hmmmm...part 2!!!

I just finished an email on training that has me really thinking hard about where I want to take my mtn biking. On the one hand I would really like to be the in-shape race guy who rides 5 days of the week and can just hammer the crap out of anyone who dares ride with me (I said can not would! lol). On the other hand I'm not sure if I have the energy to do this on a regular basis. I think I'm using my kids as an excuse to keep from really getting into the training thing. This might be legit and it might not be. I feel that I must really persue this line of thinking over the next few days.
Another idea that the email brought mind is, if I train...what am I training for? I really can't race the way the average person does because getting the time off is not always a possibility. I work weekends and weekends are when the races are. Last year I made four races at Southridge and I'm finding out from this year that that may have been a fluke. Right now I'm looking at racing the next Southridge race and then not race again until November. So are my own personal goals enough to keep me going? Are goals like riding 36 miles on my birthday enough to keep me pushing. Can little goals replace the milestones and deadlines of a race? This is an interesting question to me and one I've been pondering since I read the email.



These were two pretty cool moments (finishing my first race ever and making the podium...even if it was next to the podium on the last race of the year) last year and I'm wondering if completing my first 100 miler (on road bike or mtn bike) will feel quite the same?

hmmm

Well here I was sitting all Quasimodo like over the laptop writing emails and reading blogs about riding. I had told myself I was going to ride this morning and yet there I was coming up with excuse after excuse. (It's cold outside, I'm tired, my work day is going to suck, my week is going to bite!) Then a light bulb went off and I got changed. I threw on the Lycra (I haven't worn Lycra on mtn bike in two years) and the leg warmers a long sleeve jersey and hit the dirt on the FSR. It was a good ride and I tried to push myself a bit up the hills. I stayed in the middle ring a few minutes longer and nearly cleared two short steep rocky ascents I usually have to HAB. It was a 70 minute ride and I probably did 8 miles. Not much compared to some of the folks I read about but right now it was good for me and started the week off right. No pics though cuz I had a short amount of time. Now I'm scarfing down a couple of PB&J sandwich's and am heading out the door for work. I'm happy that I pushed myself and now I can go to my first day back of the Spring semester knowing I didn't slack off. Life is good...well it will be until I get to work! LOL til my next post...keep the rubber side down folks!

News of the Day....

So it's thursday or sunday if you work Friday thru Tuesday like me. I didn't get a chance to get out yesterday 'cause a daughter was down sick...again! So this morning I forced myself to do something. I dropped everyone off came home, changed and went for a run. Today I didn't care how long I ran I just ran. I ended up doing 4 miles in about 50minutes. I did the road thang for a bit and then hit the dirt. It felt good and I kept a steady but comfortable pace. It was probably a 5 for most of the way. Lot's of climbing though and I'm sure I'll feel it tomorrow. Took a few shots and here they are, the last one is the approaching storm that I dodged by about 2 minutes. I don't mind running in the rain but it was nice to stay dry.





In other news on this gloriously overcast day is that I'm returning to a love I left about a year after I got this job of mine. That love is Aikido. After speaking to my Sensei about some issues I am returning to the dojo. I have mixed feelings about this as it takes me out of the house on my Sunday. I get back at around 8pm and I have an early morning every Friday. Yet, despite that I know I miss it something fierce. When I stopped going due to time constraints and cash flow I felt as if something was missing. I had invested a lot of my time and energy into my training in the last 6 years and to just stop was tough. The information I accumulated and the books I had loved sort of just sat there mocking me. So now nearly a year later I'm looking to return to the training because I feel my life is lacking a certain balance and spirutality that my Aikido training can provide. I'm scare and apprehensive but excited at the same time. We'll see how it goes. Here's a few pics of me and of the dojo with some of my training partners. It's actually quite a blast and a lot harder than the critics of Aikido could ever know.

A light week...

It wasn't a bad week but it was a bit...off. I didn't work my normal schedule at work and instead got caught in jury duty on Monday, a day shift on Tuesday and just a busy day that started out at court (for work) on Wednesday. Thursday was a quiet stay at home day that should've been a ride day but with a sick daughter it was time to put rides/runs and exercise worries out to pasture and take care of her. Friday was apartment signing time and that took all evening. So what did I end up doing for the week? Glad that you asked! lol

I got a run in on Monday afternoon and it felt decent. I stuck around the 30 minute mark and pushed myself a bit harder than I have on the previous few runs. I got up to a good 7 (on a scale of 1 to 10 w/10 being all out) and felt good enough to slow down, recover, and then push again without walking. After Monday there was nothing to speak of until....

Saturday, I raced home from work, changed and tok off on the FSR. I pushed myself several times and took full advantage of the settings on the rear shock. I pushed down hill along Scott Rd. I went South on Haun and then up and around the water tower to the Nursery. I remember a time when the dirt road to the nursery was nearly impossible but yesterday I pushed it and made it up. It wasn't fast but it was steady and it felt good. From there I did my normal run down into the small valley and then back out to the farm. I rode well, felt strong and had a really good time! All in all I was out for 95 minutes w/about 15 miles. Not a swift pace but a good solid pace for me. Next week I'm hoping for two rides and a run. We'll see if life/family will let me!










Just a few pics of the ride. I was trying for some different shots but its not easy to hold a camera phone, balance and ride over a rutted road with one hand! LOL. I really need to get better shots/camera so I can get better scenic shots. Until next time keep the rubber side down!

It's just one of those days....

So I woke up this morning all gung-ho to get things done. Yesterday ended up being a write-off of a day and today I was gonna get up take the kids to school/sitters and hit the road bike for a quick run around Elsinore. I figured about 20 miles today and some good times. I was planning on following that up with a nice healthy lunch and some packing!

Instead I got up to a sick daughter followed by too much time on the computer followed by....well its still early but I figure I'm gonna end up on the Wii for at least an hour! With the ride snatched away I seem to be lacking the motivation to do much of anything.

I know I need some cheese with my whine but hey that is what blogs are for...right! ;-) Alrighty it's off to try and salvage this morning and see if I can't get a couple of boxes packed up. Here's a pic...just because!

Week in review...

Overall it wasn't a bad week to be honest. I got in a run, some rides and a bit of daddy daughter time. A downer/upper popped up at the end of the week with the decision for the family to leave the house we've been in for five years and move into an apartment. I also just got an interesting offer from an old friend that I don't think I'll be able to pass up.

I've got some pictures too.

I started the week out with a run that was nice. It was about 40 minutes and it was good to start the week off with exercise, especially when that was my goal.

Wednesday was spent with the girls since we were all out of work/school. We spent the day having goofy fun and visited the Lake Skinner playgrounds which they love. That is where I took a picture of them at.

Thursday I got in a 50 minute bike ride on the road. It was amazing how out of shape I am in when it comes to the road bike. I did what I consider to be the Farm Crit which consists of a 3.5 mile loop through the Farm. I did three laps in 50 minutes. I was going to push for a fourth but I had a date with my wife at noon and it was 11:50. To be honest though my legs were shot and I probably would've bonked half way through.




Finally on Sunday, unable to take watching the Chargers get beat by the Steelers, I took the Heckler out for a spin through the dirt roads around the house. It was a decent ride but I sucked wind a bit due to my poor shape and a head/chest cold I've been fighting off.






So the weekly tally was 2.5 miles running and 21 miles riding. Not great by the standards of a guy in shape but pretty good for a guy who had a three month lay off and who has been fighting off a cold for the past week and a half! I do apologize for the quality of the pics, they were take on my Katana cell phone. But I do love having pics on my blog!

Ugghhh

Man I feel like crude. I have this head cold that is really kicking my butt. I felt okay yesterday and got a nice jog in before work but as the day wore on I just kept feeling worse. Now I'm sitting here facing another 8 hours of work in the cold and not wanting to go in at all.

You know I sit here and I read the blogs of folks like Luke, Allison, and Kerkove and I boil with envy at their form, physique and ability to ride for hours on end while I sit here and feel as if I'm pushing myself with an hour in the saddle! I know that pushing much more than that right now could lead to injury but it can be frusterating...especially when you know you've done way more time on the bike in the past. Stupid school for getting me off my riding! lol Running for 35 minutes is a start but man I can hardly wait to get my times up into somthing somewhat close to 'epic'!

I'm supposed to ride tomorrow but I think with the kids off I'm going to spend the day with them which then leads me to the hard truth, I need a trainer! I could get a good hour spin in and spend the time with the girls instead of an either/or situation. hmmm

It's a new year...

So it's a Friday and I'm off...not only am I off but the whoe family is off!!! Crazy. So I slept in this morning and then ot up and hit the bike for the first ride of 09! It was a decent ride on the normal trails. Having been off the bike since about November I wanted to take it super easy just as I've been doing with the running. Nice and easy to regain the lost base fitness. So I kept it to about an hour...70 minutes to be precise.

I felt a bit off for the first mile or so but then settled in. I can't believe that I out of the whole 1000 acres or so of land I ride through I picked the one spot of dog poo to dismount on!!! Lucky me, so after cleaning it off the best I could I was back on the bike. The skills came back slowly and by the end of the ride I felt pretty good. I hit up VA hill but only rode the lower quarter and the upper quarter. The real steep middle section was a no go but gave me a good idea of where I stand in the over all fitness.

I tried to take a couple of pics with the camera so I'll upload those and see how they look. Hope everyone had a pleasant and safe new years!





Not bad. I'll have to keep doing this as I like Blogs w/pics!