Muni Or Bust

P90X - Day 1

2012-01-22T21:41:00.000-05:00

I've been way too inactive lately. I was sick a lot of December and the weather has been crappy and uninviting.So I decided to exercise more inside with the P90X workout.

I did Day 1 today and felt pretty weak. I certainly AM compared to the buff guys in the video.

It's gonna be tough to do every day.Hopefully I'll get through it and be more fit for riding muni. That's my end goal.

Uni Videos

2012-01-21T16:34:00.000-05:00

Here are a bunch of my favorite unicycle videos I've seen online. Some street, freestyle, trials, and muni.

Max Schulze's 2010 video with a mix of trials, street, and freestyle.As if the video wasn't crazy enough, he shows off his new MaxWhip trick at 2:15. Woah!

Max Schulze's 2011 video, again with a mix of trials, street, and freestyle.In this one he shows off his front flip! Again Woah!

A quick street video by Kelly Hickman. Lots of stairs and railings

Cedric Vincent riding street. Very cool.

Dan Heaton riding street. I would love to be able to hop like that.

Bobousse's video. Mostly freestyle with some street.

Ryan Kremsater with some serious muni skills near Vancouver. Lots of North Shore features and skinnies.

Claude Magnuson having a good time riding muni. Nothing insane but I like his video a lot. It's the kind of muni I do.

Kris Holm's classic Freeride video. My blog started with this!

Dan Heaton's Columbia Sportwear video.

Derek Schmitt's stillstand for over 18 minutes! You'll get the idea in a minute and skip through. It's like watching paint dry, but you've gotta be impressed.

Zombie problems? The Unicycle Bastards can help.

Snowshoeing

2012-01-15T15:29:00.000-05:00

Today the family and I went out to Whiting for a snowshoeing hike. The last time I remember trying it was when I was a kid on a school nature hike, so I wasn't sure about it. It turned out to be easy and fun!

In previous winters I only got out to ride muni occasionally and didn't have any other winter sports that interested me. But cross training has always sounded like a good idea. My wife got me a pair of snowshoes last year but I never used them. Now I can see myself going out more.

I brought some ski poles with me and they were ok. But I did some running with Kyle and wished my arms were free. I don't need handlebars, so maybe I don't need poles either.

I still would like to ride muni in the winter. In fact on the trails today there were times I wished I was riding instead of snowshoeing. The trail surface was mostly packed. The snowshoes were cool because I never worried about slipping or twisting an ankle in areas with icy frozen boot prints. So maybe when we get a lot of heavy snow I'll go snowshoeing, and when the trail conditions are better, I'll ride muni.

Coming Back To Life

2012-01-14T14:08:00.000-05:00

It's been over a month since my last blog post. I haven't ridden at all for a long time.
During December the temperatures finally dropped and being outside started to become less inviting. But still it was unseasonably warm so the trails and road never got snowed over. Trails were muddy and generally not ridable.
Additionally I was sick for weeks with what I think were three back to back colds. Nothing too crazy, just typical cold symptoms. I'm still not 100% with slight congestion and tight breathing. So I've been avoiding any strenuous exercise.

Finally the temperature is dropping and we're getting snow that seems to be staying. I went for a casual ride around the block today after clearing the driveway. The road is mostly covered in snow, though a bit icy and slushy at the moment. When plowing, the town's goal isn't to leave a hard packed snow surface. So for the conditions to be right I need some luck. It needs to snow a lot so the plows can't keep up, cars need to drive enough to pack the snow, and it has to stay cold.

I hope it snows some more and I can go for a bigger ride soon.

Dr. Luckey

2011-12-06T21:38:00.001-05:00

Since August I've been complaining about pain from my left knee. It was lateral knee pain that occurred either during a rideand or within a few hours after my ride was over.

Google helped me diagnosis it as iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). Stretching the IT band helped releive some of the pain, but I couldn't get rid of it.

After posting about it on the Tryon Bike forum, I got some advice to go toPittsford Performance Care to see Dr. Luckey.

Dr. Luckey

I saw him first at the beginning of November. The building he’s in looks like it was once a distribution center that has now been retrofitted for small businesses. It's not fancy like many medical buildings, but the office itself was pretty nice.
He's a chiropractor, but with a different approach to solving injuries. He called it In-Balance. If I understand correctly, he concept goes as follows. Our muscles absorb the physical shock we experience, such as in sports. When the muscles aren't responding fast enough, the shock is then absorbed through other parts of our bodies, causing injury and pain. By analyzing the responsiveness of your muscles from one side of your body to the other, you can determine if there is asymmetry, and how to make corrections.

I figured he’d use some kind of electronic or mechanicaldevices to detect my muscle responsiveness, but he just held my leg as I pushed when he told me. Compared to my right leg, my left was shakey in areas. I was a bit skeptical because I already told him my problem, and since he was holding y leg it seemed he had the ability to make it appear shakey.

In-Balance Evaluation

Once he completed his muscle response analysis, he made afew adjustments like a typical chiropractor. Although, unlike the otherchiropractor I had seen, Dr. Luckey only adjusted one side. He alsopulled hard on my left leg to adjust that.

I was surprised when he was done, because it only took a few minutes and Iexpected more analysis or exercises. Shouldn't I be working onstrengthening at home? He assured me that the adjustments he made wereenough. It seemed like I should be doing a lot more to solve a problemthat I've had for months.

He suggested I come back in a few days and did not discourage me from riding. But that was when my friend Roland was going to be visiting and I didn't want to be injured, so I did no riding. I made another appointment for the morning before my ride with Roland. That appointment was similar to the first, but without the consultation at the beginning.

Dr. Luckey brought up that a past injury may have caused me to be using my muscles in an unbalanced way. It then occurred to me that last year I fell very hard on my left glute! Maybe that was the root of this problem!

After my adjustment I rode with Roland at Bay Park West and did not have any knee pain! It had been months since I rode without at least some pain on my left knee, so this was huge!
But prior to riding I had stretched my IT band way more than usual, and I had taken ibuprofen for days. So I still wasn't sure Dr. Luckey's treatment was the key.

I emailed Dr. Luckey and he suggested the stretching and ibuprofen were a bad idea, and that it would be better to create the problem again and then go see him, so he could more accurately diagnosis the problem.

So I stopped trying to treat it myself and just rode as usual. Since then I've ridden at BPW again, OCP, and at WRNP twice. I haven’t had any knee pain! I let Dr. Luckey know and he said as long as the pain doesn't return, I'm good to go. So in two visits he apparently fixed me up!

I am really convinced that Dr. Luckey’s treatmentsolved my problem. It's great not to have to worry about my knee anymore! Thanks Dr. Luckey!

GROC Member at Large

2011-12-04T21:01:00.001-05:00

Late last week I attended my first GROC board meeting and was voted in as a Member at Large.

So now I'm a Member at Large for both GROC and The Friends of Webster Trails.
Who better to have as a liaison between the a group of mostly two-wheelers and a group of mostly no-wheelers than a one-wheeler!

Warm December

2011-12-04T18:22:00.001-05:00

We had another unusually warm weekend with temperatures over 50°F by afternoon.

I rode at Whiting and Webster to enjoy the fruits of my leaf blowing labor. I saw a bunch of people out there, about a dozen mountain bikers and even more hikers. I stopped to talk to one mountain biker and he was happy the trails were cleared and praised whoever did it. It was me!

It WAS nice to have the rails cleared for my ride. Unfortunately the trails were muddy in many places. I guess we had some rain during a few nights ago, but it was suggested to me that the frost might be the culprit. Either way, there are plenty of spots that need attention.

After my muni ride, Jamie came over and we practiced in the driveway. He's been making great progress, and continued to make progress this afternoon. He rode past four houses up the street and free mounted several times. Nice! I made a bit of progress in my hopping, trying to building up to rolling hops.

My muni ride was about 9 miles.
Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-12-04

GROC Mobile Trail Maps

2011-11-29T22:58:00.001-05:00

Lost on a trail?
Download the GROC Mobile Trail Maps app from iTunes for your iPhone or iPod!
Or download it for your Android!

As seen above, it's got maps for:

Irondequoit Bay Park West (BPW)
Tryon Park
Dryer Road Park in Victor
Ontario County Park (OCP)
Letchworth State Park

Pretty slick and it's free!

FWT Leaf Blowing

2011-11-26T14:17:00.001-05:00

Being the nice guy that I am, I volunteered to do some leaf blowing for the Friends of Webster Trails. As far as I know the group hasn't been leaf blowing every year, but there was a desire this year.

Clearing the trails of leaves has a number of benefits.
- Trails covered in leaves don't get airflow or sun, so they stay wet.
- Leaves act like sponges, holding more moisture on the trail.
- Low spots with preexisting water/mud issues get worse when spongy organic material collects in them.
- Trail users are more likely to trip on roots, stumps, and rocks when they are hidden by leaves.
- Leaves can be slippery.
- Trail users can stray off the trail and get lost when leaves hide them.
- Trail maintenance can continue because we can see the trail surface.

The most important aspect to me is allowing the trails to dry out. Last spring was very wet, and the trails took forever to become usable.
So I volunteered to clear the trails at the Whiting Road Nature Preserve, and the Midnight trail. Frank, a friend, and friend of Webster trails, let me borrow his seriously powerful Stihl BR 600 backpack leaf blower.

It's the same on he uses for his rocket-man rig. I didn't use a bike, just hiked. Frank met me at the trails this morning at 8:30 and set me up. After a few minutes I was on my own.

I had planned and memorized my route yesterday evening to minimize backtracking, but in some cases it is unavoidable. The leaf blower was a beast and in most cases I could walk quickly. Some places were naturally clear, and others could be cleared just with the blower idling. In other places with big oaks or maples the leaves were seriously thick. In these cases I had to slow down and found myself persuading bigger piles of leaves off to the side, especially at the bottom of hills.

In many areas, with the top leaves removed, it became obvious how much moisture was being trapped underneath. The trail surface was sometimes slick if not muddy, and I tried to blow off any caked-on leaves when possible. It felt a little wrong removing what seemed to be a more appealing layer of leaves and leaving a wetter trail. But with the actual trail exposed, it should dry up quickly.

I was getting tired by about half-way through the Whiting trails. I don't hike much and carrying about 25 lbs of equipment and fuel didn't help. But I persisted.
After finishing Whiting, I stopped for a granola bar at my car and heading towards the Midnight Trail across the street through Webster Park. The snack break didn't help my sore feet, legs, back, and shoulders, but I pressed on.

Technically the county owns Webster Park, but FWT maintains the trails connecting Whiting to the Midnight Trail. The Midnight Trail had some long stretches with thick leaves. Two years ago when I was experiencing my first fall muni riding, I cleared the Midnight Trail. I was hoping not to have to deal with the angry leaf woman (aka stick woman), and thankfully I didn't.

On that matter, I do understand than some people actually prefer to walk on leaf covered trails. But at some point, clearing the trail becomes more important. Last spring was very wet and many trails got destroyed. People show up and use trails even if they're still wet, and then they become mud pits. Many volunteer hours went towards fixing these. If we can avoid wet trails, we must.

After I finished with the Midnight Trail, I was done with my FWT duties. I took my FWT hat off and put on my MuniOrBust hat, both figuratively of course. Instead of heading out the way I came, I decided to head further into Webster Park on the route I typically take. I was already tired and sore, but what the heck, it was now or never. In Webster Park, there are a number of places that have so many leaves it's insane, and they take forever to dry out in the spring. There are hills, one shaped like a water slide, that funnel leaves down in huge quantities. Even the mighty BR 600 couldn't clear these in a single pass... more like 5.

During my work, it occurred to me that by clearing a select loop through Webster Park there would be a tendency for trail users to follow it, possibly changing the usual traffic flow. Good or bad, I don't know... just an observation. I'm also a bit worried someone associated with the park might take issue with my donation of free trail maintenance, but hopefully they'll understand the benefits.

I finished my Webster Park loop and headed back to the Whiting parking lot.

I saw a number of people throughout my hike. Some smiled, some looked confused, and some looked like their anti-depressants were working well. In other words, people looked at me like I was riding a unicycle through the woods... nothing new. I didn't want to interact with people and explain and justify what I was doing. I had to allow people to get past me, so I had to stop, leaf blower idling, and let them go. But thankful only one woman actually talked to me. She asked me "Why are you doing this?", and I thought, "Oh great, here we go." I told her, "We do this to help the trails dry out faster in the spring." To my surprise, she said, "And the leaves can be slippery too." So I guess she approved!

I noticed about 4 or 5 runners out there. Man, you've got to be crazy running through some of these trails with all those leaf-covered roots. It's like running through a mine field but instead of dying you roll your ankle. I have a feeling they were also appreciative of my work today.

Based on the previous GPS maps, I estimate I hiked about 8 miles, leaf blowing except where I had to back-track. On the map below, I cleared all the trails in Whiting, and the purple and pink lines in Webster Park.

I got in my car just shy of 1:00pm, 4 1/2 hours of trail leaf blowing. I think I may have broken a record.
Based on the length of this blog post, obviously I don't feel like moving from my chair. ;-)

Great Black Friday Deal

2011-11-25T16:07:00.001-05:00

Today is Black Friday and I think I got the best deal of all... 55+°F weather!

I rode at Whiting and Webster Park. Aside from getting a good ride in, I was also scouting out the trails for leaves. The Friends of Webster Trails would like the trails cleared before the snow falls for good. I'd like to help soon. There are tons of leaves in some places.

There was an abnormally large number of visitors at the parks today. Everyone must be taking advantage of the holiday and the last of the mild weather. It's good to see people enjoying the trails.

I pushed myself to ride farther than normal to test my left knee problem. My last few rides at Bay Park West were pain free, but I don't ride a long time or distance there, due to its hilly nature. I rode close to 15 miles today, and although I thought I felt hints of irritation to my knee, I had no pain! But in the past, I've had pain show up hours after riding. So I'm still waiting to see.

My GPS said 13.5 miles and my cycle computer said 14.8 miles.
Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-11-25

FWT Member at Large

2011-11-21T09:33:00.001-05:00

I am officially a Member at Large on the Friends of Webster Trails board! The vote was going to be at the December meeting, but that got cancelled so the board voted by email and let me know.

Of course, with great power comes great responsibility.

OCP Work and Ride

2011-11-20T14:15:00.001-05:00

It has been a long time since I rode at Ontario County Park (OCP), June of last year in fact.
I've also been meaning to get out there for trail work, especially because Rick, a leader of trail work at OCP, comes out quite often to the Friends of Webster Trails work days.

So today I joined the crew and helped out. There were only four of us. Not a big turn-out. We filled and graded a handful of low spots on a new section of the Purple trail.

After the work, I went for a muni ride. From my past experience, I remembered it was difficult with its hilly and rocky terrain. I confirmed this today. While I'm better than a year ago, I still run of of steam on the never-ending hill climbs. I think next time I'll avoid the Brown trail, or at least the west half. I was told the east half was easier, but I mistakenly started on the west and never got back to it. And the other trails are still challenging but more manageable.

I took a few pics:

I rode about 4.5 miles.
Muni at Ontario County Park- 2011-11-20

Member At Large

2011-11-14T21:48:00.001-05:00

I attended the monthly Friends of Webster Trails board meeting tonight. There's a "Member at Large" position open on the board and I asked if I could fill it. In that position I'll help out with whatever I can.
The motion was raised to have me fill that position, and it was seconded.

But it won't be official until next month, after the board members make a decision.

So it's looking like I'll soon be a Member at Large for both FWT and GROC, since I was asked to joined them too. I look forward to contributing where I can.

Typical Ride at BPW

2011-11-13T16:22:00.001-05:00

I enjoyed the mild weather today at Bay Park West.
Nothing too exciting, just a good ride.

I rode about 5 miles.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-11-13

Mountain Bike Leaf Blowing

2011-11-13T10:49:00.001-05:00

I recently mentioned that a few local superheroes have been leaf blowing the trails for the rest of us mortals to ride. This makes the trails less slick, much easier to follow, and they'll dry up faster in the spring.

It's a big job to clear miles of trails, but thanks to Mark's invention and GROC's support, it's not so bad.

Here's a video of Frank operating one of the "Rocket Man Zamboni" machines at Bay Park West:

Muni with Roland

2011-11-07T21:02:00.000-05:00

Roland, a muni rider from Albany, is in town for a business conference. He's the guy who has put together the Muni Only Race in Schenectady for the past two years. This afternoon we rode together at Bay Park West.

BPW was the obvious choice of riding locations because the trails were leaf blown. Thanks again to the few great mountain bikers who've been doing this! It's great to be able to ride one wheel without slipping on the leaves.

Riding with Roland at BPW was an eye opening experience. He's such a good rider and could climb all the hills and pass all log and rock obstacles. I need to learn to do rolling hops like him. In one rock garden, when the going got tough, he was able to hop the final half. He's put a lot of time into his riding and his hard work has paid off.

I stretched my knee extra today and had a chiropractic adjustment to try to avoid the lateral knee pain I've been having. We rode 5 miles, and at a place like BPW, that's more than enough to give me knee trouble, before and after the ride. My knee was fine during the ride, and afterwards it has been feeling ok. I've been stretching extra to hopefully prevent the usual pain.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-11-07

Jamie Starts Learning

2011-11-07T20:23:00.000-05:00

Jamie Lissow, from The Wease Show, stopped over this weekend to borrow a unicycle from me. He seems to have the necessary drive to learn.

He practiced at his home and already made some good progress. It might not seem like much but it really is huge.

Here's his first day:

This morning he mentioned it on the radio.

Multiflora Rose

2011-11-05T17:47:00.005-04:00

Today I joined the Friends of Webster Trails at Finn Park to help with trail work.
The expectation was to do some digging and install a culvert in a wet section. Unfortunately the town had not dropped off a load of gravel needed for the job, so we went to Plan B.

Plan B was to remove a whole bunch of Multiflora Rose. This plant is a shrub that, at least where we were, is 8 feet and has approximately 10 billion thorns. It's nasty stuff and is an invasive species in this area, originating in Japan, China, and Korea. According to National Park Service, "it has been planted in highway median strips to serve as crash barriers." Seriously, this stuff is strong and dense.

If I didn't have work gloves on, I would have been useless. But if I do that work again, I think I'll should get some thicker gloves.

If you were being chased by a psycho with a chainsaw and Multiflora Rose was in your way, your best bet would be to turn around and ask to borrow the chainsaw.

This was the last official FWT trail work day for the year. After the work, we gathered in the Liberty Lodge there in Finn Park and enjoyed cider and donuts. Some of the crew had also put together display tables showing things like how the wooden trail signs are made, samples of plants in the area, and maps of present and future trails. Good stuff.

GROC

2011-11-04T22:44:00.002-04:00

I was recently invited to become a board member of GROC, the Genesee Regional Off-Road Cyclists.

GROC is an organization of volunteers that has brought the Rochester area so many shared-use trails. They are the stewards of four parks in our region:

Dryer Road Park in Victor

Ontario County Park in South Bristol

Tryon Park in Rochester

Irondequoit Bay Park West in Rochester

Because of GROC’s efforts, Tryon and Bay Park West are the first two out of the 21 Monroe County Parks to allow legal off-road cycling under a shared-use pilot program.

Two years ago I started working with the Friends of Webster Trails. Just over a year ago, GROC got the go ahead to start working in Bay Park West and I began helping them.

I expect to officially become a board member at the next GROC meeting. Hopefully as a board member I can contribute to GROC in a bigger way.

Circus

2011-10-30T20:39:00.001-04:00

The family and I went to The Greatest Show on Earth this afternoon, The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus!

Of course the first thing that comes to mind when people see unicycles is the circus! So it was especially exciting for me to go and see so many unicy.... WHAT?! No unicycles at the circus? Not a single one.
The closest thing was a penny farthing in the opening introduction.

Penny Farthing

Oh well. I guess unicycles aren't for circuses anymore. So to get my fix I went riding at Bay Park West after the show.

A few awesome guys from Tryon Bike shop and members of GROC do miles of leaf blowing at this park. With the otherwise wet leaves covering the trails, I wouldn't have been able to ride there like I did. THANKS GUYS! By the way, this is what you get when you open up a park to off-road cycling... a team of volunteers to build and maintain your trails for free.

It was about 50°F but I just wore shorts and a short sleeve shirt. It felt cold at first and I thought maybe I had made a mistake. But after about 10 minutes I felt ok. Any colder and I think I'll wear long sleeves, at least to start.

I only rode about 3 miles. I think the colder air is harder to ride in and I felt kind of worn out towards the evening. And BPW is a tough park too. My knee didn't bother me but my lower back was very tight after my ride. It felt like a good workout.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-10-30

The Wease Show

2011-10-24T20:31:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I met a nice guy and his family while I was riding muni at Webster Park.It turns out the guy is Jamie of The Wease Show. He mentioned me on the show today and it sounds like he's gonna give unicycling a try.

Here's the relevant audio from the show:

From the show's daily rundown:

The guy was on a freaking unicycle
Jamie went for a walk at the park over the weekend with his family and was flabergasted when a man went blowing by him. You will NEVER guess what this guy was doing. We made a contest out of that question.. because we're trying to get everyone to go to Arrowhead Haunted Hayride in Spencerport. Wease actually went there over the weekend, brought the kids, and loved it.. so he wants to give away passes seeing as how this weekend is the final weekend that it was open. So anyway.. the guy that passed Jamie in the park.. he was on a freaking unicycle!!

Fall Ride, Possible New Rider

2011-10-23T15:27:00.001-04:00

Today I rode at Whiting and Webster Park. Fall is certainly here and with temperatures in the mid-50's I was concerned about what to wear. I always forget at what temperature I should wear long sleeves when I ride. Thankfully I have my blog for reference and in the past I wore long sleeves when in was in the 40's but ended up getting hot and switching to short sleeves a mile into my ride. So short sleeves were fine today. For convenience I should make chart showing temperature and appropriate muni clothing.
I was surprised that the cooler air irritated my breathing a bit. It doesn't seem cold enough for that yet. Maybe I'm still getting acclimated.

My ride was fairly typical. The trails are mostly covered with leaves, but it doesn't bother me like it once did. Though a few hills in Webster Park have so many leaves it affects my climbing.

My Schlumpf hub worked fine. I don't really notice any of the problems with it when I'm riding.

My left knee was good up until about mile 7 when it gave hints of getting sore. I decided to play it conservatively and headed back to the car, but I had enough riding to not feel disappointed.

The highlight of today's ride was stopping to talk with a family. The dad recently saw a unicycle race and became interested. He's looking to get a unicycle and learn to ride. He also got into snowshoe running last year, and that's something I've been planning for the upcoming off-season. So hopefully we'll get together sometime.

I rode 7.5 miles according to my cycle computer.
Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-10-23

Schlumpf Inspection

2011-10-22T14:55:00.001-04:00

As I mentioned in my last post, my Schlumpf hub is beginning to make a bit of noise and is feeling less smooth. It's a sealed system and I there's not a lot of maintenance I can do on it, but today I inspected it.

First I took my wheel off my frame so I could spin the bearings by hand. I immediately noticed how dirty things looked.

Wanting to clean things up, I removed my cranks:

After going at it with Q-tips, a toothbrush, and paper towels, things look much better:

But unfortunately after turning the axle and bearings by hand, I confirmed that the issues were internal and there was little I could do. It sounds and feels like bearing issues to me. It doesn't matter whether I'm in high gear or not. It has a 5 year warranty, so I have many years left. It probably makes the most sense to just keep riding it until the bearings get worse and can no longer be ridden.

Knee and Schlumpf Issues

2011-10-09T12:18:00.000-04:00

I hadn't ridden since the Albany race two weeks ago. I wanted to rest my knee/IT band and have been doing a small amount of daily exercising and stretching to hopefully make it better. Plus the weather had been colder and uninviting lately.

But this weekend we've had temperatures in the 60's and 70's, so it was time to get out. I rode at Whiting and Webster this morning.

Unfortunately my left knee started bothering me around the 5 mile mark, as usual. So my ride was shorter than I like, at just under 8 miles. I did manage some good climbs, though gave up after four tries on my relatively new nemesis hill on the Red trail at Whiting. Last time I was able to climb it, but it wasn't in the cards today. Same with one hill in Webster Park.

The leaves are now falling and the trails are covered. It can be a bit nerve racking riding fast and not being able to see the hidden roots. But none got me this time.

At some point during my ride I must have been off my uni and spun my wheel to position my pedals to mount. The spinning wheel didn't feel completely smooth. I think I could feel some vibration through my frame and seat and into my hands. It looks like my Schlumpf geared hub is acting up. I think the bearings are no longer spinning smoothly and it looks like more grease is leaking out than normal. Usually it just looks shiny near the seals, but I actually see some grease. This sucks. The hub has a 5 year warranty and it will likely need to be sent back to Switzerland. The turn around for this kind of thing can be months.
The good news is, I have my original 24" wheel ready to go for just such a problem. So I won't be completely out of commission, just without my high gear. Plus, if I have to send it back, doing so as we get into the winter months is probably the best time.
The other bad news is I'll have to remove the hub from my wheel in order to send it back, but the possibly good news is that I have been thinking about getting a 29'er. If I do, then I may have been moving my geared hub into a new wheel anyway.
I'll have to investigate the problem closer before I pursue the warranty fix.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-10-09

Wegmans Passport to Wellness Posts

2011-10-08T12:39:00.000-04:00

This morning I attended the Friends of Webster Trails trail work at Whiting Road Nature Preserve. I was asked if I could help John install two posts at the Gosnell Field.

The posts will be part of the Wegmans Passport to Family Wellness program. It encourages families to hike our local trails and find special Wegmans plaques. Then you make a rubbing of the plaque on your passport to prove you were there. Wegmans will then reward you with a free item, gift card, or t-shirt.

So John and I drove over to the Gosnell Field. We hiked in a wheelbarrow with a bag of concrete, a few gallons of water, a shovel, post-hole digger, tools, and two 6' posts. We installed two very plumb posts.

The actual passport plaques will get mounted later.

Mobile Wireless Level

2011-10-02T19:08:00.001-04:00

I love the challenge of climbing hills and the satisfaction of being successful. I'm often curious about the grade of the hills I ride. I really have no idea what grade they are or what grade I find challenging. If I knew the grade of an unconquered hill is only 1% more than a hill I've already climbed, it might help me push harder.

So I want to measure the grade of the trails I ride. I always record my rides with GPS and that records altitude. Applications such as Google Earth can take that data and draw a path with elevation. Google Earth will then calculate the grade of sections on trail. That sounds good, but GPS data can be off by 2+ meters in the horizontal direction and about double that in the vertical. On a mile long hill climb maybe the grade calculated from the start and end points would be close enough. But the grade calculations for a short length of trail could be way off. And I'm only concerned about short steep hill climbs. I would think calculating based on the both the inaccurate horizontal and vertical GPS data would make the grade calculations extremely inaccurate.

So it occurred to me to go out to the trails and measure the hill grades by hand, writing the results down. I could use a plumb and protractor, or a digital level. But this is a bit too manual for me, and it would be tedious to get this data on a map.

What I need is to collect data while I ride, just like I do with GPS, only I want actual level information.
But since a unicycle's frame pivots on its wheel, it moves independently of the grade it's rolling on. So I can't use my uni. However, a bike frame stays in sync with the trail grade as it rolls, assuming the wheels don't leave the ground, there's no suspension, and no tire compression.
ZOMG! Bikes have a purpose after all! ;-)

Months ago I attached a Wii Remote with a Nunchuk to my bike to use as a level. Both of these devices have accelerometers in them and can be used to measure angles. The wiimote's data can be read using Bluetooth, and as a software engineer it wasn't too difficult to write an application to log from it. In testing, I found the nunchuk I had gave me data at twice the resolution of the wiimote, but still only gave readings at about 1.8 degree increments. On a side note, I also noticed another nunchuk I had was actually the same as the wiimote, at 3.6 degree increments. Hmm. Anyway, I rode around the neighborhood and recorded some data. Unfortunately because the wiimote and nunchuk measure position using accelerometers, they're dual purpose, and their values bounce all over the place as they shake. This is good information for the Wii, but not for my purposes. Even riding carefully gave me extremely shaking and therefore useless data. The other annoyance with the wiimote is it implements the Bluetooth Human Interface Device (HID) profile. I can interact with this using my laptop, but not with my Dell PDA. So I'd have to carry a laptop with me in a backpack to log data.

What I really need is a digital wireless level that implements the Bluetooth Serial Port Profile (SPP). After an extensive search I found a digital protractor with an accuracy of 0.01 degrees that had an RS-232 interface and mounting holes. Brand new this thing costs almost $350. But I was able to find it used on eBay, shipped for $73. It's branded by many companies, but the model is always the Pro 3600.

With an RS-232 interface I could still make it wireless by buying or building a Bluetooth SPP adapter. Then it would be simple to log data with my PDA. I ended up building my own, by buying some parts and using some I already had. I saved $30-40, but spent a lot of time. But it's good to keep exercising my novice electrical engineering skills.

Using an baby seat rack I had never installed on my bike, I was able to mount the level and Bluetooth adapter.

So now I can log both GPS data from my Holux GPS receiver and trail grade data from my Bluetooth enabled Pro 3600 protractor to my Dell Axim PDA. By the way, this PDA is one of the few models that can simultaneous have two Bluetooth connections open at once. It's specifically why I bought this one off eBay almost two years ago.

Holux M-1000 GPS receiver

Dell Axim x51 PDA

With a single logging program running, I can log from both devices, associating the GPS with the trail grade data.

I still need to do some more testing with the Pro 3600 protractor. Hopefully it will not be as jittery as the Wii components. On the trails, I plan to walk with the bike. I think I can keep a more consistent pace and avoid vibrations this way.

Once I collect trail data, my plan is to use the grade information to calculate and replace the GPS altitude positions. This way I can still use Google Earth to render the trail for me, and I can view grade information there. Here is an example of how Google Earth can show the trail grade:

Hopefully I'll be posting some results soon!

Schenectady Muni Only Race 2011

2011-09-26T21:32:00.000-04:00

This weekend was the second annual Muni Only race in Schenectady. Like last year, the family and I made an event of it.

On Saturday there was a fun ride at the Albany Pine Bush Preserve. There were a few new faces this year. Rob was new to riding but did very well. Kaycee came from Maine, but showed up about 20 minutes late and didn't make the picture.

Steveyo, Kai, Tom, Rob, Roland, me, (Kaycee not shown)

It was a good ride but the mosquitoes were relentless, thanks to hurricane Irene's recent flooding. Kaycee showed some impressive skills, landing a few 180 rolling hops over logs. He was also a fast rider on his geared 29er.

After the ride we enjoyed dinner at Roland's house. Thanks to Roland and family for their hospitality!

Amy made special unicycle cookies just for the occasion. We had a choice of super fat tire gingerbread unicycles or sugar cookie unicycles. They were a big hit. Also, Friday was my birthday and Amy made me a unicycle cookie cake too!

Gingerbread, Birthday Cake, Sugar cookie

On Sunday we raced at the trails at Schenectady Central Park. This year we registered on BikeReg. How official! Was this the first unicycle only race on BikeReg? A super serious runner and biker, Heather Rizzi of HHRT, helped put the race together with Roland. I can't thank people enough for the effort they put into preparing and managing an event like this. THANK YOU!

There were 9 of us racing this year. I wished Perry and Jason, who I met last year, could have made it. Maybe next year.

Kyle, Max, Roland, Kaycee, me, Steveyo, Tom, "non-racer"
Missing from picture: Kelley and Rob

Just like last year, the race was a 2 hour race, as many laps as you can. You can start your final lap before the 2 hour mark and finish it. Most laps in the best time wins.

The start of the race comes down a cinder road before climbing into singletrack. At go time, I waited for a handful of riders go ahead of me. I knew the race wouldn't be won or lost in the first 30 seconds and I didn't want to get tripped up in the group. Most riders were ahead of me as we entered the singletrack. It's sandy right there and I UPD'ed, holding up the few riders behind me. Oops. After remounting, I passed a few riders within the first minute or so. Soon I was riding by myself, with three riders ahead: Roland, Kaycee, and Steveyo.

I believe it was during my second lap that I found Steveyo in my sights. We switched places several times during much of the lap, but somewhere along the way I gained some ground. I was able to use my high gear for a few minutes on a flatter area at the end of each lap, and I'm sure that gave me an advantage over Steveyo, who was riding a 24" uni like me, but with no geared hub. Roland and Kaycee were riding 29ers, and Kaycee had a geared hub too.

Near the beginning of lap three Kaycee was in sight. I could tell he was running out of steam, as he was no longer riding up some hills.

As we finished each lap, Heather would yell out our time so far. Mine were 29, 58, and 1:27. I was consistently doing 29 minute laps. This was kind of bad. At this rate I would finish my fourth lap just under 2 hours. Would I stand there and let the time run out or head out for another lap?

It must have been during my fourth lap that I saw Roland. But he was on a trail above me going the other way, so I had no idea where he was. He knows the trails very well. Enough to tell me that I was in 2nd place. Even though we passed within talking range, he might as well have been two miles away. I still don't know those trails well, so for all I know, he WAS two miles away.

Sometime after that I decided I would definitely do another lap. I was spent, but I saw two scenarios. One was that Roland would be waiting at the finish, ready to do another lap only if he had to. That case would have been fun. The other scenario was that he'd be into another lap and possible have a technical problem or cramp up, allowing me to catch him.

Sure enough I finished my fourth lap just before 2 hours at 1:57. I didn't see Roland standing there and I headed back in. And I didn't see Roland at all during that, my final lap. My quads started cramping up on the hill climbs. On steeper hills I stepped off for fear of cramping up bad enough to not be able to continue.

I got a good cheer as I finished. It turned out I didn't need to do my 5th lap, but I'm happy to have gotten my money's worth. ;-) I'm proud to have earned 2nd place.

This year we had some prize options: a helmet, some folding tools, and Park tool pint glasses. I've started a collection of pint glasses from the races I've done this year, so I went with that.

"IT'S A GREAT DAY TO FIX A BIKE"
yeah... anyone have a hack saw? :P

Unfortunately the course was a bit wet from recent rain. Some of the skinnies were hard to ride and I learned to walk across some rather than slip and slide. I was able to ride over many more log obstacles than last year, and that saved some time. The hill climbs felt easier too. I've definitely a better rider than last year. My lower back was still sore like last year, but I felt like I could manage it better. Now I have a sore knee (ITBS I believe) but it bothers me after the ride much more than during. Stretching is helping.

Here are the results:
1) Roland Kays 25:10, 49:22, 1:16, 1:40, 2:07 (5 laps)
2) Buzz Weetman 29:00, 58:02, 1:27, 1:57, 2:28 (5 laps)
3) Kaycee Stevens 26:00, 55:27, 1:30, 2:05 (4 laps)
4) Steve Relles 28:00, 58:28, 1:36, 2:19 (4 laps)
5) Kelley Terrill, 36:30, 1:14, 1:51, 2:44 (4 laps)
6) Max Demilner 33:45, 56:40, 1:55 (3 laps)
7) Kyle Demilner 40:45, 1:23 (2 laps)
8) Tom Baker 55:38, 1:50 (2 laps)
9) Robert Detweiler 59:30, 1:57 (2 laps)

For the record, here's my fun ride GPS track:

Muni at Albany Pine Bush Preserve - 2011-09-24

And here's my race GPS track. My cycle computer said it was over 12 miles. And some of my track started miles away, so I trimmed that. And I guess it stopped recording during my last lap, since it ends before I finished. But I guess it shows the general idea.

Muni Only Race at Schenectady Central Park - 2011-09-25

Return to Dryer

2011-09-18T15:48:00.001-04:00

It had been a while since I rode at the Dryer Road Mountain Bike Park (PDF trail map). The last time was two months ago at the Fat Tire Festival.

I did well and rode longer that usual, making good progress on several hill climbs. There's a short but steep hill on Epping Forest that's fairly rooty and has a bit of a step up in the middle. I finally made it! I also successfully climbed two of three hills on Chutes and Ladders. The one I didn't make seems easier in terms of grade and distance, but has a log obstacle that's tough to get over during a climb. On my two runs up Elevator, I UPD'ed as I hit the steepest section. On my second run I stepped back after my UPD and tried again, several times. On my third attempt I made it! I can't claim to have climbed Elevator in one run, but now I've climbed every part of it. I just need to put it all together.

I've been using Kasha as my way up from the parking lot, and it tripped me up all three times today. It actually seemed a bit shorter and easier than I remember, which I think means I'm making progress. The steepest sections are riddled with rocks and sapling stumps that have been left since the trail was built and that's what caught me each time. I think that was just bad luck. I'll keep at it, but it also might be time to try some alternative routes again.

My knee was hurting as usual around the 5-7 mile mark. I stopped several times and stretched my leg best I could. That helped, but once I got home it was worse. I keep stretching it, and it's getting better, but it's still frustrating.

As usual, with all the twists and turns at Dryer, my GPS track shows less than my cycle computer: about 7.5 miles versus 8.5 miles.

Muni at Dryer - 2011-09-18

BPW and Hojack

2011-09-14T12:53:00.000-04:00

I took vacation from work this morning to ride at Bay Park West. When I started it was under 60°F. Nice and cool. I was able to recreate the hill climbs I accomplished last time I was there without much problem, including the climb from the parking lot near the Fish and Game Club, and the climb out to Homewood Lane. Actually, come to think of it, there wasn't any climb I didn't succeed at. Oh wait, there's a little 5 foot section coming out of an old creek crossing that gets me every time. I don't think I even try very seriously because it's just not happening, but I should work on it.

The logs are the biggest challenge for me. Some day I'll learn to hop them.

Because of the roller-coaster of hills at BPW, I accumulate mileage very slowly. And because of the route I like to take, at about the 4 mile point I find myself deciding whether to commit to nearly doubling that of just heading out. Not wanting to push things, I decided to head out.

Instead, I decided to ride the Hojack Trail in Webster before calling it a day. As an old railroad bed, this trail is flat and tame. I was able to ride my high gear the whole way with no problem. I did shift to low gear at several road crossings. Last time I rode there was after the winter thaw, and the trail surface was a mess. At this point it's back to normal.

Looking at the stats of both rides really shows how different these trails are:

Bay Park West Hojack Trail
5 miles in about 1.5 hours
Average speed: 3.4mph 6.8 miles in about 45 minutes
Average speed: 9mph

Halfway through the Hojack, my left knee was starting to bother me as usual. Before turning around for the return trip, I sat down and stretched it out. After that it felt 100%! It got sore again before I was done, but I was amazed at how much the stretch helped. I'm still hopeful that I'll completely rid myself of any pain during a reasonable ride, say 20 miles or less. But until then, I hope I can use stretching to push on.

Muni at Hojack Trail - 2011-09-14

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-09-14

Hills and Graffiti

2011-09-11T13:30:00.000-04:00

I rode at Whiting and Webster Park this morning. I hit the Red trail, going from Orange to Blue. One of the hill climbs in this direction is a challenge for me and I had never accomplished. But today I made it on my second try! I also took the more direct, challenging route up two hill climbs in Webster. I also made both on my second attempt. Aside from some good hill climbs, I used my high gear quite a bit.

I made sure to ride the new Green trail opened yesterday. I rode from the field entrance to where it meets the Red trail. It's a good trail, though it's fairly pitted. I remember how some of the new trails at Bay Park West were like this a first. I'm not sure if work was done to smooth the surface of those trails or if it just happened with use.

My left knee started bothering me a bit towards the end of my ride. I stopped and stretched a bit. It's not as bad as it's been, so I'm hopeful I'm on the path to recovery.For months I have noticed the "Closes at Dusk" sign in the Whiting parking lot had been graffiti'ed. Someone had spray painted a penis on it. Nice. So today I brought a ladder and a variety of cleaning supplies to try to remove it. My first attempt was to use auto body rubbing compound and it worked very well. That was my good deed for the day.

I rode nearly 10 miles:

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-09-11

Whiting Green Trail

2011-09-10T22:00:00.001-04:00

Today was the monthly trail work day for the Friends of Webster Trails. There were about 30 volunteers helping out. We continued working on the new Green trail at Whiting Road Nature Preserve. I worked with a group that did a lot of benching. In all I was there for over three hours.

There is still more work to do but the trail is completely usable and has been opened! This is actually only 1/3 of the planned trail. The rest will likely be worked on next year.

I hope to ride this new trail soon.

Stride Gum Unicycle Sightings

2011-09-09T20:33:00.001-04:00

Unicycle sightings inside Stride gum packages:

Nursing My Left Leg

2011-09-05T14:57:00.001-04:00

I've been working on fixing my left leg. It sounds like my IT band is too tight. That's what I suspect caused the pain on the outside of my left knee last time I rode. But the deep sciatica-like ache within my hamstring might be a different problem. I've been stretching more and more, and have come to realize just how inflexible I am, especially in my legs.
This morning I did some yoga with my Wii Fit and so many exercises cause the muscles/tendons/ligaments on the back of my legs to feel like they're stretching too far. And yet, my legs still have a long way to go to be straight. When I sit on the floor with my legs straight out and reach to touch my toes, I can only get to about 12" away. As I try harder the back of my knees burn. That's pretty pathetic. I'm going to be stretching more and more and see if I can fix this.

After this morning's stretching, I rode at Whiting and Webster Park. I did well, making all the usual hill climbs. I didn't try to challenge myself with the Red trail or any more difficult options because I'm trying to take it easy. I kind of surprised myself at how easily I climbed the usual hills.

I did my standard circuit, and then repeated the first half in Whiting. By then I was feeling some issues in my leg, it was raining significantly, and the trails were getting greasy.

I rode the Midnight Trail, but did not see anyone. This was my first time riding there since the stick woman incident.
My ride totaled about 8 miles.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-09-05

Iliotibial Band Syndrome

2011-09-01T12:52:00.002-04:00

I had another chiropractic appointment today. The sciatica-like problem I was having has not been a problem, even after my hard ride at Bay Park West.

But as I previously mentioned, the outside of my left knee got sore towards the end of my ride, and continued to be sore for the rest of the day. I was limping a bit at times. This problem has gotten progressively worse over the past four or five rides.

My chiropractor analyzed it and is pretty confident that it's a problem with my IT band. It's very tight on the left leg. He suggested the sciatica-like feeling could be related. Stretching it should help, and he gave me some exercises.

Hopefully I'll get rid of my back, leg, and knee problems so I can concentrate on edurance and skills.

Back to BPW

2011-08-30T12:23:00.003-04:00

It had been a month since I'd been to Bay Park West and I started to miss it. This morning I took some vacation time and rode there.

I messed up a few hill climbs, but I also made excellent progress on others. And I finally made it up the trail from the old trolley tracks up to Homewood!

The trail crew has made some changes to a few of the log overs. Some of the old ones were just downed trees that crossed the trail at the angle of the hillside. Hopping over these would be very trick because I'd have a tendency to roll or slip downward. The new log overs are nice and level, but unfortunately they're just a bit too big for me. In time I hope to have the skill to get over these without having to step off.

For the past three or four rides, I found my left knee has given me trouble. I get a sore joint pain on the outside of that knee. It was occuring about an hour after I rode, but today it was during the last third of my ride. Though, I rode more at BPW than I probably ever have in one outing. I found myself limping a bit when I walked, but riding was better. The determination and concentration when riding probably helps mask it too. Hopefully ice and ibuprophen will fix it for now, but I'd like solve the problem more permanently.

My cycle computer says I rode 7.3 miles. That's big for me at BPW.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-08-30

Neighbor Unicyclist

2011-08-28T20:43:00.004-04:00

A neighbor of mine has joined the world of unicycling!

It probably helps that he works with Mj, one of the few local riders, and he sees me out riding all the time. He bought a 24" Torker LX and has been learning to ride for the past few days.He stopped over yesterday and practiced a bit with me in the driveway. He is very persistent and is making good progress. It won't be long before he's making it around the neighborhood!

Welcome to the club!

Continued Trail Work

2011-08-27T13:42:00.002-04:00

There were five or six of us working on the IMBA trail this morning at Tryon. We continued benching and connected the far end of the trail to an existing trail.

A large tree prevented us from digging down or back into the hillside, the standard way of making a bench-cut trail wider. So in about an 8 foot section of trail we used a log on the trail edge to hold back additional dirt. This allowed the trail to be wider.

This trail will probably get fully connected and be online with one or two more work sessions.

Chiropractor

2011-08-26T12:07:00.014-04:00

Last year I remember being at the Muni Only Race in Albany and mentioning my fatiguing back muscles to some of the other riders. I felt like I got a bunch of blank stares. This year at the Fat Tire Challenge in Pennsylvania, I got the same response. My lower back continues to get fatigued on many of my rides, and most other muni riders aren't having this problem.
Although I generally push through, it feels like it's my number one limiting factor. In one of the Fat Tire Weeknight Series races this year, I did not finish due to lower back fatigue. It's a problem.

To help, I did some extra stretching exercises here and there, but I've never gotten into a regular routine.

About a month ago, I started to get a slight sciatica feeling in my hamstrings. It wasn't anything too crazy, but something to note. I think it showed up in both legs at different times. I just felt it once in a while and it never lasted long.

About three days ago, I got a much stronger sciatica pain in my left leg, or at least what I've been calling sciatica. It was only in the hamstring and didn't go all the way to my foot. Certain movements seemed to cause it. I noticed it more when I swung that leg forward while walking, when no weight was on it. Sometimes when I bent over while seated I'd feel it more too. Just shifting my weight in my chair might give me a zinging feeling. I iced my lower back a few times, but it wasn't making a big difference.

I figured it was most likely from the Singletrack Stampede race I rode on Saturday. That's a tougher trail. Or maybe lifting something heavy caused it. Or maybe it was from the fall I took at the race, though that was just a typical tuck and roll. I haven't had any specific events that caused me sharp pain.

Whatever the cause, it didn't seem like it was going away, so I made an appointment with a chiropractor.
The day before my appointment I woke up and was frustrated to find little improvment. Sometime in the morning, at work, I shifted in my chair and felt some kind of a pop in my left hip joint area. That happened twice during the morning. I didn't feel any noticable improvement in my sciatica though. But in the afternoon I started to notice a marked improvement. I don't know if that popping had something to do with it or not.

This morning things were even better. I can still feel the sciatica a bit once in a while, but it's way less often and less intense. Still, I went to my chiropracic appointment with the hope of understanding the problem and improving my low back fatigue.

After telling him my story, he started with the TENS therapy. After a lower back massage, he adjusted my back. I heard and felt a good amount of crunching. He also adjusted my neck, though I didn't hear or feel anything. I don't feel like a new person, but it's good to know things are closer to where they should be.

I have another appointment in a week for a follow-up adjustment and to talk about stretches and exercises I can do. He didn't want me to start on any specific exercises until after the next appointment to avoid confusing any soreness from my first adjustment with soreness from exercise. Still, he said to go ahead and keep up with my normal exercise, including muni.

So I hope to get a ride in this weekend.

Singletrack Stampede II

2011-08-20T19:22:00.014-04:00

Today was the Singletrack Stampede II mountain bike race at Sprague Brook Park.
I had gotten permission to ride over a month ago, and tried the course out a few times. It's a super rooty 7+ mile loop.

Like in many races, Beginners do 1 lap, Sport 2, and Expert 3. There classes for age, gender, and for single-speed bikes.

I registered in as a Beginner. The weather was good, and the race went fairly well. My stomach was bothering me in the first couple miles, but I don't think it slowed me down. I had eaten a bagel with jelly about two hours before the race. Maybe that was the problem? I guess I need to work on my pre-race nutrition.

For a good portion of the race I saw a couple of the volunteer riders who were there to help anyone with medical or mechanical problems. They'd pass, then rest, then I'd pass, etc. I passed a few riders who has issues like a broken chain or a flat, but later they passed me. It must have been at about mile 5 that some experts and sports started passing me.

I did well. I'd say I rode about 98% of the course, but had to dismount for some steeper hill climbs.

My time was 1 hour 35 minutes. The top mountain bikers were doing laps in less than 50 minutes. So I'm going about half their speed.

My lower back muscles got sore, but not too crazy. But I was glad when my lap was done. It's a tough course with the constant battle of roots. My left knee started feeling very sore hours after I was done riding. I was on the edge of limping once I got home. Ibuprofen and icing helped a ton. This happened to me last weekend too. It's something I need to figure out.

Once all the racers came in, we had pizza, pasta, and salad. Then the top three riders of each class got medals. Depending on the class, some of the top riders got money too. For example, the top beginner got their $30 registration fee back, and the top expert rider doubled their money.

At the very end of the awards ceremony, Scott, the race coordinator, asked if they had forgotten anyone. Someone yelled out something like "UNICYCLE CLASS!". Earlier, Scott had hinted to me about an award so I made sure to stick around. So I think he had it planned. He called me up and gave me a medal and my $30 registration back! Thanks Scott!
Pint glasses were also given to all the racers.

I talked to a lot of riders while I was there. It's surprising how many of them either own a unicycle or have tried one. Most who have tried haven't stuck with it long enough to get very comfortable. I hope seeing me out there encourages someone to work their way into muni.

There were plenty of cameras around, and it looked like someone had some serious video equipment to document the event. I'll have to look for the footage online.
Actually, Peter, one of the volunteer riders took a quick video of me on his android phone. Nothing overly exciting, but here it is:

I'll add more pics and video if I get some.

Click here for the race results.

Of course, I tracked my ride:

Singletrack Stampede II - 2011-08-20

Suicide 6

2011-08-14T18:08:00.007-04:00

Today I "raced" at the Suicide 6 mountain bike race at Harriet Hollister Spencer Park at the south end of Honeoye Lake. The race is 6 hours long and teams, sending one rider out at a time, do as many 7+ mile laps as they can. Riders can ride as a team of one, which is what I did, on my muni of course.

About a week and a half ago I did a test run of the race course. Based on that, I knew I'd have to push just to do two laps in the race. So my hope was to do one at the start, and one towards the end, with a good few hours to chill in-between.

Unfortunately there was a 70% chance of rain today. Still, that left 30% of no rain. I like those odds. So I went for it.

I arrived and learned it had rained over an inch overnight. So the trails would be at least somewhat wet from the start. From early on there was significant thunder in the distance.

The rain held off during my first lap. The course was marked very well and had mile markers. I felt ok at the beginning, but somewhere around mile 5 the course gets more difficult with many rooty and rocky climbs. My lower back muscles got painful quickly and I realized this would probably be my only lap. But somewhere near the last mile I found my back was improving. There were more downhills and flats to recover from the pain. I finished my lap, and chilled and snacked for a bit. The park only has one shelter, an open sided lean-to, where the race officials were stationed. Many riders/teams had canopies set up with chairs and coolers. The guys next to me were from the Sprague Brook area. And one of them was actually Scott, the race director of the Singletrack Stampede II that I hope to attend on Saturday. So I hung out in that area for a bit. Thunder continued to rumble in the distance and a few drops were falling. It had probably been about 30 minutes since I came in from my first lap, and my lower back was feeling fine. With the threat of a downpour soon it seemed wise to go ahead and head out for another lap sooner than later. So I did.

In the first hill climbs I was questioning my decision. My quadriceps were burning. But I pushed on. The lower back pain came quickly, but didn't seem as intense. It began raining, but the trails didn't seem to be changing much. There are enough flats and downhills in the first half of the course to manage my pain. But again, once I hit the 5 mile mark my lower back muscles started to hurt bad. The rain began falling harder and the trails were getting very wet and much softer. I found myself dismounting earlier on difficult uphills, and remounting later. I still was riding a whole lot more than walking, but certainly walking a higher percentage than I prefer.

Some areas had thicker fog. Unicycling on difficult trails with low light levels, fog, and thunder is other-worldly. Some sections also had a thick tree cover, and the light levels were insanely low. Riding down a greasy, twisty, rooty, rocky trail in these conditions was feeling crazy. In the latter half of lap two, my quads were giving strong hints of cramping. Anytime I pushed hard up hills, my quads felt like they were on the verge of having one the those charlie horse cramps I have had recently in my right calf. I was even feeling it as a walked up hills. I downed energy gels and extra water to help. But with this kind of fatigue and the deteriorating trail conditions, I was sure this was my last lap. I finished and was glad I was done.

As usual, all the mountain bikers were super nice and many gave encouraging comments. Of course, I dismounted whenever I heard them on my tail and got out of the way. I tried to return the positive support too. Anyone riding in those conditions has some serious will power and skill. The bikers are more likely to catch up to me when I'm moving slowly, so I think I see them more often when I'm walking up the remainder of a hill. The bad part of that is they see me walking and not riding, and I feel a bit like a loser. The good think is I see that these hills ARE climbable... at least on some machine. I'll keep working on it.

After my second lap there was still a few hours of riding left in the race. But with the rain coming down steady and nothing for entertainment, I decided to call it a day.

The trail mile markers went up to 7 miles with plenty more trail before the finish line. I put my two rides together and only get about 13 miles. But with all the many twists and turns, it makes sense the GPS would cut corners and show less distance. So I'd say it was about 15 miles of riding. Given the caliber of these trails and the conditions, I'd say I did well.

Suicide 6 - 2011-08-14

Tryon Trail Work

2011-08-13T13:56:00.002-04:00

I worked for about 2 1/2 hours today with the GROC crew in Tryon Park. We continued work on the trail started a few weeks ago with IMBA. Lots of benching was done.

I received a GROC work shirt for my continued support.

It was a typical work day. A lot of good work was done.

Sprague Ride With Tom

2011-08-12T21:34:00.005-04:00

In an online unicyclist forum, I posted about the upcoming Singletrack Stampede II mountain bike race in Sprague Brook Park, south of Buffalo. I don't know of any muni riders particularly close to that area, but I was hoping I might get a bite. A rider, Tom, from Berkeley, California responded. He couldn't make the race, but he would be visiting family just over the Canadian border. So we planned to meet up at Sprague Brook and ride together, a few weeks before the actual race.

Despite the threat of rain, we met up today. It rained quite hard just as I entered the town of Glenwood, where Sprague Brook is located. Tom was running a bit late. About 10 minutes after I arrived, it stopped raining. I rode my uni around the park roads until Tom arrived about 15 minutes later. After the introductions, we prepared to ride. Tom's wife Nancy would be hiking along with us.

Just before we set off, I realize I had locked my CamelBak in my car, and my key was in it!! Ugh. Thankfully I had a spare key hidden under my bumper. Unfortunately, the screw and wing-nut holding it on had rusted and were not cooperating. The wing-nut broke off, but the corrosion on the screw kept up a fight. It took Tom and me nearly 30 minutes to get the key off, but we finally did. Tom and Nancy were both very patient about the whole thing and said it added to the adventure. They're really great people.

Despite the rain, the trails weren't all that bad. The many roots were more slippery in some places, but it was all totally doable. There were puddles here and there, but nothing much longer than a few feet. Most of those puddles were benign, but a few of them had a hidden root that were an unpleasant surprise.

Tom and I would stop riding occasionally to rest and chat. We also tried hill climbs and difficult trail sections multiple times until we succeeded or had enough. During those delays, Nancy would catch up and sometimes pass us. On several passes she brought us raspberries or blackberries she had collected. "Nature's Cliff-Shots!"

Into the ride a breeze picked up and kept us cooler. But at one point the breeze tried to kill Tom! We had stopped to rest and Tom's unicycle was on the ground. All the sudden we heard a cracking sound from above and a 3" diameter tree branch fell, landing right across his uni! The odds of that happening were certainly slim. We joked about it, but then Tom grabbed his uni and rode over the offending branch, breaking it. I think it learned its lesson.

Tom was a strong rider, having started 10 years ago. He rode a 29" guni, and I of course rode my 24" guni. We used our high gears in only a few short places.

Tom and Nancy took some pictures. Thanks!! Here they are:

After our ride, we drove to a pizza shop called The Pizza Glen for pizza, wings, and beer. Good times.

Here's the GPS record of our ride. You can tell where Tom and I stopped to rest or retry some features.

Muni at Sprague Brook Park- 2011-08-10

Benching a New Trail at Whiting

2011-08-06T14:02:00.004-04:00

Today was the monthly Friends of Webster Trails work day and a Tryon work day. I decided to work with the FWT group because they have fewer work days and would be working on a new trail I'm very interested in.

There were groups clearing the trail and groups benching. I helped with the benching.

In my trail work with the GROC crew and in the IMBA training, full benching has definitely been encouraged over partial benching, though I didn't know why. Today's trail work got me to look closer.

Here is what the IMBA Trail Solutions book says (page 140-141):

A bench is a section of tread cut across the side, or contour, of a hill. A full bench is constructed by cutting the full width of the tread into the hillside. The entire tread is dug down to the compacted mineral soil. This design creates a consistent and stable tread, but it takes time and effort, since the organic matter that normally covers mineral soil must be removed. In the end, all this effort pays off in the form of a trail that lasts indefinitely with very little maintenance.

On a partial bench trial, only part of the hill is cut away and the soil that has been removed is placed at the lower edge of the trail to try to establish the desired tread width. There are serious downsides, however, to the partial bench design. The section of trail made of fill soil is soft and rarely compacts consistently. As a result, the fill portion of the trail either gradually slips downhill or it compacts unevenly and creates a berm on the outer edge of the trail, which traps water. Partial bench trails usually are not sustainable and we rarely recommend this design.

The are a few occasions in which it's simply impossible to build a full bench trail, and you must utilize the partial bench design. It may be impossible, for instance, to dig past tree roots or impenetrable rock in order to place the entire tread on mineral soil. At times like these, you're stuck with the partial bench.

While this logic makes sense to me, it's also logical that no solution is best for every situation. Hal, the president of FWT, pointed out how previous partial benching has held just fine, and suggests that our soil type allows for it. And it is certainly faster to build, so why not take advantage of this technique if we can.

Hal's comments make a lot of sense to me, and the partial benches we did today sure look great.
Anyway, I wasn't sure why full benches were generally considered better than partial, and now I "know". Really knowing will come by observing how our work holds up over time.

Great work today! I'm looking forward to riding this new trail once it's completed.

Suicide 6 Test Run

2011-08-05T15:51:00.009-04:00

I took a vacation day and went to Harriet Hollister Spencer Park just south of Honeoye Lake. I had never been there and I wanted to see what the trails were like. This should help me determine if I am attending the Suicide 6 mountain bike race.

The trails were not marked all that well, though I occasionally found a sign with a trail name. There are double-track dirt roads weaving throughout the park and the trails intersect these. Normally single track is preferred, but some of the race is on these double-track roads. Knowing when to turn off the double-track was tricky, but the route should be well marked for the race.

I did have two maps with me. One was the race map, which is not to scale, and another was a trail map with more trail names on it. My ride roughly followed the race map, but it looks like I did the southeastern Sidewinder trail backwards and bigger. I think part of that deviation was a long downhill followed by a long hill climb, of course. I had to walk much of that climb, so it will be great if it's not actually part of the course! I also missed a turn and had to backtrack a bit, shown in the middle north section of my trail map.

Each race lap is said to be 6.7 miles, and I did about 7.5. Those deviations add up.

I got a charlie horse in my right calf about 80% into my ride. It was just like I had at a race a few months ago. I rolled around on the trail and moaned for a minute before I could stand up and start walking. Those things are excruciating! I was soon able to ride, but I was cautious not to stress my ride calf. I think I may have tilted my right foot down too much during a climb. I was drinking a lot of water, so I don't think I was dehydrated.

So the big question is, will I race? Hmm. There were plenty of times during my ride that I leaned towards not racing. But once I was done, it felt like it was possible. To race and finish in the S6, I have to start at the start, and be out riding at the 6 hour mark. It look like it would take me about 2 hours for a race lap. So, at that speed I could theoretically do 3 laps in the 6 hours. But that would be suicide! Instead, it probably would be smarter to do 2 laps, one at the beginning and one at the end, with about a 2 hour rest in-between.

I need to think about it some more. The upcoming weather forecasts for August 14th will also help me decide.

Muni at Harriet Hollister Spencer - 2011-08-05

EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in New York

Short BPW Ride

2011-07-31T10:43:00.003-04:00

I didn't really feel like riding much today, but it's hard to let a weekend go by without it. I headed to Bay Park West this morning thinking it would be good to try the hill climbs that challenge me.
I did make it up two hills I never had. My failed attempts were not from lack of strength or stamina but because I had random UPDs from unseen roots and ruts.

It was a short ride at under 3 miles.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-07-31

IMBA Trail Crew Training

2011-07-30T18:05:00.004-04:00

Today I attended a trail construction training class presented by IMBA, the International Mountain Bicycling Association.From the IMBA website:

The Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew, on the road since 1997, is IMBA's grassroots educational program and an authority on sustainable trail building practices. Two teams of professional trail experts travel year-round throughout the United States and beyond, leading trail work sessions, meeting with land managers and working with IMBA-affiliated clubs and the communities they serve to improve mountain biking opportunities.

Although mountain bicycling is in the name, the trail building philosophies suggested by IMBA benefit all trail users. Building sustainable trails is the overarching theme.

In the morning there was a three hour classroom training. The instructors, Steve and Morgan, presented the philosophy of successful trails and the techniques to build them.

After lunch, we met up again at Tryon Park for the trail work portion of the class. We began the construction of a new trail that had been flagged by the GROC leaders and IMBA yesterday. The work was pretty much identical to the work we've already been doing at Tryon and Bay Park West. GROC has been leading those efforts and has been following the IMBA trail building practices.

The class was good reinforcement of the philosophy and techniques I've been learning from GROC.

Beware the Stick Woman!

2011-07-26T12:29:00.006-04:00

This morning I took some much needed vacation time to ride muni at Whiting and Webster Park. I haven't ridden since the Fat Tire Festival, as I've been recovering from a cold.

One of the trails I rode was the Midnight trail, as I have many times over the past few years.

On the double-track road section of the trail, a woman was walking her dog in the direction I was riding. As I do with pedestrains in this situation, I approached slowly and from a distance gave a "Hello" until she heard me. I don't like to startle people or dogs. She reined in her dog and I continued my approach on the half of the double-track she was not occupying.

As I approached she began says something to me about wheels. Realizing she wasn't just giving me the usual "Did you lose your other wheel?" comment but had something more urgent, I began to dismount at the point where I was just beside her. At the same time she made an attempt to poke one of her two walking sticks into my wheel, in an apparent attempt to force me to stop! I KID YOU NOT!! My dismount was quick enough for me to step away and avoid her stick of death.

She said that wheels were not allowed on the Midnight trail. I said it was my understanding, through the Friends of Webster Trails, that they were. She said FWT is wrong.
She said that the covenant that was established when the land was given to the town states that no wheels are allowed.
I explained that I was riding there with the understanding that wheels were allowed.
She continued to say I was was wrong, and I suggested she talk to the town.
She said she already has.

I then addressed her attempt to put a stick in my wheel by saying she can't put a stick in someone's wheel to stop them!
She said, "I'll do what I have to do."
I suggesting that action could land her in jail.
She said she did not think so.
I gave her a look of confusion and said her approach to the addressing the issue was awful.

Feeling like no more value could be added to our conversation, I repeated that I understood I was allowed to ride on the trail and would talk to FWT about it.
After walking ahead, out of stick-of-death range, I mounted and began riding away.
I stopped a moment later, turned back, and asked her why it bothered her so much to have wheels on the trail. She said the covenant says so, and wheels damage the trail.

I specifically recall attending a FWT board meeting two years ago, and being told bicycles (and unicycles) were allowed on the Midnight trail.

So now I'm looking into the legality of riding there. I'm also curious who this woman was and what her role has been for the Midnight trail. I'm positive she's the same woman who had a problem with me leaf blowing the Midnight trail a few years ago.

Again I attempted to ride Whiting's Red trail, the Yellow trail in the steep direction, and steeper hills in Webster Park. I didn't have any huge accomplishments, but I'm still pushing.

UPDATE: I found a document pertaining to the donation of the Midnight Trail land to the town. It says:

The Trail system shall be used for non-motorized recreational uses only, including, but not limited to, walking, hiking, cross country skiing, horseback riding and other uses that neither require nor produce significant surface alteration of the land. There shall be no hunting.

Nothing about wheels or cycling at all.
I've also emailed the leaders of the Friends of Webster Trails, and they forwarded the question on to the Commissioner of Parks and Recreation, Mark Yaeger. He responded:

There is no restriction of wheels on the midnight property. To access it you would need to violate Webster parks rules.

Right, so I can't legally ride in Webster Park, but can in the Midnight Trail. Technically I can carry my unicycle in, and also there is a Webster Park road that gets very close, leaving only a 30 second walk.
So Stick Woman was certainly wrong.

My cycle computer said I rode 14.6 miles. GPS says 13.7.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-07-26

Hardcore 24 and Suicide 6

2011-07-25T12:53:00.004-04:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, there's a 24 hour mountain bike race held at Ontario County Park called the Hardcore 24.
It was a few days ago and I did not attend. Race teams send a rider out to do a lap, and when they return, another rider may go. The goal is to do as many laps as possible in 24 hours. While your teammates are out riding, you can sleep, eat, or whatever, in preparation for your turn. There are also solo riders. In the night hours, riders use headlamps to light their way.

I didn't race for several reasons. I didn't have a team, I've never even ridden at night, I don't have any lighting equipment, and it's a freakin' big race! This year is my first year of racing with mountain bikers, so it would have been a push to jump right into the HC24. Plus I've only ridden at OCP once before, and it was tough on me. I still want to return and give it another shot sometime. As it turns out, this was a hot weekend, and I was just recovering from a head cold. So I'm glad I didn't try to race. Next year may be a different story.

Bruce, representing the Park Ave Bike Shop Race Team, had invited me to race muni at the HC24, without having to pay the $100 registration. And now, he's invited me again to another big race. The Suicide 6.
The S6 is held at Harriet Hollister Spencer Park, south of Honeoye Lake in Candice, NY. It's similar to the HC24, but only 6 hours. The race site says, "Come have fun riding in a real mountain bike race on a punishing loop with white knuckle single track." Gulp. Sound tough.

This race is coming up in a few weeks, on August 14th. Currently, the only excuse I have to not race is that I've never ridden there, and it sounds like it's harder than the trails I've ridden. I also don't have a muni team, but riding solo would be ok. It's short notice, and it'd be hard to ask others to ride with me without ever having been there myself.

Maybe I'll take a vacation day soon and head there for a test ride.

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #5

2011-07-19T20:12:00.002-04:00

Unfortunately I was not able to race tonight. I've been sick for a few days and didn't feel up to it.
This was the last race of the series, but I'm looking forward to next year!

Thanks to Park Ave Bike Shop and YMCA Camp Arrowhead for putting together this great event!

2011 Fat Tire Festival

2011-07-16T14:27:00.009-04:00

Today was the Fat Tire Festival at Dryer Rd Park in Victor, NY.
I raced beginner, doing one 4 mile lap. Of course I started at the back of the beginner pack. It started in a sports field before heading up into the trails. This helped the pack thin out while people find their pace. Unfortunately there was still quite a bit of congestion before entering the singletrack, forcing me to dismount. Once into the first trail, Kasha, I felt like I was pretty much alone. But then the real climbing started and I found I was right on the heels of the last beginners, and again was forced to dismount. It was a little frustrating that no effort was made to make room for me, despite my requests. I guess they weren't expecting to get passed at that point. From then on I only had to dismount as a courtesy for any expert riders, and possibly sport, who passed me from behind. As usual there was the occasional train of riders forcing me to wait what must have been a few minutes. But hey, I'm on their turf, and I'm happy to oblige. I also wasn't really worried about my time.

For about the first third of the race I rode behind a child mountain biker who did outstanding! I couldn't believe the hill climbs he was making. Eventually he left me behind, making distance on all the downhills.

I didn't ride as strong as I have before. It could have been the sore throat I woke up with, or the heat, or whatever. But I still did well.

I received a lot of positive remarks from many people. Many riders and spectators recognized me from the recent Fat Tire Weeknight race series I've been doing.

There were tents set up in the field for the many bike shops and sponsors of the event. There was also a little skills area set up. It had about a 40' skinny section, made of 2x6's, a teeter-totter, a single log, and a 3-log pile. I had fun trying it all out.
Then a GT bike rep offered to give me a t-shirt if I rode the skinny for him while he videoed. So I did, though it took a couple tries to get the whole thing. I also did the teeter-totter, which was a new experience for me.
Later, the announcer for the event walked over to me and did a sort of live interview with me on the PA. He asked about my geared hub, brake, and wheel size. I guess it was kind of fun, though I don't normally like that kind of thing. Then he asked if I could demonstrate riding the skinny. Now all of eyes were on me, but I did it fairly well, and then did the teeter-totter too. Riding back to him, I powered over the single log. He wondered if I could do the 3-log pile, so I made an attempt to do a few side hops over it. I came close but failed the first few times, falling to ground, but without injury. Someone yelled, "Third times a charm!", so I gave it another try with success!!

As a reward for entertaining the crowd I received an awesome pint glass.

These were given out as prizes to the riders who placed, so it's an honor to have gotten one of these! A great memento.

Fat Tire Festival - 2011-07-16

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #4

2011-07-12T21:06:00.002-04:00

I raced for the fourth time at the Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race at the Camp Arrowhead YMCA. It was a hot day, but I managed to make it through my three laps.

I made it up both of the difficult climbs for the first time! The switchback climb I made on my first lap, and I came close on other laps. I made the climb just before the pool area on my last lap. I think I could make that one every time, but on my first and second lap I always have to dismount for mountain bikers wanting to pass. On my third lap, a biker was approaching at the last steep section. I powered up it, involuntarily letting out some big grunts and slurred expletives. I wonder what he thought of that. Ha ha... whatever works, right?

It's kind of interesting how each lap is different because I get passed more in different sections. Today it seemed like I had to wait a full minute in some sections. I'd dismount for a rider, and once he passed I'd see another rider approaching through the trees. I'd wait for that one, and then another, and another! It doesn't bother me much, but it does affect my time.

I also made it over every log on the course on all laps! That was a first. No hopping was involved. I just powered over them. One near a parking area is telephone pole size with curbs on either side. I had never even attempted it in the past. So that was more good progress.

At the end of the race one of the guys from GROC and Park Ave Bike, Bruce, encouraged me to ride at the upcoming Hardcore 24 race. He said they'd sponsor me and pay the registration fee. Wow! That's $85! It sounds like he liked the idea of having something fairly unique there.

That's a 24 hour race. You just do as many laps as you can, sleeping and eating between laps as needed, and heading back out when you feel like it. You can ride solo or on a team that alternates riders. I'd be solo or on a muni team, as my slower speed would hurt a mountain bike team.

I had considered doing that race if some of my muni friends in Albany could. But I don't think they can. Maybe I'll hit them up again. In any case, I'll think about it.

Here's my gps track from this evenings race:

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #4 - 2011-07-12

Whiting Webster Challenge

2011-07-10T12:59:00.005-04:00

I thought I'd fit one more ride in before my Tuesday weeknight race. So I rode a bit at Whiting this morning.

Again, I tried the red trail, south to north. There's one hill climb that I haven't been able to do. I didn't make it up today, but I'll keep working on it.

I also tried the yellow trail from north to south. Again there is one steep hill climb that's holding me up. I've actually never tried it, because I always ride the opposite way. I made it halfway up, which was actually further than I expected, and I could see it might be possible for me to complete it in the future. So again, I'll keep working on it.

In Webster Park, there are two hill climbs that offer two possible routes, the left route being easier on both. It took me months to be able to climb those left routes, but now I can, more times than not. So today I tried the right routes. Despite several attempts, I failed the first hill. I'll keep working on it! The second hill beat me four times, but I succeeded on my fifth attempt! Woo hoo! Still, I'd like to be able to consistently climb it. So I'll keep working on it.

My left elbow has been bothering me lately. I think I strained it while trying to cut some over-sized tree branches with a pair of loppers. Today's hill climb attempts irritated it more, because I pull up on the seat pretty hard at times. Hopefully it will get better soon.

My gps did not record for some unknown reason. My cycling computer said 6.8 miles.

WNP Trail Work

2011-07-09T14:50:00.004-04:00

This morning I worked at the Whiting Nature Preserve with the Friends of Webster Trails.
We had a big turnout.

Most of us broke up into groups and attacked any problems we saw, specifically on the Blue trail.

Others did some more work on a new trail off of the Red trail. I haven't even seen that progress yet. And still others did pruning on the blue and orange.

I worked mostly alone on some drainage runs off of several long sections of sloped trail. The idea is to allow water to flow off the trail instead of building up as it runs down the entire length. Erosion could be a problem, though in this case the water flow would be fairly slow. The bigger problem is the water collecting at the bottom of the hills, and sometimes having no place to go. Maybe I'll walk out there during the next heavy rainfall and see how things are working.

My family showed up at the end with watermelon slices for the group! Everyone was very appreciative!

Progress at BPW

2011-07-08T17:20:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow is a trail work day for the Friends of Webster Trails and I feel obligated to attend. That will eat up the morning and it's best to spend some weekend time with the family and on home projects. So I broke out of work to do some riding before the weekend at Bay Park West.

I tried the new Green trail which I've hiked before and helped build. I could ride more of the hill climbs than I thought I'd be able to. Still, some are too much. I rode it both ways, and both have their pros and cons. I don't have a strong preference yet. It's a cool trail, but I'm not sure it's my favorite. The mountain bikers I've talked to really like it.

After descending down to the south most parking area, I was able to make the climb back out. That's a first, and I wasn't particularly winded at the top. I stopped there to talk to some mountain bikers, but next time it would be cool to continue on and make the climb around the corner.

I also made good progress from the old trolley bed back to my car at Homewood. That's a long drawn out climb, with a few steeper points. I did UPD at one point, which sucked because it was totally doable. At that point I had to walk two feet to get to a place to remount. Without that UPD, I would have climbed the entire trail, which at the beginning of the season seemed impossible. Next time!

I rode just over 5 miles.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-07-08

Sprague Brook

2011-07-05T19:32:00.006-04:00

There is a trail system at Sprague Brook Park south of Buffalo in Glenwood, New York. It's just a few hours away from me.
I had originally heard about the trails last year from local riders and was told it might be difficult to ride muni there because it is rooty. But it's hard to rule out a trail without ever seeing it.

There is a mountain bike race in August at Sprague Brook called the Single Track Stampede II. Mj mentioned it to me and it looked like a good one.
I emailed the race coordinator and got the go ahead to ride muni at the race. But first I needed to test ride the course since I've never ridden there before.

So Mj and I drove out there today and gave it a try. They are definitely the most rooty trails I've ever seen. The roots are everywhere and they rarely let up. In the past this would have been an awful trail for me. But I guess I've gotten to a level of riding where it's actually fun to continuously pop over roots and pick the path of least resistance. It's a constant battle to power over the roots, rocks, and log piles on these trails. It's also a huge workout, but surprisingly my lower back did not fatigue like I would have expected. I've been trying to sit up and relax more whenever possible and I think it's helping.

At first Mj and I missed a turn and rode a cross country ski trail which is a much wider and smoother, dirt and rock trail. It was really the only place I used my high gear, but most of that isn't part of the race course.

Looking at a GPS map I found online, I may not have ridden the end of the course completely. But I certainly got a feel for it the trails. ROOTS! There were also, some good hillclimbs, some walking hillclimbs, a fun stream crossing, some cool rock armored sections, wood bridges, skinny bridges, small log piles, one big log pile (I had to walk), and... ROOTS! And a lot of it is right at the edge of a ravine, adding to the excitement.

I enjoyed it a lot and I will likely ride at the race in August.

My cycle computer said I went 9.9 miles, which is a little farther than my GPS. I guess all those ups and downs aren't accounted for on GPS.

Muni at Sprague Brook Park- 2011-07-05

Long Ride at Whiting and Webster

2011-07-01T12:50:00.004-04:00

I took another vacation day and decided to spend the morning riding. I went to Whiting and Webster Park. Last time I was there it was a disaster with crazy amounts of mud and water from the spring rains. There is very little mud there now, but the once muddy parts are still scarred with ruts and depressions. It's totally rideable, just bumpier.

With all the riding I've been doing I've been feeling stronger. This definitely showed during today's ride. While it still took a strong effort to climb the hills I always ride, I succeeded every time and was not nearly as out of breath as in the past.

I rode the red trail in both directions. This is the hardest trail in Whiting and I rarely ride it. Riding south to north, there was one hill climb that was too much, a big log, and a short section of crazy tall roots that I stepped off for. Going north to south, I was able to climb everything, except the tall roots section which is part of a climb. The big log got me again. Oh, I did have get off for a step up to the boardwalk. It's narrow and there are railings that make it difficult to side hop up.

I saw an old coworker and chatted for about 10 minutes. It was good to catch up a bit, but I prefer to keep riding. I encountered a couple with a few dogs, and their small dog was afraid of me. I had to walk about 20 feet off the trail before it was willing to pass by! The owners were laughing so much. They didn't know their dog was afraid of unicycles! Later another little dog walking way ahead of its owner decided to climb a hill with me. But halfway through he turned around and started growling. I dismounted and made friends before starting the climb over.

Overall, it was a good strong ride. Both cycle computer and GPS agreed with about 15.5 miles.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-07-01

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #3

2011-06-28T22:17:00.005-04:00

Even though I rode in Syracuse today, I decided to give this week's Fat Tire Weeknight race a try.

The juniors all went before the adult racers this time, and we waited for them to complete. So I didn't have them chasing me and passing. Plus I didn't have to fix anyone's chain this time!

There were a few female beginner riders that I kept up with. I was near one of them for most of my first lap. I was able to power over a log I usually dismount for, right in front of her. So that was cool. I like to show those two-wheelers what's possible.

Unfortunately my lower back was fatigued and my first lap was my last. It felt like a bad idea to keep going. Oh well.

It had rained earlier today and some of the trail had bit puddles and muddy turns. Unfortunately this was in the area that I had found my high gear to be most effective. But having to be cautious on the turns slowed me down and caused me to UPD several times. It can be hard to keep the high gear going in those conditions, and probably added to my fatigue.

The next race in this series will be in two weeks due to the 4th of July.

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #3 - 2011-06-28

Muni at Skytop

2011-06-28T20:58:00.006-04:00

Yesterday I got an email from Steveyo, one of my Albany muni friends. He was going to be in Syracuse today and wanted to know if I was up for a ride. Hell yeah!

I took a vacation day and drove almost 2 hours to the Skytop trails in Syracuse.
The trails are in the wooded areas around an old rock quarry. "Private Property" signs are posted all around, but it is well known place to ride. I've heard of people getting in trouble for trespassing, but it's rare. The only other alternatives were trails that sounded too easy, or were too far out of our way. I stopped at The Bikery bike shop along the way for advice about Skytop. One of the guys there convinced me that we'd be ok there, despite the legalities. Thanks!

The trails we rode were almost all singletrack. It had a great combination of smooth flowy dirt and many rock gardens. It challenged us both very nicely. We found ourselves trying and retrying technical areas. Having Steveyo there helped push me a bit, especially with rocky step-like descents. But there were a good number of difficult sections we gave up on or had to skip. They'll be waiting for us next time, and we both agreed there should be a next time. Plus there are trails we didn't have time to explore.

We don't know of any muni riders in Syracuse. I wonder if we are the first ones to visit Skytop.

Muni at Skytop - 2011-06-25

Dryer: Prune in June

2011-06-26T13:52:00.004-04:00

I went back to Dryer this morning for some light trail work. There were about a dozen of us and we cut back the vegetation along the sides of Epping Forest and, I believe, Gully Down. The two head guys, Rick and Victor, fixed some of the Epping Forest trail where mud has been an issue. One fix was a reroute.

After the work, I rode a bit. I tried to ride up Kasha again, but got hung up on a root and walked the top section. I headed directly to Chutes and Ladders to see if I could do any better without riding Epping Forest first. I did have more energy and climbed more, but still I couldn't ride some. I'll keep working on it. I was able to get over a good log pile though. I also got higher up Elevator, but at one point the grade increases and it feels impossible. Maybe someday I'll be more capable.

I rode back down, rested for a minute, and headed back up Kasha. This time I made the climb! Then I rode Tree Beard and Ziggy and headed back down.
I rode just over 4 miles according to my cycle computer.

Two Year Unicycling Anniversary

2011-06-25T22:27:00.006-04:00

Recreating my longest ride on day 1 has become a tradition:

2011 Fat Tire Festival Test Run

2011-06-25T13:07:00.010-04:00

The Fat Tire Festival at Dryer Rd Park is on July 16th. Last year I got permission but then decided to skip it. It's a tough course for me and I was afraid of getting in the way of mountain bikers.

This year I have a little more confidence because of my recent races, but I'm still a bit nervous. I rode this morning at Dryer, following the posted course map. It's supposed to be 5 miles, but both my GPS and cycle computer told me it's under 4. Closer to 3.5 miles actually. Hmm.

I think I followed it right, with the exception of some of the parking lot area. But if anything I'd think I rode a little extra:

Under 4 miles doesn't seem like a big challenge, but Dryer has a lot of hill climbs. In the race, Beginners do 1 lap, Sports 2, and Experts 3. I think a single lap will do.
Looking at last year's results, I would finish about 5 minutes after the last beginner male mountain biker (excluding the very last, who was significantly later).

This was my first ride at Dryer this year and I was very pleased with myself. For the first time, I climbed Kasha! Last year I had to walk the upper half. I was panting heavily at the top, but kept moving down the slope across the field. Then it's up a small hill around the perimeter. Last year, I remember walking this, having not recovered from Kasha yet. But this time it was totally doable! The next section has enough descent to keep me going for a bit, though I did UPD once for no good reason. I continued through a couple of good climbs on Epping Forest that have always been challenging. Woo hoo! From the start to that point, I had a great run! But much of Epping Forest was muddy and had to be walked. I actually slipped and fell on my butt while walking. I did better than ever on the final hill climb of Epping Forest. But then Chutes and Ladders kicked my butt as always. The climbs (ladders) are too much for me by then. My lower back was fatiguing. SSW was muddy but ridable. By the time I get to Elevator, the main hill is just too steep to ride. But then it's into the field trail and I engaged my Schlumpf. I remember last year I couldn't shift well enough to use it. The rest is downhill through Gully Down and Kaliedoscope. So overall it was a stronger ride that last year's test run.

It helped that there was low humidity and it was cooler out.

Muni at Dryer - 2011-06-25

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #2

2011-06-21T21:31:00.007-04:00

Tonight I rode again at the Fat Tire Weeknight Series mountain bike race. This time the family didn't join me, and registration was a snap. No paperwork and I already had my number.

Without my family I kind of stood around by myself waiting for the racing to start. A few curious riders chatted briefly, and Tom and Matt from Tryon stopped to chat.

Once again I started at the back of the beginner pack, and the juniors started something like a minute behind. And once again at least some of them caught up with me. And once again one of them had a chain fall off! It's kind of sad to see some little kid standing on the side not knowing what to do while his buddies all ride away. Of course I stopped and fixed it for him, this time having to grab the chain and yank out from between his frame and little ring. Greasy hand. Yay! So that's twice now that the only guy without a chain had to fix one! Hahaha!

The course was modified slightly to avoid a somewhat dilapidated bridge. I don't think anyone thought the bridge was really unsafe, but I guess the insurance company thought different. I think the detour added a touch more distance onto the race, but not much.

I raised my seat about a 1/2" in the hopes it might help my lower back fatigue. I also tried to be more conscious of my posture. I think I might lean my upper body too far forward sometimes, especially on hill climbs. I still ended up with some fatiguing, but not as much. So I might be onto something.

As I have gotten to know the course, I've found some great areas to shift my Schlumpf hub into high gear. I really felt like I was cruising in places.

I think I did better on hill climbs than last week, but unfortunately there were a bunch of climbs that got interrupted by a rider approaching faster from behind. I have no choice but to dismount and let them pass. They often apologize, but I'm a guest in their race so I've got to stay out of the way. And then sometimes there is a train of other riders I have to wait for to pass. Though I guess it's a good way to catch my breath. I didn't stop to rest like I did last race.

Between the Schlumpf and resting less, I shaved about 7 minutes off my time. Last week my time was 1:24. This time 1:17. I had thought I might have done even better than that, but it's a step in the right direction.

Once again I got a ton of positive comments from riders as they passed and from spectators as I passed. I kept hearing "Go uni-man!!" There was also a swimming event going on and the racers ride down a hill adjacent to the pool. The first time I rode past I got a huge cheer. All the positive comments help to keep me moving.

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #2 - 2011-06-21

Fat Tire Challenge 2011

2011-06-20T18:52:00.017-04:00

In Butler, Pennsylvania there are a group of unicyclists called the Butler Wobbles. Dave, the leader of the group raced last year in the Fat Tire Challenge. It's a mountain bike race in the town of Sigel. He rode the whole 14+ mile course and impressed a lot of people. This year, Dave worked with the race organizers to include a unicycle class in the race.
I heard about it online and decided to go. So I took Friday off, and the family and I drove the four hours and camped at the nearby Clear Creek State Park.

On Saturday morning we scurried to get up and ready for the race. There was a kids race that was supposed to start at 9:45, and although we got there in time, that race was already underway. Apparently the kids had lined up and were ready to go early, so they just let them go. We rushed to get Sydney out there and she was able to get a lap in. Kyle didn't bother, but both kids got goodie bags and were ok with that.

The big race didn't start until 11:00, so I had some time to ride around and check out the venue. There were a lot of wheels around, but it was fairly easily to spot the ones I was interested in.
In total, there were six of us muni riders at the event. Dave, Andy, Isaac, and Connor came from about an hour or two away, and Claude was from Maryland.

There were race announcements explaining the how the racers would line up. Unicyclists would start last, of course. We would do about 7.7 miles, while the mountain bikers would either do 14 or 21 depending on their class. There would be arrows all over the course to guide us. That's all I needed to know. Or was it?
The race started on a dirt road with an uphill and downhill. I was able to use my Schlumpf on the downhill and keep up with Dave and Claude. Dave rode a 26" wheel, Claude a 29", and I rode my 24". The other three riders were not far behind. After a few minutes we turned into a trail and it wasn't long before we started spacing out. Dave was pulling away from Claude, and Claude from me. I never really looked back to see the other three riders, and I didn't see them for the rest of the race. The terrain varied a lot, from double track, to dirt road, to single track. Some areas were very technical and I doubt even the mountain bikers road it. There were a lot of big rocks jutting out of the trail. Many of them could be navigated around or over, but in some places it was more like a trials course. It also must have rained recently, because a lot of rocks and roots were wet, and there was mud every once in while. My wheel slipped out from under me causing a few UPDs.

There was a point, still fairly early on where Claude had pulled away significantly, but we popped out onto a dirt road. I was able to gain on him a bit using my Schlumpf. But it wasn't long before he pulled away again, and I didn't see him until the end.

The only people I passed were some bikers. Two had technical difficulties and ended up passing me later. Two others looked like a father and son just enjoying the experience together. Towards the end I passed a woman on an uphill dirt road climb, but she cruised away down the other side.

It felt like one of my typical rides when I push myself. Though if I was riding in my own trails, I would have found an alternative route around some of the unrideable areas. Nothing too eventful happened, and I just kept pushing forward. There was a sign at 5 miles, which seemed to come pretty quick.

Very close to the end I was riding down a dirt road. Dave was heading toward me and said the end was just up the hill. Just before that there was a hydration station with people cheering and handing water to riders, if they wanted some. Amy, Syd, Kyle, and Kessa were there. I knew the race would end for the unicyclists very shortly after this, and the mountain bikers would be continuing on through the second half of the course.

Who could ask for a more supportive family?
As I rode down what was supposed to be the final hill I somehow forgot that I all I had to do was stay on the road. Ahead I could see a few bikers that passed me had followed the orange arrow off the road and onto a trail. I had been following arrows the whole race and for some reason as I approached, it didn't even occur to me that I was supposed to stay on the road to the finish. No one was there to guide me and there were no signs, other than the arrow. So I turned off the road and headed down the trail for a while. I kept wondering if I had made a mistake and finally after cruising down a long double-track trail for what must have been 10 minutes, I decided this could not be right. I kept hearing Dave say, "The finish is just up the hill".

So finally I turned around and headed back. I got back to the road, headed down and found the finish line was right around the corner. Ugh! I had wasted what seemed like 15 or 20 minutes. In hindsight it seems obvious that I should have stayed on the road.

I came through the finish and found I had come in 4th. Dave was first, then Claude, and while I was lost, Andy had finished. I was pissed at myself for making that mistake. I explained what had happened to the other riders and Andy was quick to say I should have third place. I would have come through the finish line about 8 minutes before him. Amy took pictures of the uni riders as they passed the hydration station. Looking back at the time stamps on the pictures, I was a little less than two minutes behind Claude. Given that I had gained ground on him on the roads with my Schlumpf, I bet I would have come in less than two minutes after him, had I ridden the right way. I didn't want to take anything away from Andy, but I also felt cheated because there wasn't a sign to tell me what I was supposed to go straight. There were some fun signs along the trail saying things like "Your wife called. She says it's either her or the bike." Then 1000 feet later, "Looks like you chose the bike." Ha ha ha! If only there was a sign for the unicyclists to go straight! Thankfully Andy really didn't seem to care and we all talked to the organizer to correct the placing.

I guess my brain wasn't with me, because I also forgot to turn my GPS on before the race. And I didn't reset my cycle computer either. Ugh. I feel like the GPS trail would have been proof of how I had messed up. But I guess I'm the only one worried about it, and everyone seemed cool.

There was food available after the race, but I wasn't hungry. I had downed three energy gel packs along the way.

Awards were announced for all the many classes: experts, sports, men, women, age groups, single speed, Clydesdale, and unicycles. The awards were machined plexi-glass. Most looked like cogs, but the unicyclists' awards were unicycles. I felt bad again that Andy, having given me third, wasn't getting one. Though I would have done the same. He had to hit the road before the awards ceremony began, so I was kind of glad he wasn't still there for me to feel bad about.
In the upper left picture, from left to right: Claude, Isaac, Andy, Connor, Dave, me.

Dave gave each of us a laser etched Butler Wobble drinking glass, a key-chain, and some stickers. So I got some really great mementos from the race.
Aside from actually riding, the best part was talking to the other unicyclists. One thing I learned was that none of them had any lower back muscle fatigue while they ride. Last year at Schenectady, no one had that problem either. And yet it's got to be my number one problem while riding. I now feel like I HAVE to figure out why my back gets so fatigued and then fix it. If I can do that, I'll be a much stronger rider.

After chatting with Dave and Andy for a long time about the race, trails, and unicycle clubs, the family and I headed back to the campground to stay another night.
I was kicking myself for the next day about riding off the course. I've learned my lesson to totally understand the course ahead of time. Looking back, had I studied the map better and listened better, it could have been avoided. After all, the other uni riders did it fine. Dummy.

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #1

2011-06-14T23:59:00.004-04:00

Tonight I raced at the first Fat Tire Weeknight Series mountain bike race at the YMCA Camp Arrowhead. I posted about investigating these trails a few weeks ago.

A week or so ago I stopped into Park Ave Bike shop and talked to the owner, Andy August, about me participating on my muni. I actually worked for Andy at Park Ave Bike Shop back when I was in college, over 15 years ago. He granted me permission.

I've been nervous on and off for the past few days. I've never ridden with a single mountain biker before, much less over 50 of them... racing! I was mostly worried about getting in their way, and envisioned some of them getting pissed at me.

The whole family came with me, which was nice. Before the big race started there was a kids race. Sydney participated in that one, as the ages went up to 7. I was too nervous and busy figuring out where to zip-tie my race number to really watch her. But I hear she did well and she says she liked it. I ended up zip-tying my number between my spokes. #148

Kyle also raced, but in the actually race, as a Junior level. His age group did a single lap. He doesn't really ride his 24" wheel mountain bike on trails much, and before leaving he said he didn't want to race at all. But once we got there he changed his mind. I was a bit nervous for him, because I know there are some challenging climbs and downhills. An inexperienced rider could definitely get out of control and get hurt, or at least very frustrated and discouraged. Plus, despite bringing shorts in the car to change into, he decide to stay in jeans. If he wasn't going to ride, that would be ok, because it was unseasonably cold today, in the lower 60's. But, Kyle is Kyle, and he wore his jeans. He turned out to be ok, but I'm sure some people saw it as a bit weird.

Each lap was supposed to be something like 2 miles.

Experts went first, starting their journey of 7 laps. After about a minute, Sport started their 5 laps. Then beginner with 3 laps. That's where I was. I positioned myself at the back of the group. I got a sudden burst of anxiety as we were about to start, but nothing too bad. The start was actually not at the finish line, but went around the perimeter of a baseball field and passed the finish line. I'm not sure why the finish line just wasn't where we started, but ok.

If you click on the picture below you can see me at the start, though it's a bit of a Where's Waldo. My head is at the corner of the white tent in about the middle of the picture. There's a wheel that almost looks like it must be mine, but it's really the back wheel of a biker. This is just the beginner class and the juniors waiting behind.

As we got going, it became clear that I was slower than all the beginners, but that was expected. I shifted into my Schlumpf for some of the field, but had a UPD towards the end of it. I'm not a big fan of riding on grassy areas because potholes are not easy to detect. That's what got me. It got me again on the second lap. Grr.
Right after the field, I entered single-track, and started feeling winded pretty quick. That happens to be at the beginning of most of my rides. I guess I gotta get warmed up. But it's scary at that point to think how much farther I have to go and I'm already feeling crappy.

I believe there were two Junior classes that started after me. It wasn't long before I was being passed by some of them. I guess that was a bit discouraging, but I hoped I overtake them later. I saw Kyle every once in a while. He passed me too. I was glad to see he was doing well. At one point I helped a kid get his chain back on. At the end of the race he told his parents the unicycle guy helped him. hehe.

The race route was certainly different than what I has test ridden a few weeks ago. In fact, they had made new trails there altogether. There was a pretty significant switchback climb, which unfortunately was too much for me to ride in one go. I did ride a bunch of it, but probably walked at least half. I always feel like I'm doing the walk of shame, but hey... maybe someday I'll be more capable. New trails are always a bit softer and harder to ride, but these weren't all that bad. Perhaps the dozens of bikers ahead of me had paved the way.

Somewhere in that first lap the experts were starting to pass. Pretty much the standard routine was for them to yell "On your left" and for me to hug the right and keep riding, or when the trail was particularly skinny, for me to hop off and stand to the side, often in the weeds. I could usually hear them as they got close, and often didn't need any verbal cues. I got a lot of "Thanks" and a whole lot of encouragement and compliments for riding muni. "That's hardcore!" "You rock!" "You're awesome" "Go uni man!" Much appreciated.

There were some Tryon team riders there too. In the parking lot one of them (sorry!! I forget his name... again) asked if I wanted a Tryon jersey to wear. I asked if he had a small, but he didn't. At one point, he and another Tryon rider passed me and one said something like "Passing teammates!" I'm tempted to interpret that as an acceptance onto the Tryon team. I'm not sure if there's any requirements to do that, or what that would really mean, other than wearing their jersey, but it felt like respect and felt good. I really did get a lot of great compliments throughout the whole event. I really appreciated it all, and don't really feel all that worthy. The other racers were pushing themselves and working very hard too. I'm just using different skills.

Somewhere probably half a mile before my last lap I saw caught up to Kyle and expressed my concern about doing another lap, much less two. I was feeling it in my lower back. But as the course eased up a little bit, I guess I got a second wind. I passed by the finish point and moved on to my second lap.

But soon my back was getting bad again, and after walking up a short steep hill I needed to rest. I decided to down one of my PowerBar energy gels. Tangerine with twice the caffeine! I was hoping it would give me some more energy, but definitely wasn't thinking about it helping my back. But within minutes I realized my lower back suddenly felt just fine. Huh... maybe there's something there. Of course, it didn't last for the rest of the race, but it was great while it lasted. On the topic of nutrition, I used my CytoMax mix in my CamelBak. And about 48oz was enough for the entire race, and post race. But then, it was cool out so I wasn't sweating too crazy.

At one point in my second lap a mountain biker was about to pass in a tight section. I pull over and held onto a small tree. I was on an incline, and after he passed, I unintentionally did a funny pivot thing, turned around and basically fell before I ever got going again. I raked my shin down my pedal, but didn't really think anything of it. It wasn't until the end of the race that I saw I had a small amount of bleeding. And it wasn't until I got home that I noticed some swelling. It's nothing too bad, but it's funny how those kinds of injuries are unnoticed when you're really pushing yourself.

Throughout the race, at certain bridges and open areas, Amy and the kids, and miscellaneous spectators cheered for me. At the end of lap two, I stopped at the finish line. Everyone cheered as if I had finished my three laps. I corrected them and just said I was taking a break.

But even the time keepers looked baffled. Hmm. I was feeling pretty spent, but I considered going for my third lap. I asked for my time to determine if people would be standing around waiting for me at the end. My time at that point was about 55 minutes. And I knew from looking at last years times that some of the expert and sport riders finished at about 1 hour 30 minutes. So I decided to try for another. Amy looked a bit concerned, because that's her job, but I really didn't want a DNF (did not finish) posted.

Lap three didn't seem too bad. I did stop for another energy gel. This time it was a strawberry flavored Clif Shot energy gel. The package shows a coffee cup on it with "1/2". I haven't looked into it, but I guess that's half a cup of coffee worth of caffeine. I any case, it didn't consciously notice any difference after that one, but who knows. Maybe those "x2 caffeine" gels are better?

On one of the final hill climbs of my last lap, I got a crazy cramp in my right calf. Well, I'm calling it a cramp, but it was caused from pushing really hard on the climb. Is that a cramp? Anyway... Holy bejesus! I literally dropped to the ground and rolled around, swearing and groaning for a moment. I stumbled to the high side of the trail and sat there for a few minutes. Probably about six riders passed in that time, and several of them asked if I was ok. "Cramped up. But I'm ok.", I said. Thanks for checking guys. After a few minutes I walked until I had some friendlier flat ground and continued on. I could feel some after effects on my calf, but it wasn't bad.

As I rounded the field in my final lap, my eye caught a small person charging at me from the side. It kind of startled me, but it turned out to be Sydney, and she ran beside me as I finished. I got some good cheer from the crowd.

After chilling for a bit, shaking some hands, and getting some compliments, I walked over to the time keepers to check my time. 55 minutes. WHAT! That was my second lap time, but they had written it in the third lap place! And I had no third lap time written anywhere. Ugh. Thankfully, Amy had been taking pictures of me as I approached, and rider #6 was caught in a picture. Knowing he finished just before me, the time keepers estimated my time. Though once the results are posted I'll have to check. I think they make have just given me his time. We'll see. I think it was about 1 hour 24 minutes.

I think all the other beginners had finished their 3 laps about the time I finished my second. Maybe that explains the funny look when I informed people I had only finished my second lap. In the reports I get from other muni riders racing with mountain bikers, it ALWAYS sound like they pass mountain bikers and finish ahead of some. I guess I'm just not there yet. Or maybe this trail was different. It's hard to say, but I'm at least a tad bit disappointed from that perspective.

On the other hand, on the first lap I couldn't imagine doing any more. And on the second lap I had thought my back was going to break. But I pushed myself and finished the 3 laps I signed up for. So I'm overall pleased with my performance.

It is great to finally know what it's like to race with mountain bikers. Thanks to Andy August of the Park Ave Bike shop for allowing me. Thanks to the countless mountain bikers and spectators who encouraged and praised me. And special thanks to my great family for their support!

I can't say for sure I'll be racing again next week. It will undoubtedly be hotter. But it would be cool to try to beat my time, and continue to represent muni.

My cycle computer says it was 7 miles.

Fat Tire Weeknight Series Race #1 - 2011-06-11

Trail Work at BPW

2011-06-12T12:28:00.003-04:00

I attended this morning's trail work at Bay Park West. There were seven of us. We did some benching and clearing on the green trail. The route of some of the trail was not completely defined yet. What we ended up with is great.

I missed last weeks BPW work and could now see what that group had done on the green trail. They did a lot of benching. It looked really good, but there is still plenty of work to do.

I'm looking forward to riding it.

Good Muni at BPW

2011-06-11T10:22:00.006-04:00

I arrived at Bay Park West this morning just after 8:00. I wanted to beat the heat and rain, and I did.

I'm happy with my ride because I made some good accomplishments. I climbed some hills I've never finished before, got farther up several, side hopped a nice log, and got down a small ravine that I didn't last time.

There are several trail heads into BPW, but I favor the Homewood Lane entrance, on the west side of the park. The others ways start with significant hill climbs. Once I get closer to those trail heads on the east side, there is basically three downhills to choose from. The all currently are dead ends and thus require me to come back the same way. Unlike last time, I chose the one I favor and skipped the others completely. I wanted to save more energy this time for the way back. In the future the green trail will create a loop. But to my knowledge that trail is not officially complete. There is a new boardwalk leading into it from the east. That looked pretty nice!

The downside of starting from Homewood is that it leaves a long hill climb for me at the end of my ride, when I'm most tired. Today I may have discovered a technique to help me with this. All I did was went very slow. Before I knew it I was farther than I had gotten in the past. I still ended up walking up a good portion, but progress was made, and for the first time I feel like that climb is possible for me.

I rode 4 miles:

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-06-11

Lighter Weight Tube

2011-06-10T21:58:00.004-04:00

I wanted to try a lighter weight tube in my KH24. The whole unicycle is heavy, especially with the Schlumpf hub, but there isn't a lot of room for weight loss. One thing I have heard of is "rotational weight". It's something about how it takes more energy to move a pound of the rotating wheel and a pound of the rest of the uni. Weight on the outside of the wheel has a greater effect than on the inside.

The tube I've been riding with is the stock one, so I assume it is a heavy duty Duro brand tube that normally comes with it. By "heavy duty" I mean it is made of thicker rubber to help it endure the stressed of the most extreme muni riding. While riding a unicycle off-road may be considered extreme by itself, there are plenty of riders out there doing way more extreme riding than me. So I'm hoping a lighter tube will survive just fine and give me a lighter wheel.

I've read about some riders do this have having no problems, while others get flats soon after. So I'm still a bit concerned.

I had to call 5 bike shops before finding a 24x3 tube. Giant brand. I had heard Specialized brand tubes were good, but none of the Specialized dealers in town stocked a 24x3 tube. It's kind of odd. I found it at Towner's.
I weighed both the new and old tube using a cheap postal scale.
I don't now how accurate it is but here's what I got:

Duro: just over 15 oz. (425g)
Giant: 10 oz (284g)

I gave my new one a test spin around the neighborhood. I want to say I felt a difference, but it could easily be psychological.

But then again, my wheel's circumference is about 77", so that's about 4114 rotations in a 5 mile muni ride, which means I'm moving over 20,500 extra ounces around... that's 1285 pounds! Sounds good to me... whether it's logically sound or not!

Hot Ride at Tryon

2011-06-08T22:15:00.007-04:00

I rode this morning at Tryon. With the heat, it makes sense to ride early in the day, but it was still hot.
Just like with my last ride at Bay Park West, this was my first time to Tryon this year and a lot of trail work has been done. The new trails and improvements were good, but Tryon is still a very tough place to ride. I still don't know my way around completely, and I think I sometimes ride trails in the more difficult direction. I need to come back and work on picking a smarter route.

In my exploration of energy supplements, today I tried using grape flavored CytoMax powder in my CamelBak water.

I liked the taste a lot. It wasn't too sweet. But did it help me? Of course, once again, it's hard to say. But with a 5 pound canister, I plan on using it again!

There was a big snapping turtle crossing a trail I was on, so I dismounted. He began turning to face me as I walked past him. I think he would have snapped at me if I were a bit slower!

I rode about 5.5 miles. Actually, probably 20% of that was walking. It's a tough place.
Here's my GPS map:

Muni at Tryon - 2011-06-08

Do Energy Supplements Work?

2011-06-05T18:36:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I posted about my ride at Bay Park West and my use of No-Xplode, PowerBar gel, and other energy products. I questioned whether any of it made a difference.

Today my quadriceps are pretty sore. That's unusual and I wonder if I actually worked harder yesterday than I realized. Maybe the energy supplements actually did something?

I think I'll have to try it again soon.

Muni at Bay Park West

2011-06-04T12:57:00.008-04:00

I swear Mother Nature is against me. She knew I wanted to ride this morning and despite the 10% chance, it rained. But only a little, and it let up, so I headed to Bay Park West. This was my first time back there since last year.

It's a tough area to ride for me with its many hills. But I noticed the trails were smoother than last time, because they've been ridden a lot more since then. And they're in great condition.

I stopped in at Tryon Bike Shop yesterday and picked up some supplements to try.
At home, before leaving for my ride, I ingested a Rocket Chocolate Honey Stinger bar and half a serving of No-Xplode.

The instructions on the No-Xplode make it seem like you're going to turn into Mr. Hyde if you take too much. It suggests taking half a serving to start and wait an hour to see the effects. I didn't bring the second half with me.

I was expecting to feel some kind of super power boost. I figured I'd be jumping of the walls... err trees. Not so much.

Probably 30 minutes into my ride I was wondering where my extra energy was. It's a tough place to ride, so I decided to down a PowerBar energy gel pack. It was the Double Latte flavor with twice the caffeine.

I continued my ride and never felt anything special.

At some point on my journey out of the trails I was feeling a bit hungry. I ate a few bites of a PowerBar.

I completed my ride feeling like I usually do.

I did ride up more hills than I have there, but there were still plenty of hills I ran out of steam on. There were plenty of times that I stopped for minutes to catch my breath. I feel like I met my expectations given my current fitness and skill levels.
So I'm not convinced any of those energy food/supplements helped. I wish I could have a vision of the alternate reality for comparison.

It started raining about 20 minutes before I got out of the trails. The trails started to get a bit greasy, but nothing too bad.

I rode 5.4 miles, which is a lot for me, on those trails.
I mapped my ride, but EveryTrail.com doesn't seem to be working. I'll try again later.

EDIT: Finally, two days later, my EveryTrail upload is working.

Muni at Bay Park West - 2011-06-14

South Tryon Trail Work

2011-06-01T21:58:00.004-04:00

Tonight I joined the trail work crew in south Tryon. We added material to some wet spots, armored a few places where water runoff crosses the trail, and de-bermed some.
There was a lot of poison ivy in the area and I wasn't very careful to avoid it. I was told multiple times that I was standing in it. Whoops!

On the advice of a co-trailworker I stopped at CVS and bought some Technu cleaner to remove poison ivy oils from my skin, clothes, shoes, and tools. Hopefully it works!

Checked Out Camp Arrowhead

2011-06-01T12:46:00.007-04:00

There is a mountain bike race series put together by Park Ave Bike Shop and a local YMCA camp that starts in a few weeks. It's called the Fat Tire Weeknight Race Series. Five races will be held at the Camp Arrowhead YMCA trails on Tuesday evenings starting June 13th.

There are Beginner (3 laps), Sport (5 laps), and Expert (7 laps) classes, for mountain bikes. Of course there is no muni class.

Before I asked the organizers if I could join in with my muni, I wanted to investigate the trails. You are supposed to be a YMCA member to ride there, but I asked around and learned that the program director there, Mike, would probably be ok with it, especially if I explained.

So I went there this morning and rode a few laps around. I spent a fair amount of time just figuring out which trails were which and how to get on them, just like with any new trail system. The land is adjacent to Powder Mills Park, which is a county park and does not allow biking, and the trails run together. So it was kind of tricky to stay in the right area. The trail markers aren't always clear. I did have a map, which helped.

But even with the map, I didn't hit all the trails the right way. I think I strayed out of the property a few times. Of rourse for a race the trails will be marked way better.

The trails aren't bad, though not all that exciting: some rooty areas, some trail along cliffs, a few significant hill climbs, and a few significant downhills. I don't know what the race course will be, but 3 laps is likely going to be plenty for me. So I'll see if I can join the Beginner class. I'll have to contact Park Ave Bike.

I met a few of the YMCA employees near the parking lot. One of them was Mike, the program director who it was recommended I talk to. He was very nice and excited to see the mountain unicycle. We talked a bunch about the sport and he showed me some of the work he's been doing on the trails. It's always good to see some people actively working on trails. He's in need of some workers to do some trail benching, so I may be back for some trail work soon. As it is now, you'd have to buy a full YMCA membership even if you only wanted to use the trails once in a while. That's way too expensive. We talked about the possibility of having much cheaper trail-use passes.

I only rode 4 miles. And probably 10% of that was walking, either uphill or trying to figure out where to ride.

Muni at Camp Arrowhead - 2011-06-01

IMBA Trail Solutions

2011-05-31T20:35:00.004-04:00

I've been working more and more on the local trails. I've learned a lot from different crew members, but I wanted a good book on the subject.

The most popular book seems to be IMBA's Trail Solutions. IMBA is the International Mountain Bicycling Association. They seem to be all about sustainable trails.

I just received my copy of this book today and I'm looking forward to studying up!

Schlumpf Maintenance

2011-05-31T20:22:00.006-04:00

It is commonly known amongst Schlumpf hub owners that their crank arms will loosen fairly quickly over time. It's been a few months since I last checked mine, and sure enough they needed tightening.
It's recommended to torque them to 25-35 ft-lbs. I aimed for 30, but worked my way up from about 15. I'm always nervous about over-torquing. I was surprised to find I was actively tightening at about 20 ft-lbs. I had even used blue loctite in the past. It clearly did not hold.

For any Schlumpf owners who may stumble upon this post, I recommend you push the back of your wrench with one hand to keep the hex socket seated well while you tighten. I've rounded one of the Schlumpf bolts in the past.

I also added another 2.5 ml of grease to my Schlumpf. It naturally leaks some out over time, and it felt like it was time.

Another Whiting Inspection

2011-05-30T23:00:00.001-04:00

Last night we had a big thunderstorm, adding more water to the already muddy Whiting Road Nature Preserve.
I decided to hike the trail again this morning and document the water issues. This time I took a picture of every single issue and landmark.
Later I added annotated the pictures and added them to my GPS trip on EveryTrail.com. Although my camera does not have a GPS feature, EveryTrail is able to place them on its map based on the time stamp. After using the time offset feature on EveryTrail.com, the images fell into place fairly well.

Seeing the map and slideshow together works better at the EveryTrail site. Click the link to see that:

Whiting Blue Trail Water Issues - 2011-05-30

Bay Park West Trail Work

2011-05-29T13:10:00.006-04:00

This morning I joined the trail crew at Bay Park West. We spent over three hours at the trails. A few of the crew members worked on some armoring before a bridge, and the rest of worked on benching a hill.

It's amazing how a hillside that you can hardly walk on becomes a manageable trail.
There were about 12 of us working and the amount of work done was impressive.
I gotta bring a camera next time. Update: I got some images capture by a fellow worker. See below.

Riding muni at BPW is difficult due to the never-ending hills, but I'm still looking forward to heading there when things are dry enough. It's very close.
I'm crossing my fingers for no rain for the next 24 hours. Maybe I'll try to ride there tomorrow.

Family Ride

2011-05-28T22:06:00.005-04:00

For the first time I rode with the entire family with me on my uni.

We rode in the area neighborhoods, about 4.4 miles. But the fun part about it is that I'm not slowing us down, thanks to my geared hub.

My average speed was 8.8 mph, and my top speed was 12.6 mph. I even had to slow down several times for the slow poke... who will remain nameless. Good thing she wasn't on her unicycle. Wait, have I said too much? ;-)

Inspecting Blue Trail Water Issues at Whiting

2011-05-27T20:58:00.012-04:00

The blue trail at Whiting has some serious water and mud issues. I had mentioned these problems to the Tryon crew, and Frank offered to walk through the trail with me and analyze the situation. He's a trail manager who leads many of the work days at Tryon and Bay Park West.

Tonight we walked the trail and looked at the sections with issues.

We came to the conclusion that Whiting is a different animal than Tryon or Bay Park West. In those parks, there is so much elevation change that any standing water can typically be convinced to move. Digging a trench, de-berming, and pitching the trail can be used to shed the water. But at Whiting, there aren't as many opportunities for those techniques.

Looking back at my notes, Frank and I decided that at least part of the solution to the majority of problem areas was to add material. These sections are simply lower than their surroundings, so raising them is the only solution, aside from rerouting the trail. Building the trails up has already been done in much of Whiting. I've heard some of the long-time trail crew talk about it, and it's obvious in places. Sometimes there's four inches of standing water on both sides of the crushed rock trail. It's impressive how much material was brought in.

There were a few locations that could have been improved by de-berming and adding a pitch to the trail.

There were also a few hills that the water flows down. Although there isn't enough water flow to cause severe erosion, those section do seem to be wet. They also feed the water problems at the hill bottoms. To prevent this, having several pitch changes periodically down the hill would encourage water to the side, instead of continuing to the bottom.

Much of the trail was too muddy to actually work on. But I saw a few places that I had worked on at a previous Friends of Webster Trails work day. Some of the fixes helped keep water off the trail, but others were not doing as much good as I had hoped. Those were in very muddy sections that are still holding the water like a sponge. Once those areas dry up, the dirt can be raked and grading can be done to fix the problems for the next rains.

There were many places that had standing water at the side of the trail. Peering through the surrounding vegetation, I could see the water goes on for a ways. It makes we wonder if there is opportunity further within the overgrowth to drain the water to another area. Some exploration may be in order.

Frank and I took some pictures along the way. I also took notes, and recorded our hike with GPS. I hope to find the time to put all this information together so I can keep track of the trail conditions over time.
For now, here are the photos:

Road Ride With Kyle and Ben

2011-05-26T20:16:00.004-04:00

Needing some exercise, I got Kyle and his friend Ben to ride their bikes with me through some neighborhood streets.
I rode in high gear the whole way, cruising along. They rode their BMX bikes and we matched speeds well.
4.5 miles.

More Tryon Trail Work

2011-05-25T21:17:00.003-04:00

This evening I attended another Tryon trail work meetup. There were about 10 of us working for a few hours. We blazed some trails (marked trees with paint), raked some leaf covered trails, armored a few wet sections (placed flat rocks), and did some general trail fixes.

Generally the conditions at Tryon are great. I want to get out there and ride soon!

Ridiculous Mud

2011-05-22T12:24:00.006-04:00

It's was rainy all last week, but this weekend started out perfect. Saturday was picture perfect, but I had household obligations and decided it was good to let the trails dry up some anyway.
So I saved my riding for this morning and went to Whiting and Webster Park.
I quickly discovered the trails are in the worse state I've ever seen them.
Places that tended to be greasy were now muddy. Places that tended to be muddy are now lakes.

It's clear that bad sections get worse if the rain keeps coming. But the problem is not the rain alone. The muddy areas have gotten so abused over the past month from people using the trails. Wet areas have become pits from boots and bikes. Those pits now hold water better than ever. They grow in size, becoming harder to avoid, get more traffic, and then get pitted even more. It's a vicious circle.

Temporary fixes may be possible to drain the standing water from these areas, but that still leaves a lot of water trapped in the mud. Unless these areas are left alone and are allowed to dry out, they will always be a problem. Once mostly dry, these areas can be graded to avoid the problems in the future. Though I noticed some previously "fixed" areas were having problems because the areas to the side of the trail could not hold enough water.

Many areas at Whiting and Webster Park have no grade, leaving them susceptible to water problems.

I rode my usual 6 mile loop.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-05-22

Tryon and Bay Park West Trail Maps

2011-05-15T11:09:00.006-04:00

Here's the latest trail map for Tryon Park:

And for Bay Park West:

These were made by the county.

Another Afternoon Ride

2011-05-12T20:00:00.002-04:00

Since rain is forecast for the next few days, I took a few hours off from work this afternoon and rode again at Whiting and Webster Park.
I felt like I was still recovering a bit from my ride a few days ago, but I was still stronger. Though maybe not as strong as I have been. I'm a bit amazed that I once rode three six mile laps there once.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-05-12

More Tryon Trail Work

2011-05-11T21:05:00.002-04:00

Tonight was another Tryon trail work night. I worked with the crew to bench some sections of a new trail that will replace an existing unsustainable one.

Benching means we cut the trail into a hillside. Here's an illustration:

Hopefully this new trail will be fun for me. But there are some significant climbs throughout it, at least on a unicycle. I think I could climb them if I was rested, but at Tryon one hill comes after the other. So I'm always winded unless I actually stop for a rest, which I never like to do.

Afternoon Muni at Whiting

2011-05-10T17:35:00.006-04:00

I took a few hours off from work and rode at Whiting and Webster Park today.
It's my first muni ride since being sick for weeks. I felt pretty good, but a little out of shape.

I did my usual 6 mile loop, and decided to try some more. But about 10 minutes into it I started to feel pretty weak. Being in the middle of the orange trail, I pushed on, but ended up stopping for a rest. I ate a Power Bar and chilled for about five minutes. I also ran out of water there. I should have filled my CamelBak more, but I tend to try to bring only what I'll need to avoid carrying the extra weight. I felt better after the rest and moved on. My attempts to climb the two remaining hills were pathetic. My legs just didn't want to work, but I made it to the car without any real problems.

I really enjoyed my Schlumpf hub today. I was really hauling through some areas. Downshifting is still causing me more problems than upshifting. I may adjust that shift button to stick out a bit more.

It was a good start to the real riding season!

I rode about 8 miles. According to my cycle computer, my average speed was 5.7 mph, and max speed was 11.3.

Muni at Whiting and Webster Park - 2011-05-11

Whiting Trail Work

2011-05-07T21:17:00.006-04:00

This morning I worked for three hours at the Whiting Road trails with the Friends of Webster Trails. The group worked on a variety of tasks throughout Whiting and in the Webster Park corridor to the Midnight Trail.

Most of the work had something to do with addressing water issues. That's very understandable considering how much rain we've gotten so far this spring.

I worked on the blue trail and some of the yellow trying to allow areas of standing water to drain off. Some of the sustainable trail methods I've learned from the Tryon and Bay Park West work days helped me. But some muddy places on the trail didn't seem to have a quick fix. If both sides of the trail are at the same level as the trail itself, where do you direct any water? In cases like that, it seems the trail was simply built in the wrong place. Maybe a bridge or a dry well could be used in the future, but for now, the sun will have to dry it up.

One of the other projects was starting to develop a new trail off the red trail. That sounds cool.

I didn't get a chance to see much of the work that was done, other than my own. I look forward to seeing it all next time I ride there.

After this weekend of no rain (fingers crossed), I hope the trails will all be dry enough to ride.

Tryon Trail Work

2011-05-04T20:08:00.008-04:00

Tonight I attended the Tryon Park Wednesday night trail work meeting.

We spend about an hour and a half walking the trails and breaking down berms on the low side of trails, where water tends to collect. The water creates mud, and when hikers and bikers walk through it, berms are inevitably created on the low side of the trail. More water can then collect and the problem grows.

We broke down the berms and creating a channel or knick for the water to flow out.

It was good to get out after being sick for a while. Now if it will just stop raining!

Sick and Rainy

2011-04-27T20:04:00.005-04:00

Two weeks ago I became sick with bronchitis. After a week or so, it mostly went away, but the tight irritated feeling in my upper chest still lingers. And I still have an annoying dry cough.

Aside from a bit of hopping in the driveway on Saturday, I haven't been out riding.
But even if I wanted to ride the trails, we've had so much rain it would undoubtedly be a muddy mess.

I guess it's good that my bronchitis overlaps the crappy weather. But the whole situation is frustrating. I wanted to get stronger early in the season. Instead I feel like I'm getting weaker.

It sounds like the persistent lung irritation left from bronchitis is common, and it can last many weeks. Hopefully I will be done with it soon. And hopefully by then the trails will be dry and ready to ride.

Springtime at Whiting

2011-04-09T20:04:00.005-04:00

Today I rode at Whiting and Webster Park. It was still wet and muddy in places, but most of it was ok.
This is my first real trail ride this spring. The Hojack doesn't really count because it's so flat.
I definitely felt a bit out of shape. I got winded faster than I used to at Whiting and didn't make it up all the hills I know I can. Because of that and the muddy conditions, I only rode one lap through Whiting and Webster.
I did make it up the hills in Webster Park.

I was able to use my high gear in a few places. But in many places where it's flat, I was too spent to consider using it. I preferred to take it easy, knowing I'd need the energy for whatever was up ahead.

It was just shy of 50°F according to the weather report. I wore shorts, a poly t-shirt, and a poly long sleeve shirt. Less than a mile in I had to remove the long sleeve shirt and felt perfect the rest of the time.

I forgot my GPS this time, but my cycle computer said 6 miles.

Checked the Hojack Again

2011-04-03T18:37:00.011-04:00

The ground is still too wet to be riding the trails with messing them up, but I rode the Hojack again anyway.
I don't really think it's a big deal, because the spots that are muddy should really be fixed anyway. And I see other people actively using the trail, even a casual biker.
I didn't see any of my past tracks from my last ride, so I'm not sure what effect it had. No snow at all this time! Yay!

Last time my lower back was killing me. I later realized I had left my tire pressure very high because I has been riding the streets more. The hard tire didn't absorb all the bumps left from the freezing and boot prints. This time I lowered my tire pressure and things were much better.
I made a lot of good shifts, but I'm definitely finding down-shifting more difficult. It might be because I have less coordination with my left foot. A bunch of times I failed to down-shift about 5 consecutive pedal rotations as I was heading into a muddy area, causing me to dismount.

Again, not the most exciting of rides for me, but it's good to get out, work the muscles, and practice shifting.

My cycle computer says 12.8 miles, average speed 7.1 mph.

Hojack, Etc - 2011-04-03

Hopping in the Driveway

2011-04-02T20:30:00.004-04:00

I spent some time in the driveway this afternoon hopping on my 20" uni.
I lowered my seat an inch or so to help give me some more room to spring up.
I should post some pictures soon to show my progress.

But I should probably take a break from hopping for a while. My inner thighs feel bruised and are a bit chaffed. I guess that just comes with the territory. I need to toughen up.

Sydney at the Community Arts Day Talent Show

2011-03-26T16:54:00.003-04:00

This morning Sydney rode her unicycle at the Community Arts Day Talent show!

She did very well!

Syd's Uno and Fun in the Sun

2011-03-20T21:14:00.017-04:00

About a week ago I ordered Sydney a new unicycle. It's actually almost identical to her current one, but it has an alloy rim instead of steel. Her rim wasn't straight and steel is harder to true. Plus this new one has a better tire for pavement, where she normally rides. You could say this is a birthday gift, but I don't need a birthday to keep my own kid interested in my passion!

Here are some pics:

It feels like it's slightly better quality than her first uni. Syd seems to like it.

I had fun with my 20" uni also. For the winter, I had messed around with it in the very limited space in my basement. It was good to bring it out in the sunshine. It's a bit easier to hop around on than my 24" muni. Hopefully I can learn some skills more easily on the 20 and then apply those to my muni riding.
Amy took a few pics of me. Not the most impressive, but I was just warming up. And the season has just begun. ;P

I practiced some rolling hops too. For my non-uni readers, that's riding straight at an object and hopping it. Just like a bunny hop on a bike. On a uni, everything's a bit more difficult, but without a freewheel your cranks aren't always in a good position when it's time to hop. For now at least, that means only a portion of my attempts are even possible. Well I managed to do a few rolling hops over 4". It's a start!

I also rode around the block on my 20" while Sydney rode her new 16". Our speeds matched more nicely than on my 24".
Later Kyle wanted to ride his 24" geared mountain bike around the block and asked me to join him. I rode my 24" uni, mostly in high gear and our speeds matched quite well, at about 9 mph. Though it was a very casual ride for him. We ended up riding outside our neighborhood and rode 2.7 miles.

It was a nice first day of spring.

Wet Trails and Twilight Zone

2011-03-19T17:13:00.008-04:00

With the snow melted and the sun shining (though 35°F), how could I not go out for a ride? I rode to the Hojack Trail again, but this time I expected to actually be able to ride it.
Instead of taking the road all the way there, I rode to the relatively new Webster Parks and Rec, through a trail that was just made last year. It was very muddy, with lots of standing water, and not much rideable trail.
That trail leads to the Bird Sanctuary trail which has been there for much longer. That still had some muddy spots, was most of it could be ridden.
I then rode some more street to get to the Hojack. The first section of trail into the Hojack was total mud and standing water, as it most always is. The Hojack itself was mostly rideable.
But some parts of the trail were in very bad condition. Some parts were dry, but had bumps, ridges, and holes from heaving, and from bikers and hikers leaving impressions when it was softer. Some parts were very soft, others had lots of mud, and others had standing water. Some still had packed snow. My riding definitely left marks in the mud, but it didn't seem to matter considering the hundreds of boot prints and the trenches from bikers.
It was much harder to ride than when it's dry. It took a lot more energy and my lower back was getting fatigued soon after reaching the farthest point on the Hojack.
On my way back I rode around North Ponds park on the paved path as long as it was right there. Nothing too exciting there. I skipped the Webster Parks and Rec trail since it was so muddy, and took the road instead.

On the Hojack I had planned to use my high gear. It's generally flat so I envisioned some fast riding. But on the way to the far end I convinced myself it was actually a gradual incline. I had never really noticed that in the past. And with the soft ground slowing me down, it didn't seem like a good time to go to high gear. When I was on some of the drier, seemingly inclined areas, I was excited to think of the way back, riding on a slight decline in high gear.
But then on the way back, it looked like a slight incline again! Uphill both ways? Huh? I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone. After riding a few minutes, I looked back, and it looked like a slight incline too. Maybe my eyes need adjusting. Despite thinking it was a slight incline I ended up switching into high gear whenever the ground wasn't too wet, and I did get some good chances to ride faster.

For some unknown reason my GPS didn't record my way back on the Hojack properly. It shows me way off the trail. Huh. Maybe I WAS in the Twilight Zone!

My cycle computer says I rode 12.76 miles. Average speed was 6 mph, max was 11 mph.

Hojack, Etc - 2011-03-19

Selling Grease

2011-03-11T20:38:00.005-05:00

I wanted to buy some grease for my Schlumpf hub. Long story short, I bought more than I needed with the intention to sell it to my fellow geared unicyclists.

Here's the page where I'm selling it.

Snowy Road and Hojack

2011-02-27T12:07:00.006-05:00

With the trails under snow I've been riding the streets lately. But I've been shying away from any busy roads and that has limited where I can ride. I've ended up riding 10 to 15 miles within a 1.5 mile radius north of my home. So I looked at the map to see if I could stretch my riding out to new areas.

One thing I've been wanting to do is to ride to the Hojack trail from my house. With the distances I've been riding that was definitely doable. But it snowed last night so the road and trail would probably would not be ideal.
I gave it a try anyway.

The road was not too bad. Most of the way had a wide enough shoulder. It was 75% clear and most snow and slush didn't seem to slow me down. Some shoulders were off-camber which makes riding less relaxed.
When I got to the Hojack I was disappointed. I had hoped it would have been packed down from snowmobiles but that was not the case. So it was covered in about 6 inches of snow that had only been disturbed by a few walkers. I gave it a try and was able to ride but for only a few hundred feet at a time. I ended up walking about 50%, between riding, while I caught my breath and my heart rate came down to a reasonable level.

I got off at the next crossroad and headed back home on the street.
It was good to get out, but I miss the trails. Spring will be here soon, but not soon enough.

I think my cycle computer doesn't work well when it gets wet. It came up with an obviously short distance again.
My GPS said I went 6.8 miles. Had the Hojack been good riding I was ready to ride about 12 miles. Oh well.

Snowy Road and Hojack - 2011-02-27

Faster Road Ride

2011-02-20T16:06:00.006-05:00

This afternoon I rode the suburban streets, riding faster and farther than I ever have on the street. It was chilly at 26°F (-3°C), but it was unusually sunny for the Rochester area.

I'm getting more comfortable with my geared hub. I had a lot of successful shifts. I think all my unsuccessful shifts were downshifts, which uses my left foot. I found myself staying in my high gear on more inclines. My quadriceps down near my knees got sore, hopefully just from pushing myself farther. I can hardly walk down stairs. Haha. Ibuprofen and some ice should get me back to normal.
I also found my low gear felt lower than ever. It almost felt goofy, just like being in your granny gear on a bike. But that will likely feel different on the trails.

I encountered a few dozen walkers and people in their yards. I told one little kid riding a tiny bike with training wheels, "Hey you've got too many wheels!". Haha.
From two ~10 year old boys playing basketball, "Wow a unicycle!", "That thing rocks!"
From a ~4 year old, "You're really good at that."

I road 15.5 miles (25 km). Thanks to my Schlumpf my average speed was about 8.4 mph (13.5 kph).

Road Ride - 2011-02-20

Harris Whalen Park

2011-02-19T20:08:00.005-05:00

Harris Whalen Park is a park in the town of Penfield that I drive by on my way to and from work. It's a small park, but it has a wooded area with trails that I've read about online. I've never read about this park being good for cycling, but wanted to check out the trails sometime.

Today some friends hosted a pig roast at Harris Whalen Park and my family and I attended. I used the opportunity to explore the trails. That plan made more sense when I made it a few weeks ago, because today was super windy and cold. But we came prepared, and after the party we hiked a bit.

The trails system is in a relatively small wooded area, but there are a number of trails and they intersect many times. The trails were covered with hard-pack and ice with a few inches of fresh snow from today. So I couldn't see the trail surface. But at first inspection, it looks like a place worth riding. We didn't encounter any super steep hills on our short hike, but there were a few longer ones that would probably be challenging.
I didn't see any "No Biking" signs. I did see colored trail markers painted on the trees which was very helpful on our hike.

Afterward, we walked over to the sledding hill. No one was there and we didn't have sleds. But the kids found that rolling down the hill was good fun. I joined in for a few laughs. Unfortunately all that rolling didn't sit well with Sydney after all the party food. We found that out the hard way on the drive home. Guess who got vomit cleanup duty when we got home. Yay! But enough about that, this is my muni blog.

Penfield has a trail map online. Using that I estimate there are only about 1.25 to 1.5 miles of trails. But with enough loops, it might be a good time.

Sydney's Talent Show

2011-02-19T12:55:00.006-05:00

Last night Sydney rode her unicycle at her school's talent show. The show was part of the school's winter carnival night and went on for hours. So people were coming and going as they pleased.
The stage was not very deep, so it was a little tricky. She also rode clockwise, though I think counter-clockwise is her preferred way. I think she had more UPDs than normal because of this.
We put a stool in the middle of the stage for her to lean on when mounting.

Here's a video of her performance. Unfortunately our camera is older and the quality is rather poor.

Powder Mills Park Master Plan

2011-02-17T22:30:00.007-05:00

Tonight I attended a public meeting the auditorium of Park Road Elementary School in Pittford for the Powder Mills Park Master Plan. I saw the notice for this meeting in the Tryon forums. I actually don't know much about that park. I may have been there for a work or family picnic, but I don't really recall.

Just like with the Ellison Parks Master Plan, a whole environmental survey is being done. That work appears to be very thorough and is quite impressive. They've cataloged the plants and wildlife in the park, mapped the trails and features, and bascially surveyed everything and anything in the park.

The presentation portion of the meeting spelled out the time-line and general ideas of the plan. It described the existing features of the park, but the details of what will be changed are not yet decided. That's the purpose of the open discussion that took place in the second half of the meeting. This is the time to make suggestions that will shape the park for the future.

Just like with the Ellison Parks, the goal for the off-road cycling community is to establish shared-use trails.

There were comments and questions about many topics, but the off-road cycling shared-use issue came up many times. It sounds like this park is more heavily visited than Tryon or West Bay. Hikers say bikers go too fast and will run into them. They claim they can see the erosion caused by bikes currently riding there illegally. Same arguments, different park.

Given that the off-road cyclists have been given access to Tryon and West Bay for an 18th month trial, I have doubts that the county will be opening up Powder Mills Park for cycling. The plan and work for this park is expected to be completed by the end of this summer. That means it will be finished before the 18 month off-road cycling trial which won't even officially start until sometime this spring. So it seems premature for the county to open Powder Mills up for cycling.

On the one hand, with the current trial period, the higher pedestrian use of Powder Mills, the concerns of the hikers at this meeting, and my lack of experience in this park, I'm less inclined to work for shared-use in this park. One the other hand, I can imagine a future where off-road cycling in any county park is just a given. It would be awesome to just grab my uni and head to any county park knowing there will be some trails available to ride. If it's accepted and understood, and not illegal, maybe there would be more respect between hikers and cyclists.

One idea that a mountain biker suggested was to get creative with sharing. Maybe some trails are shared-use and others are not. Maybe some are hiking only or cycling only. Maybe the park allows cycling but only on certain days. I like the idea of finding some way to compromise so we can all enjoy the parks.

But for now, with the Ellison Parks off-road trial about to be kicked off, maybe what's important is to be sure the master plan doesn't preclude off-road cycling in the park in the future. Though I can't think of anything that really would.

Bay Park West	Hojack Trail
5 miles in about 1.5 hours Average speed: 3.4mph	6.8 miles in about 45 minutes Average speed: 9mph