Up For Grabs

Anyone who checks in here often can tell you that I haven't been posting at all lately, and those that know me can tell this means something's up. Well, I've been putting so much time into StartupWriting.com and my own freelance writing, that I don't have the time or money to construct the full Multisport Maps website right now. I have a brand already built and and have lots of information stored away, so I might get back to it at some point.

But in the meantime... anyone want it? I'd consider selling what I have, or shipping it out to a CEO. Interest?

Thanks,
Brian

Catching Up

I've been real busy of late, and haven't had a chance to post.... so here's a quick update:

I spent this past weekend participating in Startup Weekend (which was a blast), and have spent the last few days writing a new blog (inspired by my experience there). Fun stuff!

The full Multisport Maps site is still coming along - the designer Andrew is coming into Boulder tonight, and I'm locking him up in my basement until it's done... so more details on that soon.

And of course, I'll write up a few more features for the blog here at some point... keep an eye out for those.

Hope you all are doing well!

Sugar Snow Run

We've had a dry winter here in Boulder - no significant snow to speak of in awhile. But last night, a good 5 or 6 inches fell. Real nice, wet stuff too... what Vermonters call a sugar snow. We don't have any sugar maples here, and I haven't made any syrup (though I did eat some of my father's in my oatmeal this morning), but I figured I should still celebrate. So I threw on my running gear, strapped up my sneakers, and went for a long run. It was my best one all season... under weighted branches, and along rushing streams, all over our open space trails. It (of course) looks and feels different here in Colordao, but the time reminded me of Vermont. Protected, peaceful, and beautiful.

So, to you guys in Vermont: Enjoy the last of winter, and I'll see you soon.

Feature – East-West Hill Climb

I’ll stay in the Putney/Brattleboro area, and talk about one of the best rides around… the climb up East-West Hill. It’s best from the West side, from Route 30 (the popular biking road that runs out of Brattleboro). On Rte. 30, A couple miles from town, there’s a real nice covered bridge - classic Vermont. It goes over the West River (over a nice swimming hole, and only a couple miles from where we distance-swim), and onto East-West Road. From there, the road kicks up pretty good. 2 or 3 miles of hard, out-of-the-saddle grinding… relatively short, but wicked steep. One of those climbs that no matter how fit or strong you are, you’re gonna have to suffer a little bit. For people who like that kind of thing, it’s a blast.

Most athletes in the area ride it pretty often. A lot do their z3 and z4 intervals on Route 30 (the only real flat road around), and jump up East-West Hill to finish off the workout (in a tough way). I used to tack it onto the end of my favorite 100k loop (out from Putney, through Saxtons River to Grafton, and back through Townshend), and cracked on it once real bad (I tried to do the ride on 2 Gu’s and one piece of pizza). The best story about the climb, though, goes on that Bill Koch (Putney native and credited-inventor of skate-style skiing), used to double-pole up and over the hill in training. That’s ridiculous if it’s true.

But anyway, if you’re in the area, make sure to hit up the climb… it won’t disappoint. Here it is pinpointed on a google map, and here’s the one picture I have of the climb (I don’t have any of the top part for obvious reasons):

Feature - West Hill Shop

Allright. I'm sick of talking about swimming. Well, not completely. I’m always up for talking about it, and I will… there are plenty more great places to swim across the state, and I'll feature them all here (and on the full site) at some point. But at least for now, it’s time to move on. I’m switching sports, but staying close (geographically). From the West River in Brattleboro, to the West Hill Shop in Putney. The shop is legendary by now (read this to get caught up). It’s half calm-Vermont, and half intense-cycling…. a holdover from the old-school days of riding, but with a modern feel too. They’ve put a new post-and-beam addition on, but they still keep the dirty “old shop” attached, and of course, they still keep the famous Red and Yellow kits.

The owners Jim and Diny are both personable and helpful, but the soul of the store (as it always has) revolves around Daq, the mechanic. He’s top-notch… the best wrench I’ve ever seen. He does the simple stuff flawlessly and the difficult stuff easily. He pays attention to the small things, and has an ingenious creativity. He can do any repair, and more times than not, can do it with a used part or a piece of inner-tube (for example). He does great work, and can usually save you some money (so you can stock up on Gu).

Daq has a name for everyone (I’m “Captain Burnsie”), and every rider in town drops in to hang out every once and awhile. You add in the (relatively) new (and cool) guy Rob, plus Jim and Diny… and West Hill is as much a place to hang out as it is a place to buy bikes. So, if you want to talk shop, if you want a new bike, a bike repair, even a (hard) Tuesday night road ride or a (very hard) cyclocross practice, West Hill’s the best place in the area. They’re just off 91 and just outside of downtown Putney (8 miles or so from Brattleboro). Or, you can cruise to their website (and lots of cool stuff) at www.westhillshop.com.

Pictures… one of the shop, and one of me riding in my West Hill kit:

(Another) New Blog

Hey guys. Thought you might be interested in a new blog of mine, located over at brianlburns.blogspot.com. It's relatively simple - a dynamic, web-based resume for for my writing... but it should be lots of fun too. Check it out.

Noah Revisited

Ok... I've gotten a lot of crap (mostly from my mother) for being unfair to Noah. She said it was mean to post this picture of him a couple days ago:


As someone who wears my Speedo with pride, I meant nothing but admiration with the picture. But to clean up the record for all, Noah is a good-looking dude with a fine sense of style. This is a picture of him (and half of paul) earlier that evening, loaded up in my Jeep to go swimming. Pretty studly, eh?

Feature (part 3) - West River

Two times I written features about the training in Vermont, and twice, I've featured pools. It's winter, so I figure that's where my mind was... but really, anyone who's spent a summer in Vermont knows the best swimming comes far from chlorinated water, lane lines, and the black-tiles-of-death-by-boredom. It comes under the late-afternoon sun, past trees that hang out over the water, and through schools of fish darting around the bottom-rocks. It comes, of course, in the open water. Vermont holds almost unlimited open-water adventure; every town it seems, has it's own favorite rivers and lakes. Each one is worthy of an afternoon’s-worth of exploration, but I'll try and narrow it down to a few to feature here.

The first is a spot pretty near to my former home, and only 2 or 3 miles outside of Brattleboro: the West River. The water there, depending on rain and draught, can be as shallow as 3-4 feet in some points. Deep enough to swim easily, but shallow enough to bring the fish right under your nose, and shallow enough to give the swim a safe feel – absent of loud and threatening motor boats. A steep, tree-green hill rises up immediately to the east of the water, which not only beautiful, gives the river a closed-in feel, and makes the swimming seem even more safe. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy the calm, worry-free Vermont evenings.

We usually swim from the launch (a 1/4 mile hike from rte. 30) downstream to the 91 bridge that goes over the water. There’s always cool stuff that’s dropped off the bridge to explore there (I’ve found a fork, a pair of women’s sunglasses, and a couple hubcaps), and then, we swim more slowly back up. It’s a great time, and being only 2 or 3 miles out of town, is a great option for people in Brattleboro.

Pictures... Two of Bad-ass Steve T. and I goofing around, and then an afternoon series of Friends Noah, Paul and Hilary.

Steve and I:



Noah in the outfit he got unrelentless shit for:


Noah, Paul and Hilary Wading in:


Actually swimming:


And afterward, Hilary performing in the parking lot:

My Kind of Workday

I've been working pretty hard lately - Multisport Maps is starting to kick back up, and I'm running a couple new businesses... all while life (and relationships) run on. I've put in more than a few long days recently, and worked right through this past weekend. Come today then, I was pretty tired. I woke up, and was working at 8am, when Roommate Randy started to dress for a ride. It was a great, sunny February day, so, heck… I decided to go with him. I could head out for a quick spin, and be back at my computer before lunchtime.

Well, we rode 110k... took us a bit over 4 hours, 42 minutes. I haven't ridden for more than 90 minutes since last October, so I can't say it was pretty, but it sure was a blast. It started at with a free espresso shot at Moto's coffee shop (a buddy of Randy's), then rolled out north of town, toward a reservoir called Carter Lake. We climbed up to the lake, descended off, and going through a headwind 2 hours, 30 minutes in, the predictable happened: I cracked… completely. I was way gone.

I stuffed down a caffeinated gel and a chocolate Powerbar, then sat behind Randy (at 10mph) for the next 20 minutes. I got out of "that place," but the legs just weren’t there again. I basically dragged my ass home... but only barely. We ate near a full box of spaghetti, we watched a movie, and I'm only writing this after a quick nap. Tough ride, but a great ride. And really, a great day. Exactly the break I needed.

A few pictures:

Moto’s:

Rolling out:

About halfway (check the mountains at 11 o’clock):


Our second (and last) coffee stop, about 80k in:

Breckenridge Retreat

A new feature is coming along soon, but I figured it’d be fun to show you all where I am this week – a sweet mountain home in Breckenridge, CO. I’m staying at an entrepreneurs' retreat, as a guest of my good buddy Andrew. I’m getting some work done, sure, but there’s also been plenty of eating, hot tubing, and general relaxing. It's been a real nice time.

Here are some pictures. One of the house, then a series of Andrew. Partly because he’s an important pal, but mostly just because he likes posing:

Features (part 2) - Bennington Rec Center

In part one of the series, I wrote about Stowe’s pool, ‘The Swiming Hole’ – named and designed to capture the quaint, easy feel of Vermont. And while it’s certainly a nice place to swim, I think the Rec Center in Bennington actually does a better job representing the states’ culture; the straight-forward, no-nonsense side. It’s set into one of the town’s run-down, old mill neighborhoods, and the facility itself is pretty dreary. But the pool is fine, and it works great if you just want a workout.

Best of all, access only costs you $3, so if you go in the morning (they usually open for adult swim around 6am), you can get in a couple thousand yards, then head down to Sonny’s Blue Ben Diner for a great railroad-car breakfast. All this for less than a single access pass to The Swimming Hole.

New Project

Though Multisport Maps remains my main focus, I've been working on a new tri-related project recently: www.tribiz.blogspot.com.... a simple networking site for triathletes making their living away from the sport. Check it out, and by all means, I hope the athlete readers here will add themselves to the list.

Features (part 1) - The Swimming Hole

It’s been a little quiet around here lately, so I figure it’s time to start a new multi-part series… this one about some of the things I found around Vermont – some of the rides I went on, some of the pools I swam in, some of the runs I took…. Just a few of the things that will be on the full site come spring.

I figured I’ll start, for no specific reason, with one of the nicer pools in the state – The Swimming Hole in Stowe. Like most things in that area, it’s a little cutesy. It’s built to look like a Vermont-style red barn, has tiled showers and expensive soaps, and of course it’s pricey:16.50 for a day pass (!). That said though, the facility is pretty nice, and the pool is great…. 8 lanes across, lots of other swimmers, and it’s set into a large, airy room with nice big windows. Most of Vermont’s pools are cramped and dark…. The Swimming Hole is open and light. It may not be for everyone, but it’s a nice place to get in a workout (and even relax a little bit).

Check it out if you’re in the area, or visit their website at theswimmingholestowe.com. For now though, here are a couple pictures I snapped while I was there:

A new idea (and a new time)

Those of you who read multisportmaps.com know I don’t do a lot of linking. Actually, this will be the first. But if you haven’t already seen it, go check out this ESPN.com article. It’s cool because these guys (Slipstream cycling team) are getting good exposure in a sport that only makes Sportscenter for it’s underbelly culture; it’s cool because they’re based in Boulder, and I almost rented a room from one of the riders; and really, it’s cool because they’re creating buzz over a new approach to building a team. The idea is based on being clean, sure, but it’s also based on being smart – about branding themselves, just like Apple, Kodak, or Match.com. About being professional, and about being business-minded, not just strong on the bike. A lot of money’s coming into endurance sports, and the ante is being raised – you have to be good, no doubt, but you have to be smart too.

Boulder (Part 3) – The Job???

First things first, Multisport Maps is still the center of my professional attention. That’s my direction, and that’s where my focus is…. I’m still dedicated to creating a fantastic guide for endurance athletes (more on that in the next post). However, as my expenses pile up in a new city, and seeing as though the money-making phase of Multisport Maps has yet to launch (more on this soon too), I’d like to add other work onto my plate. I’ve been looking around – trying to find a local business who needs a hand, or an exciting new startup that can use some of my experience. But as expected, it’s been difficult – it’s hard to find an appealing option after enjoying the work on this project so much.

So the search will continue for a little while longer. I think something will pop up soon, and I’ll certainly share it here when it does. Until then though, wish me me luck.

Boulder (Part 2) – the Place

I’ve now set up camp at a house in the North-Central part of town, with another triathlete and stud-cyclist (Randy). I have a nice, organized bedroom that gets a ton of sunlight - I share the living room and kitchen with Randy, and on one out of every couple nights, his girlfriend Andie (a darn-good triathlete in her own right). We have HDTV, wireless, and best of all, a garage just for bikes… complete with racks, hooks, a work station, and plenty of room set-up for our rollers and trainers. Location-wise, the house is 1/4 mile from a section of the Boulder running-trails, one stoplight from the riding north of town, and only a mile or so from Pearl Street and downtown. In all, it’s a real nice place, and a darn good one for me.

A couple pictures:

Bedroom:

Living Room:

Kitchen:

Roomate-Randy doing some post-ride yard work:


And me doing some late-night wrenching in the garage: