Mid South - Expo

This has been one of those races always on the "bucket list" but never on the schedule, until this year. I am not a fan of mud, not necessarily because it's usually associated with wet, cold weather either... the toll it takes on bike and equipment is often disastrous and costly. However Jackie, "lets not sign up for every race next year", decided that this was the year where she would sign up for all the races and then let me know she'd signed up so that I could also sign up. So pretty much just like every previous year except this year she decided that we'd make the journey down to Stillwater and both have our first taste of Oklahoma's red dirt and hope it wasn't red mud as it's infamous for being. Since you need to get on registering the day the event opens you just never know what the weather is going to be like 6 months down the road when the event actually takes place. So we tossed our names in the hat and hoped for the best.



On Friday morning a few of us formed a caravan and made the drive down to Stillwater to catch the expo and get settled in before the race on Saturday.






The atmosphere is something else down there, the live music, the vendors, the food trucks, the number of people milling about he expo and the number of closed off blocks of city streets is just something you have to see to fully grasp. Your can tell that the city of Stillwater has fully embraced and supported the Mid South and that's something not every city does as well as it should. I'm sure that there are other events that rival the Mid South in such things but how many of those have the vibe, the ethos, the grassroots feel and, well, the Bobby?

It was great seeing some familiar faces and checking out some of the vendor booths and District Bicycles. If the expo was this much fun, what would the race bring tomorrow... I guess we'd find out.

 

Has Spring Sprung?

Hard to believe that about a month ago we were riding in feet of the white fluffy stuff in temperatures so low that it hurt your face to be out in it for more than a few minutes unprotected.




Fast forward to yesterday when we headed down to Marysville to ride with the Hoffmans at Backroads Bicycle. We went from every inch of skin needing to be covered up to wearing a jersey and vest yesterday. I'm usually a winter person over the sweltering heat and humidity of Nebraska summers but after the sub zero weeks this year, I am more than ready for warmer temps to stick around.




The real question is, will the temperatures stay warm or is this just a lull before the cold returns? I did see geese flying north the other day which is usually a good sign that the worst of winter is over but living in the midwest is a lot like being on a Duncan Yo Yo. Temps this week start out in the 50s but drop down into the 30s by the end of the week only to rebound back into the 50s next week... Lindy Loop here we come! It is the Gravel Worlds Winter Endurance this Saturday so I suppose it would be befitting that the temps were more winter like than spring like.


To be honest, I'd be okay with the temps doing their thing as long as the snow stays away. Roads are just now getting back to being good riding after a month or more of being very suspect if not unrideable and gravel season is just around the corner, seems like as it gets bigger and bigger the events are starting earlier in the year.



Regardless if it stays warm or goes back to being cold, I hope you all got out and enjoyed the gravel this weekend because it was almost perfect.

 

Snow Where To Go

Took a trip out to Fraser, CO during the week of Christmas when the temps were cold in Nebraska but we has yet to get any real snow accumulation. They had plenty up in the mountains of Colorado however so we took the Fat Bikes up and got in a little riding, not as much as we would have liked but with most of Jackie's immediate family up there with us there wasn't much time for too much riding.


They do know how to do up the Christmas festivities up there though, the fireworks display on Christmas Eve is something to take in if you get a chance.


Not to be out done, we did have a blizzard here in Nebraska the day before we drove back. That made travel a bit more interesting than it should have been. All that mostly melted by the time we got around to the Saturday ride last week but the temps were still chilly. Side note, as I write this we are currently in another blowing snow warning with single digit temps and probably 10 or so inches of snow on the ground.

">

Had a pretty good group on the ride on Saturday when you figure in the temps and the winds. Still haven't gotten around to replacing the Canon camera, definitely a step down on photo quality with the iPhone and screen grabs from the GoPro.




Made it out for a decent 37 mile ride to Bennet and back, I think that was more than enough cold gravel for everyone involved. So far winter in early 2024 is shaping up to be a cold and snowy one, been since about 2009 when we had single snow events in the double digits for accumulation... or at least that I can remember.

Video version of the ride.

 

2023 Global Fat Bike Day

It's nutty to think that Global Fat Bike Day for 2023 was almost two weeks ago now! My how the time flies when you're... well, living life really, fun or not. It is alarming at times when you stop and think about just how quickly the days, week, month and years seem to go by at an ever increasing pace. Some days it seems like the days are like a tether ball arching around a pole, the shorter the rope gets the faster that ball travels around the pole until... WHACK! No more spinning.


Well that was a bit of a dark turn, let's get this thing back on a positive axis. This was our 9th event, dating all the way back to 2015 when Fat Bikes ruled the biking industry there for a bit it seemed. We got more swag to give away in those first 2-3 years than some gravel events get now, it was crazy. Things have calmed substantially on the Fat Bike and the event has morphed to less swag and just more of a group ride with a chili cook off at the end, and you know what? That's okay, I kind of like the less hectic pace of the event now vs. it's heyday.






Who needs swag when you can get all the smiles and comradery you could ever ask for.




Camera took a shite so I'm down a camera right now and while the phone does an okay job it's no "real camera" for sure... then again it takes way better pictures than the camera makes phone calls, so there is that. Any way, bought the insurance due to other issues in the past with cameras so it'll get replaced after the holidays. Until then you get some subpar pictures. It's always a bit of an adventure getting 30+ fat bikes from the shop to Wilderness but it's great seeing people's faces as we roll by.




The spin through Wilderness Park was pretty spirited at the beginning but then settled down to a more managable pace, as is always the case it seems people branch off of the main ride... and take unsuspecting people with them that follow thinking that they are following the main route. Herding cats man, just like herding cats.






After the ride was the chili cook off, one of my favorite parts of the ride... so many great chilis to try and they are all good.



This year in addition to gift cards for the top 3 chilis we also had gold, silver and broze medals. Joe took the top spot, Jackie and I took second and Gary rounded out the podium. I guess now we can say we make an award winning chili! Can't wait for next year, I hope this is a ride we can keep going for several years to come.

Video from the day.