Please come out and help support a great non-profit organization that builds and maintains all of the mountain bike trails in Dane county.
CORP Movie Night returns for 2017! We’ll be at the Capital Brewery and Bier Garten on September 14: Doors open at 6:00, movies begins at 7:30. First 70 IMBA members through the door receive a CORP pint glass and a fill-up of beer. Not a member? Sign up at madcitydirt.com/join, or we can help you join that night!
Mongoose has generously donated not one, but two bikes as door prizes! Just by showing up, you’ve a chance to ride home on a Tyax Supa 27.5+ hardtail or a Salvo Pro full-suspension bike.
Movie details are still being worked out, but expect to enjoy a classic of the mountain bike film genre along with some shorter features.
There will be food: details coming shortly.
Tickets, $10 in advance, $12 at the door. All proceeds go to support, improve, and expand the trails you love to ride.
Ten Drafters set forth on the Ride of Ages, with the skies looking ominous and a few raindrops biding their warning as we headed towards Dane. Mother Nature must have taken our GPS coordinates and planned her precipitation route to precede our arrival at every turn. We didn’t get wet, but we were literally drafting the rain, finding each road ahead more saturated than the last. The capstone event was climbing Pheasant Branch and seeing the setting sun in all of its pink, orange, and yellow glory. We had a few new Drafters this week, including a deer and 3 confused cranes, who joined us briefly.
CM Wille brought her famous Monster Cookies to celebrate the birthdays of Loose Screw, Billy Boy McC and Tobacco City Boy. In fact, she brought enough for all of us to enjoy two, and still left have overs! I was careful to consume only the low calorie monster cookies. We also celebrated the return of her fiancee, E-Money. Eamon will be Drafting for the next 5 weeks while he applies for residency positions. He commented that paying for medical school and residency interviews is a bit like playing with Monopoly money- you just keep spending and hope you draw a Chance card with a big payout.
CM is responsible for the video below, which was intended to be a delayed selfie. The slow motion gait analysis at the end is worth the watch.
Loose Screw, Billy Boy, BrickO, Z, Capt Joe, Arms, Tobacco City Boy, Hit-the-Wall, E-Money and CM Wille
Congrats to LuciO on her podium finish in CO. Check out the Drafter socks.
“It really came down to the socks in the end”
Key announcements:
No ride on Labor Day. I will post the ride for Sept 11 next week. We will need to keep the miles under 30 due to lack of daylight.
Yoga for the Cyclist with 2x Olympic medalist Karen Kraft Rigsby starts Mon Sept 11, 6AM. Email her for details and to sign up: karenkraftrigsby@gmail.com
Spin begins the end of October. Email me to confirm your spot.
Look for your Drafter jersey order to be sent on Sept 6. I will email you with FedEx shipping numbers.
Historically, the Draft is the highlight of my Monday routine. I dare say, however, that I missed the No Brains All Brawn ride in lieu of an opportunity to experience the Solar Eclipse in OR. A complete sensory and spiritual experience, indescribable with words, at least with my literary limitations. Z and I thought we might have a shot at winning the Outrageous Drafter photo competition, ousting Arms and Legs from their African Safari post, but taking a photograph of the eclipse with us in Drafter gear while holding a lead shield proved too great of a task for an amateur selfie-photographer. And during totality, well, it was just plain dark. These will have to suffice- neither Drafter gear nor the Eclipse are visible, so I will acquiesce that my photo submission ranking remains at ground zero.
The Eclipse trip was definitely a rich experience, including the food and beverage service. Unfortunately, anticipation doesn’t burn many calories. In an effort to come home wearing the same size clothes in which we departed, Z rented a bike and conquered Mt. Bachelor.
The Bachelor? No, no. I said Mt. Bachelor.
Enough about the Eclipse. Let’s circle back to the Draft. One of the most outstanding attributes of the Drafters is the number of generations we span. If my math is correct (never a good assumption), we have over a 40 year spread between our matriarch, Sully, and the youngins. With that, I am quite sure that Monday’s Ride of Ages, with reference to Rock of Ages will escape those in diapers during the Big Hair 80’s music scene. If you will allow me to pen my stream of consciousness during my reconnaissance mission yesterday, I will try to make the name relevant.
In search of a route to suite our 30ish mile hilly criteria, I headed north, but stayed south of the lakes (Fish and Crystal). As I began to climb my way up Bitney, Buethin, Brereton, an alliteration from the Def Leppard Song Rock of Ages resonated in my brain (or whatever matter occupies the space between by ears): Gunter Glieben Glauchen Globen. And so it stuck for the remainder of my recon.
Gunter Glieben Glauchen Globen.
All right.
I got something’ to say.
Yeah, it’s better to burn out.
Yeah, than fade away.
All right
Over, and over, and over again in my head. One of the many beautiful things about music is it’s ability to connect you with a place and time. One note from Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin’ and I remember the dress I borrowed from my cousin to wear to Prom (the rest I have conveniently forgotten). And then there’s Quiet Riot’s Come on Feel the Noise, the concert which earned me a spot on Dane County Sheriff’s finest list. And let’s not forget Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer, our pre-game locker room decibel barrier song. Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart- relevant for my recent trip, and also eerily descriptive of my high school and college dating history. Once my gray matter retreated into the 80s, I remained there for some time.
It occurred to me that my passion for riding really stemmed from those early teen, formative Big Hair years. I didn’t/don’t do big hair. To be fair, I couldn’t even if I wanted to. Did you know that blonde hair (or dishwater blah in my case) often lacks the central protein with amino acids that form disulfides bonds that promote curls? Yup. True that. I have zero disulfide bonds. And so I found it convenient to have a helmet on my head as often as possible. I grew up on a farm, literally born in a barn (technically a milking parlor which my parents converted and named the Cow Palace), a few miles south of the roads we Draft. My primary form of entertainment came from my uncles, Numa, Kent and John Boy, who were cycle enthusiasts. Only these cycles had motors and studded tires to deal with racing on the ice in the winter months. My mom insisted that I wear a helmet, Irish setter boots and a jean jacket, regardless of temperature. It is no wonder that my first crush was on Evel Knievel (I gave up my crush on Mark Spitz when I didn’t make the A relay at my YMCA swim team- too painful). Motorcycling offered me freedom- a helmet to cover my head, noise to block out all the distractions, and speed to make me feel alive. I sold my motorcycle in the mid 90’s to buy my first bike, a shiny red Kestrel. It offers much the same freedoms, minus some but not all of the risks we take on the road (please ride with LED blinky lights). The boys still have their toys, and I highly recommend studding up the tires and taking a lap on the frozen H2O, if you ever get a chance.
Numa and John Boy
T for Taylor
How’s that for stream of consciousness during recon? I bet you’re relieved it was only a 30mile route. Can you imagine what goes on in my head during a century? Scary. The Eclipse has me a bit reflective and way sentimental. Life is good, even when it sucks. I’m grateful for being born in a barn, for my family, for the mentors and opportunities I’ve had, and honestly, for the Draft. You guys are the Rock of Ages.
Let’s ride. The Ride of Ages is 30 from our house, so add a few extra from Free House. The short pour could be a shortcut by turning left onto Fellows road (see yellow dotted line on map), or if you wanted to ride clock wise, you could do the Hyer Loop. The shot could take the Hyer Loop with the bike path home.
The sports page of the Drafter Gazette is loaded this week! Congrats to the following Drafters on their various adventures:
Vilker and MegaWatt took advantage of the glorious weather on Saturday to explore 300k of Wisconsin’s finest hills. The longest event in the Dairyland Dare was no match for these two Drafters. Vilks finished third overall with a time of 11:41:31. MegaWatt decided to use more of the allotted time and rest stop hospitality, finishing strong as the clean up crew cheered him on. Z and BrickO took the more leisurely 150k route. They had intended to ride a more substantial distance, but once they realized the finisher shirts did not delineate the distances ranging from 50 to 300k, they lost motivation. BrickO was whining incessantly about lack of sleep and emotional exhaustion subsequent to dropping her eldest offspring off at the dorm the day before. She claims there weren’t tears in her eyes during the DLD, only sweat (hard to do that in 70 degrees and no humidity but let’s cut a little slack here).
Half way to an empty nest
Loose Screw fought the mountain and the mountain fought back, hard. The Leadville 100 is not for the meek. If they do inherent the earth, I’m quite sure it won’t include the 100 miles of the Colorado Rockies terrain ranging from 10,152 to 12,424 elevations.
Loose Screw battles hard at Leadville. The jersey isn’t the only thing green.
B2 Bomber found slightly less elevation to do a mountain bike race, but still incredibly challenging. Congrats on rocking Ore to Shore 48 mile Hard Rock event in Marquette, MI.
MI was a popular destination for Drafters this weekend. CM Wille knocked 28min off her 70.3 PR at the Steelhead triathlon in Benton Harbor on Sunday. Despite the sleep deprivation that comes with parenthood, Coach Cindi Bannink was on her A game, pushing CM to a 5:33:03 finish. Wow.
Cookie Monster Wille has gas left in the tank
A dozen Drafters boldly set off last night, despite as many raindrops which began to fall at precisely 5:28PM. L-Mac allegedly experienced derailleur failure and was forced to withdraw from the Draft. This claim falls under suspicious circumstances, as the equipment malfunction occurred near Docter Evergreens, where L-Mac has been known to frequent for hiking and beer drinking festivities.
I trust the group can find their way next week without me, as I will be Solar Eclipsing in Bend, OR. To ensure success, I have chosen a route that requires No Brains and All Braun/Brawn. Tobacco City Boy and Dan-yelly can’t even get lost (congrats to both of you on a successful Indian Lake Extended route last evening).
For drone coverage of previous episodes, please visit the Drone Master’s webpage at: Drone Master Video
5 Kingdumbs in WesteroWIS
14 Drafters from 5 Kingdumbs joined forces on Monday night to win the battle against the Flat Tire Walkers. Deflation is coming. Any history of war between the 5 Bone Mender Kings was cast aside for the greater good of the Drafters.
Kingdom of the Rock and Flat Tire, ruled by Rainbow Maker
Kingdom of the Mountain and Strava Segments, ruled by One Hip Wonder
Kingdom of the Isles, Rivers and Cancelled Swims, ruled by Aquaphobe
Kingdom of the Wrong Turns, ruled by Hit-The-Woll
Kingdom of Ukrainelands, ruled by Z
Rainbow Maker was looking a bit green heading into the glacier ridges of Kahl Road. In part, this was due to shielding BrickO’s friendly fire, as she failed to observe the wind direction before executing her farm girl discharge maneuver. Distracted by the friendly fire, Rainbow Maker rode over a landmine of pot holes, blowing a tire on his Cervelo war machine. The reverberations that ensued enhanced the green hues in Rainbow Maker’s spectrum.
Fire breathing flies were ferociously attacking the cycling warriors as they waited for Rainbow Maker to repair the damages. Apparently, he is pretty green when it comes to changing flats as well. In a rare call for help, Rainbow Maker cried out to his resident, “I could replace a hip faster than I can change this flat.” No doubt or argument there.
Fire Breathing Flies on an otherwise gorgeous glacier ridge
A surgeon with a tire iron and no power tools discovered that replacing a tube takes longer than replacing a joint.
In the true spirit of the Bone Menders alliance, leaders of the 5 Kingdumbs rushed to assist with flat tire repairs. 5 sets of hands all working together independently. We grew cold and hungry waiting- not easy to do in August, but we exceeded expectations.
It takes a Kingdumb to keep the Drafters rolling.
The Flat Tire Walkers and fire breathing flies were not the only adversity the Drafters faced that evening. Seemingly, the Map of WesteroWIS had been sabotaged. One Hip Wonder, a red-shirt pre-schooler, could not discriminate between R and L such that every turn was decidedly right. Team Tobacco City didn’t even bring a map, and subsequently had no recollection of the battle fought on Far View Rd. Can’t take a wrong turn if you don’t know where you are going. Edgerton breeds some clever boys. It is no wonder we only have one stop light in our home town. Aquaphobe failed to head the steep grade warning on Turkey Rd and toppled over. This incident would have gone unnoticed by the Drafters, save the black spot on his shining forehead. Given that Ash Wednesday doesn’t fall on a Monday in August, we were quick to deduce the cause of the dark mark. Drone Master had a different map altogether- one that included a secret passage with a direct route to the cask and ale.
Fully inflated, the Drafters sped down Schneider in a pace line that averaged 30mph. Zika was pumped up with stories of pulling Lance Armstrong at RAGBRAI last week, which inspired the blistering pace. The Free House was glowing under the full Sturgeon Moon as we rolled in having defeated the Flat Tire Walkers, fire breathing flies, and navigational ineptitudes. Also glowing in the moonlight was Sully, dutifully holding down the fort and ordering beers for the thirsty troops. News correspondent Tobacoo City Cousin reported that all golf courses within a 100 mile radius had agreed to shut down Monday evening to ensure Sully reenlisted in the Draft. Winter is coming, but Sully has a date with the Green Walkers of AZ.
Tobacco City Boy, Sully, CM Wille, Human Metronome, One Hip Wonder, Mega and KiloWatt, LuciO, Tobacco City Cousin, Z, Aquaphobe, Zika and Drone MasterSturgeon Moon over Free House
We had the moon to guide us home, but next week we should rely on daylight. The routes will start to shorten, this one less than 35 to Indian Lake. The Short Pour takes the bike path home after crossing the Highway, near Rauls Rd. The the Flat Tire Walkers should strike again, we might all be taking the bike path home. I did recon today and discovered that Hwy 19 at Indian Lake is still closed to through traffic. This is perfect as there should be minimal car traffic.
Take me to church. The 17% climb to Vermont Church was breathtaking, literally. Equally breathtaking FOSHO was the most beautiful descent in Dane County (in my humble opinion) on Forshaug Road. It could easily be mistaken for somewhere in the south of France (minus the vineyards- but I’m a beer girl anyway). I regret not snapping a photo of 11 Drafters at this scenic location but it was too painful to stop ascending, and too beautiful to stop descending. I was hypoxic, gasping at any available molecule of oxygen on the ascent. The few extra ATPs required to fetch the iPhone from my jersey pocket would have resulted in rigor. I’m filing a formal complaint against all things Strava and this time B2 Bomber isn’t the guilty party. Vilks showed up with a 70s mustache and as much horsepower to crush several Strava segment leader boards. Side note: I apparently have a Strava account, but please don’t friend me or follow me, message me, or whatever the heck people do on Strava since I have accumulated zero miles- dang technology eludes me.
That’s a big W.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we all come with 70s mustaches next week in a quest for more horsepower. There seems to be a correlation.
Steve Prefontaine
Tom Selleck Magnum PI
Jeff Vilker
Vilks hurt all of us, an equal opportunity suffering lender for quadriceps and egos alike. One Hip Wonder, who stayed in contention for the Strava victory with Vilks, seemed to escape the pain until leaving church. He whimpered, “do you have anything absorbent?” Sort of an odd question coming from a member of the XY chromosomal camp. And then I noticed his nose bleeding, and the impact of the altitude at church became apparent. Luckily, Z is not only a Bone Mender, but an expert in herbal medicine. A few purple clover plants inserted gently and precisely in the nasal cavity and One Hip Wonder was good to go. Best quote of the night, by far, came from One Hip Wonder after receiving his herbal remedy: “I was going to challenge Vilks up that climb, but I’m too hypoxic due to this nose bleed.”
Take Me To Church: Z, Vilks, D2, Ivy Ice Queen (hidden for not forgotten), Rainbow Maker, Tobacco City Boy, Billy Boy, CM Wille, One Hip Wonder, Tobacco City Cousin. Photo by BrickO
There was much excitement beyond church. Rick earned his big boy Drafter handle, “Pres“, after entering this photo from his recent trip to Mount Rushmore.
Mt Draftmore“Pres”
Pres wasn’t the only Drafter rushing up the mountains last week. A shout out to K2 who continues to dominate the trail running leader board in Oregon. I also enjoyed a trail expedition, but on a bike with my daughter, who is rushing at Iowa State next week. I’m more concerned about dehydration due to substation loss of fluid through tears than I am hypoxia. I have red blood cells to spare, but am in need of Kleenex (preferably with lotion).
Shout it out
An add for ISU or Kleenex?
Speaking of altitude, the Drafter photo competition climbed to another level. CM Wille got inked! WKOW Channel 27’s Tobacco City Cousin lost the story of local glory to the Washburn County Register. Sales at SweatVac have reached as all time high as cyclists and triathletes alike are seeking to duplicate Cookie Monster’s fashionable Drafter head band, which contributed greatly to her success (as did Coach Cindi Bannink). It is essential to keep sweat out of your eyes. Read on further to learn what can happen to those who don’t heed the head band recommendation.
Loose Screw suffered more cerebral damage during the last yoga session in July. During a challenging triangle pose, Loose Screw experienced an unscripted free fall maneuver, reportedly due to a stray sweat bead that temporarily blurred his vision. Loose Screw denied that the crash was related to balance or flexibility impairments. Helmets and headbands will be required in forthcoming yoga sessions. Perhaps his free fall pose was part of his preparation for the upcoming Leadville 100 event. Good luck and Nama stay alive.
On that note: Yoga II will be coming soon to a VFW near you after Labor Day, not in Aug as previously, prematurely and erroneously announced by me. Sorry. My bad.
Warning: Read the label. Confusion. It is inevitable, but I would like to point out that some confusion is easily avoidable. Without sharing the details, I will simply put on display two essential cycling accessories and let you draw your own conclusions as to my displeasure with packaging.
Similar containers butt very different application locations.
This week, we are headed to Spring Valley (I’m trying to lure B2 Bomber into a Strava challenge up Enchanted Valley with One Hip Wonder and Vilks). There is a little northern twist from our usual route, roughly 36 miles. There is a splendid Short Pour route that cuts off on Pine, which is roughly 27 miles.
brickosdrafters 
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