Say Hello to the Team

As I alluded to a few posts back, I jumped in feet first getting involved with a mountain bike student league - program part of the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance.  Attended a coaching conference in January, recruiting kids over the last few weeks, along with related planning and communication.  Well, today it all officially kicked off with our first team practice.  Welcome to the team.  Plenty of Rain 'N' Mud included at no extra charge.

Ten kids total on the team (so far), photo proof above.  Woman in orange is Marne, local woman racer assisting with coaching - cool - and glad to have her help and knowledge.  All these kids in junior high, that means 7th - 8th grade for this area.  Most of 'em appear to have previous mountain biking experience.  Scotty, one of Ian's basketball teammates and pretty new to this mountain bike gig also aboard.  Fantastic!

Ian and I actually rode with Scotty and his dad, Larry, last Sunday - this being Larry's first ever dirt ride - piloting my vintage Fat Chance on loan. Guess they dug it, since Scotty checked out practice today and signed on right afterwards.

Practice was a mix of introductions, a brake skill drill, then a shared ride for 40 minutes or so.    Misty rain and wet trails greeted all.  Kids rode great, no problems.  Should be a cool little adventure we're all starting here.  Much more to follow...  

Team Fat Chance Yo Eddy - Peek from Beyond

Feast your eyes on this specimen of all things old school cool.  Yes, bike geek alert in full alarm.  Team Fat Chance Yo Eddy in all its steel frame and fork glory, courtesy of Fat City Cycles.  Please bow your heads.  Fat City Cycles.  R.I.P.

Suspension?  Nada.  Toe clips?  Check.  Top mount shifters?  Check.  Turbo saddle?  Check.  Fat ass tires?  Check.  Stare in awe at the green and black fade paint.  Marvel at the correct stance of the thing.  It just plain looks right.  One of the coolest mountain bikes ever made.  You know it.  I know it.  We all know it.  Well, at least now you know...

Okay, I'm biased.  I own one, now retired after many years of use.  I still enjoy just seeing it hang in the garage.  I occasionally buzz it around, still amazed how good it feels.  Some frames appear to contain magic in their tubes.  This is one of those bikes.  Trust me.

I pulled this image off the 'net.  Not sure of the original source, so apologize for not giving credit for the excellent photo of how things were.  We now return to our regular programing, already in progress.

Tiger Mountain - Trail Building "Mockumentary"

Nicely done video showing off recent trail work on Tiger Mountain, a local riding spot here in the Seattle area.  The Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, along with an army of volunteers, have been at work creating new trails at this well used and popular location.  Very cool to see and I'm looking forward to checking these out on two wheels.







Another video of new trail finished last summer.  I've yet to ride this, will do so this spring.  Some of the trails at Tiger Mountain close during the winter to reduce damage, though really not necessary with recent maintenance and modern trail building methods.  That debate continues.


I've ridden Tiger Mountain many times over the years, quite a bit in the '90s - then a gap of a few years - and now plenty of times with son Ian. It's a Seattle area classic with a decent climb to the top, then really fun trails to descend.  Yup, plenty of people ride Tiger and for a good reason - it rocks.

Thanks to the crew at Evergreen and all the volunteers involved to keep this place flowing.  Great job.

Basketball Season Ends

Today was the last game of son Ian's basketball season.  They ended it all with a fun win, then a pizza party nearby.  Good day for all.  Ian's fourth year on this recreation league team and that for a reason - great bunch of kids and coaches.  All based on having fun and learning new skills.  A great set up and we plan to be back next time around.

A few shots from the season, games and practice...

Ian works the ball down court.

Coach Larry with low angle attack of advice.

All for one.  One for all.

Practice fun.

Andres on the go.  Smallest kid on the team, but a fantastic player.

David enjoying the game.

Ian on defense, puts the smack down.

Practice goofing around.

Dominic gets some air.

Coach Lyle keeps an eye on the mayhem.

Full speed ahead Scotty.

Time out conference.

Ian has a pretty sweet jump shot.

The basketball gig has been a positive all around experience for Ian.  The team aspect a good companion for his bike racing, very different mentality and culture to both.  Working as a team verses the individual effort involved with mountain bike and cyclocross events.  All good stuff.

Opens my eyes a bit also, since I normally have little interest in the mainstream stick 'n' ball sports.  I've grown to appreciate basketball a bit - it's a cool sport.  More of a family affair as well, since wife and daughter attend every game, a little more comfy then hanging around a bike race for a few hours.

To help out, I designed some t-shirts to give away today at the season ending party.  Plus put together a photo slideshow.  My wife helped arrange gifts for the coaches and worked with the shop on printing the shirts.  Another mom arranged the party site reservations.  Thanks to Coach Lyle and Coach Larry for all their time and support.  The kids should good memories of all this, and that's what counts.

Until next basketball season, back to bikes.  Stay tuned.

Washington Student League - Coach 'R' Me

Washington Student League coaching conference now complete.  Two full days of discussing how to get more kids on bikes, concluding with a group ride, blurry iPhoto pic above as proof.  That ride was today on a cold, but beautiful afternoon, here in the Seattle area.

What exactly is the Washington Student League?  Glad you asked.  A program that falls under the umbrella of the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, that allows 7th - 12th grade kids to form school or regional teams.  These teams to ride together, train together, get involved with mountain bike advocacy, and participate in optional race series this spring.  Basic intent to get more kids on bikes and outside in general. Sound good?  Yeah, I thought so.

I dabbled with getting involved with this about two years ago, attending the initial coaching conference and volunteering at the first race. Program then under NICA ownership, this year folks running the Washington chapter elected to break off on their own, joining forces with Evergreen.  One of the reasons, to open the program to junior high school students, and change the philosophy a bit, to general mountain biking and less racing focus.  Sign me up.

The main reason I didn't jump in fully back then, was that my son, Racer Boy Ian, was too young to be involved.  Now with him in junior high school and the league open to 7th and 8th graders, my excuses are over.  So, yours truly - that be me - now scheduled to be head coach for a composite team of local junior high kids.  Intimidating and exciting.  Team in early forming stages, recruiting in progress.  Son Ian on board, along with the 7th grade son of the dude coaching the local high school team.  Plan is to have the junior and high school kids partner on some practices and share resources if needed.  I have a few other junior high kids interested, hoping to get between 5 and 10 students officially signed up.

This is a coed league, girls very encouraged to ride and race.  Getting more girls involved with biking is always a good thing.  A local woman mountain bike/cyclocross racer has signed on to be assistant coach for my junior team - our junior team - which is fantastic.  Her name is Marne, her husband also rides and offered to assist with the team.  He also builds custom frames in his garage.  Cool couple, eh?  Having a female rider/racer as coach role model is all around goodness and much needed in Bike Land.

Troy, dad to two school racers, will be coaching the high school kids for our area.  This team existed for two years under the NICA banner, first year for Troy to act as head coach.  As mentioned, we'll partner together between the teams a bit.  Besides a few previous emails, this weekend was the first time spent together.  Cool folks and I'm looking forward to working with them both.

Being on the team should also be a good life experience for my son Ian.  At 13 years old, is already the experienced racer, with many mountain bike and 'cross races under his belt.  Most of the kids who join this program are rank beginners, in riding off road or racing, allowing Ian to be a mentor and young leader with this exposure.

Lisa Miller runs the Washington Student League, who I know from Seattle bike circles.  She used to run the Indie Series, where Ian really got his start in bike racing.  Kari Studley also involved, who happens to a multi national cyclocross champion.  The Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance used to the Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club (BBTC), that I was pretty involved with during the '90s.  So in a way, full circle for me.  Nice.

A shout out to Dirtfish Rally School, that allowed the league to use their conference room, facilities, and land - free of charge - for the coaching conference.  Gawking at rally cars in the lobby the added bonus for me.  Thanks! 

Long winded post, but more to follow in the future.  Should be a fun ride.

Lake Washington Sunset

Cold 'N' Clear here in the Seattle area, replacing the usual Wet 'N' Damp that we all know and love.  Sorta.  Roots being from the east coast, I dig the occasional cold snap.

Some family time goofing around Juanita Beach today, complete with spectacular sunset over Lake Washington, water turning from red to pink the process.  Amazing.

Grabbed a few pics as proof.  See for yourself.  Hope everyone had a good weekend.

The Bicycle Shop Decal Project

Found this fun site - well, fun to bike geek me - that posts nothing but dealer stickers.  Old school and new.  Current and long gone shops.  Little adhesive backed pieces of bike culture and history.

My old shop, Whippany Cycle, where I spun wrenches and made a few friends for life back in the early '80s, even featured for all to gawk at.  I got a kick out of cruising though the pics - shops I've visited, purchased from, or know folks that worked there - cool little reminders.

Maybe you'll get a kick out of it too...