Thirsday Night Regular

I was pretty bummed to miss another Thursday ride I though most the day, But I had got two rides in the days prior so that was a way better start than last week. As I drove home from the grocery store with the boy, I stopped at the lot where the riders were gathering and asked what trail they were riding since maybe I could join them them 30 minutes into their ride since I could get home and put him to sleep. They said another ride was running late so I could meet them in the lot at 6:30. Excitement fillled my body as I ran home and accomplished the tasks I needed and then I sped off into the trail on the way to the lot. We sat for 15 minutes or so waiting for them to arrive which was kind of a bummer since I was anxious to ride but they eventually showed up and off we went. I was feeling pretty strong riding, I was on the Belltown and feeling pretty good. On a tiny little downhill I soon found myself ejected from the bike and landing on my shoulder and hitting my head pretty hard. I got up and my neck felt a little funny, but I quickly did a shakedown and got back to riding. I was trying to replay the crash and figure out what happened since I normally do but this one happened at supersonic speed. I chalked it up being too far over the front wheel standing while on a 29r which is usually a common close call without ejection. From then on things went just fine, it was 80 minutes or so when they ended the ride and I was desperate for more trail but filled my glass. This week darkness falls earlier so let's see what happens on solo rides, I might have a partner for Monday night ride let's see.

Powa hour

Put the boy down at 6:15 and I took off into the woods to get an hour ride and finishing in the darkness. I was not looking forward to spending too much time out there in the dark by myself but I was more comfortable than other solo rides. I guess I just stayed focused on riding and not the dark, I still would love to get a two hour ride but I have not gotten that brave. I will take anything I can get right now. Good spin on the Belltown, still very unimpressed with Shimano Zee brakes but maybe they will get better since I just installed the new rotors. Power hour at EveryTrail
EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in Connecticut

Got one

Been 8 slow days without a ride, last night I sacked up and went out solo at 6:40 after I put the baby down. With no cloud cover I could get a good 45 minutes without creeping myself out too much maybe an hour. As I rode I realized it was going to be hard to pull me off the the trail due to darkness. With 30 minutes under my belt I crossed the road and decided to stay close to see how much more riding I could get in before pitch darkness. Turns out two riders were suiting up in the parking lot and I got brave and asked if I could join them which would allow me to have company and get more riding in so we could all fend off mythical creatures we might encounter. Well it was slow going since one was recovering from a broken foot injury. While waiting up 15 minutes into trail with them, two lights came down the trail and stopped at us and I realized it was Nate and Tom. Two well paced fellers I ride with on Thursday nights, this was perfect since the two I was riding with were slow moving. I felt kind of bad but they offered me to join with my Thursday night homies so I did so. From there it was a great ride, I could not believe how I struck such luck to find people to ride with. I hope I can get so lucky tonight when I go out to man up in the dark as long as I can. Love fall riding weather but the loss of light is tough with my schedule. Bout time at EveryTrail
EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in Connecticut

7th day of rest

Well the riding has hit a wall, things have gotten serious with LuAnn's studies so I am on ride hold until a window opens or until December. For a ride monkey like me it has already been a tough week but I know once this semester is over riding will open up big time. Yeah I am missing all the nice Fall riding weather in a way but I found a way to combat looking at my bikes, which is going on walks with my boy. Being home with a nutty teething baby all day every day by myself has been causing me to lose my sanity, so if I can't ride trail well there is no reason I can't walk them! The weather has been incredibly pleasant lately and for the next 7 days it is about as good as it is going to get. So we headed to School House Brook to investigate more trails and check other things out on foot. It is so peaceful walking through the woods with my boy on my back, he is extremely mellow when he is with me out there, not the raving lunatic running around the house. Today he dozed off for a few, we walked for a good 90 minutes and explored some new trail and also found an old DH trail with some impressive hits but in need of major love since it probably has seen no tires in 3-5 years. Later that evening I went out into my backyard, Hale is just across my street so it's always convenient and calmed the little guy down for an hour long stroll in the glowing orange sun. I look forward to more walks and plan to until the weather gets out of control, it's nice to slow things down off that bike pace and just take in the woods and take in all their beauty. I love it and while I long for my Mountain Bike I know with time rides will come.

I need a new All Mountain

I got the Kona Tanuki in a box in Utah at my inlaws which is a pretty good bike but not the tool I want and need. The Tanuki will remain with me for a long time in my future but I need a new rig for moving back to Utah, I can get by with 130mm travel around here in CT but when I start descending big lines and jumps I need more bike, so my birthday is next month and $3400 is a lot of money but it would really be a great present for me, I'm just saying :) Why are mass produced bikes coming with dropper posts? Convenient I suppose but having to maintain two shocks is enough stupid dropper posts......I would sell that thing as soon as it hit my door step. I hope I can find a pro deal in the next few years as I start to save for maybe one day a 150-160mm All Mountain rig.....

Uvex XP CC

Let me just start off by saying I have bought quite a few helmets since my last run in with Uvex and I absolutely loved it and regret buying always what was on sale. My last visit to Utah reminded me while I was pedaling those 106 miles how dang much I liked it, it sat on my head perfect, since it was snuggly secured in the Uvex 360 degree tensioning system. It did not take long to know that I was going to retire my Kali helmet shortly after getting home and going back to Uvex. I had a bit of trouble deciding between Xenova, Ultra etc.... I ended up buying The XP CC since their newest aggressive Quatro has not been released yet. It arrived on my doorstep the following week and I was extremely excited since I had worn out pads that were leaving me with rough part of velcro rubbing on my forehead during rides. I strapped it on and nearly banged my head against the wall as I have been so stupid having not bought another Uvex sooner! The tensioning system did exactly what I expected like the Supersonic, it felt like nothing was there, also this helmet felt like it was half the weight of my Kali which was nuts! Now when I am throwing back flips I can whip my head faster. Even when i got the light mounted up it was still very light and far from awkward like on previous helmets. I am one happy guy, I guess I learned one thing from all this, you find something good you try to stick with it. I look forward to more of these in my future and I desperately needed it since the funk works it's way into my clothes and no one wants to ride behind a stinky dude. Thanks Uvex your tensioning design in superior! At the end of the day I wish it had a little more coverage on the back and sides but I never need a helmet so ppssssffftttt.

Helmets in review

Just about every year I need to buy a new helmet, I apparently develop enough stank in my helmet to force me to lol. There is a lot in the market these days, I have bought helmets that look cool, helmets on sale or just somehow ended up in my hands. The most recent two helmets I have used I was pretty unpleased with.

Uvex Supersonic served me well, it was a great fit, Uvex usesa fantastic tension system which does not just push the helmet against the front to keep it on, it has a circular tensioning system which holds your head 360 degrees which makes it feel like nothing is on you most of the time. This helmet also ventilated very well and is semi retired at my in laws for when I visit Utah. I should have never stopped buying Uvex brand it is German mad and engineered and it shows!

The fox flux, it fit like crap and felt like crap but it was a big name with a nice agressive lid piece, that's about the only way I figure I ended up with it, would never buy another.

Ended up with a Luis Garneu Edge model which was among the last few a good purchase, a good fit and lots of venting. Bit of a funky helmet but solid stable fit. Another one I had to retire after helmet funk in the muggy North East riding.

Luis Garneu Robata was on sale and bought on short notice, this was a small fitting helmet that saw very little use, also has very little dome protection, I would not recommend compared to others. I still keep this helmet around sicne it saw little use and works good for a backup helmet since it's still in good shape.

Kali Avita, I was pretty happy with this buy from chainlove.com, I liked the looks, I liked the fit somewhat, seemed like it was a great fit and would last me. Once it came into full tome use the padding began to melt away and replaced it with the spare set after just a few months of use. Then I wore through those pads and I was left with a loose fitting helmet that felt just like the Fox Flux garbage. I really wanted to buy another one of these in the begining but after less than a season of use it was time to go.