Where has the summer gone?

I've been thinking about my blog a lot lately. I'm not sure why. Maybe it is an opportunity for me to sit and dump some of this extra cruft I have built up in my brain onto paper. Maybe it is because I have at least a half dozen people who read this and really want an update (Sarcasm). Maybe some things are best not analyzed. The fact of the matter is I'm adding a post!

I have about a hundred topics I'd like to talk about, but I'm going to keep this one short and sweet. I'm going to tell you a story. A true story.

This past weekend I was driving in my S.U.V on a country road that had enormous power lines next to it which went as far as the eye could see. Forget the fact my truck is spitting out exhaust, I have the gall to say, "This view sure would be nice if it weren't for all those power lines."

My wife quickly responded, "That makes you sound so old. You need to embrace the necessary and sometimes ugly things in life and look past them."

I took that bit of advice to heart. That afternoon I went on a bike ride. I brought my camera with the intention of capturing beauty in man made objects. While on my ride I was thinking to myself, "I need to look past the ugly..." and no sooner did I think this when a really fat grasshopper tried to cross the road at an inopportune time. the grasshopper jumped into my spokes where he was quickly blended into a grasshopper puree, which was then sprayed onto my leg. It honestly felt like a glass of water hit my shin.

The moral of the story: There is a lot of ugly in the world and not all of it is man made...

OK, maybe that is a bit dark.

The moral of the story: Whether the ugly is a power line or a blended grasshopper; if you don't focus on the ugly and focus on the big picture, things are a lot less ugly.

I looked past the power lines and I saw beautiful mountains. Similarly, the minced grasshopper on my leg didn't keep me from having a great ride!

Inner monologue

Some people have friends they are able to vent to. Others use therapists. I recommend both, but sometimes the one who understands you the most is yourself. Being alone with my thoughts while out on the road is some of the best times for me to find center once again. To prove my point, let me take you on a 20 second journey to the inside of my head and thoughts while I outline an inner monologue I had during today's ride.

Me: "I need to get in touch with a couple people. I've either left them hanging or haven't chatted with them in a while."

Myself: "Later man, you are riding."

Me: "I need to get my shit together and finish that wheel I've been building."

Myself: "Dude, shut up and ride."

Me: "I gotta find time to finish that level of the video game."

Myself: "Pedal, man. Focus on me for now. I won't let you down."

Me: "Oh yeah, I need to login to finish some work before Monday."

Myself: "Breath. Enjoy the cool air. Enjoy the fact that you are outside."

Me: "I'm out here riding and I should be home doing other stuff."

Myself: "That is it man, I'm shutting down your brain. Breath, pedal, enjoy."

Me: "Ah, I love riding! What a great day to be outside. The rest of the stuff can wait."

Myself: "That's it man! I'll be there for you next time when life gets in the way of enjoying your ride."

Crocs-Hating Closet: I'm Coming Out!

If you have spent any time with me talking about fashion, and lets face it, non of my guy friends have, you would know my deep hatred for the eyesore of a shoe called Crocs. Up to this point the only person who knew of my hatred for the shoe is my wife. Today she sent me a link to an article titled "Make. It. Stop." written by Steve Tuttle at Newsweek.

Reading Steve's rant about Crocs was pure joy. It rang so true to my soul that I was willing to come out of my Crocs-hating closet and tell the world,"Although I have little to no fashion sense, I still have enough sense to never wear Crocs!"

In the article Steve Tuttle sums it up wonderfully with the following quote:
"If you think about it, the Crocs company should really be admired. P. T. Barnum would be proud. They've managed to separate money from the wallets of millions and millions of seemingly sane people who wake up, look in the closet, and actually decide: 'Today I'll leave the house wearing these neon-green Dutch bubble shoes with Swiss-cheese holes in them. Maybe I'll even buy some little plastic strawberries or bananas and jam them in the sweat holes, just to jazz things up and make the bacteria incubate faster.' That's fine. I say do whatever you want in the privacy of your own home. Let your Crocs freak flag fly. But don't make the rest of us watch."

So having read the article my advice to you is:

1) If you hate Crocs as much as I do, read the article. It is like Steve read your mind and wrote it down for you.

2) If you love Crocs, but owned stock and now have a reason to hate Crocs since their stock value tanked, you should read the article. It won't help, but it will make you laugh at yourself.

3) If you love Crocs, didn't own stock, and have been lucky enough to not yet get your Croc shoe stuck in an escalator, you should read this article. You'll come around eventually...

You can read the article at Newsweek.com
http://www.newsweek.com/id/150240/&GT1=43002

Fathers Day...

Yesterday was Fathers Day and when I went downstairs to make coffee I was suprised to find three new books next to the coffee maker and a full pot of coffee already made. As I stood there and read the cover of one of the books my son quietly walked up next to me and stood there silently. When I broke my attention away from the book and looked down at him he captured my attention with his big blue eyes and in his most endearing tone said, "Happy Fathers Day and I love you, Daddy."

I don't know if you have ever had the opportunity to have every heart string pulled at the same time by unconditional love, but that tug on your heart is what will make a grown man cry for apparently no reason and will create a bond stronger than anything which can be imagined.

I scooped him into my arms and gave him a great big hug. While I hugged him I cataloged the moment and hoped when the time comes that I need to leave this life this moment will flash before my eyes once again.

Jeffco Air Show...

Yesterday the family and I were treated to the sights, sounds, and feeling of an F-16 fighter jet flying as low as 300 feet over our head.

If you didn't know about the Jeffco Air Show and you live in the Denver metro area, you probably figured it out; 28,000 lbs or thrust creates a lot of noise. We watched as the F-16 fighter jet did laps from Denver to Boulder in under a minute. It was amazing!

As I watched this machine and the power it harnessed I couldn't help but think, "I'm glad it's on my side."

A stunt plane doing the

best corkscrew I've ever seen.

F-16 takes to the air

It's been a week since vacation...

It's been a week since I've returned from my vacation in Hawaii and all I can say is, "I want to go back!"

I spent 14 days in Hawaii with my wife; 5 days on Maui and 9 days on Kauai. In that short time I was able to capture enough memories and photographs to fill a thousand posts, but I won't bore anyone by doing that. Although, I will likely post a couple highlights of the trip.

In the meantime, I'm going to watch this video I took of my feet on the beach in the surf and reminisce about how good it felt to be doing nothing but watching and feeling the ocean as I stood on the beach and watched the sun set on Maui...

Happy Easter!

Big Day For TC Betty...

Today is a BIG day for my wife (TC Betty) and because I'm married to her a big day for me too!

If anyone has visited the About Us page on TrailCentral.com you would have read this...

"... Over the next several years the website started to grow, the number of
unique visits started to skyrocket, and our knowledge of website design improved
significantly. At the same time, one of the original founders graduated from CU
and started his own business in Denver, CO, while another started making bags of
cash selling on eBay, which left me as the sole owner and manager of a
successful website."

Well, TC Betty is the one who "started making bags of cash selling on eBay." In and of itself this fact is amazing, but having been a Power Seller for some time now she decided the time has come to make the next step and get office space. Today she signs the lease!

TC Betty is everything I am not when it comes to running a business. She is skilled, efficient, savvy, and she loves what she sells, which is why I know her business will continue to grow and become a huge success.

And because I know she is reading this; I want TC Betty to know I support you 100% and I continue to be impressed with what you are able to accomplish when you put your mind to it. Good Luck!!!

What A B.R.A.T...

My stomach has been giving me issues this last week. At first I thought it was my diet, but then I remembered I'm a Clydesdale cyclist and the strongest part of my body is my stomach... It must be a virus of some sort.

It has been gripping my stomach hard for nearly a week and I've been forced to cut back on the spicy foods and stick to the B.R.A.T. diet.

For those that are unfamiliar with the B.R.A.T diet:

Bananas
Rice
Applesauce
Toast

All the foods that are part of the B.R.A.T. diet are very easy on the stomach. This evening my stomach was feeling a bit better and I made a very yummy rice, turkey, and black bean mush that my wife invented several months ago. It may not sound good, but it was delicious!

For those interested in trying something new...

2 Cups Whole Grain Rice
4 Cups Water
2 Tablespoons Butter
4 Teaspoons Chicken Bouillon
1 lb Ground Turkey
1 Can Black Beans

Mix the whole grain rice, water, butter, and bouillon into a saucepan and allow to cook for 50 minutes. In a separate pan; fry the ground turkey and add the beans when the meat is cooked. Once rice is ready; mix the meat and beans into the rice and serve.

Yummy!!!!

Websites and Wine

I've gotten into the habit of working on TrailCentral while enjoying a glass of red wine. Maybe it is because both TrailCentral and red wine require enthusiasts who have good taste. Or maybe it is because TrailCentral is driving me to drink... The jury is still out on that one.

In either case, I'm looking for red wine suggestions. There are plenty of great red wines out there with a price under $20. Keeping my $20 limit in mind; I'd like to know what you would suggest?

I got new shocks!

For those cyclists that read this blog the first thing you probably thought of was some tricked out pair of shocks for my mountain bike. I'm sorry to say, those are not the kind of shocks I purchased.

My upcoming weekend will bring with it the opportunity to give my truck some much needed attention. I purchased new shocks for my truck and those are the shocks I referred to in the title.

I don't know if you are like me when it comes to spending money, but a lot of times when I spend it on non bike related stuff I think about what I could have purchased for my bike with that same money. It is even harder when the non-bike related item has the same name and function as a part on my bike that desperately needs attention. I really need to rebuild the front shock on my mtb, but believe it or not, the shocks on my truck were a higher priority. Bummer...

In any case, I'm looking forward to the smooth ride! Even if it is in my truck instead of on my bike.

Happy New Year!

As I reflected on the past year of my life before falling asleep, I came to the conclusion that 2007 was a pretty uneventful year. Don't get me wrong; that isn't a bad thing. Although it was not a year to brag about, I would rather have an uneventful year than a bad year.

So here we are in 2008. I'm almost 9 hours into it and so far it is going pretty well. I have a sneaking suspision that this trend will continue. Time will tell...

Happy New Year! The best of luck to each of you in 2008!

Frosty The Snowman

I spent some time with my son today.

We had a great time making our snowman!!!

Merry Christmas To All!

Sometimes "Super" Sucks

I'm going to tell you something that my wife has known for years. Just because it has "super" in the title doesn't mean it's better. When I say this I'm referring of course to the super centers (ie. Super Target, etc). This time of year the only "super" thing about them is that they are a super pain in the ass.

You pull up to the super center. You park a mile from the store because everyone and their brother is trying to get their shopping done. When you finally make it to the store you are bumping elbows with the same "everybody and their brother" that beat you into the store and parked closer. Getting in the store is only half the walking. You then need to walk another quarter of a mile because the department you need is on the other side of the store, which happens to be the size of a small city. When you get to the department you get disappointed because the same "everybody and their brother" that beat you into the store and bumped elbows with you as you walked to the department also wanted the same thing and bought them all so the item is out of stock...

An hour later, 3 miles of walking, and several elbows to the gut later you are finally back in your car with nothing to show for the past hour of effort. Oh, the joys of Christmas shopping!

From one procrastinator to potentially another. Do yourself a favor and look for the store that doesn't have "super" in the title. Even if that means shopping at "Target" instead of "Super Target." I guarantee they will be stocking the same thing for the same price and without nearly the traffic.

Even if the cost is a bit more at the non "super" center, consider the extra charge a fee for hassle free shopping. A fee that I feel is well worth the couple extra bucks.

The Brain: Friend or Foe?

While driving home yesterday a spotted a young girl on the side of the road. I didn't think anything of it as my headlights illuminated her, until she raised her thumb. I was pretty shocked. Here is a young girl, in the dark, hitching a ride from strangers. I pulled over.

I was ready to drive her back to her place and lecturing her on the dangers of hitch hiking. When I got to her place I intended to let her parents know what she was doing. However, that all changed as she approached my vehicle.

Instead of seeing the ignorant little girl, I saw a girl who was sobbing tears and obviously in a state of panic. I quickly shook off my parenting mode and asked what was wrong and how I could help.

She stated how she was trying to find her way home, but got lost and couldn't figure out how to get home. At that moment I totally understood how she felt.

Several years ago while hiking on a mountain trail I came to a point where the trail became obstructed by deep snow. I continued hiking on top of the snow for several hundred feet. I turned around to try and locate where the trail was when I became disoriented in the trees. At that moment I had a surge of adrenaline that effected my thinking.

The mind is a powerful tool that can be a person's biggest asset. At this particular time; it was my biggest adversary . As I frantically scanned for the trail, the adrenaline continued to flow, the panic increased, and an irrational fear began to take over.

This happened to me as an adult when I was only a couple hundred feet from a trail. Fortunately, I was able to harness my thoughts and was prepared with a map and a GPS. Within a couple minutes I was back on track.

When this same series of events happens to an undeveloped mind I can easily imagine why the little girl was in a state of panic. As she sat in my truck I could visibly see her fear decrease. She stopped crying and within a few minutes she was able to orient herself. Mind you, we hadn't driven anywhere yet. The difference was her mind was able to think clearly when she felt in control. It was amazing to see.

The good news is that we were able to find her home and she was a good distance from it. I drove away and today I'm still amazed at how the brain, which gives us our sense of reason is able to turn on us at times when we need reason most of all.

Cold Days = Movies and Coffee

The cold and snow we've had on the Front Range these past couple days has kept me indoors, huddled under a blanket, watching movies and drinking coffee.

Here is what I consider must see movies during the Christmas season.

• It's a Wonderful Life
• National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
• The Grinch (Cartoon)

Plus, my wife got me hooked on a poor man's mocha.

• 8 Ounces Freshly Brewed Coffee
• 1 Tablespoon French Vanilla CoffeMate (Powder)
• 2 Andes Mints

This is yummy and strangely addictive. I've had several cups, which is why I'm wired at 11PM. Oh well, it is worth it. I'll just pop another movie in the player...

The Grinch

So I live in a neighborhood that has a lot of teenagers, many of whom can't drive yet. So the cool thing to do for these kids is to walk the neighborhood in the middle of the night. Often times that leads to kids becoming bored and what do kids do when they get bored? They break stuff, paint stuff, and have a general disregard for other people's personal property.

Earlier this year my back fence was painted with all types of foul language, which I spent the following day removing with a power washer. I've been lucky as others in my neighborhood have had their house broken into and far worse done.

The reason I bring this up is because a neighbor friend of mine recently decorated his house and his yard with Christmas decorations. Unfortunately the warmer November weather of this year is drastically different than the cold weather of last year. Without the snow and the cold, those same troublesome kids are out and about, and causing trouble.

I just heard through the grape vine that my friends house was recently vandalized in the middle of the night. In a very Grinch like act, several teens took a baseball bat to several of his lawn decorations and wire cutters were used to cut through several of the LED strings of lights. Roughly one hundred dollars worth of damage was done. Believe me it could have been a lot worse, but the act is no less than a stab in the back of the holiday spirit.

I have a yard display that spent a great deal of time with over the weekend and I know I would be very upset if a couple teens with no respect for personal property, or more importantly the holiday season, use my yard display to vent their frustrations with being bored.

However, I won't let the Grinch steal Christmas from me. In the back of my head I feel as though I will be posting about this subject again, only next time my yard will be the focus of the post. None the less, if the cords are snipped and the decorations beaten, they are after all only the peripheral of what this holiday season is about. I'll be pissed and I won't likely replace them, but like the Who's, I will still celebrate the season fully!!!

In the meantime, a baseball bat resides next to my door...

Happy Thanksgiving

Those that read this blog know I have a weakness for food. Why else would I be racing clydesdale? Well, Thanksgiving is the mother of all holidays when it comes to consuming calories. This year was a record breaker!

The feast was terrific, but the climax of the evening was the annual "Man Pie" competition where each of the men in the family bake a pie, but not just any pie... These are pies that are engineered by the men to fully show the potential of an everyday pie. It was a stiff competition this year, but my brother won, hands down, with this behemoth apple pie!

Have you ever seen an 18 apple, apple pie?

Now you have!

The 2007 Champion!

Check out a couple other entries by visiting the below link:

http://www.trailcentral.com/community/viewthread.php?tid=1929

Light Reading From Here On...

Well, the Google Reader has gone under the knife. I trimmed off all the fat and I'm left with only the meat. Over a hundred MTB feeds were in my reader when I logged in this morning and when I was done, only 7 remain.

The MTB meat in my Google Reader:
Racing Green
Scott's Singletrack Mind
Singletrack's Mountain Bike Blog
Slip Angle
Google News about Mountain Biking


Grizzle that may get cut off, but may stay in the reader for a while longer:
Stories from the Front Range
The mountains call, and I must go.

Route 66

Cadillac Ranch
Amarillo, Texas

So, what did I do while I took a break? Part of it was on a road trip. This is Cadillac Ranch off of Route 66 in Amarillo, Texas. This is the kind of random stuff I love.

I spend my spare time and money creating a mountain biking website. This farmer spent his time and money burying 10 cadillacs nose down in his field. As they say, "Different strokes for different folks... "

This is part of what got me thinking I'd like to change gears a bit. I'd love to walk away from TrailCentral for a while and go burry 10 Cadillacs in the dirt. Of course I can't 'cause it has already been done, but you get my point. Sometimes it would be nice to try something completely random and different.