New Bike

Woohoo Amy got a new bike.

Saturday Bubba made it all the way around the Dwelling Loop. He walked most of the up-hills, but he rocked all the down hills. I was pretty impressed. He seemed like he had fun which is the most important part.

Today Amy and I went to Dauset. Amy took this wonderful picture of me.



I always make these terrible faces when I am riding my bike so Amy came up with a brilliant solution. That nice tree is much easier to look at.

I also saw these big ass birds. No idea what they were.

Bike Demo

Amy and I went to the Bike Demo at Blankets Creek on Saturday. She test rode the Specialized Safire again. She rode this bike in January and really liked it. Since then she has test ridden several other bikes. I think Saturday confirmed for her that the Safire is the bike she likes the best. After the test ride she talked to Kevin the owner of Outspokin bikes. I think she plans on buying her a bike this week. I am not sure who is more excited.

Sunday I did a quick ride at Big Creek. I played this game in my head where I was a fox and the guys that started after me where the hounds. I rode like crazy to try to keep ahead of them. After I thought I lost them this guy comes out of nowhere and rides past me in the freeride area. It scared the crap out of me.

Later I ran into Mike Young and his wife. Mike is super nice guy. I met him at a night ride earlier this year. He likes the rohloff on my bike and is thinking about getting one. When I ran into him on Sunday, Mike showed his wife my rohloff and she seemed to think it was pretty cool. Like Mike she also seemed really nice, and I enjoyed meeting her.

Bad weather

Amy and I tried to cheat the weather this morning and sneak in an early ride. We didn't quite make it though. About 4 miles from the car the rain, thunder, and lightning overtook us. I am scared of lightning and had to resist my natural instincts of bolting towards the car and leaving poor Amy behind. Seriously though I was freakin and Amy was as cool as a cucumber. Every time I looked at her she was smiling and looked like she was having fun. I was impressed. Luckily the storm moved over pretty quick and we made it back to the car completely soaked but otherwise just fine.

Ride with Bubba at Blankets

[Riding Buddies]

Took Bubba over to Blankets to check out the new Mosquito Bite and Van Michael Trails. We had a really good time. It was fun watching Bubba fly down hills with little fear and still keep his bike under control. Also ran into my friends Roger and Laurie. I always enjoy seeing them. They are some of the happiest, friendliest, and fun loving people I have ever met. Check out Laurie's blog to read about some of their adventures.


[Bubba has a good eye with the camera. I like this angle.]


[Full speed ahead]


[One more time]


[Bubba's first time cleaning the teeter]


[Piece of cake]


[Hardest obstacle for me]


[Fun stuff]

Fun in Virginia

Amy and I went to her dad's farm in Virginia for an extended weekend. We did our normal routine of ride lightly and eat heavily.

On Sunday, Amy's dad showed us some dirt roads on his farm that the local fox hunt club built recently. The trails wound through the forests that surround his fields. There were some really steep hills and a couple of fun creek crossings. There were also these cool gates that horses could jump to go from the road into a cow pasture. I was a little too chicken to try jumping the gate on my bike though.

We ended riding about 6 miles. Even though we did not ride all of the trails, I felt like I saw more of the farm than I ever had seen before. I never knew the farm had so many trees or hills. Some parts of the trail were very beautiful. I especially liked the part that ran along the creek. We even got to see a fox that must have gotten away.

For the eating portion of our trip the highlight was our visit to the Bavarian Chef. When I walked in and saw they served beer in giant boots I knew I had come to the right place. I ordered the Barbarian Sausage plate with homemade kraut. Amy and her dad got the the Wiener Schnitzel. With your entrees they bring out bowls of vegetables family style. We picked mashed potatoes, red cabbage, zucchini, green beans, and carrots & apples. The potatoes were to die for. I think there must have been some kind of meat in there. Amy's dad had fun scooping a huge dollop of potato on his fork and turning it upside down to show how thick the potatoes were.

Amy has been telling me how good this place was since we first met. I am so happy she finally took me there. We are definitely going back to the Bavarian Chef the next time we go to Virginia. My treat!