Monday, December 22, 2008

What I've Learned...

...from the 8" of snow in front of my house.

1. The lid from a rubbermaid bin does not make for a good sled, neither does a boogie board. Use a real sled, better yet, wrap the boogie board with a trash bag and ride that.

2. The El Mariachi is fantastic in the snow, the wide tires combined with near zero air provide great traction.

3. Crank Bros Mallets are NOT good in the snow when used with regular boots.

4. 5050s are perfect for riding in the snow.

5. Screw biking, the hill I live on is perfect for snowboarding.

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Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Photographic Evidence

Well, it turns out that most of my pictures from Sunday really suck so there's not a whole lot worth sharing.

BCT, as if you didn't already know.

The mighty Agua Fria river, we heard it before we could see it and for a brief moment I was worried about crossing.


I think the bike was asking a lot.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Ok, Maybe One Picture...

Dad says this will protect me up to 50 GHz.

Back in the 'nix

Well, it's been a good trip. Saturday, on the way to the house we stopped and picked up Tim's Niner so that I'd have something to ride. Tim has a thing for nice bikes and he keeps them in good shape, so when we got there and the bike looked as if it just came off the floor at Rage I felt a little ping of hesitation but that didn't last long. After just a couple of small adjustments back at the house I had the bike nearly perfect.

Sunday morning we loaded up and headed North to the Little Pan loop on the Black Canyon Trail. I first rode this trail about two years ago with a group from MTBR and it was still fairly fresh and soft in a number of places. Since then it's bedded in quite well and become quite the place to ride. Tim's Niner was absolutely fantastic, I couldn't have asked for a better bike. It was just a hair twitchier than the El Mariachi, but very predictable. The bike plus the bad ass trail helps to remind me what it is about Arizona that I miss so much. The abundance of amazing mountain biking is all anyone could ask for. Of course, I also have had to deal with mild allergy problems, just like when we lived here, but that I can handle.

The real purpose of my visit was to help my mom pick out some materials for the house and drop some knowledge for how the remodel ought to go down and I think that went pretty well. Of course, I'm not the one doing the work so obviously it went well from my point of view. We picked some materials, talked about cabinet options, and mulled over some paint colors. Nothing too taxing.

Today, before my flight, we picked up Char and hit LGO for dinner. LGO wasn't my first choice but The Roosevelt, Lisa G's, and Lola Topas are all closed on Monday. It wasn't all bad, Rombauer Zin was only $27 a bottle with no corkage fee, that's like six bucks less than buying in the store in Washington. Good times.

Pictures will have to wait until I get back to Seattle.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

All Done

My frame bag project is done. From a foot or two away it looks pretty nice too. Grand total for the project is in the neighborhood of $24 dollars, including thread, new needles for the sewing machine, and a fancy new pin cushion. I had all of the pattern cutting done earlier in the week and got assembly done today. It took me around four or five hours to complete. The zipper was a real bitch and I can think of a couple better ways to do it now that it's done.

My big monster chain fits inside perfectly. Maybe I'll build a full size one next. Or a seat bag. Or a handlebar bag. Or a...

Almost Done!

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Yet Another Project

Twelve dollars worth of Cordura, Velcro, and zipper. Good times.