What is the Universe Telling Me?

In the last 2 months, I have had four flats and been hit by a vehicle once. Terri thinks that all these incidents are trying to tell me I should take a break from the bike for a while. I'm a little more hard headed than that I suppose. Regardless of what the cycling gods are trying to say, I ride on!

Ok, I'm at the gym on the stationary. As I mindlessly crank away, I understand just how therapeutic cycling is for me. The stationary is a substitute only for the exercise and mileage. My mind is not able to wander or focus on the many things currently running through it. I get no feeling of going anywhere. Just another hamster on the wheel.

Right now, there's a lot going on. My Grandmother is quite ill and probably not going to be around much longer. I feel so helpless here in AZ. Yes, I was out there last week, but I wish I could be there to help more.

I have to be here for my wife & kids too. They are my life and it's hard to spend any time away from them.

I shouldn't bike & blog at the same time.

The Hills of San Diego

I'm in my hometown (kinda) this week to help with some family stuff. I decided to bring my bike for some early morning/evening meditation. i actually use my time on the bike to reflect and gather my thoughts much like I used to do while surfing.


Anywhoo, I'm out riding this morning down a newer street in Mira Mesa where my mom lives called Calle Cristobal(sp?). There is a fairly good downhill and decent bike lane. As I am FLYING down this hill, I counted no less than 9 man hole covers. What's the deal with that?!? Put the manholes out where it won't affect bicycle traffic. Obviously poor planning on the part of the city. Probably some engineer who is not a cyclist. If work needs to be done in one of these holes, thay would more than likely close the right lane.

By the way; when I mentioned I was flying, my cyclocomputer clocked me at 51.7mph. This is a new personal best for me. I probably could have squeaked out a few more mph, but wih the traffic and curvature of the road, tis was good. Ironically, the speed limit on this road is 50mph. How wild would that be to get a speeding ticket at that speed on a bicycle? It would never happen as I was being passed during my flight. It was a short but sweet ride down followed by a mild climb back up to the mesa. All in all, a good ride today.

Keep it rubber side down!

Slicker than ???

So I finally got the tires for the wheels I bought on craigslist and put them on the bike. I mounted "slicks" which are tires with very little tread. My normal tires are wide with lots of meaty tread. I call them my urban assault tires. For riding on the road, I like to ride slicks for speed. I test rode them last night to make sure the gears worked and everything was good.

This morning Emma & I rode to the chiropracter's office; and what a difference. We were absolutely flying! On the way there, we cruised at 18-19MPH (not bad pulling a trailer). The way back was slightly slower due to the heat. It was about 100 degrees and it was only 10:00AM. Needless to say, we didn't overdo it.

I can't wait to see what type of pace I can hold without a trailer.

What a Night!

Last night I rode the stationary bike at the gym for 15.25 miles. Mindlessly droning on and on and on. Even though the gym is air conditioned, I was drenched after my hour.

Tonight, however, I'm back in the real saddle and absolutely cranking along. I was a machine, I felt that I could ride all night long. About 17 miles into the ride, heading towards home, I am crossing the intersection of Higley & Elliott. I know you're probably thinking " you live at Higley & Elliott"; and I do. As I said, I felt that I could ride all night and decided to ride to the ball parks and come home along the power lines (another 4 miles or so).

So I'm cruising through the intersection, having just switched my headlight to flash for better visibility when this Chevy Avalanche approaches the intersection from the South....fast. He's gonna run the red, turn right and continue on his way. One small problem, I'm at the place where he needs to turn. I realize that he doesn't see me and is going to hit me. I hit the brakes, start yelling at him, and start evasive maneuvers. Well, he did hit me but not too hard. Actually he nudged me more that hit me. I pulled over to make sure my bike was OK. I wasn't even knocked off, but would have been pissed if this jackoff screwed up my bike. He sat at the intersection for a while, probably not realizing he just hit a cyclist. When he started to get out of the truck, I lectured him that he needs to watch out for us on the road and pay better attention. He mumbled some bullshit about losing me in the lights of the oncoming traffic. Now, I use my flashing front light n the road and wear a "hi-visibility" jersey. I'm sure all the way home he justified to his wife in the passenger seat how I was in the wrong for being at the intersection where he intended to run a red light. Jackass!

This little incident got me to thinking. Most of the bicycle/road safety information out there is geared for cyclists. Where's the bike safety info for motorists? We as cyclist have to ride as if we're invisible, because we are. There are far too many distractions to drivers these days (cell phones, lattes, changing radio stations, text messaging, being an idiot, ....)

I could have been going off like a roman candle on the 4th of July with a lit sparkler dangling out of my ass and this guy wouldn't have seen me. I am going to credit my defensive/evasive riding and Jedi reflexes for keeping this from being a much worse incident.

So if you are out there driving, please keep your eyes open for cyclists, and give them some room.

Am I some deranged trill seeker? no
Is riding at night dangerous? yes
Will I be back on the bike at night? you bet your ass!

Thanks for listening

It's a Small World...

Back in April, Terri did her first triathalon (Susan G Comen Tri for the Cure). She did awesome and I couldn't be more proud. She is doing another in July with Torrey. She expressed concern about riding her mountain bike and making good time.

Well; while she was in Sedona for some much deserved R&R, I sold her mountain bike and got her a road bike. Nice bike, should help her speed. I sold the bike on Craigslist to a guy who bought it for his wife to ride with him.

So, I've been wanting to get a spare set of wheels for my bike so I could have one with off-road tires and one with slicks (tires with little or no tread for speed).
I found a Nishiki bike on Craigslist for only $20, and the wheels looked like they might work! I went to look at the bike and the guy selling it was the same guy who bought Terri's bike. How weird is that? That probably means something deeper than I think.

I'm still trippin. Hope I didn't get the song stuck in your head.

Keep it rubber side down.