Blogging has been a little tough for me lately, for a number of reasons, but one of the main ones is that I've always tried to keep this blog as diverse as I can, given the constraints of my limited knowledge and experience. I recall one particular exchange among local bloggers regarding "why we blog", and the consensus was that the desire to blog is ego-driven. True for them maybe, but for me, I think it's a lot more about connection. I don't facebook or tweet or anything, so for me this blog is my means of hanging out with my local and national bike buds, known or unknown.
But back to the diversity thing. The pump track has kind of taken over my life and rendered me pretty much one-dimensional, and I've been trying to figure out how to work other stuff in as part of the connection deal but as of tonight, I guess, I'm throwing in the towel and thinking that my best path forward, short term, is to just lay it out there: My name is Pat S and I'm a pumptrackaholic. The backyard pump track season is drawing to a rapid close and so I won't be talking about it forever, but maybe there's some value in just focusing on and sharing what I've learned and experienced and think about every day, ever since I decided to throw myself into this project back in early spring. Or not, that's for you to decide. But for sure I can't do diverse right now.
So even though backyard pumptracking is a miniscule segment of the bike scene here in Spo, tune in here over the next few days if you want to know more than you ever wanted to know about this particular weird little subculture. Including some tales of satisfaction, disappointement, revelation, downright rants, and major exhiliration. And of course how could I not share some data.
5 comments:
yes, and hopefully some serious details on all that you've learned for those of use who have spousal buy in to tear up our yards...
And here I was, looking forward to the ice pump tracking season reports.
Take a breather and recharge, but don't give up Pat. Your witty and humorous prose is top notch. I picked an entry at random and ended up on the one where you bought your first set of studded tires.
http://26inchslicks.blogspot.com/2008/12/welcome-home-studley.html
"...and even though it's 2:09 am and Patty went to bed many hours ago, my body clock says it's 2:09 pm and time for a ride so I'm headed out and if you are sitting at home in your pathetic warm living room then you are soft and not at all what this nation was built on and all I can say is see-ya-wouldnt-wanna-be-ya, which in less than 10 minutes will become see-ya-wouldnt-wanna-be-me and all I can hope is that when some freak pounds on your door at 2:15 am you will open up and let the comment about how you are soft slide just this once and let me step into your living room and use your phone and then hang around and lie down on your sofa and wrap myself in your blanky while I wait for my wife to come pick me up. I'm not asking, but if you have some hot chocolate I wouldn't turn it down. Ride on."
Classic stuff and only one of many awesome posts. You have a talent for story telling and the stories are all around you.
Data, you say? Perhaps a CADD drawing of your track? Or at least an elevations picture, accurate to the 1/16"...
I've never heard of pumptrackahol, but it sounds delicious.
bmike, good work with the spouse!
Hank, thanks for the very kind words. Given the source, they're especially flattering.
Alan, don't even get me started.
FBC, it's as potent as it is delicious.
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