Tour De Roxbury '06

I have a greater respect for my friend and teammate Stephen Badger. (www.skntcycling.com). Not because he is the promoter of one of the best events of the year (Tour De Roxbury...duh) but more because he has not gotten his ass kicked out of the house by his wonderful wife, Belinda. Belinda, how you do it, I do not know. You are indeed an angel. So the NYC crew drove up ffrom the city on Saturday, Oct. 21 for the big event. Tour de Roxbury...Badger's 63 mile offroad, cyclocross purgatory. Yeah, Me, Johnson, Baz, and Tracey piled into my car, stacked the bikes on top, and off we went. The idea was dinner with the Badger's hacienda, then beers around the campfire until we were all drunk enough to make the ride that much more horendous the next day. When we arrived, Belinda had a PHENOMENAL Meal prepared (Thanks again to the Badger houselhold) Chicken, Pasta, Salad, Wine..you name it...that girl can cook! We ate like crazy, and then out to start the fire, and start drinking and YES...OH YES...SMORES! I mean...what good is a campfire without roasting marshmallows right? Tracey proved to have the optimal roasting technique...Just brown enough. I, on the other hand tend to just set them on fire. The drinking continues.... Next morning, Belinda has an equally impressive breakfast waiting for us...we eat..ALOT...and off we go. Turnout was great for the TDR. 25 riders...meeting at the local Starbuck's. We roll out. Weather was perfect...started out cold, around 35 degrees, and the sun was out. 2 and a half hours in and Belinda and Tracey meet us with water, gatorade, cokes, oatmeal raisen cookies, and yes...Fig Newtons. We finished with everyone in about 5 hours including the stop, and yes...it was brutal. Gravel roads, long climbs, short steep climbs, paved sections, single-track, and yes a grass runway of the HUGE Woodbury Airport. After, pizza, beer....coma. No seriously , we had the Pizza and the beer, then some espresso, and back to NYC. I haven't had that much fun on a bike since I was in Colorado last Thanksgiving...that says a lot. Badger...Thanks again, and Belinda, thank you for putting up with the Badger...Its a full time job...I know.

Please pass the Xanax

I travel alot for work. You might even say that traveling IS my work, largely because I spend more time actually travelling to see my clients than I actually spend WITH my clients. For what? To shake their hands, take them out to dinner, pressure them to spend money they don't have to spend. Yep. That about sizes it up. My territory is the entire East Coast of the US as far west as Detroit, Canada, and the Caribbean. Its a big territory for one guy to cover. I keep telling my boss that, but he doesn't listen. When I am talking to my friends, or just random people I meet, and the subject of my work comes up, I always see that same wide-eyed look of excitement on everyone's face when I say "and the Caribbean". Everyone assumes that this is the perk of covering such a large territory. "Well at least you have the Caribbean", they say. I would rather go to Pittsburgh than the Caribbean. In the last month, I have been to: St. Thomas, St. John, Tortola, St. Maarten (and St. Martin), San Juan, Aruba, and I am right now in Barbados. Next week, I am in Grand Cayman, and Jamaica, the week after, the Bahamas. I have been to all these places before. I'm sure I will go to them all again. But... be it known, it will be against my will. Let me back up.... I can see how a nice vacation on a beautiful island, with someone you love (or even just someone you like...to see naked) can be a wonderful experience. Romantic island requiring very little clothing, alchohol flows freely, and hotel sex. How could it be bad? Right? Resorts make everything so easy for you, and you have the vacation induced, care free, spend-it-all attitude that makes these experiences memorable and fun. When you are a single guy, traveling alone....for work, to some of the most romantic destinations on earth, the vacation scenery makes you naseous as you order room service for the umpteenth time. That's why I say I would rather travel to Pittsburgh, or Duluth, or any other place that you don't mind going to alone. Its not because I like these places, its precisely the opposite. Work is supposed to be WORK. Going to Duluth, MN in December when its -22 degrees, is WORK. My trips to the Caribbean are work, but it fucks with your head to be trying to get shit done while everyone else is on the beach with fruity fucking umbrella drink in their hand. I also believe in fate, and that you have a limited number of Take-offs and Landings alotted to you in a lifetime. Especially with today's cut-rate commercial airline situation. Iamusing mine up rapidly... Its a lonely existence out here...on the road. Don't kick me in the nuts by throwing a beautiful island in there, complete with utopian happy couples that agree on everything, and gaze into eachother's eyes as the sun slowly dips into the lapis blue fucking ocean. I fly back to NYC tomorrow. I can't wait. 7 hours of flying, with an additional 2 hour layover, and I'll be back where I know what I can expect. Gray, and unforgiving...the way I like it. Where I won't be the only guy wearing black, and wear depression is a welcome part of life. not to mention some decent fucking sushi. So like I said. Until then. Pass the Xanax.

Johnson got a new toy...

Lact Sunday Angela (Johnson) got a new toy. We built her pimped out Gorilla of a cross bike. Specialized Tricross. Nice. It might be the smallest bike that I have ever seen, apart from the ones you see the parrots ride in those carni side shows. Now to race that beast. I finished building up the Planet X. I have not named my bike. Johnson coined the "Gorilla" monequer for hers...or "Monkey" for those adorable times...me...I never keep them long enough to name them. If I did, I might have to actually deal with the separation anxienty of watching another one go. Or...If I were to personalize it with a name, I might just keep the damn things longer. Whatever....everything is replaceable, except the stuff that's not. Put that in your vaporizer and smoke it.

Today was good day...I didn't have to use my AK

My Friend Eric..

Is a pervert. Eric lives in Alabama, and Andy Shen from www.nyvelocity.com happened to click a photo of him at Interbike. ( what are the chances?) Eric was in rare form for this one. Nice job E, you have made me proud.

Booyakasha,

RK

I never thought I would...

But...I miss NYC right now. I travel alot for work, and this is the busy season for me. So, I guess I could consider myself lucky to make it home most weekends. (It still feels weird to call NYC "home") Even though I am traveling all over the US, and to exotic tropical islands, I can't help but think about how great this time of year is in the city. The weather is perfect...fresh and crisp. The feels clean. The temperature for riding bikes is the best, and the road race season is over, so I can just ride for fun instead of hammering out intervals and weighing my food. Its Cross Season, Its Sweater Season, Its Wine Season, Its Mushroom Season, and I feel like I am missing it all. This is my favorite time of the year to go on long rides with friends, stop for coffee, and pastries, lunch at the Hungarian Pastry Shop after... When I moved to NYC, I guess you could say it was against my will. I was living in Boston, and my employer wanted me in the Jersey/Connecticut/NY area. (Read: New York City, because I wouldn't commit social suicide by living in 'burbs) So I moved. And ya know. I'm glad I did. Now I am addicted to it. New York City is like gambling, in more than one way. Of course there is the addictive quality, You can lose large sums of money just by participating, takes money to make money to make money, and all that jazz. But mainly, when you are up, you are WAY up, and when you are down, its the worst place on the planet. I'm WAY up right now. I'm "All in" for New York. the bitch may drop me on my ass in a week, but right now, I am riding high, and what better time: Its Apple Season. I'm a sentimental sissy, RK