Super Rookie's World

Sounded like a pretty uneventful race today, minus the rain and hail storm. All I was told was that Super Rookie was off the back 5.5 miles in, but managed to pull it all together and finish the race.

We have this umbrella that could fit a family of five comfortably underneath it. He was all excited about bringing it to keep dry today, but you can’t race carrying a giant umbrella.

SR, Tuffy and Little Guy himself went to some hockey game tonight and had a blast. I’m sure they’re having more fun than I am watching the cats hiss at each other for hours on end.

Until tomorrow,

hotpinkevil.

As you may have read over at Hotpinkevil! we have a new addition to the family.

She is five months old and her name is DiLuca aka The Killer. Oh, by the way, The Killer is the greatest nickname ever given to a cyclist. Think it ain’t?

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This picture is from her previous owner who took her in after she was abandoned:

As you can see she has a black patch over her eye. This makes her look like a pirate. I wanted to name her Pantani, but Sarah vetoed that name. I think DiLuca is pretty bad ass and this cat is just as awesome. Roscoe is a bit jealous, but we are each taking care of one at a time and it is my turn to be with The Killer.

Now that the family has gotten bigger we have decided to get a new car.

Here is a picture of it:

I totally dig the stripes.

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Off to Iowa. Check here for two straight Hotpinkevil! race reports. Word.

Some teammates and I are going down to Altoona, Iowa for some bike racin’ this weekend.

I am super stoked for the big debut. As of now the plan is to not get dropped, but the Little Guy will somehow find himself in the break and (dis) and I will control the monster field and we will win the race…beep, beep, beep…snooze… After winning the race Little Guy will take us out to eat at Dairy Queen for Burgers and Blizzards…beep, beep, beep…five more minutes.

I totally hope this dream will never end!

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Oh. Check It…the Grumpy’s/LGR machine is starting already…

Only once every year does an event of this magnitude occur.

On one single day in April, the stars align, the skies open, and cycling’s biggest heroes converge for one single purpose…

Grumpy’s-Roubaix.

Join us on April 15th, at 1pm, for a ride leaving Grumpy’s Bar NE to tour the most brutal cobbles Minneapolis and St. Paul have to offer.

We will be arriving at Grumpy’s Bar in Downtown in time to pull a stool up to the bar, and watch dudes in spandex suffer and crash, again and again.

April 15th, 2007

Grumpy’s NE to Grumpy’s Downtown
Ride Leaves at 1PM
Arrives at Downtown at 330PM
Helmets Requested, but not mandatory.

Race wheelset not recommended.

(I believe LSC might have done this in the past, but we are doing our own this year…it is going to be hot!).

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I am shocked at how many unique hits my site got in the past two days (total of 839 hits). It totally has to do with that race review that the ‘pony tail’ wonder wrote about his love for the Eastern Bloc Europeans. I would like it to be known that a few of the IPs came up as Lot Airlines in Chicago. I would be worried if I spewed trash like that about one of the smartest riders in the Chicago scene.

I ain’t trying to stir up trouble, I am just trying to reiterate the fact that I don’t live in Chicago and drama still happens.

It is amazing I know.

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Al Fraken is on Letterman right now. Getting lobbed softballs and hitting them out of the park. It is a rather boring interview about lameness. Either way he is better than that dooshbag Norm Coleman

Holy crap.

Most people in Chicago thought I caused a lot of drama. You may recall various times I trashed ClifBar and crappy teams for doing all types of stupid shit. I like to believe I am done with doing that, but it seems Chicago just wanted to continue the spirit. Check out this race recap.

The characters:

The Author: A Get A Grip rider that is tall and maybe 150 pounds, but has one hell of a gorgeous pony tail.
The Nemisis: A LOT Polish Airlines rider that is short, stocky and…just there.

The situation:

The Author is in a race and tries to get on a wheel. The Nemisis puts hand out on The Authors hip to tell him he is there.

The aftermath:

The Author crashes and tells the world that “Eastern bloc goons should stick to hockey and stay away from bike racing.”

Super-Rookie.com’s Take:

The Author looks like a complete doosh by going all out. It is my personal belief that there is two sides to every story. I also believe that the LOT Polish team is super misunderstood due to cultural/language barriers. The individuals I have spoken to on this team are some of the nicest people I have met racing and The Nemesis himself is rather funny.

The Author also tries to call out how The Nemesis doesn’t chase down breaks etc…why should he? Good bike racers don’t do any work until they have to. If anything, attack the ugly ass bikes that they ride. I also think the kits are rather fascinating with the little airplanes. In my opinion they are the best kits in all of Chicago. They reflect the sponsor and they are rather mysterious.

What is better than sitting by your car and about 8 Polish dudes show up talking Polish (probably about you or the dude with the pony tail over there, but you can’t tell because it is Polish). That is why I enjoyed Chicago. The different cultures etc…

Oh well.

I am not a saint for when it comes to airing dirty laundry. Check the archives and you will see about 10-15 times I have talked the smack. Yet, since I decided to start my own team and represent my sponsors to the fullest I don’t think you will find me talking borderline super-offensive cultural trash.

Because in the end Poland has never had a good hockey team….The Author might be thinking of the Czech Republic, but definitely not Poland.

Word.

I hope The Nemisis finds out about this blog post and takes it into his own hands. That would be hilarious and it would be as if I never left!

Yet, in the end I just realized how ridiculously stupid you look when calling people out. In the end isn’t it just about riding you bike? I think for the most part I just gazed into a mirror and didn’t like what I saw…to bad I didn’t recognize it before…I doubt I will change though…I still need to give the readers what they want.

S-R.com stirrin’ the pot since 1981.

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In other news Team Powerbar SouthEast Elite Amatuer Masters Team is still silent about my challenge of racing at Des Moines this weekend. Perhaps they are scared? Can’t wait to hear from the team Web Consultant.

I went on a team ride with four others on Saturday it was fantastic. Here is a picture of the sweet kits in the fog…

While out on the ride we ran into a bunch of people and teams. The Birchwood Team failed to acknowledge us, 3 of the 16 Peace Coffee riders waved to us. Remarkably, 4 SPBRC riders waved to us. This might have to with Phanna dating one of my teammates, but either way they were 4 for 4 on Saturday.

Currently on the rankings of local teams utilizing, as Nick said, “criteria that they don’t need to know about…” is as follows:

1st. Grumpy’s/LGR
T-2nd. Grand Performance
T-2nd. Vello Bella
31st. Peace Coffee
39th. Birchwood
There are a ton of teams still to be ranked by this mysterious criteria. You all better be on your best behavior when you see the rolling train of Silver. Don’t mess with the best…because there is no way you will ever be at the top…oh the rankings are flexible. The first SPBRC rider that messes up on the scale will drop the whole squad…did you hear that Redmond?

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Where will the other teams rank?

Hint: If you want a better ranking and all the press that goes along with it, quit being a, “I am such a badass, and I won’t wave to you because we are too cool for you kind of person.”
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Oh snap. Rock Racing has yet another kit. Check out the stylings…

Kayle LeoGrande got second yesterday out at the Redlands Classic. Not to shabby for a team no one seems to know anything about. I am more amazed at the number of awesome kits…I want one. No word on what Clinger was wearing…hopefully he got the memo from the team in regards to the right kit color.

Uh-Oh.

I don’t know if I want to be on the team anymore!

I am scared.

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John Edwards had a huge press conference today. It turns out his wife’s Breast Cancer is back in full force. I hope that she does the best she can in coping with this terrible news. I admire Edwards for carrying on and Elizabeth’s courage to keep going next to her man.

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Sarah and I went on a nice ride today. Did a nice 18 mile loop. She is really improving.

Along the way we saw a bunch of people including Barb Harrick and some Birchwood guys. One of them waved and the other didn’t. Hey Lalla, add that to your ticker. More people need to wave instead of looking like tools.

Just my opinion. Let’s start waving to one another. It is an ‘us’ vs. ‘them’ thing with the cagers out there.

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The season starts in about a week for me. What is amazing is that it was just one year ago that I jumped in a car with the xXx’ers and went down to Hillsboro, Missouri for their road race. It was pretty bad ass, a nice little section on brick roads right before the finish. It was a little hectic last year, but I finished in the top 20 and I had a teammate take in a 12th place.

This year I am heading down to Iowa for the Altoona RR and State Fair Crit weekend. It is two races instead of one and it is a new race. That is pretty bad ass if you ask me. In other news Team Clifbar Midwest has yet to reply to my invitation of a challenge to show up in Iowa. They are opting for Hillsboro instead. We all know this is because they are afraid of our awesomeness. Just ask Julian the webmaster.

We came up with a date for our team photo. Everything seemed all fine and dandy and I even checked my digital calendar. Little did I know that it was Easter on that day. Holy crap it has been a while since I have been to church, or seen the bunny laying some candy eggs.

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Organizing a team is a lot of hard work. You seriously have no idea unless you have been in my shoes before…so I guess that Smithers is 3x more experienced than I am. What is amazing is that lots of people on the team are helping with all sorts of things, but there is always one more thing that needs to get done…but this team is surely worth it.

I just can’t believe the amount of work that needs to get done just to feel ready for the season. We did the kits, special orders, got the kits, corrected special orders, errors were made with the orders, try to fix those, plan a photo, photo is on easter, replan photo, get on a bike, go to promoters clinic, volunteer at expo, recruit greg lemond, type up list of contacts, meet with university officials to go over course for team crit, ride bike, contact uscf officials about course, reorder team kits, check on special orders, make sure special orders are made, ride bike, plan ride, fix bike, eat, respond to inquiries about joining squad, hanging out with family, work 50+ hours a week.

Seriously. It is a pain in the ass, but our kits are awesome and the race will be even better. I can’t even imagine if we didn’t have all the other people on the team that have taken on some important roles. It would be impossible.

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There are 500 things to get done all of the time and before you know it riding the bike is an after thought. People offer to help, but sometimes it is harder to have someone do it because of communication etc…thankfully most of this crap is getting out of the way and others are helping out…but sometimes I just want to come home and hang out and not have to think about Tuffy’s helmet color.

cheers…oh I beat Tuffy on 3 of the 4 town line sprints on Saturday.

When Sarah and I lived in Chicago there was one bar that we really like that became our place of choice for when we wanted to go out and have a drink and relax. The place was called the Small Bar and it truly lived up to its name. The food was great and the atmosphere was straight out of Northeast…classic and comfortable.

While we were in Chicago Sarah and I also realized that there are 24 bars in Northeast Minneapolis within a reasonable bike ride of where we live. The rough geography limits are: West of Central to the Mississippi River, Spring St. North to Lowry. That is a lot of ground to cover and a bunch of places to visit!

All the time we have lived in Northeast we haven’t gone to all of these places. That is why decided to go to all of them. Each bar is unique in its own way and thankfully none of them are really scary now that the 331 club has taken over for the biker bar…wait, Gabby’s seems to have it’s problems so we will make sure to take Tuffy to that place.

We haven’t made it to all of them, but we are going to try. When we do we will rank them in order of coolness. There are already two at the very top. There are also a couple at the bottom…the very bottom…check back soon.

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Bars yet to visit:

1029 Bar- This is a cop bar. Perfect place for dispencer(for real click on that link) to join us.
331 Club- There always some cool hipsters outside so it is only natural for us to show up.
22nd Avenue Station- This place is legendary and Hotpink is going to love it…bring the single bills and make it rain.
Elsies- We need to go bowling at some point…perhaps Gilby will throw some rocks with us.
Gabby’s- Tuffy is rolling here with us…we need someone to blame all the trouble on.
Gasthoff’s- Supposedly we are going here with Fil and his wife. Drink beer from a boot.
Jax- This will be the last place we hit up…for the big time prime rib.
Moose on Monroe- I don’t know if I want to go here. There is always a ton of trucks. Perhaps Donimator will join us.
NE Yacht Club- There are only 2 people I will ever set foot in this bar with. Hotpinkevil and The Courteous Fellow.
NE Palace- We will go here when the giant patio is in operation.
Shaw’s- I have been here on several occasions, but not with Hotpinkevil!.
Tony Jarros- Hmmmmm. I have heard a lot about this place…but never ventured inside.
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Bars We’ve Been To-
Dusty’s- Best jukebox ever…EVER.
Grumpy’s- Best NE Bar hands down.
Jimmy’s- Try the Little Drummies while rocking to Pat Boone.
Knight Cap- The best fish tank ever.
Mayslack’s- Get the original and never eat again…for a whole week.
Peacock Lounge- Nice swank place.
Psycho Suzi’s- Worst service ever.
Sample Room- Went there for my mom’s birthday on Saturday. It was awesome.
Spring Street Inn- (shoulder shrug).
Stasiu’s- Go for the beer, stay for the urinals.
Vegas Lounge- Wins the brightest bar/darkest exterior award.

*let me know if you want to join us one night on our quest to hit them all and if we are missing any on the list.

The wheel sold in about 2hours.

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M.A. Roscoe, how could you get plastic surgery? You are all pointy now and I just don’t know if we will be able to get over that.

I decided to forgo the wonderful HED set-up for the ZIPP 404 wheelset. While HED is local and well known as the superior brand I just can’t afford them at this time. This is why I have the front HED 3 that I bought at the swap from Dan Casper on Ebay.

It is a great wheel and I will miss never being able to use it.

You should help me pay my bills!

Take a look here.