Cyclepedia - Portland Art Museum

Cycling has a great community, which sometimes is at odds with each other, but at least we have two wheels in common.  That is why I had such a great time at the new show currently at the Portland Art Museum called "Cyclepedia - Iconic Bicycle Design."  The show features over 40 bikes hanging from the ceiling that show innovative and iconic designs from the early days of cycling to the modern mountain bike.  It was so much fun to look at the different bikes up close (like a bike from the Olympics) to a wacky fold-up bike.  The show is running now through September 8th 2013 so you still have time and I strongly encourage it. Here is a link and some shots of the great bikes.  http://www.portlandartmuseum.org/special/cyclepedia:

The Show

Carry On Luggage

Side by Side - it takes two to ride

Great Bikes Part 1

Great Bikes Part 2

A Sh#t Bike - for you Bike magazine fans

You just want to ride it

1950's and it weighs 50 lbs

A lot of bike helmets

Getting Hurt Again

This seems to be one of my frequent topics in this blog.  I've heard it said that "Mountain Bikers don't sue, they take pictures" and that is the truth.  While I think road biking is more dangerous than mountain biking, there is no mistaking that you can get hurt on a mountain bike.  With a road bike, one fall can kill you (as can that semi, joy riding pick-up truck or that texting teen) or at least give you lots of broken bones and severe road rash.  I like to say that at least on a mountain bike I can see the trees coming and the ground is softer.  But the nature of mountain biking is that at some point you are going to get scraped, scratched or bruised, but rarely unless you choose to do something crazy you won't brake any bones or get killed.

Which brings us to "choosing" to something crazy, or in my case not listening to the "promptings" I was receiving.  I have been on a mountain bike high for the last four weeks.  It started with a great ride at the CPR.  Then came Moab where I road some crazy fun trails that were all rock with drops, steps, and trails very close to the edge.  Then we came back and road the three hardest trails in Mac Forest in one loop at night (The Plunge, New Groove and South Side Slip) all with only a small scrape on my arm (CPR) and my knee (Slickrock). Then came Black Rock last Saturday.

I love the Bonzi Downhill (green run) at BR.  It has such great flow and BR crew has worked on it so much to really get it dialed in.  It is such a blessing to have it so close and I have played on it many times.  Last Saturday four of us visited BR in the morning and after riding my longest skinny in the Practice Area we climbed to the top of the mountain and road the first (of four) section of Bonzi twice, then we did the 2nd section.  The 2nd section has two table top drops near the end and because I was on my Epic, I skipped  these two drops. My Epic just doesn't have enough suspension for those kind of drops.  BR is better suited for my Stumpy. We then climbed to the top again and headed down sections 1 and 2 again.  This time when I approached the first table top in section two (having no plan to ride it) at the last moment I swung into the entrance, but by then I wasn't carrying enough speed and I didn't pedal hard enough.  So instead of flying out, I nosed dived off.  I landed perpendicular and went over the handles bars and due to the steep landing hit my shoulder so hard it broke my left collar bone in three places.

This is the second time I have broke this collar bone.  Breaking a bone is like getting the wind knocked out of you, but you can still breath. The pain isn't sharp, but so intense you can't get on top of it so it makes you feel like you can't breath.  What did sting was the scrape on my knee and elbow.  They really burned and bled.  After getting my legs under me, I checked the bike which was okay, so I unzipped my jersey and stuck my arm in it like a sling. We walked down to the road and the start of section 3 and then I road out with one hand. We then packed up the bikes, hit the Bread Board for cinnamon roles in Falls City before heading to Urgent Care.

I was so glad that Dave, Todd and Lee where there with me.  When you crash, the first thing you want to do is jump up like nothing is wrong.  Having friends ride with you, makes sure there is someone else with a clearer head to assess things when you won't.

So what did I learn? Accidents do happen, but following the "red flag" warnings in your head (the Spirit) is always better and will help you avoid getting hurt.  That split second indecision is now going to cost me 6 to 8 weeks of riding and a titanium plate on my collar bone.  I have also learned that surgery is worse than the break but it is the only way to get better. What I didn't expect to learn? That pain pills cause constipation (the secret warm prune juice).

6/9/13 Update - back on the bike since last Friday, but only on pavement, any vibration can loosen the screws.

CPR 2013

Black Rock 2013

Moab and Black Rock - always the same spot

I didn't even know

Sometimes the cure is worse...

One nice plate and 8 fun screws

BPE III and the Beaver Freezer 2013

It is that time of year when things are starting to bloom, things are warming up, but the rain is coming down and the trails are getting really soft (and muddy).  It is also the time that the "events" start like the Freezer, Mudslinger, CPR, TOE, C2C, etc.  As part of a group that rides year round, we also have a few of our own events like the Best Plan Ever series of rides.  The BPE as it is know, is a quarterly event that can consist of anything as long as riding is included and most of the time is a surprise.  For example, take the latest BPE (III) event.

BPE
It started with the owner of the "BPE Card" let us know that we were to meet at my house at 10:00 p.m. Friday night (in March) and be ready for an all night adventure.  Then we drove to Newport on the coast and down the coast to Cape Perpetua (below Waldport) where we met some additional guides and then we went on one of my most favorite night rides of all time.

We climbed and climbed in clear skies (and 25 degrees) to the top of Cape Perpetua. After enjoying the view of the stars we had just a tremendous technical descent which ended getting back to the car at 3:00 a.m. and home at 5:00 a.m.

Beaver Freezer 2013

The next event was the Beaver Freezer in April which is a "sprint" triathlon that includes a mountain bike division (the only one I have found).  This is a well run very fun event that I would recommend it to anyone.  The swimming is short and indoors, the bike course is flat and the run is three laps around the quad.  I finished 17th for the the men in 2012 and 10th in 2013.

Mudslinger

While I did the Freezer, the next day several of the "old men" did the 2013 Mudslinger which is 30+ miles and around 6000 feet of climb.

Road Trips - Moab

It all started after a nice long Saturday morning ride as a bunch of us sat around drinking hot chocolates in the Adair Village coffee shop when someone said we needed to do a road trip to Moab. And that's all it took.  About 90 days later there were 7 of us in a rented 2013 Suburban loaded with 10 bikes.  We left at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday and drove all night and arrived in Moab to our condo at 7:00 a.m. local time (just over 1,000 miles).  That morning we road Slickrock and then that afternoon we did some trails at the Bar-M.

On Friday we got shuttled up to the top of Koppopoli and road down 22 miles including Porcupine Ridge to the Moab city limits.  We hit up Rim, Hot Pepper and Poison Spyder Cycles. Then on Saturday we road the Amesa and the new Captain Ahab (my favorite) and then in afternoon we went out to Bar-M again and road some additional trails including Bee Sting.

After a second great BBQ at the condo we packed up the rig and headed out at 11:00 p.m. and arrived back into Corvallis about 3:30 p.m.  It was a perfect trip with no egos or issues, other than some mechanical issues with some of the bikes.

Moab lived up to its name.  The riding was incredible and way different that what we ride in the valley.  The town itself is fun, everywhere you look you see dirt bikes, crawlers, 4-wheel drives, and $4,000 bikes everywhere. It is nice to see a community that embraces these kind of extreme sports and that all the different sports work together.

Tips for a good road trip:
1. Have a rig with enough room
2. Have a nice place to sleep (the BBQ, Hot Tub and Pool were worth it)
3. Pick some place you haven't been
4. Make sure everyone knows each others riding ability
5. Be flexible - sit in the back, the middle or take a turn driving
6. Warn before you "break the barrier"
7. Leave the egos at home
8. Make sure someone knows how to do bike repair
9. Share in the clean-up, cooking, and buying of food
10. Have fun, you still want to be friends when you get home!

The Polar Bear Ride - Why Winter Riding is Fun

The Osborn Aquatic Center (our local swimming facility) hosts a Polar Bear Swim in their outdoor pool every January 1st. That got me thinking about doing something like that for mountain bikers. Thus the Annual January 1st Polar Bear Ride (climb) was born. The rules were simple, meet at the Saddle (a local jumping off point for riding) and climb 2.4 miles (500 feet elevation) on a gravel fire road to the Dan's Monument at the start of Dan's trail. You could only have on shoes, socks, shorts, gloves, a helment and a backpack. No leggings, skull cap, or shirt (sports bras for women were allowed). And you couldn't get dressed until the picture was taken.

The day was perfect, no rain, the sun was rising and it was 24 degrees.  It was not as cold as I thought it would be because we were climbing and you had adrenaline keeping you warm. After the picture we went put on our riding gear and completed the rest of our ride.  It was such fun that we we'll do it again next year.

That's what makes living in Corvallis perfect for a mountain biker, you can ride year round.  This cold was rare but the timing was perfect.  Bether than riding with no closes on in the rain!

1st Annual Polar Bear Outing

19 Degrees

Top of McCulloch

The Hoar Frost

Your Mom Was Right!

Here is your medical warning to start 2013 - I noticed a dry spot on the top of my ear and let it go for about a year before having it looked at. After a few visits and tests, turns out it was Basal Cell Carcinoma (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001827/) a slow growing skin cancer. It is the most common skin cancer in the United States and since mountain bikers are outside in the sun, something you need to be reminded of. Most basal cell cancers occur on skin that is regularly exposed to sunlight or other ultraviolet radiation. This includes the top of your head, or scalp. Turns out mom was right and we do need to put and keep our sun screen on. Nine days before my 53 birthday I went through 4.5 hours of Mohs (the best way) surgery and came out with 23 stitches and a clean bill of health (plus yearly doctor visits for skin exams). Put your sun screen on, watch for changes in your skin and get them checked early.  Now go ride!

Keeping my skills sharp

But will I hear any better?

What everyone wants to wear to work

The DSR & BPE Rides 2012

This has been the year of the "epic" rides and events.  The latest was Dave's Stupid Ride (DSR) and the Best Plan Ever (BPE) ride.  Both of these are night rides.  One of the best things about mountain bike riding is riding with great friends and a second thing is riding with great friends at night.  We've talked about night riding before, but it doesn't hurt to talk about it again.

First, night riding doesn't have to be expensive.  I'm using lights that cost less that $100 each. For a successful night ride you'll want to use two lights.  One one the bar and one on your helmet.  The reason for this is that the bar light keeps the trail lit up, and the helmet light allows you to look into the corners and hairpins. 

The DSR came about from Dave, one of our "old men" who tried to come up with the craziest night ride he could come up with that hit all the hard trails and climbs.  It was approximately 20 miles and 4300 feet of climbing. It included the Face, Skillings Trail, Southside Slip, etc. Just a great ride.

Best Plan Ever (BPE) came about as a result of wanting to do something very memorable before the rains set it.  It turned out to be an all night bike ride adventure.  It started by picking up team members about 9 p.m. and driving to Sisters Oregon where we road the Peterson Ridge Trail, then we drove to the McKenzie Trail head and riding down about halfway and back.  Finished this ride about 5:00 a.m. and back to Corvallis for breakfast at 7:30!  Thus, the best idea ever.  Needless to say we also slept a lot of the next day.

These are the kind of rides that break up the regular weekly rides, build friendships and give you something to talk about for weeks!