Fair Hill First Timers

A proper recap of yesterday's ride has to include footnotes from the night before, both involving Irishmen:

Spontaneous beer drop due to failure of the opposing digit to grasp a beer. Accompanying slurred speech and balance issues suggest that keg beer may have been a contributing factor.

Last man standing entertaining the ladies into the wee hours of Sunday (they we duly impressed). Included late night departure and then unexpected return on the lawn tractor, to continue hydration and entertainment for the ladies benefit.

Both individuals overcame long odds and showed up for the early morning departure on Sunday, a little green around the gills but still game for a ride. True Irishmen!

Sunday departure went better than expected - only 12 minutes of "dorking around" - which is a record for a group of this size (10). For the one hour drive we ignored GPS and were treated to another "Sebastian back road special" which got us to Fair Hill in a little over an hour. Unfortunately the back roads also got one rider carsick, and he spent 5 minutes in the WaWa bathroom getting himself straightened out before the ride.

The ride commenced with a jaunt over to the orange trail to see what the trail guide meant by "rolling terrain with ocasional steep climbs." It was apparently a typo and should have read the opposite. We got a nice view of the practice track (made us tired just looking at it - it's huge) and eventually worked our way over to the east side of the park on some really sweet single track which included a pretty hairy and rocky descent (so much fun that we did it again later in the day). We had lunch by the river and were treated to the arrival of about 20 horseback riders complete with rider in chaps and another alledgedly displaying signs of a long day in the saddle (or excess saddle soap, still unresolved).

We experienced the normal course of mechanical failures and crashes. Notables:

• Crash resulting in turf being embedded into the sidewall of a tire. We are still puzzling over the physics of that one.
• Family jewels embedded into toptube of a bike. The physics of that one are readily understood by anyone with jewels.
• Jim wins the pink polka dots for this ride. For those of you familiar with the Tour de France, the pink polka dot jersey goes to the best hill climber in the mountains. Jim had no equal on the hills yesterday.

Overall a great day in the saddle even with all the navigational challenges (resulted in some dead ends and open field crossings). See the attached satelite image to view our track.

I think that covers the highlights.

Weekday ride schedule:

• Tuesday night (8:30pm) UL
• Thursday morning (6:30am) LL

Chris

Two NOOBs and a Curfew

Add Andy Sokol and Steve McLaughlin to the Sunday roadie to Fair Hill! This brings us to 9 which is capacity for our 2 vehicles. Calvaresi is possible which would put us in 3 vehicles - this would be good because we'd have Dave along for log hop/somersault type of stuff and also would not have to shoe-horn 5 guys into Riley's truck. Also not too late for others guys on the chain to jump in on this. Kirk can you be on driver standby in case we go to 3 vehicles?

Andy don't forget we need to load bikes on Saturday. We have a neighborhood block party Saturday at 3pm so if possible can you drop your bike off at Mike Riley's (119 Kaiser) sometime Saturday morning? Mike runs a (drunken) bike shop out of his garage so is used to bikes being dropped off.

Kirk there are no Starbucks on the way to this place but if you (or anybody on the ride) needs a jolt I will be brewing fresh espresso shots/coffee between 6:30am and 7:00am so stop by.

Passengers - Fair Hill may have a nominal trail use fee (per vehicle) so bring a couple of Washingtons in addition to the Lincoln you are brining for the driver. Also walkie talkies so we don't have to send a search party for ...someone... like we did at Blue Marsh.

Everyone - remember the 48 hour curfew before roadies. No funny business and steer clear of Jim at the block party. Chris

Mountain Biking

Sunday ride included a special guest (Rob) who introduced us to yet more new trails on the lower east side. One rider attempted to singlehandedly move the huge logpile at the bottom of the sole trail - bike and rider seem to be doing fine but I'm sure the impact registered on a seismometer somewhere. Also we had the customary mechanical breakdowns (broken chain, busted crank arm) but recovered without our drunken bike mechanic who was busy sipping champagne and eating quiche at the family brunch.

"The rumors of my demise are greatly exaggerated"-- KO

Game on for Chelsey's ride on Thursday!!! Chelsey's doesn't have daycare, so Kirk is lining up a baby sitter. This means we will flip-flop the weekday rides this week:

• Tuesday 6:30am (morning) meet at Lower Lyndenwood
• Thursday 8:30pm (night) depart via Upper Lyndenwood.

For Thursday ride don't forget bike locks, some cash (birthday boy needs only a bike), and a hall pass to stay out past 9:30. Weather this week looks perfect.

Finally I have collected photos from Savage. Goto http://picasaweb.google.com to browse, select, and download whatever you want.

Chris

This is Why We Ride

Perfect chemistry for today's ride - sun, cool temperature, and eight guys riding for pure fun (no "training" on anyone's mind). Even the baggage some were carrying from Saturday night did not slow us down. In fact one rider proved that it takes less than 8 hours to rise from the ashes (or the living rom floor) and jump big into a Sunday ride.

Highlights: SF made his presence known on the way to the dam when he blasted through the middle of the Sunday formation like a Corzine motorcade. A tumble over the side of the Sole Trail bridge (not Sebastian) reminded us all that no stream crossing can be taken for granted. A stop at Mike's drunken bike shop to do "something" to Matt's noisy bike proved fruitless. The action soon picked up when Riley led half the group over a really huge log drop and DC, always a gamer, followed suit and demonstrated a classic clipped-in-somersault over the drop and down the hill. Standing ovation and a trip to the chiropracter for that one! Not to be outdone, Mike Young planted a shoulder, hard, on the Eddie Trail to finally finish the downhill section of the ride. We ended with a mad dash down the Struble and grind to the clubhouse for the debrief. All in all a great ride and reminder why we like to do this stuff so much.

Regarding the customary monthly roadtrip, it is time to nail down a date for the first of '07. Mother's day is next weekend, and at least 5 of us have an Indian Princess event the beginning of June, so May might be a challenge. Anyway let me know what Sundays in MAY and JUNE would work for you - I will reconcile and reply with the date. We usually make these an early day so we can salvage some of Sunday for the family. Depending on destination, we leave around 7AM and get back by early afternoon.

Send me your dates and get back to work. Oh and don't forget rides this week:
* Tuesday 830PM from LL
* Thursday 630AM (note morning) from UL

Chris

Six Savages

We now have six bonafied Savages among us - tested by the crucible of grueling competition (20 miles of it). The real headline is that we served notice to over 100 visiting teams not to mess with Marsh Creek (OUR house), as we took home #1 and #2 finishes! Now we drop some Advil and contemplate next year's defense of our title.

As you can imagine there are numerous stories to recount but as is tradition you must jump one of this week's rides to get the details. Also it is time to switch to summer hours, so for this week:

• Tuesday night (8:30pm) depart LL
• Thursday morning (6:30am) depart UL

Also I think we have some spring babies on the team (Kirk?, others?), be sure and let us know your preference for Chelsey's ride.

Chris

Crusty Stuff

The early morning departure Sunday morning was a stretch (especially for those with some Irish in the family) but it paid off with the proverbial pot of gold. Crust was rock hard, smooth as a baby’s bum, and gripped like Spiderman. We covered every inch of the park even taking two trips past MDBRS. Steve got some “on the job training” on bike repairs by the dam, quite a few laughs but I can’t figure out how to explain it without triggering your corporate email filters so you’ll just have to ask someone who was on the ride. We did experience a couple of bouts of attrition near the end of the ride, but logged a solid FOUR hours on the trails, ending with tanks absolutely bone dry. The last couple of falls (sideways, not enough energy for an endo) actually felt pretty good – warm sun, snow nice and soft, could have laid there until spring…

Unfortunately temperatures are moderating this week so it looks like the last opportunity to ride this stuff will be tomorrow morning. I have an early meeting so can’t do it, but if anyone has the flexibility you might consider it. Biking prospects for this week:

Monday warm with rain – sloppy, no good
Tuesday and Wednesday night forecast is mid-20s. Maybe a night ride if things freeze up by 8pm. Let me know if you are interested, and we’ll touch base by phone around supper time.
Thursday low 38 – sloppy, no good

If the biking doesn’t work out then maybe a good week to do some cross training – break out the running shoes and the kayaks. We will want to log some time in the canoes before the Savage, but some flat water paddling in the kayaks is also an option (logistically easier as well). Remember wet suit if you have one and don’t paddle alone.

Time to hit the treadmill (kidding).

Chris

Savage Throwdown

For our first official Sunday ride of the 2007-08 season we rode across (except the lunatic who bombed straight down) the dam to the Struble and out to Penny Packer for some “slow racing.” It was a great way to shake out the cobwebs after a month on the sidelines. Also 7 guys “slow racing” sure drew a few stares from passersby.

Time to get the weekday rides going again. This month we have 3 birthdays so we’ll try to fit a Chelsy’s trip in this week. Note the time change for this week:
Tuesday depart LL at 8:30pm – Woods trails are a mess right now, but Monday and Tuesday are dry so we’ll hope they firm up a little.
Thursday depart UL at 9:00pm – Chelsy’s so bring some cash, we’ll see if they recognize Riley without his bobsled uniform. There is possibility of rain late in the week so we’ll monitor this one.

Note: After a month of no use, your batteries are likely down 30% so be sure to top them off before Tuesday night.

OK, now for the BIG NEWS. We have an “Adventure Sprint Race” coming to OUR BACK YARD at the end of next month. It is called “The Savage” and it entails 20 miles of trail running, orienteering, mountain biking, and paddling. Sort of like a triathlon except groups of 2-3 compete as TEAMS, not individuals. So if you need some motivation to get off the couch and impress the ladies, this is surely it. We have registered one team already – Anegada 1703 (JA, CD, SF) – and surely this group can field a couple more teams at least! Check out the website for more details on the event, photos from past events, mandatory equipment, and online registration http://www.goalsara.org/yr2007/sav_race.html. Note this is the first event I’ve ever encountered that REQUIRES you bring a knife (that’s got to be a good sign).

Team Anegada 1703 has discussed our goals for this race and they are twofold: no training injuries and HAVING FUN. We have not deluded ourselves into gunning for the podium. Finishing will be great, not finishing last would be even better. Regarding training, if we have enough interest from this group we might start mixing up the rides in a few weeks – shortening them and combining with running and paddling to help everyone with the cross training. Also I have a canoe with paddles – if anyone is interested in borrowing at any point just say the word. Finally note the the schedule of clinics on adventure racing skills: 3/25 (French Creek) and 4/15 (Hibernia). We’ll consider designating these as our monthly roadtrips for March and April.

I think that’s it for now. It’s good to be back in the saddle.

Chris