Indian Cave State Park trip

My fiance and I had a chance to finally make it out to Indian Cave for some camping and riding. It was great to break out the camping supplies again. Great prep for Ragbrai. That night, while sitting around the campfire, we had an unexpected guest of some kind. Unknowingly, we had an intruder steal a bag of food. We found a trail of oranges from the bag that led into the forest. The girls claimed it was either a pack of coyotes (heard earlier in the night) or a rapeist. So, around midnight, we got to pack up the tents and move our camp closer to other fellow campers (expect now at the RV park down the road). Therefore, it wasn't the most peaceful night.
Sarah and I got up the next morning for some riding. She ventured off on the pavement to explore the entire state park. I ventured into the single track to test trails 3, 7, 8, and 9. With the exception of the awesome downhill and scenic vistas from trail 8, I was disappointed. The horses have again made their mark. I spent a good portion of the ride dodging large horse-hoof divots. The trails are not very bike friendly. You have to know the trails well so you don't have any painful uphills (I experienced one). After such climb, I can across two aquestrians. I made the comment to the first gentleman on horse that it was quite the climb. He replied that is so the bikers don't go on the trails. I thought this was a pathetically rude comment, but I continued on my way as I had to rendevous with Sarah shortly. Overall, a good trip. Glad to have made it out there before the move to Pitt.

Are you...

Put me in charge of the store marquee, and you are going to receive some biased advertising. This will be my 3rd straight year for the greatest bike ride across any state. 20,000+ riders, Mr. Pork Chop (Pork Chooooooooooop!), spaghetti feeds, small Iowa towns with fantastic hospitality, and again thousands of other fellow riders! This year, Team Skanks will be small in number, but strong in weight. We will all be self-supported this year...carrying all our gear on the bikes. Should be a damn-good time!

Jamming with Dain

Recently, I had a chance to jam with Dain (formerly of Shaking Tree). A friend invited Dain over for a house concert in which I sat in on two songs. We covered Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me" and Indigo Girls' "Closer to Fine." Good times!

At least I can ride and run...

Again, the swim got the best of me. It's as if I panic in the water and I can't seem to reach steady breathing. My swim training has gone well, but open-water swimming is a whole different giant. The mass swim start and the 81 triathletes added to the chaos. At about 50 yards out, I found myself floundering and then flipping over to do the backstroke. It wasn't until the second half of the 1/2 mile swim that I settled down to do the frontstroke. The ride and run is where I made up all my time. I managed to spin the 12 miles at a 22.3 mph pace. Then got off the bike and ran 7:37 miles. Overall, I finished in 16th place and 4th in my age division. Not too bad given the number of participants. Just got some work/training in the swim category.

TNT Duathlon update...

The race went well. I successfully ran 6:23 miles for the first two miles, then averaged 20.3 miles/hr on the bike. I rounded out the event with 7:15 miles (should have been faster, but some leg cramping didn't help matters). I placed 8th overall, with a final time just under 62 minutes. Sarah finished 3rd in her division, and we both came home with medals.
http://www.teamnebraska.org/TNT%20DU%20Results%202009.pdf

Kanesville Krusher at Lewis & Clark

The relatively techical course is strewn with bluffs of difficult climbs. Had a chance to run the granny gear and largest cog on the last climb of the course. Nice little roller coaster section with a tree pyramid obsticle that has been built up. Overall, I placed 10th in the Cat 2 Open division. Not bad considering the circumstaces...
1. Poor first lap thanks to a front deraileur that didn't want to shift down to a lower chain ring at the very beginning of the race (gravel road climb). Therefore, I was already in last place because I had to stop momentarily, put the chain back on the 2nd chain ring, and start pedaling again. First lap 28:12, 2nd lap 53:47, 3rd lap 1:19:35. See?
2. Never rode the course with the exception of the 1/2 lap that I did before the event. That's my own fault, really.
3. Bad allergies. Yep, these were kicking my butt days before the race and into that morning.
Great race, though. Scenic vista of Omaha added to the experience.

http://www.nebraskacyclingnews.com/news/mountain-bike-news-on-nebraska-cycling-news/113-kirkpatrick-wins-kanesville-krusher

Sick...this video is incredible

Thanks to friend, Justin, for introducing me to this rider and the song "The Funeral." Danny has some insane bike skills. All done on a mountain bike. Check it out...