Matt, we had towels. You really didn't have to lick up the beer.

Two friends that I miss. I made it back to Lincoln for Jill's going away party. She's moving to Raleigh, NC to attend grad school at NC State. Yeah, she's a smarty. I wish her luck and good fortune in all her future endeavors. EJ was supposed to be in Portland, OR all summer, but surprised us by dropping in. I hear he's going to be moving into the ol' Hotel soon. Another great person added to the list residents at the Hotel.

I got to see my little bro' Alex this yesterday. My dad and he drove from Omaha to Lincoln to take me out to lunch. Alex had a pretty tasty cheese frenchee at Jimmy Aces (the old Kings on South street.) We then went to the Children's Museum where I was teaching the little bugger how to drive a big rig.

There was a party at Dirtbag Mansion (a.k.a. D Street Hotel) last Friday. We were sending off Jill and welcoming Deidre to the household. There was a mint julep theme (and a few Mohitos) to the party. Quite yummy, but what a mess. Sorry I didn't help out cleaning up the next day guys.

When the Dirtbag Mansion throws down, they don't hold back to provide entertainment everywhere in the House. The sink might not work in the bathroom, but they sure as heck have porn for your viewing pleasure.

My cousin Tiffiny and her husband Jim are the proud parents to twins! I had the pleasure of looking after them this week. Abigail and Madison are two cuties that will be keeping their parents quite busy I'm sure.

So, How's Your Aspen?

So, it's been over a week since I've posted and some people have been worried that I might have fallen off the face of the planet. Fear and fret not (that means you Dad), sometimes you just can't find free internet. Anyway, I had a good time in Snowmass. It was hot and a lot of work, but I still found time to have some fun.

On the way to Nebraska from Colorado, Clarke and I stopped in Frisco to ride Peaks Trail with Soper. The trail heads out of Frisco, winds up and around a mountain and ends at the base of the Breckenridge ski area. The trip back is mostly a descent back into Frisco. We had a blast, even with the cold, cold rain that hit us on the trip back. Even with the rain and riding down a trail that seemed more like a stream, I was grinning ear-to-ear.

Soper had a mechanical on the trail, Can you figure out how his chain ended up like this?

On Peaks Trail, helping out a fellow cyclist with a flat repair.

Butch, Clarke, Ricci and I went out on the town in Aspen Saturday night. I met this gal with a smokin' bod, but I forgot to get her number. I'm always shootin' bricks with the ladies.

Here we see Butch, Ricci and Clarke contemplating whether we should order another $15 pitcher of beer. Yup, fifteen smackers. Here's a friendly tip, if ever in Snowmass do NOT order Red Hook. Best bet is to stick to the Bud Light, it's easier on the pocketbook.

Butch and the "jedi" made the trip up from New Mexico to hang out with Clarke and me. Here Clarke is giving them pointers on how to man the trailer so we could go take naps. (Just kidding!)

This is Billy Holmes, a mechanic for team Haro and all-around swell guy. Billy has his own blog at: www.wanderingwrench.com. Note the ice-cream stuck in my teeth.

It rained every afternoon while we were in Colorado. On Saturday it poured. I spent much of the afternoon periodically knocking the water off of our tent awning. Here you see the result of the deluge.

It's hard to tell from this picture, but this guy had to be well into his 40's, pushing 50. He has dyed blue hair.

Bad bike geek, Bad! You are not cool!

Surrounded by Mormons

So, I'm stuck in Salt Lake City.

I left Omaha yesterday afternoon, got to my home in California at 11:30pm, was back on a plane for SLC at 9:30am this morning. Clarke, my partner, in en route to pick me up, but since he was held up at the Canadian border all weekend he's a little behind schedule. I've been sitting around waiting for him for seven hours. He just called and it's going to be at least another hour and a half.

Bored bored bored bored...

Thank goodness for free airport hotel shuttles and free wi-fi access in hotel lobbies. Yeah, I'm a loitering mooch, but there's a restaurant and a bar at this hotel, which is a lot better than the SLC airport. The pool is looking awfully inviting, too. Hmmm... I wonder if I can talk one of the desk girls into swim break with me?

I saw a bunch of my old friends and roomies back in Lincoln on Sunday. Good to see everyone. It's nice coming back to familiar faces, I'm worried about the day when I come back and the faces have all changed. It's going to happen sooner than expect, I fear. I just hope we can all stay in contact. This tech-no-tronic, info-spreadin', boggin' world of ours certainly makes it easier.

I'm hoping to make it back to Lincoln next weekend (not the one coming up.) Chill some tall-boys for me at the mansion, I'm buying first round at the bar!

I was in Lincoln, just driving around in my Dad's Turbo Brick, when I was so amazed by this empty lot full of flowers I had to stop and take a picture.

Nebraska is boring. (But I love it.)

We do all sorts of family-bonding activities when my family gets together. This is a photo from our "piercing party."

I was in Omaha this last weekend for my cousin Kasey's wedding. Here she is with her new husband, Jesse.

Alex in a yellow tube.

Showing my brother how it's done.

My little brother on his bike. You gotta start 'em young.

Presenting a pic of my padre. We were downing some brews in the Old Market in Omaha last night. I'm back in Nebraska this weekend for my cousin Kasey's wedding.

The Jedi and me. Glad to have Ricci hang out with me in Angel Fire. Hopefully he and Butch can make it up to Snowmass.

Is there a law requiring you to take pictures of hot-air balloons if one is around?

Actually, the town of Angel Fire had a whole bunch of events scheduled to entertain the crowds, including motocross daredevils. Unfortunately, there were no crowds.

Honestly, I was just watching in hopes of seeing one of these guy bite it. Sorta like why people watch Nascar, for the wrecks.

Headin' Back to Cali...

Nah, I don't think so.

I got back to California from the Angel Fire race late yesterday afternoon. I leave for Nebraska Friday morning. I have a cousin getting married on Saturday, so it should be a fun time with the family. I won't be back for very long, so I'm not sure I'll get to see anyone in Lincoln. But, it looks like Clarke and I might be rolling through later this month.

I got Sam and Jenny's invite to their wedding. Unfortunately I had to RSVP that I won't be attending. Gotta go to Crankworx up in Whistler. I know I'll be missing a good time. I also heard that I missed Zack Blume's wedding. I'm assuming it was a dry reception, right?

I hope to get a few pics of Angel Fire up tonight. I didn't really take that many photos. Oh, Jeremy will be excited to know I took a pic of the dead mouse we found in our condo. We need to get that dead animal blog going. sick sick sick

We stopped in Flagstaff on the way back to do some riding and check out the town. Very cool riding, very cool town. My friend Mark who lives in Scottsdale, AZ drove up to hang out with me and Peter. A slow, summer Monday night in Flagstaff and we had women hanging all over us and jumping in our booth. Seriously, this is a fun town for anyone who loves mountain bikes. And Sedona is just 30 miles to the south.

Crater!

What is it with me and big holes in the ground? First the Asbestos Mine, then the Grand Canyon, now this. The visitor center said it was a meteor crater. I think the Arizona tourism board dug it and just call it a crater so they can charge $12 for people to see it. This crater is 3/4 of a mile across, 2 and 1/4 miles around and 550 feet deep. The meteor that caused it is estimated to have been 150ft in diameter.

Arizona

I found this bike locked up in an alley in downtown Flagstaff. Very cool town with friendly folks and flirtatious women. We stopped here to gas up and grab some coffee. Took a sidetrip to the town center and wandered into the first bike shop we saw. It happened to be AZ Bikes, more about them later. Drove to Sedona, about 30 miles away and was treated to some breath-taking scenery. It ranks up there with my PCH 1 drive. Pete and I got a mountain bike ride in before sunset. What started off as a tame trail eventually dumped us into a dry creek bed that kicked our ass with suprise drop-offs, deep sand, prickly brush and numerous large rocks. We had fun. Some Mexican food and beer, a dip in the hotel hot tub and I'm ready for some shut-eye.

Sedona, Arizona. Words can't describe how beautiful this place is. Amazing, towering rock formations reach skyward with their sculptural form and multiple hues. Any of the pictures I've taken don't do the scenery justice.

LIVEWRONG

AZ Bikes. Home of the Drunk Cyclist website. Ground Zero for the LiveWrong movement. Small shop, nice guys. Hooked us up with free LiveWrong bracelets, stickers, and a good-guy deal on t-shirts.

Hey, I actually did something today!

Vasquez Rocks, about a 20 minute drive from my house. A lot of filming is done in and around these unusual rock formations. You may recognize them from Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, or Star Trek, or countless Westerns or car commercials.

Stardate: 20050703, The Search for Gorns.

No funny looking lizard men, no William Shatner. Damn, I was sure I'd find them here.

And she's climbing a stairway to heaven...

Ohhh, that was bad. Sorry.

Flowers.

It's a branch.

Nothing Much

Well, not a lot has happened since I've returned to California. I'm pretty much just waiting to go to New Mexico on Tuesday. I'm posting a couple of pics from my return trip, two big holes in the ground. Compare and contrast, dicuss amongst yourselves.

No plans for the 4th yet. Most of my co-workers went up to Tahoe to ride. Everyone I know in LA seems to be busy, so I've just been relaxing.

Giant hole in the ground made by nature.

Giant man-made hole in the ground. It's hard to see, but the tiny specs on the switch-back road are those gigantic mega-dumptrucks. This was an asbestos mine we came across in Quebec.