Excellent Blog on Cycling!

This is an excellent Blog - Cycling Related that is...

Cant wait until the 27th of March!

Sedona her we come!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Hope all of you have a merry Christmas and Safe New Year! Chad should be back now and I hope everyone gets really fat and slow over the winter! I plan on Smoking all of you on the Sedona Trip! Kevin, Wish you could come...there is plenty of room.

Anyway, Happy Holidays to all and to all a good night!

Lost and fogotten.

Look close. See the little Pantani looking figure on the bottom left? That is NOT a Pantani it's proof that aliens exists. Second picture is just some cripple Italian dude posing like Pantani.
I am going to miss the good old days of cycling you know? I'll miss drug raids and denials. Bonking one day and rocking the next. Claims that my dog needs the EPO and my house plants need the HGH. That is what is appealing to bicycle racing. Drama!

Airport Blues

I am stuck in the Phoenix Airport. I was on the runway to pull out at 1156 Phoenix time and there was a fuel leak and they brought us back to the gate. After a little while of sitting on theplane, some genius commented that it would e a good idea to de-board us while they checked out where the leak was and how much fuel was being jettisoned.

We are now being told it will be 60 minutes or more if we are lucky. Otherwise, the only other Frontier flight is at 5:00 pm and it is completely booked...

Love when a plan comes together...If I had my bike, I woulod just stay another day and go for a ride...I need a Friday, or another type of folding bike!

Georgia Opposition Suspends Protests Following Crackdown

Chad is in Tbilisi and surrounded by all this nonsense...Please kee him in your prayers and hope he stays safe!

Sampson jumps into the road group fray

As much as I have been satisfied with my Sampson Products, and as good as these sound, I am disappointed that these shifters are very close to Shimano and not enough like Campy...Smooth, snappy stuff, but no cassette clearing swipes of the shifters, and no thumb drive! I will keep my Campy!!! but good to see that he is in the market!

Go Sampson!!! Check out all the good stuff...

Diablo 20 - Sampson on Cyclingnews

Eric Sampson had his anniversary bike tested and it is not even his fastest or lightest and it got 4/5 Yellow Jerseys!

Check it soon for the post of the Sampson Road Groups! On Velo News now!

He is a sad sad man!!!

Sad but true...It is now verified that Armstrong has been on drugs for years!!! How can you go from Kristen to Sheryl to one of the Monkey Twins???

Brenda,
He is obviously never going to be interested in you unless you add some Skank to your life!!!

and for her side of the Story: http://www.nypost.com/seven/10312007/gossip/pagesix/pagesix.htm

Amazing.

Well Mary and I are back to our respective homes. The trip was a hoot!!!! No snags Except me not buying the correct ticket 3 months ago (typical me) I was lucky and changed my flight to leave on the correct day at a nice cost of 221.00 EU (do tha math) So anyway Dan, I think instead of Italy, we should shoot for Garmish. The lodge was a little pricey (meals etc) our room had 2 queen beds and full bath and was huge for 84.00 US a night BUT they do have cabins that sleep a lot of pep's for about 1k per week (check out the site) that would be about 500 each. The town is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO bike/walker friendly lot's of stuff for kids, I mean we could go ride and not worry about having to hurry back because the facility has enough to keep every family memeber busy. A LOT of mountian bikers, But we could either bring road with some thick tires and climb the col's on the dirt roads. I am not sure what type of single track there is outside of the hard hiking trails but bikes are allowed on all the public transport, even probably the lifts anyway check it out and rethink about the trip. http://www.edelweisslodgeandresort.com/faq.html
So onto pictures. Just various ones. We hiked upto the bottom of the Alpspitz the last 600 meters would have been really tough so we couldn't do it plus it took us 5 hours just to get to the tran back down. We started at 750m and stopped at 2050m so it was a good jaunt. Oh some German lady was trail running it. Made us feel........lazy. I'll tell ya more when we talk on the phone. I will be getting my ticket on or about the 1st on Nov for AZ!!!! That trip will be fun too, You are going right guy's (Dan Thomas)

Rock racing on the path to........nowhere!!!!

Read the article, you HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! Win or your fired? Now I don't care that there is doping in cycling when done so by the individual. If a single rider decides to possibly shorten his life by doping that's fine. HOWEVER I am apposed to the systematic doping by teams when it's presented as, 'do or get fired' I mean come on what in the hell is a rider going to do when the teams philosophy is win or get fired? They will feel the pressure to cheat. Rock Racing is a JOKE I mean shit look at the jerseys. Hello tribal skulls were soooooo 90's. I would expect this type of crap from Shaun Palmer the loser that he is but jeez. Do you believe this shit!
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2007/sep07/sep29news

UCI new anti-doping rule

Here's a good one. UCI has anounced it's new anti-doping rules with an addition. "Shoot up and get shot" Let's see if it works!

Comedy Central : Videos

Comedy Central : Videos

The Chimp-O-Matic

The Chimp-O-Matic

worth checking out!

Long's Peak and Labor Day

Well, we went camping over the Labor Day weekend up in Estes Park just outside the Rocky Mountain National Park. We drove through on the way to Grand Lake and watched the Elk graze and foriegn tourists turn white due to oxygen deprivation...

On Sunday, i got up and hiked up Long's Peak as high as 13500 ft. I stopped along one of the lakes and got a good set of pics out of it. I did the hike not as a recreational jaunt, but a full on cardio experience...Being the air-breather that I am,I struggled to keep my pace the higher I went...anyway, I enjoyed myself as it was a beutiful day...Here are some pics...

Then Kyle & I went hiking in Castlewood Canyon this past Sunday...Check out the Doo on Kyle! It is almost Afroliscious...He is an excellent hiker though and we pulled off 5 miles and 980 vert gained in less than 75 minutes...anyway, here they are:

Anyway, we had a good time and hope to get out on Snowshoes this winter with Kyle...He likes to hit the trails with me...

Until the next time...Bike The Planet!!!

Batumi trip Labor Day weekend.

News, went to Batumi which is located on the Black Sea. We took the night train at 10:30 on Friday and arrived at 7:00 am. We stayed at the Batumi Palace. Very nice place. Built in 1888 as a church and then destroyed in the early 30's, rebuilt in the late 30's as a hotel. Batumi is a port city and also a resort town, it was not the cleanest of resort towns, we didn't dare swim because it smelled like grey water, I guess it was due to the 3 'streams' located up and down the beach that flow from the city drains. We tried the local flavor, the BBQ pork was real good and the cheesy bread is always yummy. BATUMI beer, vomit in a bottle!!!! It made Heineken taste good if you can imagine. We walked around the city on Saturday night but quickly realized that there was not much to look at except Mr. Book Maker gambling halls just puking cigerette smoke into the street. Most of us spent Sunday next to the pool, accepting crazy stares from people who had possibly only seen an american on TV. Overall it was an okay time. You can scratch it off of your 'To do' list though, you won't be missing much.

Georgia on my mind

So I have been in Georgia for 39 days and it has been grueling!!!!!! Aside from the filthy stinky shitty city, bad water, and other stuff it's not to bad. Beer is cheap, the people are very ugly! and there a lot of cows!!! See for your self. Pictures of the Tbilisi sea, it's a water reservoir for the city it also doubles for the pisser while at the beach. You can also jetski and motorboat in it, yes it is the cities drinking water, yummy. Some various pics, Humvee's and shit.

NASA Shuttle and Space Station

Here are some mind-blowing pics from the last shuttle mission...Amazing things these folks do... The additional one of me is on the crane above the Space Station Production Facility after a tour...There is also a pic of Hurricane Dean from space in here.

This is one aspect of my job that I enjoy...The gentleman that sends me this pics is Ron Caswell...He works Space Station and gave me the tour of the Space Station Production Facility. I get these right after the mission every time, but these were the best I've seen so far...Please click on the images to enlarge them...

I need a Vacation!

Well, we are 1/2 way through the biennial east coast swing. We left Colorado on the 26th, got to New Hampshire the 29th, left the 7th for Cape Cod and we got to Hershey last night. Today is very humid and muggy...Hopefully the rain stays away enough to enjoy the park. New Hampshire was a good time, although I felt like we were there a day or two too long. We had a good time with family and at the beach. I went twice, as I had to finish a work related financial management course, and the kids and Laurie went 3 times. Laurie's friend Patricia came up from Maryland for a couple days, and they had a good time.

I will update after Hershey with some more stuff and hope to keep the blog updated periodically while Chad is in Georgia (The Republic of...)

Anywho...here are a few pics:

CDT may become off limits to fat tires

Bike Ban Looms Over Iconic Continental Divide Trail

Action Alert

For Immediate Release
08-09-07
Contact: Drew Vankat, Policy Analyst
drew@imba.com
303-545-9011

Mountain bikers may find some of the nation's best singletrack off-limits if the Forest Service pushes through with a new directive. The agency wants to limit or prohibit bike access on the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), which runs the length of the country, from Montana to New Mexico.

The CDT includes the famous Monarch Crest, many sections of the Colorado Trail, well-known Steamboat Springs singletrack, important trails around Butte and Helena and much, much more.

Take Action

Your strong voice is essential to saving epic rides along the CDT. The Forest Service's proposal to restrict and prohibit mountain biking has been warmly embraced by some anti-bike groups, who are giving it their full support. All mountain bikers are urged to take action:

File Comments

Formally file your comments with the Forest Service. IMBA's simple form takes seconds and will submit your official comments. The deadline is October 12.

Spread the Word

Rally your friends and ask them to echo your support for bike access on this outstanding trail. We need thousands of comments to hold out hope for continued access, so please forward this to your riding friends across the country.

Help Maintain the CDT

If you live or play near the CDT, consider organizing or attending trailwork days to help build and maintain this magnificent trail. Learn about volunteer opportunities near you.

Donate

Can you imagine losing our longest shared-use trail? The IMBA Legal Fund needs your financial support.

Additional Information

Why is the Forest Service revising its management directive? The CDT is currently managed under guidelines from an outdated p;1985 Comprehensive Plan and the agency believes it's time to update that document by clearing up any ambiguity regarding the purpose of the trail and its allowed uses. As part of this effort, the Forest Service is focusing on a hiking and horse-centric vision.

The CDT is a 3,100-mile shared-use route from Canada to Mexico, traversing some of the most scenic high-elevation terrain in the country. Mountain biking is permitted in most non-Wilderness areas and has occurred on some sections for 25 years. According to the Continental Divide Trail Alliance (CDTA), the trail is only 70 percent completed, with many existing miles in desperate need of repair and maintenance. CDTA estimates the cost to complete the CDT at $27 million.

IMBA believes a shared-use philosophy that includes bicycling is compatible with the intent and purpose of the CDT, and that mountain bikers can help overcome these significant hurdles impeding the trail's completion. With 40 million participants, mountain biking is the second most popular trail activity in the country (Outdoor Industry Foundation, 2007). This large constituency helps lobby for public lands funding and donates nearly one million volunteer hours each year to trail construction and maintenance. Mountain bikers can be valuable partners for the CDT.

Among long-distance trails, the CDT is unique in that has generally allowed mountain biking. Unlike the Pacific Crest Trail or Appalachian Trail, mountain bikes are largely welcome on non-Wilderness sections of the CDT. IMBA isn't asking for access to all 3,100 miles, but there are many non-Wilderness sections where non-motorized users can get along and mountain biking should continue.

The Forest Service has said it believes Congress intended the CDT to be for hiking and horse use only. Unfortunately, the agency is basing its proposed directive on a 1976 Study Report - written before modern mountain biking was established--and a similarly out-dated Comprehensive Plan of 1985. Not surprisingly, both documents focus primarily on providing experiences for the "hiker and horseman." But neither suggests the trail should be limited to these two uses, and in many instances encourages non-motorized activities.

In fact, the 1976 CDT Study Report states, "The primary purpose of this trail (CDT) is to provide a continuous, appealing trail route, designed for the hiker and horseman, but compatible with other land uses" (italics added).

In 1983, Congress amended the National Trails Act to clarify potentially acceptable uses on the CDT and other National Scenic Trails. Bicycling is listed alongside various forms of hiking, backpacking and horse use (16 USC 1246(j)).

This congressional statute is clear and should supercede internal agency documents. IMBA does not believe bicycling should be discouraged or prohibited on the CDT. More than two decades of bicycling on the CDT has shown that this activity does not substantially interfere with the nature and purposes of the trail and that all users can get along.

Today, the environmental and social science of trail recreation is better developed and many backcountry trails are shared by hikers, equestrians and mountain bikers. A growing scientific consensus has shown that impacts of mountain biking are similar to hiking and less than horse or OHV use (Marion and Wimpey, 2007).

The IMBA / Forest Service Memorandum of Understanding states mountain bicycling should be managed distinctly from motorized travel. It also says mountain bicycling is appropriate in areas listed as "primitive" on the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum. These areas comprise a significant percentage of the CDNST.

Proposed Forest Service Directive Language on Mountain Biking

The proposed directive contains the following sections that discourage our quiet, low-impact, human-powered activity:

7. Bicycle (mountain bike) use may only be allowed on a trail segment of the CDNST where the following conditions are met (16 U.S.C. 1246(c)):
a. An affirmative determination has been made that bicycle use would not substantially interfere with the nature and purposes of the CDNST, and
b. Bicycles must also be allowed by the overall management direction for the land management plan area.
8. Where bicycle (mountain bike) use is allowed on the CDNST, consider establishing bicycle use prohibitions and restrictions (36 CFR part 261) to mitigate the effects of such use on the nature and purposes of the CDNST. Management practices and actions that would promote or result in increased bicycle use on the CDNST should not occur. (72 FR 32276)

Read the proposed directive in its entirety.

Visit the Forest Service's CDT website with additional policy resources.

If you have any additional questions regarding the directive, please email IMBA's Advocacy Team .

Mailing Your Comments

If you would rather write your own letter of support for continued shared-use management on the CDT, please use the following address: Greg Warren, CDNST Administrator
P.O. Box 25127
Lakewood, CO 80225-0127

Or via email:

cdnst@fs.fed.us

The Importance of Elected Officials

Every comment counts and the support of town councils, county commissioners, tourism and parks boards and other elected officials is extremely important.

Please consider asking your representatives, both local and national, to support equal treatment of mountain biking on the CDT.

The Bomb - I have seen it all

Check out this video!!! Scraper Bike! The Shiznit!!!!

Cyclists peel off clothes to push pedaling, protest pump

Thats Right!!! The best way to make cars and motorists more empathic toward cyclists is to ride in massive groups nude! Today was the 4th annual World Naked Bicycle Ride. At least the pervs get off on it!!!

Update

Wow it's been a while since anyone has updated this blog so I will be the 1st. Congrats for DiLucca (the Killer) he did a good job of course I wasn't there to whoop his ass but we will see next year, now I just need to find a team!!! I may be inking a deal with Kotex but this is just a personal sponsor I still need to find a team. I have the results!! Someone sign me! I will be spending some R&R in Maine the week of June 16 gonna do a little fishin' a little 4 wheelin' a little drinkin' (you see where I'm going with this) yah it's just gonna be me and my dad. I'm going to take Brett to the Coast Guard recruiter just for some Q&A. He's a senior next year DAMN I'm 16 years older than he is! and we both like the same age in women (naughty me) ha ha. Anyway I'm out I'll post the pics of the big fish later!

Yah for Beloki! Yah! yah! he got mail

Well looks like a glimmer of hope for Beloki, after being run off the road by Armstrong and suffering a mental condition preventing him from pulling his head out of his ass. Icelands largest cycling sponsor has anouced that it will sign Beloki to a 2 year deal in hopes of him placing in the Special Olympics. Many team managers tried to protest in anger stating that the special olympics were for you know..........retar......um mentaly challenged. One look of a current photo of Beloki and all protesters changed their tune. Yah B you got mail, tire pump yah!

Alternative Teacher Options in Castle Rock

Schools Succeed With Nontraditional Teachers
Written By: Ben DeGrow
Published In: School Reform News
Publication Date: March 1, 2007
Publisher: The Heartland Institute

Douglas County, Colorado's nontraditional teacher preparation program has blossomed with the new Castle View High School in Castle Rock. Opened in late 2006, the school consists of four themed academies: visual and performing arts; electronic and business media; world languages; and math, science, and engineering.
"I'd be surprised if you can find any one school in America like Castle View," said principal Dr. Lisle Gates. "It includes the meshing of many good thoughts."

Community Interest
Gates got the idea to license outside specialists from an aeronautical engineer who works at nearby Lockheed-Martin. The engineer, who served as a consultant to develop Castle View's program, expressed a strong desire to teach a nine-week course at the school. Yet when he learned of the commitment needed to meet the state's licensure requirements, he was frustrated that he wouldn't be able to get into the classroom, Gates said.
Gates since has received calls from certified public accountants, a bank manager, a manufacturing engineer, and others who have said they would like to teach at Castle View part-time.
The high school plans to expand its world language offerings to eight next year, including Arabic and Russian. The Colorado Department of Education does not rate a Beijing-born holder of an accredited master's degree as a "qualified" Chinese language instructor, but Castle View does.
"Our intent for this program is that we ferret out good, quality people, mentor them, nurture them, and make them effective teachers in the classroom," Gates said.
The Professionals in Residence (PIR) enrollees will not work toward achieving a state-recognized license. However, they will receive intensive "boot camp" training in classroom management and other instructional basics, along with ongoing support.

County Partnerships
A key to getting the alternative licensure program afloat has been Douglas County's close working relationships with other players.
"It's an effort that involves every stakeholder in the district," said Gates, who found nearly universal enthusiastic support from parents and students in 40 neighborhood meetings. In addition, the district is cooperating with local colleges and universities, which are helping to develop the program and have offered to share the services of adjunct instructors.
Pat McGraw, chief of staff for Douglas County School District, identified the connection between the district and the Douglas County Federation of Teachers (DCFT) as vital to the process.
"The union is involved. They're partnering with us," McGraw said.

Union Support
Through its affiliation with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the local union "can provide staff development course[s] to teachers" in many different areas, said DCFT President Brenda Smith.
"A big positive piece is teachers training teachers," Smith said.
In 2004, AFT approved support for alternative licensure programs that have rigorous screening processes and high performance standards, are field-based, and include relevant coursework and an emphasis on mentorship.
Smith said AFT's counterpart--the National Education Association, which has staunchly opposed alternative licensing--would be well-advised to follow AFT's lead in this area.
"By saying they can't support alternative licensure for teachers, it's just a way of avoiding the problem," Smith said. "If they don't step forward and help [solve] the problem, then they're blocking something that could have a lot of potential."
-- Ben DeGrow

Ullrich hangs up his tar-speckled jersey

Thanks to Patrick O'Grady for a special Monday Rant...Ullrich has finally decided to enjoy the beer & frites w/out guilt.

Bank Robbers by Bike

Joplin — Neighbors and bank customers helped police nab one of two men suspected of robbing a bank and making their getaway, such as it was, on bicycles.

Goes to show you that even criminals are interested in staying fit...

What Mary, Hunter and I have been upto.

Still just as handsome as he was when just a pup..........but



getting that gray beard look, He's late 30's according to the realationship of dog age and human age.





He helped me build this with moral support.

and he made sure the ice was safe for us to skate on. It took him about 45 min to even get 5 feet off shore but once he did him and I walked around way out in the middle and it became a daily ritual to pee, poop and go out on the ice for a short walk. (Ice is bad now 2-21-07).


Our part of the lake.