Monday, January 30, 2006

Another great Idea

I had to split somemore wood today after the workout. This time I had to use a maul and wedges to split each piece into quarters just to lift the things.It was a good 100 year oak tree that snapped back in the tornado 9 years ago.Anyways, me and my dad were scoping out our property down by the lake and I have this crazy idea of building a short track course through the yard.We have a good 2+acres here with which I think has lots of potential.The only straight aways would be through the yard out by the road and down along the neighbors.Then I can bomb down the hill on the very edge of our property to the lake.Its a steep drop of about 50 vertical feet.I'll weave it all through the woods going up and down the hill for some intensity.I'm thinking of adding a little north shore style including riding across big downed trees,a jump or two,bridges,log pyramids,rock gardens,and even build a floating bridge to go out into the dense cattails in the lake.It'll take some time but it will be fun building and worth it.I'll keep an update on it.It'll be sweeeeeeet!

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Is this legal in Minnesota?


Ah,lightness Posted by Picasa

I saw the opportunity so I took it. I brought out the good bike to get that nice feel of light, fast carbon under me once again. That coupled with just base layers,warmers and a vest mean't for a very nice ride.I didn't go for too long because I had already got 2 long days in a row previous. Anyhow, I hope everyone else got a chance to enjoy it.

Ah,yes I also went looking for the medallion yesterday.I've never done this before and I thought I'd give it a whirl.From what everyone was posting on the message board It was thought to be in the Battle Creek on the east side of Mcknight. This is where everyone was and from looking at the clues it seemed logical. But its not where it was. It was where I first thought.Right by the start of the mtb trails next to the community center. There's that sledding hill right there and it was found to the left in the pines. Oh,well. Its only $10,000, right.



Look at that, warmers and a vest in Jan.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Are we going to have a winter this year


halfway point. Posted by Picasa

Enjoying another beautiful day

now thats what I call a shoulder

I went a full 4hr ride today and it was gorgeous out. I took my time and finished not totally wasted. Nice wide, clean roads just cruisin and a jammin. Like I said 3/4 of this route is on shoulders like this.Then right afterwards I helped my dad split wood for 3 hrs before supper.

I guess the biggest decision I have right now is whether or not to get braces.I went in for an estimate yesterday and bottom line I have to cough up like $3,700 for them.Thats after insurance helps out. Insurance pays a maximium of $1,500. I would have them on for 18-22 months.So what do you think?Should I go for it or what?

Yesterday I also went to Home Depot with my mom to discuss remodeling the bathroom and get the plan ready.I don't know when she'll want me to get started.It seems when its a good time for me to do it, its not for her.Now that I'm in the middle of training season she'll want me to do it.Crap! Time management will be the key here.

All done


Pull it over. Posted by Picasa

"I'm looking for Sarah O'Connor"

I promised some pics of the bike when it was done didn't I? Here it is. I found the "Cobra" sunglasses (If you remember that movie) in one of the side bags.I can just picture my boss stylin these bad boys back in the day. The helmet and way to small jacket are my dads.

Monday, January 23, 2006

What to do with freetime?


inside Jasons icehouse Posted by Picasa

Last night I went out to Centerville Lk where my cousins have their fish house.I brought my house out too.And after a little fishing they had a big crew come out to play boot hockey.One of the friends brought out his Banshee and was ripping around the lake. That thing can really wind up the rpms. Jasons brother does all the fishhouse decorating.He's always modifing or building something. It was cold but good times.

We are finally paying for all the good weather we've had.That wind is getting brutal. You really suffer on those long rides comming back into the wind, not looking forward to that.I took a little tip from those crazy guys and gal down around the Mankato area,and tried out the mx goggles on a cold, windy ride and they are awesome. They're nice with face masks because you can get them to not fog up unlike glasses. They will be invaluable if you hit precipitation.For only around $20.00 for the cheap ones you can't go wrong.REI makes a ski glove that has a little rubber wipper on the finger for wipping them clean (fyi).

I finally went and got my motorcycle permit today.It was easier than I thought.Just go in and take the written test, if you pass your good to go.I got like a 85-90% on it.Not bad considering I never studied for it.Most is common sense stuff.Now I just have to wait for nice weather and I can cruise...sweet!

Banshee attack Posted by Picasa

Boot hockey rink Posted by Picasa

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Winter Getaway


Snowshoe journey Posted by Picasa
Where do I begin I did so much in the last 3 days. First I should thank the Richards for such an awesome resort. The hospitality is amazing and in the winter the lodging provides a warm cozy atmosphere. If you like to ski, Maplelag is a must for a few days.
I arrived monday morning at 11:30 and after a quick ski I was ready to chow down.If you go to Maplelag make shure you bring a HUGE appitite.Here bonks are unheard of. After lunch I took the snowshoes out and hiked for 3:00 hrs back to dry lake. Its not that far but if you've snowshoed before you know its slow and tireing.I was bush wacking too so I had to make a few corrections in my navigation.After that I broke out the icehouse and did some fishing.It was perfect out, absolutely no wind and mild temps. I caught 3 nice crappies and a sunny before supper, then when I went back out, nothing at all.Jay and the 3 youngest came out to visit for a bit. 3 young ones in a 5x5 area with 4 holes drilled is a little cramped.They were pretty good though.
The next morning I did 4 laps around skaters waltz including the extention and suicide hill each lap. and did a lap without poles wich is good for your form and balance.That was about 2 hrs. Then after lunch Jay borrowed me a pair of classic skis and I took them up around roys run,Island lake,Bullhead lake ,and a bunch of the smaller loops around the lodge.That took 3:30 hrs, but I was having a blast.I haven't classic skied for over 5 years. The muscle groups you use are totally different than skating.Now I'll be buying a pair when I find a nice deal. After a very long day we sat down to a massive dinner, lets see there was chicken,salad,maple squash,creamy corn,rice,fried bread,and dessert was German chocolate cake. I like the way they set up the meals too. Its like a family style dinner where everyone sits together and passes the different food items around to each other.Its kind of an icebreaker that gets everyone talking and getting to know the people staying at the resort. That night at about 8:00 Jay and the kids took me out to the sledding hill which is the steep climb for the short track course.There me and Jake had the Jibskates and were taking them off a little jump they made. They were fun but they would take a while to get used to.

The next morning I was a very sore puppy.The classic skiing killed my hip flexors. I wanted to leave right away for Itasca but Jay talked me into staying for the sticky buns,hashbrowns,bacon,and eggs. After stuffing myself once again, I headed up to Itasca State forest which is a 45min drive from Maplelag.My plan was to ride around lake Itasca on my bike,but they close the oneway down for the winter.They did start grooming this winter however,so Why not. I got a map and off I went. I parked at the south entrance rd which they close off and groom in the winter.This is the freaking autobon for skaters. They groom shoulder to shoulder on the rd.You can do the v1 for like 3km straight. Turning into the trail system I was treated to a narrow downhill followed by a long stairstepper climb. The first few km of this trail had the most climbing but that was it.The trail is groomed for both skate and 1 classic track.I would recommend skating it. The trail took me around an endless amount of very small lakes with absotutly gorgeous scenery. At the end of Eagle Scout trail you can either take the Desoto trail back or go straight on Nicollet. Nicollet is skate only and narrow.I recommend experts only since its quite a ways back there and there's alot of quick turns. I absolutely loved this trail and it was the most fun I ever had on skate skis. The trail weaves all over the place through the big virgin pine forests and the terain was so up and down that my heart rate stayed relatively low while attaining higher speeds.My glide was perfect on the freshly groomed trail.It felt like rally car through the forest...totally sweet trail.This is a must. The trail comes out on Elk lake and turns into that one lane rd that I was going to ride on the bike. Again, shoulder to shoulder grooming and fast. This takes you back and you take a little dog leg that spits you out on south entrance rd. The big loop is 20km.Again, I highly recommend going and skiing this park its a blast.

I'm glad I took this little vacation it was well worth it. Maplelag is an excellent place to go and just ski.You don't have to worry about anything else. Everything is taken care of. Jay keeps the trails in emaculate condition.The best grooming I've seen. The terrain is mild too, so its a great place to take a significant other. Most of the trails are classic only. I thought I would never like classic anymore when I started to skate, but now I found a new love for it. Doing both will develope more muscle groups and really even out the legs. If your an avid skater Itasca is well worth the short drive for an afternoon.Its a beautiful park.I guess thats my review.Untill next time-see ya.

I got some pics in my photo gallery link,and I added the Oftedahl family history link too. Pretty interesting

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Maplelag bound


Maplelag resort Posted by Picasa
I made a decision to take a little drive north to visit the Richards at Maplelag.The skiing is good and being in the north woods should be fun (it always is). I'll be leaving tomarrow morning and come back on friday. I'm bringing my ice fishing gear to see if I can get a few walleye's while I'm there. I'll also be eating my share of cookies and hot cocoa mmmm. I'm looking forward to trying those new jibskis that Jays been talking about.They should be fun.Anyways I'll take lots of pics to post this weekend-See ya

Monday, January 16, 2006

The run around

Here's a glimps of what I did on my day off.I forgot to get a pic at REI after H'Woods



Went to Hollywoods after the boss's house and this dude brings in chinese food for everyone.After a 3hr ride I wasn't going to pass.H'wood just got back from a 16 day vacation riding in California,Arizona,Nevada,and Colorado."Party on" Posted by Picasa

Went to the boss's house to pick up the rest of the motorcycle stuff and Tony (a laborer for the company) was putting new tires on the Bobcat.They offered to change the tires on my bike and maybe be my pit crew.After seeing the maul in one hand and the size of the tire levers in the other I kindly refused the offer. Posted by Picasa

Pretty obvious where I'm at Posted by Picasa

Pics give hills no justice Posted by Picasa

Stillwater lift bridge Posted by Picasa

In the drivers seat Posted by Picasa

Sunday, January 15, 2006

Toughing it out

Well after really thinking it through I've decided to stay home after all. I thought about what it would be like to drive 21hrs alone...and comming back.I figure I really would be spending more time driving instead of training.Even if I split it up in a couple days I have to drive 8 hrs stop find a decent route.... yada,yada. I'll just tough it out around here or something.Maybe I'll just drive to different locations around here to get a change of scenery.Only if I had a snowmobile right now I'd have some fun on that. At least I can ride in daylight now, thats a big plus.The weather is going to change again and turn the roads crappy again.They were so nice the last week or so. Dry roads in Jan,you couldn't ask for much more...nice weather too.

For a little tech talk-I got some Tufo valve extentions and those are the only way to go.I'm going to be running my Zipp 303's with Tufo C S3 Light 215 gram tires.They're those tubular clinchers.You can run 220 psi in those suckers.They have like 440 tpi! Anyway I had the Zipp extentions and they stink because you have to run the valve open all the time.With the Tufo you take the valve core out and thread it into the top of the extention making it so you can close the valve.Would anyone recommend putting the tire sealant in or do you think I'm being too cautious since their my race only tires?

Who's racing the mtb race Feb 8 in ST Paul? What,a MTB race? you ask Yeh, did you hear about that time trial format through the skyways right in downtown. Red Bull is promoting it and it starts in the Galtier Plaza and runs almost a mile through the skyways to the Xcel energy center.Morc has it on their website. It starts at 7:00pm and runs untill all the 50 preselected riders finish the course. Their will be stairs,tight corners,doorways ,ramps,and other items brought in to make it interesting. I heard some xc racers were selected.Does anyone know who?

Thursday, January 12, 2006

Laid off!?

From all the talk that was going on about all this work that we supposedly had I thought I was going to be working all winter.I guess not. I just turned Journeyman too. I had bought pizza for everyone on the job yesterday for lunch since it was my first day as a journeyman. My boss said it would only be a week or two. I just wish I could have seen at least one full scale pay check.Anyway I don't mind. I'm seriously contemplating on going down to Texas and visit my aunt and uncle. I looked at the weather and its going to be in the mid to upper 60's with sun. Ahh,what it would be like to ride in only some shorts and a jersey. And on a 16 lb bike instead of 30lbs. I should just go for it. You can't do this kind of stuff later in life with a family and kids.

Sunday, January 08, 2006

Who let the dogs out!


Dang, I wish I had the bike with the fenders Posted by Picasa
Yep, looked nice when we started but the weather quickly changed for the worst today. I should have looked at the radar before I left to my aunts house with my bike and I ended up regreting it.

Yesterday me and Sam took our usuall 4 hr weekend ride and it was kind of interesting.Going south out of Scandia we decided to take a little scenic detour that was new to us to put a little more time on the clock. It was some nice twisty windy streets, and we came to a climb that was the biggest on this ride."This should be fun" I say to Sam. Then about halfway up the hill "Crap!,Dog!" I yell.And here comes this massive chocolate lab, looks like mixed with mastif or something. It ran after us up the road a bit but the owner was calling him back, and I asked him to kick his dog for me in what breath I had. All was good after the adrenaline wore off.But wait, there's more. A while later this total hillbilly truck passes us with a guy in blaze orange driving and a dog next to him.I said to Sam "wasn't that the dog that just chased us"? "It looked like it". When we got to the end of the road we took a right and here that truck was on the side of the road. As we approach it, the dude opens his door and runs out guns a blazing and we start running evassive manuver patterns all over the road.Not! but I had you going didn't I. No, I thought he was going to unleash his dog back on us or something but he actually appologized,and said the typical "he won't hurt you,he's harmless".Man, I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard that one. Yeh, harmless untill one of those meaty chew toys goes rolling past his territory on two wheels.Don't kid yourself people, they'll get you if they have the chance.
It was a good ride though and Sam is strong right now.Dude, he led like the whole ride in the big cookie with the bottle-o-bullets just grinding everything out. While I'm back there with a mind meld on his hub. I keep telling myself now isn't the time to be fast anyway just put the time in and speed will come later.There's still 3 months to go.

Tuesday as master Yoda would say "Apprentice no longer, journeyman you must be". Thats right I will offically be a journeyman. Where has the time gone? Its been almost 4 years now. I've learned in this trade that you will never master every aspect of carpentry.(with the exception of Bob Villa and Norm Abrams) There is something new all the time ,and your an idiot if you let it get to your head thinking you know more and are better than the rest of your crew. Its a team effort out on the job site and it takes alot of communication to keep everything moving smoothly. Age doesn't mean anything either.I probably will be schooled by a young apprentice when I'm old too someday.Because some people are more experienced in different areas that maybe you haven't done much of,so you have to keep an open mind to everyone and respect each other no matter what their position.

Thats it for now.This week is a recovery week so I'll have time to do other stuff and have a little break.See ya- E

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Wish I had something to talk about other than training or the weather but I don't. It was a weird day today. Even though I am putting in a substantual amount of time this week and still getting over a cold I was totally wired at work. Does that mean I'm in for a nasty crash at the end of the week? All I know is I need to see some sun out pretty soon because the drearyness is getting old. Rain,snow,rain,snow....common make up your mind! Now it looks like the bike is going to be the way to go this weekend.I'm not complaining or nothing but I would like to see some stability in the weather.I gotta get my bike ready for tomarrow, so I won't bore you anymore with my lame posting. Check back this weekend.

If anyone is interested in a 3-4 hr ride this weekend in the Scandia/Stillwater area let me know. We can use more company.