I'm hoping I can get back to riding soon.  It's driving me nuts that my working out is so limited these days.  Besides, Raffy put a lot hard work into getting my bike back in shape:

 

Servants really come in handy, don't they

Finally found the system of trails less than a mile from my house.  I'm in heaven.

 

Nice, Nate!

Did I post the new mountain bike?



Went out with Xavier a while back. The Litespeed is no longer with us.

Soul Cycles Dillinger with Reba RL, SRAM X9 rear D and X7 shifter, 1x9, with RaceFace 30t N/W to front, and Stan's ZTR 355 wheels.

**BRENT**

How does it fall?

How does it fall? [emoji4]

3 years, hundreds of miles on a road bike, 50+ pounds lost, and much less stressed/depressed. It turns out all that stuff helps a lot in the "not falling over" part of riding.

Now it's just every other ride.

I was just talking to Mike about how I still haven't watched that video of me from Florida. That trip led me to sell my bike and get out of it. I didn't hit another trail til Oct 1 this year. Xavier saw me go with a friend, have fun, and then he wanted to go. He went and destroyed me, and his friends ride, so now he is into it, so we have more stuff to do together. Having a blast with it.

**BRENT**

Today I changed brake pads ...

 

 

Went out early for a nice 8+ mile blast through the woods with another friend.  The weather was near perfect for MTB.  Approaching 50, light wind, occasional sun. 

Xavier and I are meeting a buddy at 230 for a couple hours in the woods. Can't wait.

José, pix of mtb? Can't tell what it is, but XT brakes and XTR wheels ate a great start.

**BRENT**

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yes it's my mtb. No, no Brent. It is a humble Focus aluminum of 2013. I need to do a new pic because I'm trying on a cheap telescopic seatpost. If I think that is a goo idea, i would buy a RS Reverb.

MTB, clipless (M530 or M8020) or flats (Saints)?

I'm going to fall with either, and already have mtb shoes. I'm torn. Thoughts?

**BRENT**

P.S. @VPI, if you get Xavier the GoPro he wants for Christmas, I can almost guarantee you there would be footage of me falling down in the woods, or at least pushing my bike up a hill.

Clipless. I found some XTRs and XTs in my garage and my professional opinion is you would crash out fantastically in either one.


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Clipless.  I can't imagine riding, even MTB, without being clipped in.  The times I've been able to save things because of the power able to be generated far outweighs the few crashes the pedals might have caused.  Now if I finally get a fat bike this year that'd be something I'd ride on flats just because of wanting to have warm feet.

Win. Done. Now, M530s, M8020, or steal some XTRs or M785s from Jeff?

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Got out for a short ride through the local trails this morning.  Decided to cut it short after I saw a six point buck, heard a shot about 10 minutes later, then 10 minutes after than came across blood splatter on the trail and saw a hunter tracking him through the woods.  Stopped and talked with the guy for a bit, seemed like a nice guy.  Then not 15 minutes later saw another two-man group of hunters and that seemed like a higher density than I wanted to be a part of.  

Xavier and I are out on a road ride for the first time in a few weeks. Been concentrating on dirt. Having a blast!


**BRENT**

Who's cookin' the turkey and biscuits?

Who's cookin' the turkey and biscuits?

My mom is handling the noms. I don't think she and her husband would have approved of what I'd have made.

**BRENT**

Did a nice cold ride, forgot my new gloves, this morning around the Argonne National Labs.  Bike rides great and I feel pretty good after being off the bikes for a long time.  

A quick shot of the bike after some cleaning.

Stealthy matte black is cool.

Stealth is the name of the game when you need to knock Brent over without him knowing it wasn't his own fault.

Weren't there stripes on the front too?

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Just on one side of the fork.

Found out today it is an easy ride from my house to two large cycling paths with 100s of miles of routes to choose from.  Did a quick ride this morning including a bit of single track, which was a lot of fun.

Nice, Jeff.  My friend Marc and I went out and did some more exploring in the local woods and took a loop I'd previously skipped.  It was great, but definitely the most challenging section of the trail so I'm happy to have found it.