Its been a while hasn't it!!!???

First off I just wanted to wish everyone a belated Christmas. I hope that Santa was good to everyone. It was a rough week for the family with the flu ripping through us like a hot knife thru butter. We've all spent about a day or two on the disabled list. Not fun.

On the dirt front three weeks ago I got to ride the San Clemente Single track with some guys from STR which was killer. Met some nice guys and found some really sweet singletrack that I will most assuredly go back to. Then last Monday I met up with some more great guys from STR over at Southridge. I got to ride my first 4x course which rocked. I watched them make some cool jumps and ride a bit of the DH section there. It wasn't a lot of riding per se but all afternoon on or around the bike which was fun. I probably should've brought the Chameleon and not the Heckler but it was still fun. I even got a new skid lid and some sweet 661 knee pads.

Less dirt but still riding I went out this morning (I probably shouldn't have since I was down with the stomach flu on Monday and not feeling nearly 100% yesterday...just couldn't help myself!) I drove over the Albertsons at the corner of Murrieta Road and Newport and rode from there to Diamond Valley Lake (DVL). It was a rough beginning to a ride. I felt off and was riding into a slight head wind. My legs felt like Spaghetti but I pushed on anyway. It felt food to think up a ride and make the destination. I rested for a minute or two at DVL and then started back. For some reason I really got a second wind and just felt a lot better. I hammered pretty good and forced my pace for a decent stretch. It was really awesome. The ride out to DVL lasted about 58 minutes and the ride back to the car lasted about 45 minutes. Pretty cool.

So I'm feeling the itch again to ride and love how some of the winter gear I bought recently really helped this morning. The temp was in the low 40's and while I was cold it was tolerable. I think now that I'm going to be able to get out a bit more on both the road and the mtn bike. It's been tough with my new schedule at work (all openings) and the cooler temps.

Last but not least it looks like I might end up getting a bit of cash to purchase another bike but I am undecided as to which one to get....not brand per se but style. Do I get a XC bike or a longer travel freeride/DH bike. Part of me wants to get an XC bike and rebuild the Bullit....hmm decisions, decisions. It'll be fun to decide and see if I can find a really good deal somewhere!

The picture here is of me on the rock wall that Destroyer and Ricky built at Southridge. Its one of the first shots of me actually riding a mtn bike. I have a couple others that I'll try and post later.

Rain...Rain...go away...

Well it's been a while since I've posted so I thought I'd put a little plug in here. Its been a rough week for exercising in general and biking in particular. With babysitters being sick, a change in my work schedule and doctors appointments theres been no time for me and my pedals. I've been feeling it too with the legs being a little jittery and just a bit down in the dumps from the lack of action.

So today after I got home and checked my fantasy football team (I won the week) and to check on the stats of the Chargers (GO CHARGERS!!!) I decided I just needed to get out for a spin...BIG time. So I donned a bit of kit and took the Chameleon out for the sole purpose of finding something to pound off of. I remembered a couple of small jumps near my house so I went there first. It was nothing huge but still fun with a cool berm to rail around and enough confidence in my riding to do a quick cross up off of one of the small jumps. I even crashed which is always cool and good reason to get more gear!!!!!!

It wasn't a long ride, it wasn't a training ride but it was a FUN ride and that is exactly what I needed tonight. Here are some pics of the Chameleon as well as a post ride pic. Thanks for reading and keep the rubber side down.