Skyview CX -- Got the first one out of the way...

Nate Woodman (Monkey Wrench Cycles/Ibis) takes the high road over the barriers. He was the only one taking this road. His effort earned him third place in the Cat 1/2/3 race Saturday. Nice race Nate!

It was a surprisingly un-messy weekend up in Norfolk at the Skyview Cyclocross Classic this past Saturday. After a couple inches of snow had fallen Thursday night, all expectations were that the course was going to be a sloppy mess, but that didn't turn out to be the case Saturday and it turned out to simply be soft and energy sucking. I made an interesting decision to race the 40 minute Cat 3/4 race at noon, then try to follow that up with the hour-long Cat 1/2/3 race at 3pm, after a 2+ hour break.

The Cat 3/4 podium -- My next race wouldn't end up so triumphantly... Photo: Elkhorn Valley Cycling Club

Let's just say I won't be trying that experiment again anytime soon. While the Cat 3 race went well (I took the win), I was totally unable to rally my legs again for the 1/2/3 race. It was immediately apparent that I didn't have anywhere near the leg power of the top five guys in the race, and it was almost an act of divine grace when my tubeless rear tire blew off the rim at the end of the first lap, as I got a little too aggressive on an off-camber left hand corner trying to make up time on one of the few sections of course I could actually ride well with weak legs.

One shot of me in the Cat 1/2/3 race. Photo www.LucasMarshall.com

I could have walked around to the pit, grabbed my Fargo and continued on, but it would have just been adding insult to injury at that point. The highlight of my day had already passed... It was at the end of the Cat 3 race. I needed to just be happy with how I rode in that race and learn the lesson it taught me -- don't do two races in a day when I'm signed up for the A (1/2/3) race. It doesn't work...

But one thing that did work Saturday was my Salsa Chili Con Crosso. It was AWESOME! Man, I couldn't have asked for a better performing bike on the course Saturday. While some folks have made the jump to carbon on their 'cross machines, I'll let 'em have it. I'm stickin' with my Scandium race machine... It's light, efficient, handles great and rides exactly the way I want it to. To say that I'm happy with my new Chili is an understatement.

On the way to getting the victory in the Cat 3/4 race Saturday. Photo: Elkhorn Valley Cycling Club

The Chili has always been one of the best, most completely balanced frames in the Salsa line, and this year's frameset is no different... I've been fortunate enough to race some of the most reputable 'cross bikes in the world and this is hands down the best 'cross racing bike I've ever owned. Thank you to Jason Boucher, Salsa Cycles and the folks at Monkey Wrench Cycles for giving me the opportunity to race it this season.

Thanks also to the folks at the Elkhorn Valley Cycling Club for hosting us at Skyview Park and for putting on the race. It was well-run and a great race. Race director, John Downey did a great job and I really appreciate the effort everybody up there went to in order to put the event on and set up a good course for us to race on. Thank you very much!!

See the Elkhorn Valley photos here.

See Lucas Marshall's photos on Facebook (must be a friend of Lucas to view).

The 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo... It Was Fun While It Lasted.

The Cycle Works/Giant demo, ready to go Friday afternoon. Photo: CQ

After more than six months of planning, the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo went off this past weekend at Potter's Pasture near Brady, Nebraska. And well, it was going to be an awesome event... It started out really good. Friday was killer... I wish I'd have been able to get there earlier than I did, which was at about 4:30pm, but the realities of securing the raffle items, packing everything in Laura's Subaru (which used to seem much roomier) and getting out to Brady, which with multiple construction zones, was more than 3 hours away, it got late quick.

Getting the check-in started Friday afternoon. It was still about 50 degrees at this point... Photo: DJ, The Biking Fools

When I got out there, things were already hummin'... Folks were arriving and already hitting the trails. Sweet! We got the registration set up and started checking riders in, and then I went to set my tent up. At this point, the night ride was about to get started, so I figured, "what the hay, I'll go ahead and hit it."

The ride before the night ride I went on. Photo: DJ, The Biking Fools

Kyle and I took off at dusk with about a group of a dozen folks that came in from all over the country... It was super cool. It still blows my mind to think that in the group we had riders from Oregon, Colorado, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska representing. It wasn't just a bunch of locals... Despite the threatening weather, riders traveled in from all over to participate in the Ballyhoo! I feel a huge debt of gratitude to guys like Cory Heintz, who rode for almost three weeks to Colorado, then drove the rest of the way with friends to participate in the Ballyhoo. That's cool.

The lineup of super sweet Giant XtC demo bikes waits for action Friday afternoon at the Cycle Works trailer. Photo: CQ

Butch Johnson from Cycle Works was there, leadin' the charge on one of the sweet new Giant XtC 29er demo bikes, along with the guys from Minnesota on their Trek 69er singlespeeds, running 32/17, if memory serves. Holy COW that's tall gearing, gentlemen! No wonder they were literally flying up the climbs. They left me in the dust on the first climbs, but as the pace moderated a bit, I was able to get back onto the bus.

But as we crested the first climb, we saw the first of what would end up being many snowflakes that weekend. It added a cool, surreal element to the ride that anyone whose been on a snowstorm night ride will immediately relate to. And as we met up with Chad Quigley, who'd had light issues earlier and had to link up with us, we started down Hornitos, one of Potter's Pasture's premier descents. It was rippin'... And little did I know, it'd be the best descent I'd get all weekend.

A few moments later we rolled into camp to the hoots and hollers of about 25-30 folks gathered around the bonfire listening to banjo music. That was a cool way to end the ride!

Our friend Steve Potter was there. He's the Man behind Potter's Pasture. And if you ask him about it, he'll humbly state that he's "merely the caretaker of the land for a while," but I think we're really fortunate to have somebody that's willing to share his amazing natural resource with us, simply for us to enjoy. We are the lucky ones and we all owe Steve Potter a huge THANK YOU, even though this year, despite our best laid plans, the best part of the Big Wheeled Ballyhoo went unrealized due to the 6-9 inches of snow that fell over the entire area.

The Man, Steve Potter, takes a few moments to chat up Matt Fuller and Wes Trout from Lincoln. Wes brought out his two wheel-drive Christini that he recently scored for a song off of eBay. Steve Potter took the bike and promptly rode to the top of the steepest climb in the Pasture, proving that is was possible to ride, just not exactly pleasurable or fast. Having both wheels driven was pretty sweet in the sketchy snow too... Talk about a specialist bike! Photo: CQ

Honestly, we were fortunate we weren't 20 miles west in North Platte. They got 17 inches of snow... So in retrospect, we should be thankful for what we didn't get! But that said, it's hard to feel lucky when six months of planning are largely nullified by an act of nature that is completely out of your control. That just sucked.

My camp, Saturday morning... apparently before I got up. Photo: CQ

On Saturday morning, I awoke in a pitch black tent, only to realize I was waking up more than an hour late (and a half hour into the start of the breakfast). The snow had piled so high on my tent that it blocked out all the light, and I was so bundled up in my sleeping bag, apparently I didn't hear my iPod that was set as my alarm clock. Whoops!!

Visions of breakfast. Todd and DJ -- The Biking Fools

So I quickly got dressed and got outside to find that our pancake guy wasn't going to show (even though his super pancake cooker was hooked up and ready to go), so we were left to cook pancakes in Paul Brasby's camper, two at a time. In fact, Paul was already hooked up and cookin'. What a stud. Since folks were getting up slowly, somehow the cooking pace worked out with a little patience on the participants' parts (which we were extremely grateful for -- thank you very much!).

Kris and Butch finish packing the Cycle Works trailer before hitting the snowy road Saturday morning. Photo: Llama

With everyone fed, Kris and Butch from Cycle Works decided to pull up the stakes and head for Lincoln. Since there weren't going to be any demo rides going out, there wasn't really any reason for them to stick around, so they took off. After a quick powwow with Chad, Kyle and Paul, we decided it'd be best to hold the raffle for the Sette Razzo 29 and Misfit Dissent framesets, Oakley Frogskins sunglasses, Red Bull DVDs and Dairy Queen gift certificates at noon Saturday instead of noon Sunday, so that folks could go ahead and hit the road themselves if they wanted. So we went ahead and did it...

The winners... Kelly Klein (left) is the winner of the Sette Razzo 29 frame, while Bob Wieck (right) is the winner of the Misfit Cycles Dissent frame. Photo: DJ, The Biking Fools

While most of the folks filtered out of the pasture progressively following the raffle drawing, a hardcore group of folks stayed around, which eventually dwindled down to about six overnight campers. Little did we know, all of us would be treated to an awesome campfire grill-cooked dinner by our good buddies, Wes Trout and Matt Fuller, including some of the best burgers I've had in an awfully long time. Thanks guys! That was exactly what the doctor ordered!

Sunday morning came, and with it the realization that we had to reconnect with the society we'd willingly unplugged from two days earlier. In many ways, we didn't mind that we hadn't ridden our bikes. It was still an incredible experience... To spend a weekend camping among the creatures in the woods is an amazing gift, and is something not enough people take the time to do in today's plugged-in, Internet-age society.

I appreciate the gift Steve Potter has given us in the ability to visit and enjoy his incredible Nebraska singetrack paradise, and I hope you too will someday find the peace and sheer joy that hides within that magnificent piece of land.

We were fortunate to have several great sponsors that stepped up in support of the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo, all of which remained steadfast in their support throughout the weather-related fiasco. These included Cycle Sport of North Platte, who sponsored the port-a-potties. That was clearly a major sponsorship, and Patty was a early and pivotal supporter of the Big Wheeled Ballyhoo. Thank you to Patty and Cycle Sport!

Brent "Butch" Johnson and Kris Sonderup of Cycle Works in Lincoln were on the scene at the Ballyhoo with a trailer full of Giant XtC 29er demo bikes for folks to try out. Cycle Works and Giant were also co-sponsors of the Saturday morning pancake breakfast, which didn't quite turn out as we'd planned. That said, the food pantry in North Platte received a donation of the supplies we didn't end up using, which will go to feed families in need, and that's a good thing. Thanks again to Butch, Kris, Cycle Works and Giant Bicycles for their support of the Big Wheeled Ballyhoo!

The elated winner of the Oakley 4-legged Frogskins. Photo: CQ

Rob Versteegth at Oakley has been providing me with support for the past couple of seasons and the limited-edition 4-Legged Oakley Frogskins we gave away were the direct result of my relationship with him. It's at moments like this, when I'm typing paragraphs like these last few, that I feel so fortunate... Because this is where I realize that I have a lot of really, really good friends. And Rob is one of them. Anyone who knows me well knows I am absolutely fastidious about my eyewear, and Oakley sunglasses are the eyewear I've chosen to wear, whether I'm paying for it or not, since 1989, no ifs, ands or buts. So to be able to give the gift of Oakley eyewear is something I was especially proud to be able to do at the Ballyhoo.

Kelly Klein, winner of the Sette Razzo 29 frame, courtesy of PricePoint. Photo: CQ

PricePoint stepped in and donated one of their incredible Sette Razzo 29er frames for the raffle, as well as tubes, patch kits and tire levers for the rides. It was a really cool thing to do and the frame was much nicer than I expected it to be -- I have to admit. We were all dumbfounded by the sweet welds, cool features and insanely low price. But ultimately, we just all wished we were the ones that won it... But that honor went to Kelly Klein. It'll be his first 29er... Perfect. Thanks again PricePoint!

Thanks to my good friend Jason Boucher at Salsa Cycles for providing one of their incredible Fargo framesets for planned Fargo Ride leader and ultra-honch endurance racer, Corey Godfrey to ride. He never had the opportunity to use the bike for its intended purpose, so we're going to look for a future opportunity to hook up with the folks from Salsa and do a Fargo ride that'll show off both the Fargo's and Cornbread's formidable and diverse talents. He's already writing about racing 'cross on the Fargo, which if I recall, isn't exactly what it's designed for... But that said, I bet he still makes it go really fast on a 'cross course! These two guys are two more of those friends, like Rob Versteegth, that I'm just so fortunate to be able to call friends. Thanks to both Jason and Cornbread, and to Salsa Cycles for their friendship and support of the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo! You guys really are the best.

Taylor "Surly" Weichman, who works at Red Bull's NE ad agency, hooked us up with several cases of Red Bull's new Cola, as well as a bunch of Red Bull Rampage DVDs that we gave away during the raffle. That Red Bull Cola is AMAZING! If you're a cola fan and you haven't tried it yet, you owe it to yourself to pick one up. In fact, the most impressive thing you can do is to take a look at the ingredient list and notice how real the ingredients are... Strong and natural, just like they say it is... Thank you Taylor!

Thank you also to the folks at the Dairy Queen in Brady. They donated several gift certificates for Ballyhoo participants to win in the raffle.

Finally, thank you to everyone involved in the planning and execution of the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo, including Matt Bergen, Paul Brasby, Matt Gersib, Guitar Ted, Chad Quigley and Kyle Vincent. Regardless of the hand Mother Nature dealt us, we made the best we could of the situation and those in attendance appreciated the effort. It was a worthy undertaking and I'm proud to have been a part of it. Thanks again.

Kansas City Cup... A Pretty Good Trip.

I went down to Kansas City for the inaugural race at the Swope Park trails and man, was I glad I did. That's some extra sweet stuff they've got going on down there. Man, you want technical, rough, twisty and oh, did I mention rocks? Yeah, they got 'em. Lots of 'em. If you've ever been to Perry Lake, or Clinton Lake... It's that type of place. Landahl Park doesn't have anything on Swope... It's sweet.

And I was surprised to find that I can actually still race xc! Whaddya know?!! In a race that was fast enough that super honch Cameron Chambers finished second, I was actually able to pull off a fifth place finish overall, and third in the 30-39 experts. But let me tell you, I need to do at least three xc races each season to remind myself that the hardest endurance race start is like a walk in the park compared to a pro/expert xc start. Holy shit. Ironically, I actually rode the second lap faster than the first, because I didn't have traffic blocking my deal and was able to let my Big Mama do her thing (which she did very well, thank you very much, Salsa Cycles!! My bike was a HUGE part of my success today).

Thanks also to Craig, Scott, Jim and all of the folks at Heartland Racing Productions. They put on some of the finest produced events in the Midwest, hands-down. I've said it before and I'll say it again, promoters from anywhere could learn a thing or ten by coming down and taking a look at how these guys put their races on... how they do their raffles, how they set their podiums up, how they take care of their participants. It's really good. You feel how much they care about you. And that's what, ultimately, makes people want to come back, and tell their friends about it... Plus, they raised more than $1,000 for the Swope trails, and that's really cool.

I wanted to give one final shout out and thanks to my bro Rob at Oakley. The Jawbone Transitions SOLFX sunglasses I've been racing with this past month have been absolutely the finest eyewear I've used and today's conditons, where we were going in-and-out of the trees a lot, made the most of the Transitions lenses. It was humid in the trees too, and the vented lenses made a big difference in their ability to keep fogging at bay. I was stoked. Thanks again for the opportunity to race with them. I feel very fortunate.

Where Have I Been? Working, Riding... Living.

The day after my Maskenthine win. Ripping it up at Potter's Pasture during a "planning meeting" with Guitar Ted, Chad Quigley, Kyle Vincent and the rest of the crew we'll be working with to bring you the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo. This is the "Sweetness" climb. Photo: Llama

Yeah, yeah... I know. The content on the 'ol Dirtblog has gotten a little stale lately. It's funny, because it's not for lack of potential content that I haven't been posting... It's simply for lack of time to write posts. This past weekend was pretty low-key, but I just kept the 'ol computer turned off the entire time. It was a holiday and I made the most of it.

Last weekend I was able to pull off my first victory of the season on the mountain bike in the Marathon (3-hour) class at the Maskenthine round of the Psycowpath series, which was near Stanton, NE. I finished approximately six and a half minutes up on Ryan Feagan of the BikeMasters team. Midwest Cycling's Larry Kitner was third, about 12 minutes back. I rode my Salsa Big Mama at Maskenthine, and the choice of big wheels and full suspension was absolutely the right call on the bumpy, fast and rolling lake-side course. I was able to complete eight circuits of the five-plus mile course in just over three hours of racing.

Lap 1 of the Maskenthine Marathon -- Ryan Feagan (BikeMasters) leads, while I'm sittin' in second on my Salsa Big Mama. We'd switch positions for the finish, but otherwise, it was a pretty uneventful race. An uneventful win is still a good win, though... I'll take it!!

It was my first ride with my new Oakley Jawbone Transitions SOLFX eyewear, and let me tell you, once you ride a mountain bike with Transitions lenses, you'll be spoiled for anything else. These things are AMAZING! The light level your eyes see is practically constant and always optimal, regardless of whether you're in a canopy of trees, or out in the open, in bright sunshine. No longer do you need to search for a "happy medium" lens that'll work OK for both scenarios.

Photo courtesy of Oakley

Now you can have the best lens for both situations... and everything in-between. Oakley's VR50 lens was already my favorite "in the canopy of trees" lens gradient, so it's the perfect base point to start from. And that's where my lenses on my Jawbones start from -- the VR50 gradient, and they get darker from there, depending on the light level. As it gets brighter, they get darker -- automatically. Man, it's sweet.

Oakley's signature technologies are also present. Jawbones feature High Definition Optics (HDO), which use Oakley's patented XYZ Optics to extend lens clarity without distortion all the way to the edges of the lenses. Jawbones also feature Oakley's Hydrophobic technology, a permanent coating that sheds water, sweat, dust and smudges, making lenses stay clean longer as well as easier to clean when needed. This is HUGE when you're on the bike, especially riding off-road in the dirt and dust over the course of a long ride or race.

Oakley's three-point fit is also present in the Jawbone, and the model features the company's exclusive Unobtanium earsocks and nosepiece, which increase comfort and actually become stickier as perspiration and activity increase. The fit of the Jawbone is one thing I particularly appreciate, as I'm often wearing these glasses for up to 12 hours at a time. Less comfortable eyewear would leave pressure points that would give me headaches. How do I know this? I've had it happen... and happen often with other brands' models. That's why I went back to wearing Oakley eyewear exclusively. It fits better, especially when you've got a helmet on.

The Switchlock technology of the Jawbone is what sets the new model apart from all models that came before it. Consisting of a lock that resides under a hinged nosepiece and a hinged arm that encapsulates the lower portion of each lens, the Switchlock simplifies the lens changing procedure to allow the easy selection of the optimal lens gradient for any light condition. Each pair of Jawbones comes with two sets of lenses standard, in contrasting colors, so my Transitions lenses came with an alternate set of lenses in Fire Iridium, which are ideal for very bright light conditions -- the one type of conditions the Transitions lenses aren't ideal in. So unless it's totally dark out, I'm pretty much covered. And yes, Oakley makes clear lenses for the Jawbone, so eventually, I'll have a pair of those too. For now, I just use my clear Flak Jackets. It's not like those aren't good enough!

The HD Polarized Jawbone -- This is the one Guitar Ted is wearing now. Photo: Oakley

In addition to the Transitions SOLFX model I have, the Jawbone is also available in a variety of frame and lens tint options, including Oakley's highly regarded HD Polarized option, which is what Guitar Ted went with. The company also offers the Jawbone through their Oakley Custom program, which lets you choose all the options, for your own, 100-percent unique pair of shades. Very cool...

Being used to the Flak Jacket, which doesn't have a full frame around the lenses, I wondered how I'd like having a full-frame sports sunglass again, but in all honesty, after my initial "hey, I can kind of see the frame down there" impression when I first put them on, I never again noticed the frame. It was simply not an issue. What I did notice however, was the absolute amazing performance on the bike these sunglasses provided. Whether it's picking my way through rocks at 5mph, or blasting down the road at 25mph, the Jawbone provides solid protection and doesn't fog, shift or do anything weird. Optics are second to none, as is typical with Oakley eyewear, and the Jawbones have a very high quality feel to them. They are expensive, to be sure, but experience tells me they are worth every penny. Visit Oakley.com/jawbone to learn more about the Jawbone for yourself, then get into your local Oakley dealer and try a pair on. See for yourself... I guarantee you'll immediately understand what I'm talking about.

Join us at the 2009 Big Wheeled Ballyhoo

October 10-11, 2009 -- Potter's Pasture near Brady, Nebraska

Map it on Google Maps

www.BigWheeledBallyhoo.com

RSVP and qualify to win a pair of limited-edition retro Oakley Frogskins
(must be present at the Ballyhoo to win - see Website for details)

Don't miss it!!!

Contemplation...

Gnat sent along this great shot of some high-quality mid-ride contemplation by a bunch of good buddies during the recent Minneapolis Fargo ride. This is me in my element... Why do I have an office job again? See more great shots at www.gnatlikes.com.

MW and I worked out on the bike side at Wilderness Park last night and thanks to a large collaborative effort, the park is pretty much dialed at this point from a "no trees down" standpoint. We've gotten most of the trees that were blown down in the storm last Tuesday morning out of the trail and it's all rideable.

That said, the trail is wet south of the creek crossing on the bike side. After the sun and warmth Tuesday, it's probably a little better, but don't expect miracles. It had standing water Monday night. We were riding through the grass the entire time. Please don't put a rut down the middle of the trail.

So thanks for enjoying the park responsibly...

Now for a recap from Saturday's Tranquility Tire Tantrum (TTT)...

The start of the Tranquility enduro. That's Cornbread leading it up with myself and Jeff Johnston in tow. I believe this is the start of the second lap. Photo: Jer Cook.

Thanks to the promoters of the Tranquility Tire Tantrum. I ended up finishing second to Cornbread in a long, hot race. The course at Tranquility Park was in primo shape, but the 105 degree temperatures made enjoying it a challenge. Fortunately there was a stiff wind to keep us a little cooled down, but there's only so much wind can do when it's a hundred and five degrees outside and the sun is beatin' down on your back. My upper arms, white from wearing short-sleeve jerseys, got super sunburnt wearing a sleeveless jersey for the first time in several months.

Cornbread and I traded the lead a couple of times in the first lap before he took the lead for good at the end of the lap. He was just too strong and I simply settled into a comfortable pace in second place and rode alone for most of the rest of the race. My only real challenge came in the form of the heat and simply maintaining my hydration. Otherwise, it was all good. I was just one step from the top of the podium... but there was nothing I could do about a clearly stronger rider. One thing I know as fact after 20 years of racing. You can beat someone a lot of different ways, but a clearly stronger rider that isn't dumb will beat you nine times out of ten. That tenth time is the time his bike broke... Cornbread's bike didn't break Saturday. He was dialed-up tight and rigged for racin'. If you're reading this, nice work Corey...

The difference: Cornbread (top) and I (bottom). The look on the face tells the tale of the race... I think these images were taken on the fourth or fifth lap. Photo: Jer Cook

After five laps (of six), I stopped and drank two complete bottles of water. I hadn't been drinking enough... No wonder I was seeing stars!!! All of the sudden, I was able to ride fast again, so the sixth lap was actually one of the best of the race. Oh well, that's OK. If I had to do it, at least it was fun.

Floatin' the wide-open Tranquility downhill. Photo: Michael

The hydrophobic coating on the lenses of my Oakley Flak Jacket eyewear worked incredibly well to keep sweat spray that was coming off my body from compromising my vision. I couldn't even tell it was hitting the lenses, even though I had a full-body coating of salt after the race. The hydrophobic lens coating is another way Oakley's eyewear is superior to everything else out there. Check it out -- once you see it in action, you'll agree it's true.

My El Mariachi was perfect for the twisty, flowy Tranquility course. Photo: Michael.

I raced my red Salsa El Mariachi hardtail at Tranquility and wasn't sorry one bit. It was great to race that incredible bicycle again. Totally familiar and comfortable at full-speed... In fact, it gets better the harder you push it. The one challenge I had was shoehorning that massive 27 inch Salsa Pro Moto handlebar I have on there through the narrow tree cuts they have up there at Tranquility in a couple of spots. That is a conscious choice on my part though, so you pay to play, I guess. I like wide bars and I can not lie. You other brothas can't deny...

With that, I'm outta' here. Gonna' go for a walk with Laura. No ridin' for me tonight.

Memories From My Trip Up North...

I traveled north to Minneapolis for a long weekend this past week to spend some time with my good buddy Gnat and big time big wheel blogger, Guitar Ted and an otherwise rotating cast of characters. Over the course of four days, we hit some incredible trails in Minnesota and Wisconsin, many of which I'd never ridden before, and I met a bunch of super talented riders that I'm now fortunate to be able to call friends.

For your entertainment, here are a few selected images to tell the tale of the journey:

Captain Bob shows off his massive cheese and sausage biscuit, procured from the local Speedee Mart during Friday's Fargo adventure. Power food to the max! And healthy too...

The tree frogs came out to hang with us in-camp at Lebanon Hills. This little guy actually lived in the piping of the picnic table.

TransIowa v.5 champ, recent Tour Divide finisher and Salsa Cycles engineer, Joe Meiser came out to ride with us. I got a fast lap of the Lebanon Hills singletrack in with him on my Big Mama on Thursday night, then got about half of Friday's ride in with him before he broke off to head into work. What a stud...

Big group rollin'... Friday's ride was a big Fargonaut loop around Minneapolis. We got almost 60 miles of combined pavement and dirt in, all told, linking all of the city's singletrack via urban bike paths. Long story short, it was AWESOME! We had a killer ride, but we didn't kill anyone. Perfect...

Mudlegs... The Minneapolis river bottom trails not only left a gritty, sandy coating on my legs, it wasted the Avid disc brake pads on my Fargo. Time for new pads!!

Three Amigos... Gnat, Guitar Ted, Captain Bob. Thanks for the great memories.

Here's Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve, a one-way singletrack multi-user trail in the Minneapolis metro area. It's an example of what Lincoln's Wilderness Park could be some day... Some day in the future.

See Lincoln Parks and Rec -- One-way, directional trails can work... and work well! Here's proof.

It's Log. It's Log. It's big, it's heavy, it's wood. It's Log. It's Log. It's better than bad, it's GOOD!
Photo: www.GnatLikes.com

One of the superbly-built stunts in Murphy. The teeter is about to totter....
Photo: www.GnatLikes.com

It's just another Fargo Friday...
Photo: www.GnatLikes.com

Ripping the CAMBA Trails, from Gnat's perspective. I'm the third rider from the front. It was an incredible day, as you can clearly see from this photo... the best day of riding yet this year.
Photo: www.GnatLikes.com

After Gnat led us into the Namekagon Town Hall at blazing speed. He was absolutely flying!!!
Photo: www.GnatLikes.com

This is good livin'... It was my first time to the Chequamegon Forest, but I'm pretty sure it won't be my last.

Thanks to all of my hosts over the weekend for the hospitality and awesome time. I look forward to the next time -- when we can actually have Kevin riding with us!!

XXC Issue #3 is Available... Check it Out...

The third issue of e-magazine XXC, The Adventure Solo magazine has just been released. Editor Jason Mahokey has included stories in this issue from Lincoln homeboy Corey "Cornbread" Godfrey on the 2009 Dirty Kanza 200 gravel grinder, and Salsa Cycles' head honcho, Gnat, on his adventures on the Maah Dah Hey trail in North Dakota. Pretty cool.

Download the entire Issue #3 of XXC at http://xxcmag.com/XXCThree.pdf.

Enjoy!

A Fun Weekend...

Almost getting crop dusted at the Farmhose Classic, near Lathrop, MO. Photo thanks to the DirtBum.

This past weekend was my first double race weekend in quite a while. Both races ended up pretty good too. Saturday was a nice, gravel affair in north central Missouri, the Farmhouse Classic, hosted by birthday boy and all around strong man, Joe Fox. Not only did we enjoy some ultra-fine gravel, we also were treated to some of the best pulled pork barbecue any of us had ever eaten... It was really incredible. Thank you doesn't seem like nearly enough, but I think from the smile on Joe's face, just being around his family and friends with a bunch of bikes was exactly how he wanted to spend his 26th birthday. Happy birthday, Joe! I'm honored to have been able to spend it celebrating with you!

I was on my Salsa Chili Con Crosso for the Farmhouse Classic. I actually had my Fargo with me as well, but ended up pulling the CCC off the rack. I wasn't sorry either. It was the right choice. It's hard to go wrong on a strictly gravel ride with the Chili Con Crosso. It's as good as it gets and Saturday just provided further proof as to why.

Sunday was the 25th annual Cornhusker State Games. I was entered in the mountain bike race and though the classes were pretty small, the quality of the riders was very high. I'd be racing against the likes of guys like Darin Schlake and Nate Woodman, so there were some fast guys there. That said, it was a super fun day to race bikes, and aside from Darin and Nate, I was able to hold my own against the assembled competition.

I rode my Salsa Big Mama on Sunday and it was perfect for the bumpy Branched Oak area one course. Horses have frequented area one over the past year, making the trails really pock marked, yet it's still a fun place to ride as long as you're equipped with a bike like the Big Mama that can deal with the choppy bumps. I do have to say however, the course was in much better shape than I thought it'd be... It's been much worse this year and the Cycle Works crew did an admirable job of whipping it into shape for the race. Thank you very much! Thanks also to the volunteer radio folks who came out in force to man the course.

Riding into the finish. That's Cycle Works team rider and Nebraska moutain bike icon, Paul Chapman, on my wheel. (All photos thanks to Nebraska Adventures.)

End of lap two, I'd just taken a hand-up from Laura, who you can see in this photo in the right background, about 100 yards back down the trail. Thanks for the hand-ups Laura!!

The roll-out... Monkey Wrench Cycles' lead strong man, Nate Woodman, led from the gun. Before the second lap was complete however, Darin Schlake had moved past and solidified a lead he'd never relinquish.

Lining up... That's eventual race winner, Darin Schlake on the far left. Runner-up, Nate Woodman is next to him. I'm the 'other' Monkey Wrench jersey on the front line.

Thanks to Nebraska Adventures for the Cornhusker State Games photos... See all of 'em on his Flickr site.

Oakley Square Whisker -- Big Style, Svelte Package...

One of the defining components of summer is a great pair of sunglasses. That's why I'm so excited about the new sunglasses I've been kickin' around in the past couple of weeks -- Oakley's new Square Whisker. Thanks to Rob Versteegth at Oakley for giving me the opportunity to try them out.

They're part of Oakley's "Active" collection, which means that while they can be used for activities like running and cycling, they're not made exclusively for that stuff. They're more for active lifestyles, let's say... That said, I used them this weekend on the bike, and they worked really well. The only particular downside is the lack of easy lens interchangeability, which compared to their sporting glasses (like the Jawbone, Radar or Flak Jacket) is definitely a negative. Otherwise, they looked, fit and performed really well on the bike.

The frames are built from Oakley's C-5 metal alloy, which the company says makes them comfortable and durable. I just can't believe how thin the earstems are while remaining durable enough to function... Amazing. Plus, Oakley's superb Three-Point Fit and UNOBTANIUM coated earstems combine to keep the Square Whiskers exactly where you place them on your face, regardless of the conditions, moisture or heat.

High Definition Optics crafted from Oakley's durable Plutonite lens material meets ANSI Z80.3 impact protection and optical performance standards, and its clarity extends the entire lens surface. The patented XYZ optics are exclusive to Oakley and provide a noticeably clearer, sharper sight picture at all angles of vision, especially when you're looking off to the side. Plutonite lens material also filters out 100 percent of UV-A, UV-B and UV-C rays, as well as harmful blue light up to 400nM.

The best part is that the Oakley Square Whisker is available in a variety of frame color and lens tint options, starting at just $135 MSRP. That's a great deal for an awesome quality pair of sunglasses! Polarized models start at $200. There's even a Polarized Titanium model (you have to ask how much?). Check out the Square Whisker options page to learn more about colors, lenses and pricing.