Mike Curiak is the top dog in endurance racing. He doesn’t do the 24 hour loop-in-a-circle-until-you’re-a-veg. He does the endurance races that most think are simply impossible. Right now he’s riding the entire Iditarod trail at the same time as the Iditarod Trail Invitational race. Mike’s ridden the full 1100 miles to Nome before. He’s already won that race. This time he’s doing it fully unsupported.

Compared with most races and rides, the Iditarod is about as unsupported as you get. You can stop in cabins along the way and purchase a meal. Further along the trail you can stop in small villages and buy food. Mike’s won’t be doing that. He’s on his own and carrying everything he needs.

Just surviving on what you have is amazing. I just can’t imagine the willpower to ride past some of those cabins where they’ll gladly serve some hot tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Spending a day slogging through snow, eating just Clif bars and trail mix certainly makes you appreciate a basic hot meal.

The above photo is from Eric Parsons. Eric’s company, Epic Designs made Mike’s storage and handlebar mitts. His stuff looks absolutely bombproof and very well-designed. And I know Mike sets the bar pretty high for his gear. If the stuff didn’t work, it wouldn’t be on his bike.

While walking to the grocery store last week I passed blind woman and her dog heading the opposite direction.  We both exchanged greetings and continued on our way.  This was a welcomed contrast to the more commonly sighted pedestrian with an iPod who’s rather oblivious to their surroundings.

I used to cross country ski a fair amount. I’ve done a couple races, including the VASA. But since I started biking more in the winter, I’ve hardly skied at all.

The dry spell was broken this year when Karen and I skied the Lake Ann Pathway near Interlochen. That was a great time.

I hit the trails again with Dan Harrison. Dan was good enough to let me borrow his waxless skis so I wouldn’t have to deal with waxing mine. We did a quick loop at Harwick Pines near Grayling, but not the main groomed trail. Instead we did the less used, more rustic AuSable River trail.

I need to put a plug in for my Patagonia Cold Track jacket, Windshield tights, lightweight balanclava, and All Season clothes. My hands were chilly at the start, but I was the perfect temperature after that and everything seemed to breathe just enough.

Again, it was another great time.

The conditions for running in Southeast Michigan are about the worst it can get: dry, powdery snow on top of a layer of ice. If you’re lucky, someone’s shoveled the sidewalk and you can see the ice directly.

However, this is a great time to own some screw shoes.

I got the basic instructions on-line and bought 10 half-inch sheet metal screws from Frentz’s Hardware. I pre-drilled all the holes. Six screws in front and four in the back.

How did they work? Very good. They seem to work best when running directly on the ice. I did have slippage where compressed powdery snow was covering the ice. But, the slippage was pretty consistent so there aren’t many surprises. Nonetheless I did fall once, but no one saw me so that doesn’t really count, right?

I have run with these before in mixed conditions. They are not fun to use on dry pavement. In those cases I would probably take my chances with my regular shoes.

Oh yeah, these things are noisy when they’re hooking up. If people look at you funny, tell them you have bad knees.

Also, if I were doing this again, I would probably add a few more screws up front. I don’t see much of a penalty in doing so.

Thanks to metromode for writing about cycling in Metro Detroit. As I told my friends, I don’t normally ride in baggy hiking pants, but it had rained the night before and my cycling tights were still damp. I was wearing my Patagonia Windshield top, which was a great choice for the balmy Michigan winter weather.

I’m “practically evangelical when it comes to cycling?” What does it take to become “full-on evangelical?”