Trans Iowa

What have I gotten myself into. Read Guitar Ted's post for a little piece of the pie. Trans Iowa is a 300+ mile race on the gravel b-roads of Iowa. This race is very hilly. This race is very long. There are 100 people starting this year and only a handful will finish. Conditions are unpredictable come mid april so you never know if its going to be a mud pit or just wet gravel. I am riding with two veterans who have ridden this race going on 4 times now...Ari (his background is a hill much like T.I. will have) and Dr. Giggles from upstate NYC. Also, a friend of theirs Pizza Dan from Chicago has made the roster, as well as my buddy Russcle (hellmut) who is doing this race for the second time and resides in the old country of DeKalb. My good friend Richard has also signed on for support and driving our sorry asses to the race and back home, and helping with ideas on bike setup, motivation, alcohol, good music, etc. So, 5 of us will spend the winter months training our frozen asses and cocksickles off and talking about bike setup, tires, gear ratios....etc. I will be recieving my Gunnar Crosshairs soon and start training madly on hills and as much gravel as I can find in central Illinois. I plan on doing back to back century rides, riding off hours of the night aka starting my ride at 2 am or 3 am to get a feel for being on the bike in the dark (trans iowa finishers usually spend 30 hours in the saddle), doing a long 200 mile ride from here to DeKalb, and other crazy shit like that. Speaking with Ari last night...this is a goal of his, and a goal of mine. A new challenge to put all of my mind and effort into...this is my new dream, to finish the trans iowa. Also, a side note....I will be turning 26 years old immediately after this ride, it takes place on my birthday weekend. Can anyone else think of a better birthday present?? Many more posts to come on bike setup, the new bike, training rides, random thoughts....yada, yada. Keep reading, and more importantly...KEEP RIDING!

- JB