Things are Happening Things have been real busy around the Surly Ranch and Home for Wayward Injured Folks lately. Dave's chicken ankle (see below) keeps him hobbling around and generally in the way and now our boy Blake seems to have broken his head. Blake works over on the "other side of the room" pouring over technical drawings and playing with calipers, but that's just his Clark Kent persona. On the weekends he's super long-distance mountain bike racer guy. This part of his life has recently ended up in a helicopter ride and some sweet head staples. Seems Blake wiped out and bashed his melon on something real hard out in Utah last weeked. Put' near took him out, but some other racer-geeks came to his rescue and got him the help he needed (well, not ALL the help, but the help with that particular injury.) So here are a couple of shots of FrankenMelon. Note the HO scale model railroad that begins at his forehead, drops off some logs and grain at his occipital lobe, and finaly disembarks at his ear. Check out the dent (now occupied by titanium plates). Awesome! Blake is ok. He also broke some other bits - notably his scapula and collarbone and his hip, but like the Superman we know him to be, he's walking, back at work, and salty as ever. Blake would like to thank the racers who helped him out, the helicopter pilot, the nurses and doctors, his ladyfriend, and especially his freaky vegan lifestyle. All them veggies broke his fall and surround his brainsac with a cushioning layer of cellulose. In other news: The Adventures for the Cure guys are done with their ride across the United States raising money for Kupenda and for Diabetes research. Again, to reiterate, these guys are tougher than you. They rode across the US on fixed gear Steamrollers. And they didn't go straight across like you would have, they took the long route logging over 6500 miles. Damn. Congratulations guys! In still other news: The 2006 Mpls-St.Paul ALL CITY CHAMPIONSHIP Alley Cat is coming up on Saturday, September 16th. Check out Bikejerks for more information. And word to Admiral Pickles and his crue for setting this thing up. We at Surly are always happy when folks get bike events going in our fair cities. These guys are both dope and fly, so you should get there. 4pm sign up at One On One. More news yet: For those of you in the self-flagellation set, it's almost Cyclocross season and we have a pain fest for you to attend put on by our good friends over at The Hub Bike Co-op. Their big to-do race is set for Sunday, October 22 at beautiful urban Powderhorn Park in Minneapolis. Last year was great, this year will be great. It's great. Stay tuned for more info. Lastly: The 2006 Homey Fall Fest will once again be held at the Hobo Camp. This year we'll be doing the deal on Saturday, October 21. All are welcome, most bikes will do just fine. Stay tuned. -----