Getting better...

The weather has been cooperating and now the fires are beginning to lose the battle against the firefighters. Thanks to increased humidity, calm winds, firefighting aircraft and a little luck, things are getting better.

The sunset on Thursday was still a bit spooky...

... but the sunset Friday was a lot more like normal.

Once again, I got out for a ride Friday night on the Fixed. It felt great to get out again and spin the legs, even though they were feeling pretty beat from a solid week of hard riding. It's been a while since I've done sprint workouts... and my legs can tell.

This morning I got out on the local group ride. Well, I went TO the group ride and then found my good buddy, Andrew Lee- he's the owner of one of my favorite little bike shops- Adams Avenue Bicycles.

(File photo)

Andrew and I peeled off and rode at our own pace, which was just fine with me since I was on the Fixed and the group would have blown my legs to shreds today. It was good to get out and have a great time hanging out with a friend I don't get to see enough of. Since we were riding at our own pace, we got to be conversational and just be two bike nerds talking about bikes and the business. It was fun.

Conveniently for me (and my poor groin), I will be in Tokyo the night of the Adams Avenue Anniversary party- this will be the fourth one and the first one I've missed. I'll be thinking of them all having a blast while I'm in Tokyo (having a blast).

In the end, not a bad day.

Tim

Progress...

Today, the winds mellowed quite a bit and the air crews were able to attack the raging fires. Things improved dramatically and many people were able to return to their homes, or at least assess the damage and begin planning to rebuild. The last news I got, the fires near Jill Hamilton's home were backing away and were getting some small level of containment. By the time I got home tonight, the skies were not as thick with smoke and the air didn't smell like a campfire. I might even sleep with the windows open tonight to get some "fresh" air. Still, the fire danger is very high and things are nowhere near being over, but we're making progress and that's really all I ask. Thanks have to be given again to the amazing work being done by all of the firefighters in the region right now- their efforts have been greater than herculean... heroic doesn't even begin to cover it.

Today, I had the good fortune of having lunch with Rich Kelly from Interbike. Rich lives pretty close to the Masi/ Haro offices and due to the fires, has been at home this week and not commuting to the offices for Interbike's staff. Rich is a great guy and we've had many great conversations about cycling and bicycles over the past couple years. He's also becoming more and more of a "new media" geek like me, so we talked about that today as well. It's always great to get the chance to ramble on and on, the way I do, with somebody who is equally passionate about cycling. We had a great lunch and greater conversation. Thanks again for lunch Rich- I thoroughly enjoyed the company and conversation.

Again, like I have the past few nights, I got out on the Fixed and got another little leg workout. For as much as I love all the bikes I have, I have to confess that my Fixed is my current favorite. It might have something to do with the fact I only got to do one track race again this year and so my legs are simply enjoying that sensation of constant spinning. Maybe, I dunno what it is, but I have been having a super time. The 46x16 gear and 167.5 crankarms are a blast to spin. I did the same loop as last night, with another 3 quick laps around Shelter Island. I've been doing a few hard sprints on the course, getting the legs up to speed and blowing out the cylinders. It'd be pretty sweet to actually come out of this winter with something that resembles fitness and leg speed. In recent years, I've returned to the old (bad) habit of simply pushing big gears all winter long to develop power. Add in the gym and you have a scenario where I have a ton of power, but no leg speed to get the gear up to speed anymore. I'm trying to once again strike that delicate balance of having both... so we'll see if a winter of fixed gear riding on a smaller-than-usual-for-me gear does the job. It can't hurt anyway...

Lastly, I've recently rediscovered my love for Anchor Steam. I came across some recently, after not having seen any for what seems years. I have to say, I didn't remember it tasting quite this good and I am sure glad I "found" it again. It gets the Masiguy Seal of Approval- with two healthy thumbs up!

Tim

A break from fire news.

Yes, the fires are still burning and things are still terrifying, but I personally need a break from the fire news. It has consumed my life for the past several days and the emotional fatigue is setting in. The last I heard, Jill Hamilton was doing fine and watching things closely in case things changed. Another of our own, Pete Skoda and his wife, were evacuated earlier in the week as well from their home in Rancho Bernardo. They got the news today that they could return and that they were lucky enough to have a place to return to. It's still a very precarious and tenuous situation for many thousands and thousands of people. Still, I need a break from the terror of the fires...

After I got home through the smoky drive, I quickly lycra'd up and headed out for a ride on my Speciale Fixed again. I rode down through the downtown area and then headed off to Harbor Island, which is on the San Diego Bay. I rode multiple laps of the "island" (it's a peninsula, if anything) as if I were in a crit or Scratch race on the track. It felt good to push myself a little, even in the bad air, and push the pedals with some force and work up one hell of a sweat. I finished in the dark and it wasn't until I got home that I realized I'd lost my taillight and had been riding in the dark with only the reflective strip on the back of my seat bag to make me visible. Still, it felt good to come home physically exhausted after a good hard ride on the Fixed (currently my favorite ride).

One of the very best parts of the day? Receiving this;

Hey Tim!

I thought you’d get a kick out of our Fall wall display, featuring our Masi Speciale Fixed!

Cindy

It's enough to make a Brand Manager's heart skip a beat! So if you are in Tucson, Arizona and want to see a beautiful display that incorporates a Masi (or if you just wanna buy a bike from some cool people), go to Sabino Cycles on 7045 E. Tanque Verde. If you tell'em that the Masiguy sent you, they might toss you out... but you can try it and see what happens. And when you do, make sure you ask for Cindy... HI CINDY! (I'm pretty sure she likes flowers, so maybe you should take her some...)

Tim

More fire news...

I really don't know what else to talk about at the moment. All of my thoughts are pretty much devoted to the fire situation right now. On a personal note, our very own MTB Brand Manager- the Bike Biz Babe, Jill Hamilton- is not out of harm's way just yet, as her home is very near a few of the fires. She's safe for now, but our collective thoughts and prayers are with her. Hang in there Velvet Hammer (you'll have to ask her what that means).

I rode my bike after leaving work a couple hours early again today. I got out on the Speciale Fixed, just because the stress is making me a little neurotic and my bike/s has always been my salvation. So I rode around downtown for a little more than an hour. The air quality is "ok" at the moment, as we're out of the direct wind zone of the smoke, but my eyes were watering by the time I got home and the front of the frame and the seatpost were both speckled with pieces of ash. The air near downtown smells a little different, but it's nothing like the air near the office. Put it this way- I worked inside all day and my eyes were burning and the smoke smell was heavier INSIDE the office than it is OUTSIDE at home.

This was the view of the pseudo sunrise on the way in this morning... kind of hard to actually see the sun.

This is the same stretch of road I pictured yesterday, just before the office. Yesterday there was at least some blue sky... not so much today. The fire nearest our office is now 100% contained, so the smoke is coming from that closest fire and all of the others funneling through the valleys.

This is the view of the coast from the road leading to the office- normally you have a clear view of the ocean. Not today.

To the right of this picture, on the hilltop, is our office. Crystal clear skies... not this morning.

This was the view of the sun at 3:00PM- scary. The eerie red glow is just simply surreal. The "sound" outside is also kind of muffled- if you've been in a fire area before, then you know what I mean. I noticed this same thing fighting forest fires in Alabama- when you get out of the sound of the blaze, it is very quiet. Scary quiet.

These two are pictures of the Del Mar Fairgrounds (off to the right and in the distance). This is one of the big evacuation areas. Many residents of Del Mar were forced from the multi-million dollar homes. The fairgrounds are also housing thousands of displaced animals- largely horses, since there are several thoroughbred farms and training grounds in the area- many of which have since burned.

The most poignantly painful images of the day for me were seeing people driving away from the various fire areas with their belonging in their cars. I saw trucks pulling horse trailers. Trucks loaded with furnishings. Kids with stuffed animals. I nearly lost it as I passed a woman driving in the fast lane, very slowly, clearly in shock and crying, with her dog crammed into the front seat and tons of other items in the rest of the car. I couldn't bring myself to get pictures of these scenes, it just felt far too exploitive. I wanted to pull up to them and say something... but what? What do you say to somebody who may have just lost every single belonging in their lives, with the exception of what they were able to grab in a hurry?

I have a very love-hate relationship with Southern California- it costs too damned much, there's too damned many people, development is killing the beauty, the freeways are insane any time of day now... but still I have grown to love this stupid place. I still think of Alabama as "home", but I've lived here longer than I did there. As the events of the past few days have unfolded, I admit that I've found myself choked up from time to time. It's hard to see this happen to so many people- more than 260,000 acres have burned, more than 1,750 homes have been lost, more than 100 businesses destroyed and more than 500,000 people have been told to evacuate their homes.

If that doesn't somehow "move" you...

Tim

Feelin' cross...

What's the easiest way to tell that the Masiguy has been on a bike other than his road or track bike...
... just look for the blood.

Yep, I took the cross bike out today. I was lucky enough to get my Mom and step-Dad to watch the Princess long enough for me to get out for a nice ride on one of my favorite local trails- the north side of Lake Hodges. For those who do not know the area, it is a great trail that has elements of not-so-technical trails blended with medium-technical trails... which means that for me they are SUPER technical trails... especially on the cross bike. However, these are some of my favorite trails, just because they hold lots of memories of epic rides- both good and bad.

I've always loved the trails around Lake Hodges, so they seemed like the perfect place to take the cross bike out for a bit of punishing. I figure, if I'm gonna try to do a cross race (or two) this year, I might as well ride the cross bike a few times first. My poor CXR has been in disrepair for some time now, since I had to strip some parts off of it to keep Ryan Rish of the A&F Pro Development team racing... that's how much I love those guys. I finally pieced my bike back together and am planning to basically overhaul the thing completely with my Dura Ace group... (I know, I'm totally spoiled).

(Before Chad from A&F or the Squirrel freaks out- I wanted to give some love to my friends up north... and I need to do some bike laundry...)

The trails around the lake are not all that technical if you have any kind of skills in the dirt... which means that I am totally in over my head every time I ride there. I am 100% comfortable on my track bike riding elbow to elbow at very high speed, banging into another rider in a Keirin, but if you put me on the dirt I turn into a total freak and ride my brakes non-stop and panic at every turn. However, despite my lack of skills, I thoroughly enjoy riding in the dirt and find it a great way to remind myself why I love to ride bikes... because it's a lot of fun.

I went out hoping I wouldn't crash at all, but figured I'd go down a few times... but only did it once. So I was pretty happy overall. I mean, the section I crashed on, I've never cleared- even with dual suspension and I almost made it today. I grabbed, as always, just a little too much brake and washed the front wheel out. The crash was at pretty slow speed, so I really just fell over. I was going to get a picture of the raspberry on my butt... but that requires showing a little more of my ass than I am comfortable with and I don't want to lose my PG-13 rating and go straight to NC-17. We're close and all... but not THAT close.

Honestly, I cleared way more than I ever have on a mountain bike and totally surprised myself at how my handling skills have improved- all that time on my Haro Mary SS has totally paid off. I am by no means an expert in the dirt, but I am getting far better. The spot where I crashed today is the opposite direction of the same spot I crashed in '97 when I tore the PCL in my right knee. So to walk away dirty, a little bloody and with a bruise on my ass seems like an upgrade.
Some of the sections of trail are so tranquil and pretty.There aren't many places that I get to ride that are like this. Most of the few trails I know are totally open, desert-style trails. Getting to ride, for any distance, under a canopy of trees and along the edge of a "creek" is pretty special... even if I'm bleeding. (And, for the record, all those red leaves are poison oak... which I managed to stay out of.)

The trusty steed...
... which I probably should have taken a picture of when it was still clean. I have to point out a couple things- A) the Ksyrium SL wheels (though a little older) held up beautifully to my weight (205lbs) and hard riding and stayed completely true and 2) the ProLogo Nago saddle that I rode for the first time today is one of the most comfortable saddles I've ever ridden. ProLogo is the high-end division of Velo saddles and they have really stepped up their game and produced some great products. I have the Scratch saddle on my carbon bike with Record parts and I have been very happy with the performance of the saddle. The Scratch is the same saddle ridden by both Petacchi and Zabel on Milram... so I'm in good company. Velo produces all of our other Masi-branded saddles, just like 9/10 of the world-wide cycling industry and they make phenomenal products. On top of it all, Stella (the owner and driving force behind Velo) is one of the best people I have met in this business.

The bike rode flawlessly today, even though I worked on it recently. I was super happy that I was able to ride many sections of the trail that I am familiar with walking. It was cool to clear stuff that I have previously been unable to on full-suspension bikes.

Sadly, this is fire season in SoCal. On the drive up and back, I had to drive through a very thick area of smoke from one of the recent wild fires. This is the time of year when this part of California is exceedingly dry and the winds are very high... a very bad combination.

At least one life has been lost and several have been injured by this round of fires. The fine men and women who fight these fires are true heroes around these parts. The fires of 2003 stole many lives and many homes. Without the bravery of these fine folks, the situation would have been much, much worse. So, let me say THANK YOU to the firefighters who place their lives on the line to save other lives and property during these terrible fires.

In the end, even with the smoke and the crash, it was a great day for a ride and I had a great time banging off the rocks and trees today.

Tim