An Incredible First Day
A First Incredible Day! i think about syntax a fair amount given my profession of teaching language. This is one of those tricks that you can pull off in Spanish too. the Title implies that the first day of the year was incredible. the first sentence implies that this was the first incredible day of the year, although it could perhaps be February 29th for all we know. i pondered this and several other things today while taking a ride today on the first day of the year. Following is a rundown of a few things ruminating in my feeble, limited mind:
1. one of my most favorite roads in Louisville is the bottom portion of Indian Hills (if the road has another name, i don't know it). forested, verdant, lush, sort of scenic and moody in the shade. not too many houses but a good road surface. too bad it's only .5m or less. the climbs off of it are sort of fun too, provided you have a bit of fitness. i've seen before on the listserve that IndianHillsRd (whatev the name) has a grade of about 7%, although it's pretty damn steep for my fat ass. then i think of all those climbs in the major tours that are 8-9% for kilometers on end. amazing!
2. if this city, which aspires to be more than it is- 2nd rate compared to local others like Indy, Cincy and Music City, had any cojones, they would make a major statement preserving the parks for what they are and making traffic difficult. i get the sense every time i'm in Cherokee/Seneca that so many of the cars are there just to cut through and having NOTHING to do with actually using them for their intended purpose. make them one way. close off some entrance/exits. close off a lane or two to car traffic. do something big that says "THESE ARE PARKS. USE THEM AS SUCH." Hizzhonerferlife kicked off some kind of health campaign for the city. What better way to prioritize health over traffic.
3. it'll be curious to see how the Lance effect plays out with the roadie vibe in the years to come. there are definitely more roadies out there, and they're generally better dressed. i saw some guys from a local team today lookin' fine in their kit, but more importantly others just as decked-out. the Q is to whether these same guys (mostly) will still be riding in 10 years, or will they move on to the next fad like TiBo or yoga or crosscountry pushup running or something? furthermore, over the years to come will they work at all to improve car/bike relations? you know many of them are the same demographic that hates cyclists. you know, the yuppie soccermom with too much to do and just wants to guy in the lycra to GET THE HELL OUT OF HER WAY!. as for me, i more and more want to see cycling as a means of transportation and as a way of life and not just some kind of recreation. that said, i put my 19miles in today in my lycra for purely recreational purposes.
4. a further Indian Hills note, and including Mockingbird Ln. for that matter is the fact that winter is a great time to ride through those areas b/c you can just glimpse the mansions dotting those hills, those palatial estates that are normally out of view due to all the trees. i don't always respect the rich, usually b/c they're paid far more than their value compared to average workers. BUT i do like big houses and the grounds to go with them.
5. i felt today on my ride like Paul Sherwen of TV commentary fame would say "He is really fighting his machine, trying to find every ounce of power!". i lowered my saddle a little which helped keep me from being so stretched out, but i'm not used to the B17N on the Litespeed, given that i've put very few miles on it. and with all my commuting i've really spent little time on road bikes; most of my riding has been on the Surly Crosscheck (which has a short reach), the 'Dale which is quite close, and the LHT which is even closer. i've lost that laid-out bike fit that you really need to put in more miles. i really want to finally do a century this year. the closest i got was going 85 from Lou to Lex back in '99. to do so i need to start getting in a long weekend ride, and that ride needs to be done on the Litespeed.
6. i've been watching and watching and watching bike videos. '05 Paris/Nice was fun, with Julich winning and the first stages going off in the now. the '04 Vuelta was fun to, and there is lots of climbing. you get the impression, though, that an in-form Lance, Jan, or Basso could easily beat these guys, mauling them in the timetrials and performing well in the mountains, not unlike Hinault and Merckx did back in their day.
7. the weather today was simply fantastic for the first day of the new year, 58 and mostly sunny. i got warm with a shirt and a lightweight jacket on, and not warm in a "i'm cold but sweating" way. just warm.
8. the Ohio is always fun to ride by. it's big and flowing.
i'm sure there were some other things in there, mostly relating to my bad fitness at the moment. i put 19.2m down today through the parks, across St.Matthews to IndianHills, the riverwalk, up Mockingbird, across Stilz and home through the parks and Seneca Gds. i also came up the curvy climb to chauffer's rest. that's a tough little climb.
a really good way to start '06. let's hope it's a better one for all.
19.2m/1hr 16min/14.9avg/58 breezy and partly sunny- great Jan.1 weather!
1. one of my most favorite roads in Louisville is the bottom portion of Indian Hills (if the road has another name, i don't know it). forested, verdant, lush, sort of scenic and moody in the shade. not too many houses but a good road surface. too bad it's only .5m or less. the climbs off of it are sort of fun too, provided you have a bit of fitness. i've seen before on the listserve that IndianHillsRd (whatev the name) has a grade of about 7%, although it's pretty damn steep for my fat ass. then i think of all those climbs in the major tours that are 8-9% for kilometers on end. amazing!
2. if this city, which aspires to be more than it is- 2nd rate compared to local others like Indy, Cincy and Music City, had any cojones, they would make a major statement preserving the parks for what they are and making traffic difficult. i get the sense every time i'm in Cherokee/Seneca that so many of the cars are there just to cut through and having NOTHING to do with actually using them for their intended purpose. make them one way. close off some entrance/exits. close off a lane or two to car traffic. do something big that says "THESE ARE PARKS. USE THEM AS SUCH." Hizzhonerferlife kicked off some kind of health campaign for the city. What better way to prioritize health over traffic.
3. it'll be curious to see how the Lance effect plays out with the roadie vibe in the years to come. there are definitely more roadies out there, and they're generally better dressed. i saw some guys from a local team today lookin' fine in their kit, but more importantly others just as decked-out. the Q is to whether these same guys (mostly) will still be riding in 10 years, or will they move on to the next fad like TiBo or yoga or crosscountry pushup running or something? furthermore, over the years to come will they work at all to improve car/bike relations? you know many of them are the same demographic that hates cyclists. you know, the yuppie soccermom with too much to do and just wants to guy in the lycra to GET THE HELL OUT OF HER WAY!. as for me, i more and more want to see cycling as a means of transportation and as a way of life and not just some kind of recreation. that said, i put my 19miles in today in my lycra for purely recreational purposes.
4. a further Indian Hills note, and including Mockingbird Ln. for that matter is the fact that winter is a great time to ride through those areas b/c you can just glimpse the mansions dotting those hills, those palatial estates that are normally out of view due to all the trees. i don't always respect the rich, usually b/c they're paid far more than their value compared to average workers. BUT i do like big houses and the grounds to go with them.
5. i felt today on my ride like Paul Sherwen of TV commentary fame would say "He is really fighting his machine, trying to find every ounce of power!". i lowered my saddle a little which helped keep me from being so stretched out, but i'm not used to the B17N on the Litespeed, given that i've put very few miles on it. and with all my commuting i've really spent little time on road bikes; most of my riding has been on the Surly Crosscheck (which has a short reach), the 'Dale which is quite close, and the LHT which is even closer. i've lost that laid-out bike fit that you really need to put in more miles. i really want to finally do a century this year. the closest i got was going 85 from Lou to Lex back in '99. to do so i need to start getting in a long weekend ride, and that ride needs to be done on the Litespeed.
6. i've been watching and watching and watching bike videos. '05 Paris/Nice was fun, with Julich winning and the first stages going off in the now. the '04 Vuelta was fun to, and there is lots of climbing. you get the impression, though, that an in-form Lance, Jan, or Basso could easily beat these guys, mauling them in the timetrials and performing well in the mountains, not unlike Hinault and Merckx did back in their day.
7. the weather today was simply fantastic for the first day of the new year, 58 and mostly sunny. i got warm with a shirt and a lightweight jacket on, and not warm in a "i'm cold but sweating" way. just warm.
8. the Ohio is always fun to ride by. it's big and flowing.
i'm sure there were some other things in there, mostly relating to my bad fitness at the moment. i put 19.2m down today through the parks, across St.Matthews to IndianHills, the riverwalk, up Mockingbird, across Stilz and home through the parks and Seneca Gds. i also came up the curvy climb to chauffer's rest. that's a tough little climb.
a really good way to start '06. let's hope it's a better one for all.
19.2m/1hr 16min/14.9avg/58 breezy and partly sunny- great Jan.1 weather!
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