My Area 106

Punk Bike Enduro

Wow, my first post ever!  For those of you unaware Bob was crazy enough to give his area riders access to write posts on this blog.. oh the possibilities... Moahh Haaa Haaa!!!!  Just teasing. I'll keep things clean, hopefully to the point and promise never to post after a tall cup of coffee. I can get pretty chatty if over-caffeinated. 

I thought for this first post it was worth sharing that the Dirt Rag PUNK BIKE ENDURO is this Sunday, December 2nd (Pittsburgh area).  If you have never heard of this event it is very unique to say the least.  It is a stage race, but you don't have to race at all.  People come from all over and basically enjoy the riding, fun and entertaining company (some people come decorated each year), friendly competitions (last one standing, on your bike of course, wins), and a bunch of other stuff I cant think of at the moment.  Dressing warm and bringing snacks for yourself is pretty much a must do. The day ends with everyone gathering at a fire hall (start/finish) with food and prizes given out.  If your interested in some laid back biker fun this is for you.  The Punk Bike is scheduled on the first Sunday of December every year, so great weather is usually not a part of the enduro package, but I'm sure most people still say its worth the effort to attend!

Happy Friday everyone, Michelle Johnson :)

Mixin it up in C Bus!

I was able to steal a late day ride while in Columbus the other day and traveled some of the paved trails that travel north/south along the Olentangy River trail through the Ohio State campus and then into the city of Columbus. I was really enjoying the trail but before long it started to get dark fast. I darted around the downtown sector of Columbus and was passed quite quickly by a couple bike messengers on fixies, but I didn't mind as I was in my own zone enjoying the sites.

Eatin in the area 106

After my ride with TJ we meet up with Bob for some good food at Primanti Bros. This was the first time in months that TJ & I have gotten the chance to ride together. Tonight we left from his dads house in New Ken and rode our old "home" trails. Rusty skills and soft legs made for an interesting night ride.
stork

Gotta get a pair of these winter boots

Late last season I was whinning to Barry Jeffries (owner of Dirty Harry's) about winter riding and how my ole toes would be so cold and how I hated throwing on the neopreme booties all the time (I know, I have issues). He convinced me to make the plunge and purchase a pair of the Lake Winter Boots, which I did. By then, it was late in the season and I only used them for a couple rides but I knew they where the real deal for winter wear! The Lake shoes I own are actually last's years model but I don't believe they change drastically year to year. I've worn them a few times already this year and what a difference they make. Very easy to put on and snug down on the foot. I have a very narrow foot and the securing system they utilize uses a fishing type of line that you dial in that ratchets up and secures the foot. Due to my narrow foot, I run out of line so for a bit snugger fit I'll most likely have to buy a aftermarket pair of insoles to take up a little more room.

What a difference new tires make!

52,456 miles is on my 2006 Honda Element's odometer. I purchased this car in October of 2006 brand new with a whopping 4 miles on the odometer. So, you do the math and see the miles that I do in a year. Over the past several years I've averaged 42,350 business miles logged per year. My car is very important to me and my family so I make sure its well maintained at all times. So each year I treat my Element (I haven't named her yet) or as in previous years "Grand Caravans" to a new set of tires.

I set out today for my shop visits in a good hard rainfall which never seemed to let up. My tires had gotten pretty bald (52k plus miles) so I was sliding (hydroplaning) all over the road so decided that I better stop by on the way home to my local Terry's Tire Town and get a set of new tires for my baby. The salesman "Josh" was outstanding. He asked me all the right questions (qualified his customer), listed and then demonstrated a few choices (showed me the tire and explain how it would meet my expectations) and the next thing I know I've purchased a set of new Cooper branded "Prospector SUV" 60,000 mile tires (oh yeah, he asked me for the order). What a deal, and it only set me back a little bit over $500.00.

1 World 2 Wheels (a Trek initiative )

Please join Trek and many of our industry retailers in getting the word out for the Trek 1 World 2 Wheels campaign. Urge your local (or favorite) retailer to get involved with this program in your area. It's so easy, and make sure you tell them we have all related info available at Trek. Maybe you can get involved yourself in working with your local politicians, school administors in getting the word out on bicycle use and the benefits of such.

Did you know that our European friends use their bikes for over 30% of their trips (a trip is defined as leaving your home for errands, work, school etc). Guess what percentage of trips we Americans use our bikes? Well, if you guessed .5% (a half a percent) you were right.

What's on my Ipod?

Let's be honest here. How many of us enjoy riding our bikes while listening to some good tunes? I sure do, and I realize I'm not being politically correct here, but I'm one that listens to my music source on a regular basis. Which music source do you prefer? I use the Apple Ipod Shuffle and try to keep my list under 30 songs and keep it on the shuffle mode. I update my list about once a month so I don't tire of the songs and then introduce some new tunes with the old.

I'm the youngest of 4 siblings and there was a large discrepancy in age from me to my sister so growing up in the 60's and 70's aloud me to experience a lot of different tunes, such as: Beatles, Dave Clark Five, Rolling Stones, Jackson Five, etc. I also was really big into the whole Disco craze of the 80's and think I could muster a fantastic throwback outfit for a future "Punk Bike" event in Pittsburgh next month. Yes, I did actually own the "Saturday Night Fever Soundtrack" album.

Take a look and hopefully you might want to add a few to your own music library.

Urban Riding around "My Hometown"

 

Massillon, Ohio. This is my hometown. For many in and around Ohio when you mention Massillon several thoughts might come to mind: A steel town, depressed town, city on the comeback trail, a proud city, a melting pot of various races, a football crazy town, a friendly town. Well, if you thought any of these you would be right.

Massillon is my adopted hometown (I grew up just 7 miles north in a small farming community) and I love it.

"And the walls come tumblin' down"

As the song from John "Cougar" Mellancamp's song goes "As the Walls Come Tummelin down" goes, the walls have actually came down on the store named Competitive Gear!

 

Peter McMaster (competitive gear store link), owner of Competitive Gear has decided to bring a state of the art, new modern store and showroom to the Erie, Pennsylvania market and the process has begun! I've known Peter now for almost 20 years and the store has gone each year without major changes until this past year. Early spring I visited Peter and Chris and I when I pulled into the parking lot I noticed the entire left wall of their building was "patched" with wood.

Once I entered the store they qucikly showed me recent newspapers articles and pictures of the young lady who lost control of her car (on the main road in front of their store) and drove right through the front of their showroom windows and completely through the main showroom and ending up in the warehouse. Competitive Gear's showroom ceiling is only about 10 feet high, but you could see the skid marks from the tires running across the ceiling to the warehouse (skids marks visable on the top of the ceiling). Incredible!

Competitive Gear has moved into a location across the street till construction of the new store is complete. We'll revist in the early Spring.

Jesse LaLonde Blog (Fisher 29er Team Rider from Madison)

I thought I would share a popular blog of a super fast & talented rider from Madison, Wisconsin Jesse LaLonde. Jesse happens to be the service (tech) manager of The Trek Bicycle Store of Madison and is a member of the Gary Fisher 29er Racing Team.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jessie while at the Iceman event this past weekend, and just can't get over how remarkable he is on a bike and most of the time it's on his 29er single speed. He won the Cable, Wisconsin point to point race "Chaemageon" this past September and finished 5th (I believe) at the IceMan (both using a single speed).

Check out some of the pics of Jesse and his brother Marko on the blog and their cyclo cross bike set ups. The site is creepy friendly, so check it out.