The Bucket list

The Bucket List

I was at work today and thinking about riding bikes. It has been a long time since I have taken a whole month off of cycling. The reasons are numerous to list for now. There were a lot of aches and pains, fit issues, and after so many years of riding non-stop I figured it would be a good experiment. 

Cycling can/is good for one's health. On the other hand the person that rides every single day of their lives will attest to and accumultion of tiredness, stress, pain and discomfort. 

I was one of them. Off the bike I felt like a wreck and once back on the saddle all my aches and pains would sort out and I would gently mold back into riding position. I have been working on some ideas and figuring out others. 

I thought a lot about gravel rides and races. They are the rage now! Wow! I also thought about riders that have their bucket list. They target a ride, do it, complete it, mark it off, and then, never again. 

They never help the sport, help the race, help promote, nothing. It's that check mark that keeps them focused. 

As we enter a new era of Gravel road riding and racing we will see some changes. I am already missing the old days of gravel riding in it's infancy. We were friends, we hung out, we kept in touch. 

With the big cycling organizations hungry for cash they will take care of that homie feeling and turn it corporate. Then they will lose people, like in road racing, and nature will take its course. The roads will always be there, the dust will settle and the old, creaky guy aboard his Single Speed Crosscheck will enjoy a new sunrise. 

Get'em while you can. 

Ari 

No more Bombfire Pizza

A while ago when I lived in Sycamore,Il. my wife and I used to go on scouting trips west of there. We started to discover the gravel roads on the west side of IL, then the driftless area spawned a million ideas in my head. 
At some point I decided to cross the Scary Bridge in Savanna,IL over to Sabula Iowa. Wow! That blew my mind to say the least. I remember a very first, crude ride that we did there with the wife, Bonk King, Cookie and meself. I wanted to take a map but Bonk King insisted that his new I-phone was all we needed. Of course there was no service out there. Our 40 miler turned into a death march with limited water and food left. 
We were dead tired and of course came back for more many a times. 
Jay and I started having these "Mission rides" that were intended to whip us into shape for the Spring Dance known as Trans Iowa. We rode single speed and typically did about 80-90 miles with as shit ton of climbing. 
We would then head over to the Bombfire Pizza. There we would devour pizza. Jay would drink a couple beers while I guzzled endless cans of Pepsi. 
When we organize the Death Ride with Guitar Ted we had a lot of riders eat at the Bombfire. The Bombfire Pizza was a unique place in that it had all kinds of Art work ,delicious pizza and one of the Kindest shop owners I have ever met. He talked to us all the time. Asking where we were from and really listening. 
In March of this year his friend found him dead. I just found this out last night as I was looking for info on the Sabula bridge. The Bombfire Pizza is gone. Those times we went there have just turned to memories now. My daughter loved going there. 
So, Thank you Tom for all those great memories. May you rest in peace and know that you will not be forgotten. I hope that the bridge opens soon to pump some blood back into Sabula. 
I miss those times. 
Thank you for reading. 
Ari 

Tom Holman, owner of Bombfire Pizza, Sabula Iowa. May you rest in peace. 


Ari  

Trans Iowa V10, 2014 Part 1

Well, this is going to be tough to put into words since it turned out to be one of the greatest Trans Iowas of all time. We had spent all winter training with The Blue Demon, Jakey la Cruz, Agatha and Dave on some pretty harsh conditions. I think the winter this year was brutal and it really took a toll on any long mileage that we had planned. However, we got out there and did our work. Slow but steady we had gotten into pretty good shape. Some longer rides happened towards the end of March and beginning of April. Our bikes were tuned, stradegy worked out and we finally loaded the cars and headed to the Godly state of Iowa. We met up at my old house in Sycamore and Gypsy Caravaned out there. There were a few Green Bikes to make sure the Slender Fungus was present. 
The meat up went well. We met up with old and new friends and stuffed our bellies with as many calories as possible. We hit up the Wally-mart for any possible last minute items. Charlie Farrow was stopped by a self Checkout and waited to be rescued by a clerk. She later told him to go back where he came from. I really think she believed me when I told her Charlie lived in a Cave. Boy did we laugh about that. 
Race day came quick and we rolled down to the start. Gumby on his Fargo, Bonk King on his Pugsley and the rest of us on our T.I. bikes. 
Shortly after the start at mile 7 my Trans Iowa V10 ended. My injury that I obtained on March 23rd flared up. With a knot in my throat I told Agatha I was turning around. The Red blinkies quickly dissapeared and I felt I was left in a cosmic void. I put on my mp3 player and relaxed making back to the hotel. I slept for quite a while until my friends came to take me out for food. 
I spent the rest of TI as a spectator as I watched from the "other" side. I spent a lot of time in the Barn. Got a chance to talk to Rob, whose family allowed us to use the Barn as a finish. Late at night TJ and I were informed that a big detour had happened. GT was stuck out in the fields making sure the riders would see the changes. He needed to be relieved. So we hopped on Gumby's Durango with Bonk King, TJ and I. We drove for what seemed eternity. 
On a very, very long stretch of road we spotted what we were sure was a bike light. Indeed it was Gerald, from Germany, throwing in the towel and trying to get back to Grinnell. We took him in and told him a big storm was coming Iowa style. He rode with us and we chatted and cracked jokes. He was cold and tired but was happy to hang out with the American weirdos. 
We met up with GT after TJ could not find the right intersection. We went down some steep dirt roads into darkness that I thought would swallow us. 
I was relieved to find GT. He was standing on a corner in the middle of God's Country. Lightning was all around him and it was a very surreal image. Lightning bolts were coming down vertically, horizontally and in different colors probably due to the dust in the air. What a crazy freak show! TJ and Bonk King manned the corner and GT, Gerald and I packed into the Truck with no name. WE drove back to Grinnell to drop Gerald off. I had intended to also go back to the hotel to sleep. But my adrenaline was on overload and I stayed with GT. We headed over to the barn but everyone was passed out. We started backtracking to find the leaders. In the meantime the lightning was making short moments feel like daylight. I wondered how frightnend the riders would be. I wished they would all be safe. I worried about Agatha, Jakey, Derek and Jay. 
We finally intersected Gleason, the leader, and he looked strong and focused. Derek,Troy Krause, La Cava and company were behind for many miles. I was happy to see Derek in his robot mode,in shorts just pounding against the wind. He seemed super-human and his legs looked Huge. 
We got done with that part and came back to the barn. 
More tomorrow. Sorry for the large print. Eyes not so good this morning. 
Gotta go make the doughnuts!
Ari 

Green bikes loaded. 

L to R. Dave,Gravel Jesus,Giggles,Blue Demon, Agatha,Ari,Gumby,Bonk King
on ground Jakey La Cruz. Invisible TJ taking the picture

Gumby's Durango

GT and volunteers checking in riders

Strong Slender Fungus presence

Super fans and volunteers Gumby, Tj and bonk king

Bike setup for TI. 

Jay and Giggles pre race early saturday morning

Race morning 

Jakey la Cruz and Agatha  

Dreaming of Iowa Gravel while stuck in the Suburbs

This is from a recent trip with the wife and daughter. Riding out there is life changing. 
Ari