CBaron

I bet you may have already looked through this, but just in case, I'm linking to it again. http://www.bikemojo.com/speak/14-austin-voodoo/100879-hey-bentonville-veterans-plan-my-trip-me.html There is a TON of good info in this thread! IMHO hitting The Back 40 may be a bit of a scheduling challenge for you considering the race that will be taking place while your there. But I'd strongly suggest Coler Park, Lake Atalanta, and (the drive) out to Mt Kessler. -CJB

JT- I've been (quietly) experimenting with some of the same things. We should get together and compare notes. How long and how strict have you been on Keto? -CJB

Good for you Eric for getting it done! I kept waiting for a truly "bad thing" to occur in your ride report. But thank goodness it never came. Yes, it sounded like a tough day, but you made it back in one piece. I do think I recall coming passed you while you were pulled off to the left of the trail? I seem to recall this might have been near the springs area on the southside. -CJB

For that, in my left jersey pocket, I carry a medium sized heavy duty zip bag. It contains money, ibuprofen, ID, my phone, and....a small oakley sunglass bag that I use to wipe my glasses. -CJB

Basics 101

I've been 1 part "forgotten about" this post, and 2 parts "avoiding the topic" of this post. Part of my impetus for starting this thread was the fact that the next day (Sat 25th) I was going to make a run at what I was calling an EB Prologue. It was to consist of parking at Camp Tejas and making a lap of LGT, then riding down Parmer and doing Peddler's Pass, then Deception proper (1/4 notch & DD). From there I'd jump back onto Parmer and head to WC for completion. It was my goal to cover that distance so that I could get an idea for the distance and time to completion. This would then give me an idea of what time I'd have to begin in order to start (the night before the EB) with this route as a Prologue to the EB. I was estimating it would be about 6.5 hrs and about 60-65 miles. I WAS WRONG! I ended up having one of my worst days on the bike that Saturday while attempting to do this "EB Prologue" ride. I won't go into the details again here, much of it is summarized on my Strava post. But I ended up having to pull the plug on my day and have my wife come pick me up at 7hrs, 50 miles, and an aborted run on Deception, which was punctuated by me having to lay down in the stream for recovery. https://www.strava.com/activities/1797161605 Now that I've got some distance between myself and that day, I'm not entirely sure what my plan is now. According to my calendar, upon a successful completion of the EB Prologue (on the 25th), I am suppose to be scheduled to do a nighttime LGT lap this coming Friday. However, at this moment, I really don't plan to do that. (Let me know if any of you have a hard-on for a Friday night LGT lap and I may possibly reconsider it) But I'm beginning to think that this ENTIRE idea, doing the EB Prologue beginning at midnight before the EB as a tribute to the Enchilda Buffet's 10 yr anniversary, may just have to be my White Whale for now. I also think I may have to give out a retraction of sorts to my....the EB is completely doable with grit and determination comments earlier in this (and the other EB post). Now, in all fairness, I do still believe that. But it does REQUIRE a qualification. There is a big difference between: Wow this is difficult, I've never ridden my bike this far, I'm tired & hungry and want to go home....versus.....holy shit I'm seeing stars, my body is feeling cold (and its 100* outside), and I can no longer pedal a bicycle. Knowing yourself as an athlete, rider, person will best help you to determine these differences and thus make smart decisions on going fwd or not. The EB is designed to lead rookies into deeper waters so that they can safely accomplish something bigger than what they may have ever done. Its not designed to lead someone to health issues or (semi) permanent damage. Later, -CJB

TGFL! Tender Gooches for Life.

I have a bandana that is the last thing I shove into my seat bag. Its primary use if to take up the additional space to prevent rattling. However, I've used it on MULTIPLE occasions for injuries out on the trail. Luckily for me, they've been 'other people's' injuries. But I had a riding buddy nearly sever off the tip of his finger via a disc rotor during a spectacular crash. My trusty bandana saved they day (and his finger)! -CJB

AntonioGG is pretty much on target. "Hold a Paceline" (or "comfortable in a paceline") is sort of a code word for most of the things that Antonio mentions. It essentially boils down to when you show up to a group ride of 40 ppl (the numbers on Saturday) and everyone heads out for 50-70 miles, at a very steady speed, in elbow-to-elbow proximity....you will not be a danger to yourself or those around you. I'm introducing my youngest son (9 yo) to road cycling. He's been darting around, hopping off curbs, and generally goofing off. I've had to tell him that in "this world" being steady, holding a smooth line and being predictable is the "cool way to ride". Its the difference from being a rally driver and an F1 driver. If any of you are out there and want to work on developing these kinds of aptitudes, then I'd very much recommend the Saturday morning BSS Parmer ride(s). There are 2 groups. The short-group does about 25 miles and is pretty much open to all abilities and levels. They usually have 4-8 riders. I've been meaning to bring my 15 yo son out there for some of his 1st real group rides. The long-group does about 35'ish and they usually contain some more experienced riders. I've seen this group vary from 6-20 riders. When I came back to road riding about 2 yrs ago, I jumped into their long-group rides about half dozen times to work on getting my "pack legs" back so that I could get comfy in a group again. I've now since moved on to this Bagel Ride as a next level up in pace/size/speed. The Bagel Ride group is very "civilized" in that the riders are experienced and are not there to prove anything. But that doesn't mean that its not fast and challenging. If we ever had enough people around here (this forum) that wanted to work on some of these basics, I'd be very willing to do a few basic rides to show/demonstrate some of these scenarios. There are a handful of do's & don'ts that can take you pretty far. AntonioGG summarizes a good bit of them above. Cheers -CJB

Glad to hear all went well (enough). When we completed our lap, it was noticeable the amount of cars that had left early. We got caught on the other side of the trail (just before the staircase) with a flat and fixed it in the rain. I was pleased with the amount of people that showed up today. I believe we had about 10-12 ppl and everyone was accounted for by the time we all left. No broken wrists this time either! Our group only did 1 lap because the precipitation made the rocks NASTY. But the first lap was all-in-all a big success. Since nobody got 2 laps in, there's a *chance* we may find another spot in the calendar to call a 2 lap pre-ride. Stay tuned.... Cheers, -CJB

Back when my TF MTB was stolen, I ended up riding my gravel bike at WC for about 6 weeks. I was coaching/leading my kid's MS & HS MTB club. I had to be out there with them. But they also didn't ride the chunky stuff, so it was no problem really. -CJB

Looks like things should be somewhat clear till about noon. See you guys out there at 8am -CJB

Location: Lake Georgetown Trail (LGT) Time: Monday, 8am meet, 8:15 rollout. Place: Russel Park parking lot, Georgetown Pace: Steady tempo for 2 clockwise laps Realistically it looks more like 1 lap More details are listed in the first post at the top of the page. We will be leaving from Russell Park. If you've never been there, then the trail head" is over around to the right before you get to the guard shack. It sorta like a little cut de sac parking off to the right. It should not be too hard to find. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- At this moment in time, I'm saying this thing is on. But I want everyone to know that this place is 15-18 miles of FULL ROCKS and will be very (additionally) challenging if we get caught in the rain mid-lap. Please plan accordingly. I've got a feed for a weather station that is located about 1 mile for the lake. If its legitimately raining in the morning, then I will make call here (and on Mojo) in the morning by 7am. Thanks -CJB

You guys are awfully quiet out there!?! At this moment, I'm thinking optimistically. This means a 30% chance of rain, also means 70% chance of NO RAIN!

I've been watching the weather forecast and honestly, the scattered nature of the precipitation forecast makes it a very difficult thing to call. It would be better if the skies open up and dump rain. I myself tend towards being on the "lets go" side of the ride-call forecasts. But when I'm making the call, and feel a sense of responsibility for others, I'm a bit more conservative! LGT is not a trail to be messed with in many ways. That being said, we could reschedule this (2 lap) ride for next Sunday? I'm just wanting to gather input and scheme some options. My goal is to help as many of you who desire to get 2 laps under your belt to do so. If at all possible, I'd like to have a decision made before we all go to bed tonight. POST UP! Thanks -CJB

Ok, I'll play.... In case any of you skinny wheeled punks are out there hiding in the wings, I'm contemplating showing up to the weekly Saturday AM "Bagel Ride". I can't recall the EXACT details from memory, but they roll out from Parmer & Tech Ridge around 7:30am. Its a pretty big group sometimes between 30-50 riders. At the 'midway' convenience store refuel, the group splits off into a long and short group. Long usually goes 70-80; short 50-60 miles. I'm thinking about doing short. So if you can handle the mileage, HOLD A PACELINE, and enjoy the melodic hum of 50 pairs of tires singing along the central Texas tarmac, feel free to join in. Later -CJB

It seems to me that the momentum has swung over to this forum, so I wanted to bring this ride call over to here also. I've been holding out until I could get a better window into the potential weather for Monday. There's both good and bad. The good, is that it looks like the temps will be easing off. This is very VERY good. The bad news is that there's a 60% chance of rain at 7am Monday morning. Therefore, we'll just have to keep waiting and seeing. Thanks CJB

I made this ride call last year back when this Dragon Slayer thing was a little-known curiosity of an event. Both this pre-ride and then actual event went so well that I figured I'd make an (unofficial) pre-ride call again. Last year we had 12 people show up, however this time, I'm suspecting the turnout may be much bigger. I'm planning to keep most everything the same from last year except the starting location (since the DS start location was change...I too will change this to be the same as DS) Location: Lake Georgetown Trail (LGT) Time: Monday, 8am meet, 8:15 rollout. Place: Russel Park parking lot, Georgetown Pace: Steady tempo for 2 clockwise laps Last year, I (many of us?) were uncertain about lap times and pacing. I think most of us have that figured out a bit by now. But if you don't, then this could be a good chance for you to work on it. As for myself, I plan to do a steady tempo for the 1st lap, then possibly pick it up a notch (or 2) for the second lap. This is pretty much how it went for the 4 of us in my 'group' last year. That being said, everyone is free to ride this ride how you choose. Below is a cut-n-paste from my 'ride guidance' from last year. Originally Posted by CBaron **PLEASE NOTE** I tried to elude to this in my OP ride call, but I want to restate it again for everyone's benefit. I don't consider this a "group ride" in the traditional sense of the word. I don't plan (for anyone) to wait on people, or hurdle up for a mechanical or group-change flat tires and such. The best way to think of this is as a solo ride, where you'll be leaving with probably 10 other riders. If we happen to set a similar pace then great. If not, no big deal. The comfort and camaraderie here is in partaking in the similar endeavors on Monday, not so much in riding hand-n-hand as a big group. My experience in open ride calls is that we will get a variety of skill levels, a variety of agendas and all sprinkled in with some random mechanicals. Therefore, I just want everyone to be on the same page when we start. All that being said, if you're interested in (pre) riding the trail on Monday, please come out! Forecast is showing great weather (71* @ 8am) and the chance of rain is fairly low. I'd bet that the trail should be in good shape by that time. And then the most important factor is that its 5 weeks out from the Dragonslayer ride. This makes it a critical window for building fitness in time for that event (which is the main reason I'm going to be out there). Additionally, its always good to get more trail data and bike setup info while out there (the 2nd reason I'll be there). If you have any questions or comments, please post up. Later, CJB Here is a link to the Mojo thread from last year's ride call: Monday Sept 4th: LGT (unofficial) Dragonslayer pre-ride call Once again, if you have any questions or comments, please post them up. I'm also attaching my Strava file from last year's ride in case anyone is interested. Strava File from last year: https://www.strava.com/activities/1168514299 Thanks CJB

notyal- you are 100% correct about asking for advice. I NEVER ask for advice, because you will always get it. Instead, my method is to seek out council from just a few respected sources. I've designed about 3-4 different jerseys for cycling teams/clubs that I've been a part of. My #1 requirement for me taking on this task has been that nobody gets to see the design until I'm finished (because EVERYONE wants to be a critic). Sorry Al.... But now that we are here, I think notyal's choice above is s-t-r-o-n-g! It could easily contain all the elements needed for Albert's logo: a mountain, a bike wheel or chainring, the site's name, possible a defining feature of Austin (Capital, 360 bridge, Bat, etc..) [but once again less is more] Cheers -CJB

I sit next to 2 designers at my work. We discuss these things quite often as we've (semi) recently gone through this exercise for the project that I've been working on here at my job. Modern design "trends" have evolved to be much more clean and simple. An elegance that is accomplished with less. It could be somewhat thought of as the "Apple way" of design. There is no doubt that they have popularized it (and I happened to have worked there for 6 years and it gets ingrained in part of the corp culture too). Therefore, I keep coming back to the options and offered here as a bit kitchy and dated. I LOVE ME SOME TEXAS! But its really been over-used in standard basic ways. Same with chinrings and MTB silhouettes. Maybe it really doesn't matter for a new startup forum logo, but IMHO these kinds of things do matter when it begins to represent a brand, image or tribe. Al I say challenge your designer to stretch himself; do something that is UNIQUE....DIFFERENT. How would Apple design a MTB community logo? (and still be gritty and earthy?) Maybe something with a vintage nod to it: Clean and simple logo desgins https://99designs.com/blog/creative-inspiration/simple-logo-design/ Maybe something with a vintage nod to it: https://99designs.com/launch/logo-design/89ec0e85ae5e1235/visualbrief/designs (these are not all vintage but you can gather a variety of inspiration from many of these examples) This guy Aaron Draplin is a legend in the realm of retro and simple: https://goo.gl/images/MiiuUy Outdoorsy and earthy examples of his: https://goo.gl/images/JpJyRY I bet something like that could be done with a simple MTB'er logo, a simple thick-lined mountain, and RWB TX colors giving a nod to the state. Just ideas.... -CJB

If I have to make a choice then I say #2 for sure. What point is it to have the state on there.....but then have half of it cut-off? Especially the part that makes Texas so identifiable? But to give some additional feedback, if this is Austin Mountainbiking, then is Texas even needed? Just something to think about. Additionally, I can't say that I dig the MTB rider silhouette all that much either. Seems a bit outa the 90's. And because any strong criticism should come with something constructive: Here is a link to the 175 yr commemorative Austin logo that was designed back in 2014. I have a suspicion that this may be able to be used open-source, but I get I'd check on that for sure. If nothing else it could be used as inspiration for something clean, current, Austin & Texas. (maybe substitute MTB where the 175 is on the banner). http://austin.culturemap.com/news/home-design/12-23-14-austin-texas-175th-anniversary-gsdm-logo-t-shirt/#slide=0 https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/new_logo_for_city_of_austins_175th_anniversary_by_gsdm.php https://goo.gl/images/UGZn1e

I use my Timex Wristwatch set to a 50 min repeating countdown. I skip the 1st time if goes off and then begin consumption at the 2nd alarm. 1hr 20m is a good place for me to begin. I found that with 40-45 min it was too quick and I had to FORCE the food down. But with an hour, it was too long and depending on my efforts/pacing, I could begin to feel the hunger. YMMV -CJB

Albert- I'm not that great with park names and entrance locations, however, if I'm not mistaken, most of the downed trees began at Crockett Gardens and continued (clockwise) along the trail for probably 1 mile or so? The reason I say this is that when making my clockwise lap out there on Saturday, I first ran across that NASTY group of large tree-fall at Crockett Gardens. Then after that, I'd run into a downed tree about every 50-100yds repeated for 3-5 times. Just wanting to give you guys feedback from my dazed & confused state out there this weekend. Thanks a bunch for putting in this work. Its much appreciated. -CJB

He needs to locate an XL size bike. I'd take this all day over that 26" wheeled hardtail Cannondale. https://austin.craigslist.org/bik/d/specialized-comp-rock-hopper/6677749607.html