We got that B Roll

#1 Party School

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=396

In the intro, they highlight what a shit-show State College is on a party night. And it is, and for the people that want some peace and quiet, I sympathize with them being mad about the stealing of stop signs, the littering, etc.

But in one part of this intro, they mention that she is right on Garner Street. That means she is literally in the middle of frat row. No wonder the kids there seem "not to care about property, or how loud they are". They are the mass exodus of Freshmen first experiencing a frat party. If you wanted some peace and quiet, I really recommend living up in College Heights at the very least. Its just as close to campus.

So if you are out there, Sarah Koenig, try looking for a place up near JoePa on McKee. Although I did pass out even in his side yard once... On second thought - Just move out another mile or so. Peace and quiet.

trip

Lindsay and I made a quick stop at Raymondskill Falls in Delaware Water Gap. It was 10 degrees out, so we only made it as far as the amazing water fall, but supposedly it has a great set of hiking trails.
Jumped on a plane, landed in Seattle, and celebrated New Years. We barely made it to the waterfront in time to see a few fireworks.


Snowshoeing on Stevens Pass. Our destination was supposed to be Surprise Lake. The surprise was that we missed the trailhead and went here. We were apparently trespassing - being on that land without paying, but how would you know being out in the middle of the woods. The first time I found out was when I rounded the last corner to see naked girls in a hot tub. You will have to forgive me, I didn't take any pictures.



Then it was off to SoCal. I stayed with Eric Barlevav in Northridge, and we did three things - rode, ate, and slept. He loves his riding out there, and it was great having him show me around. 400 miles, 25 hours, and 7 days.
Dan Ramsey and Eric at Camp 9 helicopter pad above the Valley.


Riding in the high country. If we would have rode any further we would have been in the legit desert.

On the beach after randomly meeting up with Guy East.

10+ miles of gravel roads with no cars. All within 30 minutes ride from LA.


I also caught some cool sights from the plane rides:
Crater Lake


Shiprock

air trip

Out on the west coast.
Snowshoeing in Seattle.
Riding in socal.
Some pictures when I get back

boom to the power of boom

This commercial was made for Kuklis

Salisbury

It snowed this weekend. So we went Mountain Biking. If you can get over the minor headache of having to kick out the ice from your cleats when you have to clip back in, snow riding is a far better alternative to riding on slushy roads. Kyle and I went out on Saturday to Salisbury. The Valley Mt. Bikers have clearly put a lot of work into this network, and it really is amazing.Saturday the snow was blitzing down.

And kept blitzing down all the way to Wegman's for some post-ride food.
Kyle, Matt, and I made the trip back out to Bethlehem for round two on Sunday. It made for some great riding with most of the single-track clearing from the riders that were out that morning. Here is Kyle threading the needle.
If you are ever in the Valley, and looking for some good riding, definitely check out Salisbury for a solid 2-3 hour ride with a decent amount of rocks, plenty of fast switch-backs, and well maintained trails. I rode my cross bike there, which gained some skeptical eyes from the locals. But with the bigger tires it was a perfect fit.

flat back

I can remember hearing Phil Ligget comment on Stijn Devolder's flat back when he won the 2005 Three Days of de Panne. I remember it cause I wasnt sure why exactly it was a good thing. I have been struggling with back pain and I have come up with a lot of answers over the past 2 or 3 years. Most of them have probably been wrong, but recently I think I am getting close to a solution. I tried strengthening my very deep back muscles with a bunch of different exercises and noticed that I got the same pain that I did when I raced cyclocross. After a few weeks of doing these exercises, I feel like I am starting to make that pain lessen during a cross race.

Maybe I am starting to get that flat back that seems to be so critical to putting the power down. Just take a look at the difference between

Winning:

And a respectable race: