Me, My Bike and I

Give me a Challenge... however small

2011-10-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

WOW... my last post on this blog was June 1st. I knew it was a while ago, but not that long. Sadly, there is not much "bike" news that I can pass on. I have been neglecting my bikes, and it shows. It has been too hot over the summer... I have been too busy at work.... I stayed up to late to do homework... and the list of excuses goes on and on. All of them just that... excuses and justifications (in my own mind) to not ride.

On Friday I was reading Mike's blog and came across a word that I had never heard before. "Coffeeneuring". Well, I clicked on the Coffeeneuring Challenge link on his blog and found the rules for a challenge that MG (a DC Rand rider) had created. "Coffeeneuring Challenge" rules as spelled out quite clearly on her blog, and it sounded like just what I needed, a challenge, to get my fat toucas back on the bike.

In a nutshell, I have to ride to 7 different coffee shops (of my choosing) by the end of October. The coffee shops have to be more than a 2 mile ride, the rides can only be done on Saturday and Sundays and you can only visit 1 coffee shop per day. Well, you can visit as many as you want, but only 1 will count towards the challenge.

The prize... the fun and exercise that you get doing the weekend rides is your prize. I am not looking at what I can get, I am REALLY looking at what I can lose. Maybe a couple lb's.

I made my list of coffee shops and made a plan. Saturday morning came around and I got the bike ready to go. Air in the tires, lube on the chain, wiped off all the cobwebs and I was off. I actually put the bike in the car and drove to the B&A trail and rode to Java Diva's. Information about Java Diva's can be found at their website Java Diva's . It ended up being a 16 mile ride at an incredible slow pace. On the way back to the car, I stopped at the Farmer's Market to meet Bev and get some good fall vegetables. It was a great ride, great weather and a great way to start the challenge.

Sunday morning was the true test. Would I get up and ride again? The coffee shop on the list today was City Dock coffee in Annapolis. This would require me to ride over some mountains (OK, just a bit of a stretch, but after being off the bike for so long, I knew they would feel like mountains). I pulled myself out of bed and downstairs to check the temperature to see how to dress. 46 degrees. I had complained all summer that it was too hot to ride, I could use the excuse that it was too cold to ride. I dressed appropriately and off I went. This time from the house I rode to City Dock coffee and then back home. I have not seen the Garmin statistics for that ride yet, but it was 17 miles at a slow pace.

Two down, 5 more to go. Next weekend I will knock out two more coffee shops and get a little bit more of my fitness back in the process.

Thanks for reading and I am going to try to carve out just a little bit of time every couple days to do an entry here.

Catch up post

2011-06-01T06:52:00.000-07:00

Ok, so how do I wrap up almost months of not blogging into one post? It really won't be that difficult, because I haven't done a whole heck of a lot, which is a problem. The rainy season (March, April and May) has come and gone, and with rain comes a wealth of excuses why NOT to ride the bike. "It's too wet, It's too cold, If I ride in the wet I'll have to clean the bike completely and I don't have time to ride, let alone ride AND clean..." You get the picture. Needless to say, my miles are down significantly this year. So much so, that I will not even fill out a training log for January - May.

Work has been a strain... but only because I let it be. Delayed roll out of new computers has caused other projects to get pushed back and back and back. I think I see the light at the end of the tunnel, so provided that the light is not attached to an oncoming train, I should be back to some sense of normalcy soon.

I have ridden 4 times in the past 7 days, so things are looking up. Last Wednesday I took the day off to watch the Blue Angels perform. Bev had gotten tickets to the VIP tent, and since I consider myself a VIP, I wasn't going to miss it. Well, the Blue Angels decided to have a close call in Lynchgburg causing them to cancel the next few upcoming shows so that they could do a safety stand down and correct the problems that led to the close call. So, I took my bike and rode from home to the Rusty Bridge and back. On Saturday I joined the SPP bagel ride into Annapolis. A large group of riders came out for that ride because of the beautiful weather. On Sunday I rode with Mike and Bob around the Severn River with a detour out to Crofton for some Caribou Coffee. It was a nice ride at a nice pace with nice people. It doesn't get much better than that. Finally, this morning I joined the 5:46 group ride from the Rusty Bridge. I think there were 14 riders at the start. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday the pace is very fast, but with a large group, enough people, for varying reasons, did not want to go fast. So 4 or 5 of us hung back and rode at a more moderate pace. I have not seen the difference in the scales yet, but I can feel the difference in my attitude and energy levels. I am hoping to ride the 5:46 ride again tomorrow. I'll let you know if I make it or not!

Why I ride?

2011-02-14T17:22:00.000-08:00

For anyone who has gotten an email from me you may have noticed my signature line that says "Would the person who stole my motivation please return it, no questions asked!" This past weekend I had my motivation returned to me by two SPP members.

On Saturday I managed to force myself to get my bike gear on and head out for a ride. I was leaving the house too late to make it to the starting point of the 7:30 ride on time, but I decided to head in that direction and intercept the group as it headed to Annapolis. Well, as it turned out I only saw Chip heading down the trail. I turned around and we headed into Annapolis to enjoy a nice leisurely ride, a hot beverage, and some good conversation. On my way home I realized that I have really missed the camaraderie that we have riding together as a group. Sharing a laugh, talking about whatever happens to be the topic of the day, or sometimes (for me anyway) sucking in as much air as possible and trying to hang onto the back of the group. That ride helped to return a portion of my motivation.

The rest of my motivation was returned when I received the following email from Dangerous Dan this morning:

Dear Chris:
I found a package of motivation on the side of the road, a little tattered, it had bite marks and dog spit on one corner, but otherwise it is intact and fully functional. I didn't know who it belonged to, so I kept it safe and took it with me for a ride every now and again to keep it charged up. I had it with me on our night perm in January and it really liked all the long hours and cold miles so I knew it belonged to an experienced randonneur. Yesterday it was really in its element and enjoyed the scenery and camaraderie of the group. It pulled me over the hills, and pushed on the descents, it waived to the ducks in the stream, and the horses in the pastures, and mocked the farm dogs behind their fences. It has been good company.

Now that I know it is yours I would like to reunite you two as soon as possible. So I will keep it on the bike and get it to you when we ride together next which I hope will be soon. See you on the roads:

Dangerous Dan

I promised Dan that I would relieve him of my motivation sometime this week. Along with my motivation, Dan and Chip have returned my appreciation for the people that ride with SPP as well.

So to answer the question "Why I ride?" it is not only to get my heart rate up and burn calories, but to spend some time with some great people who share a common interest.

A slow start to a new year

2011-01-31T06:47:00.000-08:00

So it is the last day of January, and I just totaled up my miles ridden for the Severna Park Peloton mileage challenge. It was quite an embarrassing number. I could go on and on with the excuses about how cold it has been, and the snow and ice are not exactly the conditions that I want to ride in and the list goes on and on. The truth of the matter is that I have not had the motivation that I need to get out of bed and on the bike.

Last year, I worked very hard to get in shape for the 550 mile ride through the mountains of New England in July. I had a goal. Something to work towards, and because I was registered and had solicited sponsors the help raise money for diabetes I felt that I had to ride those miles or be embarrassed in July. After the New England Classic was done, so was I. I thought it was just a "burnt out" feeling and a little bit of time off the bike and I would be right back to riding almost every day. But, the more days I didn't ride the harder it seemed to force myself to get on the bike and ride. Because I was working towards my R12, I still found myself riding some to maintain what little fitness I had left in order to ride the 200k's.

So, here we are in a new year, and I have started the month out with an all time low for me in regards to mileage. I need a goal. A target to work towards. I am not going to do the 550 mile New England Classic again, but I am considering the shorter 150 mile version. The amount of money that has to be raised is much more manageable, and I won't have to take a whole week off from work to do the ride. I have my eyes on an event that I may possibly consider. I believe registration is in April and once I have officially registered, I will let everyone know what it is. So, stay tuned, for updates.

I could use some Global Warming.

2010-12-16T05:37:00.000-08:00

We have been stuck in a deep freeze of late, and it is beginning to get on my nerves. There is a forecast for snow this afternoon, which could make Mike's 200k tomorrow a bit more...ah...dare I say... 'epic'!

I looked back at my 2009 training log and I did a so so job of recording the temps on the days that I rode, and I recorded 22 degrees as the coldest day that I rode. Given the temps of the past couple weeks, 22 degrees would seem like a heat wave.

I mentioned Mike's 200k tomorrow. Mike, Clint and Earl will be riding the Sailing Down to Solomons 200k tomorrow. This will be the completion of Mike's R12 award. Clint is one of the founding fathers of the Severna Park Peloton, and does a great job of brain washing... ah... I mean... recruiting SPP members to ride in these long rides. Clint is SUPER supportive of everyone in the group. His latest victim.. I mean... recruit is Earl, who on this ride will be doing his first 200k.Bonne Route!

If you noticed, I changed the background of my blog. The obvious reason for the change was the forecast for snow, but after I changed it I noticed the sign on the right hand side of the page. Even though it is German it pretty much sums it up for me.... "Workin' .....DAMN."

December 200K - Nottoway Ramble

2010-12-11T08:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I completed my 12th 200k in as many months, qualifying me for my R12 award from Randonneurs USA (http://www.rusa.org/). This is a goal that I set back in February, and I cannot explain how happy I am that I have achieved it. I will post a blog entry at a later date to reflect on that achievement. For now, let me talk about the Nottoway Ramble because there is MUCH to cover.

There were a few requirements that I was looking for when I was choosing my ride for December. I wanted to ride on a dry day that was as warm as possible. Well, for those of you that have been awake for the month of December you know that pretty much the whole country has been experiencing a cold spell, and a 200k in San Tropez was not only beyond my budget, but probably would not count towards my R12. So, after days of watching weather.com's 10 day forecast I saw that Friday was going actually break into the 40's so I targeted that day. This weekend is my weekend with Emily so after re-arranging the travel plans that were already in place, I was able to make it work.

I requested to ride this perm from the owner (Ron Malinauskas) and we managed to get all the requisite paperwork done via email. He provided great support for me by way of recommending a hotel, directions from the hotel to the start, information about where to park, recommendations for lunch and map images of the route. In addition to all this, his cue sheet was excellent. It was detailed and the cue's were extremely accurate.

So after a night in the hotel (which was nice) I headed out to the start. The temp was a balmy 24 degree's, but I knew that it would warm up into the high 40's so I was not too discouraged. I was layered pretty well with my Shower Pass jacket, a couple Under Armour layers and the moisture control system. As I started out, I was bit chilly, but soon I was toasty warm pedaling to the first control.

The first control was The General Store in Yale, VA. Well, I would be willing to bet that it was the ONLY store in Yale, VA. It was definitely a step back in time. The woman that was behind the counter was very kind and very southern. I asked for an egg sandwich on and english muffin and she said they didn't have english muffins just biscuits and toast. OH YEAH, I forgot... I am in the south, so it is biscuits with everything. I got my egg sandwich on a biscuit, sat down at the dinning room table that was in from of the store and enjoyed the warmth. After about 30 minutes there I jumped back on the bike and headed to the next control.

As I pedaled away from the store, I did a quick mental inventory of how I felt. I was fed, I had water AND some hot coffee in my insulated bottle (thanks Dave) I had been diligent up to that point in regards to my e-caps, my back, legs and toucas felt fine... so far so good.

The next control was an information control at mile 58+. I made it the information control, gathered the information, enjoyed a Snickers bar and some coffee and headed to Waverly. The route owner had mentioned am Italian place in Waverly where he likes to stop for lunch. I wasn't really hungry at the time that I arrived there, but I did need some water so I bought a bottle of water from that place and headed on my way. Again, a mental inventory showed that I was in a good place.

The ride from Waverly to the 2nd control, again was uneventful. I did notice that most of the roads that I was on were tar and chip and seemed to rattle quite a bit. I did notice that my shoulders were getting a bit sore, and I attributed that to both lack of riding prior to this ride and the vibration of the road surface taking its toll. I arrived at the 3rd control, which is at mile 82+. It was a small store that was operated by a woman that did not speak very good english. It was about lunch time so I asked if they sold sandwich and all they had were frozen sandwiches that could be microwaved. I chose the philly cheese steak sandwich and added some chips and a coke. I lingered at the store for a good while, struck up a conversation with the ice cream delivery man who happened to be from Salisbury Beach, MA originally so we talked Patriots, Red Sox and Celtics for a while.

Before heading out to the next control I made a slight wardrobe adjustment. Knowing that the difference in temperature would be about 25 degrees, I knew that as the ride wore on I would be sweaty and my layers would not be able to keep up with wicking the moisture away from my body. So I brought along fresh moisture control system and an additional Under Armour base layer (all packed in a zip loc bag, in the pocket of my Shower pass jacket) After making the adjustment, I felt warm and dry, almost like this was the start of the ride. Mental inventory.... getting fatigued and ready to be done, but feeling good.

Well, that feeling changed rather quickly as I was headed to the next control. At about mile 85+ I see up ahead a dog that was laying on its front porch decides that it wants to take a run at me. The front yard that he is in is not the big, so by the time I get to his house, he is already in the road waiting for me and barking. Well, I accelerate to try to out run him and he is barking a way that you just know if he gets a chance... he would like nothing more than take a bite out of you. I manage to get past him and then I have a decision to make... the road bears right or goes straight...I can't slow up and look at the cue sheet or I will be minus one ankle... I chose to go straight... I chose poorly. After making the decision to go straight there was a speed bump in the road that I managed to bunny hop, but in doing so one of my snickers bars came out of my bento box. CRAP... I have lost chocolate. The dog did not chase me too long, but it was like he knew I would be back. He didn't meander back to his yard, he laid down by the sign at the intersection waiting for me. So, after stopping and thinking this through (here I am trying to out smart a f*%#in dog) the plan was to ride back to the intersection on the extreme far right hand side of the road and head back from where I came and then after the dog settles down again, ride past him again and bear right this time like I was suppose to. Well, things worked out better than I expected... kind of... I headed up the road, and the dog figured this time he would lead me a little bit more, which allowed me to slow enough to take the left hand turn that I need to take to put me on the road I needed to be on. I pedaled pretty fast, and was pretty proud of the way that worked out. I didn't hear any barking, a quick look over my left shoulder I could see the dog. Well, that was because he was in my blind spot just over my right shoulder... and when he finally barked, it scared the crap out of me and I about fell off my bike. I looked to my right and there was Cujo. At that point the dog looked HUGE. I could have sworn that I was looking eye to eye with him. I accelerated a little bit and he gave up the chase. Mental inventory... Not as good as it was before.

Over the next 20 miles or so, there were SEVERAL dog encounters. With the first encounter still fresh in my mind, I was VERY aware of any barking that I heard. In this area, the majority of the houses are farm houses with really long driveways. With me watching for ANY movement heading towards the road, I was pretty much able to pick up my speed as soon and I saw the dogs head my way, and none of them go very close.

However, there was one dog that almost put me over the edge. At just about mile 100 I saw a truck coming down a real long driveway heading to the road I am on, with a dog running along the drivers side. A wonderful... this guy is bringing the dog to the road, so much for my head start. As the truck turned on the road headed towards me, the dog was still chasing but now along the passengers side on the side of the road. Well, I tried to position myself so the truck would be between me and the dog and maybe the dog would miss me entirely. HA HA HA... you think that would happen? Not a chance. The dog saw me... went to all stop turned around and began the chase. This dog was fast and just would not stop chasing. I looked back one time and saw that the gap had opened a bit and I figured he has begun to give up, so I slowed a bit... he kept right on coming and was getting closer. I was winded and felt the twinge in my thigh of an impending cramp... I can't very well stop and chew and ecap at this point, so I slowed down and just figured if he catches up to me, I deal with it when it happens. I had my water bottle in hand if I needed it. After slowing up a little I looked back and saw that his tongue was hanging out of his mouth and that he had slowed a bit too, so I pushed for one last time and was able to discourage him enough to quit chasing. Now, because of the first incident with Cujo, I had become acutely aware of my next cue on the cue sheet. I knew that at mile 104.4 I had to take a left. I know that this encounter started at about 100+ mile mark and it couldn't have been too much more than a mile before the next cue, so I figure that this dog chased me for nearly 3 miles... which doesn't seem like much, that is unless your the one being chased. I made the left hand turn at mile 104.4 and did another mental inventory ... really BAD! I have ridden with riders who do not want to dogs to chase them because they are afraid they will get hit. I yelled "STAY" and "NO" and "GO HOME" like they do... to no avail. I have even seen riders almost get hit themselves to try to prevent a chasing dog from getting hit. I am not proud to say it, but at about mile 102 I was praying for a car to come along and either hit the dog or hit me.

To make my mental state even worse leading up to the marathon with the dog, my Garmin was showing "Low Batteries". I know why this happened, and I am pretty ticked at myself for letting it happen. I used the back light in the morning at the start of the ride while it was dark, and my intention was to stop when it was light to turn that off so each time I hit the joystick on the Garmin to change displays it wouldn't use the back light. Well, as I was riding, with the big gloves on, I was able to turn the headlight to flashing and the helmet light off, but the gloves are too bulky for configuring the light on the Garmin. So it finally died very close to the end (mile 116 according to the Garmin file). It tried to turn it on along the way to mark the points along the way, similar to what I did in July, and at a couple spots that worked, however the spot that I wanted it to work the most (the final information control), I turned on the power, but forgot to turn on the timer, so it did not register that. I did get the last few hundred yards to register the time that I finished.

So, yes, I finished. The R12 is complete and I now can take a month or 2 off from these 200k rides. After the 130 + mile ride I met Amanda and Emily at Chik-fil-A in Virginia Beach. We got our meals to go and Emily and I headed back up to Maryland. We got home just after midnight. That made for a very long day.

Garmin details:

NEGLECT....

2010-12-07T04:45:00.000-08:00

In a word, that pretty much sums it up. I have neglected my bikes, my blogging and watching what I eat. If I neglected my job as much as I have neglected the things listed above, I would be without a job. If neglected a pet in this way, I am sure I would be visited by the SPCA, and if I neglected my relationships on the same level as the other things I have neglected, I would be a very lonely person.

So, now that I am aware of the neglect, and have confessed it here on the blog, I am working on a plan to pay sufficient attention to my riding, blogging and eating. I did ride on Sunday with Mike. We did a lap around river, which amounted to 30 miles. This is the first time we had ridden together in a while. As we started out I asked him if he wanted to hear the list of excuses I was using to stay off the bike, or if he wanted to hear the truth. He knew what the truth was. I have been lazy. Sure, I could blame it on work because I am very busy at work getting ready to do a datacenter virtualization project. I could blame the cold weather, because it has been unseasonable cold over the past couple weeks, but that is why I have Under Armour cold gear. On Sunday, when Mike and I rode, it was in the 30's and VERY windy, yet I was sweating when I got home, and did not feel cold during the ride. So, bottom line... I have been neglectful.

Moving on, the ride on Sunday was a struggle. I started from the house, which means that I get to climb UP Deep Creek Ave to start the ride. My legs and lungs were hurting and I had only ridden four tenths of a mile. As I was riding to meet Mike, the headwind was strong enough that I had to pedal down hill to maintain speed. That is VERY frustrating. I was telling myself that I did not want to ride around the river, I would propose to Mike that we just do an abbreviated ride due to the wind. Well, before I could mention my plan to Mike, he had already planned which direction we should go around the river to optimize the wind direction with the hills that we would face. OK, so I just shut my mouth and went along for the ride. This is the reason that it is always better to ride WITH someone. I had already talked myself out of riding around the river, but I did not want to be the "lightweight" who couldn't handle the wind. I am glad that I rode around the river.

Looking ahead, I have scheduled my 12th 200k for Friday December 10th. I will be riding in Windsor, VA which I hope will prove to be just a degree or two warmer than here in Maryland. There will be a ride report following that ride, and I am sure I will do an entry to re-cap my twelve 200k's. So, stay tuned.

Below is my Garmin info from Sunday's ride. You will notice that the heart rate looks a little funky. I think that my heart rate monitor needs a new battery OR I need a new heart. As we were climbing the hill on Veteran's Highway I looked down and saw that my heart rate reading in my Garmin read 0.0. When we crested the hill (and I could breath again) I told Mike that either my heart rate monitor was malfunctioning, or my heart stopped on the hill. SInce I was still pedalling, I assume it was just the battery on my monitor.

Flatbread 200k

2010-11-15T08:09:00.000-08:00

On November 6th, I set out with fellow SPP member Chip Adams to ride the "check out" ride for the Flatbread 200k brevet that would take place on November 13th.

Just for clarification, a "brevet" is a scheduled ride, and is only available to be ridden on the date and time scheduled, where as a "permanent" route, is a ride that a rider can make arrangements with the route owner to ride at any time. A "check out" ride follows the route of the brevet to ensure accuracy of the cue sheet, the conditions of the roads and to work around any unforeseen obstacles. The "check out" ride is typically done a week in advance to allow the organizer to make any changes that need to made before the actual brevet.

At 7:20, Chip and I rolled out under partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures and a bit of wind. I was nervous about this ride, as I am about most of them, because I would be riding with Chip knowing that would be the pacesetter, and it would be considerably slower than what Chip normally would be at. The Flatbread 200k is a popular ride with SPP but I had never ridden the course, so my eyes on the cue sheet would help to find any discrepancies or vague instructions that may get the riders off course.

The first control, was an information control at a wooden bridge at the 8 mile mark. As we made the right turn on to the road that the bridge was on, we saw the big sign "Bridge Closed". This is why there is a "check out" ride. The bridge was just a 1/10 of a mile down the road, so we rode down to check it out. On the near side of the bridge, there were 2 jersey barriers, but there was enough of a gap between them for cyclists to get their bike through. The top of the wooden bridge was fully intact and the timbers were in good shape, so the bridge was safe to cross. The real obstacle was on the other side of the bridge. On that side there were 2 jersey barriers that were right up next to each other, allowing for no chance of a bike going between them. Chip and I contemplated the situation for a while (Chip knows the area very well, so he did a lot of contemplating... I enjoyed the scenery) and then lifted our bikes over the barriers, and continued on the route. I know this weighed on Chip's mind for a while, knowing that to avoid the bridge would require an extensive course redesign.

We pressed on to a coffee shop in Milford called Dolce. This coffee shop served as a control during last years Flatbread, but was not an "official" control this year. I found out that Chip like a good coffee shop, and I have to say that this was a VERY good one. We ordered our coffee and goodies, and sat in the coffee shop to enjoy them. After a nice break, we continued on the route.

The next stop was a convenience store in Slaughter Beach. I found out that part of the "check out" ride was to let the control points know that there would be about 40 - 50 cyclist coming into their establishment asking the clerks to sign their control cards and probably wanting to use the rest room, purchase water, Gatorade and so on. After we did that, we crossed the street to check out the view of the beach. Apparently, Slaughter Beach is where the Atlantic Ocean and the Delaware Bay meet. It was pretty, but a little windy and cool.

The next control was in Milton, at Bodies Market. The previous control had no public restrooms, so fortunately, Milton was just 11 miles up the road. As we arrived at the Market, Chip went in to get his control card signed and I stayed with the bikes. This was the first place that I did not feel real comfortable leaving the bikes unattended. I later went in, got my control card signed and asked to use the rest room. The rest room was in the coin operated laundry next door, and was not much of a rest room. I am a guy, so my standards for rest rooms are not all that high. I knew however, that there would be ladies riding the brevet, so I let Chip know that the rest rooms were not that great. We tossed around the possibility of finding another control. As I wheeled my bike off the sidewalk, I felt that unmistakable feeling of a mushy tire. I had a flat. That sealed the deal, we considered that a bad omen. After changing the flat, we set out to find another control.

We slowly tooled around Milton and found a nice espresso bar. We went in, Chip talked to the person behind the counter, I checked out the facilities and we were both happy with the choice to change the control to the espresso bar.

The next control was a gas station in Bridgeville. Now the weekend prior to the "check out" ride, SPP did an Ocean City ride from Stevensville, MD to Ocean City and back over the course of the weekend. On the return trip on Sunday, we stopped at a place called Jimmy's, which just happened to be in Bridgeville. Now I make it a rule on the 200k's to NOT do many bonus miles, but I happily added 3 bonus miles for lunch at Jimmy's. Having been there just the weekend before, we knew what we wanted so menu's and time to think about what to get was not needed. Our waitress came, took our orders, delivered our food. We ate, paid the check and we were on the road again in just over a half an hour.

The next leg was the finally leg, but was 40 miles to the end. It was also the part of the ride that would present the worst of the wind. We each took turns riding in front to block the wind, but I was behind Chip a lot more than he was behind me.

We finished the ride in just under 11 hours and just before dark. Chip annotated the changes that needed to be made to the cue sheet and we called it a day. I made arrangements to help Chip the following Saturday with getting riders checked in and just anywhere that I could be of help.

On November 13th, I met Chip and Chris (another Chris) and Bill Beck at the brevet starting point at 5:45 a.m. Bill told us there were about 46 riders that had pre-registered online and other would be registering at the start. As it turned out, there were 71 riders at that started the brevet, which is one of the most highly attended brevets in this area.

Just after the riders started, I hoped in the car and headed to the bridge that was out. On the check out ride, Chip and I had decided that one of us would be at the bridge when the riders got there and provide assistance getting the bikes over the barrier. I know that this was especially helpful to those riding a tandem. Trying to lift a tandem over the barrier without any help would not positively add to the riding experience.

Of the 71 riders, 12 were from Severna Park Peloton. Clint and Dan, two very strong riders from SPP joined forces on a tandem along with Randy, Matt and Dave set a course record, finishing in 6 hours 48 minutes. All of the 71 riders who started finished with in the time limit and enjoyed pizza and soda from Good Guys Sports Bar, which was the final control.

It was a beautiful day, and a well planned event and I look forward to doing it again next year.

Here is a link to some photo's
Flatbread Photo's

My garmin info from the "check out" ride

Sailing Down to Solomons - October's 200k

2010-10-27T05:33:00.000-07:00

Ok... I know I am severly delinquent in blogging. The past month has included travel to New York, Chicago, Virginia Beach and a crazy time with our new laptops. Trying to juggle work, travel and family has taken my full attention... and the blogging has suffered. Things have settled down to a dull roar now, so I am hopeful to keep this up to date.

On Sunday morning I rode The Sailing Down to Solomons perm for my October 200k. This was the third time I had ridden this particular route, but my first time riding it solo. I asked Crista (the route owner) for a 6:00 a.m. start time, and as usual she accomodated me by handling all the paperwork via email. (That may not sound like a big deal, but some route owners will NOT provide the "goodies" via email for some reason).

Bike preperations were done on Saturday. Chain cleaned, lubed etc. Clothes were laid out. Nutrition 'stuff' was ready to go. I had also made arrangements to implement the controversial moisture control program on this ride. Let's just say that I was "poised' to keep myself dry, but the sucess of the ride did not fully "depend" on it.

The ride down to Solomons was fairly uneventful. I set a comfortable pace (for me) and was planning on the ride taking me 12 hours. I had advertised in an email to SPP, that if anyone wanted to join me... it would be a leisurely paced ride. At about mile 37 or so, I stopped at a Wawa and grabbed some water to top off my camel back and pick up something to nibble on.

After the Wawa stop, I pedeled to the turnaround control in Solomons. For those of you that have ridden this ride before, the route has changed slightly, and the cue sheet brings you into Solomons right down to the water for an information control. The route owner had mentioned that it added something to the ride, and I have to agree. It is a quaint little place that I am glad I rode through. After collecting the information that I needed for the control card I stopped at Woodburn's Market for a cup of coffee and a piece of coffee cake. I actually sat down outside the market and enjoyed my coffee, watching people go in and out of the store.

Just a few more miles from the market and I would be at the halfway point. I was ahead of my 12 hour schedule even with the 2 stops, so I figured I was doing fine. I rode to a little store that is at the 80 mile point. I grabbed a package of cheese and crackers (they diudn't have any Klondyke Bars) and a coke and sat on the picnic tables in the front of the store. After enjoying my gedunk there, I headed to to the next control. An SPP favorite, Sweet Sue's in North Beach.

At Sweet Sue's I ordered a Chicken Caesar wrap, which was made exactly how I ordered it. I sat at one of the tables outside Sweet Sue's enjoying the beautiful day and watching all the people that were doing the same. I think I spent about 40 minutes at Sweet Sues before heading to the next information control and ultimately to the final control in Crofton.

I have to admit that this ride is not my favorite. There is the traffic on Rte 2/4 that you have to contend with (which is really not THAT big of an issue, because the shoulder is wide enough it's like you have your own lane). Mostly though,it is the last 30 miles or so of this ride that make it not one of my favorites. The route takes you through the back roads of Calvert and Anne Arundel counties.These roads are a seemingly never ending line of little uphills and little downhills. Don't get me wrong, I prefer small uphills to big uphills, but it is very difficult to get into any cadence rhythm over these miles and they just seem to drag on.

I shouldn't complain. Sailing Down to Solomons is a staple for most of us that are working on getting our R-12 awards. Driving 20 minutes to the start as opposed to 2 1/2 hours is a HUGE benefit. That equates to two more hours of sleep.

After the ride, Mike and I met at Gina's Cantina for a root beer to celebrate the completion of 10 - 200k rides. It was nice to have someone there to celebrate with at the end. If everything stays on track, three of us (Dan, Mike and myself) will complete our R-12's in December. Due to scheduling conflicts, it doesn't look like we will all be riding the same route, but I am quite sure we will all share a root beer at some point to celebrate.

Lesson learned...

#1 - Ok, this is the leson learned you are all waiting to hear about. Moisture control. Incontinence pads. They work, and they work REALLY well. I only used 2 and I put them both on my stomach. The sticky back keeps them in place stuck to your base layer. For those of you who know me, know that I sweat a lot. Typically I sweat through my jersey and wind vest by the end of the ride. On this ride, my shoudlers and chest sweated through, but my stomach was dry. On my wind vest, on my jersey and on my base layer. All of the sweat was absorbed by the pads. I definately see the benefit of using them to keep yourself dry and warm in the colder weather. . Say what you want...but they work and I will use them again.

#2 - Ride your ride. I find that these rides are much more enjoyable when I ride within myself. I told Mike that I am not good at these long ride, I am slow. He assured me that those are two differnt things. I can be good at these ride and be slow at them. My hat is off to people who can do these ride in less than 7 or 8 or even less than 9 hours. I am just not one of those people.

#3 - If you want great weather for a week or so, order a winter cycling jacket. I recieved my Shower Pass Elite 2.0 on Saturday, and will probably not get a chance to try it out for another week or so because the tropics have somehow come to Maryland.

Big ride this weekend. Stay tuned... I promise to blog about it.

Here is the Garmin info:

Eastern Shore Reversed...again.

2010-09-27T10:18:00.000-07:00

For those of you wondering if I am still alive... I assure you I am. Here is the report from my Spetember 200k.

As some of you may remeber, last month for my 200k I did the Eastern Shore reversed route. Let's just say that the flats were more challenging than I expected. So this month I was determind to exact my revenge.

I planned to leave at 4:00 a.m on Sunday morning for a 7:00 a.m. start in Wallops Island. I was a little nervous that this route may get the best of me again due to poor preperation on my part. I spent the day Saturday in Cambridge taking pictures and cheering on our SPP particpants in the Chesapeake Man triathlon, and arrived home later than I had planned. Which meant that preperations for the 200k would be hurried. A quick look at weather. com showed a high of 71 for the day, 30% chance of showers and 12 - 15 mph winds out of the N/NE. I managed to get the bike in the car, floor pump, lube, clothes, helmet, sport beans, ecaps and gu chomps. I threw in my wind vest, rain jacket and arm warmers in as well and would make the decision on what to wear when I got there.

Sunday morning rolled around and I was out the door at 4:00 a.m. As I traveled down to Wallops Island on Route 50 I am noticing that all the flags are straight out from the wind, and although I do not have real good spacial awareness, I knew from the direction that I was driving in, that I would have that wind directly in my face for the last half of the ride, something that I didn't have to deal with too much last month. I thought to myself that this could be bad.

I arrived at the starting point with enough time to check weather. com again, just to get the finally idea of waht to expect. It showed that the temp would reach a high of 73 and that between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m. it would be partly cloudy. After 12, it would be cloudy and the showers were forecast for 3 p.m. and later. With the chance of getting caught in rain, I rolled up my rain jacket and put it in the pocket of my wind vest. As a last minute decision I put my arm warmers on, knowing that if I got overheated I could easily roll them down or peel them off and store them very easily.

I got my right of passage recipt at 7:06 and I dwadled around with last minute preps and rolled out at 7:23. I had a GREAT tailwind as I started, I thought to myself that is most people experience headwinds no matter which direction they ride on the Eastern Shore, then there has to be someone who is experiencing tailwinds if they are riding in the opposite direction of the first guy, right. Well, I hoped to be that guy that was blessed with tailwinds both ways. Now, knowing that I am not THAT lucky, I did have a plan for this ride. I was going to do my best to keep my cadence down in the 75 - 80 range, which would save me 10 - 15 revolutions per minute, over a 10 hour ride would save me 6,000 to 7,500 revolutions. I figured my legs would thank me for that when I was fighting the headwinds to get back to the car.

I made it to the first control, which is an information control, feeling great. The next control is at mile 23 ish and I made it there feeling great also. Nothing much to say about the controls... you go in, buy what you need, ask the clerk to initial your card, they look at you funny, then they survey the card like it was some legally binding document that you were asking them to initial. They finally initial it and you are on your way.

It is about 40 miles from this control to the next control so I made sure that the camel back, and water bottles were filled and away I went. I am feeling great, ecaps every half hour, chomps and sport beans every hour, drinking water to stay hydrated AND I have a tailwaind. I could very easily have deviated from the plan and cranked up the cadence to 90 and gotten to the halfway point a little faster than I did, but I knew that on the way back I would need to dip into the suitcase of pain, and I wanted my legs to be as fresh as possible, so I took it easy to the halfway point.

I reached the halway control in 4 hours and 40 minutes. I got a random bag of pretzels, a coke (thanks again for that discovery Chip) and enjoyed that for 20 minutes and left that control at 12:23, 5 hours from when I started.

As I headed back, looking at my heading on my Garmin, it was NE. I no longer had a tailwind. It was a direct headwind and it wasn't as bad as I thought at first. I did my best to get into a good aero-dynamic position to lessen my profile in the wind. For those of you that know me, I am about as aero-dynamic as a brick, and even though I was in the drops, I felt like I was holding a piece of plywood into the wind. 75 rpm... that was what I kept saying to myself.

The route from the 2nd control to the halway control use about the same route. Seaside Rd. Stay on Seaside Rd forever. (which makes it a little more embarising that last month I missed a turn and did bonus miles.) Well, this time as I was headed out to the halfway control, I made it a point to find a landmark at that turn, so that on the way back, I wouldn't miss it again. A blue rubber pool. Left at the blue rubber pool. That was all I had to remeber.

As I pedaled back towards the next control, the headwind seemed to get stronger... or was I getting more tired? I passed the spot where I needed to take a break last month. Wow, that came up pretty quickly... only a couple more miles to the blue rubber pool. It was amazing to me, how much quicker the landmarks were coming up this time. I guess being hydrated and eating on the bike will do that for ya, huh? Well there it was... the blue rubber pool. I remember how I felt last month when I got to that pool and how much different I felt this time. I rolled into the control and spotted my ice cream freezer again. I bought my Klondike bar and coke and enjoyed them outside the control.

Up to this point there had been no rain, but looking at the sky I knew that it would be raining soon. I finished my ice cream and coke, filled the water bottles and headed to the finish. It was at mile 106 that I felt like the wind had really gotten stronger, or that I was just done and it was just me being more tired. In either case, it was a struggle to push through it. It was a race agianst the rain. Having to push through this wind was bad enough, having to do it with rain whacking you in the face would really suck. I was detrermined to beat the rain.

About a mile from the finish, it started misting, and looking of into the distance I could see the rain was coming. I pulled into the Royal Farns parking lot, which is the finish and got the bike into the car and the sky opened up and it downpoured. I later realized that by bringing my rain jacket I pretty much gaurenteed that it would not rain. Had I left it at the car... it would have rained the whole day. I was glad I missed the rain, and I was glad to be done. Garmin showed ellapsed time as 9:58 minutes, but because I didn't start right at 7:00 a.m. my recorded time will be at the 10.5 hour mark. Who cares, the point is I did not let the course get the best of me this time.... even though it tried to beat me down with the wind, I was prepared and I finished my 200k for September.

A couple of notable things to mention... riding this route solo allowed me to ride my ride. It would have been tempting to rush to the halfway point with the tailwind and had I been with someone who wanted to do that I probably would have followed. I remember riding in Ashland in January... Mike and I passed a guy that seemed to be going very slowly. Mike asked me "Does he know something that we don't"? Aparently he did, because I also remember that he was sitting in Ashland Tea and Coffee shop when we arrived. Fast is not always better, at least not for me.

Arm warmers.... I think that they were the best choice I made all day. It was cool enough to wear them most of morning and when it got warmee I just rolled them down to my wrists. As I headed back, and the weather got worse, there were sections of cooler spots and I could pull them up or roll them down as I needed.

I made a mental note on the last few miles, that I did not come in contact with one driver that was in any way rude or obviously perturbed by my presence on the roads. I was not crowded by any cars and many of the oncoming drivers were nice enough to wave.

The Wall, Bay Ridge and Around the River

2010-09-06T05:22:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I got up early and took a short ride just to stretch my legs a bit. It had been a week since I had ridden, and both Emily and Bev expressed their desire for me to take a bike ride. I guess I was getting a little "cranky".

I would have to agree with them. A week off the bike is too long and with work getting very busy, and dealing with incompetent, ineffective, poor planning vendors (can you feel the stress in my words) is not making my job any easier. After my Saturday ride, Emily noted a marked improvement in my attitude... I guess it really does help.

On Sunday, I set out alone to take a nice long ride to... I didn't know. All I knew was that I needed time on the bike, and time to think. I also knew that I was going to do "the wall". I did that and felt pretty good doing it. It is .25 miles, I am not sure of the grade but the last half of it is very steep. I was standing to pedal, not really to get any extra momentum, but because it felt like if I leaned back on the seat I would have tipped backwards. I hit the lap counter on the Garmin and I averaged 8.8 mph up the wall.

On my way to the wall I say Clif go by, one of the SPP riders that I have ridden with quite a bit. He looked like he was on a mission as well, so we exchanged greetings and headed in opposite directions.

After the wall, I headed into Annapolis. Feeling invigorated by having conquered the wall I did a few more of the more fun hills on the way into Annapolis. Once in Annapolis, I made a quick sweep of the coffee shops, but did not see any bikes that I recognized, so I continued out to Bay Ridge.

I rode out to Thomas Point Park and enjoyed a nice snack and water break over looking the Bay and Thomas Point Lighthouse. There were quite a few fisherman on the point trying their luck. I made a mental note of what a nice spot that would be to get a picture of the lighthouse at sunrise. The park opens at 8:00, so it would have to be a clandestine operation. I guess I could try to get permission... but as I always say, It's easier to get forgiveness then it is to get permission.

After Bay Ridge I headed back to City Dock, headed up Main St. and decided that my legs were feeling good enough to go home the long way, around the Severn River. I stopped at Naval Bagels on Taylor Ave and enjoyed an onion bagel with garlic cream cheese (I really want to be anti social) and a cup of coffee. That was my last stop before reaching home.

Bev was on her way to church. I had church on my bicycle. If you have never done it, try riding (or walking) at sunrise, and see the beautiful clouds, water, sunrise, deer, squirels, rabbits foxes etc and see if you do not become more keenly aware of God's presence.

While bev was at church, I did my best to destroy some of God's creation. We have some trees on the side of the yard that have been over taken by grapevines. It had gotten so bad that the trunk of the grapevine was as large ar the trunk of the trees (about 1.5 to 2 inches around) So I spent the day pulling, tugging, ripping, hanging from, and damn near swinging from these vines until I was able to get as many of them out of the tree as I could. I know when I was done, I stood back and admired my work. It was very quiet and very still and I was pretty sure I heard the trees say Thank You. I checked them out this morning and they already look better.

I am off to New York for work this week. I have my bike in the car. It will be nice to ride in a different area and check out different places. I will keep you posted.

Here is the Garmin info from yesterdays ride:

A little about nothing

2010-09-01T08:59:00.000-07:00

Just a couple pictures I came across that I wanted to share.

This is the sign at the top of Crawford Notch that we climbed during the New England Classic. I was more interested in the sign behind it. 13% grade for 3/4 mile.

Another is one that I found on the website of the owner of the Permanent that I did on Saturday. (Ride report to follow, I promise). For those who are not aware, randonnuering is an endurance cycling sport. You can get the details http://www.rusa.org/

Have a great day.

OK... so I am a little over-due

2010-08-23T07:08:00.000-07:00

I apologize for my delinquency in regards to keeping the blog up to date. I could go through the long list of reasons (read excuses) why I have not had time to do a blog, but I won't bore you with that. Suffice it to say that I will try to do better moving forward.

The month of July was just a crazy month in regards to riding the bike. There was that whole New England Classic thing. Thank you to everyone that supported me on that ride. I do not only mean financial support, although that was especially nice, but also in regards to words or encouragment before the ride, comments on the blog during the ride, and congratulations after the ride. I did meet my fundraising goal, and for some unknown reason, I have plans of doing the ride again next year. Please send me all your good fundraising ideas now so I can start earlier than I did this year.

If you are keeping track of the training log, you will see a rather large drop off in total miles for the month of August. Again, I could give you the list of excuses... but you don't want to hear them, so I am considering August a recovery month. I still have a 200k to do this month to keep the R-12 alive. That will be 8 of them, and we are planning for a 300k (atually about 325K ride in September from Port Jervis, NY to Cape May, NJ. If anyone is interested, we are in need of a driver to help us with the Logistics of this ride.

Back to work.

Over to Dover

2010-07-28T13:52:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday I took a "personal" day from work to ride my 200k for July. This would be the 7th 200k I have ridden this year and in each of the previous 6 I have learned something. Well, the 7th on would not disappoint me. I learned a lot during this ride.

Over to Dover is a 204k permanent that is described as "A gentle ride north through picturesque farmland and over old stone bridges with one BIG hill just before lunch". Since it is a popular perm with others that I ride with, I coordinated all the paperwork with the owner, and set out at 6:30 in the morning.

I had a very lackadaisical attitude towards this ride. I have done a lot of riding this month, and this ride would put me over 1,000 miles for July. My legs are feeling the effects of that, and like I told one of the SPP riders on Saturday, "I have 13.5 hours to do the ride, I may just take that long."

The first "mistake" I made on this ride was to plan it the morning after flying my daughter home to Virginia Beach. The flight was suppose to depart at 7:15, but did not leave until 8:30, which meant that I did not get home from the airport until 9:00 to start getting things together for the ride. I scrambled around, got the bike in the car, got the food and snacks that I needed together, plugged the Garmin into the laptop to charge, clothes to ride in and change into after the ride all ready to go for the morning and then I was in bed.

The morning of the ride came, I left the house, arrived at the Roy Rogers in Frederick with a few minutes to spare. So far so good. Figuring that I had plenty of time for this ride, I went into the Roy Rogers, which is the first control, ordered some breakfast potatoes (carbs are good, right?) so I could use that reciept for mt right of passage. It was 6:32. I got my control card signed and made my way back to the car, where I then took the bike out, put the rack pack on the bike, got the cycling shoes on, reflective gear, healmet, gloves, glasses etc. I did not leave the parking lot until about 6:50. 20 minutes wasted.

The ride started out great... the first few miles were very scenic and the roads had virtually no traffic on them. The air was cool, and after the past few weeks of hazy hot and humid weather, I enjoyed being just a little chilly as I rode. The terrain was hillier than I expected, but it wasn't hard to climb hill, but more of annoying undulations that prevented me from getting into any kind of pedaling rhythm.

At about mile 29 or so, my Garmin beeped. Low Batteries!!! Oh Crap (that is not what I REALLY said, but my Mom reads this blog, so I will not repeat what I really said) I plugged that in last night so it would charge. It was dead the other morning when I rode also... maybe the battery is bad? Why is it doing this? Well, I had another hundred miles to try to figure out in my head why the Garmin didn't cahrge. That didn't change the fact that it, at some point in the not too distant future, was going to die.

Now, some people use the Garmin to navigate during these perms, I am not one of those people. I had my cue sheet on my handle bars with my new cue sheet holder, so I knew that I would be able to finish with no problem. The Garmin finally went belly up around mile 42 or so, just before the second control stop. As I was pondering the "Why" of the dead battery, I am 99% sure that I determined the cause. At work we just got new laptops, and if you know anything about changing laptops or desktops you know that try as you may, you never get the new one "exactly" the same as the old one. You forget that you set the screen resolution from this to that because of this one program that runs better with that resolution. Or, you forget to prevent your laptop from hibernating so it can charge your Garmin overnight! Yeah, I think that is what did it, and the bad part is, that I heard the Garmin beep when the laptop hibernated, and I didn't give it a second thought.

My next thought was how to get the Garmin charged while on the ride. Maybe I would see a Staples, or even better a small computer repair shop that might have the proper cable to charge it for 1/2 hour. For those of you who have ridden this ride... you can stop laughing now. For those of you who have never been from Frederick, MD to Dover, PA... let me just say it is RRRRRRRRural. I gave up those thought when I asked at the first control if there was a computer repair shop anywhere near by and the lady told me there was a Verizon store on my way to Gettysburg. I would have to live without the Garmin... how bad could it be.

Have you ever heard the old expression, "You don't really miss something until it's gone"? Well, I realized that I rely on the Garmin a lot more that I realized. For me, the biggest thing that I missed about the Garin was not seeing the time. Doesn't sound like a big deal, but I have found that taking 1 e-cap every half hour, is critical to keep me hydrated and from not cramping up on the bike. In the heat of the day, I sometimes bump that up to every 20 minutes, but without having the Garmin on in front of me, I lost track of time... missed a few ecaps here and there, and I felt the effects. That feeling was cumulative and by the end of the ride, I was not feeling that great.

The Garmin is critical for measuring distance between turns also. Fortunately, most of the turns were at stop signs or at "T" intersections so they were easy to spot. There was one spot where I turned right and climbed a hill. I was suppose to take a right in .3 miles, but I was so glad to be at the top of the hill, and my mind was somewhere else I cruised right past the turn, down the other side of the hill and THEN realized I missed my turn. I had to turn around and climb the hill I just came down to make the turn. These are called "bonus" miles, and I try to avoid them at all costs. That happened to me one other spot, but I think over all, the bonus miles probably did not add up to more than 2 miles. Not that bad.

There were other challenges that I had to deal with. The hills. Like I said before, the hills were not too bad, but they were more of an annoyance. The "one big hill" that is advertised before lunch was formidable and was no fun climbing. and climbing it the other way after lunch was not as bad. Plus you had the nice "screaming" downhill to enjoy.

I also learned that when you ride on fresh asphalt (when I say fresh I mean, I passed the roller truck that was rolling over the top of it) your tires pick up a certain amount of stickiness, which is wonderful for helping glass stick to them and puncture your tubes. You guessed it, that is what happened to me. I came off the asphalt, and within a mile I had not just one flat, but BOTH tires were flat. I guess if I had to find the positive in this situation it would be that there was a nice shade tree with grass underneath it to sit down and change my tire under.

As with everything that I did with this ride, I took my time changing the tires. At all of the controls I sat and people watched for a little while and at lunch I lingered a little too long probably, but the little whole in the wall restaurant was a nice place to rest. I rode slow because I was in no rush. I had no reason to have to ride fast. There was no impending bad weather. There was no traffic on the road, as a matter of fact I drafed a tractor for the entire length of Possum Hollow Rd. I was not riding with anyone else that I was holding up. I just rode at my own pace.

Despite the minor issues that I had on the ride, I did thoroughly enjoy it. It seems also with each ride I have my faith in humanity restored just a bit. As I pulled into the parking lot at the final control I was walking my bike past my car and I noticed that the hazard light were flashing. Oh great, did the alarm go off and the lights kept flashing? How long have they been on? I finished up in the restaurant and came out and tried to start the car.... nothing! Ok, so I opened the hood in hopes that someone would maybe stop and see if I needed assistance. Heck, about 20 miles from the finish I dropped my water bottle... stopped, got off the bike and the only car I had seen in a few miles stopped and asked if I needed help. I guess I looked like I needed help. So no more than a couple minutes after I put my hood up, a truck with a towing trailer pulled up to tow the car right next to me. He gave me a jump and did not charge me anything for it. After telling him how many miles I had ridden he told me it was his pleasure. See that, there are good people in this world.

Not sure what I am going to do for the August 200k. I know that I am going to rest ly legs now for a while.

Thanks for reading.

Back into the swing of things

2010-07-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

So I am back into the daily routine, if you can call it that. My body is wreck from the ride, lack of sleep and trying to re-acclimate myself to getting up early to ride... and going to work.

I have felt very tired this past week, and I am sure it is a combination of many factors conspiring to make me feel that way. The check has come due for what I put my body through last week. I trained for that ride, and I am thankful for every mile that I rode in preparation for the ride. It paid off, but I had never done that many miles in such a short period of time. So, I mortgaged some energy last week and I am making the payments this week. Not to mention the fact that I think I only got 3 "good" nights sleep during the week. I swear that on 2 of the nights I got more dehydrated laying in bed than I did on that days ride. Then, after the ride, I think that driving straight home was not the wisest choice. I was fine while I was driving, but that made for a very long day. Saturday was the party at Eddie & Tracy's which we did not get home from until midnight.

I have done some riding.... a couple of "wild" days with the peloton. Man they go fast. Monday was not so bad, because it was mosey Monday, but Wednesday was wicked (which is why we call it "Wicked Wednesday") I tried to keep up as much as I could, but Chip was shot of a canon and all I saw was the blinky blinky of their tail lights. We had a new rider with us, so Clint stayed back with him and I hung out somewhere in the middle.

I have missed having Mike to ride to work with. It is lonely riding alone, but more importantly, it is WAY too easy to turn the alarm off and sleep in a little longer when there is no one is expecting to meet you to ride into work together. Next week I will probably be riding with the peloton for most days. Our annual meetings at work are being held in Oregon, so I will adjust my hours just a bit to accommodate those extra users in a different time zone.

Emily is here this week, and she is doing her Phys. Ed class over the summer, so I know that her and I will be either walking/jogging or bicycle riding over the weekend. It is suppose to be 8,000 degrees this weekend, so I am hoping that I can pry her out of bed and get her out there early.

Enjoy the weekend... those of you in the heat... stay cool and stay hydrated!

Garmin data from Wicked Wednesday

Day 7... the push to the finish

2010-07-18T09:51:00.000-07:00

The final day! The push to the finish. I laid in bed on Friday morning visualizing what it would be like to pull into the parking lot at Chomerics in Woburn, where this whole things started.

I got up and took a quick shower (even after taking a shower last night and knowing that I am going to do nothing but sweat all day, I still need a shower in the morning. It is part of the wake up process.) put on my bike shorts and a tee-shirt and brought my laptop case and fan down to the gear truck. There was a definitively different "buzz" around the truck this morning. Everyone was anticipating the return to home and normalcy. Riders who had, for whatever reason, that had stop riding throughout the week were back in bike gear ready to ride the final day. The riders who were normally barely awake on the other 6 days were bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to go. Breakfast seemed to rival one of the competitive eating contests. Not so much the amount of food eaten, but the speed at which everyone seemed to plow through their food. Then it was back to the room, get the rest of your gear on the gear truck, get your bike ready to go, and start pedaling.

If you look at the elevation profile in the Garmin details below, you will see that at the beginning of the day, there were still a few climbs that we had to do before heading down to Woburn. These started almost immediately, and they were those l o n g never ending uphills, that are not very steep, just never seem to end. The five of us put our heads down, got into a good pedaling rhythm and made our way over the top. after about 3 or 4 of these climbs came the fruit of our labor... the best downhill of the ride. The road had been newly surfaced, the downhill was more gradual that the ones in the mountains, the road serpentined slightly, and there was very little traffic. Before I knew it, we were at the first rest stop.

The rest stops on the last day were different as well. There was no sitting down and lounging. You got in, got what you needed, got rid of what you didn't need and then hit the road again. I made a quick pit stop, ate some watermelon and some granola, filled the water bottles, drank some gatorade and away we went.

The second rest stop was more of the same...get in get out and be done. There was a route change from previous years just ahead, so the volunteers did their best to get our attention and let us know to pay attention to the road markings. The next rest stop was different this year also... it stopped at an ice cream stand. So my ride between rest stop two and three was, for the most part, an ongoing conversation with myslef on the pro's and con's of getting a milk shake at the last rest stop. It has taken me months to tweak my eating habits while doing long rides on the bike. I have tried liquid protein, Gu gels, sport beans and the like, and I finally have it down well enough that I do not dehydrate of bonk while I am riding. Do I really want to mess with that formula at the last rest stop before the end of this big ride?

As we pulled into the parking lot of the third checkpoint, the volunteers had set up tents to the right, to provide us with shade during the stop, and the ice cream stand was to the left. As we pulled in, Rolland, Mike, Joe, Steve and Barb all headed to the right, but for some reason my bike just wouldn't turn that way. It headed right to the ice cream stand. I ordered my coffee milk shake and enjoyed it under the shade of the tents. It was alright, but it was not like Storm Bros. here in Annapolis, but it was OK.

We had 17 miles to go to the finish, and I figured that Rolland would start smelling home cooking and really start spinning the wheels to get back, especially on the flat terrain. Surprisingly, we kept a very comfortable pace and we all stayed together reasonably well, and before I knew it we were making the right onto Dragon Ct. Another 500 yards or so, and we would be done. We rode side by side, because Dragon Ct. Is basically a driveway into an industrial park area, congratulated each other and i thanked Rolland for being a great diesel engine. We crossed into the Chomerics parking lot to cow bells, applause, whistles and cheers.

As we were cooling down, we began gathering our stuff off of the gear truck, packing bikes into the cars, taking pictures and changing out of sweaty bike clothes into drier more comfortable clothes. As I was walking around doing this, I had just about each one of the volunteers come up to me, congratulate me for finishing the ride, and thanking me for the money that I raised to help to find a cure to diabetes. I also had several of the riders, who I had not ridden with but knew that this was my first year riding, approach me, congratulate me and ask me if I would be back to do the ride again next year.

That is not really a question that I could answer only minutes after finishing the ride this year. According to the Garmin data, I rode 569 miles, climed 23,000 + feet through 4 states over the course of 7 days. That was not easy, but I have to say that the hardest part was raising the money. That seemed to be the consensus with all of the riders that i spoke to. My donors were awesome, and gave above and beyond what I EVER would have expected them to give. Friends, family, co-workers and even former in-laws all chipped in to help me reach my goal. I could not expect them to do that every year, so if I do decide to ride again, the fund raising will be approached in an entirely different manner.

I left the parking lot in Woburn with a feeling of accomplishment. I headed back to Maryland and arrived home at around 1:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. When I pulled into the garage I was greeted by this banner that Courtney, Bev and Donna made for me. I am so loved.

Garmin data below

Mission Accomplished

2010-07-16T17:03:00.000-07:00

I finished the New England Classic today. 7 days, 4 states, 550 + miles.

I am driving back to Maryland tonight, so this is a VERY brief blog entry. I promise a full report of the last day of riding tomorrow, and a wrap up blog with an overall ride report before the weekend is over.

The last day of climbing

2010-07-15T19:21:00.000-07:00

Well, today was the last day of climbing, and I must confess...it was tough. The first part of the ride was downhill, but from mile 50 or so, it was up hill.

The original fearless fivesome left Killington a little after 7:30 this morning. The downhills were amazing and the morning fog over the mountain lakes made for a very pretty ride. It was 24 miles to the first rest stop; at Sweet Ssurrender Bakery. I did not partake of any of the sweet's that they had to offer, but I did walk through, and the smell of the bakery was incredible. Instead, I filled my water bottles with wath water and gatorade (we had blue gatorade today) enjoyed some watermelon, Cheez-its and a box of raisins. I have found that junk food, as long a s it is salty, works pretty well for me on the long rides.

I left ahead of the Rolland train and positioned myself on the street ahead of them in hopes to snap a picture of the locomotive on the move. In the front is Rolland, of course, then Joe, followed by Mike, Steve (who is a rider that we picked up along the way, and Barb. For those of you who have never had the pleasure of riding in a paceline, I can't even begin to explain how much of a help it is. These guys are a fun group to ride with, and some of the conversations that we had in the pace line were really quite entertaining.

We pacelined ourselves to the Vermont Country store, where the downhills ended and the last bit of substantial climbing began. The difference between this day of climbing and Tuesday and Wednesdays climbing was that today there were no steep climbs, just some very very long long uphills. The grade was 3 - 4 % of an incline, but they seemed to go on forever. I found that the best way to handle it was to put the person in front of me's rear wheel about 4 inches from my front tire and stare directly at their tire. In doing this, I had to put a lot of trust in the person in front of me that they would not lead me over a pot hole or through loose gravel or any other road hazards. I only did this when Rolland, Joe or Barb were directly in front of me. We all managed those climbs and arrived at the 3rd rest stop, which happened to be at a local bike shop.

The first order of business was to go into the bike shop and get an update on the Tour de France. It appears that there was a little head butting going on on the sprint in. I have not heard what the ramifications of that were, but I did see it and I am sure there will be some punishment. After checking that out and using the facilities I went out and asked Eric if he would lube my chain, as it was getting a little squeeky. Eric is one of the mechanics that volunteers his time and talents to make sure that the riders bikes get the TLC that they need. He is an awesome guy who obviously has a passion for fixing problems on the bikes. After I climbed Crawford Notch on Tuesday I pulled into the rest stop and told him that my bike had a big problem. His got all excited waiting to diagnose a problem. He was disappointed when I told him that every time I went up a hill, it was hard to pedal. He laughed, but I could tell that he really loves solving mechanical problems on a bicycle. Anyway, we all rolled out of rest stop 3 with only about 10 miles to go to the end for the day. They were 10 very gard fought miles, but we all made it to the finish around 3:30 this afternoon. It is such a good feeling to finish up for the day, and tomorrow I will know what it feels like to finish up for the week.

I will do another post tomorrow sometime, but that is all that I will write tonight. We had dinner and then an awards "get together" and then some raffles off the gear truck. It is late, my roomate is already in bed and I don't want to keep the computer on any longer.

Tomorrow is about 75 miles, mostly down hill back to our cars in Woburn, MA. Dependong on how I feel, I will head to Maryland directly from there. Consequently, the Friday blog entry will be brief, but I plan on doing a complete summary entry over the weekend. Thanks for reading, and keep checking back.

New England Classic Day 5

2010-07-14T17:55:00.000-07:00

So this was suppose to be an easy day. Only 65 miles, right? Well, there was that little matter of the climb up to Killington ski area. Who had the bright idea to put ski resorts up in the mountains?

We left Montpelier at 8:15 in a large group of 15 riders. The majority of them I had not ridden with for very long so I managed to make my way to the back of the pack These were very fine roders, but I did not care for the amount of yelling that was going on. Each time a car was behind us, the call of "Car back" would be passed from me, and usually it can jump 1 or 2 riders before another rider will make that call further up the line. These people each had to yell it, and they yelled it like they were yelling at their kids. They also were yelling out obstacles (such as pot holes) in the road as opposed to pointing to them, which is what I am accustomed to. I kept my distance and rode with this group for 24 miles to the first rest stop.

At the first rest stop I made the decision to wait there for Rolland and I planned to ride with him the rest of the day. I am happy to report that Mike is doing better and he was able to complete the ride today. (That is him and his Dad, Rolland, in the picture) I was counting on Rolland to cut the pace back just a tad for Mike's sake. Out of the first rest stop, Rolland, Mike, Joe, Barb and myself formed our group again and headed to the second rest stop.

There were some hills today, and because of the beating that my legs had taken yesterday, I really struggled to stay with the group. I would drop off the back of the group on the hills, and then catch up on the downhills. I knew that on the final climb it would be each man for himself, so I was happy to be attached to the group up to the 2nd rest area. There was an impromptu rest area set up at mile 40 that I was really looking forward to stopping at to rest the legs for a couple minutes... but Rolland had other ideas. We rolled right past headed to rest area 2.

Rest stop 2 is only about 10 miles from the end of the ride for the day. While riding I was seeing the signs to Killington. I knew we were close, but I also know that we had a 5 or 6 mile climb to get there, and the climb was substantial... about 1000 feet. At the rest stop we got our water bottles filled up, ate some food, but not too much, and the 5 of us headed out. We had already determined that this part of the ride was every man for himself, so I set off at a very slow pace and before I knew it the climb began. At first it was steps. A small steep climb and then it levels off a bit, then another, and another. Finally as I was getting closer to the hill became a steady steep incline. I rode until my thighs were on fire, and my halo headband was drenched in sweat (It was VERY humid today). The was a left turn that had to be negotiated on a hill after climbing 4 miles, so I decided that at that left turn I would stop and swap my headband.

At the left hand turn I stopped before taking the turn, leaned my bike up against the guard rail, took off my helmet, headband and gloves. I used some of my water to pour over my head to cool me down. I drank one of my bottle of water, had my last pack of sports beans for the day and took a deep breath. In the time that it took to do all that, my legs had stopped burning and I was breathing normally again. It was only about 2 minutes, but it was just enough to give the break that I needed. I put the dry (sorta) head band back on my head, put the goves and helmet on and I was back on the bike attacking the last part of the hills.

I made it in to the lodge by 1:30, put the bike up, showered and headed down the driveway to the Grist Mill for lunch. It seems that everybody had that idea, because most of the riders that were already in were at the Grist Mill also. They are a motley looking crew, but a fun group of people to ride with. I enjoyed a cheeseburger with bacon and some onion rings. I had just about all the fruit and cheese its that I could take... I needed real food for lunch.

At the Summit Lodge I was able to get in line for the one washer and dryer that was available for us to use and I managed to get all my laundry washed and dried. I am pretty excited about that because if I had to hand wash anything in the bathroom sink tonight, because of the humidity, there is no way it would be dry by the time we leave to ride in the morning.

After getting laundry done, I had dinner, got this blog written and then it is off to bed for a good nights sleep. Tomorrow I think we go just under 90 miles to Ringe, NH. There are some climbs, but nothing as substantial as yesterday and today. I think I am out of the woods, and barring some physical ailment, I fully expect to finish all 7 days of riding. I am hoping that my legs have a little more strength in them than they did today. I'll let you know tomorrow night.

Garmin data:

I MADE IT ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

2010-07-13T17:35:00.000-07:00

Well, Tuesday is behind me, and I have to say that I am feeling better today than I did at the end of yesterdays ride.

At dinner on Monday night, the fearless fivesome had made arrangements to leave at 7:30 to begin the longest and toughest day of the trip. Morning came, we got breakfast, put our bags on the truck, gpt our tires filled with air and our water bottles filled with water, and I looked around at 7:05 and the other members of the group had left. Joe and Barbara had left with a big group at around 7:00 and I saw Rolland and Mike heading down the driveway and turning left onto Rte. 302. I made a mental note to give them all a piece of my mind (if I had any left at the end of THIS day) at dinner.

I headed out alone. I know some of you are thinking "Awww, that's so sad" but in actuality, I rather enjoy riding by myself sometimes. There is no pressure to keep up, or worry about gping too fast... OK, I have never had that worry, but you get my point. Anyway, I headed towards the first climb of the day. It would put me on the other side of the White Mountains at a place called Crawford's Notch. This climb was the topic of conversation at dinner the night before. There were tales of how steep this climb was, and that it was like climbing a wall and so on. Well, although it was not a "wall" it was certainly one difficult task to carry my butt over the top. My plan going onto the mountains was to ride until the legs and lungs were on fire, stop, take a breath, drink some water, eat som Sports Beans, get back on the bike and get back to pedaling. I did that on Crawford's Notch and I made it over just fine. The downhill from there was AWESOME. If you look at the Garmin data (click the details button) you will see that my max speed was 41.5 and that happened on that downhill.

A few miles down (and I do mean down) the road, was the first rest stop. Everyone's spirits were pretty high having just crested one of the two big climbs for the day. I saw Barb and Rolland and Mike. Mike was not looking to good. The Tour de Cure jerseys that they gave out this year were green, and Mike's face was very close to that color. Barb, Mark and I set out from that rest stop and left Rolland and Mike to wait it out to see if Mike was going to be OK.

The three of us hit a considerable head wind as we headed to rest stop #2, so we each took turns leading the group to give the other two a break from the wind. The up coming rest stop was at mile 52, and just about mile 48 or so, here comes Rolland and Mike chugging along. We formed the fearless fivesome again and rolled into the rest stop in great form. Mike seemed to be fine and enjoyed a BLT at The Brick Store at rest stop 2. Apparently, this place cures their own bacon and it is to die for. Rolland claims to have dreams about it year round. There was an Ice Cream shop next to the brick store and Barbara got herself and ice cream cone from there. I am not sure how these people can do these rides and just grab some 'random' snack and jump on their bike and ride off.

Leaving Rest stop 2 we had a rather large group, because Rolland has become famous for the way that he leads the pack. Everybody bought their tickets for the Rolland train, and we were gone. Now, as far as trains go, Rolland would be considered the engine, and I would fill the role of caboose. It is not that I can't keep up, it is like I said in a previous blog, I have only ridden with these riders for a few days now, and now there were riders in the group that I had never ridden with, so being at the back of the pack, I have the opportunity to evade any silliness that may occur. Well, as we were chugging up an incline I saw Mike slow down suddenly and move all the way over to the right. As I went past I looked at both of his tires to see if he had a flat, which is typically what would cause someone to pull off so suddenly. Both tires looked fine so I looked back and Mike was getting sick on the side of the road. We made enough noise to get Rollands attention at the front of the line, and we all turned around to render assitance... well actually to just stand around and wathc Mike throw up and make jokes. I mean, how much assistance can you really render at that point? The SAG van came and picked up Mike and his bike and transported them to the next rest area, which was only about 6 miles up the road. Turns out he has been battling some GI issues over the past week, and his Dad guessed that with the amount of exercise that he is doing it just all came up at that time. I saw Mike tonight at dinner and he seems fine. For those of you concerned about the care that we would recieve should something bad happen to us on the road I want to assure you that Mike was in better care with the group that was there then if he had been taken out of an ambulance. In the group standing around cracking jokes at poor Mikes expense were a orthopedic doctor, and eye doctor and an emergancy room pediatrician. We are in good hands.

Coming out of rest stop three Mike had decided to pack it in for the day. He was still not feeling well and thought it best take the rest of the day off. So, after taking care of business at the rest stop, Joe, Barb, Mark, Rolland and myself headed out to the other big climb of the day. This was a 6 mile uphill, steep in some places, but for the most part it was just a constant UP. I made it up about halfway, and I stopped. Changed the headband, ate some sport beans, drank some water and then finished the climb. Folled by another amazing downhill. Unfortunately, the roads for this downhill were not as nice as the ones coming down from Crawford's Notch, so the speed suffered a little.

At the final rest stop, which was only about 9 miles fom the ending point, we all regrouped and rode into Montpelier, VT. I was SO excited to finish Tuesday!!!! I felt stronger at the end of this ride today than I did at the end of yesterday's ride.

I was just listening to my room mate talking to his grandmother on his cell phone telling her that tomorrow is a short day, only about 70 miles? I thought to myself, "When did 70 miles on a bicycle become a "short" day." All things are reletive I guess. He was right, tomorrow is about a 70 mile ride, with a fairly steep 5 mile hill into Killington, VT. It is my understanding tha the downhills out of Killington on Thursday morning are spectacular. I'll let you know.

Just a quick note, Thank you to everybody that is reading this blog and leaving comments. It is my little slice of hime while I am away. It was also a great motivator to me during the ride today. My biggest fear was having to do a blog entry tonight explaining what went wrong that prevented me from finiahing. It means a lot to me that these words are being read. Thank you.

In response to Robert Frost's poem yesterday... I have travelled many miles today, my butt is going to bed! Good night!

I just posted the Garmin data for yesterdays blog, and here is the Garmin data for today. The elevation gain on the Garmin's is suspect at best, and two other bike computers came up with closer to 7500 feet. Suffice it to say, It was a LOT!

New England Classic Day 3

2010-07-12T17:22:00.000-07:00

Today we began our trek westward, from the seacoast of Maine to the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

I left the University of New England around 7:25 with a large group. Now that I we all have been riding together for a few days, I know that the group was made up of UPS Bob's team of riders as well as Rolland, his som and myself. As we rode away from the coast, the hills began.

We reached the first rest stop, filled water bottles, ate some banana's and put some Gu packets in our pockets and some of us were ready to roll. Others waited behind for a few riders that had flats to catch up. The fearless five-some of Rolland, his son (Mike), Barbara, Joe (the number one fundraiser that I mentioneed in yesterdays entry) and myself set out together. Rolland led the pace line out, and never looked back. I would compare Rolland to a diesel locomotive. He rode in front and we all hooked ourselves up to him. At one point Joe got in front for a few minutes, and apparently Rolland did not like to follw, so he passed Joe and got on the front of the train again.

For those of you reading this who may not know, if you can ride directly behind somebody then you are able to conserve a LOT of energy by not having to push your body through the wind. The person in front of you has moved the air for you and you are basically riding in theor slipstream. So, when you find someone like Rolland who is the happiest when he is on the front of the pace line... you just ride and at the end of the day give him a good hardy hand shake and say Thank You.

So, the five of us stuck together for the majority of the day. We rode through some woods and around mountain lakes. It was a very scenic ride, and I would have taken pictures, but that would have meant stopping and losing the benefit of riding with the group. Just take my word for it, it was very scenic. At an impromptu rest stop, about 13 miles from the finish line, there was this nice covered bridge. I am guessing that it is only used for pedestrian traffic now, but I am sure it was the main thoroughfare at one point in time.

Just after the covered bridge, Rolland and Mike went off the course to stop at a bike shop in North Conway, NH. That left just Barb, Joe and myself to finish together. Looking at the profile for the day, I knew there was a rather larger up hill just at the end of the ride, and Barb having done this ride before said that when you see the rock ledge, you are just about there She said it was steep but short, so you just put your head down and go for it. So I looked at my Garmin, noticed that we were almost at the 80 mile point, which was the total miles for the day, I looked up and saw a rock ledge and then I saw an incline that curved around some trees. Ok, put your head down and go for it. I did that and before I knew it, I was at the top. In my mind I was thinking... "That wasn't really that bad." Barb whizzed by me and said "That's it Chris, we're done. Just a couple loopies form here to the hotel." GREAT! I put the bike in a higher gear and pedaled hard to catch up to her so that we could catch up with Joe and we could all arrive together. Well, I saw another rock ledge, and ANOTHER incline, which was longer and steeper than the previous one. Seems that Barb's mempry is not all that good. So now I am in the wrong gear and out of breath. With 79 miles in my legs, I managed to make it up the incline, but I was D - O - N - E done. To make matters worse, on the downhill that followed, there was a headwind and we were struggling to reach 16 mph going down hill. It was a long day but I made it, with NO flats!.

Tomorrow is "The Day". Over 100 miles with LOTS of climbing. My plan is to not be so concerned with hanging with a certain group. I know that riders will be spread out the route tomorrow and I know that not all of them will be making it over both climbs. There is a very good possibility that I may not make it over both climbs, but I am determined to give it all that I have and like I have said before, I will stop to catch my breath and restore power to my legs and start pedaling again. In the words of Robert Frost;

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
but I have promises to keep,
and miles to go before I sleep,
and miles to go before I sleep"

(from Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, which Frost wrote as he was travelling from New Hampshire to Vermont, which is what I'll be doing tomorrow.)

*** Garmin data just posted! Sorry I forgot last night.

New England Classic Day 2

2010-07-11T18:09:00.000-07:00

Day 2 is in the books. 72.8 miles. It was a much better day today, although at the beginning of the ride, I thought it was going to be "more of the same."

The departure from University of New Hampshire was at 7:30, but it was not a "mass" start. As people were ready to roll, they set out for the days ride. I did not know that, so I hung around the start waiting for someone to gather the troops and say "GO"! So, once I found out that I could leave when I was ready.... I left. I set out alone, figuring that the faster groups would catch me, or I could latch onto a slower group that was ahead of me.

I was able to catch up with a couple of riders that were going a pace that I would be comfortable. One of the guys in that group was wearing bib # 1, so I asked what he had done to earn that number. Turns out that he was the top find-raiser for the ride. We turned on to a road that was too busy for us to ride side by side and chit chat, so I let him lead and absorb the blunt of the head wind. After a couple miles of that, I was feeling guilty so I took the lead, and within a mile (mile 9 of the day) I had a flat. Now I have ridden with the Severna Park Peloton for alomost a year now, and in that time I have had two (2) flats that entire time, and that was at the same time due to a very large pot hole. Now I have had 2 flats in two days. Fortunately, this one was on the front tire, which is just a tad bit easier to change. I am hoping that the puncture fairy goes and visits somebody else for the rest of the week.

With the tire changed, I was back on the road. Fortunately, the first rest stop was only a couple miles down the road, and becasue of the "leave when you are ready" policy, There was a better selection of groups to ride with. Unfortunatey, no one was ready to leave when I was, so I set out on my own again. In my mind I was figuring that I am destined to ride this ride alone.

I did catch up to a group of rider that were not with the ADA ride, but rather they were with a tour group that was riding from Boston to Montreal. For those who remeber, there used to be a ride called BMB, which was done by randonneurs that went from Boston to Montreal and back to Bostom. It was a 1200k event, and can still be ridden as a permanent. In any event, their rest stop was at the same place as our was so I rode with them for the final few miles before the stop.

The second rest stop was at Nubble Light in York Beach, ME. It is one of the most photographed lighthouses in the US, if not the world. I am sure you have all seen it in a photo at least once.

Because it was such a great spot for a rest stop, a lot of people were hanging out there, enjoying the lighthouse and ocean views. I enjoyed some snacks, refilled the bottles and I was able to join the group of riders that I had dinner with the night before. There were about 8 of us, and we had a pretty good pace line going with all of us taking a turn at the front. We passed the Bush homestead in Kennebunkport. The houses in that surrounding area are beautiful. The Bush house is still quite a tourist attraction, with quite a few cars parked along the side of the road, allowing the occupants to get out and take pictures.

I was able to hang with the same group of riders through rest stop 3 and to the end of the days ride. Riding with the Severna Park Peloton, I have become accustomed to riding in a paceline, with my front wheel inches from the rear wheel of the rider in front of me. On some level, you put your trust in the rider in front of you, that they weill not do anything drastic, like stop pedaling. This group was made up of people that are used to riding in a pace line like that, and I was able to reach that comfort level while riding behind them.

So, the fun begins tomorrow. I have not looked at the profile, but if my memory serves correctly, it is a gradual uphill from The University of New England, where we are staying tonight, to our destination tomorrow night, Attitash Ski resort. There is quite an climb up to the resort at the end of the day, and with 50 or 60 miles of gradual climbing in the legs, I will become a hill slug, and as slowly as I need to, get my fatt butt to the top.

The two day riders have all gone home now, so we are down to only about 40 riders. It is a group of only a few first timers, and some of the riders have been doing it for over 10 years now. They all say how bad the hills are, and how much they suffer up them, but if they are that bad, why do they keep coming back? There must be something that keeps their interest. I guess I will find out, won't I.

Time for bed... I will need the rest for what lies ahead. Thank all of you for your prayers and support during the ride. I am helping to make a difference for those that suffer with diabetes, and I am enjoying myself, but I am anxious to get home to be with all of you. Continue to think about me, especially as I "reach new heights" in the mountains of New Hampshire.

Garmin data below:

New England Classic DAY 1

2010-07-10T17:38:00.000-07:00

The first day of the New England Classic is complete, and I have never enjoyed such a horrible day of riding so much.

My strategy was to ride at a VERY comfortable pace these first two days so that I don't wear my legs out on the flats and have nothing left for the climbing on days 4 - 6. I was going to find a group of riders, even if it was the pre-schoolers on their tri-cycles, that I could keep a comfortable pace with.

As all 150 + riders left the parking lot at the same time, I hung in the back and was one of the last ones out. I did not want to get tangled up in a big group and end up running into someone. So as the line of riders stretched out over the road, I moved up the line and settled in with a group of 4 guys, and up until mile 15 all was well. Then I hit a pot hole that flatted my rear tire. This was a huge pot hole and I could hear that my rim hit it as well. I thought I would either have to buy a nes rim or this could be it... ride over.

I pulled off the side of the road, under the shade of a nice big oak tree, and removed my rear wheel. I first checked out the rim to make sure there was no damage, because there is really no sense changing the tire if the rim is messed up, right. I have to say, that all the hype about the Mavic Ksyrium Elite rims being bomb-proof is true. I spun the wheel and it was barely out of true. No dents, or ripples. I was very surprised. I changed the tire without incident and was back on the road.

I was determined to not push the pace too hard to try and catch up, I was going to ride a steady pace and try to cut some time at the first 2 rest stops. When I got to the first rest stop, i refilled the water bottles, grabbed some granola, Raw Rev snacks, a banana and was ready to hit the road. At the time I was ready to go, no other groups were leaving, so I could wait around or set out on my own again. I decided to set out on my own, and out of the parking lot I took a wrong turn. It rode 3 miles before I realized it. So I turned around and headed back, and as I was passing the first rest area again, they were closing it down, which meant that I was last. I was at the back of the pack. Well, isn't that a great way to start of a ride that I am already anxious about. I kept a fairly steady pace and began passing the slower riders one by one.

Around mile 45 or so, there were 3 woman on the side of the road, with one of them obviously having a flat. I was riding with 3 other guys at the time and as is customary, we all asked if they had what they needed. They said they did, but they didn't know how to change a flat. The other guys either didn't hear them, or didn't want to ruin their record breaking times and kept on pedalling. I stopped and changed the tire for them and I didn't feel to bad about doing it, because it was this group of ladies that I asked to take the picture of the jersey above.

Flat tire changed, it was back to riding. I made it, uneventfully to rest stop 2, where i did more of what I did at rest stop one. Filled the water bottles, grabbed some snacks and hit the road again. Now on the way to rest stop 3, the weather took a turn for the worse. It started raining, but not too hard. At first, it actually felt kinda nice, but as it continued to rain and as the feet started to get wet, it was not so nice. As I crested a small hill I realized that I was at the ocean.

This ia Rye Beach, NH. The picture does not do a very good job of showing the true weather conditions. It was raining pretty hard when I took the picture, and the clouds looked very ominous.

The rain continued as I rode along Route 1-A, and I was getting a little concerned because now that I was right on the water, soaking wet, with the cool ocean winds hitting me, I was getting cold. If the rain made the temperature drop for the rest of the ride, I would be in deep trouble, but as I turned west, away from the ocean, there was a noticeable rise in the air temp.

Rest stop 3 had a tent to stand under, which was nice to get out of the rain. I filled up on watermelon and a banana, filled the bottle and I was off again... headed for The University of New Hampshire in Durham, NH.

Once I arrived there, I checked in, so they would know that #29 was off the roads, put my bike in the large room that is housing all the bikes, got my room assignment, grabbed my bags and headed to my room.

I took off the wet clothes, showered and walked to the dining hall, where I enjoyed some real food. I had pasta and marinara sauce with some sauted Italian chicken breast and a wonderful salad and some bread sticks. After riding all day it was exactly what I needed.

So, the first day is done and I am happy that I completed it. I was afraid that what they were calling "flat" would be more hills than I was able to do. There was one hill that was a little steep, but even I would consider this first day to be very flat.

Tomorrow we head out to Biddeford, ME by way of Nubble Light. I will stop and take pictures there, even though it is surposse to rain all day tomorrow. Tomorrow is about 20 miles shorter than today, so I am hoping to settle in to a nice pace and make better time than I did today.

As a side note, I took this picture as I was riding down Rye Beach, and I thought it was cute. Now I just need to find 2 boats named Mr. Nolan and Mr. Devin.

Garmin data is below the picture. See you tomrrow!

And so it begins....

2010-07-09T17:54:00.000-07:00

This is it! I have trained for months for THIS ride, and it is finally here. I have done all the training I could do...I have put in the miles and now I am ready to enjoy 7 days and 550 miles on the roads of New England.

I am going to keep this entry short, because I still have some last minute preps to do before bed. I hope to do a blog entry every night of the ride and I hope that you all will enjoy following along with me during the ride.

I want to take the time to thank everyone who donated to this ride. Not only financially, but with your words of encouragement and support for me along the way. I have 3 jerseys that have been signed by friends and family that will keep me motivated along the route. I am humbled by the generosity that you all have shown. Thank you!

Now down to some business before I end this post. On Thursday night Beverly and I went to dinner at O'Laughlins, and with us we carried the container with all the raffles tickets in them. (Remember for each $10 donated you got a raffle ticket put in a container.) We asked our waiter (an impartial party to the raffle) to draw a name each time he came to the table. He did that, and the results are listed below.

HP 2140 Netbook - Sylvia Flewellyn
Memorex 250 GB External Hard dribe - Jeanne Salley
$40 O'Laughlins Gift Card - Charlie and Betty Gartlemen
$25 Deep Creek Restaraunt Gift card - Greg Matson
The Rover's CD and T-shirt - Tiffany Smith

Conratulations to all the winners. Thank you again for your doantions and your support.

Happy New Year!

2010-07-01T08:06:00.000-07:00

Working for an agency that is so closely tied to State Government, our fiscal year begins on July 1st. Making today, New Years Day.

My New Years celebration started with a very cool ride to meet Mike in Severna Park who joined me for the rest of the commute to BWI. It was nice to have someone to ride with on the commute. Others in SPP have mentioned that they would like to join us, but I think that only one other person has, and I believe that was only once. Truth be told, there are a lot of mornings that I probably would have dolled over and gotten that extra hour of sleep if I hadn't told Mike that I was riding in the morning.

I am looking forward to a nice cool ride home this afternoon. I am planning (should I say hoping) to leave a little early to get home in time to get to the bike shop and pick up the Roubaix. She should be in great shape, rockin' a new rear cassette and chain.

Back on the bike (Afternoon ride added)

2010-06-30T05:43:00.000-07:00

I was back on the bike today and I have to say, it felt really good. Of course it didn't hurt that the temperature was about 15 degrees cooler and about 3/4 less humidity than it has been. I considered wearing my arm warmers.

Last night while Bev spent time in her gardens, which look great by the way, I spent some quality time with the Allez. I gave her a good thorough bath, used my new Park Tool chain scrubber to degrease the chain and then gave her a good lube, put some air in the tires and got her ready for the ride in this morning. The one thing that I did fail to do was charge the headlight. It had NO life in it at all. I turned it on in the garage before I left and nothing. Fortunately, I have a back up headlight, I just have to mount it on the handlebars and I will be on my way. WELL, the handlebar mount for that light is on the handlebars of the Roubaix, which is currently in the shop. This ride is not starting off very well. I have a back up to the back up, which, like me, is not very bright but works in a pinch. I threw that on the handle bars and off I went. Fortunately, it gets light very early now, so the lack of a 'real' headlight was not that big of a deal.

I tried to set a comfortable pace, and not push too hard. I did not concentrate on cadence or speed, I just tried to keep my legs turning at a pace that did not burn my thighs. I took the road route from Jumper's Hole. For some reason I enjoy the change of scenery and the openness of Elvaton Rd. Not much of a shoulder, but not much traffic either.

I had a little bit of a head wind, which I would call more of a head breeze than anything, but I don't feel like it affect the ride much. I did think that it will be nice for Mike and the guys that he sails with on Wednesday nights to enjoy an evening with some wind. It seems like the past few Wednesday nights have been very still, to the point of canceling their races. Good Luck tonight Mike.

I am thrilled to be back on the bike and not feeling quite so sluggish. I will ride as much as I can until next Wednesday and then give myself a couple days rest until the big ride in New England.

Afternoon Ride:

What a beautiful afternoon. The ride home was uneventful and felt pretty good. The details are below.

In a bit of a funk...

2010-06-29T07:41:00.000-07:00

So the big ride in New England is less than 2 weeks away, and I am in a bit of a funk. I feel very tired, run down and weak. Nerves? Anxiety? Exhaustion? Loss of fitness? Whatever it is, I don't like it.

It seems to have started last week. We had a few days that were very hot and very humid. I had been off the bike for 5 days working the finish line at RAAM. I finally got back on the bike and rode to work Wednesday. Mike was not riding with me that day because of his sailing commitment on Wednesday evenings, so I brought along my iPod. I only used one ear bud, and I was rocking out, riding hard and feeling great being back on the bike. I did the same thing on my ride home and once I arrived at home in the evening I felt like I had a good work out.

The next morning, I rode with Mike into work and home from work. The way in was a struggle. It seemed like Mike was trying to show me how much faster he has become on the bike (or how much slower I had become) but when I looked at the Garmin, it showed that we were traveling at the speed that we normally travel. I was struggling. The ride home was even worse. If I had not checked my rear brakes 3 times on the way home, I would have sworn that they were rubbing. My legs were turning, but I could not get into a comfortable pedaling rhythm. I had zero power coming out of my legs, and looking at my Garmin data, my heart rate was higher than it usually is, but the speed was just a shade lower. So, I am working harder, and going slower.

Thursday night I slathered my thighs with Aspercreme to help with the pain a little bit and see if that helped me on the bike in the morning. I had already decided that I would ride with the peloton into Annapolis on Friday morning instead of commuting into work on the bike. The legs felt a little better, but the hill in Round Bay was about the death of me. I think I was the last one up the hill, and I could have sworn I saw a 4 year old on a tricycle blow by me going up that hill. Once I caught my breath, and the burning in my legs subsided, I was fine into Annapolis. The group split and I enjoyed a bagel and Iced Mocha at the end of ego alley at City Dock. The return home was uneventful, and although my legs were tired, it was not as bad as Thursday afternoon. Maybe the rest from the night before was what I needed. I made the decision to ride just the 7:30 ride on Saturday and to take Sunday off from riding.

Saturday was a fairly spirited ride from Severna Park to Annapolis and back. I was the last one to arrive at City Dock, but I was making a conscious effort to just ride comfortably and not push it. I also lost all my momentum from the Naval Academy bridge to ask another rider that was stopped at the bottom of the bridge of they were alright. Turns out their light had fallen off, and he had stopped to pick it up. After the ride, I did the normal Saturday stuff, trip to the market... a little bit of shopping with Bev, brought the Roubaix to the shop for a complete tune and lube for the ride in July, etc. By days end I could not keep my eyes open so it was off to bed.

Sunday I slept in as late as I could, went to church and after lunch I found that I, again, could not keep my eyes open. I went back to bed and slept until about 5:30. I came downstairs, had dinner, watch a movie and went back to bed for the night. I woke up Monday morning feeling like I could sleep another 12 hours. Along with all of this my stomach has had issues as well. I know, I know.... "quit your whining. Suck it, eat a little... drink a little... keep pedaling." Well that is my plan.

I have a meeting today that I needed my car for, which should get me out of the office a little early today. Depending on how that goes and what time I get done with that, I may try to ride with the 5:30 group from the Rusty Bridge. After that I am going to clean and lube the Allez and make sure everything is turning as smoothly as it possibly can and I am planning on riding in tomorrow morning. I will let you know how that goes. Stay tuned.

RAAM 2010

2010-06-22T07:37:00.000-07:00

I have been off the bike for MUCH longer than I would want to be, but I have been working as finish line staff for The Race Across America. If you are not familiar with RAAM you can read all about it at www.raceacrossamerica.org In a nutshell, it is a bicycle race from Oceanside, CA to Annapolis, MD.

Although I did not actually "ride" in the Race Across America, I did experience it differently than I had in the past. I worked as one of the vehicle drivers that had the privilege of meeting the riders at the final time station on Bestgate Rd, and parading them from there to the finish line at City Dock. I got so much more out of that experience than I bargained for, and I have already signed up again for next year.

A few months ago, I saw the email about an organizational/informational meeting at Capital Bicycle in regards to RAAM 2010. I somehow mis-read that email and showed up at 6:30 pm Wednesday for the meeting that happened 6:30 pm the night before. I was pretty bummed. So when another email was sent out looking for finish line staff, I replied immediately with a few questions. Once I worked out the logistics at work and at home, I signed up. In the spirit of full disclosure, I will say that my motivation was the money that I would make working the 5 days at the finish line. For those of you who are not aware, I am doing a charity ride to benefit The American Diabetes Association July 10 - 16 http://main.diabetes.org/goto/cslane (shameless plug) and I am donating all of the money that I made working at RAAM 2010 towards my fund raising efforts. Little did I know that I would get SO much more from the experience.

I was scheduled for the 2 a.m. to 2 p.m. shift and was fortunate to work with a group of great people on that shift. It was group of quality people who knew what needed to be done, and did it, or got word to the person that needed to do it. We spent some moments at the wee hours of the morning sitting around talking about cycling, professional badminton, mucking horse stalls and just about anything else that came to our minds at the time.

When the riders leave the time station in Odenton the escort drivers are sent out to meet them and their support crews at the final time station on Bestgate Rd. In regards to the racers time, this is the end of the race. It is here, I think, that you get to see the true raw emotion and excitement of finishing the Race Across America. On Friday morning when Team Type I arrived they had just ridden their bikes across the country in 5 and a half days and they still seemed fresh, and ready to ride the race in reverse. On Saturday morning the second place solo RAAM finisher, Gerhard Gulewicz, rode in with a blank stare on his face and mumbled "I am very very tired.". A little more than 2 hours later, the 3rd place solo RAAM finisher, Matthew Warner-Smith arrived and was nearly tackled by his crew as they were SO jubilant that he had finished. His crew then ran into the bathroom, leaving him laying on the asphalt at the Shell Station. He said that it felt good to lay down, and I am quite certain he dozed until the crew returned from the bathroom. On Sunday Team Type II (which our own Bob C rode RAAM with last year) and The Friars Club, both competing in the 8 person team division, were basically in a sprint to the finish. Team Type II finished 3 minutes ahead of The Friars Club, and were very excited about it. There are so many more great stories like those that I saw play out as more finishers came in.

Being able to interact with the racers directly was a source of inspiration to me. I was able to see the pride on 13 year old Connor's face explaining that he did normal pulls just like everyone else on Team Donate Life did, even in the mountains. I was able to see Sabrina Bianci break down to tears as she entered the Shell station, over come with the emotion of finishing 2nd place in the woman's solo division. I was able to look at Michele Santilahno's bicycle while she was preparing for the ride to the finish line. Last year Michele attempted RAAM, but was not able to finish. As I looked at the top tube of the bike I saw a piece of paper laminated to it. As I looked more closely, it listed all 55 time stations, distances between each, what time the station closed and what her average speed needed to be to reach each time station on time.

There were also some people who not only overcame the 3,005 mile course, but they also had to deal with what some people would consider obstacles. I am not sure that these people see them that way, and they certainly do not allow them to stand in their way. I did not do the escort for Operation Progress, but on that team was a former LA police officer that was shot in the line of duty and paralyzed from the chest down that completed the race. She was part of a 4 person team, using her arms to turn the crank. There was also team FARA (Friedreich’s Ataxia Research Alliance) a 4 person team that included 2 members that suffer from Friedreich's Ataxia, that completed the race. Kyle Bryant had a very emotional and inspiration message for everybody at the banquet Monday evening.

Each night of the race, there is a banquet for the riders and crews to be recognized and some serious as well as rather humorous awards are given out. I attended the banquet last night and it is here that you really understand the quality of people that are involved in this race, as well as the passion that they posses for cycling.

Fred and Rick, the father and son team that put this event on every year are doing a great job at building the race and making it bigger and better each year.

As with ALL ride reports, there are lessons learned. Here are mine.
#1 - Sunscreen is your friend! I failed to apply any while I was down at the dock, and my face has just begun peeling.

#2 - The theme to Rocky sounds really really good when you are driving down Duke of Gloucester St at 4:00 a.m. at 15 mph.

#3 - I think that "Brazilian" is loosely translate as "moving party". They bring the party with them.

#4 - There are still a lot of people (drunks mostly) at City Dock at 2 a.m.

If you didn't follow RAAM this year, you can still go to the website and check out the video's and the web sites of some of the participants.

Back on the bike tomorrow. I am hoping that still remember how to ride.

Delayed Post

2010-06-14T05:59:00.000-07:00

It was a quick moving weekend and I am just now getting a chance to put up ride information from Saturday. I apologize for the delay.

I set out Saturday morning for an easy recovery ride to get the blood flowing in my leg muscles again after the 200k on Thursday. I was hoping that the 6:00 a.m. ride would be leisurely paced, and I would hang onto back of the pack. Well, when Clint and Dangerous Dab arrived on the tandem, I knew it was going to be a spirited ride.

I would love to post the Garmin details for that ride, but I had arrived at the Ranger Station a few minutes earlier than the other and "paused" my Garmin. You know the rest of the story, I did not realize that it was off until I was about half way through the 6:00 a.m. ride. I turned it on for a second and then decided to turn it off and get the mileage from either Clif or Clint after the ride. The ride culminated at Java Diva's, which is usually the case. We chatted there for a little while and then headed over to the Rusty Bridge for the 7:30 ride to Annapolis. Here is the Garmin info for the ride from home to the Ranger Station.

The group heading into Annapolis was fairly large and also feeling a little frisky. The group stayed together for the most part until we hit the hill in Round Bay. I was going pass on the hill and go straight, but I was close to the front of the pack, and everyone else turned right to do the hill. I didn't want to be the ONLY one to NOT do the hill, so I did the hill. I am not sure what the percent of grade is on that hill, or how long the hill is, but I do not like that hill. I am guessing that at some point in July, I will be wishing that I was back on that hill.

The hill served to spread the group out. I had caught my breath and my legs and managed to make my way close to the front again, and we all re-grouped at the head of the trail at Boulter's Way. Chip, Benny and another rider were the last to come up the trail, and it was mentioned that we need to remember the no drop policy.

For breakfast we all went to the Italian place, where we shared good coffee and conversation. I left early to ride to Applebee's for a fund-raising breakfast there. Freind's of ours have a daughter and son that play Lacrosse, and their league was putting on an All you can Eat pancake breakfast. I was not interested in the All you can Eat part (although in the past, my goal would have been to eat all I could.) I just wanted to contribute. I was served a plate with a couple of pancakes, a couple sausage links and a cup of OJ. I took it outside (because it was WAY too hot inside) sat on the bench and enjoyed my breakfast and the beautiful breeze.

From Applebees I rode to meet Bev at the Farmer's Market. We were there a little later, so the selection of scones was very limited. I ended up getting a muffin to bring home for Emily (who, in typical teenage fashion, was still at home sleeping). Bev continued to shop for flowers and plants at the market while I rode home.

Although the rides were not what I would consider "recovery" rides, it was nice to be out on the bike and riding.

Here are the Garmin stats for the 7:30 ride.

*****Mileage calculation is as follows. I rode 8.48 from home to the Ranger Station, and 32.32 on the 7:30 ride. At Java Diva's I asked Clif what he had for mileage from the Ranger Station, he had "...between 21 and 22 miles". After the ride I email Clint and he had "27 miles" Using Bike Route Toaster web site I calculated the distance from Clint's house to the Ranger Station to be 3.3 miles and the distance from the Rusty Bridge back to his house as 2 miles. Making a total of 21.7, which is consistent with Clif's mileage. I rounded down to be on the conservative side and called it 21 miles, for a daily total of 61.8 miles.

Another 200k in the books

2010-06-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

On Thursday I took the day off and traveled to Princeton, NJ to ride a 200k to meet my June requirement for the R-12 award. The route would take me from Princeton Junction to Belmar then southwest through Fort Dix and Pemerton, north to Cranbury and back to Princeton Junction.

I have always tried to subscribe to the "7 - P's" (Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance)and for the most part I think I properly planned for this ride fairly well. I had the cue sheet modified to my liking (color coded and larger font for the blind rider that I am), I had my food packed, ready to go, e-caps, and extra water bottle to carry in my jersey for hydration, proper clothes for the weather, I remembered to pack my bike, I was good to go. The only thing that I failed to do was look at the route in Google maps to get a "feel" for where I would be. Although this was not a 'deal breaker' in regards to the ride as a whole, it did cost me some time and frustration.

The alarm went off at 2:30 a.m. and I was on the road by 3:00 a.m. with a predetermined start time of 6:30. The Garmin (for the car) had the appropriate address typed in and it showed that my estimated arrival time was 5:52. GREAT, I would have a few minutes to get the bike out of the back seat, put the front tire and rack bag on and I would be off at exactly 6:30. I didn't do too badly in that regard. A pit stop on the way, a little traffic and some construction slowed me down a bit, but my timed ticket at the train station was 6:38. Hit Start on the Garmin and I am off to find Wallace Rd, which is a left out of the parking lot. Wait a minute, the way I came in was Washington St, not Wallace Rd. It must be on the other side of the tracks, so I rode over there, nope that isn't it either, that's Vaughn St. OK, let me ask one of the 50 commuters that I see walking towards the train. NONE of them have a clue where Wallace Rd is. Finally I turned off the Garmin on the bike and used the Garmin from the car to find the street. Now, had I properly prepared and looked at Google maps, I would have had some spacial awareness and at least headed in the right direction. For a good chuckle I have posted the Garmin data for the 1.78 miles I did in the train station parking lot.

It was 7:00 a.m. before I found the road and was headed in the right direction. I had to make one detour to the route owners house to pick up my control card in his mailbox... what if he had a bad morning and had forgotten to put it in there? The way the last half hour had gone, it wouldn't have surprised me. My worry was for not, as I rolled up to his mailbox I saw the red flag was up and not only was the control card there, but in true randonneur spirit it was even in a zip lock bag.

Now, control card in hand I headed to Belmar. This part of the ride is almost entirely flat, which is just the way I like it. One of the concerns about doing a 200k on a weekday, in New Jersey no less, was the amount of traffic that I would encounter. The owner of the route said the traffic has not been bad, but it is New Jersey, so there will be cars. I was pleasantly surprised to find that while in the more heavy populate areas, there were very nicely marked bike lanes. I was also surprised at how quickly this route brought you out of the populated area into more rural NJ.

Some of the smaller Townships have done work on their road (like putting in new pipes uderground) so there were quite a few spots of uneven and very bumpy pavement. There were other Townships along this stretch that have NOT done any work to their roads and there were lots of pot holes and sink holes. The bike needs to go into the shop for maintenance anyway, but truing the wheels has been added to the list. With the rough roads, I figured that at least one pinch flat would be in my future, but I was blessed to have no mechanical problems throughout the entire ride.

I spent a few minutes at the first control, which is on Ocean Blvd, enjoying the clean air and the view of the ocean. After doing a little sightseeing, I set out to the next control. I was afraid that I would be riding directly into the wind as I turned west off of Ocean Blvd, and I did for a brief time, but the wind really was not a factor all day.

The next control was the LUNCH control, a Wawa in New Egypt. I made a quick run into the store to get the control card signed and pick up a can of Pringle, and turkey and bacon wrap and a Gatorade. I found a small shade tree in the corner of the parking lot and enjoyed my lunch. Went back in to the store, picked up a candy bar and filled up my three water bottles. The one that I was carrying in my shirt pocket I filled with ice and then water. This did a good job of keeping me cool while riding. (for me, it is better than a sock on your neck).

The next leg brought me to the Pemberton Wawa. I arrived there at 2:30 and I knew that I just need to take a bathroom break, pick up a bottle of water, get the control card signed and away I'd go. Well, I was tired by this point, I went into the Wawa without locking my bike. I realized that it was unlocked, just as I was picking up my bottle of water, so I rushed out of the store to lock up the bike, holding the bottle of water. I locked the bike and realized that I hadn't paid for the water. Went back into the store to pay for the water and get the control card signed. Left the counter, control card and recipet in hand. Got back to the bike... I left the water on the counter. I guess that's what happens when you are tired and try to rush through a control. I took a few deep breaths, made sure that my absentmindedness was not a result of malnutrition or dehydration. I chalked it up to just being tired. I could hear Mike's words in the back of my mind "...keep on pedaling." Out of the Wawa, I took a left on the wrong road. I realized it after only about a mile. So I got to do 2 more bonus miles on this ride

I considered the next part of the route to be the 'final leg' as the control is just 7 miles from the end. The coulds began to build and I think that I was riding just behind a little rain storm. I felt a few drops, I was riding on wet road and the oncoming cars had their wipers on, but I never got caught in any substantial amounts of rain. The ride through the little towns and horse farms reminded me of the rides I did in March and April, only with out the hills. I never would have guessed that New Jersey would be so quaint and picturesque. That is why I enjoy these ride. New Jersey looks a lot different at 15 mph on a bike than it does at 65 mph behind the wheel. Anyway, I made it to Cranbury Pizza on Main St. I ordered a slice, sat down and enjoyed my post ride pizza 7 miles from the finish.

The last 7 miles had a little more traffic as I approached the train station. Overall, I found the drivers that I did encounter to be very courteous and tolerant of a bicycle on the road. I made it to the train station, got the control card signed and I beat the 11 hour mark. I was very satisfied to have my June 200k done so early in the month.

Lessons Learned: Eat a little, drink a little, keep pedaling. What a great mantra. On this ride I ate less, drank more and of course kept pedaling. The ride to Solomon's last month, I felt like I ate too much on the bike. I felt good this time. I drank a bottle of water per hour and I took an e-cap every half hour. I was taking two at the top of the hour, but I figured splitting them up would work better and I think that it did. Of course, there is the lesson of doing a little Google map research before you get someplace that you are totally unfamiliar with.

More Garmin data below.

Afternoon Ride Home

2010-06-08T18:07:00.001-07:00

Easy ride home. Garmin stats below.

Beautiful cooler day (PM ride added)

2010-06-07T05:39:00.000-07:00

The temperature for this morning's ride was a little on the cool side with very little humidity. This was a VERY welcome break from the oppressive weather we have had for the past week or so.

Mike did his 200k for June yesterday so my ride in this morning was another solo effort. I decided that I would try to incorporate some interval training into the daily commute. I have been hearing a lot about intervals and that they not only make you faster, but they are the best way to lose weight while cycling (that is according to Chris Carmichael, Lance Armstrong's personal coach. I figure he may be a little bit smarter than me on this subject.)

For those who are unsure, intervals are a form of training in which you ride at a higher intensity than you are able to sustain for the entire ride, forcing your body to operate under stress. Your body handles stress by adapting so it can better handle the same demands in the future. It is recommended that you start with 2 minute intervals. 2 minutes of higher intensity and 2 minutes of recovery.

Well, riding in the morning (dark or dawn light) it is difficult to see the Garmin to know exactly what your heart rate is, or what your cadence is, so I just sprinted for as long as I could and then recovered the best I could and did it again. No where near 2 minutes of high intensity, and much longer than 2 minutes recovery, but it is a start. If you look at the Garmin data really close, and squint your eyes just a bit, when the light hits it just right you can see where the heart rate and speed went up for a short burst... that was my interval. Places where the speed goes up and the heart rate goes down... those are downhills.

The idea is to ride faster and to lose weight. Doing the intervals did make the ride in this morning faster. I made it to the train station in under an hour and twenty minutes. Maybe that Carmichael guy is pretty smart.

Garmin stats below:

PM RIDE:

If you thought intervals could make you faster, you should see what a nice tail wind will do. On the way home, pedaling at what I considered a normal pace... looked down at the Garmin, 20+ mph. Today makes up for those days that I fight a headwind home.

GREAT Saturday ride!

2010-06-05T09:23:00.000-07:00

I set out from home at 5:45 or so and headed out to Sandy Point. The majority of riders that make up the 6:00 a.m. Saturday ride were NOT going to be riding this morning for various reasons, so I knew that I would be riding alone for the early part of the ride. I made the loop out to Sandy Point and then through St. Margret's to the World War II Memorial then to the trail to meet up with the 7:30 group. I was a little ahead of schedule so I took a little detour down Asquithview Rd, which is a steady climb up from the Severn River. I did better this time than the last time I tried it, so I am encouraged. I expect to have a lot of climbs like that on my ride in July, but I expect that they will be quite a bit longer. Stay tuned for my reports on the ride in July.

I met up with the 7:30 group and I saw quite a few different faces. We headed to Annapolis and after turning back on the trail from Old County Rd, I notice that Mike was not with us, so I turned around and finally found him, Jim and another rider just finishing up with a flat tire repair. The group was pretty well strung out along the trail by this point, but at the head of the trail, we regrouped and headed towards Annapolis. Once at City Dock, we all seemed to have our own favorite place to get breakfast, so we made our purchases and congregated outside the Market house to enjoy our goodies and some good conversation.

At this point the group split up with some heading out to Crownsville I think and Mike, Jim and I heading back up the trail. I commented to Mike how spoiled we are to ride the trail at 5:00 a.m. when there is the occasional jogger. Today the trail was very crowded, with lots of people out enjoying the beautiful day. Mike and I turned off the trail at Jones Station Rd and he headed home to do his "Dad" and "Husband" things, and I went to the farmers market to meet Bev for Breakfast.

After the market, I was ready to head home on the bike. I noticed that only 11 more mile and I would have 50 for todays ride, so I told Bev to enjoy shopping for plants at the market, I was headed home, but was going to take the scenic route to try and get 50 miles in today. I was able to do that, and right after I got home, Bev pulled in as well. We couldn't have timed it better.

It was warm and humid, but an awesome day for a bicycle ride. I am looking forward to a nice long ride tomorrow morning as well. Good luck to Mike, Janet, Gardner, Theresa and Jim on their 200k tomorrow. Stay cool, Drink early and often!!!!

Ride stats for the day...

Tempting fate.... DON"T DO IT!!!!

2010-06-03T07:23:00.000-07:00

The forecast calls for showers this afternoon, but I decided to ride into work anyway. Nothing like a refreshing thunderstorm to help you keep a good quick pace on the ride home. Hopefully, I will have the same luck that I had on Tuesday. By the time I got to my bike, the storms had blown through, and although the road was wet, and the humidity was oppressive.... there was no rain. Stay tuned to see how I make out. (I did bring my rain jacket this time)

The morning ride was an uneventful solo effort. It is nice to have brightness in the sky at 5:20.

It is either me or the Garmin website, but for some reason I am unable to upload the ride from this morning. The strange thing is that I am able to upload the info from the Garmin into the analysis software on the computer, but not up to the web. As soon as I am able to do that, I will post the info from today.

UPDATE: Garmin info below

Afternoon Ride --- This is where tempting fate proved to be a big mistake.

OK, so there were thunderstorms in the forecast for this afternoon. Last night weather.com said between 4 and 6 pm there was a 30% chance. This afternoon when I checked again, there was a 40% chance of T-storms at 5:00. OK, so that is when I am getting on my bike and riding home, maybe I will miss them, or they will be somewhere that I am not.

I got geared up after my train ride and was on the bike at 4:59 headed home. It was partly cloudy but it did not look too bad... except for that patch of clouds over there. I was riding away from them, so maybe I could stay ahead of them and not get too wet. My plan was to ride until it started raining, and if it got too bad, there are several places tha I could find shelter and ride out the storm. Sounds like a great plan, don't ya think?

As I came around the corner of the BWI trail, and began heading east, away from the bad clouds, I heard a "pop" and a fizz. No, it was not an Alka Seltzer... a flat. I knew I shouldn't have tempted fate. But, at this point I am thinking I am still OK because I have a tube and a CO2 cartridge, I can change the tire and still out run the storm. As I was bending over to remove the rear tire, I heard thunder. All I could imagine was having the tire half changed and the sky opening up with rain. So, I walked the bike to the 7-11 just up the road and changed the tire under a tree near the air pump. I was about halfway done when it started to rain. I picked up the bike and the tire and carried it to the gas pumps which were under a roof at 7-11. I got the tire on, filled it with a little bit of air, checked to make sure it was seated correctly before filling it all the way... CRAP. There was a bulge in the tire and upon further inspection I could see that the tire was splitting just above the rim line. Then it started pouring... and blowing... thunder, lightening... the whole 9 yards. It seemed to be right on top of me too. At times I swore the lightening and thunder were simultaneous. If I was still riding, I would have been hunkered down somewhere waiting for this storm to pass.

I called Bev and asked her to come and get me. I knew that if I tried to ride with the split tire, I would end up with another flat, so I was dead in the water so to speak. I took a chance and texted Mike, who works close to where I was, explaining my dilemma. I was hoping that he was still at work and could swing by and pick me up.

As it turned out, I caught him just heading out of his office on his way home. He swung by, put the bike on his truck and we met Bev at Severna Park Middle School. Mike's twins had a performance at 7:00 and although he would have gladly taken me all the way home, we both thought it best to meet Bev at the school so he didn't have to rush and fight traffic to make the performance. He saved the day.

Thanks to Mike for bailing me out. This is the second tire that this has happened to, so maybe they had a bad batch. I will certainly be bringing it to Capital Bikes sometime this weekend. These tires are not cheap, so you would expect them to stay together a little better than that.

The moral of the story is be careful when you tempt fate... because she may just beat you like a red-headed step child.

Check out the disappointing Garmin stats:

Almost immediately,

Tuesday morning and evening ride

2010-06-01T16:59:00.000-07:00

Mike and I made arrangements last night to ride to BWI together this morning. I was surprised by him wanting to ride so soon after his blistering paced ride to Deale MD on Monday. (See his blog for details).

We met at the Park and Ride at 5:15, and we rode at a comfortable recovery pace. (I didn't need the recovery.... my Monday ride was at a wimpy 13 mph pace). As we were talking he mentioned that he put his windbreaker in his bag, because the forecast called for showers this afternoon. Well, crap. I didn't even look at weather.com. Oh well, if I get wet, I get wet. At least it is warm out.

As the work day starting coming to an end, I looked at weather.com (better late than never, right?) and it showed showers forecast for 3-6 pm. Prime commuting time. I wasn't going to adjust my schedule. I would take what I got as far as weather goes on the ride home. I missed all of the rain. There had been a storm while I was on the train, and it had to have been a pretty good one, because there was a river along side the bike path that is not normally there. When I got off the train, the sun was shining, and it was HOT.

The trail and the roads were wet, and the air was thick with humidity, but at least there was no pounding rain.

Memorial Day ride

2010-05-31T07:11:00.000-07:00

As most members of the SPP rode to Happy Harbor in Deale, MD. I opted for a much shorter, more leisurely ride to City Dock and back.

Emily is here this weekend and has a 2:30 flight back to Virginia Beach, so a ride to Deale, even with the 6:00 a.m. start would significantly cut into the amount of time I would be able to spend with her. Quality time with her is precious, and I can ride to Deale some other time.

I had to get in at least 8.2 miles to reach 700 miles for the month. So I slept in a little bit and headed to City Dock. My original plan was to ride Bikenstein, which is the Allez that I put together with parts that I picked up here and there. I got out of the driveway and shifted to the little chain ring and after a couple of revolutions of the chain, it dropped of the chain ring. I put it back on and again, after a couple of revolutions it dropped off again. I think it is a front derailleur adjustment, but I didn't have time to fool with it this morning, so I rode the Roubaix.

As you can see by the Garmin stats, I was not out to set any land speed records. I was out to spin my legs and get myself to 700 + miles for the month. I am fairly surprised that I rode that many miles for the month. If you look at my training log, you will see that I was off the bike and rode zero miles on more days than I care to admit. Almost half the month. I hope to do better in June.

Here are the Garmin stats for today's ride.

Around the River to Crofton

2010-05-30T07:53:00.000-07:00

With the promise of s beautiful day, Mike and I agreed to meet at 6:00 to do a ride around the river, with a short side trip to Caribou Coffee in Crofton.

We met at the corner of Shore Acres Rd and College Parkway and headed east towards Sandy Point State Park. We were moving at a pretty good speed. Each time I looked town at the Garmin it was showing 20 - 22 mph. This usually only happens when there is a pretty strong tailwind pushing us down the road. I started searching for a flag pole. I wanted to see how strong the wind was blowing the flags. When I finally found one, I was delighted to see that the flag was limp. No wind at all. We continued on towards Annapolis and finally the pace slowed. What had happened was that Mike would get a little ahead of me so I would speed up and get a little ahead of him and he would speed up.

We arrived at City Dock and stopped briefly for me to make a wardrobe adjustment. While we were stopped, an older gentleman in a Volvo stopped and complimented us on our tail lights. He said that bicyclists are sometimes difficult to see, but with the tail lights he could see us from a good distance away. I defer that compliment to Mike's tail-beacon. I think he found a lighthouse that was being decommissioned and is using their lantern for a tail light. Riding behind him can be a blinding experience. I joke about the light, but it certainly can seen and that is the purpose.

We headed up General's Highway to Waterbury Rd to take our side trip to enjoy coffee and a bagel at Caribou Coffee in Crofton. I was a little familiar with the route, so I was navigating. WELL, I have to say, on all of the 200k rides that I have done with Mike, I relied on him for the navigation and we have never missed a turn. On this short side trip we relied on my navigation and we missed our turn. Not TOO big of a deal, we added a couple bonus miles, but we got to see some beautiful scenery along the way. We got back on course and arrived at Caribou Coffee to enjoy the outdoor patio, beautiful weather and good conversation.

The ride back was uneventful. We both decided that we had sat too long at the coffee shop and our legs were in s slight state of rebellion. We worked through that and set a comfortable pace home. On the trail, we started doing it again. He'd speed up, I'd speed up etc. I guess it was an appropriate way to end the ride together.

It was a great day, and like Mike said at the coffee shop, there are a lot worse ways to spend a Sunday morning. I'd have to agree.

Garmin details below.

Saturday Morning Ride with SPP

2010-05-29T09:40:00.000-07:00

My intention was to ride with the 6:00 a.m. group which meets up with the 7:30 group to ride into Annapolis. The 6:00 a.m. ride did not work out for me. I woke up early enough, and I even got out of bed and made my way downstairs. However, when I was checking email I heard the pounding rain on the sky lights and decided that I did not want to start the day of riding soaking wet. I went back upstairs and got an extra hour of sleep. I managed to make it to the Rusty Bridge for the 7:30 ride. There were 19 of us I think. We headed into Annapolis to enjoy breakfast and some camaraderie. After breakfast the group split. One headed out to Bay Ridge for extra miles and beautiful views of the bay. and the other group (which is the one I was in) headed back up the trail to our respective destinations. I met Bev at the Farmer's Market for an Iced coffee from the Cosmic Bean tent and a scone from Vera's tent. We flagged Mike down as he rode by on his way home and the three of us enjoyed refreshments and good conversation. After the coffee and scones were gone, Mike headed home... I headed home on the bike and Bev headed out to do some shopping. It was a great morning on the bike and with good friends.

Stats below...

Half and Half... - PM Ride added

2010-05-26T05:24:00.000-07:00

So this morning I rode to work alone. Mike does sailing races on Wednesday and riding the bike does not get him from work to Annapolis soon enough to make the races. It is always better to ride with someone else, there are very few who people that I know that will dispute that. But, there are also some days that riding alone is okay too. When I ride alone, I can stop and call Bev to wake her up so she can go to work early to avoid all the Blue Angels and USNA graduation hub-bub at the Academy. I can also ride a little slower because the legs are just not feeling like turning this morning. I can also take a different route if I want to, and that is what I did this morning. It was half trail half road. I took the road route from Jumper's Hole Rd. It was a beautiful morning, and there was very little traffic. I am not saying that I couldn't do ALL of these things if I was riding with Mike, I am just saying that I didn't have to consider anybody else when making these choices. Finally, I also enjoy my Wednesday solo rides because it gives me a chance to gain a few miles on Mike for the month. I need to get a good lead because I will not be able to ride to Sweet Sue's on Memorial Day, which will be about 100 miles of riding for Mike. I an confident that we will both have over 700 miles for the month of May. Looking at my training log, and how many days I didn't ride, I should have had 800 or more miles. Oh well, there is always June.

Stats for this morning:

Uneventful ride home. Very hot and humid.

It is feeling good again -PM Ride added

2010-05-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

I have heard it over and over again, "... if you exercise you'll have more energy!" Well, one would think that the exercise would wear you out and make you more tired, but I can attest to the fact that that is not the case. These past few weeks off the bike because of rain (and other excuses) I have gotten lethargic. No energy to do much of anything, and struggled to get out of bed. After 43 miles of riding yesterday, I got all my bike clothes washed dried and folded, got the dishes done after dinner and I was not ready to drop at 9:00 pm. This morning, I was awake at 4:13, laying in bed waiting for the alarm go off at 4:15. I got out of bed, excited to jump on the bike again for the commute to work. To make a long story (blog entry) short, I am glad to be back in the routine again. And for those of you who are wondering (you know who you are).... i have NOT gained all my weight back again.

Here are the stats from this mornings ride.

This afternoon I rode home alone. I set a leisurely pace and enjoyed the scenery that I miss in the morning while it is dark. I was delayed a little bit while riding through Severna Park by a woman looking for her two boys and little girl. 2 other bikers were riding up and down the trail, the County police helicopter was circling and the park ranger was driving up the trail. BY the time I got to Jones Station Rd, I no longer heard the helicopter, so I am hopeful that the children were found unharmed.

Here are the stats for this afternoons ride

Back in the saddle again....(Evening commute appended)

2010-05-24T05:43:00.000-07:00

As much as my body told me NOT to get out of bed, my mind took over and I was able to muster the energy to get up at 4:15 to ride my bike to the train station for work.

Mike met me at the Park and Ride in Severna Park and we headed up the trail towards BWI. We encountered a little bit of mist along the way, but no rain to speak of.

I deviated from my route just a little this morning. I followed Stewart Ave out to the light at Dorsey Rd and took a right there. Dorsey Road has a fairly large shoulder and traffic was not that bad. I may do this every now and again, just to remain a little unpredictable.

Here are the stats -

The scheduling worked out for Mike and I to ride home together this afternoon. After a phone call here and there, we set a good pace and made good time getting home to our loved ones.

Off the bike...(Ammended)

2010-05-20T05:53:00.000-07:00

It has been a pretty dismal week for riding. I did the 200k on Sunday, and if you read the ride reports you know that Mike and I attained our personal best for a 200k. This week has been a personal worst for me in regards to riding. Monday, the thighs were telling me that I needed a day off the bike. Even Dave allows for missing one day for each 200k ridden. Tuesday, I should have ridden. It was misty in the morning and drizzly in the evening. I have ridden in worse, but the thighs talked me out of riding again. Wednesday, there were grey skies, and weather.com called for showers between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. which is right while I would be riding. So, not only did I not get up early and ride, I slept in and went to work late. How's that for motivated? This morning, I got up, went downstairs made preparations to ride. I had to backup a database that I was working on last night, and that did not go smoothly. I could not remember if I had shorts in the box at BWI to change into to ride the train, I think I took the sweatshirt out of there too. I knew I didn't have any shorts or under garments to change into at work, sorry, too much info... I know. I was not prepared so I did not ride this morning. HOWEVER, hope is not lost. There is a Severna Park Peloton ride that starts at 5:00 pm and I am planning to do that ride tonight. It will be with different people and I am hoping that the pace will be manageable.

I'll keep you posted.

OK, so I am keeping you posted now.

Have you ever had an uneasy feeling about what you were doing, or about to do? As I was riding to meet the group this afternoon, I just had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. The traffic was very heavy and I there were 2 accidents on Benfield Blvd. The drivers were just not paying attention today. I made it to the intersection of W. Benfield and Veteren's Highway. I was early, so I waited by the side of the road, well out of the flow of traffic. I still almost got hit. This ride was suppose to go onto Route 3, which is typically busier than Veterans Highway. I decided to NOT ride with the afternoon group. I headed up Veterans Highway to East West Blvd and rode around there for little while. Only 20 miles, but it felt good to get my legs turning again.

Bike to work day tomorrow. I am taking the day off, go figure. We will be riding into Annapolis for a get together at City Dock. Stay tuned.

Sailing Down to Solomon

2010-05-16T14:48:00.001-07:00

For a much better ride report than I am able to write, please visit Chesapeake Sailor Blog (link to the right). His description is very accurate and my report will mirror much of what his contains... just not as articulately.

Mike and I teamed up again to ride our May 200k. Schedules being what they are, with nicer weather upon us, the number of "commitments" that we have on the weekends increases it makes it more and more difficult to get our schedules to mesh. My March and April 200k's were done solo, and although that does have some benefits (not many, believe me) I was looking forward to riding with someone this month. Mike solicited participation from other members of the Severna Park Peloton and we were joined by Shane.

At 6:00 a.m. we departed the 7-11 in Crofton. Everyone was upbeat and optimistic about the day. This is the same ride that Mike and I did together in February. For that ride we had a 4:30 a.m. start, in the dark, with temperatures below freezing. I have to say, I enjoyed the later, and warmer start this time around.

The early part of the ride was overcast and a little cool. The sun was suppose to make an appearance and warm things up a bit, but I had my doubts as I was looking at the sky. I felt a rain drop and then another and then I saw oncoming traffic with their wipers on. Given that there was only a 10% chance of rain, I did not bring any "rain" gear with me. I was not prepared for rain and because we were so early in the ride, I was very nervous that any serious rainfall would make this a long and miserable ride. That could have resulted in a phone call to Bev to come get me. Fortunately, that is not how the day turned out.

The pace down to Solomon's was very quick. There were points that I was riding and chatting with Shane and we were doing 18 - 20 mph and I look up and Mike is pulling away from us. On Several occasions I asked Mike if he had his Wheaties for Breakfast or what? From the outside looking in, I could tell that Mike was having a good ride.

We made it to Solomon's and decided that we were all feeling well hydrated, well fed and our legs did not need too much of a break so we opted for a quick stop at the 7-11. I got a water refill and pringles while the other guys got there nutritional replenishment and we were on our way headed north.

As we headed north, we encountered a fairly stiff breeze. It was not the gusty winds that others have had to deal with over the past couple weeks, but it was formidable enough to make a difference. Mike recommended that we each take a 5 minute shift at the front of the line to battle the wind while the other two enjoyed the reprieve from the wind. That worked out SO well. I don't feel like we lost much time heading north, and no one had to shoulder the entire burden of riding into the wind. This is one of many reasons why riding with someone is better than riding alone.

Riding into the wind did take it's toll. Shane developed a cramp, but was able to ride on to a country store at about mile 80. We stayed there for an extended break for him to stretch and rest his leg. I enjoyed some peanut butter crackers and topped off the water bottles. From there we headed to Sweet Sue's in North Beach.

Sweet Sue's is right on the water in North Beach. Riding in to North Beach with the views of the bay, and along the Boardwalk is very pretty. Sweet Sue's did not disappoint. I got a Cranberry Muffin, Mike got a scone of some variety and Shane got an eclair that was as big as his leg. (Mike's blog has a picture) Maybe that was to help the cramp in his leg, I don't know, but it was the biggest eclair I had ever seen. We all enjoyed our sweets, filled up on water and we were on our way again.

As we neared the end of the ride, we crossed Davidsonville Rd. with about 6 miles to go. If we took a left it would have been a straight shot back to the 7-11. The cue sheet however, calls for us to cross Davidsonville Rd and it brings us through some pretty enough neighborhoods and then back out onto Davidsonville Rd. I wish there was an option on the route to do those extra couple of miles down in Solomon's. I don't know the area down there, but after 122 miles of a 126 mile ride, when you are so close to home, you just want to "get there".

During the ride, I used the same nutrition/hydration plan as I did in April. Drink constantly, 2 -3 e-caps per hour, cheese bagels, fig newtons, sports beans and food at the controls. This worked well for me again. On rides were water is not readily available, I will have to come up with a strategy for that, but so far... so good.

The last 2 long rides that I have done, I have felt really good during and after the rides. I hope that this trend continues. Mike and I are conspiring to do a 300k in September. As I continue to feel better after these 200k's, my level of confidence for longer rides increases ever so slightly.

Saturday Bagel Ride

2010-05-15T18:21:00.000-07:00

Headed to Annapolis with Severna Park Peloton. Left early to get a coffee at Java Diva's... not Diva there to serve me coffee. Bummer.

FLAT....

2010-05-14T11:39:00.001-07:00

...no, not the tires, ME! The weather, and pollen and a touch of a cold has kept me off the bike for pretty much the whole week, but I purposed in my mind that I WAS going to ride this morning. And that is exactly what I did.

I set the alarm for 4:25 so I could get up and give myself enough time to put the pedals on the Roubaix and try them out, but I turned the alarm off and the next thing I knew it was 4:45. I scrambled and managed to get on the road at 5:07. I decided that I was not going to kill myself trying to get to the Rusty Bridge by 5:45, because I knew that the gang would be heading down the trail, and I would meet up with them at some point. I did make it to the bridge on time and myself and 8 other riders headed into Annapolis for breakfast.

It felt good to be on the bike again, but I could also tell that it had been almost a week. The legs did not want to spin quite so freely. I plan to ride tomorrow, but I am unsure if I will be able to make it for the 6:00 a.m. ride to Java Divas. I have to meet Eddie McGowen (Mr. Annapolis) at City Dock tomorrow morning for assistance in my fund raising efforts for the New England Classic (check out the link if you haven't already). Depending on what time he wants to meet, I may head out to Sandy Point and then into Annapolis, and skip the 6:00 a.m. pre-ride. In any event, I will be out riding tomorrow.

Saturday morning ride(s)

2010-05-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

Well, the usually 6:00 a.m. pre-bagel ride did not happen today, at least not for me. I was not feeling like getting out of bed at 4:45 on a Saturday morning to meet the group. I did manage to grab myself by the scruff of the neck and make it to the Rusty Bridge for the 7:30 bagel ride. I made a quick stop at Java Diva's for a cup of coffee before meeting the begal ride group.

We had a smaller turn out than normal because several people are riding other events this weekend. A few are doing a 200k in Lancaster, PA and Chip is doing a 400k today. The numbers may have been decreased by the threat of rain, but I figured... that is why I bought a rain shell.

The ride into Annapolis was uneventful. A nice pace and some nice conversation as we mad eour way up the trail and over the bridge. The wind on the bridge was very strong and gusty and right in our face.

The group split when we got to the City Dock area. Several people went to the City Dock cafe while myself and a few other went to the Hard Bean. I enjoyed an Iced Mocha and a Lemon Poppy muffin. Mike was up against a time deadline to be home in order to get his kids to their various sporting events so he and I did not linger at the Dock for very long and we headed back down the trail. Conveniently, I was headed to the Farmer;s Market which is right where Mike leaves the trail for home. As we were getting close to the Farmer's Market, the skies were getting grey and the wind picked up a little more, and I figured that the rain was finally going to arrive.

When I met Bev, we put the bike in the back of the 4Runner and got our goodies at the market and we headed to a plant sale in Severna Park. By the time we got there, the skies had brightened and since I didn't want to walk through the plant sale in my bike clothes, I took the bike out of the car and rode home.

So far we have had no rain, and I am glad that I got up and was able to get some miles in on a beautiful Saturday morning.

A commuting route change (Evening ride added)

2010-05-05T05:38:00.000-07:00

This morning I made my way down to the kitchen at 4:20 to get ready to ride to work. One of the first things that I do is look at the thermometer that displays the outside temperature. I was surprised to see that it read 60 degrees. It was going to be a little nippy this morning. I got my coffee made and my lunch packed in my little bike bag and glanced at the thermometer again... 58 degrees. Better wear that extra layer.

I am glad that I did, because it was cool on the ride in. I had decided when I left the house, that I was going to ride at a leisurely pace, and concentrate on pedaling at a steady even pace. Well, that changed as I turned onto the trail from Jones Station Rd. I made the right hand turn onto the trail, and I saw the flashing tailight of another biker up ahead. Now, It is an instinctual reaction that I have when I see a rider in front of me. I always try to chase him/her down. Very much like a greyhound chases the mechanical rabbit around the track (Ok, so it's more like a St. Bernard chasing a bone... but you get the my point). So I set off to tail light. In my mind I was trying to figure out who it may be. I know Mike's bike is in the shop, and the tail light was not nearly as bright as his. I knew that if it was Dangerous Dan I would never catch him. I could see that I was closing the gap and I knew that I would catch them, so now I was trying to judge how far back I was and determine where on the trail I would over take them. I set a goal to catch them at the Ranger Station. I met that goal and caught up to him at White's Lane. It was not an SPP rider, just another commuter. I kept going at a pretty steady pace and before I knew it I was at Jumper's Hole Rd.

This winter, after I secured my bike box at BWI, I scouted a road route to get me to the airport in the event that the trail was closed. So, since I left the house early this morning (for a leisurely commute) and because I had made good time chasing down the other rider, I decided to take the road route for at least part of the way. Elvaton Rd. does not have much of a shoulder to ride on, but I only saw one car the entire time I was on it. I pretty much had that road to myself. Oakwood was a little busier, but it had a HUGE shoulder to ride in. There were piles of sand that I had to be cautious of, but other than that, it was great. I took a right at Aquahart and got back up on the trail. That little detour did not add too much distance to the trip and did not take up any more time than the trail. It was a nice change of scenary.

The nap on the train was uninterupted. I certainly hope I didn't snore, but I do not remember stopping at either of the two stops on the way in to Washington DC. I hope that means I will be well rested for the commute home.

Ride home... tired legs... tired body... glad to be home. Going to bed. Good night!

Warm Muggy Commute (PM ride included)

2010-05-04T05:11:00.000-07:00

It was a very warm and humid ride into the train station this morning. I met Mike at the Park and Ride in Severna Park and we rode together to BWI. It is always nice to have company any time you ride the bike. What is it they say about misery?

The afternoon ride home was nice until the very end. Mike and I met at the BWI rail station for the commute home. As we were just starting out we got passed by a guy in an Army cycling jersey. That didn't sit well with Mike, so we decided not only to catch up to the guy, but we afforded him the privilege of pulling us for a couple miles into the wind. After that, he held onto our wheels for a while and then broke off. We would like to think that he just couldn't hang with Mike and I.

The rest of the ride seemed very spirited. I think Mike may have eaten his Wheaties before he left work, because he was certainly driving the pace. We took turns at the front, but my legs were definitely feeling it.

My ride took a turn for the worse just as I turned for home on Deep Creek Ave. I direct your attention to the Garmin information. Look at the speed graphic, all the way to the right, where the speed shows 29.7. I was headed down the hill and just as I got into my best aerodynamic position on the bike, I got stung by a bee. What do you do when your doing almost 30 mph on 2 very skinny tires on a less that perfectly smooth and you get stung by a bee? You do nothing, because at that speed slight movement on the bike is exaggerated. So I slowed down as quickly as I could and then smacked the bee, but not before he stuck his stinger right down to my thigh bone. Definitely a buzz kill for an otherwise good ride. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.

Dry ride home

2010-05-03T18:26:00.000-07:00

For as miserable as the morning ride was... the afternoon ride home was just as enjoyable. I made it home just before more showers arrived.

Rainy Days and Monday....

2010-05-03T05:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I got both today. A rainy Monday! What better way to combat that kind of negativity than with a bike ride in the rain.

Weather.com said 40% chance of rain in the morning, and only 10% this evening around the time that I will be riding back from BWI, so I set the alarm and figured I would assess the situation when I woke up. At 4:15 the patio and the driveway was dry, so I saddled up and left the house. There was the occasional rain drop, but nothing serious. Until I got to Whites Lane. It was raining hard enough at that point that I stopped to put my rain shell on. It rained steady from Whites Lane to BWI. When I arrived at my bike box, it really started coming down, so I pushed the bike into the box and carried all my clothes to the area that has all the newspaper vending machines. It is under cover and dry. I am sure the people didn't appreciate my wet bike socks hanging off the handle of the USA Today box, but oh well.

The problem with riding in the rain is really NOT the rain. We wash our bikes with water. We wash ourselves with water. It is the dirt and sand that gets on everything when it is wet that wreaks havoc with the bicycle. I will wipe the chain off and re-lube it before heading home to hopefully minimize the wear and tear on the chain.

All in all (now that I am dry in my office) I am glad that I decided to ride. I certainly commend again Clint, Clif and Chip for riding their fleche in 40 degree rain... in the middle of the night... uphill. It was in the 70's and miserable riding in the rain.

Inspiration day on the bike

2010-05-01T14:27:00.000-07:00

I set out from Severna Park Park and Ride this morning at a little after 5 a.m. to mee up with the SPP 6 a.m. pre-bagal ride. This is usually a small group and the pace varies depending on the consensus of the group. We rode through Pasadena and ended up at Java Diva's. If you don't know what Java Diva's is, Google it and check it out. It is certainly a great conversation starter.

After coffee at the Diva's, we met the bagel ride group at the Rusty Bridge and headed into Annapolis for breakfast. I am not sure of the count, but we had a good size group for the ride. We enjoyed breakfast at the Italian place at City Dock and re-mounted our bikes and headed out for a quick ride through Quiet Waters Park.

We then headed to Jonas Green Park to meet up with the Wounded Warriors Project for a ride through Annapolis. I have to say it was one of the most humbling and inspirational events I have ever been a part of. The soldiers were riding with out arms and legs and they ALL had a smile on their faces and thoroughly enjoying themselves. Some were pedaling with their arms, some were pedaling with their legs, but steering with prosthetic arms and so on. If ever I feel like I am too tired or too sore to ride, I will draw on the inspiration that I got from these young men and woman.

The warriors were well recieved as we rode through Annapolis. The Naval Academy had Midshipmen line the street to cheer the warriors as they rode through. Signs were held up thanking them for their service and their sacrifice. Next year I hope to ride with the warriors from Andrews Air Force Base to Annapolis.

Modified Bagel Ride

2010-04-30T06:38:00.000-07:00

This morning I rode with the Severna Park Peloton 5:45 group. It was nice to ride with those guys again. It was especially nice to see Clint, Chip and Clif (the 3 C's, also known as Italian Ice) fresh off of their epic fleche last weekend. (if you haven't already done so, take the time to read Chip's ride report here.)

I was late getting out the door this morning, figuring that since my departure time was 15 minutes later than on a normal ride day, I could do a couple extra things. That was not the case. I was in such a rush to get on the road, I forgot to turn my Garmin on. I turned it on just as I turned onto College Parkway (I know that spot is 2 miles from the house, so I can just add 2 miles to my mileage total for today's ride.) I was moving right along, but was not too worried about making it to the rusty bridge by 5:45, because the group would pass me on the trail headed into Annapolis anyway. As I got to the light to cross route 2, I ran into Mike. My first thought was that I was not as late as I thought, but Mike assured me that he was late as well. He did the calculations and said that if we went a certain speed we would make it to the bridge at 5:45. I didn't hear the speed, I just put my head down and pedaled. I glanced back down the trail and in the distance I saw another bicycle light closing the gap very quickly. Mike and I both assumed that based on where the rider was coming from and the speed at which he/she was riding... it had to be Dangerous Dan. It was great to ride with him this morning as well. He will be doing a 400k ride tomorrow with the PA Rand group. Good Luck Dan.

Our pedaling paid off and the three of us were actually the first ones to the bridge. We were soon joined by Bryan, Clint, AJ and Earl. We departed the bridge en route to Annapolis and picked up Chip and Clif along the way. A hearty group of 9 riders on their bikes before 6:00 a.m. How cool is that?

Earl had a flat tire just as we crossed Robinson Rd so the group stopped and either waited or assisted in getting that changed. (The Severna Park Peloton no drop policy is awesome). That tire issue set us back a bit in regards to time and it appeared that 3 other people would not be making the trip into Annapolis for breakfast, so I opted to turn around with them at the head of the trail and ride home to get ready for work.

This mornings ride was a great way to start a great day and what is suppose to be a beautiful weekend. Emily is here this weekend and she is suppose to bring up here bike gear. If she does, I will try to convince her to ride the Wounded Warrior Project ride with me as it goes through the streets of Annapolis. It should be fun as well as an honor to meet some of the wounded soldiers who voluntarily put themselves in harms way so that I am free to get up at 4:15 to ride my bicycle.

From work to home

2010-04-29T17:40:00.000-07:00

I was able to meet up with Mike for the ride home from the train station. It was a beautiful afternoon for a bike ride. Below is the garmin data.

The Morning After (A massage report)

2010-04-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

I rode to the train station this morning, although the better decision may have been to stay in bed and rest. Yesterday I was up at 3:30 to get to work to fix a server that was down. It is the server that handles emails to the Executive Director and Deputy Director cell phones. With that down, God forbib, they would be without email on their cell phones. I say that like it is a bad thing, but since they pay me to keep all that kind of stuff up and running, I had to get to work early. I also had to juggle 2 appointments that I had previously scheduled for yesterday, but in the long run it all worked out. It just made for a VERY long day.

One of the appointments I had yesterday was for a massage. After my 200k my legs were feeling fine, with the exception of couple of places that remained tight and painful. Having heard of the benefits of a massage, I put the preconceived notions aside and made an appointment. I felt very comfortable with my choice of therapist. The location of her studio was in her home, in a very nice neighborhood in Arnold. Her website gave her first and last name, which made it easier for me to Google her and find out a little bit more about her.

I arrived at her studio, and she showed me to the room where she would be doing the massage. Before getting on the massage table she asked me to sit down and she asked me some questions about how I felt after I get off the bike, what kind of stretches I do before and after a long ride, etc. After finishing up with the questions, she left the room and allowed me to undress and get on the table and under the blanket that was provided.

We had discussed that I wanted her to concentrate on my legs, since that is all that I felt needed massaging. I had also only booked a 30 minute appointment, so I didn't want her working on my neck and shoulders and not have time to get to my legs. She started with my calf and worked up to my thigh and she told me where my thigh was hurting. I guess she could feel the tightness or looseness or something. She worked on that area for a while and then moved to the other leg. Again, starting at the calf and moving up. When she was done with that leg, she asked me to turn over, and she repeated the process on the front of my legs. The entire time the only part of my body that was exposed was the part that she was working on. I never felt like I was "hanging out there" at all. When she finished up, she left the room, I got dressed and she came back in and spent a few minutes going over some stretched with me that would be helpful before and after riding. My 30 minute appointment had stretched into close to an hour, but I was only charged for 30 minutes. I never felt like she was watching the clock or rushing to get me out of there. It was all very relaxed and professional.

I have to say, I was not really to WOWED by the whole thing. When I talked to Bev after the appointment, I told her it was "alright". Some people go crazy over getting a massage. They say, "It is so awesome to be pampered and having someone take care of me." But, I guess because I am pampered all the time, it was nothing special. ;-) Let's put it this way, I would go back and get another massage provided that the one I just had actually helped the pain in my thighs when I ride.

That is why I had to ride this morning. I had to see if there was any benefit to the massage, and the short answer is yes. My legs felt better and looser and pedaling felt easier. I did not rush to work this morning because I was not feeling 100%, but I did notice an improvement, especially climbing the hill at the end of Deep Creek Ave. So, it really did work.

I would recommend that everyone have at least one massage in their lifetime. I did, and I can cross that off the bucket list now. Next up... manicure/pedicure. Stay tuned!

Garmin info from the ride in this morning.

Ride home from work

2010-04-27T17:06:00.000-07:00

I am glad I decided to ride to the train station today. I had a great day at work, and the ride home was very enjoyable. Below are the stats for the ride home. I followed the trail all the way to Arnold Station to avoid the traffic on College Parkway. Extra miles too.

Damp ride to work

2010-04-27T05:37:00.000-07:00

As a last minute decision, I decided to ride the bike to the train station. The hour by hour forecast called for a 30% chance of showers up to 5:00 a.m. and clearing through out the rest of the day. I haven't ridden since my 200k on Friday and I needed to get back on the bike.

I am happy with my decision. I caught a small shower as I was leaving the neighborhood and a few drops as I got to the airport, but for the rest of the ride, it was quite pleasant. I am looking forward to the ride home.

Below is the information from my Garmin. You can click it to get detailed info on the ride.

April 200k

2010-04-24T05:12:00.001-07:00

I completed my April 200k on Friday April 23rd. It was my BEST 200k to date in regards to both time and how I felt during and after the ride.

The perm that I chose was the same one that I did in March and although it felt like cheating, doing the same perm back to back, I had a few specific reasons why I wanted to do this perm again. The main reason was that I had memorized the route so I would not have to worry about the cue sheet and doing bonus miles. The second reason was that my March 200k was a personal worst for me. I finished in 12 hrs 18 minutes and I was very discouraged by that. By doing the same course I could compare apples to apples and hopefully see some improvement.

I started at 7:00 from the 7-11 in Arlington and was soon on the trail heading west. There was a headwind, but it was not as stout as it was in March, which was helpful. I tried to relax on the way out to Purcellville and focused on my cadence as opposed to my speed, trying to just maintain an easy pace. I met John, another cyclist, along the way and we rode together for awhile. He was wearing an "Outer Banks Cycling" shirt that I commented on. Come to find out that it was the only one that fit him, he was hit by a car a couple years ago and although he physically was able to ride, he "...sat on his ass, felt sorry for himself and gained a lot of weight." He also rode a Specilaized so we talked about the pro teams that ride them, the anticipation of Alberto on a Specialized vs. Lance this summer. I am not sure exactly how long we rode together, but those miles just flew by. He had to turn around and go to work, and before I knew it I was getting off the trail approaching the first control. I reached the first control a few minutes earlier than I did in March, but more importantly I felt 100 % better.

The route to the halfway point in The Plains, VA was rolling hills through horse farms and beautiful gigantic mansions. When I arrived there I was actually hungry, so I grabbed a piece of pizza, some water and sat down long enough to eat the pizza and phone home. Bev was a little surprised that I was at the halfway point at 12:10, almost an hour earlier than in March.

I made my way back to the last control before the finish in good time and I knew that heading back up the trail could be a very crowded and slow ride if it was anything like it was in March. Fortunately it was not and I was able to keep a good pace all the way back to the final control in 10 hours and 11 minutes. A personal best.

Eating and Drinking
As I am sure you all know, I have struggled with staying fed and hydrated on these rides. gels and powdered drinks like perpetuem did not work for me. So thanks to all the sound advice I got from fellow SPP riders I think I have come up with a plan that works for me. Like Fran said, what works for him may not work for me, it is highly individualized. That is SO true. With that in mind I set out with 2 cheddar cheese bagels, cut in quarters, a package of fat free fig newtons (broken down into zip lock bags with 5 in each bag) 6 bags of sportbeans, 36 e-caps, and a bag of perpetuem powder (enough for one bottle.) On the drive to Arlington I started the morning with a bagel and orange juice, and as I was riding I made a point to eat something every hour, take 2 ecaps every hour and take a sip from the water bottle every 5 minutes or so, whether I needed it or not. This worked well.

A note on the sports beans... I picked up a pack at Bike Doctor in Crofton one day last week to give them a try. Even though they were not the best tasting things in the world, at least it was not like sucking down 8 pounds of sugar like it is with the gels. So as I was researching them on the web, I saw that they were made my Jelly Belly which makes a pretty good 'regular' jelly bean as well. Then it hit me... mix real jelly beans with the sportbeans to help mask the taste. Worked great. I ate 5 of the 6 packs that I brought. I also used this strategy with the perpetuem. At the last control I bought a bottle of Orange Juice and mixed the perpetuem with water AND orange juice. It was paletable and I was able to finish it with no problem.

Hills
When I finished this 200k in March, I swore that I would never ride on Snickersville Turnpike again. It is hilly and has one climb in particular that came close to breaking my spirit. This time I was hydrated and nurished. I did not exactly fly up the hill, and my thighs were burning as I climbed it, but when I got to the top it helped reaffirm in my mind that my food and hydration plan was actually working. That gave me a big boost.

An unexpected surprise
This was going to be my last Garmin-less 200k. Because I am cue sheet challenged, I knew that I would need help for perms like Over to Dover, which has a lot of turns. I was going to break down and put out the $$$ for the 705 edge for my ride in May. Imagine how surprised I was when the 705 arrived on Thursday, especially sine I didn't order one. One of my many wonderful followers bought me one so that they could keep track of the rides that I am doing and where I am riding. I have Mike to thank for this. Mike and I rode together in January and February for our first 200k rides, and I gave her a link to Mikes blog. Now that spring and summer are here, schedules are getting crazy and solo 200k's are becoming the norm for me, she can no longer rely on Mike's blog to see where I have ridden. So, the 705 is more about 'her' wanting to see where I have been ... but I am not complaining, I have my 705 now... I am happy. I was able to get it installed on the bike before the ride. Below is a link to the Garmin Connect site with the data from the ride

Link to Garmin Conect

Activity

Route:	--	Elev. Avg:	413 ft
Location:	--	Elev. Gain:	-14 ft
Date:	04/23/10	Up/Downhill:	[+7276/-7290]
Time:	07:13 AM	Difficulty:	4.2 / 5.0

Performance

Distance:	127.72 miles
Time:	10:04:55
Speed:	12.7 mph
Pace:	4' 43 /mi	Heart Rate:	135 bpm (Avg)
Calories:	10318		175 bpm (Peak)

Map
Elevation (ft)
Speed (mph)
Heart Rate (bpm)
Heart Rate Zones

Zone	Range (bpm)	Time In Zone		Distance In Zone
Zone 5	158 - 175	0h 33m	5%	5.76 mi
Zone 4	140 - 158	3h 32m	35%	52.73 mi
Zone 3	122 - 140	3h 43m	36%	54.88 mi
Zone 2	105 - 122	2h 03m	20%	20.67 mi
Zone 1	88 - 105	0h 43m	7%	1.01 mi
(none)	out of range	0h 01m	0%	0.01 mi

Splits

Mile	Pace (min/mile)		Speed (mph)		Heart Rate	Elev Gain
Mile	actual	+/- avg	actual	+/- avg	Heart Rate	Elev Gain
1	4' 45	+0' 01	12.6	-0.1	124	+6 ft
2	6' 16	+1' 32	9.6	-3.1	124	+52 ft
3	4' 21	-0' 22	13.8	+1.1	132	+30 ft
4	5' 01	+0' 17	12.0	-0.7	147	+102 ft
5	4' 28	-0' 15	13.4	+0.7	123	-43 ft
6	5' 26	+0' 42	11.0	-1.7	126	-13 ft
7	3' 18	-1' 25	18.2	+5.5	136	-46 ft
8	4' 09	-0' 34	14.4	+1.7	122	-59 ft
9	2' 43	-2' 00	22.0	+9.3	144	-42 ft
10	2' 37	-2' 06	22.8	+10.1	154	-49 ft
11	4' 39	-0' 04	12.9	+0.2	149	+82 ft
12	5' 07	+0' 23	11.7	-1.0	135	+79 ft
13	4' 39	-0' 04	12.9	+0.2	125	0 ft
14	4' 07	-0' 36	14.5	+1.8	133	+4 ft
15	3' 20	-1' 23	17.9	+5.2	126	-9 ft
16	5' 13	+0' 29	11.5	-1.2	129	-3 ft
17	4' 10	-0' 33	14.4	+1.7	136	+19 ft
18	4' 04	-0' 39	14.7	+2.0	122	-46 ft
19	3' 26	-1' 17	17.4	+4.7	130	-42 ft
20	3' 18	-1' 25	18.2	+5.5	129	-59 ft
21	3' 05	-1' 38	19.4	+6.7	152	+19 ft
22	8' 18	+3' 34	7.2	-5.5	123	-29 ft
23	3' 35	-1' 08	16.7	+4.0	151	+49 ft
24	3' 29	-1' 14	17.1	+4.4	137	+10 ft
25	3' 38	-1' 05	16.5	+3.8	143	+10 ft
26	3' 22	-1' 21	17.8	+5.1	125	-59 ft
27	3' 44	-0' 59	16.1	+3.4	143	+49 ft
28	2' 59	-1' 44	20.1	+7.4	139	-33 ft
29	5' 29	+0' 45	10.9	-1.8	133	+39 ft
30	4' 46	+0' 02	12.6	-0.1	127	+20 ft
31	4' 17	-0' 26	14.0	+1.3	138	+72 ft
32	4' 34	-0' 09	13.1	+0.4	139	+69 ft
33	4' 33	-0' 10	13.2	+0.5	144	+45 ft
34	6' 50	+2' 06	8.8	-3.9	139	+85 ft
35	4' 25	-0' 18	13.6	+0.9	135	-39 ft
36	2' 36	-2' 07	23.1	+10.4	147	-69 ft
37	3' 17	-1' 26	18.2	+5.5	136	-20 ft
38	3' 25	-1' 18	17.5	+4.8	143	+13 ft
39	4' 04	-0' 39	14.7	+2.0	155	+82 ft
40	4' 53	+0' 09	12.3	-0.4	127	-7 ft
41	21' 39	+16' 55	2.8	-9.9	110	-14 ft
42	3' 05	-1' 38	19.4	+6.7	128	-56 ft
43	3' 39	-1' 04	16.4	+3.7	139	-23 ft
44	3' 05	-1' 38	19.4	+6.7	134	0 ft
45	2' 37	-2' 06	22.9	+10.2	136	-115 ft
46	5' 03	+0' 19	11.9	-0.8	157	+128 ft
47	4' 27	-0' 16	13.5	+0.8	130	-68 ft
48	4' 16	-0' 27	14.1	+1.4	143	+49 ft
49	4' 41	-0' 02	12.8	+0.1	135	-17 ft
50	4' 44	+0' 00	12.7	-0.0	153	+55 ft
51	2' 27	-2' 16	24.4	+11.7	122	-174 ft
52	6' 06	+1' 22	9.8	-2.9	144	+137 ft
53	4' 34	-0' 09	13.1	+0.4	134	+36 ft
54	3' 12	-1' 31	18.7	+6.0	125	-86 ft
55	4' 11	-0' 32	14.3	+1.6	136	+30 ft
56	16' 42	+11' 58	3.6	-9.1	132	+85 ft
57	3' 15	-1' 28	18.4	+5.7	141	-7 ft
58	3' 19	-1' 24	18.0	+5.3	132	-3 ft
59	4' 20	-0' 23	13.8	+1.1	148	+42 ft
60	3' 00	-1' 43	19.9	+7.2	127	-82 ft
61	4' 14	-0' 29	14.1	+1.4	146	+52 ft
62	3' 15	-1' 28	18.4	+5.7	133	+6 ft
63	4' 27	-0' 16	13.4	+0.8	149	+82 ft
64	20' 04	+15' 20	3.0	-9.7	117	-13 ft
65	3' 45	-0' 58	16.0	+3.3	130	-66 ft
66	3' 30	-1' 13	17.1	+4.4	134	-3 ft
67	3' 52	-0' 51	15.5	+2.8	147	-3 ft
68	3' 03	-1' 40	19.7	+7.0	132	-75 ft
69	5' 04	+0' 20	11.8	-0.9	151	+62 ft
70	3' 06	-1' 37	19.3	+6.6	132	-85 ft
71	4' 58	+0' 14	12.1	-0.6	147	+108 ft
72	3' 48	-0' 55	15.7	+3.0	142	-32 ft
73	10' 00	+5' 16	6.0	-6.7	115	-66 ft
74	4' 02	-0' 41	14.9	+2.2	137	+13 ft
75	4' 15	-0' 28	14.1	+1.4	138	+29 ft
76	3' 21	-1' 22	17.9	+5.2	131	-52 ft
77	3' 59	-0' 44	15.0	+2.3	137	-43 ft
78	5' 18	+0' 34	11.3	-1.4	148	+111 ft
79	3' 04	-1' 39	19.5	+6.8	125	-171 ft
80	5' 30	+0' 46	10.9	-1.8	151	+124 ft
81	4' 36	-0' 07	13.0	+0.3	136	+33 ft
82	3' 43	-1' 00	16.1	+3.4	135	-32 ft
83	3' 09	-1' 34	19.0	+6.3	117	-79 ft
84	5' 06	+0' 22	11.7	-1.0	148	+78 ft
85	4' 14	-0' 29	14.1	+1.4	144	+16 ft
86	4' 43	-0' 00	12.7	+0.0	140	+65 ft
87	4' 38	-0' 05	12.9	+0.2	139	+29 ft
88	21' 07	+16' 23	2.8	-9.9	116	-23 ft
89	3' 49	-0' 54	15.7	+3.0	133	-33 ft
90	3' 07	-1' 36	19.2	+6.5	133	-66 ft
91	3' 37	-1' 06	16.5	+3.8	143	+26 ft
92	3' 39	-1' 04	16.4	+3.7	152	+62 ft
93	4' 16	-0' 27	14.0	+1.3	144	+32 ft
94	5' 36	+0' 52	10.7	-2.0	128	-4 ft
95	3' 53	-0' 50	15.4	+2.8	133	-46 ft
96	3' 45	-0' 58	15.9	+3.2	120	-111 ft
97	3' 21	-1' 22	17.9	+5.2	129	-56 ft
98	3' 47	-0' 56	15.8	+3.1	129	-36 ft
99	3' 44	-0' 59	16.0	+3.3	131	-3 ft
100	3' 05	-1' 38	19.4	+6.7	140	-43 ft
101	3' 31	-1' 12	17.1	+4.4	147	+6 ft
102	5' 47	+1' 03	10.4	-2.3	129	0 ft
103	4' 37	-0' 06	12.9	+0.2	135	+40 ft
104	3' 03	-1' 40	19.6	+6.9	136	-42 ft
105	3' 22	-1' 21	17.8	+5.1	141	+4 ft
106	2' 56	-1' 47	20.4	+7.7	138	-39 ft
107	8' 53	+4' 09	6.8	-5.9	129	+19 ft
108	3' 14	-1' 29	18.5	+5.8	150	+20 ft
109	3' 42	-1' 01	16.2	+3.5	148	+33 ft
110	3' 55	-0' 48	15.3	+2.6	144	+46 ft
111	4' 03	-0' 40	14.8	+2.1	143	+43 ft
112	4' 09	-0' 34	14.4	+1.8	123	-33 ft
113	5' 08	+0' 24	11.7	-1.0	126	-10 ft
114	4' 11	-0' 32	14.3	+1.6	142	+56 ft
115	3' 34	-1' 09	16.8	+4.1	131	-26 ft
116	4' 10	-0' 33	14.4	+1.7	134	-29 ft
117	3' 11	-1' 32	18.8	+6.1	136	-89 ft
118	3' 06	-1' 37	19.4	+6.7	129	-19 ft
119	3' 38	-1' 05	16.5	+3.8	148	+42 ft
120	4' 06	-0' 37	14.6	+1.9	145	+53 ft
121	4' 39	-0' 04	12.9	+0.2	138	+52 ft
122	4' 00	-0' 43	15.0	+2.3	140	+30 ft
123	4' 38	-0' 05	12.9	+0.2	128	-10 ft
124	3' 58	-0' 45	15.1	+2.4	136	-7 ft
125	3' 04	-1' 39	19.5	+6.8	124	-65 ft
126	3' 41	-1' 02	16.2	+3.5	133	-32 ft
127	4' 43	-0' 00	12.7	-0.0	123	-33 ft
128	4' 42	-0' 01	12.8	+0.1	138	-4 ft
end	08' 20' 00	+08' 15' 16	0.1	-12.6	117	0 ft
Versus average of 12.7 mph

Spring Break

2010-04-12T07:57:00.000-07:00

This past involved a lot of driving... and very little riding. This was Emily's spring break and also her birthday week (I think I already covered in a previous blog how these girls end up with birthday 'weeks') so she decided that for her birthday she wanted to go to Massachusetts to spend time with her extended family up there. Included in the week, she also wanted to visit the campus of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA. Phillips Academy is a boarding high school that Emily has found and is planning on applying to for her 11th and 12th grade years of High School. Also included in the week, was a trip into New York City to visit the Museum of Modern Art. To say the least it was a very busy week. Oh yeah, throw Easter in there too... a VERY busy week.

I drove down to Virginia Beach and pick Emily up from school on Thursday (4/1) and brought her up to Maryland so that she could catch a flight on Friday morning to Providence where her grandparents picked her up. Her cousin would be with them to make the trip back from the airport less awkward. Emily was happy about that.

After a meeting at work on Wednesday, I headed up to Massachusetts to pick Emily so we could visit the other two stops on the trip. I stayed with at my Mom's on Wednesday night and picked Emily up on Thursday morning. Emily and I had bagels with Mom and Dad at Panera and then we headed to Phillips Academy. The tour was self guided, and Emily had made all the arrangements. We checked in at the Admissions building. The very nice lady there gave us a map of the campus, and circled all the buildings that we could go into and look around. We entered the English building, and looked into one of the empty classrooms. The first thing that I noticed was that there were only 12 desks and they were in a circle. Small class sizes, and in a setting where students are expected to participate. I noticed this theme in each of the buildings we went into. Emily was very impressed and excited about the open area's where several students were sitting in the grass working on school work (at least that is what they appeared to be doing). I am sure Emily would not enjoy that open space walking between classes in January. Anyway, Emily was glad that we went and she is now more inspired to work on doing all that she can to get accepted. They accept about 17% of applicants, so she has her work cut out for her.

On Friday morning, Emily and I took the train into NYC to visit the Museum of Modern Art. Emily was interested in the Tim Burton exhibit that was there, so I agreed to bring her for her birthday. Our train arrived at Penn Station in plenty of time for us to walk to the Museum, which is about 1 mile. On the way, we walked through Time Square and past Rockefeller Plaza. There were SO many people there. I can not imagine what it must be like on New Years Eve. We arrived at MoMA to see a LONG line of people waiting in line to buy tickets to get into the museum. I had already purchased and printed our tickets in advance, so we were able to by pass the line. (This is where Emily said "Dad... you're awesome!) All I will say about MoMA is that 99% of the art... I just don't get. We got into the Tim Burton exhibit and spent over and hour and a half in there. It was pretty cool. Tim Burton did movies like Beattlejuice, Batman, Sleepy Hollow, Sweeny Todd, Corpse Bride, which is done with a still camera as opposed to a video camera. The making of that movie is really cool, and if you can pick up the DVD and watch how it was made, it is worth the price of the DVD. More recently, he did Alice in Wonderland. By the time we got back to the hotel, we were both exhausted. Another full day.

Saturday morning I got up and checked out a 200k ride that I am considering doing in June. It is at the base of the Catskills and takes you on both sides of the Hudson River. I drove most of the route and it does not seem to be overly hilly, and the scenary is beautiful. That could very likely be my June 200k, provided I get one done for April and May. After checking that route out, Emily and I got back in the car and headed home to Maryland.

By Sunday morning, it had been 5 days off the bike. I had to get a good ride in to start taking off all the weight I had gained traveling. I did 46 miles on Sunday and it felt pretty good. The weather was beautiful and the traffic was light. I did my normal route with a few detours to add in some hills (I was feeling guilty about being off the bike for so long, so I figured I had to suffer. I grew up a Baptist, guilt is what I know.) Anyway, I did not ride my bike to the train station this morning. Instead, I got reacquainted with the 5:45 SPP guys and rode with them. I have replenished my supplies at work for the week, and if the weather holds up, I will ride to the train station for the rest of the week. I'll let you know how that goes.

Thanks for reading... coma back now, hear!

Another 200k in the books

2010-04-04T07:08:00.000-07:00

I rode another 200k on Wednesday 31 March 2010. The following is my ride report.

So, here it is.... the ride report from my solo 200k on March 31st. With commitments every weekend in March, I knew if I was going to do a 200k, it would have to be during the week. Thinking back to the last 14 miles of Ashland I decided that I did not want to "have to" do another 200k in 15 degree weather, so after an exhaustive search, I found a weekday friendly perm on the RUSA website. No Halfway Measures is an out and back from Arlington, VA to The Plains, VA. which has nearly 80 miles ridden on the W&OD trail. The ride is owned by Nick Bull, and getting cue sheets, control cards and setting up a date and time was extremely easy.

The weather on Wednesday was beautiful. The rain was gone, the pavement was dry and the sun was out for the majority of the day. This was only my third 200k and my first one alone, so I began the ride very cautiously optimistic. The first 39 miles of the ride was on the Washington and Old Dominion trail. This trail is well maintained, and very scenic. It has several bridges to get you over the major roads, like 495 and 66, and lots of secondary roads that need to be crossed with caution. Once you are further away from the beltway and the beltway mentality, you have longer stretches of trail and fewer slow downs for roads. I successfully navigated the trail (Ok, 1 quick side note here.... my other two 200k's were with Mike. We all know that he has a Garmin, and knows how to use it. I relied heavily... ok... entirely on his Garmin to get me from beginning to end of the other 2 rides. There, I said it. I feel better.) I made it to the first control, in Purcellville, VA, in 3 hours. I was happy with that, considering my normal speed and the head winds that I was fighting the entire length of the trail. I did my best "speed run" through the 7-11... water, fig newtons, control card signed, receipt. Outside, I mixed my perpetuem and heed, and away I went. Next stop, the halfway point in The Plains, VA.

Well.... the next stop was not exactly in The Plains, VA. This perm according to the RUSA website has 7,000 feet of climbing. I believe that 6,995 feet of that climbing is on Snickersville Turnpike. I am not going to complain about the hills, especially after the climbing that some of you did in Urbana. I do want to mention that I did not get off the bike and walk it up any of those climbs. I did see a couple vultures beginning to circle, just waiting for me to drop, but I made it. As I rolled into Middleburg, at mile 54 I was in serious trouble. I had the same nauseating feeling that I had towards the end of the Ashland ride. Apparently my perpetuem and Heed combination was not working. (By the way, I have half a container or Orange-Vanilla perpetuem available - free to whomever wants it) I stopped at the Safeway in Middleburg and got some real food, found a bench on the sidewalk and rested for 30 minutes. Had I not done this, this ride report would be explaining a DNF. I felt better and got on the bike and headed to The Plains. I was carrying and eating "real" food while I was riding, and drinking plain water. This seemed to work. I made it to the halfway control at 12:45. I ate a plain ham sandwich, filled up the water bottles and headed back.

The trip back was uneventful, except for Snickersville Turnpike, and I was at the control in Purcellville at 3:15. I was excited to get back on the trail, with the tail wind and no hills I was hoping to make up a few minutes of lost time. Well, that was not in the cards either. If anyone remembers Wednesday, it was the first beautiful day after several rainy windy nasty days. SO as you can imagine, EVERYBODY (yes, EVERYBODY) was on the trail. There were several times that I had to stop because I could not pass on the left due to oncoming pedestrian or bicycle traffic. What took me 3 hours to do in the morning, took 4 in the afternoon. So much for making up time. I arrived at the final control at 7:18 pm. 12 hours and 18 minutes. That certainly did not break any records, except maybe for the slowest 200k ridden by an SPP member, but the bottom line is that I finished, and the March 200k is in the books. I was happy about that.

This was the first 200k with the new bike. The carbon frame of the Roubaix was noticeably more comfortable than the aluminum frame of the Allez. Also, the bib shorts did not move or shift at all, so there were no saddle sores after this ride.

Thanks to everyone for your words of encouragement before, during and after the ride. They are very much appreciated.

I am looking forward to getting back on the bike and riding this weekend.

Thanks for reading.

Still alive and pedalin'

2010-03-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

This post will be very short. I just wanted to do a post so that everyone that checks my blog knows that I am alive and pedalin'.

I have been commuting to work (well, to the train station, to catch the train that will take me to work) on bicycle for the past couple of weeks. I have to say that it has been pretty successful so far. I started the week before we moved the clocks ahead, so I was only riding in the dark for a little while before the sun came up. Now, it is dark when I arrive at the train station. It is getting better, as sunrise is occurring earlier now. I enjoy the ride. 95% of the 22 mile ride is on the trails, so I don't have to deal with too much traffic. Coordinating my clothes and food at the office, to be here when I arrive has worked out very well also. Like I said, the whole experience is working just as I planned it.

What I did not plan for, was having the bike in the shop for a week. Last Monday I rode to and from the train station in the rain. Well, I didn't start out in the rain, but it began raining at about the half way point of the rides. I wiped my bike down and lubes the chain, but on Tuesday I was having a hard time pedaling (yes, harder than normal) and I was hearing noise coming from the bottom bracket (that's where all the tubes come together at the bottom of the bike, and where the axle of the cranks goes from one side of the bike to the other.) Knowing that I was not going to be riding on Wednesday or Thursday of next week, due to work commitments, I took the bike into the bike shop on Tuesday evening as soon as I got home. I figured they would be able to have it done by Thursday night so I wouldn't miss any days of commuting. WRONG... I think everybody in Annapolis had their bike in the shop. They said next Tuesday... damn. So, I was dead in the water as far as commuting goes. I have the new Roubaix... but I am not leaving that in the bicycle box while I am at work. So, I have been scrounging parts to put on the Allez frame that I have sitting in the garage. I have had several packages dropped off this week and I have all the parts that I need to get that bike operational. However, just because a cook has all the ingredients to make a wonderful dish, doen't mean he has the know how to make the dish. I have bought a book (with a gift card I got from Emily on father's day last year) about bicycle repair and maintenance. I am extremely hopeful and cautiously optomistic that I will have that bike up and on the trail by April 15th (tax day). I'll keep you posted and maybe even post some pictures. Until then, I will keep riding the white Allez and hope it stays out of the shop.

For those following my weight loss, that train is moving very slowly. I have lost 113 pounds to date, which is still good, but I have not been doing as well as I would like. I have 35 more pounds that I want to lose. I am encouraged though, because through the snow storms, bicycle repairs, birthday celebrations, etc, etc etc I am still losing weight. I will keep you posted.

That's all I got for now. Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Come back again. I will be updating more often as The New England Classic ride gets closer. I am also planning to blog each day during that ride. ;-)

One less car...

2010-03-08T06:20:00.000-08:00

With the onset of the warmer weather, I have started riding my bike to the BWI rail station to catch the MARC train to work. Don't be alarmed, I am not becoming a full fledge "tree-hugging", card carrying member of PETA and Green peace. My intentions, I shamefully admit, are purely selfish. After 6 weeks of not showing any weight loss (not that I was trying real hard, there was a blizzard or two, travel to NY and Chicago etc etc) I decided that I need to really get focused on riding as much as possible. I also put gas in my 4runner Saturday and noticed that they are creeping the price of gas up AGAIN. It will only get more expensive as the summer gets closer. I am not sure what excuse they will use this year to justify their raping us again. Last year it was because they hadn't upgraded their refineries, and we use too much gas and they can't keep up with the demand. Don't get me started on that. I wish they would just tell us the truth. They need to line their pockets with more money... their 3rd mistress needs a new house on the French Riviera. I work in DC and I see a lot of people asking for money, holding signs that they were homeless vets, etc. If you give these people money, you wonder if they will use it to buy their cigarettes (which are not cheap if you have noticed the prices) or their alcohol etc. I saw one guy, sitting on the sidewalk holding a sign that said "I'm not going to lie to you... I need money to buy more wine." I would MUCH rather give the money to him because he was at least honest about it.

Not sure how I got off on that little tangent. Anyway, I rode to BWI rail station this morning with my ridding buddy Mike, who happens to work at the BWI business park. We left the Severna Park Park and Ride lot at 5:15 a.m. and took the B & A trail up to where it meets the BWI trail, which takes me right to the MARC train station. The ride was very much like the normal 5:45 rides that we do in the mornings, but it was just in the opposite direction. On our way up the trail, we got to the Rusty Bridge around the time that the 5:45 group was starting to gather. We stopped and exchanged pleasantries and then we were on our way.

On the BWI trail, there is a section that over looks the airport, and with the sun just coming up, and all the activity below it was one of those "You never see this from a car." moments.

The ride took 1 hour 13 minutes of ride time, but we did not push the speed too much because riding the new sections of trail, you never know where a pot hole has been created, or a new post has been put up. We averaged just over 13 mph and the total distance was 16.3 miles. The BWI trail is a big loop. If you look at Google maps I think it is on there. The MARC station seems to be about halfway around the loop from where we get off the B & A trail. I am going to ride the opposite way this afternoon and see if it is shorter or not.

Once at BWI, I took the first couple of layers of clothing off, draped them over the bike and put it in my bike box that I have rented for the year. I then put on the sweatshirt and sweatpants that I had previously placed in the bike box so I wouldn't look gay on the train in my bike tights. I caught the train and made it to my office without a hitch, actually earlier than I do when I ride with SPP at 5:45.

The plan is to do this routine 4 days a week, using the 5th day to replenish food supplies and swap out clean clothes for dirty ones. It will be weather dependent a little bit too. I probably won't mind riding in the rain, but if it is 'cold' and 'rainy', I may pass. The BWI railstation has a indoor terminal, which is nice, because it has bathrooms and a place to get a bottle of water or coffee if I need to. I don't plan on using it much because I don't want to spend what I am saving on gas. It is good to know that it is there if I need it.

SO, I am going green, using my bike to commute to the train station. I will keep you posted on how it is going through out the spring and summer. It will be nice to get my heart rate up twice a day as a I prepare for the New England Classic in July. More to come on that soon.

I am delinquent... I apologize!

2010-03-01T11:03:00.000-08:00

      It has been TOO long since I have posted a blog entry. For that, I apologize. To be perfectly honest with you, I just didn't feel like doing one. BUT, after surviving a debilitating snow storm, and travel to New York and Chicago... I am back in the routine, and ready for spring.

      Last weekend, members of the Severna Park Peloton set out to do another 200k ride. The original date for the ride had to be scratched, because it was scheduled for February 6, and if you look at the snowfall records, you will find that February 6 was not a good day to be riding a bike. So, the new date was February 21st. This was also the date that we had concert tickets to see Terri Clark in Annapolis. The 7:30 start time that the others wanted to do would not work for me, because it took me just under 12 hours to do the 200k in Ashland, and if I started at 7:30 I would not be able to make the concert which was at 7:30 pm. Fortunately, this ride was what they call a permanent (see RUSA website for an explanation of what a perm. is) which can be started at anytime. I decided that I would ride the perm alone, and start at 4:30 in the morning. That would give me a 3 hour head start on the other 7 riders, so if I wound up in a ditch, I wouldn't be there for more that 3 hours! Once I announced that I would be riding solo at 4:30, my riding buddy Mike asked me if I would like some company at 4:30, that he would start early so we could ride together. Of course I welcomed his offer and we met at the starting point at 4:15 a.m. on Sunday morning.

   This ride from Crofton MD. to Solomons Island MD had a completely different vibe for me as compared to the Ashland ride in January. It was 26 degrees when we started, which made it 11 degrees warmer that Ashland, but I think because the area and the roads were a little more familiar, I felt more confident and comfortable. Because the temps during the days prior to the ride were above freezing, when we set out from the start we had to be cautious of black ice slicks across the road. I know, this sounds ominous and scarey, but the roads that we were on we very dark, so the lights on our bicycles caused an obvious glare on any ice that happened to be on the road. Mike and I were both able to stay upright on the bikes, and by sunrise, we were already had 20 some odd miles behind us. The rest of the ride was uneventful, with the exception of Mike having a flat at about mile 70 something. We changed the flat, but them Mike realized that the tread on the tire was going the wrong way, so we have to basically change the tire again. 20 minutes later, we were back on our way. We rode through Chesapeake Beach and North Beach to a pastry shoppe called Sweet Sue's. They have good coffee, good muffins and a nice outside area to eat. By the last 4 or 5 miles, I was pretty tired and was ready for the ride to be over. Mike and I finished in just over 11.5 hours. Which was about 30 minutes better than the ride in Ashland.

   I made it home, showered and got dressed for the concert. Bev had a salad and pizza ready for me, but I was not feeling like eating. I needed to just sit and relax and let my body settle. So, we put the pizza and salad away and we headed to the concert. Terri Clark is one of my favorite female artists because she has so much personality and she shares it with the crowd. This was the third time that we had seen her, and she has been great each time. She talks and interacts with the crowd, which is what I really like. I don't care how good of a singer you are, if you just get up on stage and sing and not talk us in the audience... I won't enjoy your show. I would see Terri Clark again tomorrow if she was coming to town. That's how good she is.

   I slept very well that night as you can probably imagine. I got to sleep in a little bit on Monday, because I was off to our Chicago office on Monday afternoon. Travel is something that I enjoy, but hate at the same time. Especially travel to Chicago, because I stayed in a hotel that was in downtown Chicago. I love opening the curtains just before I go to bed and letting the city lights be my night light. I enjoy walking on the streets to work in the morning and on the way home and seeing the different (and I mean different in every sense of the word) people walking here and there. It is a cool city, but it does take me out of my routine. No bike riding (except on a stationary bike, and if you've looked at my Training log you know that I would prefer to chew broken glass than ride a trainer or stationary bike.) Additionally, I don't have the normal food that I eat readily available, like I do at home. No apple just waiting to be eaten, no 100 calorie snacks nearby in case I am in need of a chocolate fix. You get the picture, it just puts me in a funk. I am back now, and looking forward to spring.

I was fortunate enough to have a bicycle box come open at BWI rail station, which I have rented for the year. This will allow me to ride about 23 miles from home to BWI to catch the train into DC for work. I am hoping to do this 4 days a week, using the 5th day to swap out clothes and necessities at work. I am sure you will hear how that is going in a later blog post. I did ride the route yesterday morning and it is an actually very enjoyable ride. I am hoping that by getting my heart rate up two times a day, I will be able to get the pounds to begin coming off again. With the snow storm and travel I have not lost any weight, but I have not packed on any significant amounts of weight either. I am in a holding pattern, and I am ready to start shedding the last 40 pounds to reach my goal. I am hoping to get that off by the end of May. I need to get peddling. ;-)

SNOW...SNOW...SNOW

2010-02-17T07:12:00.000-08:00

     I want to reassure those of you who figured I got buried in a snowdrift on my bike during the snow storm that I am doing fine. I apologize for the long period of time between entries. You would think that while we were snowed in, I could have found the time to do a blog entry, right? You REALLY didn't want me to do a blog entry on any of those days. My mother and children read this blog, so I try to keep the cuss words down to a minimum. Any blog entries, minus the cuss words, during the snow storm would have been very very short. The snow had definitely put a damper on my mood. Now that I am able to talk (write) in complete sentences (usually) without steam blowing out of my ears, I think I can do an entry.

   So, in case you hadn't heard... we got some snow. From Friday evening to Saturday evening (2/5 - 2/6) we accumulated about 26 inches of snow in Arnold, MD. I went out in the blizzard (yes, we had blizzard conditions) on Saturday and spent the better part of 6 hours shoveling the driveway so that when the snow finally stopped, the John Deere would only have 8 inches of snow to plow instead of 26. On Sunday morning I began plowing the driveway with the John Deere. I added some weights to the back of the tractor, which helped with the traction tremendously, and it had no problem pushing the snow. The problem was, where do you go with 26 inches of snow? The John Deere has no capability to lift the snow, so it can only go as far as I could push it. I came up with ways to push it as far as possible, and after a couple hours of plowing... the driveway was clear. Time to relax, warm up and get ready for the Super Bowl. It was nice to watch the game with out really giving a rip one way of the other who wins. I dislike both teams for different reasons, but I was hoping to see The Colts win because I enjoyed watching them dismantle the Jets 2 weeks before. Maybe it was because I was tired, or maybe it was just me, but I thought the game and most of the commercials were very boring.

     With so much snow in the area, and not nearly enough equipment to remove it, the Federal Government (which is who my employer follows in regards to Operating Status in foul weather) was closed on Monday and Tuesday while the District of Columbia tried to clear the roads. The Metro system closed all of its above ground stations, Commuter Rail service was canceled, it was a mess. NOW, to make things even more interesting, we got another 12 inches of snow on Tuesday. These are record breaking totals, and like I said in my previous entry... it's all my fault. Well, the John Deere handled moving that snow as well, and when it was all said and down, I was about ready to head to the Bay Bridge and jump. We will not see green grass until July. The bike trail is just a distant memory, and in someplaces you can not tell where it is, it is just a field of snow. The forecast has the temperatures rising above freezing during the day, and below freezing at night. That means snow will melt, causing the roads to become wet, temps will drop causing aforementioned melted snow to turn to ice. Ice + bicyle = disastrous results. I am officially depressed. Hopefully someone has taken the Viagra away from 'old man winter' and we will have no snow for the rest of the season. (By the way, i'd like to get my hands on that damn groundhog too!)

      The Severna Park Peloton IS a hardy group though. On Saturday a small group of riders were out enjoying the fresh clean air that the snow brings. The ride was an impromptu event and I did not know about it, so I did not take part, but I hooked up with my riding buddy Mike on Sunday and we enjoyed a GREAT ride out to Sandy Point, Thomas Point by way of The Hard Bean coffee shop at City Dock in Annapolis. Check out his ride report here. Mike's ride report On Monday, Presidents Day, I rode alone from the Park and Ride in Severna Park to The Hard Bean and back by way of St. Margret's Road and College Parkway. I can't do the fancy ride reports because I do not have a Garmin 705 Edge GPS computer for my bike... yet!

       Tuesday, there was a threat of more snow, and in the early morning hours we did get a dusting, which discourage any street riding. It was either the trainer or sleep in. When the alarm went off... I rolled over and slept in until it was time to go to work. I checked email last night to see if any SPP riders were planning to ride this morning. There were no declarations of insanity, so I figure everyone was waiting another day before braving the roads. When I check email this morning at work, 3 hearty (and slightly insane) SPP riders rode this morning and reported that the road route was passable with caution and they would be out riding again tomorrow morning. I can guarantee you that I will be out there with them. I rode the trainer for 45 minutes this morning and I would rather be cold and cautiously icy than riding on the trainer. In the infamous words of my bike buddy Mike ... "Just say NO to trainers."

      So there you have it. I was depressed, and sat around the house eating bon bon's all week. But now that we are on the road to recover (pray for warm rain for a complete meltdown) I am feeling much better. Thanks for listening to my rant, and I hope you will stop by again soon.

What a bummer

2010-02-05T08:10:00.000-08:00

      Well, I got in my last ride on the roads for a while I am afraid. The impending snowstorm has definitely dampened my mood. I will be sentenced to ride the trainer in the garage until the road ways have been cleared enough for safe passage by bicycle.

       Our ride this morning was well attended with 9 of us making the trek from the Rusty Bridge in Severna Park to The Hard Bean in Annapolis. Everyone had the storm on their mind, knowing that this would be the last ride on the roads for a while. The nickname "snow-magedon" has been adopted, as the weather prognosticators have forecast between 12 and 30 inches of snow. Yuck.

        To make matters even more depressing for our ride, I was blessed with 2 flat tires this morning. It is funny (not funny "haha", but funny "strange") because I thought to myself as I was loading the bike into the 4Runner this morning... "I have had pretty good luck with the new tires I put on the bike. I haven't had a flat in a while." Well, I made up for it in one day. As I was coming down a hill, just about to turn onto Richie Highway, I hit a pot hole that was just big enough to traumatize my tires, causing them both to go flat. Mike, Brian and I pulled well off the road (this is the same road, and almost the same spot that Mike got hit the other day) and started changing the tire. Brian jumped right in and started removing the flat tube, while I dug out the new tube from my seat bag. I got my CO2 containers of air ready, and once we figured out how to use the CO2 device, we were filling the tire with air. I thought to myself, "wow, the rear tire went flat, but nothing happened to the front tire, and it hit the pot hole first." So, just to be sure, I checked the front tire and sure enough it was flat as well. Off the bike it came, Mike started on that one and I produced my 2nd spare tube (I am glad I had 2 of them). That one got changed and full of air, and off we went. That probably set us back about 15 minutes. Thanks to everyone that helped, it was nice to have a group of people around to help get you back on your bike quicker.

       The rest of the ride was uneventful. We enjoyed good coffee, pastry and conversation at The Hard Bean, and as we headed back to Severna Park, you could just feel the impending doom of the weather. I apologized to everyone on the ride, letting them know that the weather this past winter has been all my fault. Usually, I welcome the snow. It was really not a big interruption of my life. If it snowed and I didn't have to go out... I stayed in. If I had to go out, I was confident in my abilities to drive in snow, coupled with taking into consideration the other idiots who have no clue how to drive in snow. Now, snow is the enemy. Since I started riding with the 5:45 group, there is virtually no conditions that I will not ride in, with the exception of snow and ice. I have ridden with temps as low as 15 degrees, I have ridden in the rain, in the wind, etc. but snow forces me to make a choice. Stay in bed, and get fat. Or, ride the trainer and learn to like it. I am hoping that I will choose the 2nd choice more often than the first. So, because I needed it not to snow this winter, so I can ride, we have had record snowfalls, and we are only into the first week of February. So you see, it's all my fault. Sorry everyone.

       I will try to make the most of the trainer. I am going to go home, put as much weight on the John Deere as I can so I get better traction, move the cars around in the garage so the John Deere is ready to start plowing when the snow stops, and I am going to set up the laptop so I can watch a movie while I am inside riding the trainer. I guess I will make the best out of a snowy situation.

       For those of you who will be affected by the snow, please be safe and stay off the roads (I don't want to have to take YOUR driving into consideration in case I have to go out). As for those of you not affected by the snow... I'm jealous.

FAT TUESDAY

2010-02-02T09:59:00.000-08:00

     OK, so it's not REALLY fat Tuesday, but with me traveling the past couple of weeks, and the dumping of another 8 inches of snow on Saturday, I have managed to gain 2 pounds. Not a big deal, I am not in crisis mode... we are going to Ruby Tuesdays as planned. It just means that I need to ride a little harder and longer and faster when the snow melts enough to get back on the bike.

      It is never easy to maintain a healthy eating routine when traveling. I spent last weekend in our New York office doing scheduled maintenance and reconfiguring the firewall. It was nice to work alone in the office, not because I don't enjoy the company of the guys that work there, it's just that I find I get a whole lot more done. The drive up to New York on Friday evening was very long and very slow. I was on the New Jersey Turnpike on a Friday at rush hour. I did not plan that very well.

     What is nice about New York is that I am able to drive to the hotel and the office, which means that I can schlep around all the food I need to stay on track. I brought some salmon, and pork chops, already baked sweet potatoes, plenty of salad ingredients. I brought along fruit and snacks for work... so I was pretty well set. The problem was that I did not bring my bike. Sure I rode the stationary bike at the hotel, but it just isn't the same. It tells you when to increase the tempo or pedal harder, as opposed to being on the bicycle and YOU deciding how fast you want to go up that hill, or how long you want to keep the cadence above 100. You actually 'move' on a real bicycle too. The stationary bike just wasn't cutting it. I did an hour each day, and didn't have that good work out feeling that I get from riding a real bike.

     From New York I headed north to see my Mom and Dad. That was another day sitting in the car. Only this trip was during monsoon weather. It was raining buckets and the wind was blowing 40 - 50 mph gusts. Going over the Tapanzee Bridge in New york, I felt like I was going to be blown over the side. There were 2 spots along the trip where I was detoured from the highway because of high standing water. What was happening was the water was eroding the embankments along the highway, loosening the dirt around the roots of the trees, and the wind was blowing the trees over into the road. The drive that normally takes me 4 hours took me the better part of 6 hours. No working out at my parents house. Not that I couldn't have... I just didn't.

     Tuesday I did some visiting with a former teacher and a former sister in law. These visits were preparations for the New England Classic ride in July. My former teacher said that having me in his office was like an episode of "Cold Case". He was picturing me like I was 27 years ago when I was in high school. It was sort of surreal to walk through the high school again. The kids look so young...I was not that young when I went to high school.

      Wednesday I was off again, headed home. I snuck out of my parents house at 3:45 a.m. and headed to the New York office. I had a computer that I needed to drop off there, and then I was on my way back to Maryland. Another day in the car, with no exercise... and what is there to do in the car. Driving on long trips is SO boring. It's no wonder I fell asleep at the wheel when I was younger. There is nothing to do when you are driving. Bite your nails and pick your nose... that's about it. The radio is OK for about 15 minutes, then all the songs start sounding the same. This is a perfect scenario for mindless nibbling. Twizzlers are my favorite, but pretzels work just as well, which is what I had with me.

      So there you have it. Traveling, coupled with lack of bicycle riding and you gain 2 pounds in 2 weeks. I am scheduled to travel to Chicago the week of the 21st of February. I am looking for a place that rents bicycles in Chicago. I figure I can get a pretty good rate to rent a bicycle in Chicago in the middle of February.

      That pretty much gets you up to date. I am very busy at work, getting ready to make the trip to Chicago. I am finishing the flyers and the web site for the New England Classic fundraising, and Emily will be here this weekend. I will post again when before I go to Chicago.

Thanks for reading.

What would YOU say?

2010-01-21T08:54:00.000-08:00

      I didn't start this blog with any hopes of spreading a philosophical message, promoting anything (other than myself of course) or writing any controversial entries about my stand on health care, global warming or who should host "The Tonight Show." I'll be traveling next week and will probably not have the opportunity to do a blog entry, and even if I did, how many of you want to hear about the finer points of reconfiguring a firewall? I didn't think so. So I going to deviate from my normal topic... just this once.

     With everyone talking about the earthquake in Haiti and devastation there I got to thinking. There is a story about a woman who was trapped for 7 days without food or water, and made it out alive. I wondered what was going through her mind during the time that she was trapped. There is a song about the 13 coal miners in West Virginia that were trapped when their mine shaft collapsed. Only one of them survived. The song is by "Trailer Choir" and it is called "What would you say?" Click to listen here

What would you say? by Trailer Choir

What if the moment came
and you knew your life was down to minutes,
a lighters flame was all you had to see.
and you found a pen and a torn up piece of paper
and a note was all you could leave?

13 men fell trapped in a mine in West Virginia
only one made it out alive.
But their love lives on in the words
"I can not wait to see you, on the other side"

What would you say?
What would you say?

In the lines on a page, from the life that you made
could you write it with no regrets?
Would you know in yourself, you gave somebody else
all the love that you had inside
right down to your last breath?

Would you tell your Mom, Thank you for the way you love me,
Daddy don't cry, everythings gonna be OK
would you tell your little boy, you'll be watching him from up in heaven,
You never miss one game

What would you say?
What would you say?

In the lines on a page, from the life that you made
could you write it with no regrets?
Would you know in yourself, you gave somebody else
all the love that you had inside
right down to your last breath?

What if the moment came
and you knew your life was down to minutes...

     I love music! It puts into words feelings that I have a hard time articulating. What would I put on piece of paper if I was down to my last breath? It is a question that I like to toss around while I am riding the bike or driving. It not only helps pass the time but, for me, it helps keep me focused on the things that are important in life.

     Ok, I apologize if this was a little "heavy" or too "touchy feely" for some of you. Do with it what you will. If nothing else I have introduced you to a GREAT country group whose other hit is called "Rockin' the Beer Gut!" Click here to listen

Thanks for reading.