Internal Battle

Since it's the 19th of the month, I figured I'd go for a ride before work. The plan was to do 30 miles or so.
I started out with an empty tank as it was. No big deal, I can push through that. Done it before, can do it again! Legs weren't quite feeling it, but I told them to shut up and keep going. They quickly fell in line. My lungs, however, were a different story. They decided that we were going to not ride as far as the rest of the body & mind wanted.
At 6 miles or so they started to squeeze. Since my ride today (and in the future) are somewhat contingent on them working, and even though they were out numbered, they won the battle. We didn't do the 30ish miles that the brain had in mind (lol), but we squeezed out 12. Not too bad, but better than nothing I suppose.
That's not the end of the story though. The brain and legs decided that since the lungs were being wimpy, the should be punished. After every other corner, the legs decided to do some interval sprints. After the first few, the lungs were burning. We kept on riding and made it home without having to use emergency services! That'll teach them.
It was still a great way to start the day and the week! Thank you lungs for allowing the rest of me to finish the ride today and ride again another day.

Riding Like a Bus

While on a ride recently, I was passed by a VW Bus (probably the only thing he passed that day). I got to thinking on just how similar the bus and I are. Here's a short list of how we're similar:

1-We both are "air cooled".

2-We both get passed by most traffic.

3-Neither one of us will win a race.

4-We both keep to the right on the road.

5-When loaded down with cargo, we go even slower.

6-The bus' engine is called a pancake, and my engine runs better on pancakes!

I'm sure there is more, but this is what came to mind. When I had my 1975 VW bus it wasn't very fast which is probably the biggest similarity. Hopefully from the back, we don't look similar!

I Made That Headwind My Bitch Today...

...and other random thoughts.

It took me a couple miles to warm up this morning. Odd because it was 90 degrees out when I left. Once I warmed up, I was in the groove! Felt good to be out there today. The first thing that came to mind with the wind is that it's gonna suck for the firefighters up north if it's windy up there too. Please keep them in your thoughts.

Usually as I ride, I am thinking about one particular thing and working it out in my headf. Today, was a bunch of random stuff. Here's what went on in my head today:

...if you're going to cut me off when turning left in front of me, commit to it. Don't go, then slow, then go; just sack up and cut me off!

...feeling good that I saw a bee fly into my helmet and I was able to remove my helmet, free the bee and put the helmet back on without missing a pedal stroke.

...traffic around churches on a Sunday morning is crazy! (there were no less than 15 in the last 12 miles of my ride-at least that's when I started counting).

...I hate it when I see families riding and only the kids have helmets on. If a car plowed you guys, the kids will likely get to grow up without parents. Not worth the lack of "helmet hair".

...feeling kinda bad-ass from shifting into the big ring and throwing the chain and being able to get the chain back on while still rolling down the road!

...while the "vanilla gingerbread" GU is delicious, on a hot summer day, it just doesn't work.

...I need to start my rides earlier. It's damn hot!

...le Tour starts soon!

...I need to ride more...

...gonna jump in the pool when I get home to cool off.

...ahhhhhhh

Exc-USE-me JACKASS!

That's the phrase shouted at me as I passed her.

Let me paint the picture. I went for a quick ride today along my favorite "quick route", a 5+ mile loop around my house. While heading north along the canal, I'm confronted with a farm tractor slowly making his way north in front of me (only in Gilbert). I quickly divert behind the Riparian Preserve which has a windy bike/pedestrian path. I don't like to ride back there because it's directly under the power lines. So I come around a corner and this lady is riding slowly on a beach cruiser to the right side of the path and her dog is on the left side with the leash extended between them. I give the "on your left" warning, but apparently it wasn't as loud as the headphones in her ears. Since I was moving at about 20mph, I had to choose quickly; slam the brakes or pass. I chose to pass on the left, off the concrete. Scarred the crap out of the dog and that's when I was greeted with this "greeting". Had I gotten a flat from riding in the dirt, I would have had ample time to discuss this with her, but I moved on.

I forgave her immediately for calling me this. I'm not one to hold a grudge on someone who doesn't know better.

So if you ride with your dog, or by yourself; please respect the rules of the road. Ride to the right, keep your dog close as not to block the whole path, and be aware of others around you. Oh yeah, you should also wear a helmet to protect yourself (something else she forgot). The only thing I can fault her for is the fact that she's riding a bike, can't be that bad of a person. Maybe just having an off day.

Keep it rubber side down.

A Good Bike Ride Soothes the Soul

Life comes at you pretty fast. Lately, life has been coming faster than a Mercedes on the German Autobahn at me. It's been like taking a drink from a fire hose. First of all work has been crazy-busy and add in a couple trips out of town to make it even more fun. Second, my father-in-law passes away suddenly while we were in Southern California on vacation which turned our 3 day trip into a 2 week trip. Thirdly; upon my return from my last trip out of town which coincidentally was the 23rd anniversary of my dad's death, I learned that my mother has colon cancer. WTF? The universe is spiraling out of control! I decided that I needed a good bike ride to clear my head. I headed out with the intention of clearing my mind and getting back to "center". The goal was a quick 15 mile round trip to Sprouts, a local health food store that is only 3 miles away. I was taking the long way. I'm 6.7 miles into my ride and I hear BOOM. What the hell was that?!? Turns out I blew a tube. No biggie. I pull over into a church parking lot and get ready to replace the tube. Alas! No tube. Didn't I just buy a bunch last time they were on sale? No worries, I'll find the hole, patch it, be back on my way in 10 minutes. As i remove the tube, I find that the "boom" wasn't a puncture, but a "pinch flat". Pinch flat's are harder to patch because they are 2 small holes or sometimes slits that look like a snake bite. My pinch was 2 good sized slits. So naturally, the patch didn't hold. I did what anyone else would, called for back up. Luckily, I only live about 6.7 miles away and reinforcements arrived shortly. I hung my head and began my walk of shame back to the closest corner so my wife could come pick me up. As I rode, I came to a yellow light in traffic. When we drive and we approach a yellow light, what do most of us do? Gun it! Gotta get through. As a cyclist, we typically slow down because we have less of a chance to make that light and if some jack ass is chomping at the bit to go, we could get hit if we're a little late through the intersection. Not worth it. I've come to the realization that i need to look at life as a cyclist approaching a yellow light. SLOW DOWN. I have too much that i could be missing if I'm always working, or always out of town, or always distracted by work. So not worth it. From now on, I take it a little easier. Sure, I work a full week, but I won't be putting in a bunch of hours after the kids are in bed or on weekends. I need to enjoy my family. That's why I work, to provide for them. If I can't enjoy them in the process, why work at all? I have come to the realization that not EVERYTHING'S an emergency. Some shit will have to wait for tomorrow. I'm not going to bust my ass and miss out on seeing my kids grow up. I've recently taken on the role of co-leader of my son's cub scout den. That will strengthen our relationship (not that it's bad) and I'll be able to enjoy him even more than I already do. So next time you come to a yellow light or start feeling the stress of all you have to do; slow down, enjoy the moment with the one's around you. They'll thank you for it. About those tubes I thought I bought; I did buy them. They're right here on my desk where they shouldn't be. Lesson learned.

"Daddy, Why do I have Autism?"

Sunday, April 3rd was the first annual Hirning Family Ride for Autism Awareness. Matthew, Torrey & I headed out for a little bike ride to raise awareness for Autism. We didn't wear signs or blast propaganda. It was a simple bike ride with the kids. I did, however, invite all of my cycling friends from all over the country and world to ride wherever they live for Autism Awareness. I heard from some, others I did not, and that's OK.

My son asked me earlier that day, "Daddy, why do I have Autism?". As we rode, I pondered the question. The more I thought about it as I pedalled, the clearer the answer became. I still stick with the answer i gave him. "You were given Autism so that Mommy & I can learn more about it and help other people. We also have learned more about nutrition because of it and are healthier for it. Thanks to you, and your Autism, Mommy & I are better people". I can't even begin to count the number of people my wife has touched because of her knowledge of bio-medical treatment for Autism and GFCFSF nutritional information. There are TONS 9and those are just the ones she's told me about). I have been able to offer help as well. There was a lady at my daughter's dance class and we started talking nutritional stuff and I was there holding my own. She was listening and I was actually telling her things she didn't know (all because of my wife's knowledge). My wife is amazing. If you haven't yet, check out her blog here. If a dumb schmuck like me can learn from her, I know you can too.

I feel that we are given the "gifts" we have for a reason. My son, with his Autism was given to us to help others going through the same things. Maybe at first it was to teach us patience or compassion, but now it is to share what we've learned.

So what's your gift?

The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

So, our national sales meeting was last week in Las Vegas. Even though our schedule was jam-packed, I did my best to exercise when I could. This usually meant taking the stairs instead of the elevator (18 floors up to my room from the meetings). I walked instead of taking the bus back for one event and walked to dinner the first night. My calves are mad at me for taking the stairs so much. They're sore and achy. I took Thursday and Friday off from the stairs because they were really sore on those days. No pain, no gain.

The Good: Upon my return I hopped on the scale this morning and i was "only" up 4 pounds. Given the types of food that was served, and the sedentary days, this could have been much much worse. I'm please that the gain was only 4 pounds but would have liked it to be less of course. It shouldn't be too hard to get back to where I was pre-meeting. I will get back by walking the dog and eating the way I'm used to eating. No problem

The Bad: The food we ate, while tasty, was much heavier and served much later than my body is used to. For example, our last night's dinner and sales awards presentation started at 8:30. We had a small salad, steak ,potatoes, and creme brule. The dinner was tasty enough, just way too late for me. I like to eat earlier in the evening and get to bed by 10:00. Our awards banquet didn't end until 10:30. I'm just glad I don't eat like this all the time or I'd be a coronary event waiting to happen.

The Ugly: I typically like a good 7 or 8 hour night's worth of sleep and usually get close to that. I believe that the body needs rest in order to function properly during the day. I don't know if they were pumping pure oxygen into my room or what, but I slept like crap. I typically wouldn't fall asleep until 1:00am or later and would wake up around 4:00. This machine needs more than that amount of rest. The coffee helped, but on the last day, I was really feeling the lack of rest.

I'll bounce back. Back to the routine, back to walking, back to healthier food, back to normalcy. Most importantly, it's good to be back with my family.,