Century Day

Road rider I rode with from Cherry Valley to Kirkland

Surly finally met Shirley and they went under the bridge and got it on!

Cool murals in Belvedere,IL.

Since I rode my fixie I thought this would make me cool.

Headquarters of the VCR Party. (Very conservative Republicans.) I'm guessing.

Optimal Control Center. Nitto Noodle Bars
Thomson 120mm stem Zero degrees (thanks Jay)
Chris Kings Cobalt Blue headset
Dia Compe levers,
Cinelli Cork tape.

Finally it happened that I was motivated enough to get on the Surly Steamroller fixed speed bike and round out a hundred miler. I rode to Sycamore, then Genoa, then Belvedere, then Cherry Valley, stopped for lunch, then Kirkland, then Malta, then Dekalb, then Sycamore. I churned the gear all day and never got tired. The racer dude passed me on secret location and while still Digesting a mighty exquisite Cheeseburger, Fries and 3 cups of coffee I decided to give chase. I was going to chase him down like a dog and not let go of him. Quickly he started to play with his Sti shifters as if all those gears were not good enough. We rode hard all the way from Cherry Valley to Kirkland. I took some pulls and he also pulled. He was smooth, had excellent style and his bike was set up real Pro. I complimented him on his style and form on the bike. The steamroller was hitting 25 many a times as my tired legs turned into pretzels. He turned around in Kirkland and i quickly slowed down my pace. A great day of riding, truly.
Today I thought that maybe the 5 dollars a gallon will help all those jelly heads that drive like maniacs calm down a bit. I was also thinking of the Nuclear reactor meltdown in Japan and the hazard that has caused. I like how the area we live in some-how ignores that fact that we have such a reactor in Byron, just 30+ miles away. Maybe we should turn some lights off? Maybe we don't need to hightlight our McMansions with exterior lights like our home is a trophy. Who freakin' cares??



Data from my wired Cateye computer

100.15 miles
max 25.5 mph
timer 6:42:59
average 14.9 mph


best,

Ari
timer

Another Tuesday, another Metric.

Thanks to B.B. for hanging out with me and helping me get those long rides in. The weather has been a bummer to say the least. Last night we rode out to St. Charles and back. By the time I went to hit my water bottle up for some liquid it was frozen once again. We both got out on the Surly Steamrollers and it felt great to just roll with the punches. So far this month we have ridden 1 century and 3 metrics. Besides that we have been commuting and doing some shorter 20,30,40 milers. Trans Iowa is fast approaching and I am starting to feel better. I am really looking foward to some warmer weather. I really need to ditch my Lake Winter boots and ride in some lighter clothing.
Tomorrow I am going long. It might just be a day of riding.

best,
Ari

Monday nigth riding.

The bar scene on a Monday Night. Richardson, IL.

35 miles on the fixed. Road and trail 700x23 tires.

My beloved La Cruz Steel. Hunter fork, speedcity wheels.

Still accepting the fact that I have a real Titanium bike.

Took the day off yesterday since I had felt good about my mileage so far this year. This week is the start of my fixed gear run. Rode to work , then came home, ate dinner and hit the GWT. BTW, the trail is fully open so stop hiding. The Fixed gear always helps me spin the legs, build some muscle and it just plain makes me ride better. I have the steamroller set up with carbon fork, king headset, thomson stem and nitto bars. Velo Orange seapost, PHil/velocity rear wheel, Mavic hub/rim in front. Conti tires. Great bike, solid, fast, and capable. Get one already.

ari

Ari

All in the Family

Rapid Transit Bike shop, Chicago, IL.

My 14 year old just got done doing an intership at a bike shop in Berlin, Germany. He is stoked about moving back to the States and starting to ride with the Slender Fungus. He will be our youngest member. Morrie has been a bike nut for a long time and his serious attitude and smooth pedaling technique promises a long life on the bike. My second to oldest daughter Franny just landed a job at Rapid Transit bike shop in Chicago. She has started a Cross team and will be hitting the races this fall. I am very proud to see that the kids have picked up Cycling as their sport.
best,
Ari

More Peacock Groove

There is something that intrigues me about this company. Maybe it's because Eric thinks outside the box, maybe because he hides bottles of Jack Daniel's in the rafters. Maybe because he doesn't give a shit about technology and only cares about building awesome bikes.
Check it,
Ari

Peacock Groove (ooooove)

Saw this guy up in Minneapolis and have a great respect for him. If I can unload a crapload of stuff I will for sure get a frame built by this man.

Another hunt puts 65 miles onto the Slender Fungus

Our destination for tonight

a moment of panic as we lost the o-ring to the Stanley flask.

A perfect road to ride on .

A great house to live in.

We also hit some gravel just to make it nice.

We were so sure to run into the werewolf. We left my house around 430 and started to head nw towards rockford, il. We ran into a stiff nw wind all the way there. The roads were wonderful and the traffic light. Dogs were good and owners even better since they had their poochies fenced. We rocked the heavy bikes with fat rubber so as not to feel that we were cheating. We brought lights for the darkness that we knew we were going to encounter, we brought money for dinner and winter outfits for the 25 degree ride back home. We ended up in Cherry Valley and headed to the local diner for Burgers and Fries and some hot coffee. We filled our bellies and around 8 pm started the ride back home. Darkness it was and the roads out there were pitch black. We were amazed at the stars and how cold it was. We took breaks and kept hitting the full flask. Arrived home around 10:30 and the legs were good. Had a great ride, laughed too much and it was truly relaxing. No sign of the werewolf but then we figured he would not be out since there was no moon. Too bad you missed it again.

Ari