BALLS TO THE WALL FISHING

The only place to stay current on the latest manic ramblings from the Florida Panhandle.

CHEEKY FLY REELS, THE OFFICIAL REEL OF BALLS TO THE WALL FISHING

Monday, June 30, 2008

THIS JUST IN FROM JAKE WELLS


ON BEHALF OF NAT ROSS WHO IS CURRENTLY RACING IN BCYo,
Check this out. Nat has been nominated to the MtnBike
Hall of Fame. He needs our votes, but of course we are
under a time crunch. So what you have to do if you want to
vote, is go to
http://www.mtnbikehalloffame.com/page.cfm?pageid=9
and
fill out the online form, Then you print out the receipt and mail it in
with your 15 dollars and wait for the ballot in the mail.
The ballots have to be back in the mail by July 15th. So,
since all of this has to take place via snail mail, we are
running out of time to get the ballots back in the mail and
postmarked by the 15th. I'm sure Nat will appreciate
any help we can give him.

Jake Wells


ATTENTION DOG OWNERS

PLEASE DO ME AND EVERYONE ELSE A BIG FAVOR,
PICK UP YOUR GALL DANG DOG SHIT,
THANK YOU.

LANDIS LOSES APPEAL....

velo news photo
the French have successfully crushed the career of Floyd Landis for the time being as he lost his appeal today to regain his Tour title. Pretty crazy to hear considering all the tainted evidence and poorly run procedures which lead to this entire debacle. Read the book before you judge.

BC BIKE RACE UPDATE

HERE IS THE LATEST FROM THE BC BIKE RACE. YOGSTER FROWARDED ME AN E-MAIL FROM TODD MOYER THIS MORNING.
hello everyone,
for those of you who dont know, kevin perry & jimi mortensen team beavercreek 1, toph leonard & zach bingham beaver creek 2, todd moyer &chris morris, team moyer. we are all representing the vail valley up here inBritish Columbia, in the bc bike race.well we are all getting are asses kicked by the weather, its way freaking hot 95 plus, dehydration and cramping ,its killing us. jimi and barry wicks had averbal spat, cause jimmi apparently cut off his partner. moyer and morris crushed it today after a slow start yesterday, we are now in 16th place 80 pluscat. jimi and kevin are sittin in 11th. and toph and zack are in 39th.
no pics yet but go to http://www.bcbikerace.com/ for more updates and info
later Todd

Sunday, June 29, 2008

AN AMAZING WEEKEND, AMAZING PEOPLE, AMAZING TIMES, AMAZING HANGOVER. HAPPY BITHDAY LINDA AND JAKE WELLS

birthday crew pre-ride

pretty much hurrying downhill to get to the drinking part of the day.


the crew at the Beaver Creek yurt

Whadaya do when two of the Valley's favorite people both have big birthday's in the same week? Especially when they are married to one another...uhhh, maybe play and party? So it was, so it shall be. Saturday started with a great group MTB ride up the Beav, with just a sick downhill coming back home, only two crashes and no serious injuries. Then pre-party beers with the honorary Birthday bashers Jake and Linda Wells (with special guest T-tot), then tour De France pool prep with Jonobra, and finally the BIG BLOWOUT at Amy H's place (man is she on a hosting roll) to celebrate another year of life and friends in the valley. Mint Julips, Tequilla, beers, champagne, killer BBQ and the such had the crowd rolling and laughing well into the night. And you think it would end there but today was a pretty solid follow up with a float on the Colorado River and more BBQ at KK's on the river. I am excited to report I now have some time to really appreciate my hangover.hippy dippers


party crankin up



Tatum Wells celebrating mom and dad's b-days



the hostess with the mostess, the ultimate multi tasker


calling in the natives and asking them to take their clothes off all at the same time, it's a tricky tune but....


fun meter getting cranked all up

Friday, June 27, 2008

SAFE TO SAY WE SURVIVED THE WRATH OF THE EAGLE RIVER AT 3000 CFS....DEAD COW AND RODEO RAPIDS

A BUNCH OF KIDS IN GROWN MEN'S BODIES

SOME HOW OR ANOTHER I ALWAYS SEEM TO LET THESE GUYS TALK ME INTO DOING SHIT I REALLY SHOULD'NT BE DOING. OR IS IT THE OTHER WAY AROUND?

WHITEWATER SEASON IS UPON US...MIGHT AS WELL GO SHIT OUR PANTS.

Rigged and ready, the boat and the Keller Williams mobile.

When the text message came in from Skelly this morning to meet at the Wolcott put-in on the Eagle River at 4pm today, it said bring the boat, the life vests and the A GAME, we got a crew. So I went down to scout some of the big water we will be running today...don't mistake my nervousness for cockiness, I'm already staining my diaper and the float is still 4 hours away. I ran big water for years, but in my later years just like to enjoy a good float and fish, kind of like my mountain biking style now, survive the downhill so I can enjoy the next ride, however, when the boys want to float some shit, well, it's hard to say no.

With any luck at all we should have some saweeeet helmet cam vij.

HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT SERIES CONTINUES IN EAGLE


the Hot Summer Nights concert series continued last night in Eagle, man is this thing getting huge, just one of the things that makes Eagle a great place to reside, of course the top reason to live in Eagle is the world class SINGLETRACK.

Stay tuned for some crazy "whitewater cam" action tomorrow. With the Eagle River RIPPING at over 3000 cubic feet per second today's scheduled float should be an adventure.

And for those of you who are unaware, our cycling community regained one of it's favorite characters yesterday. While doing a Texas overhaul on my front fork yesterday at the Mountain Pedaler in Eagle,

Ryan McFreakster showed up with the car packed fresh off the road from Portland...welcome back ass clown. Good to have you back.

the freak in action at an Eagle Cyclocross race...nice form.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

IT'S ALL JAY HENRY AT DAVOS

The Davos Dash once again bowed to Jay Henry in this year's Vail Rec District Davos Dash Hill Climb. Jay who shattered the time record up Davos last year defended his title by nearly 40 seconds, a huge margin of victory considering the length of the course. Way to rip it Jay. Jay defends his National Marathon Mountain Biking Championship on the 4th of July at the Firecracker 50 in Breckenridge next week. Should be an epic between Jay and Ryan Trebon who finished a close second last year.

photo from the vail daily
And while Jay ripped Davos, Air Bus, Silagy and myself did the grand tour of Beaver Creek last eve...anything to get relief from the cow shit in Eagle.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

IT'S BIKE TO WORK DAY TODAY...SO DO IT.

And be sure to lock it up so it does not get ripped off.

On the local news front, there was a town meeting in Eagle last night that NONE of you were present at which was addressing the possibility of closing down the access road (to motor vehicles) to Redneck Ridge due to the problems that some dirt bikers, atv drivers and truck drivers are causing in the Bluffs subdivision. Sounds primarily like the agro kids and an angry atv users may be the culprits. The Board of trustees elected to not close access for the time being and evaluate the situation. They've asked law enforcement to monitor the area a little more diligently while solutions are contemplated. The crowd was actually quite reasonable with some great feedback from all sides and we should be able to figure out a solution as a community.
A WORD OF CAUTION TO ALL CYCLISTS.
A couple of speakers brought up the fact that they are concerned with cyclists up on Redneck Ridge (aka the Boneyard) not being very visible during hunting season because of the choice of earth toned colored clothing. I found this pretty alarming and spoke on behalf of all cyclist everywhere during hunting seasons when I stood and proclaimed (I'm a hunter as well) that we have a huge problem if hunters are not disinguishing their targets 100% before even considering pulling the trigger. At the same time, I have always tried to wear very bright colored clothing while mountain biking in hunting country in the fall, I suggest you all do as well to avoid any "accidents" in the fiture.


REDNECK RIDGE VIJ

Monday, June 23, 2008

TRIPLE TOP SECRET SINGLE TRACK UPDATE

The triple top secret single track is nearing completion after spending the majority of Saturday up there. I've run into some VERY thick cover to clear on the last 400-500 yards of the project, but it is going to happen. Some exciting news is that I've also found another spur which enters the trail I am currently working on from a route up higher. I will explore this "animal route" next time I'm up there. I did finally walk out the end of the route I'm working on and it connects into one of our existing lines pretty nicely with some really cool descending, should be a great addition to the greatest mountain biking on earth.
a small section of the "elgee cutoff" after some clearing.

Sunday, June 22, 2008

THE MAIDEN VOYAGE....THE FLOAT TO PLAGERVILLE

Nothing like a day off the bikes and a float to Plagerville...cmon.
Jonobrah got rid of some toys to buys some other new toys including an inflatable two person kayak...it works.
Thanks to the safety crew for bringing the bud light, Mike Skellion.


Saturday, June 21, 2008

A CYCLING STORY AND COUPLE FOR THE AGES...

Chris and Leslie Kehmeier
I was driving around Eagle one day last week when I saw this unassuming couple come riding by me on Capitol Street. It did'nt take long to realize that the couple was Leslie and Chris K. Chris is pretty easy to spot as he rides around, the dude is like 8 foot 2 inches tall. Anyway, they are a super cool couple who ride bikes, alot. They were temporarily in the valley between traveling destinations as they are cycling around the world, no shit, around the world. A year ago, they sold their home, quit their jobs and headed across oceans to start their journey which you can follow at the above web site..check it out, really, it's an amazing journey and story and will leave you envious that you do not have the balls to attempt the same feet. Their next stop appears to be China, I'll bet they can pick up some NIKE cycling apparel cheap there.
Of Course I got em all hooked up with SQUIRT lube to test in all their worldly riding conditions.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

JONOCAM BERRY CREEK BASH 2008


FOR MOST, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER....

I SAID FOR MOST
What's a little fundraising fun without a very late night cab ride to Denny's, Moons Over My Hammy in a dirty Chamois, and then a little good old humiliation of your buddies...this is a classic.




I think Courtney lost a contact lense

And then Courtney is thrust into superstardom as his ass makes the Vail Daily sports section due to his "livelikemike.org" logo which he emblazed on his very own dooper prior to the race yesterday...what a country.

AND IN ALL SERIOUSNESS, PLEASE VISIT
http://www.livelikemike.org/
TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE JANELLE LEGACY. MARIBEL AND MIKEY JR. NEED THE SUPPORT! THEY HAVE SOME GREAT SHWAG FOR ONLY A $40 DONATION. PLEASE HELP IF YOU CAN OR JUST VISIT THE SITE!

ONE THING I WILL GUARANTEE YOU, SOMEWHERE UP HIGH, MIKE JANELLE IS LAUGHING HIS ASS OFF THIS MORNING...

I'm not sure there is a picture that will better describe the evening's events than this picture of Bruce Kelly from Pedal Power FREEZING HIS BALLS OFF in the dunk tank at last night's Mike Janelle Fundraising event. There is not much to say if you were there, you know what a HUGE success this evening was in it's efforts to not only raise money for Maribel and Little Mike, but to bring together an incredible cycling communtiy full of awesome people who all choose to LIVE LIKE MIKE.
I know I speak for everyone who attended when I say words beyond a huge thank you to Amy Hermes and the gurlys of High Maintenance for organizing and running an amazing event. Thanks as well to E-Town for supporting the cause and the use of the venue. And thanks to the Dunk Tank dude for all the entertainment, to be honest with you, I would have taken 1000 more dunkings well into the night if I could have and I give my word that next time I will. Thanks to all the dunkees as well, the line-up was impressive, a virtual podium of world class dunkees. Jay Henry, Josiah, Mike Kloser, Lisa Isom, Gretchen Reeves and all the rest of you who took the plunge for the cause, froze your arses off for 15 minutes...you were all awesome. I'll need some time to sort through all the party vij and the JONOCAM from the race, but there is some good shit coming, stay tuned.


Tuesday, June 17, 2008

HUGE NEWS FOR TAYLOR PHINNEY...THE LATEST FREAK ON WHEELS?

All right, I talked a bunch of smack on this kid not in the too far distant past, something about how can you root for the kid. Well, I guess I eat the big pile of pooh on that one. It appears Taylor is the latest freak show to ride on two wheels. And I've got to give credit where credit is due. The kid has had to deal with a BIG TIME family crisis watching his father suffer through the effects of Parkinsons only to benefit from some crazy surgery which required a probe being surgically placed in his brain to control the tremors of the disease. For Taylor to deal with the trauma of seeing his dad (Davis) go through all this and to be able to perform as he has is pretty amazing...and he beat the record by more than a second. Crush away Taylor, I'm ringing more cowbell for your blistering fast ass.
American Taylor Phinney, the 2007 world junior time trial champion, set a new world junior pursuit record Monday at the ADT Event Center velodrome in Carson, California.
Phinney’s time of 3:16.589 in the 3000-meter individual pursuit broke Australian Michael Ford’s four-year-old record of 3:17.775. It was the first world record set at the ADT Event Center — the same track where Phinney
won a pursuit World Cup in January.
Phinney's World Cup pursuit times qualified him for an automatic nomination to the U.S. Olympic track squad. Although already chosen for the team, Phinney, who turns 18 on June 27, was training in Los Angeles with USA Cycling’s Olympic team selection camp.

FIRST FLIGHT LANDS BIRD ON VINTAGE

Due to the rising costs of fuel which make absolutely no sense to anyone as prices randomly jump up and down for no apparent reason...(I mean what the fuck? It rains a little so the price of corn goes through the roof? Why the fuck doesnt the price of water go down if we have so much of it now? Guess I'm an idiot.) Well, back to my point, I've been commuting on my custom painted 1986 Rockhopper alot lately to conserve and save the world. When I stepped out of the house the other day to ride to the office, I saw this robin flop out of it's nest and start flailing around banging into walls and bushes and trying to figure out the flying thing. Kind of reminded me of one of my old college roommates trying to Disco dance at the Holiday Inn lounge in Tallahassee, Florida after eating a qualude and drinking six shots of Jack Daniels. When the robin finally figured out how to fly UP instead of into shit, it's first perch was on the handlebar grip of my Rockhopper. I thought this bird was destined for a life of glory until it took a big crap on the grip at which point I scared it off and watched it bang it's head against condo walls some more before eventually figuring out how to fly up and away...tough start at the flight school of hard knocks.

AND TO CATCH UP ON SOME REAL CYCLING NEWS....

VALVERDE WINS THE DAUPHINE

And Silence-Lotto's Robbie McEwen wins stage 3 of the Tour du Suisse.

Monday, June 16, 2008

THESE POOR BASTARDS IN IOWA....

Got so sick of all the rain in their state that they decided to pack all their shit in their houses and mobile homes and float down river for the tropics and the Gulf of Mexico for a new life under the palm trees. Unfortunately, this gall dang bridge got in the way and stopped the trip before they even left Des Moines. What a freekin bummer. I'll bet there is one hell of a collection of Jimi Hendrix black light posters going to waste in these places...I'm gonna look for em on EBAY as soon as the water drops.

On the serious side, Addicted to Bicycles hopes for the best for all the flood victims and encourages you all to help in any way possible.

FATHER'S DAY LEADVILLE LOOPER...

The annual Father's day Leadville Looper took place yesterday. Here is the crew on top of Freemont Pass at the infamous beef jerky stop point. This is just minutes away from the "Jaws of life ride I" beginning location from last fall. Notice the two victims of that ride are not pictured here. We decided to race the "Rock the River" road race the day prior and avoid the 80 mile solo TT on this day. Plus, I aint a father. Happy Father's Day boys, hope you enjoyed your hall passes.


Sunday, June 15, 2008

ROCK THE RIVER VIJ....

VIJ FROM THE AFTERNOON CATEGORIES AT THE ROCK THE RIVER OMNIUM DAY ONE.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

ROCK DA RIVER ROCKED THE RIDERS

A new omnium hit the high country today with a road race today and a crit tomorrow in Glenwood Springs. The morning racers had ideal conditions to race with cool temps and low winds, and then the afternoon racers were greeted with the head wind from hell on their way back in from the turnaround point out on the dirt of the River Road. "Rock the River" had a pretty huge turnout for it's first year. Courtney wuwuwuwuwuzup Gregory was all set up for a win when he got run into a pot hole with 1k to go and flatted on top of almost eating shit, he ended up 7th with Damien Frasier finishing 6th in the same category, a good showing for Mafia Racing.


riders battle the wind and the climb on the way back in during the afternoon races.


Elgee calling it like he sees it.





these photos are the property of Larry Grossman, you use em, I call
Frank Azar.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

PER THE HERMINATOR....

Mike Janelle 1967-2007
If you were not aware already, The Vail Recreation District has named the second mountain bike race of the town series after our dear friend Mike Janelle. The “Mike Janelle Memorial, Berry Creek Bash” will be held this Wednesday, June 18th!!!Immediately following the race, a Celebration of Life and Fundraiser will be held at E-Town in Edwards. This evening will undoubtedly be filled with fun, “Mike Style”, with music, a raffle for an Electra Cruiser Bike (courtesy of The Kind), the sale of some very cool memorial water bottles and head set caps, and the much anticipated DUNK TANK. Come and dunk some of our more infamous local athletes including, Jay Henry, Mike Kloser and Josiah Middaugh.So, come on out and support Maribel & Baby Mikey...even if you are not racing, this will not be a night to miss!

The Details:*

A $5 donation at the door will get you a limited edition memorial water bottle. (Additional water bottles can be purchased for $5 each)**A $10 donation at the door will get you a water bottle and 3 throws at the dunk tank. (Additional throws for can be purchased for $5 for 3 throws)***A $20 donation at the door will get you a water bottle, 3 throws, and an entry into the raffle for the Electra Cruiser Bike!!! (Additional raffle entries can be purchased for $10)****And for $50...you get it all! A water bottle, 12 throws, 2 raffle entries, and a limited edition memorial head set cap for your bike (Head set caps will be for sale separately for $10); not to mention good Karma!!!(Please note that we can only accept cash or checks for the memorial fund)The festivities will commence around 6pm, but will really roll after the finish of the race!!! Eat and be merry as E-Town has graciously offered to donate a portion of the evening’s profits to The Mike Janelle Memorial Fund.


Thanks and hope to see you there, Amy Hermes and Team High Maintenance



NEW PEDAL POWER KIT REVEALED

PERSONALLY, I THINK THEY COULD HAVE DONE A LITTLE BIT MORE WITH THE
YELLOW.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

BIG GEORGE H. STILL HAS A LITTLE SOME SOME

Hincapie wins stage two at the Dauphine as he drops the hammer and wins the field sprint
And in an unrelated story, Tom Boonen is seen here celebrating the world champion coke snorting championship which he just recently admitted to dominating just a short time ago. According to Tom, it was the 16 inch gagger in the last round which helped him to the victory while all his competitors lay on the floor in coke induced siezures with their hearts exploding.
WAY TO GO TOM! YOU ARE THE PENULITMATE AMBASSADOR TO OUR SPORT! THANKS!
douchebag



I COULD NOT AGREE MORE....


Tuesday, June 10, 2008

TEVA GAMES XC MTB STARTS.....

The start of the men's open race was furious, Ryan T-bone went off and never looked back with Jay Henry finishing a rock solid second. Sound like Trebon wanted some high altitude miles to get ready for the Marathon Nationals in Breck next month. Jay vs. Ryan #2 comin up at the Firecracker 50, should be an epic. As expected, Katie Compton absolutely crushed the women's field as she tunes up for another shot at a World Cross Championship.


Followed by the women's open and expert classes. ALL racers got worked big time by the course on Vail Mountain and the brutal climbing.

THE PODGE CALL UP

FACES FROM TEVA