I've gotten a 7900 derailleur to handle a 30t cog with some B screw adjustment. It depends on the hanger geometry. I did it on a '09 Cervelo R3SL.

I used the Tiagra 12-30 cassette with the corresponding Tiagra 4600 RD last year at Rouge-Roubaix. The setup worked fine...the rider, not so much. :twitchy:

I was moved to the brink of tears at our Tuesday night crit. The 23yo son of one of the regulars, who used to come and watch his dad, was killed in an auto accident this past week. So tonight, instead of the normal B race, everyone from both the A and B groups rode around the course, backwards, in silence, with luminaires lining the start-finish area. There were well over 100 riders. It was a touching tribute. Then we ran the race for both groups at the same time. Wasn't the fastest night ever, but I was there for the A sprint.

Oh, no...

That was a very moving tribute, AzT...I was in tears reading it.

Sometimes I just effing HATE my job...

My condolences to your friend, AZT.

We had a fatal crash in one of our early season races out here this year. It was sobering riding past the 3 foot pool of speedi-dri once the races were restarted. Much good has come of it, though. You can read about it here.

http://bethelspringseries.com/category/news

Speaking of bad news, a few of you have asked about the situation with my mother, whose home, my childhood home, was flooded by "superstorm" Sandy.

Mom is living with my sister, but is actively looking for a condo to purchase. She has made the decision to move to a more manageable living situation. This is priority one, and takes some of the heat off of what to do with the property. Estimates have come in at over $100K to repair the property, and after looking at them, I believe that they are conservative. I have urged her to plan for at least 30% more. She does not have enough flood insurance to cover this expense. Since she decided to move on, all of her available funds will be dedicated to the new home, so this leaves FEMA grants and loans as possible funding sources. The question is, what is the better return on investment, a distressed property sold as-is, a fixed up home that will flood again and will probably not be FEMA-insurable, or a cleared, ready-to-build lot with stubbed off town water and sewer. I believe that the value proposition is as I stated, in increasing order. She is getting loads of lowball offers on the distressed property that we have been turning down. She unfortunately signed a long term exclusive right to sell with a realtor friend of my brother's. He is livid and is going to try and get her out of it. If not, we will take it through the legal paces. I can't see anyone holding an 85 year old woman without a home to a contract that was never explained correctly. Once that is off the table, we have options to do things with the property. My brother and I are going to handle this ourselves from now on. Meanwhile, the flood insurance advance check is late and I am on the insurance company for answers. I do a little bit of work on this every day. Fortunately, my mothers mind and body are sound and she is incredibly resilient.

Going to be a busy week. Wiped out Monday and rested. We had to kennel "the girls" over the weekend so I picked them up early in the AM on Monday. Our old kennel that we loved has shut down (the owner, a cyclist, retired) so we took them to a new place. Neither dog came back in great shape and our old one was vomiting all day and wouldn't eat yesterday morning.

Ran them solo back down to SoCal (Mrs. Ex is traveling for work the next two weeks). Made the standby "sick dog" meal of rice and ground beef last night, all good so far but they are both still really tired (long drive knocks them around and they were already beat). Got a 20m ride in before it got dark when I got home, between that, shopping, and cooking I ended up eating at 9PM.

Missed my weight/strength workout. Going out to do intervals in a few minutes, come home and work, try to get in an hour of weights then head to the track to meet Hermes and MEA for some testing at 7PM.

I'm sure glad I don't have a "real" job.

Kennels - there is almost no good way to do that. I'm really glad we have great neighbors that come over to care for the dog (and cat) the rare times we're both gone. I've also hired a dog-sitter in the past to come in a couple times a day and feed, give walks, play, etc. That worked pretty well. Got tired of Kennel Cough and other ailments.

Shovel - Sounds like your family is getting it sorted out well. Congratulations, and good luck going forward.

I'm feeling good, and good about where I am, right now. I'm just starting build phase, and feel I could start the season right now and do far better than last year's peak form. Knowing I'll be building from here, I'm truly excited about the coming season, and am confident Ex will push but not let me overtrain. I just sent him a note thanking him, as there is no way to overstate the positive impact his coaching has had on my riding. It's profound, and I can't wait to mix it up on the course and see how I stack up against others that are no doubt working just as hard. You folks have pointed at the ability to recover, noting how key it is, and how much it improves year-to-year in the initial few years. I'm seeing results there, and I gotta say it really feels great to get behind someone for a bit, dialing it back some, and then be able to push again fairly soon. Huge difference maker, and I had a huge smile on my face after last night's training crit.

I love this sport!

Yes. You took the words right out of my mouth.

I owe so much to Ex. He's managed to get my impulsive, addictive personality under control and give me a structure to work in. Importantly, he keeps it interesting, and without that, in spite of my goals, I would have become distracted and wouldn't have done what I needed to do. I am so indebted to him.

Shovel, more props from me, I'll gladly pile on to what AzT said. Your mom sounds like a very rational gal - I see where you get it!

Is it time to race yet??

San Bruno Hillclimb, Jan 1.

Bethel, 3/3/2013, in a new and different kit. Woo hoo.

Thanks for your support with my mother. Turns out the insurance advance check was sent to the wrong address via UPS. UPS sent it back to the sender. So another 10 days or so. Fortunately she does not need the money right now. My brother got her out of the real estate contract. Now we get to take the next steps.

100th aniversary of the Ronde van Flanderian next year and no Murr. How can that be?

That sounds like great progress... My (limited) experience with stuff like this is that its just like weight loss - peaks and valleys. Glad to see you're moving ahead.

When Belgium cycling is more concerned with the dollar than the Murr the end is nigh!

Wasted 30 minutes watching for meteorites tonight. It was really cold and my success ratio was one blazing star for every two beers.

One of the (few) good things about the night shift at work is the Night Vision Devices. With them on I'll be able to see ten meteors per sip (of coffee). I like your ratio, too, AJ!

Drink enough beers and you'll see lots of stars...

I only saw one, but I was viewing from the hot tub.

I swear, Sara, you have the coolest job. I know it's tough, demanding, stressful, and you see a lot of bad things, but you do so much good, and you get to fly helicopters with night vision goggles. If I had to do my career all over again, I would be a first responder. Then I would retire as early as possible, and sell hot dogs at the beach.

Thank you, Shovel. That was very, very sweet. I did waste 23 years flying in the Gulf of Mexico, though. I want to retire - period! ;)

It looked so lonely hanging in the basement today. It's going on a group ride on a late fall sunny day.

http://i489.photobucket.com/albums/r...B4C514EC0A.jpg

You might want to adjust that saddle first.

Sweet! Endurance pace ride tomorrow w/out PT, using my '97 celeste steel Bianchi Trofeo one more time before I put it on the shop for a shifter rebuild.

From my Facebook page, just moments ago:

"I am horrified and devastated by the horrific, HORRIFIC events in Connecticut this morning. Every time I see a video of a mom, a parent, of a child in that school, my heart crumples....I pray for those families, the kids, the other victims...and my heart goes out to them all...."