Pulling Outta Pit Lane.

Things have been well, hectically slow of late..if that makes any sense. With some wounds still to heal and work going ballistic its been a matter of trying to be efficient in all areas of work and play. Gotta say that sub teaching is one pretty damn sweet gig with no strings attached compared to the days as a full timer..definitely enjoying the perks of 4 years of mind numbing uni afternoons.

I have been smashing tea like there is no tmw of late..especially this stuff Kat brought over made in Boulder (and forgot to declare..sorry customs..well it was either your morning cup or mine.) Definitely the brew for you to pull you on through..to quote one R. Benaud. Oh yeah, Eddie has a solo album that totally slipped under the radar. Well my radar anyway. Worth checking out for those us who still revel in early 90's ripped jeans and flannel fueled music..lator, cw.

Warming The Bench.

With a pretty badly swollen knee the last coupla days have seen the two wheeler remain stationary in the garage. Ah well gotta do what you gotta do. Meanwhile the ipod has had the customary reshuffle...here's whats hitting the Winston Top 40 Countdown this month...

Idlewild- The Remote Part.
Scottish gang I believe...snared off on Jose Hernadez's hard drive in Italy, infectious pop/rock with a little darker twist on the odd occasion and stark lyrics. As I mentioned..Scottish..probably live down the street from Rowney...

Filter- Title Of Record.
Another Hernandez hard drive swipe, big rock sound with a bit of electronica in the mix to keep the part time doof heads happy. Some heavy vocal action coloured from what me thinks many a night spent on the turps...or eating wasabi.

Rancid- Life Wont Wait
Handy little purchase on the US trip to add to the collection. Heavy reggae influence on this one with some genuine rasta's lending a hand on some tracks.
Singer Armstrong makes the vocalist from Filter sound angelic...top shelf.

Ryan Adams- Gold / Rock n Roll / 29
Potentially developing a man crush of late on Mr Adams (dont tell Kat) these cd's are on constant rotation. Gold is exactly that, Rock n Roll is..well that too and 29 is a little tougher to handle straight up but probably best saved for the nights on the back porch with a bottle of whisky. Who says slide guitar ain't cool?

Hot Hot Heat- Make Up The Breakdown
Did feature on many a Euro van time epics and always a hit with fellow Canuck Cap'n Coach Ross. Quirky time signatures, good dose of keyboard action and some catchy chorus work makes a pretty good listen.

Nirvana- In Utero
Old Skool....Post the mega album of 'Nevermind', in my mind this is very much Kurt destroying any hope of further mainstream success with very non-radio single friendly songs. Loud and in the minor key. Lets all scream together.

Intercooler- Old School Is The New School
Flying the home grown flag (Bris-vegas I think?) this is one of those albums that I was keen to listen to but never factored when putting down the arthur ashe at the store. Cropping up on cycling's favourite hard drive its a pretty good listen. A nice blend of Rock/Pop without the screaming teenage girls.

Over n' Out...cw...

Live, Learn And Draw Blood.

Was geed' all this morning for todays planned excursion to the bmx track with the lads. No lycra, socks high and seats down for a change. Things were looking good after a few runs up until the last one before drinks break...yep, another scar to the collection...been awhile too..looking forward to hobbling around like an old man the next coupla days..lator, y'all. cw.

Seeing Red.

Was a busy time the last coupla days. This weekend will see SRAM step up to the skinny tire plate for the first time, providing neutral spares support for the Herald Sun Tour.

Hours were poured into building sweet new spares bikes with the new RED grouppo (only sets in the country..life is tough eh...) and setting up a bucketload of Zipp wheels with cassettes and tires. No mucking about here folks..

Getting out for a sneaky ride on the stuff was a real treat..the braking power is off its trolley..and the shifting quality is far above anything else I've tried...all in a sub 2000gram groupset. Damn Id be trying to have a mechanical during the tour just to get on one of these bikes....

A Man of Many Faces

Kat here...I've taken over Chris' blog for a day. Since I haven't found inspiration to update my own blog in a while I thought perhaps writing under a pseudonym might clear the blogger's block. Plus it's 3 a.m. in Ferny Creek so it'll be a few hours before Chris wakes up and realizes I've stolen his fans...at least temporarily.

All boys have their toys, and Chris' favorite toy next to his GT Zaskar might well be his facial hair. Ah yes, those of us who know the man well or follow his blog have seen the many transformations of Winnie's sideburns, mos, and beards. It's not uncommon for the man to take a bathroom break in the middle of the day and reappear sporting a newly-shaved look.

So here's your chance to weigh in...which is your favorite classic Winston look?

#1: The trademark Chops...




#2: the Massive Chops..taking it up a notch


#3: the Mini Chops....1 part sideburns and 1 part K-style chops



#4: The long sideburns



#5: Euro Winston...a classic 'chops to the mo' combo



#6 the Scruffy Beard-off



#7: Mo-vember



#8: USA Winston...must be lucky because it won the girl along with a few podium spots on the US circuit



It was a tough call between the manly mo and the massive chops, but I have to settle in the end on #8...the original Winston in my book.

Keep on bloggin' and shavin' Winston...your fans eagerly await your next move.

Hunting For The Wild Life.

Pretty funny when Eva snapped this little beauty up yesterday along the trail. Poor little fella had nowhere to go....Im just glad it had some legs...but im sure it wouldn't have mattered too much to Rob who has an uncanny natural affinity with Australian wildlife.

Good to have T-Lowe back in town who is still just as fast on the fat tires as ever.

Always a nice feeling when you replace your chainrings and find the dog is more worn out than the pixie...enjoy the ride..lator..cw.

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The things you do for good food and good company. Eva and I punched out a solid 125km on the fat-tired bike yesterday all the the name of a bowl of noodles in a curry soup Malaysian style. Definitely worth it. Needless to say the post lunch ride home was interesting with all that spicy coconut milk in the system...or was it the lack of big rides in the tank? The tiger snake seen on the Yarra Trails was enough to get me moving at some semi decent pace. All in all a little more suffering than required this time of the year that's for sure.

Today was by far one of the nicest days out on two wheels, best enjoyed at a slow pace..a much needed slow pace..lator, cw.