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Friday, December 18, 2020
From Burke Swindlehurst, Crusher Update. Whatup Crushers? Burke Here...
Update from Jay Petervary: Sun and Snow - The Baja Divide and the Fat Pursuit
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Saturday, December 12, 2020
Thursday, December 10, 2020
Tuesday, December 8, 2020
Late Season Roundup 2020
It takes some imagination to optimize local cycling in the transitional seasons. Sometimes it turns out well, sometimes it doesn't. I had a great mountain bike ride today. I took a spill on an icy road ride yesterday.
The Fun Farm Bridge--Early November
We fought a real battle with with a tubeless tire just after the first snowfall at Harriman. Tony did most of the work. At the moment, there is too much snow to ride at Harriman until grooming begins and not enough snow to run the groomer.
The best cyclist in the family.
The Deer Park area, west of the Menan Buttes. The mysteriously suspended milk can was photographed near Roberts.
Local Thanksgiving Day ride near the Teton River.
Saturday, December 5, 2020
Why bicycle storage hooks are still the best way to store a bike (especially in Park Tool Blue) - Bikerumor
https://bikerumor.com/2020/12/04/why-bicycle-storage-hooks-are-still-the-best-way-to-store-a-bike-especially-in-park-tool-blue/
Lots of questions answered here. Is it safe to hang all bikes? Bikes with carbon wheels?
Thursday, December 3, 2020
Wednesday, November 25, 2020
Tuesday, November 24, 2020
Monday, November 9, 2020
Saturday, November 7, 2020
Saturday, October 31, 2020
Rest in Peace Josh Parkinson
Our most heartfelt condolences to Jake and all the family.
From Josh’s obituary: Above all else, what is to be said about Joshua James Parkinson is that he was an artist. In his 34 years of life, everywhere he went, everything he touched became a masterpiece in its own sphere of beauty.
It is often said that we must live each moment in life to the fullest. That each second is an infinite space of possibility to be absorbed. For many this is a skill learned over a lifetime: the art of finding or creating the perfect moment. For Josh, this was far more than a learned skill. It was simply second nature. As a son, grandson, brother, father, and uncle, each day he lived the example of what it is to embrace beauty and love.
His laugh could never be mistaken for anybody else’s. It was a laugh that assured you, without a doubt, that there was nothing in life to be afraid of. He had the ability to give the most healing of hugs. The kind that could protect you from any day, be the storm large or small. In the midst of life, he could always create a peaceful moment of perspective: whether he sat with you at the kitchen table or took a photo of the sun splashing color across the mountains. Josh knew how to remind you, every day, of the beauty of things.
His smile, deep compassion for others, and depth of soul are things that those who knew him were blessed with every day. These and other qualities are reflected in his three beautiful children: Allexis, Mackenzie, and Cody. Allexis Marie inherited his bold curiosity and daring spirit to conquer issues large and small. Mackenzie Dawn exemplifies his intense magnetism that connected him with so many others for the better. Cody Joshua embodies his outrageous love of humor and zeal for life. His indescribable ability to see dreams and make them his reality is and always will be an inspiration.
Throughout his life, Josh’s unique heart touched countless others. He left behind him qualities and a legacy that he formed into priceless works of art: fatherhood, brotherhood, photography, drawing, hiking, laughter, understanding, compassion, and most of all, love. We were and are blessed every day to have his name in our hearts, and his touch in our lives. The loss felt by his family and friends is immense, though even this is a symbol of the peace and beauty he brought to each one of us. A signature on what is only the beginning of his work.
Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, November 2, at the Ashton Pineview Cemetery.The family will receive friends and family Sunday evening from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Baxter Funeral Home in Ashton.
Sunday, October 25, 2020
Monday, September 28, 2020
Tony, Chris, and Dave Return to Sterling Justice
It has been almost one year since Tony and I went to Pocatello to ride the newish Sterling Justice Trail which was constructed with 2500 hours of volunteer labor.
It has proven surprisingly difficult to get together for a return trip but we were able to make it happen on Saturday.
Scenic, moderately technical, and difficult, Sterling Justice may be the best mountain bike trail in Southeastern Idaho. An optimally placed cedar tree allowed me to manage a potentially catastrophic accident. The only damage was to the beautiful purple paint.
Sticky Stuff Remover Reasonably Effective on Dried Sealant
Yesterday was the big test of the Sticky Stuff Remover recommended by GCN for the removal of dried sealant. My Boone represented a worse case scenario with buckets of dried sealant on both the down tube and seat tube from several tire punctures .Here's how the test played out:
- I applied the Sticky Stuff Remover fairly heavily with a blue hospital towel and scrubbed vigorously with minimal discernable effect.
- I waited thirty minutes, repeated the process and was able to remove about half of the sealant.
- I waited another thirty minutes, repeated the process a third time and was able to remove almost all of the sealant. I am confident that one more cycle would have removed any residual.
Saturday, September 26, 2020
Restrictions pending for the Trail Forks app.
Good news/bad news on the Trail Forks app. The features of the free app will be severely restricted as of October 1st. After that it will be a subscription service. Trail Forks Pro. $3 a month until the end of time. I guess that is not terrible but I have lost track of how many things I am subscribed to until the end of time. It adds up. However, current users can subscribe through the app up until the 30th of September and lock in a half price special of a $1.50 per month.
Thursday, September 24, 2020
TNR Time Change to 5:30 for Remainder of Season
Final Tuesday night ride of 2020 will be October 27th.
Sunday, September 20, 2020
Saturday, September 19, 2020
Thursday, September 17, 2020
Tuesday, September 15, 2020
Monday, September 14, 2020
My Pandemic Bike is an Ice Cream Truck
Sled Shed ordered the bike for me in May. Turnaround time from Surly/QBP was only a couple of days. I was unable to resist the pink color which Surly calls "Prickly Pear". Anxious for some snow.
How To Remove Dried Tubeless Tyre Sealant-GCN
I have been a long time user and advocate of tubeless tire technology for a variety of cycling applications (road, mountain, gravel, cyclocross, fat bike). For the past two seasons, I have utilized Muc-Off Sealant almost exclusively with good results. 
The Muc-Off Sealant has been pretty successful in closing punctures, but it is unusually tenacious when dry. The underside of my bikes looks like this now.
Muc-Off markets a sealant removing solvent in Europe which is not available in the US. I have resisted the temptation to attack the dried sealant with industrial solvents fearing potential damage to paint and carbon fiber.
The GCN video mentions several products including WD-40 which has zero effectiveness against dried Muc-Off sealant. I ordered a bottle of Sticky Stuff Remover and will report on its effectiveness.
Sunday, September 13, 2020
Austin at Lotoja
Austin reports that it was freezing cold at the start and he had to borrow a jacket. We are hoping to publish some additional follow-up from Austin in the next few days.
Other local cyclists participating included Austin's father Justin Lamb and Jack Clark who completed the relay along with other medical colleagues.
Congratulations to Bruce, Boyd, and Austin on a Successful Lotoja
There is no such thing as an easy Lotoja. I believe this is seven for Bruce, three for Boyd, and one for Austin with a few Lotoja Relays mixed in as well.
Bruce commented last night that it had been a really hard day and not one part was fun, but he did ride 202 miles.
This is what Boyd had to say: It's an epic ride that really tests your will to
finish. When I texted (last night) I had just finished and was feeling really sick and
"off". As time goes by I'll remember it was mostly exciting
riding with different groups and managing cramps and other challenges
Friday, September 11, 2020
Thursday, August 13, 2020
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
Fish Creek Ride Saturday
Jeff and I have been talking about a Fish Creek ride Saturday. The general plan is for departure from Rexburg at 7 a.m. with the ride starting from Warm River no later than 8 a.m. Depending on the level of interest we are planning on two different finishes. Gravel to pavement or all pavement. You can RSVP to me and/or Jeff separately. Please indicate your preference for pavement to gravel or all pavement.
Tuesday, August 11, 2020
Saturday, August 8, 2020
2020 4 Peaks Gran Fondo - Coronavirus Edition
This year's edition of the 4 Peaks Gran Fondo was unique and enjoyable. Unique in respect to the logistics of dealing with the Coronavirus pandemic and keeping everyone safe.
The Rexburg contingent consisted of Dave, John, Austin and me. We were able to sign up in the days preceding the race for a "start slot", which was a nice feature that allowed for groups of no more than 10 people at a time to work through the packet pickup area and staged for the start. We wore masks in this area and appreciated the support staff continuing to wear masks at all the locations throughout the ride.
We rolled out from the Inkom City Park right about 7AM at some surprising bracing temps (48° F according to my Garmin) and headed toward our first of the four peaks - Crystal Summit.
Though we've been around this particular block before several times, we always appreciate the good signage and the folks directing traffic at intersections to help keep us safe and on route. After pacing ourselves up the start of the Mink Creek climb, Austin took a little flyer off the front and we didn’t see him again until the end, having finished a little more than 3 minutes ahead of us.
The climb was pleasant and the vegetation much more lush and green than is usual this late in the season. Oftentimes, this is the last of the four peaks we visit on our trips to Pocatello, so I appreciated the cool air on the ascent, the support at the top (including Port-a-potties), as well as my vest on the descent.
All four of us turned the corner towards Scout Mountain together, and again paced things well together for the initial part of the climb before Dave let the younger bucks go off the front to push each other around the wooded windy road to the top. At the summit Dave's pacing paid off as he looked less worse for wear than the rest of us.
With a few bananas in our bellies we made a cautious and again somewhat chilly downhill run (should have kept my arm warmers on) to the bottom of the mountain and eventually out the mouth of the canyon and then on the backroads to Inkom. We made a little pit stop at the cars to refuel and reload for the final two peaks, and while there Austin got his first taste of a Hot Shot to cool down his overactive muscles. (I assume this is about as much fun as watching someone down their first shot of whisky 😃)
With guts already roiling at the prospects of what was yet to come we worked our way south to the bottom of the Pebble Creek climb. After many attempts at this beast, I've decided the only way this could really be made easier is with an eAssist. While that may be in my future, I'm left to ponder my own personal Yogi Berra-ism about cycling: the slower you go, the slower you go. As opposed to last year's climb, this year the sun seemed a bit less scorching on on the steepest pitches, and by the time we reached the switchbacks, my vision wasn’t entirely obscured by sweat streaking down my glasses.
Austin and I paced each other to the summit while Dave and John worked their way to the top in individual style. We enjoyed a little stretch in the shade and refilled our bottles before pointing our steeds back down the slope, with the third peak comfortably beneath our belts.
Again turning the corner up another canyon, we found ourselves with a slight headwind working up towards Hoot Owl before breaking off to the Buckskin climb proper. Last year we'd enjoyed a bit of a hot tailwind in this section, but anticipating our final return along the same roads we weren't sad anticipating not having to fight a headwind on our way back home.
Dave got his second wind on the final climb, and the rest of us tried our best to match his enthusiasm as we made our way up, down, around and then back up to the top of Buckskin. More fluids, food and a little bit of rest refreshed us enough to see us the rest of the way home. It's mostly downhill, but with a few rolling inclines, I was grateful my fellows who paced me up and over the tarmac to the finish.
We were met at the finish line by appropriately masked volunteers handing out chocolate milk and medals to weary but smiling riders. Final result: 4 Peaks Gran Fondo: 4 ⭐️ - Coronavirus: 0
As in years previous - we enjoyed the camaraderie of fellow cyclists, the excellent organization centered on keeping us safe, and all the wonderful volunteers who went our of their way to pamper us. And a special "hats off" to a white pickup truck full of cheering folks who leapfrogged us up climbs for the last part of the day - we enjoyed their support!
The Rexburg contingent consisted of Dave, John, Austin and me. We were able to sign up in the days preceding the race for a "start slot", which was a nice feature that allowed for groups of no more than 10 people at a time to work through the packet pickup area and staged for the start. We wore masks in this area and appreciated the support staff continuing to wear masks at all the locations throughout the ride.
We rolled out from the Inkom City Park right about 7AM at some surprising bracing temps (48° F according to my Garmin) and headed toward our first of the four peaks - Crystal Summit.
Though we've been around this particular block before several times, we always appreciate the good signage and the folks directing traffic at intersections to help keep us safe and on route. After pacing ourselves up the start of the Mink Creek climb, Austin took a little flyer off the front and we didn’t see him again until the end, having finished a little more than 3 minutes ahead of us.
The climb was pleasant and the vegetation much more lush and green than is usual this late in the season. Oftentimes, this is the last of the four peaks we visit on our trips to Pocatello, so I appreciated the cool air on the ascent, the support at the top (including Port-a-potties), as well as my vest on the descent.
All four of us turned the corner towards Scout Mountain together, and again paced things well together for the initial part of the climb before Dave let the younger bucks go off the front to push each other around the wooded windy road to the top. At the summit Dave's pacing paid off as he looked less worse for wear than the rest of us.
With a few bananas in our bellies we made a cautious and again somewhat chilly downhill run (should have kept my arm warmers on) to the bottom of the mountain and eventually out the mouth of the canyon and then on the backroads to Inkom. We made a little pit stop at the cars to refuel and reload for the final two peaks, and while there Austin got his first taste of a Hot Shot to cool down his overactive muscles. (I assume this is about as much fun as watching someone down their first shot of whisky 😃)
With guts already roiling at the prospects of what was yet to come we worked our way south to the bottom of the Pebble Creek climb. After many attempts at this beast, I've decided the only way this could really be made easier is with an eAssist. While that may be in my future, I'm left to ponder my own personal Yogi Berra-ism about cycling: the slower you go, the slower you go. As opposed to last year's climb, this year the sun seemed a bit less scorching on on the steepest pitches, and by the time we reached the switchbacks, my vision wasn’t entirely obscured by sweat streaking down my glasses.
Austin and I paced each other to the summit while Dave and John worked their way to the top in individual style. We enjoyed a little stretch in the shade and refilled our bottles before pointing our steeds back down the slope, with the third peak comfortably beneath our belts.
Again turning the corner up another canyon, we found ourselves with a slight headwind working up towards Hoot Owl before breaking off to the Buckskin climb proper. Last year we'd enjoyed a bit of a hot tailwind in this section, but anticipating our final return along the same roads we weren't sad anticipating not having to fight a headwind on our way back home.
As in years previous - we enjoyed the camaraderie of fellow cyclists, the excellent organization centered on keeping us safe, and all the wonderful volunteers who went our of their way to pamper us. And a special "hats off" to a white pickup truck full of cheering folks who leapfrogged us up climbs for the last part of the day - we enjoyed their support!
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