Okay all... since the weather straightened out and I had the chance to take a longish lunch, I took the opportunity to make up for this morning's somewhat lame offering by taking the back roads and byways to my bank. Hey, we all run errands at lunch, right? Just not all of us have the chance to do so with such cool scenery, as Arby pointed out.

First off, this is what's in my backyard at the office. A reverse angle shot from last night's Non-Cycling post, of the same sycamore tree, and the landing strip at the Boulder Muni airport.

Here's another shot looking towards the approaching air traffic. This is a very busy glider port. On a nice day like today, you can see 3 or 4 gliders taking advantage of the thermals along the Front Range benches. There's a Colorado joke that runs "you know you're from Colorado when you've stood on solid ground and looked down upon an airplane in flight. The summit of the Flatirons is at about 8,500 - 9,000', from 5,300' in Boulder.

All right, you've seen what's in the back parking lot... now for the neighbours across the street. This is a GINORMOUS Amgen facility, and they are currently in the midst of a $50M buildout... hence the trailer park aesthetic.

The Team EPO comment refers to the Amgen Elite Masters' team. Yep, or as I affectionately call 'em, the Skinny Silver-Haired Streaks. These guys are serious leg-breakers. All former Pros and/or current Cat 1/2 Masters, these guys rock the considerately designed Amgen teamkit scheme of blood-red background with red blood corpuscles and AMGEN in 10" high block text front and back. They get endless heckling and 'doper' commentary from the locals, hence their cumulative rage and angst brings about quite a few wins... which I have empathy for, seeing as I used to ride for Team Huffy myself.

I have the dubious honour of being on their lunch ride email distribution. Every outing I do with these dudes results in a serious dose of pain for me, but they're endlessly patient, always willing to wait up on the tops of the climbs, and after all, what doesn't kill ya, makes ya faster.

This rust / junk sculpture greets everyone on their way into the Boulder Municipal Airport. The sad part is it's kinda cool, but there's absolutely no good angle to shoot it from... you've either got trailer park, chainlink fence and hangars, or the Boulder County Jail in frame.

Whatever, it's kinda cool. I can only imagine what Arby would do with this sort of thing. Just ignore the trailers behind it that I tried in vain to cover up, willya?

I didn't find any snakes, rattle or otherwise. I DID, however, locate some prickly pear 'the hard way', whilst composing the junk sculpture shot. Imagine thrashing up a loose, gravelly scree slope in Sidis and Speedplay cleats... then stepping on stickers. Quite honestly I'm prolly lucky I DIDN'T find any snakes...

Round here, this stuff's so prevalent, you just thrash it with the mower along with everything else, and go on about your business. Last year these things all had the most gorgeous, delicate peach or yellow flowers on them. I believe they call them 'desert roses', and I wish I could find one in bloom. They're astonishingly lovely blossoms for such an utilitarian pile of stickers.

I hate these railroad tracks. Really, I do. And there's a set just like 'em on the other direction of my commute. Whichever way I go, I can't avoid dealing with this stuff, tho they're really only bad when it rains, which as you can see by the delightfully toasty quality of the grass, hasn't been much lately.

You can sorta see off to the right where the enterprising dirtheads amongst us have made a bypass trail off to the side. It becomes a singletrack that parallels the steel tracks, all the way to the next road and a slightly less wince-inducing crossing. I've been known to use it when one of the Slowest Trains In All Creation comes thru. They usually do this right around rush hour, and you know you're in trouble when the front end has something like 8 or 10 diesels on it.

Yep, that's right, I'm a 'dirt pirate' A local area term for a roadie unafraid to get the slicks dusty and rattle their pea brains around their head a bit.

There are a lot of unpaved local MUTs and open space doubletrack. Most of the county secondaries outside Boulder city limits are dirt. From a roadie's perspective, 90% are rideable, albeit with various 'ratings'.

This trail rates as marginal '2-star', dirt tho that's perhaps being generous. Yeah, it's got a few sand pits and some sections of embedded babyheads or dried ruts. Let's call it a 1.5, cos you'd hafta be seriously inattentive to crash yourself on this stuff. We've got plenty of 4 and even 5-star dirt that's rideable on a road bike, if you've the minerals... but that's a topic for another thread.

Most of the dirt trails run along creeks, giving you a cool, shady respite from car traffic.

THIS is what I call 3-star trail... can you spot the somewhat confused-looking road bike in the bottom picture?

The dropin in the first shot is a lot steeper and sketchier than it looks. Depth in these shots and steepness of grade is always hard to translate thru a camera lens, where' you've not got the benefit of binocular vision. I rode up this, and even managed it today with the messenger bag on, but it's marginal with roadie gearing and slicks as to whether you're gonna clean it. The poles at the base are 4' fence posts, and the cattails are significant, too. There's a bunch of pallets thrown thru the swampy bits at the bottom, and you've got to work not to drop a tyre in the gaps.

yer crashin' the server and losing my replies!

Go find something else to do... talk amongst yerselves, read Cyclingnews, anything... I gotta ton of pics to post on this thread, so I'll TELL ya when I'm done, you slackers!!!

.....

Just down the trail from the Bridge of Death is some more dirt pirate action, aka the Fox Park dirt jumps. The county gave this plot to the local freeride community to build and maintain. This stuff probably rates as 5-star in anyone's book. I can sorta make a pass thru the real flattish section and the berms 'round the far side on the 'crossie, but this is one place I don't dare take my roadie. Let's take a look, shall we?

Wow, that was fun, wasn't it? Now I'm hungry... not much time, gotta get to the bank and scamper back to work before it gets too ridiculously late. Ah, I know... I'll stop in Page 2. Nothing better than a nice, smelly Everything bagel, toasted with cream cheese, and some Naked Juice, a local Boulder treat. Note I said NAKED, not nekkid. This juice has morals, y'all.

mmmm, bagel with onion & garlic and everything nice... care for a smooch, anyone?

Ernesto here really likes flowers. He's a sensitive kinda guy. I like 'em too.

I'm too much in a hurry, or too lazy, or both, to bother going around. The bank's right behind the cafe', but there's a vacant lot in between. That, or go 'round Robin Hood's barn and thru King Sooper's parking lot to get there. Feh, forget that. Here's the destination, and the route. Think I can make it?

This is a prime example of what we in these parts term a 'DFU' situation. Eminently rideable, so long as you've that ability to disengage your brain and go for it. Teenagers have this in spades. Me, being an obsolete teenager, and female to boot... well, I had to work on this one for a bit a few years ago before I got it handled.

Bonus points if you can manage it on the roadie without dismounting or dabbing. I rode it, then turned around and rode it back, just for funsies. Well, and because I almost always dab in the return direction. It's a steep bank, with a sharp turn on the near side (as you look at it from these shots), so you gotta have a decent head of steam coming into the thing, yet maintain control on the exit. With road gearing, and on 23mm slicks pumped to 120 psi, it provides equal doses of adrenaline, consternation and glee.

I'd personally rather ride this than walk it. The bridge is pretty wobbly, better just to zip across it than bounce it around any.

such as Gunbarrel, it behooves one to lock up their ride, and properly. I like my Krypto cable, personally. It's flatkeyed, and more versatile than a U-lock. The shrouded item behind my bike appears to be some species of crotch rocket, also cabled to this very stout rack.

The little square thingie next to the messenger bag is a Kool Kover. Buy 'em, use 'em, live 'em. Speedplays are certain death on shiny marble bank floors without 'em, I guarantee.

Taking a page from Arby's book, I noticed the reflection in the bank window was pretty nifty what with the bright sun / dark background and all. Eh, it's a start, anyway. Finally figured out how to turn off the flash (well, duh!) and had to jack with the settings on this picture real good to get any detail out of it, so the colour looks a tad strange.

Yo Arby! You see that thing on my head?? It's called a helmet, dude!

(just busting your chops, bro... you know I do the same thing :) )

These shots are freaking HARD to get... for all the times these little beasties run right by the side of the trail (or practically under my front wheel), when I WANT to take a picture of 'em, they get all bashful and I gotta use the zoom and try to keep it in focus. Plus they're practically invisible from a distance, what with the camoflage and all.

Prairie dogs. Some consider 'em a plague, some consider 'em adorable, most agree that they're vital to the food chain, but whatever, there are a daggoned lot of 'em in Boulder.

it's not as loose as it looks, quite frankly. Bumpy, but no one ever died from that, and I'm told I ride light... I'm no equipment breaker, despite brainless stunts like these.

I'll leave you with a shot of one of my favourite local wildflowers. Eh, it's a weed, who'm I kidding. But it's pretty and makes great dried arrangements, and served as inspiration for the design of my old Bishop's teamkit from my MTB days in Ohio.

Teazle. You Midwestern mountainbikers will be well acquainted with these dealies. Careful, they've got stickers in!

... oh and a gratuitous shot of your intrepid author that I found on another disc from this AM. Looking really swell at 6.30, yep, that's me alright.

Quite a few folks ride bikes to work in this town. This particular place always has the rack full to bursting, and they're always cabling 'em to trees and such. It's the Rolf institute, bunch of physical therapy / massage guys.

Bikes of every flavour, from a really nice carbon Specialized to your dumpster divers' Huffy special.

post. I visited Colorado last summer, what a beautiful state. You don't realize how lucky you are!!!!!

You don't realize how lucky you are!!!!!
I absolutely do. I grew up in Ohio, after all.

Is that a Bell Ghisallo or a Sweep? What do you think of it? I just got my hands on a new Sweep (to further my Basso fanboyism) and haven't had the gall to use it... replaces an old Garneau.

Awesome ride report! Thanks for the look into 'rado ridin'.

Awesome ride report! Thanks for the look into 'rado ridin'.
De nada, *, and I've been meaning to tell you I think your new avatar is smoovealicious, bro. Fanboy nothing, and regardless of his hotness factor, Basso is comprehensively Da Man, and looks to be consolidating his podium spot.

We have Bell as a team sponsor, and the Ghisallo in that titanium colour is our 'official' team helmet. That being said, I like this helmet a lot, but I thought the Catlike Kompact my coach loaned me after I destroyed my last Ghisallo was much more stylish.

Nice pictures.

I like Naked juice, but the price is kind of brutal around here so I usually end up with Nantucket Nectars instead.

Nice pics from your neck of the woods. I like the cactus pic...and the DFU. Not sure I'm ready to try that, so I'll stay in PA a little longer. Thanks for sharing your ride.

AWESOME ride report. your posts are always entertaining and humorous. i hope this starts a new tradition of commuting/touring forum posts for you! and maybe your (fingers crossed) your increased presence will draw arby out of the NC board, and he'll resume his prolific posts over here. maybe.

anyway...i was in CO two weeks ago, and it was amazing. i straight up envy you. i was in the vail valley, and didn't see any priarie dogs, but i did see more marmots than people. damn those things were everywhere!

the_dude

almost forgot my reason for responding..........that bagel shot and comment made me smile, seeing as i had just finished scarfing down my morning 'everything' bagel with cream cheese. i think the bad breath trade-off is well worth it!

the_dude

such as Gunbarrel, it behooves one to lock up their ride, and properly. I like my Krypto cable, personally. It's flatkeyed, and more versatile than a U-lock.

That is no way to lock a dearly loved bike. I can cut those krypto cables with a hand held sidecutter that will fit in a pants pocket.

Now I use one of those Kryptocables too but I add a little extra. You may not need a U-Lock as stout as mine but at least carry a mini-u of good quality to use in addition to your cable.

There are bad guys out there so take care.

MB1 who HATES bike theives.

whaddya think of the pictures? :(

seriously dude, tho I appreciate your concern, and I know 'it can happen anywhere', this ain't the hood. It's the suburbs, and quite honestly, Gunbarrel is a very small rural bedroom community where everyone knows pretty much what's going on. This rack is in a public area, within plain sight of the bank windows and everyone inside. Plus, if anyone tried jimmying or cutting the cable, someone would a) notice and b) politely ask what's up. Honestly, I've a good read on the characters of people in this area and I'm as paranoid about my bikes as the next person, but if anywhere in Boulder County is safe to lock a bike with less than adequate means, it's Gunbarrel.

Now BALTIMORE, on the other hand... Geesh. Arby's got a nice collection of locks, and thank heavens we always found a safe place to lock 'em up securely while I was there. But that's also why I sent the Morgul there to live with him while we're getting our logistics sorted, as it's my bike-I'd-not-be-quite-so-sore-about-losing.

With that being said, I do not, EVER let ANY of my bikes out of my sight up around campus. Hell, I barely feel safe riding them through that area, so I don't let my hands off 'em. Period. And if I'm riding around Pearl St. or the downtown shopping areas, you bet your life I bring my U-lock as well.

I'm not naive, but D.C. urban policy doesn't actually apply in this particular instance, sorry.

maybe your (fingers crossed) your increased presence will draw arby out of the NC board, and he'll resume his prolific posts over here. maybe.
Cheers, dude. Glad I could at least provide some entertainment for youall. Arby's been a diligent lad lately, and between being busy at work and the current server problems, he's not had the time to post much. You'll have to make do with me for now.

Arby's been lurking around. He's just swamped at work, which I can sympathise with.

And until they get the server issues ironed, I can't say as I'm very eager to try to repeat yesterday's experience. It took FOUR SOLID HOURS to upload all those pics, what with hitting 'reload' every ten seconds and losing half the posts due to crashes. Holy painful chores, Batman, I'd rather wear poison ivy long johns for a week than go thru that again!

whaddya think of the pictures? :(

seriously dude, tho I appreciate your concern, and I know 'it can happen anywhere', this ain't the hood. It's the suburbs, and quite honestly, Gunbarrel is a very small rural bedroom community where everyone knows pretty much what's going on. This rack is in a public area, within plain sight of the bank windows and everyone inside. Plus, if anyone tried jimmying or cutting the cable, someone would a) notice and b) politely ask what's up. Honestly, I've a good read on the characters of people in this area and I'm as paranoid about my bikes as the next person, but if anywhere in Boulder County is safe to lock a bike with less than adequate means, it's Gunbarrel.

Now BALTIMORE, on the other hand... Geesh. Arby's got a nice collection of locks, and thank heavens we always found a safe place to lock 'em up securely while I was there. But that's also why I sent the Morgul there to live with him while we're getting our logistics sorted, as it's my bike-I'd-not-be-quite-so-sore-about-losing.

With that being said, I do not, EVER let ANY of my bikes out of my sight up around campus. Hell, I barely feel safe riding them through that area, so I don't let my hands off 'em. Period. And if I'm riding around Pearl St. or the downtown shopping areas, you bet your life I bring my U-lock as well.

I'm not naive, but D.C. urban policy doesn't actually apply in this particular instance, sorry.

It makes me want to ride my bike (of course everything makes me want to ride but this is a really good post).

BTW what is up with you and Arby, did I miss something while I was on tour?
BTW2 Just because "I'm as paranoid about my bikes as the next person," doesn't mean you are paranoid enough.

MB1 who REALLY, REALLY HATES bike theives (and is always up for a bit of juicy gossip).

BTW what is up with you and Arby, did I miss something while I was on tour?
I didn't realise you were out of town. check yer PMs in a moment (assuming the server graces me with its attention).

You'll have to make do with me for now.

Holy painful chores, Batman, I'd rather wear poison ivy long johns for a week than go thru that again!


POST A PIC!!!!!

but seriously.....i'm just glad you're finally sharing your wit n' **** with this forum now too!

as far as server traffic goes, once the tour's gone, the traffic will drop back to normalish. and when it does, i expect these posts to continue. now you have a reputation to live up to. ever see how many people voice up in protest when MB1 and Arby go missing for a while?

the_dude

Great pictures, sorry I didn't see this post earlier. I especially like the close-up shots. Like the bike in the woods and against the flowers, also the pict of the bridge. You must have awesome patience to catch that prairie-dog. Great stuff! Looking forward to more once the "busy server" signs die down.

It's a link to World Cycling Productions ... a new DVD about Riis, Ivan and the CSC boys filmed during 2004. Looks promising.

http://www.worldcycling.com/overcoming/overcoming_lg.swf

Great pictures, sorry I didn't see this post earlier. I especially like the close-up shots. Like the bike in the woods and against the flowers, also the pict of the bridge. You must have awesome patience to catch that prairie-dog. Great stuff! Looking forward to more once the "busy server" signs die down.

One more week of Tour fun and then we'll have your posts to look forward to. I enjoy the pics of the dirt jumps. That track looks like fun! Are you sure you haven't tried the whole loop, just once when nobody else was there to see? If you can spot the short landing and throw the bike while you're in the air, it hurts a little less when you come down.

Damn, I miss living in Boulder. My father nearly had a coronary when he found out that the house next to ours on Spruce street had been turned into a B&B and was for sale with an asking price of over $2 million!!! Yikes!

One more week of Tour fun and then we'll have your posts to look forward to. I enjoy the pics of the dirt jumps. That track looks like fun! Are you sure you haven't tried the whole loop, just once when nobody else was there to see? If you can spot the short landing and throw the bike while you're in the air, it hurts a little less when you come down.
I've done the far side 'kindergarten line' on the 'cross bike more times than I can count. One of my favourite things to do as I'm 'chaining' stretches of dirt path / trail / singletrack together. Indescribably fun to do this as a drive-by when the freeride boyz are hanging out over there, all kitted out with their dirt jump bikes and in full body armour. I'll come zipping thru like Zorro in my very gayest be-Lycra'd roadie drag, and you can just see the "WTF??!! Was that a ROAD bike??" expressions on their faces as I disappear over the horizon.

700c wheels and Speedplays (or Time ATACS) are a little daunting for the bigger stuff, especially since I don't have the ability to drop my saddle down out of the way. And I don't have any pads. But the outside line, and the berms, are sick fun with the 'crossie, and I can even get some (very small and extremely lame) air off the little rhythm jumps down that side. The 'cross bike has extra strengthners built into the frame, plus a heavier steel fork. Both are Colnago Dreams, just the 'cross bike is marginally more purpose built for this sort of idiocy. The 'feeder' dropin is really pretty intense, and there are some things I'm just too old and female to ride a full-on road bike down. It a bit of a hard transition and bump at the bottom. Sidepulls, slicks and a lightweight carbon fork? well, they'd most likely cut it, but I really don't like that loud 'CRACK' my headset cups make as they bottom out and slam into the races on a big hit, ya know?. The 'crosser has just that little bit more cush in the tyres and ability to take it up.

I actually took those two pictures specifically for Arby... he's got some seriously cool freeride vids of him jumping off houses and suchlike.

I also like taking my road bike off road, but hadn't done any descents of consequence in a long time. I've become quite a chicken. My forearms were burning from holding the brakes, deer flies were swarming around my head and I was afraid to let go with one hand to swat them. So I walked a few descents, grateful that none of my friends were there to see me.

there are some things I'm just too old and female to ride a full-on road bike down.

And it doesn't sound like there are many things that fall into this category. Buzzing the freeride boys in your Lycra sounds like an honorable activity; it's probably good for them to have their minds blown on something other than weed once in a while.