I was chicken proofing the garden, time was running out, so I could continue working & run later or bike and shower before I had to meet Da Queen at 5. Not knowing what to do, I wrote 'ride' on one side of a scrap piece of wood and 'run later' on the other side, tossed it in the air and it landed on 'ride.' So, I picked up the tools, etc, changed into my super hero outfit, aired up the tires & off I went for a 30 min ride.
30 mins doesn't leave you many options...I could do the 6 mile loop on Shoal Creek or 2 loops of Hancock, Shoal Creek & Bullcreek, OR I could 'be like Lance' and ride the hills on Balcones!
Balcones is a 2 lane winding road w/ steep hills. I managed to avoid the steep hill heading out (I followed the bike route signs the safer route) made it to Pecos, decided to turn around and head back. the last time I remember riding Balcones was in 2006 when I was inspired by Lance and going up the steep hill on the way back, my mantra was "I'm not Lance", so on the way back this time, I thought taking the bike route would by pass the "I'm not Lance" hill. And as far as i know it did, but either way, Balcones now contains two "I'm not Lance" hills, or at least my 5.8 mph going up the hill before the bike route turns is now the "I'm not Lance" hill and I'm kinda afraid to not take the bike route from here on out...
It was a short ride, but got the heart rate up high and made me use muscles I hadn't in a while, that or building the garden fence really strained my hamstrings!
Miles for this ride: 7
Roadkill for this ride: a squirrel with meat showing
Total miles for the month: 21 (rounding)
Total miles for 2011: 82
Miles to go: 1418 to hit 1500!
20110215
20110208
Hello February!
February came in like a lion! it was roaring cold last week! I figured there would be no way I would ride over the weekend, but this is Texas and the weather likes to change quickly & dramatically! Saturday was gorgeous, but I had already ran (4 miles!) and thus ran out of spoons after doing work around the house.
But on Sunday I managed to find time before the Superbowl to get some miles in...14.4 to be exact. I took one of my favorite routes just outside my hood. It has smooth roads a few hills, sometimes lots of deer, but more importantly a yellow house with blue trim! (next time I'll take a picture of it!)
So after the hill & the blue house, I found myself on a street (West Rim) that brought back post stroke biking memories and I was once again reminded of how far I've come. I remember I was training to go ride in France, so this was Spring 2009, I think it was very hot, but I'm not sure. As I was riding down the street, I noticed I was having a hard time catching a jogger ahead of me. When I finally caught up to him, he wasn't a jogger, he was a runner, he was running about 8 mph! Slow in the biking world but fast for distance running (esp for someone who looked to be in his 30's) Well this time I was taking it easy at 13 mph and when I noticed I was going so slow, I kicked it up a notch!
On my way home on Shoal Creek there's a hump in the road that when I was tri training I would try not to let my speed dip below the speed that I was traveling at the bottom by the time I got to the top. So, I haven't been following my stupid rule (oh and you can't shift either) and today I picked 16 as my number (that was my speed when I crossed 2222) as I approached the hill, I was at 18.something, so 18 was then my new number..almost made it...speed dipped to 17.9, but I brought it back up to 18 to finish.
I keep wondering if I was upset w/ myself for being so slow that day when I finally passed the runner, but now looking back on it, I'm glad I have that memory, cuz it gives me a milestone for every time i ride on West Rim.
Miles for this ride: 14.4
Roadkill for this ride: a big rat!
Total miles for the month: 14 (rounding)
Total miles for 2011: 75
Miles to go: 1425 to hit 1500!
But on Sunday I managed to find time before the Superbowl to get some miles in...14.4 to be exact. I took one of my favorite routes just outside my hood. It has smooth roads a few hills, sometimes lots of deer, but more importantly a yellow house with blue trim! (next time I'll take a picture of it!)
So after the hill & the blue house, I found myself on a street (West Rim) that brought back post stroke biking memories and I was once again reminded of how far I've come. I remember I was training to go ride in France, so this was Spring 2009, I think it was very hot, but I'm not sure. As I was riding down the street, I noticed I was having a hard time catching a jogger ahead of me. When I finally caught up to him, he wasn't a jogger, he was a runner, he was running about 8 mph! Slow in the biking world but fast for distance running (esp for someone who looked to be in his 30's) Well this time I was taking it easy at 13 mph and when I noticed I was going so slow, I kicked it up a notch!
On my way home on Shoal Creek there's a hump in the road that when I was tri training I would try not to let my speed dip below the speed that I was traveling at the bottom by the time I got to the top. So, I haven't been following my stupid rule (oh and you can't shift either) and today I picked 16 as my number (that was my speed when I crossed 2222) as I approached the hill, I was at 18.something, so 18 was then my new number..almost made it...speed dipped to 17.9, but I brought it back up to 18 to finish.
I keep wondering if I was upset w/ myself for being so slow that day when I finally passed the runner, but now looking back on it, I'm glad I have that memory, cuz it gives me a milestone for every time i ride on West Rim.
Miles for this ride: 14.4
Roadkill for this ride: a big rat!
Total miles for the month: 14 (rounding)
Total miles for 2011: 75
Miles to go: 1425 to hit 1500!
20110131
January is over
And I know I already rode more January 2011 than in January 2010.
Saturday, Kristen and I did the same loop as last week, I tried to wuss out and turn around early, but she wouldn't let me, so I had to do the 'hill' twice. It wasn't much of a hill, but it was a hill non the less.
The stuffed pink fish was still on the side of the road as was the very dead opossum. There was also a mangled raccoon (poor Rocky) and another dead opossum.
Then on the second loop, Kristen's tire decided to hiss at us! Boo! I think this is my third longer ride w/ KT & her second flat. Unlike my ex-husband, Kristen knows how to change a flat, but the weird thing was, once she put it on her bike, it hissed again...even weirder was the guy who stopped and had a foot pump (I say weird cuz he had overalls on (like an aggie) and was wearing a longhorn shirt), ok not as weird as we pumped up the tired, put it back on and finished out the 8 miles w/out any issues! I wonder if her tire is flat today...note to self, get Kristen that extra tube liner you have...
We finished the same route 4 mins faster (ride time) than last week!
Then on Sunday, I was very out of it but decided to ride shoal creek and scout the Bike 101 starting point. I think NW park will work the best. Somehow I did manage 11 miles...
Miles for this ride: 20 & 11
Total miles for the month: 61
Total miles for 2011: 61,
Miles to go: 1439 to hit 1500!
Saturday, Kristen and I did the same loop as last week, I tried to wuss out and turn around early, but she wouldn't let me, so I had to do the 'hill' twice. It wasn't much of a hill, but it was a hill non the less.
The stuffed pink fish was still on the side of the road as was the very dead opossum. There was also a mangled raccoon (poor Rocky) and another dead opossum.
Then on the second loop, Kristen's tire decided to hiss at us! Boo! I think this is my third longer ride w/ KT & her second flat. Unlike my ex-husband, Kristen knows how to change a flat, but the weird thing was, once she put it on her bike, it hissed again...even weirder was the guy who stopped and had a foot pump (I say weird cuz he had overalls on (like an aggie) and was wearing a longhorn shirt), ok not as weird as we pumped up the tired, put it back on and finished out the 8 miles w/out any issues! I wonder if her tire is flat today...note to self, get Kristen that extra tube liner you have...
We finished the same route 4 mins faster (ride time) than last week!
Then on Sunday, I was very out of it but decided to ride shoal creek and scout the Bike 101 starting point. I think NW park will work the best. Somehow I did manage 11 miles...
Miles for this ride: 20 & 11
Total miles for the month: 61
Total miles for 2011: 61,
Miles to go: 1439 to hit 1500!
20110125
It's a new year
I decided I'm going to try to Blog more about my bike rides. So far I've rode twice in 2011, 10 miles on Jan 2 and 20 miles on Jan 23. Two rides, one blog...not too bad of a ratio so far. The blogs will probably decrease the more I ride unless something really interesting happens on my rides.
I don't remember the 10 mile ride, so I'll talk a bit about the 20 miler. The 20 miler was supposed to be a nice ride in the country, out by Krause's springs. Having lived in Austin for 27 yrs, it's a shame that I have never dipped my toe into the springs, I did ride my bike past it once and I was hoping Sunday would make it twice, well, the clouds got in the way. It wasn't raining, it just wasn't sunny, so why drive an hour to the country to ride in cloudy weather, So we (Kristen & I) didn't, we 'settled' on going to the veloway and possibly riding some on S. Mopac. Now before you start screaming about safely, S. Mopac has a shoulder, much like 360 and Parmer and far less lights and hills, so all was good. 53 degrees, cold enough to have on leg warmers, 2 jerseys and a jacket, Kristen even had her toe warmers on, but I still refuse to buy those (if it's so cold you have to wear toe warmers, then it's too cold to be riding your bike is my philosophy. What is my bike riding philosophy? Well, when it comes to outside temperature, I prefer to ride in 110 degree weather vs 40 degrees! I can always drink more water and rest in the shade, but I my bike doesn't have a heater and building a fire is out of the question.) ...back to the ride.
One lap around the veloway and we ventured out to Mopac. I felt like I was dragging, but once we turned around it was the combination of the hill and riding against the wind. We turned around and went for another partial lap. once back in the Veloway parking lot, we were at 17 miles, you can't finish a ride at such an odd number, especially when you have access to a 3 mile bike track that will put you at 2 oh!
There was a lot of gravel on Mopac and one pink stuffed fish. Overall, it was a nice peaceful ride. Felt great to get back on the bike, even if it was 53 degrees. And on the final 1/4 mile on the veloway , Mr. Sun came out. I did feel like I should have gone up the hill faster, oh well, maybe next time!
BIKING GOALS for 2011
Create and host Bike 101
Bike Krause's Springs 43 mile route
Easter Hill Country Tour
Armadillo Classic-hopefully the 100 mile ride
Host one room schools tour
maybe Hotter than Hell 100
Miles for this ride: 20
Total miles for the month: 30
Total miles for 2011: 30
I don't remember the 10 mile ride, so I'll talk a bit about the 20 miler. The 20 miler was supposed to be a nice ride in the country, out by Krause's springs. Having lived in Austin for 27 yrs, it's a shame that I have never dipped my toe into the springs, I did ride my bike past it once and I was hoping Sunday would make it twice, well, the clouds got in the way. It wasn't raining, it just wasn't sunny, so why drive an hour to the country to ride in cloudy weather, So we (Kristen & I) didn't, we 'settled' on going to the veloway and possibly riding some on S. Mopac. Now before you start screaming about safely, S. Mopac has a shoulder, much like 360 and Parmer and far less lights and hills, so all was good. 53 degrees, cold enough to have on leg warmers, 2 jerseys and a jacket, Kristen even had her toe warmers on, but I still refuse to buy those (if it's so cold you have to wear toe warmers, then it's too cold to be riding your bike is my philosophy. What is my bike riding philosophy? Well, when it comes to outside temperature, I prefer to ride in 110 degree weather vs 40 degrees! I can always drink more water and rest in the shade, but I my bike doesn't have a heater and building a fire is out of the question.) ...back to the ride.
One lap around the veloway and we ventured out to Mopac. I felt like I was dragging, but once we turned around it was the combination of the hill and riding against the wind. We turned around and went for another partial lap. once back in the Veloway parking lot, we were at 17 miles, you can't finish a ride at such an odd number, especially when you have access to a 3 mile bike track that will put you at 2 oh!
There was a lot of gravel on Mopac and one pink stuffed fish. Overall, it was a nice peaceful ride. Felt great to get back on the bike, even if it was 53 degrees. And on the final 1/4 mile on the veloway , Mr. Sun came out. I did feel like I should have gone up the hill faster, oh well, maybe next time!
BIKING GOALS for 2011
Create and host Bike 101
Bike Krause's Springs 43 mile route
Easter Hill Country Tour
Armadillo Classic-hopefully the 100 mile ride
Host one room schools tour
maybe Hotter than Hell 100
Miles for this ride: 20
Total miles for the month: 30
Total miles for 2011: 30
20090928
spokes4strokes
had the first ever meeting for spokes4strokes. made several decisions...
a. this year will be the first ever disorganized ride
b. we will ride the Recovery route,
c. there will be options for the 10 mile recovery route, 6 mile route and a 1 mile route
d. not much else will happen
e. there might be some sort of commemorative prize
f. need to look into copyright stuff (already emailed Ryan, will grab URL off go-daddy tomorrow)
g. next year will look to have ride in October 1/2 way between Yvonne's & mine anniversary
h. proceeds if any will go to Stroke network, an online stroke support community.
a. this year will be the first ever disorganized ride
b. we will ride the Recovery route,
c. there will be options for the 10 mile recovery route, 6 mile route and a 1 mile route
d. not much else will happen
e. there might be some sort of commemorative prize
f. need to look into copyright stuff (already emailed Ryan, will grab URL off go-daddy tomorrow)
g. next year will look to have ride in October 1/2 way between Yvonne's & mine anniversary
h. proceeds if any will go to Stroke network, an online stroke support community.
20090813
Back to Reality
Back to Reality
I’m slowly working my way thru the dvr’d Le Tour stages. Mt. Ventoux is next. Stage 17 was interesting to watch, cuz I saw that one from Col de Romme and had no idea that Thor Hurshoff lead most of the way, cuz he was in great difficulty as he passed by me far behind the leaders. I need to put a lock on that recording…ok, just did, now I can re-ride Romme any time I want..HA!
Finally put the bike back together on Friday night with the help from Jason. He was so excited to help, love that kid! link to pics of Jason helping:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=85038&id=1038297795&l=fc90898d91
Then on Sunday I got back on the saddle and rode to the soccer game in Manor. All sorts of thoughts going thru my head, “I wish I was a better cyclist, wish I had climbed Ventoux, will I go back and attempt it on my 50th?, where do all these people who were on the trip and in incredible biking shape find the time to ride? How did they learn how to climb? Oh yeah, they live near mountains! And, they probably get up at the crack of dawn”.(I’m afraid to do that, there is something I love about hitting snooze!) oh and then there’s that little stroke issue! Anyhow, I do a lot of thinking on the bike, mostly because I’m by myself (group rides are too early and too far out of town and no one has stepped up to take Diane’s place) and riding w/ an iPod isn’t my thing—too dangerous, hard enough to hear while riding already.
What now???…get in better shape, get my shoulder to stop hurting, get my strength back on the left side, drop 10 pounds etc, etc, etc. Will I keep up the blog? Yes, probably more of just a personal diary that’s publicly viewable. Will prob write mostly about my boring bike rides.
Other bike rides since being home…Decided once a week I would bike home from work, then bike to work the next day…should be a 20% savings in gas and mileage on the car, and 20 miles I ride every week. Depending on how I feel I can always add more miles to the ride. My first commute home was kinda in the rain. One of those rare summer rain showers, I was actually excited, love exercising in the rain, but on the bike it adds extra things you have to be aware of—breaking soon enough, water in the eyes or dirty steamed up sun glasses, not turning too fast on any white spot on the road (they are really slick and you can wipe out), puddles –there was a huge muddy water one near Zilker yesterday and I had a car behind me, thankfully w/ a nice driver who let me go thru it first and didn’t try to pass me up and splash me! By the time I got to exposition, the streets were dry, so sad, no rain at my house.
No probs on the way back into work today, for some reason the hills are smaller! My hill I struggled on a year ago, no problem, but of course there is room for improvement…like not switching into that granny gear and going faster! I somehow made it to work 2 mins faster than pre-France! That made me happy.
I’m slowly working my way thru the dvr’d Le Tour stages. Mt. Ventoux is next. Stage 17 was interesting to watch, cuz I saw that one from Col de Romme and had no idea that Thor Hurshoff lead most of the way, cuz he was in great difficulty as he passed by me far behind the leaders. I need to put a lock on that recording…ok, just did, now I can re-ride Romme any time I want..HA!
Finally put the bike back together on Friday night with the help from Jason. He was so excited to help, love that kid! link to pics of Jason helping:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=85038&id=1038297795&l=fc90898d91
Then on Sunday I got back on the saddle and rode to the soccer game in Manor. All sorts of thoughts going thru my head, “I wish I was a better cyclist, wish I had climbed Ventoux, will I go back and attempt it on my 50th?, where do all these people who were on the trip and in incredible biking shape find the time to ride? How did they learn how to climb? Oh yeah, they live near mountains! And, they probably get up at the crack of dawn”.(I’m afraid to do that, there is something I love about hitting snooze!) oh and then there’s that little stroke issue! Anyhow, I do a lot of thinking on the bike, mostly because I’m by myself (group rides are too early and too far out of town and no one has stepped up to take Diane’s place) and riding w/ an iPod isn’t my thing—too dangerous, hard enough to hear while riding already.
What now???…get in better shape, get my shoulder to stop hurting, get my strength back on the left side, drop 10 pounds etc, etc, etc. Will I keep up the blog? Yes, probably more of just a personal diary that’s publicly viewable. Will prob write mostly about my boring bike rides.
Other bike rides since being home…Decided once a week I would bike home from work, then bike to work the next day…should be a 20% savings in gas and mileage on the car, and 20 miles I ride every week. Depending on how I feel I can always add more miles to the ride. My first commute home was kinda in the rain. One of those rare summer rain showers, I was actually excited, love exercising in the rain, but on the bike it adds extra things you have to be aware of—breaking soon enough, water in the eyes or dirty steamed up sun glasses, not turning too fast on any white spot on the road (they are really slick and you can wipe out), puddles –there was a huge muddy water one near Zilker yesterday and I had a car behind me, thankfully w/ a nice driver who let me go thru it first and didn’t try to pass me up and splash me! By the time I got to exposition, the streets were dry, so sad, no rain at my house.
No probs on the way back into work today, for some reason the hills are smaller! My hill I struggled on a year ago, no problem, but of course there is room for improvement…like not switching into that granny gear and going faster! I somehow made it to work 2 mins faster than pre-France! That made me happy.
Amsterdam
So, I arrived 20 hours later than I was supposed to. I will say Amsterdam (ok, the hotel was nice, really nice). Getting onto the shuttle bus was kinda a pain, it was crowded and I wasn’t about to stand for 20 mins, so I pretended like I was riding the metro and pushed my way into the line, didn’t let a lady cut, and found a seat!
While waiting at the gate to leave Amsterdam, I start playing the “I hope I don’t have to sit next to that person game.” First ‘winner’ was “Miss Swine Flu” she kept coughing and blowing her nose, then she’d take a quick nap and start the coughing and blowing all over again. Then there was ‘Mr. What Not to Wear’ on an airplane or ever wear, especially if you are so furry! He was my biggest fear…heavy set 50 yr old man in a black wife beater shirt, fanny pack and to top it off, he was a laser hair removal ideal client! I think I actually said a little prayer asking not to sit next to him. Finally the plane started loading, I had lost track of Miss Swine Flu (I figured I had a bandana (ie face mask) and hand sanitizer, but I could not handle sitting next to Mr. What not to Wear, besides, he was easy to spot. He loaded way before I did, meaning he was either in the way back or misplaced in business class or first class, part of me wanted him in first class!
Once on the plane I find the correct seat and continue w/ the game, looking at each person coming down the aisle, hoping for someone who had showered w/in 12 hours and used deodorant. Finally, someone catches my eye and says, “I hate to have you move, but I need to get to my seat” I WON! I WON! I WON! First of all, she spoke English, second she was average size, third, she didn’t stink and she was polite. Turns out she was from Houston and had been traveling w/ her best friend for the past 10 days.
Pics from the last day are here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=85525&id=1038297795&l=010f8e24ad
While waiting at the gate to leave Amsterdam, I start playing the “I hope I don’t have to sit next to that person game.” First ‘winner’ was “Miss Swine Flu” she kept coughing and blowing her nose, then she’d take a quick nap and start the coughing and blowing all over again. Then there was ‘Mr. What Not to Wear’ on an airplane or ever wear, especially if you are so furry! He was my biggest fear…heavy set 50 yr old man in a black wife beater shirt, fanny pack and to top it off, he was a laser hair removal ideal client! I think I actually said a little prayer asking not to sit next to him. Finally the plane started loading, I had lost track of Miss Swine Flu (I figured I had a bandana (ie face mask) and hand sanitizer, but I could not handle sitting next to Mr. What not to Wear, besides, he was easy to spot. He loaded way before I did, meaning he was either in the way back or misplaced in business class or first class, part of me wanted him in first class!
Once on the plane I find the correct seat and continue w/ the game, looking at each person coming down the aisle, hoping for someone who had showered w/in 12 hours and used deodorant. Finally, someone catches my eye and says, “I hate to have you move, but I need to get to my seat” I WON! I WON! I WON! First of all, she spoke English, second she was average size, third, she didn’t stink and she was polite. Turns out she was from Houston and had been traveling w/ her best friend for the past 10 days.
Pics from the last day are here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=85525&id=1038297795&l=010f8e24ad
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