Date: June 29
Mileage: 15
Ride type: Road
Bike: Crosscheck
Temp: 83, very pleasant
June mileage: 138
Year to date: 738
several insights and observations on a relatively brief road ride this late afternoon. the title, "Crack", refers to an unseemly sight while riding in the park. i was taking a left onto a park road, with a rider crossing in front of me with the rightofway. he was a 20ish guy with regular ol' shoes on what looked like a store-bought mtn bike. what unfortunately caught my eye was the "Crack". his soccer shorts didn't seem to be providing full coverage. he was setting a pretty good pace, so i lingered behind me for a while, maybe 200yds. i finally realized that, although i was comfortable with my pace, i HAD to juice it a little b/c i could NOT be behind that "crack" any more. thusly began my first 'interval' of the ride, goosing the speed enough to avoid the crack. i stopped a bit up the road for a quick fountain drink, and a couple minutes later saw him slowly climbing golf course hill. guess he was getting in some speedwork just ahead of me like i try to get keeping up with the ripped roadies.
i haven't put much mileage on the road, in fact very little. doesn't mean i haven't been active. today at Lakeside i got a quick lift in while the boys were in their lessons. upped the pounds a bit to make up for a 'quickie'. afterwards, swam with the boys in the lake for a good while. think these 2hour swims, even in they're not in the lap pool, are kicking my ass. couple days ago in the 25m pool i swam about 700 or so yds. not too long, but i was pleased with it. i think a twiceaweek 45 minute swim would be great. this one took me less, but i'm pretty slow. why? i'm out of shape.
on the subject of mileage, i looked at February and found that i rode as much in Feb. and i have in June. this is with me off during the summer, and we've had a very pleasant month. something is really wrong with that! and it's 100 fewer miles than i rode in Jan even though i remember it being quite cold. what's to blame? laziness...yes. WorldCup...yes. French Open...yes. laziness...yes.
we're going to Holiday World tomorrow. it's in Santa Claus, Indiana. i kid you not. it used to be 'Santa Claus Land', when i was a kid and it was much cheesier and smaller. now it's quite a nice little amusement pk abt an hour west of Louisville. it's known for free fountain drinks (fortunately, the kids get tired of them after abt an hour, stomach ache included), cleanliness, some nice wooden coasters, and a great water park. we tend to ride some rides until lunch, hang out at the water park for the afternoon, and in the evening ride a second round of rides. it's truly 'family entertainment', at a much cheaper and less harried pace than going to King's Island north on Cincy. we even have a Six Flags here in Louisville, Kentucky Kingdom. Holiday World, though, is cleaner and works much better for smaller kids, ours 10 and almost 7.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Monday, June 26, 2006
Le Dour Tour
i'm done. finished. well, actually prob not, but i feel like it. i've been a cycling fan since Greg's arrival with Renault 'back in the day'. followed the '86 Tour best i could. followed Andy Hampster's '87 Tour best i could given the coverage. followed Greg's other wins. followed Corestates chmpshp, followed early NORBA and UCI mtn biking. followed Paris-Roubaix. Ronde vanVlandareen (sp?). followed Greg's '90 win while in Spain. several Tours duPont. bought lots of WorldCylingProduction videos. LOVE professional road cycling for all its grit, glory, guts, gashes. (sorry for excessive alliteration).
but with the latest Spanish doping scandal and Le'Equipe Armstrong article, I'm tired. tired of Lance. tired of inumerable accusations over many, many, many years. i just have stopped believing that EVERY single person who's chimed in on Sr. Armstrong is somewhere wrong, and he's the clean one. when there's smoke.
and then the Spanish scandal. the latest Tyler Hamilton thang. he supposedly paid big $$ to docs in Madrid for a routine. maybe, again, it's not true, but are there truly specious faxes? do they actually exist?
and how much junk is Tom Boonen on? the heir apparent to Museuw, Mr. intheend doper himself.
the sport is dirty. filthy. disgusting. now, let's be clear that thay're on no more junk than your standard bloated baseball player, or extra bloated football player. and track/athletics? give me a break. and soccer/football players? clean? give me a jodido break!! it's maybe dirtier than any sport around, b/c of the many.
it's all filthy. just like the damn politicians. just follow the damn $$$. scum.
unfortunately, i'll prob watch the Tour even though i don't want to. you can't really watch Basso, Ullrich, Landis, Valverde, and not think that the reason they'll win this year is that they have the latest regime. undetectable of course.
Yack!
but with the latest Spanish doping scandal and Le'Equipe Armstrong article, I'm tired. tired of Lance. tired of inumerable accusations over many, many, many years. i just have stopped believing that EVERY single person who's chimed in on Sr. Armstrong is somewhere wrong, and he's the clean one. when there's smoke.
and then the Spanish scandal. the latest Tyler Hamilton thang. he supposedly paid big $$ to docs in Madrid for a routine. maybe, again, it's not true, but are there truly specious faxes? do they actually exist?
and how much junk is Tom Boonen on? the heir apparent to Museuw, Mr. intheend doper himself.
the sport is dirty. filthy. disgusting. now, let's be clear that thay're on no more junk than your standard bloated baseball player, or extra bloated football player. and track/athletics? give me a break. and soccer/football players? clean? give me a jodido break!! it's maybe dirtier than any sport around, b/c of the many.
it's all filthy. just like the damn politicians. just follow the damn $$$. scum.
unfortunately, i'll prob watch the Tour even though i don't want to. you can't really watch Basso, Ullrich, Landis, Valverde, and not think that the reason they'll win this year is that they have the latest regime. undetectable of course.
Yack!
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Portugal/Netherlands
WOW!! what a total fiasco!! watch every minute of the P/N match, won by Portugal 1-0. 4 red cards, 13(?) yellow. OUT of CONTROL.
and Beckham saves jolly ole' England today with a wicked free kick. otherwise, they were as flat as week-old pale ale sitting in the hot sun.
no, i haven't ridden yet, but i'm thinking after supper of sneaking out for an evening ride. vamos a ver.
and Beckham saves jolly ole' England today with a wicked free kick. otherwise, they were as flat as week-old pale ale sitting in the hot sun.
no, i haven't ridden yet, but i'm thinking after supper of sneaking out for an evening ride. vamos a ver.
Friday, June 23, 2006
more bunnies
don't know 'bout you, but sometimes i find myself thinking abt things to write on the blog, only to find that, by the end of the ride, i've forgotten them.
jumped out today for a quickie and the lasting image is of 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 total bunnies munching grass on the edge of the local bike trail. silly.
on the topic of bike trails, i have this strong feeling that part of the reason that so many bike blogs come out of Minneapolis is that the bike facilities there are excellent. we have, in Luavull, a total of 4 independent paths, totaling maybe 10 miles tops. 3 follow the Ohio at different parts, 1 on top of the southern flood wall, the main one following west out of downtown- the "Riverwalk" of which i've taken pics, and a 3rd in a park along the river. the 4th is the one i rode on today, maybe 1.3 mile(s) long along a "creek", which is to say it used to be a creek but is now a directed drainage ditch. the big prob is that the 3 along the river don't really go anywhere, except to mosey (sp?) along the river. the Beargrass Creek trail has a little potential, but the southern terminus near Cherokee pk is a deathtrap. terrible design.
there's lots of talk of making Louisville a better cycling town, but the fundamental infrastructure- read expanded 4-lane roads, circular expressways, extended suburban throughways etc. are already established. frankly you can't get outside of the central urban area, through our ring-road Watterson Expswy, without taking your life into your own hands. 'twould be nice to have some dedicated bike paths, but not holding breath for long.
and finally, some who read this (me and ???) know that i have several bikes, some with different purposes. except for the Litespeed that was given to me as a gift several years ago, all were under $1000. today, while riding the Surly Crosscheck, that i'd mounted road tires on, i realized that, while all have their own benefits, fundamentally my fav is the Crosscheck. it's comfortable, sturdy, fun, functional. it may be my best 'doitall' bike and that's that. hate to 'Hate' on the others, but that's the truth. maybe i should sell the rest...no, no i don't think so.
Date: June 23
Mileage: 20
Ride type: Road
Bike: Crosscheck
Temp: 84 and overcast (just missed rain storm)
June mileage: 123.5
Year to date: 723.5
oh, and i still can't upload these specific pics. i'm going to try another and see what luck i have.... didn't work. don't know?
jumped out today for a quickie and the lasting image is of 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 total bunnies munching grass on the edge of the local bike trail. silly.
on the topic of bike trails, i have this strong feeling that part of the reason that so many bike blogs come out of Minneapolis is that the bike facilities there are excellent. we have, in Luavull, a total of 4 independent paths, totaling maybe 10 miles tops. 3 follow the Ohio at different parts, 1 on top of the southern flood wall, the main one following west out of downtown- the "Riverwalk" of which i've taken pics, and a 3rd in a park along the river. the 4th is the one i rode on today, maybe 1.3 mile(s) long along a "creek", which is to say it used to be a creek but is now a directed drainage ditch. the big prob is that the 3 along the river don't really go anywhere, except to mosey (sp?) along the river. the Beargrass Creek trail has a little potential, but the southern terminus near Cherokee pk is a deathtrap. terrible design.
there's lots of talk of making Louisville a better cycling town, but the fundamental infrastructure- read expanded 4-lane roads, circular expressways, extended suburban throughways etc. are already established. frankly you can't get outside of the central urban area, through our ring-road Watterson Expswy, without taking your life into your own hands. 'twould be nice to have some dedicated bike paths, but not holding breath for long.
and finally, some who read this (me and ???) know that i have several bikes, some with different purposes. except for the Litespeed that was given to me as a gift several years ago, all were under $1000. today, while riding the Surly Crosscheck, that i'd mounted road tires on, i realized that, while all have their own benefits, fundamentally my fav is the Crosscheck. it's comfortable, sturdy, fun, functional. it may be my best 'doitall' bike and that's that. hate to 'Hate' on the others, but that's the truth. maybe i should sell the rest...no, no i don't think so.
Date: June 23
Mileage: 20
Ride type: Road
Bike: Crosscheck
Temp: 84 and overcast (just missed rain storm)
June mileage: 123.5
Year to date: 723.5
oh, and i still can't upload these specific pics. i'm going to try another and see what luck i have.... didn't work. don't know?
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Oh well
2 weeks of almost daily soccer matches ends with a mediocre 2-1 to Ghana. at least we finally scored a goal. it helps to have actual shots on goal. great idea. at one point, Brazil had 18, yes 18, shots on goal on the Japanese side. 18. i KNOW we're not Brazil, but maybe in the next 4 years we can think of ways to actual score. that's the point of the game, right? i've commented here-n-there about the WC b/c i've found it thrilling to watch now that every game is on ESPN. how long will that last? how long will ESPN be willing to show every match when the US has NO CHANCE of doing anything substantial in the contest. if 2002 was the great leap forward, a quarterfinal gift from the Gods, then 2006 is a great leap backwards, a reversion to our defense-only play from 1990 when we could not compete against real teams. if you're playing a 4-5-1, with only 1 striker, and no one on the team willing to let 'er rip from 30yds, how do you expect to win.
sucks.
Viva Espayna!
sucks.
Viva Espayna!
USA/Ghana
this morning is the biggie! USA/Ghana and Italy/Czech R. doesn't get any more knife edge than this. i was thinking this morning abt how much more varied and difficult the World Cup is than, say, the NBA finals. it's the same 7 game format interestingly enough. in the NBA finals, much less the World Series, those 7 games are against the same competition and same players. rosters can be tweaked. scouting, adjustments etc. in the WC, 7 games against 7 different teams, different continents, different styles. you could look on qualifying as the early rounds of the playoffs. but the finals are another beast. as much as i like to defer to the "toughest group" comments, i can't help but be disappointed in the US so far. that piece of shit they laid vs. the CR was the worst game/match i've watched, and i've watched many of them. imagine the group with Argentina- firing on all cylinders-, the Netherlands, Ivory Coast and Serbia. on paper, and in play, that is a MUCH more difficult group. fact is, if you look at GF and GD, we're one of the worst teams in the tournament. no goals scored (thanks Italy, for that screw up), and only ONE SHOT ON GOAL!!!!!!! HOW THE HELL CAN WE HAVE ONLY ONE SHOT ON GOAL????????? man, i thought Tubby's Cats' shooting was futile.
well, about an hour. this is a weird game, b/c not only does it matter in sporting context, but i think it has a more substantial role concerning the overall health and popularity of the sport. if we lose to Ghana, we go down like bitches. if we win, go through, and play a good game vs. Brazil, we're seen as a player and the ball rolls forward.
oh, imagine these names: Basso, Ullrich, Landis, Leipheimer, Vinokourov, Valverde, Millar, Simoni, Garzelli, Mayo, Moreau, Mancebo, Rasmussen. need i say more?
it's a comin'!
well, about an hour. this is a weird game, b/c not only does it matter in sporting context, but i think it has a more substantial role concerning the overall health and popularity of the sport. if we lose to Ghana, we go down like bitches. if we win, go through, and play a good game vs. Brazil, we're seen as a player and the ball rolls forward.
oh, imagine these names: Basso, Ullrich, Landis, Leipheimer, Vinokourov, Valverde, Millar, Simoni, Garzelli, Mayo, Moreau, Mancebo, Rasmussen. need i say more?
it's a comin'!
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
extra
got in a few more miles tonight, running up to choir practice like last wednesday, this time tacking on an extra 7.5, mostly roaming around the neighborhood, thereby giving over 30 for the day. decided tonight that i'm going to get a new stem for the 9.2.5. too bent over. too much pressure on the hands. gonna be tricky b/c modern ahead-set stems don't exactly have much rise. gotta get some fixie miles in, though. too fun not too.
spent a good amount of early afternoon at the pool, swimming with L after his swimming lesson. he's getting close to being self-sufficient in the water. good for him. swam perhaps 300+ yds during their lesson in the 25m pool. i like that one b/c i don't feel like i'm going to drown when i get tired. swimming is something i wish i were better at. it's much more of a rhythm activity than cycling. hey, no hills to climb or coast on!
Date: June 21
Mileage: 7.5
Ride type: Barrio
Bike: 925
Temp: 84 and very muggy
June mileage: 103.5
Year to date: 703.5
spent a good amount of early afternoon at the pool, swimming with L after his swimming lesson. he's getting close to being self-sufficient in the water. good for him. swam perhaps 300+ yds during their lesson in the 25m pool. i like that one b/c i don't feel like i'm going to drown when i get tired. swimming is something i wish i were better at. it's much more of a rhythm activity than cycling. hey, no hills to climb or coast on!
Date: June 21
Mileage: 7.5
Ride type: Barrio
Bike: 925
Temp: 84 and very muggy
June mileage: 103.5
Year to date: 703.5
los Sprawls
Date: June 21
Mileage: 25
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 78 and very muggy
June mileage: 96
Year to date: 696
had the intention of going out for a 3 hour ride today. i decided to first catch an hour in the a.m. with los Sprawls, a brother duo that rides most summer mornings for an hour at 7.00. D is a lawyer, and R a "financial advisor", so they get a quickie in before going off to make lots of $$. D races a fair amount in the master category, so this jaunts are warmups for nighttime training sessions. R seems to maintain some fitness this way. they're both very nice and good conversationalists, and the pace isn't to bad. occassionally they stretch it out some, so i get a better cardio workout with them than poking around by myself.
they enjoy doing flatish routes in the urban area before everyone is too awake to be in the way. it's good that they stay on the flats, b/c otherwise i'd be very screwed.
after putting in a good hour i wandered over for some extra mileage in the park, bringing me to a total of 25. not bad. friday a.m. i'll try to do the longer mileage ride. tomorrow, of course, is USA/Ghana, so that will take my primary attention.
below are a couple pics from the country in Maysville (really closer to Mays Lick on a map). The first includes the road in front of the house, the 2nd down a valley (same field) with a better view of the distance, and as a bonus a couple nice thistles in view. as stated, it's pretty rolling. don't know if the pics reflect that.
(sic)- i've never learned what that means in newspaper parlance, but the upload didn't upload, so pics later i guess.
Mileage: 25
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 78 and very muggy
June mileage: 96
Year to date: 696
had the intention of going out for a 3 hour ride today. i decided to first catch an hour in the a.m. with los Sprawls, a brother duo that rides most summer mornings for an hour at 7.00. D is a lawyer, and R a "financial advisor", so they get a quickie in before going off to make lots of $$. D races a fair amount in the master category, so this jaunts are warmups for nighttime training sessions. R seems to maintain some fitness this way. they're both very nice and good conversationalists, and the pace isn't to bad. occassionally they stretch it out some, so i get a better cardio workout with them than poking around by myself.
they enjoy doing flatish routes in the urban area before everyone is too awake to be in the way. it's good that they stay on the flats, b/c otherwise i'd be very screwed.
after putting in a good hour i wandered over for some extra mileage in the park, bringing me to a total of 25. not bad. friday a.m. i'll try to do the longer mileage ride. tomorrow, of course, is USA/Ghana, so that will take my primary attention.
below are a couple pics from the country in Maysville (really closer to Mays Lick on a map). The first includes the road in front of the house, the 2nd down a valley (same field) with a better view of the distance, and as a bonus a couple nice thistles in view. as stated, it's pretty rolling. don't know if the pics reflect that.
(sic)- i've never learned what that means in newspaper parlance, but the upload didn't upload, so pics later i guess.
Sunday, June 18, 2006
En el Campo
Date: June 16
Mileage: 33
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 80 and sunny
June mileage: 71
Year to date: 671
after several days/weeks/months of Maysville hype, i finally got a ride out in lumpy cow country on Friday a.m. as expected, it was hard and i climbed poorly. on a physical level, i would give the ride a D+. my ass hurt most of all, for some reason. i haven't had any saddle/crotch probs of late, but i was uncomfortable the whole day. i forgot, but now remember that the extra, constant climbing makes for a sore back as well. and finally, the legs gave out on me herenthere, but less so than the butt/back combo.
while the physicality of it was 'pert-near-poor', i would give the ride an A on ambience and scenary. as expected, what you had was empty country roads, lots of farmers cutting the first big batch of hay, confused cows who seemed quite perplexed at me. i doubt these folks see many cyclists, but i was pleased, as usual, that a friendly wave went a long way to a peaceful, non-confrontational ride. i would say that in 33 miles, i had one close call, which wasn't all that close. i stand by my usual observation that i'm received very well by poor blacks and rural whites, but am constantly pestered and intimidated by soccer moms and yuppies in minivans and volvos. shitty group of people that one.
there were no great epiphanies on the ride, but i did it. i hoped for another ride Saturday, but family commitments kept me from one, which is alright. for that matter, i planned on another one day, but MORE family commitments- my mom's this time instead of my wife's- AND a good bit of rain kept me off the bike. there's always tomorrow.
Mileage: 33
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 80 and sunny
June mileage: 71
Year to date: 671
after several days/weeks/months of Maysville hype, i finally got a ride out in lumpy cow country on Friday a.m. as expected, it was hard and i climbed poorly. on a physical level, i would give the ride a D+. my ass hurt most of all, for some reason. i haven't had any saddle/crotch probs of late, but i was uncomfortable the whole day. i forgot, but now remember that the extra, constant climbing makes for a sore back as well. and finally, the legs gave out on me herenthere, but less so than the butt/back combo.
while the physicality of it was 'pert-near-poor', i would give the ride an A on ambience and scenary. as expected, what you had was empty country roads, lots of farmers cutting the first big batch of hay, confused cows who seemed quite perplexed at me. i doubt these folks see many cyclists, but i was pleased, as usual, that a friendly wave went a long way to a peaceful, non-confrontational ride. i would say that in 33 miles, i had one close call, which wasn't all that close. i stand by my usual observation that i'm received very well by poor blacks and rural whites, but am constantly pestered and intimidated by soccer moms and yuppies in minivans and volvos. shitty group of people that one.
there were no great epiphanies on the ride, but i did it. i hoped for another ride Saturday, but family commitments kept me from one, which is alright. for that matter, i planned on another one day, but MORE family commitments- my mom's this time instead of my wife's- AND a good bit of rain kept me off the bike. there's always tomorrow.
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
quickie
Date: June 14
Mileage: 5
Ride type: Errand
Bike: 925
Temp: 70 and getting dark
June mileage: 38
Year to date: 638
nothing more than a ride to church on the fixie, with an extra couple miles thrown in looking at the nice houses nearby (not where i live of course) at dusk. Maysville/country miles/interminable hills coming up!
being a Spanish teacher, did you see the Spain/Ukraine result today? What a goleada! wish we had a El Nino/Fernando Torres or a David Villa on our squad. the Spanish have had a long suffering soccer persona, on one hand having one of the most significant leagues in the World with La Liga, but never having much success with the nationals. love to have someone to root for after the Yanks bite the big dust, half empty that i am.
a good site that i've gotten cup soccer info from is worldcupblog. another is Yanks Abroad, FWIW.
Mileage: 5
Ride type: Errand
Bike: 925
Temp: 70 and getting dark
June mileage: 38
Year to date: 638
nothing more than a ride to church on the fixie, with an extra couple miles thrown in looking at the nice houses nearby (not where i live of course) at dusk. Maysville/country miles/interminable hills coming up!
being a Spanish teacher, did you see the Spain/Ukraine result today? What a goleada! wish we had a El Nino/Fernando Torres or a David Villa on our squad. the Spanish have had a long suffering soccer persona, on one hand having one of the most significant leagues in the World with La Liga, but never having much success with the nationals. love to have someone to root for after the Yanks bite the big dust, half empty that i am.
a good site that i've gotten cup soccer info from is worldcupblog. another is Yanks Abroad, FWIW.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Togo?
just finished watching most of the Korea/Togo match today. it was entertaining, especially with Togo a man down. i was constantly surprised at how many opportunties Korea creating for itself, and just as much how many Togo had with only 10 on the pitch. granted, neither of these teams is probably as good as the Czechs, but it just shows how limp, how flacid, how pathetic the Yanks' effort was yesterday. i'll watch the remaining matches, but utter failure rules the day.
there's always the Stanley Cup playoffs (just joking)
there's always the Stanley Cup playoffs (just joking)
Netscape
obviously my Netscape is going haywire. i tried repeatedly to post the most recent with city pics, but Netscape kept on locking up. i strongly prefer the layout in N, but at the moment i'm moving over to E until further notice. any suggestions?
Monday, June 12, 2006
#5 in the World!
Date: June 12
Mileage: 33
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 75, windy, sunny
May mileage:
Year to date: 633
i had a good title, or at least thought of one about 25miles into my ride today, but given the lack of miles in the legs, those last 5 miles or so become all 'uphill'. i really ran out of gas after the 2 hour mark. it had been a while since i was on the bike for an actual ride. i've been jogging some and lifting some weights, but no rides, so tired legs all round. interestingly enough, it seems that sometimes, when i haven't been on the bike, my back or butt or arms give out; today they got tired but i actually felt my legs cramping a little, on just 33 flat miles. portends a tough time this weekend in Maysville (during the wedding). endless half-mile, .75-mile steep climbs out of creek and river valleys. sometimes i can imagine that it's somewhat like Flanders. the climbs vacilate between .5 mile and 2 miles, but boy are they endless. i'll get a ride in tomorrow and Wednesday and see what happens. i know of one 30miler or so up there which goes by a buffalo/bison farm. i'm comfortable with that route and there's nothing terribly scary save one or two climbs. one prob has always been that the in-laws live on a ridge, one that you have to fall down going north or south.
today's route took me on several of our Olmstead Blvds, including Eastern Pkwy, Algonquin Pkwy, Southwestern Pkwy, and Cherokee Pkwy. Oh, and i crossed Douglass Blvd, which i've read is supposedly part of the original Olmstead Plan. i was not surprised that some of the park areas in Shawnee Pk. weren't really well taken-care of, but i've mentioned that the city wants to greatly expand the park acreage of the city. this simple Q, can they take care of it? frankly no.
the first shot if of downtown from the RiverWalk trail. to the left is a nice, new condo. then we have the nasty GaltHouse hotel monstrosity. tucked in the corner is the new Muhammed Ali Center. this next week includes the Micheal Graves-designed Humana Building and the Aegon Tower, a company my dad worked for back in the day.
and how 'bout World Cup result today. Stellar! one of the worst first-round results of the first matches. terrible. a team well-hyped and hoping to recreate the magic of '02 sent to the basement with that result. think that goal differential may matter in the future? after seeing Italy's solid win against Ghana, the true answer is "No". the US has NO chance of getting out of group, and my prediction is that they end with 1 point for a draw against Ghana. if you look at friendly scores of late, it's pretty obvious that this team can't score. Landon Donovan is touted as Mr.US Soccer, but they said today he's played something like 1200 minutes without a score, even though he's touted as mid or certainly forward. and the defense with superbeing 'Gooch'. i'm pleased as ever that a legimate athlete from the US (Nigeria) over AmericanFootball. there's no way US soccer will ever be anything of note as long as it's purely a suburban, adult-organized league format. kids don't go out and just play, and just create, and just learn the playful,elegant skills that so many of these others have. yes, they should remain better than many Asian, African and American teams based purely on resources and demographic talent, but we're not Close to the big leagues. oh well, there's always 2010 (i'm fair weather, can you tell?)
and here's the new 'Baggins Banana Bag' from Rivbike.com. good stuff, and good for some summer jaunts. maybe i'll actually use it more than just today.
Mileage: 33
Ride type: Road
Bike: Blueridge
Temp: 75, windy, sunny
May mileage:
Year to date: 633
i had a good title, or at least thought of one about 25miles into my ride today, but given the lack of miles in the legs, those last 5 miles or so become all 'uphill'. i really ran out of gas after the 2 hour mark. it had been a while since i was on the bike for an actual ride. i've been jogging some and lifting some weights, but no rides, so tired legs all round. interestingly enough, it seems that sometimes, when i haven't been on the bike, my back or butt or arms give out; today they got tired but i actually felt my legs cramping a little, on just 33 flat miles. portends a tough time this weekend in Maysville (during the wedding). endless half-mile, .75-mile steep climbs out of creek and river valleys. sometimes i can imagine that it's somewhat like Flanders. the climbs vacilate between .5 mile and 2 miles, but boy are they endless. i'll get a ride in tomorrow and Wednesday and see what happens. i know of one 30miler or so up there which goes by a buffalo/bison farm. i'm comfortable with that route and there's nothing terribly scary save one or two climbs. one prob has always been that the in-laws live on a ridge, one that you have to fall down going north or south.today's route took me on several of our Olmstead Blvds, including Eastern Pkwy, Algonquin Pkwy, Southwestern Pkwy, and Cherokee Pkwy. Oh, and i crossed Douglass Blvd, which i've read is supposedly part of the original Olmstead Plan. i was not surprised that some of the park areas in Shawnee Pk. weren't really well taken-care of, but i've mentioned that the city wants to greatly expand the park acreage of the city. this simple Q, can they take care of it? frankly no.
the first shot if of downtown from the RiverWalk trail. to the left is a nice, new condo. then we have the nasty GaltHouse hotel monstrosity. tucked in the corner is the new Muhammed Ali Center. this next week includes the Micheal Graves-designed Humana Building and the Aegon Tower, a company my dad worked for back in the day.
and how 'bout World Cup result today. Stellar! one of the worst first-round results of the first matches. terrible. a team well-hyped and hoping to recreate the magic of '02 sent to the basement with that result. think that goal differential may matter in the future? after seeing Italy's solid win against Ghana, the true answer is "No". the US has NO chance of getting out of group, and my prediction is that they end with 1 point for a draw against Ghana. if you look at friendly scores of late, it's pretty obvious that this team can't score. Landon Donovan is touted as Mr.US Soccer, but they said today he's played something like 1200 minutes without a score, even though he's touted as mid or certainly forward. and the defense with superbeing 'Gooch'. i'm pleased as ever that a legimate athlete from the US (Nigeria) over AmericanFootball. there's no way US soccer will ever be anything of note as long as it's purely a suburban, adult-organized league format. kids don't go out and just play, and just create, and just learn the playful,elegant skills that so many of these others have. yes, they should remain better than many Asian, African and American teams based purely on resources and demographic talent, but we're not Close to the big leagues. oh well, there's always 2010 (i'm fair weather, can you tell?)
and here's the new 'Baggins Banana Bag' from Rivbike.com. good stuff, and good for some summer jaunts. maybe i'll actually use it more than just today.
Saturday, June 10, 2006
thug
no, there isn't any info at the top of the page abt mileage. no, i haven't done any mileage. BUT
i prepared a great meal tonight. whole wheat and spinach linguini. basic marinara and red pepper sauce. italian bread with "olive oil infused with rosemary and oregano". mild italian sausage. 1998 Bran Caia. great meal. the pasta was a little too salty. i felt bad about that, but the rest was quite good. oh, and most of it bought locally. was it prepared locally? no. was it devoid of Industrial Corn? probably no. or maybe yes. don't know. tomorrow i'll watch some World Cup and actually take a ride. and on that ride i'll think about HOW to shape an ethical and appropriate existence.
last night, Saturday, we took in a VERY good show at the old, crappy phoenix hill of Scott Miller. we first ran across Scott as the head of the V-Roys , an absolutely great rocknroll band from Knoxville, TN. we enjoyed very much their brand of southern, beatleesque rock. they broke up many years hence, but last night Scott hit all the bases, a little trad country, a little new country, alot of straightup rock, some nasty blues. it is/was evident that he LIKES music and enjoys playing it. "Are ya' with me?" a great straightforward rock show, without pretensions, prestented by a guy who likes music. i've seen lots of shows, and can't at the moment categorize them ,but this was a VERY good show. if he comes your way, please go!
i prepared a great meal tonight. whole wheat and spinach linguini. basic marinara and red pepper sauce. italian bread with "olive oil infused with rosemary and oregano". mild italian sausage. 1998 Bran Caia. great meal. the pasta was a little too salty. i felt bad about that, but the rest was quite good. oh, and most of it bought locally. was it prepared locally? no. was it devoid of Industrial Corn? probably no. or maybe yes. don't know. tomorrow i'll watch some World Cup and actually take a ride. and on that ride i'll think about HOW to shape an ethical and appropriate existence.
last night, Saturday, we took in a VERY good show at the old, crappy phoenix hill of Scott Miller. we first ran across Scott as the head of the V-Roys , an absolutely great rocknroll band from Knoxville, TN. we enjoyed very much their brand of southern, beatleesque rock. they broke up many years hence, but last night Scott hit all the bases, a little trad country, a little new country, alot of straightup rock, some nasty blues. it is/was evident that he LIKES music and enjoys playing it. "Are ya' with me?" a great straightforward rock show, without pretensions, prestented by a guy who likes music. i've seen lots of shows, and can't at the moment categorize them ,but this was a VERY good show. if he comes your way, please go!
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Slow Food
i read more of The Omnivore's Dilema this evening, and it made me think of my time in Mexico last summer. the first "Third" discussed at length the impact of industrialized corn on our industrialized and commodified (my word) future network. every type of food product has remnants of corn in it, especially corn syrup, but also many different preservatives, thickeners and the like. the entire web of monoculture corn production has, in the perspective of the author, bastardized our relation to land, to food, and to nutrition.
i just finished the second "Third", which presented an indepth look at a polycultural farm in Va. i can't call it an 'organic' farm b/c the farmer strongly dissents at that label. he sees the growth of mordern Organic- most recently characterized or discussed in a NYTimes magazine article about Wal-Mart- as having given in to the industrialized machine that synthetic food moved to long ago. this section, though, brought me to think of Mexico, and some of my experiences there. the picture below captures a local market very close to my house that took place i think Tuesday and Saturday. local market with local products sold to local citizens. there is a 'Farmer's Market' about 2 miles from our house, not on this scale, but certainly capturing a similar vibe. and perhaps a similar vibe to that presented in the book. that food should be local, should be clean, should be free from chemicals and carcinogins, should be fresh, should provide a good living for a local resident instead of an exec at AMD. after reading this book- and you ALL should do so- i'll guarantee you that i'll be visiting the local market on Saturday mornings.
i HAVE to believe that there are people out there, bike commuters out there, who see our system as more than pod life, more than being a Number, as more than the bottom line and merely a widget in the machine. i do lots of gardening, but only perennials, shrubs, flowers. my mamaw and papaw raised a humongous garden every summer, canning 120 quarts of beans, untold tomatoes, and who knows what other kinds of veggies. they grew out of a rural, poor existence where growing your own food from seed was a hell of a lot more work, but a hell of a lot cheaper. the older i get, i have the inclination that, as the book says, we all would be better "Opting Out" in certain ways. for me, that is first using the bike instead of the car. and secondly participating in Slow Food, Local Food, instead of eating partially hydroginated garbage that came from lands afar but preserved with nasty ass chemicals.
consider it.
i just finished the second "Third", which presented an indepth look at a polycultural farm in Va. i can't call it an 'organic' farm b/c the farmer strongly dissents at that label. he sees the growth of mordern Organic- most recently characterized or discussed in a NYTimes magazine article about Wal-Mart- as having given in to the industrialized machine that synthetic food moved to long ago. this section, though, brought me to think of Mexico, and some of my experiences there. the picture below captures a local market very close to my house that took place i think Tuesday and Saturday. local market with local products sold to local citizens. there is a 'Farmer's Market' about 2 miles from our house, not on this scale, but certainly capturing a similar vibe. and perhaps a similar vibe to that presented in the book. that food should be local, should be clean, should be free from chemicals and carcinogins, should be fresh, should provide a good living for a local resident instead of an exec at AMD. after reading this book- and you ALL should do so- i'll guarantee you that i'll be visiting the local market on Saturday mornings.
i HAVE to believe that there are people out there, bike commuters out there, who see our system as more than pod life, more than being a Number, as more than the bottom line and merely a widget in the machine. i do lots of gardening, but only perennials, shrubs, flowers. my mamaw and papaw raised a humongous garden every summer, canning 120 quarts of beans, untold tomatoes, and who knows what other kinds of veggies. they grew out of a rural, poor existence where growing your own food from seed was a hell of a lot more work, but a hell of a lot cheaper. the older i get, i have the inclination that, as the book says, we all would be better "Opting Out" in certain ways. for me, that is first using the bike instead of the car. and secondly participating in Slow Food, Local Food, instead of eating partially hydroginated garbage that came from lands afar but preserved with nasty ass chemicals.
consider it.
La Copa Mundial y Roland Garros
you may notice that i have nary an entry of bike mileage of recent. why? the answers are quite myriad. first may be that the pinche French Open is on every a.m. when i get up, and continues through the well past lunch. i've complained abt tennis alot this spring. por otro lado i like to watch it. i like 'Rafa'. i like Roger. i like Vaidisova beating the complete shit out of the ball. i've watched alot and i'll watch more now that mens' semis are tomorrow, and the finals this weekend. mornings are a good time to ride, and so far i've used my mornings to watch pinche tennis.
we also had a nice Detroit weekend in there, watching the Tigers lose with 2 outs in the top of the 9th to the Bosox. terrible. Todd Jones terrible. pinche Pistons lost too. if they had pushed it to game 7, Z and i would've gone, but alas it was not to be.
i HAVE worked out some, going to the gym a couple times and taking a couple jogs. this has positive effects on my overall health, but puts absolutely NO mileage in the legs. we'll get there.
Except now the Copa starts tomorrow. lots and lots and lots of soccer "matches" (right?) on ESPN2. i'm as "American" as they come with respects to sports. i grew up following the Big Red Machine, and grew to appreciate the St. Louis Cardinals in my time there. Oh, and i have LOTS of baseball cards. and i've always been a fan of "America's Team", the Cowboys, given that i lived there a brief spell too. and don't forget basketball, especially the KY Wildcats. how can you not root for a team that's been so successful while representing one of the poorest populations in the country? UNC? brie and wine? Duke, ivy walls and rapist lacrosse players (not really a fair comment there).
BUT i've grown the gave an appreciation for 'Football', especially since i long ago dipped my toe into that other Euro spectacle that is professional cycling. Lemond, Hinault, Merckx, Indurain, Boonen, Museuw, oh yeah, and Armstrong. love the ciclismo and starting to like 'futbol' as well. don't know if the Yanks can get out of group. Italy, Czechs and Ghana all pose difficult challenges, especially with the first two. I can see 3 and done. but they've surprised and impressed before. Italy is all a flutter with scandal. the Czechs are dealing with injuries and Ghana isn't too great. Let's hope.
and lastly i've been reading a GREAT book,The Omnivore's Dilema by Micheal Pollard. it's an extension of Fast Food Nation, except this time taking into account the origin of the "foods"- read components- before being processed by Mickey D's. frankly, as disturbing as FFN was, this is much more so, because the impact of Industrial Food is so much greater than the choice of visiting just 1 restaurant. the premise is that we have a food economy based on just two 'crops', Corn, and to a lesser extent Soybeans. the book effectively delineates just how these crops impact everything we eat, though to our strong detriment. furthermore, he does a pretty damn good job tearing down 'Organic', or at least modern 'Organic' as opposed to the older hippie Whole Food notion. the image that comes to my mind at this instant is Soylent Green, for those of who who've seen that movie.
if the adage "You are what you eat" has an validity, then we're all corn, chemicals, and cancer. i think a few folks who read this blog are also bike commuters, so in turn are folks already predisposed to thinking 'outside' the mainstream box. this book will make you want to think even more outside that box about your culinary decisions at least.
!Forza America!
we also had a nice Detroit weekend in there, watching the Tigers lose with 2 outs in the top of the 9th to the Bosox. terrible. Todd Jones terrible. pinche Pistons lost too. if they had pushed it to game 7, Z and i would've gone, but alas it was not to be.
i HAVE worked out some, going to the gym a couple times and taking a couple jogs. this has positive effects on my overall health, but puts absolutely NO mileage in the legs. we'll get there.
Except now the Copa starts tomorrow. lots and lots and lots of soccer "matches" (right?) on ESPN2. i'm as "American" as they come with respects to sports. i grew up following the Big Red Machine, and grew to appreciate the St. Louis Cardinals in my time there. Oh, and i have LOTS of baseball cards. and i've always been a fan of "America's Team", the Cowboys, given that i lived there a brief spell too. and don't forget basketball, especially the KY Wildcats. how can you not root for a team that's been so successful while representing one of the poorest populations in the country? UNC? brie and wine? Duke, ivy walls and rapist lacrosse players (not really a fair comment there).
BUT i've grown the gave an appreciation for 'Football', especially since i long ago dipped my toe into that other Euro spectacle that is professional cycling. Lemond, Hinault, Merckx, Indurain, Boonen, Museuw, oh yeah, and Armstrong. love the ciclismo and starting to like 'futbol' as well. don't know if the Yanks can get out of group. Italy, Czechs and Ghana all pose difficult challenges, especially with the first two. I can see 3 and done. but they've surprised and impressed before. Italy is all a flutter with scandal. the Czechs are dealing with injuries and Ghana isn't too great. Let's hope.
and lastly i've been reading a GREAT book,The Omnivore's Dilema by Micheal Pollard. it's an extension of Fast Food Nation, except this time taking into account the origin of the "foods"- read components- before being processed by Mickey D's. frankly, as disturbing as FFN was, this is much more so, because the impact of Industrial Food is so much greater than the choice of visiting just 1 restaurant. the premise is that we have a food economy based on just two 'crops', Corn, and to a lesser extent Soybeans. the book effectively delineates just how these crops impact everything we eat, though to our strong detriment. furthermore, he does a pretty damn good job tearing down 'Organic', or at least modern 'Organic' as opposed to the older hippie Whole Food notion. the image that comes to my mind at this instant is Soylent Green, for those of who who've seen that movie.
if the adage "You are what you eat" has an validity, then we're all corn, chemicals, and cancer. i think a few folks who read this blog are also bike commuters, so in turn are folks already predisposed to thinking 'outside' the mainstream box. this book will make you want to think even more outside that box about your culinary decisions at least.
!Forza America!
Friday, June 02, 2006
I Can't Feel my Arms
damn, not sure exactly what did it, the wednesday lifting, the wednesday extra tennis, the thursday tennis, or the thursday construction and turning of new compost pile (to add to other bulk one), but i really can't feel my arms, or to be more precise, the front of my shoulders. the arms themselves aren't too bad, but they must rotate via the shoulder, so i can't move my arms. really.
didn't ride yesterday, but played some tennis and did some heavy yardwork. Z and i fly to Detroit Rock City today. was gonna maybe ride this a.m. but...i can't move my arms and it's raining like hell.
when we get back from Detroit i have a little less than two weeks to get mileage in before going to Maysville for the wedding.
can't seem to get a good night sleep. haven't felt rested for something like two weeks. too hot. too cold. gotta piss. can't feel my arms. ???? sort of feel like shit actually.
didn't ride yesterday, but played some tennis and did some heavy yardwork. Z and i fly to Detroit Rock City today. was gonna maybe ride this a.m. but...i can't move my arms and it's raining like hell.
when we get back from Detroit i have a little less than two weeks to get mileage in before going to Maysville for the wedding.
can't seem to get a good night sleep. haven't felt rested for something like two weeks. too hot. too cold. gotta piss. can't feel my arms. ???? sort of feel like shit actually.
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