Lake Orion High School Race Results June 9, 2010

Our first race of two drew close to 60 riders. Rain in the morning but it dried up for the most part by race time. The weather looks even better for next week.

June 9, 2010 Results

It's a boy!

Last Thursday Emily gave birth to a healthy baby boy. That is child number three for the Jason and Emily. Everyone is doing fine and this time the midwife was present during the at home delivery and they were able to use the birthing tub. No name has been selected yet.

You can go home again, sort of

The three day holiday weekend allowed me a chance to partake in a variety of activities, starting Saturday with a XC race at a trail fairly close to me in Rochester, Bloomer park. I don't ride there very often so I made sure to ride the trails twice last week to try and pick what gearing I would use on the bike.

In some ways the trails are similar to parts of the LOHS trails but Bloomer also has more flat areas and some longer climbs. Picking the right gear ratio is never easy at courses like that. I started with an easy gear on the first ride, made it harder for the second, and picked a compromise for the race.

On race morning my stomach wasn't feeling 100% plus the anticipated race time temps in the upper 80's prompted me to switch the gearing back to the one I had on the first ride, fairly easy. In the end I'm glad I listened to reason.

I purposely started out slow, 6th out of 10, and just tried to keep a steady pace and not overdo it. I passed a few riders and was in 4th or so and kept taking it easy. On the second lap I got stuck behind a young girl in the race just as we entered a long section of trail that was very narrow and went along the side of the hill. There was no place for her to pull off and I felt bad for her as she was obviously nervous. I finally got around but the wait cost me a lot of time.

On the final lap I caught up to another rider in my class and I thought we were racing for 4th and 5th place. He got away from me but I got up behind him again a little ways from the finish. I stayed right on his wheel but didn't have the power left to pass so I ended up crossing the finish line 7 seconds behind. As it turns out we were 2nd and 3rd place. Overall I was happy with my result given the way I felt at the start. Plus I ran a smart race and never really blew up or cramped. Next week we are going down to near the Indiana border to support a race sponsored by our team shop. I haven't raced at the course in many years.

After getting dinner at home I drove down to my parent's house east of Cleveland to spend the night. The next day they wee going to participating in a one mile walk as part of a bigger event during the Chagrin Falls Blossom Time Festival. I hadn't been in the town for a while and while they were walking I walked around the town seeing how things had remained the same yet changed.

Chagrin Falls was featured in the 1977 movie The Gathering, which was supposed to take place in New England but the town is very much like a town you might find in Vermont or New Hampshire, except that the houses and incomes are probably two or three times those in the northeast. However with the incomes also comes a change in the once sleepy town to a more upscale and exclusive attitude. The town still has its charm and beauty.

I didn't actually grow up in the town but close by. They were a rival in high school yet I went to church in the village and new quite a few kids there. Sandy and I ended up getting married at the church in Chagrin. Lots of good memories but a long time ago.

Leaving Chagrin I drove out to the memorial gardens that my mom helps to maintain. I had heard a lot about them but had never seen them. I was impressed with the size of the gardens and the care that has gone into them. The edges of the walks were lines with brick in memory of loved ones. I found the one for my sister that was located under a bench so I sat there for a while remembering.

One of the other reasons for heading down to Ohio was to attend an open house at the park where I had my first official job over 40 years ago. Wiegand's Lake Park is in some ways a throwback to simpler times with a picnic grove, swimming lake complete with rowboats and paddle boats, softball field and horseshoes, concession stands and a dance hall. The grounds were always in immaculate shape, partly due to the hired help that constantly was on patrol picking up litter and emptying waste cans. In fact, that was my first job, litter patrol.

The park is not open to the general public but instead rented out to companies and organizations for picnics and other functions. One of the high points was the food provided by the park, always home made. The custard stand was another highlight.

The park is now being run by Wendy, the daughter of the people I worked for. I graduated with her and when my dad's company or our church had their picnics at the park she and I would usually hang out together. I hadn't seen her since school but lately have been catching up via Facebook.

Arriving at the park the entrance and parking lot was just as I remembered, complete with a law enforcement officer directing traffic. But once I got onto the grounds it was impressive to see all the improvements that had been made. Wendy and crew have been really working to add to or update just about everything. But more important they have kept everything that made the park special.

I got a chance to see Wendy's mom who is still helping out in the kitchen. We had a nice chat and she is still as sharp as ever. My parents had to leave but I stuck around a little while longer to visit. I may stop by again the next time I am down there to visit my parents.

It was nice to see some things were actually better than you remembered as a kid, I also swung by the house where I grew up, unfortunately a lot of the big trees have come down over the years due to their age. But the house itself is in good shape.

I always enjoy visiting my parents and fortunately for now they are still relatively close, only 3.5 hours away. I should get down there more often but it always seems there is too much stuff going on around here. Definitely something I need to work on.

My parents starting their walk


The walkers started after the runners


The popcorn stand has been a fixture in Chagrin Falls forever


The church where Sandy and I got married


The memorial gardens






Wendy and her mom, my first boss


The lake with swimming and boating


The original custard stand


Brand new wedding spot down by the lake


These tables probably weigh 500 pounds with all the coats of paint over the years


Wendy was prooudn of her new bathrooms and the floors, complete with her requested glitter

Warm weekend

No races this weekend but still plenty of bike related stuff going on. On Saturday, members of the MICA board manned a hot dog stand and information table at the REI store in Troy. It was part of their Celebrate Michigan week or something and different agencies (DNR, US Forest, etc.) had tables inside to distribute literature and talk to the shoppers. We shared a table with the MMBA and promoted the MICA organization.

Outside, the store was giving away coney dogs that the MICA and MMBA volunteers served up. We set up a donation jar and collected about $100. We had heard that the store would be donating money to MICA but that seems to be up in the air.

Today I spent a few hours in the morning weed trimming part of the school trails. Later in the day several members of the CMR team met at the school to do a lap of the race course and then head over to Addison Oaks for a lap there. Two members of another team showed up as well.

With all the rain we had recently the school trails were fairly dry. But Bald Mountain was a mess, probably the worst I've seen it. Addison was also pretty dry. By the time we were done I was pretty tired, doing the ride on my SS. The temperature was in the 80's, something we have not had for awhile. The body has to acclimate to the warm weather again. But at least the trails should dry out.

LOHS Spring MTB entry form

Information and mail in form for the races. You can also register on-line here and here.

2010 Spring Mountain Bike Entry

LOHS trail map

Here is an overview of the trails at Lake Orion High School as recorded by my phone. it is pretty accurate but missing a lot of the little corners. It recorded the distance as just over six miles but it is coming up short of what is measured by a bike computer. The elevation gain showed just over 1,000 feet of climbing which seems too high.


View LOHS 5_19_10 in a larger map

Three to make one

I decided to race the Brighton stage race this weekend. The race was three races spread out over two days with the lowest total time for all three races the winner. I haven't done one of these races since the stage races were held at Whiskey Creek near Ludington and that was probably five years ago.

Saturday's race was a short time trials on a section of trail that was not very singlespeed friendly. The first half was very tight with many hills that did not allow for a fast entrance, and then the second half was a lot faster. It was hard to pick the correct gearing. I geared easy and prerode the course about an hour before my start. It was probably a mistake as it was hard to keep the heart rate down in the preride. I ended up third our of the three in my class, about 40 seconds behind first.

Later in the day we had a short track race, similar to a cyclocross course in that it was a mass start over a mix of grass and pavement with tight corners. The only thing missing were the barriers. I got a pretty good start but was getting passed by geared riders in the straight section of pavement. I would work my way back up to and around them, usually passing them in a corner or up a hill. I ended up fairly high among the entire group but more importantly I made up about 22 seconds on the 1st and 2nd place guys.

That left us with the Sunday XC race to determine who would win the stage race. I was in second now, about 17 seconds behind 1st and seven seconds ahead of third. I didn't preride the course this time but just warmed up as usual. The race on Sunday had more racers in every class since some people could not do the stage race but still wanted to compete in the XC race. It had its own awards separate from the stage scoring.

At the start the third place guy went out hard and it wasn't too long before he began pulling away with the eventual winner of the day. I was in front of the stage leader until I bobbled on a hill and he got in front. He also pulled away. I saw the third pace guy fixing his front wheel and after asking if he was OK I sped past. Later on the lap another SS got past me but I stayed on his wheel and eventually we caught the stage leader right before the end of the first lap.

I also passed the guy who pulled me as he also started to fade. I tried to turn up the heat to build a lead but I could still see the stage leader behind me every now and then. Eventually I lost him but I knew he was not far behind. Surprisingly the third place guy caught back up and passed me again. But to show how fast things can change, just as I came out of the trail toward the finish of my second lap, there he was with his chain in his hand. One more lap to go.

I kept looking back but could not see the stage leader but kept on the attack, not wanting to assume anything. I started to develop cramps in various parts of my legs but worked through them with additional Endurolytes and HEED. I finally finished the third lap and was grateful that the race was over. AS it turned out, I finished 2nd in the XC race and far enough in front of the stage leader to take first for the stage race.

I'm not sure what series race I will be doing next, it may not be until a month from now. In the meantime I have the Lake Orion races coming up plus plenty to do with MICA. And still some trail work as well.

Out west there is not much new news. There is a feeling that the baby may be coming early; it's still three weeks from the due date but could really be any time now. Sandy is still looking for employment but is being kept very busy with watching the grand kids and helping around the house and farm.

Wait, I thought I would be doing MORE riding

The saying goes, when the cat's away the mice will play. I've got to tell you, this mouse isn't playing much. In the back of my mind I thought that when Sandy left that meant I would have more time to ride since I wouldn't worry about being home for dinner, shopping with her, or whatever else we would normally do on the weekends. So far it hasn't turned out like that at all.

I seem to have less time than I did before. Some of it has to do with MICA ramping up and also trail maintenance starting to be required as the brush is growing like crazy. But a good part of it is due to now handling the little things that I took for granted, like shopping, cooking, laundry, and ironing.

I have been trying to make dinner most night so that Greg has something decent to eat instead of eating out or junk food. But that means we don't eat until late. Even if I make a lot the leftovers don't go very far with lunches. But I am showing Greg how to cook a few things; Friday he made shrimp stir fry.

I spent all day Saturday at the bike demo day, both in the MICA tent and helping at the Cannondale trailer. The weather was more like November, mid 40's, windy and intermittent rain. A great time though seeing all the people interested in cycling.

This morning I went through the LOHS trails and trimmed back the growth. I need to go back with the string trimmer in a few areas. On Friday I took out a few trees that I had tagged previously. The trees were in areas that really slowed you down or could be a hazard. The trail is faster now and should make it a little more enjoyable. Still a lot of climbing though. I have a few other modification in mind for a later date.

This week is another MICA board meeting as we try to nail down our 2010 budget, decide on a logo, and get a preview of our website. The weekend brings a two day stage race; a time trial Saturday morning and a short track race in the afternoon. On Sunday is a traditional XC race. The lowest combined time for all three events wins.

Our tent at the demo days. Signs courtesy of Clarkston High School.

One week down, how many more to go?

Well, Greg and I survived the first week as bachelors. Neither of us got food poisoning and the house is still standing and relatively clean. With our individual schedules we still managed to eat dinner together a few nights and only ate out once. We have decided that each of us will cook at least once each week, I will probably do so more often. But we already miss Sandy's cooking. Plus just having her here; the dogs just aren't a good substitute.

I entered into the modern era of cell phones, finally breaking down and getting a smart phone, along with its associated benefits and costs. I had been looking at them for a few weeks as I was getting more involved with MICA responsibilities. Sandy's departure also meant it would be nice to stay in touch via text and photo messages. Under our former plan each of those types of messages cost a quarter.

In doing research on phones available under our carrier I ran across discussion of a new phone that was due out. So I opted to wait a few weeks and on Thursday I picked up an HTC Incredible for Sandy and myself. This was the first day they came out and the supply was limited. The phone is amazing in its capabilities and now I have to upgrade my skills to use it. But now free to send me all the text messages you want.



Yesterday I took part in a social bike ride I had been wanting to do for several years. The ride started in Ferndale, about nine miles north of Detroit and covered quite a few of the famous landmarks in and around the city. Plus stops at several bars along the way for refreshments.

If you saw the Dateline piece a few weeks ago you know what some areas of Detroit are like. We rode through some of the best and worst that the city neighborhoods had to offer. But we never felt threatened; most people we saw just smiled or waved and said hello. Of course, they probably weren't going to mess with 70 or so cyclists riding together.

It rained hard before the start but then we had mainly clear skies and warm weather, although a pretty strong wind was present for most of the ride. We wound our way to several landmarks including a goat farm in a blighted neighborhood, Mexican Town, the old train depot, the Riverwalk Park, Dequindre Cut, Heidelberg Project, Eastern Market and Hamtramack Disneyland, just to name a few. We only rode about 40 miles but the ride took almost 8 hours. We spent a lot of time looking at the sights or stopping for refueling.

I am glad I was able to see the city from a different side. It is quite different to be rolling through it on a bike rather than in a car with the windows up and doors locked. I intend to visit some of these areas again when I get a chance. For a look at the pictures I took you can go here.

This week brings our third MICA board meeting and the bike demo day at Island Lake. I had planned on being there to help at the Cannondale tent but now will probably be at the MICA tent instead.

Time flies

Time has flown by since my last update which are now seeming to come less often. But lots of things going on. Not sure where to start but I guess the biggest thing is that Greg and I are now living the bachelor life. Sandy left this past Friday for Spokane, the length of her stay has not been determined.

I explained in past posts that we had an opportunity to rent a house on Mount St. Micheal's property but it didn't work out. But they did have another unit for rent and wanted us to come out. It seemed to be a sign that we were to move to Spokane, especially after I turned down an offer a year and a half ago.

But since I am not ready to retire yet but could at the end of next year, we decided to have Sandy go out and test the waters; see what she could land in the way of a job and then I would come out at a later time. If things don't work out we still have the house for her to come back to. Another bonus of her going now is that she will be able to provide some help for Emily as she is expecting their third child in June.

It was hard to see her go, especially not knowing if it was permanent or not. Now
Greg and I have to take up the slack and do all of the things that we used to take for granted, such as cleaning, cooking, and ironing. Hopefully we don't come down with food poisoning.

In other news the MICA board met again as we are planning our awareness campaign. We had the MMBA Marketing Director prepare a plan for us. We now also have a new board member and web master to help us design and launch our web site. Hopefully we will have it up in the next couple of weeks. For those of you on Twitter you can follow us at http://twitter.com/MICA_BIKE.

I raced this weekend and last but both were time trials so the overall time was pretty short, under an hour each race. I switched to racing in the singlespeed class for a couple of reasons, mainly because I didn't want to do the longer distance of the Expert age groups. Not training as much as in the past would really put me at a disadvantage, but that is my own doing. Racing in the SS cuts across all ages and racing the Sport SS class has me racing with a competitive group, even if some of them are 30 years younger than me. Not sure what will happen later in the year as the races are the longer, traditional XC format.

Greg took last week off to spend some time at home before Sandy left so he and I tried to get in some golfing. We played 9 holes earlier in the week and my upper back started acting up. It had been sore for some reason, almost like a muscle strain. But playing seemed to make it worse. But after a few days it seemed to be getting better so Greg and I went out to play again.

Of course we went for the full 18 holes since it was a weekday and the course was running a special deal. It didn't take long for the back to start going out. It was getting progressively worse to the point it was painful to move. We ended up quitting after 9 holes. I had an appointment with the chiropractor later this week anyway but this back issue will be new for him. Hopefully he can work his magic.

The final update, if you've made it this far, is in reference to a blog post I made a few months ago about a special phone call that was received while Bernie Wendel and I were out riding. At the time I couldn't report on the content of the call which of course got all sorts of responses. If you were to reread the post I didn't say the call was for me. Yes, the call was for Bernie. It was from his wife informing him that the early pregnancy test had come back and it was positive! What joyous news!

They had been trying to conceive for some time and had gone through the in vitro procedure. As it turns out, she is having twins. I had to wait until it was formally announced before I could say anything. And they had to wait for some time to make sure everything was OK. I know they will make wonderful parents and I will always have a story to tell of that special day when Bernie got the news.

Brief updates

It seems like I have been less inclined to getting around to updating the blog. Things have been busy preparing for Sandy's departure in a few weeks plus trying to get the MICA organization up and running. I have been riding a little plus putting the finishing touches on the trails at the school.

Yesterday Sandy and I spent the morning at Eastern Market and I got out in the afternoon for a ride. I also had a short ride this afternoon as the trails are starting to dry up again after the rains that came in the middle of the past week. We needed the rain though as things are starting to green up but that also means it will be time to get the mower back out of hibernation.

Tomorrow I say goodbye to my trusty Caravan as it's time to turn it in for a new vehicle we had on order. Replacing the van will be a Dodge Journey, nicer on the inside than the van and it will be in AWD so that will be nice in nasty weather. it doesn't have the carrying capacity of a van so the bikes will probably remain on the outside while traveling, but I think I can still get my cot in there if I decide to stay overnight before a race. This will be the first time in a long time we don't have a van or pickup truck to haul things. A sign of getting older I guess.

Speaking of races, the first MTB race of the season is next week at Yankee Springs. Traditionally it is the largest attended race of the season other than Iceman. I am not sure if I'm racing but plan on attending to represent MICA. If I do race I may step back a notch and race the singlespeed class so i don't have to race for as long a distance. I may decide to race SS all year for the same reason. I am not doing any formal training this year so I don't expect great results.

MICA

Over the past few years I have had an idea of getting more youth involved in the sport of cycling, specifically mountain bike racing. When we started the races at Lake Orion High School a few years ago I included categories specifically for students and cut the entry fees way down for them. We haven't had a big turnout of students but did get some new to the sport.

One of my thoughts was that someday we could get an interscholastic league started in the state. Michigan has a big racing community but spread out over the state. There is a mountain bike race of some sort almost every weekend from May through September.

I started looking into the idea a little more and discovered that there is a big school league out in California that has also spawned a national program that is still in its infancy. Colorado is starting to organize under the national guidelines. I thought we might be able to do something similar in our state.

I have been talking about it for long enough and decided to finally see what i could organize. A few weeks ago I held an informational meeting and invited anyone interested and made sure to include the advisers of school clubs already in existence. Also in attendance at that meeting were a few members of the Michigan Mountain Biking Association state board.

The meeting was well received and positive communication generated a follow-up meeting with the advisers to work on how to get other schools involved and put together a club start-up document. The MMBA members and I talked about possibly incorporating my ideas as part of the MMBA. This would provide many benefits, including insurance, resources, and fit into the MMBA mission as well.

It was decided to present the concept at the state board meeting this past Wednesday. I was put on the agenda and a copy of my presentation was emailed to the board members. During the meeting, which was held via phone conference, I presented my ideas and answered questions. The motion to be a part of the MMBA was unanimously approved.

Now the work begins, forming our own board of the Michigan Interscholastic Cycling Association (MICA) and getting the word out. We have to develop brochures, a web presence, budgets, race schedule, school literature, etc., etc. The 2010 race schedule will be a trial run of only two races, including one already on the Michigan calendar in September and another TBD. At this late date in the school year it will be hard for schools to put together a team for the fall but we hope to have a few schools participate.

I started another blog for the MICA site as a placeholder for now but hope to have our own website soon. Stay tuned for more details of this exciting new venture.

Moving on

Those of you who read my blog may have noticed I changed the color scheme from green to black and red. I had changed to green last year to match the colors of the Cannondale Factory Racing team, of which I was a member. Unfortunately the team changed it's format for this year, abandoning the grass roots team as it cut back to only include a few of the top pro racers from around the globe.

Not that I'm terribly upset, I am back racing with the Cannondale Midwest Racing team of which I have been part of, in some fashion or another, since its inception. Of course CMR's team colors are black and red. It also means no more of the free stuff that the factory team provided. But we still get good deals through the CMR team sponsors.

Another benefit of being with CMR is that my race schedule is more flexible. In fact, as of right now I don't have any specific races I plan on doing. For some reason I don't have quite the ambition this year as in years past. I sort of feel like been there, done that.

One thing sort of new with bikes is that I commuted to work by bike this past Friday. I hadn't done that in years. I used the singlespeed bike I built late last year. I now have fenders and a rear rack and also purchased a set of panniers, or saddlebags, that connect to the rack. Using the bags means I don't have to use a backpack or try to strap it down on the rack. The panniers keep the center of gravity lower which helps keep the bike stable. The commute is just under 10 miles and takes 40-43 minutes. It's a little slower in the morning since I am more careful. Time will tell how often I use the bike to get to work.

I am concentrating a lot of my efforts on the formation of the interscholastic racing program that I hope to get up and running soon. I should have more news about that later in the week.

Probably the biggest news of moving on is preparing for eventual retirement. Many of you know that I turned down a chance for early retirement a year and a half ago. I could have had a job about an hour from the grand kids but had second thoughts.

We received a call from Jason about a month ago that a house on St. Michael's property would be coming up for rent and the church thought of us first. Sandy and I talked about it but I am too close to be able to get regular retirement to leave Chrysler now.

We decided that if the house was available at a reasonable price we would see if Sandy could go out now and work for the Mount in exchange for rent and then I would come out after the end of next year once I turn 55. Not an ideal situation short term but it would get us out west.

As it turns out, the rent is pretty high and they wanted the money anyway, not a barter for work. But, they said, the do have a 2 bedroom apartment coming available soon that would be very inexpensive. And they might have some leads for Sandy for employment.

We decided to take a shot and have Sandy go out and stay with the kids for a while before the apartment became free. This would give her a chance to look for and hopefully land a job to have income to support herself until I would be able to move at the end of next year and look for a job and a bigger place to stay. If things don't work out then she would end up moving back to Michigan.

Sandy has given her notice where she currently works and will be taking the train in the middle of April. The train has more baggage allowed but we have to go to Toledo to get the train; no trains in Michigan have the baggage allowance.

While I am not thrilled about the long distance separation it allows a way to check out the job situation and will also give Sandy a chance to spend more time with Jason and Emily and the soon to be three grand kids. In the meantime Greg and I will have to take on all sorts of new responsibilities.

Spring is almost here

You can feel it, literally. The warmer weather is causing the snow to melt off the roads and in the woods, leaving the trails mushy and some of the roads an absolute mess of mud. But other roads are perfectly fine. The conditions are starting to be favorable for long rides on the back roads again.

But the melting snow also means that the XC skiing is probably over with. Sandy and I were going to spend the weekend up near Grayling and Roscommon at a couple of the XC ski trails but the snow conditions were deteriorating so we canceled the trip.

Instead, on Saturday we went hiking at a state recreation area close to us that we had not been at before. The trails are also open to mountain biking so I had a chance to see what they might be like. It is not a long trail, about 3.5 miles or so, but it had some nice elevation changes and sweeping corners. It seemed like it will be fun to ride over on a bike and check them out this summer. I'm glad that the trail was not much longer because my knee bothered me more from hiking than from any riding I have done.

Today I put the knee to the test as I headed out early to try and ride most of the 100 mile loop some of my buddies had put together for a charity ride next month. The ride is geared toward singlespeed riders so that is the bike I rode. The roads were frozen hard when I set out and for the most part were in good condition even as it warmed up. There were a few that were a real mess and almost had me walking due to the heavy mud. I ended the day with 107 miles.

Back at Christmas Sandy had received an amaryllis plan from my Mom. She planted the bulb a while back and once it started to grow we were amazed at how fast it sprouted. Sandy started recording the growth and on some days it was over an inch in one day. It sort of reminded us of something out of The Little Shop of Horrors. We kept checking to see if all the dogs were still around.

This week promises more warm weather but it looks like some rain moving in. On Tuesday is the initial meeting of the interscholastic mountain bike racing league I am trying to start. We have some interest and hopefully we get enough of a turnout to get some committees up and running.

White knuckler

This week we had more snow including a good bit on Monday. We have gotten a little bit more each day, not a lot but enough to cause some problems with the morning or evening commutes.

Yesterday I had to attend a 7:30 am meeting at one of our engine plants about 75 miles away. Leaving early meant that I would miss the majority of traffic but the roads were very icy in spots. At one spot where the freeway merged with another traffic was coming to a standstill. As the overpass curved there were multiple spin outs and accidents. We crawled past and I encountered more cars off in the median or ditches for about the next 40 miles. Listening to the traffic reports I heard that they closed the stretch of highway I had come through earlier.

Today we had another moderate snowfall but the wind was causing it to drift. Once home from work I went to work clearing the drive and didn't think too much about the temperature as it wasn't really that cold. Once inside I realized that my fingers had gotten colder than normal. The result was the lack of blood flow to one of the fingers.

I have poor circulation in my extremities, and growing up I used to play out in the snow until I couldn't feel my toes and fingers. I bet most kids have done that at one time or another. When they started to thaw out they hurt like heck. Now that I'm older it doesn't take as much for the circulation problems to occur. Come on warm weather.

Typical February

The weather has been about average this week with highs above freezing and lows in the 20's. By the time I get home from work it is warm enough for the roads to thaw out and be a muddy mess. I have refrained from riding on them and instead have reluctantly consigned myself to riding the rollers in the basement. Or taking the spinning classes at work.

But on Saturday I got out early while the roads were still frozen, accompanied by Bernie, a teammate on the Cannondale Midwest team. We ended up riding for three hours into horse country on mostly frozen roads. We both prefer to ride singlespeeds in the winter to avoid drivetrain wear and tear plus it's good training. While we were out a life changing phone call was received with joyous news, but I can't reveal the content quite yet.

Today I left the house even earlier since the temperatures were going to warm up quicker than the previous day. I planned on riding most of the first half of the 100 mile route that a couple of my friends had designed for a ride scheduled in April. I rode the singlespeed again but switched the tires to regular instead of studded and made the gearing a little harder.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that most of the roads had less ice and snow and were drier than the roads by me. I think part of the reason was that the route had more open areas than the roads I normally ride. The sun was able to reach the road surface and melt the snow and ice. By the time I returned home I had 70 miles for the day.

It looks like we will get hit with another big snow tonight and tomorrow, dumping 5-8 inches. So maybe I will be back on the skis this week and depending on the amount of snow during the week, on the skis next weekend as well. I don't really mind except it was nice to see the roads starting to get in shape for riding again. Looks like we will be back to square one after tomorrow.

Winter returns

We got hit with our biggest snowfall of the winter on Tuesday night and Wednesday. For us it wasn't really big at only 8" and certainly nothing compared to what other parts of the country had been getting. But it was kind of nice to get some snow back on the ground.

I'm glad the snow waited until after our race last weekend although we would have been able to keep a clear course on the school property. Bald Mountain would have been terrible for riding since it really hasn't gotten warm enough to pack down, even with the snowmobile traffic.

Wednesday I snowshoed up at the school, following a lot of the trails. No one else had been out so everything was undisturbed except for the animal tracks. Thursday I went back up and spent a couple of hours XC skiing on the trails and into Bald Mountain. Again, in many spots I was the first person to lay down any tracks.

Friday night several people were supposed to get together and snowshoe at the school after dark. I stopped by a local outdoor supply shop to pick up a new headlamp. Previously whenever I wanted to go out night hiking or skiing the only light I had was the one I use when riding. It is a little overkill for slower speeds sine it is a super bright HID and has a heavy battery that had to be carried in a pocket or pack. The light is mounted to a helmet so I have to wear that when hiking. It is bright though. The new light is self contained and uses LED's, still very bright for normal hiking or skiing.

Unfortunately everyone backed out of the hike for various reasons but I decided to go anyway. I'm glad I did. There is something magical about the trails at night, especially in the snow. Maybe we will try to get together again this week.

Yesterday I went out early for a few hours on the SS on the back roads. Most of the roads were clear, or at least plowed but they still had packed snow and ice. Then later in the day I went over to Stony to XC ski. They had just groomed the trails and were a lot better than when Sandy and I were there a few weeks ago. I ran into Bernie and we skied around the park together.

This morning I was out on the bike for a few hours again and picked some different roads to ride. Some of them were not as clear as others, in fact it made me wonder if they had been plowed or just partially cleared from the traffic. Sandy and I are going out on the trails to hike in a little bit. I need to go back to work tomorrow just to get some rest.

St. Isidore's Garden

I have mentioned numerous times about the co-op that Jason and Emily are running out in Spokane. The name of the CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is St. Isidore's Garden and while there is no stand alone website, there is a blog started that will represent the garden.

They have also put together a professional looking brochure that describes the venture. Most of the pictures are from the garden. The Scribd view on this page does not look as good as it does if you actually download a copy from the Scribd site. This web conversion seems to move the text boxes around.

St Izzy Brochure FINAL Copy

Another race video

The Knee - Good news, bad news

I saw the knee specialist this afternoon and there is no sign of any internal damage to the knee. Which is good. In fact, in spite of my concerns with all the hits the knees have taken there is also no sign of arthritis, also good.

But the pain is still there and there is still some swelling, although neither are as bad as they were. His conclusion is that it is tendon damage that will just take additional time to heal. He thought that one of my falls happened to hit in exactly the wrong place. His only remedy would be to prescribe physical therapy but instead we decided we would just go with trying to stretch it out myself.

So there is no need for anything beyond stretching although it will continue to be painful for a while. fortunately it doesn't bother me much while riding. The reason it hurts most after sitting is because the tendon is shortened in that position and then is elongated when first standing up. It is the initial stretching that hurts, then it subsides.

I can begin planning my 2010 race calendar now since there don't appear to be any limitations other than time, money and ability. Not that has ever stopped me before.