DougM

Life always gets in the way of living it seems

2012-02-14T10:38:00.001-05:00

In what seems to now be my monthly cycle for posting (the months go so fast), here is an update to cycling life.

I drank a lot of coffee during the month of January. Shelly bought me the Starbucks refillable tumbler for Christmas. So, I made one or two trips to the coffee shop everyday. Oh, and if you notice, even Starbucks is on the 29er kick.

The logistics of having a family with 3 kids, a spouse, a job, a spouse with a job, a church, an extended family, an extended church family, and trying to train for the coming cycling season (OMBC opener is just about 8 weeks away now!) is exhausting. As you can see below, the kids agree. Lots of days I get to bed by 11pm and wonder 1. why I am so tired, and 2. what did I accomplish? Training? Well, that isn't happening.

February begins with a high every year though as the 4th is our wedding anniversary. This year marks 17 years hitched. I was excited to take Shelly to dinner at the newest restaurant in Athens, Sol, a Cuban fusion place that opened in the old Salaam location. I don't know if it was really the food was great, or if I was influenced by the fact that I was at dinner without any kids! Just us. Doesn't seem to happen much anymore. The food was really quite good. Based on a good friend's recommendation, I had to get the chicken and yellow rice (Arroz con pollo). Too full for dessert and they were not set up yet to make a nice Cuban coffee, we headed home where Shelly's folks were watching the boys. Oh, forgot to mention that Brock and I got sick the day before and were still feeling pretty pathetic on the 4th. Life always gets in the way of living it seems.

Good news of January and February is that I have a limited number of miles on the trainer. That is because the weather has been fairly mild for a south eastern Ohio winter. Lots of sunny and 40 degree days means road riding. No trail riding since the trails aren't frozen, but miles none the less. I did rejoin Team Athens again (figured as long as they let me on the team, I better join). Looking forward to some more riding and racing this year.

Happy Riding...

Saturday

2012-01-15T10:06:00.001-05:00

A little UEFA soccer and some indoor rolling, that is, at least until Brock woke up. All the windows and the wood stove made it feel like a summer ride.

No Time

2012-01-11T12:37:00.003-05:00

Most days I feel like I am living the Guess Who song, no time. And everyone just wants more. Work has asked me to put in more hours. Church is asking me to play guitar more. Ethan is playing basketball and practicing 2-3 times a week plus games. Brock is so stinking busy, if you turn you back on him for 2 seconds, you don't know what you'll find when you turn around (like on his belly on the island counter top). I am way behind on firewood for the year (luckily it has remained fairly mild thus far). I am planning to finish part of the basement into another bedroom to move Michael into so we can move Brock out of our bedroom and into his own room. I had to turn down playing soccer after a friend asked me to join their indoor team, just can't commit the time to play.

Typical Saturday: drop off Ethan for warm-ups before his first game at 9am. Run to the gas station, grab some milk at the grocery store, pickup a package at the post office, and be back to the school by 9:30 for his game. Home around 11 and replaced the furnace blower. Grabbed a bite to eat and put in a quick 17 mile road ride. Dropped Ethan off at grandpa's at 3 and stopped to get a truck load of firewood. Home around 5 and showered and in town to get a sandwich and drop off Michael at the winter homecoming dance by 8p. Back home, get Brock in bed (a chore in and of itself) and back to the school at 11p to pickup Michael.

Anyway, with the weather being mild for an Ohio winter, I have put in some miles outside instead of just on the trainer. Speaking of miles, I finally looked at my 2011 log. Managed 1,665 miles, 107,700 feet of climbing, and nearly 92 thousand calories. Not too bad, more than double what I did in 2010.
Folks got me a near rear tire for the Masi, a floor pump, and a rechargeable taillight (Serfas USL-5R) for Christmas. I'll try to write something up about the taillight. Shelly also got me a 900 lumen headlight (bright!). Now if I just had the time to get some night trail riding in.

Not a real blog post without pictures, right?

Christmas Eve's Eve OU ball game with Ethan.

The shadow proves the sunshine.

I love this old barn. Ride past it all the time.

Glove and jacket weather.

Updates in Photos

2011-12-02T08:26:00.000-05:00

Black Friday meant I got to take Ethan and Brock to the big park in Wilkesville. Weather was crazy nice.

We finally started getting some eggs from our new chickens. Mmmm, fresh happy eggs.

Finished off the pre-deer hunting week Saturday with a trip to Lake Hope for a ride with the new SLX brakes. What a difference. Single finger stopping, modulation is excellent, quiet, they don't drag. Been a while since I was on the trail, too long.

Obligatory picture of our Christmas tree. Thanks to Shelly, it got put up and decorated.

Newness

2011-11-16T09:04:00.000-05:00

Got a new camera at work so I can shoot detailed photos of parts for the many reports I seem to be writing lately. Of course, no time at work to shoot so I can get familiar with the camera. Had bring it home to do that. On the plus side, I got to play around with to taking shots of my new disc brakes (Shimano SLX M666 with XT rotors) for the Monocog Flight. Pictures taken with a Panasonic Lumix LX5 on apature priority, without flash.

Enjoy.

Life Updates

2011-11-15T15:00:00.000-05:00

Today is a strange day. Looking back over the last week and wondering what took place, why I am exhausted, why my back hurts so bad...

Last Friday, November 11, 11, while we were honoring not only the US Vets but also remembering Eric's life on the anniversary of his death, we received the phone call that Helen Pidcock had just passed. Helen was like a grandmother. I say like, though she called us her grand-kids and we called her our adopted grandmother, we were not actually related. Helen was just 92 years old. She was as mentally sharp as I can ever remember and if it wasn't for her failing body, you would not have know she was a day over 50. She was a colorful person. Not only her personality but literally. The inside of her house was painted in almost fluorescent colors. She always dressed in bright colors. I say this as it just didn't seem right to wear black clothes and drive my gray car to her funeral services. I found my brightest dress shirt (purple) to wear with my black pants. Then, thanks to Chris at Don Wood, I drove a Sunbeam Yellow Toyota FJ Cruiser to the funeral. I think she would have loved that. She was a big influence on my family's life and she will be missed.

Spent the weekend trying to get caught up, if only a little. Split and stacked the rest of my firewood Saturday. We finished the day planning to get pizza at Fox's in Rutland. When we arrived, there was a large party and we were told that it would be over an hour before they could start our pizza. Instead we ended up at the Court Street Grill in Pomeroy for burgers. Not the plan, but worked out anyway.

Sunday I managed to get in a 20 mile ride in 20mph+ winds between lunch at mom's and dinner at the OU-AIA Thanksmas gathering. We made food for their event and were supposed to help serve. Ended up just helping clean up as they had more servers than they needed.

Woke up Monday barley able to stand up. Not sure exactly how I did it, but managed to injure my back. Not fun.

One more commentary. Ethan had saved money to buy an iPod Touch. We ordered it from Amazon over the weekend and it shipped from Lexington, KY on Monday via "Super Saver" shipping. To save shipping costs, the box went from Lexington, past Athens to Grove City (Columbus), before it came back to Athens today for expected delivery on Weds. Logistics...

That bites

2011-11-03T22:00:00.000-04:00

Yeh, so after all the other little annoyances of the last few weeks, I broke a molar. Luckily, not much of any pain with it other than the sharp edge of the tooth. The dentist got me right in for xrays and a cleaning before fixing the tooth today. They placed a form around the tooth and filled it in. Good as new.

I know I have complained about all the little stuff going on. Not to say they aren't a pain to deal with, but it all could be so much worse. The car fire was minor and the alternator fix a pain, but I had a backup vehicle that did a fine job. My truck needed two trips to Pomeroy requiring me to burn time off from work just to replace the LED cab lights, but it is under warranty and the washed it. Brock is still exhausting but healthy after a round of antibiotics and steroids. Have to deal with the pain of getting Shelly's car fixed but nobody was hurt when she was rear-ended. I can still eat and have plenty of food. Firewood still isn't split and stacked, but I have a heat pump. Work is a lot of work right now, but I have a good job. The list goes on...

There are real pains and real issues. Please consider supporting the groups that are at work for the horn of Africa. Over 30,000 children have died of hunger from the famine.

One.org: the real 'F' word, sign the petition.
World Vision: donate to the relief fund.

Cycling front: need a new rear tire on the Masi already, squared mine off. Also need to replace the brakes on the SS. Between the crash last year that ripped the hose off and the mud race at Lake Hope, they are shot. Big shout to Athens Cycle Path. They have been very patient with me and all my questions about what to do regarding the brake set.

Venting

2011-11-01T00:14:00.000-04:00

If it wasn't enough to have Brock and Shelly sick, I finished out the week with it. Then, icing on the cake; Shelly gets rear-ended uptown Athens by a college student. Luckily, even though she had all three boys with her, nobody was injured. Brock screamed his little head off, but not injured. Now the joy of dealing with another persons insurance carrier and to get Shelly's first new car ever repaired.

Working a night test at work. Decided to open my brand new Bodum and make a pot of coffee. Yep, it never ends.

In the cycling world, well, nothing is happening. I do need new brakes for the Redline, new tires for both the MTB and road bike. Thinking of a set of Kenda Slant 6's for the MTB after racing twice in the rain this year. Part of the reason I need new brakes too, pads and discs are shot. Have not ridden anything since my last post with a lunch time ride. Feel like it is going to be a long winter.

Well look at that, it just turned November.

Ah, Fall

2011-10-27T12:01:00.001-04:00

Fall, my favorite season, that is, when I can enjoy it. Fall is such a busy time that is just slips by, sometimes without notice. Brock ended up sick this week which meant Shelly was home from work with him. When this happens, I get to be the school bus. Dropping two boys off at school doesn't allow me to ride my motorcycle either (something else that has not happened much). Since Tuesday was forcasted to be the best day of the week, and probably the last of these days, I threw the Masi on the trunk rack and brought it to work. Managed a nice hour long lunch time ride.

Unfortunately, my Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS quit working (again). It has done this twice before. The GPS quits, everything else works. The watch even reports the GPS as version 0.00. A message to Garmin resulted in the only option to fix it is to send it to them plus $80 to repair. Not sure what to do, this is only 15 months old. $80 plus shipping and a 90 day warranty seems steep. New 305's are under $150 with heart rate strap and full 1 year warranty. Plus, looks like a couple of other options are about to hit the shelves with the Motorola MOTOACTV (that includes MP3 and touch screen) or the new Garmin 910XT. Both are much more expensive than the repair of mine, but...

Anyway, back to rollers I guess. The nighttime lows are dropping into the 20s.

Views of Fall

2011-10-18T12:15:00.000-04:00

Penne with butternut squash and goat cheese. Mmmm.

Not nearly enough miles enjoying the fall views and weather.

Need a better camera (phone). This tree in my backyard was vibrant yellow.

Riding, Racing, and Life

2011-09-19T12:30:00.000-04:00

Once again I find myself trying to figure out what happened to the last 4 weeks. Got a few rides in. manged a Sunday 42 miler a couple weeks ago. Did the Pawpaw Double Nickle, 55 miles from Albany around Zaleski State Forest. Have not even managed to ride a Worlds ride. Oh well.

Soccer season continues with only 3 Saturdays worth of games left. I do enjoy it, but it has been a challenge with Brock. Two practices during the week and two games on Saturday is a lot of time that I am not helping out with him. And yes, he needs constant attention or you may find him in the middle of the dining table.

I did manage to squeeze in another race, the WVMBA/OMBC Farmhand XC at Bob Evan's farm in Rio Grande, OH. Got to the race about an hour and half early. While standing in the registration line, bam, lightning and thunder, followed by a good hard rain for the next hour. It finally stopped about 30 minutes before the start, but the damage was done. I again registered for the SS Sport (OMBC) class which puts me in the massive Sport class start (and more specifically, the Sport Vet WVMBA class). Not problem, the half mile long ride to the trailhead should let the field get way ahead of me. I thought I was good until the first climb on the trail (about 10 yards in). There was already a line of riders pushing their bikes. This pattern repeated several times in the next two miles. Tight climbs, off camber roots, lots of very slick trails. It seemed to clear out a bit after the first long climb (in the grassy area). Though, this too ended up a hike rather than bike. Passed several riders in the next couple miles. By mile 6 I was hurting with my stomach in knots. Couldn't drink without an instant sick feeling. Pushed it through the first lap of 10 miles just doing my best to not crash and not vomit. By the end of my second lap I was in bad shape. Stomach cramps had set in and I still couldn't get anything in my stomach. Returned my number plate, changed clothes and grabbed my after race dinner plate (sponsored by Bob Evans). I got most of that food down including a can of Coke. It wasn't long until I was ready to curl up in a ball. Drove home, showered and spent the rest of the day either in the bathroom or on the couch. Very little sleep overnight and much of the same otherwise. It was Monday evening before I could eat and drink again. And just when I though relief was in sight, I developed a strong pain in my middle back that circled around under my ribs. It was suggested that I had strained my diaphragm. Hard to breath and very painful to lay down meant more sleepless nights. Or maybe I was just sick from being dizzy?

Anyway, I think I have fully recovered. I have to figure out what is going on though. This is the third time I have had similar symptoms after a mountain bike race, with this being the worst yet. Was hoping to ride the Wayne Ultra on Oct. 2, not sure I want to risk it though.

Why is this so hard?

2011-08-24T08:06:00.001-04:00

I can't get out on the bike. I have tried and tried. Was hoping for a ride on Sunday but called in to help my brother throw up some trusses on his garage. Even that got cut short with a serious thunderstorm. Trees down and the driveway was really cut up. For anyone that thinks the Grand Canyon took millions of years to cut, come to my house when we get a hard downpour for 15 minutes, 40 days of downpours seems about right when you scale things up.

Monday was beautiful weather wise. But with work and school open house, no riding again. I ended up on the tractor fixing the storm damage after everyone got home, finishing in the dark. Tuesday I brought my bike to work thinking I would at least get a lunch ride, and again, just wishful thinking. Work had me, well, working through lunch. Today is Team Athens Wednesday and what do I do? I have my bike, helmet but my shoes are at home. I could blame my oldest son who thought it was a good idea to sit his mother's cup of coffee on the arm rest in the car rather than the cup holder. Instead of loading my vehicle for the day, I was grabbing towels to help with the cleanup. Or I could blame a friend who needs my truck today. My shoes are actually in my car. Or I could blame work for keeping my stress levels high and now I can't think clearly.

I need a vacation.

The End of Summer

2011-08-20T21:55:00.000-04:00

I can't believe summer is over. Shelly starts back to work Monday followed by the kids back in school on Tuesday. My list for summer never got started, heck, the list from spring never got started. No real summer vacation this year. Money has been going to fix all the broken appliances and termites. Time has been scarce with the way work has been. Not sure how Brock would travel for a long time anyway. Still, I know my wife is disappointed.

End of summer also ends the riding season for me. Soccer has begun. Ethan is playing with the U12 traveling team and I am assistant coach. That means two practices a week plus two games on Saturday's. I love the game and am glad to get to coach again, but I am going to miss the evening and Saturday morning rides.

I missed Wednesday World's this week. Long story short, had to work late and missed the one hard ride I was going to do. Brought the monocog to work on Thursday and ran around Strouds Run state park at lunch (OK, a slightly long lunch). Was good to be on a trail, except for all the spider webs. Had them in my ears, up my nose, in my mouth, covering the bike. It was crazy.

Friday started with a trip to Columbus with folks from NASA. Shelly was going to be in Columbus anyway, so it was to be a great plan to meet up after meetings for a little shopping and dinner. Things went kind of south when I got a phone call from her that she had a flat. Lost air quick too. Made it into a gas station where someone put air in the tire for her. Got her from there to a Firestone (at Polaris). They were very helpful to her, but would not repair the tire (due to liability) and since we have an AWD car, all four tires would need to be replaced. Oh, did I mention that she had all three boys with her? Pretty well ruined the day for her. They were good enough to install the spare for her to get her back to Athens. We hoped to try out a Greek restaurant for dinner, but had to change plans and go to UNO's. Even that was a big wait because of the high chair for Brock and the "fire hazard". Really? We can't get a tire fixed and can't get a table. Too much liability. Finally made it home and to bed at midnight. Long day.

Saturday morning meant getting up early to get Michael to the school for drama rehearsal at 7am and on to Warehouse Tire. They fixed the tire and I had it back on the car before 9am. Shower, coffee, and out the door for soccer games. Not sure what meals I have eaten today but 10pm sure is coming quickly.

A side note: saw some of the Pelatonia riders coming in to Athens. Good job folks! 100 miles and lots of money for cancer research. Special atta-boy to Chad and Jenn Sickles.

Where did summer go!?

2011-08-16T12:38:00.001-04:00

Really? My last post was over a month ago? What happened? Sad part is, I can hardly remember.

First, the bike:
My history shows I logged 375 on the road and climbed over 24,000 feet. I did get to ride with Team Athens several times on their Weds. Worlds ride. They dropped me each time, but I am averaging 60 miles a week, a typical daily ride for those kids.

I was noticing trouble with shifting and drive-train noise on the Masi. Katsu did his best to adjust the shifting, but it was still there. I also began to notice a snapping/creaking from the crankset. Found the Jagwire in-line adjuster for the rear was broken. Athens Cycle Path replaced them with metal ones and the shifting is like new. Katsu could not find the noise in the crank so I pulled the crankset, cleaned it, and re-installed it per the manual. Noise is gone. Of course, I had replaced my 18 year old pedals thinking that was the source of the noise first. Feel like I have a brand new bike again.

The family:
I have taken a sabbatical from playing guitar at church. This allowed me to visit some close friends when their daughter was baptized, in the Ohio River. We took over the boat ramp in Belpre on a very nice Sunday afternoon.

Ethan's birthday really sneaked up on me. We didn't want to just buy him more "stuff" so I took the day off from work and we went to Magic Mountain in Columbus to ride Go-Karts. He had a blast (even Shelly enjoyed it). Finished it off with some ribs from City BBQ. Followed the next day with a mountain bike ride on the Athens Trails to Stroud's Run, a picnic lunch of Miller's chicken and fried perch, then a kayak paddle on the lake with his mom.

Of course Brock requires much less for a good time, a pile of rocks would be fine...

Picture Monday

2011-07-05T16:02:00.000-04:00

Enjoy.

Lake Hope Continued

2011-06-30T15:51:00.001-04:00

Though it has been dry for several days, I am still finding water. After moving the Monocog last night and finding the cranks nearly frozen, I removed the bottom bracket. Water ran out! Pulled the front fork and more water ran out. Going to strip the frame this weekend, take it outside and fog the inside of the tubes with a can of WD40. Not sure of how many parts will need replaced.

Ran across a couple of photos. Looks like I was having fun.

OMBC #4 "Race to the Hills" at Lake Hope State Park

2011-06-28T11:29:00.002-04:00

Woke up Sunday morning looking forward to hitting Lake Hope State Park for OMBC series race #4. While I have not been on the trails a lot this year due to schedule and weather, I was feeling really good about the race. Unfortunately, my body wasn't feeling as excited. I did not sleep well with a lot of pain in my middle back and got up with an upset stomach. Excusing it as pain from working at the house the day before and nervousness, I prepared for the day. Turned on the local radar to see a giant yellow blob rolling onto us. So much for an 80 degree with clouds race. I was now having second thoughts to be honest, but Ethan was still ready to ride, so we ate breakfast, loaded the truck, dropped Michael at church, Brock at my brothers and off to the lake we drove.... in the rain.

By now it is raining pretty good, plus it is only about 61 degrees. Cool and wet we registered and got the bikes out. The kids race, much to the race organizers surprise, had 8 kids. The course is a bit of gravel road and a section of Copperhead trail to the same finish as the adults. Ethan looked miserable at the start, though he says afterwards it was more fun in the mud (just like a kid). He placed 2nd in his age group, not too bad.

I get geared up for my race. My stomach is hurting quite a bit by now, but still excusing it as nerves, it should go away. The sport race is a mass start. I quickly fall towards the back as most the guys crank it out the road. I pedal out around 14mph, so I coast a couple of the hills on the road. The rain is really pouring now, but despite my tires (hard pack tires: WTB Nano Raptor in the rear and an Exiwolf in the front) the bike is handling well and pedaling is easy. I slowly started picking off riders, several of whom either were hitting the ground or having drive train problems. One problem with racing is managing my momentum, especially on a SS. I try to carry as much into a climb as I can and then really crank it up the hill to maintain some cadence. All these geared guys just drop to granny, sit and spin. While this did affect me more than once, I was able to pass a lot of riders on the climbs. In fact, a polite request to pass was given each time this day. I was having a difficult time drinking. My stomach was just not cooperating, excusing it now for hard effort. I was having fun though. A side note, the front Crud Catcher worked perfectly. My bike and back was plastered with mud, but my face was clean.

The race went down Copperhead, onto Bobcat, cross the road to Wildcat, to Copperhead at Grouse Point, back across the road and on to the campground connector. Sometime around the second road crossing the rain had all but quit. The trails changed drastically. Traction was much harder to come by and effort level was much higher. I ended up losing the front end and slamming a tree with my left shoulder. With enough distance to the rider behind me though, I did not lose a position. Ended up catching about three more riders in the last couple miles. I was glad to see the finish line. My Garmin said 1 hour, 44 minutes.

Jumped in the bike wash line and then cleaned myself up. Two hours after my finish, they finally announced the class placings. They ended up combining single speed with sport vet. I was disappointed, not in how I rode, but that classes got combined. I really am not there for the prize money, but I cannot compete with some of these sport vet racers. Anyway, it is what it is. I finished 9th in the combined field of 25 riders, and second in my class, just three minuets back from the leader. My official time: 1:42:32.

Oh, and my stomach still hurt. Turns out I had a bit of a virus that was shared around the family, finishing the day fighting chills followed by hot sweats. Not sure what kind of damage the bike took. It is all cleaned up now, but the bottom bracket turns rough. Need to inspect the fork seals and brake pads, and clean and lube the chain too.

Thanks to the Athens Bicycle Club for clearing the trails and marshaling the race. You all did a fantastic job.

Epic race.

My Present

2011-06-21T10:14:00.000-04:00

Shelly and Ethan surprised me with a framed photo for Father's Day. Took some work for them too, as my bike hangs upside down from the ceiling in the basement. Ladder and poster board was involved.

Father's Day update

2011-06-20T11:02:00.000-04:00

Another father's day has come and gone. First one in a couple of years that my teenager acknowledged it (he actually told me happy father's day). Family (or at least Shelly, E, and Brock) did the father's day thing for me on Saturday knowing Sunday would be busy and for our dad's. Finished off the day with fried perch and a tomato, olive, and mozzarella salad, completed with a piece of peanut butter pie. Yummm. Sunday meant lunch with my dad and supper with the in-laws. Both good times with a short ride in between.

Speaking of riding, I did manage a few of note this week. VBS at church meant no rehearsal and a free Wednesday evening. Joined Team Athens for their Worlds ride. Good practice and a good workout (meaning: I got dropped). Those kids can ride. Saturday I shot out to Lake Hope. The OMBC Race to the Hills is just a week away! Ended up meeting and riding with 4 other guys (all on full suspension geared bikes and me on my 29er SS hardtail). Got in about 18 miles before the thunderstorm hit. In about 30 seconds the trails turned from hard packed dirt to streams of brown water. Ended up hitting the ground pretty hard when the back tire spun on a wet rock. I have not been that wet and muddy for long time (thankfully, no pictures...).

Back to Back to Back

2011-06-13T10:32:00.001-04:00

The weekend started a little early when I left work during the afternoon on Friday to be home with the kids as Shelly headed for Columbus. Let Brock play in the basement while I installed the WB Magic 80 fork on the Monocog Flight. Decided to go with the suspension fork for the Lake Hope race. After dinner, Ethan and I threw the bikes and B.o.B. trailer in the truck and headed to the paved road to take Brock on his first bike ride. I think he enjoyed it, in fact, he started to fall asleep. It was swamp like humid out. Back to the house and Brock and Ethan took a dip in the pool to cool off.

Saturday started with the tractor. The storms a few days earlier did a real number to the driveway. The Kubota made quick work of it though and we soon had driveway without ditches in it. Shelly and the two youngest boys headed to town around lunch, so I headed out on the bike. Just a mile in, I came up on a helicopter trimming a power line right of way. Fun to watch, not sure I would want to fly that chopper though. Took the Masi out to Chicken Hill to get in some good climbing. All in, just over 40 miles and about 3000 feet of climbing.

Sunday was the typical, out to church for sound checks at 8, Sunday school at 9:15, service at 10:30, to my folks for lunch at 1. The weather had changed, for the better. High temps in the upper 70's and low humidity. Late in the afternoon I headed out to Lake Hope State Park with the Monocog for some single speed and single track. With responsibilities at home , church, and work, compounded with the extra wet spring, this is only the second time in 2011 I have been on a trail. The road miles have been good to my legs, but I forget sometimes how many upper body muscles I use on the trail. Did my favorite loop. In at Hope Furnace, up Bobcat to Wildcat to Copperhead and back out. 15+ miles with a couple thousand feet of climbing.

A note on elevation. I use a Garmin Forerunner 305 to track all my rides and runs. The GPS estimated elevation is terribly inaccurate. All my elevation numbers come from SportTracks with the Elevation Correction Plugin. All my data is smoothed over 3 seconds and only includes grades steeper than 2%. Garmin Connect uses some unknown algorithm and always shows a significant difference. I have also used sites like MapMyRide and RideWithGPS. Each one is different. For example: Saturday ride was 1056ft at MapMyRide, 2026ft at Garmin Connect, 3046 with SportTracks, and 3045 at RideWithGPS. Sunday was 548ft at MapMyRide, 1264ft at Garmin Connect, 2136ft with SportTracks, and 3406 at RideWithGPS. That is a huge variance. I believe MapMyRide and Garmin Connect both do some heavy smoothing. Around here though, the smoothing takes away from a lot of the hills. I also suspect that RideWithGPS may do very little smoothing or includes grades that are less than 2%. I seem to get the most consistent results with SportTracks, which is what I primarily use to log my rides.

Three days, three rides.

Washing dishes and other weekend fun

2011-06-06T11:12:00.006-04:00

I ripped into the dishwasher first thing Saturday morning with the plan to get a seal kit and a new bearing and have the dishwasher back together all for less than $25. That plan was quickly crushed when I finally got the motor out. The rust and other crud buildup on the impeller shaft was the only thing keeping the water from leaking out. The motor shaft was so far damaged that no seal would hold back the water. Now the decision is whether to replace the entire motor assembly and impeller or just buy a new dishwasher. Fun.

Put my tools away and hit the road for a couple hour ride. Consistent with how the last few weeks have gone, the ride ended in a thunderstorm and a few miles of pouring rain. 36+ miles with about 2000' of climbing. Rode past the Snowville Creamery farm where they were having an open house / farm tour. It was good to see the place was packed. Between that and it was the annual St. Rt. 143 yard sale made for a lot of traffic. Still, it was great to ride.

When it rains

2011-06-03T10:35:00.001-04:00

For the first time in a long time, it hasn't rained. At least not in the literal sense.

We have been in our house 6 years last April. Apparently there is a 6 year warranty. Just having found termites, and then replacing our water heater, I now have a loud noise coming from the heat pump blower fan, and this morning, the dishwasher pump locked up.

We lost a chick yesterday. Not sure if something grabbed it and pulled it through the fence overnight or grabbed it during the middle of the day when they were in the yard. Left work early yesterday so I could run 3' high chicken wire fence around the bottom of the chain link. I also had to run a heat lamp out to the coop last night with temps dropping into the low 50's. Bonus for the chicks, they had all the bugs they could chase and eat last night.

Did get to ride the Masi though. I have said it before, but I really am liking this bike. Did the typical loop through Wilkesville. Down Point Rock Rd to Salem School Lot Rd, to 124 into Wilkesville, then 689 back to Point Rock. 18.5 miles with about 1000 ft of climbing. It felt good.

Fixing up the 'cog

2011-06-01T11:15:00.002-04:00

The WVMBA/OMBC XC race at Lake Hope is just a few weeks away. Time to get the machine ready. Planning to race the Sport SS class on the Redline Monocog Flight. The headset was in darn sad shape so I found am un-used Cane Creek S3 in silver to install. Was going to take it to Katsu, but thought what is the worst that can happen? I used a piece of copper tubing to remove the old headset. With just a few whacks with the rubber mallet it popped right out. Put the new cups in the freezer, greased the headtube and they popped right in. Nice and smooth now. Been really digging the Fizik Antares saddle I put on the Masi, so I found a Gobi, the MTB equivalent, on eBay for $15. Fantastic, light (261g) saddle. Now, I only really need a nice set of light weight 29er wheels.

With the temps now in the 90's during the day and 70's at night, seemed like time to move the chicks outside. A bucket of chicken anyone?

Memorial Weekend

2011-05-31T10:08:00.008-04:00

Long week. With family, work, and church responsibilities, I have not been riding or running. Friday was to be different though. Kids were now out of school for the summer and Shelly only had to work until noon. I decided to bike to work. Dragged out the old Jamis Coda and loaded the panniers. It has been months since I last rode this bike. In fact, I have not been on it since getting my new Masi. Did not take long until I was missing the Masi. 21 miles to work, not a bad way to start the day. Decided to take the money I saved on gas and by a nice Cuban steak sandwhich from the Chica Chica Chop Chop buggy uptown for lunch.

The ride home was longer. I took more back roads to avoid traffic. Dropped the chain once, had my front brake start rubbing, I was starting to get sore around my neck and shoulders (poor bit fit I guess, never get sore riding my new bike). 23 miles home.

Set up Brock's birthday swing. He was a little terrified at first but was soon giggling away. Had Brock and E swinging, the chicks were running around in the yard, and Pepper was just hanging out at my feet. Ah, the coutnry life.

This is about how I felt as well.

Saturday was a rough start. Michael had friends over for the night and I got about 3 hours of sleep. Up and out of the house so I could be at a firends by 9am to help them move. Packed a full U-haul and two pickups and then unloaded at their new place. Even made it home in time to watch the UEFA finals live.

Sunday was out to church for sound checks at 8 and then to Sunday School. I got to say how much I enjoy my SS class. Anyway, first service sans our senior pastor. Off to get E from one friends house and deliver him to another while Michael ran camera for high school graduation. Left Shelly , Brock, and me on our own for lunch. Grabbed a pizza from Courtside in Athens. Though, the college kids working were watching a less than tasteful movie, the pizza was very tasty. Got in a road ride on the Masi in the afternoon heat.

Off work on Monday meant hard work at home. Set up Ethan's pool, got the place bush-hog'd, and dragged out the ladders to caulk some fresh carpenter bee holes in the house. Another hot one. Tried to finish the day off with a 5k run. Seemed slower than usual and by the 2 mile mark I couldn't get my feet to move. Light headed I slowed to a walk. One thing I really need to know more about is nutrition. Short on calories? Sleep? Fat, protein, electrolytes? I don't know, I just know I was tanked.

I tried to cram some calories when I got home (by this time my stomach was growling). Not much to make, how about a PB&J sandwich made from two chocolate chip Eggo waffles and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top? Yes, I still felt hungry even after I ate it.

Back to work on today. Can't get enough to eat and my legs feel like bricks.

Tuesday updates.

2011-05-24T09:12:00.002-04:00

Life sure seems crazy recently, both good and bad kinds of crazy.

Grandma Erma passed away on Sunday evening. What a humble lady. I am glad to have known her and I know she will be missed by her friends, her family, and her church.

Speaking of church, our Senior Pastor, Rob Vernon, resigned on Sunday citing irreconcilable differences with the church leadership team. I don't know for sure how to think about this. I am disappointed and frustrated by it. We are the church and unless these are doctrinal differences, they are not irreconcilable. We are the church though, and while it may be tough, we will get through. Time will tell...

Monday evening I helped a close friend pick up some chicken coops. We hauled three of these things about 12 miles (one way) down Ohio St. Rt. 555, one of the most twisty roads in SE Ohio. Glad to help them out though.

Pretty sure there is a redneck joke here somewhere.

We also picked up our chicks. Our friends helped us get started with 8 Buff Rock laying hens. Figured I live in the sticks, might as well have some chickens.

Everyone needed some sunshine

2011-05-23T10:05:00.001-04:00

Found this guy basking in the sunshine on my run yesterday. Even the reptiles are sick of the rain.

Two days of sun was enough though.

The days are long, but the years are short.

2011-05-20T08:31:00.026-04:00

Long week. Monday started with a phone call that Shelly's grandmother, Erma (for those of you that went to Albany Elementary, Erma cooked you lunches for years), had been admitted to the ICU and things were not looking promising that she would make it much longer. After a long day at the hospital for Shelly , her sister, cousins, folks, aunt, etc., they moved Erma to a private room and stopped all life sustaining efforts. She has since been moved back to Hickory Creek to make her feel more "at home". She was apparently spelling out heaven, "H-E-A-V-E-N, I am ready to go".

Little less than 16 years ago, Erma was coming to our apartment to watch Michael, who was just a baby, so Shelly and I could go to college and work. Now Michael has turned 16 and Erma is in her last days.

Late Monday evening I heard a sudden hissing sound. A quick search of the house showed a 1/8" stream of water spraying out of our hot water heater. Luckily, Brock had already had his bath. Luckily I was home and awake to hear and find it. Shut off the water and informed the fam that there would be no more hot showers. A quick call to Lowe's before they closed to see if they could replace it. We have a propane power vent heater than exhausts out PVC. Of course, those are special order and will take 10-14 days!

Tuesday morning, Brock's 1st birthday: ran to Economy Supply in Athens. They could get one, but it would take a couple days and was rather expensive. I really try to support these folks any time I can, but I need hot water. Off to another dealer that says they have them in stock in Marietta. Run by the office for a few minutes to check in and hit the road. I took the opportunity to check into a tankless water heater. The salesman in Marietta informed me that my gas line was too small and would have to be replaced to go tankless (the heater regulates from 11,000 to 199,000 BTU's). OK then, we'll just take the tank type. Back home and unload in the rain (surprise). Old one drained, pulled out, new one in place. Ahh, not a single fitting lines up with the old one. Tank is 1" shorter, exhaust is in the front rather than the rear, and the gas line is on the other left rather than the right. Back to Economy Supply to get all the fittings, etc. to make this work. Finally around 7pm, water is heating. Happy birthday Brock, today you get to have a warm bath.

Brock inspects my work. Luckily, it passes.

Can't even remember Wednesday.

Thursday, Michael's 16th birthday. Really? 16? Crazy. Even crazier, 16 year old that does not want to drive. Off to a crazy day at work and to the math fair for Ethan at 5. He had just left soccer practice and was so muddy, we had to go to my folks house so he could shower before going back to the math fair. Finally home by 6:30 and dinner in the oven. Next thing I know it is 10:30.

Not a single bit of training all week. I went to bed planning to bike to work for National Bike to Work Day. About a 22 mile commute, I was looking forward to the ride. Weather was supposed to be better and I just need to be in the office by 9am for a meeting. What better way to start the day?

What do I wake up to on Friday morning? Seriously? Rain? I do not have a regular commuting bike, no fenders, no commuting clothing, and no shower at work. Drove the car.

No commuting by bike today.

Going to finish the day with a date with my wife. Hope that goes better than the rest of the week.

Wilkesville-2-Wilkesville Race Recap

2011-05-16T09:46:00.001-04:00

This is the 19th running of the Wilkesville-2-Wilkesville event that, in the past, fielded nearly 200 riders from all over. I can remember when we rented a place on County Road 1 watching the fields of riders and their support wagons come rolling by and thinking how cool it would be to ride in that race. Epic ride: nearly 74 miles with crazy amounts of climbing. Here is my chance...

Full course.

Got to Wilkesville around 10:10am for the 11:00am roll out. Checked in at the registration trailer, only to be asked for my license. In my noob innocence, I got out my drivers license. No, they needed my USA Cycling license. Don't have one of those sir (in my defense, I did ask the team before the race if I needed a license and was told it did not seem to be a USA Cycling sanctioned event and would not need one). "We'll need $10 for a one day license then". Dang! I didn't bring money. Sean McGann to the rescue. He loaned me $10 and then his wife volunteered to refill water bottles as we came back through Wilkesville.

Got the bike ready and my gear on and waited for everyone to show up. Never happened though. Think we ended up with a total field of 11 riders. What happened to the race I remember? With the small numbers, they collapsed the field into a single start. I think we had Cat 1, 3/4, 5 and Master's riders.

11am the field rolled out. Wasn't as nervous as I had feared I would be, maybe because 5 of the 11 riders were Team Athens. Out onto route 124 from the Wilton Civic building and the pace picked up quickly. I was actually surprised by the initial pace. I was expecting a much easier start considering the miles and amount of climbing ahead of us. About a half mile in I was already off the back. Wasn't long until Katsu came off the lead and drifted back to me bringing me back into the pack. The ride down 124 was uneventful and onto 325 we turned. Occasionally the field would accelerate and then slow. Found myself in the middle and on the rear. Katsu continuously kept an eye on me giving me a needed push at one point.

Rolled down the hill into Vinton and onto route 160 back towards Wilkesville. Not to far out of town I found myself struggling to maintain the pace of the pack. As the chase vehicle pulled up to the group, I pulled to the right to give him room. When I did, I hit a pothole with enough force to rotate my bars in the clamp and knock one of my bottle cages loose. I immediately fell back. I tried to force the bars back, but they would not budge. One hard effort to try and catch me back up got me up alongside the chase car, almost to the last bike as we rolled over Raccoon Creek, but the road turned and then climbed and the pack just left me.

Pushed on into Wilkesville. Honestly, I was ready to quit. I was disappointed, I could not see the pack anymore, I did not have tools to rotate my bars back. But Sean's wife convinced me to keep going, so out I rolled up to 689. It felt really awkward with my bars moved. Riding on the hoods was uncomfortable. Sat in the drops a lot, made the big climb up just past the old Southern Ohio Coal offices. By the time I was at the top I could hear the sweep truck behind me. I thought I would at least ride back into Wilkesville. It was only another 15 miles on roads that I ride all the time, but by the time I was at the orchard, I waved the truck over and threw my bike in the back. I was already 4 miles behind. There were lots of volunteers making the race happen, even shutting down sections of road for us. Just did not make sense to keep pushing just for pride's sake.

My track.

Sat in Wilkesville and watched the finish of the race. Mike (Team Athens) busted through town on the start of the 4th loop with Katsu near. A short bit later was David (Team Athens) and a couple other riders. By the finish, David had caught Mike for a side by side finish with Mike in first. Katsu was near and finished in third. Great showing for Team Athens.

I am disappointed I did not finish, but I am glad I raced and look forward to doing it again. Made it home just before the storm hit and in time for a birthday party for my oldest (who will be 16 on Thursday) and my youngest (who will turn 1 on Tuesday).

Wilkesville Hawk Station Pre-ride

2011-05-13T14:05:00.000-04:00

Pre-road the Hawk Station Road loop before work today to get the legs activated. A little worried about hitting this hill after 56 miles of racing.

From the Cycle Path: "Climbing out of the Raccoon Creek Valley, Hawk Station Hill is not the steepest hill around but it is a climb that makes the muscles in your legs cry for mercy (especially after 60 miles of hard racing). The ascent starts out mellow enough at 4% and goes down hill. Then the pitch goes up to 11% and goes down hill. Next you make a sharp right turn and you head into a 13% grade and up to a 16% grade. Then when most hills in this neck of the wood level out, Hawk Station throws .5 miles of up hill rollers to gain 50 ft. more elevation. This makes for a hill that first gives you no chance to set a rhythm and then it unrelentingly takes away a chance at a speedy recovery."

Team Athens TTT, missed

2011-05-11T12:15:00.003-04:00

I decided to skip the Team Athens Tuesday Time Trial. A look at the radar did not look promising. Rolling thunder in the distance and a tornado warning in Gallia county made it sound like a bad idea. Ended up only getting a few sprinkles at home and Katsu reported almost perfect conditions for the ride. Oh well, stayed home with the fam and got a set of pyramid intervals in on the rollers while watching the return leg of Real Madrid and Barcelona from UEFA.

Unhappy radar

Bad color from the camera, but dinner looked a lot like the radar.

Intervals

Walking with Brock

2011-05-09T20:15:00.003-04:00

I know I should be training or mowing or cutting firewood or fixing our deck or finishing the two reports for work or cleaning the basement or studying for Sunday school, but Brock was very unhappy so we went for a walk. No, on second thought, this is exactly what I should be doing.

On our way.

Must have worn him out.

I've heard of a fork in the road, but I didn't know what to do when I came up to a spoon.

What did I just do? 19th Annual Wilkesville-2-Wilkseville

2011-05-09T16:07:00.001-04:00

I did it. I just registered for the 19th Annual Wilkesville-2-Wilkesville classic. The start is only about 5 miles from my house and the route circles it at one point. 73.4 miles, 2000 ft of elevation gain, two climbs rated cat 5, one of which is 1.7 miles with an average 3.1% grade (http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/26031436). I have always wanted to ride this race and this will be my first shot at it. I am a little worried to be honest.

OU-AIA Sprint Triathlon

2011-05-05T10:51:00.001-04:00

Decided to skip this event this year. Lots of reasons... Mother's day weekend, Ethan has two soccer games on Saturday, I have yet to get to the pool to do any swimming, my shoulder is still hurting (long story), forecast to rain, plus with some other unexpected expenses, $76 is a lot of money right now. Maybe next year.

What!?

2011-05-04T15:52:00.000-04:00

Just filled out my registration for the Ohio University Athletes in Action sprint triathlon. $76! Really? Seems like a lot considering. For comparison sake, I can race the 72 mile Wilkesville-2-Wilkesville Classic next weekend for $27. Race-on-the-River in Racine Ohio (a non USAT event) is $30. Enough venting, not sure I am in shape for the OUAIA triathlon anyway. Would rather have the money to by plants/flowers/ferns for my wife for mother's day.

On a positive note, I spent 45 minutes on the rollers last night. I now have a few hours on the new saddle (Fizik Antares) and have to say I really like it. I can feel more pressure on my sit bones than with the old stock saddle (and much less pressure on my perineum = no numbness).

Photo Monday

2011-05-02T17:52:00.000-04:00

These flowers popped this afternoon. Weren't there in the morning.

Scioto Hills

2011-05-02T13:10:00.001-04:00

My running partner. Got in 4 miles of wooded trails and some serious elevation. This little guy never cracked a sweat.

Fizik Antares

2011-04-25T14:19:00.001-04:00

Wow that was fast. Shipped Saturday from NH. Kium (Ti) rails. 185.6g.

Easter: Just another exhausting holiday?

2011-04-25T08:40:00.001-04:00

Another Easter has come and gone. One of those things that seems to be upon me quicker each year. Up at 5am to get to church to setup for the sunrise service, back home to get the family and some photos in their Easter best, back to church for Sunday School and service, to Shelly's grandparents for lunch, to my folks for supper, and back home at 9pm to a cluttered island counter and dirty dishes from the day before.

Even got to end the day with a strong "discussion" with the teenager. I was informed that he was ready to move out (because I was mad that he had tossed his brothers wash cloth on the floor of the tub, got his shower, and left it laying there, sopping wet, where Ethan found it the next day). Why should he hang it up? He did not use it. In fact, we should be happy that he got out a wash cloth for his brother! He even proclaimed that he cannot comprehend my thought process! Ahhhh, to be a teen. To be king of a land that exists only in a fantasy. A great friend told me that they will either grow out of it or move out. I do pray for him to grow out of it. I believe we learn more about the character of God through our family relationships than just about anything else.

I truly enjoy and am grateful for my Sunday school group. I rushed through the Sunday School lesson. It is a hard week to lead honestly. The church does not do much to prepare for Easter. The Sunday school lessons don't do anything either except to drop a passage on Easter Sunday. Easter is such a great time to study, reflect, and grow our relationship with God, but as always, schedules and obligations seem to keep us from it. Trying to just hit the highlights of Passion week means just barley skimming the surface, let alone trying to have meaningful discussions on it.

Listening to a series by Stephen Davey of Colonial Baptist Church in Cary, NC about "Life After Easter" now. Don't want Easter to be just another exhausting holiday.

On an unrelated note, I got to ride another 17 miles on my new road bike Saturday afternoon between rain showers. Got a little wet on the last few miles. Still have more time and distance on the trainer for the year than I do outside, but hopefully that will change as the weather continues to improve. Also won an eBay auction for a new take off Fizik Antares. The stock seat is causing some numbness in a very uncomfortable area. While I had not planned to pick up one of the super light ($$$) saddles, I could not pass up a deal on a $200, 175g saddle for $55! Hope it is here in time for the Team Athens Tuesday Time Trial on the 26th.

Spring time visitor

2011-04-20T08:20:00.001-04:00

With the cost of gas, bad roads, half hour drives to anywhere, termites, moles (my yard looks horrible), sometimes I am ready to sell and move to town. But then I wouldn't get these visiting my yard.

Windy training ride

2011-04-18T11:32:00.000-04:00

Wind: WSW @ 26mph with 41mph peak gusts as observed at 3:35pm Sunday, April 18.

Crazy winds. Got in 27 miles, sometimes with the bike at a 15 degree angle to fight the wind, sometimes at 23mph with zero felt breeze, and sometimes at 5mph on a flat with a headwind. Still adjusting to the new geometry of my Masi, but wow, what a great bike.

Getting some running time in as well. Now I just need to get in the water to be ready for the OU-AIA sprint triathlon on May 7.

Pre-work ride

2011-04-15T15:19:00.000-04:00

Things just all worked out to allow me to get a quick ride in before work today. Not to bad, cool and sunny, 14 miles. Makes the whole rest of the day nicer!

Really liking my new bike. I have picked up a couple MPH over the same out and back I ride all the time. Some surely is due to fitness, but some is due to the equipment. Not sure I am super crazy about the OEM seat though.

Oh Snap

2011-04-11T14:41:00.002-04:00

To barrow a phrase from my son, "oh snap"!

The weather was looking good. Lots of cool/cold/rainy weather was letting go and Sunday was promising sunny skies and 80's. Well, it's a little hot, but I'll take what I can get. I ran in the end of the rain showers on Saturday and got in a good 4 mile run. But, I have a new bike with 70 miles on it. Weekends are so busy, I was really looking forward to the opportunity to take 3 hours and try to squeeze 40 miles of of it. Got home from church and was eating lunch when Shelly says, "what are those bugs flying up from the deck"?

For anyone, termites mean trouble. For log home dwellers, termites are down right scary!

Instead of riding, I got to rip up my back deck, pull the aluminum flashing off the 4x10 hemlock rim "joist" to inspect for termite damage. The little suckers were hiding their damage well out of site. I am glad Shelly saw them. The weather was just right that they were coming out of their ground based winter home and we just happened to be home to see it. Normally, we go to my folks for lunch after church. This quite possibly could have gone another year without notice had that happened. Does not look like there is any real structural damage, but it is a mess to repair/inspect and treat. Oh, snap.

Spring (got to pay for my new bike) sale

2011-04-01T14:14:00.006-04:00

I have a list of items I am selling to help pay for my new bike. Feel free to ask questions or forward. I am near Athens but could meet within a reasonable distance or ship at buyers expense. More images and details in the photo links.

Please make offers.

Thanks.

1993 Specialized Epic road bike, size 60cm (L) - SOLD

2004 Jamis Coda Sport converted to country road duty with drops, bar end shifters, and v-brakes. 700x38c WTB Interwolfs. Frame has rack and fender mounts. Will include the rear rack in the pictures. Setup as 1x8, but have and will include the front derailleur and barcon. - $375 (pedals not included)

Adidas road shoes, size 42. Little use (they were a little too small for me) - $15

Syncros OS Gain Riser bar, 670mm. Stock from my Redline. $15

Misfit Psycles FU2Bar. $25

Travel Trac 2000 fluid trainer with front wheel block. $50. Includes a spare skewer so you don't mark up your good ones.

Rear wheel Alex ACE18 alloy double-wall/eyeletted rims, 700c, 36H, Ritchey Road Comp hubs, double butted 14-15g stainless steel spokes. Shimano/SRAM 8/9/10 compat. freehub. True and smooth. I used it as a trainer wheel. SOLD

Race Face Evolve XC 110mmx25.4mm, 6 degree. $10 (or trade for a 100mm) Titec Big-AL 105mmx25.4mm, 0 degree. $5

Shimano Sora triple, 31.8 clamp. Replaced with 105 with very few miles. $10

Sigma Sport Shape Watch heart rate monitor. Basic HR functions. $10

Sigma Sport BC1600 computer with cadence kit and 2nd bike kit. SOLD

Thomson Elite 120mmx25.4, 5 degree stem, includes matching Thomson stem cap. $40

Ed Waldron

2011-03-28T09:45:00.001-04:00

The world is a better place because of Ed Waldron. This man had a heart bigger than his head, loved Jesus, and lived it everyday. I am a better man for knowing him. It is a tough to say good bye to him, especially as he was so young, only 61. Of course, those who knew Ed never thought he would live this long. But we all expected him to die in a tractor accident while he was bush-hogging, standing on the seat, and trimming tree limbs with a chainsaw, not by succumbing to cancer. I thank God that we had Ed for as long as we did, but I am really going to miss him.

Yes, that's Ed standing on top of the beam with the sledgehammer.

No excuses now.

2011-03-23T15:41:00.002-04:00

Well, excpet maybe time. But not because of equipment. Meet my new Masi Evoluzione 105. Super excited to put a lot of miles on it!

It's official... I am old

2011-03-21T13:58:00.000-04:00

Snapping hip syndrome? Really? Turns out I have an inflamed tendon that is "snapping" over my left hip joint during hip extension, especially when running, climbing up stairs, or pedaling out of the saddle on the bike.

To top that, I am fighting a sore throat. This only a week after finishing 10 days of antibiotics for a respiratory infection.

Very little training going on.

Still have not bought a new bike.

Missed the Gravel Rouser due to childcare issues.

Season is getting off to a great start.

Water water everywhere

2011-03-13T13:12:00.001-04:00

Not much to post. Between youth basketball, work, church, rain, snow, sickness, and Brock, about the only riding I have done is on the rollers in the basement at 9:30 at night.

The Specialized Epic road bike is still for sale as I am trying to decide between a Masi Gran Crit (steel lugged) and the Masi Evo (full carbon with tapered steerer and BB30. The steel bike is about 2 pounds heavier but so darn sexy.

Got out for an hour ride yesterday on a rare spring like afternoon, after going to Pomeroy at lunch. River was really high. Up to the shop doors on main with it not cresting until today.

FS: 1994 Specialized Epic Comp

2011-01-31T15:09:00.000-05:00

I have been saving money for the last year to replace my road bike. It is a decent bike, but lacks the stiffness of more modern ones and weighs a few pounds heavier. It would be less expensive for me to replace the bike than to upgrade components.

I have been riding a 1994 Specialized Epic Comp. These are carbon tubed with alloy lugs, with an alloy fork. Came with a full Shimano 105 group but the rear wheel has been replaced and is now an Ultegra hub and Mavic rim. It is a 60cm frame. If you would be interested, I am asking $450. Seems reasonable considering I have seen them go for $350 to $600 on eBay/craigslist. Help me sell this please, got an eye for a steel framed Masi.

Rocket

2011-01-31T10:05:00.000-05:00

Friday was not a fun morning. Found Ethan's cat, Rocket, under the deck. Found the snow tore up were there had been quite a skirmish between him and a St. Bernard. I buried Rocket before Ethan got home. Broke my heart to tell him the news.

Schedule

2011-01-28T11:25:00.002-05:00

The 2011 event schedules are rolling out. I have delusions of hitting several this year, we shall see how many I actually make it to. Might try a couple of sprint tri's this year. Been a long time since I did any serious swimming though. Of course a lot depends on my physical condition, which depends on other responsibilities.

Thu Mar 17, 2011 Gravel Rouser DHTT (maybe)
Fri Mar 18, 2011 Gravel Rouser Grab-n-Git (maybe)
Sat Mar 19, 2011 Gravel Rouser Classic
Sat May 7, 2011 OU AIA Sprint Triathlon
Sat May 14, 2011 Wilkesville 2 Wilkesville Classic and Grand Fondo
Sat Jun 4, 2011 Mohican 100 (wishful thinking here)
Sun Jun 26, 2011 Race to the Hills @ Lake Hope
Sat Jul 16, 2011 Athens Quilt Barn Ride
Sat Jul 30, 2011 Race on the River- Sprint Triathlon
Sun Sep 11, 2011 Farmhand XC @ Bob Evan's Farm
Sat Sep 17, 2011 Hocking Hills Indian Run
Probably try to do the Frakenbike 50 too (sometime in Sept if like last year).

See you there.

No post should be complete without some pictures. Here is a great one that I wish I had the DSLR for. Taken on Saturday (1/22) with my phone.

Winter...

2011-01-12T12:25:00.000-05:00

Between running Michael to play practice/production (he ran lights and helped with audio), Ethan's basketball practices and games, the multiple snowfalls, Brock's inability to sleep, church, family and regular life, I can't even get time to ride the trainer in the basement. Drove to work this morning and my tracks were the only ones on the road.

2010 Review

2011-01-03T16:27:00.001-05:00

Not much to say, totals were kind of low. Running: 174 miles, 25.5 hours. Cycling: 745 miles, 60 hours. All in, an estimated 63,696 calories. The year started out strong, but the activity trailed off heavily in May, with a good excuse.

Christmas Lights - Really?

2011-01-03T11:54:00.000-05:00

Really, what causes half a strand of lights to all burn out at one time? All on a pre-lit tree to boot. Lots of fun changing bulbs.

OU Game with Ethan

2010-12-30T23:02:00.000-05:00

We are trying harder to give "experience" gifts to the boys (they really don't need more stuff to cram in their rooms). Experience gifts cool because of the consequential gifting, that I got to take Ethan to dinner and a ball game. We had a great time and OU thumped Norfolk State.

Winter Riding

2010-12-27T17:00:00.000-05:00

Hitting the Athens trails for a frozen bike ride.

Yay, Winter, wait its still Fall

2010-12-17T09:09:00.000-05:00

Really? This cold and this much snow and it is still Fall. Second significant snowfall of the year and the school has already used all of its calamity days. At least Michael learned a good lesson. It is OK to spend the bonus day before your chemistry exam playing video games instead of studying because exam day is cancelled (he could foresee this I am sure). I made it out as far as the Dr. office. Roads were pretty nasty so I went back home instead of on to work after.

It's December already!?

2010-12-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

Really? What happened to fall? Now the days are short and cold. We have snow on the ground. And... it isn't even winter yet. Have not been on the bike other than a couple of stints on the indoor rollers. Running? Well, too scared on account of it has been deer (gun) season). Plus, did I mention its dark when I get home? Oh, and cold too?

Let's see. Wheels. I had won a set of brand new WTB Speed Disc SS 29er wheels on eBay for $65! They aren't the best wheels, but wow that is cheap. A few days later I get a shipping notice. A week later I get a notice that says, sorry, we did not have these in inventory and will need to cancel your order. Seriously? Hope it was an honest mistake. Will still need to share a set of wheels between the two frames.

Shelly and I got each other our Christmas presents last week, new cell phones. Sprint had a holiday special so we get them for free (with a rebate). Amazing what phones have become. We got the LG Optimus, an Android 2.2 phone. Big plus? Purple, for Shelly of course.

Cycle Path ordered me a Surly cog for the Monocog. Seems like a very well made piece. I am still amazed at how easily the whole gear train spins as a single speed.

Life, school, work, kids, cold, dark, lack of sleep, etc really takes a toll after some time. Decided to try and spoil Shelly. The older boys went to my folks for the night. I brought home Lam's Garden (one of her favorites). Made some dark chocolate mousse and while it was chilling, lit the fire in the wood stove.

Finished putting up the Christmas tree and decorations on Saturday. Log homes just look so natural with a pine tree in them.

Blue

2010-11-23T08:18:00.002-05:00

November 22 and it was 70 degrees, that isn't supposed to happen. Just put the new (very used) Monocog together with parts off of my d440. I had hoped to go for a short loop at lunch, but since, luckily, work was slow so I got to take a two hour single-track vacation. I headed to the Athens trails and rode Rock House, Athens Trail, Finger Rock, Thunderbunny, and Sundown. What a blast. After almost 20 miles, my legs are noodles today, but a rigid single speed is a ton of fun.

The blue Monocog Flight 29er at the Blue Ash Rockhouse.

More blue. Took this on my way home last week. The camera phone does not capture how vivid the double rainbow was.

Updates

2010-11-22T13:12:00.000-05:00

First up: my new to me though very used Redline Monocog Flight 29er. It is about time I try out single speed. Why? Should make me stronger. Rigid? Sure, should make be a better rider. Besides, makes me think of riding my BMX bike when I was a kid. Will pull parts from other bikes to give it a ride soon..

2008 Redline Monocog Flight 29er

Next, the Thomspon stem. Very well made piece of gear. Should last forever.

From 2008 Redline d440

I also shot some photos of my two drop bar bikes. These bikes are for sale as I need to replace them with a single modern road bike. Particularly, a Masi Gran Criterium. For 2011 they are steel and sweet. Interested in either? Drop me a note.

2004 Jamis Coda Sport Dirt

1994 Specialized Epic Comp

Wild day

2010-11-19T22:01:00.000-05:00

Ever bid really low on something on ebay not expecting to win, then do? Just won a set of SS wheels to go on the Redline Monocog Flight 29er frame I snagged off craigslist this week. The frame is an '08, same year as my d440. It has seen a ton of use, lots of nicks and rubs in the paint, but still in very good shape. The headset that came with it is going to have to be replaced though. Between that and youth gun season, I don't think I will head to Lake Hope tomorrow for my first SS ride. Seriously thinking of making it a drop bar bike. Looking forward to the legs burning!

Can't decide if I should repaint the Monocog?

Mounted a Thomson 120mm stem on the d440 this week. Each ride left my hands hurting. Fells good with the new stem.

Bike pictures to follow.

Brock had his 6 month checkup today too. 20.0lbs. Big boy. he had to get 4 vaccines (shots) too. He is a sad little feller tonight.

Indian Summer

2010-11-15T14:33:00.000-05:00

Indian summer ended with a short trip to Lake Hope State Park and a mountain bike. If the roads are this covered with leaves, you can imagine what the trails were like. I hit the ground a couple of times (once pretty hard) because of them. But that aside, it was a great and much needed trip.

As warm as the weekend started, it ended with cold. With as crazy as life has been the last six months, this was our first fire of the season. Just something about a fire, but I have a feeling the next one will be in the wood stove.

Night Ride

2010-11-05T08:36:00.000-04:00

I couldn't stand it. I have been couped up inside at work and home or just too busy to run or ride except for an occasion trainer ride (amazing how long time lasts on a trainer compared to the road or trail). I threw a couple LED head lights that I use for working on stuff or gathering wood in the dark on the bike and on my head. Just a 2+ mile test last night. Need more light than that! It was fun though. Sorry, no pictures.

What a year, so far.

2010-10-29T09:38:00.000-04:00

Just checked my workout log. So far this year, 49 miles (6 hrs, 25 min) of trail riding; 155.4 miles (22 hrs, 46 min) of running. Can't believe I have run over three times as much as I have been on a MTB trail. I have not ridden the Athens trails once yet this year. I have only managed a total of about 600 miles on the bike. Katsu does more than that in a month!

An evening at the lake

2010-10-14T09:12:00.000-04:00

Just ran across this picture on my phone. A couple of weeks ago, I dropped Shelly and Ethan off with their kayaks at Lake Snowden. Brock and I went for a walk while they paddled.

Two-a-days

2010-10-13T08:32:00.003-04:00

Brock had me up at 3:30a yesterday. I did manage a nap from 5 to 5:30a though (not sure that was a good idea!). Left a message at work that I would be in late and decided to get some stress relief before my 9:30 meeting. What to do, go back to bed? Nope, it was sunny and 49 degrees out. Nice fall morning so I grabbed my helmet and my mountain bike for a gravel road loop. I have also been seriously looking at getting/converting to single speed. So, I did the loop in 4th gear without shifting (32 x 18T). Short, only 6.5 miles, but it felt better than sleeping.

Met Jeff at soccer practice. While the boys practiced, we hit the road for a 3 mile run. Great weather, great friend, and two great workouts in one day. In my best Steve impression, it was just great. I needed it.

After practice, Ethan and I headed to the church to pick up Michael from youth group. We had 1/2 hour to kill so Ethan wanted to kick the ball around. Ouch, that right ankle still hurts when I kick. Just don't heal like I used to.

Alexander Alumni Soccer Game

2010-10-04T12:22:00.002-04:00

The 2010 edition of the Alexander Alumni Soccer Game was on Saturday. While I stay pretty fit, this game always hurts some. Running a 5k in a straight line or biking, even on trails, does not prepare your body for the impacts, turns, and stops of a soccer match.

On top of that, hits and impacts with the ground just hurt a lot more than I remember. I'll spare you the picture of the strawberry on my back side. Took a hard hit to the ankle. No subs means you play through the pain.

While technically my side lost the match, I was able to walk away from the game. Win? We'll do it again next year.

More photos of the match here (provided by Mr. Dibenedetto).

Hocking Hills Indian Trail Run

2010-09-18T14:23:00.003-04:00

Ran my first competitive run in forever, the trail run at Hocking Hills State Park. Very nice race, well organized, great weather. All in, my Garmin says I ran 3.6 miles in 31:16. Not too bad for a trail run. While I know it wasn't a marathon, I couldn't help of thinking of Eric today, if for no other reason than to be amazed that he ran 26.2 miles.

I picked up my pace around the 3 mile mark expecting the 5K to be 3.1 miles. I was a little depressed when I realized it was longer and the end was up a nice grade, though it was on the paved road. Ended up 5th in my age class and 21st overall (out of 229). Still, I am pleased and will have to make this an annual event.

What a drag

2010-09-09T10:28:00.001-04:00

For the 3rd time this year I got to ride at Lake Hope on Labor Day. I had intended to hit all the trails except for Sidewinder. Intentions... Ended up skipping Yosemite Ridge and a section of Copperhead though to get out of the woods and back home in time. Front brake has been dragging ever since I crashed in April. A good workout to ride with the brakes on. Picked up the front wheel and spun it, it would turn about 3/4 of the way around.

Well, last night, I loosened the caliper bolts and pulled the brake lever, letting the caliper align itself. Turns out the lower mount and the upper mount are no longer in line. Must have tweaked it during the crash. Three shims latter, the wheel spins free!

I also got in a 3.5 mile run last night. This is the longest run since Brock was born. Felt good. Hopefully the Indian Trail 5K next week wont kick my butt too bad.

Smashing

2010-08-23T09:49:00.000-04:00

Not the weekend we planned, but did accomplish some things.

Hit Lake Hope for the first time since Easter (other than taking Ethan for a pre-ride of his kids race). The only thing slow about the trails was me. Was good to be out though.

Hope Furnace in to Bobcat, Wildcat, Copperhead.

Sunday ended with a moon-lit run. Smashed my previous 2 mile best time of 16:10 with a 15:32. Don't know what got into me.

Updates

2010-08-20T15:31:00.000-04:00

A lot going on...

The fam started back to school this week. Meaning, I am now up at 5:30 to get ready before they do and then make sure they do.

I have actually been able to run 5 times and ride once in the last two weeks. Got my first pair of purpose made running shoes, just for running. All in effort to run the Hocking Hills Indian Trial Run in Sept. (Just the 5k).

I also gave in on changing my own tires, on the back of the Buell at least. The tire really kicked my butt, luckily Athens Sport Cycles were great to me (as usual) and changed my tire. Shoulder is still a little sore from busting myself with the tire lever. Good news is I have new skin on the bike and will be back on the road.

D

2010 OMBC - Lake Hope

2010-08-02T13:28:00.001-04:00

Sunday was the OMBC stop at Lake Hope. I was way too far out of race shape to participate, but Ethan raced the kids event. It is the longest kids race on the OMBC schedule with 3.5 miles of gravel roads, singletrack, and asphalt. He came in first overall in just a little over 27 minutes! Great job E.

Ethan, just about to make the turn up the connector to the finish.

Brock, ready to cheer on his big brother.

Quilt Barn Ride '10

2010-07-19T15:43:00.001-04:00

First ride in a while... Felt good to spend 3+ hours on the road. Nice day for it to boot. Did not take photos of all the quilt barns this year. More information on the ride and some of the quilt barns here.

Swimin'

2010-07-06T08:27:00.001-04:00

Just in time for the screaming hot weather (should hit 98F today). Picked up a small "easy set" pool. Ethan spent over 4 hours in it yesterday. Felt really good to jump in it after a run.

Speaking of running, ran for the first time in a couple weeks Saturday and got a 13 mile bike ride in yesterday. Got a Garmin Forerunner 305 for a late fathers day gift. Nice tool.

Stay cool.

For Sale

2010-07-01T08:23:00.001-04:00

A few items for sale:

1. Adidas road shoes size 42. Light use, they are just a little too small for me and I replaced them. $20

2. Syncros OS Gain MTB bar. 670mm wide. New take off from my Redline. $15

3. Misfit Psycles FU2Bar, used. Good condition. $30

All are OBO.

Nickel and Dime and Lost Time

2010-06-23T08:20:00.000-04:00

Hey, what happened. I used to have ESPN-Classic. But now when I try to watch the World Cup games in the evening, I can't. It is listed on Dishnetwork's website as part of my package. Have a couple other issues as well, so after three phone calls and over an hour of my life that I will never get back, ESPN-Classic is an add on. Oh and my receiver is old and is having trouble, so that will require replacing. But thanks for being one of our long time valued customers. Not valued enough that I am treated better than a new customer. $95 for my receiver replacement, new 24 month contract (have not been under contract for years) and no Classic.

Rural living has its price, satellite is the only TV option other than O.T.A. (which I suggested we use, it is free, did not go too well with the fam). Satellite is the only option for Internet service (expensive, serious lag, and another dish in the yard). Phone? No cell service (funny story about Sprint offering data service for home even after I told them we did not have coverage there, she said I did not need cell coverage, this is data). Land line is expensive because everywhere I call is long distance unless we get a regional package.

But at least we get to hear obnoxious ATV's at all hours. Ah, the country life.

Different Kind of Work Out

2010-06-21T13:20:00.000-04:00

Worked outside on Saturday rather than work out. Spent 3+ hours on the tractor getting to know my new loader. Great tool and it is a whole new tractor now.

Training Decline

2010-06-15T22:09:00.001-04:00

Here it is. My training plot from January to now. I think I can see a recent trend. My sleep quality plot has an decreasing slope to match the decresing training slope since March. Oh well, they are worth it.

Did run 2.2 miles tonight, first in a while.

Unrealated, got my new Kubota LA463 loader on my tractor today. A bit different than operating a loader on a skid steer, but this thing is going to get used all the time. Good news, if I take the bucket off, I have 6" to spare putting the tractor in the barn.

Roller advice

2010-06-13T06:58:00.000-04:00

Don't ride rollers when you are tired. You may not concentrate and fall off. It will wake you up though.

Going Pro

2010-06-10T15:18:00.002-04:00

Just collected my prize money from the Tuesday TT series. All in, $20 for the season (that is a net loss of $5 after entry fees). I am now thinking of quiting my day job and do this racing thing full time.

Final TT

2010-06-09T12:21:00.000-04:00

Rode the final TT in the Team Athens Spring series last night. Since Brock was born I have ridden a total of 20 miles (excluding TT #5), all of which have been on rollers in the basement and 6 miles of running. It showed. The effort level was way up along with my heart rate. Managed 34:31. I was really hoping for 34:00. Lack of training and lack of quality sleep can really mess with your fitness level. We'll see if I can get into race fitness for the Farmhand Classic XC at Bob Evans Farms this fall.

TT#5

2010-05-26T07:46:00.000-04:00

In my ever ending quest to get slower by training, I lost time again in the TT. Excuse this time? Brock. I could have fallen asleep on my way out there. By the end my legs felt like I was wearing my work boots covered in mud. I was glad to finish. Very little riding in the last 3 weeks and a real lack of quality sleep. Good news? Katsu's genius scoring system has me in second place!

Rollin'

2010-05-23T22:27:00.000-04:00

Back to some training. Ran twice on Friday. Only 2 miles in the morning until I got rained out, so I did an afternoon set of intervals. I am running a 300m in what I would race the 400m 18 years ago...

I bough a used set of rollers from craigslist today. Took 10 minutes to get used to them. Did a quick 30 minute workout. More work and more attention than the regular stationary trainer (and less boring). Should make me a better rider.

Brock

2010-05-18T21:50:00.002-04:00

I skipped the Tuesday Time Trial #4 today and it looks like I won't be able to bike to work on Friday for Bike-to-Work day either. But, I have a great reason. Pleased to announce the arrival of Brock Edward Mansfield. Born May 17. No small potato at 8 lbs 14.6oz.

No baby yet

2010-05-13T08:40:00.000-04:00

Still waiting.

Haven't been able to do any training at all this week. Tuesday TT was postponed to next week due to rain. I am going to be hurting for sure. Muskingum Mayhem is Saturday followed by the Wilkseville to Wilkseville Grand Fondo this Sunday. Enjoy, sorry I won't make either.

Training Woes

2010-05-02T18:38:00.000-04:00

Time trial results are in... I lost a few more seconds to my first time. I was even a bit slower than when I had a respiratory infection. I have been doing a lot of running and riding and I am only able to go further at the same slow pace.

Played soccer on Saturday. A friend called and they needed another player. 20 minute halves on the U12 sized field. Wow I am sore today.

Feeling old.

Scioto Hills

2010-04-27T09:56:00.000-04:00

Spent Friday eveining and most of the day Saturday at Scioto Hills camp near Wheelersburg. Scioto Hills hosts a men's retreat each year and we (the team from Albany Baptist) are invited to provide the music for the couple of sessions. Great to hang out with a bunch of men trying to honor God and to play so much music. We got to stay through Saturday evening this year which meant we got to stay for the smoked pork and ride the zip line. Did get in a cross country 4.1 mile run in the morning too. Looking forward to next year.

Tuesday Time Trial #2

2010-04-14T08:04:00.001-04:00

34:35. Lost 8 seconds to my first time. Not to make excuses... I missed work Friday due to a respiratory infection and am still trying to recover. The wind was strong too. On the ride back to town, I thought I was going to have to stop and loose what lunch was left. Then, crossing E. State St. I got a cramp in my right calf. Coasted across and tried to unclip from my pedal, a hard thing to do with your calf muscle in a knot and you toes pointed straight down. That there is some kind of pain! Very sore this morning. Wow I feel old.

See the full results here.

Tuesday Time Trial #1

2010-03-31T08:25:00.000-04:00

34:27, 11.32 mi. Not bad for my first race. Was expecting 18mph average, hoping for 20. Got 19.7 so I am reasonably pleased and have room to improve. Now the cool part, I am in the points lead. I am sorry for the team member that drew my time.

See the full results.

Road bike riding

2010-03-29T11:36:00.000-04:00

While killing some time waiting for concurrence from NASA, I headed to the shop and turned out an oversized bushing for the pulley. Installed it Friday night. No wobble. Got to ride around Meigs and Vinton counties on Saturday afternoon, 26+ miles. Shifts better. Not perfect, but as good as a 15 year old bike will get I suppose. Sure felt good to make the full loop without any mechanical issues.

Wilkesville 160 Loop
Find more Bike Rides in Albany, Ohio

Ran 5K on Sunday. Getting ready for Team Athens Cycling Tuesday Time Trials. Should be fun. Check Team Athens for more information.

Been that kind of week

2010-03-26T10:25:00.001-04:00

The upper pulley on my Specialized Epic road bike's 105 rear dérailleur is very loose. Shifting has become slow as a result. Stopped in to the Cycle Path of Athens for a new one. Of course, this is a 10t narrow pulley that was only used for 2 years back in the 90's. Great.... What to do?

Rousing the Gravel

2010-03-22T21:01:00.000-04:00

The 2010 Athens Gravel Rouser. A nice 50+ mile back road ride out and back from Athens to Lake Hope. Weather was great.

Took the "cross" bike. With 38c wide knobs and drop bars, it was the perfect bike for those roads. Skipped the 10 mile single track though. Instead, I rode out the service road to the intersection of Wildcat and Copperhead to make sure the riders/racers made the turn onto the right trail. (After missing a turn last year, I would have really appreciated a marker).

BBQ with slaw and cookies were waiting for us when we got back. Thanks to Athens Bicycle for sponsoring the event. Thanks to John at the Cycle Path for fixing up my derailleur before the ride. And thanks to Toscano's for the BBQ. Look forward to next year.

Gravel Rouser 2010
Find more Bike Rides in Athens, Ohio

Boy #3

2010-03-05T20:24:00.000-05:00

4D ultrasound. Amazing image! Due 5/20.

Shoes

2010-03-04T10:46:00.001-05:00

No riding, so what do you do to pass the winter? Research shoes. Picked up a pair of Diadora road shoes. My toes would go numb with my old shoes unless I was wearing the perfect pair of socks and had the straps adjusted just right.

Plus, new gear always makes me faster, right?

One complaint: I ordered the shoes from Nashbar. Got carbon road shoes for $108 off mspr. Nashbar is 3 hours away and it cost $10 shipping and took 6 days to get here!

Training

2010-02-12T08:26:00.001-05:00

No training. I did get in a 24 minute ride on the indoor trainer this week. The rest of my time is spent blading snow off my driveway. At least when I get all the snow off, there is a great layer of ice below.

Must be the weekend

2010-02-06T17:13:00.000-05:00

...Cause it is snowing. Took a short ride through about 8" of snow. Heck of a work out, HRM says I burned 851 calories in 5.4 miles!

Snow was so deep that my feet were diving in as I pedaled.

Anniversary

2010-02-05T17:02:00.000-05:00

I got the chance to take a day off from work and spend the night away with my fabulous wife for our 15th wedding anniversary. We traveled up to Hocking Hills on Thursday night and checked in to our getaway chalet. Thanks to the Devol's! We stayed in Deer Run, owned and operated by Old Man's Cave Chalets. Highly recommended if you travel here.

From there, we went straight to the Inn at Cedar Falls for a fantastic dinner. The Inn is in an old dovetail log house. Enjoyed a great meal, salmon for me and fillet for Shelly, finished up with some dessert.

Back to our home for the day, we enjoyed watching AS Roma play Udenesi (I married an awesome woman for sure to watch Italian soccer on our anniversary!). Jumped in the hot tub after.

Had to head for home fairly early today, snow storm is on its way. Looking forward to the next 15 years.

Loop Turned into a One-Way

2010-01-23T16:51:00.000-05:00

I have worked a lot this week. Thursday was a 15 hour day that started at 5am and was preceded and proceeded by 10 hour days. Katsu was planning to do a 60 mile ride, just did not think I could do it, at least not without slowing him down.

So I decided that after working at home through the morning, I would head out. I mapped a 30 mile loop through Wilkesville. Made it 18.75 miles and the ride ended with a flat. Where is my spare tube? Oh, in the wheel I put together just for the indoor trainer. I had a patch kit, yep used the last one on my other bike. Good thing I had cell service.

Italia Straps

2010-01-21T19:50:00.000-05:00

I recently picked up a pair of Italia Guitar Straps during their buy one, get one free sale. Great quality, adjustable leather straps. A lifetime strap for sure.

Check them out at http://www.italiastraps.com

Team Athens

2010-01-04T07:23:00.000-05:00

I did it. I joined Team Athens Cycling. Not sure how much I will contribute, at least in racing. Anyone else want in? Check out the site for application information.

New Year

2010-01-02T20:08:00.000-05:00

Someone asked me last week what I did for fun. Wasn't sure how to answer to be honest. My resolution for next year is the remember how to have fun. In the meantime, I hit the roads a couple times for some snowy biking.