Friday, October 31, 2008

And here it is...

There is the awesome track bike of mine. I bought it a couple nights ago. Its all Dura-Ace w/Look Keo Sprint pedals. I'm planning on changing the handlebars to drop style, but until i get enough cash i will roll pursuit. Its right at 16lbs and super fast. I love it. Of course cutting 16lbs off of a bike (MTB vs. Track Bike) really helps. I hated lugging that MTB around, its not so bad in the woods but on pavement you feel like you should be going faster...and you should.

I hear today is Free Burrito Day at Chipotle. I'm waiting 30 mins and calling my local Chipotle to make sure of this. The rule is you have to dress like a burrito to get a free burrito, so i brought my aluminum foil with me today. I'm excited.

The race is in 8 days? or 9...either way, its soon. My legs feel like total crap, and there is a great reason for that. I didnt have a bike to ride. eh. I'm just hoping by race day my legs are feeling a little bit better, because right now they are totally sucking. I'm going to try and bust out some big miles tomorrow before work and on the way home. Sunday i might hit a trail or two, we'll see. Maybe two big mile days in a row and then regular on Mon-Wed, Thurs big miles again, Fri and Sat regular, Sunday race. i dont know. i've forgotten how to train, its been so long. After this race i'm just going to focus on two big mile days a week.

adios.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Halloween and Election Day

Ashamedly i took today off the bike. After being off a bike for nearly 7 days and then two ridiculously hard days right after, my legs are fried. I know, i suck. One day this week i was going to drive, to take care of some errands, so i figured today was as good as any, plus i didn't sleep good. I did, however, get up at the right time to go, but after staring outside for a good 5 mins decided to go back to bed for a bit longer and make the drive.

Friday is Halloween. I was raised not to participate on that day, to which some of you might say...wtf? But yes tis true. This year though, it has been my wife's goal to convince my parents to hand out candy. She is definitely ambitious. I think she may have succeeded though, surprisingly enough. Anyway, with all her enthusiasm and excitement over dressing up like funny things (i'm debating The World or Captain Planet) i am definitely going to be stuck at home handing out candy to annoying little kids. Now, i wasn't opposed to this previously until i found out there is going to be a free screening of Shaun of the Dead at the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse, which happens to be about my favorite place to go EVER, not to mention Shaun of the Dead is hilarious.
Even the poster is hilarious. Simon Pegg is just really really funny.

I don't have cable. And with the up coming election day being less than a week away i need a place to watch it. My family's house is a no no, mostly because i don't want to hear ignorant comments about Obama. Also, my in-law's house is a no no for the same reason. They are presenting election coverage at the Alrington Cinema Drafthouse, which is cool, but i just envision a brawl (Politics+Alcohol=Brawl). I might try and attend that, but it might be hard to get a seat considering the importance of the event. We'll see.
AAANNNDDD i just realized, i'm working that night at the bike shop. So no Drafthouse for me.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Canari Parachute...I mean Training Jacket.

I felt like a big complainer this morning .1 miles into my ride. Yesterday's "huge head wind" was merely a gentle breeze in comparison with this morning. You would have thought a hurricane was passing through being outside this morning...just utterly ridiculous. It literally felt like a 10 year old kid had a rope tied to my seat post and was being dragged behind me. I was almost blown to a stop a couple of times.

On top of dragging a little kid around i was wearing my new Canari Training Jacket:
Basically it provides a proper amount of resistance for the purpose of strength training. I think its highly effective. In reality though, i think my jacket was customized for someone with the build of Popeye, because it fits pretty nice in the body but the arms on my jacket are enormous. I believe its time for a new jacket and one that won't double as a parachute.

Though there was something positive during the ride. It was the large open road that put the wind at my back. It only lasts about a mile or more but its blissful. The silence of turning out of the wind is soothing and the feeling of a tailwind is certainly amazing. I started turning the pedals over at a fantastic rate, and slowly a school bus started to catch me. Just as it did i jumped across the lanes and sat behind it and the little middle schoolers piled up at the rear window staring in amazement...or making fun of me. Soon the effects of the previous windy 10 miles wore on me and i lost steam, cross back to the right hand lane and slowed a bit. Best part of a terrible ride...and totally worth it.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Switching to Fall Albums and MTB's

Saturday was a crappy raining day here in NoVa (like the car). I spent it at the bike shop which is always pretty cool and i got to replace the drive-train to my MTB like i had previously said i would. I ended up buying a new Front Derailleur and not buying the Rear Shifter. If i didn't get a discount then i would have put as much money into the bike as it originally cost. haha. As Darryl had asked,"Are you polishing a turd?" Yes, yes i am.

It is now a fully functional turd though. I rode it into work this morning taking the long(er) route. Its not actually that long. This morning i almost gave in to not getting out of bed, but then i reminded myself of Sunday morning getting up at 830 to go ride some trails only to find out that the only time that i could sell a couple items from Craigslist was around 930-10, which was soon enough that i couldn't roll out (literally) and just long enough that it would prevent me from riding after the fact because of an early lunch date with my parents back in their neck of the woods. eh. So i couldn't have a repeat after being off the bike for almost a whole week, specially since the race is in 2 weeks.

Good news is in the last two weeks with so much inconsistent riding i only gained a couple pounds. I've been so hungry though. i weighed in this morning at 188.

This morning had to have been one of the worst rides I've had in a long time. There was a GIANT head wind and it was about 60% of the ride and nasty crosswinds that felt like head winds for about 20% of the time.

With that said, the ride home hopefully will be much nicer, plus there are some trails i'm planning to hit on the way. A typical review says something along the lines of "these trails blow" and "dirty old men do nasty things here". So if no one hears from me after today...


Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness reminds me of fall. I love musical nostalgia.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Solved: MTB and maybe more!

I just got back from the shop to collect the paycheck.

I bought an entry level Crankset w/bottom bracket and a 9spd Deore Cassette, and I'm hoping the freewheel won't be a big problem. Tomorrow i'll probably just go ahead and replace the Rear Shifter w/ a Deore Shifter. Its all entry level from what i know, but i know so little about MTB. Anyway, It will get me back on a bike and get me through the race in 2 weeks. And after that i might try and sell it.

Also, finally i have a buyer for the Cannondale. I just hope there is no flaking involved.

A1-Shop Cycling Team and the Maniacal CAT

I don't know if its coincidence or because of my ambition, but everyone in our shop is now talking about racing. From before i started working there thats all i talk about when it comes to bikes. But at this point everyone in the shop (except myself) are very interested in racing track and most are interested in racing road. The track thing is because of Ben, who has been racing track for quite some time. But i think throwing together a group for riding road would be great. It would be a little odd though because i can't imagine there are many teams racing CAT5...haha. Though we would only need "10 mass starts" and we could get that hopefully by June. But then again i could be talking out my ass because I've never done this before. Regardless the prospect of having a couple of friends in a group would be fantastic. Ben is already a Cat4 and he said probably a Cat3, but he just hasn't upgraded. I just hope every race isn't going to be a Crit. Those don't sound like fun to me, plus I'm not the best sprinter in any type of race, running or biking, and I'm not really trying to grow elephant legs either, I'm happy with my build and my abilities. I do want to lose 20 or 30lbs more. 20 i know i can do and 30...If i did 20 that would put me at 170. 5'11 170. Darryl said everyone will be asking me if I'm sick...whatever. I still have a bunch of fat to shed. I'm already down 25 lbs. and i don't even think I've lost half of my being overweight.

I'm probably going to go Veg again to cut off the extra weight...maybe in January till August. Or maybe just red meat because last time i did that i looked sick after 9 months...

Update on Bike Situation-
  • Cannondale wont sell, so i have a couple options...
    • Post it for parts on craigslist
      • sell the frame
      • see who can be the 1st from the shop to get the frame on the shop roof
    • Sell it to the shop ($100)
    • Sell it AT the shop
  • Mountain bike needs parts...
    • Cassette
    • Crank and Bottom Bracket
  • Ti Bike
    • haha
  • Track Bike
    • still for sale, but only to me, i took it off the floor!
I'm also selling my vintage Chrome Dyno with the white (plastic) rims. I could maybe get a $100 for it. My 2nd bike ever, the first got run over.

On top of that if you haven't heard Levi Leipheimer was riding this past Sunday where i was doing my night rides by my parents house. Instead of riding with Levi, i was embarrassing myself on my MTB.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Off the bike and onto the 3rd job.

Again.

Once again I'm bike-less. I hate it completely. I have my stamina up pretty well and i'm off a bike again for a nice 2 to 3 days. This is not assisting my developing a good base for racing or training hard for that matter. Luckily its a long winter and hopefully by mid-Nov i'll be hard core on a bike, that track bike specifically.

The reason i'm bike-less is because:
  1. No money for the track bike. No one will buy my Cannondale. I thought 450 was a decent price...maybe 350?
  2. Mountain Bike is a P.O.S and needs a new drive train, its got a partially new one but i need to replace the crank, bottom bracket, and cassette at the very least. I could use a new wheel and and freewheel
  3. Cannondale doesn't fit.
I get paid Friday from the bike shop so i can replace the drive train on the MTB which is good because i have a race in two weeks that I'm going to suck in but at least i'll be able to completely blame that on myself rather than my bike.

Anyone want to buy used campy chorus parts? I'm going to post them on craigslist this week hopefully get some cash for that track bike.

I also just posted old car speakers, a mini keg (haha), an armoire, and other stuff....i'm turning it into a 3rd job.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Blacking Out the Friction

The mornings have recently been tinted with a bit of frost covering most of everything, leaving the rest of the day to recover to a very breezy cool, requiring things such as caps, sweaters, coats, scarves, and/or vests and if your Ben Gibbard from DCFC it might require "long johns under slacks for blustery days". I played Transatlanticism yesterday, which i haven't done in a long time, mostly because i find The Photo Album to be a superior album, but also because i outplayed the CD sometime a while back. Anyway, i found the combo of being dressed in a coat, the cold outdoors, and Transatlanticism to be strangely nostalgic in a very good way.

After being beaten two days in a row by my bike(s), today has started well. I rode the track bike into work today and it went fantastic. I took the short route for the first time in a very long time because i was on a new bike and i don't have a light system hooked up yet. But it was a good time to test the bike on a steep hill, being that there is a nice short steep hill towards the end of the route. I guess my fitness has drastically improved over the past 2 months because i would no longer say that's a nice short steep hill, more like an inconvenient bump. I was also on a single speed bike. So that made my morning a little brighter. There are some bigger hills on the longer route so we'll see how i fair come tomorrow or the next day, should be fun regardless...

Yesterday i decided to review trails for the upcoming MTB race in Richmond after i had received a brutal beating in Fountainhead, which I'm still suffering from. I'm still waiting to see if the thick portion of grease/dirt that is lodged under my skin will give me an infection. Also, my left arm has been rendered useless after landing on it multiple times. Anyway, I looked over the trail maps, Youtube videos, and reviews from www.singletrack.com and Poor Farms seems to pail in comparison to Fountainhead as far as difficulty. While leaving Fountainhead Sunday, Darryl and i figured a more technical course would benefit him and greatly decrease my chances of doing well. But i guess that's what happens when someone who rides road instead of MTB-ing. I would love to do really really well but i would also like to see Darryl do excellent too. Maybe i can improve my handling between now and then...any suggestions?
Anyhow i made this for Darryl...
Maybe I'm a weenie...but I'm no mountain biker.

Monday, October 20, 2008

New Bikes, Old Bikes, Flats, Wrecks, and New Parts (that dont work on steep ascents.)

With all the disappointing results of working on my older bikes i kind of gave up hope on riding them ever again and i shall be buying this Giant come spring. Now i probably don't deserve this bike because my fitness and skill are on the average side, but i shall earn it. Currently my Cannondale is for sale on Craiglist, and i'll be using that money plus some other money ito buy a track bike for winter strength training/commuting (because my strength sucks). Its a Cannondale CAAD9 with full dura-ace parts and Look Keo pedals and pursuit style handlebars. I'm going to switch out the handlebars with drop style, and throw a couple brake levers for the purpose of places to rest my hands. I'll take a picture of the bike tonight. Its a super sweet looking ride.

In other news-my old Ti frame has been relinquished all its accessories and parts...yes even the bottom bracket cup. So in other words the bike is now just a frame. I took it all apart on Saturday and then two of my coworkers got the cup out yesterday morning. I'm either going to try and sell it or just give it to one of them because he wanted it. I had already given away my old carbon fork to a coworker for his track bike...i warned him of the shattering possibilities...i mean it is old. good luck

Saturday i tried riding the track bike into work with my boss there, which he does pretty much everyday. Like i discussed before, i can hang with him but i don't know what would happen if he had gears or if i was on track bike. That day we were to find out...BUT i got a flat on mile 8 or 9. I was pissed at first but the winds were so strong that day and my legs weren't feeling too hot. Oh, and the flat wouldn't have mattered had i remembered my flat kit that i left on the couch or if Ben hadn't run out of tubes the following day. So i was left with a phone waiting for a ride.

Sunday, i got to try out my tricked out MTB. At the bike shop, we had thrown a ton of old, used XT components on it and i was excited. I also recently got my eggbeaters and new shoes, so i was no longer sporting the rat-traps and Asics. First time on the trails using all my new junk = very excited. We got to Fountainhead just after sunrise and the parking lot was already half full...weird. It was about 40 degrees so we layered up and hit the trail. As usual i took the lead and went blazing down the first run and then promptly wrecked going up the first incline. I almost shoulder checked a tree on a fun swoop that almost became a very unfun swoop. I wrecked on another up going over a giant log and lodged a rock in my palm, found my gloves 10 mins later in my jacket pocket. Later down the trail after a nice long run i made a little jump and the track went down left hard and i went straight hit a log weird and also went down left hard on my head...my helmet works well and didn't even crack. Darryl and i both wrecked in the rock garden...he wrecked only because i did. sorry. Another downhill i lost my bike underneath some how and the crank went into my leg, thankfully due to knee re-constructive surgery i have a dead spot on my shin and thats where it hit, so i didn't notice the pain, but the blood running down my leg i noticed. Darryl took a picture right after, but i look like a newbie tool, so I'll refrain from posting it. I wrecked a few more times since my *new-used* shifters would stick and change gears on me on the steep ascents and i was struggling to escape from my pedals due to my lack of experience with them. I'm really hoping this isn't a preview to the race in Richmond next month. My technical/handling skills are equal to that of a 5 year old. My upper body strength was something to be desired too, i could hardly hold the handlebars down so much of the trail because of how many stupid roots were there. It was a rough trip. But i did ride down Shock-A-Billy hill, i hadn't done that before.



2 days of bad riding and this morning it was below freezing and i dont YET have the gear to ride in such weather. So i was stuck driving in.

By the way, we are back in our house now.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

I need a new blog...says Darryl

Yesterday was my first day at the bike shop and i rode in with the guy that runs the shop. I had been wicked concerned about hanging with him on the ride in, 1. because i've had a crappy week on the bike and 2. because my lack of amazing fitness. So we were trucking along, i mean really trucking and we reach a decent climb and i burn up the hill and put some distance between us. at the top of the hill at the light we came back together and he led the way on the descent. i was feeling proud of my ability at that point, thinking maybe i'm actually not in too bad of shape and then i looked down at his back wheel. I noticed that something was missing...It was missing a few things, and to name one-Rear Derailleur. He was riding a single speed...the kind that are direct drive. ugh. I was no longer feeling the same emotion as i had moments before.
(my view was something like that.)

The ride back we averaged 21mph and i know the ride there was faster, but his comp was broken on the way in. (my seat shimmied down a bit on the way too...annoying.) The ride is some where around 25miles. So a decent little ride, specially for twice a day. The way home, i pulled a bunch or paced depending on how you look at it, which on the way in i was a little scared to do because i thought i might destroy my legs, which going home i did with some of those pulls.

I ravaged my legs (like i had assumed i would) when i got home and shaved them with a razor. By the way, Veet sucks and is annoying.

I am probably going to sell my Alesis, so i can afford some bike stuff. it will look something like this...
Is that a good deal? i think it is. Plus i'll have a little extra cash.

We move back into our house this weekend. I'm excited.

picture citing
Performance bike
Alesis

I knew it!

let me just say...i called it.

Kohl's stock plummets in Austria


i freaking that called that crap.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Job status.

I start tomorrow at the bike shop. I have Columbus day off from my job at the local global destroyer, so its very convenient. I asked the guy (Ben) if he was riding into work monday because we'd be working the same hours and he lives right down the street from where i'm staying now, he said he was and wanted me to go with him. My legs have sucked utterly and completely since i've been back from Paris, not only that but up till today i've only been on a bike 3 times. AAANNNDDD on top of that, i dont have a bike to ride, because my old man's serotta (that he never rides) is like gold to him, and my father-in-laws bike is wicked old and has limited gearing, and both my bikes are in the shop. Though i think i might go pick up the one in working condition, just to make the ride. It would be nice.

Also, Veet last about 24 hours. Its like a less painful way to shave...so next i shall try waxing, maybe i'll film it, but probably not.

Go redskins! Also, i'm going for AZ and SF to win. I made a bet with 5:1 odds that Giants beat the Browns by 31 points. so my return is going to be amazing!

Friday, October 10, 2008

Protecting Dopers.

If you havent heard all the buzz around doping in cycling its probably because you don't care about cycling. Lately they are making the effort to find dopers after the fact, to which the statement "better late than never" has never been more true. First the Tour de France and then the Olympics, but one place you will not find retesting is the Giro.
For those of you who don't care, Giro de Italia is one of three Grand tours, the greatest of which is the Tour de France, and as some would say, the least of which is the Vuelta De Espana which just concluded at the end of September.

With the greatest bike race in the world (Tour de France) and the world Olympics both doing retesting for a new drug called CERA, you would think the Giro would follow suit, but no. Arrogance. Did anyone see the results? Known doper Ricardo Ricco finished 2nd behind the suspicious Alberto Contador, Levi finished 45mins back (18th place) and Vandevelde finished 52nd (probably over an hour). just saying...

Still the same.

Updates-
  • I finally "shaved" my legs. i ended up using Veet. which proved to work well, but on day two, the hair is already growing back. maybe i should try laser surgery? (kidding of course)
  • My bike is still in the shop. It might not get fixed either and if it eventually does, its going to cost me a fortune. I just want my bike back.
  • Moving back into our house next week. pretty excited.
  • Riding on trainers sucks. 3 bad nights in a row with one of those things. Can't tell if its me or the trainer/situation of riding on one.
  • People are still trying to scam me on craigslist. i posted 5 items on there.
  • Race is in 3 weeks. I was hoping to win the beginner class. At this point i don't know how possible that is, my legs are sucking and i got no road bike to train on. oh well, maybe next year.
  • Redskins are 4-1 and they're going to be 5-1 soon, unfortunately Giants are going to be 5-0 but the last 10 games for the Giants aren't going to be as easy as their first 6.
Anyone want to buy a mini Kegerator? I'm selling mine. I used it once. Good beer companies don't sell the 5 Liter kegs, so unless i feel like having a crappy beer all the time, no real use in it.

Today sucks thus far-
  1. Got up late
  2. Got to work late
  3. Got yelled at by my boss
  4. Spilled my Diet DR P on myself while taking a sip
  5. whats next...

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Noble Eightfold Path (makes me whiter) vs. Cut and Dry

I mentioned sometime before what's good about the election season. But, lately all i can think about is what is bad about the election season. Everyone gets so hateful, which to me leaves me two options...cry (quite likely) or punch someone in the throat. I don't deal well with ignorance. From experience and philosophy, fear is generally considered ignorance. And the all the rants about a "Marxist Muslim" or "Terrorist" (referring to Obama), comes off as complete ignorance. From my general observation, the audience which cries these terms the loudest are the ultra-conservative, 11th commandment republican, KJV is God (verbatim), Christians.

Recently I tried to engage some of these people in a "call to commonsense", only maybe if i was as diligent as Thomas Paine it could work. But, sadly I'm not, and therefor it didn't. All of which in turn, left me depressed, because the response was a literal "cut and paste" on some apparent literal "facts" about Obama's connection with socialism and Islam. And to them, this combination creates the Anti-Christ and of course (not fear) but hysteria, like a drowning person. People filled with fanaticism (not to be confused with passion) that breeds hate (or at least hatefulness) in a very absolute form. And there is no discussion, only their answer.

this makes me sad.literally.



When i said "makes me whiter" in the title i meant this...


















(not saying i fulfill that exact description, but i find my friends and i in this book, very laughable)

picture from-www.stuffwhitepeoplelike.com

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Diet Dr Pepper

If you named your kid Google would you have to pay for the rights? It would make sense.
Yesterday i pulled a decent prank. Its been a while since I've done one. My co-worker (Lee) and i both bought 2 Dr Peppers from the Exxon station and then he went into McD's while i stayed in the car with our other co-worker (Craig). Since Diet DP and reg DP taste relatively similar i figured i would test it on an unknowing subject-Lee. So i pealed the labels off our drinks and switched them. He caught me putting it back, but even under his close observation he couldn't see that anything was different than before...YES! Obviously he drank it and ended up not saying anything, i laughed. I told him later.

I finally got back on a bike last night. I had to borrow my father-in-law's. I rode it on his trainer for about an hour and a half while trying to watch the debate. I ended up getting bored after about 20 mins of that, and turned on WSOP on ESPN. I love poker. I wish i had more time to take people's money, but I'd rather be on a bike. Plus last time i played i flopped a set of Kings (i was holding pockets cowboys) and the only guy to stay in, paired his K10 on the flop, which on the river turned into a straight. Of course i went all in and he called before that happened. I still question that...5% chance of hitting that queen. I think his buddy (who was dealing) may have quickly pulled that out. I don't know, maybe I'm just bitter.

My basement now has something that looks along the lines of system set up outside the house in the movie ET. Really weird.

I so badly want my bike back. I apparently need a new front derailleur too.

picture from http://www.googlestore.com/

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

clean'em up

its that time folks. its been nearly 4 years since i've last done this but yes, i'm going to shave my legs once again.

so here's the question-
do i wax them or shave them?

i plan on waxing a spot tonight and see if i can bare the pain. all i remember about this part of cycling is how much i hated shaving, maybe i just sucked at it. we'll see. my wife finally said she was cool with it.

Fabian still the fastest.

My bike still isnt done and has accumulated a few hundred dollars worth of labor. This ultimately blows.
to get an idea of just whats going on here's what we are dealing with....

(so its basically the piece on the left inside that hole on the right, but imagine the grooves for the wrench on the piece arent there anymore because they got stripped...)

Well at this point the guy is going to have to rip the piece out and re-thread the bike.

So yesterday Schumacher tested positive for EPO at the 08 Tour. Its good and bad. I'm happy they are catching people, but that means people are obviously still using.

Also, i realized this morning that i misspoke about what jersey i actually purchased in France. It wasnt Fassa Bortolo, it was a Francaise de Jeux team jersey. weird.

pictures are from-www.bestbikebmx.com and bicycle fixation
thanks.


Monday, October 6, 2008

new job.

I was chatting with the guy at the bike shop thats working on my bike. He happens to be the store manager, and i asked if he needed any help a few hours a week. He said yes. So i'll probably start working there a few hours a week pretty soon. Apparently my bike is going to need much more fixing. a few hundred dollars. Maybe i'll start there and get the discount before all that.

Home again.

I got to my desk today and found it littered (pun intended) with signs and pictures. Most of which said things along the lines of "i wish all trees would die" and "we need more CO2 gases" or were pictures of cut down trees and otters swimming in oil (which was a cartoon thankfully). My co-workers love me. They missed me.

Updates-
  • French wine is cheap and good.
  • I maintained my weight loss, I'm about to break the 190 barrier. By June I'd like to be somewhere in the ballpark of 160. Coming down from 215, that's pretty good. Want to see what i look like at around 205? look at the hiking pictures below. i look relatively normal right? weird. (160 is safe, its what my weight was when i was racing before)
  • I bought a Fassa Bortolo jersey in France. I'm not a particular fan of that (former) team, but i wanted a cycling jersey from France because I'm cheesy. It came with one of those goofy "dew-rags" and it was the cheapest one of the group and I'm not cheesy enough to buy a yellow jersey. Though i would have taken a KOM jersey just because they look awesome.too expensive though
  • I've contemplated the whole continuing to commute (in the dark) vs. riding a ton on rollers at home. I've decided to buy a ridiculously expensive light system, which means commuting. I will however be using the rollers to put on extra miles because i don't enjoy riding in the darkness of night.
  • Empire Magazine knows nothing....City of God hit the list at 177 and Revenge of the Sith was on the list at all (idiots). I would like to add though that Terrence Malick went 3 for 4 (it left out The New World...haters), but W. Anderson only landed one but it was at an impressively high ranking of 53 figures it would be The Royal Tenenbaums. The top 50 is predictable (save The Dark Knight), and the top ten even more so.
  • i called the bike shop a second ago, and the guy said he'd call me back in a minute, but from the tone of his voice, it doesn't sound like my bike is ready....AAAAAAHHHHHHHH.
  • Now i have to fix the Audi and sell it. anyone want an 98 Audi A4. It runs, but for how much longer? who knows. I'll be left with a bicycle and a Toyota matrix, I'm thinking of leaving it like that or buying a Smart Car.
I missed a whole week of doping stuff and epic returns, which is disappointing. Vino (Alexander Vinokourov) is desiring to make a return to the super team Astana. ha ha. lets see...Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador (maybe), Levi, Kloden, Vino, Horner?, Noval, Rubiera (i thought he said he was retiring, but with Lance coming back who knows). So that group plus one more maybe Keschekin (or however you spell his name) will come back too. Anyway, i doubt Vino will make it back to cycling, at least on Astana. But i could be completely wrong.

Frank Schleck seems to be in trouble. Which sucks because he didn't even do that great after losing some ridiculous amount of time in the Tour's final ITT.

I finished reading From Lance to Landis. It clears things up a bit...like American cycling in the states, Armstrong's return, Vaughters sucking so much before and being annoying about it, why decent riders left the Postal team every chance they got (Hamilton, Heras, Landis, Levi, Vaughters, Vandevelde). Though it left me wondering, i remember watching the 04 Vuelta rooting for Levi and he beat the doper Heras and took 3rd overall. I can understand how Hampsten and other clean riders won back in the day but with the rise of EPO through the 90's in to today, how can anyone viably compete?

Darryl+Dan+S.District of Shenandoah+dead of winter+X factor=a great 45 mile 4 day weekend trip

by the way, Paris is like DC in French, with a cool public bike system.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

bonjour (thanks nate)

Hey, from france.

my french is actuelly coming along.

i freaking missed bon iver. it was tonight. im pissed. i think i was overlooking the Champs-Élysées from the Arc.

3 pages plus an epilogue left to read of From Lance to Landis. Then switching to On The Road by Kerouac.

later