Thursday, August 30, 2012

A spirit from the vasty deep...

Gold star to anyone (other than Eddie) who knows what I'm building here...


Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Good morning!


The Bean; this AM. Obviously he will grow up to be a fashion designer, or alternately, an escape artist.

You don't know what you got 'till it's gone

The top 5 things I miss about Boulder:

-All our friends. Duh. Obvious #1, and I knew that was coming. Martin and Feldman are excluded as they are more of frenemies.

-Bike paths. Salt Lake has a pretty good network of bike lanes but they're not separate from traffic, and you have to sit around at stoplights *forever* to get anywhere. Now I know why people run lights on their bikes (or in their cars), I guess. It's hard to imagine how awesome something like the Boulder Creek path is until you realize what it's like to commute on a bike in the real world.

-Beer variety. There is some very good beer in Utah, actually, and it's not even too expensive. But when you're used to a selection of dozens of Belgians, lambics, and other tasty oddities at your *neighborhood* liquor store (let alone Liquor Mart or Avery) it's a bit discouraging. Utah is something like 10 years behind everyone here - they're just starting to make imperial IPAs and other hoppy stuff, but nobody that I'm aware of is doing sours or Belgians or weird experimental stuff yet.

-Creative routesetting. There is a bouldering-specific climbing gym here (the Front) but having just been there I can say that I'll probably stop going to the gym, or at least stop going frequently. Once again, 10+ years behind everyone - they are setting problems that basically just use smaller holds to increase difficulty. I don't think I did a single thing that I couldn't tell you the sequence for from the ground, and I can't recall doing a single mandatory dynamic move, heel hook, toe hook, heel/toe, etc (it's worth noting that I'm a sucky climber, but you can find all that stuff on V1s at the gym in Boulder). Pretty much right hand/left hand stuff with an occasional drop knee thrown in for variety. Oh, and no volumes to vary the pitch - the walls all pretty much just go straight up at a consistent angle the whole time. This was basically the same story as earlier in the year when I visited Momentum (roped stuff) further south so it's not just that particular gym. I miss you, the Spot!

-Clean air. I know the whole west is smokey this summer, but the smoke just *collects* in the valley here. I can't wait to be breathing everyone's tailpipe fumes come winter when an inversion hits. If it's bad enough, we'll just up and move back - SLC has the *worst air quality in the United States*! The Bean has already been coughing a lot (hopefully that's just coincidence). You would think that a culture that values children so much would have moved much faster to deal with the pollution problem. Depressing.

That's the bad stuff. Next time, top 5 reasons why SLC is awesome!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Celeste....purple?

The new rig, thanks to Celeste for the pic. At Buffalo Creek somewhere, unless I miss my guess?

A unique color for a unique bike!


Friday, August 24, 2012

A couple pictures from Minh - and a reminder

Reminder first: Open shop/free beer/17 bands tomorrow, my neighborhood. Info here.

Also, some nice pictures from Minh - this is about as close as I'll ever get to a studio photo of one of my bikes, I think. Also, Minh is probably going to have to be severely chastised for keeping his bikes so clean. Team blue looks best under a thick coating of grime and scratches, dude.



Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Open Shop Saturday August 25th

Hi everyone - the WW shop is finally (mostly) set up and I'm actually doing some constructive work! To celebrate the move and to say hello to everyone, I'll be hanging out in the shop and talking with any and all who care to stop by this Saturday, August 25th from 3pm until I get tired and/or run out of beer.

As a bonus, from 4-8:30 pm my neighborhood is having a GIANT concert with 13 local bands called "[URL="http://eastcentraldistrict.org/wordpress/?p=60"]Porchfest[/URL]". There will be food trucks, games for the kids, and lots of great music, so you can stop by and say hello and then enjoy the fun if you want to make an outing of it.

Where? 148 South 1200 East is the address, but that's a little confusing, because [B]the shop (blue garage) is actually located on Bueno just east of 1169 Bueno[/B]. Please note that the ENTIRE neighborhood will be closed to traffic, so you'll need to bike/walk/TRAX to get here.

Random notes:
-I won't let you use my tools or build anything while you're standing around watching (I don't want to burn/blind/electrocute/impale you) so don't expect to see welding demos or anything like that.
-I will have a couple of bikes and some half-completed frames/forks and such to check out, but there are no demo bikes and I won't be loaning anything out.
-My goal is just to meet some like-minded folks, not to give you the hard sell, so you do not need to be interested in buying anything from me - just come say hi. Of course, if you want to order a frame, you're more than welcome to bring your checkbook. :)
-I'll have a few 6 packs of adult beverages but if you want to *really* make friends with me you can bring a few of your faves to share.
-When I get tired of chitchat and want to go listen to music with Sarah and the Bean, I'll close up for the night. No idea exactly when that will be. If you miss me, you can always stop by another day as long as you call ahead (phone number is on my website).

Hope to see lots of new friends! Contact me if you have any questions.

-Walt

Monday, August 20, 2012

Ready for Winter

Guillaume finally got his fatbike built up and sent over a picture with a nice note. Pretty sick build - I bet this fatbike is lighter than a lot of "normal" mountain bikes that I've owned!


Hi Walt!

I rencently had the change to FINALY ride my fat bike!

I just wanted to let you know that I am really happy with the handling and everything

Heres a pictures of the bike and the specs:

Frame: Waltworks
Fork: Carver Bikes O'Beast carbon
Headset: Cane Creek 110
Stem: Truvativ Stylo T40
Handlebar: Truvativ Noir T40
Grips: Random foamy grips
Brakes: Avid XX
Shifter: Sram TT900 with Paul Components thumbie
Seatpost: Truvativ Noir T40
Saddle: Fizik Tundra 00
Bottom bracket: Phil Wood Titanium
Crankset: Middleburn Uno 34t
Pedals: Look Quartz Ti
Chain: Ultegra 6700
Cassette: Sram XX 11-32t
Wheelset: 616 Fab hubs, Bonz 47mm rims, Sapim Laser spokes, Surly Larry light 3,8" tires
Rear derailleur: Sram XX Medium cage
Chain guide: Paul Components Chain Keeper

Friday, August 17, 2012

95%!

Pictures, pictures. Here's the new shop. Highlights include:
-20x19 workspace - 380 sq feet, vs 324 at the old shop. It seems HUGE.
-Pull-down ladder/stairs up to a little loft for storage (boxes, packing materials, extra tubes, etc)
-2 240v 30 amp outlets for the mill and the welder (no more hardwired equipment that can't be moved!)
-Full blazing bright lights for working after sundown (or before sunrise).
-Attic fan to keep things a little cooler in the summer.
-Windows in the garage door and also in the loft, not quite as much like working in a cave.
-A decent, solid workbench built by my fantastic brother out of the scrap wood we had left after de-palletizing the mill.


And best of all, of course, *things arranged how I want them in the first place* instead of a shop that was throw together as I acquired tools and was impossible to get around in.

Still to come:
-2-head work stand that swings down from the roof and locks in place, then swings back up when not needed.
-A few more bike hooks and bikes.
-Jay's 36er, Lance's road bike, and a Bakfiets for me to ride around town and get groceries with (over the next few weeks, that is).


(this will be posted again next week)
Come visit me! If you're an SLC local and want to come see the shop, talk to me, find out more about what I do, please let me know if you'd like to stop by. I'm also going to do an open house (yes, there will be some beer) on August 25th from 4-6pm or so. That coincides with our neighborhood "Heart and Soul Porchfest" in which 9 different bands will be playing on porches on our block. Come say hi and stay for the music and lawn games (but remember, ride your bike or take TRAX, because the whole block will be closed off to cars).

Monday, August 13, 2012

Almost there!

We're in Utah, I just picked up some tanks of Oxygen, Acetylene, and Argon, wired up the mill and the welder, and built a new workbench with the help of my intrepid brother.

Updates and pictures soon! I'll be building some neat projects to break in the shop, so the blog might actually be interesting again (or not, you can be the judge).

Thanks for your patience, everyone who is waiting for me to email them back.

Wednesday, August 08, 2012

Go west, young Bean!

And take that greasy milling machine with you!



Tuesday, August 07, 2012

I hate packing

Wow. 36 hours until the truck needs to roll, and we are not even halfway there. Without my brother coming up from Cruces to lend a hand, I would be *screwed*.

On the plus side, though, I got a nice note from Eszter (thanks Eszter!)


Monday, August 06, 2012

Race Report: Butte 100

We're up to our ears in moving boxes and stress here, but Miguel isn't, and went and raced the Butte 100:

The sweat started developing on my palms as i looked down the trail. It sure was steep, and right at the bottom there was a big rock on the left hand side. My bare sweaty hands tightly clutched the grips, making them feel extra squishy. The nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach only became worse as two older riders pulled up on their new bikes, contemplated the descent, and between them decided to "wait for another time to try and ride it". They pedaled away as I decided to stare at it for just a little longer.

It had been a while since I had gotten my first mountain bike and I tried to ride it alone as much as possible so that no one could see how terrible I was at it. A humble bike it was, heavy by any standard with low end components and no suspension. Mountain biking had become popular overnight in Queens, where I had noticed Thule and Yakima racks appearing as status symbols on cars before I ever owned a mountain bike. I recall sitting in my friends VW as he handed me a Specialized bike magazine of that model years' bikes. When showed the one that he was going to buy I wondered to myself how I would get the money to afford something similar. Other kids in the neighborhood already owned expensive bikes; and of particular envy was one Team Edition Volvo-Cannondale bike.

---

I had already begun cursing my luck the day before I flew out to race the Butte 100 in Montana. It had been a priority to get new seals for my suspension fork since it had been pouring oil since the last race, but the parts had not arrived in time. Unfortunately the race would have to be ridden on a fully rigid bike. From what I knew of the race besides it being 100 miles was that it would climb and descend almost 18,000 feet, far more than any race or ride I had ever done. This elevation gain was so absurd to me I questioned if it could be fit into 100 miles. Tinker Juarez, who once rode for the Volvo-Cannondale Team, called it his favorite and the hardest race he had ever done. These words carried weight since they came from an accomplished racer.

In the pre-sunrise light of the early morning I lined up at the start of the Butte 100. Trying not to think of the 100 miles before me, my gloves that had somehow disappeared (I later found out our friend's two year old had taken them) and the lack of suspension on my bike I looked around and saw Tinker. A smile came across my face as the thought came across my mind. "Never did I imagine that I would one day line up against the mountain bike racers in the magazines of my youth." The smile turned to focus as the call came out; "15 seconds till start". I checked to make sure that I was in the right gear, and that both water bottles were there. "10 seconds" I felt my heart start going a little faster, took a deep breath and swallowed. "3, 2, 1, Go!" the early morning spectators clapped and cheered and we rolled through the start line.

I worked myself into fifth position going at a comfortable pace, knowing that no one wins a 100 mile race in the first couple of miles. Dead ahead was Tinker, flanked by two other riders surely trying to test the defending champion. We entered the first downhill section and I followed the fourth place rider. Thinking he was going too slowly so I went for the pass. Soon after going for the pass I realized the reason for the reduced speed. I washed out full speed in 6 inches of sand trying to make a right hand turn. As I slid across the sand dragging my leg and knuckles I was relieved that there were no rocks and that it really didn't hurt that much. A couple of thoughts went through my mind 1) bad way to start a 100 and 2) this is really going to hurt. A rider passed me from behind as I tried wiping the sand off my hands. I was now in 6th place and my hands already hurt.

It took me about 20 minutes of descending to figure out how to corner, but after trading positions on the uphill and downhill I realized that the rigid bike was naturally slower on the descents, despite my efforts to the contrary. Not helping the situation was that I had never seen any part of the course.

It was early in the race, where the first rays of the sun were beginning to peek through the trees. Feeling the comfortable temperature I knew we would be in for a hot one. I reached down to drink and saw that I lost a water bottle during the crash - I had one left but it was half empty. "Stick it out till the next aid station", I thought to myself, emptying the contents of the water bottle into my mouth.

Passing the next checkpoint I was between two Montana riders on the same team, sitting in 5th place. My bottle was now full, and I fished into my pocket to eat some food. As I did the guy behind me sped around and bridged up to the rider in front. I let them go, deciding that eating was more important at this moment. I am still not sure if it was a mistake, but I only realized after I rode them that the next 20 miles or so were perfect terrain to trade turns drafting and conserving energy. I would ride the rest of the race alone.

Somewhere around mile 60 I saw our blue rental car with Melissa in it. This was the first time I had seen her all race as she had been looking for gloves for the past 5 hours. She drove ahead up the road and waited for me. Once outside the car she pulled out gloves and filled my water bottles. My hands felt instant relief from the beating that they had taken over the previous miles. I sped to the next checkpoint with renewed energy. "I'll see you at mile 70!" she yelled after me.

Going into the checkpoint at mile 70 I was 30 minutes down on Tinker. Melissa was waiting there to fill my empty water bottles. Right after leaving the checkpoint I encountered a steep uphill section. No big deal I thought, just pace it like you have been. Yet the single track continued on and on, as did the steep climbing. What I encountered for the next twenty miles was the most difficult ride or race I have ever been a part of. I still don't know how I didn't cramp, because fluids and food were becoming less and less palatable. I was so focused on finishing I had to place the worries of a bike mechanical or crashing out of my mind. There was a very good possibility that if I did either I would have to walk out, or more likely, someone would have to carry me out.

As the miles dragged on my speed dropped significantly; and the climb continued with pain and mental fatigue slowly letting itself in. More than once did I look down at the soggy bottom headset cap on my bike; last years' 100 miler trophy and 1) wished my friend were there and 2) reminded myself that everyone else was suffering the same as me. Strange what goes through one's mind during epically long races, mostly to soothe the despair of late miles when the body begins to protest the mind's commands.

Mile marker 90 came around and it was the last checkpoint. I was on my last legs - dehydrated with no desire to drink and hungry without any desire to eat. The end of my rope had come. Yet the final climb was still ahead and somehow the first two miles felt relatively easy. Maybe it was the feel that the finish was so close or more likely it was the last desperate effort from a body that could no longer go. Whatever it was, as the climb continued the energy began to ebb from my body. I no longer had any power behind the pedal strokes; 90 plus miles and over 17,000 feet of vertical had taken their toll. Cresting over the last hill I somehow rolled to the finish line holding onto sixth place.

It was difficult to get into the car following the race; my body felt cold and my extremities began to tingle. I could see the muscles twitching in my legs, but I couldn't feel their movements. I was trying to ingest fluids but the nausea kept protesting. I knew that if I threw up it would be a hospital visit for iv fluids. Rolling down the window to get some fresh air gave me temporary relief.

Somehow holding onto the contents of my stomach we arrived back at the cabin we were staying at. I needed to be flanked on either side to exit the car into the house. Like one with broken legs I was helped into the bathtub. My body temperature had dropped; I needed heat, food and fluid. Pouring Epsom salt into the running bath I stepped in. Maybe after some minutes or maybe an hour the salt and water began to hydrate my skin and life began to return to my body. I ate a Graham cracker and washed it down with water. I was going to be ok.

---

Somehow around mile 80 I remembered what it was like to be scared of descending on a mountain bike; looking down the trail with my palms pouring sweat and my heart racing. It had been hidden away in memory for 15 years, locked up with life's other awkward moments we would sometimes rather forget.

Memories come up that retroactively act like barometers of our own life's weather patterns. They are tools of measurement, to see how far winds and weather have carried you and just maybe, during a moment of clarity you realize how far you have come with the work you have put in. Sometimes taking a step back and eliminating noise makes one realize how good they have become at something, not just in cycling but anything in life. It is easiest for me to think of such things when I have the menial task of pedaling in little circles and getting up that next hill.

I wish that only words could share the elation and pride that I felt at mile 80; yet as is often the case during any long excursion I had the most beautiful thought come to mind only to have it leave as easily as it came in. As I write these words realizing they are unjust to the thoughts I was having, as I have butchered them once again. Like trying to make a moment last forever I still clutch for it as it rapidly slips away.

Somewhere there at mile 80 a boy finally rode down the steep trail, even if it was only in my mind. We had come a long way together, growing and learning. It was the old me and the young me, meeting again for the first time on some dusty trail high on the Montana continental divide, embracing the past, present and future, knowing that our road together had come too far to let those last 20 miles stop us.

Saturday, August 04, 2012

Double congrats!

To Millertime: 7th place and ~5 days on the Colorado Trail Race - you are a badass!

To my old high school friend Sean: New California 14er record. Again; badass.

Friday, August 03, 2012

Moving!

For folks who need to correspond with me:

-I'll still be answering my phone, but I may not may not have time to talk in gory detail with you for a couple of weeks. Feel free to call and say hello if you're thinking about getting a frame or want some quick answers to questions. Don't plan on bending my ear for 2 hours, though.

-If you need to mail a package to me, hold off until at least August 15th, and send it to:
Waltworks LLC
148 South 1200 East
Salt Lake City, UT, 84102

Letters/correspondence can be sent anytime, I just don't want any packages to get lost in the moving shuffle/chaos.

-Email is your best way to contact me for the next couple of weeks but don't expect super fast responses.

-I am not ordering any parts or building/repairing anything until we're set up in Salt Lake, which will be August 20th at the absolute earliest. You've been warned!

Thursday, August 02, 2012

The last one...


Celeste's teeny tiny full suspension 29er is officially the last frame built here in Colorado, and the last built using our sweet solar array to run the TIG machine. No more solar power in SLC, unfortunately - the new house is not well situated for it, nor is UT as friendly to solar in general.

So enjoy, Celeste!

Geometry rundown for the bored folks:
-70 degree headtube/73 degree seat tube
-63.4cm front center and 58cm/22.8" effective toptube
-44cm actual/43.5 effective chainstay length
-100mm travel front and rear, built for a tapered steerer fork
-28" (yes, less than the wheels) standover
-13.5" unsprung BB height

Celeste has short legs but a long torso and arms, so she is almost the perfect candidate for a 29er, for someone her size (I'll be polite and just say she's "petite"). Built for all-around shredding and XC racing here in CO - racing that I'll no longer be doing, since we're off to Utah in 5 (gulp!) days.