All the things in a brief thought barfing

Thanksgiving and the couple of days that follow are behind us. Finally. I did my best to keep my head low all the way until Tuesday and feel I did a relatively good job of it.

Of course Thanksgiving for my wife and I, both having extended family that lives in the immediate area, (that is, the south) means Thursday was filled with eating, visiting, eating, and some more eating. We ate at my grandparents at around noon, then promptly fled to her aunt's to have second lunch around 2. To say I've seen enough ham and turkey to last me a few days is an understatement.  I did manage to get a nice ride in pre-gorging, so I can take a little solace in that I wasn't a total slob the whole day. Just most of it...

Then came the unholy day of reckoning in the civilized world... Black Friday. Honestly I could care less about doorbuster deals and huuuge savings on things I can buy cheaper online, but I admit I was interested in picking up a few rare selections from my local wine and spirits store. So Wes and myself headed out to try to snag something impressive.  In the end, I came away with four bottles of Goose Island Bourbon County stout at $12/ea. Not an amazing haul (I had my hopes high for a nice bottle of bourbon from Buffalo Trace, but all was for naught.) I'm not a huge beer snob, but the Goose Island is pretty good, so a successful outing. I spent the rest of the day hidden in my house, actively avoiding what I can only assume was mad rioting at the local Best Buys.

Hopefully no recalls this year

On Saturday was Turkey Cross, which I had the full intention of making my first successful cross ride. I don't count the Privateer race I crashed out of in the first 45 seconds ;) I dragged the wife out to the venue despite some biting wind and hung out with Jimmy (who was announcing) and some other friends. In between races I figured it would be best to get a lay of the land so I got kitted up and headed out on the course.

It quickly became apparent to me that I am not a technical cyclocross rider. With much of Turkey Cross being downhill off camber turns, my crap skills were magnified. I came down the beginning portion twice, and both times I was on the very limit of keeping myself on course. I was also going very slow. At that point a more adult, reasonable part of me came through and won out over the normally confident egotistical side of me... I wasn't going to be able to handle this at race pace. I also wasn't going to be satisfied with taking it easy in the race. Know thy self and all that. So I took the baby back b*tch approach and didn't start the race.

I know I know. Maybe it was wrecking at the Privateer race and still harboring lingering injuries, maybe it was good old common sense, maybe it was something else... but for some reason that inner voice said it was folly to race. Considering two people ended up with hospital trips, I kind of feel like I was right... Lucky number 3 is not where I wanted to be. (That kinda rhymes) So... yeah, need to work on my technical cyclocross skills... a lot. Riding for years pretty seriously and still just a total newbie, so much to learn! Very humbling but awesome.

Jimmy got this sweet shot, good enough to share! Handup gloves are excellent fwiw. (although PBR is pretty ghetto)

ahh sweet nectar of the hipster gods.

On the plus side, despite not spending any time in an actual store, I did get 90% of my Christmas shopping done! Score!

And that's a lead in... I've got a couple of items for sale myself. If you have any interest you can shoot me a message on Facebook, here, email...etc. Check it out, Blog reader specials ;)

All of the prices include Paypal fees, but you will have to pay shipping.

 First up is my beloved Planet X Stealth. You can read my review on it on the blog. It's in pristine condition, plenty of steerer and seatpost left. I'll include the saddle and stem. It's a size medium (501/405 stack/reach) from circa 2010. It is $350

This is a specialized/dupont Trispoke (700c clincher) It is a "B" wheel from the true portion. It is not enough to notice unless you have your brakes set VERY close to the rim. I ran it with Simkins Egg brakes and Tririg Omega's on Ventus brake levers for years with no issues, but full disclosure.  I'll include the skewer and if you want it the tire (old) that's on it. $275

This is a RENN 575 (700c clincher) that is in very good condition. Bearings, brake track etc all in good condition. It is currently a 10 speed but it is well documented online on how to convert it to 11 speed if you need to.  Flat disc, has the excellent whoosh whoosh sound! $275

Cobb Jof Randee saddle, has been ridden approximately 7 hours (enough time for me to give up on it) on the trainer and once (~30 minutes) on the road. So while it is used, it's basically new. No tears or discoloring. $140

I might add some other stuff in the near future, but those are the ones I have pictures of. Let me know if you've got any interest!

Thanks so much for reading, I got ahold of the new Silca portable wrenches yesterday, I'm going to put them through the wringer and hopefully have a review up next (or the next) week.

Until then,

Christopher Morelock