i can't make this stuff up

holy crazy hair batman!

i kid you not, this is the way hanna's hair looked when she woke up this morning. i asked her if she slept well and she said very well, thank you. i believe it.

bmx, revisited

i thought i would entertain you with this old photo while i took you down memory lane.

over the last week or so, a fine gentleman that used to be a competitor of mine in bmx racing named mark lopez, has informed me about a dvd that he has been putting together. it seems that his family has a lot of film footage from national races during my hayday of bmx, 1980 to 1985 or so. it seemed like a good idea to put it together and offer it to some of the people who'd like to relive some fond memories. no, his family didn't film me on purpose, but mark and i were in a LOT of the same races over the years, so consequently i'm in there. there is a lot of other stuff in there too, so i'm psyched to buy a couple of them, specifically the 1981 NBL Grand National race, held right here in st. louis. i'll skip the dvd with the '82 grands in pittsburgh because i was watching it from the bleachers. he also has the '83 grands from nashville, and that one is worth having.

and, continuing my cruise down memory lane, my old friend travis paid me a visit today at the store. travis and i met in 1982, i think, at the bmx races. eventually, we both ended up on the same factory race team and traveled quite a bit together. over the years, we have loosely kept in touch, and he even made it to my 40th birthday party. it's always fun to laugh and joke with trav about the old days, and even the new days, as we seem to have some of the exact same experiences. he bought a new pair of wheels for his mountain bike, and he's going to dig out some of his old bmx stuff to sell on ebay after i told him how crazy some of the folks are for the good old days.

it would be nice to find out what a lot of the old guys from the 80's are doing with their lives now. from time to time, i check out vintagebmx.com and bmxactiononline.com and read up a bit. it's always such a mind blowing experience. to think we were all just kids back then, it's just crazy.

learning is fun

i figure i can learn a lot from other people. like plenty of young, spirited people, i used to believe that i knew it all and pretty much nobody could give me any advice. that changed as i got older and realized i didn't really know that much. and the older i get, the more i know that i don't know anything. i guess the way out of any problem is to admit you have a problem, eh? and, i think along with the realization that i'm brainless i have learned that an ego is a terrible thing to hold on to. it's probably harder to let go of an ego than it is to learn that you're dumb.

getting to my point, over the last 10 years or so i have learned to listen to other people. i didn't say that i always followed what they said to do, but i do listen. i like to listen to other people and hear what they do and how they do it. and, unless you're dumb (see above), listening to others experiences can give you a wealth of information.

sunday at the ghisallo picnic, i ran into davey b and matt keeven. these guys have been doing a spectacular job with their training and racing over the last couple of seasons, and have been become quite respected in the midwest and probably beyond. i've really been curious about some stuff that they do, and how they do it, so i just came right out and asked a bunch of really dumb questions. they probably thought they had run into brick wall of my questions, but i figured that they are nice guys and they wouldn't mind. (my friend marty knows how dangerous i can be when i get on a roll with questions) i asked about 29'er stuff (mitch the masher probably gets tired of my questions, too), single speed stuff, and specific training questions about each, too. i think i could have continued on asking, but i guess i have enough to digest already.

learning is fun, and i figure i have another 40 years of it to go.

yep, they sure are

so, if anyone is wondering whether or not they should be entrusting their computers and laptops and other digital devices to the folks from best buys "geek squad", look no further. i will give you a heads up...

.

i don't know if they are any good or not. i don't have my computer back yet. and the three times i have had contact with them to enquire about it, i can tell you that they didn't seem to have a great grasp of what was going on.

.

so i cannot speak about the quality of their work, because i haven't seen it. i can, however, tell you that you will have ample time to get other things done while you're waiting for them to finally return your device. spend too much time reading blogs? geek squad is the cure. the soap opera of everyone else's daily lives will have long passed you by. shopping online got your credit card smoking? geek squad is the cure. by the time you're able to log back on to amazon or ebay, they may have gone out of business and we'll all be back to bartering with shiny stones and salt. addicted to live tour coverage on cyclingnews? geek squad is the cure. dogfish will have won the tour with johnny's grandson as director by the time your trusty pc is back on your laptop.

.

yeah, so i'm not funny today. just kinda bitter.

killer tour stage today!

ah, the mountains! what a killer stage today! the battle on the final climb was amazing.

i'm such a sucker for the tour.

fast and foolish

while i was out on my hilly road ride today, i witnessed a little fast and foolish automotive buffoonery.

now, don't get me wrong, i believe that there is nothing quite like driving a killer car on a twisty back road. but public roads have become so crowded, no matter how remote they may be, it's just not a good idea. particularly from the viewpoint of a cyclist.

the first encounter was with a honda s2000. i was just starting up allenton, just past the employee entrance to six flags, when i heard the beehive noise in the distance. as i pushed up the climb, it became louder and louder, and BBBBBBBBBBBBBBZZZZZZZZ, this s2000 comes into view halfway through the corner, ripping. he had to have been going 80. whoa, it was startling to see and hear a car on that narrow road bomb past like that. i'm glad i wasn't with a group of riders.

the next encounter was with a lotus elise. i guess it wasn't so foolish, maybe it was. as i climbed the last section of woods, just as it got twisty and steep, a yellow elise blazed through the corners, completely smooth, completely faster than i could've thought possible. good thing i was in my lane, i thought.

i don't know if i should pass judgement or not. maybe they both had it under control. maybe the drivers of both were young knuckleheads like i used to be and could have careened off the road at any second. once they both passed, i thought about how fun it probably was to drive such cool cars on such cool roads. it just didn't seem safe.

ah, what do i know? i drive a station wagon.

woulda coulda...you know

i would have gone to the smithville mtb race north of kc this weekend if it hadn't rained so much there. i still could have done it, i suppose, but that would have meant getting up at the crack of dawn, driving 4 hours, spending $100 in gas, RACING, getting muddy, and driving home. hmmm. the only good thing about that last sentence was the RACING part, so it just didn't add up. there are just too many things to do at home in those 12 or so hours i would have been away, anyway.

saturday was a particularly taxing day with the little one. i think he may have generated his own version of amphetamines, because he was wired like a motor. when the beautiful mrs k and i took the boys out to dinner, it was a nightmare. we had to take him outside twice during the meal to try and get him to behave. he, of course, took that behavior on the road and continued on until about midnight. i used the awake time to watch casino royale, the newest james bond movie. wow, it's probably the first bond movie i have ever truly liked. he's a mean guy, sort of, and much more human. it doesn't hurt that he drives an aston martin, though. i think i'd look forward to another with this guy playing the part.

sunday came too soon, and we saddled up to go out to the 'wood for the ghisallo cycling club's picnic. it was supposed to be an off-road thing, people bringing their food, kids, and mountain bikes. since it has been raining so much, we didn't expect much other that kids and food. but, we brought some cannondale demo bikes anyway, and others brought their bikes, too. most everyone had a bit of fun on the mtb's, pretty much staying away from the bad sections. mostly it was a chance to get together. i brought my road bike, and when everything was unloaded and set up, i took off. i did a nice hilly ride out to six flags and back to the park. 32 miles total, and i felt darn good about it. i got back and the kids were having races in the field. i ate a burger off the grill and some watermelon. eli took his first real pedal strokes on his bike, too, riding around the pavilion and running into stuff. pedaling, good, handling, not so much.

just like dad.

my old friend brett nejmanowski cruised through the park while we were there on his cool carbon bike. seems he's trying to get himself back into the mix. that's one talented boy, it would be great to see him reach his potential. we talked a bit and laughed about the same old people we talked and laughed about years ago, so all must be right in the world.

for some reason i have two days off the the bike on the ol' training plan. ok, fine. that just means i'll do more housework instead of ride. what kind of trade off is that????

different sleeping techniques

this is the "i'll just lay down for a minute and get my jammies on later" technique...it's never successful.

this approach is called the "i could'a had a v8" or "get that camera out of my face i haven't had my coffee" or "woe is me, my milk is gone."

technique? what technique? what's static cling? and who were the flock of seagulls??

and 4 years later

it's been 4 years since my disastrous crash at a castlewood short track race in 2004. it was a stupid wreck, just cruising along behind another rider, getting ready to attack again. i was in the best shape in years, and the short tracks were going very well. they tend to be a strength of mine, and i guess i quit paying attention. deanna, whom i had just started dating, was watching so i was going to try and make the race a runaway win. biff, i hit a root while my hands were only loosely on the grips. i flew superman style into a small tree and it hit me between my neck and shoulder. i was carted out of there on a stretcher. deanna followed me to the hospital and we found out i had a punctured lung, 8 broken ribs in my back, a broken scapula, a 2nd degree shoulder separation at the ac joint, and a broken acromian. and, only 5 weeks sleeping upright in a chair brought me back to not quite as good as new...

so, even though my racing, nor my life, has ever been the same, i still love the short track. tonight was no fairy tale story of my comeback win or anything like that, but it was a great race for me now and a great event altogether. tons of people come out to these things because they are fun, short, fun, there is food, and it's fun. chris ploch did what he does best and smashed us pretty early, but me and my long time racing compatriot john matthews had a battle royale for 2nd and 3rd. we went back and forth, matching each others accelerations and moves. it was just like old times, and even though we're both older, it was no less fun. i finally got the better of him in the last half of the last lap. wow, it was killer. to top it all off, tyson and hanna came out with me to cheer me on. they had signs and shouted at me every lap. they shouted at brian every lap, too, who came out, road shoes and all, to bust a move. he did pretty well, finishing 7th or 8th.

kudos to the gents who put this thing on, and to ralph and crew for the chicken sandwiches, fruit and chips and of course the drinks. and thanks very much to ryan h for more great photos, at least they're great for me. they actually make me look like i'm not hurting, which is quite a feat because a short track is always about mashing the whole time and never looking back.

...................................................

4 years later. it's time to put that old stuff to bed.

the ooze from beyond

oh, i made a big mistake a couple of weeks ago. i had to put my grass clippings in one of the trashcans because i neglected to get yard waste bags. that would have been fine, but i just left it there. and it was wet.

last night, the time had come to shovel it into a yard waste bag for the trash pickup today. when i opened the can, it stunk. but i could do it. i started grabbing clumps of it with my yard gloves, then i got to the wet stuff.

mother of god.

the stench that came forth from the can only be described as death. rotting, stinking, decaying death. i ditched the gloves and got a small shovel. it got wetter and the stench grew stronger. deanna evacuated the kids from the area as death filled the air around us. i wretched. the nasty grass kept coming. being wet when i filled the can, it eventually compressed into a highly dense mass of ooze from beyond. black, thick, grassy ooze.

as i got closer to the end, i realized that i would probably smell like death, too. my clothes, spattered with little droplets of the ooze from beyond, would have to be burned. no, washed and then burned. and buried. i spooned the rest of the ooze from beyond into the bags.

i fought my compulsion to vomit and drug the bags out to the curb. the stench still followed me. i grabbed the can and took it to the side of the house and poured several ounces of dawn dishwashing liquid into the can as i sprayed water into it. the ooze from beyond and the stench both welled up with the massive bubbles. when the can was full, i stood, stinky, sweaty, and wet now that it was raining. i took the can out into the street where the sewer drain resides and poured what was left of the ooze/soap/water slurry into it.

i took a shower and i thought i got rid of the stench. i washed my hands numerous times and they still hinted of the ooze from beyond.

never, ever leave wet grass in a trashcan.

an alfa a day keeps the doctor away

there isn't a bad angle for this car. from this angle, i see a lot of the old ferrari dino in the roofline.

chris is getting closer

my friend CHRIS has been riding the wheels off of his bike getting ready for his big event, denver to durango. it's a completely self-supported race that encompasses more than 500 miles. here are a few of the stunning photos he's taken along the way during his training miles.

he's got some great information on his blog about packing, eating, and training for the event. he's very meticulous about his preparation, and i'm sure he can be a wealth of information for anyone considering a similar event. chris has tapped into a lot of different resources for information, gear, and support. some of them are:

ghisallo sports, carousel design works, dan schmatz, jay petervery, jeff kerkove, stefan griebel, and the big one, the lance armstrong foundation, livestrong.

you can read a lot more about him HERE.

house work, check

after a big weekend, sunday held nothing for us but work. actually, it started off in sort of a fun way. thf was invited to have a rider in the gateway cup poster that gets distributed around our area for the labor day weekend races. that rider was me. it was a cool experience, one headed up by front man tim ranek. a hand full of cool riders was there, a few of st. louis' best women racers included. hopefully, they won't edit me out, but truthfully it would be a fine poster without me.

after the photo shoot, it was on to new brakes on the car. jeepers, batman, it hurts to crawl around and turn wrenches on a car. anyway, an hour and a half on the first side and 35 minutes on the second side. typical for my learning curve. now, no grinding brakes, seeing that the old pads were down to metal.

next up for me, the lawn. confounded lawn. water...grass grows...must cut...water...grass grows...it's a vicious cycle, don't you know??? while i was doing the fun manly things, mrs k and the kids were picking up sticks in the yard, doing laundry, washing the car, you name it. it was quite a team effort around here.

now, look at the time. weekend is over, it's late, and there you have it.

scenes from the 4th of july, 2008

we have ended the 4th of july fireworks festivities for the last few years at webster groves. it's quite a show and doesn't yet have any of the hassles that have plagued the downtown show for years. don't let this little photo fool you...it's a MAJOR display, one that you can sit a mere 75 yards away from. talk about boom...

but the big day kicked off with a parade. the kids are always up for a parade. here, hanna and tyson show that american pride and spirit. and a love for candy, as that's what gets thrown out at these parades.

did you see that guy cut me off??? why i oughtta....!

uh, lady, i don't want to point out the obvious, but aren't you a bit big for this ride?

all the girls and one boy. we invited along a group of friends and had a great time with all the extra young'uns around. here they are gearing up for the display. eli kept saying,"boom! shoot it! shoot it!"

a good photo of tyson and my smokin' hunk of woman.

it has come to be a tradition at fireworks displays that someone hold there hands over eli's ears. i guess he caught on pretty quick, because as soon as he knows they are coming, he starts to yell, "hold ears! hold ears!" he was so wired from the awesome show that he couldn't get to sleep until the wee hours of the night.

mmmm, sleep is good

beaten by the weather, again

i had to bag the beatdown tonight because no one has been showing up. i can blame my own inconsistent production of the ride, i guess. not many people are going to commit their wednesday evening for a ride that only happens when a guy fits it into his training schedule.

so i thought i would be slick tonight by having both bikes ready to go, mtn and road, just in case. of course, as 5 o'clock rolled around the weather was looking as sketchy as schvonzie on a creek crossing with road shoes. rain was in the air. nuts. i knew i wasn't going on a long road ride, so i jammed over to the 'wood to get in some climbing. i thought the rain would hold off long enough for a quick, intense session.

and it held off. for 45 minutes. i got out of my car, rolled out for a too-short warm up, passed marty on the trail, and busted out a lap of lone wolf, field, cardiac, rollercoaster, and grotpeter...and it started raining while i was jammin' down the downhill. sigh. i thought i might crank up lone wolf a few times for more climbing, since it's all rock i didn't think i'd get any mud on me, but i just packed up and called it a day. no sense in forcing a workout that wasn't going well anyway.

i wish i had kept count of how many times my rides have been ruined do to rain this year. no, maybe i don't want to know. it would probably depress me even more.

alfa 8c

not one to fawn over expensive, exotic hardware, i cannot help but to be floored by this alfa romeo. the 8c competizione, it's called. good lord, it's beautiful. it doesn't matter what's under the hood (i'm sure it's a LOT), it doesn't matter what it costs (ditto), it doesn't matter where it's made (well, duh)...it' got to be one of the finest shapes ever to spout four wheels.

more boy shenanigans

tyson is holding on to eli during the eagle demonstration because mrs k was afraid the eagle could carry him off.

eli: tyson, what is that??

tyson: it's his tongue! eww, it's his tongue!

eli: it's soft and wet! here, hold it!

tyson: let go of his tongue, eli!

eli: pour a little of this milk on it and see what happens.

tyson: moooooooom!

chubbin'

so finally, after many months of bike swappin' like some men swap wives, i've come upon the duo that will take me forward. the aging 2000 homegrown can no longer serve as the hardtail race bike, so it's been replaced by the caffeine. it's a 2x9 bike, with sram and a headshock. curiously, the ultimate race bike, the scalpel 1, is actually lighter. it's a carbon model, complete with lefty and si carbon cranks and xtr this and that. although not identical, the ride between the two is close enough, fit wise, so as to be pretty seamless. i don't think they can reach the marty weaver/dave breslin levels of bling, but they should serve me well. a side note: the hardtail will serve as the beautiful mrs k's bike as well, since it slopes so much and our reach is not incredibly different.

on to the story....

after my long day in the road saddle yesterday (60 miles), today HAD to be an off road ride. after an initially sunny morning turned dark and gray, i hurried out to chubb to beat the rain. ahhh, chubb. it's so beautifully technical, so wonderfully rough. the scalpel eats that stuff for lunch, too. i was having a banner day in the technical stuff. i say that, although i astutely chose to walk down the steps as usual. and who else should witness that act but the venerable john twist and wild man kyle bova? it seems they were stopped there yakking it up with a friend. i made them promise not to tell anyone that i walk down the steps, but i didn't trust them to keep my secret so i'm telling you now. i followed the twister down the rest of the way to the bottom, where he pinch flatted. ug. at least the weather was nice for flat fixing. i bid the boys good bye and headed back up. my technical climbing was even good. save for some get-offs to let hikers pass, i pretty much cleaned the switchbacks. i ran into the twister/bova crew again going up flint quarry, as john was fixing another flat. i hate those double flat days!!!

i got to the car and loaded up just in time for a bit of rain. i'm very glad i got out when i did, lord only knows when the next dry trail day will come.

grant's farm

the beautiful mrs k took the boys to grant's farm recently and boy did they have fun. here, the little train conductor has the little goats literally eating out of his hands. but he wasn't having quite the difficulty dealing with the tenacious goats as....

....tyson was. he was actually brought down to the ground by the ravenous goats, although he doesn't seem to be too upset about it.

them's some big shoes, boy

like all kids, eli has a fascination with wearing our shoes. he usually scoots around in deanna's flip flops. the other day, he found a pair of my shoes and insisted on wearing them all around the house. even up and down the stairs. with his oversized tye dyed shirt and the oversized shoes, he looked like a clown who needed makeup.

i'm racing here!

all around good guy ryan h sent a few very nice photos of me racing at webster. i like this one, if for no other reason than my glasses look nice. notice hands on the brakes at all times....

thanks, ryan and family.