There Is Always Something To Look Forward To

Mountains are an inviting and challenging place to visit. The feeling of being vulnerable to nature brings about a feeling of being alive. Rather than be protected by the technologies of modern society, placing yourself into a way of life regarded by many as foolish gives a sense of strength. Add to that a group of good friends, some Redrum, and a couple cameras and you have a mix for a fantastic time.

37 miles per my gps

The 3D version

Seth and Mike with a brew at Wallowa Lake

Horsing around never gets old

Almost to Glacier Lake. The eyes were treated to much beauty.

Glacier

A campfire somehow mesmerizes one into a calm

My lil' beagle Lucy had to stay warm too! A sleeping bag's bag turned into a dog sleeping bag

Ride the wave out of Glacier Lake

Nothing wakes a guy up like hopping into a cold mountain lake.

Mike, Seth and Sady at Glacier Pass

20+ footer at Mirror Lake

Seth, Mike and I at Mirror Lake

Mike on the way up to Eagle Cap

The view from Eagle Cap! Top notch!

Lucy enjoying the view too

Moccasin Lake

Tree, Daisy, Red

Last Sunday, I earned my first concussion at Moscow Mountain Madness. After multiple rides on the new mountain bike, I decided that going back to my origins and racing would be alright. A little prior to the mid point, my chain decided to break and send me to the ground. Not that I remember exactly what happened, but given that when I came to I had a broken chain, that's got to be what happened. For around 15 minutes, Ted Chauvin walked along the trail with me and I only remember the last little bit of it. He told me that we had walked around one and a half miles, but it seemed more like a few hundred yards. Coming to felt very much so like waking from a dream. As for the title of this blog, I was asked to remember the words tree, daisy, red and then randomly required to recite them after the race. Sure enough, I remembered it waaay too well.

Before downhilling at Brundage on my 30th birthday

Bry, Tim and Jim going through the easy stuff

Me, Jim, Bry and Tim

Hopping a log along the Fischer Creek Trail

Matt Hibbard going over the same log

Me, Jason, Derek and Matt

News And Rambling

September 11th, a group of guys are going to take off on a trip in the Wallowa Mountains and venture through some amazing terrain. Fish will be caught, booze will be consumed, and tales (fibs) of greatness will be told around campfires far from the civilized world.

A few other peaks and lakes will have to be visited as well while we're near by.

Of other news, the State Time Trial went alright. I was satisfied to have posted my first sub 52 minute 40K (24.8 miles) time trial. It was close to 29mph average, but how cool would 30 be?!
Up next, the Bogus Basin Hill Climb. I'm not expecting anything more than a good hard effort and catching up with friends, although I wouldn't turn down a good result.
Outside of that, I just thought that I'd mention that I don't want the summer to end. Fresh fruits and vegetables at their peak can't be beat. Enough sunshine to make a lot of the happy drug, vitamin D. It doesn't take half an hour to put clothes on to go outside. The mountains are venture-able (feel free to use my new word). Rivers are tube-able (I did it again, but it's not patented either). Please, speak with your local congressman about making a new law that winter does not come around but for a select few locations to ski/board at.

Better Pictures Than Results

Nationals was too hot. I melted down and didn't finish well. Some kind of stomach bug got me the Sunday before and felt to be gone by go time, but who knows. Excuses are like A-holes, everyone's got one. Luckily, I produced a 19:29 Thursday night TT (course and personal record since the chip seal was put on in 04) before the fan and the poop met.
Immediately after Nationals, I met up with my Dad and Raina for some backpacking in the Sawtooth Mountains.

A campfire at Redfish Lake

The next morning at the lake

After hiking into Alice Lake, we were treated to this view

Heading from Alice Lake to Toxaway Lake, we saw Twin Lakes from the pass.

Toxaway Lake

Laying down once at a mountain lake and dropping pack is always a good thing.

A Seven Devils And Hiawatha Break

A break from the real world is a great way to keep an even keel. The same ol' same ol' gets old and everyone knows that the spice of life is variety.

Charlene and I met up with my Dad and took off to Echo Lake in the Seven Devils

Echo Lake at sunset after a solid eight or nine mile hike in.

The following day, Triangle Lake lost a few fish, one by hand!

Charlene caught two of the three biggest fish. Thanks for feeding pops and I.

Echo Lake before heading to bed as a few thunder clouds veered away from our camp.

We followed up backpacking with a ride on the Hiawatha Trail. My long lost lil' Sis Tara decided to come back from Kazakhstan for the summer and join us and have a good time.

Many trestles needed crossing and big mountains gazed upon

and a few big tunnels were ventured, including a 1.3 mile behemoth

A fitting end shot.

Elite National Time Trial

What I've been up to lately can be summed up pretty quickly; training hard for Nationals. Approximately five days a week are spent going hard on the time trial bike in preparation for one event. To break down muscle, I do dump loops. To develop the lactate threshold, I do 20 minute efforts on Bogus and Thursday night time trials. To get the endurance and efficiency on the bike, I do Emmett Horseshoe Bend loops. Go and go and go day after day until the heart rate starts to drop at full throttle, then give it an easy day and repeat. In my free time, I cook and work on the bike. Oats cooked with almond butter, honey, cinnamon, and nutmeg for breakfast. Last nights dinner consisted of a big dutch ovens mix of elk burger, a steak, asparagus, radishes, golden yukon potatoes, broccoli, green bell pepper, mushrooms, garlic, turmeric powder and some mole verde with a couple slices of swiss cheese to bulk it up. I go to bed on time and sleep in to whenever I need since I don't have to be to work until two.
I've had the best wheels offered up to me to borrow for the big event as well. A Zipp 808 on the front with the new Zipp Sub-9 disc on the back, both with Tangente tires should do the job.
As for the position on the bike, the seat is pegged right at 5cm behind the bottom bracket and the middle of the shifters are at 78.3cm (requiring the morphological test, which I will pass easily).
None of this will mean that I make the podium, but I sure as hell hope it does!
Current registered athletes

A Thursday night time trial

Juntura Hot Springs... a trip to the desert provided new terrain to train on and an amazing new hot springs to soak!

Next Time It Will Be Me

A couple weeks ago, we drove the Mud Flat Road and then went back into Three Forks of the Owyhee River. When we were at Three Forks, we walked a ways up the North Fork of the Owyhee. Before that, we had crossed it along the drive. A recent marijuana bust was found approximately three miles away from the Oregon border by hikers. Upon a closer look, it turns out that we were extremely close by. That red line right next to the bust is Mud Flat Road. Take a look:

LP 200

The Lyle Pearson 200 put the hurt on my legs last Saturday. I ended up doing 110 miles, 98 of those on the time trial bike. That beat my previous record of 63 miles on the TT bike by one million miles.

It's time to keep kicking on the TT bike! Bogus has been my playground on the TT bike some lately too. Nationals is only six weeks away.
For those of you who didn't know, I've been posting 33hrs a week in a new way lately... at Bob's. So if you need a bike or some parts, come on over and b.s. with me for a while, but not so long that Vern gives me the above look.