looking past the last day

The last day of the year. The last day of the calender. Everything is moving on to the next click. The click of the pen to cross out the 31. The click once again and it's 2008. Just that fast and there is adjustment to a new year. New month, all the hours and seconds to. It's getting lighter everyday. Bring on the next click. Bring on all the wonderful days. All the change we have yet to know. Happy tomorrow and every tomorrow that comes.
I did the ride. The one of the last day. I rode my age, 57 miles. It was not a plan. I never looked at a map. There was never a thought to the idea of 57. It was just another day in the saddle. A long day. The working was from 11AM to 3:30PM. The light was good. The skies were clear and blue. Almost no wind. Temperature was 37 to 41 degrees. Not bad at all for the last day. The last cross on the calender of the this year. The last hills of the year. So many hills on this Island home. No more rides for 2007. The miles have been great. More than I can count. 10,000 miles, maybe more I'm sure. Just an idea. There is no ledger that is kept. These miles, each and everyone. Miles that are ridden on the roads I travel. I have called them prayers. Prayers to life. Prayers to live. Prayers to the circuit of the long rider. Mostly ridden alone. Only one partner always close. A shadow and the breath. Never seen. Just felt like the hairs on the back of your neck. A partner for all the year. For the second year going. A chill. Though there are all the little wild friends. Just so many little wild friends. Company when needed.
There was Noah, Craig and a friend in Little Rock. Noah now a family friend, Connie, Leslie, Hannah, and Kate. All the connections and loves from Little Rock. I miss time we might have had. Look forward to time we will have. Doe's will see us all again. Fun and food.
On this Island, where we now call home. Mary Anne and I are finding new ways over the last day. Ferry's cost and add to ever trip. Less trips! Saving the trip with a bigger list for Safeway, Costco, and Trader Joe's. Fill the Van and pack the pantry. Less trips and cost across the water on the Ferry. Island life. Cost of the fuel! The computer and ordering on line. It works for a lot of stuff. Going to the store and doing the shopping, is a lot of fun for Mary Anne. So compromises need to be made. Shopping is an event that has it's rewards. All for the next day. Not the last day. The last cross on the calendar. Moving on to an all new calendar. All new printing. New colors. New lay out. New size even. The last day before the next last day. Everyday is the last day in some way. The only day there is. The only show that's on. The last day is the best day. The day that can be a dream. A dream! Dream in the last day. Everyday is the only day. No more than the time you can see with your eyes, if you have them. Hear with your ears, if you have them to. All the bits and part we have to work with. The way we go through the last day. The only day. Dream well in this day. Enjoy the day to. It's the last cross on the page and the only cross to. 57 miles and never a plan. What a great gift on the last day. Thank you.

New post new times

It's been a short bit since my last posting. 2 rides ago. Today is Christmas. I want to go out on a ride real bad. The news is, about 4 or 5 days ago I had a very bad attack of Trigeminal neuralgia. It's bad if you have never heard of it. The face nerve goes on an electric holiday. Just sending electricity all over the nerve and the result is unimaginable pain in the face. Yikes!!!! So I am a bit behind. The good news is I readjusted the meds and the pain has subsided to a tolerable level. The Dr. will be a bit un-pleased though. He retired this week anyway. A new Dr. is on the books soon down in Vancouver. Same office. I hope the transition is easy. Without the meds I'm in BIG TROUBLE. So today is a short note.
It's a "Merry Christmas" note. Hope your having the best time. That there is food involved. That you have food. That you have friends. That there is love in your heart and in your house. That the presents are the connections in your life more than the wrappings on the floor. That your health is good. That you are living your dreams as best as you are able. Tolerance is in your sight to all. Joyful hope is the horizon of your new day. That there will be electric cars and trucks in our lifes in less than 5 years. We all start riding bikes to do everything. That you share the road with bikes today. That there is wonder in your heart. I could go on and on. So I will just finish with Merry Christmas and hope in the new year. The best to everyone.

a quick 50

My last ride was fun and fast for this time of year. North and South, East and West. Moving at a good pace. Doing the 65% thing as much as I could. Staying out of the "red zone". Feeling rested in my gear choice. Well, till a steep hill showed up. Just work up those as best as I could. The bike was working perfect. The roads were kind of clean for this time of year. Pavement for this old man. No dirt please. I found almost every hill in this little corner of the Island. It feels good to be climbing all the time. Doing the roads that are hard. Taking the less traveled routes. The routes that have the hardest climbs. Well except for one climb out of Glendale. That hill will just have to wait for another day. I'll bring some rock climbing gear to get up that monster. This spring I will go to Glendale again. This last ride was Bayview, Andresen, Lone Lake, Goss Lake, East Harbor, Baby Island, Saratoga, Langley, Maxwelton, French, Bailey, Cultuss Bay, Jewett, Glendale, Holst, Deer Lake, Humphrey, Orr, Heggenes, and over a few twice, then home with a nice 50 on the odometer. A fine ride in 50 degrees for a while, then it dropped to 46. Not bad at all. I'm off the bike for my normal every other day ride today. The body is unhappy. Just could not warm up this AM. I was real tired to. Second day in a row on being so tired. Not good!

Wings on the weather

It was blowing over the Bay at about 25 MPH. Stiff, not enough to stop you from a walk. The walk would be hard. There were birds out doing their work. Even in much rougher conditions the birds are out. The Gulls are always out. I saw gulls flying in 50 MPH and higher. Just a bit closer to the bluffs. Maybe using what the cliff wall had to offer as cover. Out the gulls are. The gulls seem to be made for any condition. By bird standard as I know them, 25 MPH was just an inconvenience. Not enough to stop the days work. Just enough to make that work a little harder than it is everyday.
Today I was looking out over our Bay, just watching the white caps. Knowing I was glad it was my day off the bike. Knowing how much harder the ride would have been today. Looking at what this wind storm had to offer. Not so far out, there were 2 working birds. They were big enough to see by the naked eye. Dots staying in one area. Just going over and over this one piece of the Bay. I knew these working birds were on the big side. I got the 10X50 Bushnell's off the 5'X6' window sill. There are 3 of these windows. Taking up the entire wall of the family room we spend most of our time in. It faces out on the west looking out over the a grand view. The Bay, Admiralty Inlet, Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountain Range, Port Townsend, Port Hudson, Point No Point, Double Bluff State Park and more. It's really quite a view. Magnificent is an under statement. There these birds were. Working on the hard side. As if there was a cat and mouse game going on. Life and death is more like it. Life for the birds spent energy on the back of a fish. Survival of someone in this moment. The birds were spending a lot of their energy cash on the effort. Now looking through the Bushnell's I could see the drama clear. It was our neighbors. A beautiful mated pair of Bald Eagles. These huge fish eagles live just south of the house in the furs on the neighbors property. We see them everyday. They fly by eye high. Right near the deck. Every detail of their enormous self's in plain view. Looking over at us! It's just chilling to my soul to be a part of this. Everyday I am privileged to be in these great eagles world.
The hunt was going on and on. Circling the same area. Never the 2 far from each other. When one turned and was swept back to the un-seen start over area the other was soon to be there. Always in the sight of my binoculars. I could always see these 2 together in the sight of the Bushnell's. They were that close. Splash, a strike. In a moment the diver comes up empty. So much energy for nothing. Splash another strike. Out of the water and empty again. This process of circling and striking went on for a long time. I had lost my sense of time. Just the drama. Time and effort of the players. This was the time of the moment. Strike with a huge splash. The eagle was in the water, not getting out. I was hoping for a fish dinner in the talons. So much effort. The hunt seemed to be a bit desperate. The water here is cold. The wind was 40 degrees. This had to be taking it's toll on the eagles. Empty again. I saw this cycle several more times. The eagles never varied from the hunting area. It was the same piece of water time and time again. There are limits even to the energy of these monarchs of the bluffs. The circles seemed to be faster. Less organized and smooth. The effort was taking it's toll. That is how it looked to this human. Strike and in the the cold rough water again. This time for what seemed like a very long time. I thought that was it. The eagle was going down for good. The struggle was obvious even from the distance through my binoculars. This was a desperate life threatening moment. With fearful, by human standards, effort the striking eagle slowly rises up and out of the cold bay waters to just inches about the water. Talon's still in the water. It's mate circling right over it's head. Inches not feet. It was a fight for life. This was it. There was a fish down in the water fixed to striking eagle's hooks. It had to be big or the eagle was tired. Ready to hand off this hope for their survival. Finally the striking eagle comes fully out of the water. The fish was enormous. The catch was almost the same size as the eagle's body. Just huge! Now the obviously tired eagle with the catch of the day worked to make it's way to the shore line. A good mile away. It's mate so close they were almost bumping into each other. All the eagle with the fish could do was just stay above the water using the pressure of the air between the wings and the water. It's known as ground effect flight. Almost not flight. If not for the pressure of the water against the wing of this wondrous bird it would crash into the water and lose the one hope for food in this day. The one hope for fuel to replenish from the enormous effort. Just above the water. The catch was dragging in the water. It seemed impossible this catch would see shore. The effort was herculean. The struggle was obvious. It let go the fish to keep from crashing into the waves. The relief of it's toil done. It did not even try to re-catch the meal. The partner flung itself into the water where the fish was dropped. Wings extended head up, reaching as deep as it could to stay alive. That's how important the meal was on this day. Slowly the second eagle, now wet and cold, rose out of the water. The same fish attached to it's talon's. It's mate so spent it had flown to shore. No where to be seen. Alone the second eagle began to fly as the other. Just above the water using the extra power of ground effect to fly to the shore. Magnificent is all I can say. Just with every last bit of power. All that there was left in the energy tank. Running on empty the second eagle forced itself to the shore. Dragging the catch almost it's own size partly in the water. It was going to make shore. I am still over come by the strength it took for both these great Bald Eagles to do this. To write the hunt. My hands are shaking. Bless these fine neighbor. I am so lucky to have been a witness. I will always remember when I toil, the effort, the pure power of my magnificent neighbors.

Back from Oregon

As a drive, where we live, to Salem Oregon, it's a strait fast 5 1/2 hours. Doing it twice in 24 hours is hard. I was a bit groggy after the effort. Christmas with my Mom went fast. She was a bit sad to see Mary Anne and I go. I was happy to get back on I-5.
Before all this I did get a second ride in. Second of 2 in a row. Not the normal way of every other day. 35 mile of cool weather riding. Hum, all hills as is the norm. A few flat spots to break it all up. I was happy to get the ride in before the trip to Salem. The new jersey and coat are just the best. I'm also using arm warmer. That works so well. Good ride!
Today was the get back at it ride. 3 plus hours of easy going. Turned out to be the fastest 45 mile ride I have done on this hilly Island. I'm always amazed at the way speed can happen when I'm not trying to go fast. Using a little bit bigger gear and going at a slower RPM. It feels like resting. Then all of a sudden I'm climbing in 3 gears bigger. Just at a slower RPM. Maybe the triathletes got it right. Use the big gears and go fast at a slower RPM. So it was a fast ride and not even trying. I did get a flat on Heggens hill. If I am going to get a flat this was a great spot. A nice fence to hang the bike on and drop out the rear wheel. Glass, right at the tube stem. Fast change out with the spare tubes. Another Co2 cartridge gone. It was a fun stop. Back on the road in 8 mins. Mashing the gears back to Langley. Taking the long way back to Bayview up Lone Lake Road. As I was making the last few miles I looked at the mileage on the computer. 45 mile as I said. I just thought the computer was wrong. About 10 more miles than I thought. I went over the course and realized the computer was spot on. Speed is fun when it comes easy. The miles are paying off. The every other day riding is working for this old body. Got to strip the bike before the next ride. It's just so dirty. No more, clean the chain and go. It's everything off and cleaned. Soak the chain. Put it back together and get it dirty all over again. Winter messes. There is so much sand on the roads. The Island is all sand. It's everywhere. My chain will be 1 inch longer when I change it out for a new one. Kind of wish it would snow again.

34 Degrees

It might be a good thing. Might be more information than needed. A new bike computer. Just a small wireless one that fits on the stem. Cool spot as it stays out of the way. It was cheap to! Had "Trek" the bike makers label all over it. Made in China, like most things. All the basic I'm used to. Plus it has a temperature display. Never had that before. It is turning out to be very useful. The ride yesterday was 34 degrees with ice in lots of areas. Just not the road. Stopped by "1/2 Link" to get a new rear tire. David the owner, asked if I wanted that studded. I passed as he told me of all the car/road difficulties of the mid AM. There had been some drivers go out of control and they got hurt. David of "1/2 Link" did not ride his bike to work. That's rare! I stayed longer talking and having a good time than I thought I would. Fun times.
It was noon and the roads looked OK to me. It was 34 degrees. I was ready to go out and get the hours on. Even get the little bits of elevation near by. Having the knowledge of the temperature is really useful in looking forward on the road. Knowing that ice was melting not forming. The day was wet with overcast. Not like my last long ride. Clear, dry and cold. Today was cold and moist. It felt much colder than it was. Even with my new winter weather riding gear. Still, the new gear was worlds better than what I was used to. My plan was to have a shortish ride as I am doing another ride tomorrow. 2 in a row is off my plan for the winter. Mary Anne and I are going to Oregon for Christmas stuff over the next 2 days. Might not get a ride in then. So I'm getting one ahead. The ride yesterday turned out to be 32 miles. As with most rides on this little Island, all hills. Up one side to get warm, down the other side to freeze and recover. I did this for 2 1/2 hours. The ride felt great for this time of year. There were 5 other true believers (hard core riders) out to. Way more than I thought. This Island has a lot of these hard core riders on it. Makes for a feeling connectedness. Everyone knows everyone here. Kind of fun. I have not had that kind of feeling for a lot of years. So the ride went very well. The pace was better than I had hoped. The freezer was cold, but liveable. The hands stayed warm, the feet toasty, the legs just fine and the body good enough. Winter riding is in full swing and winter is not even here yet. Out today in a few hours.

The cold came back

It's here to stay for a bit. As I have written before. Not as cold as some, colder than others. 35 degrees at the start. Bright sun shine. Very little wind. Beautiful winter blue sky's. I'm ready for this chill. I found a new Nike jacket at Bikes Wholesale on the mainland. Wonderful fabric that breaths and is still water/wind proof. It was in my bag in no time. Fits like it was made for me. So my winter, cold weather gear is in hand. Bring it on. Do your worst. Well not to bad please.
The ride had an opportunity to be a long one. 4 plus hours of Island fun. All hills all the time. I was looking forward to the days events on the road. It was going to be a new course. Adding some roads I had not spent much time on. Lots more climbs. Now these are hills, steep hills in some areas. My steepomitor got a little stressed here and there. East Bay road, that turns into another road, have some nice walls. Real grunts to get up for this old guy. I could not wait to get to them. Beings that the ride was a 50+ mile day in the freezing weather in just 4 hours. My gear choice was modest. Small chainring all the way. Still some tall gears. So I was saving my over all energy to last the ride. Still feel that I had enough to walk at the end of the it.
I took the left hand turn out of our little housing area on to Bayview. One of the flatter areas to start on. Nice to warm up. About 2 mins out on the other side was a mob of 5 true believers. All lined up looking sharp and ready to take the day on as I was. It was a nice start to see this crew. I was going the other way and was sticking to my course. A quick wave and we were gone. Made me feel good that others were out to. This part of the Island has a hard core group of road riders. On down to HWY 525, left turn. This was a short run on a busy highway to get me to Freeland, a nice little commercial town right on a beautiful bay that has a great and hard road that leads out of town. East Bay Road runs along this bay for about 10 miles give or take and has several nice steep climbs. Hills, so there not so long. Long enough to take your wind and hurt your legs for a moment. So I was riding the relative flatter areas at a relaxed pace. Keeping some energy for the hard work coming. The hills of the day. The hills of East Bay Road start quickly. After about a mile and a half the first of what seems like 8 and half more miles of hills start. There all fairly hard then the really steep ones show up. Then the ones that you can't see show up and get really hard at the finishes. I was doing well with these. I was riding in a gear stiffer than normal for the climbs to add some needed strength. Great warmers going up. With my new winter gear the fast descents were not to cold. One of the descents has a wicked right hand turn. I took it at full speed. Never touched the breaks. The sign said "15 MPH". I hit that turn at 35. I could just see the turn ahead. I have been on this road in a car twice and on the bike once in a driving rain storm. So I was going through as fast as I could. I leaned the bike over on the dry pavement. I could feel the wheels give a bit. They were not so happy. I just kept my head and worked the line. My wheels had limits. I found there limits for sure. I got through the turn still upright. My heart was pounding like I just had finished a small climb. Man that was fun. I think I will go through these turns a little slower next time. Or loss 20 more pounds! So the zig was fast and the zag lead up another climb. The longest and hardest climb on this road. Steeper and steeper and then it keeps going for a bit. It was a fun climb. Then the long fast down hill that leads to more climbs. East Bay Road changes name around this area and I just do not remember the name. So East Bay leads into the town of Langley. More strong hills all the way. Till you get to the town sign. Then it's just a ride through a very small town. 2 main roads and a few side roads. It's on the small side. Maybe 1500 or less people. It also has the county Fair Grounds on the edge of town. Then your on the next road that keeps you on the course. It's Langley Road. I have ridden this road many times. So no surprises there. So I took a turn I normally don't. I turned on to Maxwellton Road that takes me up a shallow climb across HWY 525 still on Maxwellton. A nice newly paved super wide riding shoulder. Very nice. Maxwellton leads after a several miles to French road. A nice climb. About 1/3 of the way up this road come Bailey Road. Left turn to Bailey. This is a roller road. Kind of, more climb than roller the way I like to go. Then Bailey leads to Coultis Bay Road. Right turn, and on to the Chevron Station/store/beauty saloon/coffee shack/shade tree mechanic all in one small corner. It is a social center to, I think. There is a turn up hill off Coultis Bay Road on to ?? another road that goes up hill to a nasty road if one does not make the correct turn. Glendale Road leads to the funnel town of Glendale. Funnel, for it's all down hill to the town and then an up hill out of town that is just stupid steep. I'm just not sure how steep. I don't go there! After a nice hard climb the decent start to the town. Then there is a stop with a left or right. Right to Glendale. Left up hill to Deer Lake Road. Well it's all up hill for quite a bit. Then some rollers. Then a shortish down hill to Heggins Road. Right turn. Heggins is my favorite road. Just beautiful, quiet curving road going up hill. I often do this road twice it's such a nice climb and road. After This chunk of heaven your back on Deer Lake. Right turn. This leads to Deer Lake Road once again. Left turn off of Deer Lake Road, on to Deer Lake Road going a different direction. This leads up hill to Coultis Bay Road again. Left turn to go back to part of where I was, to go the other way on Bailey Road to find French Road and turn right to climb French road to the top. Left turn on to Coultis Bay Road again. By this time I'm looking at the clock. 2:15 and I need a full hour and 15 mins. Coultis Bay is a series of climbs a descents that lead back to Langley Road and Ken's Corner. Coultis Bay And Langley Road are the same road with changed names. Ken's Corner is a older mini mall with some other commercial stuff and a Whidbey Coffee drive through at the intersection of HWY 525. I ran out of water with Zipfizz in it 15 mins before I got to this point. Not so good. So I'm heading back to Langley. then heading back on East Bay Road. Then left turn up Lone Lake Road. A nice climb. Just steady all the way. With a nice decent to Andreson Road. Left turn. Andreson leads to Bayview that after a bit leads me home. I'm still warm. It's 37 degrees. I'm on the edge of a BONK. I have had no food or water for way to long. I'm running on fumes and not thinking so well. I have 5 miles to go. I'm more worried about the mileage and hours I have ridden than my current state of mind and body. Not very good thinking. That's the first sighs of a Bonk. Where the body just runs out of fuel, and water. I think I just made it home on memory. As I got home Mary Anne came out the door going to the market. Good timing. I had been out for 4 hours on the noise. 53 miles of hills. I was a little bonked, but home and not so cold. It was a great ride. I have some good winter gear. I'm ready for the snow. It's going to snow today.

Wind it was

Yesterday was the day I had to get out for a training ride. We were still in the grips of a massive storm that has just kicked butt on the Pacific NW. It was ride day and I was going out and that was that. 35 MPH steady winds out of the South, gust to I don't know how high. Good thing the roads were tree lined in most areas. The open areas were just mean. So the ride was a 2 1/2 hour fun fest. Hills were great. I was going slow anyway. Descents,,,, well that was another story. I mean my brakes got a good workout. The faster I went the crazier it got. Wind just having it's way with me. Fast was a bit on the worry side. Worry about that tree, ditch, cow, fence, I think you get it. Fast was on the edge of out of control. Not to brag, I am a great bike handler at most speed. I love to go fast on the descents. So this ride was an all new experience. So I just did the best I could given the weather. It was 55 degrees. My last ride was in SNOW! The temp is dropping fast once again and snow is on the horizon. The ride gave me a chance to see how our little part of the wonderful Island looked after this destructive storm. Things looked great. Only a few trees down that I could see from the roads. I'm sure I found the one that took our power out for a bit. Less stuff on the road than from our first big storm a few weeks back. I was the only rider out at that time that I could see. I had a blast. Also I was trying out a new winter jersey from Performance. Just an under shirt and this super warm jersey. I'm ready for the snow!! Also I was breaking in my new winter booties from Performance. Neoprene, I never get cold with these booties. Last pair did not wear out for 20 years. So the new stuff is good . The Island got through another of the millions of storms it has had to endure. We got through the storm better than a lot of poor souls. I feel lucky. I feel thankful. I feel ready for another adventure on the roads.

Darkness slid in the light

This morning, around 8AM. I was looking at a poor tug and 2 wood chip barges making there way to somewhere in Seattle to get another load. Head wind making the trip slow I'm sure. Just across the way. Port Townsend, the bay and all. Point No Point. Just past the barges. In the mist. As though to slink in, was an active Trident Submarine. Making it's way home. This was the real deal by my thinking. Coast Guard Cutter in front. Guns loaded I'm sure. Not sailing, it was something else. Coming home after 6 months out. 6 months underwater. Can you imagine? 6 months in the deep. Artificial everything. Coming home just in time for Christmas. The boat was barely above the water enough to see it in the mist of the morning. Slipping into Hood Canal. Gun boat just ahead. The Trident seemed to take up half the bay as it creeped into the Canal. This was no research boat! As though on a Holllywood set. Mist surrounded the mighty killer as it crossed to the entery of Hood Canal. The sight now burned into my memory. This was death served cold. A fearful sight. Bless the men for their duty and their coming home. The boat was pure evil. Surely designed into it's look. Black death, 10 miles from my windows. Merry Christmas to all the souls now near their time off duty. 30 days from now, Death will be coming out again. To do her duty for 6 more months. A fearful boat to look at. There was no joy in her.

2 days later

Now it's 54 degrees and pouring rain, side ways. Talk about a change from my last ride! The rain, that is come at you, not down on you is because of the 35 MPH wind with gust up to 45+. Wind is the worst. Snow, not so bad. Rain, not so bad. Cold is doable. It's the wind that beats me down. Weather warnings posted for our area. 6 inches of rain in some areas may bring land slides. 6 inches of rain in the last 24 hours! Great we live in a house on a cliff looking over Useless Bay! Are they, talking about us? Good to know there is a superior drainage system on this property. Very high tec and all. Just updated this fall. I got my fingers crossed. Still it makes me take notice. It's blowing so hard out. I think I would be in the ditch in no time at all. Well maybe not. So I'm going to pass on a ride today. The new elliptical will do the job.
There are some travel plans coming up, tomorrow. I just finished doing a clean up job on the winter bike. Not the good clean up. Just the easy job. Chain and all the dirt I was willing to muck off without stripping the bike down to a frame. The strip job is next. With fenders the bike stays a lot cleaner. Also I have a good bit of water proof grease on the parts that are going to go without a lot of attention. The New Campy cranks and bearing system are so easy to clean. That's where most of the "Phil Wood" grease went. I have used "Phil Wood" water proof grease for ever. I'm not stopping now! In the winter its a must for my bikes. So the "Winter Bike" is ready to travel down to Salem. Mary Anne has business and friends to visit. Me to with out the business. Oh, my MOM needs some time. She gets lonely. If she was not such a crank maybe folks would visit. Oh well. So the bike is my sanity for the trip. I'm riding. Well, unless the wind never goes away. I'm betting I will get some hours in down on the old roads in the Salem area.

Cold Days

It's 32 degrees at 9AM. For this area it's cold. It's a ride day. I'm wondering what to do. I ordered a warm jersey from Performance. It will be here in a few days. I just can't seem to find a nice winter riding jacket. I do have 2 rain jackets. One just a light jacket the other a heavy duty rain jacket with all kinds of vents and stuff. Still, a rain jacket makes me sweat. In the cold staying dry is the most important thing. Being wet from the inside and cold, is just as bad as being wet from the outside and being cold. I want to stay as dry as I can on these cold days. It's going to take ice to stop me from my rides. Heavy snow will stop me to. My tires will have no grip at all. So what to do? I guess it's just going to turn out to be a tough day anyway I look at it. I sure don't want to miss a road day. Short hours is better than no hours. Also Mary Anne and I have an elliptical trainer that just got here the day before. Good timing. The indoor trainer may save the day.
The photo I attached is not so good. Though it show that the outdoor weather looks kind of bad. For here! I know there are places that have much worse weather. Just wanted to put something on the log today. Something about the training to look back at later.
Several hours later. I got the ride in. 11:40AM to 2PM. Not a long ride, but it was epic, fun, just a lot of hard work. First off, it was dam cold. The weather report said it felt like 22 degrees. I had 2 pair of gloves on, 3 jerseys on, a poly propylene long sleeve under shirt, plus arm warmers. Just about everything on top. Then my heavy rain jacket over it all. Bottom, I had the new wonderful super warm tights. My feet had 2 woolly pairs of socks. The shoes had very warm toe covers and full winter covers over the toe warmers and shoes. There was very little left in the riding locker once I was ready to go. The plan was to ride easy and try not to sweat to much. Stay warm! I went on my normal hilly course minus a few hills to make it in under 3+ hours. Half way through the light cold mist started to make it's way to the ground. It was snow. I was on the last real climb of the route, Lone Lake Road, and the snow started in earnest. My clear riding glasses would fill with snow. I had to wipe them while riding with my thick gloved fingers. I also had my blinky red light on. On my road kit, on the rear of the saddle. It was a good thing to! I could see about 30 yards in front of me. The cars, well you get the idea. I had nice big bike lanes all the way home from when the snow got to going hard. It was 32 degrees and now the snow was starting to stick a bit on the bike lanes. I had about 5 miles to go. The riding outfit was full of snow, shoes, gloves, helmet, riding glasses, arms and front of rain jacket. Everywhere had the wet sticky snow. I was riding a bit on the slow and extra careful side the last 2 miles home. I was very glad I went on the ride. My smile was ear to ear. It was just one of those mini epic rides. Not one other rider out that I saw. I think if any, they went in the morning well before the snow started. Smart of them. Though I have a great memory. First snow ride on the Island. I bet there will be a few more this winter season.

Single Gear Training

David at 1/2 LINK, (my local Bike shop) had my new part to install on the track bike, now converted to a winter single speed training bike. The first gear I tried was a bit to tough. Around 80" per revolution of the crank. Now with a new 20 tooth rear free hub I was looking at 64"+-. Sounded a lot better for the hills around here. A very easy spin on the flattish roads around this Island. There are no flat roads! So along with the gear, I had a blinky red light put on the gear bag on the rear of the saddle. It was a very dark day today at noon. So off I went to try out the new gear on a day that had 30 MPH Southerly winds and a chance of SNOW. Any way I looked at it, a tough day to get the hours in. First thing was to see if I could get up a nice hill called Lone Lake Road. Really an easy climb South to North. The gear and bike were just happy to be out together. The climb was effortless. Just pace up at a steady rate. I was very happy to see the top and at that moment remembered I had not packed the 15mm wrench for the wheel nuts. I still have the track nuts on the wheels and will keep them to. I need this wrench to get the wheels off to change a flat tire. So I turned around and started for home. Head wind all the way. Still a good spin, I was really getting to like the single speed. Got home, got the wrench and back on the bike. Back on the road in less than 3 mins. Heading South into the wind. Right turn Simms Road. Just a little climb, steady, then a fast decent to French Road that led to Bailey Road. Bailey Road was a long up hill section with one short nasty section. It was slow, but, I was rested and ready for the effort. This "rested then ready" seems to be how the single speed does it's job. Then Bailey comes to an end at Coultis Bay Road. Left turn up hill. Hard up hill, really steep. I had forgotten just how steep this section of the road is. I just did a rested climb. Trying to stay out of the red zone. Trying, but not always getting it right. It was a very had climb. Got it done. 2 more moderate climbs to go. These take me to Deer Lake road, right turn. Deer Lake is a netural kind of road. Not to hard, rollers. Then this come to a T, left turn and it's still Deer Lake Road. Then roller to a small decent to Heggens Road, right turn. Heggens Road is a bit of roller that leads to a nice Climb. An any gear you want kind of climb. Well that's what I think. The climb is just right for this single speed bike. It was a great climb. Then back to Deer Lake Road that goes back to Coultis Bay Road, right turn to Langley Road. This is an easy roller ride to the town of Langley. It was a fun run into town. From Langley I hook up with Bayview Road that takes me home. Home after a moderate climb out of Langley. Nice grade, but a bit of a grind. Then a flyer down hill and through a 4 corner commercial zone. From there it's home in the now 35 to 45 MPH head wind. I was getting cold. The rain had started with a little snow mixed in. Not much snow. It was cold. To the bone cold. Then after one last short climb my turn home came. Home at last. I had completed my first full 3 1/2 hour training ride on a single speed bike. EVER! It was both easy and unbelievably hard. I look forward to my next time out on the single speed bike.

Sunday Prayers

It was not the everyday Sunday. Not at all. The roads were full of the true believers. Bright, not quiet Winter blue sky. Chill to the bone, dry and cold. Just a slight wind out of the North. As if to blow us all along our training path. Hard work and smart work. The training never ends. We move along the roads to the next hill to climb. The next freezing down hill after the heater going up the hill. Hours on hour. We are all doing the hours. It is joy to breathe the air and have the air to breathe. Our luck, last another ride. Another prayer along the road. Pure passion is the time over the bike. Luck that we can do our dreams. Live these dreams while we can. Time has a start, and a finish for the body. Never put off what makes you live. The clock is ticking. We ride and live with the Reaper. Our time is a gift. Use it well. We ride with the Reaper.

Glorious Day

All went well on my frozen day ride. I was out at noon. It turned out to be the perfect time to start out on a frozen day ride. The roads in the morning were white with frost. Ice where there was water. Dicey at best to do the hours and get the miles.
First thing I saw before I was even out of our community area was a huge patch of solid white across the street in a shaded up hill area. Tip toe all the way, on the bike of course. Than to the stop sign that starts to the main roads. Another ture believer goes by. It's a good day to go out. After Thanksgiving ride. There are more of us out there. It was a slow day. Way down in the 65% power day. Easy on the breathing and everything else to. Almost seems wrong to go so slow. It's not though. When I got to the first of many hills I had lots of energy in the legs. It was easy to climb. I still kept it at an easy pace, stay out of the red zone. It was climbing, and the heart rate went up and got to the place it needed to for the hills. I felt great, never got out of the small chain ring. Never got out of the saddle. If you think of my bike having 20 gears. I was in first to tenth. Nice winter training day. It was 36 degrees and rising in the sun. The shadows were still frozen and white. I would ride the car tire slots in the road where it was still frozen. There were few cars, but, those few, had cleared the way. All went so well for my frozen ride.
When I got home, my new warm up is not to go to the bath and showers.I strip down out of the riding gear and put on warm a warm set of pants, shirts, fleece jacket, and a pull over cap. I have found a slower warm up vs a hot bath works better for me all around and especially my out of control Trigeminal nerve. So, very warm outfit to warm up slow. I look like I'm dressed to go outdoors. It works for me. Then I get the news. No sooner than I had started to change into my warm stuff. Mary Anne told me that Noah and his Little Rock crew had a bad run in with a huge male deer on the road. Noah is a national collegiate champion and is a category one rider I have had the pleasure to get to know and also ride with. Well Noah hit this deer head on in the road, full set of antlers and all. Then the crew had no choice but to slam into Noah from behind. It was a mess. Sounds like lots of blood, road rash, and one rider was out for the count, for it sounds like 20 mins. That's bad! What joy to hear everyone was on there feet and Noah had not been gored. These guys ride fast and aggressive all the time. I think I even know what roads they were on. The same roads I had the pleasure to ride with Noah and the crew in April this year. Also the bikes sound like they got trashed beyond use. The one Noah was riding was a loaner from his buds at Competitive Cyclist. Trashed, and was a $7,000. bike. Bikes can be replaced. I'm glad everyone was standing after a bit. Man you got to earn your luck. These guys were lucky.
So why do I bring this up. No more than 5 day ago, maybe less. I had a run in with a male deer 3 feet or less in front of my front wheel. I mean, Out of the brush almost on top of me, out of control, full of fear. This deer was at full speed, running for it's life as hunting season is in high gear. Just looking for a safe place to get away from the guns. Well my good luck was, I was going up a climb and was in a slow gear. Wow it was a scary moment. If I was on the flats doing full speed or coming down the hill, I would have been stomped and trashed. I just thank my stars. Odd, my run in with a deer and boom, Noah has a run in. To bad for Noah and crew though. All though it sounds like luck held out for them. Road rash heals. Fast healing Noah, and all your crew. The photo is the best Noah Singer shot I could steal from his blog.

New post new time

I started this blog as a training log. It's several rides behind. More than several. To many. The stories of cold, wet, and now frozen conditions. Ya, I was still going out. Doing the hours. It takes hours to keep an old body going. There is so much more I could write about. Maybe it's time to write. Then this is, a training log. And I train on my own, for the most part. Although, there is some new news. The local small shop asked me to start riding with them. I also got in contact with the regional website that lets me post when I am riding. Make the rides an organized thing. Bring more riders out during the hard times. Road riders. This is a tough time of year for some to keep the faith to the road. I'll reach out and see what happens. I'll let you know how that goes. For now there is a lot of new adventures on the Island.
In one of the last few rides it was cold and wet, 38 deg. I had on every piece of riding gear I owned. I even had 2 pair of gloves. One neoprene under a pair of hollowfill 2, water proof. My hands get cold. My hands looked like a little kid over dressed by their Mom to go out in the snow. I was glad for the warm hands. Plus I had on my real good rain jacket. I was water proof from the out side. The sweat, made a kind of rain from the inside. What a day. The cars and trucks thought I was nuts to be out. Hey, it's what you got to do, to say your prayers. Do the time and get the miles. So just as a reminder, as I was climbing the first of many climbs, French Hill, a friend showed me what it was really like. A deer ran right in front of me at full speed crossing the road. I would not even of had time to slow down. The deer never looked. Man they should make the deer take lessons or something. He sure looked wet and cold. It's hunting season to and they hunt deer on the Island. Fear drives them. The deer was 3 feet in front of my wheel going up a long climb. I was going slow, thankfully. That's what saved me from going down like a rock and getting stomped by a deer in full fear flight. Just a moment in a 3 1/2 hour ride.
Wet roads, moss, splattered banana slugs, tree parts, glass, and rocks. Just the everyday stuff was what was left for the next 3 hours. The sweat inside was just a little less than the rain outside. The sweat was warmer, for awhile. Towards the end of the ride the sweat was on the cold side to. The up hills were great, I did many of the hills twice. Though the price was the down hill. I was ice at the bottom. That's Island riding. Up and down, nothing else. There is one long shallow down hill to Langley and then a shorter steeper uphill coming back on Bayview. It's a good finishing road. Everything else is just up and down. I'm getting a lot better at climbing for a big guy, 205lbs. I'm still working to get under 200lbs. Seems like it's taking a long time. At my age of 75 I need to move a little faster on the weight. What, I have like, forever! Today's a ride day. I'll work on it.
I love the rides around here. Some are real tough. Most are just hard. I work at staying in the good zone. Keeping out of the red zone. So my winter training is a bit slower than my spring training. Cold weather just slows me down. Is that a sign of age? I hope so. The plan is to keep building strengh, not break down. Get stronger and have more power for this spring. It's 36 degrees out as I write. It's 8:15 AM. Thanksgiving is behind me. I bet the roads will have a few true believers out. There is a lot of frost out. I'm waiting till noon to go out. It's dry though! I hope all who are on the roads today find them, clean, dry,fast and safe. One more thing, it was, what looked like a full moon on a low tide last night. It's not great but it's the best my technology could do.

Keeping the habit

Today was my first winter ride with my new single speed bike. Ya, one gear does it all. 47X16 or 79+ inches each rotation of the crank. Not bad on the flat or gentle rolling roads. Just about right for that kind of training. It turns out that gear is a bit stiff for around South Whidbey Island. Like rolling backwards on the steep climbs. Not really. Though it was very very hard to climb some of the steeper climbs in the 79 inch gear. So I went to Half Link, the local shop and discussed a better gear with David the owner. We both agreed that 79" was just to much. Even for a young light guy, that I'm not. So I ordered a 20 and 22 tooth rear gear. 20 tooth cog on the rear gives me a low 60s" gear, 62 or something. A lot better than what I have now. The 22 tooth gear gives me a gear in the mid 50s". So I will try both out for a bit. With a 50s" gear I will be able to climb even the steepest hill around here. It's all for fun. The normal road bike is still the best training. The single speed bike is all about fun and using what I have. I have a very nice track bike collecting dust and I will not be riding track, I think. The track bike has a way nice set of wheels to. Boy, did it ride nice. Just strait as an arrow. Much better than the road bikes. All this time I thought it was me making the bike a little loose. Than I ride a really tight bike and WOW. The bike was so much fun to ride. I was also invited to start riding with the organized rides around here by David at Half Link. That was very nice of David to offer. During the hard winter months having others to train with is helpful. I always ride though. Maybe I can be that extra boost to get others out on their bikes this winter. Well, I'll see about that. That's it for today. Great to be writing again.

These are my ferry's

Just got this photo of the ferry's we use to get off the Island. I have a few more photos but I had to get this on the blog. I'll try to get them all on. The photos are from the wind storm last week! Man I'm staying home if it gets like this. They were running 3 ferry's with very few cars on board to keep the SCHEDULE. Duh, no one up front or back. It looks like the second story ramp is empty to. Wow that some scary weather. The deck hands must have been peeing in their pants. The Captain was way up high. Bad job mind you, but the deck hands are right in it. And they work hard to!

Making new friends

The kind of friends an old Xracer makes. The hills in my new Island home are fun. Steep, hard, covered in dark of the forest, some out in the open. Non of the climbs are long by mountain standards, nothing over 2.5 miles +- to the top. I find that a few of the climbs are so much fun I do them twice on a training day. Well everyday I ride is a training day. Just the habits of an Xracer. Who knows though I may do a race or 2 next season. This years has been such a great year of growing and training.I'm so much stronger than I once was. It feels very good to hang out with the young guy on all carbon and Campy. He tried to drop me, but saw that was not going to happen. Little victories. I saw that guy training when Mary Anne and I were in the van doing some shopping. There are a lot of riders on the south part of this Island. Quiet roads, good climbs and just the right amount of mileage. Not that I look at mileage so much. It's more hours anymore. 3 to 4 hours at a time. With these hills the mileage is not so important. It's the work that counts. Mary Anne is gone on an adventure for a few days so I'm going to get out everyday and test the legs a bit. My new winter tights got here today from Competitive Cyclist in Little Rock Ar. Super warm tenax windfront Roubaix bib tights from Giordana. I hope they last as well as my 25 year old tights! Also I got a new wheel today. It's the match to my rear wheel for the #2 winter bike. Can't go out unmatched. So it was kind of a party of bike stuff today. Plus I got out for a 2 hour ride and found some new hills. Hard one's to. I got a flat half way up the longest climb of the ride. Oh, it was raining. Always fun to get that all over you. It's like your hands wear the dirt from the bike. Ya, it was the rear wheel. So, an adventure of sorts. Got home in time to clean up hang out with Mary Anne then boom she was out the door to the airport. Man I miss her already. So I got the new wheel all ready with tire and tube. Fixed the flat tube, wash the riding gear and here I am. Ready to go at it again. Looking forward to the ride. Looking forward to the other riders I know I will be seeing. It's a small Island.
The map is the new training camp. I have done almost all the roads. The goal is to stay off hwy 525, it's got a big shoulder, but is busy and loud. So the idea is to cross back and forth on the good roads and stay off hwy 525. I'm learning that more every day.

Training Camp

No, it's not a training camp with lots of others and great trainers. It's Whidbey Island on the South part. The South part of the Island has hills. Lots of hills. It's all hills. Some of my new friends are steep to. Just one hill after the last and then get ready, here's another hill. Wow, I was worried about getting a good work out here. My legs are trashed. I like it! My own personal training camp on Whidbey Island.

First storm of the season

The storm came in on the wheels of the pro's in time trial. Head down doing the speed. Slow to rev up and them the speed is there. 60 MPH for an hour. Wind so strong that the trees were glad to give in to the force. Waves on the bay just pushed over foam. You could see the power of the force in the wind. Pop, the electricity was gone. Just for 2 hours. What a storm and it was. Just one of many for the winter storm season.
I went out the next day for a ride. First ride in 5 days. The last of the loads in our move. We are homeless. Writer wife and me the bike rider. The roads were a mess here and there. The down hills were slow with all the branches, fir cones, and needles from the fir and pine trees. Some areas just thick. Go slow. Work crews out on many of my roads. Fixing power lines, moving tree junk, doing the jobs of cleaning up after a big blow. There I was making my way through it all. Getting the miles I was so far behind on. Still, getting the miles. In the sun it was dry and fast. In the shade of the trees, slow and careful. Doing the hills and feeling the back wheel slip all the way up the long climbs. Hearing the brakes on the way down the the other sides. I stay up right for the fear of not.
This was just the first of more to come. I need to get back on the road and keep the prayer alive. Wet is not so bad. Cold is OK to ride in. It's the wind that holds me back. I need to get over the wind. Here the wind is everyday. Next ride tomorrow.

New Roads

I have been a little off the bike. Not to much but not as many miles as I like this time of year. There has been a lot to do on this now Island Home. So the day brought it's moment to go out and just point my finger and go that way. It's an Island and as long as the roads lead to water I should know where I am. I have a good GPS inside my head. Heading out to roads I have no idea where I will end up. I knew I was heading to the hilly area of the Island. Nice climbs, and a bit steep at that. Not very long, nothing over 1 1/2 miles max. Lots of go up and go down, steeper, longer, than rollers. Forested, then moments on the shore. A great mix. The down side is the mileage is a bit short on these off beat roads. I can do all the roads on the south side of the Island and not get 35 miles. Well, maybe a few more if I do some good planning. Today was not a day of planning but a day of exploration. It was fun! Well, till I found the road that lead to Glendale. A dark timber shroud road. It was always with out sun and the pavement looked to be never dry. A long descent, old houses right next to the road. Fences that are meant to keep eyes from looking in and had been doing their jobs for 50 years. The few homes and farms, old. Broken trucks with bumper sticker like "King of the Chainsaw". Places that never heated with anything but wood. Ate the food from the forest, deer and anything else that gets in the way. Families had owned these places for generations. Generations that never sold a car, but, just hauled it back from the road when it stopped running. Did I say it was a bit spooky. Wet slippery road going down at a steep angle. So steep that there were rumble strips to slow you down. No room to go around them on a bike to. I knew I could go back up that hill if I needed to. Slowly up that wet and mossy road. Then a sign came up for a stop ahead. From out of this dank wet forest came a old 2 story rooming house on my left at the stop. No right turn, it was all private and OLD just like this 1900s rooming house. Looked like a cat house to me for the loggers from the past. Seemed like there must have been bar or dinner room down stairs. So there I was at the bottom of this hill at the waters edge in a place that was still in the 1900s. Left turn to keep going and it was the steepest hill I have ever seen! I mean I was think of calling Mary Anne to come save me. It was just a monster. I'm sure a signal would not have got in there for the cel phone anyway. I just stood there at the stop sign looking at my way out of this time warped funnel zone. I put the bike in the smallest gear I had, a 34X25. An easy gear by my thinking. Well, till I looked at this wet, mossy, tree covered, and covered with broken tree branches from a recent storm. Sigh, I'm not sure I could walk up this hill! The good news was it was broken down in two parts. The first part from sea level to a small flat piece and then on to the next bit of hell. I started up the hill that might be the last hill I ever climbed. I was a little unsure about the heart rate. At my age it's best to not go to high. 172+- is getting over the top. I was past that in what seemed seconds. Over the bars to keep from falling on my back steep this hill was. I made it to the first flat relief. It was not that far! I stopped to let my heart rate come back down. What if I get to the top and it goes down to another place like I was trying to get out of and had another hill like this to do. I was thinking I only had one of these hills in my legs. I had no idea what was ahead of me. I still had to finish this monster to. Next leg of the climb was longer and just as steep. It looked so long for a short hill. My heart rate was maxed and I was trying to go easy and slow. I think I was seeing colored spots towards the end of the hill. The end was coming, the end of the hill. I had made it to the top and from there on was a modest flat to very short rollers. I mean I said a pray over that one. I'm not to sure my Van will get up this hill very easy, first gear maybe. New roads and new stories. I never would have thought this Island had a monster living on it. What will the next ride bring? I know where I'm not going to go!

Living on the Bay

Living is the key word. Not dead. Alive to take it all in. My eye's are open to the new day. That's the feeling I wake with each day. New adventure each moment. The players are all on the field. The coaches to the side. It's just you and the world before you. Jump in or just stand there, I jumped. Though, this time it's quiet nice. The view of the Olympic Mountain range in the near distance. Port Townsend across Puget Sound. Useless Bay below our palace. Nothing between. Large and small ships and boats go by all day and night. The Bald Eagle say's good morning at 8AM. The now migrating birds from the Arctic are passing through. Some will even stay the winter with Mary Anne and I. It's about as close as one gets to Paradise. Our benefactor's half way across the world, and will then stay in their warmer home for the Winter. My payment just do some work on the home I now stay in. Stay in and wake to the sunrise over all I have noted. Eat, rest, work, dream, ride the roads, meet the neighbors and take in all this Island has to offer. Island Time is now the time of things. The feeling is so large. I am taken by the vast and deep beauty, soulful embrace. My weak attempt at a photo just not enough. It's just the day. Just another day. Like the day before but not. It's a day I wish you were here. A time to share with those that are close. My luck just tearful. The lottery won, the ticket cashed in.

A million pounds later

Well, it seems that way. Mary Anne and I just moved to our new home. A place where Mary Anne will have a writing sabbatical. A nice 6000 sq' home (not our home though) on a bay in the Northern waters of Puget Sound. The view is just great. We are guest of this wonderful house for the long winter. I get to to be the maintenance guy. The house does need some up-keep here and there. Though very very nice. Got to get here on a ferry. The Island is big enough to have some good services. We are living in the Southern part and the best services are in the Northern area. Ya, like it's a 30 min drive. We still have a few things to move. They are at the NOW SOLD condo. We have till mid October to have everything cleaned out. Should work out fine. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
So we are starting our new adventure together. Mary Anne is busy getting her writing studio and art studio going in the day light basement that has nearly as good a view as the upstairs. I will have some space for my tools and stuff to do a few projects to. The walks on the beach are just inspiring. The sunsets are awesome. Wildlife is everywhere. I saw a bald eagle this morning fly eye high by the deck over looking the bay. We sit up on a bluff about 200'+-. Just grand! I'll add a photo later. For now I'm just getting over the tons of stuff we have moved. Getting organized, and just being over whelmed with the beauty of this wonderful place. There are some nice roads to ride on to.

Winds of Change

It sounds so important. A start to a novel or a great work. Maybe a screen play! No, it's non of those. A simple work this will be.
This time of year the winds come on your face from the North. The North winds come strong and fast. The afternoon is the most energetic. This is a bicycler's point of view. Wind is the friend and trainer. It all depends on the direction you are going. These winds are the winds that bring on the change in the season. Summer to Fall. As though it requires a huge effort of the wind to push the Summer South. Then the void of this push pulls the Northern cool weather in. The cool off the ice at the top of the world. The cool from Canada, British Columbia, Northern Territories,the Yukon Territories. All this effort in the Northern winds of this short moment.
My rides are for the most part North to South. I'm a continental pro going South. Fast, effortless, moving at speeds only the few can go. 25 MPH all the time, well in my dreams. Rollers are so fast there is no time for gravity to do it's work on my body. Show me who I really am, and how old this body really is. That I am a 57 year old X racer doing his best to run ahead of the storm coming my way. Then I turn and head North again. Looking to find the roads home. Bring the feeling of speed and smooth gears back to the garage. Have a new story to lie about during the Winter times of ice and snow. Some images, and feelings to make this aging rider feel as young as I am not. Then the truth comes home 25 miles out. Warm wind, 88 degrees, sometime much higher. No humidity at all. Dry, windy, no cover, your in it now. The wind that shows you who you are. Your 57, slow, almost out of water. Your heading North into the unrelenting wind of the changing season. The dreams of power and speed work for a while. Then the truth comes out for good. You grind your way in the wind, up the hills, at speeds you just don't have the heart to look at. The heart rate monitor now going up and up as though you are in a mountain pass. Your just old and you have 25 mile of this to go. Dam, what was I thinking going out in this stuff. To late for that now. Slow it down and find the right gear. Gears I climb hills in are now the gears on the flat roads. What will happen when the hills come? Keep the heart rate down and just ride smart. Those days on the Continent are over. The pro jersey you wear, you bought! The dream comes crashing down to the reality of the fight to just get home without falling over. The season of Fall will be here soon. This was just the taste of the change. Drink it in old man. It my be your last drink. Savor the effort. Feel the challenge the wind has brought. The Peleton is all around you. We suffer together. Taking our turns, one at a time. The finish line will come soon enough.
These are the winds that bring the North down to the Valley for the next challenges. The efforts to change the season are great. The dreams are there to forget the pain, the age, and the final race. Now is the time of lies and stories to forget what we don't want to tell. Maybe a team will pick me up next season.

A point in time

It was not so long ago. That's how it all begins. A story, a tale, a new post in the blog. The tale of time and the events. Notations of the events as I remember them. It was not so long ago. I was 300 pounds and could not use a normal bathroom scale. An older bathroom scale. I did not even have a scale to begin the event. The start of the now daily event of my new life. A life I have changed. The day I started riding again. The day I just had enough of my extra weight, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, trigeminal neuralgia, and general bad health for a then 55 year old American male. It was, and is, a fight everyday. Effort all the time to eat well. Courage all the time to workout smart. Fearlessness of the roads with cars, trucks, and motorcycles. All driven by people with homicidal thoughts. All the effort is worth all the risk all the time. It's not about who I was and who I became. It's not about the tales of weight lost and fitness found. It's a tale of living a better life. More spice and cooking with style. Life found by going out and grabbing the action my soul was needing all the time. Living as hard as I know how. I have no idea how I have survived. I just get up put my head on and move forward into the day. I have no job, no money, no prospects. I have never been happier.
The tale is worth a look back. October 2005, close enough. I went down to the local bike shop in Manchester New Hampshire. No fear of the thin fit staff at the shop. I bought a mag trainer for my now old Klein race bike. It was a start. How many others had gone with the same dream to the very shop. How many times had the sales staff had to hear the dream of youth lost. I did not care what the staff thought. I am pig headed and stubborn. Once I start I would not stop till I dropped over dead. Dead I tell you! It was a life or death struggle, and it still is everyday. I could not even get on my old bike saddle with out a large piece of foam. The pain was just depressing. 15 mins was the max I could stand the pain of the workout. How was I going to survive? Everyday for the start it went like this. 15 mins of pain to try and stop me from the goal. To ride on the roads again. Then the foam was put away in about 10 days. That was a great day. Next I needed to get a scale to weigh myself. I needed a marker to measure the change, or the day. Then I needed to start using the DVD that came with my mag trainer. I rode in front of a TV with a DVD and tape player. I had a DVD from the Chris Carmichael training center. It was the time trial DVD. I just turned down the volume and watched the people for the first few weeks. I was up to 30 mins on the bike. I was eating well. A high protein diet that worked very well to control the type 2 diabetes. Almost no carbs. Not so good for the cholesterol. Had to start somewhere. One month later I was down to 285 pounds. I was riding 30 mins. Now I went to 45 mins., it was hard. My hands hurt, my butt hurt, my back hurt, Almost everything hurt. Seeing the weight go away was the only thing that kept me going.
Then I went back to the local bike shop again. I bought a year end close out Cannondale road bike. A carrot for the road next spring. It was parked next to the TV. TV and new bike to ride the roads with next spring. Spring was about April in New Hampshire. October to April on a indoor trainer. I needed that carrot every workout. I went and looked at that bike several times a day. When I watched TV, that new shiny road bike was right there to see. I dreamed on that bike all the time. That new bike was a dream. I needed that dream! I still have that dream today and rode it to.
These days indoors were one once at a time. Not I need to lose ten pounds. Just a small step of one once at a time. I was taking my life back one once at a time. My scale, the TV, the DVD, my new road bike, a pair of jeans 2 sizes down. Little things that stared to look like a new way. I turned the volume up on the TV and started to watch the tour DVDs of Lance Armstrong. I was training for 55 mins now with all the great riders in the tour. I was with them, every climb, every sprint, all the drama. By November of 2005 I was riding 55 mins. and my weight was 275+-. 25 pounds was gone. I started listing to the Time Trial DVD. It was way to hard for me. So I did as much as I could and just finished in my own way. I also started working out 2 days on 1 day off. Train smart not hard! Seemed to work. One once at a time. My blood sugar readings were looking better everyday. Lance Armstrong and Chris Carmichael were my best friends. I was wearing XXLARGE Lycra riding shorts from Colorado Cyclist. It seemed like a dream all these events over the last 2 years- a bit. Not even 2 years really. The winter went like this. One once at a time. I never stopped. I worked hard, but smart. I ate well, but smart. November came and went. Everything kept working one once at a time. One day at a time. One ride at a time. 2 days on the bike 1 day off. My old body needed time to recover. December and I was down to 260+-. I needed to get down to 240 if I was going to ride on the roads the spring of 2006. I knew that once I got on the roads I was going to lose the weight a lot faster. Plus I would have to ride every other day. I would be working much harder and the body would need a lot more recovery. I was thinking about spring and it was December of 2005. I had lost 40+- pounds in 3 months. This was the easy weight. The fluff. Just eating the diet I was eating was going to strip 20 pounds off me. So it was not all about the bike. There was a force of effort in it all though. The bike I mean. The effort to do it. It was hard. Every time I got on the bike it was hard. There was something about the effort that counted for so much.
January 2006, wasn't that yesterday? There was a ridable day in New Hampshire. I was going for it! I had not ridden in 13 years. I was still to far over weight (258) and more important out of shape. It was a cold day, 38 degrees. I put on every piece of riding gear I owned and a few extra things to. I could barley get down the driveway my hands and body were shaking so much. Fear of what I was trying. My heart rate shot through the roof in seconds. Pure fear! I was still to heavy to ride a light weight high tec racing road bike. What was I thinking! To late I was over the ice dam at the bottom of the driveway. In one piece and up right. I was not the only fool riding that day. I had hoped to do 20 miles. It turned out to be a bit less. After the first 4 miles I settled down a bit. I knew I could not ride 20 mile though. So I cut the ride in half, 10 miles. My front brand new wheel was coming apart. Part from my weight, part from the wheel being a 12 spoke wheel. I was still going to be lucky to get home. I took the wheel back to the shop.
What was I thinking. Starting to write this whole thing for anyway. What is the point? The push to tell the story. Today what happened today. Why is the past important today? So today was a fine day. A great day in great weather. On a great bike and carrot. With wonderful equipment. Made just the way I want it to be. Just the equipment I want. Today is the reason I wrote all this down. So what do I say? I am 205 pounds. Very fit, low body fat, lean. New muscle I never thought I would have. Just a few pounds from my perfect weight, 198. With the muscle I have put on I have lost over 120 pounds of fat easy. Maybe more. So what! It's not the fat. It's not the fitness. It's the effort, the struggle. It's the everyday if it. It's the fight to live life the way I want. To just live. Now it sounds a bit odd. So it might be odd. It's the way I wanted to go. I feel lucky everyday to do what I do. It's not about the money. It's not about the job. I have nether. It's just about the struggle, the effort, the drive to live. I feel so alive today. I wanted a reminder. I wanted the story to remind me of the way I have come for just this moment. And the story is much bigger than I have written down. I just needed a reminder of the push. The road and the prize. The long prayer. The hope of the spirit.

Friends

Ya, it's about the Vultures. I'm so odd that way. It should be about all the wonderful folks that I care about. The folks that care about me and send their fine thoughts my way. Thanks to everyone.
No, it will be about the shadows of my roads. They will not be here much longer. The shadows I have ridden with for what seems like such a long adventure. The fine Vultures. The big birds of the roads near and far. Black birds on the plane side. I mean to say airplane side. The Black Vultures and the Turkey Vultures. Both sometimes the same. Just giant, wonderful soaring shadows of this season on the road with my bike. I still have the feather of the early season given to me by one of the dark monarchs. Their presents will be needed else where soon. Their job needs to move on. There is work south of here for several months. The food that we never look at. The corner dinner we can not see. The fast food that got a lot slower. The food Vultures love to eat. Best served a little on the old side. A little on the soft side to. Vultures are wonderful big birds. Now I have made it sounds as though Vultures only eat off the road or the side of the road. Eat the creatures that did not make the next day. This is true a lot of the times. A Vulture will never pass up an easy soft meal. A meal that has aged to a perfect taste. Well, it's more like a perfect softness. So I was somewhat surprised to see how often the Black Vultures were hunting in the fresh cut and harvested fields. One up about 35 to 50 feet and the other down very low. 3 feet or so. Flushing out the now exposed field animals to the partner flying a little higher. It is similar to how a hawk couple will hunt. No one thinks of Vultures as hunters. I never did till this year. So many times after harvest this was happening. I was very impressed. Watching a bird of that size freak out the little critters in the field so the partner about could swoop down and catch the field food. Over and over this happened towards the end of this season. Almost as though to say, "the work here is getting to hard. Lets move on to easier fields". Still a beautiful site. One low hunter passed over me close enough to look at me. What the Vulture was thinking was it's own business. I did not want to think about what the Vulture was really thinking. Food on the wheel.
No, I should be writing about all the wonderful folks in my life with Mary Anne. All the good thoughts turned my way. I think of these thoughts with kind appreciation. Writing to thank the kind thoughts during some mighty scary times. Times that lead me to think I am no different than the road food I saw so much of this season. I made it this far. I will work on the next miles tomorrow.

Island Time

I find myself on an Island on the Puget Sound. A wonderful place. A place I will be living for the next 6 or 7 months. Good roads to, very wide, smooth and clean. Mary Anne is going to be on a her writing journey. I get to be on a riding journey. I go out for a nice ride this morning. Just a first ride on the roads I know up here. Highway 525 north and south. One end of the Island to the other. At the north end is Deception Pass. A little crack of a cliff that a very large body of water rushes through one way then the other with the tide. Very cool. That is about 55 miles from here. I'm not going that far today. Just an easy ride. There are a lot of rollers both ways. 50 miles should do. In the future I will take some photos and post them on a new posts. It's a perfect day. No wind. So it's a short post for now. I tried for more but keep deleteing it with my fingers. I guess I get the message. Get your ass out and ride boy!

At first sight

I had a great ride yesterday. That's what I thought this post would be about. The roads the hills the guy that tried to pass me. All the now normal actions that can happen on any ride I go out on. I and thousands of other riders. Competitive, recreational, family and all the rest. Just chest pounding and feeling good. Tales of testosterone and endorphins. It's all good. I'm not about to complain. Not one line am I about to complain. This is another story.
This morning, after coffee, after a cheese danish, after being able to do most everything for my self. Talking to Mary Anne, loving the light she walks in. Being able to do all the things I wanted to do. Being happy to have good drugs that let me live my day in a mostly pain free way. Living in a beautiful condo in a wonderful part of town, near good roads to get my rides to the country roads. All the everyday miracles. And I feel this way most everyday. Even on days that are not so good. I still see the miracles. Today, the day I learned another true believer lost his way. Not a friend, not a fellow club rider, Not a racer I had heard about. Not any of these. Just another true believer that picks the bike up and goes out on the road to put on the miles. An every day guy. Father, husband, son, and all the rest you can think of. A rider with a helmet on. Gloves and shorts. Maybe a "powerbar" to. Just you or me. Riding in a park because he was afraid to ride on the roads. A nice well paved park with a good loop to ride in relative safety. A place you would feel safe and take your family. Your daughter or son on their first ride. Learn the way of the true believers.
Today was another sad story. A car and a bike. You can make the story up from there on your own. It's never good. A car and a bike in a park made for people. The bike always gets the worst of it. Death would be a favor in this case. No hands, no legs, no arms. A quadriplegic. It happens all the time. The car always wins. The biker always pays the price. We all keep going on. The true believers. We lost a friend today. One of the faceless millions. A rider of a bike. A family man. Your next door neighbor. He will never walk again. He will never use his hands again. You can fill in the blanks.
I am blessed, and I send my blessings to this stranger today. You are my brother, you are my friend, you are me. Bless your house and all who love you. I am a true believer and I believer in you.

Road Time

The time had come. I was driving my Van again. Why not ride my bike. So I got the #2 bike out, cleaned it up. Not that it was dirty. Lubed the chain. Checked the tires, added a little air. Put on 2 bottles of fluids. Climbed into the Competitive Cyclist jersey and bib riding shorts. Remembered to strap on the heart rate monitor. Helmet, gloves, glasses, phone, wallet, zipfizzes, a bottle of emergence meds. Wow you would think I was going to be gone for days. I was just going out for a short 35 mile or so, easy ride. Needed to see what it felt like to ride again. I've been off the bike since last Thursday. Seems longer, a lot longer.
It was the run out River Road South. A road that I should be bored with. I do the road all the time. It never bores me. It leads to some great roads in quiet country. Miles of country roads with very few cars and trucks. The trick was going to be if I could ride a strait line. With all the meds I now take that could be a challenge. So off I went. I hit the usual construction on River Road. I was being hipper careful. I was riding with so much extra care. I was afraid I would ride off the road if I made one small mistake. I was also riding in a about 95" gear. At a good clip but not breathing to hard. Must be the drugs. So I just went the first 15 miles like that. Moving good but not getting out of breath. Then the first steep hill showed up. The same hill I have climbed countless times. It went nice and easy. Stayed in the good zone. Did not get to out of breath. Must be the drugs. Moved on to a long set of rollers that brought the road to the game reserve. Saw a few riders going the other way. 2 family types out having fun. One rang their handle bar bell at me as I waved. Smiles all around. The next was a serious rider. He looked up at least. I was now on a long flat section that looped around the game reserve back to Liberty Hill. The way back home. Liberty is a longish climb, 5 miles or so. Fun climb. Some hard, some fast, then some hard again. After that it's rollers and small hills to the edge of Salem and home in 5 miles. The climbs were just great fun. I was doing the easy thing. Going at a middle pace. Going good. Going good all the time. Never out of breath. Must be the drugs. Found the last few hills and roads and turns that brought me back home to the Condo. I called Mary Anne to let her know everything was all right. 36 miles and I did not fall down. It must be the drugs.

20K

Posts of the recent past bring me to this post. To wobbly to ride my bike. New drugs will take a bit to get used to. Pain free days a miracle. Thanks to methadone and a few other modern brews from the pharmacy.
As I was trying to say. I was to wobbly to ride my bike in a strait line. I did what I could. I got my walking boots on and headed out. Down to Minto Brown Park. The local runners park just down the hill from our Condo. Just had to get my body turning over. Bring the sweat up. Warm the muscles. Stretch out and feel the push again. I have worked to hard to get to the fitness I am at to just let it go. Now, I had done a hard hill walk of about 6 miles on Friday. Before, the late night attack from the monster in my head. So this was the first push since the new drugs were in play full time. Down to the park I walked. Blue jeans, work shirt, wallet, phone, hat and belt. Ready to push the body hard. As I said I could not ride a strait line on the bike so that was out. Here I was in a somewhat farm like setting. Very simple park of asphalt paths, dog fields, and that's about it. Well it's all next to a river. I just put my head down and took the longest loop I could do and added the 5K loop onto that. 15 an 5 did the 20. I simply walked as hard and fast as the body would go. It felt great. No pain. Push all the way. Never looked at a watch, or in this case the phone clock. I just marched. All the way to and from the Condo. The event was a complete success. Not as hard as a bike ride, but a great success. I did not fall down. The pain did not catch up. Smiles all around. Mary Anne was happy to. Maybe the bike will be soon.

Another Personal Post

So if it bores you all to much. Well you can stop right now. I started this blog as a journal. A way to keep track of the day, life, experiences, moments from this body, in this time.
The battle was on the front line. There were only 2 out comes in the events that were to unfold over the next few hours. I win or I lose. It is a desperate time. So much different than times past. Big waves, steep cliffs, desert heat, and winter mountain cold. Fast cars, bad company in dangerous places. The battles of children. This is a battle of age. A battle we will all face. Time and the limits to it. Our time. My time.
I had come to the end of the road. The last stone to the path I had always followed. There were no more points I could recognize. I was off the map. I was on a new planet. It was a desperate time. Survival was only a notion. Events had taken there own course. I was facing 2 points. The fear of not living, and the fear of living. 2 desperate and dark points on the same road. The fear of living in remarkable unrelenting pain and the fear of knowing I could not live in the pain. A thin line. When the road found me on this new planet. A place with one choice. Fear. The choice I had always walked through in my now distant past. No more were there any choices. It was fear no matter how you took it. A walk with loss no matter the direction. New lines with desperate cost. The admission to the show was going to cost the same no matter where you went. It was a dark room with out a light. Cross one line, cross the other. Both unseen. Though both needed there toll. It was all consuming, the choice. Darkness, and the hand of death. Darkness, and the hand of addiction. How strong the fight to live. The line to cross into the darkness either way. The Reaper in one corner, and addiction in the next.
I lay at the hands of death and I took the addiction.
Funny thing narcotics. Cheaper than you would think, and easy to get. For the rest of your life. Once that line is crossed, you pay a price you never knew was there. I stepped into the darkness, to see the light of day one more time.

New Post is Right!

It's been far to long between this post and the last post about a wonderful little Boa hiding in a used truck. There have been many events. Some are the daily kind of fun and some bigger. The event that I am writing about is a review of a past post with new information.
Trigeminal neuralgia or TN is a bastard living inside my head and many others to. It's a nerve that comes out of the side of your head that controls one or the other side of the face. As I get older the nerve sheath is pounded by the blood vessel next to it where both come out of the skull. The pounding of the blood vessel on the nerve sheath, destroys the sheath over time if the 2 are to close to each other. Once the nerve sheath is destroyed frightful pain comes next. Lightning strikes in the head on the side that has the problem. Doctors consider this kind of pain the worst pain in the human body. I have this pain on an hourly bases. Tn is a monster you live with. Neurologist have pain medications, actually anti convolution medications. It's strong stuff that works for a while. It will not work forever. I use Tegretol, and have been using it for 5 years. I have reached the end of it's useful life. It has been a frightful experience. Coming to the point where the pain just can not be managed by what I am used to. You know, just take another one. That was the way for so long. Now I could take a handful, and tegretol will do little or nothing. During this time I have had several frightful attacks. Just horrible pain. I even have methadone or synthetic morphine for emergency's. I took some for the first time in 5 years. Imagine, taking morphine everyday!!! No way. Well it was time to go see Dr. Bell the neurologist in Vancouver Wa. See if there was any hope for a med over having a hole burded in my head to separate the nerve and the blood vessel. I was using the #1 med for TN, and had tried most of the rest. Dr. Bell was my last hope. Long story short Dr. Bell offered a new med, Kappra. There were 2 others new meds to. We just had to try and see what would work. Free samples are great!! This new med WORKS! Kicks my butt, but it takes all the pain away. First time I have been pain free in months and months. I mean no pain at all. Now mind you I can barley walk. Normal for these meds. You get used to them in a few days. First few though you are just hammered. I brushed my teeth for the first time in 6 weeks. I gargled to. I shaved without pain for I do not remember how long. I ate with ease. I could not walk so great, but wow no pain. Also no morphine. So I have my fingers crossed this med will work for a long time. That I will have a lot of pain free days and hours. That I will not have to become an addict to morphine. I also hope I can walk and ride a strait line soon.
Now, there's more. Mary Anne, the woman and love of my life. She has dealt with this. Put up with me. I could not drive myself to the Doctor anymore. She handled a lot of details I just could not deal with. I was that far gone. Pain ruled the day, the hour and the minute. I was not such a nice patient. Just was over the limit. Thank goodness I am blessed to be married to a Goddess. I was a bad passenger. I was a bad friend. I was a bad husband. I was a bad most everything. Mary Anne saw through it all. I know I hurt her feelings several time. What a schmuck I was. I'm sorry Mary Anne, I love you without question. I only hope you can put up with me.

Boa Revisited

Truck Boa has some new information. Mary Anne and I went to visit Kurtis and Jessica and see their new baby son, Arie Amos Drake. 3 days old today. Born on Sunday. What a beautiful little boy. Mom is doing great. Dad seems a little, well getting used to the wonderful new energy in the house. It is a lot to take on. Both parents are going to be great.
The news along with the birth, is Kurtis is the one who had the truck with a snake living in it. The snake of an earlier post. A nice boa that was escaping a bad life. Kurtis gave me photos. Also the little Boa as given to a reptile program. He will be doing class room work in the area. I think a good life may be in this little snakes future. So here are some photos of the day Kurtis and I managed to get the Boa out of the truck.