Two pieces of gear have been on my mind lately. Lights and Packs. Let's start with lights. I have a nice NiteRider HID system that I use for 24 hour races. I have 2 batteries for this light, and during a race I simply alternate batteries each lap. One is cooking while the other is on my bike. It works fine. I have no complaints about this set up. Well, I have one complaint. My batteries are huge, heavy, and they take up a water bottle cage. But beyond that, this set up has worked very well.

However...

I would love a long burning light that is bright enough for races such as the KTR or Trans Iowa. A light that is just bright enough to light the way, and yet burn all night long. Does such a light exist? In theory, and in advertisement, yes. There are a few that claim to fit this mold. The Exposure Lights Enduro claims to be "the endurance athletes dream come true." Perhaps it is. The BLT Ozone 9INE is another LED that claims high output and long burn times.

In theory these look like quality lights. Perfect for long climbs, dirt roads, commuting, really they sound like they'd be perfect for anything that is not to technical. I suppose I am a bit skeptical however. Can a light as inexpensive and long lasting as these really be bright enough for safe and fast off-road riding? Are safe and fast oxymorons? So, that is one question on my mind. I would love to have one of these lights for rides that start early or end late (E100 anyone?). If you have any time with these lights, or similar ones, sound off, let me know what you think.

Allright, issue number 2. Packs.

I have posted here a few times debating which pack I should get. Nothing has really changed. The question is Wingnut or not. They look like nice packs. Well built, light, and nicely designed. The low rider system makes sense. The price on them is comparable to major brands. So why the hang-up? I just want to see one. Try it on, test it out. It's all the same stuff I have been writing about the last little while. But if you are like me, then new gear purchases consume you. I spend a bit to much time surfing manufacturer's websites, blogs, review sites, forums. I have yet to find anyone who did not like the Wingnut packs.

I suppose if I purchase a product that I do not like, there is always eBay

I had a nice weekend in Moab. I was not able to get down there in time for the Friday ride, but we made it through a nasty snowstorm on Highway 6 and were able to enjoy a great Saturday on the Sovereign Trail. The snowstorm had reached Moab, and left about an inch of snow on the ground. But, Chris continued to assure us that by 10 AM the "sun would be out and the snow would be melted." Well. He was mostly right. The sun was out when we awoke on Saturday morning, and the snow was melted except in shady areas.

We had a great time. It was a quick trip, but we did what we set out to do, and that was have a good time riding our bikes for a long time. I think each of us crashed a few times. Chris was the first to go down. I looked up the trail to see him on his back with his bike still clipped in to his shoes sticking straight up in the air. He was in a perfect upside down riding position. Tim had a perfectly executed endo, and as for me, well I stalled out on a technical climb, fell over and landed on some very friendly rocks. My swollen hip however wold say otherwise about just how friendly the rocks were.

The most sketchy part of the trip was the return drive. The snowstorm we had traveled through coming down had only worsened, and we were stuck crawling along through the mountains at a snails pace. The road was covered in fresh slippery snow. But we made it through, even if it took us twice as long as normal. All in all, it was another Moab trip worthy of recounting on future road trips.

Braving the storm
Tim's outback awating 2006 sponsor logos

Paul, Tim, Karl, Carson, Chris, KC
Chris demonstrates how 29ers make obstacles easy
Not even the 29er helped up this climb
All smiles as we head back to town

I am headed to Moab Friday morning. The plan is to get down there by lunchtime and get rolling somewhere. Not sure exactly where, but Poison Spider Mesa has been suggested. Then Friday night it is a Mad Dog team/employee/friends/anyone esle who wants to join us dinner at the Moab Brewery and Restaurant. Saturday we will be raging the Sovereign Singletrack.

It should be some good fun with a lot of good people. Moab is always a great time. Allright, I am out. I gotta go get packed.

I went out today and explored the Pony Express trail. I was pleased to find that the road, while still mostly snow covered, was easily rideable due to trucks that had packed all the snow down. I was less pleased to find that some sections of the trail were a gooey mess, and it wreaked havoc on my drivetrain. I don't think I have been on a ride where I felt so isolated. I was 40 miles from the nearest gas station or grocery store. Yet, I still ran into a few people out there. A Fish and Game officer pulled over and I could tell by the look he gave me that we was pretty surprised to see a biker out where I was, at this time of year. He was nice though. He stopped to make sure I did not need any help, and that I was alright.

While I was out there I thought a lot about the possibility of an endurance race. While the route itself would be ideal for a long race, the one drawback is that it is absolutely remote. There is nothing for 130+ miles. I realize that other races are quite remote as well. However this route ends in the middle of nothing. Most races of this type will end in a town, or close enough to one where a rider can get cleaned up, support crews and greet them, there is food available, etc. This route ends near the Utah/Nevada border.

So I started thinking that if there was such a race on the Pony Express route that perhaps support vehicles would be recommended. Or possible support stations along the way. But that sill leaves everyone 100 miles from nothing at the end. Perhaps the race could be an out and back epic of 300 miles or so. Or maybe it could be a 2 day stage race. Ride out on day 1, ride back on day 2.

Anyway, there are certainly different possibilities to make a race out there viable. I want to get back out there and ride deeper into the route. It may have to wait until later in the spring though. I can see that road being a horrible mess during the wet, snow thawing months of March and April.

Total time in the saddle today was 5 hours. I felt great throughout the ride. Except when I made the mistake of standing to pedal when underneath my tires was a slick coating of ice. As soon as I began my downstroke my bike went out from under me and I did a perfect bellyflop onto the hard icy ground. Later in the ride I reached into my pocket expecting to find a Power Gel. Instead I found a gooey, sticky nightmare. The gel had exploded on impact and filled my pocket with Green apple flavored gel. My keys were in that pocket. Some of them were stuck together. I guess better that the gel exploded, and not my camera, which was luckily in the other pocket.

I spun for 1:10 on the trainer today. I was out of the saddle for about 45 minutes of that time. It was a nice sustained effort. Tomorrow I don't have to work. Which means, if the weather cooperates, I am going to go explore the Pony Express Trail. I am not sure what I will find this time of year as far as snow, mud and other conditions, but I am confident I should be able to get in 3-4 hours of good solid grinding.

While spinning on the trainer tonight I watched an old skool classic Tread. Bad acting, good riding and some nice photography make this a classic mountain bike film. A few years ago for Christmas I got Tread/Retread on a single DVD. Every now and again I will fire them up and watch what was cutting edge in 1996. Maybe next time I ride the trainer I will watch Retread.

A lot of Tread is filmed in Moab. And it got me thinking about an old skool trip I took to Moab back in 1995. It was Thanksgiving weekend and a friend of mine and I decided to head down for some riding. The trip was spur of the moment, but in a lot of ways resembled Hans and Gary in Tread. We got down there late at night, and just parked his van on the side of Sand Flats Road near the Slickrock Trail. We climbed into the back of the van and between our gear and our bikes found enough room to roll out our sleeping bags and call it a night. We awoke early the next morning to find a Park Ranger tapping on our window. He chastised us for parking on delicate soil, and told us to make sure and park and camp only in designated areas. He was cool about it all, and realized we were just a couple of idiot teens. Later in the day he rode by us on the trail while my buddy Sean fixed his chain with his teeth.

It took us far to long to ride the Slickrock loop. We spent a lot of time goofing off and taking pictures with a disposable camera. We worked on our endo skills in a typical Moab trail sand pit. We must have gone over the bars 4-5 times just because it was fun. We never did capture the perfect picture of going OTB. I rode my Raleigh M80. It was slightly to big for me, but it had a RockShox fork and in those days, if a bike had a front shock that made it a sweeeeeet bike. Actually it was a decent bike for that time, and it was the steed that got me hooked on this crazy sport. I still have that bike. The last time I rode it, I was riding to a class at BYU when the rear derailleur fell off. I showed up to class 20 minutes late and my hands covered in grease.

The trip to Moab was some of the best fun I've had on a bike. I wasn't into racing back then, and in fact I used to make fun of race geeks who were always decked out in spandex and shaved their legs and rode overly expensive bikes. I guess times change. :D

Digging up these pictures reminded me how much fun riding a bike is. Beyond training plans, race results, top of the line equipment and race fees lies an activity that most of us have done since we were kids. I love racing and competing. But if for some reason I could never race again, I'd still spend just as much time in the saddle. I'd still venture out onto epic 8 hour rides in the wasatch back country. I'd still get down to Moab and ride Slickrock, Amasa Back, Porcupine Rim and all the other incredible trails down there. Riding is riding regardless of whether there is a number plate on my bars or a clock keeping the time.

Of course, racing adds a lot of excitement, motivation and intrigue to the sport. I love to compete and feel the rush of adrenalin that surges through my body when I pass a competitor, or the sense of panic when he passes me. Racing is racing despite the number plate on my bars or the clock keeping time.

That trip to Moab was a great time. In fact, every trip I have taken to Moab is memorable. Whether my first time to the 24 hours of Moab, when I had the chance to meet and interview Gary Fisher (more on that later this week) to this most recent trip when I spent the night puking during the 2005 version of the same event. Moab is a great place. And I am all that much more excited about notching up another great adventure down there this weekend.

No Moab trip is complete without a stop at the City Market

As you may be able to tell, I redesigned the site again. I wanted to mix it up for 2006. So I hope you like it. It seems that internet explorer is pushing my sidebar down to the bottom of the page. So I suggest using either Safari for you fellow Mac users, or Firefox for windows users. Personally I think both of these browsers are far above and beyond IE anyway.

I spun in the basement for 90 minutes today. I watched one of my all-time favorite movies while spinning. Raising Arizona. Quite possible one of the funniest movies ever made, and some of the Coen's best work.

This coming weekend is the Mad Dog Cycles winter Moab trip. I think there is going to be an Amasa Back ride Saturday, and possibly another ride on Sunday. I think however, that a few of us are going to go big and get a 7 hour epic in on Saturday. The thought of doing a 7 hour epic makes me happy. It has been far to long since I put in more than 3 hours in the saddle. So, if you are going to be in the Moab area this weekend let me know, you are more than welcome to come suffer with us.

You may have noticed that I do not have sponsor links up at the moment, and the reason for that is twofold. 1) I liked the way the site looked without them, and 2) our 2006 sponsors are still being finalized. When they are set, I will link them on the blog. I will still be riding for Mad Dog Cycles, we are just getting local business and industry sponsors squared away. One sponsor that is back from 2005 is Tifosi. I have to say that I am stoked that they are back for this year. They make great glasses, and I am excited about thier '06 line. Especially the lenses that change shades with the light. It will make those night into day and day into night rides a little bit easier. In addition to a great product, Tifosi also has a really cool local rep.

Allright I am out. Again, I hope you like the new look. I will probably be making minor tweaks over the next few days. If you have any suggestions let me know.

Yesterday I did my first race of the season. The Frozen in Time bike...er...make that hike race. The course was 95% unridable. Which meant that we ran next to our bikes through powdery snow. I suffered through 3 laps. I think I finished dead last. It was amusing to see people trudging through snow while pushing thier bikes. I was tempted to just leave my bike behind and run without it. A lot of guys showed up on skinny tire cross bikes. Even a few fixies. They had no chance to even try and ride. There were also a lot of 29ers. Every event I attend there are more and more 29ers lining up.

The running race was painful. By the time I finished I was cooked. My calves and thighs are feeling the effects this morning. Yesterday afternoon I was a little mad that I went at all to the event. I got up at 6:30AM to be there for the start, which was delayed an hour. It was cold, and all seemed rather pointless. However, it was funny to see guys who are absolutley fast on thier bikes running through the snow. Those guys that are fast on thier bikes, yeah, they are fast pushing them also. I think also, this was the first race I have been to where a fellow competitor's pre-race meal consisted of a beer, a cigarette, and a rock start energy drink. He was one of the poor souls riding a skinny tire fixie.

In the end it was an amusing time. But it made me only that much more excited about upcoming events in which I canactually ride my bike aroud the course. Bob was also at the hike race. You can read his report at his blog.

So...I have been a slacker the past couple days when it comes to blogging. The winter storm that I posted about arrived, and dumped a bunch of snow on us. So I have been doing more indoor workouts this week. Lately I have been aching to get out on a good solid epic ride. 5-6 hours in the mountains. I have been putting together a route for one I think can be done in the winter. It traces the old Pony Express route that traveled through Utah on its way to California. The route today is mostly dirt road, and covers about 120 miles I think. From everything I can gather, it would make a great epic ride. I think in the next week or two I will head out and do a find out ride/drive and see what conditions are like. Even in the summer this should be a good option for some long sessions on the bike. It should be agreat training ground for the KTR.

I get to a point in each race season where I start to get ancy for races. I remember when I was playing college lacrosse, we practiced everyday in the fall and winter. It was intense. We worked hard, but never got to play any games. By the time March rolled around and the season got under way, I was exhasted. Of course the season brought new energy, but it took some doing to get mentaly and physicaly rejuvenated. To a lesser degree, a lot lesser actually, I feel the same way right now. I am excited to start racing and competing. The cold weather TT tomorrow should feed that craving, and then with Old Pueblo just a few weeks off, I think I will scratch these itchings I have been feeling as of late. I am still enjoying the training and preparation that goes into an off season, but the bug to go big is biting.

I need to make a choice soonish on which pack I will be getting. I am still considering both the Camelbak and the Wingnut brands. Without any hands on experience with the Wingnuts, it is going to take some good testifying from those who do have time with them strapped on thier backs for me to be convinced. I am sold on the concept, but it is hard for me to buy somehitng like this without trying it on, handling it, testing it.

I recently was at my parents house. My dad had 2 of these books (The Utah version) sitting on his shelf. I don't know how he ended up with 2, but I relieved him of the extra, and now I have the ultimate epic ride guide and planner. 500+ pages of maps, GPS coordinates, write-ups, directions and pictures of Utah's great back country roads. I am looking forward to exploring new routes and roads this coming summer. Like Nick Martin recently wrote, just beyond your own driveway may be trails and roads you never knew existed.

Hmmm.....I just had an idea pop into my head...something about an epic, self suported "trans" style race along the Pony Express trail. Hmm....this could be very interesting. Pain at the Pony anyone?

Well...it would appear that winter is back from its vacation. Or at least it is getting ready to make its return. There is a winter storm warning tonight, and if you look out my window toward the Northeast there are thick white clouds gathering. I would not be surprised to wake up to a snowy driveway.

I got out today for 2.5 hours of pavement pounding, mixed up by a bit of dirt on the Bonneville Shorline Trail. It was a nice bag of tricks for an afternoon ride. I felt good to. Well, the first event of the season is this Saturday. It looks like this will be a fun ride to go out and open it up a bit, see what I got in me in late January. It is the Frozen In Time mountain bike TT. It takes place up in Park City on part of the 12 Hours of Endurance loop. The snow and single track should make for a fun time in the saddle. The cold returned yesterday with some snow flurries. Today it was pretty chilly, but not to bad once the sun got going a bit in the afternoon. No wind made today's ride quite enjoyable.

Looking west across Utah Valley. The BYU campus is in the foreground.

I went out today and rode what I call the "college loop". Named such because I ride through the campus of both BYU and UVSC. There are many different routes, paths and versions of the loop. Today was a mostly flat recovery ride. I had scheduled to ride about 4 hours today, but I awoke sore and achey. I think I may have the fever that my kids have been fighting. These last few weeks we have had more sickness in our family than I can ever remember.

The warm winter continues here. The temps feel like March. I know that it will not last, and the cold will come, blast through us like wet paper and freeze everything over for weeks. I keep saying that. But it still hasn't happened. I don't even dare to hope that it won't happen at all. As soon as that thought escapes, I will awake to -10 degrees and 4 feet of snow.

I have ridden this road before. But it is a horrible road that leads to nothing. It is steep, rocky and rutted. So it has been avoided for a long time. Until yesterday when I got the idea that would it would make a great training climb. So I venured to the bottom of what I now am calling the "Stairway to Pain".

It looks innocent enough at the bottom

The stairway starts at the parking lot at the mouth of Dry Canyon. It is a jeep road that get a lot of water down it from melting snow and rain. It gets rutted out easily, and has big loose rocks covering it. Right now though, it seemed to have fewer rocks than I remember. I expect that as the summer months approach this roads condition will worsen.

Onward and Upward...the pain starts to manifest itself

There is a section of the stairway that is absolute torture. It is very steep, and there are a couple of false summits. You reach one only to realize there is more lung busting thigh burning suffering to be had before there is relief. But the relief is short lived. This is not a meandering mountain road. This more or less goes straigt up the hill.

Nearing the top of the Stairway of Pain

Throughout this upcoming season I will do periodic timed climbs on the route. I think it wil make for a great off-road TT. Sort of the dirt version of Squaw Peak Road. I didn't time yesterdays climb, as I was mostly exploring the route. Once you reach the gate at the top, you are done with the stairway. I ventured on beyond the gate, but it quickly became unridable due to mud and rocks. Perhaps in dry conditions that section will be more accomadating.

The view from the toop of the Stairway

A real feat I think would be riding the entire way without dabbing, stopping or peeling out. It would be tough, but it will be a fun thing to incorporate on future rides up the mountain.

I am on the quest for a nice all day epic worthy hydration pack. I need to be able to carry lots of stuff. Water, clothing, food, tubes, tools, bottles, etc. I have read up on a few different candidates that I think will work. Camelbak offers the Hawg and the Ventoux. Both look like very durable and quality packs, that would most likely work out very well. Another option I am considering is the Wingnut Gear Adventure. This is a unique pack, in that it sits lower on your back. The idea is that the weight of the pack is evenly distributed over your seatpost while you ride.

Each of these packs holds 3.0L (100oz) of water. Each holds at least 900 Cu In. of gear. The Hawg is the smallest at 916, then the Ventoux at 1312, and the Adventure is the largest at 1600. Pricepoints for these packs are comparable to each other.

So...which one to choose? The Camelbak models I can check out at my LBS. I can try them on, handle them, zip the zippers, pull the velcro, all in all kick the tires so to say. I don't have the luxury with the Wingnut products. There is a good discussion at MTBR on the merits of these wingnut packs. They seem like a great product. The "lowrider" system as wingnut calls it in interesting, and has me curios.

Are any of you out there using any of the above mentioned packs? Are you using something similar? I know there are models in this type of pack from DaKine, Northface, and others. What is the best value pack for epic all day and night self supported rides?

I am still a bit weak from the weekend of sick, but I spun on the trainer last night, and it was good to raise the HR for a bit. This week should be a solid week of training, capped by a long effort on Saturday. I just need the weather to hold out. In the meantime it will be weights, intervals, and hill repeats to enjoy.

I am short on words today. So...uh...have a great day!

Some sort of stomach flu has hit my family. Wife got it, now I have it. I Spent all night worshiping the porcelin thrown. Lots of fun. The weather is great today, but I get to enjoy it trying not to hurl again.

Hope the weekend is better for you guys.

I took the 29er out for some pavement action on the Provo River Parkway Trail. It was a nice 2.5 hour recovery ride after yesterdays hill intervals. It got a bit cold toward the end of the ride, which was expected since it was getting dark. I actually was ill prepared and finished the ride in full on darkness. Hopefully on May 13 I am better prepared.

I did 1.5 hours of hill intervals. I took the 29er out on steep paved roads. There are some neighborhoods here that creep up the mountain, and so the roads to these homes are steep. Some are long, others are short. They all hurt though. I felt really good on the bike. My legs were snappy, and I was able to really push the gears up the inclines. I think January is going to be a month of pain. I am focusing on doing more interval work, and more intense efforts. That is an area I was weak in during 2005, and I want to improve that this year.

Speaking of this year, here is my race schedule. Of course it is subject to change, but these will be what I plan for.

24 Hours in the Old Pueblo February 18th. Tuscon, Arizona (5-man team)
Kokepelli Trail Race May 13th. Moab, Utah
12 Hours of Endurance June 24th. Park City, Utah
Brianhead Epic 100 July 29th. Brianhead, Utah
The E100 August 26th. Park City, Utah
24 Hours of Soldier Hollow September 10. Soldier Hollow, Utah
24 Hours of Moab October 14. Moab, Utah

Now these are just the Endurance races. I will also be riding in several Intermountain Cup Races.

It has rained every day this year.

No worries, though. I feel like during December there were several very nice days that allowed outdoor workouts. I hit the trainer yesterday for an hour. Did some light spinning mixed up with one-legged drills. Today will be more of the same. I am in no great hurry to get back to the gym. I want to let the new year's crowds thin a little bit.

The first Mad dog team meeting is this week. Will be nice to see everyone again. I should have some details on a January Moab trip. I will post them here, and if you are interested you are welcome to join us.

That's it for now, have a great day.