Welcome to the creepiest time of year. October is a ghoulish month that awakens our senses after a long, hot and overly wet summer. As the Florida flooding subsides and the humidity fades, that is when the freaks and frights return in the night. The question is, are you ready for some challenges that will chill the bones? I present to you 2 amazing events to fill your party calendar for All Hallows Eve. Both combine the outdoors fun of athletic exhilaration with the unnerving allure of costumed creativity. The events take place on back to back weekends, one involves running and one involves biking but both of them embody the essential spirit of Samhain. The first great challenge is Howl at the Moon 2, a sequel to the last year's Halloween 5k trail run. However, this is no ordinary jog in the park. Just before the sunrise on Oct 19th, hundreds of costumed runners will line up at Ann Dever park in Englewood and then charge into a haunted forest full of Zombies! You ...

When I was a little kid I loved visiting my grandparents and exploring their house. My grandfather built the place himself and included a tucked away cellar that served as his personal man cave. Keep in mind this was long before people would tag such nooks with a prehistoric metaphor. While the stereotype of cavemen was that of unenlightened Neanderthals hiding from the elements, the modern man cave is more a creation of the craftsman. It is a haven where one can design, develop and create. My grandfather was a carpenter, landscaper, furniture maker, you name it. Within the dark, cool concrete walls of his basement was a long work area full of tools. On the opposite side was a weight bench and at the deepest end was a hole in the wall where older bikes or scooters were stored. Grandpa's man cave was creepy, exciting and appealed to both the primal and creative sides of myself. It was a place to hide, to build and escape the world while also preparing for it. After...

Another 9/11 date has come and gone. While the images and emotions brought forth from that horrendous day feel more distant, the reality of its effects remains indisputable. We are a different country in many ways. The most obvious of which is our appreciation of those whose job it is to quiet the chaos. First responders around the nation know that when a crisis emerges, they can handle the job in part because we will all rise up to bolster their efforts. On Saturday, Sept 14th the NPFR Honor Guard hosted the 3rd Annual Remember the Fallen 5K. This wildly popular fundraiser drew a crowd of more than 500 people with 428 runners completing the course (Up from 375 last year). On a day set aside for recollection, this was a race worth remembering. The Firefighter Challenge - Intertwined among the hundreds setting pace on the streets of North Port were those few brave souls who wore the firefighter uniform for the full length of the run. Battling the heat and rising sun th...

Personability is everything, especially when it comes to bike shops. In our internet obsessed society the modern store front is faced with a multitude of challenges. Each day dozens of websites announce a new sale, promising the lowest possible prices and free shipping. Add to this the bidding wars on Ebay plus the digital yard sale known as Craigslist and it has to make you wonder how any bike shop can keep their doors open. This gets us back to that personal touch. Since bike shops are in a losing struggle with online retailers, they have to make up for it in other ways. Their top three weapons are quality service, location and personability. At their September grand re-opening I got a chance to talk to Tempo Cyclery's owner and see their new shop. My question was, have they achieved the trifecta needed for further success? Store owner Julian Angus jr Enthusiasm can be infectious. When you are talking to a true cyclist, passion bleeds through every word. At th...

Simplicity is a beautiful thing. When it comes to rides there is nothing simpler or more elegant than a fixed gear bike or "Fixie." A standard fixie has a high tensile steel frame, 3 piece cranks, at least one brake and a flip flop hub. These are street bikes that can be used for commuter or training purposes, they are low cost (About $325.) and they are a blast to ride. I decided to give one a try at my local shop Real Bikes Englewood . "One thing you have to keep in mind," noted Melody Vasbinder, who owns the store with her husband Gary, "You can't stop pedaling. You can speed up and you can slow down but you can't freewheel." This becomes clear the moment you put a foot down on the pedal but once you start moving the appeal of these bikes quickly becomes apparent. There is no hesitation when you turn the pedals on a fixie. The power of each pedal stroke is directly transferred to the rear wheel propelling you forward. Your sp...

No trip to Winter Park, Colorado would be complete without a bike test. Luckily the people from Specialized were on hand doing demos of the 2013 line and they were kind enough to lend me a helmet as I took out a 2013 Stumpjumper FSR EVO . Since I already used my lift ticket for some downhill fun the day before then I would have start at the bottom of the mountain to do a little exploring. Right from the start I was amazed by how light this bike was. You could curl it with one hand. I'm assuming it was the carbon version but I do know that it had been modified from its original set-up. Instead of the 2 by 10 gearing it had a single sprocket and the forks had the black coating now becoming popular with Enduro cyclists. I took off down a dirt road and decided to kick this off with a technical climb into the woods. Right off the bat I was impressed. I had come down this two way trail the day before and found it to be challenging on the descent but now I was raging up ...

The final event of the Colorado Freeride Festival was the Intergalactic Pond Crossing. This is a contest for only the greats, partaken by men and women of superior skill and daring. The riders must be willing to don a lifejacket and before a crowd of onlookers balance across an 8 inch wide floating bridge over a freezing pond. Few will make it to the other side but those who do will earn prizes equal to their greatness. Ok, I'm being a little sarcastic but the pond crossing really is a fun event. After a full weekend of hardcore racing this is where everyone has one last chance to gather, cheer and laugh.  With an open sign up process the riders ranged from 10 year old kids to top professionals like Jerome Clementz, Ben Cruz, Jeff Lenosky and Tracy Moseley. Regardless of their accomplishments on the dirt, this challenge was the ultimate equalizer for all participants. The race started at 3 pm just after the rain subsided and even though the crowd was a bit sma...