One Bike, One Purpose

My Europe trip was one for the ages, I checked out London, Paris, Rome and Florence, all with my bro, best trip ever.

Some perfect weather when I rolled into London, apparently some of the best weather in a longtime. We visited Big Ben, the eye, took some photos together, it was a blast. Paris was next, and man, what a place. Outdoor cafes lines the streets, the atmosphere was electric, the city was rockin till well past midnight. I love the culture in Paris, kinda laidback, but also a lot more image-concious than here in the states, I like that.  We went to the top of the Eiffel tower, visited the arc, just a great trip overall.  Italy will stay with me forever, just the sheer history and culture involved. The Vatican, The colusseum, ancient ruins on every street, some of the best food and THE BEST Gelato made Italy the best part of my Europe tour. The guided tours were incredible, we visited the ruins, the vatican, the pantheon and more monuments than I could ever absorb. The bustrip to Florence was a little long, and we could’ve stayed longer and saved money had me taken the Italiastar, nonethtless, we got a great experience in Florence, we saw Michaelangelo’s David and some of the cutest neighborhoods, we also got in Newtons’s tomb, the Florence trip was incredible, just a little short.

I’ll never forget Europe

So I head into WheelWorld-aka the money pit, and grab the Freedom Disc Halo Wheels, and they’re 29ers. Arrrrrgh!! The shop has nothing else in stock for my price range. So I head to Spoke n’ Wheel, nothing there either, so I go online, and I find a set of Sun Ringle Disc O Flea wheels, hoping to get the price match of around $300.00 shipped. A tad over 1600 grams for disc wheels ain’t bad at all.

Here they are:

Keepin my fingers crossed I get the price match.

I was at Wheel World on Sunday, making my weekly visit. I walked in needing a single stick-on cable router and had to wait for help becuase it was busier than usual. I’m perusing the wheels, and a pair of Halo Freedom Discs catch my eye. The rims look like the Stans ZTR Olympic disc wheels and the hubs are pretty, and they’re LOUD. $350.00’s not bad for some solid looking wheels. The website says they’re freeride wheels, but they’re only about 2,200 grams, hmm I need to think about this one. Got my cable mount and hit Las Virgines, it’s a goldmine, and I need to hit it again in the morning, so I can climb all the way to the top.

So my work announces that they’re taxing me starting in June, on a per-visit basis for my gym membership. It’s $1.75/visit, which with my frequency, comes out to about 28 bucks per month, although I’m sure it’ll be less some months, as I don’t always stick to my every-other-day schedule. Oh well, it’s still better than any deal out there.

I’ve decided to save up for the new Mavic Crosstrail Disc wheelset. The Deore/XM321’s, while reliable and stout, are just too heavy at 2,300 grams. I’m also leary of the Deore hubs holding up in the long-run. Yeah I know, I’ve already got perfectly good sub-2000 gram wheels. The Crossrides have been my best wheelset, they’re relatively light, and a HUGE bargain at under $200.00. The problem with the crossrides is that the rim is too narrow, and they have a UB braking surface, plus they’re silver, :), ok so maybe the looks aren’t the biggest gripe. The narrow rim however, squeezes the tires, and takes away from their footprint. Plus, losing a few grams, or 180, never hurts. With tax, the hoops come out to $510 and change, but it’s worth it.

Probably one of my Top-5 rides today.

Cruising up the 101-N, for some reason I decided not to get off at Las Virgenes and take Malibu Canyon Rd to PCH, as I normally do to get to Pt. Mugu, more on that later.

I take a scenic drive through Oxnard, get to the trailhead-after finding sweet, oceanside parking-and set off on the Sycamore trail. I stopped at every picnic table rest area, not out of exhaustion mind you, I always stop at rest areas when I’m out riding, I like taking in the scenery, not just blowing by and not even looking. I like to mix it up when I ride, so I decide to hit some techy ST and hit Two Foxes. Two Foxes is short, but an e-ticket ride nonetheless, and I’m amped when I finish it up and stop for a rest. I decide to go back to the fork, but this time go straight, and continue on to the old gas station.

I was going to turn around and go back the way I came, but three guys coming up behind me for some reason made me continue on to the asphalt FR climb. The climb wasn’t bad, it was just hotter than I thought it would be, made it up in one shot though. Took the Waterman FR back down, then finished up by going back on Two Foxes in reverse, then hitting the Sycamore Trail back to the beach, and my car. I rested on the beach for a while before leaving, just taking in the scenery. It was truelly beautifull today in Southern California, dare I say it, a perfect day to be outdoors.

I started home down the PCH, then realized why I instinctively took the 101-N instead of the PCH. Roadcrews bottlenecked a section of the PCH, and traffic was BACKED UP. Baja Fresh topped off one of my Top-5 rides.

Oh yeah I almost forgot, No mechanicals today, no mis-shifts, no flats, no chain issues, nothing, just a sweet-shifting, point and shoot XC Steed. Which is good because I forgot my multi-tool and my phone battery died about 30-minutes in.

I’m stressin’ right now.

My unit at work’s continuing to implode-today was the last day for three of my co-workers, including my trainer, we loose a senior rep next Friday-and honestly, I’m now regretting taking the promotion/raise, because it locks me into my position for a year. I’m seriously considering turning down my next promotion, and switching to another non-phone position, or at least something closer to home within the company at Woodland Hills.

Adding to all of this stress is a guy, a “mountain biker”, if he really is one, who keeps associating me with the owner of a spoof website that apparently defames him. I’m not the owner of said website, and when he runs the ISP address, he’ll find that out too. I’m not worried about anything, I’ve done absolutely nothing wrong, as I don’t even know the guy. MW, more power to you, and I hope you catch the REAL owner of the site that “defamed” you. Apparently MW has no job and just spends his free time trying to “right” his character, you know, the one that was “defamed” I love his blog website that he maintains where he names various individuals and groups that he says have defamed him and caused him irreparable harm to his character and business. what’s funny is, I know riders who are a part of the main website in question, they have moved on and apparently don’t even care about him anymore. Such a petty thing to be so engrossed over. I also love the fact that he himself admits on his own blog that no one would ever actually read said site. Oh Well, to each his own

My rising stress level can be tied directly to my dropping saddle time. I need to get out and ride, weekends, even weekdays, just take the bike with me in the car, go on lunch sessions around the office park, anything to take my mind off the job situation.

I stepped onto the scale last night, AFTER a bike ride, and it read 190 lbs, 190 LBS!!

I sat down with a gym-rat friend of mine and came up with the following regimen:

10-minute warm-up on the Elliptical Machine.

STRENGTH/CONDITIONING EXERCISES

Exercise Resistance (lbs)

Bench Press 60-75 lbs 3-sets of 15 at 60 lbs.

1 set of 15 at 75 lbs.

Shoulder Raise 40 lbs 3 sets of 15 at 40 lbs.

Lat Pull Downs 75-90 lbs 2 sets of 15 at 75 lbs.

2 sets of 15 at 90 lbs.

Bicep Curls 30-45 lbs 2 sets of 15 at 30 lbs.

1 set of 15 at 40 lbs.

1 set of 15 at 45 lbs.

Triceps Press 30-40 lbs 2 sets of 15 at 30 lbs.

2 sets of 15 at 40 lbs.

Butterfly 60-75 lbs 2 sets of 15 at 60 lbs.

2 sets of 15 at 75 lbs.

Abs Crunch 120 lbs 2 sets of 50 at 120 lbs.

Lower Back Raise. Body Weight 4 sets of 10 at BDY WGHT.

20-minute walk on the Treadmill

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

 

Thank god for free gym memberships through work.

Trust me, blogging was the last thing on my mind.

Actually, the whole myspace-facebook fad kinda makes me cringe. 30 and 40-year old men and women with myspace pages trying to act cool and young, grow up!!

Anyways, I’ve decided to start blogging as a way to release my emotions, and maybe gain a better knowledge and understanding of why I feel what I sometimes feel.

Mike , a 30-year old guy with “two” jobs, a roof and four walls, and four wheels to get me from A to B, and sometimes C.  Mountain Biking takes up my freetime, and most of my free money. I have one bike, and one purpose, to ride, that’s it. No searching out the biggest jumps or hucks. No trying to be faster, or skinnier, or more fit. Most definitely not trying to have the greatest gear on the block, I could care less about that. My ride is an ‘05 Fetish Cycles Discipline hardtail. I bought the frame from a guy for 50-bucks. I do take pride though in doing my own bike work. The bike was built up and is maintained by yours truly. I’ll post a pic when I can. Most “MTB” guys at this point would rattle of a parts spec, but your gear is the least important aspect of Mountain Biking. I recently left a forum because some of the members were so material about the sport that it just disgusted me.

My ride haunts are mostly in Southern California, primarily in the Santa Monica Mountains areas of Topanga State Park, Cheesebro Canyon and Las Virgenes Canyon. Some people may drive 45-minutes for a great ride, but I prefer keeping it local, especially with gas prices the way they are. Most of my posts will be ride reports of Mountain Bike rides I’ve done, although I might go off-topic if I feel the need. Mountain Biking-related photos will get posted, as you wouldn’t believe some of the places that are a stones throw from Downtown LA.

Happy trails, and get out there!!