And The Rains Came

 Sunday I awoke to a rainy day, just as it had been when I went to sleep on Saturday evening. This was not very conducive to getting any cycling done. 

I heard some faint music and stepped outside to see who might be playing music loud enough on a Sunday morning that I could hear it inside my own home. I went out and caught the sultry sounds of Albert King's "I'll Play The Blues For You". 

Well, it was kinda early for music that loud, but hey! Good taste and a great selection for the dreary, cold, rainy day. I went back inside and watched it rain through the window with a hot cup of coffee in hand. 

Then I got a text that was from our pastor at the church I attend. They had need for a guitar player on short notice, so I decided I'd go and play. And it continued to rain.... 

It didn't stop until late in the afternoon and by then I had other plans in play. I spent time with my family, and with the time change, it was soon to be dark anyway. So, I had a great deal of gratitude that I had gone out and rode on Friday, because Saturday's are pretty much work, then family time, and well, it started raining Saturday anyway. 

Death of an Apple Watch

I've caught myself taking a quick glance at my bare left wrist a lot lately. That's due to my Apple Watch failure last week. You can see the results of a slight blow to the top here.

I'm not the roughest guy on watches, and this thing outlasted those old FitBits I used to get by a long, long time. Oh yeah, time......

I have to tap my phone to see what time it is now. So annoying! I guess I'll have to dig out one of my old analog watches and see if I can't get one going. That or I have to start looking for another electronic device to slap onto my wrist so I can be Dick Tracy again. (Hit the link if you are too young to know about Mr. Tracy)

Maybe I should get a Garmin watch, or a Coros watch. Not sure. Mrs  Guitar Ted is a huge Apple fan, so the most likely thing that will happen is that I end up with another Apple Watch. We will see. In the meantime, I will be caught taking a glance at my bare left wrist several times in the future. 

Old habits and all.....

Who'll Stop The Rain

Hot delivery

Since the Victory Ride it has been a hodge-podge of weather related issues that has kept me out of the country. Thunderstorms, heat, and flooding. Yes.....flooding. After two years of severe drought we are back to flooding around here again. 

I did a delivery to the Collective again on Thursday when we had 90+ degree temperatures and high humidity. I haven't ridden in that for a while. First time this year, most likely, and it showed. 

I purposefully went slow to minimize the heat build up in my body, which I think I did well enough. The thing was that even with the easing on the pacing (loaded up, mind you, for a good portion of the ride), I still came home zapped by that heat. 

Look, I've drained the tank in hot weather while riding one two many times, times five. Maybe times ten. A LOT of times, okay?! So, heat isn't something I'm good at anymore. Not that I ever was good at that, but now? It's bad. 

Then the thunderstorms have been many and at random enough times that you only get these short, super-humid windows of time to race around the neighborhood to get in some testing or just to blow off some steam. Saturday it was the same. Only adding in tornadoes in the area. Then there is the flooding, and we're just getting started on that here, although compared to Northwestern Iowa, which has already suffered too much as it is now, we've gotten off easy.  

NOAA flood prediction for the Cedar River at Waterloo, Iowa.

We are not going to get slammed, but this will mess up the soft trails for quite some time, and make mosquito factories out of the backwaters in the area. That'll be nice. Anyway, gravel travel usually is not impacted too greatly by this, but there may be some damage out there, and the dirt roads will be gooey for a while. Best to stay off those for a bit until we get a stretch of drier weather. 

I hope to get out there soon to investigate. I bet this humidity has super-charged the corn growth!

Is The Drought Over Yet?

Image courtesy of Channel 7 News Waterloo.

Remember all the writing I've done over the past two years here talking about how dry we have been? Well, I think it is safe to say we are out of the woods in that regard now! 

It has rained a LOT this May and especially in the last few days here. We received around five inches of rain over Monday and Tuesday alone. In fact, the thunderstorms have been so persistent that I haven't had good nights of sleep many times in the past ten days. It's "BOOM!" and lightning flashes, and wind, and..... Keeps a guy awake at night, it does! At least this guy!

On Tuesday the flash flood and "areal flood warnings" were popping off all around us. The road I typically run into town on from the South, Hoff Road, was under water. Prescott Creek must be out of its banks down there. I suppose that road is all torn up. It also got Orange Road where it crosses Prescott Creek as well. That section is closed too. 

I know the farmers hate it when the rains come so heavy right after planting as that can wash out seedlings easily. Hopefully all this new no-till practice where farmers plant straight through last year's trash will help with that. (Right Mr. Dave Pryor?)

At any rate, I think it is safe to say that we are over the worst of the drought of 2022/2023. This mass infusion of moisture should tide us over for quite some time now, or one would hope that would be the case.

Randomonium: Catching Up

 NOTE: Okay folks, if you haven't been around long enough here to know what a "Randomonium" post is, then here is the deal. I ramble, rant, and randomly moan about all things cycling in one, incohesive, bizarre post. "Randomonium", okay?

After a week of event recap it is time to get back on track here at Guitar Ted Productions. Regular blog scheduling will now commence! So, to get up to date here, I have a few tidbits that I thought were interesting that I would share here before getting into current events.

Finish Line FiberLink Sealant: 

I mentioned the new Finish Line sealant in an "FN&V" post a couple of weeks ago. Well, some showed up for testing on RidingGravel.com last week. (Standard Disclaimer) Now I have it installed on a set of wheels and we will see how it goes. Stay tuned for that...

Rainy Daze:

Almost every day in June, July, and half of August was rain-free. Now it decides it is time to play catch-up! Man! Last week we got hammered a few days with rain to the point that neighborhoods in Waterloo were getting flooded. Obviously it has affected the dirt trails and gravel roads here also. The biggest threat to cycling is the lightning. I really do not want to be out with the possibilities for that being as high as they were. I know that Tuesday here I would have gotten hosed had I been out in the country because that storm blew up, (literally and figuratively) in a big hurry. Glad I wasn't out that day, and I could have been, but I was in recovery mode from Gravel Worlds. 

24hrs of Cumming Changes Hands:

In late 2018 it was announced that there would be an event based on Trans Iowa and called "Iowa Wind and Rock". It would join the Spotted Horse and soon to be announced Iowa Gravel Classic as the three events which would fall under the auspices of a group called "Relentless Events". 

Now Relentless Events has 'adopted' the 24hrs of Cumming, an event run for several years by Steve Cannon, the ultra-distance runner/cyclist from Iowa. The 24hrs of Cumming is much like an MTB 24hr event in its format and with regard to its classes. The course can be done solo, in a duo format, by teams, in a relay style, and in 24 or 12 hour formats

 Steve Cannon has stepped aside as the director and now with Relentless Events taking the reins it appears that Adam Blake, who has previously been associated with this event, is taking over as director. From the release posted on the 24hr of Cumming's Facebook page;

"We are looking forward to continuing to offer the 24 Hours of Cumming in a format that everyone has come to expect, and we have some exciting changes planned going forward. We are also happy that Adam Blake’s energy and wit will continue to be part of the 24 HOC experience for everyone to enjoy."

 Questions Over Unfairness In Women's Gravel Racing Arise:

After the kerfuffle arose from the recently run SBT GRVL concerning the practice of men working to pull a woman contender to the front and keep her up front, there have been several media posted articles and athlete discussions on social media about this tactic. Many from the gravel side say it is unfair while those coming from a pro road racing background are now calling for separate women's fields and start times. 

Meanwhile, almost everyone that is not a Pro or Elite racer doesn't care. 

That should be the very first red flag for promoters to notice. Your core audience thinks maybe that stuff is goofy, and they could give a rip about whether you have racers up front or not. So, it would seem that these problems are arising due to an unnecessary part of an event for most people. It's true that many times entry fees are deferred for certain Pros, and obviously concessions to the Pros make racing for others more expensive. Not to mention what amenities have to be provided to cater to that level of athlete. 

Secondly, the purses and prizes- not to mention the intangibles of sponsorship and support outside of the event prizing, are another factor involved here. When it comes to sponsorship and prize money, those pearls are what Pro/Elite racers strive for to support/fund their season. When that sort of stuff is at stake in an event, the tactics and strategies to obtain them, or chances at the sponsorships outside the event, are going to motivate unsavory results. 

My more detailed take on all of this can be read HERE. The only other thing I'll add here is that most of these issues could be solved if promoters/RD's took a stronger stance against the silliness and actually enforced what they say with swift disqualifications without regard to who is the offending party. If, for instance, you, as a male, are told not to 'work for' a female competitor, and you are found doing so? Both the male and female get the DQ. Promoters whine and say this is unenforceable. I say bull dookey! Find ways to do this IF you are inviting those likely to cheat and take unfair advantages to your event. I can think of a few ways I would do this, so if a silly punter in Iowa has some solid ideas, I bet those smarter than I could get the job done. Drones come to mind.... Anyway..... Another idea- Don't cater to the old racing formats you think are 'necessary'. There are creative ways to get competitive racing juices flowing without drawing from Pro Roadie tradition. (Cue sheet nav, timed sections) Or how about this- Take away the money. You cry foul? I say- Almanzo 100! (Which would still be going on had it not been for the unnecessary instability injected into the proceedings by its former  RD) 

Saying "it can't be done" is quitter talk. I do not want to support quitter mindset promoters. It's on the RD's to clean this up, and strong willed, fair minded, action-taking RD's will not have issues with the following: Men letting women draft so women gain an advantage on fellow competitors, litter bugs, course-cutters, supported riders in "unsupported events", or whatever the latest issue-du-jour may be for the Pro/Elite fields. And yes- maybe Pro/Elites need their own events. (See how far down the road that takes you once you get off the backs of ordinary riding folk.)

Gearing Up For Late Year Adventures:

One other thing I did last week was I went through my Ti Muk 2 so it would be good to go for things coming up. Ya know.....like Fall and Winter? It's just around the corner now. 

Of course,  a couple of those things I needed to do were already done. Like getting new sealant in the tires, and putting on that new Answer handle bar. But during the process of putting the bar on I somehow disconnected the rear tail light wire. I looked into that and it turned out to just be a pulled spade connector which was easily repaired. 

I did get a test ride in last Friday and everything worked out great. I only have to tweak the angle of the saddle a bit which had been knocked out of whack last year when I came down wrong on the saddle after slipping off one pedal. Once that gets rectified the Ti Muk 2 will be ready for adventures on gravel, dirt, and snow.

And with that I think I've covered the things that were going on here and most important while mentioning some current events in the gravel scene. Next I have a report on a ride over the weekend, some Trans Iowa Stories news, and regular "FN&V" with some other meanderings coming soon. 

Thanks for reading!

Randomonium: Catching Up

 NOTE: Okay folks, if you haven't been around long enough here to know what a "Randomonium" post is, then here is the deal. I ramble, rant, and randomly moan about all things cycling in one, incohesive, bizarre post. "Randomonium", okay?

After a week of event recap it is time to get back on track here at Guitar Ted Productions. Regular blog scheduling will now commence! So, to get up to date here, I have a few tidbits that I thought were interesting that I would share here before getting into current events.

Finish Line FiberLink Sealant: 

I mentioned the new Finish Line sealant in an "FN&V" post a couple of weeks ago. Well, some showed up for testing on RidingGravel.com last week. (Standard Disclaimer) Now I have it installed on a set of wheels and we will see how it goes. Stay tuned for that...

Rainy Daze:

Almost every day in June, July, and half of August was rain-free. Now it decides it is time to play catch-up! Man! Last week we got hammered a few days with rain to the point that neighborhoods in Waterloo were getting flooded. Obviously it has affected the dirt trails and gravel roads here also. The biggest threat to cycling is the lightning. I really do not want to be out with the possibilities for that being as high as they were. I know that Tuesday here I would have gotten hosed had I been out in the country because that storm blew up, (literally and figuratively) in a big hurry. Glad I wasn't out that day, and I could have been, but I was in recovery mode from Gravel Worlds. 

24hrs of Cumming Changes Hands:

In late 2018 it was announced that there would be an event based on Trans Iowa and called "Iowa Wind and Rock". It would join the Spotted Horse and soon to be announced Iowa Gravel Classic as the three events which would fall under the auspices of a group called "Relentless Events". 

Now Relentless Events has 'adopted' the 24hrs of Cumming, an event run for several years by Steve Cannon, the ultra-distance runner/cyclist from Iowa. The 24hrs of Cumming is much like an MTB 24hr event in its format and with regard to its classes. The course can be done solo, in a duo format, by teams, in a relay style, and in 24 or 12 hour formats

 Steve Cannon has stepped aside as the director and now with Relentless Events taking the reins it appears that Adam Blake, who has previously been associated with this event, is taking over as director. From the release posted on the 24hr of Cumming's Facebook page;

"We are looking forward to continuing to offer the 24 Hours of Cumming in a format that everyone has come to expect, and we have some exciting changes planned going forward. We are also happy that Adam Blake’s energy and wit will continue to be part of the 24 HOC experience for everyone to enjoy."

 Questions Over Unfairness In Women's Gravel Racing Arise:

After the kerfuffle arose from the recently run SBT GRVL concerning the practice of men working to pull a woman contender to the front and keep her up front, there have been several media posted articles and athlete discussions on social media about this tactic. Many from the gravel side say it is unfair while those coming from a pro road racing background are now calling for separate women's fields and start times. 

Meanwhile, almost everyone that is not a Pro or Elite racer doesn't care. 

That should be the very first red flag for promoters to notice. Your core audience thinks maybe that stuff is goofy, and they could give a rip about whether you have racers up front or not. So, it would seem that these problems are arising due to an unnecessary part of an event for most people. It's true that many times entry fees are deferred for certain Pros, and obviously concessions to the Pros make racing for others more expensive. Not to mention what amenities have to be provided to cater to that level of athlete. 

Secondly, the purses and prizes- not to mention the intangibles of sponsorship and support outside of the event prizing, are another factor involved here. When it comes to sponsorship and prize money, those pearls are what Pro/Elite racers strive for to support/fund their season. When that sort of stuff is at stake in an event, the tactics and strategies to obtain them, or chances at the sponsorships outside the event, are going to motivate unsavory results. 

My more detailed take on all of this can be read HERE. The only other thing I'll add here is that most of these issues could be solved if promoters/RD's took a stronger stance against the silliness and actually enforced what they say with swift disqualifications without regard to who is the offending party. If, for instance, you, as a male, are told not to 'work for' a female competitor, and you are found doing so? Both the male and female get the DQ. Promoters whine and say this is unenforceable. I say bull dookey! Find ways to do this IF you are inviting those likely to cheat and take unfair advantages to your event. I can think of a few ways I would do this, so if a silly punter in Iowa has some solid ideas, I bet those smarter than I could get the job done. Drones come to mind.... Anyway..... Another idea- Don't cater to the old racing formats you think are 'necessary'. There are creative ways to get competitive racing juices flowing without drawing from Pro Roadie tradition. (Cue sheet nav, timed sections) Or how about this- Take away the money. You cry foul? I say- Almanzo 100! (Which would still be going on had it not been for the unnecessary instability injected into the proceedings by its former  RD) 

Saying "it can't be done" is quitter talk. I do not want to support quitter mindset promoters. It's on the RD's to clean this up, and strong willed, fair minded, action-taking RD's will not have issues with the following: Men letting women draft so women gain an advantage on fellow competitors, litter bugs, course-cutters, supported riders in "unsupported events", or whatever the latest issue-du-jour may be for the Pro/Elite fields. And yes- maybe Pro/Elites need their own events. (See how far down the road that takes you once you get off the backs of ordinary riding folk.)

Gearing Up For Late Year Adventures:

One other thing I did last week was I went through my Ti Muk 2 so it would be good to go for things coming up. Ya know.....like Fall and Winter? It's just around the corner now. 

Of course,  a couple of those things I needed to do were already done. Like getting new sealant in the tires, and putting on that new Answer handle bar. But during the process of putting the bar on I somehow disconnected the rear tail light wire. I looked into that and it turned out to just be a pulled spade connector which was easily repaired. 

I did get a test ride in last Friday and everything worked out great. I only have to tweak the angle of the saddle a bit which had been knocked out of whack last year when I came down wrong on the saddle after slipping off one pedal. Once that gets rectified the Ti Muk 2 will be ready for adventures on gravel, dirt, and snow.

And with that I think I've covered the things that were going on here and most important while mentioning some current events in the gravel scene. Next I have a report on a ride over the weekend, some Trans Iowa Stories news, and regular "FN&V" with some other meanderings coming soon. 

Thanks for reading!

Country Views: Rain Delay

It started out pretty hot and beautiful out.

I got out Wednesday afternoon with, what I thought was, a good amount of time before it was supposedly going to rain. I figured I had time to at least ride up Burton Avenue, which changes to Killdeer at the county line, and then to Ivanhoe Road and back across Highway 63 to maybe come back on Schenk Road so I could see all the cool old barns.

That was the plan anyway. You know what they say about 'the best laid plans', right? Well, these plans didn't go totally off the rails, but they were merely delayed. I'm going to get this route done but it didn't happen Wednesday. I decided to do this abbreviated ride on the Stormchaser with the 700c X 50mm tires set at just a hair under 30psi. Heavenly ride quality! If I were going to get to keep this demo bike, I would definitely be running big, puffy 700c tires at lowered pressures. Of all the wheels I ran with from 700c X 42mm and 650B X 47mm tires, these 700c X 50mm tires pull what I think is the best out of the Stormchaser.

Hey there! Some color in the ditches other than yellow and green are starting to appear.

Going up! Burton Avenue is a mostly up road going North.

Once I escaped out of town I found the gravel to be fast, with a deeper loose patch here and there. I also felt, for the first time this year, the Sun's energy being reflected off the road. Baking...... My nemesis for getting long rides done is heat. I throttled it back a touch, as riding a single speed on a mostly climbing road in this sort of heat can wither me. Especially after so many months off from this sort of weather.

Spot light on.....

Hmm..... Clouding up as I crossed into Bremer County.

The heat didn't get me after all. In fact, it wasn't bad after a while and I found myself plugging along upward without much issue. But then I noticed it felt cooler, and then, within a few miles of riding, it clouded up significantly. Ah......it'll be okay! That's what I thought. I figured, you know, it would take a few hours for the clouds to build in and then maybe it would start raining, but I'd be home before that.

I got up to Ivanhoe Road, which I found was marked "Ivanhoe Street" at the intersection of Killdeer, and turned East. Hmm.... The wind was up now out of the Southeast. I remarked to myself that it was going to be a bit more of a challenge getting home, but at least it would be mostly down hill, and the part where I was looking forward to turning West on Airline Highway was going to be fast!

As I approached Highway 63 I felt them. Rain drops!

 

Add caption

Dang it! The skies looked pretty heavy at this point and it was all coming up from the Southeast to greet me. Would there be thunder and lightning? I figured I'd better stop once I crossed the highway to assess the situation via my smart phone.

I pulled up my weather app, started the past radar soundings loop, and then.... Nothing, nothing, nothing, BAM! A line of heavy rain pops up outta nowhere and it was lining up to look like a soaker for me. No need to risk getting hit by lightning, and no need to push through a rain, so I texted Mrs. Guitar Ted and rode the paved way into Denver from the North.

The end of this ride wasn't a whole lot of fun.

As I pedaled South I saw two cyclists in the distance heading toward me. Two youngsters, riding cruiser style bikes, heading off into the rain. Ah! Youth! I was reminded of a not-so-nice thing my Dad used to say, but I won't burden any of you with that here. Suffice it to say that it had to do with lack of knowledge.

Anyway, it started raining in earnest as I approached the town, The Casey's convenience store I said I'd meet her at was on the opposite end of town, about a half mile away from the old city, where the four lane bypasses Denver on the South side. I had a ways to go!

I considered waiting it out under a canopy somewhere, but ya know, once you get wet, you cannot get any wetter. I just rode on. Besides, in these socially distanced times, I don't need to have any interactions with someone who is very fearful and thinks this "outsider" is leaving the worst virus ever behind to infect them with somehow or another. Nope! So, I just kept on keeping on, never coming within 20 yards or less of anyone in that village.

It's weird to think this way, but this has become what the situation is now. People are either super-freaked out or don't give a damn and figure you are being stupid. I'm not engaging on that battleground where there will be no winner. Nope! No interactions, no problems. I sat on the very furthest edge of the property, in the misting rain, and waited for my ride.

And when Mrs. Guitar Ted showed up, I racked up the Stormchaser and hopped in for the ride home. I'll be back again to finish that ride off........

Country Views: Rain Delay

It started out pretty hot and beautiful out.

I got out Wednesday afternoon with, what I thought was, a good amount of time before it was supposedly going to rain. I figured I had time to at least ride up Burton Avenue, which changes to Killdeer at the county line, and then to Ivanhoe Road and back across Highway 63 to maybe come back on Schenk Road so I could see all the cool old barns.

That was the plan anyway. You know what they say about 'the best laid plans', right? Well, these plans didn't go totally off the rails, but they were merely delayed. I'm going to get this route done but it didn't happen Wednesday. I decided to do this abbreviated ride on the Stormchaser with the 700c X 50mm tires set at just a hair under 30psi. Heavenly ride quality! If I were going to get to keep this demo bike, I would definitely be running big, puffy 700c tires at lowered pressures. Of all the wheels I ran with from 700c X 42mm and 650B X 47mm tires, these 700c X 50mm tires pull what I think is the best out of the Stormchaser.

Hey there! Some color in the ditches other than yellow and green are starting to appear.

Going up! Burton Avenue is a mostly up road going North.

Once I escaped out of town I found the gravel to be fast, with a deeper loose patch here and there. I also felt, for the first time this year, the Sun's energy being reflected off the road. Baking...... My nemesis for getting long rides done is heat. I throttled it back a touch, as riding a single speed on a mostly climbing road in this sort of heat can wither me. Especially after so many months off from this sort of weather.

Spot light on.....

Hmm..... Clouding up as I crossed into Bremer County.

The heat didn't get me after all. In fact, it wasn't bad after a while and I found myself plugging along upward without much issue. But then I noticed it felt cooler, and then, within a few miles of riding, it clouded up significantly. Ah......it'll be okay! That's what I thought. I figured, you know, it would take a few hours for the clouds to build in and then maybe it would start raining, but I'd be home before that.

I got up to Ivanhoe Road, which I found was marked "Ivanhoe Street" at the intersection of Killdeer, and turned East. Hmm.... The wind was up now out of the Southeast. I remarked to myself that it was going to be a bit more of a challenge getting home, but at least it would be mostly down hill, and the part where I was looking forward to turning West on Airline Highway was going to be fast!

As I approached Highway 63 I felt them. Rain drops!

 

Add caption

Dang it! The skies looked pretty heavy at this point and it was all coming up from the Southeast to greet me. Would there be thunder and lightning? I figured I'd better stop once I crossed the highway to assess the situation via my smart phone.

I pulled up my weather app, started the past radar soundings loop, and then.... Nothing, nothing, nothing, BAM! A line of heavy rain pops up outta nowhere and it was lining up to look like a soaker for me. No need to risk getting hit by lightning, and no need to push through a rain, so I texted Mrs. Guitar Ted and rode the paved way into Denver from the North.

The end of this ride wasn't a whole lot of fun.

As I pedaled South I saw two cyclists in the distance heading toward me. Two youngsters, riding cruiser style bikes, heading off into the rain. Ah! Youth! I was reminded of a not-so-nice thing my Dad used to say, but I won't burden any of you with that here. Suffice it to say that it had to do with lack of knowledge.

Anyway, it started raining in earnest as I approached the town, The Casey's convenience store I said I'd meet her at was on the opposite end of town, about a half mile away from the old city, where the four lane bypasses Denver on the South side. I had a ways to go!

I considered waiting it out under a canopy somewhere, but ya know, once you get wet, you cannot get any wetter. I just rode on. Besides, in these socially distanced times, I don't need to have any interactions with someone who is very fearful and thinks this "outsider" is leaving the worst virus ever behind to infect them with somehow or another. Nope! So, I just kept on keeping on, never coming within 20 yards or less of anyone in that village.

It's weird to think this way, but this has become what the situation is now. People are either super-freaked out or don't give a damn and figure you are being stupid. I'm not engaging on that battleground where there will be no winner. Nope! No interactions, no problems. I sat on the very furthest edge of the property, in the misting rain, and waited for my ride.

And when Mrs. Guitar Ted showed up, I racked up the Stormchaser and hopped in for the ride home. I'll be back again to finish that ride off........

Well, That Was A Typical One!

Not the kind of radar images I like to see, but pretty typical for this time of year.

The weekend was wet and rainy off and on. Most of it, at any rate. It really was pretty typical for Memorial Day Weekend in Iowa. I have no 'weather data' to back this up, but I have my memories, and I seem to recall that it rains more often than not around the end of  May here.

Years ago, long before bicycles changed my life, I used to go fishing on this weekend. We'd leave on Memorial Day for a week. The destination was Northwest of Hayward, Wisconsin to a place called Middle Eau Claire Lake. There were sunny years, but there were a lot of rainy ones as well. It's just what happens around here at the end of May. I remember those times due to that momentous occasion every year which was that fishing trip. Kind of sticks out in my mind a bit. And YES- There are a LOT of 'fish stories'. Anyway.....

So, the Sun had been pretty absent all last week here. I mean- zero Sun. It was as if it were November or something. Then on Saturday, for about four hours, the Sun appeared. That's when I got all those shots on yesterday's post. Then it clouded over, rained again- of course- and as of this writing on Memorial Day, as I sit here, it is cloudy once again, with the threat of rain all day off and on.

I had a big ride planned on Saturday with a friend but we cancelled it Friday evening after weather reports came out showing thunderstorms would be prevalent for most of the morning. Bummer, but at least my little 'mission' to gather images on Saturday afternoon went off without a hitch. I actually was on the Ti Muk 2 as some of what I wanted to short cut across was grassy territory, torn up by construction, or through alleys. The right call was a fat bike.

Looking back toward HWY 63 and the bike path.

At one point I had to traverse a section where there was a ton of shredded under brush resulting in lots of wood chips, debris, and mud. Low geared it through that, and since I had a Rohloff drive train, I did not have any concerns about any of the shredded sticks getting caught in a derailleur. My only worry was potentially driving a stick through a side wall, but I took it slow and easy. Nothing of the sort happened.

NOTE: I just looked outside and the SUN IS SHINING!

Anyway.... Back to the Ti Muk 2. I sometimes wonder what it is about this bike, but after pushing through all that torn up wood, mud, grassy sections, up and down hills, and around to four different cemeteries, I look at my fitness watch and it shows I barely did any work. That's not the first time I've noticed that. I know I exerted myself, and yeah, the Ti Muk 2 is easy to ride, but I find it kind of amazing that if I ride a single speed- any single speed- I can be relaxed and feel good, but the dang techno-watch says I've worked my rear end off. I actually proved that out by riding the singled out BMC Orange Crush #49 Sunday. It's just weird, or the Ti Muk 2 is a magical beast. One or the other.

It's too bad that I don't have power meters, just to see what is going on there. But yeah- just imagine what that would cost! I mean, with all the bicycles I have, there is just no way that is going to be happening. I might be able to draw some real conclusions as to why I'm seeing this on this Apple watch dealio I have on my wrist. Technology.........Pffffft! It's enough to drive ya nuts some days. I'm probably better off just riding and enjoying it, rather than trying to dig into data and never looking up.

But that's pretty typical of these days too, isn't it?

Well, That Was A Typical One!

Not the kind of radar images I like to see, but pretty typical for this time of year.

The weekend was wet and rainy off and on. Most of it, at any rate. It really was pretty typical for Memorial Day Weekend in Iowa. I have no 'weather data' to back this up, but I have my memories, and I seem to recall that it rains more often than not around the end of  May here.

Years ago, long before bicycles changed my life, I used to go fishing on this weekend. We'd leave on Memorial Day for a week. The destination was Northwest of Hayward, Wisconsin to a place called Middle Eau Claire Lake. There were sunny years, but there were a lot of rainy ones as well. It's just what happens around here at the end of May. I remember those times due to that momentous occasion every year which was that fishing trip. Kind of sticks out in my mind a bit. And YES- There are a LOT of 'fish stories'. Anyway.....

So, the Sun had been pretty absent all last week here. I mean- zero Sun. It was as if it were November or something. Then on Saturday, for about four hours, the Sun appeared. That's when I got all those shots on yesterday's post. Then it clouded over, rained again- of course- and as of this writing on Memorial Day, as I sit here, it is cloudy once again, with the threat of rain all day off and on.

I had a big ride planned on Saturday with a friend but we cancelled it Friday evening after weather reports came out showing thunderstorms would be prevalent for most of the morning. Bummer, but at least my little 'mission' to gather images on Saturday afternoon went off without a hitch. I actually was on the Ti Muk 2 as some of what I wanted to short cut across was grassy territory, torn up by construction, or through alleys. The right call was a fat bike.

Looking back toward HWY 63 and the bike path.

At one point I had to traverse a section where there was a ton of shredded under brush resulting in lots of wood chips, debris, and mud. Low geared it through that, and since I had a Rohloff drive train, I did not have any concerns about any of the shredded sticks getting caught in a derailleur. My only worry was potentially driving a stick through a side wall, but I took it slow and easy. Nothing of the sort happened.

NOTE: I just looked outside and the SUN IS SHINING!

Anyway.... Back to the Ti Muk 2. I sometimes wonder what it is about this bike, but after pushing through all that torn up wood, mud, grassy sections, up and down hills, and around to four different cemeteries, I look at my fitness watch and it shows I barely did any work. That's not the first time I've noticed that. I know I exerted myself, and yeah, the Ti Muk 2 is easy to ride, but I find it kind of amazing that if I ride a single speed- any single speed- I can be relaxed and feel good, but the dang techno-watch says I've worked my rear end off. I actually proved that out by riding the singled out BMC Orange Crush #49 Sunday. It's just weird, or the Ti Muk 2 is a magical beast. One or the other.

It's too bad that I don't have power meters, just to see what is going on there. But yeah- just imagine what that would cost! I mean, with all the bicycles I have, there is just no way that is going to be happening. I might be able to draw some real conclusions as to why I'm seeing this on this Apple watch dealio I have on my wrist. Technology.........Pffffft! It's enough to drive ya nuts some days. I'm probably better off just riding and enjoying it, rather than trying to dig into data and never looking up.

But that's pretty typical of these days too, isn't it?

C.O.G. 100 (Not Final) Recon Report

Lots of glum looking skies and dun colored landscapes during recon.

I was going to do a final recon of the C.O.G.100 course over the weekend, but the weather was too nice, and Monday it was supposed to rain. So, I figured, "Why waste a perfectly good riding day on recon when it is supposed to be ugly Monday?" In some ways, I wish I had been all wrong about this. I was right, unfortunately, and boy! Did it ever get ugly!

Rain started in before the Sun got up Monday and it stayed raining all day long. The clouds were low and with the brown vegetation everywhere, it was really quite the depressing scene out in the country.

I headed out around 8:00am and went South toward Grinnell, but I never went to the city proper, choosing instead to contact the course outside of town and then head on toward the "lollipop" section which will bring riders into the convenience store opportunity and back out again. The way I have it figured the course will overlap at one point for about a mile and a half, but it shouldn't be difficult to figure out for riders. By the way, you won't be able to short-cut the course because we will have observers at a point on the lollipop watching you. If you don't go by, you will be DQ'ed. Pretty simple. That way we will know everyone did the prescribed course.

So, anyway, I got around the lollipop part okay, but it was messy! The frost is starting to get drawn up out of the ground now and the rain was starting to make a mire out of the roads but not quite bad enough to impede my progress. It was still sketchy out there though. With about three inches of unfrozen clay on top of a harder surface of frozen, or semi-frozen road, there were times I felt out of control in the truck going 25mph.

Here you can see how the truck was pushing the gravel down into the melted road surface, but I wasn't sinking in.

The county hasn't been idle, by the way. There was a lot of evidence of fresh gravel on the roads, probably laid down over a week ago, by my estimation. Some few patches were fresher than that. With the frost coming up, it will give the roads time to recover from Winter before the end of March and I am betting on lots of fresh gravel by the time the event rolls around.

Due to a bridge reconstruction, this long climb will not be part of the C.O.G.100 after all. 

Of course, by now you've all realized that things did not go totally as planned. We had news of a bridge repair which necessitated a reroute, and that was done weeks ago here without any sight of the course down there. Well, upon laying eyes on it, what was listed as unpaved has been paved. Again ANOTHER reason that event directors and ride promoters ALWAYS should go look at the courses they come up with to verify them. So, I diddled around looking for a quick way around it but I ran into even more pavement. Why do we keep paving things here in Iowa? We can't take care of what we've got paved already. Anyway......

So, instead of wasting a bunch of time trying to figure out a route in worsening road conditions with no map, I decided to come back to G-Ted HQ and redraw the back third of the event. We will have to recon that soon, and then.......maybe......we can wrap this nonsense up and print up some cue sheets!

This steep up will be on course, so prepare your legs and choose an appropriate cog. 

I'll be getting to work here and finalizing things soon. Stay tuned! It's getting to crunch time and opportunities to wrap this up are dwindling. You'll see more on this sooner than later.

C.O.G. 100 (Not Final) Recon Report

Lots of glum looking skies and dun colored landscapes during recon.

I was going to do a final recon of the C.O.G.100 course over the weekend, but the weather was too nice, and Monday it was supposed to rain. So, I figured, "Why waste a perfectly good riding day on recon when it is supposed to be ugly Monday?" In some ways, I wish I had been all wrong about this. I was right, unfortunately, and boy! Did it ever get ugly!

Rain started in before the Sun got up Monday and it stayed raining all day long. The clouds were low and with the brown vegetation everywhere, it was really quite the depressing scene out in the country.

I headed out around 8:00am and went South toward Grinnell, but I never went to the city proper, choosing instead to contact the course outside of town and then head on toward the "lollipop" section which will bring riders into the convenience store opportunity and back out again. The way I have it figured the course will overlap at one point for about a mile and a half, but it shouldn't be difficult to figure out for riders. By the way, you won't be able to short-cut the course because we will have observers at a point on the lollipop watching you. If you don't go by, you will be DQ'ed. Pretty simple. That way we will know everyone did the prescribed course.

So, anyway, I got around the lollipop part okay, but it was messy! The frost is starting to get drawn up out of the ground now and the rain was starting to make a mire out of the roads but not quite bad enough to impede my progress. It was still sketchy out there though. With about three inches of unfrozen clay on top of a harder surface of frozen, or semi-frozen road, there were times I felt out of control in the truck going 25mph.

Here you can see how the truck was pushing the gravel down into the melted road surface, but I wasn't sinking in.

The county hasn't been idle, by the way. There was a lot of evidence of fresh gravel on the roads, probably laid down over a week ago, by my estimation. Some few patches were fresher than that. With the frost coming up, it will give the roads time to recover from Winter before the end of March and I am betting on lots of fresh gravel by the time the event rolls around.

Due to a bridge reconstruction, this long climb will not be part of the C.O.G.100 after all. 

Of course, by now you've all realized that things did not go totally as planned. We had news of a bridge repair which necessitated a reroute, and that was done weeks ago here without any sight of the course down there. Well, upon laying eyes on it, what was listed as unpaved has been paved. Again ANOTHER reason that event directors and ride promoters ALWAYS should go look at the courses they come up with to verify them. So, I diddled around looking for a quick way around it but I ran into even more pavement. Why do we keep paving things here in Iowa? We can't take care of what we've got paved already. Anyway......

So, instead of wasting a bunch of time trying to figure out a route in worsening road conditions with no map, I decided to come back to G-Ted HQ and redraw the back third of the event. We will have to recon that soon, and then.......maybe......we can wrap this nonsense up and print up some cue sheets!

This steep up will be on course, so prepare your legs and choose an appropriate cog. 

I'll be getting to work here and finalizing things soon. Stay tuned! It's getting to crunch time and opportunities to wrap this up are dwindling. You'll see more on this sooner than later.

Rainy Daze

Like this submerged leaf, our bicycle riding dreams are drowning here in Iowa.

I have a co-worker named Joe who was disgusted with the wet weather a while back. He said something to the effect of the following,"Yeah, well the rest of the Fall will probably be like that and we'll be flooded and everything will suck."

I think Joe must be a wizard or something. We got over 2 inches of rain on Tuesday and it rained again on Wednesday too. Mountain bike or off road? fageddaboudit. Not happening anytime soon, that's for sure. Dang it Joe! I wish you weren't right!

Of course, I just started the "Guitar Ted Lube-Off" with the "dry" styled lubes because, well, when I started the idea it had been dry. Ever since then it has been rainy. Great timing!

Maybe it's all my fault........Nah!

It's just weather. It is what it is. And what it is doesn't make for good bicycling weather. So, I have found a couple of other things to keep myself occupied in these trying times. One of those things has been the study of electronics. Not just any ol' electronics, but vacuum tube technology. You know.....guitars need amplifiers, and the best sounding ones are still using vacuum tubes. (British folk call 'em "valves". )

I happen to own three tube amps for guitar and two of them need servicing. So, instead of taking them into the local tech, (whom I haven't had the best of luck with), I am learning how to do this stuff myself. You Tube is a wonderful thing, and there is even a podcast I listen to called "The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons". It's all pretty informative, and I highly recommend the podcast. It's humorous, and Skip doles out recipes, musical artist stories, music listening recommendations, and even family advice.

It's been fun to learn something new, and now I am getting down to getting down here soon. I've got one major piece of equipment to procure yet, and I need to make one other one, and then I'll be off soldering, measuring voltages, and hopefully making my amps sing again.

Stay tuned.......

Rainy Daze

Like this submerged leaf, our bicycle riding dreams are drowning here in Iowa.

I have a co-worker named Joe who was disgusted with the wet weather a while back. He said something to the effect of the following,"Yeah, well the rest of the Fall will probably be like that and we'll be flooded and everything will suck."

I think Joe must be a wizard or something. We got over 2 inches of rain on Tuesday and it rained again on Wednesday too. Mountain bike or off road? fageddaboudit. Not happening anytime soon, that's for sure. Dang it Joe! I wish you weren't right!

Of course, I just started the "Guitar Ted Lube-Off" with the "dry" styled lubes because, well, when I started the idea it had been dry. Ever since then it has been rainy. Great timing!

Maybe it's all my fault........Nah!

It's just weather. It is what it is. And what it is doesn't make for good bicycling weather. So, I have found a couple of other things to keep myself occupied in these trying times. One of those things has been the study of electronics. Not just any ol' electronics, but vacuum tube technology. You know.....guitars need amplifiers, and the best sounding ones are still using vacuum tubes. (British folk call 'em "valves". )

I happen to own three tube amps for guitar and two of them need servicing. So, instead of taking them into the local tech, (whom I haven't had the best of luck with), I am learning how to do this stuff myself. You Tube is a wonderful thing, and there is even a podcast I listen to called "The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons". It's all pretty informative, and I highly recommend the podcast. It's humorous, and Skip doles out recipes, musical artist stories, music listening recommendations, and even family advice.

It's been fun to learn something new, and now I am getting down to getting down here soon. I've got one major piece of equipment to procure yet, and I need to make one other one, and then I'll be off soldering, measuring voltages, and hopefully making my amps sing again.

Stay tuned.......

Friday News And Views

Rain- Lots of it. (Radar image from Thursday morning)

Rain Seeks To Dampen Spirits:

We went a long time in July and most of August without any rain to speak of. The creeks were nearly depleted, and some small ones actually were dried up. The state climatologist was talking about drought conditions just two weeks ago. Now? Ha!

There is a flash flood warning and the rivers are closing in on flood stages again. Feast or famine, it would seem. But the main thing from my perspective is that this raining constantly nonsense is getting on my nerves. I don't like it when I have to drive to work. I don't like it when I have to modify my rides to keep myself from becoming a potential lightning rod.

Today and tomorrow are looking like "more of the same" in terms of thunderstorms, but the good news is that looking ahead it appears that some cooler, drier weather is on tap. Farmers, cyclists, and the general population here will, no doubt, be rejoicing. Well.....maybe the cyclo cross racers will be digging the rain. Hard to say. Otherwise, I am looking forward to some actual Fall weather riding conditions here. Some of my favorite times to ride are in the season of Fall and typically that doesn't last too long.

Cranking up the G-Ted Lube-Off challenge again. These are the contenders.

Guitar Ted "Lube-Off" Challenge Cranks Up Again:

It's been quite some time since I have had a "Lube-Off Challenge" on the blog, but this is going to happen again this Fall here.

"What is a "Lube-Off"", you say? Well, it is where I pit one bicycle chain lube against another and ride them on gravel (mostly) to determine whether they are worth using, actually do the job the lube claims, and ultimately, if I might recommend it. A couple new challengers are in the house currently to see if they measure up, and to see whether either can knock off long time champeen, DuMonde Tech.

To start out here, I have two versions of Muc-Off's C3 Ceramic Chain Lube. A "wet" version and a "dry" version. I'll be starting out with the "dry" version, although, judging from the first subject in today's FN&V, maybe it should be the "wet" lube! Ha! No.......I'll eventually get to the "wet" version when conditions are more favorable for that. Maybe when Winter hits? We'll see.....

The other contender here is Squirt Lube, the wax based chain lube in the water based carrier. I have several sample bottles I need to blow through anyway, so I am throwing this massively popular chain lube into the mix for the Lube-Off as well.

Stay tuned for periodic updates on how this Lube-Off is progressing.

NOTE: Muc-Off sent their lubes to RidingGravel.com for test and review, while Squirt was obtained as a schwag bag items at various versions of Gravel Worlds. I am not being paid, nor bribed to conduct the Lube-Off and any thoughts or opinions are my own. 

The C.O.G. Masters Are Watching You!

C.O.G. 100 Reactions:

Since the C.O.G. 100 announcements earlier this week, (OH! Did you miss THIS? ) , we've heard some folks are saying that they are excited about the second coming of single speed only style gravel grindin'. We're glad that you are excited about the event, although we sometimes worry about your life choices regarding the eschewing of dangly bits. But as long as you are willing to accept the consequences of creaky knees in your elder years, we cannot really say anything other than hurrah! We're happy to see that you are excited about our nutty ideas.

Now that we're all in, N.Y. Roll and I are talking about recon of the new course. Oh......yes! There will be a new course with new hills and challenges. There will be the "token Level B Road", and there will be good times. Maybe we will even cook up something special for this year's event. You never know what will come of our "think tank" sessions. Anyway, recon. Getting back to that now......

N.Y. Roll and I are talking about doing this on our bicycles. Why not? We love riding as much as anybody. Heck, I may even pull out one of my single speed devices to ride this new course on. It will make for good research and we will have a really good idea of what the route will have in store for the C.O.G. 100 posse when it is unleashed upon the gravel come March 28th, 2020. So, tentatively we are looking at doing this in October. Hopefully that works out, since N.Y. Roll is supposedly going out to ride unPaved of the Susquehanna River Valley. I was supposed to be going to that as well, but a situation has arisen which is going to keep me at home. Nothing alarming, but something I need to be around for. Anyway..... I apologize for being cagey on that point. All in due time. Anyway....

Thanks for all the support for our C.O.G. 100 event. N.Y. Roll and I are super stoked and will be coming out with details on the event soon.
 

That's all for this week! get out and ride those bicycles!

Friday News And Views

Rain- Lots of it. (Radar image from Thursday morning)

Rain Seeks To Dampen Spirits:

We went a long time in July and most of August without any rain to speak of. The creeks were nearly depleted, and some small ones actually were dried up. The state climatologist was talking about drought conditions just two weeks ago. Now? Ha!

There is a flash flood warning and the rivers are closing in on flood stages again. Feast or famine, it would seem. But the main thing from my perspective is that this raining constantly nonsense is getting on my nerves. I don't like it when I have to drive to work. I don't like it when I have to modify my rides to keep myself from becoming a potential lightning rod.

Today and tomorrow are looking like "more of the same" in terms of thunderstorms, but the good news is that looking ahead it appears that some cooler, drier weather is on tap. Farmers, cyclists, and the general population here will, no doubt, be rejoicing. Well.....maybe the cyclo cross racers will be digging the rain. Hard to say. Otherwise, I am looking forward to some actual Fall weather riding conditions here. Some of my favorite times to ride are in the season of Fall and typically that doesn't last too long.

Cranking up the G-Ted Lube-Off challenge again. These are the contenders.

Guitar Ted "Lube-Off" Challenge Cranks Up Again:

It's been quite some time since I have had a "Lube-Off Challenge" on the blog, but this is going to happen again this Fall here.

"What is a "Lube-Off"", you say? Well, it is where I pit one bicycle chain lube against another and ride them on gravel (mostly) to determine whether they are worth using, actually do the job the lube claims, and ultimately, if I might recommend it. A couple new challengers are in the house currently to see if they measure up, and to see whether either can knock off long time champeen, DuMonde Tech.

To start out here, I have two versions of Muc-Off's C3 Ceramic Chain Lube. A "wet" version and a "dry" version. I'll be starting out with the "dry" version, although, judging from the first subject in today's FN&V, maybe it should be the "wet" lube! Ha! No.......I'll eventually get to the "wet" version when conditions are more favorable for that. Maybe when Winter hits? We'll see.....

The other contender here is Squirt Lube, the wax based chain lube in the water based carrier. I have several sample bottles I need to blow through anyway, so I am throwing this massively popular chain lube into the mix for the Lube-Off as well.

Stay tuned for periodic updates on how this Lube-Off is progressing.

NOTE: Muc-Off sent their lubes to RidingGravel.com for test and review, while Squirt was obtained as a schwag bag items at various versions of Gravel Worlds. I am not being paid, nor bribed to conduct the Lube-Off and any thoughts or opinions are my own. 

The C.O.G. Masters Are Watching You!

C.O.G. 100 Reactions:

Since the C.O.G. 100 announcements earlier this week, (OH! Did you miss THIS? ) , we've heard some folks are saying that they are excited about the second coming of single speed only style gravel grindin'. We're glad that you are excited about the event, although we sometimes worry about your life choices regarding the eschewing of dangly bits. But as long as you are willing to accept the consequences of creaky knees in your elder years, we cannot really say anything other than hurrah! We're happy to see that you are excited about our nutty ideas.

Now that we're all in, N.Y. Roll and I are talking about recon of the new course. Oh......yes! There will be a new course with new hills and challenges. There will be the "token Level B Road", and there will be good times. Maybe we will even cook up something special for this year's event. You never know what will come of our "think tank" sessions. Anyway, recon. Getting back to that now......

N.Y. Roll and I are talking about doing this on our bicycles. Why not? We love riding as much as anybody. Heck, I may even pull out one of my single speed devices to ride this new course on. It will make for good research and we will have a really good idea of what the route will have in store for the C.O.G. 100 posse when it is unleashed upon the gravel come March 28th, 2020. So, tentatively we are looking at doing this in October. Hopefully that works out, since N.Y. Roll is supposedly going out to ride unPaved of the Susquehanna River Valley. I was supposed to be going to that as well, but a situation has arisen which is going to keep me at home. Nothing alarming, but something I need to be around for. Anyway..... I apologize for being cagey on that point. All in due time. Anyway....

Thanks for all the support for our C.O.G. 100 event. N.Y. Roll and I are super stoked and will be coming out with details on the event soon.
 

That's all for this week! get out and ride those bicycles!