This is the Specialized Demo 7!
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
My New Obsession
Check this out! 40 pounds of fun for one low price! This might be my next bike.
This is the Specialized Demo 7!
This is the Specialized Demo 7!
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
SJ Mercury News
There was a very inspirational article in the paper this morning. Take a look if you have a moment:
Mercury News Article
Mercury News Article
Sunday, June 3, 2007
Demo One Week Later
Joe and Eric headed back out to Demo at about a quarter to seven on Sunday morning. Our goal was to hit Sawpit and then head back up Sulphur Springs and then hit Braille. I was sure that we could swing it all and be back by around 11:30. Those familiar with my notorious inability to measure time and estimate the lengths of rides will be laughing already. Well, we did not make it back till around 1 o'clock! Surprise, surprise.
Regarding Sawpit: This trail is excellent and challenging. It has tight corners, drops, some stunts and jumps, and a few oh-my-god-it's-too-late-but-I-better-just-ride-it-out sections. It is no Braille, of course, but it does have its own worthiness about it. Overall, it a lot longer than Braille, and you feel it in your sore hands, feet, and quads. Also, the extra milage it adds to the climb out is not so bad.
So we climbed back up past the bottom of Braille and then up to Sulphur Springs. We climbed up and learned from some other climbers that Corral Trail is really a collection of jumps of different sizes. Next time we head up there we should head down Corral, hook up to Sulfer Springs and take that back up to the Ridge Trail and from there hit Braille or Sawpit. This path would cut out about 1/2 of the climb back to the top, which is pretty hard to do.
From here we headed back down Braille. We became so fatigued on the way down that we had to stop and rest our hands and feet. Otherwise, it was just a straight shop all the way to the bottom, with no fooling around. This to me was the funnest part of the ride. But because of the fatigue I ended up skipping some things I usually do. A good choice, I think.
We met a lot of very cool and friendly riders on the trail. We shared a beer with one of the most talkative people I have ever met. He was nice so it was hard to tactfully put a stop to his loquacious ejaculations. We also met a pair of guys who came from Russia. One of them was a guy who got busted up last November while Steve and I were out there for a demo. The wierd thing about it was that I had just been talking about him only minutes before we met him on the trail. All of this was less than a mile from the spot where he broke his ankle and had to be transported out.
Stats:
3 minor spills
0 injuries
19 miles
6 hours round trip
After having a cold, sinus infection, and other symptoms all week long (and absolutely no riding!) I must admit that this ride was a little overkill. I found myself winded a lot more than usual, while Joe seemed more or less at ease. I also ended up walking up a long section of Sulphur Springs. Being sick takes a huge toll on one's abilities to perform. But it was worth it!
Also, after Russ's unfortunate injury, we were really conscious of our own sense of our limitations and comfort levels. I have more fun if I stay within a certain range, dictated by the way I feel about my skills on a given day. But pushing myself a little beyond that is a little fun as well! Without at least a little risk I think we would be missing out on the potential for evem MORE fun!
Regarding Sawpit: This trail is excellent and challenging. It has tight corners, drops, some stunts and jumps, and a few oh-my-god-it's-too-late-but-I-better-just-ride-it-out sections. It is no Braille, of course, but it does have its own worthiness about it. Overall, it a lot longer than Braille, and you feel it in your sore hands, feet, and quads. Also, the extra milage it adds to the climb out is not so bad.
So we climbed back up past the bottom of Braille and then up to Sulphur Springs. We climbed up and learned from some other climbers that Corral Trail is really a collection of jumps of different sizes. Next time we head up there we should head down Corral, hook up to Sulfer Springs and take that back up to the Ridge Trail and from there hit Braille or Sawpit. This path would cut out about 1/2 of the climb back to the top, which is pretty hard to do.
From here we headed back down Braille. We became so fatigued on the way down that we had to stop and rest our hands and feet. Otherwise, it was just a straight shop all the way to the bottom, with no fooling around. This to me was the funnest part of the ride. But because of the fatigue I ended up skipping some things I usually do. A good choice, I think.
We met a lot of very cool and friendly riders on the trail. We shared a beer with one of the most talkative people I have ever met. He was nice so it was hard to tactfully put a stop to his loquacious ejaculations. We also met a pair of guys who came from Russia. One of them was a guy who got busted up last November while Steve and I were out there for a demo. The wierd thing about it was that I had just been talking about him only minutes before we met him on the trail. All of this was less than a mile from the spot where he broke his ankle and had to be transported out.
Stats:
3 minor spills
0 injuries
19 miles
6 hours round trip
After having a cold, sinus infection, and other symptoms all week long (and absolutely no riding!) I must admit that this ride was a little overkill. I found myself winded a lot more than usual, while Joe seemed more or less at ease. I also ended up walking up a long section of Sulphur Springs. Being sick takes a huge toll on one's abilities to perform. But it was worth it!
Also, after Russ's unfortunate injury, we were really conscious of our own sense of our limitations and comfort levels. I have more fun if I stay within a certain range, dictated by the way I feel about my skills on a given day. But pushing myself a little beyond that is a little fun as well! Without at least a little risk I think we would be missing out on the potential for evem MORE fun!
Friday, June 1, 2007
Poem: Demo Disaster! (Ballad Meter, Warning! Explicit Lyrics)
Hey all! I decided to wait for a while to post this, but with Russ's permission secured, here it is...
And in verse, no less! For your listening pleasure...
Russ and I went out one morn
To ride in Demo Forest.
We met upon the crack of dawn
And left at six-thirty-ish.
I drove us out, for last time Russ
Had done the driving for us
When we went out to Stevens Creek,
So I got us to the forest.
We met some riders in the lot
And they were cool and friendly.
So we were off and they behind
And we started uphill quickly.
We headed down the fine Ridge Trail.
We stuck real close together.
The trail conditions were pristine,
Not to mention the weather.
The junction finally arrived
Where Braille cuts to the right.
But we cut left down Sawpit Trail
Like we’d planned yester night.
We hit them all, we hit them fast,
Rocks and logs and corners;
We came upon a trio of drops,
One right after the other.
I hit them, dropped them, onetwothree!
In smooth and quick succession.
Then turned about after the third
To see my friend attempt them.
He hit the first and off he flew
Slightly askew, I thought;
And he carried on to number two,
But pedal he did not.
The speed he needed did not come
From the slight slope of the hill.
And time slowed down, my brain’s alarm
Was sounding very shrill.
This second drop, this demon drop
The largest of the three,
This demoniacal dead tree drop
Was more than Russ could see.
The front wheel dropped, the rear did not
And man and bike did topple.
I’m sure that in his mind it seemed
The world itself did wobble.
In micro-milliseconds flat
He rolled there in the dust
And bike and man laid on the ground
Though bike better-off than Russ.
I quickly checked just to make sure
That nothing had broken too badly,
Since the bike was ‘okay’ I moved right away
To check on my friend moaning softly.
I could not tell right away what was hurt
As he curled in the fetal position
And gritty “fucks” and “shits” expelled
With interjectory precision.
It took little time for us to find
That there’d be no more riding for Russ.
He could not hold the bar, could not squeeze the brake
So now it was walking for us.
I thought we’d be walking quite a ways out
Since we still had a four-mile hill,
But with teeth biting hard and his hand in his lap
Russ RODE up the god-damn hill!
From the lot we drove home and later that day
He went to the emergency room.
The X-ray showed that the ulna was broke
At the wrist…a rider’s doom!
Six weeks on the trail without Russ is our fate
And perhaps we’ll get along alright.
I will ride with a smile on the verge of a frown,
That orange streak far out of sight.
So three cheers for Russ who’s shown us again
The lesson that all riders need:
That the worst of crashes all seem to take place
At the slowest of possible speeds.
Although I do not claim that the poem itself is great, I will say that it is all true. Hang in there, Russ. You'll be back in the saddle in no time. And don't they say that when you break a bone that it heals stronger than it was before? Next thing you know everyone will be breaking bones too, on purpose no less, to make themselves tougher and more resilient! And so I will write great poems about their exploits! I'll never forget how you climbed that hill!
And in verse, no less! For your listening pleasure...
Russ and I went out one morn
To ride in Demo Forest.
We met upon the crack of dawn
And left at six-thirty-ish.
I drove us out, for last time Russ
Had done the driving for us
When we went out to Stevens Creek,
So I got us to the forest.
We met some riders in the lot
And they were cool and friendly.
So we were off and they behind
And we started uphill quickly.
We headed down the fine Ridge Trail.
We stuck real close together.
The trail conditions were pristine,
Not to mention the weather.
The junction finally arrived
Where Braille cuts to the right.
But we cut left down Sawpit Trail
Like we’d planned yester night.
We hit them all, we hit them fast,
Rocks and logs and corners;
We came upon a trio of drops,
One right after the other.
I hit them, dropped them, onetwothree!
In smooth and quick succession.
Then turned about after the third
To see my friend attempt them.
He hit the first and off he flew
Slightly askew, I thought;
And he carried on to number two,
But pedal he did not.
The speed he needed did not come
From the slight slope of the hill.
And time slowed down, my brain’s alarm
Was sounding very shrill.
This second drop, this demon drop
The largest of the three,
This demoniacal dead tree drop
Was more than Russ could see.
The front wheel dropped, the rear did not
And man and bike did topple.
I’m sure that in his mind it seemed
The world itself did wobble.
In micro-milliseconds flat
He rolled there in the dust
And bike and man laid on the ground
Though bike better-off than Russ.
I quickly checked just to make sure
That nothing had broken too badly,
Since the bike was ‘okay’ I moved right away
To check on my friend moaning softly.
I could not tell right away what was hurt
As he curled in the fetal position
And gritty “fucks” and “shits” expelled
With interjectory precision.
It took little time for us to find
That there’d be no more riding for Russ.
He could not hold the bar, could not squeeze the brake
So now it was walking for us.
I thought we’d be walking quite a ways out
Since we still had a four-mile hill,
But with teeth biting hard and his hand in his lap
Russ RODE up the god-damn hill!
From the lot we drove home and later that day
He went to the emergency room.
The X-ray showed that the ulna was broke
At the wrist…a rider’s doom!
Six weeks on the trail without Russ is our fate
And perhaps we’ll get along alright.
I will ride with a smile on the verge of a frown,
That orange streak far out of sight.
So three cheers for Russ who’s shown us again
The lesson that all riders need:
That the worst of crashes all seem to take place
At the slowest of possible speeds.
Although I do not claim that the poem itself is great, I will say that it is all true. Hang in there, Russ. You'll be back in the saddle in no time. And don't they say that when you break a bone that it heals stronger than it was before? Next thing you know everyone will be breaking bones too, on purpose no less, to make themselves tougher and more resilient! And so I will write great poems about their exploits! I'll never forget how you climbed that hill!
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