Getting Away

I took a little vacation up to Schweitzer for some skiing, eating and relaxing. My cycling lans flashed before my eyes when I took a spill and I twisted my leg pretty good. I don't know much about anatomy but I know enough to realize the pain was coming from the ACL, three letters that strike fear in the hearts of anyone who chooses to be physically active. I stayed cool and realized that it was possible to ski. Certain movements would activate the pain and I tried to avoid those as much as possible. I spent some time icing the area up and did some improvisational jazzercise to warm up the next morning before heading out. Lots of fresh snow made it more difficult to avoid the forbidden movements so reluctantly I finished early. By the third day I was feeling a lot better. I was confident that I had not done anything too terrible to myself and would not have to cancel any of my cycling plans.
Upon returning home I had an email from Jeff Boatman at Carousel Design Works letting me know he had sent my map case out on Monday. The bag came out just like I wanted it too. Jeff has said that he has been getting a steady stream of GDR riders contacting him about bags. I imagine that when they see my map case they will want one of them. I am grateful for the test ride I did last summer at Seeley Lake because it heavily shaped my ideas for what I needed from a mapcase. I am most happy with my idea to use a dry erase marker to keep notes on the map case clear plastic top. I always like to write things down so that I don't have to think about them.
When the mapcase gets here I am going to try and do a full packing load ride to begin the long process of dialing in the set up.

Winter Riding

You never know what winter is going to bring. Training is not important enough to me to workout indoors so I throw myself on the mercy of mother nature. Recent snow disappeared quickly when rain and upper 40 degree temperatures blew into town. I enjoyed a sunny ride in shirtsleeves and then a few days later Ben and I were making fresh tracks though some powdery snow in 20 degree sunshine. Both were great rides.

Flat But Not Easy

Last Monday I took advantage of what would be the last snow free day for awhile by riding the Columbia Plateau Trail out to Amber Lake. The 50 mile out and back has an imperceptible 800 feet elevation rise and is 95 percent dirt. By dirt I mean rocks, railroad bed rock. The route is scenic but monotonous and has a way of breaking me down mentally. If at any point I stop pedaling the bike does not coast but slows to a stop. This makes the ride a 4.5 hour workout with non stop high cadence spinning. I really wanted to ride longer so I climbed up Hatch hill to give the ride a nice metric century total. Not a bad ride for November.

Cold Sunrise Ride

I always like to take advantage of the Thanksgiving holiday by getting a long ride in early before the big feast. It was 17 degrees when I left the house. I broke the cable on my Lake winter cycling boots (they replace them free I have found out) so I was wearing my summer shoes with booties. Other than the cold feet I felt good and moseyed out along the river to CDA. It was a good chance to try my new extra warm Black Diamond gloves. Within an hour they were too warm and my hands were sweating. Luckily I brought a lighter pair as well.
I stopped and got coffee at Doma ( I was surprised to see them open because that whole town was closed) and meandered north soaking up some nice sunshine. The five hour ride was flat and paved and not the most exhilarating ride to do on the mountain bike but it gave me a chance to start dialing in my new bags.
I replinished my calories and then some
and promptly fell asleep on my parents living room floor. I woke up long enough to get home and be in bed by 8:oo pm. I am going to blame the turkey not the ride.

Bad Weather

With temperatures just a hair above freezing, winds that were steady at 20 mph and gusts that reached 45 mph, I convinced Ben to ride the rail trail out to Cheney. Normally this 37 mile out and back would have been nothing more than a jaunt but it was so much more because of the conditions. The Columbia Plateau Trail varies from a short paved section to energy sapping deep gravel trenches. I have been waiting for a day like today to really get the new bike broken in and to test out my new "waterproof" backpack. Ben rode his All-Mountain beast with downhill tires just to make the day more memorable. The first half was uphill into the wind and the rain. It did not take long for the chatting to dwindle. Our heads dropped as we succumbed to what would be quite a slog. The second half was a sprint to get home as soon as possible.
For my part it was a good ride. I felt fine though a bad seat position left me with a sore right knee. The backpack turned out not to be very waterproof at all. In fact it is less waterproof than my packs that do not feature "waterproof zippers". Regardless, I still like the pack and will have to employ some freezer bags to keep my contents dry in the future.
Winter is definitely nearing and I feel like a I am getting acclimatized. The routine of donning substantial layers every time I leave the house is less of a bother. I am enjoying the solitude of the trails and I am more appreciative of the sunshine when it comes. The sky is blue today and I am going to take advantage of that right now.

Sick No Mas and JayP talks

I officially declare my sickness over. Over two weeks of low activity. I need to be careful in ramping up the mileage too quickly. The 24 degree temperature this morning helped convince me to not push it. One big week of work ahead will get in the way of too much exercise. I have to spend an all nighter watching over a 200 lb pig that I am roasting for a big charity event Friday. After this weekend my calender is wide open again for awhile which will be a nice change.
Also here is an interview with JayP. Not much of value in it other than word that he is going to be challenging Curiak's Iditabike Nome record. SHould be a good race to follow.

Buying, Spending And Using

Bicycling the coast with your two year old: money well spent.

Unbelievably I am still sick. I am not completely knocked out like last week but the foreign substance being produced deep in my sinuses and throat will keep me from doing any of the high end aerobic exercise I had been enjoying. I have a theory that our bodies want us to hibernate, to slow down, to get fat in preparation for a long winter and these autumn illnesses are the result of our attempt to fight that biological imperative to be lazy and fat. Just a theory. I have been back on the bike just running errands and commuting to work.
Yesterday I rode the bike over to buy a watch ( I have never been a watch wearer but thought it would be handy on the trip). I have a master purchase list that lays out all the things I need to acquire before next June 20. As my squirrel cache of cash fills up i look over the list and see what I should buy next. Looking at the list all of the big items are taken care of bike/bags/ lights/backpack. Remaining are things like chlorine dioxide, sunscreen and socks. Looking at all the things I have picked up and the things left to buy, I had to wonder if this event is an elaborate excuse to buy new stuff.
Twelve years ago I had a similar feeling when my wife and I biked down the Pacific Coast with our two year old daughter. The REI dividend that year was amazing. Twelve years later, we still have and use many of the things we purchased for that trip. We definitely got our money out of them because we bought good stuff that was going to last.
I have always thought that you don't have to have a lot of money to have the things you want, you just have to have a way to analyze what is important. I could find justifications to buy an iPhone, a 320gb external hard drive (on sale for only $99), a new ski jacket or a coffee maker. All of these things I have a legitimate need for but I have narrowed my field of vision for acceptable personal purchases. All of the money I spend is separate from the general operating fund that pays the mortgage and keeps food on the table. All purchases involve cash, no credit. I have committed myself to acquiring the items I need for this event and given myself enough time to get the money together for them; no impulse buys.
Perhaps after the race I will decide it is time to buy a coffee maker and forego my morning routine of boiling water and brewing one cup at a time with a mesh cone filter. The important thing is that whatever I spend my money on I want to feel like it was money well spent and the truest test of that it use.