G.A.D.S.V.

Date: Sept 29
Mileage: 16
Ride type: Commute
Bike: 9.2.5. fixie
Temp: 45a.m./66p.m.
September mileage: 319
Year to date: 1582

doesn't have the same ring in Spanish as in the English- TGIF! Gracias a Dios Sea Viernes. got on the fixie as planned and had a very pleasant fixie time. very casual and compotent. nothing too unsuspecting abt today. rode to work. after work, rode to bar (3rd time this week!?!) and then rode home. no calamities. nothing but pleasant temps and easy fixie pedaling. tomorrow is 'Z''s bday party from 2-6. then prob supper with my Dad- who's in from Detroit- and the a movie maybe. sunday is actually 'Z''s bday, and there's also the first 'cross race of the year locally. i'm still trying to work up the courage to ask the good wife how to work that one- to bail on church on "music Sunday", and to be gone for part of bday afternoon. the first 'cross race!!

Cuz

i had completely written a much-more entertaining blog about my reasons for not riding today, but a PDF locked up the computer and i never saved it. so, a synopsis:

drank 4 pitchers with 24 year-old cousin 'A'
this morning felt like crap
didn't ride
"Douglas Loop" an interesting place
Car companies evil
family full of Southern Baptists unfortunately
tomorrow, will ride fixie

goodnight...

fixiesII

Sascha at FirstandLastandAlways has an interesting post about fixie riding. it's calling for rain tomorrow hereand given my pussyout (NOT elegant language there)last Monday, Pete and Doug's exhortations have guilted me into being a man if it does. and if it does, i'm on the fixie.

Cycling Tribes

Date: Sept 27
Mileage: 24
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 58.m./80p.m.
September mileage: 303
Year to date: 1566

yesterday i meant to discuss various cycling tribes, but was distracted by Jim's post about environmental religion. today, though, my mind is refocused on the disparities amongsts the various "tribes" that ride bikes. back in my early 20's, i just assumed everyone who rode bikes was somehow banded together in a commune cause of unity. little did i know that i was nothing more than an oblivious youth. i don't really know about other places, but in Louisville we have a couple distinct cycling tribes. the most prevelent is, of course, the lycra crowd. i've been giving this posse more and more grief of late, some i'm sure undeserved. por otro lado, they're a pretty difficult group is some ways. while cycling can be viewed as utilitarian and even "eco-friendly", the lycra crowd is often the antithesis of that. they seem to relish driving SUVs. they seem to be somewhat Socially (or athletically) Darwinistic, which reeks of Republican elitism, of which many are members. they seem to ride their bikes much like they drive their Lexus'. don't know. i'm probably stupid and wrong. they just don't wave very much.

the next tribe in Louisville, i guess, shit, i don't know if there IS a 2nd tribe. oh, i have it. it's the 22 yr-old hipster fixed-gear set that roams up and down Bardstown Rd. riding on sidewalks and accessorizing with chains and funny hats and such. they look like they're having more fun than the lycra set, but they may not be doing the best work for bike-rights given that they break the law 10x/mile. i'm too old for this group, but if i were 19 again, i think i would have to try.

there is a small third tribe in the 'Ville, one that mostly (seemingly) rides Mt.bikes and drinks beer at Cumberland brews. again, that would prob be a fun group, although so of the mtbikers i've been around in the past seem to have just gotten a tattoo after they sold their latest Camaro...or Jeep.

i'm sure there is a racer set too. i never race and henceforth am never around this tribe. i used to race cyclocross a bit, and when i sort of drifted off of that, the racer set was coming in to 'cross. 'Cross sure is fun, so i can stand some racers as long as they let me have fun in the C race. BUT i think a good-sized group of TypeA jerks that inhabit the very first lycra tribe are the oneandthesamehere.

and finally you have all the leftovers. the only reason i started thinking of this was that yesterday i ran across 'lance's' fixed-gear friend that i had met/seen perhaps a month ago. he was the one on the KHS fixie. yesterday he almost caught me on a hill. he turned towards Frankfort ave., and i later ran in behind him again. don't know if he noticed me, but he started moving at a 21-22mph clip on his fixie. i felt comfortable for a while, but eventually gave up the ghost. afterwards, i though to myself "where does he belong?". he on a fixie, but he's probably 50 yrsold. and where does the lady i saw today fit? she was perhaps 50 again, riding a LBS Rans with her backpack attached, doing the commuting thing. is she part of the 'Bent set? really, i should include the Louisville-area 'Bent crowd in there. they have their own listserve, and i think are pretty active. don't seem them often, but they're prob a "tribe" too.

where do all the black guys and mexican guys belong? do you call them cyclists? or do they just ride their bike to work while the lycra crowd drives the SUV home to put the bike in the back?

where does 'lance' fit? i think he actually is more of a kayaker who rides his bike than vice versa. BUT he rides his bike more miles than i do in a given year, given that i lose March/April/May. and 'sheryl'. she's no cyclist really, but she does ride that bike.

(cheap ass pic of a tribe. lame!)

i don't think any of it matters, but again i think that cyclists are varied in their ways and still do not present any kind of unified front in the political process. the evagelical christians sure as hell do. guess, though, they all commonly want gays burned alive and creationism as the national scientific curriculum.

wonderful day of riding today. warm. sunny. breezy in a good way. got good mileage after school good. good. good.

"Ooo that Smell!"

Date: Sept 26
Mileage: 19
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 53.m./75p.m.
September mileage: 279
Year to date: 1542

the city is digging out from the minor flooding from Friday night. i say "minor" in that our basement, Gracias a Dios, wasn't damaged, but there is many a trash pile on many city streets. the combo of trash piles and funky-smelling water in the various creeks- mainly branches of Beargrass Creek sewage and water runoff- make for a somewhat nasty-smelling city. mind you, i sure it's not as bad as, say, New Orleans, but it's somewhat funky for bike commuting purposes.

the temps are great though. mid-70s and sunny for the afternoons. i'm really liking the sandals, and the weather to boot. my legs are a little tired after 3 days of solid riding. i would like to finish Sept. w/ a bang, mostly b/c i haven't done the mileage rides that i did last fall.

Long Day

Date: Sept 25
Mileage: 31
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 70 and blue sky!!(again!)
September mileage: 260
Year to date: 1523

finally a long day on the commute. headed west towards Shawnee Pk., leaving out portions of the Riverwalk b/c of potential flooding. continued towards Frankfort Ave, up that and across Seneca and home. my legs were a little tired from yesterday, but i tried to keep a steady tempo. there was a pretty stiff wind coming from the west, so that got me in the early miles, but i had it easy for the long sweep up the river. 2 sartorial notes. #1 i used the clipped Lakes today. likes them alot. it's a wierd temp combo for them right now, as the upper60s can be a bit chilly on bare toes. #2 is much better. i wore the Phloyd tshirt i bough back in July. it's far enough away, and heck, it's just a shirt. Go Phloyd!! maybe he'll get off (with 10x above the legal limit, it's doubtful.)

Multi-mediums

Date: Sept 24
Mileage: 24
Ride type: Road(ish)
Bike: Surly Crosscheck
Temp: 70 and blue sky!
September mileage: 229
Year to date: 1492

not sure the title is exactly grammatically correct, but it's intended to symbolize the variety of my ride today. (i have a sneaking suspicion it's "multimedia", but i didn't really want to confuse it with the electronic type).

i tinkered around in the a.m. doing some bike-related stuff- fixing a flat on the CrossCheck, reinstalling some bike hooks in the garage, and uninstalling the SPD cleats from the old Nike Yubas (i think that's the name, and someone else on the web did too) and moving them to the new Lake Sandals. after all this, i felt rather compelled to put the $$ where the mouth is and get a ride in. b/c i had fixed up the CrossCheck, i realized that would be the weapon of choice for the day. i got less than 25yds down the street to realize that i hadn't properly seated the freshly-fixed wheels- kuthump, kuthump...a quick fix and off i went.

i had no illusions of training- note the strain of repeated reps and bulging quads. i instead went for a ride, in true Rivbike style without cycling shorts but rather with a pair of nylon Gramicci shorts and a tshirt. i did break one Rivbike law- and it's one i'll break often- in that i wore some old Shimano mtbike shoes with cleats for the Time-pedaled Surly. the surly crosscheck is still set up from my increasingly-distant cyclocross days, in that it's quite stripped-down, its only acoutrement being a cheap computer and mud-shedding Time ATACs. otherwise, no bottleholder, no bag, no doo-dads, no nothin'. i run with 30C Panaracer tandem tires on the road, they being left over from what came on the Litespeed Blueridge oh so long ago. perhaps next year i'm going to suit up something new for road purposes b/c the tandemtires are cracking.

i spent the first good part of the ride going through the park amidst the flood damage. really there wasn't too much of it. i did have to traverse a slimy short section, the kind that can call for a quick fall on road tires. later i goofed through a local neighborhood, Cherokee Triangle, and later took a peek at rhe grounds of Louisville's prestigious Collegiate School. my how the rich flutter in different, rarified air. i'm trying to imagine how any of those kids function in a greater society; i guess they don't. they just go from blue-blood k12 to blue-blood undergrad to blue-blood positions. or not. being a public school teacher, my views are too leftist regarding education to respect some of what is handed to those kiddies. the proverbial silver spoon has, does, and will always exist, but not in the mouth of (most of) my family members. it just irks me b/c those types are in control of this country right now. LOW TAXES!! SUV TAX-BREAKS!!! BY THE BOOT STRAPS (even though daddy set me up)!!! EDUCATION DOESN'T PAY; CONNECTIONS DO!!! GRRRR!

anyway, i then turned myself towards the river front, if nothing better than to avoid hills. this led me to a short stint on River Rd. at a good 18mph clip. the ride, and aforementioned 'medium' changed again with a stint goofing on the old RiverRoadCountryClub land, which is now in the City's possession awaiting the next possibilities. it's fascinating- maybe i said this previously- to see a golf course from just last year turn wild within just 1 year. if it weren't mowed/bushhogged, it would be forest or meadow in now time. i had previously visited this area at a crosscountry race not too long ago. the latest shows the influence of the 'cross crew out doing their training there, i think, once a week, with their little tire paths cutting through the grasses and up onto what used to be greens and tee boxes. i stayed on the cart paths for a bit and couldn't resist a few turns on the paths. they seem to be using the contours well for some run-ups and sand crossings. it was all a little soggy, but it certainly piqued my interest in doing some "real" crossing there in the days/months to come. i might just have to put on the 'cross tires on the Surly and get into it, albeit not with the decidedly more-fit 'cross crew.

the next segue took me along the Cox's park multi-path where i ended up crossing some water that perhaps a half a foot deep in one spot. another medium, water hazard crossing. that put me into Indian Hills, which is a fav spot in the area. i took a different, more scenic route up the river escarpment, one with a very challenging hill- nothing long but quite steep at the top. the route home proved somewhat uneventful travelling through Seneca- oh, i had to detour through the grass b/c of a downed tree in Cherokee.

the whole ride was a bit less than 2 hours. it proved perfect for the Crosscheck, and perfect for my present taste in riding. Riding, that is, instead of training. i pass the lycra crowd these days, and hope they stop to smell flowers, look at clouds, take detours, explore unknown neighborhoods or streets or roads or paths, and generally use their bike as something more than a training machine. i know some do, and that i'm misleadingly arrogant about being one who does when they don't. but unfortunately i've read too much Rivbike and other blogs to have too much respect for that clique. they tend strongly to be the ones riding 3 and 4 abreast and pissing motorists off. and they tend to be ones who contribute nothing in the dialogue of street use and bike facilities. often, they're the ones driving the SUVs in their non-bike time, melding in with the soccers moms who are on the cellphone, yelling a the kids, and menacing cyclists in their spare time. what am i saying? i drive a truck. so shut the hell up!!

great day on wheels though. great day!

while sitting around wallowing in my guilt for pussying out Friday, i came across this interesting link, Gobybicycle.com. it's a list of 15 reasons to ride:

Why go by bicycle? 15 good reasons.....

1. Remember when you first learned to ride a bike?

2. the most efficient form of transportation ever invented.

3. Half of all transit in the United States is six miles or less round trip

4. If you see someone you know while riding, it's easy to stop and say hello- cant' do that in a car (i take some issue with this one in that so many lycracyclist act like assmonkeys).

5. The occasional bicycle bell is nothing compared to the constant cacophony of car traffic.

6. There are no parking problems for bicyclists.

7. A good new bicycle can cost as low as $250. No dmv, no insurance, no gas, very little maintenance. (This one is specious b/c the only folks i know who don't spend money on bikes are ones who don't have any money.)

8. In addition to weight loss, bicycling reduces the risk of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and high blood pressure.

9. If you stand in a closed garage with a running car, you will die in a matter of minutes.

10. Terrorist organizations use our gas money.

11. In 2001, more than 3,000 Americans died of terrorism on our own home soil. In 2001, more than 43,000 Americans died in car crashes on our own home soil, and about 2,200,000 suffered disabling injuries. The American death toll of the Vietnam War, which lasted several years, is about 50,000.

12. States, counties and cities spend billions of dollars fixing roads that cars damage. (what about the gas taxes we pay to do exactly this?)

13. Experts estimate that easily accessible oil (in other words, cheap oil) will run out around the year 2010.(Jim's Peak Oil)

14. The car and oil industries spend billions of dollars each year to promote a benign image of driving, but the function of all this is to assure profits and manipulate consumers, and nothing more.

15. Staying closer to home to shop and do errands builds communication among residents, which promotes autonomy.

So try it. Go by bicycle.

i could've just left the link, but i really like the list. i made some alterations, deleting explanations when the basic bullet works just fine. i also commented herenthere (in italics). not trying to be difficult per se, but critical in an analytical way. i'm highly cynical though. i cannot envision the great majority of Americans getting out of their cars and on the bike or even on the sidewalk. it would take economic calamity wherein they couldn't afford to drive, much like in so many other places. we'll see when the Chinese and the rest of Asia wants even more oil. we'll see.

Rain...lots of it

little did i know that a Friday night bottle of wine would be the salve to heal the visceral wound that is nature. man, that last sentence of full of @#*& but somewhat rings true though. i posted quite early friday a.m. about riding amidst the rain. both pete and doug stated most plainly "ride", but alas i didn't. i will next time, though. it ended up working out alright b/c the good wife got caught up at work and i ended up picking the boys up from school.

the wine came in a little later. the good wife's bookstore, Carmichael's, was hosting children's author Mo Willems, he being most famous for writing for "Sesame Street" and "Codename: Kids Next Door". i support my children's reading and education, but this was definitely more of a gig from my wife's side of the cerebral sphere. henceforth, i snuck out and right down the sidewalk to check out what was happening in The Wine Rack. bought a couple bottles under $10.00, finished the gig, went home, drank 1 bottle, and went beddy-bye to sleep. it fortunately did the sleeplikealog trick, b/c unbeknownst to me, Louisville was significantly deluged last night, to the tune of more than 8" in the area. there was certainly evidence of some serious rain, but i was surprised to find that it was the most substantial single event since the '97 mini-flood that did in the basement. we somehow survived, but numerous people have died through KY over the last couple of days due to high water. we got more rain today, bringing us to over 10" for the 2day period. shit, apparently I-64 was closed down towards town b/c of high water. scarily enough, this is the exact location of the Beargrass Bike Trail is. the water would have to be 7-9feet high above the normal creek level to put it over the interstate. mierda!



This is looking at an intersection i'm always coming through, turning right from the side road (unseen in the water). This brings you to the heart of the flat portion of Cherokee Park, which of course follows the Creek.


Here is a Real cyclist doing his turns in the park, "come hell or highwater!"




I admire his moxie, but Beargrass Creek is now nothing more than a drainage ditch, and when high water comes, a de facto sewer allowing effluent released on its way to the Ohio. Hopefully he has a mouth plug along with the noseplug he's wearing.

didn't ride today. walked up the the coffee shop and back with the boys, but don't think the 2mile walked worked off the ice cream we had this evening. if we're not floating down the Ohio tomorrow, maybe we'll give it a spin.

World Car-Free Rainstorm Day

it's 5.40 and i'm checking on weather. it's the vaunted "Car-Free Day" and i'm supposed to meet 'mick' at the park in 50min. instead i look at this radar image and see that i'm nestled right to the east of this huge, nasty clump o' wet. makes it hard to get enthused...i'm doubting myself as i write. the prob is that i don't mind being wet, but i don't have the facilities as work to dry my clothes out. hence an even more miserable ride this afternoon. and the clump looks like it will Pour on me/us right about the time the commute really gets going.

what to do?

"Bikes on Board"

Date: Sept 21
Mileage: 10
Ride type: Commute
Bike: 925 fixie
Temp: 43.m./69p.m.
September mileage: 205
Year to date: 1468

give the number of mundane commutes that take place, i was glad to step out a bit and try something new today. the family schedule made it that i needed to pick the boys up. not wanting to give us at least part of a commute, i planned to do an afternoon Bike-n-Board with the boys right after school. TARC has bike racks on all their buses now. you just flip it down, thrown the bike on, and raise the tire guard. pretty easy. the boys get out of school at 2.40, i at 2.20. i rode the fixie down to their school, maybe a 2m ride. usually i'm bedecked in at least semi-cycling clothes. in the a.m., i had standard fare on, but i the p.m. i rode their in my work clothes, khakis and a button shirt. the one concession i made in the p.m. was to wear the Lake sandals, which are still cleatless.
(crappy pic not me. it might be the husband of a co-worker.)

after collecting them, we only had to walk 1/2 block to meet the 21 Chesnut bus. we waited maybe 12-15 minutes at the most and it came on time (something that's always to be seen with TARCs. timeliness is a serious disadvantage for the underclass who depends on public transpo). i had had some free ride cards from a previous schoolyear, but they were no good. still it cost 25cents per boy and 50cents for me- or $1.00, no i don't remember. at the most we paid $1.50 for the three of us, and settled down for a 30min trip. that, of course, is the irony of the bus trip. it took us almost exactly 30min, and if i'd left from there on the bike it would've taken exactly the same time. boys in tow though, it let us off right at the end of our street. a perfect schedule.

i often rode the 4Fourth Street bus backintheday when i work at a restaurant downtown. it would pick me up at 3.15 or so, and i would certainly have plenty of time there to check in by 4.00, with both stops less than 50yds from the door. it's really the only way a "normal" person is going to take the bus in Louisville. If i had to ride the bus to my own place of work, it would involve a transfer, and would set me back probably 45minutes. for that I can do almost 10 miles in the a.m. it did hearten me that it's something the boys can pull off in a few years when they're older (their school, J.Graham Brown School, has an "urban" mission. it's the only K-12 in the public system, and is the only that does not provide bus service). the good wife, and rarely I, provide taxi service. as they get older, i seem to have to do less taxiing myself. but more commuting.

the Lakes did nicely today. it was 43 a.m., so i rode with an undersock and 1 pair of heavy wools. i would say it was close to ideal. they were quite comfortable riding on the clipless-cleatless flat pedals of the fixie. i will prob put cleats on them soon to mate with all the rest of the bikes, on which i have some form of SPD. i know it's not "Riv style", but i likes clips.

and tomorrow is "World Car-Free Day". i'm set to riding with a new guy, let's call him 'Mick' b/c he's a former rocknroller. there's a chance he's a separated 40something year old who's dating a 20 yrold former student. not too sure about that. we're meeting at Big Rock in Cherokee Park and then in. he does some club miles, but has never come into school that way, so it will be a first for him. the call is for 50% rain, so let's cross fingers and toes. it's a payday, so the afterwork crowd is going back out. we'll see about that as well.

de exploracion (+Lakes)

Date: Sept 20
Mileage: 22
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 62 chilly
September mileage: 195
Year to date: 1458

funky kinda ride today. this a.m. i had trouble getting up, so i had to do the shortest 6m instead of stretching it out.

this p.m., the good wife told me should would be fighting with Z over homework, and that i didn't really need to get home right away. also, i'm going to be picking the boys up tomorrow so i had to get my miles in today. so a little afternoon exploration. i probably have mild ADD, so sometimes i have to get "off the hamster wheel" and seek out new routes. today, without being too terribly adventurous, that put me on 7th street running into downtown, and then continuing down Roy Wilkens Blvd. that was sort of a fun portion. traffic was quite backed up along three lanes. i split the difference between lanes 1 and 2 and skipped lots of traffic. i'm sure they're getting home (RWBlvd feeds onto Int.64 partly) still bitching about that damn biker cruising through traffic. from there i ended up moreorless on River Road and then to Frankfort, across Mellwood, up Brownsboro all the way to Pennsylvania (actually the home of 'lance', though we didn't ride together), across Frankfort and over to Seneca Pk and then home. it was an incredibly circuitous route. the computer showed 15.5m, but it took me practically 1:20, which is sort of ridiculous. fun though. in a way i'm a bit dissatisfied, b/c i realized that one must go in a seriously different direction to compile major miles, instead of the minor ones today. factoids include:

• the neighborhood of Clifton must come from Clifftown. Brownsboro Rd. runs through a little cleft, a little valley from downtown eastward towards, duh, Brownsboro (which is abt 25m away). now this neighborhood clings to both sides of this valley, with an interesting mixture of nice, semi-nice, junk, and practically crackhouse apts.
• Hillcrest Ave., coming from downtown, is in fact the crest of the hill. duh!
• saw a lady commuter riding home (never know, maybe to work) wearing a full-length yellow raincoat. wouldn't be my choice, but if it floats her boat.
• first morning- and afternoon- where actually cool-weather gear needed. in the a.m. 55 or so, so liteweight tights and long-fingered gloves. almost could've used earwarmers. this weekend i'm going to have to compile that kind of stuff so it's readily available. i don't know abt my hundreds of readers, but i'm really proficient at losing 1 glove, 1 armwarmer, the extra earband, etc.
• i'm befuddled how my ability to change postions on the 'Stache bars varies so much daytoday. some days i'm stiff and can barely ride the long, outwards flats, today i rode quite comfortably in the bends as forward as possible for long periods. life is inconsistent, isn't it? at least for me.
• i'm thinking tomorrow, when i have to pick up the boys, of riding TO school, and then riding down to their school to pick them up. i can then hop the TARC and go home using the bike rack. this is a kind of urban multi-riding of which i'm not accustomed. dare i? certainly there are multiple chances at chaos.
  

received the Lake sandals today. i'm in a quandry, a good quandry, abt them. i ordered the 45/46 size. in a regular shoe, i wear a 9.5wide, which would better put me in the 43/44. really, i wasn't sure which to buy, b/c one of the reasons for the purchase was the notion of winter riding and winter socks, hence the extra space with the 45/46. i have a feeling though, that they'll be to big- with a fair amount of foot slop- for non-sock riding. i know some of my thousands of readers have commented on the Lakes, so i would appreciate some input, if you have any, about this perplexion.

it's a good one to have. new cycling shoes, what could be bad about that?

los olores II

yesterday's title was a harbinger of things to come in the household today. firstly, i woke up again at something like 4.45. don't know if it's the body clock, the system, the coffee, the beer, the diet the something, but i haven't been sleeping well and it's wearing on me. i had MORE than enough time to ride to work, but my stomach was bothering me and i felt like crap, so i drove, running an errand along the way. no ride. boo hoo.

this afternoon i had to finally take action against the kitchen. we've had this funky, musty, nasty smell coming from it for days. the good wife has been pouring all kinds of bleach et. al. into the sink, since the smell was centralized there. with some info from 'lance' and some guidance from neighbor Eric i first tackled the dishwasher. i had entertained thoughts of taking the damn thing out, but apparently- according to Eric- i was able to take off the bottom panel and see quite a bit. no water damage there creating brain-eating mold.

i next tackled the sink trap. Eric has maintained through this that disposals (sp?) get REALLY nasty through the years, and that was/is the villian. 'lance' also told me that taking the trap off a sink drain is pretty easy, so that's the route i took. i figured that if i could rule out water behind the dishwasher (and it smelled in and around there) and that the trap was clear and not too funky, then the disposal would be the last resort and we would have to pay for a plomero. it was a breeze taking it off, and lo and behold, i found some almost indescribable entity living in the drain pipe. it was a 4" long fungus thing, black, grey, brown, and apparently affixed on the upper part of the pipe. from there little bitty bits would be eaten off by the bleach, but the main body of "it" would remain. maybe it's not the source of the smell, but it sure as hell looked like it could smell up the funk! i cleared out trap and used the outdoor water hose to blow "it" further down the drain. i'm serious. "it" looked like something out the the GameCube game "Metroid Prime", toxic ooze on the wall.

hope it works. i have a headache now and have to go to a meeting at work. i had the chance to commute not once but twice today, but it ain't gonna' happen.

los olores

Date: Sept 18
Mileage: 18
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 74 rainy
September mileage: 173
Year to date: 1436

my mundane a.m. commute was made interesting by a bunch of police cars at Shelby and Oak this morning- or at least i think those are the streets. no, could be Preston and Oak. i tried to take a left on my trusty route onto Preston when lo and behold a cop car was blocking the road, as well as the route of a bus. up the street at the intersection were several other police cars with their lights on. don't know if someone had been hit or what, but it confused my route a bit, throwing me into discomfort. unless i wanted to backtrack, it forced me to cross under 65 and endure all the interchange craziness that take place around there. you feel like someone in a hurry is going to sideswipe you trying to exit the interstate. i made it through safely, but uncomfortable nonetheless.

the p.m. provide 2 circumstance of a not-common phenomenon of smell memory. i doesn't happen nearly as often as deja vu, for example. you're rolling along minding your own business when all of a sudden WHAM!!!!, a strong smell hits you in the face. it's not noxious nor delightful nor sweet nor sour, it's just a smell that throws you back to another time. in this case, the first was a certain tree or shrub. i was in Old Louisville when the smell transported me back to childhood and woods and creeks and undergrowth. there's a chance that it was a Sycamore or a Gumball, but it's a distinct one. there's a chance that it's a tree from my friend Vince's backyard, one in which we played really often.

the 2nd was cigarette smoke from two folks in front of a home on Shelby. funnily enough, whether it was the brand or whatever, it reminded me exactly or smokey, filthy bars in Spain, all throughout Spain. they still smoke like chimneys, and this one scent took me back to all those great holes-in-the-wall that i've visited before. strange.

i wanted to go more mileage today, but all the radars have shown bigtime rain, and i just wasn't that much in the mood today for a soaking.

Guilt

i work with a woman, let's call her 'Pat'. i call her that b/c i think she herself is confused about her sexuality. too manly to be straight, but maybe not fully enthralled with dykedom. she also has a masters in gender studies and imposes lots and lots and lots of gender analysis in her classes, much like i impose listening to whatev wack crap i can find (Beethoven, The Roots, Flaco Jimenez, Tango, Manu Chao- you get the picture) really, though, her issues are of absolutely NO consequence with respects to this nugget.

on friday i and 'darryl' were about to use the elevator to go up to our respective rooms. when i ride a standard bike, i carry the bike up to the 2nd, but really the lift is much easier w/ the Rans. 'Pat' was walking up to the lift (shorter to type than elevator) and said to us.."boy, you two sure are making me feel guilty", us riding to work and all. 'Pat' has, from what i gather, an Electra of some sort- most likely a SS. her ultimate rationale for NOT riding the bike to work (she, in fact, lives about 2 blocks away from 'sheryl') is that a bike helmet would mess up her hair, and she doesn't feel safe riding to work in the dark w/out a helmet. i like that 2nd logical statement. a helmet is reasonably safe choice. the hair thing is, perhaps, a cogent observation as well. i am balding and generally have stupid hair, so i don't give a flying rat's ass abt my hair. 'Pat' wears her in this jet-black 50's pompadour/shortonthesides thing. as previously stated, there are some gender issues there, and she has one of the more personality-appropriate hairdos that i know of.

the point really is not her hair. the point is that 'darryl' and i commuting made her feel guilty. BUT, she was about to ride the elevator to the 3rd floor. she's somewhat heavy, but hey!, many of us fight that. i commute to work somewhat to ensure that regular workout. she's dropped a good bit of weight, which is great for her. it struck me as incredibly odd, or just a heaping pile of BS though, that she felt guilt for not riding he bike to work, but wouldn't carry her ass up a couple floors of steps. is there confusion here? irony? internal conflict? fuck, just walk up and down the steps some and get over the "commuting guilt".

sorry if i come off as a dick in this entry. maybe i should've kept the personal stuff out, but walk the damn stairs!

"I am Sound and Fury"

don't remember where this came from, but i do remember doing some kind of online personality analysis somethingoranother. my personal profile came up as the following:

You're The Sound and the Fury!
by William Faulkner
Strong-willed but deeply confused, you are trying to come to grips with a major crisis in your life. You can see many different perspectives on the issue, but you're mostly overwhelmed with despair at what you've lost. People often have a hard time understanding you, but they have some vague sense that you must be brilliant anyway. Ultimately, you signify nothing.

while it's unfortunate i can't remember the link, the funny thing is that this absolutely does fit me to a "T". "confused", "coming to grips", "different perspectives " (could be bi-polar, right?), "overwhelmed with despair", "brilliant anyway" ( i like that one). but "ultimately, you signify nothing". great ending. so succinct. so apt.

didn't ride today. first morning of fall soccer. Z managed to attack L today after lunch. a 10 yr-old (less than 2 weeks to 11) bit, and i mean bit hard enough to make a bruise, his 7 yr-old bro on the arm. WTF? and i mean que me jode! i'm pissed, but more importantly, i'm confused. totally bizarre. like a savage 3 yrold going off on a tantrum. Sigh. after that, i went down to the basement and did a dumbell lifting session, something i hadn't done since early summer. i might need to extra strenght to beat him down when he's 16 and towering over me.

and let's hope the Cards lose to Miami today. i need something to gloat over. please find a way to shut all these Cards fans up!

Commrades

Date: Sept 15
Mileage: 18
Ride type: Commute
Bike: Rans
Temp: 81 sunny, humid
September mileage: 155
Year to date: 1417

a good commuting day riding with two different comrades. i took the Rans today for a Friday changeofpace. about half way through i saw a blinking tail light, the tale-tell signs of another morning commuter- which is rare occurance in the 'Ville. when i finally caught up to him, i found that it was a co-worker, 'Darryl'. i rode with him last year one time. he actually lives quite close to the house, but he's rather, no very, slow. today he was doing his first commute in while. his set-up included his work clothes- he rationalized that it wasn't too warm and he hoped he wouldn't sweat-, a bag slung over his shoulder, and that about it. he rides a Giant roadbike, which is perfectly fine except that someone should've sold him a hybrid b/c it fits his riding style so much more. i'll give 'darryl' kudos b/c i think he's sped up since last year; Good for him! the morning included the auspicious (sic- i don't know what that is exactly, but i used "inauspicious" incorrectly again. the last time the good wife made note, so this time i've fixed after-the-fact. isn't "sic" what you see in the newspaper for some editing move?) event of 'darryl' falling, at least partially b/c of me. he goes in to work in on a different route than i. at Goss, where he turns south, i turned north. this confused him, causing him somehow to fall. it seemed somewhat in slow motion, and there were no lasting effects. but i felt pretty bad to help lead to a 'novice' ditching on his side at 6.45a.m. and he's sort of old too.

the afternoon proved less dangerous. i went with 'sheryl' over to Frankfot Avenue, and then home through Seneca. the mileage is rather approximated, but it's pretty close i think. i felt like i was finding the legs all day. in the a.m. i was slow and stiff, but in the p.m. i had to hold back riding with 'sheryl'. well, this proved the case until going up 'Chauffers Hill' in Cherokee. it's quite steep and on the Rans i was a dead duck. i ran out of gas about 3/4 of the way up and just died. like always, a fat little Belgian who can make pace on the flats, but has no climbing gene at ALL. nice day though

Random Thoughts

• the changeover to the AllBlack template seems to have eaten my links. guess i'll have to play around with those. fact is, some of my linking habits have changed, so it'll be a fresh start.

• still sneaking latest Vuelta News. Tommy up to 6th. Egoi Martinez gets closer to winning the mtns jersey. Discos have a pretty easy team overall lead. Johan's brilliance still unbridled. (sonrisitas abounding)

• Frankie Andreu thing all very interesting, or horribly passe. not quite sure yet. but Lance's denials, well, if you're a PFOAGB, then you have a right (yes, that's "personal friend of ass-monkey george bush).

• wish i could go to Cumberland Brews here in the 'Ville. it's all marketing. it seems to be the highest cyclist-per-capita number in any cities establishements. there are always mtnbikes, fixies and beattoohell beaters all over the place. i had their beer once and it was great.

• got gas this evening for $2.25. who'da thunk it? seriously! it's good i guess, but i think i'll keep riding, even though i'm saving that 75 cents.

• i like Guinness.

• i'm going to wait until '07, but i'm going to get Jim at HC to build me and set me up a Schmidt generator hub. i've been using the Niterider rechargable, and it's great. but i had that brief moment in the sun of generator light riding and it's pretty cool for commuting purposes.
  

• es todo para ahora
  

4.44 a.m.

Date: Sept 14
Mileage: 21.5
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 73 overcast
September mileage: 137
Year to date: 1399

this a.m. really started out pretty a la mierda. work has been quite taxing and i wanted to grab a couple extra ZZZs before the commute today. instead i wake up at 4.44 a.m. needing to take a leak (coffee from last night, decaf. i don't do that very often). i then stare at the clock for 10min before getting up. i was on the bike by 5.50 or so and did a little extra mileage for good measure, winding through the park to Lexington (moreorless past 'Sheryl's' place, down Breckinridge and finally up the 3rd street bike lane to work. my, what a dumbass bike lane that goes nowhere. this town has 2 painted bike lanes and neither really has a terminus that goes anywhere. it's not like they link with other bike lanes, or that they traverse space from one major entity to another. they just start and stop. to be fair, the 3rd street lane does end southward at the Univ. of Louisville, but if you arrive at UL in the lane, then where do you go after school; there is no corresponding lane. stupid.

i did about 10am and 10pm, feeling pretty good herenthere. maybe i'm building a smidge of fitness b/c it seems like i can push a slightly bigger gear on occassion. tomorrow is viernes so i think i'll 'bent in in. it seems like that kind of day.

i had a funny occurrence this a.m. that was somewhat shocking for 6.30 in hte morning. i was coming up a street in the appropriate direction when, out of my blind spot, i see a bike of all things coming off the sidewalk across my trajectory. a bike-on-bike collission at 6.30. he veered and it was never that close, but it was more the idea. it was some skateboarder/BMX type (notthatthere'sanythingwrongwiththat). no harm done, but ironic at least. well, finally got a day in over 20. 'lance' is busy filling his weekends with kayaking trips, so i haven't done a good 30 in while. it's time.

oh, i bought some Lake cycling sandals on sale from Nashbar. i've heard they're great for cold weather. you wear a couple different socks and maybe a plastic layer and the sandals don't pinch your toes and your feet don't go to sleep. yep, it's a bit counter-intuitive, but we'll see. they were pretty cheap (compared to, say, $250 Carnacs) and i like how my normal Lakes fit.

Blahg

Date: Sept 13
Mileage: 14.5
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 70, humid
September mileage: 115.5
Year to date: 1377.5

after a couple very rainy days, i was back on the LHT today. "Blah" b/c i was just sorta tired today and didn't really make much time in either direction. i got a little extra mileage in the a.m., but in the p.m. i went straight home.

i'm also "Blah" b/c i'm bored with my blog setup and i might try to pick a new template or whatev it's called.

and finally "Blah" b/c my dialup is too slow to pick pics on w/out waiting forever and timing out.

and "blah" b/c yesterday basically lasted from 7.00-8.30 and that shit is tiring.later.


here is Greg Lemond picking up his last yellow jersey (well, last day first received, but wrapped up the whole race the next day finishing 2nd i think in the TT). pretty special moment in hindsight, seeing the last Clean American Champion. and i DO thing Greg was clean. this was on top of the Wintergreen climb in VA. those trips were fun...

the whole Frankie thing is both refreshing and disturbing. and barry bonds, all of MLB and the NFL, oh and the NBA, is clean? with the kind of $$ at their disposal. Frankie's junking up to solidify a 71st place in the Tour and these mega-$$ cats aren't doing the deed? "ja ja"







oh, and i guess you saw the US's latest "project" take center stage, with Tommy D winning a mountainous stage today, the same in which Vino took the lead from Valverde. hopefully they've properly balanced his meds so he doesn't blow up like poor Phloyd.

Bike Jogging

Date: Sept
Mileage: 9.5
Ride type: Bike Jog
Bike: Bridgestone Trek Elance 420
Temp: 70, humid, rainy
September mileage: 101
Year to date: 1363

quickie today. this a.m. i was raining monsoons. the extenuating circumstances were that i had to prepare a test this a.m. otherwise, i would've chosen a nasty-ass bike (like the Trek i rode today) and gone muy mojado to work. instead, i waited until this p.m. for a quick ride around Cherokee. we get the honor to attend Z and L's Open House tonight, so i didn't really have the means to go on a 'real' ride. just toodled, did a couple pickups, and came home satisfied. did the ride in Colombia-brand swimming trunks and extrememly old Nike mt.bike 3/4 boots. one of the soles is semi-broken and they're way to small, but forsomereason, they still have the cleats for the CODA-branded pedals on the Trek. fun ride with no frills. calling for major rain tomorrow, of which during the evening i have my work's Open House. that always complicates the commute. do i go to work at 6.30 in the dark and then return home at 9.00 in the dark? makes for a long day.

Date: Sept
Mileage: 17.5
Ride type: Road
Bike: Bridgestone RB-1
Temp: 85 and hotish
September mileage: 91.5
Year to date: 1353.5

a good afternoon ride today undertaken on the RB-1. my grandfather- my 'Pawpaw'- is turning 80, so my aunts and uncles (there are 6 total, with my mom the oldest) threw him a surprise bday party at a church rec area near his house. there were perhaps 50 people in attendance, including some oldtimers who made the trip in. he was delighted, which was good to see for someone so weathered.

i did the trip on the Bridgestone, with the good wife, Z and L in the car. it's basically the same route i did several years ago in a fast 18mph trip i did, lights included, when i was more in-shape. today i averaged 15.5mph, with which i was pleased. it's always an adjustment getting on the RB-1. it's longer, much longer, than my position on any of my bikes now, especially the LHT or the CrossCheck. the gearing is absurd for my present purposes. i think the lowest gear is a 42x23, the lowest. dude, i practically push that on the flats now on the commute (just joking, but only a little) this route was rather flat, but i can't imagine climbing regularly with that. i had fiddled with various seat posts hace meses so the seat was pushed a little too far back. my knee angle was fine, but the reach was too too far. good hard miles though, mostly cruising at 16-17mph.

Date: Sept 9
Mileage: 4+2
Ride type: Errand
Bike: RedlineSS
Temp:
September mileage: 74
Year to date: 1346

no big ride, but 2 quickies in the 'hood. i've stated, and i'll state every time, that these are the rides to take, even though gas prices here in the 'Ville have dropped to the $2.30 range. that's quite surprising. i figured once the Evil Empire was soaking everybody at $3.00/gallon it was no going back, but that shows how i performed in university econ classes.

in the a.m. i went to see a high school cross-country race relatively close to the house. man, i wish sometimes that i were a jogger. they always seem so lean and fit and just dart around like gazelles. i'm more...hmm having a hard time coming up with an animal analogy...possum-like, only abit more intelligent.

later in the day i went again to the gas station to get lawnmower gas. i have an old-fashioned rotary, but it really does work like shit. i'll use it every nowandthen, but instead i only tend to mow about every 2 weeks, and sometimes longer in between. i read that 1hour of lawnmowing creates as much pollution as an hour of driving and i cringe to mow. oh the ethical conundrums we face! oh to be an oblivious accountant in some wasteland suburban office!

i've been in converstations with my friend "Ike" from school. he moving into the neighborhood from a declining area, and due to a blown head gasket in his pieceofshit Escort, is looking for alternative transpo to school. he's a nice guy, but also a "skeech", at least in my strange teenage lexicon. he's been spinning a good yarn that he's going to get one of these Electra Townies. i think maybe i've even had this pic on before, but he's yapping again. i get this impression that i can apply the analogy of the local 'Bike Path' discussion. quite a few people call for dedicated bike paths, but they tend strongly to be people who don't ride bikes. i think Ike is in the camp of the 'if i just had this bike i would actually ride to work' type of rider, one who won't ride to work, but will talk some good commuter smack. he inquired to me about the experience and the logistic. things he felt were obvious: helmet... things that were optional or distasteful: lighting of any type, bag of any type, rack of any type, changing clothes..."I'm not gonna do that shit". he also seemed concerned about how you pull it all off in winter. bundle up? there is no way he has the routine discipline to develop, well, a routine for getting to school on a bike.

now, dude, this guy is incredibly free to ride to work with his 'teacher' clothes and stuff his school papers down his shorts. he's welcome to ride with no safety lights. he's welcome to do it however he can. BUT from my years (about 8-9) experience, i feel that it's reasonable to suggest to someone to have safety lights and have a good way of carrying stuff. there are definitely folks who travel with only Timbuk2 bags. my friend Jay in DC has done that for many more years that I. BUT from experience a simple rack and pannier or (now) saddlebag is a hellofalot more comfortable than stuffing school papers down your shorts. and 6 miles in school clothes would make for a funky teacher. he mentioned just wearing jeans. I wear jeans sometimes. but his solution to be too jodido lazy to get his clothes shit together is to just always wear jeans? like he works at a mini-mart?

fact is, Ike is going to live only 1 mile away from me now. i will encourage him to ride. i will NOT give him rides when i drive. he's like a loser brother. he's a user. he asks but doesn't give. he borrows but doesn't return. Ike, in fact, was borrowing a bike from me about a year ago, a beattohell Trek hybrid that i had purchased as a neighborhood Burley trailer bike when L was young. i rarely used it and i had previously lent it to my buddy LuvDug for a year maybe. it came returned from him with no probs. Within a month of Mike's possession, some assmonkey stole it out of his yard, i'm sure unlocked. his comment? "oh, someone ripped off that bike of yours, huh huh huh" WTF? what the motherfuck? it's one of my bikes! it's personal property! i could- and Did- ride that bike. and he, through languid malfeasance and a willingness to abjure his responsibility, lost the damn thing. and didn't Give a Shit!

he's a nice guy, but he won't use any of my bike stuff again. he can walk the 6 miles to work. and he certainly doesn't have the discipline or balls to be a bike commuter. and i certainly am not holding myself on much of a pedestal. really none whatsoever. i'm no (not too much) martyr. anybody can ride to work given a few variables, namely reasonable distance from work. but Ike is chingado en el cerebro if he thinks he can pull it off. and i'm not babying his white ass.

damn that felt good. did you notice the use of 'Abjure'? that word popped into my head, but i had to look it up to make sure it was really a word.

peace out.

"Joly Conejos"

Date: Sept 8
Mileage: 16+4
Ride type: Commute+Errand
Bike: Rans
Temp: 60a.m./88 p.m.
September mileage: 68
Year to date: 1340

a good commute today. having dropped the LHT off yesterday, today i put myself back on the Rans. i tell you, i'm getting more and more used the the 'bent thang. i'll never fully convert, but it makes for a nice, quick (flats and downhill) commuter bike. in the afternoon i hooked up with 'lance' and 'sheryl'. it's been a good while, but we did the 3 miles to 'sheryl's' and then i worked my way home from there. the title (think Spanish, not "jolly") refers to the pinche bunny that actually jumped in front of my front wheel this a.m. i've certainly almost hit squirrels, but never a rabbit!

i added on 4 more miles on a neighborhood ride this late p.m. a group of very good folks from my Mexico trip summer '05 met up at a local Mexican joint. i was traveling separately from the good wife and munchkins, so i endeavoured to ride instead of drive. it's just flat out one of those local rides that a substantially greater % of the populace should do. will it happen? Hell Naw! man, the ride home was difficult though. going there i really opened up the cadence inandaround the local expressway. on the way home, though, my full-of-food-and-beer stomach felt like it was going to burst forth with an odious torrent. i also was on the fixie, which didn't exactly contribute to a more demure, peaceful ride.

Capitulation

as you can see, there is no mileage listed for today. didn't answer the bell. what i did was use the logic of "i need to get the LHT over to Clarksville, so how 'bout i drive and carry it in the truck, etc., etc.". and that's what i did. Chris over there goofed a bit and rode it up the road a bit and felt like the BB needed a thorough going over. i can't really disagree. it came to me in its present Ebay state, and there have been little things that have needed tweaking; this is the latest. i sort of hate to give in and use the pinche truck to transport the commuter bike, but i have no skills. i'll get it back Saturday.

now i need to decide what to ride tomorrow. i think i'll go fixie. i had the Rans out Tuesday, so i'll mix it up again to suit my ADD. i already have a ride planned for Sunday to my papaw's bday party, so let's see if i can get mileage in on Saturday. and let's see if i can get a fresh LHT back for these blissfull fall commutes.

Tic, Tic, Tic

Date: Sept 6
Mileage: 16
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 60a.m./77 sunny p.m.- great weather day!
September mileage: 48
Year to date: 1320

Pinche, i can't get rid of this BB noise. actually, i haven't tried per se. i've mentally tried to fix it, avoiding it or pretending its non-existence. unfortunately it hasn't worked. i've been wanting to adventure trek over to my fav LBS, Clarksville, after school, but haven't quite done it. it would be abt 25m of afternoon riding, much in heavierthannormal traffic. today i stopped at Bardstown Road Bicycle, a shop that's actually closer to the house. the "mechanic wasn't it", so they couldn't take a quick look. that's no good. if i wanted to leave it long-term i would just truck it to my fav. i think tomorrow after work must be the day. i'm sort of worried about getting over there and them finding something grave. how do i get home? hmm...

one of my many, many, many loyal readers suggested the other day to take my AK to the driving populace. today would've been a good opportunity. i got to a stop sign well before the big white punk-ass lincoln continental. he looked at me and sped on through like i wasn't even there. it wasn't in the least bit close to an accident; it was instead an asinine move completed with what looked like 3 kids in the guy with tough dad type. prob a pedophile with his prey. assmonkey of the day goes to him.

near perfect weather, BTW, today. 60 in the a.m. first jacket ride of the season. afternoon upper 70s with lots of sun and low humidity.

Hypocrite

yes, i'm hypocrite. i've been peeking on Cyclingnews.com. i don't want to. i don't want to follow the (non)exploits of the Disco Boys, of Tommy 'nonreadyforprimetime' Danielson. i don't want to find out that George won the US jersey again, and was rooked out of another win in the Benelux Tour when some douchebag ran into him in the last kilo or so. I feel dirty, like i've been sneakin' the crack again even though i promised granny i wouldn't. i can't help it. i'm still mad at Floyd. i'm still pissed at all those doped-up assmonkeys for ruining it all. but i still like to ride and i still like cycling. unfortunate habit i have. and can George win the Worlds? wouldn't that be unfuckingbelievable?

also saw a slick homie on a fixie looking like he was heading home with hte Timbuk2 bag. no brakes. i can't imagine fixie-ing it up with No brakes. more of a man than i.

(peaking is not peeking- editor)

Sin Casco

Date: Sept 5
Mileage: 16
Ride type: Commute
Bike: Rans
Temp: 58a.m./77 sunny p.m.- great weather day!
September mileage: 34
Year to date: 1304

man, my illogical behavior showed how much of a "Monday" today was. i got about.5m away from the house before i realized that i was not wearing a helmet, something i always do on the commute, and for good measure i had gone out in my Crocs instead of cycling shoes. the shoe thing i can understand. given my occassional miles on the fixie, i'm less cleat-fixated of late. the Rans- riding that b/c of the 'tic' on the LHT- has double-sided pedals, one SPD, the other flat, so wearing plain shoes, or in the this case sandals, is doable. by the end of the day, though, i noticed weird knee pain i haven't had before. i think it comes from having to actually elevate the foot/leg on the 'bent, which is unlike the dangling foot on a wedgie. the cleats in turn hold up the foot. the helmet factor bothered me all day on the bike. i was much more aware of busting my melon at the first fall. there's one 4-lane cross about a mile from the house. i'm usually somewhat brave getting through gaps, but today with no casco and on the poorly-starting 'bent, i practically never made it through.

otherwise, straight-up commute i guess. gotta get the LHT fixed, or i'll become a permanent 'bent rider, changing my whole cycling persona. that's no good.

Mini-Mt. Bike

Date: Sept 2
Mileage: 6
Ride type: Mt.Bike
Bike: Redline SS
Temp: 70 and overcast
September mileage: 18
Year to date: 1288

went to family camp this weekend. it is the 5th year we've gone and each year, for me, it's gotten more and more enjoyable. i'm not into church; i go begrudgingly to be a "team player". church family camp, though, has become something much more, well, meaninful to me and to the fam. we eat, play cards, read books, play softball, goof, joke, eat, watch morons at the talent show, be morons at the talent show, eat, do some reflective and outdoor-oriented worship, eat, and ultimately chill out with nice, unpretentious, non-"holy roller" faith-based people. do i have much faith? no, not really, but these people do and have no seeming agenda to rub it in anybody else's face. it's a message mirrored by the Christian Church-DOC denomination's greater message. if i have to go through the motions, then i might as well go through the motions in a church that's as left-leaning as can be without being Unitarian, not that there's anything wrong with that. i'm probably the most agnostic and skeptical person there, but it's nice to be out in the country with all of its clear-air benefits, with good folks and just taking a step back from the modern world.

i also took a mini bike ride this year. last year i had a great 25m road ride. this time i took the mt bike and toodled. frankly, it wasn't much of a workout. i walked almost as much as rode, but i'll count the mileage anyway.

that was close!!

Date: Sept1
Mileage: 12
Ride type: Commute
Bike: LHT
Temp: 75
September mileage: 12
Year to date: 1282


i had my closest confrontation of late with a vehicle this a.m. i headed pretty directly to work, and ended up on a 4-lane road that i don't often ride, given that there are safer places to ride. it was dark, but i had my Serfas strobe light going, and from what i can tell, it's obnoxious enough for traffic to see. i was heading down a hill at close to 30mph when a big white van started turning left in front of me. i clamped it down. he stopped fortunately and i squeezed around him. if he had kept going, either i would've T-boned him or somehow banked hard right and survived. funnily enough, it didn't scare me that bad, but during the incident, i thought "this could be trouble" quite matterafactly. don't know. i'm not that mad, but i wish him genital warts and an early stroke-induced state of dementia. 5 minutes later i almost 'doored' someone, in fact another assmonkey who i'd seen 2 or so minutes prior turning into traffic with no lights on.

i don't know whether i'm more sensative- which is the case i think-, or that the traffic-inducing populace is going nuts, but it seems quite hary-scary out there. and from blogs herenthere, other places seem equally annoying too.