Ride and Step Brother Interview
Great Ride in the heat yesterday followed by and encore ride this morning before work which was filled with monster hills up and down. This is my favorite time of year in phoenix where it is nice and cool in the am and hot in the afternoon. I had the pleasure of seeing a tortoise.
I am finally down below 170lbs. It has been a little challenge eating healthy and being on the road 4 days a week but I bring 4-5 meals with me as well as healthy snacks. I am defiantly going to be cruise ready. My goal is 165 or less before the cruise which is at the end of may. Time to enjoy a cup of Japanese green tea and get ready for work.
Gnar and Sun
This morning started with some nerve-racking but fun mountain biking. All was well until I got 2 flats in the first run. Then I was nervous that I was going to make the group wait. Everything in my body was shaking. Not from fear I have done Geronimo a few time and I am getting better and better. It was holding the group up that was screwing with my mind. Lucky for me I had 2 tubes. When I got to the bottom they had not even been waiting long because they were waiting for someone else. The next ride was national to 32nd street. I guess it’s not an official trail but it was great. Steep as shit but not very technical. I decides to call it because my front side wall was in bad shape and I didn’t want to pinch the tube.
After deciding I needed more of a workout I bought a speed stack and went to 24 hour Fitness.
Now I am dead and at the pool working on my tan and practicing relaxing. Erin says I can not relax it be quiet. I’ll have you know I have not opened my mouth for an hour!
Oh and I have to leave you with this, WTF
Original
She will never get laid!
2 Bikes 1 Day
This morning my friend Ryan let me borrow his Ducati monster. Bob and I went on a nice breakfast ride and had breakfast at Cave Creek Coffee Company aka C4. C4 has the best coffee and chorizo breakfast burritos in Phoenix. What an awesome feeling having an Italian machine back between my legs. I can’t wait till I can go back to GOAZ and buy a new motorcycle.
Around 3 o’clock Drew and I got on the Gnar Gnar shuttle at South Mountain and started off riding Geronimo. The 1st ride could have went better. I broke my rear brake lever right at the beginning.
Luck for me there was still enough left to ride. We then moved on to Holbert which is a chunky mess. I did have to walk a few sections but overall it went great. This was very encouraging. We decided to do Geronimo one more time and it went much better. We got to ride with Gene Hamilton from betterride.net. What a pleasure he was a great down to earth guy. No big crashes today. Tomorrow back out on the cross-country trails. I am loving this bike it does everything.
Nice Ride in Scottsdale AZ in the Snow
So I went out to explore a new area in Scottsdale called Brown’s Ranch. It was a muddy sandy mess. First off there are quite a few trails and I was not sure which to ride. I ended up on a lot of dirt bike trails which are normally not exactly what you want to mountain bike on. Basically there was a lot of deep sand. There were however some fun downhills with nice banked corners you could rail. It was a muddy mess but the highlight was that I got to actually ride in the snow for about 15 minutes.
Now that I finally got all the squeaks and creeks out of my bike I am loving it. The suspension is very efficient is doesn’t bounce like a lot of the other bikes I test rode. Also the RockShox Revelation is great. It is so nice to be able change from 120mm to 140 with the flip of a switch.
Back to work tomorrow but going to lift and possibly hit a little swim before I going.
Tom’s Thumb Ride.
2 days ago I went to try to conquer Tom’s Thumb trail again. I was not actually feeling amazing but I wanted to finally climb that mountain. Things were going well and then only about 30 minutes in, my brand new SRAM X9 derailleur came off. I couldn’t believe it the bolt was still screwed on, the derailleur just separated from the casing that the bolt goes into. I was so pissed! first I called my brother to vent and he assured me that SRAM was a good company and would replace it. I was just worried that I would have to carry the bike back to the car. I couldn’t figure out how it went on because now it was all bent up and didn’t fit on correctly. finally I got it on but it obviously wasn’t tight because i just slipped it on over the casing that it separated from. I was able to ride down cautiously. I went to Swiss American Bike shop where they helped me out and said they have never seen this problem before. I really love this shop. They are straight forward with you and honest. They called SRAM and got the part under warranty. What a day and I forgot to take pictures because I was mad. Got to work on this if I am going to be a good blogger.
Mountain Bike Ride and Making Mormon Tea
For my birthday first Erin took me out to an awesome breakfast at The Good Egg. Then Drew, Danny, and I went for a nice bike ride at Pima and Dynamite. The trail is basically up and down with no significant climbs. However it is sandy and that always adds some challenges. A great ride it was. We also pick some Mormon tea and chewed on it.
Now we are going to brew up some Mormon Tea
After the Ride we ended the night with a great pizza from Rare Earth pizza and wine bar.
Niner Rip 9 Review and Drew’s first Phoenix Ride
This bike is amazing. This is a true MAN bike. You can do everything. It climbs and descends. With some full suspension bikes you pay big dividends in climbing but not with the Niner. Niner only makes 29er bike so they have the geometry dialed in. No it’s not carbon but it won’t crack like carbon either. I am so happy I didn’t get the Specialized Stumpjumper. Don’t get me wrong that was a good bike but this is amazing.
It was awesome getting to ride again with my bro. Who would have known he would turn into a great technical rider. Can’t wait to take him to S. mountain. That should be a great welcome to phoenix MF. Actually he will probably be able to teach me a thing or two there.
Ouch
Our Super Bowl party was a successes. I was a bad blogger and forgot to take pictures. We had great food including: Lasagna, sushi, Enchiladas, and dips galore. Did I also mention great beer and other drinks. BTW I really like the new New Belgium beer DIG. It is like an amber and IPA mix.Very Good! I didn’t even get to see most of the second half. Can’t imagine why!
Ouch. My man Dan fell victim to National at South Mountain. We were so close to the end and his front tire lost air and then this. I swore he was going to have broken bones but I guess he has been drinking his milk! I am very excited my new bike is scheduled to be here on Thursday. I hope I don;t have to work on friday. My bro will be here too so we will defiantly be taking it out for a spin.
Today I was a good house husband. I reorganized the laundry closet and mounted the ironing board in there. Now we won’t have to go into my brothers new room to iron.
I even vacuumed the carpets and clean the fish tank and turtle tank.
Treat Williams
Started out having a martini last night and after several assorted adult beverages I woke up this morning feeling like crap. It funny how that happens. I did however manage to get a Mountain Bike ride in before work with my man Dan. Boy was it worth it. I mean I felt like crap and my legs were screaming from my leg workout yesterday but there was some Jesus (hot woman) on the trail. I think we saw the worlds perfect ass today. I wish that I had a nice picture for you but my phone was in my Camelback.
Since I didn’t get a photo here is another wonderful booty.
Tonight on a flight to Salt Lake City I sat in the same row with Treat Williams. Unfortunately I did not know who he was although he looked familiar. What a down to earth nice guy. He is a pilot as well so you know how that goes, had to talk about flying.
I am so tiered so I am going to bed good night.
On Track
I have now been on a strict workout regiment for the last 2 weeks. I have been very consistent. I have been lifting 3-4 times a week and doing cardio on most of the other days. When I am at home in Phoenix I generally either run or go mountain biking with the occasional road bike ride. I find doing cardio at the gym extremely boring and only do it as a last resort. My wife OperationMeltdown has been finding a lot of new healthy meal ideas on the internet that actually taste very good. You can find some of those recipes on her website. The biggest problem for me is that I eat a lot. Training for Ironman only made it even worse because I could eat any thing I wanted and not gain a pound. After about a week and a half my appetite has come down a bit so it has been better. So far I have lost about 4lbs in 2.5 weeks.
I found out today that I won a free coconut water contest from RunEatRepeat. I love coconut water. It is the perfect electrolyte drink. It is low in calories and all natural. One thing I hate about so many sports drinks is all the artificial ingredients. Some other great brands without artificial ingredients are Hammer Nutrition and Honey Stinger. You must try the Stinger Waffles!
I also tried wasabi seaweed from Trader Joe’s today.
This was actually pretty good. It is not going to fill you up but not bad. You think my fish would like this? LOL Time to relax goodnight.
New Year Resolutions and Video of an Awesome Dog
Well tomorrow is New Years Eve. Next year the world is coming to an end (LOL) so this year your resolutions have to be amazing. So the normal resolution is to get in shape and most people work really hard at this for about a week and the dedicated people last 2 weeks.
This guy exercises and meditates at the same time
So how is this year going to be different. I used to be a Personal Trainer and I am still very much into fitness. The key is to have fun. Going to the gym will not alone get you fit. You have to know what you are doing and you have to enjoy it. This may take time because in the beginning it will hurt and you will suffer a bit. If you do not like the gym then don’t go! There are plenty other things you can do: biking, running, swimming, soccer, tennis, cross-country skiing, etc. The best thing you can do is sign up for a race or tournament that way you will hold yourself accountable. Also if possible get a coach or personal trainer. Also there are great apps that can help you such as all sport GPS, FitDeck, and Livestrong MyPlate.
So what else are you going to do. I mean now you are going to look good and feel good so what are you going to do! For some of you, you need to stop being scared of life and get out the and enjoy it. “If you risk nothing, you risk everything.” (Geena Davis) Some people won’t go biking because they might get hurt, some will not go sky diving or scuba diving for the same reason. Yea I know you have a family that depends on you but that’s what insurance is for, use it. Watching your life pass you by will kill you faster than any activity, well base jumping might kill you faster so if you have a family you probably shouldn’t do it but you get my point have fun and take risks.
Next year is new opportunity. Have fun!
Great Video of a guy downhilling with his dog
http://www.pinkbike.com/v/227689
Lastly, I will leave you with a quote.
“I speak to everyone in the same way, whether he is the garbage man or the president of the university.”
― Albert Einstein
We all forget this sometimes but one day that garbage man might be your boss. We all have to start somewhere and we all have set backs and that garbage man has great potential. We are all equal and sometimes it is a very small gesture that makes your life turn from ordinary to extraordinary.
Awesome Day for a Mountain Bike Ride
Great ride today in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve. I started at a different trailhead (Shea and 40th St.) and got on a bunch of trails I have not been on. Well I don’t think I have been on. I can never remember. If I saw a trail I knew I turned the other way, sometimes that meant turning back. I did have a great ride although climbing a lot more than planed.
The Man Pub 