yeah.. more wierd collusion in the madison

wait and see what tehy say on cycling news about it... but it was another case of stupid racing and people tanking their own race just to help another guy win... i like the track and i come out to have fun and support it.. but shit... its just sad to see guys not racing their bikes to win...

me and bahati were third and we thought we had a shot till the shit hit the fan and we went from second with a chance to third with no hope at all.. but all in all i am happy with our ride.. we did the best that we could do in some really odd circumstances...

we havce never ridden together before and i am not super experienced in madisons even though i like them so much.. so our timing was really off... we were faster and stronger than freidman/lee and faster but not stronger than pierce/hartley... if we would have been better on the timing we could have been second but lee and freidman had a lot of expereince and it showed... they were exchanging at the right moments to beat us in the sprints and me an bahati were just not that aware of what was happening...

but i will see what comes in cyclingnews.com and then have some more comments and interpretations...

No results

For track nats in LA Times... Diving nationals are aparently going on in north carolina... Hmmm... Interesting...

Treo 650...

ok... now i will complain about team racing on the track...

usa cycling has to think about what it wants to do to develop track racing... if they want to organize things and have a situation where we develop good riders and racing.. or if they just wanna have a free-for-all...

i think that if they want to have a nice development scene they need to limit the amount of riders per team in endurance events to two... because as it is you have the j-me carney mafia and tiaa-creff making the racing negative and its very difficult to compete with two teams of 4 or 5 riders in the final of 24 guys... it ends up lop-sided and its kind of like a big crit on the track...

if the want to have a free-for-all like they do now, then go ahead and dont change anything...

i think in order to make the racing better they should limit the number of guys in a club that can compete... internationally you only get one rider per nation and thats how it is... and the racing is different as a result...

if 6 guys in an international race would have lapped early like they did at nats there would have been more opportunity for other guys to gain back the lap later because the team factor that shut the race down at nats would not have existed...

usa cycling just needs to figure out what they want out of the scene here...

i think its best to try to create events that are most like international track racing than crits... its better for all the riders to have a more fair and open competition...

ok.. nows lets talk about how poorly designed the building is...

there arent any bathrooms on the infield...

the tunnel goes out of the track to an access road and not to the parking lot...

the seats are uncomfortable and you cant lean back in them...

there isnt an easy way to get from the stands to the infield without crossing the track...

there are no showers or locker rooms...

the place is depressing and there isnt any ambiance...

i would rather race at t-town or encino anyday... or some nice place that is good to be at.. with some grass or something.. or some palm trees... and natural light...

yeah sure.. its a great track.. but the building that tehy put it in is retarded...

ok.. lets talk about how depressing track nats are...

there arent any spectators.. there were less than a hundred people last night... i hope that there are more people to watch the mens sprint tonight... there are a lot of good sprinters and it should be competitive...

after the points race i was looking aroung going "shit.. and then you are the national champion?"... there was nobody in the place!...

i remember in t town that the place had thousands of people out...

and even in texas there were more spectators...

what can you do?

So i went with a 53-15... It was ok... And i went through to the final tonight...

Treo 650...

Wreck

On the way to nats...

ok..

so i went to the track this morning and i was WAY too early and then i left to go get lunch and a coffee... and i came back and got on the track and did the scratch heats and i didnt even make it to the finals... it was pretty funny... i didnt care to tell you the truth because thats just one less thing to do later in the day.. so i drove home to the desert...

i had andy stone from shimano tech support put on a 51x14 so i can actually go fast and we will give it another go tomorrow...

i feel really good and the heats were silly easy but i just couldnt ride fast because i was really under geared... that track is really fast and i cant go with a 49x14 like i had on there before...

its typical that guys will ride 94 and 96 in a scratch race... for those of you who kow what that means...

pushbikes.ca this is going to very cool when she actually puts stuff on it.. i really like the format...

my favorite color is the red...

so its pretty much official that i am moving to winston salem... i found a house and everything... i am staying up waiting for an e mail from a loan broker with the numbers on a few different scenarios...

financing is a trip...

you can pretty much get any crazy loan you want... it all depends on the amount of risk that you are willing to take...

Nats

start tomorrow.. i missed registration today because i was running around all day trying to take care of loose ends that i have to do and then it started raining like crazy and there was bad flash floods everywhere and it was just stupid to drive in the road when its more like a river just so you can go to reg at a race...

so i will have to get my packet tomorrow morning and leave really early.. like 5 or something...

Patetroleum

this is no joke... next in the lineup is Saunders Soap... i am imagining a bald head icon like a brown mr clean or something like that...

One of the most dissapointing nights that i have ever had... Had good legs and crashed with one to go in the biggest crit in the world... My guys didnt get in the money... We came out here and made nothing at all...

Regroup mentally... I took a hit on this one...

Track nats start wednesday and i hope i can win something there... Would most like to win the madison with bahati...

Treo 650...

last advice from a reader... then i am done...

All these guys writing you about keeping their women and having time for cycling. It's all about keeping your wife or girlfriend involved. At least that's what I figured out with my wife. When I go for a long training ride I always ask my wife if I can call her if I flat, I take her to the bike store with me a lot of times. Tell her how stoked I am about whatever ride or race is coming up, ask her to be there. Also, I ride with my wife at least once a week, and it kills me because she rides a cruiser and on the city paths. But it's worth it. I think that's the key -- she sees cycling as something she's involved with me and not something she's in competition with. The proof dude? She bought me a DA group for my ride this summer for a birthday present and we're broke (especially now). But I always talked about it and she sees cycling as one of our connections. She definitely isn't one of those needy wife types either.

Hi Erik,

I have a question for you that probly applies to most competitive
cyclists. im sure this is something you've had to deal with before. How
do i get the girls i date to understand that i have to act the way i do
(the cockyness, the shaved legs, the vanity.....). many women that are
unfamiliar with the sport arent aware that we're all total badasses and
just assume that we're self-centered dicks. what do i do?

also, what do you do about the occasional girl that doesnt understand that
shaved legs are hot?

thanks

Myt Response:

dont be a self-centered dick... problem solved...

other things you can do are...

1) dont date girls you know you wont like because they are "hot"

2) dont let a girl give you a hard time and dont stand for any emasculative (is that a word) behavior

3) dont invest any time in a relationship with a girl who obviously doesnt get the whole bike thing and isnt open to it.. she NEVER will get it or be open to it...

4) you should move to france where chicks love cocky dick bike racers... but you cant suck.. so think about it before you go all that far just to get laid...

dear erik

Is it a good idea to bring your girl to races even
though she doesn't help with support,takes up a spot
in the car/van, and forces you to ask host housing if
it's ok if she stays (though you never ran it past
your teammates)?
oh...and you love her SO much!!

My Response:

leave you lady at home where she belongs (oh!)... if you bring her you need to sack up and take responsibility to provide her with a nice place to stay and good food... not on an air mattress crashed out with your buddies... shit.. a guy should just take care of his lady and that is that... if you are talking about a wife, then thats different.. if you want to bring your wife along on a trip and crash her out in a host house then she should divorce you because you are LAME!!!...

HEY

I'm going to Vegas with my girlfriend in two weeks to visit her family. I'm thinking about asking her to marry me when we are there and then going to the Elvis Wedding Chapel. Should I ask her BEFORE we go or wait until we get there?

My Response:

thats bold man... if you care at all to ask anyone for sure ask her parents... to go spontaneous like that sounds like a lot of fun to me...

Hi Erik!...

Is it appropriate to take a girl who likes you to a strip club on the 2nd date? Our 1st date was at a wedding, so this would be a substantial step down the ladder, but I’d like your input, soon, since I’m supposed to take her there tonight.

Thanks, and I look forward to hearing what you have to say.

My Response:

ok.. so you already did whatever you did...

it depends on what you are going for... long term partners dont like strip clubs in general... so that means this girl wouldnt be considered as a long term partner if you get my meaning...

i like to keep my strippers and my girlfreind separate... but maybe your girl is special though and you can have the best of both worlds...

Dear Erik,

how do I get the wife to understand my desire to ride and give me the time to
train enough to at least be competitive? She doesn't seem to understand my
attachment to my bike.

My Response:

ooh... yeah... see... there is nothing you can do about that... i am lucky in that i met my babe when i was in full swing with the biking thing and i think she accepts that i am not me without cycling.. and she understands that it will be my own decision to stop and it will have to be taken on my own terms... in other words- she cant do anything about it and i will stop when i am good and ready...

i am sure that your wife sees cycling as a theif that steals your time away from the family... nothing you can do will change that... i am sure also that she resents a bit the fact that you are not willing to give up a part of your selfish single man's life... they always want you to give up all the single guy stuff you used to...and if you came to cycling after your marriage thats even worse because you are picking up NEW SINGLE GUY HABITS!!!...

dom perras said to me that stopping cycling will be the greatest heartbreak of your life, no matter what the terms... so you will either have to live with the friction or decide which heartbreak is worse.. losing your wife, or a part of yourself...

thats what it comes to in the end... you will most likely have to quit cycling to stay married... or at least you will have to sacrifice what little happiness you could have had as a competitive cyclist... and settle for never ever improving...

would she be happy with a compromise?... does she wanna do stuff like walk around aimlessly all day and look at crap or drive to some far place thats exactly like where you live and do the same stuff that you do where you just drove from?... maybe you could do some of that stupid crap... i dont know... but that even makes it so you will have to sacrifice training time... and thats not the direction you want to go in...

i bet though that you could be fit if you used the time you have better... you are screwed... you cant change your wife or make her see anything new about cycling.. so its better to try to work at the real problem from another angle- try to get fit with the time you have rather than to allow your wife to give you more time...

please e mail me your quesions on romance and courtship and i will answer them for you... E-MAIL

ok...

this is the most fun i have had in a while... i talked to hamblen's polish neihbors...we drank beer in hamblen's front yard leaning on his truck.. and then we watched fight club... and then we raced cruisers around the block twice.. and a deer ran out in front of me and i almost hit it during the race... and then we looked at his AC in the basement because it was really leaky...

so when i move here i think i am going to have a lot of fun everyday like this... and i met some other bike racers that i didnt know before...

moment of silence please for the scotts who were defeated by the english

Vegas airport

I think its important that every so often you stop and think of all the things that you do to make your partner's life easier...

this is the actual spot where the rubber hits the road when you love somebody...

what do you do to help them achieve their goals?... what do you do and what do you give of yourself in order that your partner can either become or continue to be the person that they want to be?...

this isn't little things... its big things...

in the end this is what makes a relationship special and and this is what makes the difference between a boyfreind or a girlfreind and a true life partner...

think about it... maybe you do nothing, maybe you do a lot...

maybe you never thought of it that way...

ok people...

some of you are getting a little out of hand... i dont wanna hear from stolen underground operatives every time i mention danny pate telling me about blood spinners and chris wherry...

i dont wanna hear from uninformed idiots telling me i am this or that and i did this or that... and blah blah blah acting like you know me when you dont know what the hell you are talking about...

i dont wanna hear about kicking anybody's ass and a bunch of crap you wont do...

i dont wanna hear about what you like to do in your spare time when your mom isnt looking...

i am so close to just going to registered users only because a few of you people just aint got no sense at all when it comes to my blog...

i get a lot of mail asking me why i let knuckleheads post on here... i am wondering that also.. i probably know half you guys!... so cut it out...

no comments allowed.. see, now how much fun is that?... get a grip folks...

if you go to the home depot center site there still is no info on track nats... those guys are LAME... i bet i do more promo by having it listed on my site in the races that i'll do than USA CYCLING and the ADT Center do...

eriksaunders's website is brought to you by patetroleum products...
"approved by Danny Pate and guaranteed not to suck"

more matt!

this is an article in a VA paper about our boy matt... somebody flunked PR 101... guess who?...

bonus song

bonus song- ohio players... this is a pretty heavily sampled song

new song of the day... lord kossity...

ok...

the carney video is killing my bandwidth again.. so i took it off... that guy
took him out.. it was wrong.. forget about it... see
it here... this is on fixedgearfever.com.. and you have to register as a user...

The band

Ok... While i was at superweek bahati called me up and said that him and ma records were at this guy's house and that there was a kit and some guitars and some amps... And he asked me if i wanted to go play....

So i got up in the van and drove over to where he was near the stadium and i walked up to the house and went into the basement where this guy damian had this whole recording studio set up and he was playing guitar with bahati on the drums and billy innes on the bass...

So then i kicked billy off and got up in there and we started rockin out... And we decided that we were going to make a band... And we switched bahati over to front man and went for some bahati linkin park with jonas carney on the drums... We had the bike racer (current and retired) band going full tilt there for a while... It was pretty good... I have to get the photos and there was a bit recorded too... I think its a silly thing with bahati saying any old thing on the mic... But its in mixdown right now and i will put up the mp3 as soon as i get it...

Treo 650...

I am gonna write a book...

Some of my best moments and most print worthy blatherings have been right here in this ugly black van over the past 4 years...

the mcguire team bought the old ofoto van... They took the stickers off but you can still read the writing because tbis van is really dirty... And it stinks in here... The guys that keep it at their house never wash it... Its all splattered with dirt and mud...

Yeah... So back to my book...

I am going to cover a lot of stuff... But i will spend a lot of time on dating and courtship... And then a lot of the things that i have learned from other people like dom perras and jon hamblen...

This website is gettong boring to me because i would like to complain a lot more than what i have been doing... So i think i will be getting a bit more negative...

like i might just not do a blog anymore... It sort of sucks...

i havent said anything good in a while...

Treo 650...

tour of holy hill GPS data

old news.. but its here now...

Day off

Today is day off then i will hit it hard the next 4 days... Try to get another win... Ride as hard as i can...

Tonite is all thw way up near greenbay and i wouldnt get back till late late...

Treo 650...

Lakefront Road Race...

it went ok... My goal was to score points for the overall since the road races are double... There is 7000 for the top 20 so i wanted move into the first ten while i could... I did that but i was only 11th... I felt very strong... I should have been in the group that arrived for 3rd... Leiswyn went accros s to them with 2 to go and i was following him and mccook when they attacked up the hill... But i was near the back of the group and they went from the front... I saw them go from the bottom after a left turn and i hadnt even started the turn myself... So as soon as i had clear road i went around but as the hill (called snake hill) bent around a few times it blocked the road off and i couldnt get by... So that was that... On the last lap i ended up riding clear alone for 11th...
Henderson rode a big ride to win... It was pretty good... And J.Al went really well also to be 4th... Roman kilun is out here now and was the bubble boy in 26th... The first guy to not get paid...

Treo 650...

Superweek Photos

superweek photos are here.. this is a link to a pool of photos that luke posted in some comments.. i thought i should move it up front so that people will find it easier...

This is jackson's phone... Its a p910a something... And it sucks... Not as good as a treo... He got it to try to one up me.... See he got a sidekick (like the one for highschool kids)... But then I busted out with the treo 650 and he had to hide his little thing... So now he thinks he has some cool phone.. But it aint a treo...

Jackson checks my site 20 times a day... And he posts as "i hate you" and some other stuff... I crashed his team's house and I am staying for dinner and he is pissed...

KARL MENZIES KICKED OUT OF THE USA FOR LIFE

menzies was ejected from the country today in a "loser goes home forever match" with myself... Menzies is one of the worst trash talkers there is.. Worse even than me...

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE...

Treo 650...

photos

I am doing a story about superweek for ROAD magazine.. I have been taking a lot of photos of stuff going on.. But i can always use more... If anybody has good photos of whatever thats related and you wouldnt mind sharing send them to me!... I will make sure you get a photo credit... Thanks... Erik@eriksaunders.com

Treo 650...

Dave mccook and dan schmatz both did me a big favor to help devon vigus and i get a win last night... They didnt have to help... So it feels really good when other riders you respect are willing to volunteer to help you win... Thanks...

Treo 650...

Cytomax has a trans-am car

I am watching speed and they have toronto gp trans-am... Thr cytomax jag just pulled a sick pass to move into second with a few laps to go...

Treo 650...

ok, that was yesterday...

Treo 650...

TDF live

Yeah... I missed it...

Treo 650...

Finally Victor Ayala is leaving...

That guy has been really out of control lately with the heckling... Tonite was his last race... See ya...

too bad he leaves before i can get a chance to do a rider profile on him... Funny guy that Beektor...

Treo 650...

Live TDF commentary

If i can get up to watch any tour stages i think i will blog some lame comments... Like mystery science theatre 2000...

Treo 650...

I think i will be hosting an unnoficial menzies fan site... Send me photos... Scroll down for the e mail link..

And also i think i will do a daily rider profile beginning with billy innes...

Treo 650...

Eigth place

Today i took it a little too far and pantsed a guy... I thought he qas gonna knock me out for a second... And like an hour later i realized that i was wrong... I was a little high on being a jokester at the time and then i lost my inhibition...

Yeah... It was real bad... I am like 30 years old and i am pretty immature at times... I need to grow up...

30 guys lapped the feild and i didnt really want to do it but i didnt quite have the choice... I was pretty good and would liked to have not had to deal with the feild... J.Al was 10th...

Treo 650...

Horner in the tour...

how about that?... you have got to risk losing in order to win they say... i would like to have seen him win in front of chavenel...

Menzies can't ride a bike

He came by to heckle me after we led out nobody -AGAIN-... He rides by slow and close while i am stopped in the middle of the finish stretch talking to J.Al and goes "nice try" in a kind of nice but kind of smug way... And then when he makes it around me he does this real slow 180 and dumps it on his hip like a lame beginner... And of course i roll up over him and point in his face and yell "thats what you get!... Thats what you get, see?!... For tryin to be smart!"... God doesnt like it when you heckle me and this is proof of that... So let this be a lesson to you all... Only i can heckle people... Karl asks me after he gets up with a smile "nobody saw that right?"... Uh... Yeah... They may not have seen it if i hadnt screamed "thats what you get!"... But then everyone turned around and saw you balled up on your ass...

Treo 650...

Shorewood

This is day 2 of botched leadouts... Yesterday we embarrased ourselves in the whitnall park race... Today we were leading out bahati and it was going really well... I had it drilled out on the backstretch with the intention to give the last turn to jason allen who bring bahati... So i juiced jellybelly and got into the second to last proper turn and through the chicane before the last turn... Allen was there ready to take it in but there was no bahati!... He had been there on the back stretch but i dont know what happened because i couldnt find him after the race... I think he was hiding... But i have to say that finally i feel like the form is here in time for brewers hill tomorrow... I will be riding for a result for myself there... Today i really surprised myself with how fast i was able to ride... Devon vigus was again super...

Treo 650...

Broke a deraileur cable...

I dont maintain my equipment... Jose Alcala is gonna put a new cable on my bike and i will get it from him tomorrow before the race... Thanks Campagnolo tech support...

Treo 650...

I can tell when jackson stewart posts anonymously.... Some other dudes i cant tell... But that doesnt matter, cuz i only care if jackson posts or not...

Treo 650...

2nd place... Again....

Dammit... I cant really think too much about it... I just sucked pretty much... I like to think of myself as a guy who can come through and be counted upon when it really matters... Thats hard to do when you have a leadout like i had and you get killed...

Devon and rahsaan and allen did come through... They had some guys to sweep up and the kept it really clean all the way to the final turns... The job got done on their end for sure....

i have said always that there are so many things to go wrong in a race... And the further you get the less time they all have to happen in... So in the final the clock ticks and it all seems to happen at once... And you get this whole catastrophic failure...

There were a lot of little things to happen within the span of 50 meters... All that stuff adds up and then the wheels just fall off...

If i were a bit stronger and faster it wouldnt have mattered... And thats what makes it difficult... Its the same as getting dropped- not strong enough... Didnt win- not strong enough... Sure things happen that influence you in a race... But horsepower cures all ills...

I am better... No sores anymore... I can ride normal... But its still not really clicking for me in a big way...

If you only win when you are the strongest then you might not ever win anything... Today i did what i could... And i will keep trying and not wait to go for it only when i am finally on a good day... We will see...

Treo 650...

All the cool guys start in the back...

Ok?...

And i warm up by setting up a lawn chair from costco and either complaining or trash talking passers by...

Then i get on my bike and stink up the whole joint...

Treo 650...

Day 2

Went better... I didnt suck as bad... But i am very slow right now... No speed at all and i am not confifent to attack hard... I can go ok at AT but its feeling harder than it should...

Did a lot of hard riding for not much money... Normal i guess...

I lanced my saddle sore with a safety pin last night... A lot of blood came out... First time for that... Today it still wasnt right... But it was better... I still am not really comfy...

And uh... Nothing else i dont think...

Treo 650...

Day one

This was the worst day i have had on the bike in 4 years... No kiding... I was worthless and it hurt so bad that at one point i just had to groan in pain.... I had a saddle sore that wouldnt all ow ne sit right in my seat and that made my back hurt really bad... I had to sit up and press on it to try to massage it out a bit... And i couldnt get around the turns and i let huge gaps open and then i would have close them... And there was a hill...

So i just said to myself that it was going to suck and be hard and that was just the way it was... To go hard i had to really go really hard and i was paying for every effort... But they were efforts to not get dropped instead efforts to race the race...

So we missed out on the break because we all sucked that bad... But this is superweek and everyone knows that you can make more money in primes than for whatever they pay for the placings... So i led out jason allen for all the primes i could and we made over a grand... It was hard... But i had to just suck it up... We didnt talk about it at all... The bell would ring and then i would go... And then jason would get the money.... Easy...

I decided i was going to race every day....

Treo 650...

SUPERWEEK

i am going tomorrow to superweek.. daily updates and photos to follow...

ok.. that carney video put me over bandwidth...

wefunkradio.com check that out... its pretty cool... but they talk alot it seems.. but do some cool music... you can listen streaming.. a lot of funk and hip hop.. and break-beat style grooves...

race shedule is updated with some links...

there is a crit in Winston-Salem that i am doing that i cant find a website for, and then there are a bunch of races betwen that and BofA that i cant find either... so if anyone knows a website for these races, let me know...

Matt Svatek

Is living out his CHiPs fantasy.... First he is gonna be a firefighter and then if he is just cool enough they might let him ride a bike and move him over to the Carlisle Highway patrol... But I don't know if he knows that CHP is the CALIFORNIA highway patrol...

this is a clip of the infamous T-Town Kierin crash...

the story is that carney crashed ben barcewski (sp- kirk?)... and so in retaliation fueled by years of hatred andy lakatosh took him out...

i got this clip from carney who feels like it exonerates him of any wrong doing in the crash.. but the camera doest show it all and i cant really tell what has happened to lead up to the crash... carney says it shows that ben crashed himself.. but i plainly see carney chopping down hard onto ben...

you could speculate that the only reason to be so high is to lure the guy under you so that you can chop down on him... its common to do this if you are leading out a guy who is faster than you.. and who, if you stayed low to take it in a staight up sprint, would easily come around... both carney and ben are sort of flicking up and down the whole time... thats sort of normal... but i guess protecting your space and impeding progress are different things even though they look the same...

i wasnt there and thats just speculation.. but you cant tell... and that just might be racing.. what can you say?...

but i do really feel sorry for the poor argentinian guy who got taken down in all this.. i bet he doesnt have any beef with anybody... which is not easy a that track...

click here to see the clip.. its 8min...

this is the part when you got a call from one of these two guys...

i have been on the recieving end of a few of these calls...

Jones has a real hot look no matter what

Vin deisel movies are pretty bad...

I am watching one on the plane...

Chronicles of riddick was especially bad... I thought it might be worth a look... But it wasnt...

I was hoping that it would be like pitch black which is the only watchable VD movie... Its a good cheesy "B" sci-fi action movie... Before he was big at all...

Even though he was playing the guy he played in pitch black it wasnt lik pitch black...

It reminded me of flash gordon, but more sinister and without a sense of humor....

That flash gordon movies was one of the best things to come out of the 80's....

Palm springs airport ram...

Palm springs airport ram

Schedule update...

I am doing the crit that tuesday before fitchburg, then the nats qualifier in encino, then superweek, then bank of america - the biggest crit in the world, then track nats, then manhattan beach, USPRO crit, SFGP... Then i am going to build a wall with poured concrete and rocks... Finish my rock patio and fire pit... And some other stuff...

lessons on living well from the maasai...

lessons on living well from the maasai is a pretty good little story about relating to other humans and enjoying and simplifying your life... it nears that big think bigger than life dramatic point at times as this woman narrates, but you get the point...

i think i learned a lot of this same stuff... and the culminating moment for me came while i was in france.. where you shake hands and greet everyone that you see in the day... and people were so able to see the beauty in everyday life...

this story reminded me how important it is for me to continue to experience life in this way...

and i think the maasai live in an arid climate...

Big Neal appearances

Big Neal will be on MSNBC tomorrow at 5.. and he will also be on the O'Reilley Factor day after tomorrow...

do you want a garage?..

it seems like all new homes no matter how big they are have garages... i dont really like the look of a 1500 square foot house with a 2 car garage as your front door.. but thats what people are buying...

i cant see wasting 625 square feet of space on a place for your cars when the rest of your house is only 900 square feet and no room in the place is bigger than 400 square feet... its just not the way to live i dont think...

here there is a problem.. the lots are small, and second stories are impractical because they are hard to cool... thats why most small places are a single story on a concrete slab... if you want a big place and you can afford to have a big AC to cool the second floor then thats ok, but you have to know that you are looking at hundreds of bucks a month to cool your house... whereas a swamp cooler will cool a single story place cheaply as long as the venting is right...

what would be cool in a small house is to do like at the beach or in cities where the garage is the first floor and then you build your house on top of it.. you dont sacrifice floor space at all that way... but if you only have a slab so big to put only one story on you are limited if you must include a garage...

what does anybody think of detatched garages?... i think for a small house its the way to do it... especially since you can use to block the afternoon sun from your house and your yard... i am going to build me a garage this winter i think... and you can use a garage to help define some exterior spaces and create shady areas that you can plant and stuff... as it is, outdoor areas without shade in the desert are useless...

i think garages are cool, but there is a way to do it that is better... like not have it make your home look like a mini storage... carports are an option... i have seen some very cool carports in palm springs...

i am doing some cool floor plans right now for a place... to build...1500 square feet WITHOUT a garage... 3 bed 2 bath... big spaces... windows and doors... but still cheap to build... so i can make more money on selling it... but all my research tells me that people have gotta have an attatched 2 car garage even if its the biggest room in their house!...

its frustrating.... i'll post my floor plan soon... if i really wanted only to make money i would get a prefab and trailer in the parts and nail it all together and sell it. but if i am going to do anything i want it to be some place that i would be excited about living in...

this house they are building behind me is nice and simple and ok and all but you could do something better for a similar cost with a little imagination...

my goal is to build two houses that are smart and practical with big spaces, and natural light... free and airy... with really efficent use of space, great storage, but cheap to build... i can do it i think... either with a cool carport or detatched garage...

saul!... he was 37 in the tour de suisse...

HellaSaul: You never say Hi
HellaSaul: whats up?
Eriksaun: god job in suisse
HellaSaul: thanks, man.. I was happy with it for my first race back
HellaSaul: I pissed some guys off the last day
HellaSaul: a lot of guys off
Eriksaun: why?
HellaSaul: I attacked on the first climb, .25k into the race.
HellaSaul: then the race blew apart.
Eriksaun: psht.. they dont have to follow...
HellaSaul: my teammate got in the break .
HellaSaul: was the whole point
Eriksaun: so you started a bit of nuclear war?
HellaSaul: yea
Eriksaun: ha ha...
Eriksaun: i love that
HellaSaul: kind of funny, Took some balls with all the big pros huh?
Eriksaun: good job...
HellaSaul: I know.. I enjoyed it.
Eriksaun: you are a big pro right?
Eriksaun: forget about it
Eriksaun: anything else good or new?
HellaSaul: haha.. I dont like to think so . Poor jason mccartny was the first guy dropped.
Eriksaun: too bad so sad
HellaSaul: then he got pissed and briged aross to me on second climb
Eriksaun: this is going on the website by the way...
HellaSaul: rode away
HellaSaul: and would not wait.
Eriksaun: oh well.. thats what you get...
HellaSaul: then I caught him on the last climb and droped him.
Eriksaun: ha
HellaSaul: Its all good. we made up
HellaSaul: so sweet.
Eriksaun: so your team must be so so happy with you
HellaSaul: yea
Eriksaun: are you doing the tour?
HellaSaul: na dude.
Eriksaun: espana
Eriksaun: maybe?
HellaSaul: Tour of Austria, Poynormande, the TOur of germany
Eriksaun: no GT for you this year?
HellaSaul: I am on the long long team
Eriksaun: for spain?
HellaSaul: tour of spain is possible.
HellaSaul: we'll see.
Eriksaun: can you say that to people.. that you are on the long long team?
Eriksaun: is that a real thing?
Eriksaun: is it published in l'equipe?
HellaSaul: I dont know about the vuelta.
HellaSaul: I am dont doing the tdf. unless several guys on the team get sick
HellaSaul: I am not doing.
Eriksaun: you could tell chicks that you are on the long long team...
HellaSaul: I can do that.
Eriksaun: i'm on the long long team baby...
HellaSaul: haha
Eriksaun: so yeah... horner was good.. did you say hi?
HellaSaul: we talked alot
HellaSaul: I give him a top ten in the tour..
HellaSaul: he is good
Eriksaun: did he give you sage advice?
Eriksaun: he did for me when i was there
HellaSaul: He gives me advice.. he is one of the best a tactics.
Eriksaun: i think so too
HellaSaul: he knows how to read a race. he will so well in the tour.
Eriksaun: top ten in the tour?... i think it can happen.. especially if you say so...
HellaSaul: Top 10
Eriksaun: people wont believe it... so i wonder what they will say when they see your prediction
HellaSaul: he got 5th a switzerland.
HellaSaul: Booby J was not that good,
Eriksaun: thats right... and won a stage...
Eriksaun: do you have a girl yet?
HellaSaul: not at this time.
Eriksaun: what does that mean?
HellaSaul: My parents are here (changing the subject)
Eriksaun: oh wow.. thats great...
Eriksaun: tell them i said hi
HellaSaul: haha
Eriksaun: dude.. i gotta go right now...
HellaSaul: hi back
HellaSaul: later,
Eriksaun: good job.. and good luck in the next one
HellaSaul: than

.3GP files...

i am having a problem getting .3gp files to play on the site... these are the files created by camera phones... i want to put my treo movies up on the site... real player and quicktime have a plug-in but i cant get it to work... i hope i can get it done in the next few days... if anyone has any insight... you guys will have to go get the plug-in...

i was just thinking how much better i have been going than jackson stewart lately...

reed-not "reid" the soigneur...

i should tell you some stories about this guy.. i think he has done everything... when you are complaining about your stupid road trip he can tell you about the time he got beat up everyday in a foreign prison for 110 days... and then things dont seem so bad... i gotta put together some reed (i got this one right originally!) stories and a couple of photos... if any body has any reid reed stories then you can add them to the comments of this post!...

Racing to Retirement...

i added a new sponsor in the sponsor links.. RBC Dain Rauscher... they do all kinds of financial services... i have an account that i feed my prizes into... its managed by sue capazzoli... she says that i am "racing to retirement"...

Quote of the day

"PR is not as strong as the TRUTH"

D'ou vient le sida?

No changes...

The officials refuse to change the results...

Worst officiating ever in life... JL is 15th in the stage even though he is a lap down... And devon is 20 something even though he is a lap up on JL!...

laporte came and apologized... I appreciate that...

The officials ruined his race that he works hard on...

The idea that the officials have goes like this... The guys who took an illegal free lap finished.. So they did the distance and get a better time than the slackers like me who pulled their asses up off the ground and rode hard... They pulled me out...So we get 4 minutes off... Reward the cheaters... Penalize those of us who have a sense of fair play...

No dice...

The officials are determined that i lost 4:30 in 2 laps... Thats getting lapped 3 times in 2 laps...

I am not mad... But i tell you... Who ever decided the times has no idea what they are doing....

i'll just cheat next time... These guys like guys who just go ahead and give themselves free laps...

The crash yesterday in the crit...

Really changed the gc... Some guys took an illegal free lap... The officials figured that out and put them down 1:40 which is what the laps were it seems... Rather than take a free lap that i shouldnt get i got my ass up and drilled it to minimize the gap... I was pulled with 2 to go... I dont know if it was the first two to go or the second 2 to go... But either way i would not have been lapped... So i figured that i should be losing not more than 1:20 based on what they did for the free-lappers...

What do i get for riding hard and doing the right thing?... They put me down more than 4 minutes...

I wonder what goes on when they figure this stuff out...

I should have just done the shady free lap and i wouldnt have been penalized...

the manager is on the case to rectify this...

Mn messengers hook it up

Tim and spencer

Mankato road race...

The race today was great... Well done on the part of the promoters... 90 miles with a 5 o clock start... Late finish on a hard circuit...

there was a major screw-up on the part of the officials though... It will actually benefit me... They pulled a lot of groups that they should have let ride... They even pulled the yellow jersey group as they were closing down the gap to the leaders...

When it gets figured out we will see what they come up with... We have until 4 tomorrow to protest...

Ok... I am not going to lie... I tried as hard as i could and thats all i got... Buried in the prologue at nature valley... I pedaled as hard as i could... And that was it... Done...

My teammate was driving...

And he rolled down the window and it blew all his stale musty BO into the back of the van... And i go "man, if youre gonna be rolling down the window in front of me then you need wear deodorant"... And my other teammate goes "yeah, man you need to seriously think about using deodorant"... And so the guy just goes "nah, i dont really fuck with that (deodorant)"... And he doesnt really...

Yeah... In philly they pulled our big group... We were given official finish times but they didnt let us do the circuits...

In a race like that i need 40 guys to finish all together and ride protected in a group... And i need a lot of teams to want to make tempo for a sprint so that attacks on the wall get neutralized and i dont have to worry about trying to follow too much... And i need it to only go hard the last time up the wall...

it sounds stupid... But this race happens like that often...

Lancaster newpaper

Had an article about the promotion of the event being really bad... there were a few frustrated people quoted in the article... The flip of that was that people in the city really like the race and they wish that between the city and threshold sports there could be more effective promotion of the race...

I have always thought that threshold events are poorly promoted... In the first years of the sfgp you heard nothing about it... Nyc is the same story from people that i know in the city.... If you are a bike person then you are more likely to know about the races... But if you arent hooked into the scene already then you may not know about what a fun time you can have at a race...

local.lancasteronline.com/4/14738

Uspro was hard and I didn't go good

Sometimes you just suck... And that is all there is to say...

the city of brotherly love reminds us...

Mark furman...

i am watching a bit on the missing girl in aruba when the anchor goes "lets go to former LA county homicide detective mark furman"... Wha?... this is the new fox news celebrity analyst... I bet his best qualification is that people already know his name...

I have to wait till i fix the archiving... So the site is getting really really big... But i will fix it after nature valley...

Anyway... Trenton was cool... I lost allen on the way up to set up bahati and so it was only me... He got chopped off my wheel by some guy and that really hurt things...

After we were really well set up for bahati in clarendon we have a lot of confidence... I think that we are not far from getting a good win for him... There is nature valley soon...

my website is sort of jacked...

I am having an issue with the archiving... and I think that since I hadn't made a new post since it auto archived there is no current index file...

let's see if this changes anything...

My teammate...

Thinks its just cool to shave your head and leave your hair the middle of the parking lot... Some people just feel entitled o do any gotdamned thing they like...

There is also the wall of marty...

Nothstein has a wall dedicated to his career...

At applebees in t-town

There is this photo of tanya lindemuth... Many times national champion in the sprint... There are other pictures of her too but this fantasy painting is by far the best... And the fact that its on the wall at applebees...

Deep Throat...

It was this guy named mark felt who was the #2 at the FBI... He is still alive but pretty old and somehow not all there... It was supposed to be that they would come out with his identity after he died... But i think that the family wants to cash in a bit and it seemed from the article that i read that woodward and the family has had some back and forth over who owns the rights to the story of deepthroat and the watergate story... Hmmm...