Tag: Biking

The Biker in me

Fun Playing

What an awesome weekend. Lots of fun was had, and lots got done.

Friday night half the fam was feeling under the weather so we ordered pizza instead of cooking.

Saturday everyone was feeling better. Sprout had his first playedate ever. A boy from his old daycare came over for a little over an hour. Then Saturday night we had some friends over for dinner.

Today was a gorgeous day. Sunny and warm. We started off the morning with a trip to Beacon Hill Park and the petting zoo, followed by some time at the playground. We got home in time for Beet’s nap, and while that was happening I got out for a road ride. I couldn’t get over how many people were out doing stuff in the sun. Playing at playgrounds and parks, working in their yards, riding bikes, etc. It was neat to see that.

While Sox was out for a bit I played with Sprout, then did some work around the house. Finally after dinner and bath time I relaxed with a little TV watching.

Excellent weekend.

Here is the map of my ride. Not the greatest route, but it was good to get out for an hour.


Spinning Race

Today I rode to work for the first time in a while. It felt good to be on my bike spinning along. I certainly need the exercise, but the chilly morning air made my ears hurt. I’m going to try riding to work more often. When I was in shape the ride would only take about 20 minutes, which is very close to what it takes to drive. Today it took closer to 30 minutes. sigh. That is what I get when I don’t ride for a couple months.

Part of my drive to ride to work is that I recently found the website for the Island Cup race series. There are several races I want to enter and from races past I know that being in shape makes it a lot more fun for me. There is actually a race on March 15 that I was tempted to enter. Unfortunately I will be in Vancouver that weekend for a Collective Soul concert.

Bike Fears

I took my bike into Oak Bay Bikes today to check out the mark on the frame I found on Sunday. I was concerned that a crack was forming, even though I couldn’t feel anything on the inside of the seat tube.

My fears were confirmed, and that is indeed a crack. Bummer. It isn’t bad yet, and the seat post I have is incredibly long so it extends well past the cracked area. Problem is I don’t really want to be riding the bike when it fails. It is probably fine to ride on for a while, but who wants to take changes like that?

Next step is to call Santa Cruz and see if they can help me out. I see they are making the Chameleon again so there may be some hope.

Incredible Bender

I love fall rides. I got out for a great spin at the dump with some friends and I was reminded just how much I love riding in the fall. The air temperature was perfect, traction on the trails was incredible, there was no mud at all,the rocks were dry, and the sun was out.

We started off on Skull trail which has been something I have avoided lately as it get my heart rate too high too quickly. Today I powered up the trail, and only had one tiny dab that I could have avoided if I had slowed down.

After Skull we went up inventive, then up to C-Section, down to the fire road, then back up to Old Payoff, North Ridge, Mind Bender, then took the fire road back to Who’s Yer Daddy. Throughout all the climbing I felt awesome. My cardio was good, and my legs were strong.

I was beginning to wonder why since I haven’t been riding that much lately. On a whim the other day I jumped on the scale and was shocked to see that I was under 180 pounds. At some point since Sox and I have been together I was around 205. Perhaps the weight loss is allowing me to ride better. Maybe not. Doesn’t matter too much, but I really want more rides like today’s.

After the ride we stopped off at Bagel Queen for some tasty treats and a yummy Americano.

The only bummer on the ride was that while unloading my bike I spotted what I think might be some cracks in the frame. The marks on are the seat tube near the quick release. My seat is up pretty high, so I pulled the seat post out to double check I had the minimum insertion, which I definitely did. I felt the inside of the tube, and I couldn’t feel any crack on the inside. I will take it into a shop soon to get their opinion. That would be bad if I have to scrap the frame.

Throwing Position

I was really dragging my butt this morning. I was feeling tired and groggy and my plan to ride to work was on my mind. Sox asked me if I was going to ride and I really was about to bail on riding, but then during my shower I decided to go for it anyway.

My ride this morning was actually quite nice. I was feeling tired, but my legs felt strong and overall I felt quick.

My ride to the field tonight was short and steep: I went straight up Foul Bay hill. Again I felt strong and was really looking forward to the game.

Warmup went really well. I got my throwing in and was feeling pretty good. We only had 2 subs tonight, so I knew there was going to be a lot of running. When the game began the other team took advantage of the wind and did a pretty consistent zone.

The Green team may have had a similar record as us, but I felt they played a lot better. Our team wasn’t doing very good cuts. This made advancing on the zone difficult. Lots of swing passes to keep the cup moving lead to a slow march up the field. Once close to the endzone inevitably we threw away the disc. I was at fault a couple times too which made me feel crappy since we had worked so hard to get to that position.

Halfway through the game we lost our two subs. No more cooling off on the sidelines. Hard cuts, lots of running and hard playing were in order. I actually had a great time this game. I wanted to run and I got to run.

There was this one check though. When he was checking me he kept telling me what to do and where to position myself. I had to just tune him out. I know he was trying to help, but I really didn’t want his input. Just to prove that I knew what I was doing, several times I ran and cut extra hard and made sure I beat him to get the disk. Petty, but it made me feel better.

Nearing the end of the game I could feel myself running out of gas. I couldn’t run as fast as I could, so I backed off a little to try and avoid hurting myself.

Game over I jumped back on my bike and rode hard on the way home. Great exercise day overall.

Jumped Breathers

I got out for a great mountain bike ride this morning. A friend of mine is making a return to mountain biking, and yesterday he suggested a ride at the dump. I had the time and jumped on it. I switched over the slicks to my knobbies and the bike was ready.

The forecast for today was a high of 24 and sunny, so I knew I wanted to be done before lunchtime. Add in that Sox had an appointment at 1 and I needed to look after Sprout, that meant riding early in the day. This suited me just fine since I wanted to beat the heat.

We started riding around 9:30, and the tour of the dump was just under 2 hours. I tried to find a route that took us on some good climbs but avoided some deadly descents. The route wasn’t perfect, but my buddy wasn’t afraid to walk 🙂 I really wished I had brought a camera with me though. It was so gorgeous out and there were lots of flowers and trail riding shots I could have snagged.

I felt great throughout the ride. The temps were perfect, traction was excellent, and technically I was riding very well. I love these kinds of rides. My cardio felt good too, even though we stopped a few times for quick breathers. I’m looking forward to getting out again.

I do need to get a new front tire for my Chameleon though. The 2.65 Kujo is getting low on tread and really isn’t needed on that bike. It is big, wide and heavy and I would like something new. Also the casing is coming apart in chunks. 🙁 I can fully justify spending money on a new tire 🙂

The fam is going camping soon, and I think I will be able to sneak in a ride up in Parksville, near to where we are staying. Yay.

Conditions Steep

I got out for a ride at the dump today. What a blast. I was a little concerned that my lack of fitness would cause some issues, but I actually felt pretty great for most of the ride. The conditions were ideal too. Dry, but not dusty, and lots of traction to go around. We ended up on a trail called Grinder and traction is key on that trail since it has lots of steep rock faces. I had a couple small bails on the day, but nothing serious.

This ride reminded me of way back when, when I used to ride a lot. It was a technical ride, not too much stopping for breaks, and lots of good riding. I love rides like that.

I was pretty pooped by the end of the ride, so I stopped at the bagel place for some food and coffee before heading home.

Date Training

July 7, 2007

This is a date I need to entrench in my mind. It is the date of a big race I am in. The 24 Hours of Adrenaline, in Canmore Alberta.

This date is not very far away, yet my conditioning is nowhere near where it needs to be. My training should pick up soon as I start to ride to and from work on a regular basis. This ride will be out to Oak Bay and back. Since I moved on from NewHeights, I have basically stopped riding, and haven’t got much exercise at all.

This has to, and definitely will change.

Today I got on my trainer for the first time in a while. It was hard, but it felt good to sweat. It also reinforced that I need to ride more. I was slow, and worked very hard, but I accomplished my goal of a 3 minute warm up, a 30 minute ride, then a cool down.

1 training ride done, lots to go.

Canmore Distance

Well, I did it again. 😉 Actually I will be doing it again. I am talking about the 24 Hours of Adrenaline. There will not be a race in Whistler, so this time Mike has signed us up for the 2007 event in Canmore. Woohoo, I can’t wait. Should be a lot of fun again.

I plan to set up some kind of training schedule. Road biking is going to be a big part of it. Long road ride, hill repeats, and some off road riding to keep me accustomed to my bike. I will definitely be breaking out the heart rate monitor, and learning how to use that.

I don’t expect a technical race, and even if it is, I am sure I can handle the course. For me it is all about going the distance. The last race I did was a blast, despite the nasty weather. I am expecting great things from this race.

Pinch Commuting

This morning, while riding to work, I discovered the ultimate way to make yourself wake up quickly. Sox, this post you may want to skip.

Take one commuter on his way to work, mix in a pickup, sprinkle with a turn in the road, and top it all with wet pavement. Sound like a tasty treat? Read on for the whole story.

I was riding to work this morning, and came very close to getting pinched by a truck. It was close. Very, very close. As in, I was scared close (and that takes a lot). I was going downhill on Esquimalt, just about to cross under the train tracks. I was slowing for the corner, and a pickup started to pass me. Instinctively I put my hands on the brakes. The truck was already too close for my comfort and a right hand turn was coming up. I started to slow since something felt off. Sure enough the truck started to move right and pinched me into the curb.

I hit the brakes hard and yelled. Truck didn’t move left at all. The driver didn’t even know I was there (remember he had just passed me?). I was on a damp patch of road, on a turn. My back tire locked up, and my bike slid left a little. My bars (on a road bike) were inches from the truck, and my momentum was going left on a right hand turn.

Thankfully my balance was good, and I avoided hitting the truck. Damn I was pissed though. The truck got away from me a bit, and I wanted to chase him down so badly. I was still upright, and I was still rolling.

I regained my composure, with copious amounts of adrenaline flowing through my body. My legs were shaking. I took a few deep breaths, reminded myself that I was OK and not hurt, and continued my commute.

I saw the truck stopped due to construction stopping traffic. I was tempted to talk to the driver, but I didn’t. I gave him a dirty look as I rode by, but neither the driver, nor the passenger were paying attention.

In retrospect I wish I had at least said something cordial to the driver, and reminded them to be more cautious. A few minutes later I arrived at work, thankful I was still in one piece.

The hardest thing about commuting isn’t the riding, it is dealing with the other crap on the roads.