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

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

FUCKING WIND

When I was a kid being brought up in NJ, there were a couple of occasions when I got to take the trip to Seaside Heights on the Jersey Shore. This was back in the 1960's, and even then the place was pretty much a dump, but it was also pretty damn cool and had a bottomless pit of character. The boardwalk was daunting as a child, and an engineering marvel that seemed impossibly built over the ocean with roller coasters and other pay and take your chances thrill rides. It was a cool place. There was a booth there called Lucky Leos. It had a wheel that the carny would spin with 6 numbers on it. You put down a quarter on a number, and if the wheel stopped on your number you won an album, the equivalent of a $10 MP3 download these days. The FIRST quarter I ever put down on the wheel at Lucky Leos I won, and I picked out a Moody Blues album called "A Question of Balance". My parents had an old phonograph in our basement and I listened to it over and over again for years. Now Seaside lay devastated on the Jersey Shore, fucking wind.


Monday, October 29, 2012

IT WAS THIS CLOSE AT THE 2012 BOULDER CUP

The one-two punch on Danny Summerhill from Jamie Driscoll and Ryon Trebon pais off for the Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com team with Trebon narrowly beating Summerhill in the two up sprint by just about an inch. It was an incredible day of racing.
Image from Dejan Smaic

RYAN McFARLING'S 15 SECONDS OF FAME IN CYCLOCROSS


Colorado Cross Classic and Boulder Cup 2012 have come and gone, and now depression sets in, not really. We had some fantastic racing this weekend in the prom and amateur ranks. Georgia Gould easily swept the weekend and the mens pro field was hot and heavy with the Cannondale Factory/Cyclocrossworld.com team getting tangled up with Ben Berden on Saturday, and Danny Summerhill on Sunday. Berden took Gold on Saturday, Trebon took the coveted Boulder Cup win...

Friday, October 26, 2012

MY BALLS AND ASS LOVE YOU ERGON SM3 PRO..


For many years I've ONLY been able to ride certain saddles because I have a boney ass and big balls. It's always been a WTB or Sella for me. Well, that has all changed. I got the chance to try out this SM3 Pro from Ergon and my ass and balls have never been so happy while riding my bikes. Seriously, it's got a bit of a different design from traditional saddles which allows Ergon to put some extra padding in those ass bone and ball sack contact points which works like a dream...A2B digs this saddle.

 

HERE IS A SIMPLE SUGGESTION...

UCI president Pat McQuaid was part of an emergency meeting of the UCI yesterday to figure out how to "make sure this never happens again". How about not taking $100,000 from a person who you supposedly are trying to control. I mean really Pat, that shit is right out of  Mafia 101, and Lemond is correct, get a big ol mirror and take a look at yourself first...

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

GREG LEMOND'S LETTER TO PAT MCQUAID, UCI PRES...

 Here we go, whether you like the guy or not. Lemond has always put it out there...today was no different.

Greg LeMond posted this to his Facebook timeline this evening. Please pass it around

 
Can anyone help me out? I know this sounds kind of lame but I am not well versed in social marketing. I would like to send a message to everyone that really loves cycling. I do not use twitter and do not have an organized way of getting some of my own “rage” out. I want to tell the world of cycling to please join me in telling Pat McQuaid to f##k off and resign. I have never seen such an abuse of power in cycling’s history- resign Pat if you love cycling. Resign even if you hate the sport.
Pat McQuaid, you know damn well what has been going on in cycling, and if you want to deny it, then even more reasons why those who love cycling need to demand that you resign.
I have a file with what I believe is well documented proof that will exonerate Paul.
Pat in my opinion you and Hein are the corrupt part of the sport. I do not want to include everyone at the UCI because I believe that there are many, maybe most that work at the UCI that are dedicated to cycling, they do it out of the love of the sport, but you and your buddy Hein have destroyed the sport.
Pat, I thought you loved cycling? At one time you did and if you did love cycling please dig deep inside and remember that part of your life- allow cycling to grow and flourish- please! It is time to walk away. Walk away if you love cycling.
As a reminder I just want to point out that recently you accused me of being the cause of USADA’s investigation against Lance Armstrong. Why would you be inclined to go straight to me as the “cause”? Why shoot the messenger every time?
Every time you do this I get more and more entrenched. I was in your country over the last two weeks and I asked someone that knows you if you were someone that could be rehabilitated. His answer was very quick and it was not good for you. No was the answer, no, no , no!
The problem for sport is not drugs but corruption. You are the epitome of the word corruption.
You can read all about Webster’s definition of corruption. If you want I can re-post my attorney’s response to your letter where you threaten to sue me for calling the UCI corrupt. FYI I want to officially reiterate to you and Hein that in my opinion the two of your represent the essence of corruption.
I would encourage anyone that loves cycling to donate and support Paul in his fight against the Pat and Hein and the UCI. Skip lunch and donate the amount that you would have spent towards that Sunday buffet towards changing the sport of cycling.
I donated money for Paul’s defense, and I am willing to donate a lot more, but I would like to use it to lobby for dramatic change in cycling. The sport does not need Pat McQuaid or Hein Verbruggen- if this sport is going to change it is now. Not next year, not down the road, now! Now or never!
People that really care about cycling have the power to change cycling- change it now by voicing your thought and donating money towards Paul Kimmage’s defense, (Paul, I want to encourage you to not spend the money that has been donated to your defense fund on defending yourself in Switzerland. In my case, a USA citizen, I could care less if I lost the UCI’s bogus lawsuit. Use the money to lobby for real change).
If people really want to clean the sport of cycling up all you have to do is put your money where your mouth is.
Don’t buy a USA Cycling license. Give up racing for a year, just long enough to put the UCI and USA cycling out of business. We can then start from scratch and let the real lovers in cycling direct where and how the sport of cycling will go.
Please make a difference.
Greg

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

BOULDER CUP FINAL MAP....

You guys and Gals no the deal....it's on, Sunday. See you there, at the beer garden run up, screaming my balls off at the best in the biz.

Monday, October 22, 2012

THAT'S CYCLOCROSS-TERRI IRSIK SMITH CAPTURES THE BLUE SKY CUP 2012

Everyone had a lot of fun, except these guys....
Xilinx strikes again...


Would you expect anything else from Boups?
 
 

All images from Terri Irsik Smith


Wednesday, October 17, 2012

BEAR RIDE....

Eagle pretty much rocks once you get past the self righteous political seen here, which is easy to do, since 95% of the people who live here are sitting in front of their TVs waiting for a mall to be built. If you step outside and put in a nice effort on your cycle for an hour or so, you can get to some pretty amazing places, and see some pretty amazing things. Yesterday, I ran into a hunter while on the bike, scared the living crap out of him when I rode by, then proceeded to roll by numerous deer, including a nice buck, a gang of turkeys, and then a bear, all within five minutes of each other....then perhaps the most spectacular sunset of the season. What a ride. 

This is a gang of Turkeys

This is a freekin bear

And a sunset to try and remember...







Monday, October 15, 2012

FUNNY SHIT

You would think that as long as I've enjoyed racing CX that by now I would have experienced the advantage of riding and racing on tubular tires and rims, well I have not. I have not because I do not because I just don't have the money to invest in a $2000 set of wheels and another $250 to dump into tires, then learn the process of gluing them properly. I pretty much don't care much about it. But I was curious, and so I had a friend give me a set of old tubie wheels and I had a set of Vitorria tubeless tires I had purchased while I was still repping a wheel company. Si I figured what the hell, give a it a shot. Well.....I did yesterday, and like so many horror stories I'd seen and heard about with tubeless set-ups, I rolled mine, twice, and ripped the valve stem right out of a brand new tubular tire as you can see above. That was an expensive fuck up. Looks like I was born and raised for a good ol pair of clinchers and tubes....anyone want a Mavic Reflex rear wheel? What a ricka.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

THE USGP IS HERE IN FORT COLLINS

And I have nothing to talk about, I was not there today. Powers and Compton won their races. I'll be up there tomorrow. I'm out.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

6 MONTHS....

image from Graham Watson
6 months, during the off season. Who the fuck is that going to deter? Just more of the same.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

IT'S TRUE, I WON THE 2006 TOUR DE FRANCE

Now that all the dust has settled, it's so true. I won the 2006 Tour. Floyd kindly signed my yellow jersey in Paris at the finish for me. I am a champion, I knew it.

2012 RED BULL RAMPAGE. WINNING.

How the fuck do these guys pull this shit off. Someone looked up there and said, "that looks like a pretty good line"
HOLY SHIT

ARMSTRONG

 It's time to throw in the towel dawg. It's over.
"Those riders are, Frankie Andreu, Michael Barry, Tom Danielson, Tyler Hamilton, George Hincapie, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, Stephen Swart, Christian Vande Velde, Jonathan Vaughters and David Zabriskie.

 “It took tremendous courage for the riders on the USPS Team and others to come forward and speak truthfully,” Tygart wrote in a press release."


The above quotes are from today's Velo News article.


Meanwhile, Courtney Wuwuwuwuwuwuzup Gregory threw down in the 35+ field at Cross on the River. Git sum Hooollllmmmmes.

Monday, October 8, 2012

IT'S ONLY FOOTBALL, LEARN SOMETHING FROM AIR FORCE-NAVY

When the flurries stopped and the fog settled, the academies from Air Force and Navy put on one heck of a show going into overtime when Navy pulled a big upset as the visiting team, but there was much more to this story than a football game.


This day, if you ever get to go, is only partially about a football game. My girlfriend Anna had gotten us great seats to the game and I was super excited to go being a big college football fan. This day puts football and other sporting events in it's place, as they mean nothing. If you get a chance to see two of our Armed Forces teams to compete, do it. You will learn what a fantastic place we live, and what a fantastic bunch of people there are out there that do what it takes to keep us free, where YOU get to bitch about everything else that really does not matter. Veterans, disabled or not, are celebrated here, and they make you feel good about where you live and live and what they do for us. There is plenty of good hearted ribbing between these groups but deep down they understand a much broader and deeper picture. The National Anthem here is riveting, and there is no hate here, just a display of good, hard fought sportsmanship and values, and these guys hit as hard as any of them, they also help each other up off the deck after a play. Later Saturday night when I went home and watched my alma mater, Florida State University lose in what was considered a really big upset, adn watched all their fans blow up and get all pissed off, I realized it just doe not matter. There are much bigger and better things to worry about out there, and celebrate. Thanks to all of our Armed Forces for what you do...and you play some damn good football too.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

FAREWELL TO MOAB, THE PLIGHT OF 24 HOUR RACING?

This image above is fairly simple and unassuming. It also represents something that has disturbingly seen what appears to be a downward spiral in popularity at certain races. This image is of the Rocks. These are the rocks which are referred to when you hear "Behind the Rocks" when the world class mountain biking destination of Moab, Utah is mentioned. This coming weekend is what now, according to Laird Knight is the last edition of the 24 Hours of Moab. This race has been dying a slow death for about six years now and it appears the glory days of 24 hour mountain bike racing are fading as well. Just this past weekend in Colorado Springs, only 150 racers showed up to contend for a National Championship 24 Hour race event. I found this a disturbing number. There are many reasons why the popularity of these events are fading as I see it. For one, there are just too many 24 hour races. Over 200 a year in the USA. Moab at one time was THE 24 hour event and people traveled from all over the country and world to do it, Moab was the race you could not miss. For many it was the pinnacle of their season, myself included, everything revolved around racing well at Moab. And then a couple of weird weather years and how some things were handled by the promoter to deal with it occurred, and that seemed to change some things a bit in Moab. I'm not sure if these race promoters understand what it takes for the common man, the unsponsored athlete, to commit to a race like this. How much it cost, the time involved to train, the time off for the race, the logistics of travel and getting three other people to do the same. It's costly and a tough deal, and it gets tiresome, not too mention everyone is BURNT out this time of year if they have had a busy race schedule starting in Spring. People get married, have kids, lose jobs, move, and it changes all the dynamics, and there is really no draw to bring in new blood. It seems like enough is enough for most of the old school 24 hour racers and that they would rather do something else with their time. This time of year we have the draw of CycloCross now every weekend and nearly everywhere you have bike racers. A few 24 hour events are flourishing still, but for how long? It seems there is a growing trend towards 50 mile events and 12 hour races. They are plain and simply much easier to manage for racers, and you do not have to crawl out of a tent and freeze your ass off at 3am in the morning to go do a lap. these are self contained one day events, and they are much more user friendly. On top of all this throw in the fact that so many of us were traveling and racing on borrowed time and money before the economy shit the bed and it just makes it all harder to do. I'm a poor bastard monetarily (however I am filthy rich on experience and fun) and can barely afford a new set of tires for one of my many bikes much less pay someone $100-$200 to race when I can have more fun and chill riding for nothing. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy as hell people continue to race, it's my livelihood, and I love calling the action, but I can't help recall a quote from a very good old friend of mine about twenty years ago who now lives outside of Cabo and fishes his life away. We were out riding one day and I spoke of racing to which he cut me off in mid sentence and asked "what the hell does racing bikes have to do with mountain biking?" I had no answer for him, but I'm glad we still do it, because it's fun, hard and fantastic socially and I suppose this is what I should have answered that day.

With that said. Goodbye to you this weekend Moab, we all have stories of glory and suffering thanks to you, many of us just don't want to do that 3am lap anymore.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

LEIF BORGESON MEMORIAL SKI...ONE HELL OF A GUY.

Leif Borgeson Memorial Ski:  All profits will be donated to to Leifs non profit.   Please visit http://www.forevermissed.com/leifericborgeson/#about for more info on the fund.  Pre orders are now open.
 
Ski Specs:
Dimensions: (144-110-133)
Weight: 9.2lbs
Full Wood Core: ASH
 
Words by A basin Ski Patroler/Artist Matt Norfleet:
The Leif Borgeson Pro Model- This ski was designed in memory of our former Snow Safety Director, co-worker, mentor and friend Leif Borgeson who passed away in 2011.  It's a great part of the season at A-Basin when your hiking  the East Wall in the spring, and no better job for a patroller than putting in the staircase up Willie's Wide.  Working this part of our terrain embodies what being on patrol at A-Basin is about, and I feel was possibly one of Leif's favorite places, so thought it fitting to represent it here on Leif's ski.
and I will never be able to watch this beautiful tribute to Leif, and come to the end without a tear on my cheek....support a great cause.

IT'S BEEN A LONG SEASON, FOR COLOR
















And with that said, another day none of us will ever get back was spent in the wonder of nature. And to keep it a special day, I re-registered to vote as an Independent because everyone out there sucks running for office, and if you think that one person is going to change how shit this economy is you are out of your minds. I'm gonna just ride my bikes. ski, and let you decide who the person will be that can't change anything that pisses YOU off over the next four years. Enjoy the commercials through October. I do however believe that at this point that Mitt Palin Romney is the biggest douche out there.