I know that I've had this question in the past and I just ran across this on vitalmtb.com and thought I would share them. They are great to review a bunch of options at once!
shoe guide
http://www.vitalmtb.com/product/category/Flat-Pedal-Shoes,60?scope=brand&discontinued=true
pedal guide
http://www.vitalmtb.com/product/category/Flat-Pedals,20?scope=brand
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Monday, January 9, 2012
all systems down
Well system outage at work so what better time to get caught up on blogging, am I right or am I right? haha.
Ok so this last week went rather quick and was uneventful. The weather sucks, well I guess it is nice but it's not much of an off season this year, I could theoretically ride my bike everyday on dirt to boot! I haven't been but I have been on my bike quite a bit. I went for an urban ride, it went well. I have really been working on the things I have been reading in the Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Lee McCormick and Brian Lopes, great book, no BS, straight to the meat. Much better then my first skills book I bought which was Chris Ball's Mountain Biking the Manual, not saying it was a bad book but it was more of a book for complete noobs, it was more of a history reader about mountain biking then an instructional book but it did have some bad ass pictures.
Lee is coming up to MN this April sometime to help with the High School Mountain Bike League coaches summit and sounds like he might be doing some clinics, I will be the first in line for that! and you should be right behind me. I guarantee you won't get better instruction from anyone around here. They will just tell you to were Lycra, get clips and a 29er, haha jk but seriously you should check it out and I will keep you up dated as I find out more info.
The weekend:
Friday we went out to eat with our friends Mel and Adam, had a couple drinks and then went home and watched this God awful movie American Loser with Sean William Scott, I fell asleep, it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen!
Saturday we ran a bunch of errands and cleaned the house and then rented Mr. Poppers Penguins, this was actually pretty good and pretty funny. Miles better then Friday's choice.
Sunday my buddy Stu hit me up and we met up with 3 other guys and headed to Sandstone MN the Ice Quarries for a nice day of climbing. Surprisingly the ice was fabulous. The main reason is that it is on a south facing wall in a valley by a river, so it is always cooler and well protected from the sun. The weather was amazing though, mid 30s! I only did 3 climbs and the others did like 5 or so but it was my first time out this season and I was pumping out pretty hard and I wasn't really on my game so on the harder routes I just bowed out with the shit got hairy. Your head has to be really be in it to commit to some of the more technical stuff. Pictures to come! I took a bunch.
That night we just hung out and watched TV, I fell asleep early, laying with the dog on the couch watching junk TV.
I hope you all had a good weekend!
Keep it real!
Ok so this last week went rather quick and was uneventful. The weather sucks, well I guess it is nice but it's not much of an off season this year, I could theoretically ride my bike everyday on dirt to boot! I haven't been but I have been on my bike quite a bit. I went for an urban ride, it went well. I have really been working on the things I have been reading in the Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Lee McCormick and Brian Lopes, great book, no BS, straight to the meat. Much better then my first skills book I bought which was Chris Ball's Mountain Biking the Manual, not saying it was a bad book but it was more of a book for complete noobs, it was more of a history reader about mountain biking then an instructional book but it did have some bad ass pictures.
Lee is coming up to MN this April sometime to help with the High School Mountain Bike League coaches summit and sounds like he might be doing some clinics, I will be the first in line for that! and you should be right behind me. I guarantee you won't get better instruction from anyone around here. They will just tell you to were Lycra, get clips and a 29er, haha jk but seriously you should check it out and I will keep you up dated as I find out more info.
The weekend:
Friday we went out to eat with our friends Mel and Adam, had a couple drinks and then went home and watched this God awful movie American Loser with Sean William Scott, I fell asleep, it was one of the worst movies I've ever seen!
Saturday we ran a bunch of errands and cleaned the house and then rented Mr. Poppers Penguins, this was actually pretty good and pretty funny. Miles better then Friday's choice.
Sunday my buddy Stu hit me up and we met up with 3 other guys and headed to Sandstone MN the Ice Quarries for a nice day of climbing. Surprisingly the ice was fabulous. The main reason is that it is on a south facing wall in a valley by a river, so it is always cooler and well protected from the sun. The weather was amazing though, mid 30s! I only did 3 climbs and the others did like 5 or so but it was my first time out this season and I was pumping out pretty hard and I wasn't really on my game so on the harder routes I just bowed out with the shit got hairy. Your head has to be really be in it to commit to some of the more technical stuff. Pictures to come! I took a bunch.
That night we just hung out and watched TV, I fell asleep early, laying with the dog on the couch watching junk TV.
I hope you all had a good weekend!
Keep it real!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Help Save HPT (Human Powered Trails) La Crosse
We need all the help we can to save these trails!
read more here:
City eyes bluffland for potential development
Like here on Facebook
Save Upper Hixon Forest
and sign petition here!
SignOn.org Beta - Park Not Development!
Thanks!
Keep it real!
read more here:
City eyes bluffland for potential development
Like here on Facebook
Save Upper Hixon Forest
and sign petition here!
SignOn.org Beta - Park Not Development!
Thanks!
Keep it real!
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Duluth Traverse
Wow, I have heard rumors about things happening up in Duluth but this is going to be epic! Duluth and the North Shore area, IMO has it going on! They can almost live up to the "North Shore" BC style if this is done right! They have the topography and natural terrain to make some serious epic trails! I hope they bring out the big guns for this. They received a $250,000 Legacy grant, so money shouldn't be the issue, I know COGGS is leading this and is backed by IMBA and I'm sure MORC will be throwing their 2 cents in. That means a lot of trail creating genius involved in this!
Check on the proposed plan here!
http://www.coggs.com/trails.php
and diagram of projected lay out here:
http://www.coggs.com/pdf/DuluthTraverse11x17.pdf
also more information on riding Duluth here:
http://www.bikeduluth.com/
Check on the proposed plan here!
http://www.coggs.com/trails.php
and diagram of projected lay out here:
http://www.coggs.com/pdf/DuluthTraverse11x17.pdf
also more information on riding Duluth here:
http://www.bikeduluth.com/
brrrr!
Well hello winter, how was your vacation? Good, well I'm glad you enjoyed it... Are you going to stay long? no, why not? Oh you like the southern jet stream.... interesting isn't it a la nina year? Oh you don't care, interesting well I think next year is the start of the el nino year, so you're just going to stay on vacation through that cycle? Probably... well that is not good. I hope you change your mind, I'd like to see some more snow. We'll see...click
Yeah that was my talk with winter this morning when I gave him a call after I woke up to 6 degrees for my morning dog walk. A bit brisk but actually refreshing in a way. I'm ready for a month or so of single digits, I would really like to swing my ice axes a couple times this winter, play some hockey and maybe even put a few miles on my skis as well. I guess we will have to wait and see, starting tomorrow back in the 30's and 40's for Thursday and Friday. Is crazy Al Gore right? Is there really such a thing as global warming or is it just a normal cycle of mother nature. You know those women and their cycles... don't want to fuck with that! haha
Keep it real!
Yeah that was my talk with winter this morning when I gave him a call after I woke up to 6 degrees for my morning dog walk. A bit brisk but actually refreshing in a way. I'm ready for a month or so of single digits, I would really like to swing my ice axes a couple times this winter, play some hockey and maybe even put a few miles on my skis as well. I guess we will have to wait and see, starting tomorrow back in the 30's and 40's for Thursday and Friday. Is crazy Al Gore right? Is there really such a thing as global warming or is it just a normal cycle of mother nature. You know those women and their cycles... don't want to fuck with that! haha
Keep it real!
Monday, January 2, 2012
what's to come this year?
What is on your schedule for the 2012 season/year? Well for me it is going to be a jam packed year and probably go super fast. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing but it is what it is.
This year in general Kelly and I are getting married on June 2nd, very exciting! and then going to Whistler for a week for our honey moon. I believe we have a couple weddings we will be going to and we will be going out to the Black Hills in September. That is all I can think of for sure.
As for involving biking, as soon as spring comes I will be busy building the Lexington Street Bike Park, not sure how long that is going to take but I'm hoping not that long. The quicker the better. I would like to have it mostly completed before our wedding and trip to Whistler. This will depend on the weather but it's looking promising so far.
I will also be involved in Lebanon Trail work. I will help as much as I can but you probably wont see me there in the spring, at least not until Lex is complete.
Whistler, of course I can't go there with out riding! I'm pretty stoked to shred the shit out some real big mountain riding! I just hope my skills will be up to par. I have been studying my skills books, Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Lee McCormick and Mountain Biking The Manuel by Chris Ball as well as getting out while the weather allows and focus on proper technique and will increase as spring comes. You can gain a lot by just doing cornering drills in the parking lots, riding curbs, practicing track stands, manuals and doing some urban assault riding. I have been in the gym 3-4 days a week all winter and I'm going to step up my gym training about 6 weeks prior to make sure I can physically handle the 8hrs straight of riding because that is all I will get, so I have to make the most out of it!
I would like to do the Cuyuna Fat Tire festival but I'm not sure if that will happen. Depends on the weekend they pick.
As for races, I'm not sure if I'm going to be doing much of it or not. I would like to do some Super D races but haven't found that many close to home yet, so we will see. As it goes now I will be competing at the Giant's Ridge DH race. The only DH race in MN in 2012. I am also thinking of doing the Dakota 50 race with some friends. I have until April to choose if I'm going to commit to this or not, as that is when registration opens. I might also do some of the Buck Hill XC races, could be good cross training as well as I might try to organize some under ground super d races at BC. More like a poker night, couple bucks to enter and pay out a couple spots, we'll see.
Riding trips? Well as it stands right now. I will for sure be going to Whistler. I will for sure be going to Cuyuna to ride with my uncle at least once but probably more. I am also planning on making a trip to copper harbor with some buddies, I would like to hit up the tech trails and Marquette while I'm up there as well. Also tons of local riding. I will be trying out as many of the metro trails that I haven't rode yet. I have heard really good things about the rawness of Mammoth in Chaska. I'm sure there is more cool places I will hear of as the season goes on and I will definitely ride as much as possible when we go out to the Hills! I can't wait!
I hope you all have some sweet stuff planned! It is always a good idea to have one big thing planned for riding, such as a race or a big trip, as it will give you something to train for and will keep you going!
Keep it real!
This year in general Kelly and I are getting married on June 2nd, very exciting! and then going to Whistler for a week for our honey moon. I believe we have a couple weddings we will be going to and we will be going out to the Black Hills in September. That is all I can think of for sure.
As for involving biking, as soon as spring comes I will be busy building the Lexington Street Bike Park, not sure how long that is going to take but I'm hoping not that long. The quicker the better. I would like to have it mostly completed before our wedding and trip to Whistler. This will depend on the weather but it's looking promising so far.
I will also be involved in Lebanon Trail work. I will help as much as I can but you probably wont see me there in the spring, at least not until Lex is complete.
Whistler, of course I can't go there with out riding! I'm pretty stoked to shred the shit out some real big mountain riding! I just hope my skills will be up to par. I have been studying my skills books, Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Lee McCormick and Mountain Biking The Manuel by Chris Ball as well as getting out while the weather allows and focus on proper technique and will increase as spring comes. You can gain a lot by just doing cornering drills in the parking lots, riding curbs, practicing track stands, manuals and doing some urban assault riding. I have been in the gym 3-4 days a week all winter and I'm going to step up my gym training about 6 weeks prior to make sure I can physically handle the 8hrs straight of riding because that is all I will get, so I have to make the most out of it!
I would like to do the Cuyuna Fat Tire festival but I'm not sure if that will happen. Depends on the weekend they pick.
As for races, I'm not sure if I'm going to be doing much of it or not. I would like to do some Super D races but haven't found that many close to home yet, so we will see. As it goes now I will be competing at the Giant's Ridge DH race. The only DH race in MN in 2012. I am also thinking of doing the Dakota 50 race with some friends. I have until April to choose if I'm going to commit to this or not, as that is when registration opens. I might also do some of the Buck Hill XC races, could be good cross training as well as I might try to organize some under ground super d races at BC. More like a poker night, couple bucks to enter and pay out a couple spots, we'll see.
Riding trips? Well as it stands right now. I will for sure be going to Whistler. I will for sure be going to Cuyuna to ride with my uncle at least once but probably more. I am also planning on making a trip to copper harbor with some buddies, I would like to hit up the tech trails and Marquette while I'm up there as well. Also tons of local riding. I will be trying out as many of the metro trails that I haven't rode yet. I have heard really good things about the rawness of Mammoth in Chaska. I'm sure there is more cool places I will hear of as the season goes on and I will definitely ride as much as possible when we go out to the Hills! I can't wait!
I hope you all have some sweet stuff planned! It is always a good idea to have one big thing planned for riding, such as a race or a big trip, as it will give you something to train for and will keep you going!
Keep it real!
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Happy New Years!
Happy New Years all, well looks like we got a white new years since the white Christmas evaded us, haha. I hope you all had a great New Years, I hope non of you made any stupid choices and drove home or rode home with a drunk and if you did I hope even more that you made it home safe!
My New Years Eve started out with a sick ass ride at BC. I got there first and rode up and did a couple of the cool spots until I saw Trevor show up. We called Tim to see where he was and he was still 30mins away so we headed down to the luge but took a detour down the wall of death trail. I love that one because it's pretty technical, unfortunately it's a bit short but I'll take what I can around here. Honestly if MORC or the land managers would spend even half the money and time at BC as they did at places like Lebanon or Cuyuna, they could probably have one of the best mtb courses in the state and probably the best trails in the cities for sure! There is so much elevation gain and loss there its crazy. Tons of sweet chutes and bluffs, it could be endless switch back climbs and flowy and technical descents!
That being said as we (Trevor and I) were pushing up to the top of the luge we noticed the couple chutes that have always intrigued us and Trevor said some day we should ride those and we started looking more at it and I was like F it lets clear some leaves and do it!
So we picked the less intimidating of the two and started to clear the leaves. As we started to work towards the top, we quickly realized how steep it was. We could hardly walk up it and at the top we had to pull our selves up with the help of trees. Thankfully we don't have to pull out bikes up that way, there is a trail that leads to the top. We rode to the top and were looking around and saw the start of the other chute we wanted to run, so we knew where we were going next but first we had our challenge ahead. I was looking at it and Trevor was talking about route and was like F it and just went for it and got a bit down the first steep and my back kicked out and I slide a bit and then grabbed a tree and pulled myself and my bike back to the top. Less rear brake this time! and wham bam thank you ma'am! I made it and it was fricken awesome, I was jacked! Midwest free ride at it's best or at least twin cities free ride haha yeah!
Trevor nailed it too and we were quickly pedaling back to the top to check out the other one and start clearing the leaves.
After we started walking this one we both agreed that this one was cooler and not as steep as the other line. First run for me was lookin' good till right before the sweet little drop at the end and my handle bar clipped a tree and spun me out, Trevor nailed it first run. We went back to the top and did it again, this time perfect! I love that line. I wish there was more trail like that. I love the steep runs. The ones that push your skills and make you pucker up! To me that is what "MOUNTAIN" biking is all about! and around here we don't have mountains so we need to make up for it with what ever we can find!
We continued to session the luge for a bit longer, can't go wrong with that, love railing those berms and hitting that table!
After riding I went home picked up Kelly and Jerry and headed to the dog park for a bit. The plan was to go see the Root City Band down in Burnsville but after we thought about it we had spent enough money going to watch Brock Lesner get his ass kicked by Alister Overeem so we would go see a movie instead. I was fine with that.
We went to see The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, man that movie was bad ass. One of the best movies I'd seen in a long time. It really kept you thinking and was full of twists and turns. After the movie we went home and watch the ball drop and played with Jerry.
The one thing I'm glad about is not having that ridiculous hang over I would have had if I would have gone out.
I hope you all had a great New Years! Make some great resolutions! Mine is to save some more money and become a better rider and ride as many new places and trails as possible!
Keep it real!
My New Years Eve started out with a sick ass ride at BC. I got there first and rode up and did a couple of the cool spots until I saw Trevor show up. We called Tim to see where he was and he was still 30mins away so we headed down to the luge but took a detour down the wall of death trail. I love that one because it's pretty technical, unfortunately it's a bit short but I'll take what I can around here. Honestly if MORC or the land managers would spend even half the money and time at BC as they did at places like Lebanon or Cuyuna, they could probably have one of the best mtb courses in the state and probably the best trails in the cities for sure! There is so much elevation gain and loss there its crazy. Tons of sweet chutes and bluffs, it could be endless switch back climbs and flowy and technical descents!
That being said as we (Trevor and I) were pushing up to the top of the luge we noticed the couple chutes that have always intrigued us and Trevor said some day we should ride those and we started looking more at it and I was like F it lets clear some leaves and do it!
So we picked the less intimidating of the two and started to clear the leaves. As we started to work towards the top, we quickly realized how steep it was. We could hardly walk up it and at the top we had to pull our selves up with the help of trees. Thankfully we don't have to pull out bikes up that way, there is a trail that leads to the top. We rode to the top and were looking around and saw the start of the other chute we wanted to run, so we knew where we were going next but first we had our challenge ahead. I was looking at it and Trevor was talking about route and was like F it and just went for it and got a bit down the first steep and my back kicked out and I slide a bit and then grabbed a tree and pulled myself and my bike back to the top. Less rear brake this time! and wham bam thank you ma'am! I made it and it was fricken awesome, I was jacked! Midwest free ride at it's best or at least twin cities free ride haha yeah!
Trevor nailed it too and we were quickly pedaling back to the top to check out the other one and start clearing the leaves.
After we started walking this one we both agreed that this one was cooler and not as steep as the other line. First run for me was lookin' good till right before the sweet little drop at the end and my handle bar clipped a tree and spun me out, Trevor nailed it first run. We went back to the top and did it again, this time perfect! I love that line. I wish there was more trail like that. I love the steep runs. The ones that push your skills and make you pucker up! To me that is what "MOUNTAIN" biking is all about! and around here we don't have mountains so we need to make up for it with what ever we can find!
We continued to session the luge for a bit longer, can't go wrong with that, love railing those berms and hitting that table!
After riding I went home picked up Kelly and Jerry and headed to the dog park for a bit. The plan was to go see the Root City Band down in Burnsville but after we thought about it we had spent enough money going to watch Brock Lesner get his ass kicked by Alister Overeem so we would go see a movie instead. I was fine with that.
We went to see The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, man that movie was bad ass. One of the best movies I'd seen in a long time. It really kept you thinking and was full of twists and turns. After the movie we went home and watch the ball drop and played with Jerry.
The one thing I'm glad about is not having that ridiculous hang over I would have had if I would have gone out.
I hope you all had a great New Years! Make some great resolutions! Mine is to save some more money and become a better rider and ride as many new places and trails as possible!
Keep it real!
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