Festivus . . . and Everything After

12/25-29/11  Originally, we thought this trip would be all about hunkering down and chillin' during the thrillin'.  When we got here, the weather was all foggy and misty an' stuff.  Then, it got nice.  I mean, it got unbelievably nice.  Like, it got, 50 degrees and sunny in the middle of friggin' DECEMBER!  What the hell?  You know, sometimes you're just packing things and thinking, we're never even gonna use/wear/need this .  We could've brought skis, but we don't even own any.  Besides, we were heading to the beach!  For what?  It's WINTER for cryin' out loud!

Well, there's winter storm watching and whale watching and extreme beach walking, etc.  You know, we could roam the beaches and look for stuff washed up on the beach by the storm and tides.  What stuff?  Stuff from Japan?  That'd be gross AND dangerous!  As it turned out, Christmas Day the weather changed.  We'd found out about "King Tides" from a friend on Facebook.  So we checked the local tide tables and went about to take pictures of how high the tides got on 12/23 and 12/24.  We toured around north and south by car just to see what's out there.  We even went to Cape Arago and saw sea lions and tide pools.

But yesterday, we saw people on the beach north of us.  They weren't the usual lot of runners, dog walkers and pack bearing sorts.  They were . . .  gawkers.  You could just see them standing around and talking and taking pictures and plain ol' millin' about.  Some of them looked official, replete with orange vests and reflective gear and helmets and hats and badges and stuff.  We took a closer look via our binoculars and discovered that they were all looking at a beached whale.  We knew the tide would be coming in soon so we decided to gear up and load up with coffee and camera and go have a look.

It turned out the King Tides had brought a king of the sea, a deceased gray whale, to shore.  State officials were performing a necropsy of sorts and taking pictures and generally discussing what should be done.  There were beach walkers and curious on lookers and general gawkers hanging about as well, including ourselves.  I took some pictures.  The poor creature had met his/her demise and got washed up on the beach last night.  Now it was up to the state folks of Oregon to determine why it died and what to do with its remains.

We went to sleep last night to high winds and worsening conditions along the waterfront and awoke to the same.  The windows were wet and wiggly and we noticed vehicles driving along the beach towards the whale remains.  This was unusual because vehicles aren't allowed on these beaches.  Then, we noticed an excavator tracking its way in the same direction.  We figured it was out to do something with the whale, but what exactly we weren't sure.

One thing for sure, with the wind whipping about at 20-40 MPH, we had NO intentions of heading outside to "go check it out!"  The sand, rain and wind were not looking particularly friendly today.  We decided to use binoculars and monitor the situation from a warmer, dryer kinda viewpoint.  So, as I sit here and type from the same room where we played a complete game of Scrabble, put a partial 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle together and typed three new entries into this very blog, we watched the weather beat down on the birds, beach and crew.  The weather had no remorse as they rolled the decrepit, unfortunate whale onto a giant mat, drag it up shore and bury it in the sand.  No sunset tonight, the wind howls on.

Revelling in Bandon

12/18-24/11 Diggin' our . . . digs, we saw the foggy morning give way to some unexpected blue sky!  Our place on the beach was tiny but there's just the two of us so we don't need much space, just a view.  With the weather turning out so nice, we decided to scope out a small ride for Lisa's recovery.  We had internet access so we used Google Earth to plot a route for our ride the next day.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/135431332#.TvuphT7Z4bY.blogger

I always wanted to visit China Beach.
Hey, where's Dana Delany again?

China Beach we stopped for a quick look and snapped a picture.  The temp was a cool 48 degrees but the sun helped.  We brought all our cold weather gear (including lights) but found that the weather was so decent, we really didn't need everything.  Still, we geared up for the worse and were glad in the shady parts of the ride.  The wind was only around 6 MPH but in the shade, it made us glad we had our winter gear on.  You can always unzip and/or take it off, but if you don't have it, you suffer.



Apparently there are other ways
 to "ride" in Bandon.



Lisa and me at Seven Devils.



 We had such a good time riding the little Beach Loop Dr. loop that we planned a ride to Seven Devils State Recreation Site.  We took a day to scope it first.  Having reconnoitered it, we knew there was only one serious climb, the one to get out.  It was short so we figured we'd be able to handle it:

We were jazzed that Lisa was doin' so well.  Her major complaint was all about not having enough fat on her tush.  Her muscles had atrophied since her weight loss and treatment.  "Well, that's what we're doin' this for," I told her.  She troopered on!  That's what I love about her.  She enjoyed the ride non-the-less and we planned a few more to boot.  We lost our internet access for a couple of days so planning the next ride proved to be a gee whiz affair.  After that killer climb up Randolph Road from North Bank Road, we were glad we reconnoitered East Beaver Hill before we decided to head east then north:







Team McCoy chillaxin' after ridin' the
East Beaver Hill - North Bank Loop.

Some might've thought that bringing our plush Roubaix's down to Bandon would've been all for naught.  I too, was skeptical.  In fact, we had originally planned to bring our single speed Langsters.  What folly that would've been!  We gambled that there might be some weather worth riding our premium bikes in.  Little did we know we'd have a whole frickin' WEEK!  THAT, my friends, is what I call a Festivus for the rest of us!  Hope you all had a Happy/Merry ____________!!!

Travelling to Bandon

12/17/11  We headed out.  Lisa's last treatment was the 15th and we had planned to celebrate during winter break.  Although Belize was not to be, we chose a Pacific Northwest venue for our celebration, Bandon, OR.  The road to there consisted of many, many, many miles of road tripping, but in the end, it was well worth it.

Walker Pass had all of what we expected, a little bit of everything including some misty mountain hop.  When we left Port Angeles, it was overcast and kinda foggy.  But as we headed east, round 'bout Sequim, the sky poked through and we decided that 101 'round Hood Canal should prove to be quite scenic and it did.

From there, we headed onward along I-5 and the sun came out to greet us on our journey.  Traffic was relatively light.  We plugged in "Das Contraption" -- which is our iPod plugged into the 12V plug AND into the tape player -- and jammed to our favorite travel jams.  We had left PA at about 9:20 AM so we would end up in Bandon by about 6-ish PM.

Along the way, fog happened.  The funny thing was, we hit fog south Centralia all the way to Portland but Portland was clear and 55 degrees.  With our bikes loaded and locked onto our racks, we were pushing a lot of air and it had a marked affect on our gas mileage.  Fully loaded with two bikes on top, we were lucky to get 30 MPG at 70 MPH.  Just goes to prove, weight and wind resistance cost energy.  So, gotta lose weight AND gotta wear even tighter gear.  The one sorta requires the other 'cause who needs to see a shrink wrapped blimp?

All in all, we made fairly good time.  We stopped in Springfield for food but didn't find anything that fit our mood.  Nonetheless, we ate at a cafe and motored on.  We fueled in Roseburg and remembered the last time we had made it to Roseburg.  We had vacationed in Bend the summer before after Lisa's back surgery.  On the way home, we headed to Crater Lake and failed to fuel before entering the park.

After circling the lake, we headed west to Roseburg but were running low on fuel.  It was an interesting trip as we watched the fuel meter drop one bar at a time.  Again, we were fully loaded with bikes locked and loaded.  Luckily, the road to Roseburg is all downhill, complete with elevation markers delineating each thousand foot drop.  I purposely drove at around 45 MPH just to conserve fuel.  We made it to a town just east of Roseburg and fueled up with mere vapors in the tank.

We made to Bandon as planned.  It was dark and we were road weary so we unloaded the Prius and headed to the Steakhouse we saw at the turn off of 101.  It was Saturday night and they had the football game on so we ate, watched a bit and called it a night.  Welcome to Bandon.

Losing Heart . . . Getting Lost in the "Zone"!

12/6/11  -  I don't remember the date.  I don't remember . . . but I do.  I don't wanna remember . . . but I still do.  I can imagine what . . . it must've been, what I call . . . the "Zone".  We riders, we've been there.  And that's what scares the shit outta me most!  WE have ALL been there!  The day is what it is, be it rain and wind and/or harshness, or, just a calm bliss-ness for which we eternally strive.  The funny thing is, in the end, it doesn't/didn't and wouldn't matter anyway.  Once we've committed, we become quite titillated just to be riding.

The day was ordinary.  So ordinary actually.  No fog, no wind, no weather to even speak of.  That wasn't the problem.  But, then again, maybe that's exactly what it was.  When every day blends into every other day, some of us tend to get complacent.  We lose ourselves in thought.  We get into the "Zone".  Unfortunately, it's not the "zone" of "situational awareness" (SA).  Yeah, sometimes, as cyclists we're in another type of "zone", the one where we can hear and feel and see everything around us but I'd call it the "Urban Zone" or the "SA Zone" or the "Zen Zone" or something else.  This other "Zone" of which I speak, is the "Self Zone" or the "Bubble Zone" or, dare I say it, the "Nirvana Zone".

Once ensconced, it feels for all intents and purposes like a bubble.  Safe and secure like when Ma or Gramma wrapped us up in swaddling and loving arms and blessed bosoms.  It's a place we all (all of us, everybody) strives to return to.  It's something in our psyche.  We can't escape it because . . . we once knew it and now that it's gone, well, we want it back.  But, now that we've grown and life has had it's terrible way with us, mostly because we've had our terrible way with life, we seem to have lost what once was so simple to have.  It's all but gone now.  And, we want it back, fiercely!  But once innocence is lost . . .

Well, when I ride, I never quite get there, but I get damn close.  And, every now and then, I get dangerously close.  Every now and then, I couldn't tell you what happened the very last two miles I rode.  Sometimes, it's even longer.  Time disappears.  Space, evaporates!  It's like I slipped into a wormhole!  I could've ridden across a busy intersection without even looking for cross traffic, survived, and lived to wonder just how I made it across without ever having remembered crossing at all!  Fucking SCARY!  Trouble is, it's true.  I've been there.  No drugs involved, I swear!  It's just some sorta phenomena I can't rightly explain at the moment.  It's kinda like a "runner's high" but different somehow.  Science will back me up, I'm sure, as soon as I do my due research, etc.

I can't explain what happened that Sunday.  September, 11th, 2011, Marian Byse, 65 years of age was struck and . . . killed by a vehicle while travelling east on US Highway 112 across from Elwha River Road.  I knew her.  I remember giving her an honorary 2009 Cascade Bicycle Club Summer Bike League Champions t-shirt in the parking lot of the Port Angeles YMCA just for her persnickety tenacity at such a ripe age.  She was so humble and grateful, she thanked me for inspiring the lot that earned the title.  In reality, anyone who ever saw her ride, were the ones inspired . . . by her.

There's still a hole in my soul from the loss of Marian.  It's taken me till now to write about it.  It still HURTS!  Weeks ago, I called the State Patrol to inquire about how the investigation was going.  They were very good about getting back to me and told me that it appeared that she was in the shoulder, or there abouts, and witnesses said she just turned into traffic.  In other words, it appears that she just turned, as if to go onto Elwha River Road, without checking her six (rear).  And, apparently, a vehicle travelling eastbound struck her.  Marian died thereafter.  She was 65.  The driver of the vehicle was female and 65.  No alcohol was involved.

The last I ever saw of Marian, she was riding eastbound on Power Plant Road.  Lisa and I were tooling about on a drive and took a detour here and there.  Then, on the way back home off of 112, we took Power Plant Rd.  As we turned the corner and headed east bound, we saw a cyclist up ahead.  Based on the size, posture, gear and riding style, I knew right away it was Marian.  She was wearing that over sized electric yellow bike jacket and riding full in the lane, elbows out, hunched and pumping pedals at full steam but travelling at almost a walking pace.  Power Plant Road is so narrow, it doesn't even have a center stripe.  As a cyclist, riding in the lane on a road this narrow with a speed limit of 35(?), in the lane is the safest place to be.  It affords the maximum visibility for drivers.  We slowed as we came up on her and passed and waved.  Little did we know that would be the last time we'd ever see her.

She'd been hit before, back in February of 2010.  Riding eastbound down 8th St. near A St. right before the west bridge.  I hate that section of 8th St.  It's busy.  People are driving out of or onto A and B Streets and having to deal with the main uptown arterial traffic.  Cars are often parked on the side of the street.  As a cyclist, we can get up to traffic speeds of 20-30 mph going down that 8-9% grade.  At that grade and speed, stopping or avoiding a collision if a driver misjudges or doesn't see you, is nearly impossible.  And, staying close to the side of the street is dangerous.  Drivers have trouble seeing cyclists close to the curb and tend to overlook them, especially when line-of-sight blocking cars are parked along there.  As I recall, a young kid driving a red pickup coming northbound out of A St. and turning eas bound onto 8th St. or just trying to cross 8th St. didn't see Marian that Friday.  That time she was actually lucky.  She came out that accident with broken bones.

One year and 7-months later, after having recovered and rehabilitated from the 8th St. accident, it happened again, this time on a Sunday on Highway 112.  I rode by there that Monday.  It wasn't much of a detour for me.  The scene was empty of life.  The sun was shining with just a gentle breeze and an occasional vehicle blasting by at 55-60 MPH.  Fluorescent orange spray paint on asphalt marked various . . . articles, bike parts, bike wheel locations, impact points, skid marks(?)--I really didn't see any skid marks--etc.  It was a somber occasion.  I tried to imagine what exactly happened.  She wasn't wearing any ear buds listening to music and such.  Could she have just tunnel visioned to the oncoming traffic from around the bend and just . . . forgot to check behind?  Or, could she have been deciding whether or not to take Power Plant Road OR Elwha River Road and just made a hasty decision at the last minute to take the latter?

I wondered about the driver of the van.  Was she somehow distracted?  Was she using a cell phone or day dreaming?  Was she speeding?  Traveling at 55-60 mph, even non-distracted drivers would find it difficult to avoid colliding with something or someone turning right into their lane of travel.  I rode on from the fatal scene to the ever busy US Highway 101 Junction.  I rode home on 101.  Don't know why, I just did.  I couldn't find the "Zone" that day.  But I wondered, if Marian had.  She may have been in "it" and just neglected to check for traffic.

She didn't wear a mirror that I know of.  It's so easy to turn from the shoulder into the lane to take a left onto Elwha River Road without looking behind because of oncoming traffic.  Without a left turn lane there's no safe place when your on that bend in the highway to check for oncoming traffic as your on the inside of the curve.  The sight lines don't allow much room for error.  There had already been two other vehicular accidents in the last year in close proximity to this location.  'Wonder if they'll ever fix that?

Meanwhile, we'll miss you Marian.  (I miss you Marian--that well aged, bent, campy ridin' style on that well aged mountain bike frame.)  Wished I was ridin' with you instead of past you as I so often did on Edgewood Dr.  Might've been able to . . . might've . . .

http://obits.dignitymemorial.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Marian-Byse&lc=6784&pid=153625595&mid=4811249

Life Turns a Page

In early June, my wife Lisa was diagnosed with lobular carcinoma in her right breast.  It was early on set Stage 1 and we've been on a roller coaster ride from hell since, but it's been better than it could've been.  I decided to blog about it with Lisa's consent so that I could direct folks to the rather detailed story thus far.  Please refer to my new page "Lisa Locomotive" on the right hand side of this blog in the "Gears" section.

5 Miles 800-ft. of Climbing, What's the Big Deal?

Well, all I can say is that we survived.  The Tour de Victoria seemed like an average ride for us looking at the pre-ride profiles and distances.  Uh . . . guess again!  Here's what we didn't know:

The green line is the elevation. This graph depicts the ride to, up and over and after Munns Road.  Notice the number of times the tan/gold line (percent grade) crosses the 10% line on the graph.  Yeah, EXACTLY!  There were a handful of 10% plus climbs and about three 15% climbs, and oh AT LEAST TWO EIGHTEEN PERCENTERS!  We've done similar climbs before, Little River Road for example (10% - 13%), but never so many in succession.  It was nothing short of brutal!  What's more, the course was timed from about mile 34.5 to about mile 37 (not exactly sure).  They told us we were at the top when we crossed the top of the Munns Road climb.  Then came a couple of asphalt walls to the tune of 18% at miles 38.5 and 40.  It's a wonder our hearts and lungs didn't explode!

Ryder did this segment in about 7:32 (min:sec) at a rate of around 17.76 mph.  We did it in 21:00 (min:sec) at a rate of about 6.37 mph.  Yeah, we weren't even gonna see him or former Vancouver Canucks Captain Trevor Linden for that matter.  However, we actually did see AND ride with our favorite Victoria radio station (100.3 the Q: http://www.theq.fm/) morning show host, Ed Bain.  In fact, we conversed with him along the route periodically as we all rode at about the same pace.  Here're the stats for the two timed sections:

Munns Road Climb
		mph	Place	Min	Sec		Name
3.6	km	17.76	1	7	32		Ryder_Hesjedal
2.23	mi	6.46	484	20	42		Randall McCoy
		6.37	487	21	00		Lisa McCoy
		6.42	485	20	50		Ed Bain
		12.91	45	10	22		Trevor Linden

Waterfront
		mph	Place	Min	Sec		Name
12	km	27.76	2	16	05		Ryder Hesjedal
7.44	mi	14.38	706	31	03		Randall McCoy
		14.38	707	31	03		Lisa McCoy
		13.95	761	32	00		Ed Bain
		26.21	22	17	02		Trevor Linden

As you can see, we didn't improve over time like Trevor Linden did.  To be frank, we were wasted after Munns Road.  It rained on us too.  But, after we got south of Sydney, about 5 - 10 miles or so, the weather let up and the sky opened and our feet that were floating in our shoes began to dry out a few more miles down the road.  All in all, it was a spectacular ride.  It was also our first Gran Fondo (timed event ride that's NOT a race).  We now know where we stand compared to some of the top athletes of the world.

We enjoyed our stay at the Parkside Resort & Spa (http://www.parksidevictoria.com/) and were sad to leave but we have to earn more greenbacks to pay for all this fun and fury.  We came back on Sunday morning and bumped into Mike and Kathleen Hales of Hales Brewing (http://halesbrewery.com/) riding their bikes up Lincoln Street of all places.  We dropped into Peaks Pub (http://www.peakspub.com/) for a cool one or two with the Hales' and had them over for some pool.  What a way to end the weekend.  The jury is still out on whether we'd do the Tour de Victoria next year or not.  Time will tell.  For now though, we've plenty of riding to do.  We'll keep you posted.

Tour de Victoria

Well, it's been awhile.  Let's just say I've been a little busy of late.  Where do I start?  Let's see, February was my last post so March and April and May updates are in order.  So in February, I hovered, weight-wise, around 210 - 215 lbs.  NOT GOOD damn it!  How did this come to be?  Well . . . I know; too much!  It's what we Americans do, TOO MUCH!  Too much eating, too much drinking, too much layin' around and doin' nothin'!  But I thought I was ahead of the game?  I thought, riding through the winter would be the way to avoid the seemingly inevitable weight gain.

Not so much.  I'd even been playing racquetball twice a week as well as indoor soccer.  But, then it happened.  Too much happened.  During a regular season indoor game, as goalie, wearing knee pads, elbow pads, shin guards, I ended up dropping to my knees with all of my 200-plus pounds to block a shot.  It turns out, I bruised the bottom of my right (and to some degree my left) femur where it connects to the knee.  Oh, and I bruised the back of my right patella and have a frayed meniscus.  Yeah, kinda put a damper on things.  To make a long story short (right) I ceased and desisted all "plant and twist" activities.  Translation:  no racquetball and no soccer of any kind.

So, how did I deal with the weight issue if I had to quit activities that constituted burning of about 2K-3K calories per week?  Answer: "Ride lots!" - Eddie Merckx, "Just ride!" - Bruce Phillips  So, Lisa and I decided we'd get up an hour earlier in the morning and extend our morning commute.  We literally live in one of the most beautiful places on the planet.  How could we NOT ride along the waterfront every morning and enjoy that beauty on a daily basis.  Honestly, we're missing the point if we don't!

Now she's putting in 10 miles a morning and I'm doin' about 20.  It used to be about 3 and 8.  So this is a good thing.  I've already lost nearly 15-lbs.  We've also been pretty good at doing weekend rides of at least 30 - 50 miles or more.  Oh, and we've scaled back our caloric intake during the week.  You know, less wine and beer an' stuff.  Anyway, when you're putting in nearly 20 - 40 miles a day, ya get results!  Currently, I'm sporting about a 200-lb. frame (my body not my bike).

Tomorrow we float!  It was a spendy decision, but . . . hey, ya only live once.  We signed up for the "Tour de Victoria" (http://www.tourdevictoria.com/).  Probably the coolest thing has to be the fact that we can download the course into our new Garmin Edge 800s.  I'll be posting my rides later, but you can access them through http://www.connect.garmin.com/ and selecting the "Explore" tab and "Activities".  You can enter "Port Angeles" in the "location" box and filter the results to show just the "cycling" activities.

So, I promise to take lots of pictures and post them . . . when I get a chance.  Meanwhile, Lisa and I'll be on our first new 140 km (86 mi.) adventure in beautiful Victoria, BC!  Seriously, I can't wait!  My bike Kandi just came out of the shop with a new rear hub, front derailleur -the original of which was somehow mysteriously bent and a new, much needed, chain.  Still, I feel I won't be coming anywhere near Ryder Hesjedal.  Lisa and I have ridden with Frankie Andreu and if his thighs/quads are any indication, the pros and former pros are a different species altogether.

Oh and BTW, did I mention that we'd also be riding with former Canucks captain Trevor Linden and current radio announcer Ed Bain of 100.3 the Q?  Yeah, maybe we'll be able to catch up to one of them.  In any event, just riding with a healthy, smiling Lisa (Locomotive) is plenty for me!

Counter Cog TV Goes Online! Report: Status of ODT East and West of Dry Creek Bridge

So last summer, I bought an HD Hero camera that takes pictures and records video and audio from http://gopro.com/.  I started taking videos of my rides with the idea to post them into Google Earth as YouTube videos the whole world could access.  The files were HUGE, like 4Gbs huge for each 30 or so minutes.  So I thought I'd just store them and later, come winter, I'd have more time to work on posting segments of these videos.  Things got busy and before you knew it, winter thundered into existence (only we don't get a whole lotta thunder in these parts).  Now the days are getting longer but the weather is still a crap shoot.  I've actually videoed my commutes in the dark, fog, rain, and frozen bliss.  I don't know that people will wanna see all of that but I also have some of our event and trail rides that I'm pretty sure people will wanna see.

Currently, you may have noticed a YouTube gadget parked to the right of my blog post section.  It's under a new counter I just installed that for some reason has a different count than my hit counter.  I think it counts each page/blog post viewed instead of just each time someone views this post.  Anyway, I've directed the YouTube gadget to my channel, "Counter Cog TV" by RandallCamPA.

With the advent of the Dry Creek Pedestrian/Equestrian/Bike Bridge being installed this past December and since this opens a new route for my commute to work, I've decided to post these videos first.  These videos are not audio swapped with music because the camera was mounted to my handlebars and the transference of sound from Jack-Jack (my single speed all weather commuter bike) I felt it would provide additional information as to the roughness of the terrain via the audio.  This spring, the Peninsula Trails Coalition (PTC) and their generous volunteers will be working to prep the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT) along this segment with the blessings of the City of Port Angeles (eventually). 

I encourage you to view these 3-5 minute videos and rate them as "Like" (please).  I've been trying to get them onto Google Earth and I think there's something to do with ratings that gets them posted for all to see.  Anyway, as you can see and hear, this portion of the trail is NOT road bike ready by any stretch of the imagination.  Mud, puddles, mud puddles, giant puddles of mass destruction, exposed buried rock sections, a bizarre access point from the end of Milwaukee Way and 10th St. where you actually have to use some one's gravel driveway (which was built in the right of way) and navigate around a berm AND a rather unfriendly gate at Milwaukee and 18th (watch out for the barbed wire) are just a few of the impediments along this route.

If you haven't had the chance to use this trail and cross the new bridge, be sure to bring a mountain bike or cruiser bike, don't forget to bring shoes you don't mind getting wet and muddy and your sense of adventure.  If you fall over, you may want to bring a cell phone with GPS capabilities as some of these puddles--did I mention that these are "giant puddles of mass destruction?", they are--could swallow you whole.  Also, the ultra mud laden segments just before and after the bridge are seeded with hay to keep one from being sucked into the mire.  Still, some sections are rather swampy especially during and after significant rainfall.  In fact, bringing along some rope with a grappling hook may be a good idea too.  Rider beware.

I'll continue to report on the progress of this trail section and work on my video editing skills.  Additionally, I'm anxious to post the video I captured on he inaugural Hurricane Hill Climb as well as STP, RSVP, Rapsody and other rides we did this past summer.  So stay tuned bike fans.  Don't miss each exciting video post on your favorite station, "Counter Cog TV" by none other than your favorite blog poster RandallCamPA (a.k.a., The Man from A.T.A.P.A.).

Motivational Inertia

So the days getting shorter and the shadows and nights getting longer are reversing, so too should my ever expanding waistline.  But that's not how it goes unless I, the most responsible person of me, does something about it.  I have this hypothesis about exercise.  It's nothing new, nothing I ever think of ever is, but I experienced it and thought of it on my own.  Therefore, it's MY idea.  I call it "excercise momentum".  Like I said, nothing new.  Anyway, if I don't find initiative to get excercising (aka, riding my bike), IT don't happen.  What does it take to . . . take that first step/pedal stroke?  It takes putting on your "fat" pants and struggling to get the top button near the hole or snap that fastens the damn things together!  It's just not RIGHT!

So this morning I slipped into my jeans and buttoned them up and . . . exhaled.  No rivets popped, the button fly buttons held and although my thighs look like they've been painted in some weird blue jean textured paint, I was able to move, somewhat "comfortably" (and I use that term . . . er, rather um, loosely).  (Would that be an "anti-pun"?)  Anyway, I put my belt on and notice from the worn notch holes that although I've been fatter, I've also been thinner!  This last summer was probably our most bicycle active summer ever yet, we um, self medicated? ourselves into a rather redundant routine.  As you may or may not know, we (mostly I) was suffering from "In-Law-festation".  Finally, in October, we were free, except for a nasty habit of having more than a glass or two of wine or beer a night.

Now that the "Holidays" are over, it's time to take stock and see beyond our noses (and bellies) to where it is we're heading.  High blood pressure, early onset of type two diabetes, ever increasing weight, heart trouble and a complete lack of will to do anything about it?  NO!  Not for me and not for Lisa.  We're free, remember?  That means we've got our house back and all we have to do now is get our lives back.  So first things first.  Cut down on alcohol!  Cut down on large caloric holiday dinners (that's easy now).  And, start riding/excercising more.

I gained about 7-10 lbs. this winter mostly due to the fact that I pulled my hamstring just above and behind my knee in the last outdoor soccer game of the season.  It was October, a tad cold and I'd played the first half on the field as a forward.  The second half I was in goal and on a particular breakaway with mere minutes left in the game, I started to sprint out of net and . . . POP, I went down hobbling and a hollering.  That meant no racquetball for about four months, no riding for about a month, and no indoor practice until January.  So, sit, watch football/soccer/movies/whatever and have a beer or four!  Voila, GAIN FRICKIN' TEN POUNDS!

So today, I turned on the switch.  I got on Kandi and I rode.  Check it out: 


http://earth.google.com/kmlpreview/#url=http%3A%2F%2Fbbs.keyhole.com%2Fubb%2Fubbthreads.php%3Fubb%3Ddownload%26Number%3D973744

New Year? Bring the Mutha ON!!

Last year started with Lisa having to have back surgery for a herniated disk, our best friends announcing they're getting divorced and we were having our share of stress with a houseful of live-in family.  Last year saw the passing of a couple of friends.  Bruce Phillips lost his struggle against cancer and Bob Boardman was gored by a mountain goat.  Lisa's Uncle Wally and Aunt Evelyn also passed.  Then her sole remaining aunt, Aunt Nancy, was diagnosed with cancer.  And, I get a call from my aunt, Tante Carmen, telling me my cousin Sabina passed from her brain tumor that she'd been struggling with for years.  No wonder I wasn't feelin' too festive.

This year better be better.  Last year, just as we get back from Canada, our heat pump compressor seizes up.  This year, this morning in fact, our sidewalk was oozing water.  When we get home from work, our neighbor calls and mentions that it looks like we have water leak at or near the meter.  I call the emergency water utility folks.  The water dude comes and diagnoses that we definitely have a leak and it is on our, not the city's side of the connection.  Nothing changes on New Year's day.  I'm not even gonna bother askin', I'm just gonna expect whatever's next.  It's 2011 and I'm still emotionally hung over from 2010.  I'm too exhausted to give two sh!ts at this point.  People are still shootin' one another.  Hate is ever present.  Lies rule the airwaves.  Idiots believe 'em.  There're more and more idiots voting for f%#k's sake.  AND, THEY'RE BREEDING!! Tell me where is sanity?

But then, there're times when the sun hasn't quite crested the horizon.  The "Breakfast in America" sky peaks past the colorless clouds and an indescribable mandarin color highlights lower hanging clouds which makes me smile uncontrollably.  Thoughts of the state of our misguided affairs on this fair planet exist not in my mind during those tender and brilliant moments.  That's where I live the most.  Moments like that.  Moments when my wife laughs uncontrollably at my attempts at humor or she smiles with dancing eyes, that's when I feel alive again.  We rode into the dawn this frigid morning wearing our polar fleece balaclavas we just purchased.  Our bikes were well illuminated and . . . we got gear!  We were literally coverd head to toes.  It was a good ride.  Believe it or not, it helps take the pain away.

Night Rider in the PNW Winter Wonderland . . . of Constant Near Death

So you put your bike away . . . for the "season".  Yeah, I hate big oil and my ever expanding winter waistline too much for that!  Besides, I own a single speed Specialized Langster (Jack-Jack) with an aluminum frame and a boffo beefy chain.  Just spray 'im down, when the garden hose ain't frozen and your good to go tomorrow.  If however, the hose is froze', no biggy, just ride!  Spray later.  Anyway, I've been meaning to generate a "Got Gear?" page to list what I think are essential components for riding in the winter, at night, in the cold, and the dark, and the wet, and the scary--did I mention dark?

Now understand, those of you who live lower than the 48th parallel, night in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) starts promptly . . . around 4PM or so.  Whenever the sun goes down, dark happens.  And around these parts, it's damn early.  Same with the sunrise ('cept in reverse).  That happens, when its not cloudy--which is like one day a week--around 8AM.  Do the math and we're talkin' 'bout a scant 8 hours o' daylight and . . . (24 minus 8 equals) about 16 hours of, "where the hell did the road go?"  Just add a constant drip o' the wet stuff and voila!  You've got the PNW winter plus or minus friggin' cold.  Oh, and then there's cold--ours is a wet cold almost constantly--and then there's cold-cold.  Cold-cold is where the temps drop below 0 deg C or 32 deg F (for you non-canuckleheads).

So, in order to ride around these parts anytime after say, September, one needs to gots some gear!  So here's a list:

• A good ridin' rain jacket:
• I own a one or two but my fav is a Showers Pass Touring Jacket
• A GOOD pair of ridin' gloves:
• To be honest with you, I still, haven't, found, what I'm lookin' for!  I got three pair of winter riding gloves but none of them work for my poorly circulated finger tips for one reason or another.
• My first pair are from Trek and they are split finger or "lobstah" style gloves.  Their okay but not water proof.
• My second pair are from GoreTex called Gore Bike Wear Alp? gloves. They are the best pair I have but I still get the frozen fingertips on occassion.
• This year I bought another pair by Castelli but they are tighter fitting and don't work as well as the GoreTex gloves.
• Silk inserts that I purchased while skiing in Banff, Canada have made a huge difference when combined with my GoreTex gloves.  They replaced the latex gloves I was using when the temperature dipped below 17 degrees F last winter.  But, I'm still in the market.  BTW, the GoreTex and Castelli gloves cost over $60 each pair so I didn't think I was skimping.  But, I guess I need to do a bit more research before I find that truly stellar pair.  Stay tuned.
• December 2011 - I bought a pair of Omni-Tech gloves from Columbia Sportswear.  They're supposed to be "heat reflecting" AND "waterproof".  At over $90 a pair, I'm hoping they'll do the trick.  So far, I've ridden in 28 degree F this winter and have just noticed my finger tips getting cold.  That's using the silk liners mentioned above too.  I'll post when I ride longer during colder to really test these babies out.  So far however, these are the BEST to date!
• A descent pair of ridin' pants:
• I own at least three pair and only one for the serious stuff. (BTW, it's nearly impossible to buy a descent pair. They're either made in Europe or Asia which makes them unAmerican friendly (we're large people).  Or they make a descent pair and go outta business (we large people don't buy lots o' ridin' pants).  Or they make a descent pair and don't wanna go outta business so they change the damn dimensions to gain Euro market share, which means they no longer fit us large folk.)
• My first favorite pair are from former SuperGO (now Performance).
• My windstopper severe weather favs are from Performance.
• My most comfy cool weather pair are from Bellweather which I bought a few years back.  When I recently ordered two more pair, I was severely disappointed to find out they changed the dimensions such that when I grab my handlebars, I get a severe case of plumbers crack.  Not so good feeling in winter weather.
• My other pair are from BlackBottom and they just plain don't fit my calves.  Anyone want a pair?  Must be of stocky build with massive calves (way more massive than mine).
• December 2011 - Bought my first pair of bib longies from Performance late last year and loved them so much, I bought two more pairs at $69 each (on sale).  They're all I wear now.  Love 'em!  (I don't have to sneak on suspenders to keep them from rolling under my . . . uh, er, roll.)
• Pull-on Sleeves:
• Lisa and I purchased a pair of Sugio pull-on sleeves this summer and we've never looked back.  Why in the world did we wait sooo long?  We love-a-love-a-love 'em!  'Nuff said.
• A descent pair o' ridin' shoes WITH a descent pair o' shoe covers:
• I own a pair of NW MTB shoes w/ GoreTex and
• A pair of hideous but comfy neoprene covers
• Head gear:
• This winter my favorite purchase was a polar fleece balaclava. It nullifies the need for facial hair which although somewhat comforting at times, facial hair's got nothing against wind. And, it's damn itchy at times. I wear my balaclava when the temps dip below 40 degrees F.
• When it's a tad warmer, I've a polar fleece head band/ear muffs for the forehead and ears.
• For the mid forties to low fifties, I wear one of the coolest things I've purchased a few years ago and I swear by these things.  They are ear covers by 180s.  They even fold up flat and I park them in my jacket breast pocket for easy, ever ready access:
• Eye wear:
• I used to wear those cool but cheap $10 safety glasses until I started having issues reading street signs. Then I got some prescription lensed Adidas sport glasses with minimum frameage. I recommend some clear shades for cloudy days and night riding and some polarized "fish finder" type shades for the sunnier days.  The polarized lenses let you see into cars with tinted windows or severe glare. Seeing where the driver is looking keeps you alive.
• I also have a rear view mirror mounted to the side of my helmet to see whats coming, who's not gonna give me any room and whether or not that jerk behind me is gonna right cross me.
• Lights:
• No lie, I'm lit up like a friggin' Christmas tree on steroids! If I ever get hit, it won't be due to some lack of visibility issue.  In the fog, I'm a pulsing orb of freakish photonic . . . fervor.  At night, I have planes trying to land on me.  I'm tellin' you, I'm LIT UP!

• I've a Cateye Uno strapped to my helmet looking forward so that when I turn my head, I'm pointing the mother at folks coming from their driveways, cross streets and into my lane of travel.
• Strapped to the rear of my helmet, I've a Planet Bike blinky taillight. Again, a turn of the head and those coming up from behind get red flashiness scorching into their retinas.
• For the ability to actually see the road and its ubiquitous associated debris, I've the Nite Rider MiNewt.700 (lumen) Dual light kit.  I upgraded from the 400 (lumen) kit this year for my birthday since I ride greater distances (solo) than my wife and my route is typically on Deathwood, er Edgewood Dr.  Lisa got my 400 kit and she's almost always riding with me in town along mostly lamp illuminated streets.  Besides, 400 lumens is pretty potent lighting anyway.
• Strapped to the back of my bike bag/commuter lunch box/breifcase is a CatEye TL-LD1100 taillight.  It's a bad mamma jamma of red photonic funkiness that has several blinkiness options.
• This year, I turned the big Hawaii Five-O. My nephew bought me a set of really cool spoke mounted lights that blink red or change colors constantly.  So for T-Bone prevention, I've these cool do-dads by CatEye called Orbit lights.

• Speaking of T-Bone prevention, I also bought us a complete set of Armadillo All Condition Tires with reflective sidewalls.

• Oh AND, as my bike has the butterfly style handlebars, I also purchased and installed those little end tube blinkies.  It gives me a wider appearance when vehicles approach from the rear.
• Sound:
• For that audible presence, I purchased another coolest thing EVER, a refillable marine horn that fits into one of my two water bottle cages.  Seriously, this thing has saved me on numerous occasions.  Sometimes yelling isn't an option.  For example, a mean dog comes at you and you just know he means business.  Instead of wailing to the top of your lungs, which may be spent from riding effort, wait until the last second and reach down and pull the trigger on this bad boy.  Then watch the dog do a 180 and run from you.  Or, if a distracted driver is drifting into your path of travel, wake them the hell up with a 100 decibel blast.  Mostly, I'm warning folks at intersections who don't see me for whatever reason.  It works damn well and you can use your own bike pump to refill it.

I purchased all of this stuff over the years and received some as gifts.  Yeah, it all comes with price tags, but using the money I'm saving from NOT buying gas at or above $3 a gallon, it can be done.  Furthermore, don't skimp.  This is your well being we're talkin' here.  Life, limb and comfort are at stake here so be smart, consume responsibly.