Dirty Dirty Dirty was last nights ThNR theme. We did the FFX West Loop as the rain on and off all day had made the regular WF trails un-rideable.
A bit of a late start at just before 7PM put us back in the WF Lot at 8:52. Also a few minor navigation issues. Sigh. I'm not an expert in Old Town Fairfax. Quick stop at Auld Shebeen for an Irish Car Bomb for me and W. KL opted for a refill of her water bottle. Sigh. :P
Then a harrowing ride up along 123 to 50 and back to the CCT. Wet and muddy we were done.
PLB's briefly before Kilroys. And home.
I slept like crap from crazy dreams of robotic boogiemen and AI attacks by my phone. I could maybe blame the drinks but I only really had whiskey and beer. And a tiny bit of coffee liquor in the ICB. I think I just needed more water honestly.
Woke up with TIRED legs and opted against riding in today. I shall run instead I guess tonight. Maybe try and do 3.5 or so.
Getting a good long ride in this weekend is the big goal.
Next week's menu: Snow on thursday?!?!?!?WTFBBQ?!?!?!
Friday, November 07, 2014
Wednesday, November 05, 2014
Back on the Route Again...
Wayyyyyy back in early August I had a small mis-hap while commuting to work. I was crossing a road and made a too sharp turn while going too slow. Fell over in a majestic swan dive to the left. Impacting near perfectly on top of my left shoulder leaving me with a broken collarbone and shoulder blade.
Suckage.
I spent 7 weeks off the bike in total nearly. Some of the best summer riding weather I've ever seen in the DC area wasted. Sure I walked a bit but not enough. And running hurt also due to strain on the collarbone. Finally back on the bike in late September in time for the annual MORE camping trip.
Big Bear was a blast and I wasn't even doing a lot of the hard stuff. And I gimped myself by pulling my back while setting up camp on Friday. Still a great time.
October I threw down and started pushing to get back into shape. As in September I had committed to joining Bikenetic's CX Team at the lowest level of only 3 races. A good thing as I'm still not yet in shape, as of right now.
But today was a major step forward. Due to other commitments, weather and other stuff I've been putting off/avoiding getting back on the Bianchi and commuting to work.
Today I just did it. Well after much agonizing and some worrying with a side of minor panic. And it was fine. Great weather. Sure traffic was a bit more as I was running a tad late. And zoom in a went. No mishaps. No rude drivers. Legs feeling a bit spun out from last nights ride but thats okay. And a nice ride home to come.
What was a shocking to me was the level of panic/fear I was having towards the ride. I've done tons of mixed riding and road and mtb since getting back on the bike, yet my 7.5 mile commute had me way wound up. I stopped, took a few breathes and re-assured myself everything would be fine.
Way more people out at 8:00 than my more typical 7-7:15 commutes. Probably a dozen or more bikers. Though maybe it's the weather. We shall see on Friday when I commute again. Maybe next week I'll get back to 3x commutes....hahahaha.
Suckage.
I spent 7 weeks off the bike in total nearly. Some of the best summer riding weather I've ever seen in the DC area wasted. Sure I walked a bit but not enough. And running hurt also due to strain on the collarbone. Finally back on the bike in late September in time for the annual MORE camping trip.
Big Bear was a blast and I wasn't even doing a lot of the hard stuff. And I gimped myself by pulling my back while setting up camp on Friday. Still a great time.
October I threw down and started pushing to get back into shape. As in September I had committed to joining Bikenetic's CX Team at the lowest level of only 3 races. A good thing as I'm still not yet in shape, as of right now.
But today was a major step forward. Due to other commitments, weather and other stuff I've been putting off/avoiding getting back on the Bianchi and commuting to work.
Today I just did it. Well after much agonizing and some worrying with a side of minor panic. And it was fine. Great weather. Sure traffic was a bit more as I was running a tad late. And zoom in a went. No mishaps. No rude drivers. Legs feeling a bit spun out from last nights ride but thats okay. And a nice ride home to come.
What was a shocking to me was the level of panic/fear I was having towards the ride. I've done tons of mixed riding and road and mtb since getting back on the bike, yet my 7.5 mile commute had me way wound up. I stopped, took a few breathes and re-assured myself everything would be fine.
Way more people out at 8:00 than my more typical 7-7:15 commutes. Probably a dozen or more bikers. Though maybe it's the weather. We shall see on Friday when I commute again. Maybe next week I'll get back to 3x commutes....hahahaha.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Deep Thoughts on my Mentor.
Pete Beers on his blog posted a great entry on his thoughts of his early mentor in cycle repair and asked everyone to post up a response. Mine was my dad I have to say.
My dad went to work for the airline a week before I was born in the summer of 74. For years before that after being in Vietnam my dad had been a construction worker, but with his new family coming he wanted a better life for us and after getting his GED he finally got a job with a real future.
My dad dropped out of high school in the 50's at 15 to help support his family and due to having un-diagnosed learning disabilities, reading and comprehension were never easy for him at the time. He worked with horses, cars and later construction before being drafted into Vietnam in the mid 60's. He spent 3 years in the service and did 2 years in Nam. Mainly driving tanks and bulldozers as party of Engineering battalions or such. Pops first day in country set the tone for his time. The base they were at had a fire set by the VC that they were using to attack the compound. Pops jumps on a dozer and goes out and pushes out the fire using the blade as cover, while taking fire. Earns a silver star eventually for doing something stupid and heroic.
Came back from Nam and then spent time doing mechanical and construction jobs before meeting my mom then he went fully into construction as Northern VA was having it's 2nd big boom in the late 60's/early 70's. Entire neighborhoods in NVA have roads he cut and neighborhoods where he dug basements for houses. People I know live in some of the houses. Weird.
Eventual I came along and he went to work for the airline. Worked there for 37.5 years till he retired about 2 years ago. Nearly un-heard of in this day and age. I've been with my company now for 8.5 years and that's also unusual in the tech industry, thats one of those things I got from my dad was the desire to stick it through. I see myself sort of as a classic "company man".
My dad got the moving but and working for the airlines had us move a few times (85, 87, 88 and 91 - 88 was a town move, not a real change of location). ( It was good for me, got me out of where I grew up and really expanded my awareness of the country and how area's were VERY different. I grew up on Furnace Mountain north of Leesburg, VA till we moved in 85. From there we hit Phoenix, and Orlanda with a return to Northern VA in between. We also looked at moving at other times at Raleigh-Durham area, San Diego, and a few other places. Thats another thing I guess I got from my dad. The desire to see other places. Since then I've lived in Providence RI, Tallahassee FL, San Fran Area, and now I'm back in DC. Future places I might live include Charlotte SC, Asheville, NC and maybe Portland in the PacNW.
As a kid I watched my dad work on stuff all the time. He built his own log splitters, wagons for around the house yard stuff, solar water heating setup (in the 80's), and tons of stuff around the house including a huge deck and my tree house of awesomeness. I watched relentlessly. Then I grew bold and started using tools myself. At first I was quite limited. I favored using a hammer to drive my dads tools into the ground behind the house. BOY did he love that, especially when he hit them with the mower.
That led to my first tool set for christmas when i was 6 or 7. Painted fire engine red. My own tools. I played with bolts, screws, etc. I was shown lefty loosey, righty tighty. And off I went to his own misery. My favorite target....the push lawn mower. :) It was at my working height when sitting on the garage floor. Or out back where it was stored. My first bike also came around that time. Damn blue banana seated monstrosity. I hated the seat. It was scary and I never felt in control. I did take the stupid flag off the back though. It wasn't till a year or more later I found my first BMX in the trash that the biking bug caught for me. With my dad we reabilitated that junker with new tubes, tires, and grease in the hubs and off I went. First just riding up and down my driveway and front lawn, eventually after riding a mile around my house loop I was cleared to ride ot the general store a mile or so away at 8 and change. Freedom.
Mechanical work continued, helping dad with log splitters, chainsaws, trucks and going to work and watching him work on ground equipment. Tinkering on my bike (my first speedometer). Making up fake weapons for my tree house out of spare parts/pipe/etc. My dad was always a hard working guy, often cutting firewood in the fall to sell during the fall winter, working OT for extra money to help the family have the things he never had. I always understood it took hard work to get ahead.
I started getting payed to feed/manage a neighbors dogs at 7. At 11 I got my first tax paying job as a paperboy and did that till I was 14 and change when I went to work as a buffet stocker on the weekend at Bob's Big Boy. Then I was a dishwasher and eventually a buffet cook, and started training as a regular line cook by when I left at 17. All my money in the teens went to my computer hobby. Bikes fell by the wayside by 15 as only transportation. By 17 when all my friends drove the dropped away completely for surfing and roller blading and computers.
For my dad at least at home it's always been more about getting it done, than necessarily doing it "right" when we first started working on my camero in my late teens this became one of our bigger fighting points. When we started on the 2nd camero which was a full restoration from parts (not 1 single part was assembled, the car was in basket case condition). We began to really butt heads, he wanted to take short cuts where I wanted to make everything perfect. Natural part of the teen versus parent world. But it was eventually finished and a hell of a car to drive. He drove it for several years before selling it at a tidy profit to get into his current toy. A 78 Nova drag car. Currently on it's 3rd engine evolution, now running in the low 8's easily. It's a beast. And he loves it even when he blows up the motor as he did a few weeks ago. I always enjoy going out to the track to work and tinker and watch it race. He doesn't drive it anymore, mostly. My brother drove for a while but they were a bit more into it and butted heads way more.
These days when I visit my folks, my dad and I putter around in the 2nd garage with the Nova for a bit in the mornings, typically working on projects till lunch then I hang out with my mom in the afternoons, usually going shopping and stuff. I was always closer to my mom in many ways (Yah I consider myself a Momma's Boy, and my brother would agree), but my understanding of life and how to deal with stuff always came from my dad I think. In the way to work through, work hard, and then play hard when free.
Pete mentions that he stayed clean and grease free. I think thats anathema. You can't be clean in my family and have done real work. I look at a bike and I can find grease on fingers or smudge on my face. My hands and arms have scars from working on computer cases. I have a scar on my right hand from when my best friend in 7th grade got mad that I let his rear wheel spin while holding up his bike, he threw a crescent wrench at me! It's probably the prefectionism of europe/italy versus the rough/tumble/git-r-done way of america I suppose. :P Till then I'll wear either tee-shirts I don't care about or dark color workshirts when working on stuff. My dad still has a supply of old work shirts he uses from the airlines for when doing dirty work.
These days most bike repairs I do on my own except for my hydro disc brakes and replacing spokes on wheels. When i can get a full set of wheel tools I will go back to doing that. The hydro is just too small for me to work on :P.
My dad went to work for the airline a week before I was born in the summer of 74. For years before that after being in Vietnam my dad had been a construction worker, but with his new family coming he wanted a better life for us and after getting his GED he finally got a job with a real future.
My dad dropped out of high school in the 50's at 15 to help support his family and due to having un-diagnosed learning disabilities, reading and comprehension were never easy for him at the time. He worked with horses, cars and later construction before being drafted into Vietnam in the mid 60's. He spent 3 years in the service and did 2 years in Nam. Mainly driving tanks and bulldozers as party of Engineering battalions or such. Pops first day in country set the tone for his time. The base they were at had a fire set by the VC that they were using to attack the compound. Pops jumps on a dozer and goes out and pushes out the fire using the blade as cover, while taking fire. Earns a silver star eventually for doing something stupid and heroic.
Came back from Nam and then spent time doing mechanical and construction jobs before meeting my mom then he went fully into construction as Northern VA was having it's 2nd big boom in the late 60's/early 70's. Entire neighborhoods in NVA have roads he cut and neighborhoods where he dug basements for houses. People I know live in some of the houses. Weird.
Eventual I came along and he went to work for the airline. Worked there for 37.5 years till he retired about 2 years ago. Nearly un-heard of in this day and age. I've been with my company now for 8.5 years and that's also unusual in the tech industry, thats one of those things I got from my dad was the desire to stick it through. I see myself sort of as a classic "company man".
My dad got the moving but and working for the airlines had us move a few times (85, 87, 88 and 91 - 88 was a town move, not a real change of location). ( It was good for me, got me out of where I grew up and really expanded my awareness of the country and how area's were VERY different. I grew up on Furnace Mountain north of Leesburg, VA till we moved in 85. From there we hit Phoenix, and Orlanda with a return to Northern VA in between. We also looked at moving at other times at Raleigh-Durham area, San Diego, and a few other places. Thats another thing I guess I got from my dad. The desire to see other places. Since then I've lived in Providence RI, Tallahassee FL, San Fran Area, and now I'm back in DC. Future places I might live include Charlotte SC, Asheville, NC and maybe Portland in the PacNW.
As a kid I watched my dad work on stuff all the time. He built his own log splitters, wagons for around the house yard stuff, solar water heating setup (in the 80's), and tons of stuff around the house including a huge deck and my tree house of awesomeness. I watched relentlessly. Then I grew bold and started using tools myself. At first I was quite limited. I favored using a hammer to drive my dads tools into the ground behind the house. BOY did he love that, especially when he hit them with the mower.
That led to my first tool set for christmas when i was 6 or 7. Painted fire engine red. My own tools. I played with bolts, screws, etc. I was shown lefty loosey, righty tighty. And off I went to his own misery. My favorite target....the push lawn mower. :) It was at my working height when sitting on the garage floor. Or out back where it was stored. My first bike also came around that time. Damn blue banana seated monstrosity. I hated the seat. It was scary and I never felt in control. I did take the stupid flag off the back though. It wasn't till a year or more later I found my first BMX in the trash that the biking bug caught for me. With my dad we reabilitated that junker with new tubes, tires, and grease in the hubs and off I went. First just riding up and down my driveway and front lawn, eventually after riding a mile around my house loop I was cleared to ride ot the general store a mile or so away at 8 and change. Freedom.
Mechanical work continued, helping dad with log splitters, chainsaws, trucks and going to work and watching him work on ground equipment. Tinkering on my bike (my first speedometer). Making up fake weapons for my tree house out of spare parts/pipe/etc. My dad was always a hard working guy, often cutting firewood in the fall to sell during the fall winter, working OT for extra money to help the family have the things he never had. I always understood it took hard work to get ahead.
I started getting payed to feed/manage a neighbors dogs at 7. At 11 I got my first tax paying job as a paperboy and did that till I was 14 and change when I went to work as a buffet stocker on the weekend at Bob's Big Boy. Then I was a dishwasher and eventually a buffet cook, and started training as a regular line cook by when I left at 17. All my money in the teens went to my computer hobby. Bikes fell by the wayside by 15 as only transportation. By 17 when all my friends drove the dropped away completely for surfing and roller blading and computers.
For my dad at least at home it's always been more about getting it done, than necessarily doing it "right" when we first started working on my camero in my late teens this became one of our bigger fighting points. When we started on the 2nd camero which was a full restoration from parts (not 1 single part was assembled, the car was in basket case condition). We began to really butt heads, he wanted to take short cuts where I wanted to make everything perfect. Natural part of the teen versus parent world. But it was eventually finished and a hell of a car to drive. He drove it for several years before selling it at a tidy profit to get into his current toy. A 78 Nova drag car. Currently on it's 3rd engine evolution, now running in the low 8's easily. It's a beast. And he loves it even when he blows up the motor as he did a few weeks ago. I always enjoy going out to the track to work and tinker and watch it race. He doesn't drive it anymore, mostly. My brother drove for a while but they were a bit more into it and butted heads way more.
These days when I visit my folks, my dad and I putter around in the 2nd garage with the Nova for a bit in the mornings, typically working on projects till lunch then I hang out with my mom in the afternoons, usually going shopping and stuff. I was always closer to my mom in many ways (Yah I consider myself a Momma's Boy, and my brother would agree), but my understanding of life and how to deal with stuff always came from my dad I think. In the way to work through, work hard, and then play hard when free.
Pete mentions that he stayed clean and grease free. I think thats anathema. You can't be clean in my family and have done real work. I look at a bike and I can find grease on fingers or smudge on my face. My hands and arms have scars from working on computer cases. I have a scar on my right hand from when my best friend in 7th grade got mad that I let his rear wheel spin while holding up his bike, he threw a crescent wrench at me! It's probably the prefectionism of europe/italy versus the rough/tumble/git-r-done way of america I suppose. :P Till then I'll wear either tee-shirts I don't care about or dark color workshirts when working on stuff. My dad still has a supply of old work shirts he uses from the airlines for when doing dirty work.
These days most bike repairs I do on my own except for my hydro disc brakes and replacing spokes on wheels. When i can get a full set of wheel tools I will go back to doing that. The hydro is just too small for me to work on :P.
Friday, May 02, 2014
I could have...
I could have ridden my bike home from Kilroy's after the TNR faster than I drove home. Hell I woulda been home in 45 mins. E$@%#@ VDOT had 3 of 4 lanes leading up to the Nutley Ave exist closed. It forced 7 lanes of merging, into 1. 2 Hours to go from the 495N offramp to get to Nutley almost. ARGH didn't get home till 12:20. SOfa King Tired today now.
The TNR ride was solid, we did the ICBMF Ride (Irish Car Bombs Mid Fairfax) ride. We made a solid pace out there in about 45 mins, then once we hit the CCT we cranked HARD on the return ride back to Wakefield. 7 people made it a good group size.
Irish Car Bombs are wayyyyy to easy to drink. it's like adult yoo-hoo.
No MTB Camp alas this year, stuck in training.
The TNR ride was solid, we did the ICBMF Ride (Irish Car Bombs Mid Fairfax) ride. We made a solid pace out there in about 45 mins, then once we hit the CCT we cranked HARD on the return ride back to Wakefield. 7 people made it a good group size.
Irish Car Bombs are wayyyyy to easy to drink. it's like adult yoo-hoo.
No MTB Camp alas this year, stuck in training.
Monday, April 28, 2014
Trail Ouch and Ride Ahhh.
Trailwork yesterday has left me feeling like a burrito that has been riding all day in a bike messangers bag in New York. We built a BIG ass semi burmed new turn. By digging 3 massive dirt pits. My teammate on the dig and I dug the biggest and deepest we got 5 feet deep in most of it. I offered to bury some people in it, but alas was turned down. There is also a nice half mile of new trail leading up to it. At some point we will be forced to close the old trail section on the railroad property but not yet. With 17 people out we got a TON done. It's always surprising to see what big groups can do.
Looks like I'll be leading/co-leading a work day on May 10 at Wakefield. Wakka Wakka Wakka as fozzy bear would say.
Riding my ass off the last 2 weeks. 7 hours ish of cycling the last 3 weeks. Plus technically 4 hours of trailwork yesterday. I'm a beast. Slowly building fitness back but speed at least on the commute hasn't come but legs are TIRED. Gonna try and get in a run tonight before it rains. Tomorrow maybe a rest day or maybe Wednesday. Not sure. I'll be at 28/29 hours for the month not counting trail work as of tonight (33 with) which will mean I flat out did as much time doing stuff in april as I did in the ENTIRE 1st quarter of 15+8+12 or very nearly.
Just found out I'm getting screwed out of Spring Man Camp by a training class that just got moved to Tue-Fri instead of Mon-Thurs. Fuck. Fuckity Fuck.
Maybe I'll try Kill Bill on Saturday. hahahaha or at least the 1st third.
Looks like I'll be leading/co-leading a work day on May 10 at Wakefield. Wakka Wakka Wakka as fozzy bear would say.
Riding my ass off the last 2 weeks. 7 hours ish of cycling the last 3 weeks. Plus technically 4 hours of trailwork yesterday. I'm a beast. Slowly building fitness back but speed at least on the commute hasn't come but legs are TIRED. Gonna try and get in a run tonight before it rains. Tomorrow maybe a rest day or maybe Wednesday. Not sure. I'll be at 28/29 hours for the month not counting trail work as of tonight (33 with) which will mean I flat out did as much time doing stuff in april as I did in the ENTIRE 1st quarter of 15+8+12 or very nearly.
Just found out I'm getting screwed out of Spring Man Camp by a training class that just got moved to Tue-Fri instead of Mon-Thurs. Fuck. Fuckity Fuck.
Maybe I'll try Kill Bill on Saturday. hahahaha or at least the 1st third.
Monday, April 14, 2014
To Shjed or not to Shjed.
Solid weekend in the books. Friday was a well needed rest day. Saturday we did a Shed Epic 24/25 miles of the Fred-neck Waterless Shed. For having gotten a bit of rain overnight it was REALLY dry. We did a bunch of trails including Dave's, Huggy, Lawn Mower, EF, Trail of Tears, No-Longer-Knucklebuster, Hairway to Steven, and at Sallamander I bailed for the road ride back to Hamburg lot. Got a pretty good sunburn on that. Ugh.
We cleaned up and hit Tex Mex place in Frederick then picked up b33r and rolled on down to S'leesburg for a few hours of socialization at the Bakers Dozen. Almost was sad to not be riding it while watching people go roundy round.
Spent Sunday catching up on some house stuff then helping a friend fix her house after some windows were installed. I also helped her dispose of my old TV I had given her for her bedroom some years ago when I got my LCD. The TV was from July 1990 according to the manufacturer sticker. I did have it repaired once while I was living in Tallahassee in 2001 or 2002 I think but other than that it still mostly worked. But it was a big huge power sucking monstrosity. Weighted maybe 75lbs or more. Was a big 24 or 26 inch. My arms and shoulders are SORE.
Riding into work today was rough. With sore shoulders and legs I didn't spin out or run on yesterday it was a battle at first plus a solid headwind from the west SUCKED. After today's commute and maybe a short run tonight, I will have my most active month since December and I will be on pace to hit my best month of last Sept at 31 hours.
We cleaned up and hit Tex Mex place in Frederick then picked up b33r and rolled on down to S'leesburg for a few hours of socialization at the Bakers Dozen. Almost was sad to not be riding it while watching people go roundy round.
Spent Sunday catching up on some house stuff then helping a friend fix her house after some windows were installed. I also helped her dispose of my old TV I had given her for her bedroom some years ago when I got my LCD. The TV was from July 1990 according to the manufacturer sticker. I did have it repaired once while I was living in Tallahassee in 2001 or 2002 I think but other than that it still mostly worked. But it was a big huge power sucking monstrosity. Weighted maybe 75lbs or more. Was a big 24 or 26 inch. My arms and shoulders are SORE.
Riding into work today was rough. With sore shoulders and legs I didn't spin out or run on yesterday it was a battle at first plus a solid headwind from the west SUCKED. After today's commute and maybe a short run tonight, I will have my most active month since December and I will be on pace to hit my best month of last Sept at 31 hours.
Wednesday, April 09, 2014
That late in the season push.
Last week marked the start of the late in the spring season push. Due to March's entire suck-ass-ed-ness (I'm ordering studded tires this spring/summer for next year), I'm just now starting to up my fitness push.
Jan - 15 Hours, 154M, 14 Activities
Feb - 8 Hours, 87M, 8 Activities
Mar - 12 Hours, 112M, 13 Activities
Apr - 7 Hours, 72M, 8 Activities, plus 1/15/1 for today's commute once it's logged.
Since starting on Strava last year I avg 23/265/19 and peaked in Sept with 31/420/21
April has to be a BIG month for me. May brings Man Campage in NC with the fella's. That's a season definer.
June is the NoVA epic, and my annual MTB trip. To where? I dunno. NY? VT? Camp and Ride.
20 Activities a month is pretty sustainable. 25 is my goal. Though unless I continue 3x a week commuting ALL year my 250 goal is a bit of a stretch. Especially now that I'm working 5 days a week instead of 6.
Big options this weekend, hoping for a shjed ride on Saturday. Then either a 40 mile gravel ride with Pete on Sunday or epic cleanout at J's.
Jan - 15 Hours, 154M, 14 Activities
Feb - 8 Hours, 87M, 8 Activities
Mar - 12 Hours, 112M, 13 Activities
Apr - 7 Hours, 72M, 8 Activities, plus 1/15/1 for today's commute once it's logged.
Since starting on Strava last year I avg 23/265/19 and peaked in Sept with 31/420/21
April has to be a BIG month for me. May brings Man Campage in NC with the fella's. That's a season definer.
June is the NoVA epic, and my annual MTB trip. To where? I dunno. NY? VT? Camp and Ride.
20 Activities a month is pretty sustainable. 25 is my goal. Though unless I continue 3x a week commuting ALL year my 250 goal is a bit of a stretch. Especially now that I'm working 5 days a week instead of 6.
Big options this weekend, hoping for a shjed ride on Saturday. Then either a 40 mile gravel ride with Pete on Sunday or epic cleanout at J's.
Monday, April 07, 2014
MORE mechanicals 2014 - A weekend rules.
The Weekend is coming. In just 4 more days I will have 2 days off again. Woke up at normal work time on Saturday but rolled back over and managed to sleep till 730 when the 3 beers from the night before demanded I really get up or burst like Grampa Simspon on the way back from the Duff theme park.
Errands and shit most of saturday. It was actually a pretty busy day. Finally replaced the old Motorola Droid with a new HTC One M8. It's bad ass. A tad large but otherwise I totally dig it. Battery life rocks, sunday I played music, web surfer, facebook, mapped and took photo's while trail riding and at 10:30 (15+ hours) had 55% left. Versus the old phone would have MAYBE been at 10% with similar usage.
New pads in the rear of the MTB made a huge difference, though the grabby/rub at first sucked some of my soul out on Sunday.
Went up to Gambrill on Sunday to do Punga's ride and had a great time the first half then one of the riders rear hub started failing and so I went back to the lot with him. 7 Miles total, we were lucky he could road ride back, just no real coasting or chain suck went horribly. Went down and picked up some specialty Rye for a friend at an MD liquor store and then hit the 2 northern sections of CJ. I didn't do the lollipop off of the Goya area but did everything else though I didn't ride back on trails due to running a bit late.
Grilled up some steak, salmon and sausages to cap off a solid weekend.
Tomorrow it's back on the bike for commuting.
Errands and shit most of saturday. It was actually a pretty busy day. Finally replaced the old Motorola Droid with a new HTC One M8. It's bad ass. A tad large but otherwise I totally dig it. Battery life rocks, sunday I played music, web surfer, facebook, mapped and took photo's while trail riding and at 10:30 (15+ hours) had 55% left. Versus the old phone would have MAYBE been at 10% with similar usage.
New pads in the rear of the MTB made a huge difference, though the grabby/rub at first sucked some of my soul out on Sunday.
Went up to Gambrill on Sunday to do Punga's ride and had a great time the first half then one of the riders rear hub started failing and so I went back to the lot with him. 7 Miles total, we were lucky he could road ride back, just no real coasting or chain suck went horribly. Went down and picked up some specialty Rye for a friend at an MD liquor store and then hit the 2 northern sections of CJ. I didn't do the lollipop off of the Goya area but did everything else though I didn't ride back on trails due to running a bit late.
Grilled up some steak, salmon and sausages to cap off a solid weekend.
Tomorrow it's back on the bike for commuting.
Wednesday, April 02, 2014
Not Dead Yet
After innumerable viewings of Better of Dead this winter (nothing else to do, it was too snowy/rainy/cold) to generally ride my bike more than 1 day a week), I got back on the commute horse today. Well back on the Volpe and rolled into work.
Holy Sheet. I'm #@@$@ outa shape. Or my legs aren't used to that! My layering was also not optimal or being outa shape is making me VERY sweaty. I was in tights, bib shorts, long sleeve wooly and a jacket at 44'ish and I was sweaty as a pig when I got to work, next time I go wooly and sleeveless vest and 3/4 light pants. The bigger question is boots versus shoes with toe covers. I'm leaning towards the toe covers.
In other news I'm tracking my b33r/drink intake for April to try and reduce a bit. Or set a reduction goal. For now I'm at 2. I really didn't mean to have the 2nd one last night! Honest! The Perennial Sump Coffee stout is great with nice coffee/chocolate balance. Founders Nitro Oatmeal Stout is just smooth as hell.
For the first time in 8.5 years almost I'm going to have a regular Sat-Sun weekend starting this weekend. Road bike ride on Saturday morning and MTB on Sunday with Punga at Gambrill. Hell yah!
Now if only the rains would slow down.
Holy Sheet. I'm #@@$@ outa shape. Or my legs aren't used to that! My layering was also not optimal or being outa shape is making me VERY sweaty. I was in tights, bib shorts, long sleeve wooly and a jacket at 44'ish and I was sweaty as a pig when I got to work, next time I go wooly and sleeveless vest and 3/4 light pants. The bigger question is boots versus shoes with toe covers. I'm leaning towards the toe covers.
In other news I'm tracking my b33r/drink intake for April to try and reduce a bit. Or set a reduction goal. For now I'm at 2. I really didn't mean to have the 2nd one last night! Honest! The Perennial Sump Coffee stout is great with nice coffee/chocolate balance. Founders Nitro Oatmeal Stout is just smooth as hell.
For the first time in 8.5 years almost I'm going to have a regular Sat-Sun weekend starting this weekend. Road bike ride on Saturday morning and MTB on Sunday with Punga at Gambrill. Hell yah!
Now if only the rains would slow down.
Friday, January 17, 2014
Back in the Saddle. But someone isn't happy.
Just shy of 70 miles for the week as of last night and with today's commute I'll add another 15 on top of that and right now there is an option on Sunday to slap on another 40 or 50 miles with some Serious climbing.
But in the WIN category I logged 3 commutes this week, making up partially for last weeks epic failure. Hopefully another 3 next week and I'll feel....caught up. Todays ride will mark #11 of day 17 so I'm a bit off pace. Might do a REALLY short run tomorrow. Or it might be an off day.
Did get into a discussion with someone about how I actually count my commute rides towards my total. His point was is my ride in and ride out are generally 9 or more hours apart and it's really more of two rides, not just the one I log. For now I'm leaving it as one ride.
My posterior is displeased with this surge in riding this week after immatating a lump the last few weeks really. Sure I've done some riding but things were slow. I've joined the Strava PROVE IT challenge to get motivated.
The pre-innaugural Plan B - F Variant Ride went pretty well last night. We headed out from Wakefield directly up the CCT towards Fairfax. Our first stop was Hacienda El Paso, since L-Dog wasn't along I opted against the PJ Skadoo's stop option. One person had a Margarita and turned in his Man Card. The rest went with beer (3 of us total). We then motored up to Vienna and tried to go to WF but were thwarted twice over, they were waiting for Pint Glasses to finish washing and last call from food was now 8 instead of 8:30. Sad face. So off to Vienna Inn for a beer and Chili Cheese Dogs. We then rolled out for Lost Dog Cafe in Dunn Loring. A minor glove loss issue slowed us briefly but we made our way south rapidly after riding the WOD East. A final beer was consumed before the long ride back to WF (6.6 miles). We ended up back at the cars a bit after 10:15 or so. A damn good ride. In nicer weather with an earlier start I could see a couple variant routes involving
PJ's/Lost Dog/Mad Fox/Sweetwater or Hooter's, PJ's, Westover/spacebar/etc. Lots of possibilities.
But in the WIN category I logged 3 commutes this week, making up partially for last weeks epic failure. Hopefully another 3 next week and I'll feel....caught up. Todays ride will mark #11 of day 17 so I'm a bit off pace. Might do a REALLY short run tomorrow. Or it might be an off day.
Did get into a discussion with someone about how I actually count my commute rides towards my total. His point was is my ride in and ride out are generally 9 or more hours apart and it's really more of two rides, not just the one I log. For now I'm leaving it as one ride.
My posterior is displeased with this surge in riding this week after immatating a lump the last few weeks really. Sure I've done some riding but things were slow. I've joined the Strava PROVE IT challenge to get motivated.
The pre-innaugural Plan B - F Variant Ride went pretty well last night. We headed out from Wakefield directly up the CCT towards Fairfax. Our first stop was Hacienda El Paso, since L-Dog wasn't along I opted against the PJ Skadoo's stop option. One person had a Margarita and turned in his Man Card. The rest went with beer (3 of us total). We then motored up to Vienna and tried to go to WF but were thwarted twice over, they were waiting for Pint Glasses to finish washing and last call from food was now 8 instead of 8:30. Sad face. So off to Vienna Inn for a beer and Chili Cheese Dogs. We then rolled out for Lost Dog Cafe in Dunn Loring. A minor glove loss issue slowed us briefly but we made our way south rapidly after riding the WOD East. A final beer was consumed before the long ride back to WF (6.6 miles). We ended up back at the cars a bit after 10:15 or so. A damn good ride. In nicer weather with an earlier start I could see a couple variant routes involving
PJ's/Lost Dog/Mad Fox/Sweetwater or Hooter's, PJ's, Westover/spacebar/etc. Lots of possibilities.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
7 Weeks.....
Hahahahahaha
http://gawker.com/man-treated-for-seven-week-long-erection-caused-by-hard-1500953311
buwhahahahaa.
http://gawker.com/man-treated-for-seven-week-long-erection-caused-by-hard-1500953311
buwhahahahaa.
Friday, January 10, 2014
FFFFFUUUUUU
The title says it all. For those not familiar with this specific internet meme go google Rage Man. It's basically a comic thing alternate for screaming FUCK! FUCKITY FUCKING FUCKSOCKS! Etc.
For example:
I feel that way every time I play guitar hero and occasionally in Rocksmith when I've advanced difficulty on a song a hair to fast. Nothing like jumping from 50 to 80/90 percent difficulty and going from a few notes/etc to a full ripping chord-age and change ups.
Last night was one of those nights for Mountain Biking. I got back to the lot post ride and was removing gear and realized. Yes I am an idiot. I had taken off my glasses at some point and put them in a pocket. And then didn't zip up said @#$@ing pocket.
FFFFFUUUUUU!
I went and checked 2 easy places where I thought they might have fallen out. No dice. I may go back after work and re-check. Back in the day they were Oakley Jawbones, now they are named Race Jackets. Admittedly I did get them for about half price after trading in a non-usable christmas gift. And they were about 4 years old. But I had just put a new set of Ruby Red night riding lens in that I REALLY like right before Christmas. FFFFFUUUU!!!!
Debating a pair of Smith Optics V2 or maybe some Tifosi. I may also go out and look more tonight. Ugh.
Hoping to get in a good ride on Sunday 40 or 50 miles. Should be right about 50 degrees.
Would have liked to ride in but my sidewalk was completely iced and the parking lots I've seen were a mixed bag. Until I can justify/afford studded cx tires it just ain't gonna happen in icy conditions.
Commute by bike to work Goal - 2x - Complete FAILURE. Sub Zero Wins - Flawless Victory.
For example:
Last night was one of those nights for Mountain Biking. I got back to the lot post ride and was removing gear and realized. Yes I am an idiot. I had taken off my glasses at some point and put them in a pocket. And then didn't zip up said @#$@ing pocket.
FFFFFUUUUUU!
I went and checked 2 easy places where I thought they might have fallen out. No dice. I may go back after work and re-check. Back in the day they were Oakley Jawbones, now they are named Race Jackets. Admittedly I did get them for about half price after trading in a non-usable christmas gift. And they were about 4 years old. But I had just put a new set of Ruby Red night riding lens in that I REALLY like right before Christmas. FFFFFUUUU!!!!
Debating a pair of Smith Optics V2 or maybe some Tifosi. I may also go out and look more tonight. Ugh.
Hoping to get in a good ride on Sunday 40 or 50 miles. Should be right about 50 degrees.
Would have liked to ride in but my sidewalk was completely iced and the parking lots I've seen were a mixed bag. Until I can justify/afford studded cx tires it just ain't gonna happen in icy conditions.
Commute by bike to work Goal - 2x - Complete FAILURE. Sub Zero Wins - Flawless Victory.
Thursday, January 02, 2014
Uh 2014.
2013 was a good year for me activity wise. I WAY surpassed my A180 goal by hitting 219 activities between biking, running, hiking, etc. I'm really happy. Hell I'm down to near where I can drop to size 32 pants. 34's are loose.
So it's Goal Time 2014. I'm setting a few goals including
1st - Ride to Work at LEAST 2x per week. I rode 41 times that I have logged from April thru Dec. Ugh thats like 1x per week.
2nd - No Dead Weeks - IE no full weeks of doing Jack Shit unless I'm well and truly dead and there's 3 feet of snow.
3rd - Activity Goal - 250 versus 180.
4th - 25 Minute Commute to Work. Probably have to wait till spring and full roadbike weather but this should be doable. I've cracked 27 on the CX Bike. And I think I can do better.
5th - 8 Minute Mile on runs 5 miles or less.
6th - Half Marathon. Fuck Me.
7th - Spartan Race or Tough Mudder again. Fuck me 2x.
Got a few new video game addictions going also. The main one is RockSmith 2014. Lots of fun and challenge. I'm REALLY getting challenged right now on the 1st song I'm trying to master of Blitzkrieg Bop by the Ramones. It's fast as hell and my natural coordination is SHIT. I'm putting an hour in on it at least most days. Trying to rebuild calluses so I can play a bit more. All the subgames in the game are fun. Starts out about as hard as Guitar Hero/etc, but rapidly progresses to learning chords/etc.
Also need some new picks, my thin one is WAY to easy to bend.
The other game of doom?
Starbound. It's addictive as hell. It's in open Beta for $15 bucks you get beta access and download when it releases. Really slick. My roommate has probably put in 24+ hours in the last 5 days I estimate.
Slop ride on deck for tonight as I expect the Wakefield trails to be too damn soft today, after no freeze last night and rain and funk on the way tonight.
So it's Goal Time 2014. I'm setting a few goals including
1st - Ride to Work at LEAST 2x per week. I rode 41 times that I have logged from April thru Dec. Ugh thats like 1x per week.
2nd - No Dead Weeks - IE no full weeks of doing Jack Shit unless I'm well and truly dead and there's 3 feet of snow.
3rd - Activity Goal - 250 versus 180.
4th - 25 Minute Commute to Work. Probably have to wait till spring and full roadbike weather but this should be doable. I've cracked 27 on the CX Bike. And I think I can do better.
5th - 8 Minute Mile on runs 5 miles or less.
6th - Half Marathon. Fuck Me.
7th - Spartan Race or Tough Mudder again. Fuck me 2x.
Got a few new video game addictions going also. The main one is RockSmith 2014. Lots of fun and challenge. I'm REALLY getting challenged right now on the 1st song I'm trying to master of Blitzkrieg Bop by the Ramones. It's fast as hell and my natural coordination is SHIT. I'm putting an hour in on it at least most days. Trying to rebuild calluses so I can play a bit more. All the subgames in the game are fun. Starts out about as hard as Guitar Hero/etc, but rapidly progresses to learning chords/etc.
Also need some new picks, my thin one is WAY to easy to bend.
The other game of doom?
Starbound. It's addictive as hell. It's in open Beta for $15 bucks you get beta access and download when it releases. Really slick. My roommate has probably put in 24+ hours in the last 5 days I estimate.
Slop ride on deck for tonight as I expect the Wakefield trails to be too damn soft today, after no freeze last night and rain and funk on the way tonight.
Monday, December 09, 2013
CCCX in the SNOWHAIRS!
Yesterday's (Sunday 12/8) Capital City CX Race at Lake Fairfax was a blast and had some great weather for watching CX and it was very traditional with Snow and sometimes sleet coming down.
I left my house around 10AM and started up the road towards Vienna. And right away I knew I SHOULD go back and get glasses and a buff/facemask/something but I really didn't want to even though it was REALLY blowing snow and usually sleet into my face pretty hard. I spent a lot of time with my head down looking at my front wheel and peeking up every 15 seconds to check that the road was clear most of the way to Vienna and out the W&OD to Reston. Opted to take the back entrance via Michael Faraday into Lake Fairfax and rode some of the trails. It was a scary blast. A few bad mud holes. Made it out to the Front side of the park with no major issues and rode thru parts of the course. :P Hands were pretty cold but I was warm thanks to a travel mug of cocoa.
Hit the MORE/Scudfry operation up and warm fries rocked! Hung out. Got someone to take a picture of my frozen beard. Watched some racing. Chris Scott destroying fools! Helicopter parents are apparently a sucky part of cycling now also. Almost wanted to punch them and their idiotic strategy yelling crap. Drank some PLB's. Watched some more racing. Saw a bunch of friends. Talked club stuff a bit. Watched more racing, the ladies were pushing HARD! A hotdog later and I was on my way back to Vienna. Rode back out the south, though not before a wrong way on the actual course. :P
The Slog out was slow but not bad. Then I rode the W&OD back and then did some of it on the horse trail for some "REAL" CX. And at right before hunters mill I flatted. Yep. Changed under the sign at Hunters Mill, wasn't bad. Hardest thing was getting the ice off the valve stem to unscrew it. 20 minutes later back on the trail. Snow and Sleet blowing again after just snow. Rolled into Vienna and hit Spokes for 3 spare tube. Almost went to Whole Foods for a beer but it was pretty full.
Went home to watch the Looser-skins loosing in epic fashion. Warm shower never felt so good! Gassed up the car ran some errands.
Gotta do the breaks on the bike before I ride again, the ice destroyed the breaks. Now I remember why disc brakes are awesome.
I left my house around 10AM and started up the road towards Vienna. And right away I knew I SHOULD go back and get glasses and a buff/facemask/something but I really didn't want to even though it was REALLY blowing snow and usually sleet into my face pretty hard. I spent a lot of time with my head down looking at my front wheel and peeking up every 15 seconds to check that the road was clear most of the way to Vienna and out the W&OD to Reston. Opted to take the back entrance via Michael Faraday into Lake Fairfax and rode some of the trails. It was a scary blast. A few bad mud holes. Made it out to the Front side of the park with no major issues and rode thru parts of the course. :P Hands were pretty cold but I was warm thanks to a travel mug of cocoa.
Hit the MORE/Scudfry operation up and warm fries rocked! Hung out. Got someone to take a picture of my frozen beard. Watched some racing. Chris Scott destroying fools! Helicopter parents are apparently a sucky part of cycling now also. Almost wanted to punch them and their idiotic strategy yelling crap. Drank some PLB's. Watched some more racing. Saw a bunch of friends. Talked club stuff a bit. Watched more racing, the ladies were pushing HARD! A hotdog later and I was on my way back to Vienna. Rode back out the south, though not before a wrong way on the actual course. :P
The Slog out was slow but not bad. Then I rode the W&OD back and then did some of it on the horse trail for some "REAL" CX. And at right before hunters mill I flatted. Yep. Changed under the sign at Hunters Mill, wasn't bad. Hardest thing was getting the ice off the valve stem to unscrew it. 20 minutes later back on the trail. Snow and Sleet blowing again after just snow. Rolled into Vienna and hit Spokes for 3 spare tube. Almost went to Whole Foods for a beer but it was pretty full.
Went home to watch the Looser-skins loosing in epic fashion. Warm shower never felt so good! Gassed up the car ran some errands.
Gotta do the breaks on the bike before I ride again, the ice destroyed the breaks. Now I remember why disc brakes are awesome.
Wednesday, December 04, 2013
When is Nap Time?
Sometimes you just want to take a Nap.
Thats today's motto and yesterday's also I think. Part of it is the push to get back into cycling habit from my slacking off in November. I'm at 56 miles in the last 2 days. Today I shall run I self declare.
Crap the weather Wed and Thurs is looking Shittier. I may still ride in tomorrow, but Thursday is now looking like a possible Plan B ride.
Cooked up a new batch of Skratch, this time finally doing the eggy things. Turned out awesome and super easy due to greasing the muffin tin with my super secret ingredient.
Bacon Grease.
Next time I want to integrate the bacon and cheese more so I will actually add it at the mid-way point versus after like the book says. Also adding a "crust" of rice or bread might help also. Or I will use Extra Large Eggs.
Taking a down day on Wednesday. My body needs a recharge after 3 days of pretty hard work following 2 weeks of low activity. May roll into DC to see a friends band play The Brixton Tonight.
Rain Rain and Snow on Sunday! Looking like Cap Cross CX at Lk Ffx may be a real interesting event. I may ride out to watch the mayhem/insanity on Sunday.
Thats today's motto and yesterday's also I think. Part of it is the push to get back into cycling habit from my slacking off in November. I'm at 56 miles in the last 2 days. Today I shall run I self declare.
Crap the weather Wed and Thurs is looking Shittier. I may still ride in tomorrow, but Thursday is now looking like a possible Plan B ride.
Cooked up a new batch of Skratch, this time finally doing the eggy things. Turned out awesome and super easy due to greasing the muffin tin with my super secret ingredient.
Bacon Grease.
Next time I want to integrate the bacon and cheese more so I will actually add it at the mid-way point versus after like the book says. Also adding a "crust" of rice or bread might help also. Or I will use Extra Large Eggs.
Taking a down day on Wednesday. My body needs a recharge after 3 days of pretty hard work following 2 weeks of low activity. May roll into DC to see a friends band play The Brixton Tonight.
Rain Rain and Snow on Sunday! Looking like Cap Cross CX at Lk Ffx may be a real interesting event. I may ride out to watch the mayhem/insanity on Sunday.
Thursday, November 28, 2013
It's important to remember what we have from time to time.
This has been a VERY rough year for a lot of friends for a gamut of reasons. And today of all days makes me thankfull for a laundry list of items but not just limited to whats below:
The men and women in our services. Doing there best to represent us and protect us. Especially those on deployment who can't be with their family's this holiday season.
The men and women who server in our protective services, aka police, fire, rescue, etc. These people are out doing incredibly hard jobs to keep us safe. Remember that next time you get pulled over for breaking the law, even though you were only going 10 mph over! :)
For my health and most of my friends continued good health. If nothing else it reminds me to make smart decisions about what I am comfortable with and where I move into risk exceeding the reward. I want to live to bike/run/eat/drink tomorrow. Is going that extra bit faster worth it? Do you know who besides yourself your risks can impact?
For my continued employment, a lot of friends have lost jobs recently or left bad ones. My job isn't awesome in someways but it continues to be stable and offer opportunity to make $$ if you are willing to work.
My friends. What can I say, be they roommates, people I ride with regularly, people I ride with occasionally or new people I've gotten to meet thru out the year. Watching a movie last night I was reminded of how important friendships are to keeping people on an even keel during the hard times.
My family. Family drives you nuts, but they are your roots always something I feel I can look back on and see the support they have provided over my life. Sure there are twists and turns and they aren't always pretty.
Good Beer. 'Nuff Said.
Shelter, Food, Clothing, Friends, Health and Stuff.
The men and women in our services. Doing there best to represent us and protect us. Especially those on deployment who can't be with their family's this holiday season.
The men and women who server in our protective services, aka police, fire, rescue, etc. These people are out doing incredibly hard jobs to keep us safe. Remember that next time you get pulled over for breaking the law, even though you were only going 10 mph over! :)
For my health and most of my friends continued good health. If nothing else it reminds me to make smart decisions about what I am comfortable with and where I move into risk exceeding the reward. I want to live to bike/run/eat/drink tomorrow. Is going that extra bit faster worth it? Do you know who besides yourself your risks can impact?
For my continued employment, a lot of friends have lost jobs recently or left bad ones. My job isn't awesome in someways but it continues to be stable and offer opportunity to make $$ if you are willing to work.
My friends. What can I say, be they roommates, people I ride with regularly, people I ride with occasionally or new people I've gotten to meet thru out the year. Watching a movie last night I was reminded of how important friendships are to keeping people on an even keel during the hard times.
My family. Family drives you nuts, but they are your roots always something I feel I can look back on and see the support they have provided over my life. Sure there are twists and turns and they aren't always pretty.
Good Beer. 'Nuff Said.
Shelter, Food, Clothing, Friends, Health and Stuff.
Monday, November 25, 2013
Being locked out is no fun
Saturday was a planned off day as I had some delusions about going on Pete's ride Sunday. Well by the time to roll came around on Sunday I was not going anywhere except by foot for a bit.
Saturday I took care of some business and helped a friend with a project. It was good to get it off the list, and we actually got it done quick. Then trolled the otherside of Vienna, who knew their were some snooty snobby @#$#@ just off Maple/123.
Sunday started off bad and went to stupid/worse quickly.
Woke up to the house at a lovely 53 degrees F. COLD! Went down and turned heat off for 2 minutes then tried to engage emergency heat - no real difference in air coming from vent. The EM heat is out I suspect. I think it had tried using it over night and failed. So I messed around and changed some stuff and got the heatpump/aux going. I went out back in fleece/hat/gloves/jeans (No jacket) to check heatpump and after inspection went back up to go in. Uh Oh. Oh Shit. Front door shut behind me. And knob based lock was engaged. Tried to pop/force as it was loosely shut - no luck it closed solid on 3rd try! No roommates 1 was at work, 1 was not due back till afternoon from out of town. No phone. No keys. No Cash. Tried my car in-case i left it unlocked as that would give me access to secret cash stash - No luck.
Back down to basement. Tried to pop sliding glass door - No luck, very well secured. Nice job me. Basement window - Locked. Deck climb??? Last resort. Try front windows. 2 sets appear to be in open position. No luck. Back to examine deck climb. Not going to be easy/safe or fun. Re-examine basement window then main windows. Try a bit harder - BINGO! Back in I go. Now about 9 am and I'd been out for 30-40 mins. Almost had given up to go bum around downtown vienna and bounce from shopping ctr to shopping ctr to stay warm till roommate returned.
Once I was warmer I was off to Starblechs for Cocoa and breakfast. Then home depot for a new key lockbox outside. No more lockouts! The rest of the morning was spent straightening up the house, taking care of errands, and general crap. House got warm again around mid-afternoon. Still is okay now. Sigh.
Busy week. Tonight I gotta run. Tuesday uh avoid winter storm. Wednesday prep for Turkey Lurkey Day Adventures, Turkey Day Armageddon. Friday - Going out, Saturday - who knows. Sunday I shall Take 0ver the World!
Saturday I took care of some business and helped a friend with a project. It was good to get it off the list, and we actually got it done quick. Then trolled the otherside of Vienna, who knew their were some snooty snobby @#$#@ just off Maple/123.
Sunday started off bad and went to stupid/worse quickly.
Woke up to the house at a lovely 53 degrees F. COLD! Went down and turned heat off for 2 minutes then tried to engage emergency heat - no real difference in air coming from vent. The EM heat is out I suspect. I think it had tried using it over night and failed. So I messed around and changed some stuff and got the heatpump/aux going. I went out back in fleece/hat/gloves/jeans (No jacket) to check heatpump and after inspection went back up to go in. Uh Oh. Oh Shit. Front door shut behind me. And knob based lock was engaged. Tried to pop/force as it was loosely shut - no luck it closed solid on 3rd try! No roommates 1 was at work, 1 was not due back till afternoon from out of town. No phone. No keys. No Cash. Tried my car in-case i left it unlocked as that would give me access to secret cash stash - No luck.
Back down to basement. Tried to pop sliding glass door - No luck, very well secured. Nice job me. Basement window - Locked. Deck climb??? Last resort. Try front windows. 2 sets appear to be in open position. No luck. Back to examine deck climb. Not going to be easy/safe or fun. Re-examine basement window then main windows. Try a bit harder - BINGO! Back in I go. Now about 9 am and I'd been out for 30-40 mins. Almost had given up to go bum around downtown vienna and bounce from shopping ctr to shopping ctr to stay warm till roommate returned.
Once I was warmer I was off to Starblechs for Cocoa and breakfast. Then home depot for a new key lockbox outside. No more lockouts! The rest of the morning was spent straightening up the house, taking care of errands, and general crap. House got warm again around mid-afternoon. Still is okay now. Sigh.
Busy week. Tonight I gotta run. Tuesday uh avoid winter storm. Wednesday prep for Turkey Lurkey Day Adventures, Turkey Day Armageddon. Friday - Going out, Saturday - who knows. Sunday I shall Take 0ver the World!
Friday, November 22, 2013
I'll take that for a dollar!
It was a warm one out last night for sure. It was warmer than I was prepared for. The winter boots were overkill, except when going thru the very damp creek. Oh well.
Ton of riders out, some new folks, some old returnee's. It was a good ride, big thanks to Russ A for leading a supersized Cas+ ride.
Way too much b33r last night. But good times were had and good talk was exchanged by the DDRC. But getting home at 11:20 was a bit harsh and by the time I was in bed I think it was 12:15. Another semi-restless night of sleep and my neck is still a bit tender. Now my stupid left hand is sore either from riding or punch myself stupid in my sleep.
Busy weekend on deck maybe. Depends on some flakey folks and how @##@$$# the weather is on Sunday and how stir crazy I am. Hoping to make some positive plans.
Also need to bottle some beer and get ready for brewing a new batch for Thanksgiving week. I think it's a Black Rye IPA on deck! Hell yah!
Poured out the last of the failed Peanut Butter Chocolate Stout yesterday. It's a sad thing to pour out 2 cases of BAD beer. Even when it tastes like crap. I learned 2 things. Don't mess around with timing on homebrew and avoid @#$@# extracts/etc in full batches. If using something funky limit to half batch at maximum.
It's almost time to escape work, I can NOT fricking wait. Ants in my pants or something. Actually excited to get out and run! Someone stop me!
Ton of riders out, some new folks, some old returnee's. It was a good ride, big thanks to Russ A for leading a supersized Cas+ ride.
Way too much b33r last night. But good times were had and good talk was exchanged by the DDRC. But getting home at 11:20 was a bit harsh and by the time I was in bed I think it was 12:15. Another semi-restless night of sleep and my neck is still a bit tender. Now my stupid left hand is sore either from riding or punch myself stupid in my sleep.
Busy weekend on deck maybe. Depends on some flakey folks and how @##@$$# the weather is on Sunday and how stir crazy I am. Hoping to make some positive plans.
Also need to bottle some beer and get ready for brewing a new batch for Thanksgiving week. I think it's a Black Rye IPA on deck! Hell yah!
Poured out the last of the failed Peanut Butter Chocolate Stout yesterday. It's a sad thing to pour out 2 cases of BAD beer. Even when it tastes like crap. I learned 2 things. Don't mess around with timing on homebrew and avoid @#$@# extracts/etc in full batches. If using something funky limit to half batch at maximum.
It's almost time to escape work, I can NOT fricking wait. Ants in my pants or something. Actually excited to get out and run! Someone stop me!
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Get out there young man!
Busy week of riding and doing stuff.
Saturday I snuck in a great ride with Maureen at WF post work. It was a tad damp and the bike showed it afterwards requiring me to re-hook up the hose to get it somewhere approximating clean. Got a ton of other crap also done this day.
Sunday I cooked epic pancake and snausage breakfast before heading out on a 40 mile re-introduction to roadie-hood. It was a nice way to spend a few hours except I forgot water and snacks and by halfway back I was bonked. Quick stop at TBL Reston for water, fuel, and rinsing out the sweaty headband and I powered home feeling better. Got the car washed and oil changed and a few other things.
Friday I also hit costco and WF post picking up my roomie. It was a busy but uber productive weekend. Good times.
Monday rolled up on me with a vengeance. Like a Spirit of Vengeance like Nic Cage.
So I rode into work on Monday and that wasn't bad i was honestly too warm in my woolie. Work sucked but I got out mostly ontime and road home in my T-shirt. Gotta leave a spare jersey at work for those unplanned super warm days. My left shoulder was a tad sore so I decided to go for a quick run. As I was running I decided I would do some urban crossfit and hit the park gym of pull up bars and other stuff. Bad mistake. Shoulder went from ouch to @#$@## THAT F@#KING HURTS!
Spent the night and next day abusing the heating pad and advil but by 4pm the shoulder was mostly okay. So off I schlepped to Schaeffer Farm. Damn it felt cold in the lot and my fingers froze right away for some reason! Trails have REALLY eroded in a few spots. But it was good except where I made a few bad line choices and had to stop. d'oh.
Post ride it was off to DFH GTown for beer and chow. Good beer and good friends.
WACK dreams and I don't know whether to blame beer or food or what but I must have had my most active night of dreaming in years. Slept thru my alarm till 8PM.
Saturday I snuck in a great ride with Maureen at WF post work. It was a tad damp and the bike showed it afterwards requiring me to re-hook up the hose to get it somewhere approximating clean. Got a ton of other crap also done this day.
Sunday I cooked epic pancake and snausage breakfast before heading out on a 40 mile re-introduction to roadie-hood. It was a nice way to spend a few hours except I forgot water and snacks and by halfway back I was bonked. Quick stop at TBL Reston for water, fuel, and rinsing out the sweaty headband and I powered home feeling better. Got the car washed and oil changed and a few other things.
Friday I also hit costco and WF post picking up my roomie. It was a busy but uber productive weekend. Good times.
Monday rolled up on me with a vengeance. Like a Spirit of Vengeance like Nic Cage.
It's Monday B@#$@es!!!!
So I rode into work on Monday and that wasn't bad i was honestly too warm in my woolie. Work sucked but I got out mostly ontime and road home in my T-shirt. Gotta leave a spare jersey at work for those unplanned super warm days. My left shoulder was a tad sore so I decided to go for a quick run. As I was running I decided I would do some urban crossfit and hit the park gym of pull up bars and other stuff. Bad mistake. Shoulder went from ouch to @#$@## THAT F@#KING HURTS!
Spent the night and next day abusing the heating pad and advil but by 4pm the shoulder was mostly okay. So off I schlepped to Schaeffer Farm. Damn it felt cold in the lot and my fingers froze right away for some reason! Trails have REALLY eroded in a few spots. But it was good except where I made a few bad line choices and had to stop. d'oh.
Post ride it was off to DFH GTown for beer and chow. Good beer and good friends.
WACK dreams and I don't know whether to blame beer or food or what but I must have had my most active night of dreaming in years. Slept thru my alarm till 8PM.
Friday, November 15, 2013
It's a hard knock life on MTB
A better night at WF last night except for 1 bit.
I broke another saddle. Thats saddle #2 to give up the ghost at WF. And the 3rd saddle thats failed on me. 1st was my original WTB back on the Giant Rainer that eventually the rails simply flattened/crushed on. 2nd was my Terry Fly Ti. Rail snapped while riding towards Salemander at WF on the rocks. This one failed somewhere early I think in phase 1 headed towards the creek trail section 3. It survived the next 8 mile pretty well. A Selle Italia that had been on there for at least 2 years. I think it's a good reflection that I am a better rider but I still do sit too much. I'm sure the PA Adventure also contributed to it's recent failure. That was a LOT of rocks.
New tubeless tire up front gets a mixed rating, but I expect that to improve. I had WAY too much air at around 34/35psi in it last night and expect it to get less-funky/loose when I drop it to 30'ish.
Boy was that tire a B@#!! to get mounted. Super tight bead. I also had to go back nearly flatten it 2 times then use stans on a rag to get 2 spots to seat properly/slip the bead in to seat. Those pops always are good for a scare. :)
Tuesday I went down to WF post work for a pre-ride beer and ended up with a 11oz BCS from Goose Island from 2012. Hell yah! 15%+ ABV. It's a monster and it's smoother than at release for sure with a year aging. Went down super nice. And I weaved my way towards Barlington the first 2 miles of the WOD I rode. No food plus 15% = Ass kicking booze hit. Even in 11 OZ.
Went down to Mad Rose with a few navigation mis-cues but got there eventually. In time to score a free beer to start with, a Lagunitas IPA. Damn good. Saw a few known faces, talked with Mike E for a bit. Got some food order and checked out the Race Dots. Excellent idea. Mini Magnets setup for holding on race #'s for bike and running races. No safety pins. Really strong magnets. Lets you slide them and the plate around your shirt.
Busy weekend on deck again. Plans tonight, work sat, ride Saturday afternoon, party Sat, Sun big ride on road, and other crap.
I'll be so glad when I have 2 official days off again. Off for more free taco's at work now. Viva la Bell!
I broke another saddle. Thats saddle #2 to give up the ghost at WF. And the 3rd saddle thats failed on me. 1st was my original WTB back on the Giant Rainer that eventually the rails simply flattened/crushed on. 2nd was my Terry Fly Ti. Rail snapped while riding towards Salemander at WF on the rocks. This one failed somewhere early I think in phase 1 headed towards the creek trail section 3. It survived the next 8 mile pretty well. A Selle Italia that had been on there for at least 2 years. I think it's a good reflection that I am a better rider but I still do sit too much. I'm sure the PA Adventure also contributed to it's recent failure. That was a LOT of rocks.
New tubeless tire up front gets a mixed rating, but I expect that to improve. I had WAY too much air at around 34/35psi in it last night and expect it to get less-funky/loose when I drop it to 30'ish.
Boy was that tire a B@#!! to get mounted. Super tight bead. I also had to go back nearly flatten it 2 times then use stans on a rag to get 2 spots to seat properly/slip the bead in to seat. Those pops always are good for a scare. :)
Tuesday I went down to WF post work for a pre-ride beer and ended up with a 11oz BCS from Goose Island from 2012. Hell yah! 15%+ ABV. It's a monster and it's smoother than at release for sure with a year aging. Went down super nice. And I weaved my way towards Barlington the first 2 miles of the WOD I rode. No food plus 15% = Ass kicking booze hit. Even in 11 OZ.
Went down to Mad Rose with a few navigation mis-cues but got there eventually. In time to score a free beer to start with, a Lagunitas IPA. Damn good. Saw a few known faces, talked with Mike E for a bit. Got some food order and checked out the Race Dots. Excellent idea. Mini Magnets setup for holding on race #'s for bike and running races. No safety pins. Really strong magnets. Lets you slide them and the plate around your shirt.
Busy weekend on deck again. Plans tonight, work sat, ride Saturday afternoon, party Sat, Sun big ride on road, and other crap.
I'll be so glad when I have 2 official days off again. Off for more free taco's at work now. Viva la Bell!
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