Me, My Moots, and I

BONES OF ANCIENT LIBERAL FOUND

2006-10-27T16:29:00.000-05:00

Since Eric took a shot at My Party...I thought posting this most recent archaeological find was only appropiate...

Quick, Easy...And Pretty Neat!

2006-10-20T11:16:00.000-05:00

Wow...so long without a post...

I'll have to try and do better...

Anyway, had a friend send me this and thought it was pretty cool. Give this little Political quiz a go and post your "score" in the comment section. I'll share mine later but don't want to influence anyone beforehand :).

Can you park a car????

2006-09-08T11:22:00.000-05:00

Warning...This is as addictive as "Smack the Pengiun"... GIVE IT A TRY!

One Cool bit of Architecture!!!

2006-08-21T18:23:00.000-05:00

Stumbled across this the other day...It's located in Sweden and is called the Turning Torso. The Turning Torso stands 54 floors high and has 90 degrees of twist...the same Architect is reportedly working on a similar design to be located in Chicago which will stand 115 floors and have 270 degrees of twist. more details here!

A Real Classic...GOODFELLAS!

2006-08-21T15:05:00.000-05:00

As a side note this weekend, I also caught Goodfellas, compliments of TIVO! Hadn't really watched it start to finish since it had come out in 1990...16 years ago...WOW, that makes me feel old!

Anyway, watching the scroll at the end of the movie stating that Jimmy Conway would be eligable for parole in 2004 got me curious...

Thanks to SuperDave's friends over at Wikipedia, I found some interesting reading...

Lung Cancer got Jimmy before he had his shot with the parole board. Here's the complete story on Jimmy Conway!

Also found out that Henry Hill is no longer in the Witness Protection Program and to say the least his exploits make for interesting reading!

Tip of the Day...

2006-08-21T11:11:00.000-05:00

As posted at the paceline!

"Riding for more than an hour? We recommend using some "chamois cream" between the legs - try Bag Balm, available at most feed stores!"

Anybody ever heard of this stuff?....Bag Balm! Sounds UDDERLY Ridiculous!!! :)

A Great Weekend...

2006-08-21T08:59:00.000-05:00

Friday evening:

Got the weekend grass cutting duties out the way and handled a quick repair at the rent house.
Char and I went to Deangelo's in P'ville to grab a bite to eat

Saturday:

Me, Char, and Nixon got in 36 good miles in the early A.M. before the heat got to crazy
Me, Ward, and Paul along with our better halves did lunch at McAllister's deli and went to see Talladega Nights (just plain STUPID FUNNY!)
The Doc and Natalie, Paul and Jaime, and me and Char went out to eat at Roberto's on River Road...excellent!

Sunday:

Me, Char, and Doc did the River Road/Yousef route (about 45 miles) early A.M.
Got home in time to shower, eat, and NAP before the NASCAR race
Watched the NASCAR race...My boy, Gordon pulled out a second place, not as good as first but "points wise" in the hunt for the championship...a big day!
Did supper at my Mom's house...

Feeding Time...

2006-08-14T08:01:00.000-05:00

Actually took this picture a few weeks ago...all that remains of this litter of 10 is 3 black labs (1 male, 2 female), the rest have been sold. They're pure bred, checked out by the vet...gorgeous puppies! However, since I'm really not into the "dog" thing and for reasons I don't even try to understand...apparently "black labs" are not currently the "IN" thing. My sister said the yellow, brown and white ones went quickly and she got countless calls looking for those colors, I'm hoping this recent trend isn't racially motivated :).

Anyway...Long story short, she doesn't feel like messing with another ad in the paper and just wants to find them a good home. Therefore, if you are anyone you know is interested, the price is right..."FREE".

Last Night...

2006-08-11T08:49:00.000-05:00

Went to Latil's Landing Restaurant located at the Houmas House Plantation to celebrate Char's birthday. Char's birthday was actually Tuesday but since Latil's is only open Thurs-Sun for dinner, and since she's been wanting to go there for quite sometime, and since it's only about three miles from our house, and since I've been both lazy and negligent in not taking her there before now... I decided it was best to postpone the celebration until last night! A good choice!

While the menu struck me as a bit limited, everything we had was excellent. The atmosphere and ambience was great...a small, quiet dinning room with a great view overlooking the fountain. We did encounter one curious fella that felt the need to come by our table a couple of times....

Things That Make You Go... "Huh?"

2006-08-11T08:36:00.000-05:00

Stumbled across this one at the New Orleans airport a few weeks back when picking up my aunt. Now I realize that politicians are a unique "power hungry" breed that enjoy seeing their name in print to feed their egos, but this plaque struck me as a bit of a stretch...

I can understand a plaque for a new Airport, or even a new Concourse on an existing airport...but a plaque for new flooring?

Floyd...My two cents!

2006-08-01T14:20:00.000-05:00

Well actually, I'm having a hard time putting my thoughts on this situation into words...So, I've decided to jump on the bandwagon of someone else's quote.

Charlene sent me a link to an article written by Keith Bontrager, I thought his brief comment on the Landis situation pretty much summed up my feelings...

"Oh yeah. I am really, really hoping that Floyd is clean, just weird physiologically. It seems to me that it would make no sense to dose up on testosterone at that stage in the race. It wouldn't have helped. Anyway, if everyone decides he's guilty without listening to the issues, we suck. Of course, if it turns out that he did dose up, he does. Enough."

If you get hot spots on your feet or you're interested in a home recipe for chamois cream, check out his entire article here.

Breaking News...Leipheimer to Discovery!

2006-07-25T07:56:00.000-05:00

OK I'm back...just incase anybody has actually checked as of late...
I'm afraid my prolonged absence may have cost me my 2 or 3 readers (Not sure if I'm allowed to count myself) :)

Anyway...no good excuses, except Work, the Tour, and Vacation...Two outta the three being good things and the other pays the bills...So, no complaints from here.

While we're on the subject of spending money, check out the review on the new trutrainer rollers. Always thought I would be a Kreitler guy forever but these look pretty nice. If price is an indication, they should be VERY NICE!

While we're on the subject of "cool bike shit"...is anyone familiar with nokon cables? Not really a fan of the multiple color look but thought they seemed pretty cool!

Starved for more Tour info?

2006-07-07T13:51:00.000-05:00

Grabbed this off of the paceline site. Check it out....

Here's how to sign up for this Tour de France podcast:

1. Copy the following URL: http://www.discovery.com/radio/xml/tour2006updates.xml

2. Open a podcast player, such as iTunes.

3. Select the option, "Subscribe to Podcast." In iTunes, this is under the "Advanced" menu.

4. Paste the URL into the podcast subscription field and hit "OK" or "Submit."

- By subscribing to the podcast, you'll automatically receive Tour de France updates whenever you open your podcast player

Quote of the Day!

2006-06-16T15:49:00.000-05:00

This from the most recent issue of VeloNews...

"That's Bullshit. I could say if Lance were at this Giro, he would beat Basso. We have a saying in Flemish, "If my aunt had four wheels, she'd be a car."

Discovery Director, Johan Bruyneel responding to CSC Boss Bjarne Ris's claim that had Ivan Basso had this year's form, he could have beaten Armstrong at last year's Tour De France

Tentatively...339 days and counting...

2006-06-01T15:01:00.000-05:00

For those with a busy life and a full calendar...

Mark this date...May 06, 2007 as our next date with the mountain we LOVE to HATE...Cheaha!

**NOTE: This date is tentative and won't be official until sometime in July after the NASCAR race schedule for the Talladega Motor Speedway is officially released.

While I realize most don't require this much advanced notice...Nixon, a.k.a. "BUCKEYE" had inquired and I wanted to make sure there were no excuses for next year.

Eric...mark your calendar...I think you can take this race.

However, if SuperDave manages to avoid serious bodily injury on his upcoming Mountain Biking Adventure and drops that 50 pounds he was talking about...smart money may be on him.
Or, his Mountain Biking Adventure could be a mere tool in order to obtain "serious bodily injury" (i.e. another wired jaw)...thus making his second goal of dropping 50 pounds easier to obtain. The possibilities are endless...what that guy won't do to win..CRAZY! :)

I'm also contacting the Piedmont Chamber of commerce, their mayor, and all city council members concerning the possibility of relocating their fire station so that we might be able to get more than 20 miles out of Cody next year! :)

Our next big Ride....

2006-05-24T20:19:00.000-05:00

Last time it was the Colorado Rockies...this time the Canadian Rockies :)...Not to mention I think Lance and Eddie will be great additions to the group. Check out the details at Pez Cycling.

At first I thought it was a little pricey with a mandatory donation of 25,000 plus staging cost estimated at 20,000. Then I realized they were quoting Canadian Dollars, at the current exchange rate that's only around $38,000 or $40,000 US...SIGN ME UP!

On the other hand...that's still a lot of money just to be dropped...

Love a good Gadget...

2006-05-24T11:00:00.000-05:00

Check THIS Out!

Friends with Connections....AWESOME!

2006-05-19T16:41:00.000-05:00

SuperDave has never been one to brag but in 15+ years of friendship you would've thought that he might mention that he and "The Cannibal" were such close friends. Most guys just drop a check in the mail to settle up on a cycling trip, but not SuperDave...David took the time to have his buddy Eddie ink me an autographed photo, and judging by the caption, Eddie knows David pretty good.

Much Appreciated!
And I promise this, if I can't get any takers on EBAY I'll treasure it forever. :)

Katrina - New Orleans....Play by Play!

2006-05-15T07:46:00.000-05:00

Nice overview! I think this is by far the best explanation of what happened when, and how it affected the different areas in and around New Orleans.

Check it out HERE!

Cheaha Recap...EPIC!

2006-05-10T13:11:00.000-05:00

Left: SuperDave and Taylor arrive right on time...well more like fashionably late... actually, they were damn close to being left :)

Below: Ward's bike hauler loaded with all eight bikes and ready to roll. Precious cargo...the value of the bikes surpassed that of the truck.

Well, we've survived Cheaha for the third year running but BOY, DID IT HURT!

Our group included eight riders, mostly Cheaha veterans; Me, Char, SuperDave, Ward, Don, and Doc...along with two new comers; Cody and BBT.

Unfortunately, the forecast was for a long rainy day so the total turnout was around 320 riders instead of the 600+ anticipated. Actually, after an hour of light rain at the beginning it turned out to be a beautiful day, at least weather wise. Cheaha is miserable enough in my opinion, to the point where rain really isn't a factor. However, it was nice having dry roads for the 50 mph descents.
I think everyone suffered his or her own horrors and the consensus was that it was brutal but all and all I think everyone had a good ride.

5 of us did the full 102:

SuperDave smoked it as always.....05:54
Not the most punctual guy I know, but one hell of a cyclist...and my hero :)

I managed.........06:26
Five minutes better than my PR from last year but the price I had to pay seemed Huge! I was above 90% of my max HR for 4:52, 2:26 of that I was above 95%!

BBT......07:09
First view of Cheaha with a 39X25, gets my ride of the day honors! Well Done!

Doc.......07:52
While off his time of 07:15 from last year, considering his limited time for training, I thought it was awesome that he could finish...he's all about the suffering.

Don......08:28
A full 30 minutes off his time from last year...Impressive!

Char kicked @ss making it to the third SAG and back (67 miles) in 05:04 so I was super proud of her. Ward managed to make it to the second SAG and back (47 miles) in 03:40 refusing to let a little thing like major hip surgery slow him down. Last but not least, Cody managed to put in a good 20 miles before falling into the temptation of stopping at a local fire station and talking a fellow firefighter into giving him a ride back to the start. Not bad considering this was only the second time Cody had put his bike on the road. All and all...a great trip!

Check out the full results here!

D-DAY!

2006-05-05T20:22:00.000-05:00

Cheaha is upon us!
For motivational purposes I offer General Dwight D. Eisenhower's D-Day Message.

Order of the Day: 6 June 1944...

Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!

You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have
striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The
hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.
In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on
other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war
machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of
Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well
equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of
1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats,
in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their
strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home
Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions
of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.
The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to
Victory!
I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in
battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great
and noble undertaking.

SIGNED: Dwight D. Eisenhower

Interesting...
Imagine a few quick edits...Cyclist for Soldiers, Cheaha for Nazi's, 2006 for 1944, etc. etc.
And it seems to work quite well!

Tomorrow morning...Wheels up 0700 hrs...GOOD LUCK MEN...and Char!

Giro - Serious...REAL SERIOUS!

2006-05-04T09:05:00.000-05:00

Comments from Sean Yates after doing Giro recon with Tom Danielson...

"Yesterday we went to look at the finish on Plan de Corones. You can see from the pictures that they are still building the road, if that's what you could call it, it is really bad, we are going to use 33-28. It will be interesting to see how they manage to get up it, not so much the leaders, it's the rest of the peloton that I am worried about."

33-28....Wow! It's got to be SERIOUS, REAL SERIOUS!!

More at Sean's website.

Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer...

2006-05-03T10:12:00.000-05:00

Cheaha is still four days off and the attempts at sabotage are already starting.

My Buddy Ward...Makes a walmart run the other day and was nice enough to pick me up, NOT ONE BUT TWO OLD FASHIONED PUMPKIN PIES. Now Ward knows I'm trying to eat right...And he also knows I have an almost irresistible addiction to these damn little pies...And he thought of me...THANKS BUDDY, APPRECIATE YOU!

5 Favorite Climbs

2006-04-25T15:08:00.000-05:00

This site, Favorite Climbs popped up in one of my Google searches, it allows people to list their five favorite climbs and comment on them. Pretty interesting...I'm not worldly enough as a traveler or cyclist to offer an informed opinion, however, a page search of "Brasstown Bald" seems to rank it amongst or even beyond some of the true epic climbs out there...

Serious Odor Issues...REAL SERIOUS!

2006-04-25T13:30:00.000-05:00

Didn't get an exact count on the number of Blue Christmas Tree Air Fresheners hanging from this rear-view mirror...But I'm thinking this has to be a record.

Check out Char!!!

2006-04-23T18:02:00.000-05:00

As part of the "help pass the time movement" on the drive up to Alpharetta I surfed over to SuperDave's blog via Char's blackberry and decided to take his "What kind of Car are you?" Survey.

Me, just like David, came out as a good old Chevy Corvette, NOT BAD...Or so I thought, until my wife scored out as a Lotus Elise...Personally, had never heard of it before, but it looks good to me!

What a Stage!...So, So, Close...

2006-04-22T18:55:00.000-05:00

Just got back to the hotel from our day at Brasstown Bald and the stage didn't disappoint. Well that's not totally true, it disappointed me by four seconds...Really didn't think Floyd would be able to hang, that being said it was an awesome battle. The stage recap on cyclingnews.com paints a pretty good picture. This picture (albeit a lousy one) shows me and Char's vantage point. This is just as TD and Floyd (left) were catching Popo (right), TD put it one last big effort but as they came by us, it was obvious Floyd wasn't going to be dropped.
Pizza just arrived...Good Night!

TdG Update...

2006-04-22T03:28:00.000-05:00

Well, Char and I made it to our hotel room around 2100 hrs last night, went grab something to eat and probably got to bed around 2230 (10:30 for you 12-hr people). We actually left g-town right before noon and made pretty good time, I had forgotten about the switch to EST, so losing the hour sucked but it'll be nice to get back on the drive home. Passed some time on the driving reading the updates of yesterdays stage on Char's blackberry, sounds like Jason M. had a hell of a ride but as the odds usually have it, got caught at the end. Walking out the door to head to Brasstown....I'll try and post a recap tonight.....

Cheaha Challenge Warm-Up...Any takers?

2006-04-21T07:49:00.000-05:00

While scurrying about the world wide WEB (Little known fact...Named in honor of the Great Fantasy Cycling Guru, Ward Webb) I stumbled across this little puppy. It's the day before Cheaha and looks, how shall I say...INTERESTING! The Brasstown Bald Buster Century bolds over 12,000 ft of elevation gain, I think Cheaha is just under 8,000 ft of elevation gain...OUCH!

Brasstown Bald or BUST!

2006-04-20T23:55:00.000-05:00

Last second plans...

About four hours ago I got the crazy urge to catch the penultament stage of the Tour De Georgia at Brasstown Bald. I ran the idea by Char and as always she's game, so hopefully we'll get out of town between noon and three tomorrow. We'll crash in Alpharetta Friday night and wake up early Saturday to make the hour and a half drive to Brasstown Bald. Stay Saturday night back in Alpharetta and probably hang around long enough to catch the finish of the final stage and then head back late Sunday.

Tommy D. better not disappoint me...I know Floyd is riding strong but I have to believe TD is good for FOUR seconds either Friday or Saturday, (Sunday is pretty much a formality)...I'm thinking (hoping) it's going to be settled again this year on Brasstown Bald...we'll see!

Americans...1,2,3 @ TdG ITT

2006-04-20T15:42:00.000-05:00

Pretty Impressive...Check out the results of the Tour de Georgia Individual Time Trial here. Actually not only had I predicted this exact order of finish for the top three but I had also predicted margin of victory down to the 10th of a second...
Unfortunately, SuperDave's failure to run a fantasy TdG deprived me of a forum to showcase this ability. :)
Therefore, I'm afraid everyone is going to have to continue to believe that BBWW is "ALL THAT" when it comes to Fantasy Cycling picks...

Bonus Question...
Why was Popovych in his Discovery Kit instead of the leaders Jersey?

Sunglasses Optional...

2006-04-08T09:04:00.000-05:00

Since the arrival of my Moots, the Felt hasn't seen the road. The initial plan was for the felt to be a rain-beater. However, since I never leave for a training ride if it's already raining...and the mere chance of getting caught in the rain isn't reason enough to park the Moots, that plan hasn't really worked out. Instead, the Felt has evolved into my full-time trainer/rollers bike. For that reason, I decided to throw some HomeTrainer Tires on the Felt. The Conti Ultra Sport Hometrainer is specifically designed to run on rollers and trainers and only comes in ContiYellow (a.k.a. ORANGE). Just in case the Green paint job on the Felt wasn't enough of a statement, the Orange tires finish it off nicely :) Let's just say it's a good thing that it won't be making it out the door into the public.

I do need to send a shout-out to my friends at the Fox News Channel and thank both Alisyn Camerota and Kiran Chetry for supporting this little update in my biking world this morning on Fox and Friends.

Lance on George...Classic Quote!

2006-04-06T18:44:00.000-05:00

"George is a nice guy, no doubt," Armstrong says. "He's learned that he can be a gentleman and still have a killer instinct. Me, I'm the opposite. I'm a jerk who has to work at being a gentleman. I've always loved to put the hurt on people."

Entire story: Hincapie pedals toward cycling fame

From the "That's Different" Department...

2006-04-05T13:27:00.000-05:00

One of the crew boat Captain's on the River received this as a gift and passed it on to one of our Captains over Patrol. It's labeled "Vietnam Snake Wine" and contains a Cobra with a scorpion in it's mouth...and from best I can tell it looks like people actually drink this stuff. Read all about it on Superdave's source for all information....Wikipedia!
Wow! and I thought the worm in the Tequila bottle was nasty!

2nd Annual Training Camp...PRICELESS!

2006-04-04T10:23:00.000-05:00

Just returned last night from our second annual "pre-Cheaha" training camp in Toledo-bend. Same crew as last year (Me, Doc, Don and Ward) with the addition of SuperDave. Slight change in accommodations this year, we stayed at the Cypress Bend Golf Resort instead of Doc's camp (it's a long story...let's just say, "property settlement"!)
Anyway, the accommodations, training, and company were all OUTSTANDING! We managed two good hours of killer hill repeats Sunday and followed it up with 81 miles over challenging rollers on Monday. In between the suffering we managed to keep ourselves well entertained. Of coarse, this was at the expense of one another...as always everyone was warned on the front end to "bring their thick skin" and it was a "non-stop, no holds bared" verbal slugfest for the entire trip. While there were some classics thrown back and forth, I'm afraid they all would fall into the "You had to be there" category.

For those of you not up on your Toledo-Bend history...we had some debate as to when the lake was actually created...If interested check out the historical section at the SRA site.

From the "little known and less cared for facts" category of the trip...just in case you are wondering...Arby's does not stand for "Anytime Roast Beef, Yes Sir" but is actually derived from the initials "R.B."...Full details given at the Arby's website. Actually thought Don and Ward might exchange blows over this one... :)

A good time was had by all...

ENZO...NO-MORE-O

2006-03-23T08:51:00.000-06:00

Had actually seen a report on this accident a couple of weeks ago on the Fox News Channel...Of coarse, considering the source, I didn't believe it at the time! :)
I was sure it was a completely fictitious report dreamed up in some back room by O'Reilly and Hannity as part of a sinister plot to keep Hillary out of the White House in 2008. Anyway...I digress :)

USA Today had a mention of it today...so I'm sure it's SOLID! :)
Apparently, some rich schmuck in LA (That's Los Angeles, not Louisiana) managed to crash his $1,000,000 ENZO and slice it in half. Check out the video recreation of the accident and what was left of the car. Or some pretty good still shots. Before you start feeling too sorry for this poor schmuck, rumor has it that this was one of his two ENZO's.
I know what you're thinking Eric...I wonder what that family of eight in the Sudan with no clean water, electricity, shelter, food, medicine, education or hope would think of him and his two Enzo's. :)

Check him out....

2006-03-16T07:55:00.000-06:00

For those that know me...I'm really not the nature loving, tree hugging type.
However, saw this guy hanging out on the wall here at the courthouse this morning and found him to be picture worthy.

Snapped this shot right before I smashed him!

Just joking, Of course! :)

The Human Body...truly Amazing!

2006-03-15T22:14:00.000-06:00

No matter how many times I experience it...it always amazes me. If you remember last week in my "Ouch...That Hurts" post, I described a somewhat sadistic workout...compliments of the Doc. In the days following that workout my legs were unbelievably sore. Well, I did the same workout yesterday, and while it was equally as challenging, I basically have no soreness in my legs...

I've experienced this a number of times with everything from lifting weights to jogging and the same two things always amaze me:

First, No matter how good of shape you think a particular muscle group is in...if you hit it in a slightly different manner, YOU WILL FEEL IT, BIG TIME!

Secondly, How quickly the body is able to adjust...It's ability to handle a given workout the second time around is exponentially better than the first.

Wish it was 2007...

2006-03-10T08:34:00.000-06:00

Well at least for riding purposes!

FYI-
Starting next year we get an extra three weeks of Daylight Saving Time on the front end and one week on the back end.

That's an entire month of after work rides without being caught by darkness...I'll take it!

Cheaha Motivation...

2006-03-09T16:25:00.000-06:00

With Cheaha quickly approaching...I thought I would throw out an inspirational quote to help us remember; Why it is we do what we do?

"To be a cyclist is to be a student of pain....at cycling's core lies
pain, hard and bitter as the pit inside a juicy peach. It doesn't matter if you're sprinting for an Olympic medal, a town sign, a trailhead, or the rest stop with the homemade brownies. If you never confront pain, you're missing the essence of the sport. Without pain, there's no adversity. Without adversity, no challenge. Without challenge, no improvement. No improvement, no sense of accomplishment and no deep-down joy. Might as well be playing Tiddly-Winks."

- Scott Martin

OUCH...That hurts!

2006-03-08T08:09:00.000-06:00

Well, with Cheaha quickly approaching @ T minus 2 months, I'm trying to avoid getting lazy by finding ways to keep the inside workouts exciting while waiting on DST to arrive .

Actually, got lazy yesterday afternoon and skipped my roller workout. Therefore, I decided to hit the rollers this morning...Partially because of guilt from skipping yesterday, and partially because I wanted to try a roller workout that the Doc mentioned to me yesterday afternoon.

One Hour Roller Workout: (12 - 5 minute segments as follows)

5 minute warm-up
1 minute standing - 4 seated
2 minutes standing - 3 seated
3 minutes standing - 2 seated
4 minutes standing -1 seated
3 minutes standing - 2 seated
2 minutes standing - 3 seated
1 minutes standing - 4 seated
2 minutes standing - 3 seated
3 minutes standing - 2 seated
4 minutes standing - 1 seated
5 minute cool down

The Doc is a very sick man.....

Bridge Out...Actually GONE!

2006-03-06T08:02:00.000-06:00

NEWFLASH!!! I'm sure I'm one of the last people to realize this but the bridge in Spillman on Hwy 421 which has been closed for years, but was always "passable", is now gone. Given that the only other choice that I was aware of would have added about 15 miles to the ride, we opted for a little bike-swim-bike!
Now that I've had a chance to look at a map, looks like going back and taking Morris road would have gotten me back to JVC and only put us about 1.5 miles out of the way. I'll have to try and find out if Morris road is a viable option.
Speaking of surprises...What happened to Hwy 66, it looks the same but I thought it rode like S#it, I couldn't wait to get off of it.
Other notable surprises...Captain Doug's Bait Shop and General Store in Rosemound is a WiFi Hotspot...technology, got to love it!
To top off the day we stopped at Lola Blue's for a bite to eat on the way out of town, due to the pretty weather they had had a busy weekend, therefore they were out of about 90% of the menu choices...literally! No seafood, no bread for sandwiches, limited salads and dressing, etc. etc. That being said, the burgers and onion rings were slamming!

Classic Signs...

2006-03-06T07:55:00.000-06:00

While admittedly, it's not as good as the "Help Wanted...Brain must be working" sign from Yousef. I thought this one was pretty good, I snapped it Friday at my local barber shop.

Froth IT!

2006-03-03T15:52:00.000-06:00

YES! It's the little things in life. Nothing quite as good as a late afternoon cup of coffee amongst family and friends...but to really send it over the top, the addition of a Froth Au Lait machine is required. My sister acquired this little number recently, and while I will admit I was very skeptical at first...it's becoming habit forming.

Back on the road again...

2006-02-26T21:50:00.000-06:00

Wow! Not sure exactly why...laziness, weather, or some other lame excuse but it had been over 3 weeks since my last ride on the road before today, February 4th to be exact. Char and I did the new "slightly adjusted" Yousef route; basically it's 2 to 3 miles longer and adds a one mile stretch on a dangerous road which eliminates about six miles of shitty road surface on another. Seems like a pretty good trade, at least until I get hit :)...Hope I didn't just jinx myself. Anyway, it was windy and a little chilly but a beautiful Sunny day for a ride. The first 3/4 of the ride was basically easy and uneventful; the last 1/4 I was dying! Not sure if it was more of a side stitch or stomach cramp thing or what, just know it hurt like hell and nothing seemed to help.

On an Olympic note: Caught the 50km Free Style tonight...Pretty impressive, a group sprint after 31 miles of skiing. Have to give my "least expected/most enjoyed event" award to Curling (Hands-down)...Never would have thought it, but thoroughly enjoyed watching it! Most confusing moment has to be tonight during the closing ceremonies when they performed to the song "YMCA"...go figure!

In Response to Recent Cheney bashing...

2006-02-16T08:46:00.000-06:00

I love it when some people and the National media stress for days and make long elaborate arguments on a topic...and an appropriate response, which says it all, fits on a bumper sticker!

Worth the Wait...

2006-02-13T22:20:00.000-06:00

Funny how some people in life remember things that others have long since forgotten. Got a call at work this morning from an old family friend. Drew and my brother Don were actually buddies in high school, even though Drew also works for the Sheriff's Department our paths pretty much rarely to never cross. Anyway, apparently in 1986 after purchasing my new Mazda RX-7, I let Drew take it for a spin. Drew being both a sports car enthusiast and the owner of a circa 1978 Toyota Corolla at the time truly enjoyed and appreciated this gesture...Fast forward to today, 20 years later, probably to the week if not to the day and Drew calls wanting to return the favor by letting me take his Brand New 400 hp, 6 speed manual, 2006 Corvette for a spin. COOL!

I'm sure the words necessary to do this machine justice exist, just not in my vocabulary...
Simple put F%$#ing AWESOME!

Other than having the pleasure of driving another friends Acura NSX on one occasion, nothing I've ever driven comes close in handling and acceleration - (Don't make me pick!).

My low light picture can't start to do this work of art justice, check it out at the Official Corvette site.

TIVO ALERT - Tour of California

2006-02-10T17:29:00.000-06:00

Have heard so little about it, "actually nothing" as of late...I wasn't sure if the Amgen-Tour of California was still a go, thankfully it is!

I had also heard ESPN was going to have an hour of coverage every day. Actually it's ESPN2, 0000 to 0100 hours February 20, 22-28 and 0100-0200 hours on February 21st.

Once again, Thank God for TIVO!

I'm Back....

2006-02-04T21:31:00.000-06:00

Much too long without a post, just not a lot going on, at least nothing worth mentioning. On the health front, the Doc lined me up with a Cardiologist buddy of his and to my surprise he put me on Lipitor. My cholesterol was only 174 when last tested, however he tells me, since we now know that my CT-Scan shows something..."normal" no longer applies to me. We'll see???

Had a group of five for our ride this morning. The Doc had to cancel at the last minute but Don and Nixon both made it along with Scott who had been M.I.A. since being dropped early last year on the Woodville loop...it's a long story but is was good to have him back. We just did Yousef, the wind on the way there was brutal but the payoff on the ride home made it all worthwhile.

Char and I made a run to Roberto's River Road Restaurant tonight...which was excellent as always.

And last but not least...assuming this is old news to everyone by now...but in case you haven't heard, Lance and Sheryl are history. Maybe he'll go and find himself a nice Conservative girl now :)
In my opinion, dating a bleeding heart liberal was Lance's only known fault...and from a red blooded American male point of view...Sheryl Crow was an "acceptable" fault!

Life's not Fair...(but, who ever said it was?)

2006-01-21T20:07:00.000-06:00

Working for a Sheriff that's a good boss and concerned about the "wellness" of his employees has a few perks. In addition to free flu shots at work and annual blood work the Sheriff decided to provide those of us over the age of 40 with a Cardiac CT - for Calcium Scoring. Basically it's a 10 min, non-invasive procedure that takes pictures of your heart and assigns a score, which throws you into one of five categories...

Calcium Score........Pressence of Plaque
0.....................................No evidence of plaque
1-10...............................Minimal evidence of plaque
11-100.......................... Mild evidence of plaque
101-400........................ Moderate evidence of plaque
Over 400......................Extensive evidence of plaque

Anyway, in keeping with recent blog themes of "Why do bad things happen to mediocre people?" and "Crap Sandwich Month"...I scored a 23 and have been advised to see a cardiologist. This after watching co-worker after co-worker most of who live sedentary life styles, smoke, and carry around an extra 20 to 80 pounds score "0" consistently. GENETICS SUCK!

A good ride....

2006-01-15T17:01:00.000-06:00

Had every intention of riding yesterday, however, in the process of waiting for it to warm up a little... I decided to straighten up my study by purging and shredding all the old "stuff" (bills, credit card statements, mutual fund statements, check stubs etc. etc.) At the same time Char decided to tackle cleaning out her closet...the day was gone.

Anyway, since we skipped yesterday and the wind looked like it was going to cooperate and stay in the single digits, we decided to do the loop today (70 miles).

It was a good day and a good ride, we saw the sports car enthusiast again today. Leading the pack was a red Ferrari Enzo followed by an orange Lamborghini Murcielago. Bringing up the rear was a pair of Ferrari 308's (one black, one red). While the old "Magnum PI" Ferrari is a nice car in it's own right...considering the company they were keeping, let's just say they were suffering by comparison.

One small bit of history from the "little known and less cared for" file...Char and I were at the Paris Auto show in September of 2002, which is where the Enzo was "officially unveiled".

Exotic cars aside (after all this is the second time I see this crew on River Road)...strangest and coolest part of today's ride was a guy playing the bagpipes on the levee...I promise, I can't make this stuff up. Anyway, if the sun and temperature hadn't been dropping so quick I would have had to turn around to go talk to him, or at least stop and listen for a while.

The "F" Word!

2006-01-13T14:44:00.000-06:00

Got this for the Doc...
Thought it was Blog worthy!

There are only eleven times in history where the "F" word has been considered acceptable for use.

They are as follows:

11. "What the @#$% do you mean,we are sinking?"
-- Capt. E.J. Smith of RMS Titanic, 1912

10. "What the @#$% was that?"
-- Mayor Of Hiroshima, 1945

9. "Where did all those @#$%ing Indians come from?"
-- Custer, 1877

8. "Any @#$%ing idiot could understand that."
-- Einstein, 1938

7. "It does so @#$%ing look like her!"
-- Picasso, 1926

6. "How the @#$% did you work that out?"
-- Pythagoras, 126 BC

5. "You want WHAT on the @#$%ing ceiling?"
-- Michelangelo, 1566

4. "Where the @#$% are we?"
-- Amelia Earhart, 1937

3. "Scattered @#$%ing showers, my ass!"
-- Noah, 4314 BC

2. "Aw c'mon. Who the @#$% is going to find out?"
-- Bill Clinton, 1998

And a drum roll please............!

1. "Geez, I didn't think they'd get this @%#*^ing mad."
-- Saddam Hussein, 2003

THE WIND...My friend? My @ss!

2006-01-08T14:06:00.000-06:00

Had hopes of taking advantage of the unseasonably pleasant weather and riding both Saturday and Sunday of this weekend. Unfortunately, a leaking water pipe in the wall of my house ruined yesterday's plans...I'll skip all the boring details, lets just say it's now fixed but it was an all day project.

Therefore, Char and I talked about making today a long one and maybe doing the loop (about 70), that was until we checked the weather and saw what the wind had in mind for the day, so we decided on Yousef (about 40). My goal for the day was to, think positive and take SuperDave's advice and make the wind my friend.

Lets just say it was a love hate, relationship. When I was doing 24+ mph @ 69% of my mhr, it was a beautiful relationship. On the other hand, when I was doing between 11-12 mph @ 90% of mhr, it wasn't that great :) :)

However, I did realize one thing...either direction is better than fixing leaking pipes. It was a good day!

One-Pete!

2006-01-06T09:09:00.000-06:00

A friend sent me this, figured everyone sick of the national media kissing up to USC would enjoy...especially all the LSU and Texas fans!

Even though according to Leinart, they're still the better team...what an idiot!

LAF - Livestrong Ride

2006-01-02T09:02:00.000-06:00

Saw where the paceline posted updated information concerning the Livestrong Rides. Looks like the format has changed quite a bit from the days of just having the ride for the Roses in Austin.

Basically, from June 25th to October 8th there will be 5 "livestong" rides in various parts of the country, each requiring a $50 registration fee plus raising at least $500 (OUCH!). Anyone raising at least $15,000 will be invited to participate in the Ride for the Roses on October 15th in Austin. (Kind of Pricey!)

It'll be interesting to see how the significant increase in minimum "fund raising" required for participation will impact the size of the event.

44, 41, and 7....

2005-12-30T15:58:00.000-06:00

Oh yes, another year older...
Late December is kind of a big birthday time on Penny Lane, not only do Don, Easton (my nephew), and I, all share the same birthday (the 30th). The Doc's son, Jarad, is on the 29th and Don's wife Dawn is on the 23rd.

It's a long running joke on the Lane that Don and I both had deprived childhoods and fell victim to having our birthday stuck in between Christmas and New Years...therefore we never experienced having a birthday party or a birthday cake for that matter. The Doc in an "honest" effort to rectify this injustice that we've been dealt produced the following birthday cake:

While there are those who may think the "Jeff & Don" banner was perhaps an afterthought and has an "added on" look...I'm not seeing it! It was a beautiful thing! THANKS DOC!

The week in review:

I've been off of work since noon Tuesday, and while I love my job, the last few days have reiterated how being independently wealthy and not having to work could be a cool thing.

Wednesday: Char and I did the Yousef route on River road, very windy but a good ride...as an added bonus (speaking of independently wealthy) we were passed by three Ferrari's and a Lamborghini Murcielago...VERY COOL! Made a quick run to the mall and hooked up with David, Amy and Ryan for a great visit and meal at India's. Unfortunately, due to the limitations of my camera phone and the low lighting of the restaurant, Ryan's first trip to India's will fade away into history as undocumented...

Thursday: Slept late, Short ride, went eat out with "most" of the family (19 of us) at Hymel's in convent, which was quite the experience. If you've been to Hymel's you know what I mean, if you haven't, I can't explain it.

Friday: Started my day at Alliance Therapy and treated myself to an hour massage from Laci...AWESOME! Hit the barbershop for a much needed haircut and then met Don, Doc and Ward for a birthday lunch at "The Big Burrito Place", my name, not theirs. Good food, Good company and Ward treated...what more can you ask for?

Saturday: projected RIDE...Any takers?

iFartlek...

2005-12-27T23:07:00.000-06:00

OK...
As with all things cycling, I need look no further for inspiration than SuperDave. So needless to say when he mentioned his iFartlek training the other night on his blog it jumped to the top of my "Things to try" list.

Understand, my method was somewhat modified...for safety reasons I can't bring myself to ride on the open road with headphones. Admittedly it's arguable whether I'm actually safer because I'm more aware of my surrounding by not impeding my hearing, or just more naive for thinking that's the case...

Anyway, I digress...

My iFartlek session was done straight from itunes on my computer, in my study, while I put in some time on my rollers. Overall I liked it! I'm not a "huge" music fan but it did make the workout interesting and help the time pass. While I'm all for staying abreast of current events somehow riding rollers to Special Report w/Brit Hume on the Fox News Channel doesn't bring the workout to the same level. My one major complaint is the feeling that shuffle isn't random at all, but instead the itune gods F#cking with me. Something about riding recovery to Disease by Matchbox Twenty and then trying to push hard during an interval to Son of a son of a sailor by Jimmy Buffett just seemed real wrong. It stands to reason that this would happen from time to time, however, it seemed like a constant pattern. It was so bad I debated doing consecutive songs for interval or recovery to try and break the rhythm, but I knew this was exactly what the itune gods were trying to make me do so they could reverse the pattern and really get a good laugh. Therefore I never gave in! I just continued riding recovery to one great upbeat song after another while working hard on intervals to the likes of Simon and Garfunkel! I SHOWED THEM! :)

I'm totally new to this whole iworld but one small suggestion to the folks at Apple...it would be nice if you could flag all your songs as either upbeat or not and then on shuffle, have an option to not allow back to back play of the same "type" of song. Maybe there's no other reason for this logic but it would make the iFartlek concept a lot more appealing...

I guess the next best option is to design a playlist with alternating "types" of songs to accommodate the workout. No doubt this would work but I think the workout would lose something without the "random" unknown factor of what's coming up next.

Even with all my complaints...I Can't wait to do it again!

Char's PR!

2005-12-26T18:26:00.000-06:00

Had a great Christmas day yesterday, even though it would have been a beautiful day for a ride and I didn't manage to get one in (hey, it was Christmas!). Had Char's family over during the day, Charlene baked an excellent ham while her brother and brother-in-law fried a killer turkey...throw in countless side-dishes and desserts and follow it up with my sisters Seafood Gumbo last night.... and I was in serious need of having to burn off some calories today.

Talked Char into attempting the Loop, which is about 70 miles...her longest ride thus far had been to the Mobil @ 74/30, which is about 53 miles. Char was a little hesitant but after riding so strong Saturday, I knew she was ready! I promised I would bring the pace down a notch or two and she would be fine, so she was game to give it a try. Left the house about 11:15 this morning, SAG'ed at the Mobil on the way out and Yousef on the way back, the weather was great, and she did awesome, 71.3 miles, a new PR! A JOB WELL DONE, I was very proud of her!

Not sure if it was our late start or what, however, only saw 5 other cyclist on River road...two people riding solo and a group of three... With such a pretty day and a so many people off of work...thought there would be more people out...who knows?

And then...there were Three!

2005-12-24T22:35:00.000-06:00

Just got in from my mom's doing the family Christmas night and a good time was had by all, but it's been a long day. Having Char's family over for Christmas tomorrow so the last thing I need to be doing at the moment in blogging...however, saw that SuperDave's "Merry Christmas" post had a mention of the "grand G-town ride" so I figured I would give a quick recap.

It was going to be a beautiful thing...a good little 50 mile training ride that everyone was going to be able to make. Unbelievable, Waldon (not working on a Saturday), BBT in from Austin, Ward on the mend, Nixon "the new guy" coming out...It looked like we had a solid Eight.

SuperDave calls Friday evening and says he and BBT are out because of Christmas and spousal training conflicts...down to SIX!

Later Friday night Ward comes by to enjoy a few WAM's (Washington Apple Martini's) and leaves with a "I might make it, but don't wait on me"....down to Five!

We're all set for a 0900 hrs departure, 0730 hrs Waldon calls with a relapse on his stomach virus...down to Four!

0900 hrs - Me, Char, and Nixon are ready to roll, just waiting on the Doc...so I call to check on him...he's sleeping in...down to Three!

13 miles in, Nixon is hurting because he hasn't been able to ride much recently, so he heads in...down to TWO!

Weather was coming on quick so we decided to SAG at Yousef instead of the Mobil @ 74/30...still got caught by the rain on the way home. Not quite the ride I had envisioned but all and all still a good ride.

Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

Stupid Human "training" tricks....(update)

2005-12-22T10:25:00.000-06:00

From the world of hands free roller riding - in an attempt to fight the boredom of a super easy recovery ride this morning I decided to up the stakes. Therefore, I was attempting the hands-free, eyes-closed maneuver...not sure what I was thinking, probably a Star Wars flashback and I was trying to "feel the force" or something.

NO! I didn't go down, but lets just say it was plenty close enough to cancel any further attempts of this particular stunt.

On a more positive note...I've been dabbling with the "standing on the Swiss ball" workout. I've reached the point where I can go 10 minutes without going off. The concept of being able to do squats while on the ball is still very very distant. As a matter of fact, the effort reminds me of learning to ride rollers, it requires 100% concentration and pure focus, no looking around or watching T.V.

Weekend recap....

2005-12-18T21:23:00.000-06:00

A good weekend, even though it consisted of much too much eating and not enough riding. Ended up skipping my roller work Friday that I had planned...thinking I would squeeze it in on Saturday, which didn't happen. It's the first time I skipped riding on consecutive days since I started back riding 9 weeks ago...figured the legs deserved a little break even though I've just been riding relatively easy base miles.

Really enjoyed the Christmas party at my mom's Saturday night but I'm afraid I didn't do real well at following all the good advice offered in the Carmichael article. Had a nice cycling contingent at the party and enough Cheaha horror stories were told to get everyone thinking about starting training for this May. Somehow Amy has pulled the hat trick and has produced a valid Cheaha excuse for the third year running.

Donna and Byron crashed at our house instead of making the drive back to Breaux Bridge in the rainy weather. We woke up, had a nice visit and Char cooked us a slamming breakfast. Donna and Byron were headed off Christmas shopping so it was at this point that I planned the perfect day (nap....bike ride...nap), which I almost pulled off. Caught a good nap and Char and I headed out about 1:00 to the Mobil at 30/74. So much for feeling good after a couple of days off, I was flat and pedaling squares and the wind was not cooperating so we decided to cut it a little short and just went as far as Yousef. Skipped the second nap and headed down the road to eat more of the party food, which I had already eaten too much of the night before....

On another note, if you haven't seen it yet, check out the following story written by a Cat 3 rider who had the opportunity to take a training ride with Discovery...pretty interesting...

TGIF...

2005-12-16T14:56:00.000-06:00

Thank God it's Friday!
Friday's are always "all good", not only is there the weekend to look forward to...It's also, albeit unofficial, jean day at work...Which as far as I'm concerned...runs a close second to a 4 day work week. Not to mention the work week is ending on a high note. I finally got our Trend Micro (anti-virus and anti-spam software) renewed, updated and working properly. This means come Monday not only will I not have 300 junk emails in my Inbox, I'll also be spared additional emails from users who feel it necessary to give me a daily count on how many junk emails they've received.

Won't be riding tomorrow...I have a funeral in the morning for my Uncle Allen who lost a long battle with cancer and an open house Christmas party at my Mom's tomorrow night (kind-of a strange combination when you think about it). Anyway, judging by the forecast it's just as well that tomorrow is a no ride day...80% chance of rain, OUCH!

Sunday on the other hand looks much more promising, a little on the cold side - but dry. Even though I complain about the cold, as long as it's dry, I can deal with it. On the other hand, cold and wet, NO THANKS! Any takers?

Word Art!

2005-12-14T20:55:00.000-06:00

SuperDave commenting that he should charge me for the quality of his most recent comment concerning Cheaha brought back fond memories of this truly classic email from Dave.

The following email was received from David shortly after I took possession of my moots...to date it remains the best description of how I feel about my ride....

i can only assume that no written report on the first ride of the
Moots means that it's ride is sublime beyond words

that to qualify the ride quality of your new steed with crude
collections of man-made scribblings would denotate emotions in a way
akin to perhaps cave paintings in primeval days

and to stoop so low as to explain the quality of this bicycle in mere
words would be wrong, nay a disgrace, an evil so heinous that it would
require you to make a pilgrimage on foot to Steamboat Springs, wearing
nothing but sack cloth and your cycling cleats to appease the gods who
bent down and lit the welding torch and guided the hand of the master
craftsman who produced this latest Robert ride

i understand

...

i know it must be the greatest ride of all time

-david

Holiday eating advice...Cheaha Countdown!

2005-12-14T13:46:00.000-06:00

Found a link to the following Holiday eating advice from Chris Carmichael on thepaceline. Most of it is pretty straight forward and it all falls under the heading of "easier said than done", however, I figured a little review is good for all.

Speaking of reasons for eating right and keeping the weight down...as of this posting, The Cheaha Challenge is only 20 weeks, 3 days, and 17 hours away, while that may sound like a long time to some, those who have met the mountain know better!

Raised Security Levels -

2005-12-14T08:32:00.000-06:00

Not sure of the origin...
Had the following emailed to me and thought it was pretty good.

The British are feeling the pinch in relation to recent bombings and
have raised their security level from "Miffed"
to "Peeved." Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to
"Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." Londoners have not been "A Bit
Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies all but ran out.
Terrorists have been re-categorised from "Tiresome" to a "Bloody
Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance"
warning level was during the great fire of 1666.
Also, the French government announced yesterday that it has raised its
terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in
France are "Surrender" and "Collaborate." The rise was precipitated by
a recent fire that destroyed France's white flag factory, effectively
paralysing the country's military capability.
It's not only the English and French that are on a heightened level of
alert. Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and
Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain:
"Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides."
The Germans also increased their alert state from "Disdainful
Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also
have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbour" and "Lose."
Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual, and the only
threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels.

A little Christmas Humor!

2005-12-12T09:51:00.000-06:00

A little Christmas Humor!

Lazy Sunday -

2005-12-11T21:45:00.000-06:00

Char told me yesterday that she had plans to go shopping with her sister today, so I was free if I wanted to plan a "guys ride". I wasn't able to find any takers but I figured it would be a perfect day to get in a long solo ride of 70 to 75 easy to moderate miles. At least that was the plan...after waking up I quickly rationalized my ride plans away. Not sure if it was the cold weather or the fact that I was solo, or what?... But in a matter of minutes I found myself, first postponing getting out the door on my long ride, then changing it to something shorter, then deciding to maybe stay in and just do rollers, and finally, ....what the hell, I'm taking the day off!

The day wasn't a total loss, I decided to reorganize and clean my bike room/study. In the process of cleaning out my bike closet the ole Swiss ball showed up. Which reminded me of the picture I had seen of Vladimir Gussev of team Discovery working out at their training camp being held in Austin.

According to the article, he went 20+ minutest without going off. Well, I had to give it a try! Two things surprised me...Fisrt, I could actually stand on it after just a few tries (20 to 30 seconds) but hey! It's a start!
Secondly, after about a minute and a half, which was probably my max, my calves were ON FIRE and SCREAMING!...and I would assume it obvious- but just in case you're wondering...that's just "standing", no thoughts of "squats" involved.

Now Hiring....

2005-12-10T21:25:00.000-06:00

A true Classic...I LOVE IT!

Yousef Grocery on River road

Carville, LA

Today's Ride --- COLD

2005-12-10T14:04:00.000-06:00

In recent weeks due to the end of DST my training routine has been pretty constant...Rollers Monday thru Thursday, off on Friday, and on the road Saturday and Sunday. Everyone has been so busy as of late Char and I have been the only two constants in this routine, however, there have been some guest appearances from time to time, including: SuperDave, B.B.Taylor, Bruce Webb, Waldon, Nixon, and Chris a.k.a. "the Doc". The regular route which started as an out and back on River Road to Yousef Grocery Store (about 45) has recently expanded slightly further to the Mobil @ 30 and 74 (about 53) as the new norm. Anyway, while it appeared that it was going to be just me and Char today, the Doc was a welcomed last minute addition...due to time constraints Doc was going to cut it a little short and turn back at Yousef...due to the temperature and my flat legs, Char and I decided to join him and keep the group together. I was actually glad that we ended up SAGing at Yousef, it allowed for the following find... Apparently, Yousef (like everyone else) is looking to hire, however, in todays world of political correctness, I found his sign posted to the stores front door both refreshing and humorous!
It read:

Now Hiring
(must be 18) and brain must be working.

A true classic!
I actually got a photo with Doc's camera phone...if he remembers to email it to me, I'll post it!

Kreitler Rollers - Strange how things evolve....

2005-12-08T22:15:00.000-06:00

Seems like just the other day that I bought a set of Kreitler rollers. Actually, my first "recorded" ride on them was September 11th of 2003, it lasted a total of 30 minutes and went for 7.6 miles. I was strategically wedged in the doorway of my closet...As I remember it, I spent as much time holding the door frame as my handlebars and reaching for a drink was totally out of the question. Well, since that day I've been on them another 177 times for 153.35 hours totaling 3,713 miles. (Note: All Stats made possible by my Polar 720i Heart Rate Monitor.)

Anyway, at some point during this 2+ years of riding my rollers off and on, I evolved from thinking I would never leave the comfort of my closet doorway to in recent weeks coming up with the bright idea of going hands free. Don't want to call any friends out by name..."Doc"...but there are those who have requested video proof (Special thanks to my nephew, Scott, for his assistance in "capturing the proof"...please excuse the quality, had to use "nightshot" mode on my digital camera to deal with limited lighting. And last but not least, to my wife Charlene...my apologies for not cleaning the study before shooting the footage!)

Newsflash...I'm a BLOGGER!

2005-12-08T21:35:00.000-06:00

OK, I'm not sure whether to blame the down-time I had today or my buddy Super-Dave, a.k.a. the unfrozen caveman cyclist... I think I'll have to go with David on this one. After all, David is the person responsible for getting me into cycling...not totally, actually, it's probably both David and Lance, but i'd have to say 60-40 David! Anyway...this will be my attempt at a blog. Not sure exactly how this thing will develop, if at all, but for now I think it'll basically be my all around cycling reference page covering a little bit of everything.

Me, My Moots, and I

BONES OF ANCIENT LIBERAL FOUND

Quick, Easy...And Pretty Neat!

Can you park a car????

One Cool bit of Architecture!!!

A Real Classic...GOODFELLAS!

Tip of the Day...

A Great Weekend...

Feeding Time...

Last Night...

Things That Make You Go... "Huh?"

Floyd...My two cents!

Breaking News...Leipheimer to Discovery!

Starved for more Tour info?

Quote of the Day!

Tentatively...339 days and counting...

Our next big Ride....

Love a good Gadget...

Friends with Connections....AWESOME!

Katrina - New Orleans....Play by Play!

Cheaha Recap...EPIC!

D-DAY!

Giro - Serious...REAL SERIOUS!

Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer...

5 Favorite Climbs

Serious Odor Issues...REAL SERIOUS!

Check out Char!!!

What a Stage!...So, So, Close...

TdG Update...

Cheaha Challenge Warm-Up...Any takers?

Brasstown Bald or BUST!

Americans...1,2,3 @ TdG ITT

Sunglasses Optional...

Lance on George...Classic Quote!

From the "That's Different" Department...

2nd Annual Training Camp...PRICELESS!

ENZO...NO-MORE-O

Check him out....

The Human Body...truly Amazing!

Wish it was 2007...

Cheaha Motivation...

OUCH...That hurts!

Bridge Out...Actually GONE!

Classic Signs...

Froth IT!

Back on the road again...

In Response to Recent Cheney bashing...

Worth the Wait...

** TIVO ALERT ** - Tour of California

I'm Back....

Life's not Fair...(but, who ever said it was?)

A good ride....

The "F" Word!

THE WIND...My friend? My @ss!

One-Pete!

LAF - Livestrong Ride

44, 41, and 7....

iFartlek...

Char's PR!

And then...there were Three!

Stupid Human "training" tricks....(update)

Weekend recap....

TGIF...

Word Art!

Holiday eating advice...Cheaha Countdown!

Raised Security Levels -

A little Christmas Humor!

Lazy Sunday -

Now Hiring....

Today's Ride --- COLD

Kreitler Rollers - Strange how things evolve....

Newsflash...I'm a BLOGGER!

TIVO ALERT - Tour of California