Anything can happen on Saturday....

The Big Dance commences on Saturday and I am as excited as a little school girl getting all ready for her first prom date!!!!

To the left is a classical depiction of the major, even legendary crash I caused a few years past as the frenzied chaotic peleton crossed Rosie's Field near the start of the Chequamegon. I was feeling good and so I gunned it across the field, but as usual I lost momentary focus and rammed my trusty steed into a strategically placed hole. I hit the hole going wide open and took the customary flight over the handlebars. Landing, luckily on my head, I was unfazed, but the carnage I caused was massive in scale. Good men, tax-payers, patriots, community leaders, talented cyclists by the scores piled up on top of me. The sounds of expensive fancy-pants bikes and carbon wheel-sets breaking was awesome...Needless to say, I was not a popular person at the time, so I left the scene of the crime in a stealthy hurried, rather embarrassed state...One poor unlucky soul in a red cycling kit sustained relatively serious injuries requiring emergency medical personel and was therefore forced to DNF. I cautiously spoke with him after the race in an effort to offer my genuine apologies and yet he held no spite, no bitterness towards this writer. "I should have known better than to have gotten too close to your wheel," was his conclusion...so it goes... Although my riding skills have been compared to that of a drunken sailer...This could be my year!!!!

PS. I left off super fast TJ Woodruff, Ian Sanford, Eric Hareland, and Bjorn Selander all off my list of possible contenders for the win...The facts are that any one of about 20 guyz could do it--Itz a recipe for a great race! Hey if you believe in miracles...don't count me, Dave Pramann, Scott Cole and Jan Rybar out either...stranger things have happened, I just can think of any...Okay, you can count me out :(

Gettin' 'er tuned up for the FAT TIRE RACES!!!!

The Chequamegon 40 is Saturday & the crits. are on Sunday, as I embrace this appealing notion of resting up and hydrating...I had the boyz at Ski Hut go over my trusty Gunnar 29er. Plus, I put on my lightweight cyclo-cross wheelset (XTR hubs and Mavic Open Pro rims) coupled with the ultra-light Crows...Itz a risk, no tread and unprotected side-walls, but I am going for it. Itz not like I got something to save it for as even on my best day, a top 40 finish is the best I can hope for, plus I like the idea that I am taking a calculated risk............ Up front, a good distance ahead of me and the rest of the frantic wanna-bes, look for a tough battle between Doug Swanson and the young Simonson from Michigan for top honors in the Men's Divison. With Sara Kylander-Johnson taking on Sue Hayward for the top spot for the Women's event. Although, this year's race has the potential for being one of the most competitive ever...there are at least ten guyz that could win this thing including, Jeff Hall, Tristan S., Young Gaier from Hayward, Jesse Lalonde, one of the Moore Brothers, Mike Phillips, E.J., Brian Matter, and my favorite old Tilford, etc. The Chequamegon 40 is a great race in that it requires tactical planning, pacing, and both road and mtb skills. Risking taking in terms of gear selection can pay off...going light is advantegous, but it putz one in great danger for flats. I have flatted several times back in the day, but last year I went really light and I had a good race. The big wheels and the rigid frame/fork complement the super fast rolling course which is comprised of mainly wide ski trials, fire roads, and gravel roads. Last year that took out the only real treacheous descent due to erosion problems. If they keep the course the same as last year's I should be good to go.......Itz hard to describe the feeling of riding in a pack of 1700 racers as one heads across Rosie's Field!!!!

"Hot 'er than Georgia asphalt in July"

Ekimov Takes 2nd...full race recap to follow!

"It was an epic day to say the least. A re-cap will be drafted, but the highlights are these. I was 3rd to the bike off the run. I jumped on my newly tuned full suspension rig with full intentions on marking and hanging on to series dominator Chris Schotz. The pace through the first lap was just like a 2 hour race, complete with young kids in "Stars and Stripes" jerseys yard saling it in front of me, etc. I completed laps 1 and 2 in 1st position over the entire field, including all team (4 person and duos) only to start encountering bike problems. By the way, man Ross, do I need you. I ultimately was forced to do the entire race in the big ring. I finished 2nd overall to a very classy Chris Schotz with 3rd place over an hour and a half back of me. More details to be posted as you know, so many little stories that go into a 12 hour pain fest." Tim Ek

The Thrill of Victory....and The Agony of Defeat!!!! [Source: Skinnyski.com]

A Pride of Lions, A Pod of Whales, the Peleton...

A Flock of Seagulls, A Herd of Buffalo, A School of fish, A Gaggle of Geese...So what do you call a bunch of fat guyz on super-loud, obnoxious Motorcycles that get worse gas mileage than my 1999 Chevy Prism with two bikes on the top???

Feeding the Rat: Saturday 200 minutes...hard-core Chequamegon training...I ran into a __"Loaf?"_____of Harley Dudes on Highway 61 and one of them flicked his cig @ me. But, hey, I didn't take it personal, [afterall, I was wearing a red jersey with red shorts, so maybe he thought I was an old school Soviet Marxist or even a Castro-Commie]. Plus he was waving the old stars & stripes, so it was cool!!! I totally understand, he was just doing his part to keep America FREE!!!!!

The following is a description of the grand loop I took today: From my house [near East High School] head down to Superior Street and head out towards Lester River...cross the new four-lane 61 and eventually get on Old 61 [Scenic Drive on Lake Superior] heading towards Knife River and [eventually Two Habors]...after about 25 minutes take a left onto 33 [McQuade Road] and head up crossing the new 61 and up up up a great mid-gear ascent...33 turns into 40 and eventually the pavement ends, stay on 40 which turns into Hegberg Rd. Take a left on 42 and then shortly thereafter take another left on CR231 and then right on CR271, all of which are curvy gravel roads, complete with quaint old farms and hard-core trailer trash communes [some of which look like something out of an old MAD MAX film] and even a few junk-yard dogs that encourage an occaisonal anaerobic sprint...eventually CR271 turns into Fox Farm Road which is something like ten miles of gravel, washboard rollers (great practice for the ChequWhammy) at the end of Fox River Road take a left onto to 44 and then a left onto Jean Duluth Road and rider her in back to town...

Sunday: 3 hours mostly on the road

Monday [Labor Day]: 210 minutes of high paced riding...an expansive version of the Fox Farm Road Loop...Sweet, legs felt GREAT

Mark your calendars...looks like the third weekend in April!

------Great News to REPORT------- Trans Iowa IV: The tentative dates are April 26-27...I have never had the opportunity BEFORE NOW. Yet, I did complete a similar event up in Canada a few months ago [The Red Ass 300-A Grand Loop complete with great companionship]...As stated above, I have always had big, NO HUGE, scheduling conflicts in Aprils of past, but now with so much time to plan and scheme coupled with a current, albeit blank 'family' 2008 calendar going into the fall of '07....I have aggressively taken the offensive and highlighted in bright red that weekend in April as "Bound for Iowa- Or Bust!" I love these kinds of races. Here's a thought: Do both the Trans-Iowa & The Red Ass 300 in the same season, now that would surely get a person on THE LIST!....Important Note: Trans-Iowa III transformed Tim Ek from a shy sickly-pale school boy to an assertive confident Man among MEN....as evidenced by the fact that as I type and sip coffee, Eki is 'livin' the dream' racing a 12 hour event near Madison, WI...GOOD Luck EKIMOV