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Interview with Alexi Grewal on his Roubaix race

Submitted by Kris Thompson on

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Photo Credit: 303Photo

With permission from The Alexi Grewal Story

Story: “So Alexi how was the Mead Roubaix race last weekend?”

Alexi: “Oh, it was OK,” he said slowly, then took a drink of coffee.

Story: I hate it when he makes me play 20 questions to find out what place he got, “And how did you do?”

Alexi: “… lot of guys quit… lot of guys went down… went to the hospital.”

Story: I also hate these terse/vague answers. I was going to have to say something to provoke him so I said, “So Alexi, did you really race from Mead, Colorado to Roubaix, France? I looked on ‘Map Quest’ to see how far it was, but it couldn’t tell me the distance… probably the Atlantic Ocean threw it off. How did you get across the Atlantic Ocean, Alexi?”

Alexi: No response (he’s killing me here). He took another drink of his coffee then finally said, “I got dropped… just another hard training ride.”

Story: “Did you finish?”

Alexi: “The break happened in the first 15 miles. There was a 30 mph crosswind… there was no way. I only had a 10 minute warm-up.” He took a sip, looked at me and said slowly, “I saw the break go… I knew how hard I’d have to go… I just didn’t feel like it.”

Story: I didn’t respond. I wasn’t sure what to say to this. We sat there in silence for a few minutes.

I know how hard it is for an endurance athlete to say something like that. It’s not OK for an endurance athlete to say that they don’t feel like it. Endurance athletes suffer to hell and back… and they still feel guilty about not going hard enough.

Alexi: But then Alexi started talking… as if suddenly it was “OK” to not “feel like it” and he had permission to go on,

Learn what your Denver Mayoral Candidates have to say about the future of bicycling

Submitted by Kris Thompson on

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From BikeDenver.org

Hey Denver! It’s time to vote for a new Mayor! At BikeDenver, we believe that bicycling is part of the identity of the City of Denver and we wanted to find out how our mayoral candidates viewed issues and priorities related to bicycling. We encourage, you, the reader, to research candidate positions on a wide spectrum of issues and we hope that these specific responses will help you in that process.

High Plains - Flatirons Vista - High Plains

Submitted by David on

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I have been getting into mountain bike lately. I forgot how much I loved mountain biking. From where I work I can easily get to the trails around Superior (i.e. Colton, High Plains, Community Ditch etc.). Not the most technical trails but still tons of fun. My goto loop lately has been the Dirty Morgul Bismark. On my single speed I can do that loop in a little over an hour.

Today I parked at the small trailhead at the intersection of the Coalton trail and High Plains right off of Hwy 128. I headed west on the High Plains trail. This trail drops gradually down to Hwy 93. This section of trail is one of my favorites. It is a really nice section of singletrack with a good mix of really smooth to the omni present Front Range rocks.

At the trail junction of High Plains and the Greenbelt Plateau I crossed Hwy 93 and got onto the Flatirons Vista North and headed west. This section of trail is a two track. There is a short hill in the beginning and then flat after that.

Unpublished

Chrome - Pawn RollTop Pack Review

Submitted by David on

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I love commuting to work on my bike and have always used a messenger bag to carry my stuff (i.e. clothes, shoes, lunch, laptop etc.). It's either old age or the amount of stuff I need to carry but the messenger bag tweaks my back, shoulder, neck etc. I decided to give a backpack a try to alleviate the stress on my body.

I gave the Chrome - Pawn RollTop Pack a try. Chrome describes the pack as Our most compact, all purpose pack with a seam-sealed, roll-tight, waterproof compartment (beer cooler). Made in the USA. Guaranteed for Life



When I first took the backpack out of the box I was very impressed. The bag is designed for commuting and keeping what ever you are transporting safe and dry. From the thick Codura outer shell to the rubberized waterproof main chamber to the waterproof zippers to name a few. There are other little design details that really make the bag stand out.

My commute is 15 miles each way and the bag has functioned perfectly. It is very stable on my back even with all the stuff in my bag (i.e. change of clothes, Mac Book Pro, shoes, lunch etc.).

The last thing I want to say about the bag is that it can keep you organized. I know with my old messenger bag it was bottomless pit with one very large compartment. This pack has one larger compartment and a few smaller ones which I really loved.

From more information about Chrome products check out their website.



Specs

  • Weight: 3.7 lb.
  • Fabric: 1000 denier Cordura outer shell, 18 oz. seam-sealed truck tarp liner
  • Flat Dimensions: 18” wide, 19” high, 6” deep
  • Features
    • Weatherproof 1,000 denier Cordura outer backpack
    • Fully waterproof seam-sealed main chamber
    • Watertight rolltop closure
    • Laser-cut unbreakable stainless steel hardware
    • Weatherproof urethane coated YKK zippers
    • External wet-dry pockets
    • Haul loop handle and daisy chain lash points

More Pictures of the pack

"NO" West TSA continues ban on bikers

Submitted by Kris Thompson on

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Council Members voted to continue the ban on mountain bikes (all bikes really) in the West TSA AND ban on horses going off trail AND closing 42 of the 58 miles of social trails. There was however one council member who did vote for bikes (remember this folks)
From the Daily Camera

Councilwoman KC Becker was the only council member who said she would have supported allowing mountain bikes in the southern portion of the study area.

New Downhill trail on Flagstaff threatens West TSA's decision

Submitted by Kris Thompson on

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A newly discovered DH trail on Flagstaff comes at a most sensitive time with Mountain Bikers given that this week the Boulder officials will decide the fate of the West TSA access. Here is what was mentioned on Facebook today from BMA

Just in time for council to decide on bike access in the WTSA, an illegal DH trail is discovered on the back side of Flagstaff Mountain! Keep your eyes on the local paper tomorrow or Wednesday. BMA does not condone breaking the rules. But the total ban on bikes in the WTSA does not help this situation either.

Update Interesting spin if you read the comments, here is one

Makes you wonder:

- Cyclist caught and ticketed on illegal trail March 19, 2011
- Publicly released as front page news in the Camera on March 28, 2011, two days before West TSA decision.

I suspect that any other time this story would barely merit a mention in the paper.

More can be found on the Daily Camera

2011 - DU Criterium Photos

Submitted by David on

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It was a little cooler than the CU Criterium but for the end of March it was pretty nice. The venue was Denver's City Park and one of the oldest criterium courses around. The course is known for the three round abouts and a few long straight aways. I was there for part of the Mens 3 and the Mens Pro-1-2 race. The field sizes were on the small side but it is only March. Next weekend the ACA season kicks off in earnest with the Louisville Criterium and the Groove Subaru Spring Criterium.

The results have not been posted yet but when they are posted we will link to them. If you have pictures we will link to them. Please Contact Us

Other Photographers

Men Pro-1-2

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