Carl Buchanan - Mountain Bike Racer

November 2006 - Posts

• New wheels

  Well, Rhea has been here for 7.5 weeks now and the only problem that I was having was riding in the front seat of Amy's car with a baby carrier in the back seat. These carriers are built like little cockpits now and they take up a ton of space all in the name of safety. The problem was that my knees were going through the dash in the front seats in order to make room in the back seats so it was time for a new car for Amy. We went and looked at one on Fr… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 29 2006, 12:06 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Blah, blah, blah

  Four days of work with a bunch of driving, turkey eating, and working on things around the house has lefting me wanting some time off to rest. Three turkey dinners during the four day weekend equated to some great food and I was even able to control my eating this year which is a first. I did not not go back for seconds at all!! Can you believe that? I also got out on the Six13 a couple of times to keep the turkey burning away from my thighs. Need to … Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 27 2006, 01:15 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Me ride fast for short time :)

  I was stuck in a meeting late yesterday which kept me at work for an extra 30 minutes. That translated to a 30 minute delay for my ride yesterday and I had to be at Pepper's restaurant by 5:30pm. I left the house at 4:15 and basically did a time trial type ride to Black Hawk park and back home. It's around 15 miles and I was able to get it done in just under 40 minutes. Six13 make me veddy, veddy, happy. :) Just enough time left to get showered and in t… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 22 2006, 11:45 AM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Kerkove Tuesday

  Worked on the website at the shop last night and I had to take some pictures of new bikes. Since the camera was out, Kerkove started acting normal. Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 21 2006, 04:22 AM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Weekend riding

  Went for a short ride on the Six13 on Saturday through GW and around Big Woods Lake. I am down to one mountain bike and it is "in the shop" for maintenance so lots of road riding for me for a little while at least. Temps during my ride on Saturday were not terrible, high 30's/low 40's I believe. Just riding, no real structure except for spinning the legs. I did see some people out on the trail that are employed by the same person that I am and I do not … Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 20 2006, 04:52 AM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Fantastic Friday

  What's so fantastic about it you ask? Nothing really, but it is friday and that is cool in itself. I'll go through the motions at work today until three o'clock and then the weekend officially begins. Plans for the weekend are pretty sketchy at best. I am comtemplating the Shell Rock loop aboard the Six13. The Six13 hasn't really been "out-of-town" yet so it may be time for a longer spin, throw in a few hills here and there, and maybe even a sprint or t… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 17 2006, 01:11 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Nothing special Thursday

  I have nothing of great importance today for the blog. Nothing real exciting going on lately really. I started get some of my sponsorships in line for the 2007 season this week, that puts my mind at ease for other things. I would like to visit Belgium. Today's useless knowledge that is stuck in my head: The Earth is not round. It's an oblate spheroid, flattened at the poles and bulging at the equator. Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 16 2006, 01:50 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• More Two Nine

  I am hoping to get my rage on with the Cannondale Caffeine F29 here in the next couple of weeks. Pretty excited about that!! I might be checking into the purchase of a 29er sometime this week. Need to get my 2007 season in order a little bit more before I do that though. I will be riding Cannondales again but I am undecided as to which model is going to work the best for me though. Need to do a bit more research. Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 15 2006, 01:53 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Two Nine

  It finally arrived. My opportunity to see and feel what all of the supporters have been praising and what the nay-sayers are claiming is overrated. I have spent my entire mountain bike riding life on 26" wheels because that is what existed. Working with Guitar Ted has given me the chance to listen to all of what is "good" about a 29" wheeled mountain bike. G-Ted rides nothing but 29ers and I hold his o… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 13 2006, 02:04 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Wet

  Rain sucks. Cannondale Caffeine 29er is at the shop and ready for me to rage on it. Look for a review in the coming weeks/days. Weather permitting. I took it for a few laps around the shop floor yesterday and with a few adjustments I think that it will be just fine. Rain sucks. Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 10 2006, 03:14 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Puttin' out the vibe

  Went for a short ride with fellow Cannondale rider Jeff Kerkove yesterday. Rolled around town on our Six13s to put out the vibe in the Cedar Valley. Temps were around 77F which meant that there were quite a few trail users out and about. We rolled through Black Hawk park and a pretty relaxed pace with a 16ish mph average. Nice and slow for this time of year to let the … Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 09 2006, 11:48 AM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Wannabe roadie

  Riding today at 3:15. Pfieffer park in Cedar Falls. Road bike. Decide on direction then. Out. Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 08 2006, 12:55 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Election day

  It has finally arrived. After today you can go back to your television without having to worry about listening to all of the politicians bashing each other with their negativity. Truly depressing that our country has stooped to such a low level that even our leaders point the finger and are unable to accept responsibility for themselves. Teaching the youth of America that it is okay to lie to everyone to get your way. Brilliant!! No working … Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 07 2006, 02:29 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Happy monday

  Rest day from the bike today because I will be working from 06:30 until 20:00 between the two jobs. Oddly enough it was time for a day off. I'll be going back out again tomorrow afternoon for some more easy riding through GW and Hartman...probably on the Six13 again because it is so smooth. :) Heading to the YMCA today to get a membership for the winter months for the pool and weights. I am planning on attack next season a bit more aggressively than the… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 06 2006, 01:13 PM by cbuchanan with no comments

• Weekend riding

  I had some free time on Saturday afternoon so I took the time to ride the Janesville loop which is about 26.5 miles roundtrip. The ride to Janesville was done with a partial tailwind which kept the pace up around 20mph with very minimal effort. The return trip on the other hand was a 17mph thigh-buster into a direct headwind. Defintely a bit more work than I was planning on but not a big deal. Today was a 32 degree ride through GW and Hartma… Read Full Post Here Technorati Tags: Cycling Posted Nov 05 2006, 03:40 PM by cbuchanan with no comments