Bought the Boy a Bigger Helmet

It's spring and he's 3. I think we bought the last one when he was one. He's up to youth size now. I just need a trialer so that either of us can take him for a right this summer....

I Got to Ride

It was the first ride on the mtb today. I haven't really ridden it since we knocked off the roof of the car. It's dogtracking. I'm thinking that the frame is bent. It doesn't matter because it was a great ride today. I've decided I can't ride the Schwinn until I get a taller stem. After I rode it this week, my shoulders were killing me!

I Picked a Bad Year to Race Bikes

Between working and raising our son, there is no time for this biking funny business. Well, there is going to have to be time pretty soon because Papa is going to strip his gears....

Hmmm....

It's been quite awhile. I think I've been on a bike twice in the last 6 months. There is a lot going on with the baby and the job stuff. I'm going to start posting regularly now. One of the reasons I am going to post regularly is because we have a faster connection. I'll keep you updated and I'll put some baby pictures on here too.

Coming in Third

I think I rode once last week. I tell myself that I'll ride in the morning, but it doesn't happen. When you ask yourself, "Would I rather sleep or eat?", cycling really doesn't have a chance. This is my first full week of work, and we don't have a system in place yet that works. That's ok. I'm no stranger to sleep deprivation.

Hiatus

I've taken a break from cycling but I have an excuse, not a good one, but I have an excuse. My wife and I had a baby! He was born healthy and happy on Oct. 18. Mama had some difficulties so she was in the hospital for some time preceding the birth. I was able to take leave from work. I haven't worked since Sept. 27th. That is a nice little benefit. The day before my birthday (Oct. 11) I found out that my job is being eliminated. I'm told that taking my leave and the job elimination are coincidental. I'm working until the end of Aug. and I get 3 months severance so I can't complain. I'll try to keep updating the blog plus I've added a blog for the baby.

Nice Ride

I took a short ride tonight.  I have some stuff to do around the house plus I didn't realize that I would be racing daylight.  For the first time, I mixed up some homemade power gel.  I'm not a super-mega-racer.  I don't even know what GU is.  I just know that if I bike more than an hour, I need to eat, and I've tried Clif Shots and they worked for me.  Fast Guy said that he had a recipe for some homemade stuff.  He wasn't around when I wanted to make it so I looked on the internet, and found something that looked like it might work.  I wanted something liquid.  It's just easier to deal with.  I tried it for the first time tonight and it worked well.  Intsy asked, "How was it," and she said I made a face when I answered.  I really didn't think it tasted that bad.  It's palatable.  The consistency and color are better than a chocolate Clif Shot.

 

I decided to try to stay in one gear tonight.  Partly to see what it would be like to ride a singlespeed and partly because my derailleur needs to be adjusted.  That was a mistake.  I remembered why I don't do that. It wrenches my back.  Part of it was cool, though. It made me go faster some areas.  It wasn't more dangerous.  It was just singletrack where I usually lose speed and don't push hard enough to go faster.

 

On Friday I was fast but today I only had glimpses of the speed.  It was all in the way I handled the bike.  I was off the seat and sometimes my weight was forward or back.  I leaned the bike instead of leaning with the bike.  I'll have to work on that some more!  It was a blast!  I think a handled the bike better than usual on Friday because I was not fatigued.  I actually had some energy.