Great Green Goblins

Back in March, I was accepted to be part of the Airborne Flight Crew. In April I was given an all expense trip to California to attend Sea Otter and partake in a photo shoot. It was such an amazing experience that it took several posts to get it all out there. In case you missed something.......

Photoshoot

Day One

Day Two

Day Three

Race Day

The first week of May a huge box was delivered to my door. It contained my very own Goblin. I wanted to tear into that box and put it together. I had waited patiently for this bike and now I wanted to get to know it. Regrettably, I had to push the box into a corner. I had three single speed races in May and really needed to ride my ss. There was so much rain , I only managed a handful of rides.

California

The third week of May I built my Goblin. I opened the box, within a box, to find the frame and wheels smothered in bubble wrap, cardboard, and foam. I have never seen anything like it. Zip ties everywhere. This bike was packed so well I think it could have fallen from the freight plane and not sustained any damage. I did have pictures of the unwrapping and the build, unfortunately , my Iphone took on some water and was destroyed. Check out this awesome video from FC member Brent Davidson.

I have never put a bike together, so I was very relieved to see that Airborne did 80% of it for me. Hell, they even inflated the tires. Who does that? About 20 minutes later I had successfully put it together. All by myself! Now all I needed was for Mother Nature to cut me a break. Here in the Midwest, trails have been closed more often than open.I have been forced to ride the road, a lot of road . I had been training for the June DK200 , and there I would be using my cross-bike. I had been looking forward to this race, but also wanted it over so I could begin my relationship with the ' new guy ' in the stable. All the followed was more rain, trail closures, and frustration. I planned an epic with the Goblin, had a sitter for the day. Yep, you guessed it. Buckets of Rain. Several races have been cancelled to prevent trail damage. I would much rather build new trail than repair trail damaged by some thoughtless riders.

I also had eye surgery this week and am recovering well. I hope the Dr. lets me loose to ride sooner than 2 weeks. Breaking in the Airborne Goblin will be a pleasure. All mine. I have decided that I will run this bike exactly the way it came out of the box. Well, except for one adjustment, adding Ergon grips and bar ends. I want to see how this bike holds up without making any upgrades. I want to see how it performs after some long rides and how it will handle my abuse and MO trails. I like the Kenda small block 8's and plan to run them as much as I can. They are not my fave choice for every trail or trail condition tho.

As soon as I am released to ride I will hop on the Goblin. Gears are cool, lots of choices. I will now have choices! It's kinda funner to be faster sometimes. I have been adapting with one gear for a while now. I am thinking about doing some races on it. Watch out local experts. HaHa I know I have a ways to go. I am confident that 'his green-ness' will be the bike to take me there. I ride because I want to be better, and because it's fun. It's also fun to get better and podium once in a while.

Wait for it

"Some people follow their dreams, others chase them down and beat them into submission." Not sure who said that, but they hit the nail on the head. I consider myself an OTHER. None of this 'craziness' has come easily. My first ride , at age 37, ended with a trip to the ER and a broken elbow. While licking my wounds, for four months, I had an epiphany. During that short 1 1/2 mile ride I fell in love! Not with the bike I was riding, but with the feeling of riding a bike. I felt incredibly FREE. I was not a mom , not a wife. { I love being a mom and a wife } I was ME?! Mountain biking has changed my life and made me a better human along the way. I also realized I wanted to become an amazing rider and ride for a 'cool' team. Words can't even describe how freakin' awesome my experience has been with Team Seagal. Those jerks are the best.

At the end of Feb., I saw an ad from Airborne Bicycles looking for 5-6 new Flight Crew members. " Now, that would be a 'cool' team to ride for" I thought. Airborne , out of Ohio, sells several kinds of bikes. Downhill, freeride and mountain bikes just to name a few. Follow this link http://www.airbornebicycles.com/ and check out what they offer. The first bike that caught my attention was this one . The Goblin.

I bet it would be an incredible single speed!

I decided that I was not going to sit back and wait for anything this year. So I went for it. I sent in my application telling them about me and why I ride. I gave them links to the trails I frequent and pointed them towards my blog. The fantasies began after I hit send.

I followed the banter on FaceBook and waited anxiously to hear when the final decision would be made. Two weeks passed. I heard nothing, nada. Airborne would post up they were still reviewing apps, that they had received so many good ones, and they would be narrowing down to 29. The waiting was torture. Their plan to send emails to those who did not make it failed when their server blew. Damn, I was feeling good about NOT getting an email. Finally, I got an email last Wed. night.

Basically, it said that they needed some more info and had to make sure I was not a serial killer . I informed them I had a long ride planned for Thurs. and told them when they could contact me. They called at 9am and we talked briefly. Rick Vosper, Airbornes Director,handled most of the call while Jeremy Mudd and Eric McKenna listened in. Airborne had received several hundred responses and I was in the top 10! Yeah, seriously! They asked questions about me, Team Seagal, and why I ride. Rick said he would call me Friday to let me know either way. Are you kidding me? I had to wait one more day. Ugh! How was I supposed to sleep? Hell, I barely slept anticipating their first phone call. I started getting ready for my long ride and tried to forget about it . Yeah, right. That didnt work so well. I did have a great ride thinking of the possibilities. I may have been in shock. I told myself I should be happy to have even gotten a call. I should be satisfied with that. What Bullsh*t! I wanted this. I hoped my passion came through on the phone in case I failed in writing.

My phone rang at 4pm. It was Rick again. Had he forgotten to ask me something? He didnt beat around the bush. He said " Wendy, let me be the first to welcome to the Flight Crew". I told him I think I needed to scream. He told me to put the phone down and go for it. So, I did. I screamed . I think he was impressed with my lungs. He took my kit sizes and bike sizes and said he would be in touch.

Thank goodness I really like the Goblin, because ..... They are giving me one. Yes, GIVING. And , they said I can make it a single speed if I want. Just when I thought it couldnt get any better.... Airborne is taking the Flight Crew to ..... Sea Otter. Yes, boys and girls. I am going to California. I get the opportunity to meet and ride with some amazing cyclists for like 5 days. I am very stoked about this new gig. Don't worry, I will drag you along every step of the way. What a way to start the year, dontcha think? To think it all started with me laying in a ditch....." Look at me now Ma! I am on top of the world." I am AIRBORNE. One question. Should I race while I am there??? Get the deets here: http://www.seaotterclassic.com/