October Thoughts

With October nearing the end I want to cover some things that I have missed this month.

Brendan Turns 10: On the 10th Brendan turned 10.  We had a small party on Saturday with 3 of his friends.  They played video games and built Lego's.  We got pizza and an ice cream cake.  They had a lot of fun.  The weather was not the best so I watched the Michigan game in the basement.  On Sunday we had the family party.  Soup, sandwiches and cake were on the menu.  I had to many appetizers and did not eat much.

Ice Cream Cake.

Candles are lit.

The Happy Birthday boy!

Cool iCam: At Peak 2 Peak I used the new POV camera and am very impressed.  It is 720p resolution and is very clear with good picture quality.  Ease of use is great.  There is an on button and a record bar that slides forward to record.  With both functions there is a tone and the camera vibrates to indicate it is on and recording.  There is also a small light on the unit that turns green to indicate on and red for record.  It also came with a handlebar mount for the bike and everything is easily seen and operated while you are riding.  There is no software necessary to download video to your laptop.  I use  Windows Movie Maker or DVD Video Soft currently for editing.

If the video loads this is of the downhill run and the end of Peak 2 Peak.

What I saw at Peak 2 Peak:

Color from the top of Crystal Mountain!

My beautiful wife! I love her!

Scott Quirings new Triple B Fat Bike.

Final Thoughts: As I set here I have been thinking a lot about bike racing.  I still enjoy doing but having the time to train and the desire just is not there any more.  I really enjoy being on my bike and working on our bikes and believe I will always do it.  I like riding in a race every now and then.  But I realize that I am not at the level I once was.  I am no longer competitive at the sport level and I don't feel that paying for a beginner race is worth it.  I just need to make time to get out on the trails and I think I would be happy with that.  Especially if my wife is with me.  One of the best times that I have had the last few years was trail riding with Michelle at Crystal Mountain!

I would like to do one last bike build for myself.  Probably a carbon fat bike built from the frame up.  This project could take a full year as I would have to purchase the frame and a few other things.  I have several parts already and have already ordered some parts.  Other parts are setting in my parts bin.

After this my focus will be on enjoying the ride, working on bikes (maybe a repair service in the future?) and doing Ore to Shore as long as the boys are still intererst