We Have Been and are Currently Experiencing Technical Difficulties

I kinda feel like the guy on the left right now

If you haven't noticed, things here have been a "tad" off kilter. No riding, and no beer reviews. I can't even post up a photo dump as my camera has been sitting idle alongside my bikes and home beer reviewing kit (I bought that at WalMart  two years ago)

Dare I blame.... Work? Yes, but those faithful ones who come on here would only think that I have ill feelings towards my job. That isn't the case. Truth is I love what I do right now. Which deep down scares me as I know it can't last forever.

There are major changes happening right now which have my undivided attention. Nothing serious, just the switching of shops thats all. Thus all my might and energy have been sadly focused away from the bikes. The bikes ok now but I don't have the time. A ride tonight that was planned and is now a distant figment of my imagination. Where would I have gone? What would I have encountered? Every ride in the Edmonton river valley usually entails some sort of story doesn't it?


See you sometime soon...

Have a Happy Week

Warm weather again... sigh

Give it a Week

And we will soon be back to our regularly scheduled programming...

Which equals bike rides and beer reviews...

Till then....

It Feels like January

So here you go...

Still no bikes to ride so I'll just use that as an excuse for the extreme lack of riding.

Have a Happy Week

And stay warm...

Beer Friday. Wells IPA

I had wanted to do the first ever wine review on here tonight but was shut down by the higher ups that be. Well the higher ups being NFL football, and realizing I'm not allowed to drink wine on such a sanctimonious weekend of divisional playoffs. Oddly enough I didn't have a drip of beer until now; a good twenty minutes after the last game. So I guess I could have had the wine... You see how I sometimes over think things! This happens quite a bit and can be quite serious and thankfully have meds to take care of my problems. Sadly two of those "meds" are put away for the season and the one that "goes" is having the bicycle version of a quadruple tripass.

Wells makes it's home in England and is actually named Wells & Young's brewery after a merger between Charles Wells Brewery and Young's in 2006. The company is  very proud to be independent and between the two has over twenty five beers in their lineup.

Wells IPA is the leading imported India Pale Ale coming into Canada which is probably why I found it so easily on a somewhat cold snowy Beaumont night. Or is it that Beaumont liquor stores are quite competitive as there is four with a rumoured fifth opening up in such a small town... Fubar

The pour was unsuccessful as I was holding the glass the wrong way giving my a large head of foam that would have been useful if a jetliner crashed into my front yard. The smell was somewhat different compared to most common beers. Fruity hoppy goodness made its way into my nostrils and I was delighted. The taste was a tad nutty (Austin Powers forever ruined that reference) and slightly metallic when drunk from the can. That's why you pour beer into cups kids! As I did...

This beer gets 3 suds out of 5

Living

The next time you complain that your getting too old for something

Think of this guy...



Oldest Park Rider Ever from Nate Wagner on Vimeo.


Hopefully will see you around tomorrow for some wine tasting... I hope!

Have a Happy Week

No bike riding till mid next week.

I'm sure Winter will be here in all it's infinite glory by then.

That doesn't bother me.

Truth be told, I kinda miss Winter.....

A Sunday Morning Photo Dump

No bikes to ride for the moment, so I'm left wandering around with a camera...

Beer Friday. Muskoka Harvest Ale

Four months past harvest? Why not! This bottle caught my eye the same way a bag of Doritos would attract many many potheads. It sat there in the store with a light beckoning from above. At first I thought it was heaven but quickly realised it was the lighting in the cooler... Silly me!  Muskoka brewery, from Bracebridge Ontario resides in the heart of Ontario cottage country and it now proudly makes it's second lonebiker beer review appearance (oh , I'm sure they are damn proud!).

Their Harvest Ale is now in it's second year and is their Fall time brew. Yes I know it's now the dead of Winter so you can just pretend it's Fall time now o.k? This beer is packed with a punch. A 6.4% punch that is. I have had trouble in the past with strong beers, so I wasn't going to take shit from this beer. I started to show it who was boss right in the store by speaking loudly at the bottle, you know, making threats. There were other people in the store at the time and they moved away quite quickly once I uttered my menacing threats at the bottle. Ya! I can be badass when I want to be!

Once home I opened it up and was awestruck by the  foggy goodness that was emanating from the bottle. It was at that moment I knew my threats had won over the heart of this strong beer. It sat for picture time with an attitude, and virtually no head. It was a one finger head (and you know which one that is) that quickly dissipated much to that of the dreams of a New York waitress. The first sip was what it was. A tad bitter, and then I had another and appreciated this beer for what it is. A craft beer made only once a year for the farmers... Or maybe the Oktoberfest people... I don't know. This one is a good, different but good. Buy a bottle and share it with friends (it's big) or just hog it all to yourself, the bottle is self closing you know.

This beer gets 3 suds out of 5

An Opening Flub for Twelve

I thought I fixed my problem with the skipping drivetrain that ruined my ride on Boxing day. All my bolts were loose on my chain rings so I tightened them and quickly forgot about the problem, after patting myself on the back of course! Within a minute of riding out of Capilano park I knew I was screwed!

I resorted to pushing the small ring and climbing up to Ada boulevard and back down repetitively... Which got boring right away and quickly my first ride for Two Twelve was a dud!

Oh well... The highlight was the sound of all the coyotes in the river valley. They all decided at once to talk to each other and it was almost surreal. Both sides of the valley were singing which added to the sound of all the traffic and the fire engines that seemed to be lost. It's pretty cool to think of all the coyotes that are down there blending in and going unnoticed. Until they decide to speak of course...

And to the guy who decided he would be safe and smoke a joint in the Capilano rest stop rather then smoking it in the safety of all the forest that surrounded him. I say well done sir!

Are You Ready For the Most Annoying Year Ever?

All thanks to the Mayans ending their calender people the world over are freaking out. And no thanks to Discovery channel and the History channel for the last three years of doomsday shows ( quickly played right after the Japanese earthquake/tsunami) for propagating that fear to millions of people who don't know better. Expect this year to be worse and as it gets closer to December the internet and the media will be spreading the fear.

Thankfully we ride bikes. Thus our heads are clear...

Happy New Year and stay safe in Twenty Twelve.

Beer Friday. Molson Canadian

New years eve tomorrow night and my weekend has just begun after a fun week of inventory combined with a classic case of reorganizing. I was planning on reviewing one or two tomorrow night  but after this week I couldn't hold back.

If you were on here two years ago you would have read an angry review on Molson Canadian where I; like many a douchebag on the internet had an open forum to trash something without fear of repercussion, and trash I did! What exactly was my problem back then? I have no idea? Some leftover angst form the Canadian custom agent giving me grief about my bike.... maybe. Well Molsons. Lets forget the past and become friends shall we. Even if I don't like you much on this here review?

Canadians have an inferiority complex. I blame that on big brother living next door. Most of us won't admit it but you know it's there. We feel great when attention is given towards us. The Vancouver Olympics was a great example, the Vancouver hockey riots. Not so much... Attention on anybody makes them feel great. Just saying somebody's name in conversation when your with them makes them feel all warm and fuzzy. Just talk to any high level business professional and they will say your name repetitively in a conversation. Molson Canadian has unbelievably great advertising. They hit all of our soft spots in 30 seconds making us proud of who we are. They show us winning hockey games, doing fun stuff in the mountains, playing hockey, doing fun stuff at the lake cottage, and of course watching hockey playoffs.

The pour gave us a nice crisp, cool, smooth and refreshing looking beer! Ironically like a beer commercial would show it. A two fingered head that didn't last long enough to get the camera ready after I set up my Barbies.... I mean my daughters Barbies!  The first sip gave me some good old familiar 22 year old me love. I have not had this in a long time, in fact the last time was when I did the review on here a couple years ago and the taste was really quite... Ordinary. A slight skunky taste to make it more familiar.  Yes Molson Canadian you are ordinary. But don't change  cause I love you the way you are. Your great "Canadians kick ass" commercials and your image.... Ahh, I have tears of pride running down my cheeks.

This beer gets 2.5 suds out of 5

this is wrong... so wrong, yet strangely arousing...

Enjoy what's left of the year

Two-twelve is fast approaching and I don't have a chance to ride till Saturday.

Bummer...

Boxing Day in Fort Saskatchewan

 On another traditional Boxing Day ride I took tradition and tried turning it into something great. Well it would have been great if I didn't run into drivetrain problems. I hate running into mechanical problems! I lose focus on the ride quickly, and once I get things settled, the thought of what was happening never leaves my head therefore putting me into a foul mood.

Before the shit started I made it to the back loop and couldn't get over how things were down in the Fort Saskatchewan valley. Much like in Edmonton, things are still good to go, the singletrack is packed down good on the spots that there was snow, the areas under heavy tree cover still had dirt and ice to ride on making me love my studded tires as they held me up and kept me from falling in to the frozen river. The first half of riding was awesome until click, click....BAM... click, click...BAM!

I tried to do a quick fix on the side of the trail, yes me and my "stellar" mechanic skills, and surprisingly somehow rectified the problem and limped back to the Jeep.

eat your heart out best buy

ice and steep descents equals good times