Winnipeg Cyclist

Tooth Lake Fly Fishing Trip

2010-06-21T17:14:00.005-05:00

I had almost forgotten how much fun fly fishing can be. Earlier this year, I went up to Selkirk with my Dad to try to get a catfish or well... anything. Dad got a freshwater drum, I got skunked. Still had good company though, and we had a couple of "Canada's best hotdog" at Half Moon in Lockport. So all things considered, it was still a good night.

Fast forward to the Friday before fathers day. Dad came at 6:00 am to pick me up and head out to Black Lake and Tooth Lake for a couple days of fishing. The weather wasn't exactly ideal (rainy and windy), but it did look more promising for later in the day, and for Saturday. After a stop in Beausejour for an ample breakfast, we were on our way to Nopiming Park.

After setting up the tent at Black Lake Campground, we headed off to check out Tooth, there was still a fair bit of wind, and some rain, but we decided to head into the lake anyway. It's a bit of a hike unless you have a big 4x4 truck (Dad's camry couldn't quite make it). So we brought in the canoe, engine, gear and food. It was about 10:00 am ish (I think) by the time we got onto the water.

The ammo for the day was poppers. Poppers are floating flys that make a splunk sound when given a little tug. Casting them right up to the shore is the goal most of the time, but landing just above some sort of underwater protection (large boulders/logs) often resulted in some sort of strike. Because we were flyfishing, we had to keep out of the wind as much as we could (makes casting much more complicated). We kept to certain shores, and fairly close to launch bay.

Video from day 2:

Lunch spot for day 1: right behind me is where I caught 3 bass in 4 casts (about 2 minutes), while lunch was cooking.

Bass thumb. A sign of a good day of fishing.

Popper suspended above the water on our way to the next hot spot.

End of day 1 and the weather was clearing up nicely. Very calm water (which made for some nice fishing after a day of rain, mist, drizzle and wind. Also, as we were pulling off the water I had my very first experience with a park ranger. They were there checking licences, and making sure people weren't staying on the lake overnight. Nice guys, I think I had a couple classes at the UofM with one of them.

Nice master angler Smallmouth Bass:

and another:

There were about 6 or 7 Master Angler bass (18" or longer) caught over the weekend. Along with many many others. Most common size was in the 15-16" range.

Right arms tired, and giving the fish a break, we decided to call it a day and cruise back to the launch spot after a great couple of days. Time to go see the family.

Not only did my Dad take care of pretty much the whole trip, but after getting back to my house, he stayed for a couple hours to help take down a large tree branch that had been damaged in a recent storm.

Best dad I've ever had.

Oh, and the mosquitoes in my front yard were worse than those in the middle of the bush. C'mon city of Winnipeg, lets get that malathion going!

Recent Cycling

2010-05-17T23:20:00.004-05:00

First MTB race of the year at birds hill park.

Finished middle of the pack.

It hurt my legs.

I need to spend some time on the MTB bike.

A monkey does ride the bike, but not this one.

Apparently sippy cups fit pretty well into water bottle holders.

Gratuitous artsy shot.

Benefits of having some 'extra time'

2010-04-21T13:50:00.006-05:00

Well well, I've rejoined the ranks of the unemployed thanks to ~1/2 of the workforce at work getting laid off (just over 350 people). Upside, is that I've been able to get some really nice rides in lately.

The weather has been terrific (no need for extra layers or arm warmers). Saturday I went with some guys from the shop out to Darlingford to do some hill repeats (hill repeats are when you ride up and down the same hills to get a good workout in a short amount of time). It was good and hard. We passed this sign on the way to the valley we would be going into, then out of, then into, then out of, then into, then out of... how many is that? Either way, did 6 climbs that day over 65km

Sebastian(left) and Marion (coach):

Dr. T with a good suffer face going on:

Panoramic shot stitched together with Photoshop:

and last but not least.

Sebastian eating a banana:

what a great picture.

Then Monday, I hit Birds hill park for a few laps. Tuesday I rode up past Selkirk for another 80km. I got a cramp on the way back, and was having troubles holding on, gotta drink more fluids.

Sick Day

2010-04-11T15:32:00.004-05:00

Well, I'm not sick.

But Abby is today, so we stayed home from church.

Abby was watching some TV, so I decided to tie a Fly. After I had finished she came in and wanted to "make a bug too". So we made another one together.

Abby's first Fly. A "Woolly Bugger" she picked the colors and helped cut some of the excess feathers and tail with the 'Abby-sized scissors'. We'll see later this year if it will catch something.

St. Adolphe... almost.

2010-03-27T22:34:00.008-05:00

We've been having a little warmer than usual spring here in Manitoba, so the roads are clearing up quicker than normal. Nearly all the snow is gone. Yesterday was a nice, sunny +8 degrees Celsius out, so I took advantage of that and went for a ride south to go see how the roads were out to St. Adolphe. This is a very popular route, and one that I often head out on, it's a nice 30k ride if you leave from the perimeter highway, but can be stretched to 50k if I leave from home and add a little loop just past the town of St. Adolphe.

One reason why I wanted to head out that way was it follows the Red River, which is very high this time of year (not as high as last year when the roads were flooded out). As I came up to the turn to go over the river, I saw a barricade. So naturally I went through it and rode the very loose, and very rough gravel road up to the bridge.

I had to get off and walk a couple sections, so I took a couple more photo ops.

You can start to see the water level and ice on the river.

The geese are coming in already, and there was a herd of deer out in the field too.

And this is why this post it titled 'St. Adolphe... almost"

Last year the bridge was found to be unsafe to drive on as one of the support pillars had shifted.

I remember riding over it a couple days before it was discovered and thought the gaps in the expansion joints looked different than usual. I did forget about it by the time I got back home though. Hopefully the bridge is fixed soon as the residents have to drive a long ways out of their way to get over the river now.

Riding with Abby

2010-03-22T21:32:00.004-05:00

It was quite a nice day out, so naturally I wanted to get outside for a bit (even though I'm a little under the weather lately). As I pulled up to the house Abby, Natalie and their mom had been out drawing on the sidewalk (and tree stump) with some chalk. I had mentioned earlier in the day I had hoped to go for a bit of a bike ride when I got home. Turns out Abby wanted to go too. So I got the trailer all set up, got our helmets out, and went for a ride. Abby had a little snack (some gummy bears) to keep her occupied during the ride (~1/2 and hour or so... I think).

She must have had a long day, because when I pulled into the driveway, and opened the cover on the trailer, this was what I found.

It was a nice relaxing ride through a couple of neighborhoods. Maybe next time we'll take Jess and Natalie too.

Roller Race

2010-03-18T09:25:00.005-05:00

Just a quick update. Went to the Belgium Club here in Winnipeg for a 2-up roller race last night. (Click here for short Demo video).

2 bikes are connected to the dial in the middle that measures how 'far' they've gone. It was a 500m timed race, so full on sprint from the start. My time was 23.96 seconds. Fastest time (that I know of) was 22.75 seconds (Nicely done Jeremy). I'll find out today how it all ended.

Had some fun. was good to see the bunch from the shop. I put up a respectable time, but didn't feel so hot afterwards so I withdrew.

Sponsored by Woodcock Cycleworks. Thanks!

Skate Skiing

2010-02-17T17:53:00.003-06:00

Last week I had to go to a course on human factors in aviation (federal requirement for people working in the aircraft industry). It was a two day class that was at the Aircraft Museum here in Winnipeg. The course itself wasn't all that exciting, but it was a good couple of days.

On the second day we finished up quite early, the weather was quite nice, so I saw it as an opportunity to give skate skiing a try.

First, there are two different kinds of cross country skiing, Classic and Skate . I've done classic skiing before, and is far more popular and common than skate skiing. I have wanted to give skate skiing a try for a while. Last year I picked up a set with the intention to use them right away. That never really panned out. So, here's my chance.

I went home, packed up my ski gear (classic and skate) and headed to LaBarrier park (my favorite skiing location here in Winnipeg). There was only one other car in the parking lot, perfect I thought. Nobody there to see me fall as I try to grasp this new technique. I grab my skis and am pleased to see that there is a groomed skate trail right by the parking lot. Perfect. I clip in, and off I go.

The first lap must have been pretty ugly to watch, I sure didn't feel very graceful or smooth. I was getting the hang of it though. Shortly after starting my second lap, and my confidence was starting to build a bit, a family with a couple of dogs is walking back to their car (along the ski trail), heading in my direction. They pulled to the side and stopped to wait for me to go by. So here I am, trying to be all cool (which is quite hard to do while trying something for the first time, but they didn't know that), when my ski catches an edge and over I go, not 10 feet in front of them. I start laughing to myself, and say as I get up and get skiing again: "Why does that only happen when someone is watching you?" we all have a chuckle at my expense, and I ski away.

This time I went down to the river, the snowmobiles have made a nice hard-packed trail to ski on and I ski for a while down there before coming back to the car and packing it in for the day. Only one fall for the outing. I was quite pleased. I'll be doing it again. Now, how can I sneak out of work early this week....

I feel all grown up now.

2009-09-22T19:04:00.003-05:00

This past weekend I took part in the GGG (Guys Golf and Games) weekend. After a night of Gluttony, Games and Groaning, getting not nearly enough sleep, and eating a 'hearty' breakfast, I found myself playing golf with a few friends and my father. While walking down one of the longer holes (8th possibly), my dad reminded me of the conversation we had had a year earlier.

I was finishing up school, working at the bike shop, getting used to being a father myself after 1 1/2 years, trying to be a good husband (and succeeding sometimes) etc. I had been working at the shop for a while, and was really enjoying the work. I got to fix bikes (which I really enjoy), I helped people find a bike they would enjoy riding, train other mechanics, and do some administration work for the shop too. I was enjoying it so much that I was talking with the owner of the business about buying it from him. Obviously not a small decision.

We were talking of the pros and cons of that route. Why I enjoyed it, what else I might enjoy, what else I might not enjoy. It was a good walk in the park (something we used to do, usually when I was in trouble for something).

Fast forward a year, and things have changed a touch. Abby is now 2 1/2 ish, Natalie is now 2 months old, I have been at a new job for 5 1/2 months or so (decided there was just too much risk, with not enough reward at the bike shop), I finished the classes I needed for my degree thingy and have been even more involved in the scout/youth program I help with.

And here I am, on my very first business trip. I came here to Montreal for some training on reviewing the pricing in our database and making the needed corrections (there are tens of thousands of parts that need to be verified) I got to meet some of the people I talk with, but never knew a face. Staying in a fancy hotel (The Wyndham), keeping receipts to submit as expenses, and buying a gift for Abby.

Now, I'm waiting at the airport. I talked with Jess and Abby earlier. I got my first "love you" from her as she passed the phone back to mom. Too bad I'll be waiting longer than I expected.

I'm waiting for my first delayed flight.

Eddie Merckx TT

2009-09-08T18:02:00.004-05:00

Had a blast at this last race for the season (unless I get a chance to try some cyclocross). The E. Merckx Time Trial race is like the usual time trial, (start at 1 minute intervals, racing against the clock) but different as they give out time penalties for some of the modern aerodynamic bike components such as aero bars (which put the rider in a more aerodynamic position), deep section wheels (more aerodynamic than regular wheels), and those funky aero helmets.

Riders were awarded a time for a vintage wool jersey. I haven't acquired any of the aforementioned parts/accessories, so my time was what it was.

Since I've been racing in the lowest category, and was the first to register, I started first (the slower riders are started first in order to have everyone finish closer together). It was interesting having someone hold my bike from behind so I could be ready to go as soon as the whistle blew (or in this case the starter said.... 3,2,1, go).

Time Trials are a bit different as you really need to know your limits and be able to pace yourself. If you go too hard off the bat, you'll blow up early in the race, if you go to easy, you'll have missed out on valuable seconds. Out of the gates, I found myself going much harder than I should, so I slowed a bit, and got into a good rhythm. Just fast enough to hurt a bit. I continued this rhythm, while staying as aerodynamic as possible (changing position on the bike can save considerable amounts of energy). This continued until 1/2 way through the second lap of birds hill park. This is where the suffering began. I was hitting a bit of a wall. My legs were burning, my lungs were working very hard, and if I had a heart rate monitor it would probably have been beeping madly at me.

After cresting a bit of a hill, I slowed a bit and tried to recover on the downhill while still keeping my speed up. It worked.... a bit. Then I just had to push harder for the last 4km or so.
It hurt a lot. Legs were starting to feel like Jello, Lungs working overtime, heart getting ready to explode. I must have been going fast......

I tried to get a hold of the photographer that was at the race that night, but no luck yet. So here's a picture I took of another racer after I finished.

Race report X2

2009-08-14T19:04:00.003-05:00

Well, I've been a touch busy lately and have been neglecting my blog of cycling escapades.
To catch up, we had our second child (July 17th at 2:22 a.m.), another beautiful girl. Mom was a machine in the hospital. Natalie Ann Smith has been a great little baby, and Abby has been an amazing big sister.

A few weeks ago was the 5th race for the Olympia Wednesday Night MTB race series. Weather leading up to the race were... how do you say.... wet. The sun came out and dried up some of the track. I went out to the race, and they shortened the course taking out the really rooty sections (very slippery when wet) and some areas where there was just too much standing water. So it was short laps. I was feeling great at the start, and right from the whistle I got away from my group and never looked back. 2 laps later, I took the win. 3rd in a row. This clinched the series for me as it is based on the points accumulated on your best 4 races (3rd, 1st, 1st, 1st for me). I also had my personal photographer at the race (thanks Dad), and cheering section (mom and sister). Jess decided to stay home.

Shortly after finishing, big, dark, ugly clouds started to roll in. I packed up the bike and started home. It was quite a downpour.

Race # 6
To start off with excuses... I was coming off a week of not really having an appetite for... well, any food so my energy was probably a bit on the low side. I hadn't ridden much at all since the last race (I think I was on the road once), since I finished my exam Monday. So, going into it, I wasn't feeling terrific. I did a warm up lap and was having troubles finding a nice rhythm through the technical sections. Jess, Abby and Natalie came with me to the race and Grandma came to help out too (thank you!).
I lined up at the start, and just wasn't feeling great. So, I just started at the back (sometimes if I follow people for a bit, I get into a groove.... that didn't happen). I passed a couple of the slower riders and was keeping up with the others in my category. I passed one of the other riders while going through a very muddy section (he tried to ride it, I just hopped off and ran through).
That didn't last too long though. I was hitting trees with my shoulders, over steering and hitting the brakes more than I should have. He caught back up to me, so I pulled aside to let him go by and try to catch the others ahead of me (part of MTB racing is yielding to faster riders even if you're racing against them). He was soon out of sight.
After getting out of the technical sections, I turned it up and made up some time to only finish a minute back. I was just glad to be done and not be injured.

There was an award ceremony, where the winners of each category received a nice black hooded sweatshirt. I have a nice new sweater.

Next year, I'll be participating in the sport class (more competition, faster speeds, more laps and... more suffering). I had a great time this year and look foreward to it again.

There is a Time Trial coming up (road race where it's just you against the clock). I think I'm going to give it a try. Should be fun.

Race report

2009-07-08T22:09:00.007-05:00

Well, Jess still hasn't squeezed the baby out yet, so we went to the race tonight. She wanted to come watch me race, so we brought Abby too.
It was a little hectic getting out to the park on time, I left work shortly after 4:00, and a couple of minutes into my ride home..... BANG! I had a blow-out, rear tire. So I fixed it quick, and continued to Lifesport to pick up my new tires. So, when I got there, I tried to top off the pressure in my tire, and tore the valve off. Oops. More time needed to fix that. Strapped the tires onto my backpack, and went home to a wife who was starting to wonder where the heck I was.

A quick dinner, (mmm.... Ludine's Chicken and Potato Salad) throw the bike stuff in the car and off to the races we go! Traffic was heavy due to Folk Fest at Birds hill, but we still got there with plenty of time to register and get the bike thrown together and throw the new tires on (http://www.geax.com/vedit/pagina.asp~pagina~2316 whick turned out to be some fantastic tires. They felt just as fast as my previous ones, but had more grip and were very light too).

Then, Jess noticed another racer getting ready, that was wearing a jersey I didn't expect to see in Winnipeg. It was for "Hub Cycle" which is a bike shop in Truro, NS (where my dad grew up). I went over and said I thought I was the only one in Winnipeg with that Jersey. Turns out he was on a cross-country trip with his family and he's doing a few races on the way. Seems like a nice kid.

Well, on to the race.
Start:
Right off the bat, I got in front of the people in my class, and stayed in front. Passing people throughout the race. My favorite pass was on a sand hill, 2 people in front of me went down (very gently in the sand), I hopped off the bike and ran it up the hill (passing another on the hill), and hopping back on in one nice smooth motion without stopping, it felt great. That's where I started to pull away more from my group.

To make the rest short. I won by a minute and a half with a time of 36:35 for 2 laps.

Picture of me after lap 1.

Abby pointing at something:

Next race is July 29th.

another cold...

2009-07-04T14:30:00.004-05:00

Seems like I've had more colds than ever before this year. I came down with something again a couple of days ago. Lungs this time it seems. I wanted to go for a nice long ride today, but it started to rain a bit and I decided against it. Now it's sunny again so I might head out to get some pictures printed.
I was fooling around with photoshop a bit with some recent pictures. Here's the results.

Abby at the park, on her favorite slide (A park that I built! along with other friends/family members). It's a compilation of a few shots...

And this one of Ben (nephew) pitching.

I might head out in a bit for a short ride to get my legs moving, it has been a few days.
Next MTB race is Wednesday at 7:00pm. But, I may have something else to attend to...

I'm a winner

2009-06-26T16:39:00.004-05:00

Just thought I'd post a report from my MTB race this past Wednesday.

Started off as a beautiful hot day, got to the park (bird's hill) and there was a gentle breeze with plenty of sunshine.

There were more racers there than at my previous race, so that was cool. I recognized a few and said hi, exchanged pleasantries and wished each other good luck (while secretly wanting to crush them).

I decided to go and do a warm up lap and found myself holding back, not trusting the bike or myself. I slowly got through the lap and got back to the start area. Upon getting back, I noticed some dark clouds starting to roll in... not good. slippery roots are not fun.

Racing started, I was in the 4th group of riders to start (fastest start first), and right off the bat, I forgot about holding back and was just concentrating on keeping my speed up and smooth corners. First lap went off without any mishaps, passed a few guys, one guy went down in front of me and ended up pulling out after the first lap.

I was following one guy who was cruising pretty good until he clipped a pedal on a rock and broke it (there were some nice sparks from that one). He eventually pulled off to the side and let me by because he was having troubles with that pedal. So off I went.

The rain started falling shortly into the 2nd lap making some nice slippery mud and roots, making my tire choice for the race a bad one (relatively smooth for the fast sections). In the "root cellar" I ended up going down again, on the same knee, but it was a smooth landing this time and after a quick check to make sure I hadn't opened it up again, I was running through the rest of the section with my bike. I hopped on and kept going, I passed a couple more people from a different group and crossed the finish line.

I thought there was one other person from my group up the trail from me, but after checking the results yesterday, it turns out I won my class (which is where all the new people race, so I beat all the noobs).

The organizers supplied some hot dogs and marshmallows after the race and we all enjoyed them in the rain.

Just after getting my bike loaded back onto the car, the downpour hit and by the time I was home, I had a clean bike.

Another fun night of racing. Next race is July 8th.

Birds Hill ride

2009-06-13T15:44:00.000-05:00

I've been starting to feel kinda lethargic since I banged my knee up last Wednesday at the MTB race, so I decided it was time to get back on the bike and see how my knee would do. It had been feeling pretty good the last couple of days. So, this morning I got up, got my bike ready, had a delicious waffle for breakfast (thanks Jess), and hit the road.
Weather forecasts were for sun all day and a high of ~20 deg, beautiful riding weather. However as I was leaving the driveway I looked west and saw quite a dark cloud. hmmm.... better ride faster. Off to Birds Hill park we go!
My knee felt pretty good the entire ride, no pain, just a slight discomfort on every pedal stroke. I hadn't ridden to birds hill before so this was a new trip for me, the roads were pretty good for the most part, but there were a lot of sections of pretty rough pavement. Nothing I that I couldn't handle though.
Time from our house to the park was just over an hour (1:01), once there, I did a lap of the park where there were a bunch of triathlon folks riding, and went home.
The roads on the way home seemed to be smoother than on the way out for the most part. and I was able to finish the 74.5km ride in 2h35min. It was good, I think I'll do it again.

race results...

2009-06-03T22:27:00.003-05:00

DNS.... or did not start. I registered and all, but 1/3 of the way into my warm-up lap, my rear wheel caught a nasty root and it slid out from under me. My leg hit the bolt that holds my brake lever on and it made a nice hole just an inch below my knee. I took a quick look at it, and hopped out onto the road to get back to the starting area. Asked for the medic and got most of the mud out. He seemed kinda scared to touch it (probably because his kit didn't contain gloves), so I actually did most of the work. The adrenaline was still pumping at this point so there was no pain either. I asked him what he thought, and said to bandage it up and it'll be fine. I didn't believe him.

So, I withdrew from the race I had signed up for only 15 minutes earlier. Called a doctor (who shall remain nameless as he's not licenced to practice out of the hospital), went and watched the end of his sons baseball game, then went to his house to get it cleaned up properly (local anesthetic and everything). If he had the equipment he would have stuck a stitch in it, but all he had was medical grade crazy glue. That'll do.

So, so far I'm at 1/3 for races. Started three, finished 1. We'll see if we can improve that record.

roads are clearing up

2009-05-25T20:54:00.004-05:00

Got out for a quick 50k ride out to St. Adolphe and met a nice guy named Dan, he's a teacher. We did pretty much the whole ride together. Just chatting about bikes, school, work, weather etc. It was good, I haven't been able to get in many rides with other people (let alone rides period). It was a nice brisk pace of around 32-34 km/h. enough to get the lungs working and heart pumping, which was all I was after since I'm still getting over a nasty little cold.

The roads were finally all opened up from the flood waters (the pic below is from the week before when a section of road was still under water). There was quite a large amount of debris scattered all over lawns, which showed just how high the water was at one point (picture 2).

I apologize for the crappy quality, my new cell phone has a terrible camera. My last one actually worked pretty well. I don't really like taking my real camera on the bike since I could drop it and it would be done.... then again, if that happened I'd have to go camera shopping ;)

I have another MTB race next Wednesday, should be fun again.

Birds Hill MTB race #1

2009-05-14T16:58:00.004-05:00

Had my first mountain bike race back on the 29th, had a great time, lots of nice people there (all the more souls to crush). It was kinda chilly and threatening to rain so I was questioning my tire choice (I went with fast rolling lower grip tires as it's a pretty fast course). My group started last, and I was able to get into a pretty good position going into the first turn and passed the other 3 riders within the first 1/4 of the course, I then passed a couple of people from the class ahead of me (had 1 minute advantage) and was able to hold everyone off for 2 laps...

Which is where it gets interesting. I thought I was supposed to do 2 laps of the Bur Oak trail, but my category was only supposed to do 1. So when I checked the results after, they said it took me 46:21 (follow the link for official times, I'm at the bottom)for 1 lap... that's slow. So I contacted them and asked if they could add a note saying that I did 2 laps. So they did. I feel better.

Looking at the times, I would have been about 10th out of 14 in the sport category (where I'd like to be racing, but I bought the cheap license so I'm in the citizen class). Not too bad. I'm looking forward to the next one on June 3rd.

Oh, and I've fixed my wheel on my road bike so it's all ready to go again.

Well, It's been just under 3 weeks.

2009-04-25T22:24:00.002-05:00

This morning I participated in my first ever road race, I havn't competed in bike racing since I lived in Lethbridge Alberta when I raced BMX. I decided with a friend of mine that we'd give racing a go this year. So early this week, I bought a "Civilian" racing licence, which allows me to compete in most races, but doesn't allow for accumulating points towards a the manitoba cup series or participate in the provincial championships.

The past few days I've been a little nervous, not knowing what to expect, how many people would be there, would my extreme lack of preparation result in me being dropped right away? Or would everyone else be equally unprepared? (Highly unlikely). The race started at 11:00 am, registration was from 9:00 to 10:30, after driving around the entire park looking for the sign in (Birds Hill Park), I found the sign-in place. There were lots of signs that there was a bike race on today, but nothing directing where to go to sign in. Jess and Abby got out and walked around as I searched for someone I recognized.... no dice.

At the sign in, there were a number of people there, and they kept coming after me too, I went to the table, signed in and picked my number. #245 (I picked the highest number available). Everyone seemed very pleasant and it was a nice atmosphere (despite the snow earlier in the morning and the chilly air). I pinned on my number, got my bike ready, and took off for a warm up ride to check out the finish line, and get the blood flowing (and get a good luck kiss from my two favorite girls). Being sure to arrive back at the parking lot. There were a few details missing as to where the race was starting, so Jess and Abby were at the "Start/finish" line, which wasn't actually the start line, so she missed us taking off.

The riders were divided into 3 groups, the Cat 3s, Cat 4s, and Cat 5s/civilians. I was in the latter of the groups which is where beginners go. The 3s were the first to go, then the 4s, then we were let go shortly after that.

We started pretty gently and worked the speed up a bit (I don't know how fast we were going because I had removed my computer, but it didn't feel fast or slow so it would guess we were going around 30-35 km/h. My legs were feeling good so I got up to the front of our group (about 12-15 people I think), and was testing myself a bit. I decided to go a bit harder on the hill, and as I came around a corner, the wind hit me like a brick wall... still trying to get up the hill.

Well, the small gap I had developed over the others, quickly disappeared. As we got up over the hill, I dropped back into the pack a bit, and as I was drafting the biggest guy I could find, he decided to hit the brakes for no apparent reason, so I had to hit the brakes as there was someone beside me. The kid behind me wasn't able to slow down in time and hit my rear wheel pretty hard. Neither of us went down, and I fell back to apologise and explain what happened to him (brakes are not good in groups, you only use them in an emergency), he said he was fine and got right back in there.

My rear wheel however, was not fine. I tried to continue, but the broken spoke meant the wheel was way out of true and rubbing the brakes alot, and wobbling so much that I could fell the back end was a bit loose. That was the end of my day, I turned around shortly after the start/finish line after the first of 3 laps, to let them know I was done. Found my family, hopped in the car and went to costco for a hot dog. (here's a picture of me pouting after my day was done.)

Fun? definately. Will I be back? Yes. Will I be more prepared? I plan to be.

Replacement spoke should be here this week so I'll be able to rebuild the rear wheel quick.

Next scheduled race is a wednesday night MTB race. Should be fun, the MTB crowd doesn't take themselves as serious as the road crowd does.

Just under 3 weeks

2009-04-06T21:55:00.004-05:00

Well, I've made the decision. This is the year, and it all begins in just under 3 weeks. Boy I'd better get busy. Started tonight, 1 good hour. Stay tuned....

First ride outdoors of the new year

2009-02-23T11:13:00.002-06:00

I rode to work the other day (and home for that matter). It was around -22 degrees out with a bit of a wind (so it felt closer to -30) I finally got the chance to try out my new tires on my commuter bike (some schwalbe cyclocross tires), and I can say that I was impressed, enough grip for riding in the snow, but also smooth enough for riding on the road and not losing too much speed.

As far as the ride itself was, the balaclava I had on (a Ninjaclava from Outdoor Research) was restricting airflow a little too much for my liking, so I had to uncover my mouth. Not too big a deal, I just covered as much as I could and I was warm enough. My fingers did get a bit cold, and so did my toes, but aside from that, it felt nice to get out on the road again. It reminded me of how much more fun it is to ride outside than indoors on a trainer watching old episodes of Top Gear (brittish car show).

On a more family related not, we went to Birds Hill park with the family to feed the birds and walk around a bit. Here's a couple pictures from the day. Abby really was enjoying the birds being so close.

My Bike is Famous (not really)

2009-02-03T18:07:00.003-06:00

Well, we were over at the Barfuss's'ss the other night just hanging out watching some T.V. when a program on discovery channel came on called "How they do it" about how things are made/done etc. They had a piece on bikes, and the manufacturer that seems to have sponsored the segment was none other than Marin (the maker of 2 of my bikes). There were a few riders going up a hill in San Francisco (I think) and 2 of them were riding my exact bike (the one pictured in the title bar of this blog, 10 points to whoever can guess what is wrong with that picture). I was quite surprised as I've only seen one other owner who posted one in an online forum.

I was also introduced to a funny show called "Big Bang Theory". Very funny. Must watch again.

Officially too long

2009-01-27T23:06:00.003-06:00

Well, I guess it has been far too long since I've updated my blog, so I thought I at least put something up. Might as well start with a picture, everyone loves pictures....

Is there a better subject to post a picture of? I know a few people that could argue no (at least a couple of grandparents can be counted on to side with me there). Abby certainly does like to wear her dad's cycling caps, her favorite seems to be the Lampre team cap (pink & blue) of the current world champion's team (that may or may not have anything to do with it, maybe she just likes pink).

I guess one reason there hasn't been much activity going on in this blog is because I have generally been posting about cycling. Surprisingly, that seems to take a back seat during the long winter months of Winnipeg. I was riding (outdoors) into the beginning of December, but then it started to get really cold, and aside from a few warm days here and there, it has been a very very cold winter. Often too cold to even go skiing.

I have however been riding a bit indoors ( and I really do mean a bit) in an effort to stop my legs from turning to mush over the winter. However, there are few things more mind numbingly boring than riding a trainer indoors. Videos and music help, but after 45min to an hour, I just have to get off. I guess it could be worse though, it could be a treadmill.... uggg...

On the brighter side, things are winding down at school and I will be finishing up this semester, finally being able to graduate and move on. It seems to have been going on forever, but has really only been a few years. It will be nice to have one less thing to worry about, and more time to do things I enjoy.

Suicidal Squirrel

2008-10-19T00:18:00.006-05:00

Well, there I am on my ride to work this morning (Saturday), it was a nice cool morning, the sun was shining, lots of colorful leaves on the trees, and I'm cruising along nicely as there was a south wind.

As I'm coming around the corner to cross the bike/pedestrian bridge from Kingston Row to Jubilee (the one at BDI as pictured above), I spot him. Sitting on the curb near a garbage bin. Our eyes locked as I continued to approach him, I knew what he was thinking: "I can't make it another Winnipeg winter, so cold... so windy.... so..... cold.... I'm ending it now!" As I continued to approach, he got ready to jump, so I hit the brakes hoping to throw off his timing.

Time seemed to slow as I gazed down to watch this poor destitute squirrel attempt to take his own life by jumping into the slightly bladed spokes whirring in circles. It appears as though my efforts to throw off his timing have worked, he jumped late, I felt him hit my rear tire.

As I turned in time to watch him scurry away into the bushes, perhaps he hesitated as he realized it wasn't worth it. Sure, Winnipeg is cold and windy in the winter, but the summers are great for a squirrel. He looked "well fed" and I'm sure he's gorged himself on a few delicious treats from the nearby BDI Ice Cream Stand. What started as a delighted child's frozen treat after their soccer game, became the "crème d'asphalt", a delicassy for squirrels. Then again, these treats my have been what thwarted his attempted suicide this morning, his lack of agility due to the excess cream intake may have slowed him just enough to be off the mark. Hopefully this squirrel can find it in himself to tough out one more winter, because trust me the summers (and oh so creamy BDI soft serve ice cream) are worth it.

MS Tour Continued....

2008-10-01T23:31:00.004-05:00

heh heh, well I got a bit distracted from finishing my post on the MS tour from a while ago,and I guess I've forgotten many of the details by now. So I'll just leave it at how it went,
shortly after lunch it started to pour buckets, I hadn't seen so much rain in a long time, then the hail hit. I was sitting in our car with Jess, watching the remaining riders finish up. Boy, was I glad I finished earlier, I had to put the wipers on full tilt to see them and we weren't even moving.

The evening went pretty well, I was feeling worse and worse though, and again, I didn't sleep well once we got to bed, then I woke up feeling terrible. I got ready to go meet a few guys for a warm up ride (it was ~4 degrees C), and to see how I was feeling for the day. I decided to go for it, but asked Jess to wait at the first rest stop for me in case I didn't feel like continuing. Well, soon after the ride started, so did the rain. I was powering up the hills, my legs felt great, but... my lungs just couldn't keep up. I had 2 options: 1 Ride slower (yeah right) or 2, pack it in.

I saw Jess, pulled off the road, put my bike on the rack, and drove home.

After speaking with other riders the next day, they said the weather just got worse, more rain, wind, and apparently the food at the end of the ride consisted of 3 chicken fingers and some other small snacks.

The ride itself was beautiful, I quite enjoyed it as it was the first time I actually encountered hills on a ride. We hope to go out there next year for some camping, hopefully the weather will be nicer.

here's a little graph showing the elevation changes of the first day.

Nothing spectacular, but I was wishing I had a couple more gears in that steep part. Oh, it's not the complete course, just where it started to go up, the whole ride was ~72km or so.

MS Bike Tour Update

2008-09-12T10:05:00.004-05:00

I'd like to start off by thanking everyone for their generosity in donating $$ for the MS Society of Canada. The grand total for the event was $190,000 (not all from me). Good job everyone.

Now for the ride report:

Friday evening we drove out to Dauphin, we left the house at around 5:00 p.m. and we stopped in Headingly for dinner.... at 6:00! oh man, that was the shortest hour-long drive ever. The rest of the drive was fine, and we rolled into the hotel parking lot with 10 minutes to spare until the office closed for the night. So we unpacked the car and got settled. No sooner than my head hit the pillow, my nose started to run, and my sinuses quickly became congested, and I had trouble sleeping that night (although it was better than in stonewall a couple years ago when our noisy neighbors kept us up until 4:30a.m.). I was not looking forward to the morning.

7:30 Saturday Morning: Up, getting dressed, feeling terrible. I made my way over to the community center where the breakfast and sign-in was. I went to the table, handed in my envelope, and received my registration packet.... for "Randy Smith" huh? so I went back, and got the proper named envelope, then proceeded to attach my number onto my jersey and bike, but... no zip ties, so I had to go get some zip ties ugg.. I hope the whole weekend isn't going to be like this. Feeling a little better my expectations for the ride increased. I spotted a few guys from the shop, and we chatted as we waited for the event to start.

9:00 the ride begins after a short ceremony and "warm up" which consisted of bending over a couple of times and stretching our arms. Temperatures were somewhere around 5 or 6 degrees at the start of the day hence the tights and long-sleeved jersey. As things got rolling, we got a small group together and were riding at a decent speed (at least that's what I thought), we were slowly picking up the pace, and after one of my pulls (the rider in the front that breaks the wind for the other riders) at ~37km/h one of the guys in the group sneered as he said, "it's hard for me to warm up when you're sprinting". Huh? if my sprints are that slow, I really need to look at a different sport.

The ride was mainly flat for the first 30 minutes or so, then we got closer to the park, and started up the escarpment. My first day where there were some actual hills was going to be a learning experience for me, living in Manitoba, the biggest hill I had come across was the bridge over the floodway. Our group divided up pretty quickly, and there were 3 of us riding together through the hills. There were some tough ones where I ran out of gears, but I made it up them pretty well.

A couple of other riders joined up with us, one of which Jess used to work with at the hospital, but he has gone back to school to become a doctor. Nice fellow. Anyways, we held a good pace the rest of the way to the finish and our time was 2 hours 31 minutes for 72 km. All in all, I was pleased with my performance as I didn't have all the time I wanted to prepare for the ride (I hadn't ridden in over a month, and before that I wasn't exactly riding regularly either).

Well, I have to go to work now, so I'll continue this later. starting with lunch....

2008 MS bike tour

2008-07-05T21:58:00.006-05:00

This September I will be participating in the Riding Mountain Challenge. An MS bike tour event that happens in and around Riding Mountain National Park here in Manitoba.

The Machine must run perfectly.

In 2006 I rode the "Biking to the Viking" event and enjoyed the event, there were lots of people there, and it was a nicely run event, and I was able to raise a fair amount of pledges for the MS Society of Canada, it is a great charity which I have a bit of a soft spot for.

Last year, I was signed up to do the event I will be doing this year, but SOMEONE had to go and get married..... Paul... so inconsiderate. So out of duty to 2 great friends, I withdrew from the ride to grace them with my presence at their wedding. **wink wink**

So I'm quite excited to be participating in it again this year, we have a cabin booked, Jess is going to bring Abby, and we'll be having a great weekend together. I will have to be getting a bit more rides in to prepare for this though, I wouldn't want to be the last one to finish.

If you would like to sponsor me click HERE to do it online, or you can print off a form and mail it in. Any and all pledges are greatly appreciated, and it's for charity so be generous!

Mother's Day Update

2008-05-11T20:55:00.004-05:00

Well well, time sure goes fast doesn't it? Since my last post, concerning the appearance of grass, I saw more grass, then lots of dirt and sand (spring time on Winnipeg streets) then less dirt and sand, then more snow, and after waiting and waiting, some signs that summer is coming, we have had a colder than normal spring. Which, after a colder than normal winter isn't very exciting. But what is exciting, is that even though it is chillier than normal around, it's still warm enough to ride without putting on 2 jackets.

On the odd day where it's not too cold, Jess and I have had a chance to give the new trailer a spin, it's a bit weird pulling that thing around, but it tracks pretty nicely and rolls pretty smooth, although Abby seems to fall over in it, remedied by a couple of camping pillows stuffed beside her. I'm looking forward to going out to birds hill park, or some other more scenic areas than our neighborhood to give it a longer test. It sure is nice to have the family along on some rides with me, even if the are a bit short.

As far as long rides go, I'm having a hard time finding time to get out for a while, with me taking another class over the summer, and working full time again, and Jess going back to work part-time, the time I have at home is better spent with my daughter and wife. I have managed to get out a couple of times this year however, just hitting my normal route out to St. Adolphe and back. It's a nice ride, but I want to do something else this year.

Earlier this year I sold my mountain bike planning to replace it when the new models were available, and this week I picked one up. Big improvement without costing anything more. Here's a link to better pictures of it. LINK. I hope to get it on the trail soon and see how it performs.

Now for the mother's day part. Jess, you rock, thanks for letting me play so much with my bikes, and putting up with me. You're a great mom, and wife. Thank you for your support while I finish school (can't wait for December). I know it's hard on you, but it will be over soon. Love you.

I saw grass!!

2008-03-22T23:01:00.009-05:00

It wasn't green by any stretch of the word, but it was there, and it was visible. Definitely something that gives hope to the approaching spring (and improved cycling conditions horray!). I have recently taken a bike that has been in the family for generations (my dad used it, so that makes it plural) and had seen better days, and I gave it new life. I used it after I sold my bike back in London (that I had grown out of), and after moving here, I repainted it in British Racing Green with gold trim (it was neon snot green with silver patches where it was starting to rust). It served me well for a while, and shortly after beginning my employment at a bike shop, the parts on it started to disintegrate. So I stripped everything off the frame threw out most of it, and put the frame on the wall in the garage for another day. A few times I was tempted to throw it in with the load as we were heading to the dump, but I decided to hang onto it.

This spring I got the urge to build a single speed bike. So I perused the catalogs at work (having forgotten about the frame in my garage) looking for an economical steel frame that would work well for my intended purposes. Well there weren't any that were quite economical enough for me. Then one day while I was tidying up in the garage, I saw the old frame hanging on the wall. **light goes on**. I quickly cleaned it up and took it into work, Finding some nice cheap parts in the parts bins and putting on a different fork so I could use better brakes I began turning it into a sort of Frankenbike. Slowly it took shape and with some borrowed wheels from one of my other bikes, I was able to take it out for a spin and rode it to school the next day.

There is something different about riding a bike that is truly yours, that you built, you fell like you know the bike inside and out. You notice the smallest noise, or the slightest amount of play in the headset (which had to be adjusted). Riding with only one gear was also an interesting experience, as I'm used to having at least 14 to chose from, and as many as 27. The original gear that I chose was a little too big and found it a bit too hard when the wind started up in my face. Changing gears is a bit more labor intensive now, but I think I've found one that will work nicely.
It is a bike that I built to be a commuter, that looks cheap and is cheap to minimize the chances of someone stealing it. But there is something special about it, it's not just "a cheap bike" it's the cheap bike I built. It took my father around town, to school and work, and now it does the same for me. It has served my family well, and looks like it will continue to do so for at least a few more years. Whatever form it may take on.

Pictures will follow soon.

First go at Skiing with a trailer.

2008-02-28T08:43:00.003-06:00

Yesterday after classes, Jess, Abby and I were able to get out and go skiing for a bit, I've been itching to try out our new trailer (mentioned in the previous entry). So we got all loaded up and drove out to LaBarrier park (my favorite local XC Ski spot) and hit the trails.

It obviously took a bit longer to get it all assembled and ready to go, but it wasn't that bad. Outside, it felt alot smaller than looking at it in the basement. So we strapped abby in, I put on the harness and off we went. It was much better than I was expecting, not as heavy as I had imagined and handled well, the only tough part was finding a nice rhythm since it wants to keep going between strides. We flew down some little hills and had a great time.

Also, There's room for two in there, so if someone out there wants to come along sometime, we can give it a try.

Nordic Cab Ultra deluxe multi season sport combo package.

2008-02-17T20:50:00.002-06:00

Well our fancy new trailer system arrived and I've been able to put it all together. It looks really nice and should work well, It does however feel a bit heavy for skiing, but we'll see how it goes. It's just one more reason to get excited for spring! I'm sure I'll be posting some pictures as soon as we give it a try and a review of how well it works. It did go together smoothly and has some nice features to it that I like already. I'm particularly impressed with the quality of the hubs on the bike /jogger system wheels. They are surprisingly smooth compared to the other child carriers I've seen.
We might try to get out for a bit tomorrow (Louis Riel Day here in Manitoba) for a bit, but the forecast doesn't look too promising. Which has been the story for a while here, and the one nice warmer day we had this week (saturday) it rained! making the roads a lot of fun. So much for washing the car a couple days earlier.

Communication woes

2008-02-12T16:48:00.000-06:00

Back in November I placed an order with one of our suppliers for a bike trailer system that can be used for xc-skiing also hoping to get it before our trip to Alberta in December, the rep for that company assured me that they had plenty in stock and ready to ship..... well the day after ordering it, I received a phone call from the distributor saying that they don't have any in stock and they are expecting their first shipment mid-december, and they put it on a watch list for us. Oh well, no luck for our vacation.

Soon after returning from Alberta, I checked the availability, and they puched back their date to mid-january, then mid-january came along and it was expeceted at the beginning of february. I'm starting to think that I won't see it until summer. I had been quite excited to get out skiing with it this year as Abby is too big for our old system (me wearing her like a back pack).

Well I finally received a phone call that they had arrived, so I told them to go ahead with the order I had placed in November. The reply? What order? uggg.... So I had to get another form from the rep to fill out again (took about a week and a half for him to fax it). I filled it out and sent it out yesterday. Today, I get a fax back today saying that 4 of the items I had ordered were not available for a staff discount order (a few tools) and another part they were out of stock on (the rep had assured me that anything in the catalogue was available on the program). So it's down to two items, Im just glad the trailer is one of them. So out of 7 items, I get 2. Hopefully.

St. Vital Park XC skiing

2008-02-08T09:49:00.000-06:00

Just a little not about the quality of trails over at St. Vital park. I went there yesterday to get a bit of exerceise and some fresh air. Many of the parks around the city have groomed XC ski trails to use so I decided to check it out seems how it's only a couple minutes from my house.

Well, much to my disapointment, the trails were in horrible condition, many of the sections were just smooth from people walking on them, others were right along side the road so all the nice sand and rocks were kicked up onto the trail (great for ski bases). Until we get another big dump of snow, the trails at St. Vital park aren't likely to get much better.

As I was leaving the park, I saw another guy walking in, skis and poles over the shoulder, probably excited to go for a couple loops. Sorry bud, prepare to be disappointed.

On a brighter note, it was nice to get out for a bit, though it is more fun when Jess and Abby come with me. We'll have to wait a little while before we can take Abby again though as she is too big for the baby bjorn that I used before. Hopefully the trailer I ordered will arrive soon with the ski attatchment so we can take her along again.

Great little website!

2008-02-08T09:43:00.000-06:00

Just a little link for those of you who have a few blogs to watch. A website called www.bloglines.com allows you subscribe to blogs and other RSS feed type sites, it then informs you if it's been updated or not. Thanks Theresa for the link! I tried a stand-alone RSS program before, but since I use a few different computers, I find this way the best to go. You can log in from wherever. Anyways, give it a try, you'll like it.

Too Cold for biking?....yes.

2008-02-04T21:05:00.000-06:00

Well, this morning I really didn't feel like waiting at a bus stop so instead, I hopped on my bike (it had been a while because of all this extreme windchill stuff we've been getting. With that said, I have logged about 200km so far this year in the snow.

Anyways, back to this morning. This morning was a nice balmy -14 and a slight breeze so I went ahead and rode to school. No mishaps or anything, and I arrived safely, fingers a little cold but in good shape. Then I spent the next 4 hours working on a lab assignment. Now it's time for work, so I go back to my locker, get my cycling gear back on, head out the door, and wham! where did this wind come from? A cold north wind was coming right my way. Oh well, gotta get to work right? Well, I'll tell you, that was one strong wind, if I didn't have my OR Ninjaclava, ski goggles, water/wind proof jacket and pants (also great for keeping sweat nice and close to your body), boots and 2 pairs of gloves on, I would have gotten a bit of the frost bite for sure.

The only real downside to wearing the face cover is that it restricts air flow, so I have to open my mouth really wide to get enough air, not the most comfortable thing to be doing. Well, 20 min(or so) later, I arrive at work. my boss shaking his head with a slight grin on his face for riding today.
Well, further into the day, the wind kept picking up and the temperature kept dropping, so I had to call the support car (Jess and Abby) to come get me. It was too darn cold for me. Many will call me crazy, while others will call me a wuss. Either way, it feels great to get some exercise outdoors. School has had me swamped lately, so we havn't been able to get out skiing since our trip to Alberta.

So, hopefully we'll be seeing some warmer weather soon so I don't have to get Jess to pack up Abby and come get me....... thanks dear.

Simpsons Fan at 9 months!

2008-02-01T16:40:00.001-06:00

All I have to say is.... my work as a father is done. heh heh heh.

Now, as a follow-up to the last post,
Abby did great on our trip out to Alberta and back. We had a great couple of weeks out there at the farm and in Calgary hang'n out with family.
We went skiing a couple of times, once on the farm and once in Kaninaskis country, even following the creek at the farm there were more hills than here in Manitoba.
We had a chance to make it to the temple in Cardston while we were out there, so that was nice, it had been a while. It's getting increasingly difficult with school, work, babies etc. to find time for things.
We had a great time in Calgary too, doing some shopping, eating at cool restaurants, and watching crazy bootleg videos from Ethiopia. Balls of steel is amazing by the way.
We are planning to go to Regina in a few weeks and bringing along grandma to watch Abby for a bit.
Well, I guess it's time for bed, early morning lab tomorrow.....