SWim bIKe rUN

Great video that kind of sums up the festival.

The 2010 Tour de Fat Boise raised over $43,000 for local bicycle Non-Profits this year. 

Thanks to the New Belgium Brewery for helping organizations like SWIMBA, TVCA and Boise Bicycle Project.

Southwest Mountain Bike Association, SWIMBA, was able to build new trails like Mahalo Trail and fund the construction of Fat Tire Traverse and Watchman.  These funds also help to maintain the existing trail systems in Southwest Idaho.

Boise’s Treasure Valley Cycling Alliance, TVCA. Their mission is to raise awareness that bicycling is a healthful, economical, and practical mode of transportation; and ensure that people of all ages can ride bicycles competently, safely and lawfully. We are gathering the knowledge and experience of local bicyclists in order to help the Treasure Valley be a community whose citizens understand the importance of bicycling and whose elected and appointed officials recognize the rights and needs of bicyclists for the sake of community well being.

Boise Bicycle Project believes that everyone should have access to quality bicycles and bicycle education.  One of their great programs gives bicycles to kids 13 and under for free if they go through one of their bicycle safety programs.  If they are too young to go through the program they just need to be referred by another charitable organization.

This year the Tour de Fat hits 13 western cities to drive the message about the positive societal offerings of the bicycle.

Here are a few photos we took at the festival.

So, in true Paul Crane fashion I took another header last night on our mountain bike ride.  Great thing is Shane was there to return the favor of pulling the weeds out of my helmet.

We took off last night at 5:30 from Fort Boise and did one of our usual rides, Three Bears Loop.  We headed up Military Reserve Road and jumped on the trails at Trail #20, Ridge Crest.   Our route went up Bucktail,  connected with Shane’s Trail and dropped onto Shaw Mountain Road.  This part of the ride, all the way up Shaw Mountain Road to Three Bears was pretty uneventful except for Dan flirting with a boyfriend of his that we met at the beginning of Shaw Mountain Road. 

Once you hit Three Bears you have a pretty brutal climb for about 3/4 of a mile until we reached the top.  I was pretty proud of myself cleaning this climb for the second time in a row.  Most of the time I either spin out or my legs give out on this climb but this time I made it to the top again and this is where the fun begins.

We took off down Three Bears, down the stair cases through some winding single track and everything was fine.  Hit the turns no problem, stair case was a piece of cake passed Shane’s Trail and headed up to the next junction, Shane’s Trail.  Shane must have had a lot of input on the trails and their naming because you can’t avoid Shane’s Trail.  I’m always unsure about which way to go at this junction so I waited for Dan to help me out. 

Once Dan pointed me in the right direction I took off again and here is where the piece of cake turned into ride like sh… not cake.  Twice, on simple turns I road off the trail about 3 or 4 feet in the next 2 minutes.  I must have cracked under pressure now that I had a crowd of one, Dan, within view of my skill set or lack thereof.  Once we hit the junction at Central Ridge Trail we waited for the rest of the posse that consisted of Shane, Brent and Chris.  Here Dan took the lead and my following skills diminished.

Now of all the riding we just did, this part should be a breeze.  But even before we hit the fun bumps on the trail, yours truly decided to take another excursion off trail.  I glanced up ahead at Dan for less than a second and when I looked back at the trail I was taking the corner a little tight.  I adjusted and made it through only to miss the next corner and hit about a 6 to 10 inch edge going up on the trail.  This immediately chucked me off the bike and into the hill with the force of a mighty class 5 tornado.  The average man may not have survived.  On my way off the bike I believe I hit the outside of my right upper thigh on the handle bars and then got pummeled into the side of the hill.

Shane was right behind me to witness the sheer beauty of this dazzling dismount.  Brent was right behind him to check on me followed by Chris who got there as I’m on the ground and being attended to by Shane and Brent.  PAIN!!!!!  Dang that hurt.  Side of the leg where you smash right into the bone.

After a few moments of self pity I was helped back onto my bike and made it the rest of the way down with crooked handle bars to the parking lot where an ice cold beer awaited me to start the healing process.

So the moral of the story is, when you’re riding too fast for your skill level, make sure there is beer in the parking lot waiting for you.  Thanks Shane.

The 2010 Top of Utah Marathon is on September 18, 2010.  The course drops around 1045 ft. starting at around 5560 ft and ending around 4515 ft.  The grade is only a 1% to 2% and shouldn’t beat up your legs too bad.  Of course it is a marathon so for me the grade matters but my legs are going to be beat up even if the grade is a slight downhill.  We are all signed up for this event.

The course  starts at Hardware Ranch Elk Refuge and runs through the Blacksmith Fork Canyon into Cache Valley and ends in downtown Logan.  The leaves on the trees should be changing color but the weather this time of the year in Logan is generally good for running except for in 2000 when they got some snow.  I’d be great with some cooler weather.  Cooler, DRY weather.

One thing to consider, if you sign up for the half marathon it is actually set for a different weekend.  It is on August 28, 2010.

I’ve heard about these races and I used to work with a Shane who told me he ran a mud race in San Diego but I’ve never seen one.  Ever since I looked at Shane’s pics I’ve wanted to try one out.  Unfortunately this year I have already signed up for the Top of Utah Marathon that is on the same day as The Dirty Dash.

The Dirty Dash is a 10K obstacle course race at Bogus Basin.  It includes obstacles such as Hog Wallow, Slop ‘n Slide, Hog Wash, Big Pig Climb and others.  The race can be run as an individual or as a team.  All members of the team run the entire race but you have to have the whole team cross the line together to finish.

At The Dirty Dash, costumes are encouraged and battle wounds are almost guaranteed. 

I wish I could tell you more about this race but I have yet to run one.  Hopefully it is around again next year so that I can work my race schedule around this fun run.

Three of us met up at Barber Park on a quest to knock out 20 miles.  Brent, Ryan and I set out going Southeasterly towards Lucky peak.  I was really hoping that Shane would be joining us this morning since I knew we both took about the same pace on these long runs.  Brent and Ryan I figured would kill me if I tried to keep up.

Heading towards Lucky Peak it was a great morning and we were commenting on how the 6 a.m. start time was perfect.  The run was going nicely and very peaceful until about mile  4.5 where we met some lunatic, I think it was Brent’s dad.  He was shouting out something about limp wristed gestures, I figured he had to be talking to Ryan and Brent, soldiers, killing babies and something about our mothers that I shouldn’t repeat.  As I caught back up to Brent and Ryan we all had a little chuckle and tried to piece together wtf this guy was saying.  This pic was pretty close to our buddy.

At the dam we did the small loop and headed back towards Barber Park where we were lucky enough to see our nut job at one of the shelters brushing his tooth.  Again the expletives flew.  Poor guy, I think he was an extra in the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

I was doing well and keeping up with Brent and Ryan until about mile 15.  They decided that hanging back with me was over rated and picked up the pace a bit.  I started a run walk around mile 16 and stopped by the Warm Springs Golf Course to fill my water bottles. 

The great thing about this run was the last part is through the nicest section of the Green Belt.  It has and animal refuge and foot traffic only on dirt trails.  Of course you get the one guy on the bike who ignores the sign.  Felt sorry for the guy though.  The older gentlemen held nothing back and I saw him get chewed out pretty good by 4 of them that happened to be out for their Saturday morning walk.  Cracked me up.

I made it back to the bridge at about mile 19.3 and saw Brent crossing the road back to our cars.  I asked if they had finished the 20 or just called it at 19.3.  I was depressed to find out that they had finished the 20 and proceeded to head up Eckert Road for .35 miles to loop back and finish my 20.

Another long run down on the quest to conquer The Top of Utah.  Route