Cohutta Ho! VillinCycles is a friend

Here we go again. I can't sleep but in 5hrs I'm supposed to be on the road with Elk.
This man Alexi Dold is a proper gentleman and FrameBuilder.

Fat Back, 3 Cat Shame and Dr. Noodleman

Scooters in Granada are the most popular type of transport. Makes a lot of sense to me but their exhaust fouls up the air.
Alley's were laid with stone, often in decorative patterns.
View of the Alahambra from the Plaza of Saint Nicolas.
Rainbows during the semana santa procession, gave me a moment of disbelief in my disbelief.

Back in the states and unless the two scales I've tried are wrong there is an extra 5lbs of me to love. I don't understand how that could be since eating in Spain was a crap shoot. Breakfast was insulting to the the "hungry man" plate at Denny's. The biggest meal I could find was two eggs fried with a couple pieces of tomato and some bread. But the fresh orange juice was a quencher and the coffee played the appetite supressor.
Lunch,..I can't really remember having lunch more that once. A piece of pork and some fries. Simple but that was one of the best meals we had. Oh and I visited the Kabab stands post rides most of the second week. Best kabab's ever, with cabage, tomatoes, carrotts, olives, beets and of course either chicken or falafal. Ruben had a problem with these, because of his sensitive stomach, he has a problem with a lot of things.
Dinners were either Moraccan or Spainish and were usually pretty good. Paella is the famous Spanish dish that basically seems like oil soaked rice cooked with the ingredients from a stir fry allready in it. It's good and filling but I don't get the hype around it.
So the XS faired well in the travels and has gone straight to the top of my list of road bikes. Never have I ridden anything like that bike. Smooth like manteca, quick as a whip at Catholic school and it read my mind like a jedi knight. If it was a camera it would be a Hassablad, or Linhoff.
Before I took it back to its original owner I had to race it one time, so I drove to NY for the Battenkill-Roubaix, with high hopes. Everything went as planned in the Cat 3s, the roads were conforming to the tubulars I stuck on and I actually played the patience game. On the last 1mile climb I launched my attack, pulled Carter and Peter along with me and at the top we only had about 4 miles to go with a decent gap behind. We worked well together and with about a mile to go I blew. Carter and Peter took 1-2 and I got swallowed by the pack. Next time Gadget, next time. Speaking of Inspector Gadget, has it ever occured to anyone that IG and Dr. Claw are metaphors for the cold war enemies of the USA and USSR? If you assume that the USA is the eventual victor then I'm basically saying that we are bumbling idiots, continuously saved by our 12yr old niece and her dog.
Oh and I got my new 29er frame Friday. I keep going back to it and running my fingers over the beautiful Ti welds.

Algo Mas?

I'm back. And the states don't seem quite the same. More Graffiti.
Balls

Politics

Exploratory Invasions/ Graffiti

Graffiti of Granada
There is a lot of it. Mostly the typical script style you can see almost anywhere.
I like the stencil pieces the best.
Granada has a very metropolitan feel. Lots of skinny people in black, tourists, pseudo punks,
semi-hippies, squaters, alternative lifestyle folk. If I was to be tested on what exactly it means to look
"euro"
I think I might pass. Highlights, faux-hawks, piercings. Hard to describe but easy to recognize.
We've Also ended up here during Semana Santa, a strange religious festival that people from all
over Europe travel to see. So from Monday and until next Sunday there will be processions in the streets. It's not really a parade, since only one group goes at a time, and there seems to be no singular moment that things happen. One group of Klansmen looking walkers, followed by a large float, carried by people and then that is followed
by a band playing music that switches between a slow funeral waltz to a slightly more jazzy beat.

Your time has come.

Tree Farm.
Negotiations
Politics!

Those my friend are cherries soaked in Brandy. Take two and ride downhill! This rider only supports riding while drinking only if you promise not to end up in the hospital.

Watching grown men cry.

Our legs hurt.

Above it all.

3days, 21,000 feet up, 200+ miles. The cokes aren't small, we've just gotten bigger. The borrowed XS loves the dirt. And I almost ripped my legs off climbing.

I'm Like so There!

In case you have forgotten, I'm in Spain, Granada to be precise, with BICI Fitness. The Picture above is from the Madrid Airport. Don't worry, I'll be back.
A quick update...The day after arriving, we rode to the snow line in the Sierra Nevadas. Per Rick's suggestion we had ditched some clothing before climbing... to the snow, at 2,700 meters. It was so cold going down my bike wouldn't steer straight due to the shivering. I got off a couple of times thinking there was something wrong with the bike, because it was so wobbly. Take note,, when riding an ultra responsive bike like the Indy Fab XS I borrowed from Mr. Strickland, don't shiver on 40mph decents. Fortunatly Rick was the most miserable.
Pictures coming soon.

Weathergate, Springclassic

So things are going well on the Raffle Front, but don't delay if you plan on getting some tickets.
This weekend was pretty remarkable on the cycling front.
Saturday I rode to Emmaus to get in a checkpoint race and sell tickets. After connecting with local gal Selene, we tore up the course, collected all 10 checks and tied for a win. She was the only reason I got anywhere. I was just planning on riding with one person for some fun times and I lucked out!
Oh yeah on the final decent into Emmaus to meet up with the event I went down on the snotty road and acquired a nice bit of road rash. First road crash of the year, and I'm looking forward to more. Cause they are great: the tightness, and uncomfortable sleep, anad oh yeah the hot showers feel great.
So that was a 114mile day. Then Sunday Bob and I met up to ride the Spring Classic. We went early and backwards on the course till we met the group then turned around and crushed it to the start. And yes young Bob and I battled for the win but again, my lack of respect for the power of a car to crush me got me the win when I blew the stop sign 50 feet from the finish line. THen Bob and I went out long enough to make it a hundred mile day.

Raffle Tickets

Raffle Tickets are on their way. You can get them at Bikereg.com. Or you could buy from me directly. Federal law prohibits me from mailing raffle tickets. If you do BikeReg I'll fill out the ticket with your information, and send a confirmation to you that this has been done.
What does this mean for you? Just an opportunity to win a Custom Steel frame and fork from Independent Fabrication. For those of you concerned about the omission of a Cyclo-Cross Frame and fork, my mistake. Yes, you could choose a Planet X if you wanted, or a touring bike, like the Independance. The skys the limit. Maybe you want a 29er frame with rack braze-ons and 6 waterbottle mounts, Spoke mounts and built in IPod headphone routing (maybe not). It's your call. If you want to upgrade to a Ti, Ti/Carbon, Reynolds 953, Steel/Carbon, Factory Lightweight, you can, just by paying the price difference. So lets say you win, and want a Custom Ti Planet X, with a Sterling Silver headbadge and Carbon Fork. Instead of paying $3,850 (ouch), you only pay $1950. Thats a pretty big difference. Of course if you just want a Steel Planet X you get one of the greatest custom frames ever built, a $1900 value, for the price of a $5 ticket (buy two).
The drawing will be on 5/25/07 at the first ever "Philly-Bike Show-Off". This is going to be a Big-Bad Productions event. The Space hasn't been finalized yet, but it will be a big space where people can come, check in their bikes and hang them on the wall, where every-one can Show-Off their bike. Beaters, bling'rs, utility, and freak bikes are welcome. A 12month calendar of Philly bikes will be created from this show. I'll have a studio set-up in the corner to shoot the bikes, and a vote will be taken on the favorite twelve bikes of the show.
Stay Tuned.