Lime Trail - Overton Park

Obviously someone has been doing some trail maintenance in Overton Park, clearing and marking a small, fun loop on the North side of the park. I don't know if "Lime Trail" was the intentional name, I just did it because of the sign color. It joins the Old Forest Trail (OFT) as the only marked trails inside Overton Park, though there are plenty of offshoots that weave a web of unofficial trails. These trails are perfect for beginners as well as cyclocross. Get to "gnome" them.


View Lime Trail in a larger map

Cycle Memphis Video

Danny Wilson posted a little edit of the Cycle Memphis January Ride on YouTube:

Time To Embarrass Anthony Siracusa

The Cycle Memphis ride last night was well-attended and pretty easy in terms of SAG: no blowouts, only a slow leaked that had to be pumped twice before changing it at the halfway stop. A small audience watched as I demonstrated the proper way to effortlessly change a rear flat on a road bike. Afterwards we were talking about rim wall depth and difficulties with fixing flats and it reminded me of the Space Race Alleycat which had a flat-fixing checkpoint. To make the checkpoint a bit more challenging everyone had to change their rear tube. There are several people you would expect to be able to do this in no time at all but one person was having a particularly difficult time. That person is Anthony Siracusa:

The riders had already been to the top of a garage downtown, picked up a package and were now rolling up to the Pink Palace for the flat-fix checkpoint:

Anthony removes his rear wheel with the confidence of a trained mechanic:

The tube goes in the tire and the tire goes on the rim:

WTF Mate? It's leaking!:

Let's try this again:

Okay, count the number of tubes in this photo. One in the tire, 2 on the ground. Third time's a charm, right Anthony?

Okay, now you've got it. Load up that bag and rejoin the race, in which you've fallen considerably behind.


I think in a race some time after this one (maybe Memphis Downs?) Anthony flatted and just said "eff it!"

Sorry Anthony. You know I love you, brother. We'll do something in May so you can redeem yourself.

CX Nats 2012

USACycling.org will be streaming live coverage of the 2012 Cyclocross National Championship Elite Womens and Mens races on Sunday, January 8th from Madison, Wisconsin. I tell ya, any city that has vending machines for cyclists KNOWS their bike stuff.


I don't think I've ever shown these on here. If I have I can't remember how I labeled them. The photos were taken in Madison, WI this past summer. You can't really tell from the photos but this was right outside of a bike shop. That's pretty handy, it lets mechanics focus on more involved repairs. Now imagine if these were at "destination" spots, i.e. FedEx Forum, Harbor Town, Shelby Farms, etc... where do you think a good place would be?

Okay, take a break from that thought and watch the Elite Nationals here: http://media.usacycling.org/2012CX-NatsStream.html Womens at 12PM and Mens at 2:15PM CST. Victory is betting on Compton and J-Pow. Compton sure, but is it time to discount 4-time Nats champ Ryan Trebon?

Someone should make a complete stats page for cyclists. People would visit it quite regularly and advertising would def pay for it. I want 51% of the profits, though: my idea.

Cycle Memphis Route Posted

View Tonight's Route Looks like we're either going to Kosher Kroger or Whole Foods so if you need to pick up any groceries bring a backpack/bag/basket/trailer.

Em and I are pre-gaming at the Deli around 6:30.

Parting Is Such Sorrow

It's time to thin the herd... some more. This Gitane is sparkly green, approximately 57cm, and made from unbeatably comfortable steel. The headset, crankset, and bottom bracket are all from Stronglight and in wonderful shape as this bike really only gets ridden 2 - 3 times a year for Tweed Rides or tune-ups. MKS pedals with double leather straps securely hold your Oxfords while the Nitto handlebars have enough backsweep to keep you comfortable. You'll prob want to change the Ideale saddle, though, as it's less than, er, ideal. I've carried the light blue accents on the decals over to chain and tires, which wrap some Mavic Open Sport 700x23's. There is not a lot of clearance in the fork and stays but I've managed hybrid 28's. It's seen a few variations and I'm including two extra handlebars. The first are traditional road drops with the original, quite stunning stem, the other some track drops with light blue grips. I'm offering it local for a week or two (check out that original Memphis Hightailers sticker!) then it's going up on the bay. Price: $350

More pictures on the Gitane Flickr Set. Low light, bad photos, blah, blah, blah.

This One's For Doug

You Look Better In A Helmet

Cycle Memphis

Dress Warm! I'll carry some extra layers in the trailer.

Follow The Arrows

Formerly the British Television Advertising Awards, or BTAA's, the Arrows are jolly good fun. Lets take a pedal over to the Brooks Museum on January 26th and engage in some of this fun ourselves, shall we?

You'll recognize the song and you'll recognize (should recognize) the clips, but this was never a real commercial, though it seems like a natural fit, doesn't it?



More information here.