Kwampton.

People have been complaining about a lack

of cute things on my blog.

This is what I do to appease them.

Caitlin's 21st.

It is my sisters birthday today, and while I am mere hours

away from departing for Europe, I wanted catch the internet

up on what I got her. Last weekend I drove to Chicago to

meet up with her (halfway) and treat her to lunch.

While I was there, I presented her with (to the surprise of

essentially nobody) a bicycle. A 2010 Trek Belleville.

Made of Recyclable Steel with an emphasis on ecologically

friendly supply chains as well as the entire of the product

lifecycle. It has a front dynamo hub which powers the headlight

and taillight. Equipped with full fenders and racks, it will be

more than capable of guiding her to and from class with a

full load of books and make her look awesome doing it

She seemed stoked about it.

Post Trek World: Tiki Bar Party.

The ID team got together after the whirlwind

of activity that was Trek World 2K10. Baumann

and Lichtman had boats pulling people while

landlovers got access to an open bar and open

barbecue.

Misquotes eventually got the best of the team

and we disbanded as the sun set.

This.

Is.

My.

Job.

Sunday Sailing.

Went sailing today for the first time ever.

Might I be so bold as to suggest this is the best way to spend

a day recovering from a bike ride across Iowa.

Ragbrai: Bracelets

Rider Number.

Beer Tent.

Sweaty, Dirty, Greasy, Grime-y, Deteriorating orange twine.

Ragbrai: Accessories

What purpose does this mirror serve if it's pointed at objects

that are already in your peripheral vision?

No.

Purpose.

Ragbrai: Kaibo

People from Iowa call porta-johns, "Kaibos".

That is all.

Ragbrai: Aftermath

What happens after a day of riding?

-Dogs wear Trek sunglasses

-Beer becomes ingested

-Bikes rest

-Tan lines get admired

-Engineers cool off

Ragbrai: Spin Doctors.

I swear this next part is true. At the 8 host cities that we

rode to on the trip, the townspeople would set up a party

and concert for the riders. Below is a list of bands that

freed up time in their busy tour schedule to make their

way out to obscure towns (even by Iowa standards) to

play music for disinterested, starving and putrid bicycle

riders:

Smash Mouth

Spin Doctors

Mini-Kiss

Ragbrai: TTV

Played around with my TTV on the trip. Here's some stuff.

Dig on it.

Ragbrai: Krautbauers.

Andrews dad, Ken Krautbauer, came along to chauffeur the

team around Iowa, help the support team and be an all around

bad-ass story teller.

With the two Krautbauer's united, Iowa state patrol was put

on high alert and luckily, did not have to get involved.

Andrew found a "Kum & Go" branded 100 oz. Thermos.

Ragbrai: Prep Work.

Jess Braun was given the daunting task

of getting 12 people from Waterloo, WI

to Sioux Falls, Iowa. Those people selfishly

demanded that she find a way to transport

their bikes as well. Luckily, Trek has an

righteous proto-hop, extruded steel and

yakima roof rack attachments. With a little

ingenuity, nylon tie downs and some gentle

massaging, the bikes were on and we were

sailing down the road with our completely

custom, tour-worthy bike rack.

Krautbauer supervised the installation

process.