47th tracks

Based on the tracking skills I acquired in Cub Scouts, I've determined that mine were the 47th set of tracks at Manawa. That includes 19 bikers, 17 deer, 7 rabbits, 2 hikers (for some reason two hikers went in but only one went out, I'm not sure what that's all about) and 1 snipe. Snipe's usually travel in pairs, so there's a good chance there was a second, I just didn't see the tracks. If you're smart, you'll be the next set of tracks. The conditions were perfect.

Happy Birthday, Jesus

Pull Your Pants Up!

This goes out to all you baggy wearin' fools who be misrepresentin the rest of us.



If you run with the spandex crew, that's a whole different video.

King James

I don't really need a new bike, but if I did, the new Cannondale Scalpel would be a good choice.



Why, you ask? Because when it comes to mountain bikes, Lebron James can't be wrong!

Madame President

Order NOW!!!!! Supplies are limited

Mrs. Professor is displaying the official Goathead ornament. Please contact
J-mac or Lumpy to receive yours.

Let's meet Mrs. Goathead

A Goathead Christmas

It is December, time to celebrate the birth of our savior!!!!!!

GoatHead Christmas Party

The Shins are calling us out...

I recently put the song "Phantom Limb" by The Shins on my iphone. As it was playing, something caught my attention. Did they just say "goathead"?
Yes they did...

Foals in winter coats,
White girls of the North,
File past one, five and one
They are the fabled lambs,
Of Sunday ham,
The EHS norm.

And they could float above the grass,
In circles if they tried,
A latent power I know they hide,
To keep some hope alive,
That a girl like I'm could ever try,
Could ever try.

So we just skirt the hallway sides,
A phantom and a fly,
Follow the lines and wonder why
There's no connection.

And week of rolling eyes,
And cheap shots from the trite,

And we're off to Nemacura’s porch again,
Another afternoon with the goat head tunes,
And pilfered booze.

We wandered through the mama's house,
And the milk from the window lights,
Family portrait circa ninety-five,
This is that foreign land,
With the sprayed on tans,
And it all feels fine,
Be it silk or slime,

So, when they tap our mundane heads,
To zombie-walk in our stead,
This town seems hardly worth our time,
And we'll no longer memorize or rhyme,
Too far along in our climb,
Stepping over what now towers to the sky,
With no connection.

Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo

So, when they tap our Sunday heads,
To zombie-walk in our stead,
This town seems hardly worth our time,
And we'll no longer memorize or rhyme,
Too far along in our crime,
Stepping over what now towers to the sky,
With no connection.

Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo
Oooh waooooooo waooooooo

...So, we riding this weekend or what? The Proletariat and I met for lunch yesterday and decided that all the guys would have to wear dresses on Sunday if we don't ride.

Close

I almost had to replace my bike rack

Parkour

Some of you know that I'm a high school teacher in Millard. Today, a few students told me they wanted to start a "Parkour" club and they needed a teacher to sponsor the club so they could be official. I had heard of Parkour before but wasn't completely sure what it was, so they showed me the following video.



What do you think, does Millard have enough insurance?

No Riding For You!

The weather isn't doing us any favors, and there hasn't been a post for a while, so why not reminisce and dream about Moab? Enjoy.

Funny story......

......So I rode over to Manawa the other day for a few laps, when out of nowhere a large deer jumps in front of me... Luckily I had a good head of steam, so I was able to "Urlacher" the thing into a tree.... I wouldn't recommend what I did, (I'm still digging bark out of my teeth) but what was done was done, and I wasn't about to leave Bambi's mom laying there. So, I did what any other dedicated sportsman would do and I threw a couple hundred pounds of deer jerky on my back and peddled home. Luckily there was a passing car that took a couple pictures, otherwise nobody would believe it.

Huck and Chuck

Higher Ed.

My bosses here at Grace really want me to go back to school. Something about the school looking better if I have my PhD. I wondering if I can get a 1 hour P.E. credit for the crash course I got in Expert Mountain Biking yesterday. Met up with the man simply known as Holmes yesterday. We were going to take a spin around the new sections at Swanson. I figured that if Holmes went too fast, I could fall back and go my own pace. Not even halfway through the ride we met up with Mod. GREAT, I was now in the middle of an expert sandwich. Well, I survived the first lap with Holmes leading and did a second lap with Mod. I will end with two thoughts. First, thanks to Mod and Holmes for a great ride. WOW those guys can fly. Secondly, Mod, the Goatheads WILL see you in Spearfish next year. (don't make any plans for Labor Day next year fellas)

Hello???

Not a Goathead in sight.

We need to organize a couple more group rides this year before it gets too cold. (That's right, I said it. Too cold. You probably won't catch me out there in tights this winter, and if you ever did, you'd wish you hadn't.)

I've been exploring the new trails at Tranquility the past couple of Sundays. You can always be assured of two things when the words "new trail" and "Tranquility" are used in the same sentence:

1. You will have a fun and challenging new experience

2. (If you ride rigid) You will have back pain

Thanks for all the hard work, trail building guys. Now, its up to us trail users to get that thing broke in properly.

Let's all be thankful for bacon.....

Thanksgiving has a whole new meaning when your turkey is wrapped in bacon....

Angry Butcher's Manawa Revenge

The Angry Butcher had his revenge this last Saturday, against the evils of Manawa. This time he came loaded with the right weaponry to take out anything that attempted to block his path. Coop also came out for his first ride at Manawa, and his first ride with a GoatHead. He was quick to show off his dirt bike skills. Based on Coop's and Johnny Law's history, I say we all take up dirt bikes in the winter to practice up for the next MTB season.

It was a superb November day for the Professor and I to hit the trails with the guys.

30 Seconds of Fun

Because I'm having trouble being patient for Lumpy's 2007 masterpiece.

Unicat - Go anywhere RV

There's been a lot of talk lately about the next/ideal vehicle for Team Goathead. I'd like to submit the Unicat for consideration.

Rugged on the outside:


Refined on the inside:


And I'm sure it gets great MPG......it certainly can't be worse than the Pathfinder.

Media blitz

Here are two more places the Goatheads are featured on the World Wide Web.

yourmtb.com

dreamspost.com

Nice job JC4300

Here is some of JCanthem's work

Finally!

After 6 years of riding once a year with a few guys, and two trips: I have joined the ranks of a few average guys with average riding abilities who call themselves the MTB Goatheads. Hoorah!

So, here is a pic of average me to get acquainted.

Success!!!!!

Six guys and six bikes traveled to Moab and based on some info, I didn't know what type of shape we would return in. Well we are back and our bikes are still in working condition, although J.A.'s bike may need some work and Johnny Law was aided by Moab Cyclery. Dakota Ridge (Golden, CO) provided a great warm-up for the famous Porcupine Rim. All I can say is WOW!!!!!! I have never abused my bike so much for so long. Day three was the equally famous Slickrock. I am not claiming to all of a sudden be a Moab expert, but if you read that the practice loop is just as hard as the "regular" trail understand they are wrong. I was prepared for a brutal day on Porcupine, but was not expecting the multiple climbs of Slickrock. As we left Moab it seemed very clear to me why Moab is so famous and a must see for ALL who mountain bike

Donnie called, he'll meet you in Moab.

Ever since I bought my first mountain bike, I've been told Moab was the ultimate destination. So Team Goathead loaded into the Winnebago and headed west to check it out. After a quick stop and ride in Denver, we made our way to Utah. Surprisingly, there wasn't much fanfare when we rolled into town. Obviously they haven't heard of us....yet. We figured that since this was our first time in Mecca, we should ride the two most popular trails.
Day one: Porcupine Rim. If you like long twisting single track over smooth and grippy soil that allows you to focus on becoming one with mother earth as you slalom through the trees, then you'll hate Porcupine Rim. But if you like mile after mile of rock gardens, endless 2-4 ft drops and 300 ft sheer cliffs around every corner, then this trail was made for you....and for me. Porcupine Rim is now my favorite trail of all time.
Day two: Slick Rock. There is really no way to describe slick rock. Even the pictures and video we took don't do it justice. I've heard it said that it's like riding on the surface of Mars......Nonsense! I've seen the video sent back from the Mars rover, Mars ain't got nothing on Slick Rock. I'm guessing there's little green men on bikes somewhere saying "holy crap! this is awesome! it's like we're on the surface of earth!".

Here's a few pictures from the trip. The other Goatheads are strongly encouraged to post their own reviews. I'll be working on some video. Hopefully I'll have it ready for public viewing soon.

I made the 2007 Psycowpath MTB Season video!

Woohoo! Prolet... whatever - Jeff and I made the 2007 Psycowpath video!



This just proves that in 2007, the GoatHeads could stand around and watch the best of 'em!

Tune up

Moab in less than a week....A few Goatheads went out looking for a tune-up.





No albino witches were harmed in the making of this post........

And now for something completely different, A few weeks ago, A few guys at work suggested a mustache growing contest............I lost.

Thank you 4300. Hear my new Anthem!

Well, with the Moab trip coming up, I had been planning on taking my loyal Trek 4300 on the epic ride. It's been a great bike for me, and really did deserve to say it's ridden in Utah. However, things have changed. My 4300 will be staying home. The Professor and I went out today and picked up my new Giant Anthem 2.



Thanks to the Omaha Trek Store for calling around, and High Gear for the great deal!

And my trusty Candies still match the color scheme. I'm all set.

I think I'm going to be sick

This does not look like any fun at all. I think it's more of a test of endurance than a thrill ride.

glumbert - Amusement Park Ride from Hell

No need for a helmet

Trade in your helmet for some goo.

New World Speed Record

Markus "Hercules" Stoeckl, a 33 year old Austrian man, broke the World Speed Record for mountain bikes. He hit a top speed of 130.7 mph (210.3 kmph) on his bike. I'm not sure why it was done on snow, maybe he just wanted to increase the level of difficulty.

Roll Video:

Moab in '07 and The Crawford Ranch in '08

I don't agree with everything the President has done in the White House. However, we do agree on a lot of issues. Here is one more area of agreement between us.

Let's do it again

Wow, what a great experience at Manawa this weekend. J.A. and I had never done a 12 hour race, never gone farther than 40 miles in a day, and haven't ridden more than 8 laps at Manawa all year. A big thanks to everybody who put on the event. It was very well run.
On advice from an expert, J.A. and I rode two lap shifts. J.A. rode the first leg and put us right in the middle of the pack (PERFECT). By the time I finished my first shift the field was pretty spread out. From then on when I got passed I didn't know if I was losing position or getting lapped. Of course when I passed somebody it was the same thing (lapped or position?). By the 7th hour I am pretty sure most of the passing involved people being lapped and not position. At about 4:00 MOD informed me that we were in the top three. J.A. ended up riding one more lap than I did because I missed the 9:30 cutoff for starting new laps. Oh well, our 23 laps were good enough for 2nd place.
Thanks to our families and fellow Goatheads who cheered us on.
Lumpy, J.C., A.B., J-mac we hope to see you at the event next year.

Some good, some bad

I had a blast in Boston with my dad, two brothers, and sister.....Even though the Red Sox melted down and found a way to lose despite winning 7-2 in the 7th.

YOOOUUK!!!


J.A. and the Professor faired much better at the "12 Hours of Manawa" race. Sounds like they came in second. Well done boys!!! Maybe one or both of them will post a race report/recap.
I really hope this race, (or another 12 hour race) is part of the series next year. I'm bummed I missed out on it.