Spooky Venteicher Update

This is an amazing photo that will make for a great Halloween pic. As you can see, the Venteichers are not slowing down one bit!

Wow! September was awesome! I am so excited about more of this cool fall weather. Lee and I did a metric from Decorah to Spring Grove, MN, hitting such defunct towns as HIghlandville, Quandahl, and Bee, all near the IA/MN border. That route was hilly, but very pretty. My full for the month was from Iowa City to Manchester; my riding companion on that ride did not fare so well, tragically. (Should’ve hydrated better. ) So that puts Lee at 7 metrics, 4 full for the year, and Andrea at 9 and 9. 75% done! Hope everyone else is having as much fun as I am out there!

Austin Turner's Updates

Austin/A.J. Turner had a few updates on his rides for us for September. I think losing derailleurs is just part of riding gravel these days.

From September 10th:

Just another quick addition to the Cup-O-Dirt chase.
Knocked off the 6th metric this weekend. Discovered some new B-Roads around Kalona and managed to tear a derailleur off. Thanks to some handy work, a single speed was made and the remaining miles were completed. 

From September 24th:

Chalk up another full gravel century for me. 105 total miles at The Gritty Brevet, a fun event put together by 30th Century Bikes.
Thanks,
A.J. Turner

Scott McConell September Update

This sounds like it was a fantastic ride. Way to rock it on the single-speed, Scott.

Wanted to pass along an update. Please add 3 full centuries to my tally. Two weekends ago, I completed Trans North Georgia. It is a 350 mile, self supported adventure across the mountains and dirt of North Georgia.  I can claim that I am the second rider to completd the course on a single speed ever.........

blues skies,
Scott
 

Update Week!

It's been a while since I've posted updates. I don't think there was too much going on over the summer with people because of the heat, but in the last couple of weeks I've seen an uptick in updates and rides. Thank goodness for cool fall weather. I can't wait for the snow...

Here's the oldest update from Andrea Venteicher from August. Enjoy!

Hey!  I hope everyone has been enjoying themselves out there; August turned out pretty awesome, considering how ugly July was!  I got in a pretty uneventful Full south of Iowa City on August 11th, while Lee was winning, yes winning, the Iowa Road Race Championship near Riverside.  Guess he didn't need me to cheer him on after all! Too bad his 96 miles were all pavement.  Lee and I rode the Itchy Koo metric up near the Minnesota border again on August 19th, and while it was a little less painful than when we did it in the ice and snow, the 7500 feet of climbing in that route still wrecks me!  So that puts Lee at 6 metrics and 4 full for the year, and Andrea at 8 Full and 8 Metrics.  Rock on, everybody!
Andrea V.

Craig Irving's Update and Moonshine Metric 2 Plug

 I spent a little time with Craig last week riding some of the sweet trails at Sugar Bottom (get it?). I showed up to find him dressed in the attire you see here. As you can also see from the poster for the Moonshine Metric Boogaloo, this appears to be his normal attire. Well, we all gotta do something special. Craig did indeed ride as shown, though he had a helmet on. Can you tell that lifting all of those Cup O' Dirt mugs makes you buff? The farmer tan is an unintended side-effect of the awesomeness.

First off:  The update.  Two weekends ago I participated in The Guitar Ted Death Ride Invitational, and by "participated in" I mean "tested the limits of the no drop rule".  Apparently I spent too much time this summer riding the couch and not enough time riding the bike.  I made it halfway through before pulling the plug, which was good enough for a metric. 
Now to the nitty gritty.  On September 29th I will once again be hosting the Moonshine Madness Gravel ride, a 65 mile gravel grinder out of Mount Vernon, IA.  What's so special about it, you ask? 
It's run entirely at night. 
Sound exciting?  Well I invite all you Cup O' Dirt folks to join me on this little adventure.  For more info, check out the website at moonshinemetric.blogspot.com.

Nick W. Updates and 2011 Cups

I've got a couple rides to report for myself. I did a metric on July 4th to celebrate America. I also got to celebrate the discovery of the Higgs particle (or a particle that is new that has qualities which would be expected of the Higgs, to be pedantic). Yay for that and fireworks! Took the single-speed 29'er up the Greenbelt trail north of Ames, then went to 7 Oaks for a full lap. It started to get too hot to be comfortable, so I busted it back to Ames. 75 miles, mostly on gravel or singletrack. Finished by soaking my head in the water from the hose in the front lawn. That was freaking amazing.

My other metric was the Iowa Games Gravel Grinder. My friend and fellow Cup O' Dirt chaser Jared Morford held this event on July 7th. I was feeling pretty fast and had enough supplies for the whole 72 miles, so was able to lead the pack until my legs cramped at about 55 miles in. Matt Maxwell had been biting at my wheels for most of the race, so took the opportunity to pass me for the win. I still managed a 2nd place finish, and it was a helluva course that took us around Ames on some of my favorite roads and hills. You should make it a point to enter next year's race! After finishing, I took a quick shower and headed into work for a few hours. Needless to say, the beer after work that night tasted delicious.

A scant two days after this metric, I headed down to New Harmony pottery to pick up the 2011 Cup O' Dirt cups. Russ Leckband, who made these beautiful cups that I've been handing out, is pictured below.  New Harmony does a lot of pieces for the Iowa State Fair, so check them out if you're down there shoving deep-fried twinkies into your face. Here's a few shots of the studio, located near Earlham, Iowa. All the 2011 recipients, I'll be in contact to get you your cups if I haven't already.

Russ Leckband, showing off his hard work.

My cat Frisbee loved the paper that the cups were packaged in. 

Andrea's Hot July

I've been trying to do all my riding in the mornings these past few months before the heat gets ridiculous. Looks like this summer hasn't been the best for glorious afternoon rides. But hey, any day on the bike is better than a day not on the bike. Or something. Anyways, on to Andrea's update and photos.

The heat nearly killed me this month, as I expected it would.  I dreaded July more than January, and I was not disappointed.  Got in a Full on 7/12/12, and a Metric on 7/15/12.  Nothing too interesting to report besides feeling like a chinchilla, taking dust bath after dust bath (screw you, Schwans man, passing me like, 40 times).  Came across two free range goats in Echo Valley state park, and a sign that made me very philosophical (at least during my near-heatstroke and hyponatremia):  all pavement eventually does end, doesn't it?  And that's where things start to get awesome.  

Everyone stay safe out there in the heat!  Here's to hoping that August is ridiculously cold, or at least that Kwik Star continues to let me fill my CamelBak with ice for free.