Trans Iowa V11: A Look At The Rules Part 16

Last year I did a historical overview of each Trans Iowa up to T.I.V9. This year I am going to revisit something that I feel many folks have overlooked for a long time; The "Race Rules".

Last year, (December 28th!), I posted about the "no GPS" thing and Trans Iowa which you can see HERE. 

Now let's take a look at Rule #18, which was the rule Rookies had to scribe down on their entyry post cards this year: 

 18: Have at least a pit crew of 1 to help you if you have problems. The people and sponsors associated with this race will not come get you or be responsible for you! You get ran over by a tractor, that is your problem. You get attacked by a rabid raccoon, that also is your problem. You get recruited to scoop pig poop, yep you guessed it, that is your problem.

Okay, obviously this rule is all about the self-sufficiency part of Trans Iowa. Basically it is saying you have to have a plan because Trans Iowa won't save you if you get in over your head. So........ya know, ya better have a back up plan. I think that part is pretty plain and simple. The thing that I like about the way it is written is that it totally shows where Jeff Kerkove was at when he wrote this rule up in late 2004. 

I mean, "pit crew", right? That's straight out of 24 hour XC/endurance racing. The whole mind set of Mr. Kerkove at the time was all over the 24 hour solo racing thing. Having a "back up" or a "support person", as we would say now, was the furthest thing from his mind because 10 years ago you called it your "pit crew". It is funny how that whole scene has faded away since those days. 

Then there is the quintessential Kerkove humor in the final lines. Trust me- there is no way I would have come up with a line like "get recruited to scoop pig poop". No way. That was the mind of Jeff at its finest circa '04. And with that, we move on.....

Next Week: Phoning it in....

Trans Iowa V11: A Look At The Rules Part 16

Last year I did a historical overview of each Trans Iowa up to T.I.V9. This year I am going to revisit something that I feel many folks have overlooked for a long time; The "Race Rules".

Last year, (December 28th!), I posted about the "no GPS" thing and Trans Iowa which you can see HERE. 

Now let's take a look at Rule #18, which was the rule Rookies had to scribe down on their entyry post cards this year: 

 18: Have at least a pit crew of 1 to help you if you have problems. The people and sponsors associated with this race will not come get you or be responsible for you! You get ran over by a tractor, that is your problem. You get attacked by a rabid raccoon, that also is your problem. You get recruited to scoop pig poop, yep you guessed it, that is your problem.

Okay, obviously this rule is all about the self-sufficiency part of Trans Iowa. Basically it is saying you have to have a plan because Trans Iowa won't save you if you get in over your head. So........ya know, ya better have a back up plan. I think that part is pretty plain and simple. The thing that I like about the way it is written is that it totally shows where Jeff Kerkove was at when he wrote this rule up in late 2004. 

I mean, "pit crew", right? That's straight out of 24 hour XC/endurance racing. The whole mind set of Mr. Kerkove at the time was all over the 24 hour solo racing thing. Having a "back up" or a "support person", as we would say now, was the furthest thing from his mind because 10 years ago you called it your "pit crew". It is funny how that whole scene has faded away since those days. 

Then there is the quintessential Kerkove humor in the final lines. Trust me- there is no way I would have come up with a line like "get recruited to scoop pig poop". No way. That was the mind of Jeff at its finest circa '04. And with that, we move on.....

Next Week: Phoning it in....

Friday News And Views

Welcome to the first Friday News And Views of 2015! If you are new here, you can expect to see this every Friday unless otherwise preempted or noted.

pact bikes "BATTLE CAT' hard tail, long travel project looks pretty cool.

 Okay, so it isn't He-Man:

Here's a trend I think you'll be seeing a lot more of in 2015 and beyond. This is a frame project from the mind of Brant Richards' and part of his newest venture, "pact bikes".  (The home page is "ace" as they might say in Hebden Bridge) Anyway, the thing is basically a titanium, slack head angled, long travel, all-mountain/trail bike that will take on the new "Mid-Fat" wheels based on 27.5"ers and also will handle 29"er wheels with what I would assume would be better mud clearances.

The hard tail, big wheeled rig should prove to be a simple, fun, and very versatile bike that could cover a lot of territory for many folks. "pact bikes" example here will likely make it to the States at some point. I've seen hints that a certain importer is going to stock the frames, at the least. But you'll see this idea creep into other company's lines. I've heard that Trek's new Stache will be a "Mid-Fat" hard tail, and if Trek is doing that, you can bet that others will be jumping on the band wagon as well. It makes a lot of sense when you consider that 29+ just doesn't work for shorter folks and that if you didn't like "Mid-Fat" you could lace up 29"er wheels for these rigs.

Oh......yes- these will have wider hubs on the rear, and I wouldn't be at all surprised to see a wider standard for front wheels too, now that we have 150mm front hubs for fat bikes.

Tires are the next thing, but I do know Panaracer is bringing a Fat B Nimble in a 27.5'er variant and you can bet that Bontrager will be represented on the new Stache, bringing another model or two to the table. (Chupacabra in a fat, 27.5" size?) Sea Otter should be very interesting to watch this year.

GT In The News:

This week marked a couple of things about myself in the media. I mentioned in my "A Look  Forward" post a while back that I was leaving Twenty Nine Inches.com and moving on with RidingGravel.com. The guys at TNI.com wanted to have me write a "goodbye" post, but that felt a little too pompous to me, and I let them know that they could just do what they wanted, if they wanted, for a goodbye post. Well, they did one. They were very kind and gracious, and I wanted to say a public "Thank You" to Grannygear and c_g for that nice send off.

Then I got a phone call on Wednesday from Matt Weibe from "Bicycle Retailer & Industry News". He wanted to talk about my leaving TNI and where, if anywhere, I would be going afterward. Well, they put up a brief story about that after interviewing me which you can see here. I am a bit mixed in my feelings about all the attention. On the one hand, I have expended a huge amount of time and effort into all of this, so to get a little pat on the back and some recognition for those efforts is nice. On the other hand, I am never one to want to let any of that get to my head. Hopefully, that never happens!

If you order before midnight tonight.....

Pirate Cycling League Kit:

Down in Nebraska the gravel cycling scene has been going on for a long, long time. I have visited on several occasions and participated in the "Good Life Gravel Adventure" and "Gravel Worlds" These fine events and more are all done under the auspices of a loosely knit group of folks that have dubbed themselves the "Pirate Cycling League".

As a community of riders, the PCL is a pretty cool bunch and they have survived quite awhile now. A few years back the PCL started selling their own "kit" and then invited anyone of like mind to join in the "crew", as it were. I like these guys, and they have sort of adopted me as one of their own, so I am doing them a solid here by helping to promote their kit order for the coming season. Order the black kit by clicking HERE.  It's quality schtuff, made by Voler, and you can get a selection of jersey styles, shorts/bibs, and accessories like arm warmers and caps.

The PCL doesn't make anything off this, and they aren't in it for the dough either, but they would like to have their folks get the kit and they need a few more to be sold to make minimums. So, check it out. I've supported them for the past two years or so in this and the jerseys are really cool and very well made. Now I have to get my arse down that way to join them in some riding again!

Okay, that's a cold, frigid wrap. Get outside and ride, ski, hike......whatever!

Friday News And Views

Welcome to the first Friday News And Views of 2015! If you are new here, you can expect to see this every Friday unless otherwise preempted or noted.

pact bikes "BATTLE CAT' hard tail, long travel project looks pretty cool.

 Okay, so it isn't He-Man:

Here's a trend I think you'll be seeing a lot more of in 2015 and beyond. This is a frame project from the mind of Brant Richards' and part of his newest venture, "pact bikes".  (The home page is "ace" as they might say in Hebden Bridge) Anyway, the thing is basically a titanium, slack head angled, long travel, all-mountain/trail bike that will take on the new "Mid-Fat" wheels based on 27.5"ers and also will handle 29"er wheels with what I would assume would be better mud clearances.

The hard tail, big wheeled rig should prove to be a simple, fun, and very versatile bike that could cover a lot of territory for many folks. "pact bikes" example here will likely make it to the States at some point. I've seen hints that a certain importer is going to stock the frames, at the least. But you'll see this idea creep into other company's lines. I've heard that Trek's new Stache will be a "Mid-Fat" hard tail, and if Trek is doing that, you can bet that others will be jumping on the band wagon as well. It makes a lot of sense when you consider that 29+ just doesn't work for shorter folks and that if you didn't like "Mid-Fat" you could lace up 29"er wheels for these rigs.

Oh......yes- these will have wider hubs on the rear, and I wouldn't be at all surprised to see a wider standard for front wheels too, now that we have 150mm front hubs for fat bikes.

Tires are the next thing, but I do know Panaracer is bringing a Fat B Nimble in a 27.5'er variant and you can bet that Bontrager will be represented on the new Stache, bringing another model or two to the table. (Chupacabra in a fat, 27.5" size?) Sea Otter should be very interesting to watch this year.

GT In The News:

This week marked a couple of things about myself in the media. I mentioned in my "A Look  Forward" post a while back that I was leaving Twenty Nine Inches.com and moving on with RidingGravel.com. The guys at TNI.com wanted to have me write a "goodbye" post, but that felt a little too pompous to me, and I let them know that they could just do what they wanted, if they wanted, for a goodbye post. Well, they did one. They were very kind and gracious, and I wanted to say a public "Thank You" to Grannygear and c_g for that nice send off.

Then I got a phone call on Wednesday from Matt Weibe from "Bicycle Retailer & Industry News". He wanted to talk about my leaving TNI and where, if anywhere, I would be going afterward. Well, they put up a brief story about that after interviewing me which you can see here. I am a bit mixed in my feelings about all the attention. On the one hand, I have expended a huge amount of time and effort into all of this, so to get a little pat on the back and some recognition for those efforts is nice. On the other hand, I am never one to want to let any of that get to my head. Hopefully, that never happens!

If you order before midnight tonight.....

Pirate Cycling League Kit:

Down in Nebraska the gravel cycling scene has been going on for a long, long time. I have visited on several occasions and participated in the "Good Life Gravel Adventure" and "Gravel Worlds" These fine events and more are all done under the auspices of a loosely knit group of folks that have dubbed themselves the "Pirate Cycling League".

As a community of riders, the PCL is a pretty cool bunch and they have survived quite awhile now. A few years back the PCL started selling their own "kit" and then invited anyone of like mind to join in the "crew", as it were. I like these guys, and they have sort of adopted me as one of their own, so I am doing them a solid here by helping to promote their kit order for the coming season. Order the black kit by clicking HERE.  It's quality schtuff, made by Voler, and you can get a selection of jersey styles, shorts/bibs, and accessories like arm warmers and caps.

The PCL doesn't make anything off this, and they aren't in it for the dough either, but they would like to have their folks get the kit and they need a few more to be sold to make minimums. So, check it out. I've supported them for the past two years or so in this and the jerseys are really cool and very well made. Now I have to get my arse down that way to join them in some riding again!

Okay, that's a cold, frigid wrap. Get outside and ride, ski, hike......whatever!

Fat Bike Tire Musings

Vanhelga on Whiskey #9 rim (L) and Lou on Clownshoe (R)

Today I have a few thoughts on fat bike tires. I mentioned it a bit in yesterday's post, but the Lou tires on 100mm rims are revelatory in my experience. It will be interesting to try out my old Big Fat Larrys on the 100mm Clown Shoe rims at some point too. I'll likely do that this Summer. But the thing is, this combo is so much more capable with the conditions I like to ride in that I cannot see myself going back to 4.0"s or skinnier rims. Not for bushwhacking.

The only thing that is missing from the Lou/Clown Shoe combo is that these tires are not tubeless and the rims are not tubeless designed either. (Yes....split tube, yadda,yadda,yadda.... Read on!) If this sort of set up was designed to be tubeless? Wow! That would rule. Which brings me to............

The Vanhelga and Whiskey #9 carbon rims I built up for a customer at the shop where I work were also a revelatory experience. I have been pretty vocal about Surly/45NRTH's products pricing and lack of tubeless features. While this doesn't do anything but make affordability worse, it does bring tubeless functionality to fat bike riders that actually works well, at least it sets up well tubeless.

I've set up a lot of tubeless tires and the Vanhelga/Whiskey #9 combo is amongst the best I've done. Easy inflation with a floor pump, (and no- I didn't use a Bontrager Charger), but the tires were a bear cat to get on the rims. That's good, but in the field serviceability may be tough. (NOTE: Whiskey does not condone the use of tire levers.) That said, I could do the deed bare handed. albeit it took a lot of hand strength and my paws still ache from the effort. That's a small price to pay for tire bead stability at low pressures though, I'd say.

The Vanhelga tires themselves seem really aggressive in terms of tread design. The size is 3.8-ish on the 70mm wide Whiskey rims, so don't go expecting big flotation characteristics here. The grip should be outstanding though. Maybe if I had a "fat bike as mountain bike" set up, I'd consider these. The Vanhelgas are, at any rate, a good view into what could be for all fat bikers. If this sort of set up could be done on aluminum rims, (less expensive), and in the 4.8" size on 100mm wide rims, I'd be very interested.

Fat Bike Tire Musings

Vanhelga on Whiskey #9 rim (L) and Lou on Clownshoe (R)

Today I have a few thoughts on fat bike tires. I mentioned it a bit in yesterday's post, but the Lou tires on 100mm rims are revelatory in my experience. It will be interesting to try out my old Big Fat Larrys on the 100mm Clown Shoe rims at some point too. I'll likely do that this Summer. But the thing is, this combo is so much more capable with the conditions I like to ride in that I cannot see myself going back to 4.0"s or skinnier rims. Not for bushwhacking.

The only thing that is missing from the Lou/Clown Shoe combo is that these tires are not tubeless and the rims are not tubeless designed either. (Yes....split tube, yadda,yadda,yadda.... Read on!) If this sort of set up was designed to be tubeless? Wow! That would rule. Which brings me to............

The Vanhelga and Whiskey #9 carbon rims I built up for a customer at the shop where I work were also a revelatory experience. I have been pretty vocal about Surly/45NRTH's products pricing and lack of tubeless features. While this doesn't do anything but make affordability worse, it does bring tubeless functionality to fat bike riders that actually works well, at least it sets up well tubeless.

I've set up a lot of tubeless tires and the Vanhelga/Whiskey #9 combo is amongst the best I've done. Easy inflation with a floor pump, (and no- I didn't use a Bontrager Charger), but the tires were a bear cat to get on the rims. That's good, but in the field serviceability may be tough. (NOTE: Whiskey does not condone the use of tire levers.) That said, I could do the deed bare handed. albeit it took a lot of hand strength and my paws still ache from the effort. That's a small price to pay for tire bead stability at low pressures though, I'd say.

The Vanhelga tires themselves seem really aggressive in terms of tread design. The size is 3.8-ish on the 70mm wide Whiskey rims, so don't go expecting big flotation characteristics here. The grip should be outstanding though. Maybe if I had a "fat bike as mountain bike" set up, I'd consider these. The Vanhelgas are, at any rate, a good view into what could be for all fat bikers. If this sort of set up could be done on aluminum rims, (less expensive), and in the 4.8" size on 100mm wide rims, I'd be very interested.

Sub-Zero Commuting Fun

Breaking trail

It looked like about 4 inches when I was shoveling it, but the weatherman says we got about 4.8" of fresh, fluffy snow on Monday evening. Time to bust out the snow Dog v2 and try out those Lou tires on 100mm rims. I had shoveled late Monday evening so I wouldn't be all tuckered out from doing that Tuesday morning. That worked out well, and everything was a go, although it was about -11°F when I left the house. That called for pogies, layers, the goggles, and patience when it came to being a bit restricted in movement.

I started out with the Blackborow DS in "high" range, which was okay at first. However; when I had to break my own trail. I was shown that the low range would probably save my heart rate from going sky high. I figured it was about time to practice my "sub-zero gear change" anyway. What better time than the present? I dismounted and all went rather well until my rear brake caliper kept fouling on the rotor. An extra minute or so there sorting that out, but otherwise a successful change and even with heavy mittens on! Now on to a long stretch of snow covered bike trail.

The Blackborow DS with the big, wide tires and rims is a completely different experience than the Mukluks I have had are. Where the Mukluks seemed to be a chore to keep the front wheel underneath you and tracking straight, the Blackie just meanders a bit maybe, but mostly tracks true and the front tire sticks better as well. I have to really foul up in a turn or with body "english" to have the front tire wash out.

Big ATV pogies look like floppy elephant ears!

Another area that showed me something new and pleasing was on the climb through deeper snow by the water tower on University Avenue. The rear tire was just digging! That Lou has an amazing amount of traction. Coupled with the very stable front end, you are only limited by what your legs and lungs can do. And let me tell you what! My "max heart rate" was achieved there. I had to stop just to get it back together at the top of the hill. So even though I cleaned the tough part, my motor was tapped out at the end of that section!

The final thing that impressed me was the way the Blackborow DS went up, over, and through snow piles. Urban snow hi-jinx will be much more fun on the Blackborow. That short wheel base allows for an easily popped up front, and it also lets you make subtle weight shifts which needed to be much more dramatic on the Mukluks. The end result is that along with the front end, traction, and stability, this bike is a big advancement on what I was running before. I will say that I haven't been beaten yet by the limited gearing, unless you count the water tower hill climb, but that could rear its ugly head at some point. Maybe the big tires with their flotation and the Lou's massive traction will get me out of trouble that way. Hard to tell at this point. I do know that if things tilt upward for too long I'm going to feel the limitations of the stock "low range" gear set up. Then again- maybe I should just "sack up" and get stronger! There is that to consider as well.

Another plus on the sheet for the Blackborow DS. I'll be putting this through more snow rides, hopefully, and after that I will write up my final verdict on this bike.

Sub-Zero Commuting Fun

Breaking trail

It looked like about 4 inches when I was shoveling it, but the weatherman says we got about 4.8" of fresh, fluffy snow on Monday evening. Time to bust out the snow Dog v2 and try out those Lou tires on 100mm rims. I had shoveled late Monday evening so I wouldn't be all tuckered out from doing that Tuesday morning. That worked out well, and everything was a go, although it was about -11°F when I left the house. That called for pogies, layers, the goggles, and patience when it came to being a bit restricted in movement.

I started out with the Blackborow DS in "high" range, which was okay at first. However; when I had to break my own trail. I was shown that the low range would probably save my heart rate from going sky high. I figured it was about time to practice my "sub-zero gear change" anyway. What better time than the present? I dismounted and all went rather well until my rear brake caliper kept fouling on the rotor. An extra minute or so there sorting that out, but otherwise a successful change and even with heavy mittens on! Now on to a long stretch of snow covered bike trail.

The Blackborow DS with the big, wide tires and rims is a completely different experience than the Mukluks I have had are. Where the Mukluks seemed to be a chore to keep the front wheel underneath you and tracking straight, the Blackie just meanders a bit maybe, but mostly tracks true and the front tire sticks better as well. I have to really foul up in a turn or with body "english" to have the front tire wash out.

Big ATV pogies look like floppy elephant ears!

Another area that showed me something new and pleasing was on the climb through deeper snow by the water tower on University Avenue. The rear tire was just digging! That Lou has an amazing amount of traction. Coupled with the very stable front end, you are only limited by what your legs and lungs can do. And let me tell you what! My "max heart rate" was achieved there. I had to stop just to get it back together at the top of the hill. So even though I cleaned the tough part, my motor was tapped out at the end of that section!

The final thing that impressed me was the way the Blackborow DS went up, over, and through snow piles. Urban snow hi-jinx will be much more fun on the Blackborow. That short wheel base allows for an easily popped up front, and it also lets you make subtle weight shifts which needed to be much more dramatic on the Mukluks. The end result is that along with the front end, traction, and stability, this bike is a big advancement on what I was running before. I will say that I haven't been beaten yet by the limited gearing, unless you count the water tower hill climb, but that could rear its ugly head at some point. Maybe the big tires with their flotation and the Lou's massive traction will get me out of trouble that way. Hard to tell at this point. I do know that if things tilt upward for too long I'm going to feel the limitations of the stock "low range" gear set up. Then again- maybe I should just "sack up" and get stronger! There is that to consider as well.

Another plus on the sheet for the Blackborow DS. I'll be putting this through more snow rides, hopefully, and after that I will write up my final verdict on this bike.

The State Of Tubelessness: Here We Go Again

You probably could get this tire to set up tubeless, if......

The other day the tubeless for gravel roads/all roads came up and I researched it a bit. What I found took me right back to 2006-07 and what we were going through as 29"ers became more numerous and tire choices were being tried tubeless on all sorts of rims.

I could close my eyes and recite the enthusiastic reports of successful tubeless conversions and the agony of defeat stories of tubeless failures. They would be nearly identical to the stories I was reading on-line yesterday concerning how tires in the 33mm-42mm range were being tried tubeless. There was an enthusiastic report of a list of tires that "worked set up tubeless" on a certain website. I checked into it, and the claim was that "we've successfully used these tires". Trouble is, one person's success with tubeless conversions of non-tubeless tires is another person's failure story. To wit: The comment section for one of the sites stories was full of folks having various issues and the moderator saying "keep trying! It works, we promise!"

You know what? Promises are one thing coming from some web site. Actual engineered tubeless systems that are reliable are quite another thing. You see, even the website I checked out cautioned that riders should "test their set ups" to ensure they would hold up. You know what? That should never be the case with tubeless recommendations coming from any media or company. You should be able to buy, set up, and ride the same day. I would take any UST system 29"er tire and rim, Bontrager's excellent TLR 29"er system, or maybe a couple of other decent system tire and rim designs, set them up, and ride them with immediate confidence that they would be safe and perform well. Just like you would a tubed tire and rim system.

So, while you may say "such and such" is a set up I've never had any trouble with, or "just do this- Boom!", I can probably also find out from those folks that they had to test a few things out, learned it from someone else who did the testing, and that it works "if"..... That's just it- there should be none of that. Tubeless "works" when it is as easy to do as a tubed set up is to do. Until then, it's just cobbling.

Tubeless fat bike tires are just starting to come around, but mostly it is still garage tinkering.

I'm not saying no one should run their gravel road bike tires tubeless, but I am saying that the responsibility to test and ensure the safety of a set up is on each individual rider unless the set up is manufactured to be tubeless as a tire/rim combo. For a magazine, website, or someone on a web-forum to say that anything is "guaranteed to work" or "it will work tubeless- just keep trying" is overly optimistic at best and dangerous at the worst. Especially when you consider failure on a gravel road, miles from the house or car, and especially when speeds can easily eclipse 40mph on sketchy, loose down hills. There are a few systems available now, but most set ups are just a crap shoot and only work "if you do certain things in a certain way with specific materials". (Even then it isn't a slam dunk you will be successful.) Most are much more fiddly and complex than simple tubed set ups. Most cannot handle higher pressures that gravel road riders would want to run.

For now, the State Of Tubelessness in regard to gravel road set ups is not a very good one. I will be waiting on a true, versatile system to be introduced myself. Until then, I see no problem with experimenting if that's your bag. Be cautiously enthusiastic, and be careful what you recommend. Failure on the gravel is not an option.

The State Of Tubelessness: Here We Go Again

You probably could get this tire to set up tubeless, if......

The other day the tubeless for gravel roads/all roads came up and I researched it a bit. What I found took me right back to 2006-07 and what we were going through as 29"ers became more numerous and tire choices were being tried tubeless on all sorts of rims.

I could close my eyes and recite the enthusiastic reports of successful tubeless conversions and the agony of defeat stories of tubeless failures. They would be nearly identical to the stories I was reading on-line yesterday concerning how tires in the 33mm-42mm range were being tried tubeless. There was an enthusiastic report of a list of tires that "worked set up tubeless" on a certain website. I checked into it, and the claim was that "we've successfully used these tires". Trouble is, one person's success with tubeless conversions of non-tubeless tires is another person's failure story. To wit: The comment section for one of the sites stories was full of folks having various issues and the moderator saying "keep trying! It works, we promise!"

You know what? Promises are one thing coming from some web site. Actual engineered tubeless systems that are reliable are quite another thing. You see, even the website I checked out cautioned that riders should "test their set ups" to ensure they would hold up. You know what? That should never be the case with tubeless recommendations coming from any media or company. You should be able to buy, set up, and ride the same day. I would take any UST system 29"er tire and rim, Bontrager's excellent TLR 29"er system, or maybe a couple of other decent system tire and rim designs, set them up, and ride them with immediate confidence that they would be safe and perform well. Just like you would a tubed tire and rim system.

So, while you may say "such and such" is a set up I've never had any trouble with, or "just do this- Boom!", I can probably also find out from those folks that they had to test a few things out, learned it from someone else who did the testing, and that it works "if"..... That's just it- there should be none of that. Tubeless "works" when it is as easy to do as a tubed set up is to do. Until then, it's just cobbling.

Tubeless fat bike tires are just starting to come around, but mostly it is still garage tinkering.

I'm not saying no one should run their gravel road bike tires tubeless, but I am saying that the responsibility to test and ensure the safety of a set up is on each individual rider unless the set up is manufactured to be tubeless as a tire/rim combo. For a magazine, website, or someone on a web-forum to say that anything is "guaranteed to work" or "it will work tubeless- just keep trying" is overly optimistic at best and dangerous at the worst. Especially when you consider failure on a gravel road, miles from the house or car, and especially when speeds can easily eclipse 40mph on sketchy, loose down hills. There are a few systems available now, but most set ups are just a crap shoot and only work "if you do certain things in a certain way with specific materials". (Even then it isn't a slam dunk you will be successful.) Most are much more fiddly and complex than simple tubed set ups. Most cannot handle higher pressures that gravel road riders would want to run.

For now, the State Of Tubelessness in regard to gravel road set ups is not a very good one. I will be waiting on a true, versatile system to be introduced myself. Until then, I see no problem with experimenting if that's your bag. Be cautiously enthusiastic, and be careful what you recommend. Failure on the gravel is not an option.

Speeding To The Sunset

Not too late!

I had been not feeling so great for a while but Sunday dawned and I felt a lot better. Not 100%, but a lot better. No headache, no leg pain, and I seemed to be a lot more "normal" than not. I noticed it snowed a couple inches over night, and driving to the church gig was a bit sketchy due to the fresh powder on the roadways. However; you can accomplish amazing things in a two wheel drive truck by using judicious throttle control, at least I have found that to be the case!

I thought it might be fun to hit up some Green Belt snow when I got back and after I had eaten some lunch, but several things kind of got in the way of that before my "window of opportunity" opened up. When it did, I noticed that the Sun was lowering in the Western sky and I could possibly get to the lake and grab a good Sunset image if I hurried. Boots, layers, inner liners, hats, coat, lights, and what not make getting out the door quickly an interesting proposition, so I did not know if I would have enough time to get there before the good light was gone.

I think I did okay. 

The crunch of the Lou tires was an uncommonly heard note this Winter, but I welcomed it all the same. Interestingly, it is very apparent that the Lou gives you lots of traction at the expense of rolling resistance. Those lugs really dig in! I was still in the "high range" and riding the Snow Dog v2, so it made for some good work for the legs and lungs. I motored up the dike and stood on the pedals. It felt good, so I kept on the gas all the way out to the lake.

That was a good decision as far as staying warm as well, since the air temperature was something close to 0°F and the wind was blowing right at me, making it even colder. I dove down into the woods off the dike and got out of the direct line of the wind and that helped keep me from getting too frozen. Obviously, I made it to where I wanted to be before Sunset. I snapped a few images, then sped off toward home.

I felt pretty good afterward, so maybe the sickness is gone? Let's hope so! We're supposed to get a bunch of snow late today into tomorrow. Bitter cold temperatures too, but that'll maybe just make slogging through the snow that much more fun.

Speeding To The Sunset

Not too late!

I had been not feeling so great for a while but Sunday dawned and I felt a lot better. Not 100%, but a lot better. No headache, no leg pain, and I seemed to be a lot more "normal" than not. I noticed it snowed a couple inches over night, and driving to the church gig was a bit sketchy due to the fresh powder on the roadways. However; you can accomplish amazing things in a two wheel drive truck by using judicious throttle control, at least I have found that to be the case!

I thought it might be fun to hit up some Green Belt snow when I got back and after I had eaten some lunch, but several things kind of got in the way of that before my "window of opportunity" opened up. When it did, I noticed that the Sun was lowering in the Western sky and I could possibly get to the lake and grab a good Sunset image if I hurried. Boots, layers, inner liners, hats, coat, lights, and what not make getting out the door quickly an interesting proposition, so I did not know if I would have enough time to get there before the good light was gone.

I think I did okay. 

The crunch of the Lou tires was an uncommonly heard note this Winter, but I welcomed it all the same. Interestingly, it is very apparent that the Lou gives you lots of traction at the expense of rolling resistance. Those lugs really dig in! I was still in the "high range" and riding the Snow Dog v2, so it made for some good work for the legs and lungs. I motored up the dike and stood on the pedals. It felt good, so I kept on the gas all the way out to the lake.

That was a good decision as far as staying warm as well, since the air temperature was something close to 0°F and the wind was blowing right at me, making it even colder. I dove down into the woods off the dike and got out of the direct line of the wind and that helped keep me from getting too frozen. Obviously, I made it to where I wanted to be before Sunset. I snapped a few images, then sped off toward home.

I felt pretty good afterward, so maybe the sickness is gone? Let's hope so! We're supposed to get a bunch of snow late today into tomorrow. Bitter cold temperatures too, but that'll maybe just make slogging through the snow that much more fun.

Trans Iowa V11: A Special Note On Who Is In & Who Is Out

Not on the roster? You don't get any of these then.

Let's see now.......I've been at this for a decade now, yet it never fails- someone comes out of the woodwork and blows my mind with some question or another. If there is one take away I get from having been involved with this event, it is this- Don't ever assume you've seen or heard it all before. 

The latest in the litany of "face palm" inducing notes comes from a certain person that e-mailed me wanting to know if they could get on a waiting list, and if that wasn't possible, and I quote- 

" Assuming I cannot get into the race, would it be okay to ride the course with the racers? Like I said, I really could use the training" 

Short Answer: No.

Long Answer: See, this just doesn't work on a few levels for Trans Iowa. First of all, if some people have to follow a protocol to get one of the very limited number of entries into the event, then so does anyone that wants to get into Trans Iowa. I don't care if you are the World Champion of Whatever, a "super cool-bro" frame builder, an industry wonk, or some gal putting in miles to do a big event later in the year. I don't care about any of that. What matters is being as fair as I can with the protocols I have implemented over the years. You missed getting in on the roster when Registration was run in November? Too bad. Try again next time, if there is a next time.

Then there is this- If I were to let this individual in and let them "ride the course with the racers", why shouldn't I just let anyone that wants to do that? Other than the obvious, one should consider the chaos and issues that might arise from having folks with no idea of what is going on with Trans Iowa just ride along with the ones that do know what is going on. For one thing, you wouldn't have cue sheets to follow. Take into consideration that anyone who aids or abets a non-registered rider to "just ride along" will become a DQ. So, you want to risk others standing in the event to "just ride along with the racers"? That would be rather selfish if that would be the case.

Then there is the very real possibility that you would get stranded alone and without a cue sheet to follow the route. In Iowa's myriad grid of gravel, I would wish you the best of luck navigating your way out of that maze. More likely you would be pounding on a local farmer's door asking for assistance, or be like the cheeky gal in T.I.V5 and find yourself 70 miles off course, or worse than that, in big trouble physically or mechanically with no assistance.

So- no. Please do not bother to come to Grinnell if your name is not on This Roster this coming April.

Trans Iowa V11: A Special Note On Who Is In & Who Is Out

Not on the roster? You don't get any of these then.

Let's see now.......I've been at this for a decade now, yet it never fails- someone comes out of the woodwork and blows my mind with some question or another. If there is one take away I get from having been involved with this event, it is this- Don't ever assume you've seen or heard it all before. 

The latest in the litany of "face palm" inducing notes comes from a certain person that e-mailed me wanting to know if they could get on a waiting list, and if that wasn't possible, and I quote- 

" Assuming I cannot get into the race, would it be okay to ride the course with the racers? Like I said, I really could use the training" 

Short Answer: No.

Long Answer: See, this just doesn't work on a few levels for Trans Iowa. First of all, if some people have to follow a protocol to get one of the very limited number of entries into the event, then so does anyone that wants to get into Trans Iowa. I don't care if you are the World Champion of Whatever, a "super cool-bro" frame builder, an industry wonk, or some gal putting in miles to do a big event later in the year. I don't care about any of that. What matters is being as fair as I can with the protocols I have implemented over the years. You missed getting in on the roster when Registration was run in November? Too bad. Try again next time, if there is a next time.

Then there is this- If I were to let this individual in and let them "ride the course with the racers", why shouldn't I just let anyone that wants to do that? Other than the obvious, one should consider the chaos and issues that might arise from having folks with no idea of what is going on with Trans Iowa just ride along with the ones that do know what is going on. For one thing, you wouldn't have cue sheets to follow. Take into consideration that anyone who aids or abets a non-registered rider to "just ride along" will become a DQ. So, you want to risk others standing in the event to "just ride along with the racers"? That would be rather selfish if that would be the case.

Then there is the very real possibility that you would get stranded alone and without a cue sheet to follow the route. In Iowa's myriad grid of gravel, I would wish you the best of luck navigating your way out of that maze. More likely you would be pounding on a local farmer's door asking for assistance, or be like the cheeky gal in T.I.V5 and find yourself 70 miles off course, or worse than that, in big trouble physically or mechanically with no assistance.

So- no. Please do not bother to come to Grinnell if your name is not on This Roster this coming April.

Laying Low

A late day milk run.

This year hasn't started out all that great around here. Seems like we are all suffering from the flu-like symptoms that include a bad headache, stuffiness, and coughing.

There was a great night out Friday evening where we all felt a respite, just in time, so we could celebrate 16 years of marriage for me and Mrs. Guitar Ted. The whole family went to the Brown Bottle in downtown Waterloo and had a nice meal. It was the first time that we had taken the kids out to a "fancier" restaurant and Jacob declared afterward that it was good and that we should go back again soon.

Guess that's the start of a tradition, eh?

Unfortunately yesterday we all woke up feeling really under the weather again. Bah! I slept in until quite late and then I was wandering around the house like a zombie for a few hours after that. Finally got around to a few things about the house, then realized we were out of milk. A perfect opportunity to get out on the bicycles and wander down to the convenience store to "milk the cow" as I like to say.

Other than that we've just been laying low and trying to live through to the other side of this crud we're all dealing with.

Laying Low

A late day milk run.

This year hasn't started out all that great around here. Seems like we are all suffering from the flu-like symptoms that include a bad headache, stuffiness, and coughing.

There was a great night out Friday evening where we all felt a respite, just in time, so we could celebrate 16 years of marriage for me and Mrs. Guitar Ted. The whole family went to the Brown Bottle in downtown Waterloo and had a nice meal. It was the first time that we had taken the kids out to a "fancier" restaurant and Jacob declared afterward that it was good and that we should go back again soon.

Guess that's the start of a tradition, eh?

Unfortunately yesterday we all woke up feeling really under the weather again. Bah! I slept in until quite late and then I was wandering around the house like a zombie for a few hours after that. Finally got around to a few things about the house, then realized we were out of milk. A perfect opportunity to get out on the bicycles and wander down to the convenience store to "milk the cow" as I like to say.

Other than that we've just been laying low and trying to live through to the other side of this crud we're all dealing with.

An Odd One So Far

Never thought I'd be using this bike for commuting in January!

Back around Thanksgiving time in November I thought, "Well, here we go with another long, freezing, snowy Winter!". Last Winter was a record tough one here. It got cold and snowy early and it stayed that way until well into March. I like Winter, but that was so harsh that I wasn't sad to see it go away, and I wasn't too keen on having a repeat performance! Mrs Guitar Ted was advising me to take it easy- that there wasn't anything I could do about it anyway, and wasn't I from Iowa?!! As in- "You should know what to expect this time of year, Fool!" Yes.....she was right. I was overreacting, and then it got warm!

December was unprecedented. So says the local newspaper, which told a story of how this past December tied a record for the least amount of snow recorded for the month. The temperatures on Christmas Day were in the 40's, and I was able to bag a few longer rides on the Tamland. That bike I figured I would squirrel away until Spring was about to unfold was still being ridden in what should have been the dead of Winter! 

A friend asked what I thought of the Blackborow DS I got, and I was thinking that by this time I would have figured out the handling in snow and frozen tracks, but no dice! Besides the very first ride I had on it in November, I haven't been in any snow of significant enough depth to tell you anything about the way it rides in the white stuff. Sure.......I go get what I figure will be my ultimate snow bicycle and it quits snowing! Hold on though.....all is not lost.

I recall that in 2012 I did a beautiful day of driving on completely snow free roads at the end of the first week of January, then Winter showed up! It still could be a brutal, snowy Winter and it could start out any day. In fact, we may get some snow and we are supposed to get really cold again for a few days here soon. Stay tuned......this Winter could straighten out yet!

An Odd One So Far

Never thought I'd be using this bike for commuting in January!

Back around Thanksgiving time in November I thought, "Well, here we go with another long, freezing, snowy Winter!". Last Winter was a record tough one here. It got cold and snowy early and it stayed that way until well into March. I like Winter, but that was so harsh that I wasn't sad to see it go away, and I wasn't too keen on having a repeat performance! Mrs Guitar Ted was advising me to take it easy- that there wasn't anything I could do about it anyway, and wasn't I from Iowa?!! As in- "You should know what to expect this time of year, Fool!" Yes.....she was right. I was overreacting, and then it got warm!

December was unprecedented. So says the local newspaper, which told a story of how this past December tied a record for the least amount of snow recorded for the month. The temperatures on Christmas Day were in the 40's, and I was able to bag a few longer rides on the Tamland. That bike I figured I would squirrel away until Spring was about to unfold was still being ridden in what should have been the dead of Winter! 

A friend asked what I thought of the Blackborow DS I got, and I was thinking that by this time I would have figured out the handling in snow and frozen tracks, but no dice! Besides the very first ride I had on it in November, I haven't been in any snow of significant enough depth to tell you anything about the way it rides in the white stuff. Sure.......I go get what I figure will be my ultimate snow bicycle and it quits snowing! Hold on though.....all is not lost.

I recall that in 2012 I did a beautiful day of driving on completely snow free roads at the end of the first week of January, then Winter showed up! It still could be a brutal, snowy Winter and it could start out any day. In fact, we may get some snow and we are supposed to get really cold again for a few days here soon. Stay tuned......this Winter could straighten out yet!

The No "DS" Ride

New bike "mojo" token was found.

You know, as long as I have been a "bike nerd" it has been kind of an unwritten rule that you (a) ride on News Year's Eve or (b) ride on New Year's Day. I didn't get out of the house at all on Wednesday, since we were all feeling under the weather here. However; I did manage to grind out a ride on New Year's Day, to uphold "traditions". This will keep me in good stead with the "Unwritten Rules Of Engagement For Bike Nerds". (There is no such thing, but you'd think so by following us "bike nerds" around.)

So, I stayed up pretty late on New Year's Eve doing the family deal. The children are old enough now where staying up until midnight is considered "novel" but they can actually hold out that long and stay awake these days. We watched the "Apple Dumpling Gang" and the Wallace & Gromit short, "A Grand Day Out". Then I stayed up a bit longer and toodled around before hitting the hay. That meant a very late start on Thursday- 11:00am or so, actually, and I took my normal lengthy time to get going. I wasn't out on the bike until well into the afternoon.

We're enjoying a brief respite from bitter cold so the temperatures weren't all that bad out for a New Year's Day ride. I have seen temperatures into the 50's on New Year's Day, but more often than not it is bitterly cold. Yesterday it was right around freezing with a stiff Westerly wind. Not bad, but considering the time of year, above average weather for sure.

I decided the theme of the ride would be an easy, steady pace. To spice it up a bit, I decided to ride the Blackborow DS, (or Snow Dog v2), and to not use the lower range gearing. I would keep it in the high range and truly single speed it- a "no DS ride". That really shouldn't be all that hard to do around here, but there were a few observations along the way where I felt dropping into the lower range would have been a good thing. We'll get to that in a bit.....

Not 20 feet from my front door I found a colorful bracelet on the sidewalk. A remnant from the previous evening's festivities, perhaps? Who knew? I took it as a token that my Snow Dog v2 needed a "mojo", and I laced it initially around the right side of the handlebar. What? You've never heard of a handlebar mojo before? Well, it goes way back to the early days of mountain biking when folks would affix all sorts of "talismans" to their handlebars for fun, good luck, or some other superstitious reason. Most commonly dubbed "mojos", the practice seemed to fall out of favor sometime in the 90's. I never really got into it all that much, although over time I have had such things as a silver strand of "temple bells", a plastic rose, and maybe some other oddments on my bars throughout the years. I wouldn't say I was superstitious by any stretch, but I maybe am a bit sentimental and I like doing the odd thing from time to time. The bracelet deal seemed appropriate, seeing as how it was the first found item on a bike ride in 2015, and me without a handlebar mojo on the Snow Dog v2 and all. So there it is.

Cruising around the backwaters of the Cedar River

I decided to not do the Green Belt again. That is an easy route to use, since it is so close to my home, but others are not much further away and I decided to visit a bit of a different stretch along the Cedar River instead. I made my way via city streets and alley ways to Lower Hartman Reserve and the new trails over that way. After a bit, I moved further West and hit the old trail I helped put in back in '97 or so. It was dubbed "John's Trail" back in the day, although I doubt many remember that John Adamson put that in there over what was mostly a deer trail. I helped him out with marking it and added a bit of an "optional" curve down off a ridge and back up again. That being the only noticeable contribution I made to that trail. I always dub that tiny diversion "Mark's Option". But again, nobody cares or even remembers that old stuff. To most, it's just one of the Lower Hartman trails. Which is fine by me, by the way. I just point that out for historical purposes, if anyone would care to know locally.

You can see the rut I put in on that sandy tongue out into the back water here.

Another trail that probably no one realizes the history of is the one that parallels the old Shirey Way closer to the West entrance to Lower Hartman on the North side. It eventually rides up on a ridge that has a bit of exposure to the back water pond before it dumps out onto the old Shirey access road that goes back into the woods. That wasn't rideable until the mid-90's when some of us started clearing out a pretty significant deer trail that the current trail follows the line of. I remember bushwhacking my way through there on an old 26"er before we had it cleared out for use. By 1996 it was fairly well established. For a deer trail, it ain't all that bad.

The old "pond hockey" area and the Lower Hartman observation tower in the distance.

The "no DS ride" went well, actually. I had to time some whoop-de-doos and obstacles a bit more carefully, but I only dabbed twice during the entire ride. I had to make some fancy moves in a couple of spots, but I think given more time to get more fittness on the bike, the old Snow Dog v2 will be fine as a straight up single speed rig around here. I was looking longingly at a few beach cruise opportunities, but I really would have needed the crawling gear for those, so I limited my self to sticking with the plan. I can always come back and crawl those nice looking stretches of sand again later.

The ride was great. The day was a clear, blue bird sky day, and although the winds were stiff, I was out of the main blast down in the woods for the most part. A good ride to kick off the new year on. Now let's see if the ball can be kept rolling.....

The No "DS" Ride

New bike "mojo" token was found.

You know, as long as I have been a "bike nerd" it has been kind of an unwritten rule that you (a) ride on News Year's Eve or (b) ride on New Year's Day. I didn't get out of the house at all on Wednesday, since we were all feeling under the weather here. However; I did manage to grind out a ride on New Year's Day, to uphold "traditions". This will keep me in good stead with the "Unwritten Rules Of Engagement For Bike Nerds". (There is no such thing, but you'd think so by following us "bike nerds" around.)

So, I stayed up pretty late on New Year's Eve doing the family deal. The children are old enough now where staying up until midnight is considered "novel" but they can actually hold out that long and stay awake these days. We watched the "Apple Dumpling Gang" and the Wallace & Gromit short, "A Grand Day Out". Then I stayed up a bit longer and toodled around before hitting the hay. That meant a very late start on Thursday- 11:00am or so, actually, and I took my normal lengthy time to get going. I wasn't out on the bike until well into the afternoon.

We're enjoying a brief respite from bitter cold so the temperatures weren't all that bad out for a New Year's Day ride. I have seen temperatures into the 50's on New Year's Day, but more often than not it is bitterly cold. Yesterday it was right around freezing with a stiff Westerly wind. Not bad, but considering the time of year, above average weather for sure.

I decided the theme of the ride would be an easy, steady pace. To spice it up a bit, I decided to ride the Blackborow DS, (or Snow Dog v2), and to not use the lower range gearing. I would keep it in the high range and truly single speed it- a "no DS ride". That really shouldn't be all that hard to do around here, but there were a few observations along the way where I felt dropping into the lower range would have been a good thing. We'll get to that in a bit.....

Not 20 feet from my front door I found a colorful bracelet on the sidewalk. A remnant from the previous evening's festivities, perhaps? Who knew? I took it as a token that my Snow Dog v2 needed a "mojo", and I laced it initially around the right side of the handlebar. What? You've never heard of a handlebar mojo before? Well, it goes way back to the early days of mountain biking when folks would affix all sorts of "talismans" to their handlebars for fun, good luck, or some other superstitious reason. Most commonly dubbed "mojos", the practice seemed to fall out of favor sometime in the 90's. I never really got into it all that much, although over time I have had such things as a silver strand of "temple bells", a plastic rose, and maybe some other oddments on my bars throughout the years. I wouldn't say I was superstitious by any stretch, but I maybe am a bit sentimental and I like doing the odd thing from time to time. The bracelet deal seemed appropriate, seeing as how it was the first found item on a bike ride in 2015, and me without a handlebar mojo on the Snow Dog v2 and all. So there it is.

Cruising around the backwaters of the Cedar River

I decided to not do the Green Belt again. That is an easy route to use, since it is so close to my home, but others are not much further away and I decided to visit a bit of a different stretch along the Cedar River instead. I made my way via city streets and alley ways to Lower Hartman Reserve and the new trails over that way. After a bit, I moved further West and hit the old trail I helped put in back in '97 or so. It was dubbed "John's Trail" back in the day, although I doubt many remember that John Adamson put that in there over what was mostly a deer trail. I helped him out with marking it and added a bit of an "optional" curve down off a ridge and back up again. That being the only noticeable contribution I made to that trail. I always dub that tiny diversion "Mark's Option". But again, nobody cares or even remembers that old stuff. To most, it's just one of the Lower Hartman trails. Which is fine by me, by the way. I just point that out for historical purposes, if anyone would care to know locally.

You can see the rut I put in on that sandy tongue out into the back water here.

Another trail that probably no one realizes the history of is the one that parallels the old Shirey Way closer to the West entrance to Lower Hartman on the North side. It eventually rides up on a ridge that has a bit of exposure to the back water pond before it dumps out onto the old Shirey access road that goes back into the woods. That wasn't rideable until the mid-90's when some of us started clearing out a pretty significant deer trail that the current trail follows the line of. I remember bushwhacking my way through there on an old 26"er before we had it cleared out for use. By 1996 it was fairly well established. For a deer trail, it ain't all that bad.

The old "pond hockey" area and the Lower Hartman observation tower in the distance.

The "no DS ride" went well, actually. I had to time some whoop-de-doos and obstacles a bit more carefully, but I only dabbed twice during the entire ride. I had to make some fancy moves in a couple of spots, but I think given more time to get more fittness on the bike, the old Snow Dog v2 will be fine as a straight up single speed rig around here. I was looking longingly at a few beach cruise opportunities, but I really would have needed the crawling gear for those, so I limited my self to sticking with the plan. I can always come back and crawl those nice looking stretches of sand again later.

The ride was great. The day was a clear, blue bird sky day, and although the winds were stiff, I was out of the main blast down in the woods for the most part. A good ride to kick off the new year on. Now let's see if the ball can be kept rolling.....

Happy New Year!

Hey ya'all! I want to wish everyone out there that reads Guitar Ted Productions a Happy and Prosperous 2015. I've appreciated each and every one of you spending time out of your day to read my ramblings over the past years.

2015 will be a big year for Guitar Ted Productions as I mark my tenth year of blogging here. Actually, I was introduced to all of this madness by Jeff Kerkove back in 2004 as he was the influence and encouragement to me to get on board with blogging. (So, ya know.......it's all his fault!) Anyway, I've been plugging along here for a while and I will be marking some highlights from the past as the year goes along that stand out for me.

There may be a new look too, as I mark ten years, I think it might be time to refresh the look here. There will be the same banter and maybe even more opinionated ranting, since I have a bit of a different gig going on these days. Whatever happens, I'll try to keep things at a high level here in recognition of how many of you are stopping by and reading on a regular basis, which I feel very responsible for and fortunate to have you coming here. I owe it to all of you.

Thanks and I look forward to 2015 and beyond.

Happy New Year!

Hey ya'all! I want to wish everyone out there that reads Guitar Ted Productions a Happy and Prosperous 2015. I've appreciated each and every one of you spending time out of your day to read my ramblings over the past years.

2015 will be a big year for Guitar Ted Productions as I mark my tenth year of blogging here. Actually, I was introduced to all of this madness by Jeff Kerkove back in 2004 as he was the influence and encouragement to me to get on board with blogging. (So, ya know.......it's all his fault!) Anyway, I've been plugging along here for a while and I will be marking some highlights from the past as the year goes along that stand out for me.

There may be a new look too, as I mark ten years, I think it might be time to refresh the look here. There will be the same banter and maybe even more opinionated ranting, since I have a bit of a different gig going on these days. Whatever happens, I'll try to keep things at a high level here in recognition of how many of you are stopping by and reading on a regular basis, which I feel very responsible for and fortunate to have you coming here. I owe it to all of you.

Thanks and I look forward to 2015 and beyond.