Safety First Series

Just in case you were wondering, here at the Georgia Homeless Bike Racer Association, we are strong advocates of helmet use while cycling.   To go one step further, we are starting a running weekly (or bi-weekly, or just whenever we take the pictures) series of other activities that we recommend wearing helmets for.

First up is Fooseball.  When you play like we do (badly and angrily) stray flying balls and fists are a common occurrence.  Can't be too careful.

The Wanderlust Soundtrack

Wanderlust is defined as a strong desire to wander, or travel.  The word comes from a 19th century German expression which literally mean 'loves to hike'.  These days, we usually don't walk much when we are traveling, with the advent of the automobile.   With the development and miniaturization of personal media devices, especially in automobiles, rockin' tunes have become a crucial tool in the wanderlust tool box.  This is part 1 of the wanderlust playlist.


Gypsies know a thing or two about travel.  And yard sales.  But here we are focused on wandering.  Gogol Bordello has some premium songs about gypsy travel and wandering with a bit of punk thrown in to keep you tough.

Revalation

So if there is one general theme to take away from this past week of posts it is:  Blairsville Georgia is basically awesome.  Since all of the pictures have been wintery and cold, here is Blairsville in the summer:

Exploring

So golf carts are basically awesome.  I am not sure why driving is more fun when it is slow and cold, but its awesome.

But golf carts, like alot of things, are best used in daylight.  We just learned that when the headlights blew out in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road.

oops.

Tough as Nails

So today I was thinking about what I wanted to put here on the blog.  There are the cliche pictures of thankgiving feasts, some more pictures of awesome dirt roads, who knows.

But then I came across this picture.  I have no context for this to tie it into anything.  I do not know this person.  That being said, it is awesome/manly/crazy.

That is a guy doing what looks like a pretty nasty little descent on just his front rim, with rolled tubular around his shoulders.  Awesome.

2010

So a few posts ago I mentioned that I am too young for nostalgia.  Well, I guess that means I should be figuring out what to do next year.   We do not have a team schedule yet, but I figure I have a decent chance of getting to whatever I really want to if I start working at it this early.  It's pretty amazing how easy it is to wander about the country these days.  There are some races in the spring that I am hoping to do, and since everyone loves pictures, here is a list filled with them:

First up for the GHBRA will hopefully be the Tour of the Bahamas in late January.  Here we can get some sun, hard racing, and a re-affirmation that our lives rock to kick off the year.  Added bonus- I get to tell my normal friends that I spent the weekend in the Bahamas while they are...well, not in the Bahamas.

After the sun and joy of the Bahamas, we will need to get some old fashioned hate in our hearts, so the oppressively hard Rouge Roubaix in St. Francisville, LA will come next.  Game plan is to go there, line up, and hope nothing horrible happens after that.

Next we should cross the nation to sunny Southern California for the San Dimas Stage Race.  Should be a good race and maybe I can finally get myself to ride a good uphill TT.  I have a storied and depressingly consistent history of doing horrible in uphill TTs, even when I am climbing and TTing well.  This is where it is all going to turn around.

Right after San Dimas, and the next town over, is the Redlands Cycling Classic.  It will be similar to San Dimas, as you might expect, but harder/faster.  I have heard some pretty wonderful and horrible things about this race, but luckily, all of the horrible things were just about how hard it is.  This should be good.

With all of that sun and happiness, again, we will need some good old oppression.  So for the last big race of the spring, tour of the Battenkill.   By now you should know how the GHBRA feels about dirt roads, and this race fits our standards perfectly.

Oh, and then there is that one race i might have to seek vengeance on....

Dirt Roads, again

So the dirt roads in north Georgia, are not at all like the dirt roads in south Alabama.  First of all, they are gravel.  Also, they go straight up.  Here is some proof of why they are better here.

Whoa, whoa, actually, I just noticed something.  The first picture really reminds me of Hood River Oregon.  It's not exact, and I may be the only person in the world who thinks it is cool, but I think it's really cool, so here is the picture I took 6 months ago on a ride on the other side of the nation:

I'm totally going back to get the same angle on the Georgia version.

To ride or not to ride

So it's raining out, and freezing cold, you are faced with a decision, to ride or nap.  How will you decide?  Here is a rundown of the pro's and con's

Pro's
-No traffic, everyone with common sense and a stable mental state is at home, warm and dry.
-You get to tell all your friends you are really hardcore.
-You can daydream about winning a spring classic.

Con's
-The weather is horrible
-You could be napping/lounging
-It's fall, isn't there football to be watched?
-You could be napping/lounging (yeah, I did mean to put that twice)

So naturally, the only conclusion to come to is to go ride, because really, you were going to before you read this anyway.

Choices....

So now I am finally back to the ideal home base of Blairsville GA.  I am not really sure where exactly I want to wander this week, but I have some good ideas.  For one, today I took the golf cart on some awesome dirt roads that are begging to be ridden on bikes, so that will be done at some point.

Other than that, here are my options:


View Larger Map
First it to head over to Elijay and ride Fort Mountain. This is particularly appealing because it would warrant a stop at General Poole's BBQ, and that is the kind of thing you plan a day around.



View Larger Map

View Larger Map
Another option is Franklin NC. Wayah Bald is nothing short of excruciating, and I found a road on google maps that looks like it starts out as awesome one lane pavement, and ends up being awesome one lane gravel. It seems like just the right kind of bad idea.



View Larger Map
To make matters more difficult, I've been meaning to go ride towards Morganton, I know there are some cool climbs there too.


I guess all in all it's not a bad problem to have, but I wish I could do it all. Actually, I might. Check back in, I'll take pictures.

More From Nashville

Here is some more from this past weekend up in Nashville:

We saw some hot air balloons.

The parking lot at Walgreens was full of cars, and it was after 8 o'clock surely its open right?

Apparently not.

There was a 20ft. tall chicken with a chef's hat in front of the Booby Bungalow.  Weird.  We just wanted some gas and chips.

The Land of Milk and Honey

So this week hasn't been too entertaining.  Physics and Calculus definately hinder ROA (rate of adventures) at times.  But on the horizon, there is some good wandering/bike riding to be done.  In 2 short days I will return to the land of milk and honey: Union County, GA.  Now, I'm far too young for nostalgia, the idea that you can be nostalgic before you are 50 depresses me.  But I can still reminice.  So here are some pictures of mountian adventures of yesteryear.  Get excited.

Awesome.  I will leave you with a Thoreau quote:

"When sometimes I am reminded that the mechanics and shopkeepers stay in their shops not only all of the forenoon, but also all the afternoon too, sitting with crossed legs, so many of them-as if the legs were made to sit upon, and not to stand and walk upon-I think that they deserve some credit for not having all committed suicide long ago." 

Superlative Burrito

Mexican restaurants can be confusing.

Garbled pseudo-Spanish describing what is basically the same ingredients combined slightly differently covers bright menus.  It seems like every time I goto a Mexican place (very often), I find some new kind of food that I have never even heard of.  Then there is the wall of words that is the combinations.  Combo's 1 through 100 include every possible  combination of rice, beans, tacos, burritos and enchiladas.  Every possible combination, other than the one you want, of course.

Fear not, because I have a fool proof strategy that will put you from last one ready to order to eating chips and salsa while your dinner-mates stare dumbfounded at a new menu.

There are a few universal truths in this world: death, taxes and every Mexican restaurant has a superlative burrito.

Superlative Burrito noun.  A burrito designated as the finest, greatest, and largest at a Mexican restaurant.  Is always named in the format: 'superlative' burrito.  e.g.  "super burrito" "grande burrito" "burrito deluxe" "crazy burrito"

This order is always good, always.  I have never been disappointed by a superlative burrito, especially not in Nashville this past weekend.  Maybe it had something to do with the 6 hour mountain bike race, but I was hungry.  The burrito deluxe at Las Maracas combined with way too much chips and salsa was the perfect cap on the day.

Super Domestique

Domestique

super domestique

Yes, you heard it here first.  Little Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pies are far greater than water.  Don't forget to play for keeps.

Lock 4 6 Hour Challenge

The race, well it was a race.  I got 2 flats,  got generally beat up, and was reminded why I don't race mountain bikes.  All in all it was a super cool adventure and a great day, but the results don't reflect that.  Who cares though, here are some pictures, and tommorow, the epic tale of the superlative burrito.

Openers?  Its a mountain bike race, I'll just ride dirt roads.

The view I had to give up for another hour or so of pain.  Five times.

"Settle down guys, you did good today"

Proper Chinese Food, an Important Life Skill

I learned something today, and no, it wasn't in physics.


There are a few key clues that you should know and be able to recognize to find amazingly delicious and cheap Chinese food. 


1. It is one of those shopping center Chinese places that all have the exact same menu but are otherwise unrelated.   I know you know exactly what I am talking about.


Now tonight, me and a friend walked into one, and feeling adventurous, I walked up to the counter confidently and asked the girl behind it what her favorite dish was, planning to trust her and get that.  Well, I was met with a blank stare, which she finally broke to scramble for a sheet of paper with Chinese writing and English writing on it, translating basic ordering words.  She had no idea what I was saying.  This brings me to number 2.


2. The wait staff does not speak English.


Somehow I managed to get an order in, and honestly, I have no idea what I ate.  That should scare me, and it does a little bit, but it was pretty awesome so I can't complain.  We sat down and waited for our food to come and my friend reached for a napkin, instantly breaking the napkin dispenser.


3.  The restaurant needs to be in a certain state of disrepair.  Too nice, and you are eating 'fusion', and too decrepit and you are getting food poisoning.  You want things to break, but not too catastrophically.


Needless to say, we had stumbled into a perfect Chinese restaurant.  Just when I thought that it couldn't get better, the next guy in line ordered the final requirement for excellence.


4.  The best Chinese restaurants always sell chicken wings, I have no idea why, other than that chicken wings are good, and so is Chinese food.

Eat up.

introducing the creative inspiration

hey all, this is the other member of this website. I have a personal blog over at http://www.christianparrett.blogspot.com if you'd like to read about my normal racing adventures. I'll probably post occasionally here to share pictures and stories from some of the cool places I get to go and strange situations I get myself into. Even when I'm not posting, just know that I'm the idea man behind many of the things you read about. And when I say idea man, I mean bad idea man. Whether it's getting hypothermia, trading bike parts for food because I went to a race without enough money to get home (I counted on making money at the race but had mono at the time, so things didn't work out so hot), getting ridiculously lost on backcountry dirt trails, or not sleeping at home for months on end, I'm usually up for an adventure.







Speaking of hypothermia, I thought I'd share some photos of one of the best rides I did this year. I hope I'm not alone when I say I can't wait for winter training.

Dirt Roads

Here at GHBRA, we like dirt roads.   I know what you are saying: "But GHBRA, every self respecting cyclist loves dirt roads!"  Well we like them more than you, move on.

Dirt roads are just better than paved ones.  They are narrow, windy, hillier, no traffic, and in general have everything we like in a road.  This has led us on our quest to always find the best dirt roads in the areas we visit. Today, I found a new one in Auburn, AL.  Enough talking though, look at these pictures, then play with google street view.

View Larger Map

This weekend

Next up for the GHBRA:


6 hour mountain bike race at Lock 4 in Nashville
Eat some where cool
ride here:



View Larger Map

Still working on the eat somewhere cool part, so if you know anywhere good in Nashville, comment below.

Pine Mountain, GA

So, basically, Pine Mountain rocks.  I have had the pleasure of being spoiled rotten by the gaps.  My favorite 1 hour ride when I go home is to ride up and over wolfpen, around lake windfeild scott, then back up and over and back home.  So needless to say, at this point, I'm snobbish about my climbing.  


All that being said, Pine Mountain is awesome.  
In an area dominated by rollers and flat farm roads, an entirely unexpected ridge pops about 500ft up in Pine Mountain.  To make it better, most of the mountain is in FDR state park, so its low traffic and secluded.  The climbs are steep, and pretty long, some over ten minutes.  


More importantly, just check this out:

View Larger Map

190 runs along the ridge, and there are scenic vistas about every half mile.

Plus there is a McDonalds in Manchester, so you can sound the feasting horn at value pricing.

The Georgia Homeless Bike Racer Association

You've done it.

You've shown up at a strangers house with a pillow, 2 bikes and a razor.

This blog is a tribute to you. It is for the champions of the couch, the wanderlust kings, the incessant travelers who use bike racing as a half hearted excuse to wander the country eating pizza and drinking coffee. Here at the Georgia Homeless Bike Racer Association we love nothing more than packing up the car and heading to an abandoned middle school at 5am as long as we win enough money to cover waffle house afterwards. This is a space to share the stories of our escapades.