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Was chatting to Andy on MSN when he mentioned he was going to Hurricanes for dinner with his flatmate Miki and her sister from the states Yuki. I called him a “c*nt” as I was hungry and thinking of ribs made my mouth water, a few minutes later I get an SMS asking if I want to tag along, w00t! I then get an SMS saying he’ll pick me up (sweet me thinks I can get pissed!). What a champ!

Andy.

Yuki and Miki.

Yuki’s amazing tatts.

Ribs!

Mr Phee Cies who comes from the states, and is going to stay in Australia for a while.

The ribs weren’t great (even with a few downed Peronis) but the company was. Conversation of the night included: Relationships, bikes (haha), relationships, Tattoos, relationships, personal history, relationships, gender related generalisations, relationships and Mr Phee Cies’ travels. :)

14 people strong! A ride was organised by Tony/justified on the Bikes Move Us forums and 14 people rocked up, that5’s just awesome!

Some pics from today:

Nick’s dead sexy Cannondale Prophet.

Jarod’s bike, single speed? Hardcore! Especially considering that the gearing was a little heavy for the trail.

Andrew/JDMpulsar representing Specialized with his Hardrock.

I thought Jarod was hardcore until Rhy’s rocked up (haha), damn Glory. What a man/tank/beast/thing. He got up EVERYTHING too.

Kevin (left) and Tony (right) did great considering they’re both new to riding and it was their 1st time to the Dam too.

Timmy (left) and Clifton (right). Can’t deny that the young kids have learn something from the oldies as both of them are sporting duallies now!

Zi and Dave rocked up late (it’s becoming the norm now guys! Come on!) AND Zi had to change his tyres over too (I’m ‘lending’ him some Nevegals). Zi had another bad day on the bike, goes to show how a ready build bike (his old Giant Trance) was great in that it was all designed and set-up, ready to go but he’s in a world of set-up nightmares on his new Santa Cruz and he’s riding nowhere near as good as he was on his Trance. I had a little go at his bike at the end of the day and found the front fork way too sensitive to braking and too squishy too. I’m sure he’ll get there.

THE CREW!!! 14 riders united.

Totally missed the shot, but this is Rhy’s doing a steep roll to huck.

I was a bit paranoid pre-ride about my fitness level considering I’d been in Melbourne for a week doing nothing but eat and drink (even had 5 meals on one of the days!!!) but surprisingly I felt stronger than I’ve ever felt on the Dam. Maybe it was the excitement of riding in such a big group of people, or maybe it was just being back on the bike. One thing’s for sure. I’m feeling it!!! My legs are hurting tonight. That’s a good thing though, right?! :)

Got back from a week’s holiday in Melbourne today, feeling very fat, lazy and content, a little stressed out about the work I’ve got to get cracking on next week too.

Melbourne was great, as usual, but I woke up to a few different things this time around. The weather was great, but the streets were just SO dirty. Every day Christina and I walked past a whole lot of piss and vomit on the streets (we were staying at the bottom end of Brunswick St. Fitzroy) and on one afternoon we even saw human shit splattered on the side of the road. That just about took the cake for us.

The food this time around wasn’t great either but the great company, sights and shopping (Suga did well!) was more than enough.

One thing that stood out the most for me this time around was bicycles (of-course!). You might as well call Melbourne the City of Bicycles. There’s just so many people, of all sorts, that ride as transport. A majority of them ride absolutely shit bikes, that’s a lot like Amsterdam I suppose, lock it to a pole and forget it. I’d love to see more riders in Sydmey, if only Sydney was as flat as Melbourne, perhaps it could happen but as it is now with massive gradual/pinchy hills and insane/aggressive drivers I can’t see it becoming something for everyone.

Strange soft toys, massive ones, on Brunswick.

Lovely sparrow painting in the window of art holes gallery on Brunswick.

Nice rides.

Grill’d burgers are yummy.

Interracial!

Bionic!

Call to action!

Melbourne’s new station reminds me of the Thunderbirds.

Optical Illusion.

Like owner like dog at Melbourne’s Docklands which is a hole (at the moment anyways).

Let there be rock. St. Kilda.

St. Kilda dog beach, such a nice day.

These guys were awesome. So amazing, and sad, to see them. In this picture they were doing something amazing, hard to describe but it was something else to see.

I see you baby! So many people walked straight past this little guy as they were looking for a fish they couldn’t see.

Jelly.

Graff is out of control in the city.

Topical.

More graff.

Piece on Greville St.

Rosalie Gascoigne exhibit. So lucky to finally see her collection on show.

Part of my fave piece. I wish it was mine!

Protest at Fed. Square.

Juxtaposition – new vs. old.

Suga and I.

Catching up with my old buddy Dom.

Doms studio.

Some of Dom’s toys.

The studio’s bad dad jokes chart.

Dom got me into Pong. His studio is called “21.19” after a pong match score.

Knog store on Chapel St. had a selection of Swobo bikes from $800-2k. I was super tempted to buy one they were hot.

Suga’s shopping frenzy.

Bit naf but I couldn’t resist this DC chain shirt.

Keeping him alive.

Awesome baked eggs at Birdman Eating on Gertrude St.

Free bikes at Little Creatures on Brunswick St.

Blocked up church.

Advance Australia, love how they’re facing outwards.

This was originally painted large on their front window. They got sick of people smashing the glass so now it’s a sign outside.

Suga and I stayed at Quest in Fitzroy, close to the crazy zombies, hustle and bustle.

Belgian Beer Cafe.

Melbourne JDMST crew.

Smart street art.

Dom and I again.

Free.

I wish.

Funny old Mac vs. PC article.

Too cool for school.

More graff.

More graff.

Phibs on ACDC lane.

Postie bikes are not motorised!

Get your retro game on at Chapel St. Bazaar.

Helping hands.

Mike’s shoes reminded me of caterpillars.

Zane’s car is insane.

JType RPRSNT!

Hanging out with the JDMST Melb crew.

What better a way to cure a hangover than going for a ride? We planned the ride last night but knew that it wasn’t going to be easy to get past the hang overs and general new years day laziness. I was feeling a bit foggy in the head earlier today but mid ride I developed a headache and by the time we got back to the carpark it was a thumper. Still a great ride though. Adam came along, a guy I’ve met at a JDMST meet previously and a member of BMU.

Adam and Clifton.

Crazy Dave and Joe.

Did this roll in today.

So did Clifton and Zi.

Clifton scored 2 flats, Adam scored 1. Nuts!

Zi pedalkhana.

Zi pedalkhana.

Andy pedalkhana.

Felix.

Me trackstand comp.

Christina and I.

Jade Janice and Christina.

Zi and Gloria.

Me and Indy.

Howie.

Gang.

Steve Gloria and Di.

wii!

Zi.

We had a few people over for NYE this year, nothing as epic as the 50+ party 2 years ago, more a gathering for people who hadn’t planned anything for NYE. Was awesome fun, great company, food and lots of fun and games.

Shots!

Felix and Di.

Howie hits the deck. Once everyone was too wasted to play ping pong we set up a pedalkhana in the lounge room. Lots of laughs!

Zi got the best time.

We also had a track stand comp. HAHA.

Felix.

Zi.

Graffiti wall room complete with old school hip hop tunes.

BMU!

The boys!

Flamin rotor.

Red tuffs!!!

Red brake finally came in.

Wasp vs Spider!

Washed cars.

Jesus…

Pressies!

Ollie the blind guide dog.

Tag team sisters.

Pong on! Mum’s so cute.

Yeti frankenstein build.

Yeti decals in case I decide to powdercoat the frame.

Pig.

Suga and I.

Nice.

Linda’s B’day dinner.

Me, my cousin Nicholas and his girlfriend Romina.

Richie and my sister Jamie.

Dessert.

Evil Elf with ghost orbs.

Mum and Jasmine.

Bankstown Velodrome.

Bankstown Velodrome.

Bankstown Velodrome.

Pho Ann Bankstown, best Pho in Sydney.

My bike rack plate!

Me.

Nick.

Ash.

Grant.

Lost.

OK so I could have done a lot more damage to my ankle last Monday at Manly Dam when I went off the big drop. I’ve since gone for a few rides around the block and my ankle still feels a little tender but at least I can still ride!

I was initially a little upset that the bike is set up just how I like it but it bottomed out hard going off this drop. If I put more air in the rear shock it might not bottom out so hard off these drops but then it would surely ruin the setup for the rest of the trail.

I asked for input on MTBR and got some great input, especially the bit about putting my feet forward on the pedals:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=478366

One other thing I’ve been thinking about is finding my limit. I suppose I’ve been slowly but surely pushing myself to go harder on the bike throughout the year, it’s a natural progression right? Well after last Monday I think I’ve just about found my limit and I’m glad I’ve done so as it’s hopefully going to put an end to the frustration I feel at times when I “whimp” out of doing something.

We all have to draw the line somewhere. Going over that line could hinder progression. Just a pre-xmas thought!

MCC hits the Dam.

7.30AM at MCC. The boys had to be back by 11am to open the shop.

8.30AM we’re at the Dam (Dam Sydney traffic!).

Barry’s 5 year old mint, as new Specialized Epic.

Group shot.

Joe’s awesome at hucking off stuff.

Barry’s in his 50’s and he goes hard!

Justin doing the Dam on a hardtail, full rigid single speed dirt jump bike.

Grant hucking the big drop…

… and tasting the ground. The man got up and did it again right though. RSPCT!

I got so shitty that my testicles weren’t big enough on the day to do the drop that I went back the morning after and did it. Talk about peer pressure.

I bottomed out hard and mashed my right ankle too.

That about ends the insane riding weekend for me. Friday night pissed late night riding session, Saturday Centennial Park for Suga’s maiden TCR voyage, Sunday MCC Manly Dam ride and I drove straight over to Loftus to ride with Grant (great guy I met through the BMU forums) Eddie, Thanh and friends and Monday Manly Dam with Felix and Steve, another great guy we’ve met through the BMU forums.