Rick's Riding Strong

This just in from Patrick Myall
Hi everyone,
Just spent the afternoon riding with the man himself:
Rick Rides Great Divide Gallery

Rick's doing good, he's in 3rd place out of 23 starters, with only 10 folks still in the race. He's just taking it a day at a time, but he's pushing to finish it, just riding it at tour pace.

My friend Dave "Moe" Meyer from Gunnison and I parked at Sargents around noon and headed up Marshall Pass from the west side. We found Rick heading down about 5 miles below the top, and we accompanied him for the next 35 miles or so out towards Cochetopa Pass. Around 6:15pm, at SR 114, we had a few MGD's and sent him on his way, he hoped to make Del Norte or else camp near Cochetopa pass.

Mary Anne, Rick sent the last photo out to you. Also, you should be able to copy these pics from the Picasa site to post to the blog, feel free to link the whole gallery if you want. Let me know if you have problems getting them.

cheers,
Patrick in Crested Butte

Quitting Cap

For those who listened to the race update yesterday and heard Rick say that he was putting his quitting cap on, here's the latest word.
It's not true, he is not bailing out of the Race, at least not yet.
He was having a hard day yesterday, but I think Southern Wyoming can do that to you. The highs and lows he's experiencing in this race are pretty extreme.
He told me that after he called in he drank a couple of Pepsi's, got back on the bike, and started feeling great. The ride was awesome, the scenery was amazing, and he was just plain enjoying being out there. He slept on top of a Mountain last night, and he was in good spirits when I spoke to him on the phone from Steamboat this morning. He said that maybe he just needs to increase the caffeine intake.
He's just taking it one day at a time right now, but things seem to be looking up.
This is one hard race that requires both physical and mental toughness. You have to admire all those guys out there.

pictures from the start

Some pictures thanks to Jason and Maripaz.
The last one was stolen from adventure cycling gallery 2007

GDR Update #2

Folks have been emailing and calling to ask for more information on how Ricks doing. I guess his updates to the official GDR voice mail have been "boring" according to some people. Typical Rick, all business...
I've been talking to him on the phone and things are going well for him considering this is probably the hardest thing he has ever attempted.
He's gotten lost a bunch of times,which means he's had to do a bunch of back tracking. He lost his map on a highway somewhere, and had a stroke of luck when a mechanic at a bike shop helped him find it.
There's been rain, snow, hail, massive winds, and there's a heat wave.
He says that the hardest part is dealing with the saddle sores. He's been putting in some huge days, 2 days ago he rode 165 miles. Yesterday he sounded tired, but who wouldn't. I have a feeling that along the way there will be days that are the worst he's ever spent on a bike, along with some other days that will be some of the best. Rick is super tough, and there's no doubt that he is capable of a challenge of this magnitude.
I'll post some pictures as soon as I get some. In the meantime here's a picture of the bike he's riding.

Great Divide Race Update #1

Rick made his way to Montana, via the slow Train. There were a few bumps along the way that nearly made him miss the start, but it all came together in the end. Jason and Maripaz from De La Paz coffee happened to be in Montana at the same time and picked him up at the train station in Whitefish on thursday. They also gave him a place to sleep that night and a ride to the start in Rooseville friday morning. Thanks Jason and Maripaz.
The race started on Friday at high noon. I spoke to him Friday night, and he sounded really good. It Looks like he's in about 3rd place right now.
You can read his updates, or listen to the podcasts via the links at www.greatdividerace.com
Some bodies are already breaking down, one guy was chased by a bull Moose, another had an encounter with a Mama Grizzly and her 3 cubs.
I think I'll sleep better once Rick is out of Montana.

Great Divide Race

For those of you who don't already know, Rick is leaving in a few days for Montana to attempt the Great Divide Race.
It starts at high noon in Rooseville on June 15th. Covering 2500 miles from the Canadian border to the Mexican border along the continental divide.
All self supported!!
He's super busy right now preparing for the event, and finishing up as many frames as he possibly can before he leaves.
Here he is taking a breather in the sun in front of the shop today.

There will be updates from the race at on various websites
greatdividerace.com
greatdividerace.blogspot.com.
mtbcast.com
Wish him luck!

Shots from the hood..

Heres a 29er Swamper singlespeed frame fresh off the blocks...This bike is going to Sluggo down at the Spokesman bike shop....

A close up of some pin-stripe work from Sampson

An old cross frame I put a new curvy top tube in and had it repainted and striped...

Check out this cactus flower... Usually only blooms once a year for only a day... smellz purdy...
Back to work..

Straight out of Oregon

Randi from Rainy Peak Cycle Shop sent us some photos and nices words... They got her dads bike put together, a fully custom Hunter frame and fork I built a while ago.. Check out the front 2 speed with a super custom right side only downtube shifter... Ultra beefy tubeset with full rack mounts, designed to be ridden by angry water buffaloes....
Randi's pa Jeff himself putting his new ride through its paces in the Summer lakes region of eastern Oregon... Check out the felt hat, style is so easy for some...
Over and out
Rick

Style Cat

Hey Kids
You think your dumb ass tatoos are cool-- check out this hot ink from a local pinstriper... This 24" BMX cruiser was his first bike frame, he's a friend of Chava's and goes by the name Sampson...Super sweet if you ask me... Makes me want to build a new frame for myself just so I can feel the style... I now offer pinstriping on all my bikes... Going to get him to work on some handpainted logos and such....

My crappy pictures don't do it justice.... Stay tuned for more crappy pictures of nice work...
Happy Trails
Rick

Springing

Howdy Folks
Just checking in, thought I might put up some pixs and a few race results....
Nice shot of Mary-Anne and myself at the Sea Otter where she hammered her first ever MTB race to a 3rd place sport...Photo thanks to ScottyP


Sunny afternoon at the corporate factory....





Centerfold of a swell gold repaint of an old frame... Upside down King HS is available upon request..



Schweet little CX/Tour rig shipped out to Knoxville TN.




Punk Ass Cam himself with a darling platinum dye job... Cam just got 7th overall at the 20th annual Shasta Lemurian Classic aboard his prototype Swamper 29er curvy tube singlespeed (winning the SS class).... I guess he likes it....
On and On till the break of dawn...
Rick

New Ride

Here's nice picture of a bike we sent out to our friend Jason Ortiz in Lincoln Nebraska.
It's a 29er single speed,, great for cruisin' for chicks or dudes or both.



In other news, next time you're at the grocery store pick up the June issue of Mountain Bike Acting.....I mean Action. They cover the handmade bike show, and there's a funny picture of us striking a pose.

Condor Tour 07'

Howdy folks... Lets get back to the basics... Bikes bikes and riding bikes... A bunch of the DFL city crew came down to my neck of the woods for a 5 day self supported bike tour of some of California's most scenic and desolate bad lands. We encountered headwinds and tailwinds, rattle snakes and cougars, long climbs and long downhills, a few crashes, a handful of flat tires, one broken chain, and a whole lot of fun... Pictures are better then words, so here goes....From left to right---- PunkAssCam---SanoPat---Diligan---HardAsNailsHannon---CavemanDan---Ginger---RickTheStick---Woody

The first day was a nice cruise down the Big Sur coast... Diligan's rig looking tough

Day 2--- SanoPat topping out on Los Burros road.... Granny gears for everyone, next was a ridge run of 15+ miles with major ups/downs

Day 3 ---- A nice blooming Yucca on the old dirt road to Arroyo Seco



Day 3 still--- The gang at the summit of La Gloria road....

Day 4 ---A pic of Diligan throwing caution to the wind, this is Clear Creek road to the Ghost town of New Idria

Ginger bringing some SF grafitti to an old mine... Where did that Freewheel sticker come from ?

CaveManDan fixing up his palace..

Day 4 still---Diligan going ballistic on the long grind out of New Idria... Who says there's a lot of people in California. We made it to Mercy Hot springs that night for a bunch of tub soaking and star gazing.
Day 5 ---- Was all about Chava. ( pictured below ) He joined us for the last two days and towed our tired asses home at 22mph straight into the wind....

A little over 400 miles in 5 days with ton's of climbing and dirt roads.... Radio off
Thanks for your time and I'll try and get more junk up here more often...
Happy Trails
Rick

Random stuff

Our friend Glasgow just published a new book. Glasgow is really funny, he's also the nicest guy we know. His latest book is a personal memoir about some of his shenanigans in underground Hollywood. He's reading at some Bay Area Book Shops in the next couple of days. Check out his blog The Royal Nonesuch
It has the dates and locations, as well as some other stuff that might make you laugh.

Here's the video trailer. Trailers for books, who knew?


Also Marian Hunting (love that name!!) sent us this!

"Sooo, I rode Diablo yesterday with Pete from Marin Bikes. I'll spare you the most boring details.

I think the highlight of the trip was when about halfway up to the saddle, Pete asked as he looked up ahead:
"Is that guy riding a unicycle or is he just riding a comfort bike? He can't be riding a unicycle. He's gotta be running."
I responded with "He's probably got the Missing Link road bike conversion special. Road bike with stem riser, 4" riser bars, and bar ends pointed straight up to the sky. Finger tipping on the bar ends because his back hurts."
(I'll admit it, I'm a hater sometimes.)

Couple minutes later, we had rolled up to the man in question and yes, yes he was riding a unicycle. But not just any unicycle, an orange, 36" wheel custom Hunter unicycle with a hydraulic rim brake!

Hunter custom unicycles? Who knew?

Pete and I chatted with the guy about his unicycle. Turns out he has two custom Hunter unicycles and that Hunter unicycles are generally pretty well thought of in the unicycling world.

The guy is training for a tour of Croatia, Bosnia, etc. he is going on in June (I think). And, he's not even touring by himself, he's going with 20 other unicyclists. And he told us a little about another tour he had done back in January in Laos. He said that he toured through Laos with other unicyclists from Australia, India, Brazil, etc.

It was pretty amazing. Pictures included, hope you like 'em,
marian"

Canadians can be mean too!

Reposted from the Surly blog:

"I can't support bike lanes. Roads are built for buses, cars, and trucks. My heart bleeds when someone gets killed, but it's their own fault at the end of the day."

-Rob Ford, Toronto City Councilor
Email: councillor_ford@toronto.ca

We urge all friends of the bike to send a message to Mr. Ford explaining why he is way off-base. We recommend that you don't use any threatening terms or obscenities, as hard as that may be to do.

Below is a message you can copy and send to Councilor Ford:

As a cyclist and concerned citizen, I find your remarks concerning bike lanes to be appalling, highly inappropriate, and even dangerous. Cyclists have the same rights to the road as any motor vehicle in Canada, as well as the United States. Bicycles offer a reduction in traffic, improved environmental protection and better public health.

On behalf of the families and loved ones of cyclists killed by automobiles, we, the cycling community demand a retraction of your statement and an apology. Please know that your comments are rapidly circulating within the cycling community around the globe, and many cyclists hold prominent positions in society. What's more, cyclists vote.

N.A.H.M.B.S.

What can we say?? The show was great!! So many beautiful bikes, so many nice people!. It was cool to meet all the other builders from around the Country. We had a really fun time with the Nor Cal contingents, like the Sycips, the Inglis' and the Soulcrafters. We hung out with Steve and Denise Garro from Coconino Cycles. Rapha Racers were in a booth next door and we got one of their jerseys and some nice woolly socks! Oh yeah!
The official word is that next years show will be in Portland. We'll be there! Hopefully it doesn't conflict with the County Line!!
Our show bikes will be in the Spokesman later this week, if you feel like going in and taking a look. We'll also have them photographed by someone who knows what they're doing and post them here.
For now here are some photos...some we took, and some we stole off the web.

Handmade Bicycle Show

Yep that's right, a bunch of anal retentive frame builders will be exhibiting their wares under one roof this weekend at the San Jose convention center.
Word on the street is that next year the show heads to the east coast, so you'd better check it out while it's still local.
Wish I could post some photos of the hot frames Rick has built up, but I am under strict instruction that they are to be officially unveiled at the show.
Come by and say hi.
Check out the website at handmadebicycleshow.com.
for directions etc

Some More.......

These are from Scotty P. You can see the whole set by clicking HERE.
He also has some great pictures from the TOC prologue.

Curtis Inglis and Jeff Hantman rockin it on that sweet Retrotec tandem.

Better watch out, Bradleys coming to get you!!

Messin' with Melanie on the beach.

They don't call him Smiling George for nothing.

Homemade trophies!


Bikes bikes bikes.....