Ride with the kids on Saturday/Sunday...picking berries and such.

Rode about 20 some with Maria and David on Saturday - Ran into Neil and group...well, didnt run INTO but by anyways. Also saw the ever elusive Bernie on the trails hittin the loop...always a blessing to find Bernie on a bike. Hit up Culvers and had a great ride with the two eldest...Peter was due back from Church camp that day. Then took David and Peter Sunday to the bridge to pick berries...

trying to get on board with this again

Though FB offers a great solution to "what is going on with who/what and where/when" the blog is still a nice place to dump some thoughts.

Felt good to jump on the TT last night. No cramps and put a slightly bigger gear on to see how it would work. It did great. 22.46 on the Fletcher took the top spot but more importantly it took my PR by like 28 secs. Now, some of the big dogs were not out playing - Hogland and Broste (get better Perry). but all the same it was a fun ride.

Hit the velodrome to see some friends race and some friends watch...watching is much less effort. Looking at RAAM next year with Tim Case and trying to formulate how this would work. Yes....its early but better to start early. right? nothing like big goals.

Today is work work work...and then maybe a ride with the kids but work is the priority today...not always but today. Pete comes home from camp tomorrow so Im sure we will be riddled with stories and crazy adventures for days to come.

andy

Maria in trance

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another gr8 day to ride?

ummmm does it have to be good sunny weather to have a great day riding? no, not really but it sure helps. I just crawled out of my office (cave) and stepped outside and was rejuvenated - its time to cook the road tonight with the sound of chains and heavy breathing. 144 Loop - 33 miles and some nice rollers to get your HR up there. 5 pm at Trailhead.... Single speeds are welcome....gears are optional.....fun is mandatory.

Anticipation

Looking out to 5 pm I see a bunch of people on bikes....traversing through the rain soaked roads of Fletcher and Hassan Township...where is my rain slick anyways.

NO RAIN....the ride was near perfect. Thanks to ALL who came out and good to see the Duke of Earl out there today!!!!!!

total of 3.25 hours of riding for me - single speed. the group rode up tempo - we kept it together - we ended together with smiles. good job all!

Andrew

back to some story telling....thank you Erik

Could you believe today? I mean, it was fantastic all around - except for Maria who is a bit ill today. It started with me scheduled to be in Apple Valley for volleyball and then Maria was a mess.....so VB was nixed on our end....this opened up the option to bike with the group. It didn't disappoint at all.

25 some people - everyone smiles. It was like the moment in the Wizard of Oz when it all went color. The light turned on, the legs felt fresh, the road was quick and everyone was itchin to just - well....be there.

Some familiar faces and some new ones - but then again i didn't ride with the group that much last year so I am sure I am a new face as well to many. It was fun to get to know some new friends. For those looking to blast the ride - they were happy. For those looking to sit back and enjoy and smooth ride...they were happy. It worked very well today.

The single speed (yet to be named) was a nice ride. the geometry is a bit different but close enough for government work. I think I will shorten the stem a bit or get new bars. The 72 gear inch was a good match for today and i think it will be the primary gear for road as long as the hills don't get too steep. When we were cooking with gas, it was comfy to sit at 23 with my HR at 169 - once to 175-179 i was feeling the burn. In an effort to keep watt training going - i was trying to be mindful of perceived effort and real effort. I figure it doesn't hurt to train a bit during a nice group ride. Of course - if you ride the single speed you will get a workout no matter what.

Jay, Mel and myself had single speeds and the speed demon was Mel. Heading into Otsego I glanced back to see someone in no-mans-land and when i turned around the lead group was 30 ft in front of me....i was cooked and didn't feel the need to spike my heart rate to bridge that gap. I rode in with with the other group and it was concluded you would be hard pressed to find a better day to ride - considering the first real nice day it seemed like a once in a lifetime day to get out. glad to see everyone.

some recovery foods, muscle milk, water and ecaps and all is good.

see ya later yall.

ac

interesting times...

Have not been here in a while...that's for sure. Not sure why but I am guessing it has something to do with life...more life....and a bit more life caked on top of an already built up heap of stuff. "Stuff" is a good word here as its so random and undefined that it would take a book and a half to get it right. The stuff ranges from the mundane to the extraordinary - wonderful to the horrific - peaceful to reckless. Stuff...or life...catches up with us and it steers us and thus we are given limited control.

There are constants in my life, well, really only one - God. The other things that are cloaked as constants are relationships, marriage, money, things...things that change often. I guess I should really consider these "constants" (aside from God) as variables acting in my life that alter and re-route my life daily if not hourly. So...I guess one could say that its good to have varying alternatives out there - keeping you lively. Change is good on some levels but not all that comforting at times.

In the past years I have lived, speaking mainly of the past 14-15 years, I have seen many horrible and wonderful aspects to life. Everyday has been a change...and this "stuff" has forced me to reevaluate my stand on many things as well as how to react to these changes. Most items on the auction block are pretty cut and dry while many items also are open to extreme interpretation. My creative response ability has been put to the test as of late. Not easy to smile at times and not easy to wake up at other times....staring at a loaded gun of potential angst is not my idea of smooth running. So where do I look? How do I get through? Where is there an option that yields a perfect response, outcome etc...well, I have to look at the one constant that has never moved. Yup - God.

So what happens then when your answers from God seem to contradict what you have thought for years? When what you think is going to be the solution would actually cause more pain....or that you have traversed down a path for so long you have no idea what happened to imagination, creativity and freedom? Not meant to be answered in one night or in ten years - but maybe it is... We are creatures of habit and wont ever break that habit unless there is good reason. Pride sure does the trick as well in keeping us locked in negative patterns and pride thus defeats us in every way. Not to be confused with confidence, pride is one thing that most of us hate and its one thing we don't want to give up...go figure.

And now, here, as I sit and type, I am confronted with items in my life that seem and appear and thus smell like pride...how do i do this? Where do I go? How do I make things change? Will this survive? I'm not sure - I have no idea...as I cannot see the future. Finding time to center myself has not been easy. Confronting the issues at hand is no small task.

this may just ramble on - that's the idea I guess...just wanted to type...Winter is good for this type of stuff...too much time on my hands compounded with too much stuff to deal with that offer limited hope...and my Constant is there and that little bit of hope is more than enough to keep it going.

hope to see you all on the road soon.


Andy