Happy New Year From Erikspeaks!

I want to personally thank all of you that read and comment on Erikspeaks. I sometimes lay stuff out there for the sake of getting it out of my head and for bearing with that, I appreciate it. My wife thanks you as well, because she doesn't have to listen to it then. I want to thank all of the guys in LSC and The newly formed TVC for all of your friendships and encouragement. You people are a great part of why I am enjoying living in this little suburb so darn much. You have also been a big part of my love affair with what my wife calls the spanish mistress, sitting in my basement (the Orbea). I hope all of you have a prosperous and happy 2008.

Jim Clash Interviews Cyclist Tom Danielson About Steroids

Tom Danielson talks about doping in cycling and sports in general. He voices his opinion on the Floyd Landis Deal.

Speech from Boston Legal

Recently a good friend made a comment on the blog that I was being watched for making comments against the administration and it's behavior. Why are we okay with that? Is that okay? Are we okay with our rights, authorized under the constitution, being taken away? Its not American. It's not democratic and It's not free. Would you stand up if your neighbors were taken away for speaking up? Where do we draw the line? This next election provides a water shed for what you believe and what you value. Choose wisely.

Cycling-Moments to Remember

One of my favorites. Happy new year!

Cycling update

It is time for another cycling up. It has been a while so here it goes. It has just been announced on Velo News that Tyler Hamilton has been signed by Rock Racing. He will be riding With fast Freddy and Santiago Botero. Rock will concentrate on the Domestic seen and have the potential to dominate. While Tyler is getting up there, he did finish 6th at the US time trial championsips, some 45 seconds down on Zabriskie. That's pretty good for a guy that hadn't rode most of the year. Let's hope Tyler can keep his nose out of things for a while and just ride his freakin' bike. I am sick of hearing about him in the news with more doping allegations.

The Astana Team got under way with it's first training camp in Spain this week. The former Disco riders are riding in their Disco kits until the beginning of '08. They are riding stock non team issue Madones until Trek can get up to speed on the new color schemes. They are really getting into the swing of things late in the game. If any bike company has the resources to pull this off it would be those cheeseheads over at Trek. Stay tuned, I will post pics of the new ASTANA kit when they become available.

On the local Scene, The Trailhead Velo Club is taking shape. The Kit design has mostly been finalized with a goal for making that available by the Ironman bike ride. Neil, if you read this, can you email me the graphics and I will post for all to see? The Christmas party at John's had a good turnout. I was only able to stay for the first hour but it sounds like a good time was had by all! Thanks John!

That is all I Have for Now. Erikspeaks wishes all of you out there in cyberworld Happy Holidays and success in the new year!

Dear Mr. President

It is my birthday tommorrow. If you want to give me a present, I'll take peace.

Star Wars Lost Intro

This is an alternate intro to Star Wars that was ultimately cut to pick up the space. I had never heard of it. Check it out.

Road To Roubaix trailer

A new film on Paris Roubaix coming in 08. Looks like it is going to be really good.

An American Pro Tour Team?

Team High Road has risen out of the ashes after the destruction of T Mobile. How Ironic that with the Death of Discovery, T Mobile, once the definitive German Team is now an American Controlled team? While the license is still German, The owner, Bob Stapleton, is American. Many of the riders are either American or British. The language spoken on the team is english. With discovery and T mobile's death, America has two teams with pro tour strength in Slipstream and Team High Road. Now, I am not some sort of nutty Cycling Patriot. I root for CSC and love to see little Euskatel do well. I loved to see Barloworld come into the tour after not getting a protour license and wipe the map with all the big budget teams. It is, however, kinda cool to see protour teams based in this country. It means that our Home tours will have a better level of racing and that big names will be riding in California, Missouri, and Georgia. This can only be good for the sport in this country.

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Fortunate Son - Music Video

May God Help Us. Truly... What would Jesus Do?

shaun white gold medal run

Oh yeah the dump is comming! Snowboarding is on Baby!

Frank Caliendo on Letterman as Bush

Fun Stuff!

T Mobile Disbands

So the end of an era comes suddenly and with little warning. In Germany, the fight against doping has taken on the air of a Salem trial witch hunt. Telekom, one of Cycling's oldest and most reliable sponsors, has decided to pull the plug on it's cycling sponsorship. The team could not outrun it's past. Even with the revamping of the team and Bob Stapleton coming on board and making the team into one of the youngest and most promising in the pro tour, German Media continued to lambast the team. Sinkewitz, while admitting to doping, relayed that the culture on the team had totally changed and he was out on his own slapping testosterone patches on. He reported a culture of doping that while pervasive prior to Stapleton, had totally disappeared. Sadly this press was enough to end the team. Heroically, Stapleton has saved enough money to allow the team to operate for the next two years without any major title sponsor. This guy truly is a hero and comes across as genuine. You get the sense he is really in it for the athletes and the sport and should be commended. The new team operating with the name Team High Road will operate with an in house testing system like last year. Again, making them one of the few teams putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to fighting doping. They will be fun to watch and really demonstrate what can be good about the sport.

1993 World Cycling Championships Finish

Lance's World Championship Win.

Wideawake :: LIVESTRONG LIVE

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Be thankful for all you have.

Pro Cycling Update

I have gotten away of late from commenting on Cycling but I think it is time to do alittle update. Slipstream-Chipotle had it's camp this past week to kick off the new team. There are some cool interviews on velonews.com if you get the chance. The new Felt Bikes look awesome. They are such a breath of fresh air. It will be nice to see what the can do. Hopefully they get invited to the races they want to. The new Astana team has continued to pick up riders from the old discovery team with the addition of Chechu Rubiera. Chris Horner has signed with Astana as well. I am surprised by this. I didn't think he would end up there. This team looks stacked. It's like Disco never really ended and just body snatched another team. Weird how it all went down. The rumor is that Trek might even be the bike sponsor. They do not have one as BMC pulled out after Vino and Kash Money got busted for doping. I think Johan is patterning the team very much after The Disco Organization. With 8 tours, he would do well to do so. In other news the new T-Mobile team had it's first meeting and looks to have survived all of the Sinkewitz stuff (He was popped for a Year ban after admitting to testosterone and previously epo on the old T-Mobile under the old regime.) Addidas Says they will pull out after this year but losing a shoe sponsor is not a major hit. Many teams do not even have them. Well that is pretty much all I have for now. Keep reading and I will keep writing.

saturday Recap

It has been a nice weekend so far. Andrea and I went to a the Capella Holiday Party on Friday at the depot. It was nice to hang out. Saturday morning Holly and I hung out and went shopping. She is such an easy going kid. In the afternoon I hit Elm Creek for a lap. I think I had about 20 layers on and still could not get warm. It was about 38 degrees with some wind and just could not find a rhythm. I hate to say it but I think the outdoor riding season is coming to an end. I guess I better get used to spinning indoors. I know, I know Neil, You can always ride outside. Not really my thing to be freezing my butt off. Saturday night Myles went to his G-Ma's for a sleepover. He was stoked. Andrea, Holly and I went to Target and I ran into Andy and his family. Good to see you dude. You have a nice family! I have to tell you that living in Champlin is such a cool experience. I am always running into someone I know at the store or at church. Blows my mind how much of a community this suburb is. Very cool. We then went home and watched tv before crashing out at 1030. I am getting old!

Thoughts......

I don't usually post personal stuff on here. The blog is more an expression of my interests and nonesense that catches my eye as well as the occassional rant about the idiocy going on in our government. But I think it is time for a personal moment. So, I'm on the spin bike in my basement tonight working through some stuff in my head as I often do when I'm on the bike. I Have a beautiful son that lately has been driving me up oneside of the wall and down the other with tantrums and, well, honestly, 3 year oldness. Truly very typical stuff but fairly unrelenting in the late evening. So anyways, I'm on the bike sweating, watching some dumb flick on cable and then a thought popped into my head. "Be his hero first". I am not sure what it means or whether it will resonate with anyone else but it struck me somehow. I think what it means for me is parenting with an eye not to the letter of the law but so that when he looks back 25 years from now, and if he is starting out his life as a parent he will look back and think "yeah, sure that is how it should be done." Sounds pretty simple doesn't it? Well it's not. I think most of you parents would agree. We get caught up in getting the baths done and getting to bed on time and really should spend more time loveing and listening. We're not given a manual or an instuctional video. We play it by ear. We wing it. We go into it equipped with what we were given. Some have great tools and examples to follow. Some have none at all. I know I will fail. Probably a million times, but everytime I do, I will remember to "be his hero first".

Erik Speaks Brings You A Random Rocky Moment

Pink- Dear Mr President - Live

Do you honestly think he listens and that he and his party deserve another chance?

My Saturday

Great ride today from Trailhead. Rode with Jay, Tom, Neil, and Perry as well as a fellow whose name slips my mind. As always Saturday rides are great. The weather is turning colder but the 8:00 start time makes it easy. It sounds like Team Trailhead is forming up (Trailhead Velo Club) as well as plans for Team Strongheart II. I had not rode with Jay in awhile so it was good to see you Jay! We did the usual Fletcher loop to dayton but skipped most of 144 and swung alittle farther out. We then hit Caribou for a coffee. That was the best part of the ride as the weather had warmed up and we were able to sit outside and listen to Tom entertain us. The guy is flat out hilarious and a strong rider too! I hung out with the family in the afternoon and Met Andrea's Family at Panera for lunch. In the evening I cooked dinner and we went for a night time walk. After the kids went to bed I lifted weights and watched Dog the Bounty Hunter. Yes, I was sucked in.

With Mind Bullets! (That's for you Neil!)

Erik

Wonderboy

Wellens vs Nijs

Compliments of your local neigborhood bike nerd. Thanks Neil! With Mind Bullets!

Mayo's B Sample Comes Back Clean!

It was announced today that the B sample results are back and Iban Mayo has been exonerated of doping charges. His A sample had tested positive for EPO at the infamous Chatenay-Malabry laboratory in France. His B sample was tested at another facility and came up clean.

This is the same lab that tested both of Floyd's samples. Even though courts ruled that the first test was done improperly, they chose to convict him based on the results submitted by the lab. I have come to the opinion that something is fishy in France. I am inclined to believe Floyd Landis more and more. How can Labs that we rely on to enforce clean sport be so inconsistent in their results. We ruin careers every year and we see false positives every year. Labs can't be this incompetent. I think some individuals are on a witch hunt and are manipulating results. Like anything in this sport, we will never know for sure..............

Incredibly Steep

this is a mini documentary of a ride in portland to mimic the tour of flanders. They found climbs that simulated teh famous Muur's that we have all come to love! Great video!

Saturday Ride From Trailhead

The 8:00 ride from Trailhead ended up having 4 riders this a.m. Kudos to Jorge for riding strong even though he was suffering with a major chest cold. 144 is torn up at the end of the stretch going back into Champlin. You can pick your way through but it has major equipment and a big hole with a backhoe in it. Most of the stretch is closed to traffic so it is great for bikes. The end will definitely problematic during the week when they are working. The weather was cold to start but warmed up quickly. We stopped by Elm Creek to wish John and his family good luck in the Autumn Classic 10k. It was a great ride. Rain is forecast for tomorrow so get out today if you can!

Erik

Charlie Rose - LANCE ARMSTRONG

The Park

This time of year you really have to love it. For a cyclist it is a true advantage. It is a way to keep baseline fitness when short on time. You can do hill work, long rides or a casual recovery ride. It is in our backyard. For me, It is alot like being a surfer living on a beach with a great break. You always have a place to challenge yourself. I hope it never goes away. Tonight Neil and I rode and talked. We saw friends out riding, People training, and the casual pedestrian. I love the changing colors and the cool crisp air. Cycling is alot like other individual sports in that it isn't about the individual at all. It is about the chance to challenge oneself in the company of others or to find comraderie and friendship on the bike. Ultimately, we all have to find what drives us. This afternoon summed it up for me pretty good. Cycling is about soul. Not much else.
Thanks,
Erik

Floyd Landis loses appeal against positive drugs test

Marion Jones admitted to steroid use during the olympics today. Ride your bike.

Boarding (surf, snow, skate) Jack Johnson

Snowboarding! I am psyched!

My Girlfriends Dead - The Vandals

Ramones - The KKK took my baby away LIVE in Sweden

Is this punk enough?

Riding this weekend.

The ride from the shop was great this weekend. It was good to all stay together and make it to the finish in one group. Ironically our average time was the same as it usually is. I finished it up for a group ride with Myles and his bike w/ training wheels. We did 1.5 miles. I am so proud of that little guy. He is crazy on the downhills. Sunday, I got out for a lap in Elm Creek while Myles was taking his afternoon nap and ran into Steve who was just coming back from another century (two for the weekend if you are counting)! That is so great! Good luck to all of you guys that are riding at headwaters. We are going up with Andrea's family to a lake resort by Brainerd next weekend and yes, the bike is coming with. The paul bunyan trail is up there and I plan on logging a few miles. Maybe I'll run into Babe, the Blue Ox!

Tom Danielson talks about the 2007 Mt. Evans Hillclimb

Anti-Flag

Great punk band. I love the message.

Saturday ride update!

6 and then 7 riders rode out from trailhead today on cool saturday morning. We are getting into one of the best time of the year to be out on the bike. Comraderie and competition were the order of the day. Saturday rides are always good when you can take alittle time to enjoy the scenery. Riding in the northwest corner of the metro area brings the advantage of having the luxuries of suburbia while being able to ride in the country. It was good to be able to get out on a fine saturday morning. For all of those participating in the State Road race, Good Riding and Good Luck!

Tom Danielson has announced he will be joining Slipstream-Chipotle next season giving them a potentially strong GC rider. I think this is a good fit for him. He never fit in with the Belgies at Discovery. I think Vaughters will be good for him and be able to manage him better psychologically. He never did well with the pressure of being tagged the "next lance". He will ride with less expectations but still have a good supporting cast. He and VandeVelde can work to gether on GC in stage races. I am excited to see this american team grow. I think they will better represent what American Cycling is about. Discovery seemed to have lost it's moral compass (if it ever had it). Vaughters brings a "ride clean" attitude to a sport the sorely needs it.

Ciao for Now!

Chipotle Challenge

the true heroes of America. 3 guys. All 15 chipotles in Manhattan. 1 day.

Chasing Lance: 100 Days to the Tour

Never saw this. It is long. Crack an beer. Hide in the basement and enjoy the memories.

Tony Hawk 900

This one's for you Bill!

ride diary

My challenges with regards to getting riding in are well chronicled of late. Finding time to ride is always the challenge and getting up the motivation to ride when the stars align and you get the option is always present. Tonight I was able to find both and got off work alittle early and fired around elm creek for a one lap lactic acid body bath. I broke 20 mph for the whole lap (20.2). Lap time was about 42 minutes clockwise around the loop. For those of you that don't ride it often, it is very hilly and sneaky in it's difficulty. Conditions were windy and I really had to hammer to keep up momentum. You high mileage guys might scoff at this feet but for a present weekend warrior this was pretty good. This was my Personal best for the year.
Ciao for now!

Cycling update.

Disco is gone and they cite the current climate in cycling as the reason they decided not to take a new sponsor. I speculate they couldn't get it done because of Basso and some of the rumblings in the industry about their "practices". Jens is in the leaders jersey in the Tour de Spetzel. We'll see if Levi can make a go of it. Slipstream is apparently almost maxed out to sign any of the castaways from Disco. They done good as it is.

On a local note. I rode my first "coffee ride" with the group yesterday. We probably have one of the fastest "coffee" rides in the cities. Especially when Bernie has a time deadline :)

Jorge putting the Iced mocha in one of his water bottles and then claiming style points was classic. These new riders are great. It is good to see the group grow. Team Trailhead seems to be firming up. It will be good to see it happen. See you on a ride!

The Simpsons - Team Discovery Channel

Sadly, Discovery Channel is no more. I will miss their successes but one has to admit that the controversy was wearing a thin. America's team was hardly America's team any longer (as if that matters). Team Slipstream seems to be taking up the torch with a new more ethical philosophy dedicated to growing home talent. It is the end of an era in American Cycling and the beginning of a new one!

Slipstream Update III

Magnus Backstedt has confirmed as the newest addition to Slipstream-Chipotle. His addition adds a strong classics rider and confirms speculation that a former Paris-Roubaix winner has joined the team. These guys are serious. Not really a tour rider for GC yet but at they rate they are signing guys they could be a strong protour team tommorrow!

Jake Brown massive fall X-Games 13 Big Air

How insane is this?

Green Day - When I Come Around

Good Stuff!

Slipstream Update Part II

Slipstream has signed Millar, Van De Velde and now Dave Zabriskie! He has also stated that an unnamed former Parix Roubaix winner has been signed. Your choices are Tom Boonen, Fabian Cancellara, Stuart O'Grady or Peter Van Petegem. Those are the active Roubaix Winners still in cycling. Axel Merckx is also looking to be a part of the team in a still undecided status. In unrelated news, the rumor is that George Hincapie is moving to t-mobile.

Saturday ride update!

6 of us set out on Saturday for a 7:00 ride! Alot of new faces for me as I have been out of commission the last 3-4 weeks. It is good to see that group growing and changing. I am coming to believe that the Saturday ride is a big part of growing cycling in Champlin. The pace is good enough to challenge but is not intimidating. I called it the mullet ride a couple of months ago because it truly is business in the front and a party in the back!

Slipstream Team Update

The makings of an Anglo-American super team is in the works. Christian Van de Velde and David Millar are going to Slipstream managed by Jonathon Vaughters. Who will be next? There are lots of Rumors out there. Stay tuned.

Vinokurov is a doping pain in the ass!

When Floyd tested positive, they said this could ruin cycling when that tmobile guy tested positive I was like whatever but now that Old "We have best pottassium" Vino tested positive I think we might have a serious problem on our hands. Cycling looks really bad. T mobile might pull out. Teams can't get sponsors and may fold. No... Wait... This might not be all that bad. The old teams might fold but they are led by guys that are part of the problem to begin with. They all doped and really don't give that much of a shit. Some of the protour teams do care but many don't. Say what you want about disco but Bruyneel wouldn't have signed Basso if he cared about a clean sport more than winning. Rabobank is standing by their punk ass chicken, Rassmussen, even though he should never have been allowed to start. Man is he flying up those climbs and time trialing like a full on ninja. Sounds a little fishy to me. Astana is full on shit. I said that in another post. Why would Kloeden go to a team to ride for someone he reportedly doesn't even like when he could have been on a team that would have given full support to him for the tour. T-mobile was going to test his skinny mountain climbing butt, that's why! This is cleaning up the sport and showing guys they cannot cheat. The teams that aren't on board will need to make room for teams that really want clean sport i.e. Slipstream. So get on with the proverbial high colonic. This sport needs and enema!

Valverde Explodes Losing 6 minutes While Rassmussen Holds Them All Off

Shoulda Ate a Power Bar!

Valverde exploded yesterday dropping way down in the top 10 while Vino is back in dominating form. Rassmussen some how (we all know how) managed to put in the time trial of his life and keep the yellow jersey. Astana dominated the TT putting 3 guys in the top four. Only Cadel Evans was able to keep it from being a clean sweep. He is my new pick for the win. Leipheimer seems to be conceding to Contador. He just does not seem to have the killer instinct needed to win this thing. It is not in him. He will settle for a high place and he will probably get it but he will not podium unless he goes on the attack in the pyrenees. Big climbing stage today. Make sure your watching!

Beckham L.A Galaxy Debut vs Chelsea

Not a huge Footie fan (for you british soccer nuts). But it is hard to not be enthusiastic about something other than crooked football players, thuggish basketball players and your usual steroid addled baseball player setting himself up to break the most hallowed sports record in America. Bravo to MLS for stepping up and creating some excitement around Soccer in America. Our house is a big Soccer one with Andrea's having played all her life. Soccer in America is very much a grassroots sport but It has great potential.

Is the Chicken Organic or the Usual Hormone Filled Pile of Crap?

Jorge and the Chicken

It seems as if Rasmussen is having a little trouble with the harsh glare of the public that the yellow jersey brings. He has been kicked off of the Danish Olympic team for not informing the governing Danish Cycling organization of his whereabouts and has missed (or avoided?) multiple drug tests. In another odd turn of events, a former mountain biking buddy of Rasmussen's has come forward with accusations that the Chicken attempted to trick him into smuggling artificial bovine blood products into Italy from colorado for him. The synopsis of the story is that Rasmussen asked the guy to bring a pair of shoes of his into the country when he came over. The box was dropped off and when the guy was running out of room, he opened the box to fit the shoes in and found bags of the artificial oxygen expander and iv tubing instead of a pair of sidi's. He threw the stuff away and when he got to Italy he confronted Rasmussen. The Chicken's response was "Do you know how much that shit costs?" Rassmussen has confirmed knowing the man but when asked about the incident he stated "I cannot confirm any of that". Not exactly a ringing denial. If it is true, how shady is that? Tricking a friend into doing your dirty work and setting him up to take the fall if he gets caught. Says alot about his character.

Michael Vick Indicted

Michael Vick and three of his buds have been indicted in federal court today on charges ranging from running a dog fighting operation to running an illegal gambling operation. He could possibly face up to 6 years in prison and 350,000 dollars in fines. Hopefully the NFL will be consistent in the punishments it hands out and throws the book at this thug.

NEWSFLASH!: ZABRISKIE CHEATS ON MOON KNIGHT WITH WOLVERINE!

I just picked up the latest edition of PRO cycling and was flummoxed while reading the interview with Dave Z. and David Miller. Apparently the Z man is a huge fan of Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Apparently his Avatar of Choice is Wolverine. Dave... Moon Knight is very jealous. It is a rest day at the tour and hopefully all of the favorites are growing a pair today (no testosterone guys) because the only guy that talks like he feels strong at all is Rassmussen. Can you believe he has a shot?!? The favorites will never live it down if he wins the whole thing. He is a great climber but can't time trial for anything. It was very similar to Stage 17 from last year. No one really wanted to take a chance or put a hurt on anyone. They just let the chicken ride away. This was what made Lance so great (I know, I know). He would play the tactics but eventually he would just go and would dare anyone to go with him. Sometimes he won sometimes he was second, but no one could hang with him or his dedicated teammates every time. And even if they could, he would pummel them in the time trial. Sounds a little like wolverine don't you think? Most definitely not Moon Knight.......

Tour Standings for GC as of end of Stage 8 and Erik Throwin' Down a Little Comic Book Knowledge

Dave Zabriskie was asked in an interview on Velonews.com before stage 8 the question:"If you could choose to be any superhero, which one would you be?" His answer in typical Zabriskie fashion was "Moon Knight". Interesting choice... Methinks we have a closet comic book fan in the peloton..... I did a little research and got this pic for any of you that were interested in what Moon Knight looks like. Anyways, here are the GC standings after stage 8 that saw Rasmussen solo for the win.

Overall Standings, after 8 stages

1. Michael Rasmussen (Dk), Rabobank 15:37:42

2. Linus Gerdemann (G), T-Mobile Team, at 00:43

3. Iban Mayo (Sp) Saunier Duval - Prodir, at 02:39

4. Alejandro Valverde (Sp) Caisse D'epargne, at 02:51

5. Andrey Kashechkin (Kz) Astana, at 02:52

6. Cadel Evans (Aus), Predictor - Lotto, at 02:53

7. Christophe Moreau (F), Ag2r Prevoyance, at 03:06
8. Alberto Contador (Sp), Discovery Channel Team, at 03:10

9. Frank Schleck (Lux), Team CSC, at 03:14

10. Denis Menchov (Rus), Rabobank, at 03:19

11. Carlos Sastre (Sp), Team CSC, at 03:35

12. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Discovery Channel Team, at 03:43

Ah..... July, My Favorite Month of the Year!

Ah, the tour is in full swing and we have just entered the mountains. July in Mn has brought cooler temperatures the last few days. Perfect for riding. My Daughter was born on Wednesday and The family is under the same roof for the first time tonight. What a glourious month July truly is!
As for the tour, Cancellara has truly dominated up to this point and finally gave the jersey back to the peloton so that the true podium contenders could fight it out. I like Fabian. It is a shame he cannot climb. He would make a fine champion but when you cannot climb in the tour, you cannot wear yellow on the podium in Paris. Vino and Kloeden are already beaten up. Did you notice how long it took Astana to get together riders to pull vino back to the pack. Too many GC guys. Ultimately, you have to have one rider that the whole team supports. During the postal days, you would have had five riders pulling Lance back if he crashed like that. Who do you ask on Astana to do the grunt work. Salvodelli? Kaschekin? Kloeden? These guys all have GC potential. No matter how strong they are, they are not domestiques and will not ride that way. This represents why team structure is so important in cycling, yet so underappreciated. Salvodelli did eventually go back and help vino out. I would have loved to have heard that radio conversation. I still think Valverde has the best shot. Disco is showing it's experience by staying out of the mess and letting the other teams do the work on the front. They will be much fresher going into the Pyrenees. That is where everybody will have to be at the top of their game.
The hilly stage yesterday was one of the most enjoyable stages I have ever watched in the tour. I thought I would see Voigt on the front for sure. The parcours really suited him. Again, I think CSC is conserving after defending Cancellara the first week.
So there is my first week analysis. It has been great having cable. Versus should cover the other great races this way. I never miss a minute with all the coverage. Have a good week and enjoy the tour!
Ciao for Now!

Keith Olbermann - You have stabbed us in the back - RESIGN

When Mr. Bush pardoned Scooter Libby last week without even forcing him to go through the appeals process he subverted our laws and subverted our democracy. YOU that have supported this administration need to wake up. Are YOU an American or a Republican first? Do you support the concept that no ONE person is above the law? If you do, you can no longer support this president or his administration. HIS decisions to pardon Scooter Libby cheapened our laws. The president needs to be impeached. NOW!

My prediction for the Tour........

Okay, I am not big on predictions. Particularly cycling predictions. The sport is to variable and unpredictable. This year is wide open. I really think there are two favorites. Alejandro Valverde and Vinokurov. Both have strong teams. Vino has been very strong but I am guessing he is peaking to early. Valverde had a strong spring and then was sick but has been training hard. My guess is he will peak when they hit the mountains. So, my pick is the "Green Bullet" for the win! That being said, there are alot of miles and anything could happen. Crashes, sickness, and major meltdowns have been known to ruin many a chance at the podium. We haven't even touched on Puerto or any other unknown doping investigation. Both of these guys could be out at anytime as there is speculation that they could have some involvement in puerto. There are other good riders. Sastre, Leipheimer, Evans, and Moreau all have outside chances. I just don't see it, but we shall see......

Lance Armstrong ESPY Video Reel

funny.

1996 Fleche Wallonne

Lance in his first and only classic win. Check the climb. Who says Lance couldn't climb pre cancer? Notice the rhythm. It was there even before......

Friends

Sometimes life gets busy. Sometimes you get so wrapped up in it you forget what you love. Sometimes you prioritize so much that you forget to take time for yourself. This is why it is good to have friends that push you just that little bit and drag you out. Thanks to Jorge and Jay for getting me out there. I couldn't get all of the century in due to time constraints but did get about 66 in. It felt really good and It was good to see my friends and do something I really love. You guys rock!

I haven't been bloggin' like I used to.... (A down and dirty cycling update)

Well, with a baby on the way and a new job, a few things have really suffered. One, my riding has been not nearly enough. I sacrificed this weekend to the yard work gods to get alot of stuff done that I had been ignoring for to long. Two, my blogging has gotten lazy consisting mostly of you tube videos. Those are probably more intersting than my writing anyways.

So here goes with a down and dirty procycling update. Christophe Moreau is leading the dauphine. He looks impressive but I don't really think that he can do it in the tour. Vino' appears to be in form for the tour and looks to be a favorite. How can a guy that was from tmobile and liberty siguros and from a former russian republic escape all of the doping controversy.....? I think he is as fishy as they come. Not my favorite, although his attacking style is fun to watch. His buddy kashekin appears solid as well. Levi seems to be progressing well and will make a run at the podium. Tommy D has been pulled off of the short list for the Tour. Apparently Johan Bruyneel has gotten tired of his stomach ailments and wants him to figure it out. Maybe the Vuelta again.... Basso has just taken a two year ban but his team suspension from csc and disco have been counted and he can ride in october of 08. So two tours and another giro will be missed. Tour de Swisse is going as well as everyone builds for the Tour. I love July! My first tour with Cable. No more begging people to tape it for me!

So there it goes. The down and dirty update. Hope all is well in your world. RAAM is continuing and the guys and crew have figured it out and hit their stride and are now in third place. They are an impressive crew to be doing so well in their first shot at this.

Ciao for Now!

Descendents - I'm The One

See these guys live if you ever get the chance. They are great!

Bjarne Riis Spoof Press Conference (Subtitled)

Very funny and very clever!

Pearl the Landlord

Will Ferrell goes toe to toe with a two year old.

The Giro and the "Quickstep Raids"

Bettini and Basso

Danilo Diluca shows up in convincing fashion and wins the Giro. Vladimir Gusev wins the tour of Belgium. Who cares? I hope we have a bang up Tour De France because pro cycling is doper after doper after doper. Riis has been taken out of the official Tour De France Roster of winners. Can someone please tell me why Alejandro Valverde has not been charged with anything yet. I suspect that Spanish officials are protecting him. Now for the greatest revelation. Apparently Belgium Police have raided the homes of employees and riders of Team Quickstep. They have confiscated atleast some doping products. So lets see..... two back to back world championships and multiple classics and one stage races as well as many stages in the grand tours. Could that have all been fueled by doping. Yeah.... I think probably so. So where do we go from here? Everyone is dirty and everyone is implicated. I don't have the answer.

Wideawake :: LIVESTRONG LIVE

Somebody asked me the other day why I still wear the wristband. I tell them it is not because I love Lance. I love cycling. I think he is doing great things for cancer. I wear it because cancer is still with us. People are LIVING with cancer everyday. I have taken care of them. I see them. It touches us all. So I wear the wristband not to forget.

Extra Mayo With That!

In a rain soaked stage of the Giro, Iban Mayo might just have made it back onto center stage in the peloton. Iban and another rider broke away before Mayo was able to pull away for a spectacular win. It is great to see him come back as he was THE rider that put fear into Lance in the 2004 (or was it 2003?) Tour. After that amazing demonstration of climbing ability, he promptly fell apart. Yes, I know he dominated in the Dauphine the year after, but then there was nothing. With a change to a new team, ol' Iban might be back on the road to greatness. It was good to see him do well. Speaking of the Giro, who would of thought that Danilo Diluca would be the Giro leader and probable winner or that Andy Schleck would be doing so well in his first real stage race with real mountains. Look out world her comes Andy! Looks like Bjarne is doing a good job bringing him along. Speaking of Bjarne, it sounds like the tour doesn't want him there this year. While I agree what he did was bad, atleast he owned up to it. He didn't say "I just tried to dope" or "I only did it for a week". I think He doped when everyone was doing it. Practically everyone has come out and admitted to it (Except Lance, he never tested positive). What I am saying is be careful with Bjarne. He has been good to the sport since taking over CSC and he is trying measures that other teams are not trying to keep doping out of the sport. He shouldn't be punished for that. He will give his yellow jersey back and that will be the worst punishment he could ever get. Cycling will not benefit from CSC leaving as a sponsor or Bjarne leaving as a D.S.

Ciao for Now!

New Transformers Trailer

OH MY GOD!!!!! THIS IS SO FRICKING COOL!

Sugar - If I Can't Change Your Mind

From Sugar's Copper Blue. You know this song.

Michael Vick-- True Scumbag

I caught a story on SportCenter about Michael Vick and his favorite hobby. Pitbull fighting. The ass likes to put his dogs in with other dogs and watch them tear each other apart. Apparently, he is a high roller and likes to bet alot of money. The story related that there is a pervasive culture in the nfl and nba of guys that own dogs and fight them routinely. The dogs fight until one is killed or until one is so injured they can no longer go on. Now, don't paint me as some sort of liberal nutjobg (Okay, I am), but Vick is scum and anybody that does this is scum. The videos they showed on espn churned my stomach. They suspend a guy for a year after being busted for pot twice in the NFL. This is exponentially worse and I hope it ruins his career. We thought Cycling had problems.....

WRECKLESS ERIC - WHOLE WIDE WORLD - LIVE 1977

Brought to you by Erikspeaks. A great old punk song. Covered by Will Ferrel in Stranger Than Fiction. Youtube is very cool.

John Ashcroft, the Hero?!

There is a revelation that has come out in the last two weeks that Ashcroft was pressured during president Bush's last term to sanction the dubious eavesdropping program initiated by President Bush. Apparently he had been fighting it and arguing it's illegality. Gonzales and Andy Card were pushing hard for it to be sanctioned by the justice department. There is an incident described in recent testimony where Ashcroft apparently was sick in the hospital with appendicitis and doped up on morphine. Card and Gonzalez come to the hospital to get him to sign paperwork authorizing the program. Ashcroft refuses. He then resigns with the successful reelection of Bush (Good Job, America! Now go to your recruiter and serve your country in Iraq. It's what you wanted, after all.) Gonzales is then promoted to attorney general and the eavesdropping program continues. It's pretty bad when John Ashcroft thinks what your doing is unconstitutional. The guy doesn't even believe in separation of church and state. Gonzales needs to go down and yes I am saying it for the first time, Bush should be impeached. His misdeeds and illegal actions are much more egregious than Clinton's ever were.

Sugar - Believe What Your Saying

My kid loves this song. He has good taste! Bob Mould's second band. (you might know his first) I just found out Extreme Noise is back open in MInneapolis and has moved. The only coop punk music store in the cities. It is a cool place and if you like punk, you should check it out!

Oasis - The Masterplan

Cool video-- "it's up to us to make the best of the things that come our way..."

The Tour.....

Food for thought.....
1996: Bjarne Riis-Admitted to doping
1997: Jan Ulrich-Retired due to doping allegations.
1998: Marco Pantani-Confirmed for doping.
1999-2005: Lance Baby!-"I am the most tested athlete in sports and I've never tested positive.
2006: Floyd Landis-Just finished trial for use of exogenous testosterone.

I have two points. If these guys were doping you know more were. At this point I think Lance fits right in here. I must be honest, (i hate to admit it) Lance is most of the reason I got into cycling. I loved his story. Now, I love the bike. Period. My second point is that this is beginning to look like a witch hunt. Be careful how we move forward with this and how we treat the men who come forward. If they are treated like lepers then it will discourage more people from coming forward and ultimately make cleaning up the sport more difficult. Ruining their present career out of a desire to make examples of them might be a huge mistake. Good judgement is required. I worry the leaders in the UCI and the Tour have shown they lack that.

Bjarne Riis Admits Doping

Zabel now Bjarne!

So Erik Zabel has admitted to doping in 1996, but only for a week. None of those green jersey's he won in the tour were a result of epo use. Are you sensing the sarcasm here. I like Zabel. If you have seen Hell on Wheels, you can't help but like him but c'mon dude only for a week? First Basso wanted to dope but never did it and now Zabel did but only for a week. Whatever......

So, that brings us to Bjarne Riis. Bjarne admitted today that he doped for many years and even admitted to doping during his tour victory. Bravo! It only took him 5 years after his retirement to admit to it. But, Atleast he did and boy when he did, he really did!

Yeah I took drugs. You betcha! I took them a long time. I'm not proud of it but I did it alot and You bet I did it during the tour I won. The yellow jersey is in a box. I'm not proud of it but everybody was doing it! Was I ambitious? Hell yes I was!

Some serious candor from Mister CSC. I like the guy and I appreciate his candor. He wants to move forward. He doesn't want his accomplishments with CSC to go tainted. I don't know how they can't with Basso, his relationship with Ceccini, and now this. Time will only tell, but it looks like we are finally getting somewhere in all of this.

Ciao for Now!

5/23/07Cat Fight on the View, Rosie vs Elizabeth

This is seriously good. The debate that should be going on across America devolves into a funny sad conversation....

Working Class Hero - Green Day

Here is a Lennon Cover By Green Day. Sounds good to me.

Quick ride in the Park

I went for a quick lap in the park today after an all day in-service to burn off the fish and chips I had for lunch. I ran into Bernie in the park and we road for about a quarter of a lap. Riding with Bernie in the park is like this.
Me: Hey Bernie how'ya doin?
Bernie: Pretty good. Good to see ya man!
Me: How many laps you doin? (pant pant)
Bernie: 5, How bout you.
Me: 1 then I gotta get home (pant, pant) Thinking to my self: stay on his wheel, god, I feel like I'm gonna puke! shit, why did I drink the stupid guinness.... Man he's frickin' fast. crap I soiled myself. I can hardly wait till they get this RAAM thing outta their system. Shit, this sucks.
Bernie: What else is new!
Me: Just started (Breath) a new (breath) job. (pant)(gasp) Hey man, why don't you just go on. I am just (gasp) taking it easy to(shit)day.
Bernie: Okay man, Always nice riding with you.

So I ride for awhile. And I am feeling pretty good. The legs are coming around and I have picked up the pace after blowing up thanks to the good old Bernmeister, when.....

(Riding up behind me comes.....)
Bernie: Hey man!
Me: Geez Bernie, that's nice you only lapped me in Elm Creek. That's great......
(I guess I gotta ride some more......)

So in summation while riding with Bernie is great, it can at times be a humbling experience.
See you on a ride.
Ciao for Now!

Lemond Testifies at Landis Trial

Today Greg Lemond testified at the Landis trial that during a conversation the two cyclists had, Landis admitted to doping. He also testified that a member of Landis' camp made harrassing phone calls to Lemond and used private information that Lemond had relayed to Landis during their conversation. Apparently Lemond had confided in Landis that he had been abused as a child and the harrassing phone calls cented around that. This case gets more bizarre every day. What does any of this have to do with doping or the Tour? Lemond seems to like to get into pissing matches with other successful American cyclists. Why doesn't he stay above the fray and act like the great he is? This however, is his track record. Even as a young champion, he liked to get into pissing matches with teammates publicly (Hinault, anyone?). It is just silly. Is the lab science bad or not? It needs to boil down to that. Period. All of the other stuff is conjecture. No one will win in this. It is such a waste. I guess I will go ride my bike.
Ciao for Now!

Smoking Ban in Minnesota for Oct. 1st!

Alright!!!! The legislator finally followed many other states in the country and took the line that smoking sucks and is bad for everyone's health and just because you want to smoke while you drink doesn't mean that the two are mutually inclusive. I for one am psyched that when I go get a beer with my friends I won't have to come home smelling like smoke and be coughing up the plague in the a.m. from some dudes marlboro red's the night before. I know what the argument is: What about freedom? What about keeping the governmant out of "MY" choices. Well let me tell you, When I am in a place where smoking is allowed there aren't alot of choices for me. I have to breath. YOu don't have to smoke. I work in a hospital. Do you know how much smoking related illnesses cost us all every year? End of life treatment due to respiratory illness is incredibly expensive. This inturn causes our health insurance premiums to go up hits us all directly in the wallet. So the next time your puffing away while complaining about taxes going up to pay more for schools or teachers think about how much that heater is costing the rest of us and not benefiting anyone at all, including yourself.
I feel better now.

Saturday Ride

A good group rode out of Trailhead at 7 this a.m. We did the usual loop and it was again a very good ride. People are continuing to get stronger and it is amazing how our group is rounding into shape this year. Andy mentioned that he thinks people are at another level this year. I agree. People will either be burned out by the fall or crazy strong. After the first loop, I rode up to Blaine to the garage sales for an even 50 miler. My brother in law had a bloody mary waiting for me when I got there. Thanks Patrick! Carol and some of the other folks were planning to go out west to minnetonka on the second part of the ride for some serious milage!
See you on a ride!
Erik

Will Ferrell and Lance at the ESPY's

Check it out.

Letter to Three Rivers Park District

Here is a letter to The Three Rivers Park District. I have withheld the name and address but thought everyone might be interested in reading it. You might be particularly interested about the biking part. It is topical as I was thanked by a slower biker (There aren't many....) the other day for calling out "on your left!" as I passed. She said "No one does that anymore!" Just food for thought:
To whom it make concern:

We have noticed the increase in rude bikers on the Three Rivers Trail every year. This year is even worse already than last year and last year was even bad.

The trail is right behind our house and we walk and ride our bikes on it almost every day during the summertime. The rudeness of the bikers while we are "walking" has been almost more than one can take. This morning it was not busy, but the 3 different sets of bikers that rode past, nearly took my arm off from passing WAY too close. They have vertually no regard for the walker what so ever! We had our dog and had to nearly jump off the trail to not get hit. They are riding way too fast and no announcements regarding passing and then ride WAY TOO CLOSE.

Because of the incident this morning, we did call the Minnetonka Police and reported what happened. Neither of us were HIT, but some of the bikers were probably only a couple inches away from my arm! That is way too close. They travel fast and 2 to 3 abreast, not caring what is in their way!

We need more patrols on the trail. We need possibly volunteers to stop these rude bikers and explain the rules of the trail! Vertually no one announces their passing anymore. It is so RARE. And, when 2 or 3 abreast try to pass, you almost must hit the ditch so not to get killed!

This needs to be addressed somehow before someone gets killed on the trail this summer. And, the weekends are so bad, that we do not even use the trail during weekends anymore. I would imagine many, many people are hurt or nearly hurt while out on the trail. We see near accidents all the time just from our backyard!
What can be done regarding the rude bikers?? Also, we have asked for more benches for years and the answer is always that there is not enough money. The parts of the trail we use the most, is from Hopkins area out to Victoria while on our bikes. We use the trail for walking from Country Village area out to Excelsior area. A suggestion for some benches would be Williston Road and the trail intersection; Hwy 101 and trail intersection, and man more areas on the trail heading out to Victoria. We find it shocking on how much money is being spent on signs and shelters for maps, etc., yet no additional benches are mentioned. The cost of more benches here and there can't be more than the cost of the concrete the signs and shelters and the cost of the signs and the shelters themselves. For several years I guestioned portable toilets be placed along the trail and especially at the trailheads. (Hopkins & Victoria) And, the answer was always there was not enough room on the trail for them. The concrete laid for the new shelters was more than enough room to place a portable toilet. So how could they be built? Would someone please respond to our email? We need to make the trail safer and more user friendly. More patrol and the addition of more benches and portable toilets. AND GET THE WORD OUT ON RULES OF THE TRAIL! One last concern we just thought of also, is that the trail is being used more during the AFTER hours than it ever was. We are concerned when people are walking past our backyard on the trail and it's midnight! What are they doing on there at that hour of the night? Plus more noisy.

We used to think it was a great benefit to live on the trail system, but don't feel that way anymore. Rude and LOUD people have taken over. And it's really sad it is in our back yard!

Any thoughts?

Basso Admits to Doping!

Well, It appears that Basso is admitting to his involvement in Puerto. I believe this is very good for cycling. It only took a year and the fear of being caught to get him to come clean. It now seems that he is only claiming to "ATTEMPTING" to dope and that his Giro was won fair and square. He says he never actually got the chance. What a load of crap! I was reading the wilcockson book on last year's tour and there is a part where Julich is talking about Basso and how honest he is and that Basso had come to each person on the team and told them personally that he had nothing to do with it. He said he would be crushed if Basso really was guilty as they were good friends and he trusted him. How very sad that Basso felt he had to lie to his friends and teammates. I liked Basso. I even tacitly supported his coming to Discovery. I, like many people, had my head in the sand. Now, the uci has to investigate and hand out even handed punishments. Like, for example, how is Valverde still riding? Blood bags were found with "valv" on them. This is far more evidence than they had to hold Basso under suspicion (Birillo, anyone?). The uci needs to be consistent (it never is). It needs to punish everyone, not just the stars (Ulrich and Basso). I guess we shall see how McQuaid handles this. I won't hold my breath that punishments and the investigation will go even handedly. Whatever the case, I hope that these names come out soon so we can get on to the business of the Giro.

My Ramblings

Good ride on Thursday guys! It was good to see Jay T. and Dave and some other people that I had not seen in awhile. It looks like regular rides are getting under way. This has always been a way for the group to get stronger. I felt much better on Thursday than last sunday. It is amazing what 10 degrees change in temperature can do on a ride. It was a little cooler and I just felt way stronger. I do think that century ride did help with my form alittle.
As far as on the procycling front, the Giro is coming. I mentioned in previous post that Tyler Hamilton is suspended. That now appears to not be the case and it looks like Tinkoff is planning on letting him ride. Popo is the leader of Disco and it has been announced that Thomas Voeckler will lead Bouygues Telecom. He was the guy that led at the tour a few years ago for a bunch of stages and was really inspiring.
I was talking with a friend on the ride on Thursday about the state of Pro Cycling with all the doping and what it was like to be a fan. His take is that we should just ride our bikes and make our own experiences. It is actually a really good perspective and actually a good outlook for life. So, I will end with that. "Ride your bike and make your own experiences!"
Ciao for Now.

'07 Tour of California Stage 4 Diary - Jens Voigt

Great interview with Jens from Tour of California.

Ironman 2007

This sunday was the Ironman bike ride. Thanks to fellow Loons, Bernie and Patrick, I finished my first century ride. The guys were great and we saw some amazing things. Many fixies and single speeds were out. There were people of all shapes and sizes enjoying the ride. We say a guy doing the 62 mile course on a unicycle. We even met Neil's Dad! The most amazing thing had to be the guy doing the century on a BMX bike. The guy was amazing. Every time we pulled into a rest stop he wasn't all that far behind. Truly amazing! For myself, I finished with a sense of accomplishment and a new appreciation for long distance riding. Speaking of which, Bernie and Neil are going to tackle The RAAM ride this summer as members of Team Strongheart to raise money for Camp Odayin. It is a good charity and they are good people that have been working hard all winter for these kids. So go to the link on this page and buy a t-shirt and make a donation. The kids and the Guys deserve your support!
Ciao for now!

Basso Leaving Disco and More Operacion Puerto Fallout!

As reported on VeloNews.com Ivan Basso has resigned from The Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team. Basso is citing the renewed interest in Operacion Puerto as the reason for his asking to be released from his contract. Basso had only good things to say about discovery and denied being asked to leave. One has to give him atleast some credit for handling this situation the way he has. The investigators can't make up their mind and have proven to be inconsistent in their prosecution of these cases. Discovery knows that with trying to find a new sponsor it would have been very difficult signing a company with the Basso situation hanging over their head. I am sure that this had some part to play in all of this.

In other news Tyler Hamilton has been suspended by Tinkoff for the giro for supposed links to the now expanded Operacion Puerto investigation. Apparently the Spanish investigators are prepared to release a new larger dossier of information with 6000 pages of evidence with as many as 49 new cyclists linked to the case. That would bring the total to over 100. I do however, find it ironic that of all those riders, Basso and Ulrich are the only ones that are being punished in advance. I am all for stopping the riders from riding, but if you are going to do that, then you need to stop ALL of the riders not just the big guys.

Will Ferrell as Bush

This is pretty good.

SNL Weekend Update: Really with Seth and Amy: Gonzales

This would be so funny if it wasn't so TRUE!

Erikspeaks Brings You a Random Rocky Moment.....

Thought you guys could use a little rocky!

Basso not riding in Fleche-Wallone and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and other Cycling Hoolaganism!

As reported by cyclingnews.com and velonews.com Ivan Basso is pulling out of The Fleche and LBL. As predicted here on Erikspeaks the fallout from the Ulrich positive is spilling over into the other riders that were implicated in the Operacion Puerto mess. Hopefully Basso will concede to testing soon and this will be over and done with (either way) before the tour. Alejandro Valverde is denying any involvement and using as reasoning that he was not stopped from riding last year (not "I am innocent") as his defense. This has seriously got to be over with. The giro is coming and there could be alot of riders not riding. On another note, How good have the one day classics been this year. Alot of guys that should have been at the top were there but new riders and riders that have not won in the past, but were close have finally made it over the top. Very cool.... I watched the two hours of coverage on Versus of Amstel Gold yesterday. It was pretty solid. I can't quite understand why you cover two hours of Amstel and then barely cover Paris-Roubaix and the Ronde. Oh well, maybe they've listened to the criticism that has been leveled at them and decided to get rid of all the "where is lance now" crap and get to covering the race.
Ciao For Now!
Erik

Loony Loons Ridin' a New Route!

Steve, Holly,Jorge, and Myself rode from Trailhead this am at 08. We headed down through Maple Grove on the three rivers corridor trail and then headed into Plymouth before heading back up to Champlin. It ended up being a 50 miler today. Nice to see some different scenery and as always good to hang out with people who share a love of the bike. One thing that struck me was how many people were out riding in the parks and on the roads. Every kind of bike and every level of fitness was out today. It was amazing to see how big the road scene is in the western suburbs. Cycling in the post Lance era is surviving and thriving.

Ciao for Now.

Erik

Jorge's adventure at the Tour (of California) !

Jorge and Levi

Jorge and The Floydster

Drool Baby Drool!(Thor Hoshovd's Bike)

Jorge con El Pollo

Jorge and Eki

J.J. Haedo

Basso Up Close and Personal

Big Ole' Thor

Fellow Loon and good buddy Jorge made a trek out to the Tour of California. He has been so kind to share some of his pics from the trip. This has been a long time coming but I wanted to get some of them up on the blog. This is what is great about our sport. Jorge flies out and goes to two stages and meets some of the greatest riders in the world. Next time you go to a Twins or Wolves game see how close you get to the players. Jorge, thanks for sharing your adventure with us. I will try to post more pics in the next week. These are some of the ones that stood out to me.