Stony Race Pictures

Stony Time Trial

Shelby rocked the tandem today at Stony.  I had a blast & Shelby did somewhere deep inside!  She was a champ.  We ended up 2nd out of 3 tandem teams entered in the event.  The course was dry and fast.  We made all the water crossings and had a few slow speed corner slide outs.  At one point the rear skewer came loose and the rear wheel was slopping around.  A quick fix and no damage done thankfully.  It was great to see a bunch of precisionmtb team mates at the race.  Jim Senska rocked the single speed with a 1st place, way to go Jim.  John S finished strong and the rest of the team did well as far as I know at this point.  I checked the tailwinds site and the results are not posted yet. 

Here is a link to the GPS of the race.  We commuted to and from the race from home.  Great day!  Lots of fun & I'm super proud of Shelby!  Here is a link to the pictures.  Click Here

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Sunday Morning Ride - 62 Miles

John & I had a good northern Oakland / Southern Lapeer County roll this morning.  One flat tire and lots of water.  4 hours on the bike & I'm eying a new brooks saddle. We got just a little north of I69 at Lake Pleasant road before heading back.  Granted it was not a direct route back but back none the less.  I super nice guy stopped and let us do the flat repair in his drive while he filled our water bottles.  Picked up a new tube and am ready for the commuting week. 

Here is link to the GPS Data

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/99789478

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Leelanau Rides

I've been having a great time riding in and around Glen Arbor.  I've not ventured too far yet mostly staying around the lakes.  The Scenic Drive is a lot of fun on a bike.  I love this playlist for riding.  The picture on the left was from yesterday, perfect spot for breakfast.  (Cliff Bar)  Here are a few of the GPS posts from recent rides.  

Glen Arbor Loop

GA Run

Glen Arbor AM Ride

Big Glen Morning Ride

Breakfast ride in Glen Arbor

A few recent Stony Training Ride GPS posts

2 days in a row, Glad the weather has broken! 

Today

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/79055127

Yesterday

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/78786988

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Training Ride - First Dutton Hill climb of the season!

I think that hill got bigger over the winter!  858 feet of climb in 10.8 miles.  Good way to start the day.  

GPS Link - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/78309474

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BTT had a new twist this week. Art exhibit in a very unconventional way

Another great day on the BTT ride.  A few firsts.  Steve joined me for his first BTT ride.  We met up in Royal Oak and headed down.  We had the first tool motorist I've ever run into (not literally) on the ride in Eastern Market.  Hope he's having a great day and feeling more calm.  

Midtown had a urban art exhibit on display by Tyree Guyton.From Mlive.com - Tyree knows how to use Detroit as a canvas.  Titled "Street Folk," the work includes more than 10,000 shoes covering Edmund Street at Woodward. Like his Heidelberg polka dots, Guyton says the shoes are meant to raise awareness about a social issue. In this case, homelessness.

The exhibit was impactful and it had a spiritual air about it.  One of the riders kept saying I've never seen anything like this, I don't know what to say.  If you have a chance check it out in Midtown.   People were asked to send in their shoes and a story that went with them.  The letters were posted along the fence.  I took a picture of a few of them but there are many more there. 

We did the default route today, great pace on the island, lost the chain twice until Brian B hooked me up and towed me around the island.  

GPS Post - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/78099097

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2011 BTT Season Opener

The 2011 www.beatthetrain.com season started of with a great ride.  Turnout was strong (21 riders at rollout), the weather cooperated and the sunrise on the river was fantastic.  The island kicked my butt (6 miles flat out) John & I rode the tandem for the first time together on the BTT ride.  It sure goes faster downhill.  The breakfast in Mexican Town tasted especially yummy today.  The last 2 miles after breakfast are always the longest of the ride.  We did the 2010 default route today.  Below this post there a bunch of videos John took from the back of the tandem.  Great Ride today!  Great way to start the season!  Hope you join us next week. 

Beat the Train - 2011 Name Game by the other Andy - www.beatthetrain.com

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Beat the Train - Belle Isle - www.beatthetrain.com

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Beat the Train - Detroit River Sunrise Part 2 - www.beatthetrain.com

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Beat the Train - Detroit River Sunrise www.beatthetrain.com

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Beat the Train - Season Opener 2011 - www.beatthetrain.com

Year End Milage

It's that time of year again to post up your miles for the season.  Below is what I did this year, down from last year.  I'm planning to take better advantage of the opportunity to commute in the new year.  Happy New Year everyone!  

Progress Summary Report for dfsmith2
Count:	103 Activities
Distance:	1,943.11 mi
Time:	146:00:36 h:m:s
Elevation Gain:	76,083 ft
Avg Speed:	13.3 mph
Avg HR:	128 bpm
Calories:	129,301 C

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Iceman 2010

We made it! Shelby & I completed the 2010 Iceman together! It was 20 Degrees when we left and muddy when we finished. A huge thank you to Mellisa & Paul for helping get Shelby properly outfitted with gear. Bikes seem to have been crashing all around us including one tandem that passed us and not 500ft further up we passed them off the trail in a wreck. The ice was particularly unnerving for me and Shelby was not a big fan of the downhills. At the end Shelby was saying "come on Dad, we can do it, let's not walk up this hill". She is an amazing young Lady and inspiring to me. It was very challenging both mentally and physically and to experience it with my Daughter was truly a blessing. Got to hang out with my buddy John and we were 3 for 3 on the food stops on the trip. Riverfront for a burger in Glen Arbor Friday. Tim was kind enough to let us eat in a closed section of the restaurant as they are carry out only that time of year. It was John's first Riverfront burger and not his last I suspect. Went to Cherry Street Market in Kalkaska for fresh made to order Deli sandwiches and fixings after the race Saturday. If you haven't tried it you need to. We topped it off with breakfast Sunday at the Omelette Shoppe in TC. no chain food the whole weekend, YEA. Back to the race: The other racers were SO encouraging to us. Almost everyone that passed shared words of encouragement. On one hill a rider pushed us that last little bit, that was so cool! We went to the party at the school house again and enjoyed the great food put on by the Jeff and Christina. Shelby love the soup! Can't wait till next year whatever that may bring! Here is a link to the GPS of our race - dave

YTD Miles Update

Behind last years pace at this point for sure but enjoying the season

Progress Summary Report for dfsmith2

Count:	89 Activities
Distance:	1,764.90 mi
Time:	129:03:25 h:m:s
Elevation Gain:	64,245 ft
Avg Speed:	13.7 mph
Avg HR:	127 bpm
Avg Run Cadence:	--
Avg Bike Cadence:	--
Calories:	114,905 C

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Leelanau County Rides Update

Hey Everyone - Just got back into town from up north and could not wait to download the GPS data from the rides. Picture at left is Shelby & I at one of the look outs on the Scenic drive. Biking featured a pretty big role in our recent family vacation both for me and for Shelby & I. It was worth hauling both the tri-cross and the tandem up their. The roads are fantastic up in Leelanau County and the scenery is world class. I did various routes from the condo in an around M22. Shelby & I hit the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive in the National Park, this is a must ride ladies and gentleman. Below are the GPS posts, I hope we can organize a ride up here sometime where all us gear heads can pound out some miles in the most beautiful area in the state, in my opinion. See you after Kenya! - Dave

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43296130

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43296131

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43296133

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43296135

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First tandem trail ride GPS

We did a partial marathon loop @ stony riding from home via Bear Creek. It's taking some getting used to having a gears and front suspension with no lock out. We had a blast



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The Man Cave - Makeover

Much thanks to John S. We did a bunch of Man Cave maintenance last night. Got the bikes organized. Notice the empty spot for the tricross. You can see the attention to detail with the bike stand neatly tucked under the shelf, you can't see it in the picture but there are 2 Opps holes 2" above the current hook locations. The hooks are even color coated, fun time!

Thanks John, your the Ty Pennington of garage extreme makeovers!


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Ride Report - First BTT ride on the Tandem

Shelby & I got our first ride under our belts last Saturday. Picture at left of Shelby enjoying a snack along the Detroit River. Click here for the GPS loop. It was another magical BTT ride. I was a little off my game as it was the maiden voyage for loading the tandem that early in the morning. I've gotten automatic loading the tri-cross, the tandem is really a 2 person load regardless of what the rack advertising says. The roof mounted Yakama was still not optimally setup and the cross bars were too close. This bike weighs 46 lbs and its 8ft long. I was not super confidant that it was going to stay attached at the 9 mile curve on I-75 as we heading downtown. We picked up John S on the way down and we took turns looking out the sunroof to make sure our sail was still attached. We made it to fort wayne with no issues.

Shelby & I loaded up and made a few last minute adjustments. Thru Axel in place we were ready to go. We quickly realized that this thing will move and hit 32 mpg heading towards the train depot. Cobo roof was fun and got the heart rate up fast. Belle Isle was a blast and everyone seemed comfortable tucking in behind the giant sail for a rest. The gold cup hydroplane races were in town and they were practicing as we circled the Isle. The weather was amazing and Los Galanes came through as usual. All in all a great time. Looking forward to getting out on the trails and figuring this thing out some more. This bike is one that really needs a name. We are looking for suggestions on what to name her.

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