Lake Calamus Nebraska Part I

Drove to Nebraska last wknd to sail w/ sister, her husband and others, catch the action here.

Protein Builds Muscles

Dr. Gabe Mirkin's latest weekly ezine discusses the importance of protein, i.e., meat consumption, in building muscles, especially in older athletes. Read it here. For optimum results consume protein, i.e., meat within an hour following exercise.

"It's Not About The Bike"

Justin and Ilana climbing the nearly continuous 5 mile long grade out of Ft. Pierre following the Native American Scenic Byway.

Summer Fun

Every once in a while a guy just has to hang out and let the nephews dictate the play. With temps forecasted to be at or over 100 F, we opted to spend the weekend at the lake.

We engaged in a wide variety of water-related activities. Highlights included kayaking, canoeing (a midnight 3/4 moon paddle in conditions so-calm-it-was-erie), paddle boarding, body surfing and windsurfing.

A short video of the boys body surfing on Lake Oahe can be viewed here. Today these four future watermen played in the shorepound from noon to 5 only taking one break, a forced one, for lunch then back in the water for more.

Oh, what would one give to be young, again?

Hummingbirds Journey

While finishing up a ride yesterday we met a couple on a tandem from Portland heading to New York. You can view their blog here.


Also, check out James Raia's latest, The Next Lance Armstrong, but be sure to watch the video of the kid on his way to kindergarden school on his strider bike.

Coming Soon:

The Best Dam Loop Ride in the State

Achilles Tendonitis: Rehabilitation & Recovery

Following 2.5 days of battling headwinds, a heavy feeling in my right foot announced itself at about mile 210 on Day 3 of the Tour de Kota last June. I dismissed the feeling and kept pedaling. A few miles later, my right achilles tendon felt like a constrictive belt had wrapped around it. Easy pedaling relieved the only symptoms -- tightness in the achilles tendon and a heavy feeling foot. Following a massage to loosen the tight calf muscle, the TdK continued, albeit at a much reduced pace, eventually racking up nearly 430 miles in 6 days.

Upon returning home, a visit to the local Physical Therapist resulted in immediate relief. As the words, "Go easy" of my PT Ami echoed in my head, reduced mileage kept me pain-free for the first two weeks. Ramping up the miles too fast returned the pain at mile 63 of a 73-miler at the end of week 5, a 300+ mile week.

Back to rehab; only this time re-injury evoked constant worry. Lowering the bike seat, moving the clips back as far as possible without drilling new holes in my shoes and every other day rides ranging from 10 to now 25 miles seems to be working. So far, so good. No pain. No tightness. No heavy foot feeling.

My latest regimen:

- stretch several times daily;
- alternate daily calf raises with riding; and
- ice when done.

Current goals: Improve strength. Gradually increase distance. Remain pain free. Do not re-injure.

Inflatable Kayaks Make Sense

(Reprinted from River Life July 29, 2010)

Water so smooth it could be glass graced my run down Okobojo Creek and on into Lake Oahe. Numerous birds, some geese, a few fish and one deer shared the creek area as a rhythmic stroke settled in while the shoreline coasted by. Silent, serene and sublime, kayaking offers the soloist freedom unmatched by any canoe. In fact, compared to canoeing, kayaking almost seems like cheating. But, who cares?

As summer temperatures continue to soar and the strong windsurfing winds transition to mere bike-challenging breezes, thoughts turn to self-propelled water sports for an upper body workout on off-the-bike rest days. With a little creativity and minimal transfer hassles, kayaking options abound in the Pierre area including Dam runs, LaFramboise Island circumnavigations, Farm Island inspections, Cow and Okobojo Creek one ways and many others.

Getting set up with the right kayak requires some thought, but for me it was a no-brainer. However, before letting you in on my discovery, first some kayak basics.

Stretching sealskins over driftwood and animal bone frames, natives of the arctic regions of Asia, North America and Greenland invented kayaks to hunt seals along the edge of sea ice. With the paddler sewn into the boat, the original kayaks or ‘hunters’ boats’ were personalized watertight watercraft capable of maneuvering long stretches of arctic coastline in search of seals while keeping the paddler dry and warm.

Though most modern kayaks aren’t used for hunting, their basic shape originates with their Inuit ancestors. Eventually, the ancient style gave way to modern materials consisting of fiberglass and wood and transitioning to nearly bombproof synthetic hardshells. Refinements in the skin-over-frame style resulted in the modern fold-up. Recently, improvements in air bladders, synthetic skins and valves created the modern inflatable kayak.

Inflatables paddle almost as efficiently as a hardshell but have several redeeming features, including:
• Lightweight – 20-30% lighter than a comparable hardshell;
• Stowable - a trait hardshell models, except for more expensive foldups, can never mimic;
• Walkable – you can walk over the bow to enter/egress the kayak keeping feet dry and mudfree; (Try this with a hardshell and you’ll likely be reminded of a feature we all appreciate on this planet, gravity.) and
• Diveable – you can dive off bow or stern to obtain instant relief on those hot summer days floating the Missouri River from Oahe Dam to Pierre and get back in the kayak safely.

Last year I picked up two inflatable kayaks from Pedal & Paddle Bike Shop, conveniently located on main street in downtown Pierre, SD. Manufactured by Advanced Elements, Inc., the kayaks invoke the best features of a fold-up (like Folbot’s Folding Kayak) and a pure inflatable, but at less than half the cost of the more expensive fold-up.

Both kayaks, a solo and a convertible one-or-two-person model, inflate quickly, easily and hassle-free using just a hand-pump. Military grade valves allow precise inflation pressure taking less than 10 minutes to set-up. Compare that with much longer set-up times for the more expensive folding kayaks and there’s no reason why everyone shouldn’t own one of these amazing boats.

Weighing in at around 25 pounds and 55 pounds for the solo and convertible, respectively, creates a package that is as easy to cart around as it is to paddle. What more could a serious recreational specialist ask for?

I have paddled these kayaks on rivers - including the Missouri and Columbia - as well as on flat water and wind driven chop and am impressed by how well they handle the conditions. Recently, my nephew took his to Alaska and paddled on the Cook Inlet and later he ran a stretch of Skagit in Washington State.

A few weeks ago while in The Black Hills for a biking adventure we took the kayaks along hoping to use them. My wife and niece did get the opportunity to paddle both kayaks on Sylvan Lake in the heart of the Hills.

Following their adventure I deflated, packed the kayaks in their traveling bags and stowed them conveniently in our van. With the kayaks safely placed inside the vehicle, no worries about loose or broken tie-downs entered my mind as we cruised back to Pierre.

Additional features of an inflatable vs hardshell kayak:

• No roof rack or trailer needed
• Securely stored inside vehicle
• No reduction in gas mileage.
• Easy storage indoors during off-season


As opposed to tying the kayaks on the roof of the van or pulling them behind on a trailer, my gas mileage didn't decrease. Although the mileage doesn't matter much on short trips to the Hills, on longer trips the difference will likely be enough to treat ourselves to some fine micros following a hard day’s paddle.

A Cyclist's Best Friend

What would you say if a road biker told you that he has put over 1,000 miles on his bike on a single lube of the chain? Would you call "Bullsh*%!" and never give it another thought? Or, would you inquire further and ask for details? Hopefully, the latter and your inquisitiveness rewarded as your friend fills you in on the greatest road biking invention since indexed shifting.

I first heard about this amazing new lube on RoadBikeRider.com where Ed Pavelka described his experience of 1,400+ miles on a single lube. That testimonial definitely got my attention so I ordered up a bottle and am totally sold on the product.

Chain-L No. 5 boasts 1,000 miles on a single lube and, based on my empirical testing this summer, it's legit. Beginning late spring both my wife and I started using Chain-L No. 5 bike lube. After putting in over 2,000 miles I've lubed my chain exactly twice and this last lube still has a lot of miles left in it (however, I will lube it before heading to the Black Hills where I'll be guiding with Dakota Bike Tours on the Monument Tour next week).

Amazing stuff. And, to top it off my chain and entire drive train looks almost as clean as the day I installed the new chain. Simply amazing.

But, like any new improvement it takes a bit of time to apply the lube correctly but it's time well spent and worth the little extra effort. Briefly, on a new chain the following steps should suffice:

1. Size the new chain to old chain.
2. Lay the chain out on a newspaper on a flat surface.
3. Place a drop of the highly viscous Chain-L No. 5 on each roller.
4. Allow to soak into the bearings over night.
5. Wipe off the chain with a clean lint-free rag. This is important. Wipe the chain thoroughly along its entire length.
6. Install chain.
7. Ride. Wipe the chain, chain rings and pulleys off after each ride.

If your chain gets wet from rain you might have to freshen it up with a small amount of Chain-L No. 5 on a cloth which you wrap around the chain and pedal backwards to spread on the rollers. Otherwise the treatment should last at least 1,000 miles and maybe longer.

So don't delay, order up some Chain-L No. 5 from their website today, follow the instructions exactly -- preferably on a new chain -- and look forward to hundreds of worry-free cycling miles.

Mega Missouri River Hills

Next time you're out looking for a different sort of ride check out the Mega Missouri River Hills ride that my wife and I recently completed. Climbing every hill (totaling over 1700 feet of climbing) within a short distance of Pierre and covering nearly 50 miles the Mega Missouri River Hills ride certainly ranks right up there with the best climbing rides in South Dakota outside of The Black Hills or Badlands.

Starting at the Oahe Dam Visitor Center drop down on the face of the dam and climb the Stilling Basin Hill (aka Little Ass Kicker, easily an 8% effort), continue on up Billy Goat Jump (aka Gut Check, a sustained 6 percenter), up Emergency Spillway (aka Big Ass Kicker, a bonafide 10 percenter -- even has the highway sign to prove it) and back down 1806 to Highway 14 and up a yet-to-be named 1.5 mile long grunt and back through Ft. Pierre to Highway 83 south and up the approximate 1.5 mile long 350 foot climb that humbles even the best of the River City Riders, down and up 1806 climbing Time Trial (a 5 mile nearly continuous gentle uphill - use the big chain ring) to the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe Buffalo Interpretive Center and back down through the two towns and up Euclid to 1804, eventually topping out on Snake Butte at 1870 feet asl and down to the visitor center.

Congratulations! You've just completed the most grueling 50 miles in the entire Pierre/Ft. Pierre area.