Syntace C 2 Streamliner SL Clip On Aero
Syntace C 2 Streamliner SL Clip On Aero
Price: $133.00
 
Zipp Speed Weaponry 404 Wheel
Zipp Speed Weaponry 404 Wheel
Price: $945.00
 
Hammer Gel
Hammer Gel
Price: $18.95
 
IRC Mythos XC Racing Tire
IRC Mythos XC Racing Tire
Regular Price: $45.00
$14.98 on sale
 
REI Power Stretch Half Zip Top Womens
REI Power Stretch Half Zip Top Womens
Price: $75.00
 
Counterparts
Counterparts
Price: $4.49
 
Black Diamond Zenix IQ Headlamp
Black Diamond Zenix IQ Headlamp
Price: $43.50
 
If you are needing some cool new gear, use the gear search below to find what you're looking for.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Long, Tough Week

A couple months ago, I wrote that my brother-in-law was in the hospital with cancer. One of my long training rides for the Leadville 100 was to Denver to see him in the hospital. Unfortunately he never came home from the hospital. He passed away a little over a week ago.

This past week we had relatives staying with us. Not only was it tough with the funeral but other things kept going wrong. First the basement sink clogged. Next as we were leaving for the viewing, the panic alarm on the van went off and wouldn't stop until I disconnected the battery.

Then we started having the sewer backing up. We were ready to leave for the grave side service when my 5 year old said it was backing up again. I ran down and started vacuuming it up with the shop vac. I took out 16 gallons of water and it was still coming. It turned out one of the toilets had stuck on.

Hopefully the coming week will be a little calmer. I will be adjusting to working from home full-time. The company I work for laid off some in our local office a few weeks ago. There are now only 6 of us left here and we will be telecommuting full time. There are certainly some positives to that but also some downsides.

The North Face STH Jacket
The North Face STH Jacket
Regular Price: $199.00
$158.95 on sale
 
The North Face Q Three Jacket
The North Face Q Three Jacket
Price: $149.00
 
The North Face STH II Jacket
The North Face STH II Jacket
Price: $199.00
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 2:33:00 PM   4 comments links to this post

Friday, July 25, 2008

Tagged by Dave Moulton

Dave Moulton tagged me (his blog has moved to new location)to write six little known random things about myself. He was tagged by Ron at Cozy Beehive which is another blog I read.

I've been tagged a couple times before. The other times I was tagged it was for 5 things. It seems the meme has been growing in the last year.

I started writing this nearly 2 weeks ago but just couldn't find the inspiration to come up with little known things about me. I revealed enough last time. In the meantime the Fat Cyclist was tagged.

He thought it was unimaginative and came up with a list of questions to answer. I like his new meme better so I'm switching to it.

If you could have any one — and only one — bike in the world, what would it be?

I prefer not to have needless constraints. There are enough real ones without making more.

Do you already have that coveted dream bike? If so, is it everything you hoped it would be? If not, are you working toward getting it? If you're not working toward getting it, why not?

For me it's not about the dream bike. It's about the dream rides.

If you had to choose one — and only one — bike route to do every day for the rest of your life, what would it be, and why?

See my answer to the first question.

What kind of sick person would force another person to ride one and only one bike ride to to do for the rest of her / his life?

Some poor, unhappy person that can't stand to see other people happy. I don't think Fatty is unhappy but he is the one that came up with question ...

Do you ride both road and mountain bikes? If both, which do you prefer and why? If only one or the other, why are you so narrowminded?

I ride both. They're different tools. If I'm going to ride 200 miles on the road, I prefer my road bike. If I'm wanting to go to the middle of nowhere on single track, I prefer my mountain bike.

Have you ever ridden a recumbent? If so, why? If not, describe the circumstances under which you would ride a recumbent.

No. I'd ride a recumbent if the closest food was 20 miles away and I didn't have any other way to get there. I suppose I could run but I only do that if something large and scary is chasing me.

Have you ever raced a triathlon? If so, have you also ever tried strangling yourself with dental floss?

No, I swim just like a Rock. Straight to the bottom and that's where I stay. If I raced a triathlon, there'd be no need for me to strangle myself.

Suppose you were forced to either give up ice cream or bicycles for the rest of your life. Which would you give up, and why?

That's easy, ice cream. Ice cream is good but it's not near the top of my favorite foods.

What is a question you think this questionnaire should have asked, but has not? Also, answer it.

Have you done a solo 24 hour race? If not, what are you waiting for? If yes, when are you doing your next one?

I've done 6 solo 24 hour mountain bike races and 4 races on the road that were longer. Hopefully I'll do a long race next year.

You’re riding your bike in the wilderness (if you’re a roadie, you’re on a road, but otherwise the surroundings are quite wilderness-like) and you see a bear. The bear sees you. What do you do?

This has actually happened to me twice. Fortunately I'm scary enough looking that both times the bear ran away from me. I slammed the brakes and gave them time to get away. As fast as they ran, they didn't need much time.

Since I already had my list of 6 bloggers chosen, I'm sticking with it instead of Fatty's three. Even he couldn't stop at three.

Yeti ARC X CX Bike 08
Yeti ARC X CX Bike 08
Price: $2349.00
 
Yeti 575 XTR Bike 08
Yeti 575 XTR Bike 08
Price: $5549.00
 
Yeti 575 Carbon XTR Bike 08
Yeti 575 Carbon XTR Bike 08
Price: $5649.00
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 6:33:00 AM   1 comments links to this post

Thursday, May 01, 2008

Blogging From All 50 States

In my journeys around the web, I found a blog by Patrick Curl called There's a Blog in my Soup. The interesting thing about Patrick is he plans to go on a road trip this summer and interview a blogger from all 50 states and do it in 50 days. Patrick has created an American Blogger Directory that he is going to use to pick which bloggers he visits.

It would actually be more interesting if he was going to do it by bike. Alaska would be a long ride and Hawaii would be a bit of a problem. Maybe I should do it next summer. It would probably be hard though to do it in 50 days by bike.

To get more visits to his site and raise awareness of his road trip, Patrick is doing a group blogging experiment. He asked people to submit what they thought were their best post and then he picked his favorites. My post 7 Mountain Biking Confidence Killers was one of the ones selected.

Here are the other posts to see what's going on outside of cycling

Wenger 18x10 foot St Bernhard Family Dome Tent 18 x 10 St Bernhard Family Dome Tent
Wenger 18x10 foot St Bernhard Family Dome Tent 18 x 10 St Bernhard Family Dome Tent
Regular Price: $345.00
$254.99 on sale
 
Wenger SwissGear 16x9 Muerren Family Dome Tent 16 x 9 Muerren Family Dome Tent
Wenger SwissGear 16x9 Muerren Family Dome Tent 16 x 9 Muerren Family Dome Tent
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Wenger SwissGear Brienz Family Dome Tent 14 x 14 Brienz Family Dome Tent
Wenger SwissGear Brienz Family Dome Tent 14 x 14 Brienz Family Dome Tent
Regular Price: $252.00
$189.99 on sale
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 9:46:00 PM   0 comments links to this post

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Blog Feed Switched to Full Posts

This post is to test switching the blog feed to full posts from partial posts. I don't like partial posts in feeds anymore than any one else. The reason I had stayed with partial posts was the way I've done something caused problems in full posts. I've wanted to fix it for a long time but it never made it to the top of the list. Lately it's been bugging me too much and so I spent the few hours to fix it. Of course that's if I don't find out there's a problem once I post this.

Cars R Coffins T Shirt
Cars R Coffins T Shirt
Price: $18.00
 
Cars R Coffins longsleeve t shirt blk XL
Cars R Coffins longsleeve t shirt blk XL
Regular Price: $30.49
$27.47 on sale
 
Cars R Coffins longsleeve t shirt blk L
Cars R Coffins longsleeve t shirt blk L
Regular Price: $30.49
$27.47 on sale
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 10:27:00 PM   2 comments links to this post

Monday, April 21, 2008

Feed Updates Fixed

Due to not getting something configured correctly when I changed servers over the weekend, the feeds for this blog and my deals blog weren't being updated. I believe the problem is now fixed.

Is anything else broken?

BlackBottoms Wind Breaker Fleece Vest
BlackBottoms Wind Breaker Fleece Vest
Price: $58.58
 
Oleg Casisini Wind Breaker Jacket and Pants Set For Women
Oleg Casisini Wind Breaker Jacket and Pants Set For Women
Regular Price: $68.00
$24.95 on sale
 
La Crosse Technology Wireless Wind Chill Station with Wind Sensor
La Crosse Technology Wireless Wind Chill Station with Wind Sensor
Regular Price: $169.95
$84.97 on sale
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 11:50:00 AM   0 comments links to this post

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Server Move Happened Today

As I had mentioned a couple weeks ago when the hard drive crashed on my hard drive, I was also looking for a new host for this website. There were intermittent problems of pages loading too slow. This was most noticeable on the cycling and outdoor gear pages.

I've been working hard over the last couple weeks to move to a different hosting company. I've been testing and making tweaks to get everything to run on the new server. Today I switched the site over.

Although I've done my best to check that everything is working, it wouldn't surprise me if there's something that's not. Please let me know if you find something missing or isn't working right.

Carnac M1 Mountain Bike Shoes
Carnac M1 Mountain Bike Shoes
Price: $209.99
 
SIDI Blaze Mountain Bike Shoes
SIDI Blaze Mountain Bike Shoes
Price: $119.99
 
SIDI Bullet 2 Mountain Bike Shoes
SIDI Bullet 2 Mountain Bike Shoes
Price: $149.99
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 9:18:00 PM   0 comments links to this post

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Technical Difficulties

I wish this was an April Fools joke but it's not. A couple days ago the hard drive on my desktop computer died. The computer isn't much over 4 months old. I doubt that the hard drive was poor quality but one of the tiny fraction that fail early for some unknown reason.

Dell shipped out a new hard drive yesterday and I was supposed to get it today. They called to make sure I had gotten it but I didn't. The address they say they shipped it to is my home address but somebody at my old job signed for it. I'll have to get it track it down in the morning.

So how does this affect this website? The computer that went down is the one that runs scripts a couple times a day to update the products and prices of the cycling and outdoor gear search. Hopefully I'll have it updating again tomorrow. I guess I need to set up a 2nd system to handle problems in the future. I think it would stress my current laptop so I may need to look at something else.

average page load timeAnother technical issue I've been having is the pages on this site are intermittently loading very slow. I've contacted my hosting company, GoDaddy, a couple times and they've been less than helpful. I've heard several bad things about their hosting from others. They say they can't do anything unless they see it happening even though I have monitoring logs that show the problem about once an hour.

I've gotten a few suggestion on good hosting providers and have been researching them. If you have any other suggestions, please let me know. Once I get my main computer back up and running, I want to get this site moved to somewhere reliable.

Eureka Solitaire Tent
Eureka Solitaire Tent
Price: $69.95
 
Eureka Spitfire UL Tent
Eureka Spitfire UL Tent
Price: $189.95
 
Eureka Sunrise 9 Tent
Eureka Sunrise 9 Tent
Price: $189.95
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 8:07:00 PM   1 comments links to this post

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving



Thanksgiving is a good time to reflect on all we have to be thankful for. This isn't the only time of year to be thankful but I find it easy to go through life and not think how good I have it. Sure my life isn't perfect but I know there are a lot of people less fortunate.

Camping with the KidsOf course one of the things I'm thankful for is being able to do cycling and other outdoor activities. The love of the outdoors is one of the things I want to pass to my kids. My 4 year old has already hiked almost all the way up the Manitou Incline and likes to ride her bike. She says when she gets older she's going to race her bike across America. She's been asking to go skiing. My 3 year old has been enjoying riding her bike and I think she'll enjoy doing more when she gets a little older. They both like to go camping.

The Fat Cyclist wrote an excellent post about what he's grateful for. A lot of them have to do with cycling.

Venture 25 Snowshoes
Venture 25 Snowshoes
Price: $179.99
 
TSL Over the Top Aluminum Snowshoes For Men
TSL Over the Top Aluminum Snowshoes For Men
Regular Price: $219.00
$149.95 on sale
 
MSR Denali Snowshoes Red
MSR Denali Snowshoes Red
Price: $139.95
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 11:00:00 AM   0 comments links to this post

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Looking for my Life Back

A few times this year I've posted about my job stressing me out and also a Dilbert cartoon describing the situation at work. Although my job wasn't the only thing that kept me busy and mostly off the bike this year, it really sucked the energy from me. An anonymous poster commented the following on the Dilbert cartoon post.
I can so identify with crappy working conditions. I'll say some prayers that I read of a new job for you rather than see you in the news because you've strung up your boss by his toenails and are now forcing him/her to watch the Wiggles, Blue's Clues and Thomas the Tank in an endless loop.

The prayers have been answered and my boss wasn't forced to watch the Wiggles, Blue's Clues or Thomas the Tank.

Tomorrow is my last day at my current job and I'll start my new job next Monday. I'm excited about my new job. It's at a small company which is something I like. My new manager used to work with one of my good friends at HP. One of my co-workers has finished the Leadville 100 8 times, 6 of them on a single speed. He's currently training for the 24 Hours in the Old Pueblo. I won't have to get up from my desk to see outside and I'll have a view of Pikes Peak out the window. I'm sure there'll be some things I don't like but there's plenty of things to like about it.

The North Face STH Jacket
The North Face STH Jacket
Regular Price: $199.00
$158.95 on sale
 
The North Face Q Three Jacket
The North Face Q Three Jacket
Price: $149.00
 
The North Face STH II Jacket
The North Face STH II Jacket
Price: $199.00
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 10:28:00 PM   2 comments links to this post

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Perfect Description of My Current Job


It would be impossible to describe my current job situation better than this Dilbert cartoon. I'm not sure how but it has to change soon. My health and my family are too important to let it continue. If you wonder what I do for work, you can look at my LinkedIn profile.

Trigger Point Massage Ball
Trigger Point Massage Ball
Price: $24.99
 
Trigger Point Total Massage Package
Trigger Point Total Massage Package
Price: $129.99
 
Yoga for Stress Relief DVD
Yoga for Stress Relief DVD
Price: $19.98
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 11:57:00 AM   4 comments links to this post

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

I've Been Tagged

Red Rock Canyon Open Space
View of Red Rock Canyon Open Space from my parents' house. When I was growing up, the grassy area on the left was a landfill.


I've been tagged by Fritz at Cyclelicious to tell five random facts about myself. I was also tagged in December by Biking Bis but never got a post written.

  • When I was 6 months old, my mom put me in the top bunk of my brothers' bunk beds so I could watch my siblings play. My Dad had put a board across to keep my brother from falling out so she thought I'd be safe. My brother climbed up with me and his weight pushed the mattress down enough that I slipped under the board. I fell head first onto the concrete floor. My Mom saw it happened from across the room but there was nothing she could do. At the ER they couldn't find any signs of a concussion but a x-ray showed I had fractured my skull. I was kept in the hospital overnight and sent home.

  • I've lived in 4 houses in my 36 years. I was only 2 when my parents moved to where they still live so I don't remember the first one

  • I've been in 49 states. Guess which one I haven't been to.

  • I did an unsupported solo ride of 140 miles when I was 16. It was part of a bigger trip. I rode about 130 miles to part way up Independence Pass. I met the rest of my family and we camped for 2 nights. Then I rode on over to Aspen and up to the Maroon Bells. My brother and I then climbed the Maroon Bells. We also did an overnight trip to do Pyramid Peak and 3 high thirteeners on the ridge to the south of it.

    The day after finishing the mountain climbing, I tried riding home. I ended up running out of daylight. I was a little less than 30 miles from home with 23 miles of downhill and a drop of 3,000 feet. I was bummed I didn't get to ride the easy part. I had thought my tires felt really low but I kept pumping them up to 100 psi. A few days later, I figured out my presta valves were stuck and I only had about 40 psi. That's when I learned to always depress the valve before pumping.

  • I didn't get my drivers license until I was 18. I could get everywhere I wanted to on my bike. When I was 18, I was working for a stucco company and my boss was happy I couldn't drive the trucks out to the job sites so I got my license. My first year and a half of college, I rode 10 miles each way from my parents' house. I never missed class because of weather. Not even when it snowed 8 inches or when it was -10 degrees. Now I'm dependent on driving and don't commute by bike nearly enough.


Now it's my turn to tag 5 other bloggers. I know this meme made the rounds the end of last year on several blogs I read. I don't remember which ones and I'd rather ride my bike than spend time figuring out which ones. If you've been tagged before, I'm sorry to tag you again.

Pearl Izumi PRO Microsensor Shorts
Pearl Izumi PRO Microsensor Shorts
Regular Price: $125.00
$119.98 on sale
 
Pearl Izumi Womens Vera Shorts
Pearl Izumi Womens Vera Shorts
Regular Price: $29.95
$25.97 on sale
 
Pearl Izumi Womens Aurora Shorts
Pearl Izumi Womens Aurora Shorts
Regular Price: $29.95
$25.97 on sale
 
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posted by UltraRob @ 12:32:00 PM   0 comments links to this post