A-Ville Weekend

A nice weekend off the bike, hanging out with some friends in Asheville. Lisa and I met up with Tejal at Curtis' old shop, Motion Makers on Saturday AM for the bikerumor schwag toss. With the luck of the draw, I happened to race Tejal in one of the slow races, and won (the prize was a Cane Creek headset that should be here sometime later this week). Lisa lost her slow race, but still scored me a Verge baselayer from Biowheels. Overall, I walked out of there with a baselayer, a t-shirt, a Cane Creek headset, three tubs of chamois butter, a plethora of stickers and the satisfaction of having won a bike race...albeit a slow one.




We also spent some time at the Biltmore, ate out a few times at some great restaurants downtown, hung out at the Grove Park Inn, and just generally enjoyed time off of work/school. Great weekend with my best friend!

Wyoish

Good ride today with E. Wyo, Williams, Conrad, Grapevine, Conrad Sawmill were some of the key players for the day.



There was a breakaway at one point, and E and I had a tough time reeling them in, but eventually success.


A post ride chocolate milk and kit kat were brought out in short order.



Wind-blown mullet in full effect

Pilot

Erich, Cisco and I and Pilot made good friends today. Mad Alchemy Embrocation is amazing. E and I rode without kneewarmers in 30ish degree conditions and were comfortable. Amazing stuff, I wholeheartedly suggest you try some!

Tie One On

After this mornings GRE, I had to retreat to a stream to get some mental clarity action going. I loaded up the trustworthy copilot and headed out the door...westward! Slow fishing at first, due mostly to rusty casting and trying to figure out the right pattern for the day, but did catch 4 or so in the first hour and a half. Further upstream, I saw some trout hitting the surface, so I tried on a dry fly. The fourth fly was the ticket and just about every third cast I had a fish on. After another thirty or forty minutes of fishing, I had managed to catch ten more fish. I called it quits at this point, basking in the satisfaction of having matched what the fish were eating.


The dog had been great in the car the whole time, but when I got back, she was amped and ready for a hike. Off we headed into the woods, to the falls and beyond off trail exploration. She's not too keen on water though:

Back to Reality

So after a short ride in Pisgah on Sunday, I had to head home and back to reality. This week brings long days at work/class and just altogether business. With class on Monday and Thursday, parent-teacher conferences on Wednesday and Thursday, and the GRE on Friday, I'm not going to be on the bike much. But, the end is in sight; a good ride is being planned for Saturday, and a rendevouz with E is in the near future with a ride planned for Sunday.

The GRE and applications to some universities in the area are going out; I've been having the sinking feeling of mediocrity of late. Though the path ahead of me isn't set in stone and I'm not sure where it leads, I do know that it likely leads me away from my comfort zone that I have established over the last five years at my current job. I find my life seems to be increasingly tied to a metaphor of cycling, or at least through cycling painted glasses. The path I am headed on is a new trail yet unexplored, or a new road not ridden.

Pisgah Day 2

As a side note: More pictures were added to yesterday's post...



Brad and I had some lofty plans for the day. Only a mere 23ish miles, but with over 4k feet of climbing. The route: Ranger Station>276>477>Clawhammer>Black Mountain>Buckwheat>Bennett Gap>477>Clawhammer>Maxwell>Black Mountain>Ranger Station. Holy smokes what a fun loop with some great trail. This was my first time on Bennett, and the rock moves at the top can only be accomplished by superhumans, it's amazing to me that people are able to actually ride it, I struggled just carrying my bike down. Props. Buckwheat was super fun as well, and of course, the lower part of Black Mountain is incredibly grin inducing.

Pisgah; Day One

Eggs in a sandwich maker? Definitely awesome.


The standard Fish Hatchery Loop was on the docket for the day. After hearing the bear dogs and trucks all night, we weren't extremely energetic to get out of the sleeping bags, but the trails were beckoning. After the requisite breakfast, Brad and I got the bikes ready to go and decided for certain on the route. The route for the day: Campsite>475>Long Branch>Cat Gap>475>475B>Cove Creek>Daniel Ridge Connector>225>Daniel Ridge>Campsite

Long Branch mountain laurel tunnel


Cove Creek berm


Daniel Ridge rocks


Highlight of the day: riding all but one section of Daniel Ridge, then wrecking on the gravel road at the end of the trail. Brilliant.

Highlight of the day part deux: Three paninis for dinner.