ROAD DOMINATION SQUAD

Does Colorado even know whats coming its way? Someone should warn them.....

Dano out.

3 days till total destruction.

put on your lifevests, grab your snorkels, strap on your swim fins. you've got 3 days until TDS unleashes a Tsunami wave of terror on Pisgah Natl Forest.

PMBAR sets off at 8:00 am sat morning. Are you ready?

TDS and Sycamore is...

Dano out.

holy shit.

this is amazing.

that is all.

Dano out.

edit: haha.

"set me off like dynamite strapped tight around my waist,

We are the ones in competition but claim this ain't no race..."

-Rise Against

oh lord, someone's gettin' all aggro up in here. looks like the gauntlet has been thrown down on the SECCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC to me. any answers dirty south?




yeah, i didn't think so.

this might just be the year of Brevard if coach doesn't spend all our money on vests and skinsuits.

at least we'll all look damn good riding around pisgah in October.

dano out.

Confidence.

got any?

being that this is my blog and my outlet for the words clogging up my mind on a daily basis, be prepared for a little bit of word vomit in about 1 second.

deep breath....ok.

So I'm a part of the Brevard College Cycling Team (for the moment at least). everybody that reads this probably already knows that, but just clarifying for those who might live under a rock that has wireless access. There's some great kids on the team, really fast on a pedal scooter and fun to be around off bikes too, which is a great thing. There's one thing that I've been noticing though concerning racing, and its something i think i can help with cause its something I've dealt with a good deal in the past and am by no means an expert on, but i think i have some tips to help.

the mental game.

first off, racing is rad and being fast at it is awesome. all the kids are pretty damn fast at what they do, but could be faster. I'm not talking about everyone on the team, and I'm not talking about just one person either. I've noticed people getting super nervous the night before and morning of a race. like not able to sleep, sitting in a corner shivering, doubting their abilities nervous. being nervous before a race is normal i know, but to the point where it affects your performance is not a good thing, especially if you put in a shit ton of training work and are physically prepared. I've been there, for years i lost races because i psyched myself out, thinking everyone was gonna beat me, that i wouldn't be good enough, that i missed that crucial training ride, or didn't get enough sleep, etc. just little shit that gets in your head you know? i got to the point for me that i hated racing and ended up quitting racing altogether for almost 2 years. i don't think it has to be that way, cause racing is supposed to be fun as hell. we've got enough stressful things in our lives like school, work, and chappet's sweet ass.

anyhow, enough rambling. basically what i had to do was just sit down and tell myself that i can ride like hell and that I'm the one to be scared of when i go to a race. i visualize the win and what its going to take to accomplish it, whether its the crucial break or the fastest line down the course. then, i take a huge breath and fill my lungs with the negative thoughts and blow it all out. once I'm at the race i don't think about everyone else, i don't think about the people watching, i think about my lines and getting my practice/warm up in. i have to make a conscious effort to focus my thoughts but it seems to be worth it. i know that sounds like some hippie bullshit, but its what works for me. that, and falling asleep every night to metal in my ears.

so yeah, just a random passing thought that i hope helps with nervousness, because we all want each other to succeed when its comes down to it.

feel free to call me an idiot because of this post,

dano out.

p.s.-

i want this.

ATTENTION LADIES

The Mini-Bear is offically back on the market.

Get some while its hot.

Dano out.

"i got my hater blockers on..

step out my way cause you all in my zone."

yeaahhh!! that is the new black mtn jam..

so the new weapon is working out nicely, if you aint in the know, sid world cups are the new pink. and my bike is a pound lighter than T. Cowies...... ah skeet skeet!!! yep so that fork is offically flattrack worthy and derby approved. badass. all in a light ass hell, stiff package.

maybe it'll even get me to race a little xc this summer.

it was good to see most of the team out last night, in a non bike related, social setting. way to go kids. keep up the good work.

drifting is the new sprinting,

Dano out.

p.s.- go huck something this weekend.

Good Luck at Sea Otter!!

This one's for you Old Man Balls, get some in cali!!

Dano out.

On the Hunt

Thats right.




I'm going hunting.


we need a back story on this one so here goes...

I'm moving into a new place in a few months and its pretty awesome. currently its occupado by one johanne tuttle, so I'm hoping by sleeping in the same place she has I'll gain some sort of edge or motivation. i doubt it but we'll see. so yep moving. its gonna be good, but theres a catch- besides Jo and timmay theres one more member of the house. he's small, black, and bearded. yep, dick bandit is there. every time i see ol' DB he's straight pinned, ape shit crazy, and nonstop 24/7. i appreciate the energy, but if I'm living with this animal, we're gonna have to take it down a notch once in a while. I've been trying to figure out the best way to do this, and i think I've got it. bandit needs a nemesis. bandit needs a cat, a big old mean one that'll kick his ass once in a while.

I believe I've found this cat. after the ride last night, i was talking with a dude that works at Appletree, and he was telling me about all these wild cats behind their business.

dude: "we've got like ten wild cats behind work."

dano: "oh yeah? sweet I'll come get one tomorrow"

dude: "you better bring a cat trap cause they ain't just gonna jump into your lap"

Cat trap eh? what is a cat trap? i had to google...

so there it is. it looks like I'll need a lobster trap, a rock, an empty case of beer, and some scrap wood.

Bandit is going down.

dano out.

I (heart) racing.

race season is officially upon us kids. the first races of the mtb season have started and you can see who's been doing the work and who's been knocking back grandes all winter. I've been doing a little bit of both and I'm cool with it.

Austin, J. Anglemeier, Irby , and i went down to Clemson yesterday for a little dh racing action. it was a lot bigger turnout than we expected with over 100 racers all trying to beat Chris Herndon. (kidding Chris). i was pretty excited to see how i was gonna stack up against a pretty strong field of riders, some with pretty intimidating looking pits and kits. luckily the KOP came through for me with a sweet-ass SYCAMORE CYCLES shirt and virgin white dh shorts so i could intimidate right back at em...

anyhow, the course was awesome huge props to the Clemson Freeride crew, they put in massive amounts of work to make sure that the course was in prime shape for some racing, and then they put on a very well run event, seriously great job guys! it was sweet.

the top pedally section was once again taken out for the race, the course was basically the same as the fall with some new berms and a big ass table top put in that was super fun to boost to the moon. i was stoked with the course setup, it meant i didn't have to race in the devils pedals, which I've ridden xc with for years but for some reason when i put on a dh bike i lose any and all skill. weird but not a big deal really. i didn't feel too fit racing honestly, but luckily the skills were feeling good and i was able to pull off a third place behind Herndon and Ryan Taylor and also beat my time from the fall race, which was my only goal coming in. I'm honestly way more stoked on that than getting on the podium because it means that I'm getting faster. its gonna be a good summer of racing.

also, props to Jo for killing it in the women's race, jumping everything and making it look good too. Irby, heal up quick buddy, we've got snowshoe coming up...

whatever races your getting into this weekend, get some!!!!!!

Dano out!!

What the hell happened?

Where did this train get off the tracks?

Who stole the soul?

Maybe (probably) I'm being whiny on this issue, but seriously? does anyone ride bikes for fun anymore?

Example:

(timmay walks into the shop at 3:00 on a beautiful day, the only sunny day so far this week)
Me: "what up timmay! man you headed out on a ride?"
Timmay: "Naw man its my off day in my training program"
Me: "Really? its beautiful out dude"
Timmay: "yeah i'd really like to ride but my plan says i can't"
Me: "uhhhh, ok."

There you have it. the thing is, i have this conversation repeatedly with different people on a regular basis. How did this happen? When did people stop riding for the fun of it? This mindset of riding for training has got to be stopped at all costs.

Remember when you were a kid? Remember that first bike and how awesome it was to just get on it and pedal as hard as you could? I do. I remember going to the bmx track with my old man when i was 7 and ripping around trying to jump everything. i also remember when i lost that first race and started crying because i wanted to win. i had the wrong mindset about it and luckily my old man set me straight right quick. its a lesson that i remember to this day.

first a little background on Bruce "the menace" Ennis. Raised in Jacksonville, Fl, my dad found water skiing early on when his family would go down to a lake house for vacations. At age 20 he moved from a nice house in town to a single wide trailer on doctors lake so he could ski everyday after work. Over the next few years he won pretty much everything there was to win in competitive water skiing. slalom, long jump, trick ski- he got natl champ in all of them. He got sponsored by Ski Nautique and got free boats every year. His long jump record stood for almost ten years. After his knees both blew out he was instrumental in starting up the Cypress Gardens ski show. He was also a grade A jackass, partying hard, driving sweet ass shitty muscle trucks and buggies and generally living the dream. One story he tells for instance was when he went out partying the night before a huge meet in Orlando. he showed up the next day at the venue in the back of a truck with nothing but the clothes on his back. He then walked around the pits and managed to borrow two mismatched old skis and a women's life jacket. He then proceeded to kick everyone's ass and win all three events. he told me that because one ski was longer than the other he had to lift up the shorter one right before he hit the ramp and jump one footed then correct in the air so he didn't eat shit. PURE AMERICAN AWESOMENESS.

so yeah i look up to the old man. He taught me that having fun is most important in life and that you'll be better at whatever you want to do because of it. he also taught me about how a positive attitude and believing in yourself is much more important than the best training and equipment.
to this day if my old man shows up to a race i will ride 90% harder just because my hero is watching.

So back to that bmx track years ago... I'm crying, pissed that i lost when the old man says "what are you crying about? its just a race, if its not fun why bother?" the rest of the day we rode the track and had a blast jumping shit and roasting corners/ it made a lasting impression on me. the race didn't matter. learning something new was more important. riding a fun track was more important. HAVING FUN WAS MORE IMPORTANT.

so that's where i come from. That's what this riding is to me. unfortunately i feel like I'm a minority in this sport today. all i can do is fade out of the picture. the soul is gone. riding is a bout skin suits and numbers now. its about training plans and goals. fun has been kicked out of the picture.

no thanks,

Dano out.