Nice

Those are the words for the course that the good people of the north woods put together. There is a nice mix of open roads and some sweet single track. The course will challenge many of the best and take them to the limit. There is some new bench cut single track and much of the good old trails used in the past. After getting our pre ride in we picked up our dinner and are presently sitting in the cabin relaxing waiting for my parents and Maddie to arrive. Then we will put together a nice dinner and relax on the lake. They just pulled up got to unload Nate's bmx bike and Maddie's bike. Later..

Done 1 to go

Maddie is now done with middle school and that just leaves Jess. It was a nice ceremony and mass and then the gathering after was nice. So many of the kids are going to different high schools that it is to bad as many of the kids were very nice. Then home for some snacks and bed. Now getting ready for the drive to Rhinelander. Later.

Thursday Night Ride

Tonight Nate and I loaded the bikes and went to the Beat Down. The bmx track may have been OK but we needed to get a nice long spin in. The group was smaller tonight but it was perfect. The pace was nice and steady and the time on was the same as always. Got the 37 plus in 1:42. The pace was even and fast and kept together to the end. Nate got gaped and rolled in with a few that popped right at the end about a minute after us. Kyle picked up a nail and a nice guy seen him walking and gave him a ride in. See you at the races.

Now we have to get the house and things ready as Maddie has 8th grade graduation tomorrow night. Man the years are flying and then we have to get ready for the race this weekend. Going up Saturday morning with Nate, Mitch, Gage and Jeff. Then staying with my parents before the race. Then they are bringing Maddie up and we are leaving Nate there too. Nate is going to race bmx during the week and then meet us at Wausau and race and then go back for another week. My parents will bring them both down 2 weeks from tomorrow and then go back up on the following Sunday with the 2 girls. It will be different around here with kids missing for long periods of time but they need the time on the lake and with Grandpa and Grandma. Oh I have to get going as there is stuff to get done. Later..

Sick Ward

Got 3 punks that are all under the weather. Maddie is coughing and looks really bad. Nate is getting better but still has a runny nose and cough. Jessie has a runny nose and slight cough. I have not caught it yet but I'm bet I do like Sat night or Sunday morning with the great luck that I have. Maddie has 2 more 1/2 days of school and then she is done for the summer and then she is in High School next year too. That is going to be something that will have Cece and me on our toes. I don't know how my parents did it. I guess we were just so good and easy that they didn't have to worry. Time for some ice cream. Later..

Stuff

Here are a few pictures that Brad one of the fathers took of us at the Rockford track on Saturday. Nate looked like he never left the bmx bike. He had 1 day of practice the other day and he was busting the gates and beating many of the regulars. Unlike me I don't have a chance with the guys that race cruiser in my age. They are just fast and got way more skills then I do. So the 20 inch is what I will be racing more of. I'm taking Nate's 20 inch up to Rhinelander and leaving it with him while he is there with my parents.

They will take him to the track there and he will race on Mondays and Fridays while there. Nate and I skipped the track tonight as I have a school board meeting so I hope everyone has a safe night of racing.

On Sunday Nate and I found a cell phone in the road and we picked it up and called the # for home and the lady came and picked it up today. She was happy and offered money but I just said have a great day and do the same if you ever get the chance. She smiled and drove away, good feeling to know that some one got something they valued back. Got to run to a meeting. Later.

Nate smooth as hell.

Look at the air that I got. Yeah right...

Too Much Fun

We had a great weekend and got to hang with some friends and then ride with more. The kids had fun burning the Happy Meal toys Joan of Ark style over the fire by Dan's last night. As always it was nice to get together and see the gang and talk smack all night. The today Nate, Mitch and myself headed out to Ron's for the awesome ride that he put together. It ended up being a nice 70 plus mile ride. It was just the right temps and the fellow riders made for a perfect day. Check the other blogs for pictures and reports. Track racing tomorrow and I hope the jitters go away after a few laps. Just need to get back on the track bike and enjoy the company and remember that Don was doing what he loved. Now I need to get the feet up. Later..

Race'n and Ride'n

The bmx racing last night was a blast. I was feeling good on the 20 inch, so good that I passed on racing it and raced the cruiser. I didn't make the main. I have to save the last 2 wins for Rockford Nationals and I can't hold back when I race and if I won that would put me on the bubble for the Nationals. Nate looked fast as ever even though he was sick and stayed in bed till we left. He was flying out of the gate and the other racers were asking what is going on with you and the gate? You are nailing it and looking good. He took a 2nd in cruiser ( age 20 and under ) and 4th in the 20 inch. He was racing a stacked class and looked good. Mikey and Sam were not ready to race when we got there but once on the track they were not coming off and raced great. Sam took a 1st and now has to race cruiser to save his win for Nationals, we gave him Nate's old cruiser to use. Mikey had a 1st place until he crashed on the final rhythm section and then had to settle for 2nd. Lenn took 2nd in the 20 inch and now has the fell for a fast and technical track. We will be having some fun in a few weeks that's for sure.

Today I got the bikes ready for the Ronsta ride tomorrow. I put some cross wheels on Nate's 29er and some 1.75's on my S Works. Hope that they are good for the 60 mile ride tomorrow. Then we hit the lake front and rode the trails along the bluffs. Nice to ride some single track and the tires felt fine. See you on the ride tomorrow. Later..

The 29er set up on cross wheels and tires.

Nate along the bluffs, the trail used to be about 10 feet to the right 6 years ago.

Nate on the trails on the cross tires.

The high speed car ferry coming in.

Riders ready

Yeah Nate can do this but the rest of us just pump over the rhythm areas of the track. Lenny, Sam, Mikey, Nate and myself are heading the the Rockford track later for some racing under the lights tonight. Should be fun to race the little bikes again as it has been a while.

Today I installed the head set in the Haro that I had welded to repair the crack and now it will be a road riding single speed. Cece and I will now have a mtn bike and a road bike single speed to ride on the road which will be nice. Heck Nate will be fighting for time on both to I bet. Got to get the pool cleaned before we leave so I have to run. Maddie just told me that Jessica's team won their game, sweet. Later..

Weekend Duty

I have been waiting for the weekend to get here after what felt like one of the longest weeks in a long time. Nate had his last final exam today and he is now done for the summer, now he can start his real training I hope. Nate and I have a few training rides over the weekend, and a bmx race planned tomorrow in Rockford. Jessica has a soccer tournament tomorrow and Sunday. Cece is at a awards thing tonight and a play tomorrow. Maddie well she will just do what 14 year old girls do ( Text her friends ). So while Cece is at her awards thing Maddie got a pedicure and then we went out for pizza. Now we are watching Big Daddy. Later.

Don and bmx

Here is a picture of Don Vanderbrook leading his race on his last night of racing with us. May he ride in the big peloton in the sky. I read on line that he passed away the other night from his injuries from the accident the other night on the track. God Bless.....

Picture from http://www.peloton-pix.com/

Nate and I loaded the car rack with the bmx bikes and hit the bmx track. the practice feeling good by the end and I was beginning to pedal over many of the spots that gave me problems last year. Lenn was dragging me down the first straight but I was able to pedal in spots and carry some speed in areas that he is a little scared yet, but I know that will change and he will be right there when it counts. I put a 44 chain ring on the 20 and it was a tad tall and I switched it to a 43 and I felt better but lost some of the speed down the first straight but I will get it dialed in and try the 44 again once I get used to the 43. I will try the 43 at Rockford Saturday and switch to the 44 if needed. The wind was so strong it almost blew Nate over when he was pulling a manual. He was able to pull his bike back under control and keep himself up right. He decided that after the scare he would keep both wheels on the ground and he killed Lenn and I on every lap after that. I have to say I wanted to laugh when Tina fell out of the gate but I didn't know if she was hurt, but she wasn't and got right back up. It was nice to see the bmx gang again and I will race a few more races this summer. By the end our eyes where sore from the wind and dust and loaded up and headed home. I now have a bushel of dirt in in the corners of my eyes, can't wait till the morning and find the mud pie of dirt in the eyes. Now I need a shower to get the dirt out of places where it was sand blasted in. Later..

6 Flags

We were coming off the water ride and a few of Maddie's classmates waited as they were finished and wet already.

Peace out as I'm on my way up on the Giant Drop, I love this ride.

Maddie's classmate's on the way up.

The soaked punks trying to cool down, asphalt is hot when it is 87 degrees and you are waiting for 30 minutes to take a 1 minute ride.

Waiting and hour for our bus, it broke down 1 block from the entrance and they had to send another down to get us. If we would had known the kids could have stayed in and gone on a few more rides, but they were good sports and we just sat around and talked and had a good time despite the circumstances. Missed the bone ride but it was a blast to be around these kids again, never pass the opportunity if you have the chance as kids are great and keep you young and happy. See you on the road as I need to take care of some sun burn. Later..

Track Racing

Tonight was a good night of racing and a sad ending also. Nate and Gage raced the Jr's races and did well in the scratch with Gage pulling a 3rd and Nate a 5th. In the Miss and Out Nate and Gage worked well together to eliminate the strong Shark riders and then ended up with Gage taking 2nd and Nate a 3rd. In the 3's scratch race Nate and Gage made it with the field to the last lap and in the Miss and Out Gage got caught in the back early and was out and Nate made it to the last 6 out of 19. In the consolation Nate was ready to take the 1st sprint when the race was stopped and 4 riders went down in turn 3 and one was severely injured so they called Flight For Life. It was bad enough that they landed in the infield of the track. We are praying that everything will be OK. Lenn went to the hospital and will keep us posted. Again Lenn thanks for letting Nate use your spare track bike till the Bianchi comes in. Tomorrow is a 5 am ride and then off to Six Flaggs with Maddie's class. Later..

Track Racing Tuesday's

Pictures from Goat.

Track racing starts tomorrow and it is supposed to be a perfect day for it. The only thing is the Bianchi is on it's way for replacement so by the luck of it Len is letting Mate borrow his spare bike to race tomorrow night. Andy said that he is hoping that the replacement won't take that long to get here but no body knows. All good though.

Today Nate took the dirt jumper and I took the 20 inch out for a spin. Just wanted to loosen the legs up after the race yesterday. I was satisfied with the result but as always there is room for improvement. The next races are a tad more cross country style opposed to climbing up and down some hill and a little single track. No bone ride this year as I have to chaperone Maddie's class at Six Flags. It should be OK as it is going to be sunny and in the 80's. Those doing the ride have fun as I will going on rides with some punks. See you at the track. Later..

IOLA

Today was a perfect day for a race. The temps were ideal and the course was great. Nate had a good race and took a 4th in the Jr X race and I took a 9th in my comp age. I hate the hills that are at the start of each lap as I can't climb them worth a crap. Just never have since the accident and that is just what it is.

As always it was nice to see a lot of the people that we haven't seen since the end of the race season last year. Getting there today and not pre riding was no problem as the course has not changed in years. But not going up yesterday also meant not getting a chance to talk to everyone either, but we got all summer. I need to get something to eat I'm starving. Later..

One crazy girl

Today was a day of getting a ton of stuff done as tomorrow Nate and I are going to the Iola race with Dan. Dan is racing single speed open, I'm racing comp age and Nate is racing Jr X so we get to head up a little later as the race time is 1:30. I like that but the distance is the thing on the back of my mind. All OK though.

I got the lawn mowed, weeds pulled ( thanks to the putz next door with a ton of dandelions ), pool cleaned, tons of old bike tires and boxes out of the basement and put in the dumptser, Jessie to her soccer game ( they lost ), and a bike ride in. When we got home from her soccer game she begged to go in the pool and as always I say go for it. She went in and stayed in for 15 minutes plus. The water is 68 degrees thanks to Mark for the solar cover last year. A few more sunny days and warmer weather the pool will be nice and warm. Time to load the engine for tomorrows race. Later..

NEWS

LABECKI TO JOIN WIAA EXECUTIVE STAFF AS DEPUTY DIRECTORSTEVENS POINT, Wis. – The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Control approved the recommendation of Dave Anderson to name Wade Labecki as the next Deputy Director of the Association at today’s meeting.

Labecki, 45, will fill the deputy director vacancy beginning July 1, 2009, created by the promotion of Anderson to executive director effective Aug. 1. “I’m very excited for the opportunity to work in high school athletics in Wisconsin at the highest level,” Labecki said. “I plan to do my very best to serve the membership.”

Labecki has served as assistant administrator and transportation director at Baldwin-Woodville High School since 2006 and as athletic director since 2000. Responsibilities of these positions included budgeting, purchasing, scheduling, supervising coaches and staff, programming, coordinating school transportation and participating in discipline and truancy issues.

Prior to his most recent positions at Baldwin-Woodville, Labecki taught accounting, business law, general business and Internet classes from 1987-2006. In addition, he served as head football coach from 1988-2004 after one season as defensive coordinator of the 1987 State championship team. He led the Blackhawks to a State Championship in 1992, a State runner-up finish in 1994, five conference titles and a 108-63 record. He coached the Blackhawk baseball team to a 122-55-1 record from 1990-97, which included two conference championships and a State Tournament appearance in 1991.

Labecki was elected to the WIAA Advisory Council last October. Other related experiences include memberships in the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, Wisconsin Athletic Directors Association, Wisconsin Football Coaches Association and the Wisconsin High School Forensics Coaches Association. “We were pleased with the quality of candidates that expressed an interest in the deputy director position; it was a robust process involving the staff,” Anderson said. “We are very excited about the skills and experience Wade will bring to our staff and the membership. The ranks of the athletic directors in this state have served this membership well in the past, and we look for that to continue.”

Labecki has received a number of professional honors and awards during his career. Among them was his induction into the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2008 and his selection to coach in the 2000 Shrine Football All-Star game.

He is a 1987 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a Bachelor of Science degree in Comprehensive Business Education. He received a Masters of Education in Administration degree from St. Mary’s University (Minn.) in 2001 and is currently working on an Educational Specialist and Doctorate of Education degree at Argosy University (Minn.).

A 1982 graduate of Thomas More High School, he served as vice-president of the student body and starred on the football team that won the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association State championship in 1981. He also lettered in wrestling and track and field during his high school career and was a member of the National Honor Society.

The WIAA oversees interscholastic athletic programs for 503 senior high schools and 116 junior high/middle level schools in its membership. It will sponsor 25 championship tournament series in 2008-09. For more information, please contact the WIAA office at (715) 344-8580.

Oh Yeah

Cece is brewing a pot of coffee and the temps outside are cooling down so I can't wait. Almost ready to put my mouth under the coffee maker. My parents came down again this weekend and they are staying with us while they attend a meeting at Summerfest with the workers that they will be supervising. So it is nice that they are in to visit again. Oh the coffee is ready, got to run. Later..

Beat Down low down

The ride was fun and fast. Nate took a pull just after the Fox River and BOOM he popped. Aaron and Joe went back with me to try to get him to the group again but they just kept rolling away so we rode in with Aaron, Craig, Nate and myself for the rest of the ride as Joe bridged to the group. A good pace of 25 the rest of the way and a good solid ride. He is just finishing his last antibiotic today and that may have effected him a little but he learned that the fast guys are fast and that sometimes you just sit in and go along for the ride. We are ready for the race and now we just have to see where the chips fall on Sunday. Later..

One more time

Nate and I went for a short ride in the neighborhood. It was a short spin to make sure the bike was dialed in and that the new Ergon grips were in the right spot, they were and they are great. Thanks Gus. His bike is ready for the race this weekend, are you?

My bike is the S Works that I put together for Nate last year and he raced it 2 or 3 times. I guess having to settle for a awesome S Works with all SRAM XO on it is OK. Just hope that I can race it as fast as Nate did.

Tomorrow is the Beat Down that goes from Hales Corner Wheel at 6pm. See you there. One more time going race pace and then some easy spinning till the race. Later..

Track Practice

Nate and I headed to the track for some practice with the gang. More sprints and some group riding so we can get used to being close on the fixies. good time and then got home and tore the Bianchi apart so Andy can get a replacement for me. Nate and Gage wore the new kits and they looked good. Need to rest for my Birthday now. Later..

Check the Box

Yeah I get to check the next box now 45 - 49. I turn 45 today. The older you get the easier it seems to be. I never cared about another Birthday and another year tacked on to the body. I just say I may be getting older but I refuse to grow up. I'm not doing anything special for my Birthday except working and then going to the track for a workout with the Boy and the team. Later..

Punch List

Today was getting a few things done. I never thought I would get it all done but the more that the is the easier it seems to get done.

1. Take cracked track bike to the shop and have Andy get the replacement in the works.

2. Buy some new sew ups tires to replace the worn out 1 and the flat one.

3. Get out and do a hill repeat workout.

4. Get Jessica to soccer practice.

5. Lift weights.

6. Glue on a new sew up on my rear wheel that has threads showing.

7. Put the new sew up on the rim to stretch and get ready to mount on the one that was flat.

8. Go and pick up Jessica from soccer practice.

9. Change the tires on the 20 inch bmx bike from Holy Rollers to Micro Knobbies for speed.

10. Get the 20 inch Schwinn bmx bike ready for Mike to take home for his niece to use.

11. Sit my butt down for 24.

12. Make my Birthday Wish List, turn 45 tomorrow. I even get to work on my Birthday. Later..

Happy Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day to all the Mothers today and may you have a great day.

Homeward bound

Just a few pictures from the week upnorth. On the way home now and back to the normal routine. I miss the Northwoods already. Later..

Sat Morning

Last night the kids got to hold snakes and turtles. Some of these kids have never gotten to touch or hold anything other then a dog or cat so this was a new thing for them. Funny to watch some of the reactions from the girls as the snakes were passed around. Then when it got dark we gathered the kids and then told then they couldn't talk anymore and laded a bus and went to a forest and went for a night walk. During the walk they couldn't talk and just had to walk in take in the sounds. They also had no flash lights, cameras, or watches. We walked in the woods and then sat for a while and it was just peaceful as there was no lights or city sounds, man I could get used to that. Today one more class on GPS usage and then we head home. I need to get on a bike bad. Later..

Life is Good

Today we went to Bond Falls in the UP and the kids got to net things in the water and identify what they caught. Then we went to the Falls and they were beautiful. After a nice bag lunch it was off to a walk in the Ottawa National Wilderness. That was awesome and got to sit by a lake for a while. Now are in a class about Herpetiles, then we are going out for a night walk. Back home tomorrow night and back to the routine. Later..