Red White & Boom

I found myself running the Red White & Boom 1/2 marathon this morning in Mpls. The fact is that I didn't realize I was even registered for it until I get some emails from TCM this week reminding me of the race. It was ugly, but I managed to cover the 13.1 miles without doing too much damage. Maybe a little weird to say, but the highlight of the race was seeing & meeting the venerable Tim Ek before the race, he was there supporting his wife who was running. We talked briefly about Kanza and the 99er, he seemed genuinely humbled by the Beat the Sun award that he had inspired at the Kanza. Good dude.

Lutsen 99er

I don't have any pics yet, but take my word for it, the 99er was another mudfest. Though not as bad as years past, still muddy. I think Brent and I both went into the 99er a little overconfident. Having survived the Kanza and being only 6 days removed from an 8 day mountain bike trip out West the general feeling was that the extra red-blood cells would easily lift us through a mere 99 miles. We were wrong. The 99er is a hard race and it really beat me up - again. This year's finish came quick, which was nice, but I did kind of miss that .5 mile slog straight up the mountain from years past.

To top off race day we headed to Duluth for the Bayfront festival and took in a awesome Trampled by Turtles show. If you are a fan of TbyT then you probably have already heard about the show, and if you were one of the people who decided not to wait out the lightning ... then I'm sorry, you missed something special.

Dirty Kanza 200

Dirty Kanza 200 is behind us. It is a bit of a relief to be done. I was pretty intimidated going in, and for good reason. Our remaining 100 milers seem pretty tame. More to come . . .

At the start in Emporia, KS.

If you don't like the looks of this then you wouldn't like gravel racing.

Almanzo 2014

I'm slow to get this updated - but only because I'm lazy. The ride in Spring Valley this year was beautiful. The track was fast and the weather was perfect. No doubt the talk after the race was about the three horses who decided to run along with us.

The crowd seemed pretty chill at the start of Almanzo.

The line of dust kicked up from the riders was right on brand.

I'm still clearing limestone from my the corners of my bike.

With Almanzo in the books we are up to 260 for the year. This weekend is Kanza, 200 miles of Kanza. I'd be lying if I didn't admit being a little intimidated going in, but I'd probably also be foolish not to be.

Pelican ride

I meant to post these pictures last week. I rode about 80 miles out & back to Watertown on Saturday last & caught a some great pictures of American Pelicans. I stuck to the Luce Line trail so the course was flat & on crushed limestone. The limestone is nice & smooth, but sometimes is still feels a little heavy to me. But a nice ride.

About 20 - 30 lbs each.

Up to 10 ft wingspan. 2nd largest Wingspan in N America.

Beautiful road - but I had to pass. I was on the Luce Line for the day . . .

The Luce Line wasn't too bad either.

It's spelled w-a-r-b-i-r-d. Warbird.

Bird is the word.

Did the Dickie

The Dickie Scramble is in the books. Thanks to Drew for hosting such a fine event.

In the alley behind Tailgators in Elgin, MN getting ready for the Dickie Scramble 2014.

I seem to struggle with appropriate clothing / layers when the temps are cool. The weather for the Dickie was a challenge for me - the temps were supposedly in the 50s (felt more like 40s) plus the wind was blowing pretty strong at 15-20 mph. I opted for shorts and a light jacket to hold against the wind, but the price I paid was a sweaty jersey on my skin all day. I have to believe that other people had a better performing outfit, but so it goes.

We rolled out of Elgin at 9:30 sharp and headed north as a group on pavement. After about 4 miles the course dove West & straight downhill on gravel and the race was on. The next 75 miles were a mix of gravel, pavement and a little stretch of trail more suitable to mountain biking than gravel grinding.

The scenery was beautiful all day and the gravel was for the most part fast.

Overall the route was more pavement than I expected. The mile or so of off-road riding was clearly a stand out section - rough & rocky downhill where you really had to be careful on our skinny tires followed by a fun, long & technical climb. I channeled my inner Fire Tower and managed to clean my way up & out - one of the day's highlights for me.

The wind was a challenge all day. It was blowing pretty steady at about 15 MPH out of the east and felt like it was carrying a bite. I was fortunate to find a group of about 12 -15 riders for the 1st half of the race which was huge - I didn't want to be out there fighting the wind alone. The second half was predominantly downwind, which was lucky for me, because I rode most of it alone.

As good as the riding was I would be lying if I didn't suggest that the ribs at JJ Tailgators in Elgin may have been the highlight of the whole day. Well done JJ - the ribs are awesome.

So with the 80 miles from the Dickie our total to date for the Dirty Millennium 2014 is up to 160. And the grand-daddy of the all is next, bring on the Almanzo!

Burleigh County Cup or Fulton Gran Fondo?

Looks like the Mammoth got shut down again this year by mother nature - too much snow fell this week on the gravel roads in Northern Wisconsin. There is still a ride, but not the dirty kind. Bummer.

Forest service road on the Mammoth course. Looks kind of slow.

It seems like every week I am finding new rides - I just found the Burleigh County Cup this week (May 10 in Bismarck, ND) and with the changes to Mammoth I'm now looking at the Dickie Scramble next week in Elgin, MN.

I am very conflicted about the BCC because it is on the same day as the more local Fulton Gran Fondo, which isn't dirty, but has the distinct advantages associated with events sponsored by a brewery.