I love the smell of 8 Pin Alley in the morning

I say hit the trails while you can. It's almost January and we've had really good weather. I think, and most would have to agree, it probably won't last all winter.

A look at 8 pin alley first thing in the morning. As If 8-Pin isn't challenging enough. Believe it or not I only had to dab (put my foot down) once going through 8-pin
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A look at 8 pin Alley scond thing in the Morning. This time I had to dab 3 times. It's funny a thing. The better my vision, the more I dab. and this is something I've noticed over time. I'm not sure why that is.
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Speaking of bad weather. Look what fell off the truck this afternoon as the say. A pair of Nokian Hakkapeliitta w106 700x35c studded tires...

That's right Hakkapeliita (Finnish light cavalryman)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakkapeliitta

....On a set of mavic Open Pro 19mm wide rims they measure 33mm wide, but might measure a little wider when they get mounted to my 22mm wide Salsa rims. I would have thought they would have had more studs, but they are made in Finland so it's not like they are strangers to snow. Now that I have them it will be interesting to see if I actually have to use them. They would have worked the other day when a few street had that thin layer of ice on them. or it will just make you feel a little more at ease when you ride home at night and can't tell if the road I wet, or covered with ice.