rugby begins in three weeks... but there's still mountain biking to be had! the fall brings some tasty, tasty riding to the valley, and i'm wondering when there's going to be time to get out and pedal on nice, long rides when the days are getting shorter and my weekends are taken up with elegant violence...
what to do, what to do...
the real question, though, is how to fit enough of BOTH into my schedule. that's the fun part - having your cake and eating it, too! who says you can't...
Friday, August 25, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
The 24 Hours of GREAT GOOGALY MOOGALY, numero dos!
i did it again! i swore i wouldn't but, dammit, you can't keep a true dumbass down... here's the official TWAF press release:
Release: Team Weak and Feeble cracks the top 10 at the 24 hours of GG!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (even though this is a fake release just designed to let everyone know about how TWAF did this weekend at the 24 hours of great glen - feel free to send it to cool people, though)
Pinkham Notch, NH - Fresh off a frustrating, yet strangely triumphant debut at the Jay Challenge in Jay, VT, Team Weak and Feeble regrouped and posted a 9th place finish at the 11th annual 24 Hours of Great Glen. The crew pedaled 25 laps around the 8.3-mile course in 24 hours, 19 minutes and 11 seconds. With Sven Cole (DEA) leading the way at seven laps (including a stunning, back-to-back, final-hours lap display to put a bow on the event) and Abe Wrobleski (A1), Josh Mac (PJ) and Nick LeBel (nK) adding six laps a piece, TWAF rebounded strongly after nK and PJ couldn't complete the Jay Challenge due to mechanical and physiological problems, respectively.
Pictured below is the happy TWAF after DEA rolled into the finish, with (L to R) nick leBel, josh mac, abe wrobleski and sven cole. below that is a fine action shot of nK callously ignoring a downed rider as he heads into "Miah's Drop", a particularly nasty section of singletrack that ate up both abe and nick later on in the day, proving that karma's a bitch.
take care, all,
nick (nK, north Korea slim)
Release: Team Weak and Feeble cracks the top 10 at the 24 hours of GG!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (even though this is a fake release just designed to let everyone know about how TWAF did this weekend at the 24 hours of great glen - feel free to send it to cool people, though)
Pinkham Notch, NH - Fresh off a frustrating, yet strangely triumphant debut at the Jay Challenge in Jay, VT, Team Weak and Feeble regrouped and posted a 9th place finish at the 11th annual 24 Hours of Great Glen. The crew pedaled 25 laps around the 8.3-mile course in 24 hours, 19 minutes and 11 seconds. With Sven Cole (DEA) leading the way at seven laps (including a stunning, back-to-back, final-hours lap display to put a bow on the event) and Abe Wrobleski (A1), Josh Mac (PJ) and Nick LeBel (nK) adding six laps a piece, TWAF rebounded strongly after nK and PJ couldn't complete the Jay Challenge due to mechanical and physiological problems, respectively.
Pictured below is the happy TWAF after DEA rolled into the finish, with (L to R) nick leBel, josh mac, abe wrobleski and sven cole. below that is a fine action shot of nK callously ignoring a downed rider as he heads into "Miah's Drop", a particularly nasty section of singletrack that ate up both abe and nick later on in the day, proving that karma's a bitch.
take care, all,
nick (nK, north Korea slim)
Monday, June 05, 2006
i'm back! (and i'm soggy)
OK, i've been a real slacker on the pedaling front lately. still been active, still been running and playing rugby like a fiend, but very lazy when it comes to getting in the saddle.
however that all changed sunday when i went on a solo tour of red tail (which runs parallel to the diabolical hurricane mountain road in north conway), down to mt. cranmore. could've done more, certainly had the legs, but it just wasn't that much fun of a day alone... but that was my own fault.
anyway, started the ride from home, down to sid's for some power bars, and then over the power lines (see how that ties together?!) and then up hurricane mountain road to the trailhead. by the water tower i passed by a gentlemen who'd been hiking with his dogs, and as he emerged from the woods, i passed his two dogs and said, 'how's it looking?' he said, 'good! considering...'
the 'considering' part was since we'd been deluged and soaked to the bone saturday, sunday brought forth running water down the trail, wet, slick rock and some slight washout action. not a big deal. what WAS a big deal was the fact that the super-technical sections that always existed became flat-out not rideable, and other sections that were typically tricky became serious challenges.
it was one hell of a ride in that respect. that, and i FOUGHT with my derailleur the entire time, although i managed to not chuck anything (least of all the iron horse). not that it was all bad, though! since i was having 'issues' with my derailleur, i rode 90% of the trail in the middle ring, since granny gear just wasn't working. it was an advantageous equipment issue, but it's going to have to be fixed by jay. and by fixed i mean replaced. and by replaced i mean not by me, because i'd break it.
from trailhead to the top took just over an hour, and i was really happy with that - all alone, with only my own meager motivation to keep me going, and it felt good! the cruise over to cranmore was a bit sloppy, with the trees being so weighed down with rainwater the branches leaned deep into the trail, and basically bitch-slapped you as you passed by. oh well, it cleaned me off.
then, once i hit cranmore, it was a break-busting downhill (you could hear the brakes steaming - i love disc brakes!) back to the parking lot, and although i seriously considered turning right back around and doing it again, i went home and watched mythbusters instead.
here's to being in over our heads at the jay challenge!!
however that all changed sunday when i went on a solo tour of red tail (which runs parallel to the diabolical hurricane mountain road in north conway), down to mt. cranmore. could've done more, certainly had the legs, but it just wasn't that much fun of a day alone... but that was my own fault.
anyway, started the ride from home, down to sid's for some power bars, and then over the power lines (see how that ties together?!) and then up hurricane mountain road to the trailhead. by the water tower i passed by a gentlemen who'd been hiking with his dogs, and as he emerged from the woods, i passed his two dogs and said, 'how's it looking?' he said, 'good! considering...'
the 'considering' part was since we'd been deluged and soaked to the bone saturday, sunday brought forth running water down the trail, wet, slick rock and some slight washout action. not a big deal. what WAS a big deal was the fact that the super-technical sections that always existed became flat-out not rideable, and other sections that were typically tricky became serious challenges.
it was one hell of a ride in that respect. that, and i FOUGHT with my derailleur the entire time, although i managed to not chuck anything (least of all the iron horse). not that it was all bad, though! since i was having 'issues' with my derailleur, i rode 90% of the trail in the middle ring, since granny gear just wasn't working. it was an advantageous equipment issue, but it's going to have to be fixed by jay. and by fixed i mean replaced. and by replaced i mean not by me, because i'd break it.
from trailhead to the top took just over an hour, and i was really happy with that - all alone, with only my own meager motivation to keep me going, and it felt good! the cruise over to cranmore was a bit sloppy, with the trees being so weighed down with rainwater the branches leaned deep into the trail, and basically bitch-slapped you as you passed by. oh well, it cleaned me off.
then, once i hit cranmore, it was a break-busting downhill (you could hear the brakes steaming - i love disc brakes!) back to the parking lot, and although i seriously considered turning right back around and doing it again, i went home and watched mythbusters instead.
here's to being in over our heads at the jay challenge!!
Thursday, April 13, 2006
we're back on track (or, sven is an ASS)
ok, so as some of you know, and others don't (and yet even more others may not even care), we're doing this bike thing this summer that involves lots and lots of pain, pedaling, puke and, most likely, pussying out. the jay challenge; 64 miles of up-and-down. hardly any flats to speak of, but lots of boiled potatoes at the aid stations to keep your sodium level up and your body energized!!
however, that didn't stop sven from being a right c*** and dragging me up not just thorn hill BUT hurricane mountain as well yesterday. and he didn't warn me, the svenster being from the "what he doesn't know can't hurt him" school of bike training. then again, all we did was 25 - 30 miles at a VERY chill pace except for the climbs (we had someone just getting back on the bike). that's less than half of jay.
however, jay means i'm riding the iron horse, which means a comfy saddle, unlike the freaking samurai swords i've been balancing on while pushing a road bike. hmm. so at least my ass won't be screaming. looks like i'll need lots of chamois butt'r. look it up, it's a real product.
we made drunk cyclist! drunk cyclist is a guy by the name of jonny who lives out in arizona (i think) and hosts the dirtiest, most raunchy cycling site out there. breasts and bikes! that's just two things that go together very, very well. peanut butter and jelly. pork and beans. ron and nancy. anyway, he picked up a link to the Team Weak and Feeble blog and linked us! so, in honor of his bit of dap, i send some back. go here:
http://www.drunkcyclist.com/
go now!
OK, now come back. now go visit http://jaychallenge.blogspot.com to see the latest adventures of Team Weak and Feeble. you'll know me as nK or north korea. sven is SC. abe is A1 or steak sauce. dennis is d2. josh (powder jew) never posts, so never mind.
later!
however, that didn't stop sven from being a right c*** and dragging me up not just thorn hill BUT hurricane mountain as well yesterday. and he didn't warn me, the svenster being from the "what he doesn't know can't hurt him" school of bike training. then again, all we did was 25 - 30 miles at a VERY chill pace except for the climbs (we had someone just getting back on the bike). that's less than half of jay.
however, jay means i'm riding the iron horse, which means a comfy saddle, unlike the freaking samurai swords i've been balancing on while pushing a road bike. hmm. so at least my ass won't be screaming. looks like i'll need lots of chamois butt'r. look it up, it's a real product.
we made drunk cyclist! drunk cyclist is a guy by the name of jonny who lives out in arizona (i think) and hosts the dirtiest, most raunchy cycling site out there. breasts and bikes! that's just two things that go together very, very well. peanut butter and jelly. pork and beans. ron and nancy. anyway, he picked up a link to the Team Weak and Feeble blog and linked us! so, in honor of his bit of dap, i send some back. go here:
http://www.drunkcyclist.com/
go now!
OK, now come back. now go visit http://jaychallenge.blogspot.com to see the latest adventures of Team Weak and Feeble. you'll know me as nK or north korea. sven is SC. abe is A1 or steak sauce. dennis is d2. josh (powder jew) never posts, so never mind.
later!
Friday, March 31, 2006
we made it!!! and a parable explained...
okay, i'm in new york! just out of the city, actually, in new rochelle, westchester county, or something like that. we went 3,047 miles in five days. pretty slow normally, but blazing fast if you realize that we were trailing a 5 x 10 trailer with a 4 cylinder jeep. so, here we are, but my journey's just started.
first off, i have to get to lynn, mass, tomorrow BY 1 PM in order to play some rugby. then i have to get to portland to meet up with some people. THEN i can rest. sunday's an off-day. and dammit, i need one! i just want to sit on the couch, do nothing and let lethargy take me over.
it's been a hell of a trip, crossing california, arizona, new mexico, texas, oklahoma, missouri, illinois, pennsylvania, new jersey and now we're here just outside the Big Apple - but i have one anecdote i want to share. you know the whole glass half full/half empty parable? well, mikey solved it. and i'm here to explain it: there are two answers to this, because of two very important things: gas tanks and bladders. gas tanks exist to be emptied. so, if there's half a tank left, it's half EMPTY. bladders, on the other hand, exist to be filled. so when you are about halfway away from your eyeballs floating, you're half FULL.
folks, we're here to help you...
missing the valley, can't wait to get back!!
first off, i have to get to lynn, mass, tomorrow BY 1 PM in order to play some rugby. then i have to get to portland to meet up with some people. THEN i can rest. sunday's an off-day. and dammit, i need one! i just want to sit on the couch, do nothing and let lethargy take me over.
it's been a hell of a trip, crossing california, arizona, new mexico, texas, oklahoma, missouri, illinois, pennsylvania, new jersey and now we're here just outside the Big Apple - but i have one anecdote i want to share. you know the whole glass half full/half empty parable? well, mikey solved it. and i'm here to explain it: there are two answers to this, because of two very important things: gas tanks and bladders. gas tanks exist to be emptied. so, if there's half a tank left, it's half EMPTY. bladders, on the other hand, exist to be filled. so when you are about halfway away from your eyeballs floating, you're half FULL.
folks, we're here to help you...
missing the valley, can't wait to get back!!
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
halfway home!
sorry, sorry, sorry!
well, sorry to all three of you who read this. however, i know i was supposed to be updating this diligently, but, what can you do... it's harder to find internet access than i thought.
BUT, i'll give a quick overview of the past three days:
DAY 1: san diego, CA to Demin, NM. at least i think that's what the name was. anyway, it was all desert, and i mean all desert. going through tuscon, AZ was a bit anticlimactic and that's about it. at least mikey and i fart a lot. but we already knew that. and, we found it's helpful to play our tunes loud so when we sing with them we can't hear each other...
DAY 2: demin, NM to elk city, OK. this was a good one. we went through albequerque (sp?) and saw a funeral procession for a slain police officer that stretched for miles on the highway, i mean probably 10 miles, shut down a major highway going westbound and pissed off the truckers something wicked. we have a CB in the jeep, and it was something to hear the truckers rant. also, elk city, OK has probably the nicest holiday inn in the world.
TODAY (day 3): elk city, OK to collinsville, IL. we made this day up with the intention of going to the bud brewery in st. louis and getting the tour. well, we made it to st. louis, but found that those anheuser/busch assholes closed the gates on us before we could get there... so, we told st. louis (and the west bank of the mississippi) to eff off and we headed into illinois. had BBQ at the bandana's across from our lovely comfort inn, and we're headed to PA and amish country tomorrow.
we haven't killed each other, all is going great, and i have no idea in the world about how i'm going to manage to play in my rugby match saturday! pray for bad weather or something, i guess...
we're almost 2,000 miles in, and the U-haul's still hitched to the jeep. that alone is an accomplishment.
wish us well, and mahalo!
well, sorry to all three of you who read this. however, i know i was supposed to be updating this diligently, but, what can you do... it's harder to find internet access than i thought.
BUT, i'll give a quick overview of the past three days:
DAY 1: san diego, CA to Demin, NM. at least i think that's what the name was. anyway, it was all desert, and i mean all desert. going through tuscon, AZ was a bit anticlimactic and that's about it. at least mikey and i fart a lot. but we already knew that. and, we found it's helpful to play our tunes loud so when we sing with them we can't hear each other...
DAY 2: demin, NM to elk city, OK. this was a good one. we went through albequerque (sp?) and saw a funeral procession for a slain police officer that stretched for miles on the highway, i mean probably 10 miles, shut down a major highway going westbound and pissed off the truckers something wicked. we have a CB in the jeep, and it was something to hear the truckers rant. also, elk city, OK has probably the nicest holiday inn in the world.
TODAY (day 3): elk city, OK to collinsville, IL. we made this day up with the intention of going to the bud brewery in st. louis and getting the tour. well, we made it to st. louis, but found that those anheuser/busch assholes closed the gates on us before we could get there... so, we told st. louis (and the west bank of the mississippi) to eff off and we headed into illinois. had BBQ at the bandana's across from our lovely comfort inn, and we're headed to PA and amish country tomorrow.
we haven't killed each other, all is going great, and i have no idea in the world about how i'm going to manage to play in my rugby match saturday! pray for bad weather or something, i guess...
we're almost 2,000 miles in, and the U-haul's still hitched to the jeep. that alone is an accomplishment.
wish us well, and mahalo!
Friday, March 24, 2006
ROAD TRIP!
i got a phone call last sunday from my best bud, who lives out in sunny san diego, CA. hey, how's it going, all that stuff, and then he tells me that he's moving back east. that's great! awesome to hear, i'm really glad he's moving home, blah blah blah.
then he gets to the meat of the matter: do i want to fly out there and do a cross-country trip back with him? and it's all taken care of, as well. hmmmm...
done, and done.
i'm flying out tomorrow. keep checking here for my location and our adventures!
then he gets to the meat of the matter: do i want to fly out there and do a cross-country trip back with him? and it's all taken care of, as well. hmmmm...
done, and done.
i'm flying out tomorrow. keep checking here for my location and our adventures!
Thursday, March 23, 2006
are you kidding me?!
drew over at fark.com said it best: we're being followed by "Generation Wuss". this is unbelievable.
yeah, it's been a while, but this really irked me.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.baseball22mar22,0,7892062.story
yeah, it's been a while, but this really irked me.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.baseball22mar22,0,7892062.story
Saturday, January 28, 2006
a different kind of ramblings
i probably ought not to do this now, but i'm going to.
my grandmother's not doing well (and the odds are i'm going to delete this before anyone reads this). i don't mean not well as in she's going to die tomorrow (god forbid), but she had an aneurismn late wednesday night. thank god she was vacationing with my grandfather in florida, near gainesville, which just so happens to be right where U of F has their hospital, which also just happens to be the best place to be if this kind of thing happens to you. so, pepere got ahold of the EMTs, they got her to the hospital in time to save her. that sucks to say - save her - i can't even belive this happened to her. but, she's alive.
my dad and his three sisters flew down from maine immediately, and they were with her and my grandfather on thursday, when things were very bad. and very scary. thursday night was a very, very scary night. i'm lucky enough to have spent my life with all four of my grandparents, and i'd never really entertained the thought of losing one of them. any of them. my grandparents are, on either side of the family, healthy, fit, tough people. they don't show weakness. they don't get sick. they're not going to die. period.
well, that all changed. early friday morning, nana went in for surgery, and it went great. if anything of that nature can go great. they relieved any immediate blood flow issues to her brain, located a potential second aneurism (to be operated on later next week once she's had time to recuperate), and called it a success.
which it is. she's not going anywhere. that tough, wonderful, loving, amazing woman won't give up the ghost that easily. i don't know if i'll be going down to florida to see her yet - i don't know how i can help other than to take pressure off of my dad and his sisters, but i do know that if they need it, my family has rallied. big time.
i'm scared. and writing this has helped a lot. she has a long road ahead of her, and she and my pepere have a terribly long and painful journey ahead, and nobody seems to know (especially the doctors) what's next.
all i (meaning me, my cousins and the extended family) know is we have to do all we can, whatever that is, to make sure she's comfortable, my pepere's comfortable, and my nana's kids (my dad and her sisters) are stable in what they have to to.
god, i'm scared. i want her to be as strong as i've known her to be. but i'm in new hampshire, living my own life, and i feel guilty for it. i hope i'm doing the right thing.
my grandmother's not doing well (and the odds are i'm going to delete this before anyone reads this). i don't mean not well as in she's going to die tomorrow (god forbid), but she had an aneurismn late wednesday night. thank god she was vacationing with my grandfather in florida, near gainesville, which just so happens to be right where U of F has their hospital, which also just happens to be the best place to be if this kind of thing happens to you. so, pepere got ahold of the EMTs, they got her to the hospital in time to save her. that sucks to say - save her - i can't even belive this happened to her. but, she's alive.
my dad and his three sisters flew down from maine immediately, and they were with her and my grandfather on thursday, when things were very bad. and very scary. thursday night was a very, very scary night. i'm lucky enough to have spent my life with all four of my grandparents, and i'd never really entertained the thought of losing one of them. any of them. my grandparents are, on either side of the family, healthy, fit, tough people. they don't show weakness. they don't get sick. they're not going to die. period.
well, that all changed. early friday morning, nana went in for surgery, and it went great. if anything of that nature can go great. they relieved any immediate blood flow issues to her brain, located a potential second aneurism (to be operated on later next week once she's had time to recuperate), and called it a success.
which it is. she's not going anywhere. that tough, wonderful, loving, amazing woman won't give up the ghost that easily. i don't know if i'll be going down to florida to see her yet - i don't know how i can help other than to take pressure off of my dad and his sisters, but i do know that if they need it, my family has rallied. big time.
i'm scared. and writing this has helped a lot. she has a long road ahead of her, and she and my pepere have a terribly long and painful journey ahead, and nobody seems to know (especially the doctors) what's next.
all i (meaning me, my cousins and the extended family) know is we have to do all we can, whatever that is, to make sure she's comfortable, my pepere's comfortable, and my nana's kids (my dad and her sisters) are stable in what they have to to.
god, i'm scared. i want her to be as strong as i've known her to be. but i'm in new hampshire, living my own life, and i feel guilty for it. i hope i'm doing the right thing.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
my new endeavor
so, folks, after a long, lengthy break from blogging (thanks to another round of the surgery bug), i'm back, and i'm not alone! check out a new blog that a few of us idiots set up for our impending doom - er, bike race.
http://jaychallenge.blogspot.com
and i'll be back with more informative, entertaining and thought-provoking entries in the coming days!
http://jaychallenge.blogspot.com
and i'll be back with more informative, entertaining and thought-provoking entries in the coming days!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
