he did, and after some waiting, I rolled out to go do the damn thing. It took some time and some work on my part, but after a couple of hours I left with a Tubeless fixed war machine, but had to Leave the Black Beauty. While attempting to repair the bent derailleur hanger from PMBAR it snapped. Ordered two and was on my way home.
Broadus totally hooked up my Tubeless for the right price. Let's just say for the same amount of money I would of spent on 4 venti Iced Latte's at Starbucks, I got Tubeless!!!
I really dug how the bike rolled. At an easy cadence I was easily doing 13mph, so I decided on some FAT tire Commutes for the week as many as I can muster with the hopes of getting my leg speed up on the bike. I have only completed one successful Self Supported Race and its on that bike, in fact when I look at the stats I have had more plug pulling incidents on that damn Salsa then I have the War Machine. Is it the name? Is it the bike itself? Cursed? We will see right cause I'm pretty sure that I am using the Black Beauty at the TNGA.
Regardless, we are a couple of days away from the NK Ride REDUX, you should be there, its gonna be awesome! There will be a riders meeting for sure and I am looking to be done in the 6 hour total time range, and that's at sight seeing pace, I hope to control the front so as to not blow anyone out of the water.
A nice little Intimate ride, hopefully will have my Black back by then so I can put the aero bars on it and test the Fred bars for their actual intended application vs. what I have been using them for, LOL.
Ok, well, should be an interesting week,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Was pretty amped to go ride as I prepped myself a Huge sauce pan of garbanzo beans. I am really doing my best for my system to avoid grains so the simple carbs I am trying to use to fuel my rides are Beans. As I sipped my coffee and continued my prep I marveled at how long it was taking, gosh....Finally out the door, the air is crisp, the bike's rolling great, I constantly have to force my Knee Paranoia out of my head, but I could of sworn I felt something not even five minutes into it.
But I ignored it. Got into the Tall Woods section heading towards Old Train Road, decided to stop at the dead end and adjust the bars and just soak in nature for a bit.
I took some pics, started making a mental list of things I would do to make this bike even more comfortable for a SUPER LONG ULTRA LEVEL Epic. Hmmm, More Bar tape, Check, shorter stem? Nah, seems like turning the bars up a bit really helped, internal dialogue is funny.
As I roll on to the other side of Old train Road I start putting the hammer down a bit, having fun,
the twinge in my knee disappeared, (could it have been from over reach all along???) and then when exiting that section of dirt, I notice my rear TUBED tire getting very squishy. I pull out my trusty Topeak Mountain Morph mini pump(which I love) and attempt to pump the tire only to see it deflate rapidly. Apparently the little top cap of the inflater head must of vibrated loose during PMBAR, backed out and I lost all the guts. 
Fantastic, I am stuck walking. So Push, I go.The first thing I did was Text a friend to see if she was up and could come fetch me. The second part of the plan was to walk to Ace Hardware 1.5 miles away and see if they had a pump that would work with my presta valve and make a flat repair, all the while, keeping an eye open for any real cyclist that may have a pump I could use in their house. Well I asked one guy and he did not have a pump. So walked, I did, eventually reaching ACE. ACE did not have a pump, so on I walked to the bank to get cash, then to Mcdonald's to break down said cash, then to the bus stop.
Everything was timed perfect as I ended up catching the bus and being dropped off to finish my walk home.While walking I call Broadus from Bikeworks Orlando and ask him if he has supplies to make tubeless, I did not want to go thru this again. He said he did, and after some waiting, I rolled out to go do the damn thing. It took some time and some work on my part, but after a couple of hours I left with a Tubeless fixed war machine, but had to Leave the Black Beauty. While attempting to repair the bent derailleur hanger from PMBAR it snapped. Ordered two and was on my way home.
Broadus totally hooked up my Tubeless for the right price. Let's just say for the same amount of money I would of spent on 4 venti Iced Latte's at Starbucks, I got Tubeless!!!
I really dug how the bike rolled. At an easy cadence I was easily doing 13mph, so I decided on some FAT tire Commutes for the week as many as I can muster with the hopes of getting my leg speed up on the bike. I have only completed one successful Self Supported Race and its on that bike, in fact when I look at the stats I have had more plug pulling incidents on that damn Salsa then I have the War Machine. Is it the name? Is it the bike itself? Cursed? We will see right cause I'm pretty sure that I am using the Black Beauty at the TNGA.
Regardless, we are a couple of days away from the NK Ride REDUX, you should be there, its gonna be awesome! There will be a riders meeting for sure and I am looking to be done in the 6 hour total time range, and that's at sight seeing pace, I hope to control the front so as to not blow anyone out of the water.
A nice little Intimate ride, hopefully will have my Black back by then so I can put the aero bars on it and test the Fred bars for their actual intended application vs. what I have been using them for, LOL.
Ok, well, should be an interesting week,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Friday, May 14, 2010
The ShoRt AND LoNg Of It
Well...
I will tell you all this. I no longer consider myself an ENDURANCE athlete. I think ENDURANCE is riding a long time, long time being 12 hour range. I have since about Last October when I won the CFiTT (albeit everyone dropped out accept one guy who had a GPS issue and had no choice but to stay with me) with an a time of 25 hours and 37 minutes, considered myself an Ultra Endurance Athlete.
What separates Endurance from Ultra Endurance? Well In My Opinion, its time. Endurance is 12 hour day or less, Ultra is 24 hours or more straight. Simple 12 hour racers are Endurance athletes, and 24 hour racers are ULTRA endurance athlete. Let's break it down further. Riding a Dirty Hundy is an Endurance ride, Riding a dirty Hundy and a half or double dirty Hundy is ULTRA. Makes sense.
So, when it comes to Ultra Endurance Athletes I am on the Long List no doubt. There are TONS of Ultra Athletes out there most of them way more hardcore than me. I completely accept that. BUT, on the list of Fixed Gear Off Road Ultra Endurance Athletes I am on the Short list. There are not many Athletes that do Off Road Ultras/Let alone On Road Ultra's that do it Fixed gear.
That's kind of Cool to me. To be on the Short List. It's cool to be on the Long list too, but to be one of the documented few and proud is kind of RAD.
So to finish this post I will share the top ten things I have evolved too after completing an ULTRA:
1. I used to think riding for 3 hours was a long time. During PMBAR this year, I said to myself, at the bottom of Pilot Rock, I got 3 more hours left and I am done with this thing!
2. I used to think a Dirty Hundy was a long way, now I call a Dirty Hundy an Easy day.
3. I used to think Riding a fully loaded bike was a bear, now when I do, it seems normal and riding without a load feels O SO light.
4. I used to think That There was NO WAY I could ride 12 hours straight let alone 16 or 20 and if I stopped and took a break I would most surely cramp. But I have done both, without cramping.
5. I used to think the only way to fuel for a ride was with the appropriate astronaut food, Now I eat all kinds of things to fuel my rides. Astronaut food is cool, but real food agree's with me better.
6. When I first started packing to ride, I way over packed, I know have a firm understanding of what it is to pack for comfort and what it means to pack for speed.
7. To avoid Saddle Sores, LUBE every 50 miles or so, sweat washes it away.
8. Fueling by the Clock makes me stay on top and not bonk, although I am by far no speed demon.
9. I find that small goals works a lot better than the big picture. I dont wanna think, I got 177 miles left, I wanna think, Ok, ten miles to this point, 3 miles to the top of this, 1 hour till Im here, then set goals based on that.
10. That the human body can be pushed to do anything and everything, you just have to break the barriers and extend your comfort zones.
So folks that's the long and the short of it all...
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
I will tell you all this. I no longer consider myself an ENDURANCE athlete. I think ENDURANCE is riding a long time, long time being 12 hour range. I have since about Last October when I won the CFiTT (albeit everyone dropped out accept one guy who had a GPS issue and had no choice but to stay with me) with an a time of 25 hours and 37 minutes, considered myself an Ultra Endurance Athlete.
What separates Endurance from Ultra Endurance? Well In My Opinion, its time. Endurance is 12 hour day or less, Ultra is 24 hours or more straight. Simple 12 hour racers are Endurance athletes, and 24 hour racers are ULTRA endurance athlete. Let's break it down further. Riding a Dirty Hundy is an Endurance ride, Riding a dirty Hundy and a half or double dirty Hundy is ULTRA. Makes sense.
So, when it comes to Ultra Endurance Athletes I am on the Long List no doubt. There are TONS of Ultra Athletes out there most of them way more hardcore than me. I completely accept that. BUT, on the list of Fixed Gear Off Road Ultra Endurance Athletes I am on the Short list. There are not many Athletes that do Off Road Ultras/Let alone On Road Ultra's that do it Fixed gear.
That's kind of Cool to me. To be on the Short List. It's cool to be on the Long list too, but to be one of the documented few and proud is kind of RAD.
So to finish this post I will share the top ten things I have evolved too after completing an ULTRA:1. I used to think riding for 3 hours was a long time. During PMBAR this year, I said to myself, at the bottom of Pilot Rock, I got 3 more hours left and I am done with this thing!
2. I used to think a Dirty Hundy was a long way, now I call a Dirty Hundy an Easy day.
3. I used to think Riding a fully loaded bike was a bear, now when I do, it seems normal and riding without a load feels O SO light.
4. I used to think That There was NO WAY I could ride 12 hours straight let alone 16 or 20 and if I stopped and took a break I would most surely cramp. But I have done both, without cramping.
5. I used to think the only way to fuel for a ride was with the appropriate astronaut food, Now I eat all kinds of things to fuel my rides. Astronaut food is cool, but real food agree's with me better.
6. When I first started packing to ride, I way over packed, I know have a firm understanding of what it is to pack for comfort and what it means to pack for speed.
7. To avoid Saddle Sores, LUBE every 50 miles or so, sweat washes it away.
8. Fueling by the Clock makes me stay on top and not bonk, although I am by far no speed demon.
9. I find that small goals works a lot better than the big picture. I dont wanna think, I got 177 miles left, I wanna think, Ok, ten miles to this point, 3 miles to the top of this, 1 hour till Im here, then set goals based on that.
10. That the human body can be pushed to do anything and everything, you just have to break the barriers and extend your comfort zones.
So folks that's the long and the short of it all...
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Thursday, May 13, 2010
WhEn ItS CoLd OuTsIDe
Man, When it rains it pours. And just when you think you see the light, you get thrown for a loop.
Life is such that we are defined by our challenges. Whether self imposed, or whether created by circumstances or bad choices.
Imperfection plagues every single being on this planet.
No one is exempt from its vices or devices.
Sometimes, we all make bad choices and do things we should not have done.
Regret is a harsh teacher. AND if you let it, it will drive you insane.
But think. Think for a bit. What is most important in this universe. Some of us are blessed and we have everything honkey dorey. But that blessing at times can turn into "taking for Grantedness."
For Example LOVE. I dont know if all of you know what True Love is, and I wont get all preachy and sit here and tell you that I know and you dont. Perception is ultimately part of it all. BUT, How many of you have had that True Love tested, Challenged, pushed to its very limits? How many of you have had to let it go to see if it would come back? How many of you, have had the very boundaries of what your Love can do tested?
For truthfully, that's one sure fire way of finding out how REAL this LOVE you got is. By testing the boundaries and the limits. So just like Life is defined by our challenges, so Is Love.
I feel blessed to have at least known what True Love is. Have let it go and watched it return. Will it stand all Challenges, I have faith that it will.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD IndiaN
Life is such that we are defined by our challenges. Whether self imposed, or whether created by circumstances or bad choices.
Imperfection plagues every single being on this planet.
No one is exempt from its vices or devices.
Sometimes, we all make bad choices and do things we should not have done.
Regret is a harsh teacher. AND if you let it, it will drive you insane.
But think. Think for a bit. What is most important in this universe. Some of us are blessed and we have everything honkey dorey. But that blessing at times can turn into "taking for Grantedness."
For Example LOVE. I dont know if all of you know what True Love is, and I wont get all preachy and sit here and tell you that I know and you dont. Perception is ultimately part of it all. BUT, How many of you have had that True Love tested, Challenged, pushed to its very limits? How many of you have had to let it go to see if it would come back? How many of you, have had the very boundaries of what your Love can do tested?
For truthfully, that's one sure fire way of finding out how REAL this LOVE you got is. By testing the boundaries and the limits. So just like Life is defined by our challenges, so Is Love.
I feel blessed to have at least known what True Love is. Have let it go and watched it return. Will it stand all Challenges, I have faith that it will.
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD IndiaN
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
OpEn
So, Im Open to suggestions.
I want to be a real Athlete.
Frankly Im tired of being made fun off for my poor performances at times. I mean, realistically I wish they could see how hard my situation is and you know relate, but just like in School, Kids are brutal.
So Im open to suggestions. Let me tell you what I want to train for and maybe you can feed me a training plan and I will follow it.
I am preparing for the TNGA. What is the TNGA, its the Trans Georgia. 330 so miles 56000 feet of climbing all self supported. I wanna finish in 4 days. I will ride a geared bike with 27 gears packed as light as possible.
At my disposal for prep, I have my race bike, a road bike and a fixed geared Mountain bike. I will do Yoga for core work, but I need to get strong at hike a bikes and be able to push at a quick speed. I intend to take my trail running shoes for the long hike a bikes, I figure that the minutes I spend changing shoes to push up a mountain will translate to saved muscle and energy. I am not looking to win, just looking to finish within 4 days.
So, wanna be coaches, actual coaches, good friends, email me a training plan at Nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com and mold me into a machine.
take care,
laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
I want to be a real Athlete.
Frankly Im tired of being made fun off for my poor performances at times. I mean, realistically I wish they could see how hard my situation is and you know relate, but just like in School, Kids are brutal.
So Im open to suggestions. Let me tell you what I want to train for and maybe you can feed me a training plan and I will follow it.
I am preparing for the TNGA. What is the TNGA, its the Trans Georgia. 330 so miles 56000 feet of climbing all self supported. I wanna finish in 4 days. I will ride a geared bike with 27 gears packed as light as possible.
At my disposal for prep, I have my race bike, a road bike and a fixed geared Mountain bike. I will do Yoga for core work, but I need to get strong at hike a bikes and be able to push at a quick speed. I intend to take my trail running shoes for the long hike a bikes, I figure that the minutes I spend changing shoes to push up a mountain will translate to saved muscle and energy. I am not looking to win, just looking to finish within 4 days.
So, wanna be coaches, actual coaches, good friends, email me a training plan at Nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com and mold me into a machine.
take care,
laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Monday, May 10, 2010
TrAFFiC, HuStLiN and CoNNecTionS
If your fortunate enough to not have to deal with a highway system before you get to your Place of Employment in the morning consider it a blessing.
EVERY morning that I go to work, I witness the tomfoolery of human society on the highway system.
Needless Slowdowns. AND I Mean NEEDLESS. I don't claim to understand what makes traffic work. Why at certain times of the day you could literally ride a bicycle quicker than the traffic moves. BUT, I tell you that any roadside distraction will slow down traffic.
This mornings road side distraction? An Empty Parked State Trooper vehicle. Most mornings, its a Motorcycle State Trooper pulling someone over and ticketing them.
Some mornings its a complete mystery as I see nothing that warrants a slow down.
I am feeling the stress at the moment of getting my hustle on. Getting out there and doing what needs to be done to prepare for what lies ahead. I have a couple of HUGE races coming up, and I want to do well, so I will start by commuting to work and confirming that my knee is healthy and build off of that, with proper eating and Lots of Core work Via Yoga. Come time for my first trial at the end of the month I should be tight.
I learned something over the weekend. Well not learned, but confirmed. I got to see someone that I have not seen in a long time and it was much needed. I will attempt to dance around this subject, I will be specific without being specific, I will give detail without giving details, I will try to elaborate while being intentionally vague.
In my younger years I was able to just go and drive this tractor that I wield and gain some sort of satisfaction. It was easy to just go and seek and destroy. Rather, I think at that point in my life maybe the satisfaction I was gaining was from the Hunt or from conquest, or maybe it was to seek attention and to feel valued. To a point, I think I have done way too much of that. Sought to feel handsome thru Extreme Tractor Pulls. Sought to make others see how handsome I was by telling them how many individuals want to see my Tractor pulling skills.
Then over the past couple of months I saw that Tractor Pulling just wasn't as fun as It used to be. Sure the sensation of Shifting into the big gear and releasing the power feels good, but not great. Why not great? Well I think Spiritually, I have experienced truth. I have truly experienced the melding of Mind, body and spirit when it comes to Big Rig driving. AND, if I can only experience the body part, it leaves me feeling empty. In fact, the only satisfaction I obtain when doing Extreme Tractor Pulling, is when I can feel it on all Levels, Mind, body and spirit. When I can Feel that Soulful Connection.
Have you felt this? I willing to put money that 90% of you don't know what I am talking about, never have felt it and never will feel it. Some of you think you have, but I don't think you have. I cant change what I have now evolved too. I am too the point that If I cant have what I want the way I want with who I want, then I don't want it. It's not worth it, I might as well, just Solo Drive my rig if that is the case. THAT's how serious it is. I am not being dramatic, or romantic or anything, it is FACT. I cant just throw it around like I used too, not cause it don't work, and it works fine, cause I don't care too, I have tasted Heaven and only Heaven will do.
Its true.
Dancing, is one of the things I Love to do.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
EVERY morning that I go to work, I witness the tomfoolery of human society on the highway system.
Needless Slowdowns. AND I Mean NEEDLESS. I don't claim to understand what makes traffic work. Why at certain times of the day you could literally ride a bicycle quicker than the traffic moves. BUT, I tell you that any roadside distraction will slow down traffic.
This mornings road side distraction? An Empty Parked State Trooper vehicle. Most mornings, its a Motorcycle State Trooper pulling someone over and ticketing them.
Some mornings its a complete mystery as I see nothing that warrants a slow down.
I am feeling the stress at the moment of getting my hustle on. Getting out there and doing what needs to be done to prepare for what lies ahead. I have a couple of HUGE races coming up, and I want to do well, so I will start by commuting to work and confirming that my knee is healthy and build off of that, with proper eating and Lots of Core work Via Yoga. Come time for my first trial at the end of the month I should be tight.
I learned something over the weekend. Well not learned, but confirmed. I got to see someone that I have not seen in a long time and it was much needed. I will attempt to dance around this subject, I will be specific without being specific, I will give detail without giving details, I will try to elaborate while being intentionally vague.
In my younger years I was able to just go and drive this tractor that I wield and gain some sort of satisfaction. It was easy to just go and seek and destroy. Rather, I think at that point in my life maybe the satisfaction I was gaining was from the Hunt or from conquest, or maybe it was to seek attention and to feel valued. To a point, I think I have done way too much of that. Sought to feel handsome thru Extreme Tractor Pulls. Sought to make others see how handsome I was by telling them how many individuals want to see my Tractor pulling skills.
Then over the past couple of months I saw that Tractor Pulling just wasn't as fun as It used to be. Sure the sensation of Shifting into the big gear and releasing the power feels good, but not great. Why not great? Well I think Spiritually, I have experienced truth. I have truly experienced the melding of Mind, body and spirit when it comes to Big Rig driving. AND, if I can only experience the body part, it leaves me feeling empty. In fact, the only satisfaction I obtain when doing Extreme Tractor Pulling, is when I can feel it on all Levels, Mind, body and spirit. When I can Feel that Soulful Connection.
Have you felt this? I willing to put money that 90% of you don't know what I am talking about, never have felt it and never will feel it. Some of you think you have, but I don't think you have. I cant change what I have now evolved too. I am too the point that If I cant have what I want the way I want with who I want, then I don't want it. It's not worth it, I might as well, just Solo Drive my rig if that is the case. THAT's how serious it is. I am not being dramatic, or romantic or anything, it is FACT. I cant just throw it around like I used too, not cause it don't work, and it works fine, cause I don't care too, I have tasted Heaven and only Heaven will do.
Its true.
Dancing, is one of the things I Love to do.
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Friday, May 07, 2010
GO!
May 28th early morning I will be packing up the bike and rolling again to complete the Eye of the Huracan route and God willing, come away with a new record for the route.
I have from Monday, till then to get as prepared as I can. Lot's of pedaling to do as my break from the bike to relieve my knee has had an impact.
That's the bad news, the good news is my knee is all better and I had No pain at all on Saturday. Which was awesome. I was heartbroken that after several years of not taking any Over the counter medication, I had to break down and take it. I was holding out, but, it actually seemed to help. As much as I hate to admit it. I wonder if there is a natural anti inflammatory that works as good as the Ibuprofen I was taking???
So, now that PMBAR is over, and I admit feeling great disappointment over my performance, its time to move on and focus on my next Challenge, the Rematch with the Huracan.
Looking forward to a busy weekend,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
I have from Monday, till then to get as prepared as I can. Lot's of pedaling to do as my break from the bike to relieve my knee has had an impact.
That's the bad news, the good news is my knee is all better and I had No pain at all on Saturday. Which was awesome. I was heartbroken that after several years of not taking any Over the counter medication, I had to break down and take it. I was holding out, but, it actually seemed to help. As much as I hate to admit it. I wonder if there is a natural anti inflammatory that works as good as the Ibuprofen I was taking???
So, now that PMBAR is over, and I admit feeling great disappointment over my performance, its time to move on and focus on my next Challenge, the Rematch with the Huracan.
Looking forward to a busy weekend,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Thursday, May 06, 2010
The PiLLoW HaiR ChRoNiCleS
Well... If you didn't know, I cut my hair and donated it to Locks of Love. About a year ago One of my close Friends wives was diagnosed with Cancer. She went thru Chemo, lost her hair, when I had heard the news I had just cut my hair or I would of made a donation then. The time came I had enough (8 to 12 inches) and I made a donation.
The intent? To help a young child out there get a nice thick head of hair courtesy of my blessed Native hair farm.
The result, a little loss of self esteem as I hate my short hair and I hate how its more of a hair don't then a hair do.BUT, the other result is comedy.This is actually a "not to be named social networking" site exclusive that I am bringing over to the blog. What does that mean? Well it means if your my friend on facebook, Http://facebook.com/singletracksamurai you get access to things you may or may not see on the BLOG.BUT for your viewing pleasure, and without further ado, here is the Pillow hair chronicles:
I had forgot that when you don't have long hair, your Pillow Molds your hair to whatever make up it desires. I quickly learned my pillow had the soul of a 1970's master hairstylist.
Everyday a new style, different then the day before, more extravagant, more adventurous.
My pillow stylist wasn't afraid to take chances and challenged the norm on every morning. In fact, some pay hundreds of dollars for what my pillow does for free.
Eventually, I noticed a theme, it enjoys parting my hair and then works off of that to make an extravagant look, unique, each and every day.
It wasn't afraid to explore and challenge the standards that it created the day before and excel the next.
Till finally it culminated in the Coup de grat of hair do's look at this beautiful design it bestowed upon my skull.
The hair stylist that is my pillow has mellowed out.. Or maybe my hair is already starting to grow.
Hope you get a laugh out of this, I know I did.
take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDian
The intent? To help a young child out there get a nice thick head of hair courtesy of my blessed Native hair farm.
The result, a little loss of self esteem as I hate my short hair and I hate how its more of a hair don't then a hair do.BUT, the other result is comedy.This is actually a "not to be named social networking" site exclusive that I am bringing over to the blog. What does that mean? Well it means if your my friend on facebook, Http://facebook.com/singletracksamurai you get access to things you may or may not see on the BLOG.BUT for your viewing pleasure, and without further ado, here is the Pillow hair chronicles:
I had forgot that when you don't have long hair, your Pillow Molds your hair to whatever make up it desires. I quickly learned my pillow had the soul of a 1970's master hairstylist.
Everyday a new style, different then the day before, more extravagant, more adventurous.
My pillow stylist wasn't afraid to take chances and challenged the norm on every morning. In fact, some pay hundreds of dollars for what my pillow does for free.
Eventually, I noticed a theme, it enjoys parting my hair and then works off of that to make an extravagant look, unique, each and every day.
It wasn't afraid to explore and challenge the standards that it created the day before and excel the next.
Till finally it culminated in the Coup de grat of hair do's look at this beautiful design it bestowed upon my skull.The hair stylist that is my pillow has mellowed out.. Or maybe my hair is already starting to grow.
Hope you get a laugh out of this, I know I did.
take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDian
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
FoR IMMeDiaTe RelEasE SinGLeTraCk SaMuRai PrOduCtiOnS PreSenTs: The CroSS FloRiDa InDiviDuaL Time TRiaL 2010 Aka the CFiTT October 9th 2010 7am Start
This route was constructed by the folks here at SSP with the intention of connecting two of the biggest forest in the State, the Ocala National Forest and the Croom Forest, with a mostly off road route.
By any means, do not underestimate the extreme difficulty of the event.
Please read the rules at the about in this section:
Rules and About information in detail
Photo Checkpoints are required for route confirmation and time completion and can be found here:
Checkpoint requirements
If you want to race you must send a letter of intent before September 20th to nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com
This years CFiTT will be more competitive then any other.
Please email me for route GPX file and PDF of the ONF.
There is a slight change in the route and the file will be fixed to reflect it, in the section going from SR 484 to SR 200 used to be limestone road is now singletrack.
Cue sheets are not provided and must be custom made by the racers if they are not using a GPS Unit.
Email address above if you have any questions.
Although all racers line up on the equipment of their choice there are Several different Records that can be achieved:
Single Speed Record
Fixed gear Record
Men's Official Record
Women's Official Record
Tandem Official Record
Current record is 25 hours and 37 minutes and it is Shared by Karlos AR Bernart and Bryan Frantz (Karlos also holds the Fixed gear single speed record with the same time)
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
By any means, do not underestimate the extreme difficulty of the event.
Please read the rules at the about in this section:
Rules and About information in detailPhoto Checkpoints are required for route confirmation and time completion and can be found here:
Checkpoint requirements
If you want to race you must send a letter of intent before September 20th to nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com
This years CFiTT will be more competitive then any other.
Please email me for route GPX file and PDF of the ONF.
There is a slight change in the route and the file will be fixed to reflect it, in the section going from SR 484 to SR 200 used to be limestone road is now singletrack.
Cue sheets are not provided and must be custom made by the racers if they are not using a GPS Unit.
Email address above if you have any questions.
Although all racers line up on the equipment of their choice there are Several different Records that can be achieved:
Single Speed Record
Fixed gear Record
Men's Official Record
Women's Official Record
Tandem Official Record
Current record is 25 hours and 37 minutes and it is Shared by Karlos AR Bernart and Bryan Frantz (Karlos also holds the Fixed gear single speed record with the same time)
Take care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
FoR IMMeDiaTe RelEasE SinGLeTraCk SaMuRai PrOduCtiOnS PreSenTs: The NaKeD InDiaN RiDe ReDuX
This folks is the ride that started it all....
Come taste a Lil of West Volusia's Backcountry as we cover 55+ miles of dirt roads, ATV track, two track, Railroad service roads, Technical Jeep Roads, Singletrack, Bike paths, Sidewalks and paved road. At the same time we traverse five cities, and experience some of the most remote and buff areas of the West Volusia Wilderness.
This is the Naked Indians training ground and personal loop. This will be a No drop ride, but GPX file can be provided upon request, and if possible, we may be able to do two groups so that the Hammer heads can hammer. This option will be explored as needed. Also added this year will be 8 miles of Technical Jeep road never ridden before in the NK ride known as Acorn Loop.
The Ride will roll at 930am on Saturday May 22nd from the Wal Mart Parking lot:
There is no fee for this self supported ride. This ride is all about fun and adventure, think more of it like a Dirty Road ride then anything else. A good day to put in some miles, have some fun and experience something new and different. There will be an After party, I can provide up to 10 camping slots in my backyard and 2 on the side of the house, bring your own extension cord if you want electric and your own ice, BYOB etc. Please RSVP and indicate if you will be crashing. The Idea is to go down the street to a cool restaurant to hang out but we can explore this option once we have a head count.
Please RSVP: nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com
thanks,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Come taste a Lil of West Volusia's Backcountry as we cover 55+ miles of dirt roads, ATV track, two track, Railroad service roads, Technical Jeep Roads, Singletrack, Bike paths, Sidewalks and paved road. At the same time we traverse five cities, and experience some of the most remote and buff areas of the West Volusia Wilderness.
This is the Naked Indians training ground and personal loop. This will be a No drop ride, but GPX file can be provided upon request, and if possible, we may be able to do two groups so that the Hammer heads can hammer. This option will be explored as needed. Also added this year will be 8 miles of Technical Jeep road never ridden before in the NK ride known as Acorn Loop.
The Ride will roll at 930am on Saturday May 22nd from the Wal Mart Parking lot:
101 Howland Blvd
Deltona, FL 32738
Please park in the Lot to the left of the Liquor store. 
There is no fee for this self supported ride. This ride is all about fun and adventure, think more of it like a Dirty Road ride then anything else. A good day to put in some miles, have some fun and experience something new and different. There will be an After party, I can provide up to 10 camping slots in my backyard and 2 on the side of the house, bring your own extension cord if you want electric and your own ice, BYOB etc. Please RSVP and indicate if you will be crashing. The Idea is to go down the street to a cool restaurant to hang out but we can explore this option once we have a head count.Please RSVP: nakedindian@singletracksamurai.com
thanks,
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
Monday, May 03, 2010
ThE LaSt....
It's pointless to speak in miles when you talk about this race. If you look at the data file, its ridonkeylous what Luis and I did. I will say upfront, that I give Huge Kudos to Luis. Over a year off the bike, two months back and he out climbed me on every climb. I felt so bad that he had to wait for me at the top of almost every climb, He probably could of finished an hour or two earlier but, as a good partner he waited. My MOJO was not on at all. I could ride, If it was flat or downhill I was fine, but climbing legs were absent.
So back to the story....1 mile into the race, my heart was in my throat and I was looking at the speedometer in bewilderment as to the distance I had covered and how hard I was already working. The entire day there was so much internal dialogue going on, most of it negative. I finally reach Pressley Gap and Luis lays the plan on me. The entire time I had told him, he was the Captain, I was there to work. Luis picked the route, and my job was to go with him, and that's what I did. The plan was to go up and over Turkey pen gap.
We continue hike a biking, get to the trail, several teams are there, the mountain is covered in mist, the humidity was thick, it was literally misting. There was a cold breeze cutting thru the air, so much in fact, that I put the rain cover on my pack and put my rain jacket in my bottle holder. Before we started head long towards Turkey pen a team was walking back saying that it was pointless to go that direction, that it was a mess.
So up and over Black Mountain we went, eventually after what seemed a while we were locked into a sweet downhill on Buckhorn gap, then right into S mills river, just a conga line of riders. Then Onto Squirrel gap and more hike a biking with a fair amount of riding thrown in. 13 miles and 3 hours later, we finally made our first checkpoint.
We make quick time and push on, toward the next checkpoint, as we continue to ride Squirrel gap which is a pretty gnarly trail, I go over the bars several times, I think Luis even got a picture, I never hit the ground though, but on one particular incident I smashed the rear derailleur on a tree and bent my hanger. Rendering my 32 cog on my rear cassette a liability to use.
O well, nothing we could do, attempting to straighten it could mean a break and that would be worse then losing my lightest gear. The entire day I kept waiting for my Leg's to come around. I reminded myself that it had been several weeks since I had ridden and had taken it easy before then on account of my knee issues, not only that, the last time I rode in the mountains was exactly 1 calendar year before this day, I did my best to keep perspective. But Luis, was riding away on every climb and I felt so bad about him having to wait. By the middle of the day the huge joke was, how "I owned the Gravel Road descents", literally balls to the walls, flying down them. After we made the Bradley creek checkpoint, we started up 5015 which I knew was going to be a pain in the ass climb, yet not as bad as I remembered. I was eating, I was fueling, I was taking endurolytes, it seemed hot, the sun was bright. I was taking in Dark Chocolate to motivate me for the slow work that the climbs were proving to be. As we made our way to Yellow Gap, we hung a right and began a screaming downhill. At the bottom I knew we could get water without having to filter so we took full advantage of that. I cleaned my face, refilled my bag, wet my head. Then off to climb 5000 to reach the next checkpoint. At this point, I had grown at least accustomed to my miserable pace up the climbs and it blew my mind that I actually passed someone on a climb, LOL.
We made it to the top, got Checkpoint number 3, and up rolled Rob Roberts and Mike Kanning, aka Team Black Ops. Rob, looked happy as ever, comfortable, said he was "sweaty". Mike, looked like someone had kicked him in the stomach, but I understood the feeling. Unless you have ridden at Pisgah, you have no idea how hard it is by reading this. Just say this to yourself again, 3 hours = 13 miles. Ok, wrap your mind around that.
We asked Rob what checkpoint was this and Rob Roberts said number 3. Momentarily, I told him we were done, a silly attempt at a Psyche out, but literally, we had made 3 checkpoints before them, but the rub was this. We had one Checkpoint left that we were going for, and it was gonna take all we had to do it, they had one easy checkpoint to grab, and one pain in the ass one, meaning they would get 5 and unless they had a ridiculous mechanical (which I would not wish on anyone, let alone my friends) we were bested.
No matter, we still had to finish and so did they. Before we even climbed 5000, I was already crying about having to climb back up to yellow gap. Man did it hurt. As I climbed I kept looking back, fully expecting to see Mike and Rob, and eventually they came by, Rob still looking happy, Mike still looking like someone owed him money. By the time they passed me I am sure Luis was already at the top waiting for me, felt so bad. BUT, I was happy that this time on this climb, I didn't walk like I did at this spot last year.
We continued on 1206 and it was more climbing then it was downhill. Then at the bottom of Pilot Rock, which I hiked up Last year, I was pretty much over the entire thing. 40 miles in and I knew I had 2.5 miles of pure hiking ahead. And so I began. Just drained. Just suffering, just over it. I questioned, as I have done in the past, why do I race, why do I come out here, under trained every single time, why cant I once make the mountains in good form, its always one thing after another. I thought about The Arizona Trail Race, man that's probably way harder than this, then I thought about the TNGA, then I said, you know what, I am never gonna race again, this is freaking retarded, I suck at this and I should give up. Just go home, sit on the couch and ROT. Eventually I turned off the music. I started to just focus on my surroundings. I took pictures, I tried to think of other things and other people. Eventually, I made it to the top, then a short descent, nabbed the checkpoint.. At that checkpoint, Shana and her partner showed up. We had Yo Yoed all day long and was astounded to see them. We took off and started descending a ridiculous mountain back down. This trail was hard to walk up and downright deadly to go down.
So back to the story....1 mile into the race, my heart was in my throat and I was looking at the speedometer in bewilderment as to the distance I had covered and how hard I was already working. The entire day there was so much internal dialogue going on, most of it negative. I finally reach Pressley Gap and Luis lays the plan on me. The entire time I had told him, he was the Captain, I was there to work. Luis picked the route, and my job was to go with him, and that's what I did. The plan was to go up and over Turkey pen gap.
We continue hike a biking, get to the trail, several teams are there, the mountain is covered in mist, the humidity was thick, it was literally misting. There was a cold breeze cutting thru the air, so much in fact, that I put the rain cover on my pack and put my rain jacket in my bottle holder. Before we started head long towards Turkey pen a team was walking back saying that it was pointless to go that direction, that it was a mess.
So up and over Black Mountain we went, eventually after what seemed a while we were locked into a sweet downhill on Buckhorn gap, then right into S mills river, just a conga line of riders. Then Onto Squirrel gap and more hike a biking with a fair amount of riding thrown in. 13 miles and 3 hours later, we finally made our first checkpoint.
We make quick time and push on, toward the next checkpoint, as we continue to ride Squirrel gap which is a pretty gnarly trail, I go over the bars several times, I think Luis even got a picture, I never hit the ground though, but on one particular incident I smashed the rear derailleur on a tree and bent my hanger. Rendering my 32 cog on my rear cassette a liability to use.
O well, nothing we could do, attempting to straighten it could mean a break and that would be worse then losing my lightest gear. The entire day I kept waiting for my Leg's to come around. I reminded myself that it had been several weeks since I had ridden and had taken it easy before then on account of my knee issues, not only that, the last time I rode in the mountains was exactly 1 calendar year before this day, I did my best to keep perspective. But Luis, was riding away on every climb and I felt so bad about him having to wait. By the middle of the day the huge joke was, how "I owned the Gravel Road descents", literally balls to the walls, flying down them. After we made the Bradley creek checkpoint, we started up 5015 which I knew was going to be a pain in the ass climb, yet not as bad as I remembered. I was eating, I was fueling, I was taking endurolytes, it seemed hot, the sun was bright. I was taking in Dark Chocolate to motivate me for the slow work that the climbs were proving to be. As we made our way to Yellow Gap, we hung a right and began a screaming downhill. At the bottom I knew we could get water without having to filter so we took full advantage of that. I cleaned my face, refilled my bag, wet my head. Then off to climb 5000 to reach the next checkpoint. At this point, I had grown at least accustomed to my miserable pace up the climbs and it blew my mind that I actually passed someone on a climb, LOL.
We made it to the top, got Checkpoint number 3, and up rolled Rob Roberts and Mike Kanning, aka Team Black Ops. Rob, looked happy as ever, comfortable, said he was "sweaty". Mike, looked like someone had kicked him in the stomach, but I understood the feeling. Unless you have ridden at Pisgah, you have no idea how hard it is by reading this. Just say this to yourself again, 3 hours = 13 miles. Ok, wrap your mind around that.
We asked Rob what checkpoint was this and Rob Roberts said number 3. Momentarily, I told him we were done, a silly attempt at a Psyche out, but literally, we had made 3 checkpoints before them, but the rub was this. We had one Checkpoint left that we were going for, and it was gonna take all we had to do it, they had one easy checkpoint to grab, and one pain in the ass one, meaning they would get 5 and unless they had a ridiculous mechanical (which I would not wish on anyone, let alone my friends) we were bested.
No matter, we still had to finish and so did they. Before we even climbed 5000, I was already crying about having to climb back up to yellow gap. Man did it hurt. As I climbed I kept looking back, fully expecting to see Mike and Rob, and eventually they came by, Rob still looking happy, Mike still looking like someone owed him money. By the time they passed me I am sure Luis was already at the top waiting for me, felt so bad. BUT, I was happy that this time on this climb, I didn't walk like I did at this spot last year.
We continued on 1206 and it was more climbing then it was downhill. Then at the bottom of Pilot Rock, which I hiked up Last year, I was pretty much over the entire thing. 40 miles in and I knew I had 2.5 miles of pure hiking ahead. And so I began. Just drained. Just suffering, just over it. I questioned, as I have done in the past, why do I race, why do I come out here, under trained every single time, why cant I once make the mountains in good form, its always one thing after another. I thought about The Arizona Trail Race, man that's probably way harder than this, then I thought about the TNGA, then I said, you know what, I am never gonna race again, this is freaking retarded, I suck at this and I should give up. Just go home, sit on the couch and ROT. Eventually I turned off the music. I started to just focus on my surroundings. I took pictures, I tried to think of other things and other people. Eventually, I made it to the top, then a short descent, nabbed the checkpoint.. At that checkpoint, Shana and her partner showed up. We had Yo Yoed all day long and was astounded to see them. We took off and started descending a ridiculous mountain back down. This trail was hard to walk up and downright deadly to go down.
This is a section of the trial, pics dont do it justiceRocks, ridiculous switch backs, rock stair drops into ridiculous switch backs, but eventually, after awhile of tech descending, patience, control and forearm burn we reach the bottom.
The view from the Hike a bike that almost killed meI kid myself, but I am like a sprinter in the Tour De France.
Mountain bike feedbags, you should have some, order them, best piece of gear I ownOnce I can smell the finish Line I get an extra burst of energy, and sure enough, I started going. And on we went, Big Ring party 1206, to S Mills River, then Big ring party halfway up S Mills river, then hammered the fastest I had climbed all day up Buckhorn gap.
The man, the Myth, The Legend in his own mindAnd finally I was climbing like I should have all day. Finally my legs seemed to be even keel with my intentions. Down Clawhammer, flying and I mean flying, then up Maxwell cove, still moving good, finally Luis and I were climbing together, like we should have, then eventually, I ran out of energy close to the top. We made Presley gap, only a short wait this time for him, and we did the final hike a bike and made the parking lot after carefully navigating the ridiculous Black mountain descent in the poor light conditions.
This Little Purple Flower, reminded me of someoneSo happy to be done, I check the clock, 8:02 pm.
Us, at the finish, Look at the guns, I look all muscular, Pic was taken by Eddie O DeaMy favorite part of the race was finishing. It is harder than anything I have done to date, and I have done some hard ass rides. I believe the route we took was possibly the hardest route, but it also had the most singletrack out of the possible options available.
Huge Thanks to Luis for being such a good friend and Captain. Huge Thanks to Bikeworks Orlando crew for helping me get ready for the event. All my sponsors for the support and gear you provide that I rely and beat up and still holds up. Finally Huge Props to Rob Roberts and Mike Kanning for snagging 13th place, amazing.
Huge Thanks to Luis for being such a good friend and Captain. Huge Thanks to Bikeworks Orlando crew for helping me get ready for the event. All my sponsors for the support and gear you provide that I rely and beat up and still holds up. Finally Huge Props to Rob Roberts and Mike Kanning for snagging 13th place, amazing.
Just to line up for this race, makes you a brave soul. To finish and place, an amazing rider. To take a spot in the top 15 is a World Class performance. To place in the Top Three, almost makes you Beyond Category, the guys who win this, are locals, and did just as many checkpoints as everyone in the Top Ten and were still done by 4pm and change, ridiculous.
Flowers are pretty
Take Care,
Laters,
The NaKeD InDiaN
PS:
GPS stats from Topofusion, the Garmin Connect Data is a little skewed: per topofusion, 60.91 miles, 10425 feet of climbing, 5.6 mph avg speed, 48.6 max speed, 12:18 total time, 1:24 min stopped time.
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