Skip to main content

Monster Commute


Decided to do the early morning Monster Commute again. Got out the door just before sunrise and headed through the Preserve up to Mt Herman Road. Stopped for a quick stretch and found a funny little sign that says "NEED RIDE UP THE MOUNTAIN" on one side and "NEED RIDE DOWN THE MOUNTAIN" on the other side.


Cruised up Mt Herman Rd in the cool morning air. Way up high on a slight downhill, I heard some crashing through the woods. Looked over and saw 2 elk flying through the trees! I have never seen elk on Mt Herman Rd, so I was not sure I had really seen elk. About a half a mile later, what crosses the road directly in front of me? Another elk! Wow, very cool.


Hit Rampart Range Rd and headed south towards Woodland Park. I almost took the wrong turn again, descending to Woodland Park, but realized my mistake and headed the correct way.


Cruised past Rampart Reservoir, enjoying the magnificent views of Pikes Peak and then descended all the way to Garden of the Gods. The descent was surprisingly devoid of washboard, but did have some extra chunky gravel in places.

Had an enjoyable spin through Garden of the Gods, where a roadie passed and commented on all the stuff on my bike. "Yeah, I'm on a long ride." Not wanting to wear a camelback today, I had everything on the bike:
- pump strapped to frame
- gps on handlebar
- light on handlebar
- handlebar bag with phone, id, and 2 bottles of Perpetuem inside
- 2 Mountain Feedbags holding a Spot Messenger, snacks, rain jacket, endurolytes, and camera inside
- seat wedge carrying work clothes
- tools and tube strapped to frame with an Awesome Strap
- 3rd water bottle in cage
- climbing shoes strapped to top tube with an Awesome Strap

Looks like I'll hit almost 170 miles for the week after tonight's commute home. Sweet! That's about what I'd like to do at 24 Hours of Colorado Springs...in a day. Yikes!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What do we have here? My planned race bike, the culmination of a lotta work and planning. Looks like a Redline Monocog 29er singlespeed, but its not quite that simple. Frame: Redline Monocog 29er Forke: Manitou Minute Absolute 80mm Handlebars: Jones H Bar (yes, more expensive than my frame) Brake levers: Vuelta's (nice, long, and light) Brakes: Avid BB7's Front hub: DT Hugi / Onyx Front rim: WTB something or another Rear hub: here we go...Shimano Alfine 8 speed interally geared hub Rear rim: Stans Arch Cranks: AC Lo Pro XT Seatpost: Ritchey Tires: Specialized Fast Trak Pro Now, the reasoning behind this build. First of all, the Jones H Bar is awesome. Bars with a sweep like this one and the On One Mary are the only kind that I can ride for long periods of time without elbow pain. The multiple positions on the Jones are sweet for long rides. The Monocog...well, I like it. It is heavy as a pig, but the ride is nice. This is my first 29er, so I don't know if its wheel si
1 comment
Read more

Yuba Mundo...Schwing!!!

It's been a while... I'd say the knee is almost 100%, but wouldn't wanna hex myself. :-) I've managed to get out for the occasional ride the past 6 weeks or so. Most of my biking focus has been building up the new kid hauler / cargo bike. The Yuba Mundo V3. Nearly fully sorted, just need to come up w/ something for the kids feet. I installed a carbon fiber stoker bar with matching grips...stylin'. I've had the bike out for a few test rides, including a 19 mile, sub-zero night ride on trails. Worked fairly well. Some chain length issues to sort out and disc brake tuning, but otherwise...smooooooth. Riding on the back deck while hanging onto the bars is fun. :-) Specs: Mundo V3 frame - blue Mundo V3 fork (threaded) Shimano STX headset (threaded) Nitto Albatross handlebars Kalloy adjustable stem Oury Mtn grips - blue Shimano LX M581 brake/shift levers Avid BB7 185/160 disc brakes Deore/Ditchwitch wheels w/ 14mm adapters 2.4" Mutano Raptor tires XT sha
9 comments
Read more

Yuba Mundo V3 Upgrades

It's been a while since I posted about the Mundo. It has been pretty cool for toting around 70ish pounds of kids. After some riding, I decided to invest in a few upgrades. I put on a deflopilator, a double-legged kickstand, a front rack (just because it was laying around), and figured out the 185mm rear disc brake. The 185mm disc brake requires a 203mm adapter to clear the rack frame member. Seems to work fine with that setup (at least on the stand, I haven't taken a real ride yet). 185mm rotor with 203mm rear disc brake adapter Cheapo 2 legged kickstand (big improvement)
6 comments
Read more