New Finds After All This Time

Trans Iowa v14, the last start. Image by Dori Jaansma

 Last week was filled with Trans Iowa memories on my Facebook timeline. It happens every year, right? Anyone who uses that social media platform can probably nod their head in agreement with how this "memories" thing works. 

My surprise is that even after eight years I am still finding new stuff on Trans Iowa I'd never seen before, or knew about. To me, this is remarkable. 

Images are the most common thing, obviously, but I have found a story about Trans Iowa v14 written by Nick Legan, a fellow Gravel Cycling Hall of Famer, by the way. It is a story about his efforts to finish the last Trans Iowa. I found it fascinating since Nick tabulates some numbers which I had no access to from athletes or from my own research. Things I had guessed at, but now I have some hard numbers to point to. The story, on "Rambleur" can be read HERE.  

Mark Lowe (L), and Nick Legan on the course of Trans Iowa v14. Image by Jon Duke

 As an example, I knew it got really cold the night of v14 going into the Sunday finish. Matt Gersib and I were freezing standing on a Level B Road just East of Grinnell, trying to toast to the end of an era. It wasn't to be as Matt said it was "too damn cold" and he was bailing out. A moment dashed. A moment I was hoping would be an intimate, final farewell to Trans Iowa with him. No hard feelings, Matt. I was 100% with you. I just was wishing it wasn't so cold right at that moment. 

And I never really knew just how cold it had gotten. Now I have a number, thanks to Nick. 23°F! In late April! No wonder we couldn't enjoy that moment! It all just makes so much sense and now, eight years later, I have found some solace as to why this moment did not work out for me. 

My image of the full moon, standing on a gravel road near midnight during T.I.v14

 I used to get asked all the time what the elevation gain was for any Trans Iowa. Frankly, I had no way of knowing this for certain. Especially in the earlier years of the event when GPS tracking was nearly non-existent or so poor it could only be taken as a guidepost. 

Of course, things have changed. Even by 2018, which was the year of the last Trans Iowa, GPS data was much more reliable.  Nick had a Wahoo Elemnt onboard his ride of Trans Iowa v14 and shared this data in the story linked above. His device read out 19,291ft in 350 miles. (Nick admittedly did some "bonus miles" due to a navigational error or two)

While this number may not be all that impressive, consider the fact that Nick accomplished that elevation gain and mileage in under 33 hours overall with no sleep. Plus, he had to do his own navigation by cue sheets. No gpx files. No simply following audible prompts for where to turn. 

Post T.I.v14 scraps. Image by Ryan Simon

Of course, none of this probably hits anyone quite like it does me. I understand this to be true. Eight years later not many folks even think about Trans Iowa anymore. Maybe the riders do. Some of the volunteers might. I don't know. 

It seems to me that the whole thing should have blown away like Fall leaves down a chip sealed street. Tumbling away until there are only remnants of what was once a green, living thing. 

Then those memories posts show up and the old feelings are reignited. Especially when images and words I hadn't see before are popping up all these years later. These new finds make me think about why this all may still matter to some people. Why it still matters to me. 

Jason Boucher, a good friend and supporter of myself and Trans Iowa when it was an event, once wrote to me and encouraged me to keep the event going because "..you give people a chance to change their lives".I know he was right about that. I've heard from people who have said as much to me. I know it changed me too.

And in the end, when it comes to this old stuff concerning Trans Iowa, we can find new things as a result inside our lives because of those times. What those things are may be different for each person who was touched by the event. 

And that is what matters. 

Bikes Of 2025: Salsa Cycles Fargo (Gen I)

 It's another end-of-year period on the blog. You know what that means? Yep! Another round of my bikes I used in 2025. This round-up will not include some of the bikes I did not use this year much, or at all. I focus only on the bikes that played a big role in my riding during this year.  As always, any changes or future plans for any bike I feature will also be detailed. I hope that you enjoy this year's round-up.

This bicycle might be the most recognizable bike I have. Most folks know well what it looks like and what this bike has meant to me over the years.. I received this bike in late 2008 as a gift of sorts. Ostensibly I was only to have been riding it for a demo, but ....... Well, you had to be there, I guess. Anyway, this bike means a lot to me because of the person behind it, who had the idea for the bike, and essentially was the one who coined the term, "Adventure by Bike;". Well, if it wasn't Jason Boucher who coined the term, he certainly was a big proponent of the saying and the ideal behind the saying. 

I have encouraged Jason to tell his story about the Fargo for years, and he has teased us with a few details, but maybe one day we'll get the full enchilada. Maybe......

I use the Fargo for occasions which I am going to be finding myself in territory I am unfamiliar with. Why? Because the Fargo is like a horse which doesn't let its rider fall off under any circumstances. I have bonded with the bike since day one. I trust the bike, it is very comfortable and capable, and I reach for it every time I feel anxious about a ride. 

The Fargo Gen I has also been a bike I have had very meaningful rides on throughout the years. So, it was the only choice for the Ride For Jacob this past August. I just could not imagine using any other bike for that ride on that particular day. 

Not surprisingly, there is not much left on the Fargo which was on the bike when I received it 18 years ago. There is the head set. I know I have not touched that part. Then maybe the rear and front derailleurs are original to the bike. I think that is all. 

As far as changing anything in the near future goes, well I would like a premium wheel set for it. Something with carbon rims, nice hubs, and sturdy spokes. But it doesn't have to have those things. I just need to ride the Fargo more. And the plan is to do just that. 

This will be the bike which goes with me to the Flint Hills in April for the L.O.G. Ride. I hear Wabaunsee County is pretty rough, and this is right up the Fargo's alley. I will likely be doing some training rides previous to going on the trip on the Fargo as well. Then, I don't know. I'm sure something will come up like the next Ride For Jacob, whenever that happens in 2026. 

A Pictorial Review Idea

During the Tree In The Road Ride a discussion of an idea from Jason Boucher came up which I thought might make for a good event, and maybe more. The idea would be to present a photographic review of Trans Iowa's history. 

Now, before we get too excited here, let's consider a few things. First off, there are several image takers which would have to be consulted and to get permissions from before any sort of show or more could be considered. Just to give you an idea, there are nine major contributors to Trans Iowa's imagery and several minor contributors. That's a LOT of permissions and editing to cull the best shots for any sort of showing.

I have well over 1,000 images alone which I have collected from those nine individuals, including my own, and from other minor contributors. To say that there is a wealth of images is not an understatement. Plus, I know there are thousands  of images no one has seen but the image takers themselves.

Wally Kilburg accounts for a vast amount of iconic T.I. Images. 

One snag is the fact that Wally Kilburg is no longer with us, and getting permissions for using his imagery, or even accessing it, is a big hurdle to overcome as of now.

I know Wally would be 100% all-in on this idea, but we cannot ask him anymore, so without those images, I'd be rather reticent to pursue the idea at all. Wally would have to be represented in anything like this idea.

Then you have a venue, a space to hold an event like this in, and what does this entail? Yeah, not totally insurmountable, but you all know if we picked a site there would be cries of it being unfair to those far away. Plus, any date chosen would be a big snag with several folks as well. Personally, I don't care about those two issues, because there is an inevitability about any of those two things. It will happen no matter what we do, so whatever.... 

It's a nice idea, but it wouldn't be easy to pull off. Maybe we would have to do some kind of a book to make it worthwhile, and this would complicate things further, but I know making money off this would be something some of the contributors would want to see happen to make it worth their time and efforts. Plus, you have to recognize the talent and product realized by these artists. Would this idea work if it could result in a coffee table type book? Maybe.

Look, I have no clear idea for this, and it is just an idea now. If enough folks wanted to see it happen, maybe the effort would be worth the time. I really do not know. It would have to be a collaborative effort, because I just do not see myself pulling this off alone. So, this really is not up to my decision. Plus, the whole thing with getting nine entities/people to enter into a collaborative agreement. That's a big ask.

But....I thought I'd throw it out there. You never know unless you try, even if it is just throwing something out to see what sticks. And maybe nothing will come of this. I'm good either way. 

The Fargo Legacy.

My Salsa Cycles Fargo

 The Salsa Cycles Fargo (Gen I) bicycle I have is a well known entity to you who have read the blog here for many years. The bike, somewhat synonymous with myself and this blog, has brought a lot of attention to these pages since I acquired the bike in 2008. It has been and remains an important bicycle to the blog, but more importantly, to my life and memories. 

Through this bike I have been connected to many people that figure heavily in my relationships. Some of my most intense and memorable experiences were had while riding this bike, or because of this bike. It is for these reasons and many others that I do not ever plan on letting this bike get away. 

I also am somewhat of a nut when it comes to the history of this particular Salsa Cycles model. While I have had a front seat to some of its earliest days, I certainly don't know but a drop or two of this model's story. That is why I am excited to see, and share, that Jason Boucher is writing up more of this bike's early history. 

Jason, for those of you who may not know, was  leading the Salsa Cycles team for Quality Bicycle Products during the time that the Fargo was developed. Due to certain limitations and just timeliness, there is a lot about this bike and its design from the earliest days that has never been shared. 

If you are interested in learning more about this bicycle's early days and its impacts, Jason's blog is where he has started to tell the story. Check out his first post on the Fargo Gen I HERE. I will likely link to his forthcoming posts, but I encourage you, if you are interested, to bookmark his blog. Jason has a lot of very interesting imagery and stories to show and to tell. 

Second entry HERE.

Country Views: Camera Nerd

Escape Route; Black hawk Park w/Josh Paxton

 I was out for a ride yesterday and it was a ride for a specific purpose. I was helping a friend to get some imagery for a project he is working on. While this was happening it struck me that a LOT of cyclists are photographers and several are downright "camera nerds". 

Note: I say that out of love and respect for you if you, are in fact, a camera nerd. No putdown intended. 

I happen to know a few of these folks and a few of them have helped me out with imagery in the past. People like Steve Fuller, Wally Kilburg, George Keslin, Jason Boucher, and Jon Duke. All cyclists, all definitely camera nerds. 

I know Erik Mathy who takes 'camera nerdery' to the next level. It's amazing stuff, in my opinion, and when I spent time with Erik in 2022 at the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame days, I was constantly amazed by his talents. 

Well, on Tuesday I spent time with another camera freak, Josh Paxton. He is setting up something that is an image-heavy online thing and he wanted a section on cycling to be a prominent part of that project, so he talked me into being a 'model' for a day. We decided to head out to start the ride from Black Hawk Park.

Ford Road near Black Hawk Park

I've always liked this barn. The owner keeps it in pretty good shape.

We left the park and immediately were on Ford Road going North. It isn't all that long of a stretch, but it is picturesque in several spots. This is generally enhanced by good morning light and Fall colors, both of which were happening on this day.

Josh coming up on the intersection of Ford Road and Mt. Vernon Road. He forgot his helmet, so don't "@" me!

Ford Road looking North from the intersection with Mt. Vernon Road.

The thing about these camera nerds is that they stop. A lot! "Hey! Can I get you to ride toward me here?", or "Stand still here and act natural.", as the photographer sticks a $10,000.00 camera rig three inches from your face. "Yeah, no problem! I always have a camera pointed RIGHT AT MY HEAD!" I'm used to it, ya know? Ha ha! 

Josh riding up out of the Ford Road Access.

It was a glorious Fall morning.

We explored a bit of the Ford Road Access to the Washington Access fire road. We didn't go all the way to the Washington Access trail, but I was surprised to find that this trail had been cleared and was very rideable. It wasn't always so. I was out this way a couple of times, once in 2008 and another time six years later, and the Ford Road Access trail was impassable by bike and nearly so on foot. It's good to see it back in ship-shape again. 

I had forgotten that there is a pretty steep climb up from the flood plain to the road on the Ford Road Access. Josh had me ride down it a bit so he could photograph me climbing up. (This modeling gig! I tell ya! What these photogs put us through! Ha ha!) 

After a couple hours we were finished. It was great to get out early and ride some, despite all the stops and sessioning. Good to see Ford Road again and that the access trail is open. I need to get out that way again soon.

Country Views: Barns For Jason Live

Escape Route: Moline Road

Well, if you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you probably are familiar with the "Barns For Jason" thing I do whenever I see a barn on a ride I have not documented before. Maybe those posts are fewer and further between these days, but that's because I've ridden every gravel and dirt road in Black Hawk County. So, I've imaged every barn on those roads. I usually have to travel by bicycle outside of Black Hawk County to get any "new" material. 

Anyway, that whole theme was named after Jason Boucher, formerly of Salsa Cycles/QBP and now the proprietor of Iceworm MFG. We used to have a "barn imaging" contest years ago, and, well.....I still carry that tradition on. 

So, the other day Jason got a hold of me, we tentatively planned for him to drive three+ hours to see me and ride bicycles. Now, you never know about things, so I was hopeful it would actually happen. It has been since 2018 that I have seen Jason, so it has been a while. 

Well, he made it despite being delayed by a serious accident near where he lived that blocked traffic. (He was not involved in it) He arrived at about 9:40am, and we got out to the gravel by around 10:00am. I had a route plan to show Jason some of the highlights of our area in the country, most of which are North of Waterloo.

I was honored to be able to turn pedals with Jason after so many years.

Jason brought a brand new custom flat bar gravel/light MTB design he had made by a local to the Twin Cities  Sacremento California area builder. Jason mentioned that hardly anyone had seen it yet, so I won't say a whole lot here, he may want to do that on his own. Suffice it to say that it was pretty darn cool.

Although the skies looked threatening during our entire ride, it was rather dry and windy from the West-Southwest.

The corn harvest has started in earnest. There was lots of traffic on the gravel this day.

The corn has completely dried out and the farmers are wasting no time in getting it out now. I suspect, barring any rain, that most fields will be cleared out in a week, week and a half. It will be a stark contrast to what it looks like out there now. 

Someone has decorated the windows at the Bennington School house.

A random maple has already turned color here on Schenk Road.

I routed the ride past many of the country highlights North of Waterloo. We went by the Big Rock, we passed by the Methodist church at the corner of Mt. Vernon Road and Sage Road, and we stopped at the Bennington School #4 to look around some. Then I took Jason over to Schenk Road because it has a bunch of cool barns off of it between Bennington and Marquise Roads. 

Corn harvesting on the Schmidt farm on Marquise Road

Coming into the old edges of the Big Wood on Marquise Road

Jason and I had a really great time together and we discussed a myriad of things over the course of about a two hour ride. It was really good to catch up with him and hear about what has been going on in his life over the past five years and more. 

Image by Jason Boucher. Look closely and you can see the driver waving back at me!

 It isn't often that I get to post an image of myself riding since, well......most often I am riding solo! But Jason is a huge camera nerd and, like myself, is not shy about whipping out his camera while riding to snap an image. Here he caught me as I was passing by a pick-up truck right after I waved at them. A friendly wave back can be seen if you look closely. 

This explains why my left knee is bent inward here. I do that to stabilize the bike if I take a hand off the handlebar to do something like wave to a passing motorist. You can see my right hand just about to return to the handle bar here. The gravel was kind of chunky and loose here, which cameras have a hard time depicting, but trust me- it was a bit tricky to wave!

Thanks for this image Jason! 

Another corn field almost finished up.

I think Jason found the old East Janesville Church a good place for some shots of his new bike.

There was wind on this ride, but it wasn't terrible. The weird thing was that we felt that the heat coming up off the road while the wind felt somewhat cooler. Maybe all that heat energy which got baked into the ground over that period of very hot weather was to blame? Maybe it was just the Sun's energy from that moment being reflected off the white rock road? 

A combine in a field East of Burton Avenue.

There is a semi-tractor trailer rig in that dust cloud.

Once again, we were having to have our heads on a swivel to make sure we weren't being overtaken by a vehicle and we were being passed going the other way by several vehicles along our route. This is a very unusual thing to have happen on these roads, unless it is planting or harvesting season. 

Jason got to see a lot of barns on this ride! There was not one here though!

"See here, Vulture! We aren't dead yet!

We made it back to Waterloo and Jason's car after a little over two hours. Then we went out to eat and we had a great conversation over some Mexican food. But then it was time to part ways. Jason dropped me off at my home and he made his way back to the Twin Cities. 

It was one of those dream-like rides that was so much fun and so much was packed into a short time that you feel like it didn't really happen. Much too short a time which only leaves one wanting more. I guess that's how it goes when the company is excellent and the roads are great. 

Until next time, Jason.....

The "Boucher Route" Cabling Method Explained

My cabling routing I use which was learned from Jason Boucher

Earlier this week I received a comment from a reader asking if I might explain what the "Boucher Route" was which I used on my new Singular Cycles Mk3 Gryphon build. This post will help explain not only what that routing is, but the name behind it, and why I use that name for this technique. 

History: When I went to visit Quality Bicycle Products in late 2008 to see and ride the then new Salsa Cycles Fargo, I was invited to tag along with Jason Boucher, who was then the brand manager for Salsa Cycles. 

As we prepared the bikes at Jason's home for the Fargo ride the following day, Jason taught me a new-to-me cabling method for external routing of a geared drop bar bike that was elegant and kept the head tube from being rubbed by cable housing. I found the idea so worth using that I associated it with Jason Boucher and ever since I have called this method of cabling a drop bar bike "The Boucher Route". 

Now, Jason would be the first to tell you that this is not his idea or invention, and that is true. However; this is what I am calling it, and have been calling it for over ten years, so there! Ha! It is what it is....

Besides, I wanted to honor Jason for his friendship and early advocacy of my efforts in reviewing product and events production. These days Jason has moved on from the bicycle business to doing his own line of camera bags. Check those out HERE. 

My old "Fat Fargo" from 2015 using the "Boucher Route" cabling method.

 Explainer: Okay, so let's dig into what is going on here. I've done the "Boucher Route" on nearly every geared, disc brake drop bar bike I have owned since 2008, but this "Fat Fargo" example from 2015 is a great example since I employed two different shifters on the same bike. Note: this routing only works in its entirety for disc brake drop bar bikes. Cantilever brake bikes will require different front brake cable routing than this example does.

#1: This is the route for the rear shifting which you would use with an external cable housing run for most earlier Shimano STI levers up to about 2010-ish when Shimano started routing the cables under the bar tape. Note that instead of having the right side cable go to the right side cable stop, it goes to the left. The example here is showing a Gevenalle shifter set up.

#2: Here you see the route for the left shifter, which in this case is a bar-end shifter, but the routing would exit the bar tape in a similar manner for STI/SRAM under-the-bar-tape shifting as well. The left side shifter cable housing goes to the right side of the bike.

#3: The brakes. Note that the brake cable route for the left/front goes behind the head tube and fork from the right. So, you do not go from the left brake and try to make a tight curve down toward the left fork leg here, On steel frames you have the option of cable tying the housing to the center hole on the fork crown, but you do not have to do this in every case. The rear/right side brake cable housing goes to the down tube cable mounts from the left side of the head tube. 

Benefits: The "Boucher Route" keeps the gentle curves which cause less cable friction and also it keeps the cable housings bowed outwards from the head tube in a better way. This causes less paint damage due to its keeping the housings from contacting the paint on the head tube unless you turn the bars enough that the cable housings eventually contact the frame at the head tube.  

Cons: The "Boucher Route" can cause really long runs of cable for the derailleurs and rear brake. I've had to use tandem cables many times, longer housings, and those are more expensive, Also- It won't work on every bike. Typically I have found this is a great idea for steel and titanium bikes. However, many carbon bikes and lots of aluminum bikes won't benefit from this, or they have internal cable routing, or no cables because you have hoses and wireless shifting.

I hope that explains the "Boucher Route", its history, and how it might be a benefit to you. Got any more questions? You know what to do! 

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

The "Boucher Route" Cabling Method Explained

My cabling routing I use which was learned from Jason Boucher

Earlier this week I received a comment from a reader asking if I might explain what the "Boucher Route" was which I used on my new Singular Cycles Mk3 Gryphon build. This post will help explain not only what that routing is, but the name behind it, and why I use that name for this technique. 

History: When I went to visit Quality Bicycle Products in late 2008 to see and ride the then new Salsa Cycles Fargo, I was invited to tag along with Jason Boucher, who was then the brand manager for Salsa Cycles. 

As we prepared the bikes at Jason's home for the Fargo ride the following day, Jason taught me a new-to-me cabling method for external routing of a geared drop bar bike that was elegant and kept the head tube from being rubbed by cable housing. I found the idea so worth using that I associated it with Jason Boucher and ever since I have called this method of cabling a drop bar bike "The Boucher Route". 

Now, Jason would be the first to tell you that this is not his idea or invention, and that is true. However; this is what I am calling it, and have been calling it for over ten years, so there! Ha! It is what it is....

Besides, I wanted to honor Jason for his friendship and early advocacy of my efforts in reviewing product and events production. These days Jason has moved on from the bicycle business to doing his own line of camera bags. Check those out HERE. 

My old "Fat Fargo" from 2015 using the "Boucher Route" cabling method.

 Explainer: Okay, so let's dig into what is going on here. I've done the "Boucher Route" on nearly every geared, disc brake drop bar bike I have owned since 2008, but this "Fat Fargo" example from 2015 is a great example since I employed two different shifters on the same bike. Note: this routing only works in its entirety for disc brake drop bar bikes. Cantilever brake bikes will require different front brake cable routing than this example does.

#1: This is the route for the rear shifting which you would use with an external cable housing run for most earlier Shimano STI levers up to about 2010-ish when Shimano started routing the cables under the bar tape. Note that instead of having the right side cable go to the right side cable stop, it goes to the left. The example here is showing a Gevenalle shifter set up.

#2: Here you see the route for the left shifter, which in this case is a bar-end shifter, but the routing would exit the bar tape in a similar manner for STI/SRAM under-the-bar-tape shifting as well. The left side shifter cable housing goes to the right side of the bike.

#3: The brakes. Note that the brake cable route for the left/front goes behind the head tube and fork from the right. So, you do not go from the left brake and try to make a tight curve down toward the left fork leg here, On steel frames you have the option of cable tying the housing to the center hole on the fork crown, but you do not have to do this in every case. The rear/right side brake cable housing goes to the down tube cable mounts from the left side of the head tube. 

Benefits: The "Boucher Route" keeps the gentle curves which cause less cable friction and also it keeps the cable housings bowed outwards from the head tube in a better way. This causes less paint damage due to its keeping the housings from contacting the paint on the head tube unless you turn the bars enough that the cable housings eventually contact the frame at the head tube.  

Cons: The "Boucher Route" can cause really long runs of cable for the derailleurs and rear brake. I've had to use tandem cables many times, longer housings, and those are more expensive, Also- It won't work on every bike. Typically I have found this is a great idea for steel and titanium bikes. However, many carbon bikes and lots of aluminum bikes won't benefit from this, or they have internal cable routing, or no cables because you have hoses and wireless shifting.

I hope that explains the "Boucher Route", its history, and how it might be a benefit to you. Got any more questions? You know what to do! 

Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!

The GTDRI Stories: The Third One

 

"The GTDRI Stories" is a series telling the history, untold tales, and showing the sights from the run of Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitationals. This series will run on Sundays. Thanks for reading!

I've noticed over the years that no matter how hard you try not to run fast out of the gate, no matter how much you tell others not to go out too fast, it never seems to work out that way. That's one of my chief memories of this GTDRI's start. maybe I secretly expected some mercy for all those beers consumed the previous evening. Maybe I expected that the others would be in a similar state as I. Whatever.....

The pace was withering, and I was not 100%, probably not even 75%, and I was just hanging on. All the while, Jason Boucher was bemoaning his "lack of fitness", and displaying a strength that spoke of something the opposite of what he was saying. I've no doubt he believed he was out of shape, but apparently his measure of that vague metric was quite a bit different than mine, or other's measure. 

But however you look at this, it was obvious that Jason and Matt Gersib (MG) had the motors to drop us at will. And they were off the front for most of the early morning hours. Now there was a reason for that as MG was plying Jason with many questions about the still secret Fargo dubbed "Black Electrical Tape" and Jason had to make sure all this was out of ear-shot of the rest of us. So, that may account for those two being out front for an extended period.

The morning fog pointed to a humid day ahead.

Michael Beck coming up on Matt Wills in blue and Jeffrey Bonsall on the right.

About ten miles into the day a Level B road that was a tad bit tacky caused us to have to stop and gather up the group.  I was thrilled about that because it gave me a moment of rest and recovery from the the previous night's shenanigans and the torrid early pace of the ride. David Pals was riding a then new Salsa Cycles Casseroll, This was the first year of the model that David was on which had caliper brakes. He was having problems with clay mucking up the caliper and eventually blocking the wheel from turning in the rear. Again, I was granted relief and the group was really good about the delay. 

(L-R) Jeffrey Bonsall, Jason Boucher, Matt Wills, Michael Beck. Clowning around with point and shoots.

The remains of a deer's leg, shot by Jason Boucher. This sparked a theme for the '08 GTDRI.

While we were fooling around, Jason Boucher, who has been a "camera nerd" for longer than I've known him, was off scouring the spot we were stopped at for some image taking opportunity. He found something. It was a gnawed off leg from some poor deer. This sparked a silly conversation and the saying, "It's all about Death!" became the catch-phrase used during the rest of the ride. 

Endless rollers met us in Tama County. Rider: Matt Wills Bike: Soulcraft custom drop bar MTB SS

Rider: David Pals Bike: Salsa Cycles Casseroll.

The riders stuck together well into Traer and one of the early uses of the station there on the East side of the road, just South of the rail road tracks. Interestingly, this place has decayed noticeably since these days described here, but back then, it was a pleasant enough stop. 

The ride then went into the heart of the "Bohemian Alps" of Tama County. These relentless, steep hills were very taxing on this very humid day of riding. This was the longest stretch with no resupply, so I don't recall much of this part. Somehow, even my original reporting on this ride glosses over that section of the ride. It isn't until we get to Garwin, Iowa where I pick up the story with any more detail.

Riders cresting a hill on a Level B Road East of Garwin, Iowa.

This GTDRI was a tough one. Several miles from the finish I had to stop and douse my overheated body with water. David Pals was not far behind me doing the same thing. We were way off the back, but in true "grassroots", gravel grinding fashion, someone came looking for us. It was Matt Wills, and once we had gathered whatever strength we could muster, David, Matt, and I pushed on to the paved road finish and back to Hickory Hills parking lot. 

The previous year we had a bit of socializing and this year of the GTDRI was no different. Out came the beers again and there was a couple of good hours of camaraderie. Jason's family came down and picked him up, and the whole mystery of "Black Electrical Tape" would carry on from this ride until September at Interbike. Meanwhile, a few of us drove over to LaPorte City for pizza. All in all, this was a successful event which eclipsed the previous two, which was a pretty hard thing to do, since those were really awesome rides as well. 

Next: The Impact Of The Third GTDRI

The GTDRI Stories: The Third One

 

"The GTDRI Stories" is a series telling the history, untold tales, and showing the sights from the run of Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitationals. This series will run on Sundays. Thanks for reading!

I've noticed over the years that no matter how hard you try not to run fast out of the gate, no matter how much you tell others not to go out too fast, it never seems to work out that way. That's one of my chief memories of this GTDRI's start. maybe I secretly expected some mercy for all those beers consumed the previous evening. Maybe I expected that the others would be in a similar state as I. Whatever.....

The pace was withering, and I was not 100%, probably not even 75%, and I was just hanging on. All the while, Jason Boucher was bemoaning his "lack of fitness", and displaying a strength that spoke of something the opposite of what he was saying. I've no doubt he believed he was out of shape, but apparently his measure of that vague metric was quite a bit different than mine, or other's measure. 

But however you look at this, it was obvious that Jason and Matt Gersib (MG) had the motors to drop us at will. And they were off the front for most of the early morning hours. Now there was a reason for that as MG was plying Jason with many questions about the still secret Fargo dubbed "Black Electrical Tape" and Jason had to make sure all this was out of ear-shot of the rest of us. So, that may account for those two being out front for an extended period.

The morning fog pointed to a humid day ahead.

Michael Beck coming up on Matt Wills in blue and Jeffrey Bonsall on the right.

About ten miles into the day a Level B road that was a tad bit tacky caused us to have to stop and gather up the group.  I was thrilled about that because it gave me a moment of rest and recovery from the the previous night's shenanigans and the torrid early pace of the ride. David Pals was riding a then new Salsa Cycles Casseroll, This was the first year of the model that David was on which had caliper brakes. He was having problems with clay mucking up the caliper and eventually blocking the wheel from turning in the rear. Again, I was granted relief and the group was really good about the delay. 

(L-R) Jeffrey Bonsall, Jason Boucher, Matt Wills, Michael Beck. Clowning around with point and shoots.

The remains of a deer's leg, shot by Jason Boucher. This sparked a theme for the '08 GTDRI.

While we were fooling around, Jason Boucher, who has been a "camera nerd" for longer than I've known him, was off scouring the spot we were stopped at for some image taking opportunity. He found something. It was a gnawed off leg from some poor deer. This sparked a silly conversation and the saying, "It's all about Death!" became the catch-phrase used during the rest of the ride. 

Endless rollers met us in Tama County. Rider: Matt Wills Bike: Soulcraft custom drop bar MTB SS

Rider: David Pals Bike: Salsa Cycles Casseroll.

The riders stuck together well into Traer and one of the early uses of the station there on the East side of the road, just South of the rail road tracks. Interestingly, this place has decayed noticeably since these days described here, but back then, it was a pleasant enough stop. 

The ride then went into the heart of the "Bohemian Alps" of Tama County. These relentless, steep hills were very taxing on this very humid day of riding. This was the longest stretch with no resupply, so I don't recall much of this part. Somehow, even my original reporting on this ride glosses over that section of the ride. It isn't until we get to Garwin, Iowa where I pick up the story with any more detail.

Riders cresting a hill on a Level B Road East of Garwin, Iowa.

This GTDRI was a tough one. Several miles from the finish I had to stop and douse my overheated body with water. David Pals was not far behind me doing the same thing. We were way off the back, but in true "grassroots", gravel grinding fashion, someone came looking for us. It was Matt Wills, and once we had gathered whatever strength we could muster, David, Matt, and I pushed on to the paved road finish and back to Hickory Hills parking lot. 

The previous year we had a bit of socializing and this year of the GTDRI was no different. Out came the beers again and there was a couple of good hours of camaraderie. Jason's family came down and picked him up, and the whole mystery of "Black Electrical Tape" would carry on from this ride until September at Interbike. Meanwhile, a few of us drove over to LaPorte City for pizza. All in all, this was a successful event which eclipsed the previous two, which was a pretty hard thing to do, since those were really awesome rides as well. 

Next: The Impact Of The Third GTDRI