"If Ifs And Buts...

...were candies and nuts, it would be a Merry Christmas all year long."

My slogan for 2011. A year of good riding, but way too many IFS and BUTS.

Allgood. Just being able to ride a bike, must appreciate that and not get all balled up in the racer boy hoopla.

Border Battle- Not sure it qualifies as a battle, for a MN/ WI thing it couldn't be milder. At the line I barked out a "go gophers" even though I'm a Fighting Sioux. Didn't get any sort of bucky badger comeback...
Overall- was pleased with fitness, BUT didn't take advantage of it (branch in rear end somehow didn't tear off the rd, lame crash/ classic, and the best excuse the bottle blunder with my Honey/ Ha! now but not then... Ha.)...  Shoulda been a fifth lap. 36 place of more than 60 Cat 1's...
Got to thank the KORC (local trail group) guys for building and maintaining that trail that came from nothing just  few years ago...

                                        Token photo...

Up next... Not sure on the race front, but will find a way to self punish on a bicycle... Election in 3 weeks, I think I'm eligible again.

Hey Jimmmay, wonder if a 4.7" is overkill? Can't even run it in the back. From no fat options to too many options = 8.

UP: Ride Time = Drive Time

Thoughts, Speculation, Riddles, and Facts-

• Copper Harbor only has 25 Miles of trail, but everything runs both ways
• Boreal Forest/ exotic ferns grown in the Keweenaw peninsula 
• We didn't have to swat at one bug while in Copper Harbor, but there are weeds Jimmmay
• The new titled Copper Harbor "Flow Trail" downhill makes good use of 400' of vertical, taking 10-15 min
• The Red trail is the gem. 
• Hobs would like going down Pauls Plunge, but coming back up I'd get the look... 
• The MTB folks of copper harbor are adding another 16 miles of out and back trail along the lake, meaning 32 miles
• Horse Shoe Bay, couple miles east of Copper Harbor, get there by bike via dirt road/ hiking trail for swim, rock picking, pics, wandering around in lacra

• Pasties? What? Decoded- Must eat fresh with rutabaga next time
• Houghton/ Hancock has a mini-Duluth vibe
• There are more skinny's/ wood traps in 4 miles of the MI Tech Trails then in MN/ WI combined
• People that live in the Keweenaw have no desire to leave the Keweenaw. UP thing?
• Fancy carbin XTR rear derailleurs can not hold up to the technical hammering and mud = Downgrade to upgrade
• First time to visit a car wash to spray off a bike in last 11 years. 
• Hurley, Wisconsin is a good spot
• The eastern time zone needs to move farther east!
• Another fancy XTR riddle- when your 10 speed chain breaks, a 9 speed sram power link works just fine
• Pivot Company should change name to Pivot Creek Company.
• Lake Namekogon SP Campground has many a memory for the clan
• Wanted to ride the new stuff north of OO, but we were already cooked
• Rock Lake- finally was able to do the hildebrandt loop backwards with the Pirate. He got a fling PT on me
• When your car key/ ignition wont turn (worn out tumbler), tap on it with something. But not too hard...
• Wonder who's Pivot creeks louder Richy's or mine?
• 5 days, 15 hours of driving, 15+ hours of riding. Mission complete

                                    Pirate playing with the Copper Harbor bird...