Ministor

Snow Bike Enduro

2012-01-24T07:46:00.000-08:00

That's the look of someone having a blast in the middle of Winter. This past weekend was loaded with awesome. All because of the wonderful folks with whom I was spending time. Laser tag on Friday night, Snow Bike Enduro on Saturday, and great worship on Sunday.

The Enduro was even more fun than last year and this year Lauren made it out too. I believe I saw around 32 teams, which means there were almost 100 riders! The weather was spectacular and the course was difficult but ridable. I had the pleasure of being on Jon's team again and this time we added Ben to the mix.

The bonfire was warm, the Lakefront Big Easy was tasty, people were laughing, and riders were crashing in the snow right in front of camp. I was one of those riders. I caught some sweet air on the big downhill finish, landed it, and then had too much speed going into the corner of doom. I fell in slow motion and then hopped up and struck the landing to the applause of the judges. There's first hand video of it too! Perhaps I can get my hands on it from Jon and post it here later.

Maciej and his team came away with the win after the three-way tie was broken by double elimination Indian Leg Wrestling. (special note, never challenge Uncle John to a leg wrestling match as he will end you with extreme prejudice)

Lauren has more photos and will get them posted soon.

Huh?

2012-01-11T14:43:00.000-08:00

So, you may notice in the bar to the right under "Places of Interest" that there is a new link called "Life on the Island." If you were to follow that "link," you end up on another "blog" written by "me." (Sorry, I got a little quotation mark crazy there for a second, but I'm better now.)

What? Why, you may ask? Simple, I needed a place to discuss my authorial endeavors that wasn't also a bike blog because my authorial endeavors are not about bikes. So check it out if you like. And if you don't care, tell someone who might.

Cx Nationals

2012-01-09T07:22:00.001-08:00

I woke up on Saturday tired; tired of being sick and tired pretending to train. So, I was resolved as I drove out to Verona for the Cyclocross Nationals 35-39 Masters race that I was going to focus on having fun and leaving it all out on the course.

The course conditions changed for every race and for our race it was going to be a mix of peanut butter mud and slick spots. I knew the first lap was going to be chaos, especially starting 5 rows back, so I planned on being cautious so I wouldn't be taken out of the race in a crash.

Being cautious appeared to be smart and I avoided many a rider going down wildly in front of me. The conditions were challenging and there was very little where constant power wasn't being put down. I was in the groove of things and moving up when my race was cut short by the officials. The details are all a bit sketchy and I am not going to focus on what happened.

Instead, I want say how great it was to be able to hang out and race with Joe, Mike, Ron and the whole Knutowski caravan, Jeff, Travis, Eric, Chris, Andy, Heidi, Sanjay, Maciej, Kate, Marcin, and anyone I missed. Then there are the too many to list people that made the whole season as fun and successful as it was all season long. Wisconsin has a great and growing cx scene.

After having a pitiful year last year due to real health reasons (13, 23, 13, DNF, 21, DNF) my goals were simple this year. Be able to finish in the middle of the pack even when I am not feeling good. Between the on and off cold and numerous tire issues I would say I was pretty successful in reaching my goals, maybe even a little better than I expected.

My week off the bike (not counting the park bike) began with this.

That's right, Clutch beer from New Belgium. The last bottle of a delicious dark sour ale that I have been saving. I also thawed out the cookies from Christmas that I didn't eat. I pretty much took last week off because of the cold so after taking this next week off I should be about 5 lbs heavier and ready to slowly start riding again. Heck, maybe if it ever snows in WI I'll even get to ski!

Getting the word out

2012-01-05T10:32:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to learn more ideas and get the word out about my upcoming book The Island in the Confluence, I am on the twitters and the facebooks now(again). I haven't been on either for years and I am not totally sure how I feel about being back on them now.

Do me a favor and make it worth my while at least. Seek me out in those venues if are on them. Spread the word too, if you would.

I'll start sharing more information about my book soon. If you are curious, please ask.

NYE Chicago cx

2012-01-02T07:44:00.000-08:00

photo by Rockwell

I hemmed and hawed about trying to make this race. It was going to be a surgical strike if I went; just enough time to race and then head home for other responsibilities. My results don't show how well the race went for me, but I am glad I went.

For the past month, at least, I have had a little cold. Nothing that would stop me from doing anything, but just annoying and hanging around. That is until last week, when for Christmas my niece and nephew gave me something nasty. It was bad enough to make me slow down and take some time off on Thursday and Friday. It feels the same as the cold I had at the costume cx race, I just can't take a deep breath. But I was already signed up for the race, the season is almost over, and my last race lasted 3 minutes, so I was a bit determined to make it.

I made good time to Chicago and for the most part I felt okay, other than the deep dry coughing and inability to take a deep breath. I wasn't going to let it take me out of the race mentally. The venue itself was awesome: heated bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers. And the course was cool too, I didn't get a chance to see most of it before the race though. It had numerous 50 foot long 4-5inch deep mud sections, a super muddy hill, and somewhat hard packed sand traps that had huge lips on the exit that if you didn't almost bunny hop out of, you were going over your bars.

I started in the second row and had a good start. I was 5th or 6th wheel going into the 3rd turn when a guy (and I am still not sure how he did it) pushed me off the line in a gravel corner so I had to soft pedal. A train of guys blew by and I went from 5th or 6th to 15th. It seems as though some guys are actually peaking now for Nationals and Masters Worlds, so it was a fast first lap as I went to work to try and move up.

After 2 laps I was battling it out with one guy. I knew I was riding the course smoother than he was because I could hear him braking everywhere. In the long mud pits I had more power too and would get little gaps on him. But here is where the cold got frustrating. My legs felt great, in fact they never really never got tired (or even sore the rest of the day) but I was breathing like was I being chased by a bear. I couldn't access the actual power in my legs.

With 2 to go the other guy rode the backside of the hill, when I ran it, and got a good gap on me. By the end of that lap another guy had caught me. When he did, I let him lead thinking I would let him take me around the course. We got to the backside of the hill, he ran it and I rode it. I got a good gap, but I couldn't keep the speed up. My front shifter was too jammed up to get into the big ring so I was left to spin like crazy, tough to do when you can't breathe. We hit the final straight and he eased by me doing half the rpm's I was. I rolled in 12th.

Disappointing placement, but fun course and good times. Plus, even though I didn't feel good I was able to mix it up in the top third of the field. Next Saturday is Nationals for me. Right now it looks like I line up 41st out 71. I know I can move up from there, the question is just how far?

Afterglow cx

2011-12-19T07:19:00.001-08:00

Unfortunately, there isn't much to write about this past weekend's race in Chicago. I went down to race in order keep my fitness up and maybe improve my seeding at nationals. The course was great. It had snowed. There was mud, sand, and icy roots. In the 1,2,3 race there was a lot of pushing and shoving for position at and after the start, I think it was partly due to how slippery and technical the course was.

We had just about established a line when I heard a horrible noise. My rear brake was jammed into my wheel. I thought, that's weird and hopped off to pull it out and put the straddle cable back, but the arm where the cable engages was bent together. I spent about 3 minutes trying to pry it open and get the cable back in. It wasn't happening. By this time the 3's field had passed by me too. I made a lame attempt to ride with only the front brake and quickly found out that wasn't going to happen. All can I think of is that another guy must have rammed my brake in all the pushing.

I raced for a total of 3 minutes. Argh. With 3 weeks until nationals and no more races I can make, I am going to need some motivation to keep training to at least not lose any fitness.

Badger Cx Saturday

2011-12-12T07:54:00.000-08:00

After three weeks off of racing and more ground beef in a week than I think I have eaten in month for a few years, I wasn't sure what the race in Madison was going to be like. I wanted to race and I have been riding, but I haven't been able to push myself like I can during races.

Lauren opted out of coming to this race because it was real cold. Weather.com said it was 25 with a windchill in the teens at the start of our race. During the course preview and warm-up I felt pretty good though. The course was hilly and far from technical, although if we do get snow or ice for Nationals there are going to be some sweet crashes at the bottoms of the long hills with 90 degree right hand turns!

I knew I was dressed well for the race because I was freezing while waiting for the start. There were call-ups for this race according to registration and I got the last front row spot. Sweet! I had great start and by the time we hit the grass I was comfortably 5th wheel. They ran us with women 1,2,3 and for some reason started them first. This made no sense as we caught their entire field on the first big hill. That is where I lost contact with the lead group. I got pinched off on the steps by not one, but two ladies falling hard. As I dodged the first one to the left the other one went down in front of me. This allowed a 50 meter gap to open up to 4th wheel. I wasn't mentally in the race and let them go.

Half a lap later another rider caught me fast. I didn't even see him until he passed. I put some effort in to stay with him but settled back into my pace. Then another rider caught me half a lap later. I was starting to come around mentally so when he passed me I stayed on his wheel. We rode together for a lap and caught one of the lead riders who was falling back. When we passed him he hopped on too.

At this point two things happened. First, due to the routing of the internal housing of my front derailleur, after weekly bike washings enough water got into the housing to sit at the bend and freeze in the extreme temps. So I could shift into the big ring but not back down. I could kind of get it to work for the first few laps, but then it stopped. So once I got it back down, I left it down because of the hills. This made the loooong paved straight very hard when the two guys I was with were hammering in their big rings.

The second issue was in a super bumpy corner I got a little loose and started to go down. I couldn't get my foot out to stop the fall fast enough so I yanked my foot out of the pedal and slammed my knee into the end of my handlebar with the force. I had no power for a lap. So, due to the shifting and the knee both guys I was with took off for a lap. But mentally I was coming back around.

One guy smelled blood and hit it, so I never saw him again, but Chris wasn't feeling well. So after he got a gap he settled in again. I made solid contact with one to go. I had no choice but to throw it in the big ring on the flat to stay with him, and of course it wouldn't shift down again. After the flat I went around him and pulled him through the rest of the lap. At the finish I looked back with a little to go and Chris was about 50 meters back. So I pedaled hard, but I didn't sprint. Then I look back right before the line and he is right next to me! What a jump! He thought he had it and almost accidentally killed me with his celebration.

It was hard to say though if he did get me. He went through the line faster, but did he get there first? Well, the officials didn't think so and gave me the spot. I ended up 6th in a pretty good field of racers. My last lap I finally felt like was in it and racing. I still had some left too, I will have to adjust to the 45 minute races for the rest of the year after doing 60 minutes all season.

I'm still stoked to race this race year so maybe I can keep it going for Nationals. Next week, Afterglow cx in Chicago so I can keep the intensity up.

Stubby's

2011-12-06T13:23:00.000-08:00

Burger of the Day:

ground beef patty topped with fried mac n' cheese,bacon, cheddar cheese, tomato, pickle, lettuce, and of course I got the world's best (and most underrated) condiment added to it: pulled pork!

Hales Corners, WI State Championship

2011-11-21T10:25:00.000-08:00

Occasionally, I need to stop and remember what a blessing it is to be able to ride and race bikes. I don't take it for granted and I am always prepared for the current year to be the last year I have time to devote to the sport. I've been riding for about 6 years now and I have already had to take two interspersed years pretty much off from riding and racing much. Like last year, I had some annoying persistent health issues all year. I think I raced 7 times all year and ended up dropping out of the last month of cx.

Thinking about that makes this year all the better. Last year at this time I was barely riding and I weighed a 10 year high of 194 pounds. I am currently 178lbs and although I have been fighting allergies/cold/ or something for while, I am probably the fastest I have ever been. I may not be getting on the podium, but I am putting up a good fight, unlike last year when I was fighting for last.

So, on to the race report. I was hoping there were going to be call-ups like there have been in the past. I would have had a front position then, but there were no call ups. So I was second row of 3 and half.

I was behind the right guys but had my worst start of the year somehow, and was in about 15-18 place coming out of turn 2. That was a bad place to be because the next 400 meters of course was basically singletrack when it came to passing and I was stuck behind guys braking hard in every corner.

By the straightway the top 6 had a huge lead on me so I put down some power and got in front of about 5 more guys before the next technical section. Slow down. Then it was the greasy hill and I dug deep to get in front of 3 or 4 more guys. I was coming down the hill and the lead group was already heading back up again. I almost broke there mentally. But I had gotten in front of the corner-brakers, so things were smoother and faster (the tracer I had in front was like velcro, I wish I had 2).

After that I set my sights on what was apparently 5th and 6th place. Chris and Mike were a ways ahead of me but it seemed like if I sprinted out of every corner and stood up on the hills I was making up time. It took me about a lap to make contact with Chris. He was hacking up something awful and as I was pulling away he yelled something about me being 34 and being in the race on a technicality.

It took another lap or 2 to catch Mike. He slipped out in a corner and I finally bridged.

I rode his wheel for a lap but in doing so J.W. was able to start catching up to us, so I hopped in front and starting hitting it at the pace I was at when I caught Mike. After a lap I was really feeling it and asked Mike if he wanted to pull. He mumbled something to the effect of "No." So I kept at it.

Then with 2 or 3 to go (I think 2) either way it was a 1/3 lap after I asked Mike to pull, he jumps me! I think he was trying to bridge to Will, whom we were slowly catching. I didn't have the pop to hop on his wheel.

And when Will saw Mike coming he hit too. For the last couple of laps that is how it went. Will, Mike, and me pretty evenly spaced. I took the time for a nice beer hand-up after the uphill barriers on the last lap. Most of it ended up frozen in my beard. It was cold and windy.

It was a ton of fun. I loved the long course. And even though I was spewing mucous, I felt good once I was going. Now, because of scheduling, I only have 2 races left and they are spread out. The regional champs on Dec. 10th and Nationals on Jan. 7th. If things go the way they have so far with the race predictor for nationals, I should get a better start spot than I would have thought at the beginning of the season. Somewhere near the back of the top third. I'll take it!

Concordia Cx and Sliver Lakes Border Battle:one crazy weekend

2011-11-14T08:18:00.000-08:00

My first taste of cyclocross was in St. Louis 5 years ago. I had no idea what I was doing, it was also my first year racing bikes altogether. I think I carried a tube with me in my first cx race. After that first year, I missed a season of cx and pretty much a year of racing after that, but now I am in my 3rd year of cx in WI. So when I had the opportunity to race in STL this year on a course that takes place on my old Seminary's campus I made it happen.

Lauren and I made a little trip out of it and got down there Thursday night so we could spend some time with some friends. It was great to hang out and see them again. Then on Friday night we were able to see some more friends and discuss strategy/content of the book I am writing.

Saturday was supposed to be nice but it ended up being windy and cold. Scott switched work so he could race the single speed race.

In STL they have a women's race, single speed/C race, B race, and A race. I lined up for the A race.

I had a pretty good start and was 2nd wheel going into the first corner when a guy totally cut my line. I had to slam on the brakes and I still smacked the side of my front wheel into his rear wheel. After all the groans from the guys behind me I recovered and was 3rd wheel (slightly gapped though)heading into the woods.

I lost time in each corner because I had too much pressure in my tires, but I didn't want another tire issue. Whenever I pushed a corner too much I would drift a lot and three times I slid out, losing more time and letting a few more guys pass me. The Team Seagal super fans were witness to one beautiful slide I made, it was like I was stealing second.

The course was great and technical, but since I was losing time in the corners I needed to make it up on the straightaways, but they were too short to make up much time. So I was left to defend my position more than advance it.

Lauren has some more pictures of the race here.

I ended up 6th or 7th (I guess a guy was DQ'd in front of me). I showered quick and we headed home. By the end of the drive my glutes were killing me.

I have timed my racing pretty good this year and I want to race all I can right now, where as in the past I would be ready to done at this time of the year. So even though I had to work morning and night on Sunday, I made the hour drive down to Silver Lake for the Border Battle. It was windy but warm and the course was awesome.

I had another good start and was 4th wheel coming out of the sand pits. I was following Mike too close at the uphill log hop and cased my rear wheel hard. Thank goodness for tubulars! I didn't get a flat. I felt good once I settled into a pace, but I didn't have any pop. When a couple of guys passed me I didn't have the jump to go with them. I going to blame the tender glutes (which is just an excuse, but they still hurt today!).

Photo and video courtesy of Eric B.

The video was too funny not share. I took some beer pyramid hand-ups but just took a drink of each one. I had to work three hours later.

All in all though, I was happy with the race considering all the traveling I did this weekend. I finished, watched Joe beat Jeff in a great sprint finish for the win, said my goodbyes, changed, got in the car, and made it home in time to clean up, eat and make it to work with a half hour to spare.

It was a great weekend even though I made it pretty crazy on myself. Next week state.

Estabrook Cx

2011-11-07T06:56:00.000-08:00

After being sick for the race last week I was looking forward to turning it around this week. I could finally take a deep breath again on Thursday so I thought I was in good shape. It was another beautiful WI day.

I had a good start. I was more aggressive than I have been in the past so when I was shouldered off my line into the tape I just returned the favor. I'm still not crazy about the idea of having to push so much for a spot, but I suppose that is just the way it is.

On the first lap Joe put in a huge attack and took one guy with him (I think the rest of us may have been blocked by the other guy's teammate) they immediately got a good gap and when I looked backed I found out that I was on the end of the 3 man chase group. For two or three laps that is how it went. I wasn't doing any help at the front and the guys called me out on it. I was going to hop in front after the barriers when this happened.

I dropped my chain. The other two guys took off then and I started to chase. It took me a full lap to finally make solid contact with them again. I had just settled in to breath for a second when in the one technical section I rolled my front tire. I couldn't believe it. Three separate tire issues in 4 weeks! I walked off the course, let my bike fall, and I thought I was done. After about ten seconds I knew I couldn't quit. So I pulled the tire back onto the rim and decided to test ride it to the pits. It seemed fine so I never got a new front wheel. But I had lost a lot of time and let a few guys pass me in the process.

I ended up dropping my chain two more times. Making it a total of four stops that were around ten seconds a piece. It's interesting looking at my Garmin data after this race. After the first chain drop my heart rate shoots up for five minutes. Then after the rolled tire my heart rate drops way down and stays a few beats lower than it was for the first twenty minutes of the race. Then after then next two chain drops, it falls a few beats more with each one. Until the final two laps when I started mixing it up with Ron K., then it shoots back up again. Apparently with every setback my motivation just slipped away.

I figured out my chain drop issue once the race was over and I didn't have cx brain. It was operator error. I was cross chaining so that coming out of the obstacles I could spin out fast. But the approach was so screwy for me that I was bouncing the bike a lot and my leg was hitting the pedal making it backspin. Of course the chain was falling off the ring! If only I could have figured that out during the race and either shifted to the smaller ring or just made sure to slow down a bit more and be smooth.

Last, I have to mention Ron's great move. We rode together for the last lap and a half. On the course there is a short steep hill with a twelve inch log at the bottom. In the past, guys would try to hop the log and ride up, but not many could do it consistently, so I have always ran it. This year, the log was broken down, making the approach a lot more easy, yet seeing how I have had so many tire issues I didn't want to increase my chances of something stupid happening there so I was still running it. Unlike most other guys who were riding it this year, Ron being one of them.

The last lap he timed it great. I ran up and as I was remounted he shot by with a burst of speed because he rode up. There were maybe 600 meters of twisty turns and a tight corner left in the race. By the time I closed the gap he made on the hill it was too late to come around him. Nice.

As usual, Lauren took more photos.

Washington Park Halloween CX

2011-10-31T07:23:00.000-07:00

That's right, I am a lumber jack wearing jeggings. That was a surprisingly hot outfit to race in and the jeggings didn't slide onto the slide very well during remounts. But they looked good, right?

Last week I prefaced my race report by hoping it would be my worst race of the year. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Washington Park was worst(as in, I will not have a race that bad again this year!).

Cyclocross is as much mental as it is physical, so all of last week I kept telling myself I was just having bad allergies, and I can race through allergies. I kept telling myself that I had a really hard workout on Tuesday so it made sense that I was still achy and sore all over on Friday even though I had done everything I could to work the soreness out. It turns out that I cannot just psyche myself through being sick. And being sick was very evident on the first lap of the race.

I was having a hard time getting a deep breath since Thursday but I thought once I was racing I would be able to, as long as kept clearing the phlegm out of the way. It wasn't happening during the race. I had a bad start, but I was just off the first chase group, a group I should have been able to catch, but I couldn't close the gap. Instead, I felt like I moved backwards during most of the race. I couldn't drive my bike, no power, no leg speed.

I finished feeling pretty bad and it got worse as the night went on. All the plans changed for the weekend. Canceled Saturday night, and Sunday was just work and sleep instead of trying to make it to the Sheboygan race. One weird thing about not being able to produce anything on Saturday was that my legs weren't tired or sore at all on Sunday and usually they are the day after a cx race.

This week I need to keep resting and getting over this thing and start psyching up for Saturday. November is when I wanted to start getting some good results anyway, so maybe this forced rest will be a good thing.

Lauren got more great photos. The Doyne Park pics are up now too.

This picture of Mike is too awesome not to put up here!

Doyne Park Cx

2011-10-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

Well, hopefully Doyne will be my worst cx race of the year. I had a decent start and was 5th of a five man lead group on the first lap. However, on the remount after the barriers my tubeless tire experiment officially failed and I burped a ton of air out of my rear. After that I couldn't take the corners as fast as the lead group anymore and slowly started to trail off.

I wasn't sure what to do about the tire, it was slowing me down, and in the off-chamber sections I was burping more air. I rode another lap on it and then on the trickiest off-chamber 180 turn it gave up the ghost. To this point I still hadn't lost any places. The My Wife Inc guys knew that section was a tire eater and so the pit was real close. I ran the 100 meters to the pit and got a new rear wheel.

My bike didn't cooperate though and the exchange was slow. My heart sank as groups of riders from my race as well as the P,1,2 passed by the pit while I was standing there. Two cx races in a row with flats. I knew when I got back on my bike that I was mentally out of the race. I kept riding, but I wasn't attacking until the last lap. And that was for practice more than anything else.

I went down in the same corner I flatted in 4 laps later and my leg locked up straight so I couldn't get out of the pedal. It was awkward to sort of limp-pull the bike up the hill. After that I had to watch for cramps when I got off the bike for the barriers. All in all, not a good race and a 7th place finish.

All of this is too bad because the course was sweet, the day was beautiful, and I was racing against a bunch of friends. Oh well, it just makes me more determined to get my tires figured out and race my butt off next weekend!

Lauren should have the pictures up soon.

BW

2011-10-17T07:58:00.000-07:00

The Flickr uploading app is not working very well for my phone. This the one pic that is somewhat visible from Beechwood and it isn't a very good picture to start with.

As always, it was super fun and I wish I could have spent more time there. Thanks to Mike and Joe and everyone else who helped put it together!

Grafton Pumpkin CX and Cam-Rock CX

2011-10-10T08:59:00.000-07:00

At Reconcile (the church where I am pastor) we have two worship services on Sundays. 10:30am and 6:30pm. So normally Sunday races are out for me. However, every 6 weeks we only have one service in order to encourage everyone who can make it, to worship together. That fell this weekend, so I was able to hit both races.

Grafton

Both days were unseasonable hot, like in the mid to upper 70's, but beautifully sunny. The Grafton course was the same as it has been with a few improvements making it a little more of a bike handlers course. Plus they found water somehow.

Our field was a little small which was most likely due to it being the last WORS weekend and a USGP weekend. Our start was smooth and I was sitting 3rd wheel when we caught the tail end of the p,1,2 group. I thought our start was slow, but theirs must have been very slow. I think it was the second lap where I made a move on the hill and passed a bunch of people, putting me on the front of my race and a train of P,1,2 guys.

I stayed on the front for almost a lap and when we caught up to another rider Mike went around us both. I didn't move fast enough to catch his wheel and it was too late. Mike doesn't make a lot of mistakes and he won the race.

I ended up battling it out and going back and forth with Nathan (who had already raced that day!). I had him on the hill and just when I thought I was going to get him he cleaned a chicane better then me and was able to create a gap I couldn't close. I took 3rd.

Cam-Rock

I had never been to Cam-Rock before so I wasn't sure what to expect. We didn't get there until ten to 2pm and my race started at 2:45pm, so I had just enough time to register and warm-up. I got one preview lap in before we lined up for the start and I told Ron I was going to flat during the race. Cam-Rock has lots of roots and rocks that when hit at low pressure are sure to cause a pinch flat. I flatted my front tubular at practice this past week so I was rocking a clincher in front at 35psi. Great pressure for Grafton, not so great for Cam-Rock. But it was too late to find a pump.

The field was better this time with about 20 guys. I had another good start and was 2nd into the hole shot behind Ron.

I was feeling good and not really working, content to being on Ron's wheel. Two fellows hopped in front of us but there was no gap created. I was in a great spot. Then coming around a corner my front tire nearly rolls off. I had a flat.

I pulled over to the side, shouldered the bike and starting running to the pit which was about 400 meters away. Everyone passed me.

Thankfully Sram was there with neutral support so I was able to get a new wheel. But this was on the first, which is usually the fastest, lap of the race. So it was basically like giving the group a half lap head start. And with how fast and flat this course was, being in a group and catching a draft would be a huge advantage. It was a dirt crit, my Garmin said it was a little over 17 mile race. Alas, that was not my fate though. I got my new wheel (which was a little sketchy not knowing in the turns for a few laps), put my head down, and started chasing.

It was the hardest fought 8th place I can remember getting. I would catch guys and then they would hop on my wheel for a lap or two, but I was doing the work and pulling 95% of the time. It was definitely good training for future races and I am happy I stayed in the race mentally.

As usual, Lauren got some great photos!

Cross the Domes

2011-10-02T19:07:00.000-07:00

The first race for the Wisconsin Cyclocross Series is in the books. The boys at my wife inc put on a great race at the Mitchell Park Domes in Milwaukee. The course was changed up from last year, rather than featuring a large hill as the decider, this year was a bike handler's course with some really crazy off-chamber turns.

After 7 days of rain we got a beautiful sunny day for the races. It was good to be back on the local scene and see faces that I haven't seen in a while. I lined up in the 35+ 1,2,3 with a few goals in mind, one of which is a better start. The p,1,2's took off and we rolled up to the line. I was near the outside in the second row. The whistle blew and I got clipped in and got a good start and this time I wasn't slowed down by anyone in the first corners.

I then worked my way up to Mike's wheel. I knew he would take fast lines and keep moving and I could learn from him.

I was on his wheel for a few laps and we worked our way into the p,1,2 field. Then I dove a corner a little better then he and I took the lead. I was going to pull for a while, but Mike dropped off a little. I worked my way up to a couple of guys and made a huge mistake.

Once I bridged, I stayed on their wheels too long. I should have been more aggressive and kept moving up by myself.

But I didn't. It was a lap or two later that Mike caught us again, and when he passed, it was just enough acceleration that I couldn't match it at the time. So he slowly pulled away.

The last couple of laps I spent racing against a p,1,2 racer. I made up some of the time on Mike and Joe, but I couldn't close it in the last two laps.

I ended up eighth for the day.

My fitness is coming around and the mental toughness is coming together too, but I still have a lot to learn about racing. Every time I race I learn something and it isn't just about being more fit.

Looking forward to next week!

Lauren got a ton of great photos. Right now it's just the p,1,2 and 35+ are up, but soon there will pics from 3's, the 45 and 55+ 1,2,3 and the women p,1,2.

USGP Sun Prairie

2011-09-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not whistling a little tune, I am trying to clear out the dust and phlegm.

I got my first cx race under my belt for the year and what better way to start than the USGP on Saturday. It started out cloudy and in the 50's; the course was dusty. I had no expectations for it because, well, really why should I? My lack of expectation was good because otherwise I would have been angry that the call up guy skipped a whole page and instead of starting in the third to last row of 80 riders I got to start in the last row.

This is us waiting to get called up.

I wanted to work on my starts and being aggressive the first lap at this race. Starting in the last row ruined the start for me, but it gave me opportunity to exercise my aggressiveness. I was passing guys on the flats and in the corners when I could. Until, in a 180 turn, one fellow laid his bike down right in front of me. I ran into his head set, stopped, then I hit the throttle again. In the first two laps my heart was in the high 180's bpm. It peaked on the run up on the first lap at 198bpm. My first lap was my slowest by 30 seconds.

I spent the rest of the race reeling people back in my own little race.

I was eyeing up guys I knew and trying to bring them back.

My laps got faster and my heart settled nicely (in between 175 and 180) once I wasn't hitting the brakes in many of the corners.

In the last two laps it started to drizzle. I had two guys I was trying to catch. The last lap, I just about closed the gap when I laid my bike out in a gravel corner. They got a few more seconds on me. My wife is starting to understand what motivates me at races and instead of saying "Good job, Marc!" she yelled "It's the last lap. Don't punk out now, Marc!" I couldn't catch the two riders, but I tried.

I finished 5 minutes down from the winner of the race, who was putting up lap times that would have made him a top ten contender in the pro race, so I'll take that kind of gap.

I am stoked and ready to start racing the local series next week!

Lauren took some great photos of the races.

Anniversary

2011-09-08T07:35:00.000-07:00

Last week was our 11th anniversary so Lauren and I headed to Chicago on Tuesday night to see one of our favorite bands. The Swedish group Blindside hasn't toured in a long time in the states so we were stoked to see them. We were also stoked to see that the Bottom Lounge boasted this:

The show was great, the band played a good mix of all of their music. Obviously, a phone isn't going to record anything very well but here is a snip-it of "A Burning Fire".

All in all it was a nice little break for us.

Wet Ramble

2011-09-03T19:52:00.000-07:00

While some of the team did a gravel century on the South West side of the state, Ron, Adam, and I stayed on the East side of the state and did a 70 mile ramble on cx bikes.

There were roads.

There were "off the map"trails.

There was gravel.

There was wet gravel.

There was a Ronsta snack.

There was wet single track.

Two flat tires.

And a false flat uphill into the wind and rain 10 mile hustle back to Waukesha.

Good times, tired legs.

photos by Rontsa

Give My Nose Back

2011-08-25T13:25:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up I apparently had the tendency to make things worse for myself by having a bad attitude about things that didn't go my way. So may parents would tell me that I was "cutting my nose off despite my face".

Well, I'm not sure if it was that or "cutting my nose off to spite my face". So I am not sure if the idiom is cutting one's nose off to get back at his face or to cut one's nose off and to cut one's face off. Either way it's pretty gruesome to tell a child. However unclear I was/am about the exact idiom I know that which the sentiment behind the saying is referring. Stop making it worse for yourself, you’re not thinking things through!

I bring these childhood memories up because I see the same thing happening in popular culture today. In the past week I have run across the idea that religion and "god" are to blame for what is wrong with the world (specifically war) from two very separate sources. The sentiment isn't new to me, but it appears to me that it has trickled down from the likes of social commentainer (I think I created that word, commentator + entertainer) Bill Mahr to your local armchair intellectual. The answer to this problem for any good spawn of Modern thought, of course, is to get rid of "god" and religion. Then we can be free and everyone will get along.

Now, there is no doubt that religious fanatics have done their fair share of horrible things in history, but to blame God and try to remove him from the world because of the evil that people have done seems short sighted to me. People use math every day to do horrible things, from stealing from others to creating weapons with the only purpose of killing mass amounts of people. By the reasoning above, we should get rid of modern math and René Descartes, the father of modern math. Hey, maybe René Descartes didn't even exist (oaky maybe I went too far with that one)!

Perhaps rather than attempting to remove God from the world (which will never happen) the logical move is to seek God out and to learn his will so that when religious fanatics bent on destruction claim to be working for God we can reprove them and put them on the right track. That way, we can keep our noses, or our faces, or both. Uh, whatever that saying means we do the opposite.

Major Jake for Sale!

2011-08-10T15:50:00.000-07:00

This is my new ride for cx. The Specialized Crux Expert. Once again, my bikes outclass me. And although I would love to keep the Kona Major Jake I really don't have the room. So I am selling it. See the photo below.

This will be a sweet bike for someone, I've really enjoyed it. It's a 2009 61cm.

Full scandium with a carbon Alpha Q cx fork.

The frame and fork have less than 800 miles on them (so say my computers).

The wheels are Velocity rims laced to Ultegra hubs.

It has a Sram Rival 1x10 with less than 500 miles on it.

FSA SL-K cranks and Kore cantilever brakes.

Salsa Bell-Lap bars and a new Specialized Phenom saddle.

Send me an email if your interested and I'll get you a price, marc.engelhardt at gmail.com.

Christians in Community

2011-07-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

Oooo, the exciting conclusion to a topic I started weeks ago! Can you feel the excitement?

To catch up on what has been said thus far see these two cleverly named articles: Christians without Community and Christians without Community pt 2.

What we have to understand in order to grasp the benefits of being in a ‘Kingdom Community’ is that we are created to be in community centered around our relationship with God. Read Genesis before the Fall, the book of Revelation after the restoration of the world, and listen to what Jesus says in the Gospels and it becomes pretty obvious (at least to me) that for us to jump into the ‘Kingdom Community’ with both feet is a swift kick into Satan’s crotch. Sin pulls this community apart while Jesus restores it, therefore we should be working to restore it through Christ.

So if Jesus is restoring the ‘Kingdom Community’ we should look no further than it for the gifts and blessing that God offers to the world. There are the gifts that have become most prominent in many churches, that is the Word and Sacraments, which are normally associated with times of corporate worship. Such gifts are fantastic blessings and marks of the church but from them should be a waterfall of gifts there are easily overlooked or not practiced. I am going to list a bunch, feel free to ask for clarity on any of them:

Are you praying for the direction of God’s will in your life? Then ask for clarity from your ‘Kingdom Community.’

Are you short on money for groceries, or rent, or babysitters, or to visit a sick or dying friend/relative? Then allow your ‘Kingdom Community’ to tend to your needs.

Do you have a dispute with another Christian? Go through the proper channels for resolution within your ‘Kingdom Community.’

Do you have a dispute with a non-Christian? Ask your ‘Kingdom Community’ for guidance.

Are you feeling abandoned, marginalized, or taken advantage of? Immerse yourself in your ‘Kingdom Community.’

Have you hurt someone or broken a law or publicly sinned and want forgiveness and to start over? Run to your ‘Kingdom Community.’

Has God blessed you with something great, or just a time of smooth sailing? Celebrate the goodness of God and his creation with your ‘Kingdom Community.’

Now, as you read that far less than exhaustive list you will notice that living in the ‘Kingdom Community’ takes some vulnerability and willingness to not be self-reliant. Some of you are also probably thinking to yourself, “Not at my church.” Or some of you may be thinking that you can get those benefits from other places than your church. Please understand that the ‘Kingdom Community’ is larger than your local manifestation of the church and God works through all sorts of means, the point is that we need to be regularly involved and immersed in the Community of the Kingdom, in order to grow closer to King Jesus and reap the benefits of that relationship.

Can you imagine if we didn’t say “Not at my church” and started living in the Kingdom with intentness? Can you imagine what would happen if you let your guard down and let people in and cared for their needs without desire of compensation? Can you imagine what it would be like if the church was the place you ran to, rather than from, when you screwed up?

[end rant]

Too Much Friction: Levis

2011-07-18T19:53:00.000-07:00

I have looked forward to the WEMS race at Levis for the past three years. I have some friends who always come up from St. Louis for it and the trails there are great. This year was fun because I was able to spend some time with my friends, but that was about it.

There was a 50 percent chance of rain the day of the race but the Levis trails can take rain because they are so rocky and sandy. However, they can't take a Wisconsin monsoon. We had just enough time to set up when we arrived in the mosquito craziness before the showers hit Friday night.

For most of the night is was dry and then we woke up to a storm. There was a 2 cup measuring cup on the picnic table that had a half inch of water in it at 6am, by 10am the cup was full. Yet the race went on, despite the fact that there was lighting, winds, and rain strong enough to destroy my e-z up tent. It was just one thing of many that were destroyed this weekend.

Levis is so sandy though that these puddles disappeared within an hour after the rain stopped. So I was determined to race the 50 mile if the race directors would continue with it. There wasn't much common sense going around.

It was miserable. The low sections of trail were hub deep mud puddles full of ruts and roots. After one lap there were no good lines possible in those sections. And because Levis is so sandy, the mud puddles filled the brakes and chains and cables with sand so that I (and everyone else with disc brakes) was effectively braking the entire time. Not many brake pads made it through the day.

That is Eddie's rear brake after 3 laps.

The bluff sections actually were pretty dry, but the heat and humidity made them far from a respite. In the end, I wish the race director would have taken out the trail that was under water. It would have shortened the laps and made it more climbing over all, but it would have saved people a lot of money on bike parts, saved the trail, and probably would have allowed most people to finish their races.

That's sand stuck to my bike, not mud.

Oh well, it was a crazy experience with some good friends. I'm sure we will be back next year for our annual trip to Levis.

Christians without Community pt. 2

2011-07-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

There are many Christians out there who profess a 'personal faith' alone and who are not involved in any Christian community because they do not need "Church" to be close to God.

In my last article I tackled a basic issue with that ideal. That is, as followers of King Jesus we become aware of our place in the Kingdom. The Church is part of that Kingdom and if a Christian willfully refuses to be part of the 'Kingdom Community' it may actually reveal a problem in the relationship between said Christian and King Jesus.

I may be making it sound like being part of a Christian community is a rule or law that Christians have to follow. However, I assure you, like all of the designs for life that God has given us, this is not a restriction but rather a blessing. How is that you ask? I never got anything out of church, you say? Well, allow me to wow you with a few simple examples in my next article. First, let me address the last hypothetical question.

I'm not going to say anything cliché like "You only get out what you put in", although I suppose it does apply in a way, so apparently I will say something cheesy like that (more on that in the next article). What I would like to say here though is that most local manifestations of the church do not function like the community they were meant to be. That being said, in my experience there are always people and groups within each church living in recognition that they are part of the Kingdom Community (often doing so unaware of the fact), but many of the other people in said churches are consumers. A consumer could be defined as a person who wants to use programs or only comes to worship but has no desire to let Christ truly rule his or her life. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh but that appears to be the reality of the situation. Then there are the in-betweeners, people who desire more of Christ in their lives but are not sure of what that actually means or how to pursue it.

I bring this up because some of what I will describe in the next article may seem unfathomable in some churches. Many churches are not currently Kingdom focused communities, but that doesn't mean they couldn't be. And there are Kingdom focused churches out there, they may not use that language, but be sure, they exist. In short, I will not be describing utopia, just a little taste of the Kingdom on earth that is possible because the King has given us the gifts to make it happen.

(For an interesting take on the topic in general see this article by Dr. Jeffery Kloha)

Christians without Community

2011-07-08T16:20:00.001-07:00

This has been on my mind a lot lately. I have been big on community for a long time, but recently in discussions I have been having and things I have been reading, I have seen just how important community is--especially for the Christian.

For today's article I am going to throw out some presuppositions and see if I can get any reactions.

For starters, Jesus came announcing that the Kingdom of God is at hand. After his death and resurrection he ascended to the right hand of the Father to rule creation. Thus making him the King of the Kingdom. This is part of the basic Christian worldview. Therefore, people who claim to be followers of Christ are in essence recognizing that Jesus is their King.

While some may say that Jesus is their personal Savior, and this is true, there is more to the relationship than that. If Jesus is your King, that makes you part of the Kingdom. My point here is that your relationship with King Jesus also creates a relationship with others in the Kingdom by making you aware of your place in the Kingdom. Therefore, being a follower of Christ makes you part of a community. To deny the community is to deny the Kingdom, and to deny the Kingdom puts into question one's relationship with the King.

I will tackle the benefits of the 'Kingdom Community' next week, but for now, how does this sit?

Ooo, look at that cross-hatching...

2011-07-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

It's time for another cook-off!

It is happening tomorrow night (July 2nd) and this time the themed is 'Grilled'.

We will have 2, probably 3 grills going and the idea is that you bring whatever it is you want to grill and cook it there. However, you don't need to bring anything to come, there is always plenty to go around!

Since we are in essence cooking together this time it is going to start a bit earlier, around 4:30-5pm. If you can not make it until later, don't sweat it, just come when you can get there.

This one is taking place in the Milwaukee/Wauwatosa area. Shoot me an email for directions. marc.engelhardt@gmail dot com

Texas Conference

2011-06-24T08:31:00.000-07:00

I paid for this photo because I dropped my phone (phone-jack first) into biscuits and country gravy. Very messy.

John Muir Race

2011-06-19T15:27:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting all year to both actually do a race I was planning on racing, and race duo rather than solo. At the WEMS John Muir race it finally came together. Maciej agreed to the duo but wanted to do the 75 mile instead of the 50. I figured it couldn't hurt.

I have been in the middle of doing base work for the coming cx season, but I wanted to do well at this race, so I did a little taper this week so my legs might be a bit fresher. We had two goals: first was to beat Ronsta (who was doing the solo 75 on a ss), and second was to win our race. The first goal might sound silly, unless you know Ronsta, and this goal got us off to a fast start.

Maciej started the race and stayed on Ron's wheel for the first lap until the end where he got a little gap for me. I had two choices: let Ron get in front and follow him, or ride like the wind on the flats and see if I could hold him off. I chose the latter. I wasn't riding smooth or smart for the first lap. I could hear his brakes in the distance--coming to get me like a banshee--but I held him off until about the 9.5 mile mark of the 10 mile lap. He caught me on the big climb at the end where I conceded and let him pass.

After that though, Ronsta settled in a little and Maciej kept his pace up, giving me a good gap on my second lap. Second place in our race was nowhere to be seen, so my lap was spent going through the lapped traffic and trying to keep the throttle up. The humidity was also really rising in the woods making recovery after climbs a little more difficult.

My last two laps I started to ride smarter, but I was wearing down and without any direct competition it was difficult for me to push it as hard as I should have. Maciej stayed consistent and in the end we won our race. I think we actually would have won the overall 75 mile (if there was one) beating the 3 and 4 man teams too.

It felt good to ride fast on a day without rain. I think we also had the most awesome tent area with a ton of fun people using it as home base. That was one of the best parts of doing the duo, I was able to hang out more. I could go for more of that, but for now it is back to the base training for while.

Sunny Afternoon

2011-06-03T14:57:00.000-07:00

Nice weather is finally here!

I'm telling all y'all it's a Sabotage! (on myself)

2011-05-29T17:01:00.000-07:00

That's right, I effectively sabotaged myself for the Northern Kettles. Never mind that I don't like the trails. Never mind that I wanted to do the 6 hour duo instead of the solo. Never mind the wet trails or the fact that my back wasn't speaking to me anymore after hour one. Nope that's not why I dropped out after 3 laps.

For about the past 3 weeks or so I have been thinking that I need to add more Stans to my tires. I would spin them and hear nothing. No liquid. On the other hand they were still holding air just fine. So even though I knew better, I headed off to a 6 hour race with dried up Stans in my tires.

The race itself was going well. Some heavy hitters showed up as well as the usual WEMS folk. (This is cool because it looks like the WEMS races are becoming more and more a thing to do for some of the real fast guys in the area.) The warm-up for quite a few of us consisted mostly of standing around and the Le Mans start. I took the start easy but fast enough to hit the single track about 10th out of the single and duo riders. I didn't want to go too hard and blow up early. I rode with Ron K. a bit but he was having some troubles with the rocky corners so I went around him. I settled into my 6 hour pace and slowly picked off a few more riders.

That is until at the 5 mile mark(9 mile laps) I felt my handling get really screwy. It was very floppy if I leaned the bike at all. My front tire was very low, not flat yet, but low. I decided to push through the lap and find a pump at the turn around since at that point I thought I burped some air out. In retrospect, I probably should have filled it out on the course, seeing how riding wet trails with 10 pounds of pressure in your front tire is a leg eater.

I got back to the turnaround and asked around for a pump and started filling up. There Matt G. was adjusting his shock pressure for the rocky trails. I got back into the woods after a few minutes and Matt joined me a few minutes later. We rode together for a while, trying to pull back a small group that didn't stop at the turnaround. But after about 4 miles I realized I was doing too much work trying to follow Matt so I backed off slightly. Which is funny because we passed each other right outside the turnaround of lap 2, so I probably should have just stayed with him.

It was in mile 2 of lap 3 that I realized I hadn't just burped air in the front tire, it was leaking. I stopped and put almost a full CO2 into it to get it back to about 30 pounds. The rest of the lap was filled with decision making. I really wanted to do 6 laps, but I didn't want to do it if I wasn't racing. I didn't think I had it in me to actually take the time to put a tube in and then make up the lost time, and I didn't want to ride a flat front and constantly refill it either. Besides, running it flat wasn't safe on those trails.

So, I resolved that I was done with a few miles left on my 3rd lap. I cruised in, then contemplated going out again after talking to Brett and Marcin, I thought maybe I was just not feeling it, which I could have sucked it up and pushed through. But after I squeezed my tire I remembered why I was calling it a day.

I still had fun and I was glad I went and finally raced. The fitness is starting to come together and I think I am in a good spot for this time of year. (I'll try to get some pictures next time.)

Legs a burning

2011-05-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

photo by Ronsta

The Gun Slingers are coming out in full effect! The ride is getting faster and faster and more people are showing up. Last night we had good numbers in both the "A" and "B" groups. Come on out and see what you've got!

This weekend I may actually do a race that I have planned to do! The weather might really cooperate this time. So now the question is if I can yet find a duo partner for the 6 hour. If not, it could be a long day at the Northern Kettles.

On a different note, I have noticed that comments that are made are not actually appearing on this blog. I'm not sure what the bug is, but I haven't censored anyone or erased any comments. So if you made a comment and it didn't show up, I am sorry. I'm working on fixing it.

Roll 'em up!

2011-05-18T09:22:00.000-07:00

It's time for a Cook-off again! This Saturday, May 21st arrive around 6:30pm and eat around 7pm. The theme this time around is "Things in a Roll", so the possibilities are wide open!

If you have been to a Cook-off you know what a blast they are, if you haven't been, you need to check one out. This one is taking place at my friend Mike's (AKA Rod) place in Brewer's Hill. Contact me for the address, marc.engelhardt at gmail.com.

Riding under the Painbow

2011-05-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

photo by Rontsa

The Gun Show was in full effect last night! With a tailwind for the start of the route it was hard to go for any of the sprints because we were already riding near my top speed! The weather was great, it felt weird to feel my jersey right against my skin and to feel a warm breeze on my bare legs. It has been cold and wet too long!

We are getting some good groups now for the ride. Plus, there is "sweeper", "b", or "side" show, or whatever you want to call it, for those people who want to ride fast, but maybe can't ride as fast.

Tuesday nights leaving at 6pm sharp from downtown Waukesha. Be there!

Change of plans but still according to plan

2011-05-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

On Friday night, after I was all packed up and dropping Scooter off at my parents, I got a call from Matt saying that the Missouri weather was likely to cancel the race and that he was going to call it sooner than later. Meaning, people probably wouldn't come down on Saturday either. So instead of driving to MO to see a bunch of friends and ride some sweet trail in a Team Segal non-race, I stayed home.

This left me in a predicament, Lauren was out of town and I had already worked it out that I had off on Sunday, a rare thing in my line of work. The good thing was that the WORS Iola Bump and Jump was on Sunday and not too far away. The bad thing was that I was in no way prepared or motivated for such a race.

I was in the 4th line of our 120 something field at the start line and although Ron and I had talked about not going all out on the first lap and burning up our legs, I did. Well, maybe not all out, but definitely too hard. I still spent the next two laps working my way through riders who apparently went out even harder then I did and shouldn't have. In the last lap (my first last lap in a WORS race) it got nuts and I think I was passed by about 7 or 8 guys.

On the outside it looks like a horrible performance for me, but truthfully I am happy with it. There are a few factors going into it, but it boils down to this: on my google calendar on Sunday May 1st, it says "Begin Base". This year is just getting started for me and I hope to be strongest in October/November. We'll see what happens but yesterday was a good start.

Gun and Sun Show

2011-04-15T06:46:00.000-07:00

Well, Spring was here for a few days and now sadly, it is gone again. But while it was here I road outside like it was mid-April!

Photo by Ronsta

The Gun Show was in full effect last Tuesday with 8 guys staying together to the end. Darin pulled us around while I pretended I could go for sprints. I think I at least pushed the pace a little that way. Plus, there was a sizable "sweeper" or "B" group, whatever you want to call it, this week. If you want to get faster and stronger, the Gun Show is where it is at.

That be a picture of my pale legs exposed to sunlight for the first time this year. The Southern Kettles finally opened up this week and I was able to get out there on Wednesday and ride the whole system. It was in the upper 60's to low 70's and the trails were in great shape besides some downed trees.

Unfortunately, it is Winter here again as the temps are back in the 30's, at least on the East Side by the lake, and there is little hope in sight. Then again, the weather forecast is usually wrong, so maybe it will all turn around. It would be nice to be able to hit the trails a few more times before racing starts in May!

Time to Grab the Tiny Balls!

2011-04-05T14:04:00.000-07:00

That's right, it's time for Koz's mini bowl again. We have all 4 lanes rented from 6:30-9:30pm this Saturday April 9th. Come on down, bowling is free! Bring whomever you like.

Koz's Mini Bowl 2078 South 7th Street Milwaukee, WI 53204 map.

Questions? email me: marc dot engelhardt @ gmail dot com

Culture-Made-Self

2011-03-30T13:35:00.000-07:00

A few weeks back I posted an article from a book about worldviews.

The book is Transforming Worldviews: An Anthropological Understanding of How People Change by Paul G. Hiebert. As I said in the last article about the book, it started out slow but it picked up. Here is another interesting nugget. During the Enlightenment some of the leading philosophers made a concerted effort to substitute the word "self" for the word "soul." Now, that may not seem like much, but think about it, what are the connotations of the word "soul" compared to "self."

It also isn't a stretch to see how the word switch helped to promote individualization, further push God out of the realm of possibility of impact, and make the focus of one's life (to use the phrase we have inherited from the word switch) self-improvement. I find this to be profound. I realize that I am often alone on this, but I find it fascinating how we as a culture and society can take our current outlook, culture, situation, view of knowledge, idea of morals and see them as permanent; existing in a vacuum even. Then, turn around and apply them to what has happened in the past without blinking an eye.

What would it be like today if the popular view of the human was that it is equally physical and spiritual? What would our world look like if the concept of self-help never dawned?

Let the riding begin

2011-03-21T11:39:00.000-07:00

The snow, for the most part, is behind us and it is time to get out on the bike. I have been enjoying getting out. The Gun Show begins in a just a few short weeks so you better polish up those cannons you call legs and get ready to ride under the pain-bow.

Ron and I got out for a hilly ride this past Saturday. We drastically overestimated how warm it was going to be in the morning but after a few hours it became very pleasant. We hit both the Southern and Northern Kettles giving us just over 6,200 feet of climbing in just under 85 miles according to the garmin. Not too shabby for this area!

And since I had promised some pictures of Ray's to readers in far off lands many moons ago, I took some last Wednesday. Here you go!

expert skills section

part of the street park and expert jump line

pump track

half of the Sport skills section

street park with jump line in the distance

Single Windchimes

2011-03-16T12:54:00.000-07:00

While I was reading a book, as I sometimes do, I ran across an interesting statement. The statement is, "Modernity defines justice as living within the law, not as living in harmony with others." It comes from a book called Transforming Worldviews: An Anthropological Understanding of How People Change by Paul G. Hiebert.

It's a real page turner {read sarcastic}. Well, actually about half way through it is starting to get interesting. It's just that the first half reads like an overloaded anthropology textbook. The author was writing a rather good synopsis of modernity and its effects when I came across this statement and it gave me pause.

Read the statement again. Is this a 'well, duh' statement? Or do you disagree. Think about what you know about modern thought and culture (in case you are unaware, you live in one), is this outcome the desired goal? Is culture going more this way or turning from it? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Also, I have again recently been harangued about spelling errors, missing words (especially negatives), and grammar flaws in my writing. The truth of the matter is that spell check has gobbled up my ability to spell correctly and my brain corrects grammar mistakes faster then I talk. So, there is no real hope of me ever doing much better.

If I knew I would be writing this much as an adult I would have paid more attention in high school. Okay, that last part is probably a lie. Seriously people, I can barely talk intelligibly, why would writing be any different?

Grab some Beano and come on down!

2011-03-02T12:48:00.000-08:00

The Chili Cook-Off! is this Saturday night. Arrive around 6:30pm, plan to eat about 7pm. You don't need to bring anything to come, but the more chili the more better. This one tends to be one where the men's cooking shines, much like the Meatball Cook-Off!

It is taking place at some friends' place so I'm not putting the address up, shoot me an email if you want to know where it is: marc.engelhardt@gmail dot com.

Vacation

2011-02-26T10:11:00.000-08:00

Went out to visit some friends in Sacramento this week.

Birthday Sushi

Turn around point of 86 mile ride into the foothills. We had planned a 63 mile ride but Ryan made a "slight distance misjudgment." My sit-bones planned a 20 mile ride, then planned a mutiny. I haven't climbed that much in a long time. Great day!

Getting all touristy in San Francisco.

Special note! If you are in the Milwaukee area the Chili Cook-off is this Saturday March 5th, 6:30pm in the city. Put it on your calendar. More details in a few days.

Clutch rocks! Motorhead is wrong

2011-02-17T16:16:00.000-08:00

The picture is blurry because I had to zoom in from the balcony with my phone. They played a great set and the Rave even sounded pretty good.

Motorhead on the other hand was, well, Motorhead. Loud, really loud, and boring. Their whole shtick is that their loud. Thirty years ago they were innovative, but now they pack rooms because of their name. It isn't that they weren't tight or didn't play well, but I bet if they were a new band they wouldn't fill a 25 person bar. {I'm almost done with my rant} Last, they had a banner behind them that said "The World is Yours", the title of their new album (that's right, Motorhead released an album in 2010. What, you didn't hear about it?). Anyway, I can think of two reasons why that statement is wrong, one purely logical, the other theological. Can you guess what I am thinking?

Last day of skiing?

2011-02-14T11:44:00.000-08:00

The snow has been melting rapidly over the last two days and it looks like more of the same for the rest of the week. Upon the advice of seasoned skiers and the weather forecast I tried to make the most out of last Saturday. Ronsta and I got to McMiller for a couple of hours after a great breakfast at Cafe de Arts. I only had one crash! (Okay two, but the second doesn't count because I basically did it on purpose)

photo courtesy of Ronsta

Then I got home in time to pick up Lauren to go meet Eric and Jen at Whitnall for another 45 minutes of skiing. For what was her 4th time and probably our last time this year Lauren really did great!

While I have enjoyed picking up cross country skiing this year, the ride over to the office in the sun today has me yearning for spring. Time to get the bikes ready!

What would it be like?

2011-02-09T09:57:00.000-08:00

What would it be like if belonging to a community meant that you had a place of refuge and a place of responsibility to others?

What would it be like if public and private (if they even existed) where more about physical modesty and less about belief and values?

What would it be like if today was the focus, knowing tomorrow may or may not come?

What would it be like if life was ruled by purpose rather than chaos?

What would it be like if relationships were more important than individual goals?

What would it be like if the spiritual was as much a reality as the physical?

What would it be like? Look at the above list again and imagine your life with the proposed changes. While some, if not all of these changes would make for messy complicated lives, wouldn't they add to life? Wouldn't they make for a fuller life? One would be hard pressed to say that they take away from the experience of life on earth.

The above attributes would be quickly associated with primitive cultures by anthropologists, that is to say that such cultures haven't been modernized. Darwin called the people of such cultures savages (and he was only a hundred years into the Enlightenment!) Now look at the list again, how many of these things wouldn't you like to have, or at least the possibility of, in your life? Some of these you may have even been trying to instill, but besides some small glimmers of hope, it seems like you are swimming upstream. That is, because in our society such ideas do not fit the Enlightened/Modern model.

Here is my proposition: "Modern society" has been actively pushing God out for over 300 years, therefore we have lost God-given aspects of how to live our lives to the fullest and now we aren't sure how to get them back. The problem is, we can't. Not without God. We can't do it without Jesus and his Spirit. The above attributes are all over the message of Christ, just waiting for us to turn and take him seriously.

What would it be like? I don't know, but I am going to keep pursuing it until it happens.

Getting the hang of it

2011-01-31T14:26:00.000-08:00

Lauren and I got out skiing on Saturday and then instead of taking a nap I went by myself to Scuppernong for the first time yesterday afternoon for a couple of hours. The description of rolling terrain is right on, you are either going up or down for most of the trail.

I only crashed a few times on the downhills. No broken equipment either! I am starting to get a hang of the technique, also how to fall more, how should I say, gracefully.

I am taking such a different approach to training this year compared to last year. It seems to be working, I am less run down and worried about workouts, yet I feel more in control of my body when I am being active. I don't know what that will translate into when comes to competition this year. Should be interesting. Couldn't be a much worse competitive year than last year was!

Fat Enduro Cheese

2011-01-17T13:53:00.000-08:00

Saturday was both fun and busy. In the morning I headed out to John Muir for the Fat Track Snow Enduro. There was a great turnout, 25 teams with 3 people. Team captains (had to have a fat bike, Pugsley etc.,) choose teams sand lot style. We took turns on the same bike. I ended up on a team with Russell and DJonnyMac. It was my first time on a Pugsley and it was fun.

Here are some photos of the derby for picking order.

The first rider had to run to the bike with the front wheel and put it on, whilst being pelted by snow balls. One fellow's bike was found in a tree after a few hints.

I ended up spending some 6 hours in the 20degree temps, and had a great time doing it. Then it was time to head home to get ready for the Cheese Bar.

The Cheese Bar did not disappoint. So if you didn't come because you were like "eh, it's downtown, or the Packer game starts at the same time, or I have to wash my hair, or I'm lactose intolerant (okay that last one is legit)" Just come check it out next time. Lauren should have some photos up soon.

Indoor Action Fever

2011-01-13T07:46:00.000-08:00

At about 10pm last night, a few of us were left after 4 hours of riding at Ray's Indoor MKE, we were hanging out at the top of the expert jump run. We were all beat, but for some reason we kept saying, "Eh, maybe a few more," or "One more time." Ray's was a ton of fun and I can see spending many, many hours there. It also helped that I had friends there to show me the ropes and how to do things since I have never ridden that type of bike or been in a park before.

I forgot my camera, but Ronsta got some shots. Next time I will try to get some pics/video of a little of everything so you can get an idea of the park. All you guys in STL will want to make the trip.

My lame second attempt at the foam pit.

Ron tasting the foam

Greg's sweet 360

sinking like a rock in the foam

Get your Cheese on

2011-01-10T18:11:00.000-08:00

Oh man, I can't wait for the Cheese Bar this Saturday! I have been working up my cheese tolerance for the pass two weeks. If you have no idea what I am talking about, and you are somewhere near the Milwaukee area, you should come. Chances are you will know somebody, if you think you won't, bring some people with you.

I'm talking FREE flights of fancy cheese, free sausage platters, an amazing selection of wine and WI beers (check the menu), and Millers soft pretzels. All in the name of building community and knowing people better. Everyone is welcome!

For those whom are into it, the Packer game will be playing on two televisions.

When: Saturday January 15th 7-11pm

Where: The Cheese Bar (map)

Two snow rides in one day

2011-01-06T12:56:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to ride/hang out with people I embarked upon two separate snow rides yesterday. Both at the same trails. Both the same route. However, both rides were very different.

The morning was cold. Real cold. The "feels like" temp was 7 when I got back into the car after the ride. There was just a little snow and ice on the trails.

The night ride was, well at night, with lights and such. It was also about 10 degrees warmer. Weird, right? It was also snowing, giving the trails about 1/2 to an inch more snow than the morning ride. I forgot my neoprene booties and somehow I lost a front brake pad before the ride started. Only rear brakes for me for an hour and forty minutes! What's worse is that I didn't actually lose the pad!

When I got home in good light I checked it out closer. I couldn't see the outside pad in the shadows of the parking lot and because it wasn't moving towards the rotor no matter how much I adjusted it, I assumed it gone. My best guess is that the brake got moisture in it from the first ride which then froze during the drive to the second ride, therefore not allowing the 4 year old beat up BB7's to function properly. I'm such an idiot!

It was a good day and the most trailbiking I have done in a long time!

Where did those muscles come from?

2010-12-30T07:53:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday night I got my first chance to go cross country skiing. That's right, I went at night for my first time, and for some reason I didn't even think twice about it. After all I had a head lamp!

Anywho, Ronsta was kind enough to teach my some skills as I floundered around Minooka. I've never done any kind of snow sport, unless you count sledding. I noticed I was getting quite a different workout then he was, it was like trying to swim laps with someone when they can breath stroke and you can barely doggie paddle.

I crashed a few times, nothing horrific. However, I did manage to bend a pole crashing at slow speeds on a flat, and bust a ski going even slower on a flat. That was just weird. I didn't bust any of me though and I had a great time! I am sore in muscles that I apparently never use. I look forward to the snow coming back after this rain and warm weather so I can get out there again!

Snow/Ice Ride

2010-12-18T19:09:00.000-08:00

Photo courtesy of Ronsta

Great icy snow ride with some good guys for a couple of hours in the cool temps.

Do we have the consumption?

2010-12-15T10:41:00.000-08:00

I have recently heard from numerous people from both political sides and all kinds of beliefs that "they" want us to spend more to save the economy.

"They" in this instance are the government officials. What I find interesting is that in general these people tend to agree that spending, or rather consuming is not the answer. The only premise I can gather is that the practice of consuming is bad. The idea that consuming is bad I can go along with in most cases, but I am not sure I can write off the practice of consuming goods as evil in general.

One thing we need to remember is that we live in a capitalist society. Oooo, I said capitalism, we all know that is inherently evil! Or is it? Sure, it can be a breeding ground for greed, but that doesn't necessarily make the economic structure greedy in itself, it means the people using it can use it for purposes for which it was not intended. In a capitalist society buying and selling are needed to keep the structure going. Buying is consuming.

Where I think we often get caught up though is that we equate buying/consuming with greed. Surely it is when we buy things only for ourselves, for our own use, and especially when we do not have the money to do so. Such consuming is greed. Let me flip that now. How different is that from storing up our goods or money so that only we have access to it and no one else, especially when we have plenty for ourselves in the foreseeable near future, and calling it savings? To me it's two sides of the same coin. Both are greed and have numerous theological implications, perhaps I'll get into that later.

Consuming goods doesn't have to mean we have to use or keep goods for ourselves. What it can mean is that we use the resources we have been blessed with to help and bless others so that the society we have been blessed to be born into can continue, if that is what you want.

Every time we buy a meal for ourselves (or somebody else) and tip we are paying wages for numerous people. Just something to think about.

Thoughts? Comments?

WI Cheese, Sausage, and Beer

2010-12-10T12:58:00.000-08:00

Don't forget the big fat soft Miller's Pretzels. No, I'm not talking about every family get together or work holiday party in WI. I'm talking about Saturday, January 15th at the Cheese Bar! 7pm-11pm on Old World 3rd in Downtown Milwaukee. Mark it down. Bring your friends!

More details to come, like some tasty things that you won't have to pay for and some other things on which you just might want to drop a dime.

P.S. the Tosa Trails were in great shape this week. Even if it rains on Saturday and they ice up good by Sunday, studded tires will have you leaning on corners on Monday.

Uh, I think it is safe to say winter is here

2010-12-07T13:40:00.000-08:00

The Cook-off was a blast, if you missed it, you need to make the next one. Along those lines, I should be finalizing the details with the Cheese Bar on Thursday for an event. At the Cheese Bar you can get various flights of Wisconsin cheese (my favorite thus far is a 12 year old cheddar) and they'll give you tips on which beer or wine to pair up with the flight. They also have the most extensive selection of Wisconsin beers available in one place that I have ever seen. Mark it down, Saturday, January 15th. For those so inclined, perhaps we could mix in a ride around the city after? More details to follow soon!

Training is back in full swing, well as much as it can be without spending much time on the bike. I'm in the gym 3 times a week and on the trainer once a week. I'm told in a few weeks there will be enough artificial snow to start cross country skiing if we don't get the natural type. I'm really looking forward to learning how to ski, and for some reason, falling down a lot. Is that second part weird?

Also, Reconcile just launched a micro-site called sorryIwasajerk.com. It is not the church website, but it does have a link to the church website. The point of the micro-site is to try and understand people better, from all walks of life, so that conversations can begin or be furthered. So if you would, take the time to check the site out and post something. It is completely anonymous. Just the few that are up already give an interesting look below the surface. It would be so cool to get people with all types of beliefs and backgrounds posting things! Also, go back after you have visited and posted once because A: you can post again; B: you can read all the new posts since last time you were there. There is a link at the bottom of my links to the right

Cook-Off!!!

2010-12-02T07:23:00.000-08:00

Here are the details: The Cook-off will take place on Saturday Dec 4th. People should arrive around 6:30pm and plan on eating about 7pm.

Here is how it works: We pick a theme dish, style,or ingredients and everyone brings their version to share. We call it a Cook-off but it isn't really a contest. You do not need to bring food, but it is more fun when more people do. The theme this time is....MAC N CHEESE!!!! Be creative. Let's get carbtastic!

If you are in the Milwaukee area and you want to come, shoot me an email for directions. marc.engelhardt at gmaildotcom

The Scandal of Particularity Part II

2010-11-29T10:08:00.000-08:00

Last, we left the Scandal of Particularity with the Israelites. God chose them as the path through which to reveal himself and his plans. In the Scandal though, God does not end it there. In his revelation of himself to the descendants of Abraham (Israelites) he revealed that a Messiah was going to come and be king, and that the whole world would be subject to this king. Here enters Jesus.

Jesus the Christ isn't just the next step in the Scandal, Jesus is the scandal. Jesus is everything the Israelites were intended to be as God's chosen people. He is the Messiah and the Son of God. So, if he is everything the Israelites were supposed to be, then he is where God reveals himself and his plan. Take a second to think about that and how it fits into the scandal of particularity. Jesus is the revelation of God to the world.

Jesus is the fulcrum of the Scandal of Particularity.

Part of why this is called a Scandal is that if Jesus is the Son of God, that is, the revelation of God and his will, then other people or gods are not. Meaning that Jesus is not one of many ways to get to, or to know God, rather he is the only way. Jesus speaks of himself in that very manner when he calls himself the Way, the Truth, and the Light.

This brings up another facet of the Scandal of Particularity. That is, that there is no passiveness when it comes to understanding Jesus. What I mean by this is the popular notion today that many people like Jesus, but not his church or followers. However, when more questions are asked about the Jesus such people like, it is not the Jesus of history and scripture but rather one they created, a revolutionary nice guy who was misunderstood. The problem with this view is that one has to go to great lengths to create such a Jesus out of imagination. Such a figure just isn't there in history, what is there is a figure that forces the classic "Messiah or Lunatic" argument. Meaning Jesus is who he claims to be, the only Way, or he is a dangerous nut, but never just a "nice guy who was misunderstood."

According to the Scandal, all of history leads up to Jesus and his life. It makes a permanent visible line in the sand, one of exclusiveness and inclusiveness. With Jesus, the Scandal became more evidently Particular, as it were. What are the ramifications for us today then?

If you find this interesting or have strong opinions either way, come on down to Cafe Hollander on Downer Ave tonight, 7pmish. There will be some open discussion time and probably a game or two. Ask for the reservation under 'Marc', we are normally upstairs.

WI State CX Championship

2010-11-22T14:07:00.000-08:00

Well, I didn't race it myself. It just didn't work out, but if there is one thing I learned about racing this year it's that it isn't necessarily about the racing that makes it fun. It is the atmosphere and community. I was able to steal away enough time to go watch the P, 1, 2 and the masters 35+ 1,2,3. It was a great day for cx racing.

Unfortunately, Lauren couldn't come, so I was left to take pictures myself. With my junkie camera and my junkie photo taking ability. I took lots of pictures but none turned out very good. So here is the one that still looked cool, plus videos of one of the chicanes.

The P,1,2

The Masters 35+ 1,2,3

Time learn how to cross country ski and start getting ready for next season!

Scandal of Particularity

2010-11-19T11:51:00.001-08:00

While the title of this article may not be familiar to you, the concept or the opposite of the concept probably is. There are many facets to this and I do not want to overburden any one article so I will take it in small chunks. I would also love some interaction with readers as I work through it. To set it up, have you ever heard someone, maybe even yourself say "God is too big for one religion." Or something close to that idea like, "Why would god only be known through Christianity?" Think about it a bit, what other things have you heard or you yourself believe that go along those same lines.

It is called the scandal of particularity for a reason. That is, God chose a particular path to reveal himself and his plan. Not that the existence, or aspects of, God's character cannot be known outside the particular path, but the specifics of God and his plan can only be known through the one path. This is often referred to as natural versus revealed knowledge of God.

The scandal begins with Noah. Noah is the first time in scripture where God chooses one route to carry on his promise of redemption from sin for all of creation. Noah's family is the only one to survive the world-wide flood. The second big time is Abraham. God makes a covenant with Abraham that creation will be redeemed through his ancestral line. This is eventually where the 12 tribes of Israel come into the picture. The 12 tribes eventually became the people of Jewish ancestry today. Which is why they refer to themselves as God's chosen people.

That is of course an oversimplification of the history but it gives a quick glance at the path of God's specific revelation and his plan. And that is why it is particular. While a relationship with God was available to all people during these parts of history, it was only available through the particular path. If one wanted to be right with God and know him, one had to believe what the chosen line said about God and know him the way they knew him. Sounds very exclusive doesn't it? Perhaps that is why it is referred to as a scandal.

That is enough to chew on for today. What thoughts does this first step in the conversation bring to mind?

Weekend recap

2010-11-08T06:27:00.000-08:00

Koz's was great again, especially now that it is smoke free. I think we will be back there again soon. There were 2, count 'em 2, 300's rolled! There may have been some help from the pinsetters, but they still got their names up on the wall!

Check out this weird picture were it looks like Ronsta was superimposed onto it.

As far as the Estabrook Cx race, I dnf'd. In the second lap I heard a noise that I thought was my fork, one that didn't sound good but I kept going. In the middle of the 6th lap I hit a pothole in the grass and my bars turned way down. They are what made the noise the first time too, I think. I still haven't pulled the bike apart to check. Somehow they got loose, maybe the cold? Anyways, that was it for me.

Koz's Mini Bowl!

2010-11-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

If you have never been mini bowling you need to make this a priority this weekend. If you have been, then you know how fun it is, and now it is smoke free! We have all 4 lanes reserved, so tell your friends. We cover the cost of the lanes, and everyone chips in to tip the pin-setters (that's right, real live pin-setters!) Let's crowd up the joint.

This is a bar so you need to be 21+.

When: This Saturday November 6th, lanes reserved 7-9pm

Where: Koz's Mini Bowl map

Everyone's welcome!

Questions? email me at: marc.engelhardt at gmail.com

Washington Halloween CX

2010-10-31T19:22:00.000-07:00

I am still trying to get past the cold that kicked in last week and I woke up Saturday not feeling good at all. But I already lost too much fitness from my week of inactivity and if I don't want to get completely shelled in my last few races I had to try and race on Saturday. That and the Washington Park race is one of the best courses in Milwaukee so I wasn't going to miss it.

When I got there, Kate was kind enough to lend me her wings. They went well with the Seagal kit.

The first two laps my legs felt strong and I was moving up from the back. I had just about closed the gap to a large chase group when I went down in a dusty corner where I was pushing it too much. After that is was a race between me and two MyWifeInc guys.

I was trading blows until the last two laps when my cold caught up with me and I got a serious stomach ache (I had been fighting it all day). I finished on the lead lap, beating about 5 guys, which altogether was a small victory for the day. Super fun day.

Lauren got some more great pics and videos.

Conference

2010-10-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

Double Double Deuces

Kletsch Park CX

2010-10-25T08:02:00.000-07:00

Sick. Half a race and done. It's not heavily in my lungs like it is for Lauren, and hopefully it won't get there. Racing Washington park is questionable.

Would you like that bag filled with sand?

2010-10-18T08:05:00.000-07:00

I had a Blast this weekend in Beechwood. I had to do the 2 lapper because of commitments later in the day. One the best things was when Scott and I were watching part of the 3, 4 lap race at the rock garden and I ask a local 12 year old speedster how he did in his race and his reply was," Top ten I think, but I had some sandbaggers in my race."

I replied, "Uh, that was us, you make sure you knock off two places when you tell others your results."

At least we got to ride, plus I still got to put the screws to Scott. Ronsta killed it. Wish I could have stuck around longer. Thanks a ton Curtes brothers!

A very few pics.

Grafton Pumpkin Cross aka The Little Engine that Couldn't

2010-10-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Not much to say about the last race other than the engine wasn't there. I had no acceleration or power. To give you an idea, my average speed was only 1mph faster than last week's race and this was a much faster course with more flat straights to open up.

Rode most of the race by myself. It was a true mental test though and I made it to the end, up the big hill 12 times. The technical skills seemed on point, although that could have been attributed to the slow speeds!

Oh well, it happens. I plan on having a Blast this coming weekend. A short one because of my nephew's birthday party, but at least I'll get out there.

As per usual, race photos here, from my wife Lauren.

CrosstheDomes

2010-10-05T07:16:00.001-07:00

This past weekend was the WCA Cyclocross #2 "CrosstheDomes" by my wife inc. They put on one heck of a race, with a course that had everything. The weather was crosstastic--low 50's with intermittent rain showers.

This week I tried something new, actually warming up for the race, and I think it helped! Well, actually it is hard to tell. Less than a minute in there was a chain reaction of pile-ups coming down a hill into a 180 uphill turn. I was in it:

As the peleton sped away I tried to get going again but my shifter was turned in--so the cable was stretched--so my chain wouldn't sit in a gear-- so I had to stop and jam the shifter back into place. It took a long time and I actually had the thought that I was going to DNF after 1 minute of racing. But I hopped back on and played catch-up through the 35+ masters who started 30 seconds after us.

Then I crashed two more times in the first two laps. One pushed the shifter in again, the other was in the same place as the first where I was cooking the corner too hot and I did this fancy "front tire slip otb downhill into 2 akido roles back up grab the bike and remount" without losing much time. Although, I felt it all over Sunday morning.

In general I had no handling skills, partly front tire choice, partly lack of skills practice. So I was taking the techy stuff way too slow for most of the race, but I was much faster when I was upright!

I had one more mechanical with 2 laps to go. After the barriers I somehow got my chain jammed in my Paul chain guide. It took me a long time, well 30 seconds, to get it out. Which allowed this fellow to bridge the gap.

We played cat and mouse the last lap. I punched it up the big hill (that isn't him in the picture below, he was riding the hill too):

But I didn't attack enough once I had the small gap. We went back and forth, rather slowly, the rest of the lap. He came around the last corner with a 3/4 bike length lead and kept it through the uphill sprint.

I just need to put the pieces together and I think I could have some good races this year. Once again Lauren took a bunch of pictures, check them out if you like. She also took a video with her phone upon Ryan's request. The lens is a little dirty but it works. It also shows Cale's tremendous effort to ride both sides of the pit.

The Feel of Fall

2010-10-01T10:29:00.000-07:00

There is just something about living in a climate that has distinct and extreme seasons that can affect your mood and tastes with each season. This can be a good thing, like "Yay, heat","Yay, crisp air!", "Yay,snow!", or "Yay, green stuff again!". Or it can be a bad thing such as in "seasonal affective disorder". Thankfully for me, it's the former.

Fall is here which means the colors are changing, cyclocross on the weekends, coffee or spiced cider in the afternoons, and The Bad Plus and Mr. Bojangles on the stereo. Who would want to live on the West Coast where it's always 75 degrees, ultimate Frisbee(see Jerry Town), Diet Rite, and Jack Johnson (at least that is what Ryan, Justin, and Chris taught me)

Fall Color Festival

2010-09-27T07:37:00.000-07:00

This picture doesn't do it justice, the entire parking lot and field to the driveway were packed with cars. The turn out for the FCF was great and the trails were in awesome shape. Last year I think it was closer to 27.5 miles and this year the Garmin said the loop was 31.5. The single track just keeps on growing, partially due to events like this!

Thanks to all the people like Ronsta, Wheel and Sprocket, and the Southern Kettles that put the work into making something like this happen!

No Good Double Cross

2010-09-19T19:57:00.000-07:00

My first cx race as a 2 is in the books. It was great to see so many familiar faces again.

If you look closely at the start you can see me taking my usual last place at the start. I just didn't have the aggression needed for the hole shot yet and it hurt me right away on the first hill because there was only one line. It's possible that if I would have been more in the mix from the start I might have done a little better, but then again, it is my first race of 8 or 9 this year so I shouldn't be going all out quite yet.

The course was awesome--hilly, muddy, techy, and hard. It took place in a mock ol' West town/dude ranch.

I was trying out new lines almost every lap and never really put a great lap together. In the end, I had a ton of fun and finished about the same I did in my first race last year (about bottom quarter). So hopefully I can keep moving up in the finishes like I did last year too. The season is looking good!

As usual my beautiful and talented wife, Lauren, took a ton of pics. Check some out here from the 3's, 35+, and p,1,2's.

Local Yokel

2010-09-17T12:01:00.000-07:00

The Local Yokel at Comet Cafe. This is the first time I have been full all week.

I'm so excited, I'm so excited...I'm so scared!

2010-09-16T08:39:00.001-07:00

First off, a dollar and a hug to whomever first can identify from where the title of this article came.

Cross starts this weekend! I have no idea what to expect this season when it comes to finishes. This is the first time since I started racing in '07 that I have set out to do a bunch of races where there is no feasible possibility for me to podium or place top 5. I can't really imagine a scenario in a P,1,2 race in WI where it could occur. So I guess I will be trying to break top 10? Even then, it all depends on who shows up for each race, I've never raced cx against most of the guys I will be racing this year.

What I do know is that the bike is ready to go, I feel like I am ready to go, and Summer is giving way to Fall. My race season mentality is just starting to kick in, time to break out the cow bells!

A Mail Mystery

2010-09-13T08:38:00.000-07:00

I received this letter in the mail the other day. It was in this condition inside another envelope from the postal service that said something along the lines of 'we care, so we even send you damaged mail'.

Now, I know that mistakes happen and I am not complaining about the condition of the letter per se, however could a damaged letter be more mysterious than this?

Look at what is visible on the letter, something is a secret and I am suppose to know what it is.

Furthermore, it looks as though I am to respond somehow. But to whom, to where? I do not know! This was too odd not to share.

If anyone reading this received a similar, yet in tact letter, please let me know the scoop.

Breathing can make a difference?

2010-09-08T12:29:00.001-07:00

Before my surgery a little over six weeks ago I was a mouth breather for a long time. I could not breath through my nose and get enough oxygen. The surgery opened up the airways and now (after some intentional practice!) I can breath through my nose. I'm not sure what the reasoning behind it is, because I still mainly keep my mouth open when I bike, but it has affected my heart rate during rides.

If I toss out my first 3 rides after the surgery, where I was still really healing, my max and average heart is around 8-10 beats lower for the last five weeks during rides than the two months before the surgery. Doing the same rides and even some that are more difficult. My distance and speed have also increased after the surgery. Of course, some of this makes sense with just getting more fit throughout the year, but I find that I am having difficulty even getting close to some of the heart rate maxes and averages that I could do before the surgery.

This is just weird to me. Anyone have any insights?

Goodbye Gun Show

2010-09-02T09:44:00.000-07:00

With the close of August it is time to bid the Gun Show farewell for the year. It was humid and hard to breath but that didn't stop Joe from ripping off our legs for the majority of the ride. I found myself holding on to the back of the line often, just trying to stay with the group. But then we got into the hills.

I looked up through the pouring sweat only to see a painbow in the sky. So I hammered on the pedals and rode towards the ever distant arch, leaving what I had left for the Gun Show on the streets of Waukesha. Thinking "If I can just get to that painbow I can let up."And for once, because they all raced last weekend and I didn't, I was able to dish out a little pain to the other guys on some of the hills.

From there on out the painbow remained in my sight, taunting me to try and reach its destination, but it never got any closer. I guess that is the painbow's trick. Cx starts soon, where I am sure I will often see a double painbow all the way 'cross the sky:

More Human than a Human

2010-08-30T06:54:00.000-07:00

The title of this article comes from a White Zombie song, however I doubt Rob Zombie was thinking of it the same way I am.

What does it mean for Jesus to be truly human? Or the perfect human? It is rare today to find someone who denies the existence of Jesus as human, they might argue over his divinity, but rarely debate his humanity. At the same time it is pretty easy to find people who believe in the divinity of Jesus, but have little idea what it meant for him to be human.

The first answer usually given about Jesus' perfection as a human is that he is sinless. Okay, I agree with that, but what does that mean?

Next answer, is something to the point of how he didn't break any rules or laws, or he loves everybody. That sounds good, but what rules didn't he break, what does it mean to love everybody? I know of a few accounts in scripture where Jesus broke laws, at least according to their interpretation at the time. So how is he perfect? Did he never get sick or bleed? Is that what it means to be the perfect human?

Here on out the answers to the questions become varied and garbled. Let me offer one idea I find rarely pondered. It starts with the creation of humans. God made Adam and Eve in the image of God and set them over the rest of creation. Humans, from the start were to be God's ambassadors to creation, reflecting God's will and his will alone. The first sin was to chose a human's will over that of God's will and ever since that has been humanity's default setting. Thus, a ton of consequences that I won't get into here, but the point is, to be a human creature as we were to created to be is to always follow God's will for his creation.

This is why Jesus was perfect and sinless. This is why even though it may have seemed that Jesus had broken laws, he in fact never went against the Father's will for his creation. Which happens to be his usual rebuttal to those who question him.

Jesus is more human than any other human because he lives the way humans were created to be. In an unbroken connection to the will of the Father.

What questions does this idea then raise?

Ramping it up for CX

2010-08-26T13:36:00.001-07:00

Today I got out for my first real cx practice. If you look close at my bike you see that it now has 9 more gears, which I believe translates into 9 times faster, right?

It also means that I now have a barely used White Industries Eno Eccentric and 17/19 Dos freewheel that I hate to sell, but probably should. Let me know if you're interested. They have seen maybe 20 rides total. Marc dot Engelhardt at gmail dot com

The rest of these photos show where I am practicing cx. I think it would be a great venue for a real race--flats, lots of hills, off chamber and plenty of trees to dodge.

See my barriers way down there.

If the Miss n' Outs don't happen I will probably be out here every Tuesday night. Anyone is welcome to join me. Just let me know. I forgot them today, but I have flags to mark off corners and chicanes too.

On the trails

2010-08-23T18:32:00.000-07:00

Well, I feel as though I am back in the swing of things finally. I'll be giving the blog some more attention again with my usually mix of riding, race reports, and theology. So if you like any of that stuff stay tuned.

Scott and I rode the Southern Kettles today and the weather was great.

I have my old frame set up as my winter/single speed bike. It has been a while since I rode real trails for 2.5 hours on a rigid, and I can feel it in my hands tonight.

Little did we know that it was Giant dealer day today. Funny how I think we saw maybe 3 people on the trail on Giants, but there were like 25 cars in the parking lot.

Here is a bonus pic I found on my camera. This is me eating a cheeseburger on a Krispy Kreme doughnut after waiting 15 minutes in the heat to get one at the State Fair. It was delicious, I love the WI State Fair!

I can breath!

2010-08-11T11:25:00.000-07:00

Today it has been two weeks since my surgery and I can breath through my nose! I haven't been able to do that for a very long time.

I've done two real rides since the surgery, some intervals on Sunday and the Gun Show last night. It is hard to gauge how much being able to breath is helping. First, I am still healing, my nose is tender and there is still some swelling. Second, I haven't ridden hard for almost 2 weeks so I obviously lost some fitness. After factoring both of those in though, I think being able to breath does help. While my heart rate was a bit high for both rides, the outcome of both rides was the same or better than before the rest. And last night there were only 3 of us at the Gun Show.

Time to crank it up for cx!!!

Oh no, I broke my mustache!

2010-07-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

Okay, I didn't break my mustache. Rather I had surgery on my septum and turbinates. This picture is a fresh bandage from yesterday morning. I no longer have the bandage and I am off the oxycodone, which is good because it was giving me lucid dreams last night. And not fun flying ones either.

Even though there is a ton of nastiness going on in my nose right now, I can already breath better than before the surgery. Now, if the migraine meds work properly too with no side effects I'll be ready for action.

Levis Trow

2010-07-19T11:46:00.000-07:00

Levis was a blast. Hot and painful, but a ton of fun. The STL representatives made their way up to MKE on Thursday. We proceeded to celebrate Scott's birthday and the smokefreeness of the MKE bars! It was a bit of a late night for a Thursday, we almost closed Wolski's.

Friday it took us forever to get to Levis, so by the time we got there I was really itching to go ride. On our pre-ride we saw that the tornado was not horrible, but also not great to the trail conditions. By the end of Friday night I was pretty sure I was going to do the 50 instead of the 25 because the lap had more fun parts and I wouldn't have to wait until 3pm to start. First thing Saturday morning I signed up for the 50.

Then I found out at the start of the 100 that the laps were now 15 miles long and everyone was doing the same lap. Suddenly, I was going from 25 to 60 miles. Game plan: feel out the first lap and try to get faster and faster.

Well, I did hold back more than normal, but I still got a little swept up in racing and went out faster than I had planned. After 30 minutes of that I back off just a bit and settled into a comfy pace at which I could really enjoy the trails. The trails and the route were awesome, except for the bog section--that part just stunk on a hardtail. All in all, I really enjoyed just riding the trails

The heat was rough and people were dropping left and right, the tortoise plan may have worked if I wanted to ride more than 6 hours. But I didn't. I hadn't planned on it and didn't really feel like getting beat up that long. So I only did 3 laps, knowing that a 4th lap would have sent me well beyond 6 hours.

A little stat action from the Garmin w/speed sensor: the laps were actually about 16.2 miles with 1,430 feet of elevation per lap(according to the elevation correction function). Which means that 3 laps was over 48 miles and much closer to the 50 mile race the organizers kept calling it. Big props to all the people that finished the full 64ish miles.

I think Eddie was feeling the late Thursday night during his 105 mile race but he seemed like he had fun. Scott and Matt did great, finishing 6 laps in their duo and taking 4th. I have no idea were I placed, and I am not too concerned about it. I had fun and more importantly, I felt better than I have in while. After Saturday's race and an hour trail run today I feel good. My legs are cashed but aerobically I feel good. I have realized for a while that my mtb races this year are just going to be training for cx--at least that is my hope.

Congestion a red herring?

2010-07-14T10:50:00.000-07:00

Here is a health update for those who care to know. The appointment on Monday wasn't the revealing test read for which I was hoping. According to the CT scan my sinuses appear to be in good shape. Other than the eye muscle that got caught in my broken orbit 10 years ago, it looks like it is bulging into one passage and there isn't too much to do about that. What was apparent is that my septum is screwed up and while the there are no blocked passages, some of the openings are very tiny. So, I have surgery coming up in two weeks to fix that, and hopefully I come out of it no longer a mouth-breather.

What this means though is the other symptoms that I have been having are not accounted for, and the congestion that was pointing toward sinusitis was a bit of a blind alley. My GP has referred me to a neurologist two weeks from now(everything is always two weeks away!) to see if my brain is broken. Which many people who know me have suggested in the past! As I sit here and right while my eyes pulsate, I sure hope something gets figured out.

On the more positive side, I think the fluticasone that was given to me to help with the congestion was the culprit for the shortness of breath and racing heart at the past two races. It may be a rare side effect, but I am not the only one to have it. The symptoms coincide with use a week after I started, and it takes a while to build up in the system to work. Which means it also takes a while to get out of the system. Last night at the Gun Show I didn't have much top end speed because I was tired, but I was able to put out some good effort, getting the heart rate high. And here is the key, the heart rate dropped down after the bigger efforts and I was able to breath, something that was not happing in the past 3 weeks. I am praying it is a good sign for the weeks to come.

This weekend is Levis and I have some friends from MO coming up to race the 100 mile. I am looking forward to it. Friday afternoon we are going to explore the trails, then on Saturday I am probably just going to do the 25, unless Scott wants to do the 50 duo. Either way I have no big expectations and I plan on seeing how I feel and maybe going hard for the second half of the race. Race report to come early next week.

The Ramifications of Faith

2010-07-09T09:48:00.000-07:00

Faith is unavoidable. I understand that some would argue that faith is not necessary, and that they do not have faith. However, that is another discussion, one of which after some give and take, I think most people would actually agree with me.

But what does having faith mean? I argue that having faith means to live as though something is true. At least until something more plausible comes along at which point one could put their faith in something else, and in doing so denying what they thought to be true before. In the end though, having faith necessitates corresponding behaviors.

An example would be this: I have been told not to look into the sun because it will damage my eyes. I haven't done any research on the matter, I haven't tested it, I don't know what exactly the damage would be on a molecular level, or anyone who has eye damage from the sun. I sure there is someone out there who has done all of that and who has some explanation as to why it happens, though probably incomplete in itself, but I accept that looking into the sun will damage my eyes in faith. Not on knowledge, and certainly not on experience.

This faith has ramifications. My behavior reflects that I believe it to be true, by that I mean I do not look into the sun. In fact, I take great precaution not to look into the sun. To push it further, people create special apparatus to look at solar eclipses because they believe the sun to damage eyes. Some who use these apparatus have no idea that the sun can damage eyes, yet they have faith that the apparatus is the proper way to look at a solar eclipse. Which means that in some, if not many situations, this is faith based on faith once removed. A phenomenon that is prevalent in the world.

The point to all this is that faith in what we believe to be true has ramifications everyday of our lives. For Christians, this is a call for daily repentance for denying what we believe to be true by how we live our lives. For non-Christians is this a call to take a second look at being so quick with calling Christians "hypocritical" as if it is a special category for some people. Christians cannot follow the way of Christ perfectly, that is why we need him, but how often do many non-Christians deny what they have faith in (believe to be true) by their own actions? It is an idea that deserves thought.

Thunderdown in Underdown

2010-07-05T09:03:00.000-07:00

I feel like I keep making excuses for my races and I am pretty tired of it. Things haven't really gone all that well so far. I have been fighting some sort of illness for months that looks is though will hopefully be identified and treated soon (should get an update next Monday). And I think, after some trusty interwebs research, I have figured out the shortness of breath and racing heart beat at my last two races, causing me to go on cruise control. So there is hope that I can turn this year's racing around.

The Thunderown itself was a bit hectic, I had to drive up and back on Saturday. Which made for a long day. The race was very well run and I always appreciate when there are aid stations, even if I don't use them. They are a nice safety net. The 3hr course went like this for me:

We line up, I look around and see that it is a very small group. The junior(eventual winner) next to me was probably my best competition due to the 70lbs I had on him and the amount of climbing on the course. The race started really casual, like 15mph on double track casual, and I end up on the front, on a course I have never seen. Things are going alright, but my heart was not coming down at all on parts of the course where it should. After 15 minutes of shortness of breath and a racing (ironic word choice, no?) heart rate I let the top 3 go and decided to just enjoy the trails. Which up to this point were off the hook.

Eventually another guy catches me (who I caught later, but stayed about 100 ft behind until he mysteriously disappeared???) So I am jra and thinking to myself that I have to let the organizer know that this course is sweet. But then I get to, oh about mile 7 or 8, and the sweet singletrack becomes a rut-fest with little to no flow. Now, I like techy, but techy can still have flow and the next 8-10 miles of the course had glimpses and short bursts of techy flow that were great, but for the most part it was just back busting roughness with short steep climbs in between. Which is sad because for the most part, the last third of trail was sweet too, but I had little patience left in my back to enjoy it and I just wanted to be done.

So I finished, stood there for about 20 minutes stretching my back, cleaned up, said my good-byes and I was on the road headed home.

On a unrelated note, the Gun Show is awesome and I plan to get there whenever I can.

Subaru Cup

2010-06-28T07:24:00.000-07:00

Well, my first WORS race didn't go as well as I had hoped. I ended up pulling the plug after one lap because I couldn't breath right and I figured I wasn't going to make the ever-looming cutoff time anyways. It's a good thing that the people in control imposed a cut-off time too, because the pros only had 1.5 hours of completely empty course before their race. But that is more part of my negative WORS experience, on which I do not desire to dwell. Despite racing like junk and some other annoying things, I still had a really good time.

The pro races were awesome and the venue was great for spectating. Here are a bunch of blurry pictures that give you the feel.

This was taken about 350 meters below the highest point of the race, at the bottom is the start/finish.

The Pro call-ups

The Pro Men start

An idea of the crowd in the woods along the trail.

A gnarly techy little drop. Nothing hard, but fun to watch.

The trail was awesome.

Ronko trying to force a beer on Ronsta while he suffers late in the race.

Next up the 3hr Thunderdown. I hope to just feel good the whole race, these past two races weren't priorities, but I would like to come away feeling like the time training will eventually pay-off.

WEMS Southern Kettles Race

2010-06-20T08:47:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of Velogrrl

Yay! I finally got to race this year! And it still almost didn't happen. If the race wasn't only an hour away, I probably wouldn't have made it.

For those of you who have been to the Engelhardt household, you know Scooter our dachshund. You also know that he can get excited and pee everywhere. Well it turns out he had 6 bladder stones making it pretty much impossible for him to hold it. We found this out last Wednesday and had him in surgery Thursday. So Thursday I basically stayed up with him all night taking care of him. Not the best thing to do a day away from race. But like I said, it was a close race and I was itching to get out there.

I did the the 3 hour which was good because the trails got soaked the night before and the 3pm start of the 3 hour gave them some time to dry. I actually had a good start and was with the lead group until the guy in front of me started to fade and a gap formed. As he was letting me pass he came back into the trail early and we locked up. His handelbar went into me rear wheel (which I still need to check is alright) at the same time, another guy shot around us.

Eventually I caught the guy who passed us and we rode together for a mile or two and then he faded off. So there I was, by myself in 4th, picking off riders from other races. Then I caught up to Aristotle on the Orange climb. He had a puncture that just sealed and he needed CO2 and a cracker so as I kept my momentum going up the hill I dumped out supplies out of my pocket as he ran behind me. I told him I'd see him in a little bit, knowing that there was about a mile of flat double track coming up in the next mile and a half and he was on gears. He caught me right after the end of the all the double track which is also when I got my first twinge of cramps.

My 2nd lap was only 2 minutes longer than my first but I had to put it on cruise control for half of the 3rd lap in order to let my bottle hand-ups take effect (thanks to Earl and Colin). Right when I started to feel a bit better someone caught me and passed me pretty quick and I didn't want to push it too much yet and cramp again. So I ended up with 5th, which fit my goal of a top five finish. However, I just didn't feel great for half the race and the few times I glanced down at my heart rate whilst climbing I saw that it was low when it should have been high.

The graph read-out for my heart rate shows a steady decline for the whole race. In other words, my body wasn't up to it, hopefully because of the lack of sleep on Thursday. But at the same time I did pretty well for my first race of the year and the whole situation. The other Haymakers did great in the 4 man 12 hour (well 10 hour because of the rain) and took second after Scottie too Hottie made up about 2 minutes in the last lap of the race. Congrats to you guys. It was fun hanging out.

Next up, the Subaru Cup, my first WORS race and my first cat 1 mtb race. I'm praying for sleep this week and that Scooter starts feel better.

Wednesday night ride

2010-06-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally got out to ride with someone on the Haymakers other than Scott. Last night Earl, Jim, Scott and I met up with some of Earl's Madison friends to night ride the Southern Kettles. It was a lot fun, except for the overgrown thorn bushes. My arms are tore up.

Broken down...pt 2

2010-06-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

Please the previous post "Broken down, about as simply as I can put it" before reading this one.

So, because of our sinful condition, we rebel against God's priorities and God himself, which leads to eternal separation from God. Jesus is the answer to this problem.

Jesus is the Son of God made man. Fully human and fully divine--a mystery. What is known though is that Jesus was always the plan of God to repair the rebellion. Jesus is the perfect human, in that God's priorities were always his first priority, thus Jesus was without sin. Jesus' most basic message was 'Repent, God is about to do a great thing, he will die and then rise three days later, all who believe and call on his name will be forgiven their sin.'

Allow me to paraphrase the previous statement into words we have been using thus far, 'Give up your rebellion, the plan is about to come to fruition, here it is, God pronounces you sinless if you have faith in his plan.'

That is it in a nutshell. That is how Jesus puts us into the proper relationship with God. Any questions? Comments?

Broken down, about as simply as I can put it.

2010-06-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

I wrote an article a while ago called "Brain Spill" in which I was working out what it means to live life to the fullest. In that article I mentioned at the end that Jesus puts us in a right relationship God. I think that needs to be fleshed out a little further in order to understand what it means to live life to the fullest.

(Remember my initial premise is that Jesus is Lord, so everything cascades from that for me)

Most people have heard the term sin and thus have a idea of what sin "is". The problem is, many people define what sin is differently. I find it easier to start with the root of sin, instead of a list of sins. The root of sin is: drum roll please........Not placing God, the Creator of Universe, as God in a person's life every moment of the day. Another way to look at it would be to place the priorities of anyone or anything else other than the priorities of God, the Creator of the Universe, as one's first priority. Sin spirals out of that reality.

God, the Creator of the Universe, appalls sin and will not tolerate it forever. Eventually, God will separate himself from it completely. And here is the kicker, if you think about it, the root of sin is a condition, one of which we all have. So much so that we cannot fathom what life without it is like. Which means that when God separates himself from sin forever, we too will be cast out of his presence. God is present with us now albeit in a sin-filtered way, so if you think the world can suck now, you probably don't want to imagine what life completely separated from him will be like--much less experience it.

This is where Jesus enters the picture but this is getting long again, so I will finish it tomorrow.

A Challenge

2010-06-03T11:41:00.000-07:00

Taking care of the poor and outcasts in society are clear ways to serve God. In fact, he tells us so to do. But what do you do when have no poor or outcasts among you. What if you live in a small town? What if you in a area where such people just aren’t readily available for you to serve? Well, you can seek them out. You can make special plans to help so and so, at such and such time. This is most definitely service, but I am not convinced it is the best or only way.

What about cutting a check? The money aspect of serving people. There is, and rightfully so, a consistent movement in the church for people to give their time and not just money. However, there are people in our world and society that need our money! There are whole agencies and programs set up in order to help people, but they need money in order to survive. But don’t just give, give like it isn’t your money anyway–trust me you won’t miss it.

So what about time? This is both harder an easier than we usually think. I am not talking about special group organized time. I am talking ways to serve weekly and daily. There are people in our lives that we don’t spend enough time with, whom have needs we may not even know about. I think that we often serve such people without thinking because many are close friends and family. However, here is the rub and the root of the challenge: how often do we not show our love for these people because we don’t have time or we are too tired, or don’t want to be bothered?

So here is challenge (I am going to try as well), every week think of someone in your life that you can serve by visiting, or by doing their chores, or anything basically putting them before yourself. As you plan your week, make that one of your top priorities, not the last. Such a way of life will take discipline. But come on, what are just a few hours out of your week? Just cut out some tele time.

Who’s with me?

Saturday Night

2010-05-30T07:05:00.000-07:00

Long Wong's to bowl and eat egg rolls

Bad Genie to hear some friends.

Good Times.

The Southern Kettles in Spring

2010-05-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I got out to the Southern Kettles and it was beautiful and fast. It's amazing how much greener it has gotten in a week, it really changes the flow of the trail because it is harder to anticipate what is coming.

This post it has a dual purpose. First, I have to thank the folks at the Southern Kettle Moraine chapter of WORBA. The work they have done out there in the past year is awesome. The Emma is sure to become a destination for riding and the new stuff on the orange adds a level of difficulty that the Muir end was missing. I will at some point actually get out to help you guys one of these days.

Second, the Muir WEMS race is about a month off and the organizers released the course. I did a lap of it yesterday (yes, I did the short backwards on the orange, slowly and ready to walk if someone was coming the correct way) and the lap is sweet! Pretty much all the fun and climbing that Muir has to offer packed into one lap. Now, if there was just some way to cut out the half mile of fire road...

That is all, continue your day.

Pet Projects

2010-05-18T07:35:00.000-07:00

I started playing music when I was 25, and went a little crazy with it. If you scroll down and look at the right you will see some music that I have written and recorded. I figure that I could share it after all the time I put into them. They are all quite different from each other.

I'll add songs here and there.

Getting back at it

2010-05-17T08:53:00.000-07:00

For the past month or so things have been hectic for me. Organizing and running a conference, having friends stay with us for 4 days (twice), trying to find a locale for worship for Reconcile, and trying to stay on top of training. Training has certainly taken a back seat, I was supposed to be racing already which would allow me fewer hours on the bike per week. But that has all changed and it looks like my first race won't be until late June. So now I have to stay motivated a month longer before the real fun starts.

I'm not complaining, it has been good, just not what I had planned. It is all just a part of life, which with every day I am more convinced to live one day at a time. People make plans and God laughs.

So no race reports yet, but if you like the theological side of this blog keep an eye out. I have more of that coming soon...

High Wind Motivation

2010-05-06T08:03:00.000-07:00

If you rode a bicycle in the Milwaukee area Wednesday you know that it was ridiculously windy out. Like blow you off your wheels windy, which is probably why I saw less roadies out than usual. As for me, I went to Crystal Ridge to check out the bike setup one last time before racing on Saturday. That and to see if it's allergies or the cold my wife brought back as a souvenir from the Brooklyn office. The jury is still out on that one.

It was an eventful ride for being Crystal Ridge. Scott got a pinch flat on the new single track. Word to the wise, there is a dip-down with some rocks as a bridge where the first rock you hit has a tube eating-rim-bending sharp front edge. We tried to buffer it with a few logs but the next lap they were already gone. Well, Scott didn't bring anything and I forgot my pump, so Scott had the long walk--at least it was nice out. I continued onward.

After popping out of the new section I started up a longish climb. No leg buster, but steep and long enough to get your attention. That is when I heard a horrible grinding pop and click sound. When I looked up to see what it was, I saw the tallest tree in the area was very dead and a burst of high wind was making it groan. I simultaneously had thoughts of the stories of people being killed by tree-fall in storms and sprinted as hard as I could up the hill (as the dead tree was already slightly downhill). I could feel that part, if not all of that dead tree, was coming down.

It was, I glanced back as the groaning got worse and saw a huge branch break off from the trunk. I mashed the pedals again, which doesn't do much in 2:1 uphill from a basic standstill. Thankfully, nothing fell my way, because it sounds pretty absurd to answer the question "What happened to you?" with "Oh, I was hit by a tree."

The rest of the ride was plagued by an annoying brake pad on the front, which fell completely out at some point on the car ride home. I have about 12 rides on these brakes and I am going from happy to not sure about them pretty quick.

Bronson

2010-04-30T08:40:00.001-07:00

Why Charles Bronson you ask? Well, while I really like the previous picture I had up, it was from last fall and I don't want to see any fall weather right now. Even in picture form. So until I get something from this year I am going with Charles.

Years ago, I got tired of being disappointed by movies that I was supposed to like. So, I started watching films that weren't supposed to be good, but were still entertaining. Enter Charles Bronson. The man has like 60 movies over 40 years. Some good, some bad, some horrible. But they almost always deliver some good lines or a poorly done explosion. He has great line delivery and don't even get me started on the stache. No mustache month is complete without someone donning the Bronson-stache.

I like the above picture from The Mechanic. It could say a few things. Like "You must have expensive tastes, this is fine wine." Or what is really going through his mind in this movie, "Oh geez, did I just drink posion!?!" And my favorite, "Here's to you Ministor, here's to you."

Hater or Hatter?

2010-04-27T12:34:00.000-07:00

This may be coming out of some "the cool kids wouldn't let me sit at their table" complex, because I didn't get into the ride, but it has bugged me from the start.

Why is it the h8tr and not the h8r? Now, I'm not sure how mixing characters and the whole texting language works, but isn't h8tr=hatter? So, h8r=hater?

Perhaps one of you cool kids can explain it to me.

Brain Spill

2010-04-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

The training for the race season goes well, although I wish we were into it already. Last week I actually felt strong at the trails, which has me guessing what gearing I should run for racing, but that will work itself out. That stuff has been on auto pilot, what I have been thinking about lately is living life to fullest.

This may get a bit too theological for some and I am working through it myself, which is partly why I write articles like this. The first thing anyone reading this has to remember is that I come from the foundation that Jesus is Lord, so where I end up may be quite different that you.

Like I said, I have been thinking about living life to the fullest, but perhaps not in the same way many people do. If you recall my article, "The problem with rules", you see my stance on Christianity is not one of maxims or moral code, rather it is Jesus healing the relationship between God and people. There may be a hiccup in that for many of you because A. all you know is the religious rules Christianity, or B. you have seen in scripture that it is clear that Jesus commands us to live certain ways.

It isn't a bait and switch and I still stand by what I said in the previous article, but "rules" do play a role in the Christian life. However, the "rules" are not a way for the church or even God to control people, instead the "rules" are guides in how to live life to the fullest. One act, whether it is doing or self-restriction, can open up facets of the human experience that we could not grasp otherwise.

I know, I know, that doesn't sound right in our culture of permission, but our culture isn't always right (no matter who you are, there are things you do not agree with that our culture perpetuates). This is getting really long, so I am going to put my reason for this conclusion as succinctly as possible and then perhaps unpack it at another time.

If Jesus can make our relationship right with God, we then need to know what that means for life. In other words, how do we interact with God and his creation(includes people) in a proper relationship with them? That is where the guides fill a role, they show us how to get the most out of life by living it the way it was intended.

I don't know, what do you think?

A lot stronger than we used to be

2010-04-21T13:09:00.000-07:00

Things have been busy but good. Had some old friends staying over for the last 3 or 4 days and a few of us got out for a ride to Pewaukee and back. I noticed that I had perma-grin most of the ride, I must have needed it.

The problem with rules

2010-04-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

Many religions if not all, focus on what the individual does to fall into line with said religion. In other words, it is about the rules.

The problem with rules is that anyone can make them up. What I mean by that is that a few of my atheist friends like to point out the failures of many Christians to have good morals and raise moral families, while they as atheist can do a great job of it. It is a point of truth with which that I cannot argue.

That is because anyone can follow rules, especially when they decide what rules are good and moral. A god can give an outline for rules, but it isn’t needed, which is why I believe my atheist friends make this argument. They are using the common atheist sociological argument that humans make up religions in order to control behavior. I can’t argue with that either.

However, Christianity is not a religion. At least not the way people commonly define religion as I said above. I know that many people are only exposed to the religion of Christianity, and that deeply saddens me, because it wholly misses the point, and we as the church have perpetuated it. The truth is, Christianity is about God repairing the relationship between creation and himself.

It has nothing to do with rules, other than the fact that every rule we follow we end up breaking, something with which I think my atheist friends would agree. It has everything to do with Jesus’ death and resurrection giving us grace, love, and forgiveness. Christianity isn’t a religion because it isn’t about a list of rules that we do, it is about the unending love of God repairing our relationship.

Opening Day: Southern Kettles

2010-04-01T13:14:00.000-07:00

I was able to ride the kettles today. I had to ride by myself because everyone else had to work the day, well I was mostly be myself, I was accompanied by a squeaky seatpost/saddle issue that voiced itself every peddle stroke in the saddle.

When I got there I was the 4th car in the parking lot, by the time I left there were at least 20 cars. The trails are in pretty good shape, except for the deadfall. The Muir and Emma weren't too bad, but there are parts of the new connector area that just sucked; lots of thorn branches. The new section of orange is pretty cool, once it gets packed down it will make for a challenging fun climb.

Somehow I lost a rotor bolt on the Emma, so I rode the rest of the day only using my front brake. Which was okay because I wasn't flying anyway.