So Close

    I haven't been writing because i haven't been riding. although i rode on black friday at one of my favorite spots, 6 mile. it was nice out, some wind, lots of sun and mud. for some reason i didn't expect it, nor did i pack fenders but i did pack a change of clothes. i just rode for an hour, rode the loop i wanted to do, nothing more or less. i took breaks and listened to the trees screeching on other trees, listening to the wind gust thru the trees and leaves rustle on the ground. it was a good ride.

    so, the babies still haven't come. the wifey is pregnant with twin boys and the c section is scheduled for december 15th. the wifey is large, maybe a quarter the size of kate from the opening of that show jon and kate plus eight. i think she looks good and is still functioning day to day by herself. the babies room is done, the mural is painted, all their clothes are washed, her bag is packed, the bouncer and swing are ready but i think we will never be ready.

happy trails,
~db

Time Flies When Yer Having Fun

    whoa, it's been a long time since the last post. I haven't done much riding because i was letting my back heal. when i got word i could ride again, i went out and tried it. it probably wasn't the greatest idea but i needed to get it out of my system. i lasted only an hour the first time and only noticed sharp pain when i pulled up on the handlebars, trying to get over logs. the second time i went out, was for an hour and had a little less pain from going over logs but a strong tight feeling in my lower back, at time it would be unbearable but a sign i need to wrap up the ride. so i gave it some time and didn't ride for a few weeks.

    well i just went out recently and the lower back hurt a lot less but i'm so much out of shape, from not being active. i have been a lot busy doing home projects and prepping the home for the new babies. my wife is pregnant with twin boys, so there has been a lot of work done in the house. last month, all i did was spackle, sand, prime and paint for a month.

    i dragged my wife to an after hours bike shop pizza party, sale at Halters. i bought winter gloves, Giordana Silverline lobster style. i also got woolie boolie my favorite winter socks AND i finally purchased Light & Motion Stella 200L bike lite for nite riding.

happy trails,
dirty bert

Make It a Double

    Whew, so much has gone on since the last time i posted. let's see if i can make the long bad story short and the good stuff fun.

    first up, i took a bad fall on may 31st, that landed me in the hospital for a week and home on disability for 6 weeks in a back brace 24/7. i fracture all 5 lower vertebrates in my back. i'm much better, but i'm still ache. 2hrs is the longest ride i have taken and i was in agony from it, so right now an hour is what i can do.

    now the good news. my wife is pregnant!! very exciting news, our firsts, the twin boys are due to arrive in the beginning of december. yes, i did write, twins and yes they are boys. i'm pretty excited about that and i can't wait to buy them bikes, i already got my eye on something at the bike shop.

    life has been good lately, i know it can sneak up on you and make it bad but the wifey is feeling good, as expected and there is more food in the house now. while sitting at home for 6 weeks, i have looked around and saw all the things i neglected over the summer, in order to go riding instead of doing the things i should have done. well now, i'm making other jobs a priority. all the things i neglected are getting done and that includes some biking issues.

    i finally convert my 1991 Klein Rascal into a single speed. i will take pics this weekend to show you. it's pretty light, i kept the xt levers and SE scott peterson brakes on their for a bit but are removing them soon. i guess i'm a weight weenie, i want the bike lighter, like my 5.5 pound turner frame (why did i think i could make a 5spot light). anyway, i'm replacing the brakes with avid single digit 7's and brake levers and i need to find a 5 bolt bash guard. anyone know of any?

ride for me!
happy trails
~dirty bert

Daily Rituals

    since i haven't been working for 5 weeks now, i have a ton of time internet surfing AND most of it is spent on looking for bike stuff or deals.

    one of my new favorite sites to check daily is ChainLove. it has some pretty good bike deals daily, from bike sox's to winter gear. lately i have been seeing a lot of gurls stuff on there.

    my other favorite site to watch is Steep and Cheap. at Steep and Cheap, they sell premium, core outdoor gear and clothing at prices that are downright criminal. they sell one screamin' deal at a time until it's gone. the deals are fat (up to 80% off and no less than 50% off), so they sell out fast. you have to act fast or you'll miss it, but don't stress-as soon as one deal sells out, they kick off another.

    today, i saw this bumper stick on a car it said, save the ta-ta's. sock guy is selling the sock but here's the official ta-ta site... save the ta-ta's.


cancer sucks.
~dirty bert

House Arrest!

    so you'd think after 4 weeks of being home, i'd make at least 1 post on this blog. 2 weeks ago, i felt like i was on house arrest, instead of having that bracelet on my ankle, i have a brace around my back and chest.

    you see almost 5 weeks ago, on May 31st, i fell mountain biking, a freak accident is what i like to call it. a friend and i were riding chimney rock and decided to do 1 more trail. i usually don't ride that trail because its physical with the roots, rocks and ruts. so as i was climbing this hill, i lost my steam (i think) and wanted to unclip, with my right foot but i didn't do it in enough time. so instead of falling to the sides, like we most do, who ride with clipless, i fell backwards, with great speed and force. i landed, back first into a huge fallen tree on the ground.

    i remember screaming in pain, a wave of nausea, sweeping my body and i didn't want to move because the pain was that bad. my friend wasn't to far behind me, but didn't see me fall, because the fallen tree was that big and was laying in the apex of the turn. i had fallen backwards and smashed my lower back into the tree. i had a camelback on and THANK GOD i did because it cushioned my fall and back. but where the camelback didn't cover, my lower back, is where the pain was.

    after maybe a half and hour i was on my feet, in some excruciating pain and i used the bike as a crutch to walk out of the forest. i honestly thought i broke or bruised some ribs and maybe even my kidney because the pain had gone to my groin. i think it took us about 45 minutes to walk out of the woods and back to the car, where my friend put the bikes back on the car and i painfully got back into the car to drive home. yes, i drove home. 45 minutes later, i dropped him off and called another friend to see if he'd drive me to the hospital but first meet me at my house.

    at the hospital, i waited an 1 hr and 15 minutes to get an x-ray, in all that time i stood up because it was to painful to sit down. i got a CT scan and minutes later, my wife and i found out i broke 5 vertebrate's in my lower back and had internal bleeding. SUPER, FANTASTIC, AWESOME, BRAVO, GOOD JOB!!

    well this whole time, since i was laying on the ground to now, all i could think is, my wife is going to KILL ME! recently my wife and i were told, that we were going to be blessed with TWINS in december. yes, wonderful news but she'd didn't need this stress.

    ok, so to wrap this long winded story, i spent a week in the hospital where i was fitted with a back brace. i was told it would take 6 weeks for my bones to heal and this monday will be my 5th week. i also have to wear this huge back brace for 6 weeks and i only take it off to shower. i can't ride a bike, drive a car or lift anything heavy for 2 months and i'm out of work till september with my short term disability. i'm getting an x-ray this tuesday and hopefully a follow up appointment with my neurosurgeon, the following week. i'm keeping my finger's crossed, so that the doctor will tell me, i'm healed and i can remove the brace, no surgery is needed and i can return to work and be able to drive again. we shall see!

happy trails and
please ride for me!
~dirty bert

Taco Bash Guard

    i got this bash guard on my bike from Dark Cycles, called Black Guard. i gotta say it's pretty phat looking and it does its purpose well. it makes me look better in my non-graceful way of clearing logs.

    I just found this on E-Thirteen Taco Bashguard. for 45 bucks you get a quarter of what you really need in a bash guard. i like the idea, plain and simple and definitely puts its self in the ranks of "why didn't i think of that."

happy trails
~dirty bert

Spring Bike Deals!

    i ask myself, is it really spring? it's nothing like last year, where we jump from a very short spring into summer. although yesterday was very warm, i think a high of 85, we haven't hit the 90's just yet. i'm thankful because i got 2 many outside projects to worry about that.

    i found a cool site to do price comparisons called, Spadout. i only search for mountain biking stuff that's on sale but there are other options as well. for example, i found Time ATAC Cleats, for $14.99! so basically you can buy 2 sets of them for the price of one at a bike shop but then again there's the waiting factor and shipping cost.

    another site, i stumbled along is Bike 29, a 29er site for those dedicated to big wheels. i like looking at the shop section, dreaming of what i would buy if i had the loot.

    i like Twin Six jerseys and t-shirt designs. i like the arygle jerseys. although i vow not to wear bike jerseys, i'd wear them if it was a loose performance, coolmax, shirt, maybe 3/4 length design.

    tasty thursday deal, even though it's friday (thank god), is this 6-pack of GU for $5.50. this offer expires today!

get out there and ride!
~dirty bert